#ft. elif karadaş

[nicocastillo]

·✥·

( summary: Nico did his best to assuage Elif's fears and comfort her, and asked her to trust him with engaging help within the town and the pack—with limited success. He emphasized to her that his life and his home wasn't a place, it was the people in it, and she was at the top of the list. He left the knife with her, instructing her to keep it with her from now on. )

—end.

Elif’s eyes darted from Nico’s face to the blade he held out to her, the words swirling around them like leaves caught in a storm. Her breath hitched, sharp and uneven, and she took a step back, not out of rejection but instinct, her body unable to decide between fight or flight.

She tried to focus on what he was saying—the Pack, the witches, their options—but her pulse roared in her ears, drowning out the logic behind it all. Her breathing turned shallow, rapid, and her hands curled into fists at her sides. She took a step back, then another, her body screaming at her to move, to run. Her vision blurred slightly at the edges, and a cold sweat prickled at her skin.

"I... I don't have a photo," She shook her head as if that would clear the suffocating pressure building in her chest. She hadn't exactly taken much with her when she had left him and, after the two of them had gone on the run, her possessions dwindled more and more. Every fiber of her being was screaming at her to run. Not sit. Run. Her feet bounding against the pavement as she'd tear out of town and not for a second look back. But, then he said Jasmine's name. His wife. His family. And that was the thing wasn't it? He had a family here. He had a life here. It was what made it come back to Lunar Cove to begin with. "You have a life here, Nico. I can't... I can't take you from that, but... I don't think I can stay here, either?"

"I..." Her back hit the counter, and she gripped the edge like it was the only thing keeping her grounded. Her breathing came in uneven gasps now, her fingers digging into the wood. "I don't fit," she said, her voice pitching higher, panic leaking through despite her best efforts. "I don't think I ever fit." Her throat tightened, and her knees buckled slightly. For a moment, it looked like she might collapse under the weight of it all. But then she clenched her jaw, her whole body stiffening as she forced herself upright. A sharp inhale—one, then another. Her trembling hands gripped the counter harder, and she squeezed her eyes shut.

When she opened her eyes again, the fiercely determined and resolute wolf who looked up at him seemed utterly lost. Like she was fighting to find her way out of a storm, but couldn't see the edges of it. Her gaze, wide and unfocused, fell on the blade Nico held, and she hesitated before reaching out. Her fingers closed around the handle, her grip unsteady at first but tightening until her knuckles turned white. She didn’t pull it from the sheath, just held it like it was the only solid thing in a world that felt like quicksand. "I don't know. I don't know."

[nicocastillo]

·✥·

Nico wiped his own eyes, chuckling through the flurry of emotions that was circling around and through him. "Oh, well if tiktok says—" He swiftly raised his hands and pulled away from Elif, alarmed and defensive. "I'll cry on my own, I promise! Don't sauce me, you menace, I'm not a hot wing." But he returned the hug just as tightly when his friend buried herself in his arms again. "Hey—come here. Is this just from me getting married?" He drew back a little to fix Elif in his sights more firmly, chin tilted with concern. "You know you can tell me, if there's more to it than that. If the camera's confusing? I get it. It took me like five pictures of my shoes to figure it out, you're not alone." He was fairly sure that if there was anything else bothering her, it probably wasn't polaroid-related, but still.

"I can't help it," She choked up, trying to no avail to hold back her tears. "I'm just so happy for you," She sniffled. Pulling the hanky she had tucked away in her blazer pocket in an attempt to dress her suit up a bit, she full on blubbered into it. Blowing her nose, before she lifted her head back up to look at her best friend. "Too bad! She should know what she's getting herself into marrying into this family," She reasoned as she let out another little sniffle. "And you should cry. Brides apparently like it when you cry. If tiktok has anything to say about it, if you don't cry, she might turn right around and walk away until you do. You can tear up on your own, right? Because if not, I'm sure if we dab a little hot sauce into your eyes, you'll be bawling like a baby in no time. And you did drag me into a town death trap, didn't you?" She mumbled out. The corner of her lips tilting up all the same as she pulled him in for a tight hug. "You better not or Jas and I are going to have some words. Only a little, right?" She asked, not wanting to do a bad job at taking photos, but also knowing that she might get tears all over the polaroid when she tried. "Okay, okay. We've got this," She said, giving him a little nod, before she shook her head once more. "On second thought, we don't got this."

[nicocastillo]

·✥·

He fell back on his elbows and spoke slowly, not because he was measuring his words but because he wasn't. "This house is... the place where I remember my family being happy together. Like, I remember pulling down books in my dad's study and trying to read them even when they were way too hard for me to understand, just because I wanted to be in the room with him while he was writing. Or my mom, laughing with other pack wolves in the backyard and trying to teach me to make s'mores." Nico smiled softly, but it faded quickly as he continued. "But, it’s also, like... where everything fell apart? And that kind of crosses over the happy memories." He caught a piece of the blanket and traced it between his fingers, remembering the day his dad hadn't come home, followed by all the nights afterwards. And how that loss hung in every room. In a quieter tone, he continued. "I wasn’t very happy here, then. When I was alone, when my mom had to go off and y'know. Be the Alpha." There were air quotes voiced in over those last three words, an unwelcome and heavy emphasis. "And now... that’s me, and… well," Nico shifted uncomfortably and glanced out the window. "You can come with me wherever I go, like on full moons? But she won't be able to do that. And when I have to change and run, 'cause I can’t sleep? Like, Jas' RV was where I usually ended up, when I felt restless. But if she moves in here, or... or anywhere with me, actually..." he said, realizing it in real time. "She can’t come to the Den, or anything like that. When I go out, I won't be going to see her, I'll be just leaving her here. And when I imagine her being here alone in the woods, I get sorta…" Tension rolled through his shoulders. "Cause that's the way I used to feel when I was younger, and it—" An exhale through his nose. "It pissed me off, you know? So it's like, it's easier, knowing she’s in town? And I know she has people there, her siblings and Efe and the Coven around. I mean, she’d have Thunder now, at least, and you to be an annoying roommate," this came with a shove of his hip into hers, and an attempt at a grin. "So that’s a little better, but it’s still…" He trailed off uncomfortably. "I just want it to be... good. Here. For her. And I don't know how to make it be that, but I don't want the only thing she'd get by moving in here to be, like... just me, 'cause that's not enough, and I guess... I think I have a harder time leaving people than I thought. And I'm just... I'm afraid of that, I think.” His eyes travelled over to Elif's face, accompanied by the rush of affection he still felt when he registered that she was actually here. He swallowed, and added something he hadn't voiced before. “It was hard leaving you out there, too. For a while, I kind of just told myself that you’d be safer, where you could run, and leave, get away whenever you had to, but…" He glanced at the scar again, then back to meet her. "It wasn’t safer at all, was it?” There was no way he was buying the joke answer, and though he wouldn't press her if she got uncomfortable, he wasn't going to gloss over it either. If something happened, that was partly his fault too. But she might not be ready to talk about it, so he followed the distraction and changed tack, reaching for a bag full of spooky makeup for her to do her worst with. "I was hoping you would. If I had to do it myself, I'm pretty sure I'll just end up looking like the Prince of Raccoons instead of the Prince of Darkness."

“You do?” Elif peaked up. Pushing herself up onto her elbows, she rearranged herself on his bed so that she was now sitting crisscross applesauce with one of his pillows plopped in the midst of her lap. Elif couldn’t help, but be a bit of a hopeless romantic. It probably had something to do with her nearly infectious optimism, despite not having been given many, if any reason, over the course of her life to view the world as a happy or hopeful place. And when her best friend who had never really seemed to be all that interested in anyone over the years said he wanted to move in with Jas, she knew it was big. “Then why don’t you-“ she started to ask, only for her to trail off as he continued on. “Oh. Complicated how so?” She asked, having an idea of what Nico was alluding to with it being his parents and all that. But, as someone who didn’t have a childhood home she could ever go back to and was currently living in the house she had once attempted to steal from, she wasn’t sure if she could entirely relate with the sentiment. “I mean I get what this house means to you and all, but if this isn’t where you see yourself starting a life with someone, you know you could always, I don’t know, get a place together? Somewhere new? And I could always stay here and take care of this place for you? Or Jas can move in and the three of us can live here together? Then it would be even more weird, but likely less complicated given that you’d have some random roomie?” She offered up with a sly smile. “I’m just saying as much as I want you to be happy and I do, you were the one who made the mistake of asking me to move in and, like Thunder, you’re now just going to have to live with us,” she teased. At least, until she could find another place to crash and while her and Poppy were still trying to one up each other to prove who was Nico’s better friend.

“Okay, okay. I’m imagining,” she let out a light giggle as she cupped her hands over her eyes in a dramatic motion before lowering them once more so that she could scan his costume up and down. “I think- your costume has a lot of buttons. No wonder it took you so long. But I love it! Very demonic. And ugh,” she let out a groan as she buried her face into the pillow in front of her. “Don’t remind me.” Elif loved nearly every part of being a wolf, except for the annoying amount of facial hair that would grow during the partial shift which is why she avoid partially shifting anything but her claws if she could help it. “I’m probably going to switch over to a Red Riding Hood cloak at that point. But, hey, at least neither of us will be fully stripping down tonight? I think neither costume is going to be fun to hastily take off in the woods. Or at least not to hastily put back on. “And huh?” Her attention shifted as Nico poked her shoulder. “Oh that,” Elif muttered under her breath as she caught site of the scar on her arm that Nico was gesturing towards. “It’s nothing. Tis but a mere flesh wound,” she offered up with an eased shrug, quoting Monty Python rather than explaining the origin for the deep scar. “Now, back to this creepy makeup. What are we thinking here? And can I be the one to do paint it on you?”

[nicocastillo]

·✥·

"Hey, hey, hey—" He caught Elif on reflex, returning the hug even as he picked up on the panic in her voice. Words spilled out in a rush and he focused on staying upright as she clung to him like a very distressed but extremely buff koala. "I thought I saw the Reeds when all hell broke loose, yeah," he murmured under her onslaught of information, feeling numb as fear constricted his heart. This was the first confirmation he'd gotten that Jas had fallen into whatever this was, too. Absorbing that, he almost missed the mention of an injured human, his brain skipping right to the next item before swiftly rewinding to catch it. Still locked in the hug, he nodded into her shoulder. He managed to get some air as she pulled back, and took a moment to hold her shoulders and look her in the eye. "I'm so damn proud of you, Eli. You're brilliant, and so brave, and I don't even need to know what happened to know that you've got nothing to be ashamed of, okay? And we will find Batman's toilet, I promise." He had no idea what she'd meant by that, but his conviction didn't waver. "After we're done saving lives." He reached for his med bag. "Lead the way."

@nicocastillo

"Nico-" Her voice choked up on his name. She barely got the word out as her feet carried her forwards. Flinging her arms around her best friend, she pulling the other wolf in, giving him the tightest squeeze imaginable as she felt herself breaking down. She had been doing as well of a job as she could holding it together after the night she had just had, but the moment she had caught sight of him and saw that he was safe, something took over her. She practically feel her eyes tearing up in relief as she refused to let him go from the hug. "Jas- Jas is under whatever the hell this is. All of the Reeds are and, and, I tried to help get as many people to safety as I could, but- I couldn't stop all of it. There's a human a few blocks away whose loosing a lot of blood and I lost the batman toilet seat and felt slut shamed and I'm just so glad you're okay. Today sucks. But," She cleared her throat, finally pulling back just enough to ask him, "Do you have your paramedic bag on hand, because if so I could really use your help. I can show you the way?"

[nicocastillo]

( summary — Nico was encouraged to take some time and actually follow through on establishing the halfway house, as well as re-examining some of his other priorities for the future.)

·✥·

He could feel her freeze and kept his hands on her shoulders. It was unnatural, witnessing the constant motion and energy that flowed through her at all times suddenly drain away. Her limbs pulled in tighter, stiff like she was getting ready to bolt. Nico kept his hands firmly on her arms, eyes locked on her face. "Tranquila," he murmured, though he could feel his own fears working up alongside hers. It made him grind his teeth a little, and he nodded. "We can go. That's always an option." He took a breath. "But it's not our only option." There were some stools near one of the counters. "Sit with me for a second. We gotta be smart, right?" Slowing down to think and talk often felt like waiting on tracks when you could hear the train in the distance getting closer. It wasn't a good or comfortable feeling, and he grimaced, slightly. "I already told the Council he's bad news, they're on alert and we can get a photo circulating. But think about it, Eli. We've never had more power than we do right here, right now." He tried to impress the meaning of his words to her, as calmly as he could manage. "If you want to go, we go. We can be out of here in ten, I'll text Jas to get Thunder, she can meet us on the road somewhere with the RV. But Damien still could catch up to us out there—or he could be waiting outside the town border to grab us when we bolt, I haven't had time to check." "On the other hand, here we have a Pack, we can communicate over distances, work together. There's witches with magic to help us, older vampires and fae with experience and influence, and some of the smartest humans I've ever met. They have money, and numbers. We know the layout of the town, we know the woods." He shook his head. "If we run, we have to keep running, and we'll lose our advantages. But if we stay, we still have the option of running later." He dug in his jacket, to a pocket on the inside lining, and withdrew an old hunting knife, its silver blade protected from contact by a carved leather sheath. It was the knife his mother had given to him the day he triggered his wolf, and one of the weapons Elif had tried to steal once a long time ago, out of fear of this same man. He offered it to her, handle first. "Run, or stay. I'm with you either way."

"Well, there you go! Put JC in charge of the meetings and you can hit two birds with one stone. You can show him how much you trust him, while not having to do the part of the job you don't want to and then can spend more time working to implement real change," She reasoned. The sarcasm flying over her head as she attempted to problem solve. "And if you can't not show up, then you can always be the silent presence in the room? Let JC do the talking and just back him up when he needs it with a stern leadership look," She mused, attempting to mimic a smolder, before she cracked a smile up at him. "Okay and she's dead. So, are we moving?" She asked him, despite already knowing the answer. "And if you didn't, you wouldn't have a wife. You wouldn't have reconnected with Jas or fallen in love. Look," She squirmed from where she was sitting as she told him plainly, "As much I don't particularly love being here, even I can see this place is your home. You belong here and are building something." it's why she had stayed even if she still wasn't quite sure Lunar Cove was the right fit. It was the right fit for him and that had been enough for her. "So, what do you want to change? What fucked elements of pack life? Oh, um, I mean I don't really know how you have a pack without a hierarchy? Alpha, Beta and Omega are kinda built into our DNA, aren't they? But, I mean what are you waiting for? You want a shelter for lone wolves, you have a house you can use and I can help you?" She offered. "So, then do it? As far as I can see, the only thing stopping you from doing what you want is you," She pointed softly out, poking him lightly against his forehead. "But, I guess that's why you have me. To remind you of how capable you are," She said, resting her head lightly on top of his as she gave his arm a reassuring squeeze. "It is, but you don't have to try to build it or keep it from falling apart all by yourself. So, how can I help? Put me in coach."

·✥·

"Neler oluyor?" What's going on? A soft laugh broke from her lips as Nico pulled her in for a hug. "You know you're going to get flour all over yourself?" She pointed out, though she didn't make any effort to pull away, happy to accept the hug for her best friend. It was only hen his arms tightened around her that she found her own breath hitching in her throat. "Mhm?" She started to nod only for her entire body to grow cold at the mention of one name. Damien. She hadn't heard that name in months, but it still sent a shiver down her spine. Her entire body tensed, the flour on her clothes suddenly feeling like a heavy weight as she blinked. Her eyes wide with fear.

Her hands went instinctively to her sides, trying to steady herself, but the panic was already settling in her chest, spreading through her veins like ice Her thoughts raced, images of the past flashing in her mind— memories she’d rather forget. Her mind screamed to run, to get out of there, but she forced herself to look at him, forcing the words out through clenched teeth.

"How could they—why would they—" Her voice faltered, her face pale. She wanted to say more, wanted to demand answers, but she couldn’t quite form the words. The thought of him here in any sort of way let alone in a power of position made her blood run cold. "That is a- that is a very bad joke. It's- it has to be a joke, right?" She stammered, her eyes desperately searching his face for any sign of reassurance, but she knew there wouldn’t be any. "We have to go. I have to go," She shook her head. Her head felt light as she took a step back moving to yank the apron off of herself. "I- I can't be here, Nico. You know that. Not if-" Damian Blake’s name on any list meant danger—and that was the only truth she could hold on to right now.

[nicocastillo]

Nico took careful note of the tone of her voice and the color rising in her cheeks when she spoke of Ronnie, though he had guessed as much since the camping retreat. An eyebrow lifting, a half-smile, the solemn return of a pinky promise, that was the majority of his reaction—and a shake of his head and a startled laugh when JC came up. "Oh yeah, JC loves meetings," he said wryly. He quieted back down, resting back on his elbows where they sat on the steps of the Den, and thought a long time about what she'd said before answering. "I came back to kill the Catalyst," he said plainly. "And to keep her from killing more wolves in the meantime." He tilted his head, and looked at her. "But I really thought I'd be back out there with you in a month, you know? No joke. If I'd known it'd take this long, I don't think I would've come." He rubbed at the back of his neck, thoughtfully. "But I guess... a part of me wanted to try and change things, too. See if I could fix some of the... more fucked elements of pack life, I dunno. The hierarchies, the us-versus-them of it all. That shelter for lone wolves idea, that was supposed to be something... But really, I got one piece added to the Accords to protect Elena and others like her, and that kinda feels basically the only thing I've changed. In two years. I feel like I could do more," he said with a sigh. He flopped his head onto her shoulder, and took a rare moment to actually relax and give voice to his feelings. "It's hard to build anything new when I'm just trying to keep things from falling apart all the time."

·✥·

He barged into the bakery, and pratically leapt to her side when he spotted her. "Hey, yeah—sorry, sorry," he said. Reflexively he wrapped her up into a tight hug, ignoring the immediate transfer of flour from her clothes to his. He pulled back just enough to meet her eyes, and took a breath. "So, I just came from a Council meeting. You remember when Meena was missing, they had that notice put out, looking for anyone who wanted to take over for her, as mayor? Well, uh." He took a breath, still holding her arms, gently, making sure to get the facts to her in a way that would tell her everything they knew, without panic or exaggeration. "Someone—we don't know who—put in a nomination for Damian Blake."

"Why?" She scrunched her brows as he said she should branch out. "I don't need anyone else, but you and, anyhow," Her gaze fell as she muttered out under her breath, "I have given other people plenty of chances. It just always ends up the same. I'm a good time, not a long time, remember?" Her shoulders slumped into a small shrug as she slowly tilted her head back up toward him once more. "Which pintsized vampire?" She scrunched her brows in confusion, not all too sure who he was referring to at first before a possibility dawned on her. "Wait, do you mean Ronnie? She's not that pintsized." Even if she was rather small. But, at the mention of her cooking class, her head snapped back toward him. Any thoughts of an adorable vampire or remnants of a faint blush vanished as she found herself once again easily distracted. "Right!? And that is a good question... Honestly, I'm not even too sure how to describe it? But, yes! Eggs are involved! And the whole pastry can sort of deflate if not done right. Though, deal," She stuck out her pinkie toward him as if to shake on it. "Just wait until I get a little better before we do. I want to be sure I can impress you," She smiled happily at the thought. But, before she could fully relish in the moment, her brows were crossing once more as she told him without missing a beat, "Bullshit. You are a decent leader. Who cares if meetings aren't as much your thing? Just delegate the meetings to JC. He likes that sort of thing doesn't he?" She pointed out with another small shrug, not quite understanding what was so complicated about it. "You never had to do it, Nico. You chose to. We could have stayed on the run until the end of time. I would have been more than happy to, but it was you who chose to go back and it was you who chose to lead. You're the reason why I'm even here. So, if you don't want to do it anymore, just say the word and we can drop everything and go. But, just because the Catalyst is dealt with doesn't mean the Pack doesn't still need you. There is that whole Organ Alien Abuduction person out there and I mean is the only reason you decided to lead and leave the life we had really just because you want to avenge your mom? There wasn't even a little part of you who wanted to do it for you or the pack?"

·✥·

"We're close-" Elif glanced up from the ruined batter, her sharp features set in a familiar mix of annoyance and amusement. When the door banged open and Nico stormed in, her eyes widened up at him. Peaking her head up from behind the counter, she called out to him, trying to ignore the flour smudging all over the sleeves of her oversized hoodie. "Why are you looking at me all serious like that?" She asked, not having had a chance to check her phone yet. The wolf having been using the times when Tatli was closed to practiced what she had learned from class so that she could get up to speed with where Safiye and the new chef they had just hired were at.

[nicocastillo]

·✥·

"Terrible choice to make," he said, tone teasing. But he jostled her with his shoulder. "You know that goes for me too. But you should give other people a chance sometimes. They might surprise you—" He slid her a sidelong look. "Even, like a pintsized vampire, or I dunno, whatever..." In a lot of ways, he realized, Elif was one of the only constants in his life. Sure, he'd fallen in love and gotten married, and leading the pack had become less a pact of vengeance, and more of a genuine community for him. But choosing to protect her had been one of the first real decisions he'd made in his life, and he knew that it always would be, regardless of anything else that changed around them. Hearing her talk about her new job made him beam proudly. "B+! Impressive, I don't even know for sure what a souffle even is, I wanna say... eggs? You'll have to show off your skills for me one of these days, and not just because it's making me hungry." He leaned against her and sighed. "Honestly? I'm proud of this pack. More than I thought I could be. But being on the Council, that was never what I was in it for, you know? And now that the Catalyst is dealt with, I dunno. Maybe there’s someone out there who would be a decent leader, someone who actually likes the meetings and the arguments, and all that bullshit..." He trailed off and shrugged. "It's just been a lot, and it doesn't feel like I help people that much with it. And I don't have to do it any more, so do I want to? I just need to decide, I guess."

·✥·

( some time later—after a meeting, an argument, and all that bullshit )

Exiting Town Hall, half-turned and beginning to break into a jog in the direction of the bakery, Nico texted at the same time as he reached out on the pack bond. Elif? Are you there? Anyone have eyes on her?

Nico: Where are you right now? Find me asap, I'm checking Tatlı for you then I'll hit your house and the Den, but you can get me on the pack bond too

"I always put you first," She said without missing a beat. "It's just other people I don't always care as much about," Elif admitted honestly. It wasn't that she didn't want to grow closer to the people in this town. She had made a few friends since coming back, but it didn't change the fact that she still often found herself feeling like an outsider here. "I told you I'm tough," She mumbled under her breath as he told her she did good. Though, she also couldn't help, but sit up a little taller when it came to the compliment. "Mhm. It's more than that and we both know it. But, oh gosh. Good? I think? Safiye has been doing most of the baking. I mainly just decorated and did the less fun office things. But, I have been taking cooking classes at night and I got a B+ on my soufflé last week! So, progress!" She beamed happily over at him. It was the first real achievement she had felt in weeks. "But, how about you? How's the whole alpha thing going?"

[nicocastillo]

·✥·

He gave her a look of tired warning right before she cut herself off, and grumbled. "Nice save. Just wish the tough ones would try putting other people first, people who worry about them..." Nico let out a soft snort as she cheered up, and gave her a rueful grin. "You're stuck with me, family-wise at least. Careful what you wish for, maybe they'll officially adopt you, right as I'm getting kicked out." He tied off the last stitch. "There, you're stitched, you did good." Beginning to clean up the supplies and stripping off his gloves for disposal, he reached over and gently mussed up her hair. "It's the leather jacket doing most of the work in my case. But enough comparing looks, tell me about the bakery. How's that going? Tired of being up to your elbows in flour yet?"

"I am, I am," She insisted, sitting up a little straighter despite wincing again at the sharp pain she felt across her cheek from the stitches and the rubbing alcohol to clean the wound. "That's because we are too tough. We don't need the hel-" She started to say only to quickly tact on, promising him with that of a small, yet, hopeful smile, "Outside of you that is. I'll always need your help. And I did?" Her eyes widened. Her smile growing at the thought. "I do look kinda badass, don't I? And your badass wife and I now match. It's like I'm really part of the family," Her smile grew a bit at the thought. "Now, if only I matched with you too. But, then again, you look so badass as is, it might be unfair if you had an action movie star scar on top of it all."

[nicocastillo]

·✥·

"Hey you," he returned, in the same tone but more breathless. As she smiled up at him and began to tear up, then pulled him in for a hug, he buried his face against her shirt with equal feeling. "Stop it, you gotta stop..." He shook his head, smushed into her shoulder as he felt his own eyes tear up. "You cry, I'll start crying, Jas will get disgusted with us for being sappy for the whole thing and call it off because we're too pathetic to continue... I'm so glad you're here with me, Eli, even if I dragged you into a small town death trap to do it," he whispered, and gave her another squeeze for good measure. "I'm never leaving Neverland, are you kidding? I'm not growing up if you don't, I refuse. It'll take more than fancy suits and me getting married to change us, got it?" Wiping his own eyes he did his best to try and straighten out her shirt, and her hair, patting her shoulders and then putting his own stiff jaw emphatically in the air to be more professional. "Come on, now, leaky face. You've got a job to do—actually more than me. All I gotta do is stay standing, say some words, and remember how to sign my own name. But you also have to take photos, and I expect them to be at least a little in focus." He reached over to the table where the old polaroid camera was waiting and slung the strap over Elif's shoulder like he was giving her the most serious of responsibilities. "We got this. I think." He nodded firmly, speaking his confidence into existence.

@nicocastillo

"Hey, you," Elif slide beside Nico, giving his sleeve the smallest of tugs as she beamed up at him. If someone had told her years ago, that the wolf who had caught her red handed would have become the closest thing she had to family, she likely wouldn't have believed it. But, here they were now. All grown up and her best friend in the whole wide world was getting married. The tears were already starting to brim around her eyes as she looked him up and down. Not a spec of dirt insight. While, she, herself, had spent way more money than she likely should have on a suit to not seem out of place as their court house witness. "Mmh," She blinked over at him, trying her best to blink back the tears as she told him, "I can't believe you're really doing it. You're about to be all grown up. You better not forget about me when you up and leave Neverland, got it buddy?" She warned him, narrowing her eyes over at the other wolf and giving his arm a small fist bump before she pulled him in for the biggest hug she could muster. "But, thank you. For letting me be the witness? I know you've always had a number of other people in your life, but you really are all I have and I don't know-" She found herself choking up as she took the smallest step back. Waiving her hands in front of her face as if fanning herself would stop the tears from running. "My face keeps leaking. But, I promise, I'm just really happy for you," She admitted, dabbing her cheeks with the hem of the white collared shirt she was wearing that likely wouldn't make it through the rest of the night.

[nicocastillo]

·✥·

Nico slowed his struggles with the buttons in the bathroom to do some gradual mental math, and answered the question while his mind buzzed around it. He'd filled Elif in on some of his relationship with Jas, but specifics hadn't been the focus. "Uh... well, I guess it depends how you count? Sorta since New Years, not officially until later but... I mean it's not that I wouldn't want to live with her, 'cause I do—" Saying it out loud at exactly the moment he realized it. "But with this house, I mean—I never meant to keep it, so asking someone to move in feels... complicated." He finished his fussing and added, "I'm ready—you have to imagine it with like, creepy makeup." Stepping out of the bathroom he did a dramatic flourish with the long coat and tried his best to look serious and imposing. He grinned when he saw her though. "Catwoman, nice! You know there's an eclipse though, so be ready to embrace sideburns under your mask," he teased, flopping down beside her. As he looked over, his eye caught on something and his brow creased, then shifted to get a better look and prodded her in the shoulder with a ring-encrusted finger to make her turn a little. "Hey, what—" His frown deepened, pretty sure it was a scar that she didn't have before—a deep one.

@nicocastillo

"You know I've been wondering, how long have you and Jas been together? I just mean that you haven't like, I don't know, thought about asking her to move in yet or anything?" She asked curiously. Elif was sprawled out across the top of Nico's bed, tossing a tennis ball up in the air before catching it again as she waited for Nico to get changed. She had been staying with her best friend since she had come to town and it wasn't as if she was looking to be kicked out. She had a pretty cushy set up right about now. But, the noisy part of her couldn't help, but wonder how long she had here or if her new home came with an expiration date. "Also, are you changed yet? I'm bored. Come out already! I want to see it," She exclaimed, propping herself up on her elbows as she waited for Nico to emerge. She was already full dressed in option number 1 herself which was a cat woman costume she was testing out.