#the expression Lou had during this scene made me want to cry

[nosnexus]

I love Kristen Applebees.

[jflashandclash]

Tales From Mount Othrys

This story comes soon after the Roman ambush on Alabaster’s laboratory. After the Pax brothers and Alabaster defend the lab until reinforcements show up, the question hangs in the air: who revealed the location of Alabaster’s lab? The Spy Master is assigned to find out or, at least, find a scapegoat.

 Mercedes: Interrogation Letdown

           If you asked Mercedes, she would say that she didn’t drink coffee. Her hijab always smelled of the robust aroma, one that wafted memories of her mother, of her mother’s lips as they pressed Mercedes’s forehead in a morning goodbye. Another day of work. Another disposable cup of coffee. Another hour to torment her brothers as Mercedes corralled them ready for school.

         There were few personal items in her Camp Othrys cabin, but two of her most valuable were a rug (for when she went to “tend to the Hecate garden” in the chapel) and a small French press.

         Few were awake early enough to witness her trek from Fajr prayer to the Spy Wing. There, she dumped some coffee beans and hot water into the glass container. After capping it, she would lean over the golden lid to inhale the fumes. Normally, the French press, accompanying mug, and coffee were all cleaned and away before anyone came in.

         Today, she set her coffee mug in the center of the interrogation table. Steam curled up between her and Pax. She tapped her pen against her Othrys notebook. She hoped her irritation was prominent enough to cover up her worry. Pax didn’t need to know she was worried about him. It would get into his head, inflate it, and he’d become the next astronaut to circumnavigate the world and her anger.

         This silence was one of her and Pax’s many games: invite him into the spy wing, give him no clear instructions, then ignore him for thirty minutes. At the end of his twitching, squirming, and sprawling across the table, she would ask him which three suspicious activities she had done. She would ask for the exact timestamp for each.

There weren’t always three. Sometimes there were none. Sometimes there were eleven. She wanted him to question her authority, and she wanted him to use his brain, something many people found abhorrent, she knew. At least Pax could be bribed into it.

         Today was not one of those exercises. However, she didn’t correct his assumption that it was. She enjoyed his rapt attention and silence.

         At the top of the page, as she did in every page of this notebook, she scrawled, “To me, death is nothing but happiness, and living under tyrants nothing but living in a hell” and “The end justifies the means.”

         Pax, as suspected, broke first. “Are you going to drink that?”

         “No,” she said, “It’s there for the aesthetic.”

As per usual, Pax couldn’t tell if she was serious or sarcastic. That’s exactly where she liked him. His face scrunched up in his I’m Over-Thinking expression. Mercedes loved it. Pax’s unending chatter put her at ease. Ever since he went to Tartarus, his liar’s tells had become obvious. If she waited long enough, he’d rat himself out.

That’s why she left Pax’s interview for the end. He was uncomplicated and comforting after the morning’s slog.

Underneath her paper’s quotes, she wrote, Suspects.

“Did you decide it wise to tell someone about Alabaster’s super secret layer before its defenses were activated?” With others, she couldn’t be so direct. With Pax? If he thought he was at fault, he would crumble to guilt.

Instead of falling apart, he fell onto the table. The coffee mug jerked, the brown liquid sloshing against the white, ceramic sides. She forced herself not to grab for it, to maintain her composure as cool and collected.

“Oh! Mercedes! Do I have to answer more questions about this?” He peaked at her through his fingers, his amber and black eyes glistening. “Axel and I didn’t know the location until we got there! We were just told we’d be Alabaster’s pack mules for the day and we’d do less of a half-assed job that the empousas would.”

From the information she’d collected, this was correct. Mostly. Alabaster verified it: he hadn’t told the Pax brothers anything until moving day.

However, Axel, after several rounds of questioning and clearing his throat, admitted that Alabaster had given him a rough approximation about the plans and location. This either meant Alabaster was willing to lie for one of his “meat shields” or that he had forgotten that detail. Alabaster had come to their interview with a stack of papers meticulously chronicling each time he’d mentioned the lab project over the last three months. If he had forgotten, Mercedes was a Zeus fangirl.

Mercedes had checked his records and found that Alabaster had altered them. He probably thought she wouldn’t notice, but….

But Mercedes knew Alabaster. She knew all of them. It was her job. She knew that Alabaster rubbed the upper left corner of pages when he was thinking. Several pages from his records had unmarred corners. The penmanship was sloppier on those pages. (He forgot to dot an “i;” an atrocity in Alabster’s book of How to be a Hard Ass.) The margins were five millimeters wider than the other pages, something he would balk as being a behemoth waste of space. He likely rewrote those pages, omitting that he told Axel anything. And he thought he adjustments were small enough that she’d overlook them.

From Pax’s reaction, neither Axel nor Alabaster had told him.

“Pax Two, you’re—”

“I know, I know.” He sighed, slumping back into his chair. “I’m excreting salacious facial sweat onto your interrogation table.”

She forced her lips not to twitch. “Sebaceous,” she corrected and immediately regretted it. It brought her joy to envision adult Pax on a CSI crime scene, taking fingerprint samples and discussing how “salacious” or “lustful” the evidence was to the appall of all of his coworkers, all left to theorize about his sex life.

Mercedes was always pleasantly surprised by how carefully Pax listened to her and remembered what she said, even if he did mispronounce a word way out of their grade’s reading level.

“How did you detect the Romans?” she asked. Part of her wanted to be proud of him: he was her trainee, after all and he thwarted the Romans with his snooping.

“One of them shot Sphinx.” The playfulness was gone. He stared at the coffee mug’s rising steam.

Mercedes set the pencil down. Her instincts said to touch his hand or give him a hug.

Impartial, she reminded herself, tracing quotes in her notebook. I’m supposed to remain impartial. Not to think about Lou Ellen crying when she went to the lab, where Sphinx used to live. Not to notice Pax shamefully avoid his best friend’s gaze, horrified Lou Ellen might blame him for not saving Sphinx.

I’m as impartial as a campaign poster.

Mercedes often caught herself daydreaming about ending this war without any deaths. This was the problem with being a spymaster: you had friends on both sides of the war. Little divided you other than a sense of loyalty or cultish idealism. When most Romans defected from Camp Jupiter, they left everything and everyone. But, Mercedes was the spymaster. She needed contacts. She could never truly leave either camp.

No one had won this fight, though New Rome definitely lost. Alabaster no longer had his lab, half-a-decade’s worth of priceless magical artifacts, and one of his spell books. The full death toll wasn’t in on the Roman side, but they had lost a lot of people. Mercedes still needed to verify the death of their prisoner. Rumor said that he had consumed a suicide pill during Jack and Flynn’s “questioning.” Lucille and Mercedes normally did the interrogation. They kept the interrogation humane. Jack and Flynn didn’t.

Mercedes shivered. She didn’t like Flynn and Jack doing interrogations. She didn’t like that Jack’s mind was waning alongside Luke’s.

On top of that, rumors swept the Roman legion of a new monster, this creature that had awaited the legionnaires in the Mist of the Witch’s Layer. No doubt, this was a rumor started to preserve some soldier’s honor, to make the Pax brothers and Alabaster seem an insurmountable foe instead of three panicked kids. From the way Pax retold the story now, he had no idea about the impression they had made.

Pax was retelling the events—enumerating the soldiers, recalling their location, their armament, their words—when he choked. “I couldn’t kill her, Mercedes. Is that bad?” He puffed up his cheeks and popped them. His eyes were glassy. He had been talking about a soldier that he’d caught in a noose. “Good thing to know I’ll always go for the high five. I’ll never leave you hanging there.” The last words broke with a hiccupped sob.

Impartial. You’re impartial.

Mercedes gripped the handle of the mug. The warmth was fading from the ceramic. She lifted it. What was left of the heat and the scent of tangy undertones—she exhaled, shuddering. How would she get through this talk without hugging Pax?

He shouldn’t have been at this fight. He ought to have been failing out of middle school. Really, he ought to be playing with a pegasus at Camp Half-Blood. She tried not to consider how their relationship would differ if he was.

She set the mug back on the center of the table. “No. A propensity for murder isn’t a skill I value and… and the availability of a compassionate heart is a rare delicacy on this ship, despite what Luke and Kronos preach.”

Pax’s watery eyes went wide. He sniffled. His gaze shot around the room before resting back on her. “You don’t like Luke very much, do you?”

Mercedes scowled. “That is a dangerous accusation, Pax Two. I feel for him the same way I feel for my father.”

Irresponsible. Power-mad.

Luke had made her exchange her fear of one monster for another.

She did not always see eye-to-eye with Axel; she’d been to one of his cage matches and was unfond of the sensationalized violence he so easily exhumed. However, she’d never been more relieved than the day he stood between Annabeth—a bound and gagged, thirteen-year-old girl—and her would-be molester. That changed her mind about Luke forever.

This was not a conversation to have aboard the ship.

“I made you something,” the words exploded from Pax. It startled Mercedes and reminded her of the time that Pax smuggled thirty containers of pudding from the cafeteria in Matthias’ spandex boxers. The seams ripped, much like Pax had sputtered these words: clumsy and a little too excited to escape.

Trust Pax to easily dodge a conversation and to make you think about someone’s underpants.

He withdrew something from his jacket pocket. A bulge had inhabited that it since he’d returned from Tartarus, though she’d assumed it was some kind of safety blanket. Knowing Pax, it could have been a preserved piece of skin that hadn’t properly reattached to Lou Ellen’s hand.

When he unfolded the brown silk, Mercedes stopped breathing. While scrunched up and crinkled, the embroidery was still beautiful: all pink and gold thread. It swirled in an elegant floral pattern along the square’s edges. He made this?

“And—I—I made you a magnet pin to hold it together so you don’t need to be worried about piercing the material…”

When he fumbled in his pocket again, Mercedes could feel her lip trembling. Before he looked up, she shut her jaw and dabbed her cheeks with the back of her hand. By the time he had set the items on the table, she managed her expression into a neutral one. She added Practice Facial Expressions to her list of spy exercises for his training. Vitally important if he ever had the karma of training a mini-him later down the road.

“I made a different one and ruined it when I practiced pinning it. Can you show me how to put one on right? The fabric slides and goes everywhere so I can’t test it properly. You won’t tell us when your birthday is, and I’ve been wanting to make you one for awhile, and this is one of the many things I wanted to do to make it up to you...”

His voice trailed off. Although he tried to keep his eyes sheepishly on the table, they kept flicking up to check her reaction. His information cataloguing demeanor was so obvious: wide-eyed excitement, the hint of a smile curling his lip, a slight lean forward.

Mercedes couldn’t keep her hand from shaking when she reached for the fabric and magnets. He would notice the weakness; she had taught him to notice.

Both sides of the magnets were decorated, one a subtle brown that matched the hijab and another with bold gold and pink paint to match the embroidery, presumably to either blend or use as an accessory. Both were coated in a smooth gloss, likely for comfort. From what she could see, there was no trick or prank attached. Just a small, thinner section, where he must have fiddled with the fabric when talking to her.

This was one of the nicest things someone had done for her since she got to Camp Othrys.

His words echoed in her head. I wanted to make it up to you. To make up for lying and going to Tartarus.

         “This is an acceptable start, Pax Two,” she said, “This does not mean you’ve dissuaded my wrath. Continue to grovel and do not expect any items in return.” If he thought she was mad, he was less likely to do something so stupid again. Mercedes almost swore. Technically, Pax was younger than her, even if by less than a year. She ought to give him something, even if it was a few pennies, for Eid al-Fitr. He better not look at that as an apology acceptance.

         Pax’s conniving smile broke into a goofy grin. “Gifts are not gifts if you’re expecting something in return.” He sounded like he was quoting a childhood mantra, adding in a little jingle.

         “Then they’re transaction pieces,” she agreed absently. Mercedes folded the fabric and attached the magnet to assure she didn’t lose it. She shoved the gift out of sight, under the table. If she looked at it for too long, he’d catch her smiling. She was furious that some part of her wanted to be somewhere private, so she could examine the embroidery in detail.

         She began again, “The investigation—”

         Pax whined and sank right back onto the table.

         Mercedes waited until he quieted his whining. “Did you notice anything suspicious? Oh competent assistant of mine? Or were you too busy examining Alabaster’s assets.” She flipped her notebook to a previous page, one with two columns of names that were subdivided into tables. “This is my list of people who found out or were told. Who would you find most suspicious? Who do you think can’t keep a secret and to whom would they relieve the secret’s burden?”

         She read it aloud from a second copy before he could point out that he couldn’t read:

 Involved in the planning process: Alabaster, Matthias, Lou Ellen, Hecate, Prometheus.

Involved in construction: Matthias, Alabaster, a rotation of blind-folded minions under Matthias (see back)

Knew the location: Alabaster, Matthias

Found out the location: Flynn, Jack, Luke/Kronos, Phil, Pax One, Pax Two, Mercedes, Morpheus

Two days of constant interviews had taken its toll. Tension clenched her jaw, something she didn’t notice until Paxton forced her to relax. Had she had water since before Wudu? Her mouth felt dry.

         Paxton began to babble, “Matthias is a great secret keeper. I still don’t know how he shaved an underwear pattern into Phil’s—”

“Pax Two.” She meant to stop him from going off on a tangent. He took it as an accusation.

“Who, me? I’m a huge security flaw.” He gave her a sly smile. “I tell you everything.”

“That’s amply evident.” Since his return from Tartarus, he felt the need to tell her each time his color switched from green to transparent.

Pax tapped the lower part of the paper. “You forgot the centaurs. They didn’t know until we got there, but they did find out.”

Mercedes applauded this observation with silence. This would indicate that she had not forgotten the centaurs, but wanted to know if he would. This type of testing was so customary to Pax that he continued unhindered.

“Oh! And that sun god—the old one? Hecate’s friend that can see everything under the sun, like Greek Santa. How come he gets the privilege of being Greek Santa but the sky god doesn’t? If I were Zeus, I would want some those powers re-sorted

         “Helios,” Mercedes said. She had forgotten him. Rumors of his power (near-forgotten at the likes of Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter) were rampant in the Othrys ranks. Helios sometimes claimed his powers didn’t work because he didn’t have the sun chariot, but she would need to be sure. Mercedes sat very still. Would she need to interview another titan? One she did not want to see?

         “You forgot about him.” Pax sounded cheery.

         Slowly, Mercedes nodded. “I had. This is why it’s good to keep parasites around. Sometimes they keep things in their digestive systems longer than the host. Or, maybe, sometimes hosts need partners more than parasites.”

         Elevating Pax’s position—that was a conversation for another day.

         Mercedes felt sick. She wanted to accuse a friend of espionage as much as she wanted to volunteer them for an interactive presentation on degloving. No one had given her much to work with, but most didn’t fit the bill.

Matthias had gone in rambling circles during his interrogation. The main thing saving him? He was too clever and resourceful. Had he wanted to capture the three boys in a building that he had designed, there would have been an attack of chloroform-coated underwear automatons.

Prometheus, likewise, would not have been so sloppy. He, as he admitted, would have gassed the boys or poisoned them.

Alabaster and Lou Ellen suspected Lamia. Apparently it would be easy for such a powerful witch to locate the magical objects transported there. Mercedes had Lamia on a different suspect list.

Luke, in his ever-increasing paranoia, thought it was Alabaster who set himself up. A charming disposition to cover up Luke’s insecurities, but Mercedes knew that Alabaster had no use for subterfuge. His family made up a third of the army. If he wanted, he could have the Princess Andromeda make port in San Pedro Bay with a Welcome Legions of Rome! sign.

That left an option Pax should have pointed out but never would.

Axel.

He was close to all the right people: Luke (formerly. Mercedes blamed their falling out on a lack of shared interest. Axel didn’t have the propensity for pedophilia and domestic abuse that Luke had), Alabaster, Jack and Flynn, and, of course, Pax. By being close to Pax, he was close to Mercedes and all of Mercedes’ documents. He was one of the only souls aboard the ship not pledged to Kronos—incapable since he was full-blooded Maya.

There was no point in interviewing Flynn. Flynn could tell Mercedes that she was innocent; with her charmspeak, Mercedes would believe her. Any argument against Flynn would have to be cautiously researched, compiled, and brought to Lucille, Prometheus, and Luke in full secrecy.

For that matter, Lucille could be a good option, but there seemed no reason: she was happily courting Ethel and had taken Charlie on as her own daughter. She didn’t feel right… Although, Mercedes guessed Silena Beauregard wouldn’t feel right as a spy for Camp Half-Blood, and Silena had been cheating on Beckendorf and getting campers killed for at least two years now. Having children of Aphrodite around was always dicey. Thank god the Roman editions weren’t as powerful.

Although it was unwise to be too close to anyone with Mercedes’ job, she wouldn’t want to accuse Lucille without hard evidence. Lucille made sure no one bothered Mercedes about her hijab, just as Mercedes assured that no one bothered Lucille about her relationships with women.

Mercedes watched Pax’s gaze flicker over the symbols on the paper, pretending to read them.

She didn’t think Pax would accuse his half-brother or his surrogate mother, even if those were the most logical conclusions.

Pax set the paper down. His rounded cheeks puffed into a frown. Insecurity wrinkled the edges of his eyes as they gazed intently into hers.

Mercedes took in a deep breath. Would he?

“Mercedes,” he said, sounding grave, “I’m thinking about having my first kiss—well, my real first kiss.”

“Ya Allah, save us from the sins and hellfire,” Mercedes mumbled, exhaling. The tension eased out of her muscles as she restrained a laugh.

“I’m thinking about Alabaster, though Lou Ellen says he might not be ready yet. But, that’s like saying she shouldn’t try to make a move on my brother during our victory dance party, and she should totally make a move on my brother.”

As he spoke, Mercedes collected the list of suspicious names, tucked it into her flip notebook, and closed it. She rose, took her cup of cold coffee, and dumped it down a sink along one wall. As the brown liquid splattered against the white porcelain, she sent a mental prayer of safety for her mother, brothers, and friends back at home.

No one seemed to realize she eavesdropped on her comrades as much as she spied on her enemies. If there was one thing she knew, Alabaster was not ready for intimacy, with anyone, let alone with Pax. And Axel would certainly have a heart attack warding off Lou Ellen, who, she knew for a fact, Axel thought was too young for him.

“I want it to be perfect. Jack agrees and he’s been brainstorming with me. He said he doesn’t remember his first kiss and that makes him really sad and Flynn won’t tell me about hers. But, it has to have great atmosphere—music! And maybe outdoors—maybe with a garden—but what if something goes wrong? I’ve been practicing on my hand—You know, to make sure I’m not the worst while keeping the purity of the first kiss—and I’ve been asking for advice all around, from Lucille and Prometheus won’t tell me anything, he just laughs in his ‘I’m a titan who can predict the future’ kind of way. And what if it isn’t perfect?! Like, I want it to make Alabaster happy and make me happy and be a good story for future Pax generations like Jack wishes he had a good story for me!” Pax rose to his feet to follow her around the room.

From the frantic cadence of his tone, she knew, with relief, they were done for the day. The part of Pax’s brain capable of none-meandering thoughts had a clear timer and that alarm had gone off.

She walked back to the table, gathering her notebook and new hijab. The fabric felt so soft when she tucked both against her chest. “Too many expectations lead to inevitable disappointment. What if you’re a bad kisser?”

“What if I’m a bad kisser?” Pax’s eyes widened. He puffed up his cheeks and popped them.

“Planning isn’t in your nature. What if nothing goes according to plan?” She ushered her stunned friend towards the exit of the Spy Barracks.

Pax stumbled alongside her, eyes clearly visualizing the worst case scenario. “You’re right! What if nothing goes according to plan?!”

“What if you make a big fuss over something that won’t matter and you worry yourself needlessly?”

“What if I—hey!” Pax’s features scrunched up into a pout. He folded his arms.

Mercedes sighed. Like Alabaster, she didn’t have time for experience in this field and couldn’t offer much advice. As someone who ran spy operations, and someone with a cute, unpredictable parasite pouting in front of her, she knew things tended to fall apart in correlation with how hard you tried to keep them together. “You can’t control if something goes wrong, Ajax, and you can’t control how Alabaster will react. If things go wrong, then you’ll find someone else later, whose lip sensitivity is closer to that of your palm.” She pointed to his right hand, the one she assumed he’d been practicing on.  

“But what if—”

Pax went quiet.

Mercedes had, much to her own surprise and skipped heartbeat, leaned forward. His nose was cold when it pressed against hers; his lips, warm. There was a faint hint of something citrusy, like he had drunk orange juice for breakfast. Fortunately, no reek of bacon.  

Several jittery questions flashed through her brain: What constitutes as a “real” kiss? Was I supposed to close my eyes? It’s awkward if I keep them open, right? How long am I supposed to do this for?

The insecurity shook her nerves—it shouldn’t have. This was Pax. And they were just friends. Just two friends who spent 90% of their time together.

His eyes had gone wide with shock. His gasp sucked air from her before he gently exhaled.

Four seconds was plenty, plenty enough to make her face feel hot. Mercedes saw movement out of her peripheral—either he was about to push her away or pull her close. She didn’t wait to find out. She withdrew, absently fussing with her notebook and hijab like she’d finished another closing procedure. Both items had almost slipped from her grasp.

Pax looked lost. His mouth moved a few times, before remembering how to form words, “Why did you do that?” The question was quiet and uncertain. Not angry.  From his hesitant tension, she got the feeling there was more he wanted to ask, but was scared.

Mercedes quirked her lips into a smirk. “Because, no one will believe you when you tell the story later.”

His mouth moved a few times more times; Mercedes resisted the urge to remind him that they were no longer kissing.

In the most delayed startle she’d seen, he jumped. “But—wha—it—Mercedes!” he cried in protest. Mercedes ushered him outside the spy barrack’s door while he was still floundering for words. “I—but—” He huffed. “I wanted to share my first kiss with someone who hadn’t had theirs!”

Mercedes paused in the doorway, widening her grin. “You just did.” And, she shut the door on his face, locking it. Mercedes pressed against the wall, flipped out her dulled mirror, and tilted it to watch him through the window.

Pax paced back and forth across the entranceway, paused, raised a hand to open the door again, threw his hands up, and dropped them. After six seconds of standing there, he touched his lips and blushed. The blush remained as he walked, unsteadily, away from the Spy Barracks.

He’d be pouty with her for another week. To keep any ideas out of his head, she’d have to pretend she didn’t know why. She unfolded the hijab to admire the embroidery. This must have taken Pax weeks to make. She pressed the silk against her face, enjoying the smooth coolness. The slickness would be a pain—she’d have to wear an undercap to keep it in place.

She thought about how hard her mother would slap her if she ever found out Mercedes had kissed a boy. At home, she would have been forbidden to see Pax or, at least, be forbidden to spend time with him without a chaperon—no, it would be fully forbidden. Pax was raised Catholic. There was no potential for—

The elation in her chest crushed when she glanced down at her notebook. This was a botched job. There was no time for any daydreaming or—had she been flirting? Luke expected a report from her by the end of the day, and she needed to give him a name in that report. If she didn’t—

Mercedes tried not to think about the hunger in Luke when he stared at Annabeth, the way he’d smacked Phil across the room, the times she’d stumbled into Jack healing his own battered face with a hushed, “Don’t tell Flynn or the boys. They won’t understand that Luke has bad days the same way that I get confused.” The way Kronos’ darkness seemed to spread through the underlings like a contagion, through how Jack and Flynn had future plans to torture-heal-torture any new captives (for Jack, as some displaced revenge against Thalia for failing his friend; for Flynn, for fun) and the increased violence and spectacle of Axel’s now labyrinthine cage fights.

And here she was, holding a gift against her face like she could have a Catholic Maya boy as a sweetheart even if she were at home. People died and were seriously injured because of her lack of oversight—how dare she. What else had she clouded from her vision?

Pax is a good suspect. He has access to all your files. But, he had no reason to alert Axel and Alabaster to the ambush. Breath choked in Mercedes’ throat. And she couldn’t do that—she couldn’t do that to Pax or herself.

She knew this—suspecting friends—came with the job. But, that had been a distant thought when she—terrified and desperate for some good to come out of the inevitable slaughter of her Cohort—realized she would make the perfect spy for Camp Othrys. Before she knew the ease of Lucille’s smile, how special Pax could make her feel, how horrifying Flynn was.

Pain spread along her forearm. She dug her nails in. Underneath were the lines of her Roman tattoo, of Mercury’s symbol and her bars of service. The marks didn’t vanish when she pledged her soul to Kronos, when she forsook any chance of joining her real family after death. Was there a chance Allah would understand? To what extent could you step into the dark to stop tyrants and false idols before you were consumed?

When she inhaled sharply, she could almost taste the scent of her centurion’s perfume, a smell as comforting as her mother’s brewing coffee. She thought about that home—Rome. About her real home in Spain. About her real name, the one she had to abandon, and the one she took upon joining the legion, now reserved for her contacts in New Rome. She could never keep a name. If she did, and something went wrong, if she couldn’t do her job right, legionnaires or titans might find her real family and kill them.

Like not finding a satisfying suspect for this report.

Life seemed complicated when she lived in Granada, helping to raise her brothers while her mother worked. It seemed more complicated when she had to abandon them to keep the monsters away. Tiny Mercedes could have never predicted life would get worse.

Allah does not burden a soul beyond what it can bear.

But, she didn’t feel that right now. She’d been so careful not to feel anything. And then Pax gave her this stupid hijab and she was dumb enough to kiss him.

Her breath felt tight; legs, weak. She had to lean against the wall for support. How many homes can you have before none of them are a “home?” How many identities can you wear before all of them lose meaning? How many times could you pledge a soul before it shatters?

         There were no answers to these questions, and Mercedes still had to pick from one of her friends to throw to Luke as a scapegoat and sacrifice.

Mercedes slid to the floor, pressed her face completely into the hijab and sobbed.

 Authors note:

Thank you for reading! I’m sorry for the hiatus--I aim to get back to a bimonthly schedule.  Every time I edited this piece, it just didn’t feel right/good enough. I hope you enjoyed anyway! I also hope all of you are well and being gentle with yourselves! Stay tuned for one of my first (sorta?) fluff pieces, Alabaster’s Delicate Dance of Chance (hopefully during the month of October >>’‘)

[fanfic-inator795]

RotTMNT/Baron Jitsu Fanfiction: Dating... With Children - Chapter Two

(Also on AO3 if you want to leave a comment or kudos)

Plot:  Benjamin Draxum hardly considered himself a man of high social standing. Not because he was uncouth or unworthy of it, mind you, but simply because he didn't have much of a social life. Hard to have one when he usually spent his days at work, cooped up in a lab for so long that he often had his lunches in there, and his nights at home reading or doing research for more personal projects. But perhaps meeting handsome semi-retired movie star - as well as his four young sons - could change all that...

((Chapter two, ya’ll! Thank you to everyone for their support on this story so far, and I hope you enjoy the next chapter! ^v^))

“...What’ve you got there, baby?”

Mikey smiled, and held the drawing - consisting of crayon, marker AND a bit of paint - up for his father to see. “Lots of drawings!” he replied, “Didn't wanna choose one, so I made ‘em all! Like this guy here is a super cool dragon, an’ here's his friend who’s a turtle that can skateboard, and this is a bee that's always makin’ up words and making people spell them!”

“Heh, I'm sure I know what that's inspired from,” Lou chuckled, remembering how Raph shared that his class was having a spelling bee a couple weeks ago. He sat and listened to his youngest explain each doodle, nodding and making quick comments of his own as he did so.

“And that's all I really have so far,” Mikey finished, setting the paper down, “but I think I wanna try to add a few more drawings. Maybe some stickers too, THEN it'll be perfect!”

“Alright,” Lou nodded, “But when you're finished, would you please clean off the table? Remember, we have company coming over tonight.”

“Oh yeah! Don't worry, Papa, I will!”

“Good,” Lou smiled, ruffling his curly hair and making the boy giggle, “Thank you.”

“I'm glad Dr. Draxum is coming over,” Donnie spoke up from the beanbag, looking up from his textbook, “I wanna talk to him more about science stuff. And look!” He held up his book - ‘The Building-Blocks of Life’. “I'm reading up on genetics too! And I'm pretty sure I’ll be about as smart as him on it by the time I'm finished.”

Amused, Lou raised an eyebrow. “I didn't realize they were teaching genetics in the first grade.”

“They aren't. I finished my work early and got to go to the library again.” “Ah.” Lou made another mental tally in his head. The school hadn't said anything yet, but if this kept up, he'd have to go there himself and look into possibly moving Donatello up to Raph’s grade. “Can you believe that some kids aren't even interested in looking at the big kid section of books? Or at the non-fiction section? Those are the best sections!”

“Heh, no, I can't. But then it's a good thing that you can appreciate them.” He began to stand up, but stopped when his ears picked up on something. Some quiet whispers, a couple soft footsteps… The martial artist smirked, and prepared himself.

After a couple seconds, he felt something heavy run into him, slamming him to the carpeted floor. He let out an “OOF!”, unable to help himself, while giggles filled his ears. “I got you, Pop!” Raph grinned, “You're pinned!”

“Oh, are you sure?” Lou asked, “because I think-” He twisted his body quickly, knocking a surprised Raphael off before scooping him up into his arms, making the boy squeal. “That I have YOU!” Raph squirmed in his father’s grip while Lou gave him a couple quick noogies before kissing him on the top of his head.

“Daaaad!” Raph groaned, sticking his tongue out. Lou just laughed, letting the boy go.

“Told ya you couldn't beat him, Raphie,” Leo said, grinning at the whole scene as he sat on the arm of his pop’s chair, growing legs swinging, “He's like, the best fighter in the whole world!”

“Yeah well, I still pinned you for a second, right Pop?”

“Mm-hm,” Lou nodded, “Though next time, make sure to actually pin them once you have them on the floor. Don't just sit on them, but try putting your hands and weight on their shoulders. Makes it harder for them to move, slows them down some.” After a moment, he added “But, maybe don't try to tackle our guest tonight, hm?”

“Heh, I won't.” “Good. Now why don't you and your brother wash up?” Raph and Leo both glanced down at their grass and dirt covered limbs, grimaced at them and dashed out of the room.

Still chuckling a bit to himself, Lou picked himself off the floor and headed back into the kitchen. He had already started prepping a couple dishes, but he still had plenty left to do for their meal. His smile softened a bit as he thought about their guest…

It had taken five days for Draxum to call him. In that time, Lou had tried looking him up online. Draxum’s social media was pretty standard, nothing offensive or red-flag raising but nothing too interesting either. The only other piece of the man online was a brief biography on his lab’s research site along with a photo - where he had a very serious and professional expression on his face. A far cry from the fairly casual man he had met at the art gallery.

When he did finally call, it had been late at night, just after he'd put the boys to bed and right before heading to bed himself. Lou had wondered if perhaps this was planned, as a sort of “welp, I tried calling but there was no answer, oh well” type of thing. But Lou had answered, and much to his (and certainly to Draxum’s) surprise, they had ended up talking for a couple hours.

The conversation had started out pretty slow and standard. Lou asked how his day at work was, and Draxum asked how he and the boys were doing. After a while though, things became a little more natural, and their conversation almost became more of a banter. They’d go back and forth, discussing their favorite forms of entertainment, hobbies they enjoyed, and even sharing a couple personal anecdotes. And after all that, there was no way Lou wasn't going to end the call by inviting him over.

Draxum told him he'd have to check his schedule. It only took until the next morning for Draxum to text, letting him know that he would be free the following weekend. Again, Lou couldn't help but wonder if Draxum actually had to check his schedule or if he just didn't want to appear to eager, but said nothing. Instead, he simply gave him a date, time and his home address, and let him know that he was looking forward to it.

Lou had to admit, Draxum wasn't usually his type, but he was still unique enough to catch the ex-movie star’s interest. After all, how many buff science-type bookworms did one meet in their life? Draxum was certainly intelligent, and had a bit of a dry wit but never seemed like a snob. He was a bit stiff but not boring, spoke his mind and, if Lou was really being honest, was so hot. (Again, buff bookworms. Who knew?) Plus, his kids really seemed to like him too. In Lou’s opinion, that last bit was the most important one of all. So, with all that in mind, Lou just figured: “Eh, why not?”

It was funny how often that phrase came up during the big decisions in his life - like when he had decided that he wanted to try being a father when almost everything else in his life seemed hollow, and ended up adopting four kids instead of just one.

---------

Draxum looked at his watch. 5:17. A bit early but, wasn't that better than being late? Really, it was a good sign he was there at all, given that he was still a bit surprised at himself for even accepting the invite. ...Not that spending more time with Lou was necessarily a bad idea...

He then glanced up at the house he was now in front of. Having never actually been invited to a celebrity’s home before, he hadn't quite been sure what to expect. But a medium sized, cozy looking and slightly run-down home in Brooklyn certainly was a bit of a surprise. Maybe making action movies didn't pay as well as Draxum thought.

Still, he kept these comments to himself as he went up the walkway that was littered with chalk drawings and up to the door, knocking twice. It took a couple moments for someone - one of the boys, the one with light patches of skin around his eyes who was wearing a blue tee - to open the door. “You know the password?” He asked.

Draxum’s expression twisted slightly in annoyance, but he kept his cool. “Open says me?” He guessed.

“Mm nnnnope, sorry.” With that, the door was slammed in his face. From the other side, he could hear more young voices, scolding and lightly arguing with each other. The door opened again, and one boy had become four. “I was just joking!” Leo insisted while Donnie continued to glare.

“Hi, Dr. Draxum!” Mikey greeted with a wave.

“Sorry about my dumb brother-” “Hey!” “You can come on in,” Raph added.

Draxum nodded. “Thank you,” he said, moving his arm a bit so he could reveal more of the small box he had been carrying. “If you hadn't let me in when you did, this probably would have melted.”

Leo’s eyes widened. “Wait, you brought cake?! Well you should’a said so!”

With a ghost of a smile on his face, Draxum walked inside. The living room to the Jitsu home was inviting and very much in-use, but not the cluttered and messy space that Draxum had been worried it might have been. There was a reclining chair, a love seat, two kid-sized beanbags, a coffee table with several colorful marks now permanently on it, and a flat screen tv that was playing some cartoon. There were a couple toys on the floor, though not enough that Draxum had to worry about tripping over anything, as well as a few framed pictures on the wall. One of Lou at what looked like some award ceremony, one of him with a Chinese woman (ex wife, perhaps?) and of course, one of him with his children that looked like it was taken just a couple years ago.

“Hey, Doc!” a voice called from the kitchen, bringing Draxum out of his thoughts, “How’s it going? You find the place alright?”

“Yes, there's this wonderful thing called a gps that really helps,” Draxum dryly replied.

Lou chuckled, smiling at him over his shoulder, and blinking when he saw the ice cream cake in the taller man’s hands. From the look of the packaging, he could guess that it came from a pretty high end bakery. “Oh, you didn't have to bring anything.”

“Well, you said you were making supper, I figured the least I could do was bring dessert,” Draxum told him, “Should I just put this in the fridge, then?”

“Yeah, go right ahead.” Draxum did, and then sat down at the table. He noticed that Lou was just in a loose fitting, pale yellow tee and some jeans. Immediately, he felt overdressed, even if he himself was just in a button-up long sleeve shirt and some dark khakis. Still, Draxum tried to look as ‘casual’ as possible, but clearly it wasn't working by the way Lou kept glancing back at him from the kitchen counter

“I'm glad you could make it, by the way,” Lou spoke up, trying to break the ice a little, “I'm sure you get pretty busy, being a scientist and all.”

“Actually, unless I hit a big breakthrough or doing work on a time sensitive project, it's pretty much a nine-to-five job most of the time,” Draxum replied, “The work stays steady, at least.” Lou nodded, and went back to his cooking. Not wanting to risk falling into uncomfortable silence once again, Draxum decided to ask something that had been on his mind since they first met. “And what do you do for a living these days, given that your last film was in, what, the early 2000s?”

Rather than being offended or caught off guard, Lou just smirked. “...You sure you're not a fan of my films?”

“Definitely not,” Draxum retorted so quickly that it made Lou laugh

“If you say so! Anyway, yeah, that was about the time I moved from LA to here. I was smart about my last few paychecks, so I pretty much live off my savings.

Draxum blinked. “...Seriously?”

“Seriously. Though, I know I can't use ALL of it - I know at least one of my kids is going to be going to college - so I do odd jobs when I need to. Make appearances at conventions, do a quick commercial or two sometimes- heh, last year I was even paid to play on a gameshow. A stagehand kept an eye on the boys as they watched me play from the audience, I won some money for a charity, and then the next day I took them to Disneyland. Used most of that paycheck to do it, too. So, I guess you could call me a bit of a sellout.” Though judging by his tone, Lou didn't seem bothered by this at all.

“I don't think anyone could really blame you for taking less time consuming work,” Draxum offered, “Still, do you ever miss making movies, as cheesy as they are?” Or rather, were.

Lou thought for a moment as he tossed the last few ingredients into the frying pan. “...Yeah,” he admitted, “I do. Though, there are plenty of things about the industry that I definitely don't miss, and besides…” His smile softened a bit. “I've got plenty of other things to occupy my time.”

Suddenly, there was a shout. Turning in surprise, Draxum looked through the doorway and watched as Donnie tackled a laughing Leon to the floor. “...Speaking of which, do you know that your kids are tackling each other?”

“Oh yeah, they do that sometimes,” Lou nodded, not even moving from the counter, “Boys will be boys and all that. They're going to roughhouse no matter what I say, and as long as they follow the rules, I usually don't need to step in.”

“Rules?”

Setting down his stirring spoon, Lou counted them off his fingers. “No holding anyone down for more than a couple seconds, no using force to get someone to play what you want to play, if someone says they don't want to wrestle then just leave them be, and no making anyone cry. They're good boys, so that last one is usually punishment enough when they accidentally break it.”

“Ah, I see,” Draxum nodded. Well, that was one way to teach kids how to control their strength and think about their actions. Still, he wondered how Lou would go about things once his sons got a little older and possibly became interested in following in their father’s martial arts footsteps.

It didn't take much longer for their supper to be finished. The kids came to the table without even needing to be called, smelling the food and eager to eat as well as being excited to talk with their guest again. While Raph and Leo told Lou all about the latest exciting climax in their cartoon, Mikey shared one of his drawings with Draxum, who could only stare at it.

“It's, uh…” He tilted his head a bit, staring at the mess of bright colors and scribbles. What on earth was it supposed to be? A natural disaster mixed with a rainbow? “...Very nice, yes.

Mikey beamed. “Really?! Which one is your favorite?”

Shoot, there was more than one drawing there? Well, that at least explained why everything was so cluttered. “Er, well…” He focused a little more on the drawing, and try to find anything that resembled something other than a blob or a tumbleweed to him. “I like this… Cat. Yes, this cat over in the corner, with the… Ice cream on it?”

Mikey looked back at the paper. “That's not a cat.” “Oh, sor-” “But that's a good idea!” The boy gave Draxum another bright smile. “I’ll draw you a kitty with ice cream later, kay?”

“Heh, very well,” Draxum nodded, relieved that he didn't offend the young artist.

“-And then, they used the magic sword, and blasted the bad guys right into the sky!” “Yeah, and the main hero guy said the BEST thing afterwards! He's soooo cool!”

“Well of course, he IS the main hero, after all” Lou chuckled, setting the last of the dishes down at the table, “Donnie, please put your book away now.”

Donnie frowned, reluctantly closing his half-finished textbook. “Fine…” As he placed it back into his ever-present backpack, Draxum managed to catch the book’s title.

“Genetics, hm?” He asked, smiling a bit. Perhaps the boy had been inspired. “Enjoying it so far?” Donnie nodded, keeping his eyes on the silverware in front of him.

The meal was fairly simple. A baked fish as the main course, with fried rice and an easy-to-make salad as the sides. Still, what it lacked in uniqueness, it more than made up for in good flavor. “I'm usually not much of a fish eater, but this is quite good,” Draxum commented, after only a couple bites.

“Mm-hm,” Lou smirked, “I'm not just a handsome actor-martial artist, after all. I know how to cook.” Draxum just rolled his eyes, mildly amused at his date’s cockiness.

“You should try eatin’ the fish and the rice at the same time,” Raph advised, “They go really good together!”

Draxum was the type to keep his food, as well as the tastes and textures, separate while he ate, but he did try the combination once just to appease the eldest Jitsu child. As he continued to eat, Draxum kept glancing over at Donatello out of the corner of his eye. The boy in purple nibbled and picked at his food, fidgeting a bit and staying silent. Certainly different from the eager and inquisitive boy Donnie had introduced himself as, so what had brought on this sudden shyness?

Was it something Draxum had said? He couldn't think of anything that could've been taken as discouragement or dismissal. So, maybe Donnie just didn't care for his field of science but didn't want to offend Draxum by saying so? No, that didn't seem right either. So then, what-?

He noticed Leo leaning over, whispering to Donnie for a moment before being nudged away. Rather than being annoyed, Leo just looked a bit concerned while his twin just looked… Embarrassed? An epiphany went off in Draxum’s mind. So THAT was why Donnie wasn't talking to him.

“Donnie,” he began, getting the boy’s attention, “I was wondering if you had any thoughts on your research so far?”

Donnie continued to squirm, squeezing his fists in his lap. “I-I mean, I'm still reading through the book so, so I'm not really an expert on it yet.” Truth be told, while he liked all sciences, he had really taken a shine to robotics and technology the most. “But talking to you ‘bout it before gave me a good head start, and I know the basics of it already and, um…”

“Yes…?”

“A-And, I…” Donnie scowled before suddenly shouting, “I have a scientific theory! A-About genetics, I mean.”

Draxum nodded, keeping composed (because, wow, even he could admit this was kind of adorable). “May I hear about it?” he asked, making sure to keep his voice neutral to avoid sounding patronizing, knowing that a child as smart as Donnie would definitely notice.

“Well… O-Our genes are inherited from our birth parents, right? So we only have a possibility of getting what they, or the rest of their people in their family, had. But, maybe there could be a way to, um, switch out genes somehow? Maybe with gene samples from other people, or with genes made by scientists, and then those new cells could develop and make whatever kind of person with whatever features they wanted.” Donnie winced a bit once he was finished, and waited for Draxum’s reaction.

The scientist hummed. “Well, that is a sound theory. Perhaps a bit difficult to test at the moment, but I can understand the basis of it, as well as see how it could be possible one day.” Donnie’s eyes widened. He stared back at Draxum, and began to grin widely, as if he had just received the best compliment ever. Draxum held back a chuckle. “Would you like to discuss this theory further?” “Yeah!”

Unsurprisingly, once Draxum began sharing the concept of gene mutation, the conversation devolved into a mix of scientific theorizing with some sci-if-esque levels of speculation (Donnie) and a debate over which animal features and mutations would be best to mix with people (the rest of the boys). Still, the discussion was no less enjoyable, to the kids or to Draxum.

And as for Lou, he just watched and listened, a warm smile on his face. This may have been their first shared meal together, but Draxum already felt like a seat at the table that had always somehow been there

----------

“...I think I just made it impossible for your kids to go to sleep tonight.”

“Eh, they've had worse sugar rushes. Trust me, this is nothing. Besides, they'll burn it all up soon enough.”

The remaining slices of the ice cream cake had already been placed back into the fridge, and because it was still somewhat light out, the boys had been allowed to go play outside for a while. So, they raced out the door, leaving their father and his date to watch by the window while they started playing what Draxum could only describe as a mixed up version of soccer and cricket.

He wasn't even sure if they were keeping score. All he could tell was that the game involved running all around the small yard, using foam swords and hockey sticks to hit a ball as well as kicking it with their feet. Either way, they all seemed to enjoy it, with Raph happily teaming up with Mikey and offering him a piggyback ride whenever his youngest brother struggled to keep up.

Draxum hummed, taking a small sip from the tea Lou had made for him before setting the cup back down. “Your kids are definitely unique.”

“Heh, they sure are,” Lou agreed, “They really are good boys… And they really like you, you know.”

Draxum nodded. It was still sort of hard to believe himself, given how he often thought of children as nothing more than tiny annoyances. Yes, Lou’s kids were loud, and strange, and still a tiny bit annoying. But they were also clever and endearing, and even a little cute. So, he had no real problems with them liking him, or with liking them in return.

“...And,” Lou began, taking a step closer, suddenly making Draxum very aware of his presence, “I really like you too.”

“I-...” That was all Draxum could get out as he turned from the window, looking Lou directly in the eyes now. The handsome (‘ugh, why did he have to be so handsome,’ Draxum thought to himself, knowing this would all be so much easier if he wasn't) man stared back at him, lips curled into an honest smile. No cockiness or playing up his ego, Lou simply wanted him to know how he felt.

“And I mean it too. And uh, heh, no pressure or anything but… I hope the feeling’s mutual.” Draxum didn't say anything, but he didn't look away either. Lou took another slow step forward. Close enough together to do so now, Draxum dared himself to take his hands.

“I think… That's a possibility,” Draxum told him quietly, finally finding the words to reply.

Lou smiled, letting out a soft chuckle that made Draxum’s heart leap a bit. “Good to know…” They were closer now, enough for Draxum to see himself in Lou’s glasses. He told himself that he wasn't the kind of man to kiss on the first date, but Lou was making it SO tempting!

Their faces were getting closer, with Draxum’s own feeling much too warm. He placed his hands on the shorter man’s chest… And gently pushed him away.

The ex-action star blinked, the intimate mood gone in an instant, suddenly leaving him feeling cold. Still, despite his disappointment, Lou backed away.

“...It’s getting late,” Draxum stated, “I should probably get going.” He didn't waste time moving past Lou, now standing in the doorway between the kitchen and living room.

Lou nodded. “Right, of course. Well, thanks again for coming over. I had a nice-”

“I’m-” Draxum suddenly began to say, still refusing to look back at him, “I’m… Available next weekend, as well. So, perhaps you could come over to my place and we could have dinner there.” He paused for a moment before adding, “Just the two of us. It, it's the least I could do, cooking for you in return.”

“...” Lou’s grin returned. So there WAS going to be a next time! “Yeah, that sounds great! Just text me a time and your address and I’ll be there!”

Draxum nodded. “I will.”

“Heh, I’ll be looking forward to our next appointment, Dr. Draxum.”

Even with the light blush still in his cheeks, Draxum turned back around halfway, scoffing at him. “You don't have to keep calling me that. I have a first name, I won't be offended if you use it.”

Despite his internet search on the man, Lou continued to be coy. “You never told me it, Dr. Tall, Dark and Handsome.”

His date rolled his eyes, sighing slightly. He was tall, definitely, but he wasn't anywhere near dark. His skin just barely had a tan! “It's Benjamin. Benjamin Draxum.”

“Ah. Well, Ben, I’ll see you next week.” Draxum nodded, hesitating for only a moment before moving once more. Lou followed him to the front door, and they each gave a quick good night before Draxum left.

“Heh, a second date,” Lou told himself, still grinning about it, “How about that?” With his steps light and earlier disappointment being unable to touch his now sky-high mood, Lou went into his backyard and began trying to wrangle up his kids and get them back inside for pajamas and teeth brushing.

[solange-lol]

Crazier Than You - Ch. 2/?

Chapter Title: Pulled

Words: 2,047

[chapter 1 | chapter 2 | chapter 3 | chapter four (coming soon)]

Read on Ao3

“So how’s it going with lover boy?” Lou Ellen teased at tech after a few weeks of Will going to rehearsal. He didn't need to anymore, by that point, as they were just waiting to finish building all the set pieces before they began running them. Chiron never called him out for it though so he would make himself busy backstage. Secretly he enjoyed watching it all, even with the constant stops and restarts. This was one of Will’s favorite musicals, after all.

Also, Will had gotten significantly closer to Nico. Nothing more than friend-close, of course. It’s probably the most social Will has ever been with the cast, considering Nico was somehow acquainted with almost all of them. Apparently, he’s more social than Will first thought, though he’s been assured by Nico that is all circumstantial (whatever that means).

All of this just gave Lou more reason to bug Will about his micro-crush on Nico.

“We’re just friends Lou, I swear,” Will sighed, nailing another piece of wood to the bench they were creating for the dining room scene.

“Friends who hold hands?”

“It was one time! And it was an accident!” He nearly shrieked, feeling his face warming. Will truly regretted telling Lou that story. It was a moment of panic, and he needed to get it off his chest to someone who didn’t know Nico as a close friend. He set a mental reminder to never tell Lou Ellen anything.

Unfortunately, her comment brought the vivid memory back to Will. During rehearsal that week, things were slower than usual as the cast made their way through Act Two. It got the point where Will was too fidgety to stand still anymore (curse you, ADHD) and he had already scrolled to the end of his Instagram feed. As he had fiddled with the curtains next to him, he thought he was grabbing onto the chain; while in reality, it was actually Nico’s hand. Awkward apologies ensued, and Will did his best to forget it altogether. (Also, no theatre person had the right to have hands that smooth. Or maybe Will was just used to everybody in tech’s rough, calloused palms).

“Besides,” Will continued. “I’m pretty sure he likes Piper. Nobody can have that much chemistry in high school without probably wanting to fuck each other.”

“It’s theatre. He’s probably gay!”

“Not all guys in theatre are gay! Just look at Percy.”

Lou rolled her eyes. “Just because he’s dating Annabeth doesn’t make him straight. That’s bi erasure, Will.”

“Whatever, I can’t focus on him when I have a job to do.” He was getting riled up, shooting another nail with a kshk. “Like, it’s not fair, y’know? That I don’t get the year that goes smoothly, and not because of sets or anything,” Kshk.

“Will,”

“The other day, I forgot to close the curtain before Full Disclosure because I was thinking he had to kiss her and it so fucking dumb that I want that to be me..” Kshk

“Will!”

“I think I’ve been single for too long Lou.” Kshk.

“Will!”

“What?!” he nearly dropped the nail gun as he turned to face Lou Ellen, who just pointed at his hand. As soon as he noticed blood dripping from where he had accidentally shot himself with a nail, he felt his finger begin the throb. Painfully.

“Shit,” Will cursed loud enough that even their supervisor, who was busy snooping through their snack box, turned and said “Language, Will!” He ran off the try and grab a bandage or cloth or something that didn’t have sawdust on it. Cecil dropped down next to Lou Ellen.

“What did I miss?”

Lou Ellen rolled her eyes for the nth time that day. “Will being a chaotic gay idiot.”

“Ah, so nothing new.”

**

The show was approaching quicker than Will was expecting it to. Parts of the set weren’t even finished being built yet, much less painted. He eventually gave up on trying to finish it all at once and called in Rachel to recruit art class students to start on the finished pieces while he, Lou, and Cecil built as fast as they could. It ended in a lot of late nights with just the three of them after everyone else went home; their supervisor usually dozed in the back.

After one particularly long night, Will shooed off his bleary-eyes friends, saying he could clean up himself. During this cleanup, however, Will discovered the bucket of dirty paint brushes stashed in the corner, as if whoever put it there was trying to hide it. Setting a mental reminder to ask Rachel about it the next day, Will sighed and grabbed the keys to the janitors closet. As much as he was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to collapse and/or cry, he was stage manager. This was his responsibility. Not to mention he was the only one left here to do it. So, he picked up the bucket to clean them himself.

Here’s the thing: Will hated the janitors closet. Avoided it at all costs, in fact. For his entire four years in tech, he’s managed to only go in it four times. Of course, he already knew he was going to have to in order to get the mop for the stage. It just so happened he was avoiding doing it until he absolutely had to.

The closet had a certain smell to it, one that everyone in tech seemed to be immune to except for him. It was grout and mold mixed with old paint and cleaning supplies that somehow managed to combine into a smell Will could only describe as cat pee; it never failed to give Will a headache after more than 30 seconds of being in there. Not to mention that the sink water was freezing cold no matter how you adjusted it. When Will noticed there were paint rollers in the bucket as well, he nearly cried. (They were made of some cheap fluff material that took forever to squeeze paint out of. Lou had nicknamed the task “the shitty handjob”).

Will had only managed to clean one of the six rollers in the bucket before he was interrupted by an unexpected visitor. Clearly, said visitor was confused as well as to what Will was doing, judging by his first words.

“Will, what the hell are you doing?” Nico almost seemed exhausted with him by the way he said it, although maybe he was. Will was definitely exhausted with himself. God, he was so tired.

The blonde’s answer was barely a mumble over the loud spraying of the sink. “I’m cleaning brushes.”

“What?”

“I said, I’m cleaning brushes!”

“Why are you cleaning brushes at-” Nico checked the clock on his phone. “-7:00pm? Have you even gone home today?”

When Will shook his head, Nico just laughed under his breath. “I mean, I get it. I have a sister who pulls all-nighters to finish an art project she has all the time in the world for. You were in the zone.”

Will laughed quietly too, although it was shortened by a yawn. “The worst part? This isn’t even my fault. I’ve been building all day.” He was forcing his eyelids to not go half-lidded; he didn’t need Nico interpreting what was exhaustion for, well, something else.

He went back to the roller in front of him. Nico just stood there a moment, fiddling with the sleeve of his hoodie.

Finally, he spoke again. “My sister is supporting her boyfriend in some language singing competition, and I’m her ride home. So I’m going to be here awhile if you, uh, want some help?” he offered.

Will just smiled to himself. “You don’t know what you’re getting into. Trust me, you do not want to be doing this.” When he glanced up, his hand with the sink hose shifted and he accidentally splashed water all over his jeans. “I prove my point.”

“I mean, I could sort of guess by your expression when I walked up here that you aren’t exactly enjoying yourself-”

“Tell me about it.”

Nico snorted at Will’s eye roll before continuing. “-But, maybe it’ll be more fun with someone to talk to. Plus, four hands are better than two?”

“If you insist. Don’t say I didn’t warn you though.”

Truthfully, Will was terrified. He knew how stupid that sounded, being a senior nervous to talk to this random junior that he forgot about up until a few months ago. Sure, they were friends, but always backstage with a thousand other people. Neither had really talked to the other one-on-one, and there was nobody in this wing of the school.

It was quiet for a moment, only the sound of the hose running as Nico handed him brushes to spray down.

Will took the plunge and spoke first. “How did you get into acting? You always seemed pretty quiet freshman year.”

Nico looked surprised. “Yeah, I never really thought I would like it either. But Hazel heard me singing and told me I could try out for some local church theatre. Turns out I’m not bad.”

“You’re telling me,” Will chuckled. “I couldn’t have been only one blown away by your audition.”

Nico didn’t respond, heat rising to his cheeks. Will wasn’t quite sure if it was him specifically or if Nico was just generally surprised by compliments. Honestly, he didn’t know which one he preferred either.

“Uh, thanks,” Nico smiled sheepishly before clearing his throat.“So, how did you end up becoming stage manager?”

“Dunno. I always wanted to be in one of the shows, but I figured out pretty quickly that I didn’t exactly have the voice for it, so tech crew was the next best thing.”

Nico lifted his head from the bucket and looked over at him. He wasn’t smiling, but he looked intrigued. “Usually when people say they can’t sing, they’re over exaggerating,” he pointed out. Without warning, he started pulled out his phone and pulled up the Addams family album. He tapped the screen a few times before “Pulled” started to play. When they got to the chorus, Nico started singing along.

“I'm being pulled in a new direction,

But I think I like it.

I think I like it.”

He gestured for Will to join. With hesitation, he did.

“I’m being pulled in a new direction

Through my painful pursuit,

Somehow birdies took root.

All the things I detested impossibly cute.

What do I do?”

Unfortunately, Will wasn’t exaggerating when he said his voice sucked. He had no sense of rhythm and was mostly tone deaf. Next to Nico, he didn’t sound any better. At least singing along to the recording made up for it a little bit.

He was pretty sure Nico was laughing at him, but that didn’t really matter. They went back to working on the brushes.

When the bridge came, Will accidentally splashed Nico with the hose as he mocked a violin at “string quartets,” which just resulted in an all out splash war. By the end of the song, both were completely soaked and nearly in tears with laughter.

Nico switched off his phone before the next song could play. “I don’t think you’ll be playing Wednesday anytime soon,” he said through laughter. “Though honestly, I wish you were. I would love to see that with a live band. Plus kissing you is probably easier than kissing Piper.”

Will chose to ignore that last comment for the sake of the sudden butterflies in his stomach. “You’d rather kiss me than Piper?”

Nico shrugged. “Kissing a girl is one thing. Kissing a girl who is also one of my best friends is another. That’s like kissing my sister.” They both shuddered.

(Well, at least he wasn’t being friendzoned).

“Could be worse,” he pointed out. “You could have to kiss your actual sister.”

Nico laughed. “You’re right, that’s so much worse than having to just kiss a girl.”

They finished up pretty quickly after that and said their goodbyes. Walking to his car, Will felt different. Lighter, almost.

It wasn’t until he started the engine when it clicked in his brain.

This wasn’t just some little crush on a guy he thinks is cute.

Will was falling.

thanks for reading! tag list under cut! (message me to be added/removed)

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[light-and-darkness-equally-well]

I Saw The Crimes of Grindelwald

And like any movie, there were things I loved.

Baby. Nifflers.

The freaking artistic departments and the COSTUMING were all very beautiful.

I liked Theseus Scamander more than I thought I would - maybe I was getting more realistic older sibling vibes, maybe his human moments just hit me. Idk.

OMG the cast performed so well??? I’d literally just list all their names if I wanted to point out anything specific. If you’ve seen the movie yell about the spoilery things in the comments with me?

SPOILERS BELOW

Okay, Leta was awesome and I had honestly expected her to follow Grindelwald? But they definitely broke expectations with this one. Really pulled a Last Jedi on us in that regard - the person we expect to be tempted to the dark gave her life for the right reasons, and one of our brightest, most hopeful and wholesome characters in the first movie goes dark.

BTW she made me want to cry when she screamed “Walk with me,” ugh. I really hope she doesn’t die still on Grindelwald’s side. The man must be a powerful occlumens to not reveal his actual endgame to a legilimens that just hears people without even trying. I’m glad it wasn’t just “for love”, though that is a driving factor for her - it’s for freedom to express that love, and being caught in a moment of vulnerability in the crowd, and Jacob finally calling her crazy out loud for that decision.

Also, like, can we talk about how her descent into darkness was definitely not unexpected? She enchanted Jacob to keep him compliant! I mean, I get it - but Jacob was the one who loved more in that scenario, because he cared more about her than about them being together. She could have campaigned for the right to marry him at the Ministry - but she went with mind control. There’s a clear difference in what she believed was right and wrong versus others.

IDK I just hope that if she does come to a breaking point it won’t take someone killing Jacob to bring her to the Light again.

Nagini was pretty cool even though she was just kind of along for the ride? I liked her companionship with Credence. Unfortunately we already know how her story ends.

Okay, gonna touch on Johnny Depp - I’m not extremely well read on the irl controversy and really based off of what I know I can’t personally condemn or acquit him just because I don’t have all the info.

But I’m able to separate a person’s actions from their work either way and - he was a goddamn good Grindelwald. Very charismatic and softspoken when he needed to be, cruel in turn to see where loyalties lie, and he knew how to push all the right buttons. The only part that just made me giggle at the absolute wrong moment for a movie to make me want to giggle (with death and destruction on the line, ugh) was the “I hate Paris”. It was too cheeky for me at that moment, idk.

ON TO HOGWARTS

Freaking Jude Law, ugh. He definitely was an amazing Dumbledore. I was all for his performance, and there were definitely images with the Mirror of Erised scene where I just was like wow, you two had such a profound bond. And Grindelwald used “The Greater Good” line, which was a thing between the two of them regarding their positions on this whole new world order thing. He’s enigmatic and friendly, especially in his interactions with Newt and Leta.

(OMG McGonagall was there for a hot second and it was perfection)

Theseus Scamander, my friends. He is SUCH an older brother around Newt. I am an older sister, and can confirm. My heart broke for him when Leta died, omg.

and Flamel was unexpectedly hilarious and simultaneously badass?

Tina was kind of following a trope that I expected of the spurned girlfriend, so meh on the storyline but A+++ with the “salamander” dialogue between her and Newt and the moment when she pulls out the little bell toy.

I don’t have much to say about Newt because he was very typical Newt. It worked well and I was glad he wasn’t the only main player in the movie, but I adored every bit of him.

AND OKAY THE NIFFLER BEING THE ONE TO STEAL THE THING FROM GRINDELWALD OMG

Okay, you’ve guessed that I’ve been holding back on the Credence bit because -

What the actual fuck?

Okay, the very first option is that Grindelwald is a lying liar that set it all up, and that would not be a surprise honestly.

(Gonna still call him Credence for a bit on account of that notion)

But these things tend to be important, these “phoenixes come to Dumbledores” type of things. So I’ll take it as truth for now.

And we have heard nothing about an Aurelius Dumbledore even existing until this point - and we know very little about Ariana and Aberforth. So I suppose it’s plausible that we never heard his name before. Still!

He has been pulled from every side for every reason to use him or destroy him, and that breaks my heart. Look at how freaking powerful he is at the end at Nurmengard (which we know later, of course, will be Grindelwald’s prison) - all he could do. And that of course worries me, because under Grindelwald he could do a ton of damage.

The one good thing Grindelwald does, imo: give Credence a freaking wand. Ezra Miller has been waiting too goddamn long for this moment, probably vibrating in his seat with excitement, let him be a proper wizard.

And how in Merlin’s name did he get where he is? I have a pretty interesting timeline.

Ariana Dumbledore, the youngest Dumbledore until now, was an Obscurial child because of muggle bullies. She died during a fight between Albus, Aberforth, and Grindelwald (who may have already witnessed her power and had ideas of how to use her? Albus hadn’t enjoyed the burden of caring for, essentially, a disabled sister. Maybe he had been wondering how to take her off his hands, and Aberforth had seen it coming and that’s how that mess occurred.)

Anyway, she died in the fight - no one knows who killed her out of the three. This was 1899.

Credence was born two years later.

Now, he doesn’t necessarily have to be a brother - he could be a cousin - but I’m super inclined to think that if he is indeed Aurelius Dumbledore, that he’s the youngest brother, or at least is symbolized as such if he is a cousin. (Wizards live a lot longer than average humans, so it’s totally plausible to have siblings that far apart I think) It would be a different mother, because Kendra Dumbledore (Albus’s mother) died some time the same year before Ariana did.

And Albus, upon finding out about Credence and perhaps guilty about his own treatment of Ariana, thinks I am not fit to care for a child keep away and offers to send Aurelius and his mother to America. Thus we have Credence.

NOW this is assuming we don’t get an entire retcon of the Dumbledore history. If we do that, then my mini-headcanon is a bit more disturbing.

We know very, very little about Ariana Dumbledore. We didn’t know she existed until the seventh book. Same for Aberforth. We learn a lot about Dumbledore all at once from some unreliable sources (Skeeter etc) through Harry, who finds certain information more important than other info.

I looked up the timelines earlier, so the first theory fits better with canon. If we throw timelines and whether Kendra Dumbledore died at a certain point out - if we assume that the little tidbits might be wrong -

What if Ariana wasn’t hidden away in the house? What if she was born later? What if she and her mother moved to America when it became clear that Albus wouldn’t support them?

And this is sort of fanfictiony, and very weird, but what if -

Aurelius was Ariana? I mean, Obscurials. Dumbledores. What if Dumbledore didn’t love his sister enough to keep her close, and supposedly lost her to a storm at sea?

What if, in a bout of childhood accidental magic, Credence changed their own body, uncomfortable as a little girl?

(This leads Mary Lou Barebone to scream about witchcraft for the rest of her days, but she still takes care of the cursed little boy. She feeds him, houses him, hopes his sins will be forgiven, punishes him because he’s a little curse on her too, and Lord if it happened to her-)

So Albus believes Ariana to be dead, but if he can save this Obscurial boy, just maybe -

Yeah. Okay. So. Tangent over, fanfiction to be written, this movie was great and weird and confusing and cool. Ta-da.

[vaampz]

VAV’s interview for SohuTV

disclaimer: this is a rough translation so it may contains inaccuracies. [original article]

Q: How long have you been trainees?

St. Van: The longest it should be Ayno.

Ayno: Yes, I have been a trainee for 9 years since I was a child. Now I am very happy. I am working hard on the VAV team. It is good to be a combination with my brother and friends and friends.

Jacob: I am the member with the sortest trainee time. I trained for almost a year and then debuted. During the period, I did not encounter any elimination, and it went smoothly.

Baron: Almost three to four years.

Lou: I’m almost three to four years.

Ziu: After five years of practice I debuted.

Ace: I am also had a trainee time of almost five to six years.

St.Van: Almost four to five years.

Q: What is the most memorable thing in the training period?

St. Van: When we first lived together in the dormitory, the dormitory would leak when it rained. There was water on the floor. Jacob slept in the top bunk, so sometimes when Jacob was sleeping, the rain would drip on his face. There is that we can't wash clothes in the dormitory at that time, so we will go to the laundry room to wash clothes.

Baron: It’s especially hot when is hot, and it’s really cold when it’s cold. You need to be careful when you are cold, and you may be dehydrated when you are hot. In this grim environment, we have been preparing for the album (...) When we practiced, (because of dancing) the mirror is full of water vapor, the degree that people can't see clearly, those days are really hard to forget.

Ace: My most memorable thing is that Ayno had a big cry when he was a trainee. At that time, this friend had just joined less than a week ago.

Trainee for a long time suffered a lot, you may then have a lot of pain, but also a lot of pressure (...) He’s here to come to this (VAV) and want to work hard to do it. Suddenly this scene emerged in my mind. Now he really grow up more. The then still very cute brother, now become a very handsome artist.

Ayno: Although the life of the trainee is very hard, these have become my wealth.

Q: What is the biggest difference between the debut and the practice period?

Ziu: I think the difference is that during the practice period, I went to practice for the debut. Now, after I debut, we have fans who are helping us. The biggest difference is with whether there are fans for our support.

Lou: As Ziu said, the biggest difference is whether there are fans who like us. And as we just said, we have been practicing for a long time before debuting, and the results after hard work are shown. It is different to show it to the company or to show it to ourselves, or to show our results to others.

Q: What is the deepest impression after debut?

Baron: We just finished the tour. There are many memories. I am very happy to see fans from all over the world. I am always excited when performing on the stage, so it is especially memorable, and we also want to meet Chinese fans as soon as possible.

Ayno: The debut song "Dance With Me" was the most impressive. It was really stressful at that time and I relied on my brothers. When I came down from the stage, I was particularly excited and expressed my happiness to the members. I was very happy at the time.

Baron: Speaking of "Dance With Me", I think of a little story. Ziu cried a lot after the end of the stage while returning home. This was a very deep feeling in the dormitory.

Ziu: I was sitting in the back seat of the car at the time. I was on the way home after the end of Showcase. I looked out the window and cried. I felt my dreams come true. My brothers, I love you.

Q: What is the happiest thing and the most distressing thing at this stage?

Ziu: First of all, the happiest thing at this stage is the efforts of our seven people. With fans who can see these, the most distressing thing is how to look more handsome? How can I let fans hear better songs and dance more handsome dances? There will always be such troubles.

Ace: I think the preparation of the album is the most interesting and fun thing, because practicing the favorite songs and dances, the most exciting moments of practice. Also when we were preparing for the album, we’re thinking about what kind of music fans and people liked, so that  was the most distressing moment when we were preparing for the album.

Q: What do you think is the most important qualification for an idol?

Baron: I think it's important to be able to express yourself. Although it is important to express myself between us, it is especially important to speak in front of the camera or in some actions. Like coquetry, although I don't know how to act spoil. I feel that I am more organized when I speak. People who speak more like Lou and Ace can make people feel very interesting and happy with words, and there are others who use action to bring joy to everyone. You can see these strengths of our members and it’s more fascinating.

Lou: It would be especially good if, personally, you zoom in on what you do. For example, Ayno's dance and rap are great, and then just continue to delve into each of their strengths. For example, Ace is very sexy, Jacob is very cute, Ziu is very interesting. Everyone has their own characteristics. If they each magnify their strengths, I believe that they will also bring extra points to the group.

Ayno: I think that for the idols, "cause" is very important, even if it does not need to be cultivated.

Jacob: Actually, I think that if I am a successful idol, although I am not very successful, I feel that if you want to be a successful idol, you need to work hard and stick to it. Talent this or that, as long as they persist in their efforts, they should certainly gain something, and they will succeed in the end. I believe that we’ll too.

Q: How do you try to make yourselves a better idol?

St.Van: If you want to say more on stage or elsewhere, every time we prepare a new album or practice a dance, we will do a lot of exercises. Do a lot of exercises in the mirror in your own part. The focus is not just on dance, but also on gestures and expressions. Especially when we are practicing dancing, Jacob will often help us adjust the movements.

Jacob: Actually, like my brother said is that when we are dancing in our practice room, sometimes I will... In fact, I am a little obsessive-compulsive, because I am a Virgo, sometimes see in the video that some places are not the same, or a little forced and tell them to let them change.

Ace: I have been sticking to sports all the time, in order to give everyone a better look, I also pay attention to the diet.

Ayno: I am very concerned about management. I will give myself a massage. If I press it from the bottom of my ear and press it along my neck, the lines will fade, and it will look younger.

Ace: Suddenly I remembered one thing. Yesterday Ayno suddenly searched the Internet for a way to widen the shoulders. The voice of "Teach you how to widen your shoulders" came from the video. It was really funny. Recently Ayno is very much about the shoulders.

Q: Do you have confidence in the future? Talk about your ambitions!

Ayno: My goal is to get number one in music with VAV, then enter China, communicate with more fans in China, and also want to do concerts and share music with fans.

Ace: I am very proud of our music. I have made a lot of attempts on every album. In order to bring more diverse and better listening music, I think we are always moving forward, and now we are also working hard to prepare. With new songs, I also practice dance carefully in order to show you a better side. I hope that this song will be shown to everyone, and I hope that I can hold a concert with everyone at the end of the year.

Baron: I want to be a singer that resonates with everyone through music events, and members like St.van, Lou, and Ayno are also working hard to write songs, hoping that their songs can be included in our album for everyone. To bring you more stories of good music, we will continue to work hard.

Lou: As Ace brother said, I am also very confident about our songs. My ambition is to hope that everyone will listen to our songs in the future and can say "ah, this is a VAV song", "VAV's song is worth a Listen," I hope we can leave this impression on everyone. We will continue to work hard.

Ziu: My ambition is to work hard with our six brothers to become a good artist.

Jacob: As mentioned by the previous members, I hope that our music can get good grades, go to more places to see more fans, and hope that we will have a long and long way to continue.

St.Van: I believe that our VAV can do better and better than now. Please support us a lot, we will also cheer more, thank you. 

[celestial-amnesia]

Tiny New Member

(Continuation of the Baby News story)

It was a nice day in Idalar, home to Aria or Scarlet when translated. She was giving instructions as to where the dresser of the nursery should go. “Come on Ari! How much longer?” Her childhood friend ,Hirato, complained. Scarlet places her hands on her hips, “Could you just call me Scarlet? It’ll get confusing calling me two names at once. There will be fine.” Letting out a sigh he places it down then lays on the floor with a hefty sigh. “It’s not that bad.” Scarlet sits on the bed looking down at him to which he replies, “You try it!” Scarlet rolls her eyes scoffing, “I would but,” she places a hand on her baby bump, “Karno doesn’t want me doing anything strenuous to hurt me or the baby. It’s honestly thanks to the others, mainly Leon, Zyglavis, and Scorpio, to convince him that I would be fine.” Hirato sits up laughing, “Convincing?! What is he watching you like a hawk?” She shrugs, “I guess he’s just really concerned?” She stands and heads out, “But whatever the reason he’s happy for the most part and so am I. I should head back to him though. Thanks for the help.” Hirato smiles, “Who would have thought. Scarlet, having a kid.” Scarlet laughed, “Telling you now it certainly wouldn’t have been me!” She vanishes back to the heavens where her husband waits.

She appears in the living room and is surprised to see Teorus and Ichthys running up to her. They were asking many questions at once and it was making her dizzy. Scarlet wasn’t realizing that she was leaning backwards a bit. Luckily Leon and Scorpio saw, reeling the guys back and sitting her down. “Do you two want to die? If she actually fell Karno would be out for your blood.” Scorpio scolds. Leon kneels in front of Scarlet, “Do you feel alright?” She nods looking blankly, “But I kinda want cookies. And tea. And also a red velvet cake…where am I?” Leon and the others stare in shock so he repeated his question. Her expression is similar to Aigonorus’s normal one, “I’m…tired.” That being said she falls asleep sitting up. Tauxolouve walks in on the scene and upon seeing the sleeping goddess he asked what happened. “Poor little lady, you two didn’t even give her time to get settled in. Should I take her to the soft room? She looks pretty relaxed.” Leon nodded as Scarlet was picked up and carried out. The soft room was completely made for Scarlet during one of her moody episodes that the even the King himself was afraid of and didn’t want to deal with. The room was full of soft and fluffy pillows, blankets, stuffed animals, and anything of the kind. Scarlet doesn’t like the heat that much so the temperature was cool enough where she could be comfortable. Lou lays her on the bed places one of the stuffed animals in her arms, covers her in a blanket, cracks the windows for a light breeze to come through then closes the door behind him.

Karno was done with his work and as he walked through the hall he was stopped by Leon who handed him a piece of paper. “What’s this?” Karno looks over it as Leo explains, “Scarlet came back and started talking about what she wanted before she fell asleep on the couch. Tauxolouve took her to the soft room.” Karno chuckles at the list with a nod saying his thanks heading that way. Opening the door to the room he gets a big smile on his face seeing the innocent expression on Scarlet’s face as she slept. Karno was grateful that she wasn’t hostile towards him. Her mother explained that it’s very likely for her to dislike everyone around her but becomes needier to him. With that in mind Karno wake Scarlet up by stroking her hair. She blinks a few times and rubs her eyes to fully wake up. “I’m sorry to wake you dear but Leon told me that before you fell asleep you were hungry?” He handed her the list and her eyes lit up. Nodding vigorously Karno snaps food in front of her as Scarlet clapped delightedly then hugged him tight, “Thank you!” While eating, Scarlet felt his gaze on her and blushed a bit covering her mouth, “It’s rude to stare ya know.” Smiling he looks away out the window. A breeze came through and Scarlet glance at her god. For some reason, his appearance struck her harder than normal as she looked from him to her stomach beginning to cry.

Karno heard her sniffling and rushed to her side, “What’s wrong?” He placed his hands on her cheeks to wipe tears away. “I-I’m sorry. I just…we’re gonna have a child soon! I’m still not used to the concept sometimes. I have a really hard time sleeping cause…” Karno sits next to her on the bed wrapping a comforting arm around her pulling her close to him, “You’re afraid of not being a good mother?” Scarlet clings to him nodding then looks up at him, “Then I looked at you and felt happy again because I’ll be with you and the others. I know I’ve been a lot in the months leading up to her birth ,but thanks for putting up with it.” Karno gives her a warm smile, “It’s not putting with it. It’s making sure that the both of you are happy and safe.” Right after he said this a light figure appears, who they both know, in front of them. “Hello dear.” The little figure giggles, flying around being happy go lucky as ever. She hops to them, “Can’t wait. See you. Bye.” With that she hops in front of the door and disappears as some of the others god walk in. Karno looks to Scarlet, “She really happy that’s good to see.” She stares at her stomach placing her hand on it, “Not to alarm anyone ,but what that meant was that she’s coming.” Karno’s eyes widen, “…What?” Smiling but fear in her eyes she repeats the important sentence, “Karno, the baby is coming.”

A unison “What?!” was yelled through out the room. Not wanting to put more panic into the atmosphere, Karno got everyone to calm down, opened a portal to Idalar and picked Scarlet up and everyone went through. Clarissa, Scarlet’s mother, was surprised by the opened portal and even more by the ones who walked through it. She looked from Karno to Scarlet immediately realizing what was going on, “Follow!” They all make there way to a large door and behind it was a pool of beautiful blue water with a large white lily, big enough for a person, in the center. As Scarlet was carried in the room started to glow. The helper fairies stopped the others from entering. Clarissa smiles, “I’m sorry, at this point only the three-“ Leon and Zyglavis nod already knew what she was gonna say, “We’ll wait outside. It’s fine.” The door closes leaving Scarlet, Karno and Clarissa. Karno looks around, “What is this?” Vines come down and remove Scarlet from his arms and she held on to him. The vines weren’t forcing it they just moved around waiting. Clarissa explains, “We don’t have children like a human or goddess would. They are place there and are turned into light, or in her case light and chaos, and to separate them. We explain this to children at a young age but she…” Karno sits on the ground with Scarlet in his lap. He takes her face in his hands to get her to look up, “Scarlet, listen carefully. I will be right here with you. Your mother will be. The guys are right outside. I know this is a scary moment but the outcome will be worth it all. Our daughter seemed so happy that she would get to meet us for real. Don’t keep her waiting.” Scarlet had tears fall but it wasn’t of sadness or fear. It was from those words that made her smile, “You know just what to say don’t you?” Karno chuckles as they softly kiss before she is moved to the flowerbed. The flower closes and the process begins.

Karno stays seated watching with wonder as the flower, that now holds those precious to him, as the it glows emitting light and chaos at the base. Clarissa sits next to Karno taking his hand. He could tell that despite her calm exterior she was nervous all throughout. “You know I don’t think I ever thanked you.” Clarissa stared straight ahead but he looked to her confused and she continued, “In the beginning, it seemed as though she would never love again and then she met all you. As a young child she would state over and over that she would never married. Yet she did. Above all else said she would never have a child but yet here my daughter is. I always hoped someone would show her a new light and a new meaning of love. Thank you.” Karno and Clarissa shared a hug as they watch the flower shine and flow with chaos and light. It’s white petals change to dusted pastel pink.

Less than an hour or so passed when the flower finally stopped glowing. The two stood and moved closer and the flower got closer to the edge. Karno moved his hand to the petal then stopped because he wasn’t sure if it was ok for him to do so. The vine moved his hand closer giving him the ok. Taking them down one by one revealing a sleeping Scarlet and in her arms a healthy sleeping baby girl. The vines help getting her out and Karno held them against him. Scarlet awakens looking at him with happy tears whispering, “She’s here and tiny!” He nods even he started tearing up, “Yeah she is. Have you thought of a name?” Scarlet looks from the child to the moonlight pouring into the room, “Kamaria. That’s her name.” Her mother moves closer, “Welcome to the world Kamaria. Your life will be filled with love.” She looks at the two then whispers, “I’m sure of it.” Standing and moving to the door Clarissa says, “Shall we show the rest their new member?” Karno picks Scarlet up with the child as the door open to the other awaiting gods and Kamaria‘s new life.