#I cried again and then I turned off the light and had a massive breakthrough with a shortfilm idea/wish for an idea that I've had for a year

[creature-once-removed]

.

[writersplight]

sometimes life’s a bitch and then you keep living.

Connie remembered everything about that night.  It was raining, and it was late. About two in the morning. The car was stuffy, but he didn’t want to be anywhere else. His girlfriend and childhood friend, Sasha, was silent. It was weird, because she usually picked him up blasting music and having something to say. But tonight—that night—she had nothing to say to them. Usually the cliffside view was beautiful for a sunset, and they’d hold hands and laugh until they decided they were tired enough to go home. It would be hours at a time. Sometimes, they’d buy McDonald’s and rant about the world, sitting on the car hood with just each other. 

“School starts up again next week,” she started, quietly, her eyes on the wheel.  “Yeah. Spring break was not long enough—”  “It never is for you,” she snorts, and he rolls his eyes. She was right. No matter how long the break, Connie always complained about school. It’s not totally his fault that he feels stupid in every class he has; even the one he gets B’s in. Sasha wasn’t like that in all her classes, she excelled in science and math, and even though her mind was dead by the time she got to English, she still did well. Intellectually, she was superior. He didn’t mind—he was too preoccupied celebrating her academic achievements to compare himself to her.  “Yeah. I’m not a fan of—”  “It’s still raining. . .” It’s weird that he never got to finish his sentence. Maybe she was afraid he’d say something to make her stay. Not that he would have. “Nothing good ever happens when it rains.”  She started the car again, and Connie, who was trying to figure out why his heart was starting to sink, kept quiet. He was never quiet. He always had something to fill the silence with. He wanted to tell her about his parent’s divorce, but he couldn’t he couldn’t find the words. It wasn’t the time.  As they pulled up to his lawn, the rain started to come down harder, and everything finalized in his mind.  “Who is it?” he asked, quietly, finally getting his one sentence in. Sasha grips the steering wheel tightly, but she was glad he got the memo—they were breaking up. She already soft-blocked him from all her social media, but he wouldn’t know that until morning. “Niccolo,” she finally says, and he nods. He knows of him. Blonde VoTech student, succeeding in the culinary field. Of course that would win over the brunette—the way to her heart is through her stomach.  He swallowed dryly.  “See you at school?” he wouldn’t meet her eyes, hand on the car door.  “Oh, Connie. . .” her face got dark. She wouldn’t look at him. He was standing in front of her on his lawn. He doesn’t remember moving. “No.”  She drove off.  Connie spent the rest of freshman year, and all of sophomore year avoiding Sasha and her boyfriend. He’s never seen her happier, and he didn’t want to interrupt that. Despite, you know, wanting to be the cause of her happiness. He heard them laughing a lot. It was torturous.  He was always dizzy, and kept his hood up to prevent the bright lights from reaching his eyes. He was starting to find comfort in the darkness that once scared him. The unknown of it all really put him at ease. It did keep him up, though. Pros and cons.  “Connie!” Sasha finally caught up to him, midst of junior year, grabbing his arm so he wouldn’t run. The cars were starting to pull away around them, so she pulled him to her car. He kept his eyes on the asphalt ground.  “What’s going on, man? You’ve been avoiding me for so long! Marco, Jean, and I were trying to—”  The world turned red, and spun. Distantly, he questioned, “What?”  “Why have you been avoiding me?”  “Why?” he repeated, dumbfounded.  “Yeah,” she cocked her head to the side like he was confusing her. Shoving his hands in his pockets, his eyebrows furrow.  “Sasha. . . You broke up with me. What do you mean?”  “Yeah, but—”  “You blocked me on Instagram and Snap,” he pointed out, getting angrier. His hands were starting to shake. “You started avoiding me first!”  “Yeah, but. . .”  “Am I an asshole for returning the favor?”  “No, but I miss you.” she pouted, twiddling her fingers. That’s the last straw.  “Sasha, we’re not in middle school anymore! That pout won’t work. I’m sorry you missed me, but I’m not willing to let myself hang around and wait until it’s convenient for you to feel up to being my friend again. That’s not fair to me.” She was starting to get upset, he could see that. But he’s been upset for months upon months. It’s almost been two years.  “You’re so happy with Niccolo, then make friends with his friends. No need to involve me.”  “But. . . You’re my best friend, Connie,” she reaches for his hand, but he yanks his arm away.  “I was, wasn’t I?” he steps

back. “Well, everything must come to an end.”  “Wait!” she cried out, and he found himself waiting. It angered him that he was still willing to listen to her. He turned back to her, eyebrows raised. “How. . . How did you move on?”  “Move on?” he thought about, removing a hand from his pockets to fix his falling hood. “I didn’t. I probably won’t ever ‘move on’, but. . . I just take one step at a time. It’s all I can do.”  “I miss your company.”  Connie went silent, eyes on his beat up converse. The wind picked up. He didn’t have anything else to say. Sure, he missed his best friend, too, but it’s not like she unblocked him or truly made an effort. He shrugged, turning on his heel. There wasn’t much else he could do. He was so close to being roped back into her friend loop. He couldn’t do that to himself. He tried, at first, to make amends, but she always turned him down. Connie couldn’t keep waiting.  Connie spent a lot of his high school life working. He wanted to save up for something fun to do with friends. Marco and Jean offered not many ideas, but it hit the buzzcut teen when he was trying to sleep one night—a camp out. In the woods not too far behind his house. There’s this clearing he used to use that’s perfect.  He sent out a massive group text. That included: Jean, Marco, Annie, Bert, Reiner, Mikasa, Armin, Eren. . . His thumb hovered over Sasha’s contact. He frowned. He skipped over her, and sent the text. Despite it being one in the morning, everyone seemed on board. They spent the next hour finding a date. They decided upon July 12th, where they all had time to call out and arrange accordingly.  That date. . . In fifth grade, that’s when Connie asked Sasha out. They dated until freshman year. It was wild how the universe works. He agreed upon the date and marked it in his calendar.  After graduation, he continued working. He still had a few months before he was going away to college, and he still had the whole camp out to put together. He found himself hanging around Annie and Mikasa a lot. He didn’t expect them to be so hands on with the project, or into it at all—considering how they tended to not be huge talkers—but they were. It didn’t make sense to him, but he had fun organizing it with them.  It all came to him at the end of the night, after grilling hot dogs and hamburgers for dinner. He was sitting in a lawn chair, staring at the stars by himself, with this big dopey smile on his face. His hand was around his soda bottle. Annie and Mikasa pulled chairs up to sit with him.  “You seem happier than you’ve been in years,” Annie points out, handing him a bottle of root beer. He opens it for her, nodding along to what she said.  “Yeah. I am.”  “Does this mean you’re over Sasha?” Mikasa sends a glare to the blonde, and Connie finds himself laughing. It was funny how people still treated it like a sore subject.  “No. Yes? I’m able to talk about it, but it still hurts. It’s everything and nothing at all.” He adjusts himself in his chair. He bought a tent big enough for them all to lay in, and he managed to be assigned to the very girls sitting next to him. However, he was focused on the stars.  “I’m glad you’re feeling better,” Mikasa settles on, not being too good with words. That’s something Annie and her shared—their difference was Mikasa had a heavy filter, where Annie’s filter was non-existent. She thought about her words heavily.  “Me too. It’s good to be hanging out with my friends again. I’m sorry for, you know, being shitty. I didn’t mean it.”  “It was a tough breakup. Don’t worry about those it doesn’t concern.” Annie advised, taking a swig of her soda.  “It does concern you guys, because you’re my friends and I wasn’t there for you. That’s how I see it, and I’m sorry. But, yes, it was tough. I tried to ignore it but. . . Well, there are some things you can’t avoid in life. I had to deal with it.” Connie explained, looking into his soda bottle. He’s glad he found his way out. He just got so tired being sad that he had a breakthrough. Some aren’t as lucky, but he was never the

forever-brooding type. He was much more comfortable as the clown of the group.  “And you’re better now for it,” Mikasa says softly, turning to him. She placed a hand over his, and Annie took his other hand. His face grew hot, but they all looked at the stars. There was comfortable silence between them. Slowly, Connie intertwined their hands together. In the distance, Jean and Eren could be heard bickering about trees. Weird topic for them, but it was normal.  “We both like you, Connie,” Annie finally said, “and we’d like to figure out what that means.”  His smile grew, finally tearing his eyes away from the stars. He looked between them, and found that they weren’t joking with him. He’d never think he’d go from dating, to sadly single, to being fine with being single, to possibly having two girlfriends. Life was crazy in that way.  “Okay,” he said, turning his direction to the stars. It got quiet again, but the conversation started back up when Connie mentioned he didn’t know how to piece together constellations—or something along those lines—but Annie did. She spent the hour before bed teaching them about how to find north, and some constellations that she could find. Mikasa, on the other hand, had a handful of knowledge about astrology, and told her lovers all about it as they turned in for the night. Connie was set in the middle, with his arms around both of them.  When college came around, it turns out that Annie was going up north. Mikasa and Connie were also going up north, but for a different college. They decided to buy a two bedroom apartment together and to just commute. It was weird to live with two girls prone to bickering, but Connie was always able to compromise. On top of that, they all were pretty good at communication between each other.  When Mikasa was feeling left out, she sent a text explaining herself the best she could, and her two lovers always figured out a way to make it up to her. Same with Annie. The blonde and black haired girls were always able to communication to Connie how they were feeling, and they genuinely listened to Connie when he spoke—especially if he cracked some stupid joke; they love his shitty humor. They loved him. He, of course, loved his two strong girlfriends, and never felt emasculated—he enjoyed watching them outlift in the gym, and was very encouraging.  He’s grateful for them, and couldn’t ask for better girlfriends.

[turquoisephoenix]

Perfect Chemistry

A Skylanders one shot

Dr. Krankcase/Mags. All it takes is a slip of a tongue and before you know it you're accidentally admitting that you have romantic feelings for your best friend from Inventor's School.

The sun was already setting in the cloud-filled horizon of Skylands, distant clouds on the western horizon glowing like fresh coals in a burning furnace.

Just this morning, Skylanders Academy - beacon of hope, symbol of virtue and peace in a turbulent magical world littered with monsters and villains - held a giant celebration to welcome four new Skylanders into the fold. While it was common for someone courageous enough to be made a Skylander (Master Eon was never considered very picky about who he granted the title, provided the recipient had proven themselves worthy of the title) was what made this day special was that it heralded the end of an evil chapter. The end of a nightmarish era.

Four of The Doom Raiders have given up crime.

After several years performing community service and training under the watchful eye of Master Eon and his most loyal followers, Wolfgang, The Golden Queen, the Chompy Mage, and Dr. Krankcase were now all considered fit to rejoin society and were all awarded new jobs as both Skylanders and teachers at the Academy. The Doom Raiders as a villainous organization had now ceased to be.

Some of the members of the Academy wished that it was all of the awful criminals - Chef Pepper Jack, Dreamcatcher, and The Gulper were all considered to be at large and major threats to the peace that the Skylanders upheld - but this was still considered a major victory to celebrate. It proved that evil could change, even if it took several years of sorting through books at a library to do so.

And with their newly awarded freedom - and their declaration that they would never use their powers for evil ever again unless they want a life sentence in Cloudcracker Prison - the Academy threw a party in their honor.

And boy, what a party it was. Even as the sun was setting and the hours were winding on, the party showed no signs of slowing down and looked to be rising to a fever pitch, with everybody in the Academy taking advantage of the excuse to eat as much food as they could, dance until their feet felt ready to fall off, and talk to the new members of the Academy staff while under the influence of caffeine and various snack products. The enchilada sauce flowed freely, as did the music from several local bands. The kitchen fires burned around the clock just to supply enough refreshments to everyone who showed up.

One ex-Doom Raider, however, wanted a break from the celebrations. Dr. Krankcase, tray of party favors still in one hand, kept glancing out the window and at the setting sun as if searching for an exit. That isn't to say he had fun today, of course not, but while his former partners in crime were still taking the center stage, either through queenly proclamations that they declare their powers to be a rightful force that will make all the bad guys tremble or through unprompted guitar solos that shook the dust off of the Academy's foundations, Dr. Krankcase was now just hanging back near the back of the party with Mags and her friends. Mags was the only non-Doom Raider he knew at the party, after all.

Mags had noticed that Dr. Krankcase was giving subtle hints that he no longer wanted to be there anymore, even if he refused to say so out loud. She had known him for so long that she was able to pick up on the tiny cues that he gave when it was obvious that he was no longer having fun at a social gathering, especially one that was filled with questions from future coworkers. His jokes became just a little more forced, his body language became tight and more hesitant, his eyes kept searching for possible escape routes, and his smile had turned from something bright and cheerful to something that had the grimace of a caged animal.

He seemed too afraid to leave on his own, possibly in fear that someone would somehow find it suspicious and immediately take away his recent accolades and throw him back in Cloudcracker Prison (anxiety was funny like that) so when Mags suggested they head over to her workshop, he practically jumped at the opportunity.

That's what friends were for, right?

"Man, thanks for saving me back there, Mags. I'm not used to so much festivity and merriment thrown in my direction." Dr. Krankcase said as he entered Mags' workshop, breathing a sigh of relief as his legs clicked noisily across the floor.

When the ex-Doom Raider had last visited her workplace, there was so much stuff on the floor - wrenches, half-finished blueprints, cans of oil, that sort of thing - that he had such a hard time getting around and instead stood awkwardly in a corner. Now, there was a clear path cutting through the place, the organized chaos instead being pushed off to the sides where they couldn't get caught on his spider legs. He appreciated the gesture. With how well his cybernetic wooden legs worked, a lot of people forgot that they were still considered mobility aids and that he couldn't stand in places that people with two legs could.

"Aww, it's no big deal!" she said, hanging her silly stovepipe hat on a stand near the door. "Although personally I think ya were doing a great job with all them questions and-" Mags stopped herself the moment she saw her partner follow her lead and also remove his hat. "...Cranberry, are you wearing a toupee?"

The mad scientist looked up, radiating a similar aura of a dog caught with a stolen bagel in its mouth, and smiled sheepishly. There was an unfortunate blue hairpiece perched on her froggy companion, several shades darker than the actual hair sticking out on the sides of his head. His face began to turn pink as he looked away from her.

"Well...you know, I wanted to be prepared in case some accident knocked my hat off during the party! You know how it goes. I didn't want my new coworkers to see my massive bald spot, and...well..."

He trailed off, realized how lame he sounded, and ripped the hair piece from his head as he immediately gave up. His massive bald spot, normally hidden by one of his many tall hats of choice, now glistened in the workshop's lighting.

"So yes, yes, I'm wearing a very bad toupee," he held it away from him between two pinched fingers in disgust. "A very damp one at that!"

Mags put a hand against her mouth to stifle a giggle as he unceremoniously chucked the hell toupee in a wastebin. "Ya wanna relax while I get yer gift ready? It'll take a couple minutes to get it set up and ya look like death there, buddy."

Thankful for the invitation, Krankcase flopped on a dusty old couch that Mags kept in her workplace, his legs curled up like a dead spider as some of the legs pierced the worn out arm rest. His modified body shape was good for standing but not so much for more leisurely poses; couches were now the preferred method of relaxation over a chair. He stretched, his back and neck audibly cracking, as a lazy smile spread on his face. "Don't need to tell me twice, Mags."

He listened to her leave into the next room and allowed himself to gaze around the area. He loved that Mags' workshop was like an extension of herself. Most of the space in her workshop was dedicated to her profession, with wrenches and blowtorches and screwdrivers hanging on the walls, but on occasion he'd spot something like a kitten poster or a little ceramic puppy hanging out alongside cans of oil or belt sanders.

There were almost no hints that Mags had originated from the Underlands - a place where vampires, werewolves, and zombies lurked in dusty ol' crypts and mansions - except for one aging photograph that showed her standing next to her parents and five other siblings. Even in the photograph, her parents looked like they were glaring in disapproval at the legless amphibian laying on their daughter's sofa.

But then, as he was left to his thoughts and as he studied Mags' knickknacks and workshop decorations, the butterflies in his stomach returned anew, this time bringing forth the bubbling feelings he kept suppressed. His smile slowly morphed into an uneasy frown as he began to fiddle with one of his bottom tusks. Ah yes, that was a problem. He wasn't sure what caused it - what made his brain flip the switch and change his thoughts into something more potent - but lately he's been having feelings for his best friend. Somehow it almost felt criminal.

'No, don't make it awkward...' he told himself, dragging a hand across his face. He couldn't say it out loud, but he loved Mags. He loved everything about her, her bubbly, positive personality, her immense knowledge in everything science. He loved her accent, the way she would crack a silly joke even in the face of danger. He loved how excited and loud she would get when she was getting close to a breakthrough in an experiment. He loved the way she smiled, the way she still was friends with him even after all the awful, evil things he's done in the past. He even loved her stupid hat, even if he thought his taste in headwear was far superior.

And he was absolutely afraid of ruining all that by saying the wrong thing. What if his tongue betrayed him in the worst possible moment and he said what he was really thinking? Would she hate him? Would he lose his best friend over some stupid emotions?

"Here it is!" Mags cried suddenly, jolting him from his thoughts. Almost guiltily, Dr. Krankcase scrambled to his feet.

Nothing could prepare him for what he saw.

"Mags..."

Standing before him, next to a very excited Mags, was an exact double of the wooden legs that were holding him upright. He slowly walked over to it, his arm outstretched like a sleepwalker, until his fingers grazed the top of it. It was made from the same wood and everything, and all the bolts and joints were at the exact same size. She got the measurements down exactly, when he didn't even build a working blueprint for his wooden spider legs.

"You...you built a replica of my legs?" he asked, leaning forward to examine it even more closely. He lifted a leg up and started testing the joints, then he moved one of his own legs next to Mags' gift and eyeballed the two inventions together, admiring Mags' handicraft. There was absolutely no difference, beyond the fact that only one pair of legs had a Dr. Krankcase sitting in them. It was unbelievable.

"They're not functional, before ya ask. You're still the only one who can bring this type of wood to life. But this has been a little pet project o' mine that I've been fiddling with over the months. I'm slowly learning how yer legs work so that, if something...you know...were to happen while you're out on a mission doing heroic, dangerous things, I could help repair them. It just seems like something to ease your mind just in case something terrible happened."

Krankcase was speechless. After spending an entire day keeping up appearances and trying to play it cool, he lost his composure.

"Mags..." he paused to take a deep breath. Words were suddenly catching in his chest. He ran a hand down his face as tears caught in his eyes. "No one's ever offered to help me like this before."

Mags elbowed him playfully, grinning from ear to ear.

"Aww, it's such a small gesture for the man I love."

Time seemed to stop for both of them. It was the tiniest slip of the tongue - something that Dr. Krankcase thought he misheard - but, like the wrong ingredient thrown into an alchemist's pot, there was an immediate explosive response and suddenly everything in the recipe changed.

"I MEAN-" Mags began, her face instantly turning beet red. She began to gesture wildly with her hands, emotions suddenly flaring up. "Aw shoot, I meant that in a platonic way! I didn't mean it like as in LOVE love, that would be real awkward ta just spring that on ya just now, aw diddly-di-darn, I mean, some things just slip out, boy howdy, I've been working so late and I'm tired andand-"

"Mags! It's okay!" he shouted. Inwardly, as he watched her fidget nervously, he noticed that Mags' accent got even thicker when she was flustered. It was adorable to him, one of the many quirks that made her beautiful in his eyes, and something about it made the ex-Doom Raider feel bold.

He was a Skylander now, after all. Skylanders were supposed to be flexible and adapt to any situation.

"To be quite honest, I love you too."

It was a shot in the dark, one that made his mind scream out in anguish for letting such an important secret out, but it had the perfect effect. Mags didn't tell him that their friendship was now over, she didn't react in disgust at such a display of utter pigheadedness from some frog with a doctorate degree. Instead she froze in place and stared at him blankly like a newborn fawn.

"Wait, you...you do?"

He nodded.

"...Really?"

Her voice sounded so small, so fragile, so unlike the Mags he's known for so long. That's when it hit him. Gears spinning in his head, his eyes fell back on the replica of his own mechanical legs, the result of months of studying his own handiwork just so he would never have to worry about an injury making him unable to repair his legs himself. He wasn't the only one hiding secret affections for a best friend, too afraid to speak up in fear that it'd just alienate the other person and their long-term friendship would be ruined forever.

Dr. Krankcase and Mags were the two smartest scientists in all of Skylands, capable of bending the very fabric of reality with their inventions, and yet both of them were unable to see what was developing between them.

Without thinking, he wrapped her in his arms and pressed her close, burying his face in her bright purple hair. He felt her flinch, but then her hesitation vanished and she relaxed in his embrace and put her arms around his waist.

"Really." He replied back, trying to imitate the dashing hero in a romance novel. His attempt at being suave failed instantly however as his bottled-up emotions overwhelmed him. His voice ended up trembling and the tears he was holding back began to fall on her head. A weak sob escaped his lips and his body shook. He wasn't sure if this was real or not.

"I just didn't think..." he paused as words were getting harder to use. "-you'd want someone like me."

Mags didn't respond as she rested her head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat flutter anxiously. She didn't have to ask what he meant. She had frequently checked up on him while he was doing community service and on occasion he'd tell her that he was afraid that them continuing to be friends would tarnish her reputation. After all, she was a hero of Skylands while he was a disgraced criminal. She helped people, he hurt people. She saved the world from destruction, and he once built a doomsday device. Their friendship persisted, but lately, he was voicing his doubts more and more.

'Because he was falling in love with me,' she realized as she remained pressed up against him, breathing in the wood chip and hint of acid smell that lingered on his clothes. Dr. Krankcase's hug lingered; he was so touch-starved that he was almost afraid of letting go, in fear that this golden opportunity would slip through his fingers.

He was always like that, she mused to herself. Doubting himself and his ability to live up to her achievements despite looking outwardly prideful. Even when they were alumni at the most prestigious inventor's school, Krankcase was afraid that becoming friends with her would reflect badly on Magdalena Sibylla-Bronwen Soulstealer the II, daughter of one of the most famous vampires in the Underlands.

"Of course I want to be with you. I'd be fine living the rest of my life with you if I had to." she said softly, arms still around his waist.

She loved Dr. Krankcase, she could finally admit that to herself. She loved everything he was, every little piece of his maniacal personality, his talents and strengths as well as his flaws. She didn't mind at all that he had creepy spider legs. He was a cunning scientist just like her, a man of alchemy and engineering, and also a fearsome warrior. She almost felt a little guilty for admitting this, but she even loved his time as a villain, if only because it made his current achievements that much richer. He was once evil, but he also had the strength to realize what he did was wrong and pull himself out of his wicked mindset.

At those words, Krankcase's mind started to ponder the possibility of spending the rest of his life with her - would they get married? would they have kids? - and something about it activated his deep-seeded anxiety and his body went into fight-or-flight mode. He instantly pulled away from her, an action so swift that Mags nearly fell over, as he tried to slowly walk backwards out the front door. Everything was happening too fast.

"You know, Mags. I should...I should get going." he said, panic flooding his voice. "T-Thank you for the present, it was...I'll be real, it was the best thing I've ever received in my life-BUT I think I've stayed too long, I'm kinda making things awkward right now, I don't want anyone in the Academy to get any ideas and start talking-"

Mags approached him swiftly, her hands gently resting on his shoulders, stopping him from running away. They made eye contact and for a brief moment, neither of them spoke as they both gazed into each other eyes. Without realizing what he was doing, Krankcase leaned forward until both of them felt each other's breath on their face. Two of his spider legs adjusted themselves so that they were on opposite sides of her own, gently framing her with his own cybernetics.

Mags drew herself to her full height. Now it was her turn to be bold.

"Let them talk."

And with those words, she pulled his face towards her's, fingers caught in his fluffy blue hair, and gave him a kiss. It was clumsy, a sloppy first attempt from a scientist so inexperienced in romance that most of her experience - save for the time when she dated Cali for a brief couple of months - came from TV shows and crinkled paperbacks.

But like most of her science experiments, it had the desired result. He leaned into her kiss and they both melted into each other, savoring the moment. Dr. Krankcase put a hand behind her head, running his fingers in her purple hair. When they finally pulled away, both of them needed some time to catch their breath.

"Wow..." was his only reply. It snapped him back to his senses; the panic was gone and he was back to his charming self.

Then, his mouth curled into a wide grin, his bottom tusks framing his lovely set of fangs.

"Well? Did it work? Did I turn into a prince?"

It was a dumb joke, but it also broke all of the tension that was hanging in the room. Mags immediately started cackling like a hyena like it was the funniest joke she's heard in her life, leaning her head against Krankcase's chest as he too started laughing.

"Sorry! Sorry! It was the perfect moment-" he tried to explain, but he was cut off when Mags jokingly punched him in the arm.

"You're such a dork!" Mags shot back.

Krankcase quietly embraced her again, leaning his chin on her shoulder. Even without his face visible, Mags could feel the grin that was spreading across his face. She smiled back. To both scientists, everything outside of the workshop was now forgotten. The party was forgotten. All fears of gossip were forgotten. All that existed now was their beautiful romance blossoming between the two of them like the most wonderful result of an experiment.

"Yes but I'm your dork."

[i-like-cookiez]

An Experiment (Pidge X borrower!Lance)

Voltron g/t oneshot!

Wanting to write g/t + the amazing characters of Voltron = this, please enjoy :3

In all honesty, Lance should’ve seen this coming…

He’d been getting sloppy with his borrowing runs over the past week, leaving behind evidence of a presence in the home. He overheard one of the humans living there, a girl, muttering to herself about catching mice. He should’ve realized she had been referring to him.

And yet here he was. Desperately pounding on the strange glowing walls of his trap. He backed into the middle, his breathing becoming less stable. He’d been caught. By a human! Examining the walls closer, only added to Lance’s confusion. It didn’t look like any human object he’d ever seen before from other houses he’d lived in.

“It worked! My trap worked!” He heard from outside the strange little box. He shrunk into himself, realizing who it was. The girl. He heard the approaching footsteps, and felt the looming darkness of her shadow fall over him. Lance considered himself to be pretty brave. His parents even supporting that claim before he’d left his home.

But now? Now, he felt terrified. Powerless to do anything. He felt like the human girl was already grasping him in her tight, unforgiving fist, and yet she hadn’t even reached for him.

“Finally, I’ll have a live test subject for my experiments and inventions! And you’ll stop stealing all of my peanut butter cookies.” Lance’s body tensed, and his legs felt like jelly.

“T-Test subject…?” He whispered to himself. She was going to keep him in a cage, locked away from the world. Testing stuff on him. He fell to his knees, and hunched over, not having the will to look at the human.

“N-No please...please.” Lance quietly begged, tears beginning to trickle down his face. He tried to stop them, but to no avail, as the fear for his life overrided his pride.

“Wait a second...you’re not a mouse…oh my gosh.” Lance heard the girl suddenly whisper. And then, like magic, the walls of his trap receded. Freeing him, but also leaving no barrier between him and the girl.

“Incredible! A t-tiny person?...But how? How are you real?” She inquired, eyes lit up in awe at his presence. Lance hesitantly looked up. And up, and up to meet her gaze. He gulped fearfully as he took in her appearance.

She was wearing a green and white shirt, and had short light brown hair. She also had a pair of quite large glasses on. Scientists wear big glasses to study their subjects don’t they? Lance thought to himself. They locked eyes for a few seconds, and Lance took a couple steps back. She continued to look down at him, still surprised. Then she saw his body shaking.

“Oh...you poor thing.” She cooed, then looked at herself, “a-am I...am I scaring you?” She asked. The borrower was curling in on himself, and didn’t reply.

“Here, let me…” she trailed off, reaching down, and grabbing Lance in a firm, but gentle fist. Lance, however, did not appreciate the sudden handling. He kicked and screamed with all he had, but not even his best efforts did anything to weaken the massive being. He slumped against her fingers, defeated, and let himself be taken to what he knew would be his certain doom.

~~~~~

Pidge’s mind was going crazy. A tiny humanoid creature?!?! She never thought stable living beings were possible at that size due to the square cube law…and yet, she was holding one in her hand, although the little guy didn’t seem too pleased about being picked up.

She had so many questions she wanted to ask this boy. Where did he come from? Are there more of him? What is he? Her scientific brain swirled. What if she showed him to her father? Maybe he’d take him to labs, and their family would get rich because of her discovery! They would get tons of money, and she could use that money to work onbigger and better inventions! Pidge’s ideas came to a halt as she took a glance down at the boy in her loose fist. She immediately noticed the tears welled up in the corners of his eyes, how she could feel his entire body tremble against her fingers. He wasn’t just scared of her.

He was terrified.

Guilt crashed over Pidge like a tidal wave. This boy had emotions, and seemed just as intelligent as a human, she could’ve sworn she had even heard him speak quietly earlier. And she had thought of showing him off as some object. Some inanimate trophy of sorts for her own personal gain. Sure, he would be a scientific breakthrough, but he looked human. And no human deserves to be treated like a science experiment.

Opening and closing the door to her room quickly, Pidge carefully set him down on her desk, near some of her inventions in progress. She watched him look around with a small smile. He was kind of adorable. Then, he bolted. Thinking fast, Pidge slammed her hand down in his path. She cringed as he smacked face first into it, and fell back on his butt.

“Shoot! A-Are you okay, little guy?” She asked worriedly. She reached towards him to check if he got hurt, but he shielded his body with his arms.

“No! L-Leave me alone, human!” He shouted up to her. She pulled her hands away, raising them up defensively.

“Hey, hey, please calm down, little buddy...I mean you no harm. I’m sorry if I’m scaring you. I guess my curiosity got a little too much for both of us...heh.” She admitted, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly.

“My name is Katie, but my brother, Matt, calls me Pidge.” She introduced. “What’s your name?” She asked softly.

~~~~~

Lance looked up at the human, Katie, or Pidge, whichever she went by, distrustingly. His name? He’d never tell his name to a human!

“Wh-Why do you want to know my name?!” He asked her, “aren’t I just your new ‘test subject’?” He questioned, fear seeping back into his voice. He noticed her face sadden.

“I...I’m sorry for trapping you. I thought, well, a mouse was stealing our food. I thought it’d be a nice way to test my new device that I built myself. My hypothesis never anticipated the Mouse actually being a tiny human.” She explained.

“I’m not a human, I’m a borrower!” Lance retorted, slamming a hand over his mouth. Oh shoot, he just revealed his kind to a human! “Are-Are you going to send me to a lab to be experimented on?” Lance asked. Pidge sighed.

“No, I couldn’t do that to a creature as intelligent as yourself. You don’t deserve the treatment of an animal in a science lab.” She stated. Lance blushed a little. Did she say he was smart? Obviously Lance was overthinking what she’d meant. Pidge saw his face and rolled her eyes with a small smile.

“Oh, and don’t worry. None of these strange looking inventions are going to be used on you. In case you were feeling nervous about that.” She mentioned, moving them to another part of her room to ease his tension. “Can I know your name now?” She asked hopefully. Lance looked wary, he closed his eyes.

“It’s...L-Lance.” He sighed. Could he trust Pidge? Was she using him to gain info on his kind now that she knew about him?

“Nice to formally meet you, Lance.” She said with a smile. “So, uh, how do “borrowers” like you live?” Pidge asked him, pulling up a chair and sitting down at the desk. Lance hated how she sat leaning over him. She held so much power over him and she didn’t even realize, and he didn’t like that one bit.

“Well...we live in humans’ house walls, and scavenge small portions of left behind food scraps to survive…” he was reluctant to answer the question, but did so anyway. Pidge nodded, taking in his words.

“Seems like a dangerous life.” Pidge observed, “why don’t you come to us for help? Wouldn’t it be easier than hiding away?” She asked. Lance shuddered.

“Ask a human for help?!” He outbursted, surprising Pidge, “that’s crazy talk! Do you know what would happen to us?!” She raised an eyebrow, signaling him to continue.

“I’ve heard stories from old friends, and my parents...humans who’ve...killed us, shown us off to friends, kept us as...as pets.” He scowled, “humans are not to be trusted.” He finished. Pidge was speechless from his answer. She watched as he turned and began to walk away from her. At first, she decided to let him leave, but then another idea came to her.

“W-Wait!” She called out, “please, come back Lance.” She pleaded. Lance narrowed his eyes, but the look of desperation on her face made him cave, so he walked back.

“I’d like to conduct an experiment.” Pidge declared. Lance gasped.

“What?! Y-You lied to me!” He exclaimed. But Pidge stopped him from panicking.

“Just hold on! Don’t freak out! Just please hear me out first.” She started, “What if you give me one week to prove you wrong that all humans are cruel and evil?” She offered. Lance was confused.

“Huh?” He asked, not getting it.

“Will you stay with me for one week? Just to see if I can prove to you that I don’t want to hurt you? And that some humans are worth trusting? That’s my experiment. You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, but you might learn something new.” She added. Lance bounced back and forth on his feet, unsure of what to say.

“I...I don’t know. Wh-What if your lying? What if you kill me? What if you...eat me?!” Lance was starting to panic again. Pidge chuckled.

“Gross, I’d never EAT you!” She cried, grimacing, she leaned her face down closer to Lance.

“Lance...you can trust me, I swear. If you accept, You’ll be 100% safe. I just want to show you a new side of life.” She reassured. Pidge then placed her open palm face up on the table in front of him.

“Do you trust me?” She asked. Lance looked from the hand, to her eyes. She gave a small smile, and her eyes showed genuine kindness from behind her giant specs. Taking a deep breath, Lance stepped onto the offered palm.

“Yes. I trust you, Pidge. I-I’ll do it.” He stated, trying to sound as brave as possible. Pidge lifted her hand off of the table, bringing it close to her chest, and using her other hand as a wall as a way of protection.

“Excellent. I can’t wait to show you all of the amazing things that being an antisocial, inventive human has to offer!” She jokingly said excitedly.

“Hey, Pidge?” Lance suddenly piped up. She looked down at him.

“Yeah, Lance? You okay?” He paused, rubbing his arm nervously.

“Why are you doing this?” He asked.

“Because. From the looks of things, you seem to be here all alone, and with my dad and brother gone in space...I think we both need a friend.Wouldn’t you say?” She replied. Lance sat in silence for a moment.

“Yeah. A friend sounds...it sounds nice.” He admitted. Even a human friend… he thought, a small smile crossing his lips. Maybe Pidge would prove him wrong. After all, she turned out pretty okay.

He sat down in her palm, as she carried him back downstairs, to show him “video games”, what he thinks she called them. Her body heat was really comfortable, and in no time, he found himself curled up against her frame. The warmth enveloped him like a blanket, and it’s relaxing quality soon took him into a nice sleep.

~~~~~

Pidge heard Lance’s breathing slow, so she looked down to check on him, only to see he was fast asleep, curled up against her. She silently cooed at his adorable sleeping body.

“Huh, if tiny people really can exist...maybe I could build something to shrink Matt when he comes back. Then he’d finally stop making height jokes about me.” She said to herself, chuckling. She decided to turn back to her bedroom. Her new friend deserved some rest.

She deposited him onto her pillow, and sat down beside it.

“Sleep well, Lance. I’ll be here for you.” She whispered. She made a promise to Lance that she’d show him that humans could be good. And she intended to fulfill that promise.

My first time writing g/t with not original characters...woah. I mentioned how we need more tol Pidge, so I decided to act upon that, and made this! I hope it was a nice read, and I hope I got their characters right...I mean after 6 seasons of Voltron in 3 days, I should be pretty good.

[thechocoboexpress-blog]

Everything

This idea caught me like a fever in the night, so I took it and I ran my ass off with it.

All 2,922 words worth of it. 

So uh, warning, angst, a bit of gore/body horror at the end. Oh, and character death.

Have fun! Bring tissues!

P.S. This is written in the perspective of Ardyn so his view of certain people is a bit skewed. 

@hypaalicious​ @diabolik-trash-heap​ @louisvuittontrashbags​ @wrathwritesthings​ @themissimmortal​

Ardyn was a man with many things, wealth, power, beauty, and slews of gorgeous women and some, men, at his feet, and my, what young boy doesn’t want beautiful people with beautiful bodies just begging for his attention?

Ardyn was a man with many things, but he didn’t have everything.

Ardyn was a man that people envied, or admired, or strove to be, he was well educated, he was charming, he was strong and tall and light on his feet, healthier than even the finest Chocobo. None of those things mattered to her.

Ardyn was a man who was given everything, in the form of the most divine creature he’d ever seen.

A beautiful baby girl.

Ardyn already knew he was a very tall man, the only man almost as tall as he, was his elder brother, and even Izunia was shorter than him, if only by an inch. And yet. All his gloating about being the largest man he knew didn’t compare to how massive he felt cradling his little flower in his arms, those tiny little hands that could hardly fit around his finger.

His everything was a Camellia, or so she was named.

His everything left him in tears most nights, as she didn’t grow, she stretched, born a sick, bedridden and broken little thing, all skin and bones and this horrible, rattling wheeze as she slept, constantly fighting to live.

He knew he had responsibilities, he was a Prince, the world needed him. But he was also a boy and the whole world could go be damned for all that he cared, coming to the infirmary every night rather than his home, curling around his daughter as if he could physically shield her from her ailments with his flesh. And he would too, if that opportunity were ever given to him.

He thinks this, with his eyes to the sky. Thunder rumbles. There is no response.

She grows, he ages, she becomes clever with a tongue sharper than a knife, but her body remains desolated by a disease that can’t be cured. She’ll never walk.

She’s given a wheelchair and it eases some difficulty in her life. But it isn’t enough. Her home is an archaic structure with thousands of stairs, anyone with half a brain knows that wheels and stairs aren’t going to go well together.

Even with her chair and her strength, six bless him his baby girl is so strong. But sometimes, it’s just too much. So he’ll pick her narrow body up in his arms, carry her out into the fields that surround his home, and braid flowers into her hair as he talks about anything and nothing. Until the tenor of his voice lulls her to sleep.

Niflheim has come up with some of the first braces of their kind, things that would ease so much of his daughter’s pain. The medical professionals assigned to take care of her however, are reluctant to go through the painstaking task of getting some of these from an enemy country. She’s already been deemed a lost cause behind his back.

So he takes it upon himself, begs and pleads with anyone in good standing in Niflheim to help him with this, and when he is refused time and time again he takes to shadier roots, he knows some people from his slightly younger days, very good at forging and smuggling, and while something as precious a medical breakthrough as that is nigh impossible to steal, the schematics for it might be another story.

It takes a long time, and a lot of money, but before long the things he needs to make those braces are in his hands, and he knows he can’t trust others to make this without using the knowledge as blackmail, so he takes it upon himself to painstakingly shape metal rods and leather and wool into something that can be useful. Thing is, he has no experience in any of these departments.

And boy, does he injure himself, a lot, and badly. So often would he come home smiling, he’s getting closer! Only to notice the panic in his daughters’ eyes and look down to see blood gushing from the cuts in his palms and across his fingers, or other times searing burns in the shape of the scalding rods he gripped with his bare hands. But he never does seem to feel the pain past all the excitement.

The gloves he wears are one of the few things he has with a purpose, rather than grandiose fashion. They cover millennia old scars, pale white marks that force him to remember a little girl he used to hold in his arms and spin around until they were both dizzy.

He’ll never forget that look on her face the day he comes back exhausted with the finished braces in his hands, the way she looks on the brink of tears, it doesn’t make the pain magically disappear but it’s better and it hasn’t been better since she was a toddler. She smiles so broadly his heart feels like it might explode.

Ease one ailment and a new one forms.

But this isn’t something he can just smuggle a cure for.

It’s something he’s heard nightmarish stories about.

It’s worse than he imagined.

He wants to puke his damn guts out when he hears the word ‘Scourge’ among all the medical jargon he almost feels like is there just to infuriate him. Maids and doctors and even a guard or two try and stop him. “No! My liege, it’s contagious!” But why would that ever matter to him? Why? When his whole world is in that room dying a horrible death.

He’s careful not to burst through the doors like a madman, but even with his slow entry the sight is so startling he wants to fall to his knees. Just a day ago she was fine! She was normal and bright! Why? Why did this happen?

She’s laid out flat on the bed, and her skin is so papery and pale that it looks like it could tear at any moment, she’s staring blankly at the ceiling and the pupil of her right eye is so disgustingly oversized that barely any of her iris is left, the skin around her eye sunken with purple and black veins spidering out, her lips have gone blue.

She’s going to die, she’s going to die very soon and in this time he’s not a boy, he’s not a man, he’s not a Prince, he’s just a desperate father, and so he goes to the only place he can think of, The Crystal. He goes there and he pleads. For days.

Every morning he’s at his daughter’s side, watching that horrible disease eat her already fragile body, mutating more and more of her as it goes. And every night he sleeps up against the Crystal, pleading for help until he passes out.

It isn’t working, so he holds his baby girl in his arms and kisses her forehead and reads her all the books she loves until nightfall, and then he leaves. He seeks out his oldest friend, not a person but rather a bird, Morgan, a large gentle black Chocobo he’s owned since he was a little boy, the only Chocobo he’s met that not only didn’t mind the ocean but sought it out. Much to the chagrin of the stable workers that had to comb down his frizzed out feathers.

And to the wide world of Eos he goes, searching out old ruins of Solheim, searching towns and cities with abandon trying to find something, anything for his daughter. But it’s pointless. No one has ever cured the plague known as the Starscourge. It’s likely no one ever will. But that isn’t good enough, so he goes farther, and his ever faithful mount gladly takes him, until fields turn into nothing but sand.

It’s fruitless even then, but he’s made a fatal error this time, he hasn’t packed enough rations for the journey into the desert, and it’s been a week, and now he and his bird are dehydrated and starving and he’s on his knees beside his bird that has collapsed. And he grieves for the fate of his avian friend but not for his own. He promised his child he’d do anything for her. He failed. He deserves this.

He’s shaken from his despair with a rumble, no, a rumbling voice. So loud it’s unfathomable and shakes the sand in place. Speaking in a tongue he couldn’t understand. And as it became apparent it wasn’t getting through to him- the air around him began to cool. And a soft voice spoke in his ear. “O chosen one, we have seen your suffering, your love, you offer your soul time and time again for She who’s life withers away in your home. And we have come to answer.”

It’s hardly something the Prince can fathom, deities he grew up worshipping speaking to him.

Morgan seems as if he were never overheating in the first place, and Ardyn finds that his hunger and thirst has vanished as well. And off he races back to his home. Every time he thinks he should stop as the night falls that gentle twinkling voice is in his ear again, urging him on and assuring him that neither he nor his bird will grow tired. Never again.

It takes three days for him to return, and the somber mourning of the city rends his heart to lead.

She died the night before he arrived.

So he goes to her, and he wants to wail when he sees what state she’s in, the veins have completely infected the right half of her body, her eye is just gone, her fingers had melded together into some disgusting lump and her teeth fell out, she looked like some diseased mummy.

He cradled her stiff body despite this, and he cried.

There’s a bright blinding yellow light, and then a hand on his face, warm and soft and small. When he gazes down she’s staring up at him, she looks fine, she looked better than fine. In fact, Ardyn has to take a moment and try to remember if she’s ever looked this healthy in her entire fifteen years of life.

And here approaches the happiest thirteen years of his life, he has been chosen by the Six to heal the world, and after seeing what it did to his daughter he was more than determined to get rid of the plague as fast as possible. But more importantly his daughter was healthy, the ability the Six had given him did so much more than just cure the scourge that plagued his teenage child, it cured her of every ailment she’d ever had, and my, she blossomed. She became her father in a dress, practically, all the wit and cunning and determination.

And naturally. Ardyn became a six-and-a-half-foot force of fatherly terror for any boy or girl dumb enough to so much as look at her for an extended amount of time.

But now Ardyn had a new role than just ‘Father of The Damn Millennia’ to play, he was now The Healer. And there were so many people he could help now. So so many. Camellia was coming along, she didn’t ask. She said so. That’s his precious girl.

He was a healer and she was a scholar able to talk circles around the finest nobles, and they spent the next thirteen years glued to each other, going about life in the morning and picking on each other at night. “Father, you’re like a Anak Stag, you’re as tall as Costlemark Tower and you trip over everything.”

“Well excuse me for not being able to see your hobbit furniture, I swear, no concern for an elderly man such as myself.”

“You’re only thirty-four.”

“With the back of a ninety-five year old!”

“It wouldn’t hurt if you’d stop slouching when you read documents.”

“Well I wouldn’t have to get so close to the paper if your uncle’s handwriting wasn’t illegible.”

“As you say.”

Camellia ends up with a Chocobo named Sable, a bird so dark brown it was almost black, and Morgan ended up with a crush.

Ardyn should have seen it coming.

It was inevitable.

His worst nightmare had finally come for him.

His Daughter was crushing on someone.

They were from Niflheim, went by the name Besithia, they were a relatively minor Noble house, but full of good and level minded fellows, it was a shame they’d all have to DIE- “Father! Yield! You overgrown attack dog!”

Okay, so maybe it wasn’t as world ending as led on but still, his baby girl was growing up and it hurt, he was happy, but it made his heart ache to watch her grow and not need him anymore.

Months turned into years, she fell for that boy named Eleazar, with his bright blond hair and eyes bright clear blue, an inane amount of freckles and a strange obsession with science and engineering, always working on some new invention. Weapons and medicine and other machinery. Hm, better than inventing ways into her blouse I suppose.

So many merry years. Love and joy. Watching her fall for and marry that boy.

But the life of these royals, it’s like a pendulum swinging.

As Camellia’s life waxes, Ardyn’s wanes. His body beginning to weather under the magic he’d been gifted by the Six, and yet he continued onward.

It wasn’t long before Camellia began commenting on… Changes. He was tiring faster, walking slower, breathing heavier. And his hair, his eyes, how they mutated.

He remembers the first time she noticed. They were in the Leide region and in the middle of a casual stroll he crumpled like a bag of potatoes, when it was she that had problems walking it was no problem, he could pick her up and maneuver her without complaint, but he wasn’t small. So getting him somewhere safe was a big problem.

By the time that ordeal was over she scolded him for hours. In the middle of cupping his face and telling him how worried she was was when she noticed, two delicate small fingers reaching up to grab a strand of violet hair. She wasn’t just seeing things! His eyes actually are turning yellow. But there was nothing to be done, he wouldn’t hear of it.

It was a fight about this very thing that broke them apart.

The last they spoke ended with him calling her ‘A selfish little imbecile.’ and her calling him ‘A damned fool headed for his own death.’ And with that she’d left.

He’ll never regret anything more in his two thousand years of life.

She had taken Eleazar and returned home to Insomnia, ready to live her life, and he continued to burn himself away healing people of the Scourge.

Three years passed and he got a single letter from his daughter, wishing to speak.

He returned to his home, fully planning on going straight for his daughters’ house, but he was intercepted by his traitorous brother, speaking of how he’d completed his task and was ready to ascend. And so he went to the Crystal. Just a quick stop, then I’ll talk to her.

It burned.

In a way he couldn’t describe. And then he could see it. Everywhere, on everything black black black black. And he wanted to be enraged but everyone was screaming… So scared of him. People he saved were all running.

They dragged him through the streets that day, they beat him, cut him, stabbed him, carved him up. Burned him. The worst treatments that could be thought of and more.

It was in the evening of the next week when he heard the shrieking and wailing, didn’t need to see it to know it was Morgan, that they were doing something terrible to that poor creature who’d been nothing but good and pure.

The shrieking lasted hours and he closed what was left of his eyelids against it, and then he heard the scream. Every part of him wanted and needed that to still be Morgan, but the scream got closer and it was a Human, a Human girl, his Human girl, his baby girl. Sweet precious amazing Camellia.

She screamed again when she saw him, what was left of him, torn into shreds and oozing everywhere, missing both legs and his left arm and two fingers from his right hand, and what was left of his right arm was mangled and broken in disgusting angles. The rest of him so mutilated that it’d be sin to articulate it.

The side of her face was swelling, busted up and bleeding, and he felt the world turn red with all his rage. And they forced her onto her knees in front of him. And his sinful evil vile little bastard worthless- brother came into view, in all his shining useless decorative armor and his fake sorrowful expression.

“Well little brother, you love her. Come get her.” And his sword rose high…

And he wanted to scream but he dragged himself, felt his intestines sliding out past his charred skin and wanted to howl but he kept going, watched his brother brace that sword in both hands.

He was so close to her! Almost there almost there! The wind whistled—

And!—

Ardyn Lucis Caelum was once a man who had everything.

He lost it all in a single swing.

[writingisbetterthanreality]

Perfection of Destiny: Prologue

November 5th, 1915

“What appears to be the end, may really be a new beginning.” -unknown

 Stretching out on the beige couch, Daniel groaned of boredom. It had been nearly an hour since his girlfriend, Winnie, left for the store. He gave up on taking a nap and sat up looking for something to do. Standing up, he stretched his arms out above his head and reached for the sky. He let out a roaring yawn as his toes curled and his muscles constricted. He shook it off and headed towards the fireplace to poke the wood. Winter was coming and he didn’t like to be cold. Feeling satisfied with the growing flames, he decided he’d entertain himself the old fashioned way. Turning to pass the couch and coffee table, Daniel walked into the master bedroom and flipped the lights on. The massive room illuminated to expose the disaster of clothes. Winnie’s clothes were sprawled across the floor and sequined curtains hung around the  perimeter of their king size bed. Walking towards the full-body mirror, Daniel tripped over a pair of black high heels. He balanced himself and cursed under his breath. Ever since the couple decided to cohabitate, Winnie had treated the bedroom floor as her own personal closet; it drove Daniel insane. Finally making it to the mirror, he locked eyes with himself and mentally concentrated on a figure. Suddenly, his pampered, brown hair transformed into short grey stubble, his deep, brown eyes started to fade, and his beautiful, olive face started to sag along with his posture. He raised his eyebrows and snickered.

“Too old,” he commented in a deep, raspy voice that wasn’t his originally. Daniel was what the Court called a successful experiment. About 400 years ago, his parents sold him to a group who called themselves the Nécron. They promised to bring a better future for the people of Russia and at a high reward, too. The Volikov family accepted 300 rubles in exchange for 17 year old Demyan. Demyan was Daniel’s birth name. It was given to him with pride by his father at his first birthday. Children weren’t often given names until their first birthday, once the high chance of death had passed. Daniel was removed from his family home in the middle of the night and taken to an underground lair that reeked of chemicals and dirt. He was chained to a slab of stone and injected with a glowing, green liquid. As soon as the chemical entered his body, he was sent into a convulsing shock. After an hour, the chemical was fully injected and his body was conformed to the new cells. He repeatedly dazed in and out of consciousness throughout the process. He could clearly see the men’s faces surrounding him. They stared at him as if he were a disgusting blemish on the face of their perfect planet. He didn’t feel differently, but his heart was racing and he was worried what he may look like. He screamed at the men, but they did nothing beyond ignore him. It took a few long weeks, full of whips, chains and torture, for the Néron to be pleased with their results. They subjected Daniel to all sorts of torture to try and trigger his new abilities. Finally, they received a breakthrough after forcing Daniel to stare at himself in the mirror for nearly 24 hours. During those long hours, his brain had started to shift and he began thinking of his family. He felt betrayed by all of them except his younger brother, Nikolai. Nik had tried to come with Daniel when the Nécron came for him, but it was no use. The Nécron had thrown him to the side and only taken the one they paid for. That’s when it happened; Daniel’s features started to change for the first time. Sharp pain coursed through his every muscle and every bone. He cried out and begged them to make it stop, but the men merely stood around and watched in awe. Feeling the pain surpass, Daniel looked up to see his younger brother’s reflection. His heart tightened. “Nikolai?” he asked, scurrying closer to the boy. As he moved, so did the figure. Realization hit him when he touched the glass and felt nothing but cold metal against his palm. He let out a soft sob and his body collapsed against the hard dirt. The next morning, he awoke in the woods. He wasn’t sure of his location, but he decided from then on he was going to travel as far away from Russia as possible. He arrived to another tribe, far away, months later where he met an old couple that took him in and gave him his new name: Daniel Harling.

Coming back to present time, Daniel concentrated again, his hair started to grow long and brown. His body started to slim down and his facial features became more feminine. After many years of practice, Daniel could now configure his shape without pain. When he came out of his haze, he took in the figure before him.

“Mama..” he whispered. Memories flooded his head. His mother was always his favorite parent, despite the betrayal he felt. His father was an abusive drunk who didn’t deserve such an angelic soul as her’s. But it wasn’t long until his subconscious was pulled back into reality, as well as his own body, when he noticed his beautiful girlfriend, Winnie, walk into the room.

“Oh, hey babe!” he said with a loving smile that seemed so genuine. He could sense something was off about her by the unpleasant facial expression she possessed and her tense body language as she walked towards him. As if changing her mind, she moved the sequined curtains from around the bed and sat on the edge.

“Hey, hun,” she replied as she took off her alter with a snap of her fingers and the familiar explosion of blue sparks, exposing her exotic, turquoise skin that shimmered in the low lighting of the bedroom. She wore what looked to be a costly, sleeveless dress. It didn’t do much when it came to accentuating her figure, but she wasn’t worried about her appearance right now. She looked at Daniel and sighed. He could see by her eyes that she had an important question to ask him, but he couldn’t understand any more than that. Winnie had always confused him, from the moment he met her. He stopped believing in love when his family sold him. But rather, he took pride in his true beliefs: sex and procreation. It was part of his nature; it was in his newly formed DNA. The Nécron called him ‘Experiment A001’ and he had an uncontrollable urge to reproduce and protect their race. But with Winnie, he felt different. He thought that there was a chance he could love her; he’d had many internal conflicts about the subject over the many years they’d spent together. He had tried and tried to convince himself that it was not a big deal.

“Where were you last night?” Winnie finally asked the question that had been eating at her inside. The words slipped off of her tongue like ice slicing through the air. Her eyes flickered from the mess of clothes on the ground to his deep, brown eyes. She couldn’t stop herself from looking at the man she had come to love for nearly a hundred years. She often told herself that she shouldn’t love him, that he constantly broke her heart, but she couldn’t help herself. Daniel was her addiction; she would always have to return for a fix of his poison. Winnie predicted this upcoming fight would be just like all the others. She would get upset, they would fight, she would look at his hurt expression and that would be the end of it. They would then have sex and the fight would be over. She would find herself falling in love with him all over again; while learning to hate herself even more than the last time he walked all over her and her dignity. She always told herself it was her own fault, but this time she stayed strong. This time, it had to stop, it had to be the end of the messed up cycle of love and hate that they called a relationship. She refused to be the victim in his madness once again.

“What do you mean? I was with Robert, you know that,” Daniel replied, his eyes filled with questions and concern. He walked towards her, careful not to trip over anything, and sat on the edge of the bed beside her.

“You weren’t with Robert; I just saw his wife at the market. She said he was home with her all night. I’m not stupid, Demyan,” she replied and bit her lip. Sitting up straighter, she fought the urge to curl up next to her love and forgive him for all of his wrongdoings. He looked at her even more confused; he knew that he was caught red-handed. The use of his birth name sent a shiver down his spine. He hadn’t been called it in years. Winnie was the only person he ever told about his past and his true name. But in return, she had to tell him about hers. About her birth name and her past. He tried to look more innocent than he was. He kept the confused facade up a while longer.

“I don’t think you’re stupid, Winnie. What is this about anyway?” He shifted on the bed and grabbed her soft, blue hand. She quickly pulled her hand away and took a final moment to think her decision through. Should she ignore the issue once more and go back to pretending that she didn’t know he was cheating? She could still be happy, right? No, she thought, I need to do this now. Otherwise, nothing will ever change. She took a deep breath and continued to push the issue.

“Who were you really with last night, Daniel? I deserve to know the truth.” Daniel’s heart dropped with defeat. He looked everywhere but her eyes. Her eyes. He couldn’t stop but think of how beautifully blue they were, even in the midst of a fight.

“What are you implying?” He started to stutter, which was unlike him; he was a charismatic man who did not have to struggle to find the right words to say. “I was,” he paused, “with Robert. I told you that.” Winnie shook her head stubbornly. She knew better than that. He knew as well as she did that he was not with his colleague, Robert, the previous night. He was only playing games at this point and it was pissing her off. She was going to get through to him and show him that he couldn’t use her like he used everyone else. She was not his toy. Not anymore.

“Fine. If you were with Robert last night, look me in the eyes and tell me so,” she said angrily. She was fed up with all of his games. She stood up and waited for a reply, her hands placed on her hips in an annoyed manner. Daniel ignored her request and continued to look across the room and not at her. “Look me in the eyes and tell me you weren’t with another woman, Daniel!” Winnie requested again, even more frustrated. Daniel closed his eyes.

“Fine.” he said softly. He stood up and looked his devastated girlfriend in the eyes. “I won’t lie to you anymore. I was with another woman.” Winnie’s heart shattered as she looked at the ground. She promised herself that she would not cry in front of him. So instead, she lifted her head and sent an icy, blue glare at him.

“Why? I mean, if you don’t want me anymore, just tell me! I could leave right now and neither of us would really care! Just admit it!” She knew she was lying. She would care and it would hurt like hell. She didn’t know what she would do without Daniel. He had been her life for nearly one hundred years of her pathetic life. Her chest felt like it was going to explode from her heart pounding so hard. She started breathing heavier to regain composure. Finding that her legs would no longer support her, Winnie sat back down on the bed and put her head in her hands and sighed. Daniel wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her and kiss her worries away.

“Of course I want you. I have always wanted you. I love you. I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m sorry. I’m really, really sorry.” He looked up at her with a small tear rolling down his cheek. He could feel the hurt he had caused her and knew this fight was different than all the others. “I know you will never forgive me. I would bet money on that, but you know what I am and how I live. I have to reproduce to keep my kind alive. I don’t have feelings for that girl, or any other girl but you. I haven’t been able control my urges since the experiment- you know that. Winnie, I am so, so sorry.” And he really was sorry, in a sense. He cared for Winnie more than he ever cared for anyone else he’d met in his life. They certainly had had a connection at one point that he had never experienced before. Was that love? He didn’t know.

Winnie breathed in rapidly and realized just how close she was to having a panic attack. Daniel had been the only person to ever be able to comfort her out of one of her attacks. It was difficult, but she managed to keep her breathing normal. She didn’t reply, instead she turned her back to him so she wouldn’t have to face the man who had spent the past century breaking her bit by bit. Daniel knew that he had officially pushed her over the edge and that he was going to lose the only woman he’d ever thought he might have loved.

“Winnie, I’m sorry,” he said once again. His face was red with frustration and anger; anger at himself and the world. He wasn’t sure how he would survive without her. Her and her blue hair that always looked perfect, even early in the mornings. As well as her sexy body that had always seemed to intertwine perfectly with his. Memories of their time together replayed in his head. The first time he had met her, their first date, their first time having sex, their first trip across the world together, their first masquerade ball, their first fight which led to their first make-up sex. Daniel fought back the tears. He couldn’t understand these emotions that were filling him to the brim. “Please,” he paused, slightly overcome with emotion, “say something.” His voice cracked.

“I know. I know that that it is what you have to do to survive, something they made you do when they made you,” she stuttered and paused to compose herself. She thought maybe she had no right to be upset about him only doing what he had to to survive. After all, she didn’t get mad at him for eating or for sleeping. He always lies about it, though, she reminded herself. Maybe she wasn’t made for a relationship where it wasn’t monogamous, “but I can’t be with you when you do. I just can’t handle the lies.”

She felt a tear fall down her cheek. She quickly wiped it away and turned her gaze to Daniel. She stared straight into his dark eyes and remembered an abundance of wonderful memories they had made together. She remembered the moment when she had sworn to herself that she was going to get to know Daniel in a way no one else knew him. She knew she was the closest person to him and that she was his one true love; but did she really believe that she was different than all the others? She thought she had seen something in him that might be considered love. When she would look at him, she often caught him staring at her first, not lustfully, but lovingly, longingly. She really had thought they could make this relationship work, that he was the one she would marry and have a future with. Whether or not Daniel was the one for her didn't matter anymore. No matter how much she loved him, she couldn't let him keep using her like this and shatter her heart over and over. She couldn't fight him anymore, or his way of living. She thought maybe he should be able to live the way he needed to and she should be able to live the way she needed. She knew they cared for each other more than anything else, but maybe that wasn’t enough. She felt her heart breaking again as she realized maybe they were never going to work. It was something she’d put on the back burner, but she couldn’t ignore it anymore. She hated his lies and his games and the way he played. It made her feel degraded and disgusted with both him and herself. Looking at him this way, she had to resist the strong urge to lean into his warmth and kiss him one more time. She bit her lip and looked away again to keep from doing something she would later regret. Daniel felt as if his heart had fallen off the roof of the tallest building and shatter into oblivion. He just lost the one person he cared about more than anything in this world. He was in the middle of harboring a whirlwind of emotions.

“What do you mean? Don’t say those kinds of things! Of course you can. I mean, I’ll stop. I’ll stop. I promise. Is that what you want? Please!” He’d blurted it out before he knew what he was saying. He stopped his pleading to take a breath and make sure no more tears escaped his eyes. “Please. Just don’t leave me.” His voice cracked as he spoke. The room around him seemed to turn black. What once were memories of love and happiness, were now full of hate and heartbreak. He bowed his head and ran his hands through his hair. “Please,” he pleaded softly, completely broken.

Winnie analyzed the situation as a whole. It took all of her strength not to wrap her arms around her lover and return to acting like nothing ever happened, just like every time this had happened before. She sat down on the closest chair and tried to regain her normal breathing. She needed to get away from him. Daniel was her biggest weakness and they both knew that. He had used her, abused her, and played her like a toy. For a century. Hell, she was sure he was toying with her right now. Could she really find the strength to walk away from the one person she loved more than anything? Surely he knew how much she loved him, how he was her Achilles heel. He must have known how hard this was. His act made it worse. They had spent so many years together. Sure, they had their breakups, but they had some great memories together.

“I know it’s not the first time you have done this. I just haven’t said anything before this. I've ignored it for the sake of this-” She felt herself breaking more, “-this entirely messed up relationship.”

Daniel looked at himself in the mirror from across the room. He realized he was acting weak and his body stiffened as he glared at his reflexion. Suddenly, his reflexion was replaced by a mental image of his father. His father was a tall man, nearly seven foot, who always got his way. He was rough, tough, and all around, not a very friendly man. He had a muscular build and a brown beard that complimented his hard, brown eyes. He only smiled when he was around his wife, Daniel’s mother. His mother was an average-faced woman with long, black hair and piercing, green eyes. She had no special qualities, but Daniel’s father loved her dearly.

Growing up, Daniel’s family lived with a village of people in Russia. Their group was located very close to the forbidden forest. It was seen as “forbidden” because there were wild beasts that were thought to live within and it was not safe. Daniel and his younger brother, Nikolai, would often run away to play in the forest and forage for food. Believe it or not, Daniel used to be a happy child who enjoyed nature. This was, until one day his father found him playing in the woods. Sensing his father’s presence, Daniel felt a sharp pin of electricity course through his body and he quickly hid his brother in a bush and himself behind a tree out of fear. As if being reenacted, Daniel could feel the rough hands pulling his small body out from behind the tree. He could also feel the fists colliding against his cheeks and the knees pounding into his ribcage as small, blue eyes witnessed through the bush. His father accused him of what he referred to as “doing womanly things” by foraging for food and repeated how he would not have anything but a strong willed son living in his home. His father was a proud sexist, and always flaunted having sons, not daughters. Being pulled back into reality, rage overwhelmed Daniel. He would not be weak. He would not let his father down again. Finding himself drifting toward Winnie, he was close enough to reach out and touch her if he wanted.  

“Whatever! You clearly don’t understand anything! If you don’t want me anymore, then fine. But you will regret it.” He moved to walk past Winnie, causing her to unconsciously flinch away from him. He gave her a hurt and confused look; she hadn’t flinched in a long time. He thought they’d gotten over that, but apparently he seemed angry enough to resort to hitting her again.

  He couldn’t take being in the same room as her for one more second, so he stormed outside. The frigid breeze tore through his clothes and sent goosebumps across his body. It was raining softly, just enough to get his clothes soaked quickly. He sat in his car and punched the steering wheel, causing the horn to honk loudly. He started his car and placed his hands on the wheel. He wasn’t sure where he was he supposed to go. Winnie was all he knew in this town or hell, even this country. He rested his head against the back of his hands and screamed. He felt like his whole world had just tilted sideways. All he felt was pain and anger, he took a deep breath, started the car, and speedily drove to the nearest pub.

Winnie sat there, in the now deserted apartment. She realized that her breathing had gotten out of control and tried to bring it back to normal. Instead, she found herself sobbing. The tears fell as she sat there, feeling her world empty itself. Her shattered heart saw no hope. Daniel was her first love; her first real love. He was her everything, but she knew she had to fix this situation; otherwise it would have gotten out of control. Sobbing, she stood up and ran to the closet and started ripping Daniel’s clothes out and throwing them across the room and out the window. She was shaking from head to toe. Giving up on everything, she fell to the ground and screamed. She questioned the very reason of her awful existence. How would she go on after this? How could she get over him, without him? Daniel was supposed to be the one thing she could have and never lose. Winnie had been abandoned by her family. She had nothing left until Daniel came into her life. Now what was she supposed to do?

 Daniel woke up with his head on his crossed arms that rested on the pub counter. His eyesight was extremely fuzzy. He tried to stand, but stumbled and grabbed a chair. Regaining some balance, he slowly started to walk. He was trying hard to focus his eyesight and fight off the alcohol at the same time.

“Call me,” he mumbled, pushing a blonde tramp out of his way. She made a disgusted sound, called him an asshole, and huffed away. He continued his way outside and finally made it to his car. He searched for his keys and yelled when he couldn’t find them. Frustrated he got in his car and slammed the door. He looked over to the passenger seat and found them lying there next to him. He grabbed them and fumbled to put the keys in the ignition. Once the car was started, he slammed it into reverse and started to pull out, almost hitting a black ford. He drove down the road to the nearest hotel, swerving the entire way, his vision wavered in and out. Finally, he pulled into the parking lot and surprisingly parked without any further complications. He stumbled out of the car and walked through the front doors.

“Hello, sir, welcome to the Biltmore Hotel. We have-” the man behind the counter started his typical speech until Daniel interrupted him.

“Please,” he started as he stumbled and gripped the marble counter. “Just- shut up and give me a room. I’ll pay you when I’m ready to leave.” He slurred a little along the way, but managed to get it all out. The man was shocked to be spoken to in such a way.

“Excuse me sir, but are you under the influence of  alc-” The man sounded genuinely concerned.

“What did I just tell you? I don’t care what you have to say. Don’t make me repeat myself, Winnie!” Daniel interrupted once again. He pounded his fist against the counter and the man jumped slightly. He started to ask who Winnie was, but figured that would only anger the man more. “You won’t give me a room? Fine, I’ll get one myself.” Fed up, Daniel reached behind the counter and got himself a room key. He started to walk down the hall towards the numbered rooms when he stopped and turned back around. “You call the police on me and I will kill you with my bare hands. You got that?” Daniel threatened him with a look of all seriousness. The man’s face was filled with pure fear as he nodded slowly.

“I understand, sir. Enjoy your stay.” The words spilled out of the stuttering man’s mouth quickly. Nervous sweat dwelled on his forehead. Daniel scoffed, turned and headed to his self-assigned room. After fumbling with the door handle, he finally got inside. The room was small, dark, and smelled musty. Daniel groaned in dissatisfaction. Tearing his clothes off, he headed to the shower. The water was cold, and stayed that way, but it would help him clear his mind. The ice water made him shiver, but instantly cured the hangover. He looked at the rusty shower head and closed his eyes, letting the water run down his face and body.

  Sitting on a bench in the rain at one of the many New York parks, Winnie kicked her mud-covered heels back and forth above the drenched ground. It was nearing wintertime, but instead of snow it kept raining. She sniffled and ran a pale hand through her black hair. She felt utterly betrayed and was past the point of return. She was exhausted and could barely maintain her alter. After wrestling with the fact that her true love betrayed her trust- and not just once- she was left with no other choice. She couldn’t keep living a lie. Daniel had been the main reason for all the love, the joy, the pain. He was the source for all the emotion she had felt over the course of a hundred years. One did not just move on from that.

Their love was intense, extraordinarily passionate and full of compassion, even if others didn’t see it. Winnie had loved Daniel with a willing and open heart. It was evident since the beginning that her way of loving was genuinely different from Daniel’s way of loving. She had questioned herself and endured others verbalizing their concerns that Daniel never loved her; that he was just using her for sex. After being with Daniel off and on for 70 years, she had become more certain that he did love her, just in his own way. He may not love her the way she wanted, but he showed he loved her everyday.

Thinking too much about her past, and Daniel, Winnie rubbed her face, only to discern that she was crying again. She wiped at her makeup coated eyes and cursed herself for ruining it. Winnie sighed and realized that she was left with nothing but questions. What was she to do now? Where was she to go? What was the point in living anymore? She thought about going to a hotel, or maybe a bar, but decided against it.

Suddenly, she found herself reminded of all the time she had spent with her ex-boyfriend and mentor, Marcus Cruz. She remembered the time she had run across him on the street as no more than a child. She was sixteen when she had first met him and had trusted him wholeheartedly to take her in. He had given her shelter, food, clothes, and compassion while everyone else had simply ran in terror. Despite the fact he was her mentor and protector, he was at one point her lover as well. Around the age of 20, she realized that the love she had with Marcus wasn’t her destiny. Her love for Marcus was simply strong friendship rather than a romantic relationship. She knew now where she always seemed to go when the rest of her world was falling out around her; the one person who would always be there for her, no matter what others thought.

“I have to see Marcus.” She mumbled to herself, shivering from the cold winter breeze as she stood up from the freezing metal bench.

She began walking down the cold, wet street and approached a familiar brick building. The lights were off, but she knew that Marcus would still be awake. She came to the door and pressed the buzzer. Once. Then, twice. The rain slowly stopped, leaving her utterly soaked. This caused her makeup to smear more than it already was. She took a deep breath and waited for a moment. The cold wind ripped through Winnie’s dress. She feared hypothermia might overcome her. She wrapped her arms around herself and heard a familiar, husky voice on the other end of the speaker.

“It had better be important.”

“I-It’s Winnie,” she stammered. She brushed her icy hands over her face, trying to look somewhat presentable and knowing it wasn’t possible right now. There was a beep and the door instantly opened. She walked through and up the stairs. When she got to the hall, a towering man stood in the doorway to greet her. He took in her appearance, put his arm around her, and led her inside without a word. They walked to the velvet couch and she sat down, pulling a fleece, mink blanket around her frigid body.

“You want a drink, kitten?” Marcus asked, eying her. She nodded slowly and he snapped his fingers. Green mist swirled slowly out of his wiggling fingers until the shape of a porcelain mug was formed. He looked down to his hands and handed her a hot chocolate with an alcoholic kick. She drank it too quickly and was pleased when it refilled itself. She looked at Marcus for a moment and turned her gaze back down to the floor. Marcus sat beside her and squeezed her hand.

“Is it Daniel?” She nodded in reply and felt her eyes stinging with tears again. Marcus grimaced. “He’s an ass. You want to talk about it?” He asked as he pulled her close to him to attempt to warm her up. She shook her head and opened her mouth as if to say something, but closed it again.

“You were right, Marcus. He’s nothing but an experiment, you know. He has to be with other women to keep his species going. I just-” she took a deep breath and felt Marcus squeeze her hand again as her words faltered. “I just can’t stay with him knowing that. And, of course, I’ve known for a while, but I finally broke it off. I just- I didn’t know where else to go. I’m sorr-” Marcus shook his head.

“No, no, no, kitten. No need to apologize. You know you are always welcome here. I’m sorry about him. He didn’t deserve you. But you need to remember that once you make the decision to move on, you can’t choose to look back. Your destiny won’t be found in a rear view mirror. You have to keep moving forward and you have to fight.”

His words spoke to her heart. She shifted closer to him, looked up at his face, and took in his overall comforting presence. His golden brown eyes were enhanced by the lighting. His curly, brown hair stopped just above his shoulders. She always seemed to find herself crying on Marcus’ shoulder.

“You’re such a good person,” she mumbled through her tears. He laughed at that.

“I’m anything but.” He put his gentle arm around her and joined her under the warm blanket like they had so many times before. He was her best friend long before he was her boyfriend and she loved their friendship. He was always here for her.

Resting her cold face in the crook of his neck, she shivered. He always seemed to be naturally warm-blooded. She remembered the hours spent cuddling with him, in this very same living room even. She could feel his breath flow past her cheek and the familiar scent of Marcus wafted up her nose.

“I love you more than anyone, you know that right?” she whispered into his neck. Marcus gazed at her with his loving eyes.

“As do I, Winnie,” he said as he slid a piece of wet hair behind her ear. After looking at him for a hard minute, Winnie leaned in and kissed him slowly him on the lips. He had extraordinarily soft lips, like always, but his facial hair had started to grow out a bit and tickled her lips. He responded willingly and she continued kissing him harder and more longingly. He moved one hand to her waist and the other behind her head. He intertwined his fingers in her damp hair and deepened the kiss. Her hands slid up his shirt to feel his abs. The kiss turned sloppy and their tongues started to clash. As if a bucket of ice water was dumped on him, Marcus quickly pulled away.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” He asked furrowing his brows and looking at her with question. “I don’t want you to regret any of this in the morning.” Winnie moved to straddle him.

“I’m sure. I need you right now.” She looked at him longingly and leaned down to kiss his neck. He moaned softly into the air and continued to kiss her harder than before. His hand brushed over her face and he thought it felt wet. He willed himself to pull away once again and lift her face. Her breath was ragged, even more so than what this situation could cause, and he knew it. He wiped her cheeks and she opened her eyes. She was, indeed, crying. He looked at her with concerned, golden-brown eyes. She shook her head and wiped her face. She then intertwined her fingers in his messy hair and pulled him back to the kiss once more.

They ended up in the bedroom upstairs on Marcus’ queen size bed with their clothes hurled around the room. Over an hour passes of their bodies intertwining in several positions. The air was hot and sweat crept down Winnie’s forehead. She lie next to Marcus and put her head on his chest to feel his heart beating.

“Are you okay?” he asked her softly, worried.

“Physically? I mean I’ve had worse,” she joked, smirking up at him. His only reply was the continued focusing of his golden-brown eyes at her, so she added, “I’ll be fine. Thanks.” She leaned up and pressed a chaste kiss to his cheek. He smiled softly and pulled more of the blankets up around her naked body. She yawned and felt her eye droop. Exhaustion was finally catching up with her. She laid her head on his bare chest and was soothed to sleep by his steady heartbeat.

Marcus looked down at Winnie, the girl he had taken in years ago, who had easily become one of his best friends and saw him as a mentor. He looked at her face that had always been there to pick him up when he had needed it. He had seen her challenged with many difficulties in her life: being abandoned by her family, friends, the world. She had been shunned similarly to how he had been.

She looked so exhausted, not like she needed more sleep, but simply she was exhausted of life. She had gotten to the age where she was starting to come to terms with how hard being immortal really was. After being alive so long, one begins to stop feeling. Marcus hoped that she would not reach that extreme, but it was coming. She had gone through the period of her life where she screwed around, partied, and tried so hard to feel something. She had been through the drug and alcohol phase. Anything she could think of to help, she had tried. Marcus attempted to be there for her the whole time. Although, when Daniel came around, Marcus noticed that she was definitely feeling something. It may have been confusion, hatred, love, anger and so much sadness, but she was feeling.

Now that he thought about it, that may have been the reason she unconsciously put herself through the hell that was her relationship with Daniel. They had gone through their fair share of breakups; she had been hurt and angry over every last one. This one, though, seemed to be different, the end. This caused Marcus to be both grateful and worried that their cycle of hell was over. He was far from happy that Winnie had been so repeatedly pained by the same person, of whom she claimed was her true love. But he was thrilled to think that she wouldn’t go back. Marcus wondered how this would affect Winnie later on. It was simply the concern that once your heart was burnt, torn, and beaten repeatedly for so long by the one you love more than anything, it becomes extremely hard to give your heart away and to let others in.

He brushed his hand gently over her peaceful face, feeling the warmth of her soft skin. He loved this woman so much and he could discern how troubled she had been lately. She had kept commenting more and more about Daniel’s lifestyle. Marcus had seen this day coming for a while. He had been watching and waiting for them to end it due to Daniel being a complete jerk, but he did not tell Winnie that. He thought she deserved better. She had always been easily susceptible to anxiety attacks and depression. She tried to keep up the facade that nothing ever hurt her, but when it got down to it, she was just scared of what would happen tomorrow. Marcus had quickly learned to read her emotions and body language. He could tell she had been through hell and at some point, she would tell him more about it. He sighed as he closed his own eyes and lulled his brain to stop rambling about so he could fall asleep.