#Yes i know that in NoME he is said to have blond hair

[maellor]

This is why Gil-galad may NOT be Orodreth's son

If Gil-galad is Orodreth's son, then why does he follow the Nolofinwean color scheme?

Gil's armorial device is the same blue as Fingolfin's and Earendil's, or very near it. Gil's device consists of 12 silver stars, four of them resembling the star at the center of Earendil's device and four resembling the little stars on Fingolfin's device. The remaining four seem to be original.

In the lay of Leithian, a stanza describes Fingolfin before the gates of Angband:

"In that vast shadow once of yore

Fingolfin stood: his shield he bore

with field of heaven's blue and star

of crystal shining pale afar"

- Lay of Leithian, Canto XII

The above verse implies that Fingolfin's shield actually looks more like Gil's or Earendil's device rather than his own: a blue backround with a star of pale crystal, which could be color coded as silver.

"Shining pale afar" even as Gil's helm does:

"His sword was long, his lance was keen.

His shining helm afar was seen;

the countless stars of heaven's field

were mirrored in his silver shield."

- The Fall of Gil-galad

To conclude with, Gil-galad seems to be using the blues and silvers of the Nolofinwean side of the family, instead of the whites and golds of the Arafinweans. Why would he do this, if he was Orodreth's child? I do realise that Tolkien's last word was that he was the son of Orodreth, son of Angrod, but... nothing else indicates this, from what i have read.

[imjustthemechanic]

The Price of a Soul

Part 1/? - Agent Russel Part 2/? - The Letter Part 3/? - Miss Lake Part 4/? - The Stewardess Part 5/? - An Assassination Part 6/? - Fallout Part 7/? - Face to Face Part 8/? - Deals, Details, and Other Devils Part 9/? - Baggage Part 10/? - Private Funding Part 11/? - Just Passing Through Part 12/? - Party of Four Part 13/? - Resolute Part 14/? - The Wreck Part 15/? - Body Snatchers Part 16/? - Out of the Frying Pan Part 17/? - A Miracle Part 18/? - A Matter of Circumstance Part 19/? - Nome Part 20/? - The Future Part 21/? - A Hero’s Welcome Part 22/? - Up to Speed

In which Peggy has to have those conversations she’s been putting off.

-

Having cleaned out her room at the Botticelli Gardens, Kay no longer had a place to stay in Los Angeles.  Something would obviously have to be done about that, but Peggy was not yet at the point where she was willing to trust the woman to stay in a hotel.  She therefore invited Kay back to her place to wash up and change, and Kay seemed happy to accept.  While Peggy unpacked, Kay took a shower, and Peggy could hear her chanting cheerful nonsense under the spray.

“Boom ba-boom-boom boom ba-boom-boom bass!  He got that super bass!”

She came out wrapped in a towel, and Peggy noted that the roots of her blonde hair were growing out darker.  Peggy took her own turn to wash up, and came out to find Kay already dressed, in a black skirt with a red jacket and matching red hat, which she was adjusting in front of the mirror.

“What do you think?” she asked, turning so that Peggy could inspect her outfit.

“A bit flashy for a spy,” Peggy replied, grabbing the pile of clothes she’d left folded on the vanity.

“I’m a flashy spy,” said Kay with a smile.  “The James Bond of the Red Room.  Or… no, wait, that’s not until the fifties, is it?  James Bond.”

“I’m afraid I wouldn’t know,” said Peggy, “but if I ever meet the gentleman I will give him your regards.”

Once clean, dressed, and made-up, Peggy felt considerably more confident as she and Kay headed back to the Auerbach Theatrical Agency front to meet with Daniel.  Unfortunately, more confident was not the same as actually feeling like she knew what she was doing, and there was definitely a knot of dread in the bottom of her stomach that would not go away.  Sooner or later Daniel would absolutely ask her what she meant to do about Steve.  Her only honest reply would be that she didn’t know yet and needed time to figure it out.  It was the figuring out that was going to be agony.

Rose stood up to greet Peggy as she stepped inside, then stopped short when she saw Kay.

“Good afternoon, Peggy,” Rose said cautiously.

“Hello, Rose, it’s good to be back,” Peggy replied.  “I believe you’ve met Miss Katerina Lachkova.”

“Call me Kay.”

“She’s given us some valuable intelligence and for now Chief Sousa and I have chosen to continue working with her,” Peggy said.  She wanted both Rose and Kay to know that this was open to change at very short notice.

“I love your lipstick,” said Kay.  “That’s the perfect shade for a redhead.”

“Thank you.  Your jacket is very becoming also,” Rose told her.

Having thus established that the two would refrain from trying to kill each other until Peggy gave them permission, Rose allowed Peggy and Kay upstairs.  Daniel was waiting in his office for them, and the way he sat up and lowered his hands, Peggy could immediately tell he’d been sitting there holding his head.

She also realized that the presence of Kay would keep him from talking about personal matters, which was… it was only a temporary reprieve, but it was something.  Peggy shut the door behind them, and went to sit down in the chair where Kay had sat while interrogating her as ‘Nadine Russel.’

“I can’t believe you found him alive,” said Daniel.

“Neither can I,” Peggy replied.  “Although Kay claims to have known the whole time.”

“The serum acts to keep his body functioning almost no matter what,” Kay said.  “So when he became unconscious in the water, it slowed his metabolism to reduce the demand for oxygen.  The cold slowed it further, so he went into a state of suspended animation that could have kept him alive almost indefinitely.”

“And this is something the Soviets know?” asked Daniel.

“They picked up a number of Schmidt’s experimental subjects from various camps during and after the war,” Kay explained.  “It’s something they’ve been working very hard on, and they’re going to be working even harder once they learn that Captain America is back.  They will see it a you having a weapon they don’t.”

“Not that there aren’t people here who don’t think the same thing,” Peggy noted dryly.

“From what I know of him, the United States government will find Captain Rogers harder to control in peacetime than they thought,” said Kay.

“I agree,” said Peggy, and made a mental note to ask later what kind of things Steve had gotten up to in that alternate twenty-first century.

Daniel nodded.  “Well, in the meantime, I do have some good news.”  He picked up a file off his desk.  “I don’t have a lot of information yet, but it looks like the East Coast has Underwood.”

“Oh, thank goodness,” said Peggy.  That at least was one less thing to worry about.

“Did they mention me at all?” Kay asked.

“No, as a matter of fact, they didn’t,” Daniel told her warily .  He plainly still wasn’t sure what to make of Kay, any more than he had any idea what to think of Steve’s unexpected return.  “I think they’re trying to keep that on the down-low… although Thompson did mention a splitting headache the morning after Stark’s plane left New York.”

“That wasn’t me,” said Kay.  “Drowsiness or slurred speech, yes, but not headache.”

“I don’t imagine Thompson has requested me again,” Peggy noted.  The last time he’d tried to interrogate Dottie, she’d nearly broken his nose.  He had to save face by now allowing it to happen again – and that meant not giving Peggy a chance to upstage him.

“He hasn’t,” Daniel said, “but I thought you’d want to know.”

“I do want to know,” said Peggy, turning to Kay.

Kay nodded.  “I’m going to need to talk to her,” she said.  “Some of my information is out of date, and I think she’ll be able to fill me in.”

Daniel looked at Peggy.  She nodded.

“I don’t know if I’m going to be able to arrange that,” he said.  “Officially, you’re still a wanted foreign agent.”

“If you can’t arrange it, I can do it for myself,” said Kay, “but it’d be nice if I didn’t have to.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” Daniel said.  “Miss Lake… do you mind giving Agent Carter and myself a moment to talk in private?”

“Of course not.”  Kay stood up.  “I’ll wait outside.”

“On the other side of the room, please,” said Peggy.  “And do try not to cheat anybody out of their entire life’s savings while you’re there.”

“Oh, that’s asking a lot.  I can’t make promises.”  Kay smiled and shut the door behind her when she left.  Peggy and Daniel watched through the office window as she went to the other side of the room, leaned against the wall, and opened her compact to check her makeup.

Daniel turned to Peggy again.  “Okay, tell me the rest.”

“I want you to at least pretend I haven’t told you this when we’re in front of her,” Peggy warned him, “although I’m sure she can guess.  I feel like the fewer people know, the better.”  She took a deep breath.  “She says she knew where Steve was because she’s a time traveler from the twenty-first century.”

Of course Daniel’s first reaction was to scoff, but Peggy could see him quickly catch himself.  He knew she wouldn’t tell him something that sounded so ridiculous without a reason.  She detailed what had happened on their trip, and the full story Kay had told her… leaving out the parts about her and Daniel’s own future.  That was irrelevant now, as Kay herself had pointed out.

“I don’t know if I believe it,” Peggy said.  “I want to believe her, but that may just be wishful thinking.  Her information has been good so far, but if she wants something from us that we may not be willing to give her… what better way to put us in her debt than by giving us Steve?  Not just us personally, but the entire country?  Or to establish trust?  She told me she wants me to trust her.  Why would somebody give us Captain America if they didn’t have the country’s best interests at heart?”

Daniel hesitated, his eyes moving back and forth as if he were trying to choose between two possible directions for this conversation.  “Has she given you any idea what she might want in return?”

“Sort of,” said Peggy.  “She told us that Steve’s friend, Sergeant Barnes, is captive in a facility in the USSR.  She has some kind of a plan to rescue him, and it seems to hinge on Dottie telling her where he’s being held.”

He mulled that over for a few moments.  “We’ll have to be very, very careful if we let her talk to Underwood,” Daniel decided.  “What does your gut tell you?”

“I’m afraid my gut is every bit as confused as the rest of me,” said Peggy.

Of course, Peggy knew her gut wasn’t the organ Daniel was really concerned with, as his next question confirmed.  “So on a personal level…” he began.

“Oh, no,” Peggy groaned.

“I’m not going to…” Daniel swallowed.  “I just need to know what you want, Peggy.”

Peggy shut her eyes as she felt those traitorous tears well up again.  “I don’t know what I want yet.”

That seemed to surprise him.  “You don’t?” he asked.

“No, I don’t,” Peggy said.  It was just as she’d feared, wasn’t it?  Daniel really thought Peggy had been settling for him and that he had no chance now that Steve was back.  She took a couple of deep breaths and forced her emotions to calm down.  “I knew Steve three years ago, in the middle of a war, in a totally different world.  I don’t know how well I remember him, and he doesn’t know how much I might have changed.  I’m going to need some time to work it all out.”

“Right, of course you are,” said Daniel, lowering his head a little in embarrassment.  “I’ll give you some room, then.”

“Thank you,” Peggy said, but she could see in his face that he already expected to lose.

To distract herself, she glanced out the window to see what Kay was doing, and found her cheerfully flirting with Samberley, who appeared to be falling for it hook, line, and sinker.

“I think we’d better put a stop to that,” said Peggy.

“I think you’re right,” Daniel agreed, sounding as relieved as she to have an excuse to end this conversation.  He got up and as he opened the door, Peggy caught his arm.

“Just promise me whatever happens, you won’t think it’s because you’re unworthy,” she said, looking him firmly in the eye.  “Worth has nothing to do with it.  You are not in any way less than he is.”

“You say that,” said Daniel, with just a hint of a smile, “but I’m definitely shorter.”

Peggy smiled back, and stood up a little taller to kiss his cheek.

That was the moment when the elevator doors opened.  Peggy dropped back onto her heels and turned to look as Masters stepped into the room – followed closely by Steve Rogers.  Like Peggy and Kay, Steve had apparently had some time to clean up.  He’d shaved and combed his hair, and was now dressed in a beige shirt with a tie.  People crowded around to meet him as he entered, but he looked right over their heads and into Peggy’s eyes.

In a world where time travel was apparently possible, and where men cold survive three years frozen solid in the arctic ice, it simply wasn’t fair that Peggy couldn’t sink into the floor and vanish.

“Daniel!” said Masters, worming his way through the crowd towards him.  “It looks like I’m gonna have to borrow a couple of your agents.”

Should Peggy move away from Daniel?  But wouldn’t that just make it more obvious that she wanted to hide something from Steve?  Why was she trying to hide anything, anyway?  She’d had the entire trip from the Valiant to Los Angeles to tell Steve what she’d been doing for the last three years and she hadn’t said a thing.  If she’d stopped to think about it she would probably have decided it was in order to avoid overwhelming him, but wasn’t it just because she didn’t want Steve to know she was on the verge of marrying somebody else?

“Steve,” said Masters, making Peggy bristle.  “I think you’ve met Daniel Sousa.”

“We met at the airport, yeah,” said Steve.  He gave Peggy a questioning look.  She tried not to react to it… she would have to sit down with him and explain.  Was he remembering how she’d told him off for kissing that blonde in the SSR offices, how she’d thrown the words the right partner back at him?  He’d later told her what had happened and she’d felt foolish.  Would Steve expect to hear that this, too, was only a misunderstanding?

“Captain,” said Daniel, shaking Steve’s hand.

Masters put a hand on Steve’s shoulder as if the two were supposed to be best friends now.  “We’re taking Steve to New York to meet the president and visit his hometown, and he’s requested that Carter and Lake come along, since they’re the ones that found the spot.”

Peggy glanced at Lake, still standing by the wall next to Samberley, then up at Steve.  Everything he was thinking had always shown on his face, but that was no help to her because right now he wasn’t thinking at all about why he wanted Peggy and Kay with him.  He was thinking about what he’d just seen, and it was certain now that he had seen it.

“Of course,” said Daniel.  “They’re welcome to.”

“Wonderful.”  Masters patted Steve’s back again.  “We’d best get a move on, then.  The whole country’s waiting to welcome the Captain back!”

[thdorkmagnet]

Little Starco Part 1

Happy Halloween Everyone!! Today I bring you all something new! This AU is based off of my favorite game in the world right now “Little Nightmares.” It is a super awesome horror game that I have been obsessed with for months and so I figured the best way to deal with my love of the franchise was to do what I always do: write Starco fanfiction! So yes this is all based off the video game but I did my best to make it understandable without having played the game. It was a challenge the game is full of mystery and a tense atmosphere, while also putting in some of my typical fluff so trying to match the style was not easy. Still I hope I succeeded and I hope you all enjoy!

Also as a fair warning, this is a horror game and while I don't have anything too bad in here I did push the T rating quite a bit for this one. So anyone who is easily frightened you've been warned. Please enjoy and have a great and spooky Halloween!

This will be a two-parter btw.

Disclaimer: Star vs and all its characters belong to Daron Nefcy and Disney. Little Nightmares belongs to Bandai Namco. All rights go to the respective owners.

Star awoke with a start, letting out a panicked gasp as she sat up quickly in fright. She took a few deep breaths as the initial fear slowly began to fade, leaving only the tense anxiety she normally carried with her. The only sound she could hear was the steady dripping of a nearby leak and the quiet creaking of the ship as it gently swayed back and forth. For as far back as Star could remember she had been having the same nightmare over and over again, every single night, being engulfed in a suppressing darkness that slowly faded to reveal a woman in a white mask. She would slowly turn around to face Star, but just before their eyes could meet, she would wake up. She didn't know what it meant (but then what else was new) but she had a feeling it had something to do with her past.

Not that she could remember it.

As bad as the nightmares were though, she wasn't sure if being awake was any better, she was still trapped in a nightmare whether she was asleep or awake. But at least when she was awake she could run from her threats.

Star pulled her yellow raincoat a little tighter around her, trying to fight off the sudden chill she felt creeping up her spine and got a quick look at her surroundings. She had fallen asleep in a vent, finding that one of the safest places to rest in, and she usually slept in one whenever she got a chance, even if they weren't the most comfortable sleeping spot. She took a moment to breathe in the musty air and let the motion of the ship soothe her, as she once again allowed her mind to wander as it often did in the quieter moments aboard the Maw.

The Maw, the mysterious ship full of monsters and danger and death. She didn't know what purpose it existed or how she had ended up here, all she knew was that she had been a stowaway on board the ship for a very long time. Maybe she had always been on the Maw, maybe there was no life outside of it. Star had no knowledge of the outside world or even if there even was one, but to be honest she didn't really care. All she cared about was staying alive.

Star decided she had rested long enough (knowing she needed to find some food before the hunger pains started in), slowly starting to crawl her way through the vent.

After a couple of seconds, the dim lighting faded, the small girl now encompassed in inky blackness and Star reached into the pocket of her coat, pulling out her sole possession (excluding her raincoat of course): a small, thin lighter. She flicked the lighter open and there was a quick spark before a tiny flame appeared, helping light the tight space around her and bring some warmth back into Star's shivering form. Star couldn't help but smile as she stared down into the flickering glow, relishing the feeling the small source of light brought her. Light was a rarity on board the Maw and she had learned to appreciate whatever she was given.

She nearly jumped as she heard a soft guttural clicking noise echoing farther down the tunnel, but she grinned as she recognized the weird noise as nonhostile. It was one of the many small creatures called Nomes that were known to be found wandering all over the ship. Just like everything else on the Maw, the Nomes origin and purpose was a mystery, but they were also the only thing on this horrible ship that was even remotely enjoyable, Star finding the small creatures adorable and she would often go out of her way to find them and give each one a tight hug... once she managed to chase them down, that is, all of them running away from her in the beginning the second she got close.

But, unfortunately, Star couldn't spot the Nome in the dark tunnel and so she instead reluctantly pressed forward, keeping her eyes focused straight ahead. Eventually, she found a ladder and she quickly flicked off her lighter before climbing up. When she reached the top she immediately noticed a series of hooks passing over her head, being pushed forward by a conveyor belt. A few of them even carried large objects wrapped in cloth and knotted closed with coarse rope and Star tried to ignore the oddly human size and shape they had, choosing to instead focus on finding a way up to the hooks. She looked around for a high enough spot where she could reach one and lucky for her she found a pile of the wrapped packages tall enough and after climbing up she was able to easily grab onto one of the empty hooks and sail away to another part of the ship.

She soon found herself dangling over a large gap in between areas, the long drop into the darkness below causing Star to cling on tight. Long, thick chains hung all around, each rung twice the size of her small body and she could hear them shaking and jangling from the constant motion of the ship. It felt like a lifetime before she finally bridged the gap, now hovering over a huge pile of wrapped packages, and she reluctantly let go, letting them break her fall. She held back a shudder as the bags shifted slightly under her weight.

She had heard rumors of what happened to the kids kept prison on the ship but she wasn't sure she was quite ready to confirm that theory. So instead she rose and began climbing down the massive pile, trying to ignore the squish underneath her bare feet and stench of blood that caused bile to rise up her throat.

Once she was on solid ground again Star took in a deep, shaky breath and ran as far away from the bags as possible. But she hadn't gotten very far when Star was seized with an unbearable hunger, the blonde doubling over in pain. She groaned, clutching her stomach tightly as the emptiness in her stomach increased with every passing second. These happened to her every so often, one minute she would be fine, the next it felt like her stomach was trying to eat itself and it was all Star could do to keep going until she found herself some food.

She stood and began shuffling forward on shaky legs but a couple steps later she was down again as her stomach let out a troubling growl. It took some more effort but Star was able to somehow keep going, trudging slowly ahead, her eyes on the constant search for food. She made it into the next room when her stomach growled again and this time lacked the strength to continue standing, falling hard to her knees as she took deep breaths. She looked up through fading vision and spotted the single greatest thing she thought she had ever seen: a loaf of bread.

Star's stomach released another terrible growl at the sight of food and the blonde gathered up every bit of strength she had left as she began crawling toward the bread, her hand outstretched as she reached for her saving grace. Another sharp pang in her stomach zapped the last of her strength, leaving Star to numbly reach forward in a last desperate attempt to get ahold of the loaf, her fingers just an inch too short. The girl felt hopelessness consume her as her vision slowly faded to black, her one chance of survival just barely out of reach and she nearly sobbed at the cruel irony.

Just when Star was about to give up and accept her fate, she saw a hand reach down out of nowhere and push the bread closer to her. Star snatched the food up without a second thought and began greedily tearing chunks of it off with her teeth, swallowing after only a few bites. She could feel a pair of eyes watching her, but she was too busy eating to care, not daring to stop. The emptiness and pain in her stomach subsided as Star finished devouring the loaf of bread.

Once she was done, Star took a few deep breaths letting her stomach settle, blinking as her vision cleared. After that she stared up at her savior, taking in the appearance of a young boy. He looked to be about her age (however old that was) with short, oily brown hair, brown eyes and a tiny little mole on his left cheek. She recognized him as one of the children kept prisoner on the Maw, if the tattered and faded blue pajamas were any indication. And if that wasn't enough proof then the rusted shackle hanging from his dirty leg confirmed her suspicions. Despite this though, unlike the dull, lifeless orbs the other children typically had this boy's eyes gleamed with joy and wonder and a curious smile hung on his lips, as if the horrors of the world and his situation had yet to reach his fragile young mind.

Star felt her cheeks blush as he continued to stare down at her, suddenly anxious for reasons she didn't quite understand. She looked down at her feet shyly, rubbing a hand up and down her coat sleeve as she muttered out quietly, "Uh, thanks... for that."

"No problem," the boy said pleasantly, before offering her a hand up. Star hesitated before accepting the help, allowing the boy to haul her to her feet. "I'm Marco by the way," the boy said pointing to himself.

"Star," the blonde replied.

"That's a really pretty name," Marco commented before the girl blushed vividly

"So what are you doing on board the Maw?" Marco asked. "I mean, you're definitely not a prisoner, " He added, gesturing down to the bright yellow raincoat.

"No idea," Star admitted. “I just woke up here one day and that's all I remember."

“You don't have any memories?" Marco asked and Star nodded.

"Yeah," Star mumbled. "So what about you? I'm guessing you're a runaway, considering the outfit," Star commented.

The boy cringed, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand as he said, "Yeah, uh, I got sent here to the kitchen a couple of days ago, but I managed to sneak away before... y'know."

Both kids shuddered, knowing full well what fate awaited those who fell victim to the Monsters' gluttony.

"That's terrible," Star said sympathetically, putting a hand on Marco's shoulder. "I'm so sorry that happened, Marco."

"I-Its okay," the boy stuttered, his eyes suddenly filled with pain and Star found herself longing to see his innocent smile again.

"How have you survived this long on your own?" Star asked, quite impressed with the boy.

Marco shrugged. "I've just been sneaking some food out here and there when the chefs aren't looking," the boy said modestly.

Star's eyes widened as realization dawned on her, giving his an apologetic look as she gasped out, "Oh my gosh, did I eat the last of your food? I'm so, so sorry!"

"No, no it's okay," Marco reassured her. "You looked like you needed it more." He smiled at her and suddenly Star's cold body flooded with a peculiar warmth. But she didn't have time to question it as Marco suddenly added, "Besides I know a place where we can get a lot more food than that."

"Where?" Star asked curiously.

"Come on, I'll show you," the boy replied before turning and running off somewhere. Star hesitated for only a second before chasing after the boy, hopeful that she could have a full belly for once.

...

As the two got closer to wherever the boy was leading them, Star began to pick up on the metallic swing of a knife from another room as no doubt a large butcher knife was getting some use. She held back the shiver that jumped up her spine, trying not to focus on the concerning sounds down the hallway. Instead, she concentrated on where she was being led and more importantly the boy who was leading her there. He had a calm smile on his face, despite the obvious danger they were in and Star was almost unsure what to think of that. Or Marco in general.

She hadn't been around kids her age in a long time but the ones she did usually weren't this upbeat. Most were quiet, reserved, and had more or less given up. They certainly didn't smile, she was lucky to see them even raise their head in her direction. So far, Star seemed to be the only one on this ship who cared at all about trying to escape their situation.

Until Marco. Star had never met anyone like him before, he was the closest thing she had come across to a companion in well… forever honestly. Marco's charming naivety was hard to resist and the blonde couldn't help but feel drawn to her companion, wanting to know more about him.

Marco suddenly stopped in his tracks and Star ran into his back by accident, causing him to slightly stumble. Once he had recovered, he turned to her and put a finger to his lips, before pointing in the direction of a towering doorway, the sound of something being violently sliced clearly coming from that direction. Star felt a shiver run up her raincoat but nodded in understanding. The two then began to tiptoe slowly closer to that area, Star feeling her heart rate beginning to spike as they did.

Finally, the two seemed to have reached their destination: a large door. The boy grinned over to her to show that they had reached the right place and pointed over to the door for extra emphasis, mouthing the words, "In here."

Star smiled from beneath her hood and the two quickly started to push on the door with all their little might. But for some reason the door didn't budge, staying sealed shut and the two grunted as they strained against the wooden frame. But the effort proved pointless and the two quickly gave up the struggle, letting out deep (but quiet) sighs of despair. Star leaned heavily against the door when Marco suddenly whispered into her ear, "Let me give you a boost up and you can try the handle."

The blonde didn't argue with that, standing up straight as she watched Marco cup his hands into a foothold for her. Star placed her foot in his palm, before hoisting herself up using his shoulders for leverage. Once she was suspended above ground she sprung up off her companion's hands and grabbed on tightly to the handle. She hung off it as it slid down but instead of a noisy click like usual, there was nothing. Meaning the door was locked.

Star frowned, before dropping back down to her feet, Marco staring at her with a mixture of confusion and anticipation. She bit her lip, thankful he couldn't see her face beneath the hood. The last thing she wanted was to make him feel worse about the whole situation. "Well," he whispered, leaning in close to her face and Star felt her cheeks heat up for some reason.

Star shook her head. "It's locked from the other side," she explained, hoping she didn't sound too disappointed. She really shouldn't have gotten her hopes up, especially since the whole thing had seemed too good to be true, but the idea of a decent meal had gotten her excited.

"What?" the boy groaned, his bright eyes filling with disappointment, a sad frown on his face. "But I just checked it yesterday."

"Guess they figured out you were getting in there," Star said, in the most sympathetic tone she could.

"Well guess we came all this way for nothing," Marco said, sitting down hard on the wood floor with pure despair in his voice.

Star couldn't stand seeing her new friend so downtrodden and tried to think of some way to cheer him up. She looked around for an idea of how to help him, before spotting the doorway across the hall, the sound of sharp metal slicing ringing through the air. Star swallowed hard, knowing what she was thinking of was probably a terrible idea. In fact, it was an incredibly stupid and dangerous idea but now that it was in her head, she knew it would be impossible to get out. Besides, she reasoned with herself. I want to make Marco smile again and if it works…

"Well, I know another way we can get some food," Star said, looking over to Marco knowingly.

The boy gave her a confused look, an eyebrow slowly rising. "How?" he asked, with fragile hope in his eyes.

"Well the pantry may be off-limits but…" Star gestured with her head in the direction of the doorway. "I bet there is some food in there."

Marco's eyes widened. "In… there," he whispered, pointing at the doorway fearfully. "B-B-But, the chef is in there."

Star put an arm around his shoulder saying confidently (more confident than she actually felt), "Come on, Marco. It'll be fiiinnneee. I know my way around this place, I'll keep you safe."

Marco frowned, the doubt clear in his eyes, as he muttered nervously, "I don't know."

"Hey, relax. As long as we stay quiet he will never even know we're there," Star said, flashing him a bright grin, not realizing he couldn't see it under her hood.

Star's enthusiasm seemed to sway Marco's mind some, a thoughtful look spreading across his face as he bit his lip, clearly contemplating his options. "Welllll…" he began, only for his rumbling stomach to interrupt him.

"See, Marco, you're hungry, let's get you some food, come on," Star said, not giving the boy a chance to argue as she grabbed his arm and dragged him in the direction of the kitchen. The boy whined under his breath but otherwise didn't resist, following reluctantly along behind his companion.

Everything about this was making his instincts scream at him but he held back the urge to run away, putting his faith and trust in Star. Like she had said, she had been doing this much longer than him, staying alive on this horrible boat all by herself. Marco had barely survived the week, having to fend off every meal he stole from the pantry from rats and other vermin including… leeches. The boy shuddered at the thought.

But Star. Star was amazing! Even though he had only briefly met her, he could tell just how cool she was and he knew if anyone could get them some decent food, it was her. So he figured it was best to follow Star's lead on this.

But he was quickly regretting this as the sound of chopping grew all the louder. The closer they got, the louder it grew, causing anxiety to course through Marco's bloodstream, turning it to ice. When they reached the door frame, Star peaked her head around the side, checking to see the position of the chef, trying to hold back the cringe as she took in the hideous form.

The creature towered over the two miniature children, it's skin an unhealthy looking shade of almost gray. Then again, nothing about the creature screamed healthy. The chef was overweight, barely fitting into its grungy work uniform. Its meaty arms and hands were hard at work, chopping away at a large slab of meat in front of it, short, stubby finger gripping the massive knife tightly as it slammed the blade viciously into the meat, again and again, its movements sporadic and almost vengeful, like it was getting some sick pleasure from it all. It wore the typical garb of a chef, complete with chef hat and apron, its uniform stained with blood and who knows what else.

Its face looked like melting dough, thick layers of skin and flesh hanging loosely from its expressionless face. It was almost too expressionless, something about it felt off to Star like it wasn't really a face at all. Maybe a mask? The chef made noisy grunts and moans as it worked, its attention so focused on its work it thankfully didn't notice the two kids.

Star waited a moment, making sure the nightmarish creature was properly distracted before putting a finger to her lips and gesturing Marco closer. The small boy swallowed hard but followed after the girl, nearly jumping in fright as he spotted the towering figure of the chef. Star saw he was about to scream and quickly covered his mouth with her hand, muffling the cry of terror. Marco continued to stare at the chef in pure fear and Star quickly pulled him to safety under a nearby table, out of the chef's line of sight.

She gave Marco a moment to calm himself down, his breathing shallow and sporadic and Star wasn't sure how he hadn't hyperventilated yet. Maybe this wasn't a good idea, Star thought to herself. But what other choice did they have? They needed to eat and this seemed to be the only way to guarantee them food. The blonde waited until the boy's breathing calmed enough before removing her hand from his mouth, keeping a hand on his back to steady him.

"Sorry," he mouthed to her, afraid of making any sound whatsoever.

Star pulled off her hood and gave him a sympathetic smile mouthing back to him, "It's fine."

She then pointed to herself and toward the next area of the kitchen before pointing at Marco and then at the ground, hoping the message was clear. You stay here, I'll get the food. But the young boy shook his head stubbornly, a determined look in his eyes as he grabbed onto the girl's hand, causing a blush to spread across her cheeks.

There was no way he was letting her go alone. Star had been alone enough, she deserved to have someone by her side. Even if he was afraid, he was going to do everything in his limited power to help her any way he could.

Star was surprised by Marco's response, figuring he would prefer to stay out of harm's way but he actually wanted to go with her. Star felt another stirring in her chest, the warmth beginning to grow and spread to the rest of her but she ignored it for now. Now was not the time to be consumed by emotions, now was the time to act.

So Star simply nodded her head, giving his hand a tight squeeze before slowly leading them out from the safety of the table, creeping past the chef who was still hard at work cutting slabs of meat, before ripping them apart with its bare hands. Star kept a watchful eye on the chef as they tip-toed past him, staying as low to the ground as possible. The chef was becoming violent with its work, slamming the large butcher knife into the meat again and again and Star felt her stomach roll in disgust. These monsters were insane.

The two finally made it past the creature, creeping silently down the stairs into the main area of the kitchen. Star held her breath at every creak she heard on the rotten wood but thankfully the noise was not enough to alert the chef of their presence.

The two tiny kids continued to creep around the kitchen area, ignoring the array of foul odors coming from the many, many boiling pots on the stove tops. How anyone could eat this stuff was beyond Star. The who was eating it was what had her intrigued but she didn't really want to over think that, in all honesty, she would rather not know. Hopefully, there was better food for them to munch on around here. Star looked around for any sign of good food to eat, before spotting a large metal door at the far end of the room. The freezer. That had to have some real food, right?

Star grinned, before tapping Marco on the shoulder to gain his attention. He gave her a confused look and she pointed over to the door. His eyes widened with greed before he licked his lips, the prospect of food too entrancing to them both. He nodded to her, a smile on his innocent face and suddenly everything felt worth it to Star just to see his eyes light up like that.

The two made their way towards the door tip-toeing as slowly and quietly as possible… when two Nomes appeared out of nowhere, chittering as they scurried around the room, one of them bumping into the door to an oven causing it to slam closed. The loud noise caused both Star and Marco to jump in fright and they both felt their hearts drop as a loud moan sounded from the next room, followed by shuffling feet.

The chef had heard the noise and it was coming to investigate.

Star gave up any hopes of stealth as she shouted to her companion, "Run!" The two ran as fast as they could through the kitchen, the chef making another loud groan as it spotted them but Star didn't dare turn around. Instead, she just focused on getting away. She could hear pounding feet as it chased after them and Star quickly ran under a table in the center of the room, hoping that would stall it enough from catching them.

Finally, Star reached the door to the freezer but felt her heart stop as she noticed the large rusted metal lock on its handle. The blonde swallowed hard, trying to think of some way for them to hide before spotting a large shelf. Star nearly sighed in relief as she shouted, "Come on, Marco! Over here!"

But as she turned to check behind her, she saw that Marco was not there. "Marco?" Star repeated softly, feeling a cold fear creeping up her spine.

"Star!" came the terrified and fragile voice of Marco and Star felt pure terror fill her system as she followed the voice to a horrible sight.

The chef had Marco.

Holding him tightly by the back of his hood, being none too gentle with him as it looked around for her. The boy's body swung haphazardly around as he hung there, kicking his bare feet uselessly and trying to somehow pry the meaty grip off of him. But it was no use. Marco was caught.

Star didn't think she had ever been more afraid than she was at that very moment as she watched the one person in the world who understood her and she cared for in the clutches of that vile creature and it was all Star could do to keep herself from running over and trying to pry him loose, but she knew that would only result in both of them being caught. She needed a different plan to save her friend, preferably one that kept either of them from being served up on a platter.

She quickly ducked behind cover as she watched the chef for a moment, trying to formulate some kind of plan to rescue Marco. Her heart was hammering so hard against her chest at this point she worried she was about to have a heart attack. And as she listened to Marco's desperate and frightened cries, calling out for help, screaming Star's name at the top of his lungs, it felt like a knife had just been wedged deep into her heart, twisting viciously within.

The blonde continued to scan the area around her, looking for something, anything, that could save Marco. Finally, the gears in her head began turning as an idea came to her out of nowhere. She didn't even hesitate as she jumped into action, unable to waste precious seconds thinking it through or second-guessing herself, she would just have to hope it worked. For Marco's sake.

Marco's tiny heart was racing so hard it was painful as he tried futilely to free himself, doing anything he could think of to escape. The chef finally gave up its search for the other vermin and instead carried its captive over to a nearby table… one with a conveniently placed cutting board and butcher knife. The chef practically threw Marco down on the table, the boy letting out a cry as his back painfully collided with the hardwood surface. He tried to crawl away but was stopped as the chef placed a grubby hand over him, keeping him pinned and effectively trapped. The boy tried to squirm away but he was trapped, the pressure on his chest causing him to cough and wheeze, struggling to suck in enough oxygen. He could feel something oozing against his back and he felt bile rising at the back of his throat as he shuddered. He did not want to think about what that could be.

The chef casually picked up the knife beside Marco, the gleam off of its smooth edge hitting Marco and causing him to be temporarily blinded. He blinked furiously, trying to regain his vision as he let out shuddering breaths. The moment his vision returned, however, he wished it hadn't as he saw the chef raise the knife high over its head, preparing to strike.

Marco squeezed his eyes shut, his short few years of life flashing before his eyes as he waited for the finishing blow. This was it, he thought to himself. I never even got to tell Star goodbye.

Just before the chef could begin its swing though, something smashed into the back of its head, causing the creature to stumble and release its grip on Marco. The boy looked up with confusion before spotting Star in the scaffolding above a pile of small pots and cups sat next to her. She stared down at him with her bright blue eyes full of relief and determination and for a second Marco wondered if he was staring at the face of an angel instead.

"Marco run!" Star screamed, lifting another pot over her head, preparing to fling it at the chef.

The boy quickly hopped down off the table, the chef reaching down to pick him back up only to be nailed in the arm by the surprisingly strong-armed Star. The boy ran as fast as he could away from the chef, heading the same direction he had seen Star take. The chef chased after him but was stopped after only a few steps as Star managed to land another hit on it with a pot, causing the chef to release a very annoyed growl, clearly growing frustrated with the pair of vermin that had invaded its kitchen.

Star did her best to hold the chef off as Marco ran over to the shelf Star had used, quickly climbing up. But he wasn't fast enough as the chef was finally catching up to him, beginning to ignore the array of glass objects crashing into its head and body, seconds away from reaching the shelf. Star saw her friend wasn't going to make it in time and quickly held out a hand and yelled over to him in desperation, "Marco jump!"

Marco threw himself off the shelf, stretching out an arm towards Star's waiting hand. Time seemed to slow as he flew through the air, reaching out for his friend with all his might, hoping he was able to reach her. Luckily, he barely managed to grab onto her, his fingers nearly slipping out of hers but the blonde squeezed his hand tight, refusing to let go. Star grunted and tried to brace herself as Marco's weight threatened to pull her down too and quickly added her other hand to the effort of holding Marco.

Below them, the chef was stretching up as high as its chubby arms would allow, letting out hideous grunting noise as it tried to somehow reach the two pests. Star and Marco ignored this, however, as Star focused only on pulling Marco up on the overhead beams with her. She finally managed to gain enough leverage to drag him up with her, the boy soon sitting beside her, both panting from exertion and the remnants of adrenaline and terror coursing through their bloodstream.

The two took a moment to calm down, laying next to each other on the high beams and just letting everything that had happened wash over them. That had been one of the most terrifying ordeals of their joint lives and they dreaded to imagine what might have happened had Star not stepped in when she did. Marco tried not to picture the knife being swung high, still seeing the glint of the cool metal and he felt tremors still coarse down his spine at the memory. It had been too real, too close and he was sure it would be haunting his nightmares for weeks after.

"Thanks," Marco finally managed to mumble, still trying to calm his breathing. "That was… too close."

"Yeah, it was," Star agreed, her own voice trembling some. "Sorry I let that happen. I should have protected you better." She slammed a clenched fist into the wooden board they lay on in anger, frustrated with herself for not doing more. She had promised she would keep him safe, instead he had almost gotten killed on her watch.

"Star, it's fine, it's not your fault I got caught," the boy said, trying not to let his fear show as the memory still haunted his mind. It was still too fresh to ignore, to forget. But he didn't want to make his friend feel any worse than she already did. So instead he gave her a warm smile and told her in the most pleasant tone he had at the moment, "Besides you're the one who saved me. I woulda been a goner back there if not for you.”

"Yeah, but you wouldn't have been in any danger if not for me," Star mumbled, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"The important thing is we both survived, right?" Marco said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Star stared at him in surprise for a moment. She had expected him to be angry or upset, maybe even part ways with her to avoid further disaster. Instead, he willingly and openly forgave her and Star was so stunned by this she had no idea how to respond for a moment. Instead, she found herself staring into his stunning brown orbs for a moment, full of so much hope and tenderness that her cheeks heated up against her will.

She coughed into her hand to hide whatever this strange emotion was Marco kept making her feel, deciding it best to change the subject before she started acting weird. She really didn't want to humiliate herself in front of her new friend. So she tried to distract herself by taking a closer look at the kitchen below. At this point the chef had given up any hope of catching the intruders, instead going back to making its disgusting meals, grumbling to itself the whole time in its high-pitched whine.

But the blonde wasn't interested in the chef anymore, her concern was on the freezer door and more importantly the lock that prevented them entry inside. She laid her head on her knee for a moment as she muttered in annoyance, "Well so much from getting any food in there."

Marco sat up and followed her gaze to the door, frowning in disappointment. "Yeah, I was really hoping to eat, too."

The two let out simultaneous sighs, staring in longing as the only chance at a decent meal was just out of reach. If only they could get inside there. Suddenly an idea came to Marco, his eyes widening at the thought and a bright smile beginning to spread across his face. He turned to his companion and quickly proclaimed, "Actually I think we can!"

"What? How?!" Star asked in intrigue, leaning closer to him until their faces were nearly touching.

Marco ignored the stirring his chest at the close contact, instead replying, "Well that's a lock right? So all we need to do is find the key."

Star gasped, her own eyes filling with excitement as she exclaimed, "Marco, you're a genius!"

The boy blushed at the compliment, rubbing sheepishly at the back of his neck. "I mean, I don't know if I'd say genius," he muttered in embarrassment. But his nervousness doubled as Star suddenly threw her arms around him in a hug, causing his heart to skip a beat. The warmth was surprising but not unwelcome and Marco found himself melting into the tight embrace, treasuring every second.

Star wasn't sure why she had decided to do this, she had just been so… was happy the right word? She didn't know what she was feeling but she just knew she needed to express it in some way and the next thing she knew she had her arms around him. But now that it was happening, she found she kinda enjoyed it. She liked having Marco this close to her and she found her heart stirring inside her chest for some reason. She still didn't know how to describe the feeling just yet but.... it was nice.

The girl released her hold, pulling back so they could stare into each other's flushing faces. Star felt suddenly awkward about the display of affection, playing with a loose strand of hair as she whispered, "Sorry, I don't know why I was…" Her voice trailed off and she was tempted to hide her flushed face inside her hood once more.

"Uhh, no it's fine," Marco replied, still clearly in shock but the joy on his face was clear as day. "I thought it was nice."

Star grinned back. "Me too."

The two stayed like that for a moment, smiling blissfully at each other, before a loud swing from the chef's knife caused the two to jump, reminding them where they were at. "Come on," Star said, standing up. "Let's go find that key!"

"Alright," Marco replied enthusiastically, following along behind the girl as they went in search of the key to their breakfast.

...

Star peeked her head out from the grate she was hiding in, watching as the two chefs noisily cleaned the dishes, piles and piles sprawled before them, some reaching almost as high as the ceiling. But that wasn't what had piqued Star's interest, her focus was on the small silver key set precariously close to the soapy water and in plain view of the two monsters. Marco must have noticed it too because he turned to her with a smile and a determined gleam in his eye, which she returned. They both nodded as one before crouching back under so they could safely discuss their plan of attack.

The two had been searching for the key for a while now but luckily they had found a loose floorboard and had been able to sneak around undetected right under the Monsters' noses. Except now their only way to get into the freezer was being guarded by the twin chefs and getting past them was going to be tricky. "So what now?" Marco asked Star, keeping his voice below a whisper.

Star thought for a second before replying, "We need to lure them away somehow."

She put a finger to her chin, pondering over an idea, when Marco suddenly said, "The hooks.”

"Huh?" Star said, looking over at the boy in confusion.

"There are a conveyor of hooks running all through this place, I bet if we find the switch that'd draw their attention," Marco explained simply.

"Oh yeah!" Star agreed, smiling brightly at her new friend. "Great idea, Marco!"

The boy grinned at the praise, before standing up and starting to crawl out of the grate, "Cool, then I'll go find the switch-”

But Star cut him off, grabbing onto his arm and pulling him back down with her, saying in a quiet hiss, "Are you crazy?! You can't go out there it's too dangerous!"

“Well one of us has to find the switch," Marco argued.

But Star wasn't having, shaking her head vigorously. "No way, it's too risky! What if you get caught again?!"

"I'll be careful," Marco told her, trying to sound more reassuring than he felt. "Besides, someone is gonna have to run to get the key and I think we both know who is faster." The two shuddered as the memory from earlier flashed through their minds, neither of them wanted a repeat of what happened.

"Okay," Star reluctantly agreed. "Just promise me you'll be safe."

Marco nodded once. "Of course. Safe is my middle name," he told her, giving her a small smile. Marco could see the tiniest of grins on Star's lips and he felt his heart flutter. Then, without warning, she pulled him into a hug, holding him tightly against her for a moment. Marco's cheeks blushed red but he wrapped his own arms around Stars slender frame, listening to her even breathing for a moment.

They parted much too quickly for Marco's liking, craving her warmth and comfort almost as much as she did. But that would have to wait for now, they needed to focus on the task ahead. They could decipher the tangle of emotions they felt later. Marco stood up and Star whispered softly to him, "Good luck."

Marco nodded, before replying, "You too." He then climbed out of the hole slowly. He kept a close eye on the two chefs, who were too deep in their task to notice him yet, as he carefully crept around, staying low to the ground, trying to make himself as small as possible.

He saw one of the chefs move away from the dishes and he quickly hid underneath one of the large sinks, trying to keep his breathing steady as his heart pounded painfully against his chest. He waited until his heartbeat had slowed to a reasonable speed, before risking peeking his head out from the safety of his hiding spot. The chefs had its back to him, sniffling noisily as it arranged dishes on a large shelf. Marco, seeing he was safe for the moment began looking around for the switch he needed. He spotted a large lever in the next room and smiled. That was it. It had to be.

Marco, seizing his chance, sucked in a deep breath and stepped out of his hiding spot. He tiptoed toward the next room, keeping a close eye on the chef as he did. He held his breath, his body starting to shake with fear as he repeated again and again in his terror-filled mind, Please don't turn around, please don't turn around, please don't turn around.

Snap!

The sudden jarring noise caused Marco to jump, looking slowly down at the floor where the sound had come from. The boy felt his heart come to a painful stop as he spotted the bits of glass under his feet. The boy had been so focused on the chef he hadn't been paying enough attention to the world around him and had somehow not noticed the array of broken, discarded plates scattered around him from where the chefs had presumably dropped them.

The boy froze as he heard a grunt from the chef, turning to the towering creature with pure dread coursing through his veins and nearly screamed in fright as he saw the chef turning around to see what had caused the loud noise. Marco panicked, time seeming to slow to a crawl as he waited for his presence to be revealed, to be caught and captured all over again. He knew he should move, run, escape but he couldn't. His legs felt like they were made of lead and his body was still and unmoving as a result.

This was it. In a matter of seconds, he would be back in the grubby grip of the nightmarish chef. He wasn't sure he could bear being flung around haphazardly by the heartless capture again. Couldn't stand the thought of being pinned in place as he watched the instrument of his demise slowly rise, ready to end his short, few years of existence.

But then suddenly, like a light at the end of a dark tunnel, Marco remembered Star. How devastated she would be if he died. How she was counting on him to pull through. He had promised her he would be careful. And he couldn't let her down. He refused to cause her anymore pain or grief. He had seen her desperation before, when she had struggled to reach that loaf of bread, the sight of her so helpless and struggling had torn at his heartstrings. He didn't want her to suffer, he wanted to help her, even if he didn't know how just yet.

So he pushed back his fears into the corner of his mind and forced his legs into motion. He ran quickly across the loose floorboards doing his best to dodge around the broken plates and make as little to no noise as possible. Still, just as he entered the next room he heard the chef release a surprised grunt and he knew he had been spotted. He had to be quick and make every second count.

He hopped up onto a table and jumped onto the lever. His weight caused the switch to be pulled down, a loud whining sound invaded Marco's eardrums and nearly causing them to burst. He landed back on the table and covered his ears with his hands, the sound of grating metal almost too much for his fragile ears. After a few seconds, it stopped as the conveyor of hooks began moving in the opposite direction. Marco smiled in victory.

But he didn't have long to celebrate this as the chef walked into the room Marco was in, letting out an annoyed groan as it spotted him. The boy ran across the tabletop, pushing his legs faster than they could physically go, hoping to somehow escape. The chef strutted its way over to the table, reaching out a grubby hand to grab him but Marco slid under it at the last second.

The boy then jumped through a window into the main room again, landing in a sink filled with soapy water. Marco, who had never learned to swim, struggled to get above water, flailing his arms in some desperate attempt at not drowning. But his clothes felt like they were weighing him down as he became distinctly aware of the chain on his ankle which seemed to be dragging him down instead of up. And to make it worse his eyes were stinging from the obsessive amounts of soap the monsters had used to clean the dirty plates. Finally, the boy managed to get his head above water, gasping and sputtering and he tightly gripped the edge of the sink.

He looked up with blurry and pain-filled vision to see the second chef rushing at him as fast as its stubby legs could carry it. "Oh come on!" Marco screamed in annoyance. Could the universe just give him a freaking break?

The boy quickly jumped out of the sink and made a break for his hiding spot from earlier, his drenched clothes making it difficult to run. Still, he managed to reach the table unharmed, ducking down underneath it and trying to make himself as small as possible. The twin chefs had soon gathered around the table, one of them struggling to reach underneath, straining with all its might to reach the boy, the other just watching the whole thing with nervous annoyance.

Star took advantage of the distraction Marco had provided, quickly racing over to the large sink, climbing up onto it and picking up the key. She smiled in victory, which was short-lived as one of the chefs spotted her and let out a loud moan. Star felt her heartbeat race in her chest, looking around for an exit. She would never make it to the grate in time, which meant she needed another way out of here.

Her gaze rested on the hooks above her head and an idea sprang into her mind. She threw the key with all her might, letting it hit the ground with a loud thud, the chef forgoing her in favor of its precious key. Star then shouted over to her companion, "Marco, over here!"

The second chef had stopped its attempts to snatch him up to watch the commotion going on with its brother and Marco used this distraction to crawl out from underneath the table and quickly running over to Star. The girl offered him a hand up, as he climbed up onto the side of the sink with her. "Where's the key?" he asked, panting from both fear and exertion.

Star shook her head. "Forget the key, we gotta get outta here.”

"How?" Marco asked, his voice cracking with fear.

"We go up," Star said, looking up at the line of hooks and then a large stack of plates reaching just high enough for the two of them to be in reach of the hooks. Marco followed her gaze before a small grin lit up his face. The two's eyes met again and they shared a brief smile before nodding in unison. They had a plan, now was the time to see it in action.

The two climbed up the large stack of plates, ignoring as they wobbled and jolted around with every step. When Star and Marco reached the top they found themselves struggling to keep their balance, holding out their arms in an attempt to stay on the unsteady stack. The chefs both reached for the two children, grunting in their feeble attempts, growing more and more frustrated with every second that passed. Star, however, had her eyes on the hooks, waiting for one to be in position for them to reach it.

She watched as one slowly slid closer, her body tensing as she shouted, "Marco, get ready to jump!"

"Right!" the boy yelled back, determination in his voice as the two crouched down waiting for the right moment.

"3," Star whispered under her breath.

"2," Marco added, his voice shaking with anticipation.

"1!" The two kids shouted together jumping up just as the hook passed over their heads. The sudden shift in weight, finally caused the huge stack of plates to collapse and tumble onto the unsuspecting chefs, causing them to groan in pain and surprise.

Star grabbed tightly onto the rusted metal, while Marco wrapped his arms around Star's waist, clinging to her tightly. The two cheered in victory as they sailed over the kitchen, Star shouting at the frazzled chefs, "Ha take that you monsters! That's the last time you'll think about messing with us!" She then stuck her tongue out at the creatures for added measure.

Marco just let out a sigh of relief, glad that the whole terrifying incident was over. He held Star in an almost death grip trying to ignore the long drop that waited just below them, burying his head into her bright raincoat. Now that they were safe and out of harm's way he couldn't help but enjoy holding onto Star like this, even if they were precariously dangling in the air.

However, something was still bothering Marco. Something he couldn't quite get his mind off of. "Star, where do these hooks lead?" he asked, looking up at his more knowledgeable friend.

Star didn't seem even slightly worried, saying in a smooth, confident tone, "Oh relax, Marco. I'm sure everything will be fine now that we got away from those chefs."

Marco looked up ahead to see where the conveyor belt was leading them only to gasp in shock. "Oh no we didn't!" he screamed and Star looked over her shoulder only to see one of the chefs waiting for them, piles of packages stacked all around it.

Star gasped in surprise and let go of the hook, dropping the two to the ground without warning. Thankfully, a pile of cloth broke their fall and the two slowly crawled their way out of it, cringing and rubbing their aching backsides from the rough landing.

The door behind them busted open, the sheer force causing the thin wood to snap off its hinges and Star and Marco jumped at the sudden noise. The second chef stood in the doorway, a towering, hideous figure fuming with hate and rage and the pair felt the hair on the back of their necks stand on end at the sight.

"Run!" Star screamed for what felt like the hundredth time that day, gripping Marco's arm tightly and pulling him along behind her. She wasn't going to make the same mistake as before. She was not letting him go this time. The two ran as fast as their little legs would let them, their bare feet slapping against the wooden floor and they could hear the enraged chef chasing after them, right on their heels.

What was worse the two were quickly approaching a dead end, a huge gap in the ship standing between them and freedom and Star felt her heart clench in despair. Until Marco shouted, "Look, more hooks!"

The blonde followed her companion's pointing finger to a new row of hooks, these stretching right across the massive gaping hole in front of them. Star tightened her grip on Marco's hand, hoping they made it to them in time.

They could hear the loud, gurgling breathe of the chef getting louder and louder and Star knew they couldn't wait any longer… not unless they wanted to be monster food. So, steadying her nerves (what was left of them) and sucking in a deep breath of air (possibly her last) she dove for the hooks, jumping off the thin railing that was meant to keep people from slipping over the side to their deaths. Marco somehow sensed her movement and jumped too, the two airborne for a second, before Star managed to snatch the hook out of mid-air, the two now dangling from the moving conveyor belt, only their intertwined hands keeping Marco from plummeting to his death..

The chefs were none too happy seeing their prey escaping, throwing all manners of things at them from plates to large bottles of intoxicants, letting out high-pitched groans and grunts as they watched their possible meal slowly drift away.

Unlike before the two kids didn't dare cheer their victory, Star was too busy trying not to lose her grip on Marco's hand. Their position had been much easier before, her arm straining to hold Marco's weight, feeling like her bone was being pulled from the socket. Not to mention her grip on the hook threatening to slip with every passing second. But she fought through the pain, focusing only on getting her and Marco to safety. She would not lose Marco now. Not after everything they had just gone through.

Finally, Star could let go as the hooks flew over a large metal pipe, the two landing gracefully on it. Star clutched her sore arm tightly, hissing some in pain and Marco was quick to check on her. "Are you alright? Did you get hurt?" he asked, concern in his voice as he put a hand gently on the limb.

"I'll be fine," Star reassured him, giving him a bright smile.

Marco nodded but wasn't entirely convinced, reminding himself to keep a close eye on her for a bit. He turned and looked back over the gap, letting out a longing sigh. "Well there went our meal ticket," he muttered under his breath.

Star frowned, sitting down on the pipe as she contemplated everything. "Yeah, I know. Sorry I blew our chance to eat," she mumbled dejectedly.

"Star it's fine, I'm just glad we got away," Marco said, subconsciously laying a hand on top of hers. Star shivered as his warm palm soaked into her cold skin, making her whole arm tingle from the touch. "Besides we'll find more food.... soon."

Star nodded, unable to keep the smile off her face. "Yeah, you're right," she replied in a much more upbeat tone. She didn't know what it was but something about Marco made her world… brighter somehow. She really liked having him around.

"So what now?" Marco asked, looking to her for answers, his bright eyes causing her heart to do all kinds of weird things.

Star shrugged, ignoring the sudden heat in her cheeks. "Guess we should see where this pipe leads."

"You think it'll lead into anything good?" Marco asked as the two stood, their hands still locked. They didn't know why but they liked it better this way.

"Probably not," Star said honestly. "But it can't hurt to try."

"Can't argue with that," the boy replied with a shrug. After everything that had happened today, he really didn't see how it could get any worse.

...

The two followed the pipe for a bit, not really sure what to expect on the other end. They began to notice a strange warmth coming from up ahead but couldn't quite figure out what it was. That was when Star heard a sound and felt her heart jump for joy. She stopped in her tracks, causing Marco to stumble into her on accident. "Marco, do you hear that?" she asked in excitement.

Marco paused to listen intently, finally hearing a chittering sound. "Is that a Nome?"

"Yep!" Star said, her eyes shimmering for the first time since Marco had met her.

"So what about it?" Marco asked in confusion.

"First rule of survival, when in doubt follow the Nomes," Star explained. She dragged Marco behind her as she ran across the pipe as quickly as possible before coming across a crack in the wall. The two paused at that, sharing looks with each other, before shrugging. Star slipped in through the tiny crack, sucking in her breath to help her squeeze through a little easier, Marco following right behind her.

What the two stepped into caught both of them off-guard. A group of Nomes, at least 20 or so were all laying around the area, a large boiler, full of hot coals and warm fire rested in the center of the room. The Nomes, upon spotting the two intruders quickly panicked and all started to scamper away.

"Wait, little guys!" Star called after them. "We won't hurt you!"

She let go of Marco's hand to chase after them, while Marco could only stand there dumbfounded. He had only ever heard the Nomes before through the cracks in his prison but seeing them in person it was quite a sight. They had cone-shaped heads, all completely featureless and small gray bodies. They were even shorter than Star and Marco and that was saying something but something about them also felt kinda cute, although that was probably helped along as he watched his friend's funny but endearing attempts to catch the remarkably quick Nomes shouting after them in an attempt to get them to stop. "Just let me hug you!”

Marco laughed out loud, feeling his cheeks heat up with a blush. But he soon spotted one of the Nomes stuck in a small crack in the wall that it had been too big to squeeze through. The boy rushed over to help the tiny creature, plucking it effortlessly out of the wall. "There you go, little guy," Marco said, setting it back on its feet.

Star, spotted the creature and quickly rushed over, lifting it off of its feet before hugging it tightly. Marco grinned at the cute sight before the blonde set the small creature back down who now let out a gentle coo and stared up at her almost longingly. "Now you hug him, Marco," Star told her friend, giving him an encouraging grin.

"Oh, okay I guess," Marco said, picking the creature up and hugging it just like Star had. It was surprisingly warm and the boy felt his spirits lift a little just by embracing the adorable creature.

The other Nomes, seeing that the intruders were friendly, slowly began to approach them, still slightly hesitant and fearful. Time aboard this ship had taught the Nomes to be cautious.

Soon, Star and Marco found themselves surrounded by Nomes and they happily took turns picking them up and hugging each one, the creatures soon almost begging to be picked up, each one getting more and more excited by the show of affection. Finally, the happy moment was broken up by a loud grumbling from Marco's stomach who blushed bright red.

"Aww poor Marco," Star cooed over to her friend. "I'm sure you must be hungry."

"Maybe a little," Marco replied, rubbing his empty stomach with a sad frown.

The Nomes heard this and all began to chitter loudly, rushing off to a corner of the room and Star and Marco shared a look of confusion. A second later, the gnomes were back now holding a large array of food which they set down in front of the pair. Star and Marco gasped in delight and surprise, feeling their mouths begin to water staring at the food. Real food!

Star and Marco didn't even question the creatures kindness as they began to gobble down the food as fast as their tiny mouths would allow. It was the best meal either had ever had, most of the time surviving on scraps but now they could fill their bellies up as much as they wanted. Anytime the two started to run low, the gnomes would bring them more and the two ate until their stomachs were stuffed to bursting.

The two let out happy moans as the food settled in their stomachs, before turning to the small creatures. "Thanks guys, we really appreciate it!" Star said brightly and the Nomes all let out what the blonde could only assume was joyful chitters.

With their bellies now full and their bodies warm and comfortable thanks to the furnace, the two felt the next pressing matter than needed to be attended to. That they, were in fact, beyond exhausted. It had been a tiring day both mentally and physically the two found themselves yawning and rubbing their eyes as they struggled to stay awake. "We should probably get some sleep," Star suggested.

Marco nodded but Star noticed his body visibly tense up. "Is everything okay, Marco?" she asked, concern etched into her voice.

Marco shook his head before admitting, "It's just… what if I have a bad dream?" He bit his lip, shuddering as he imagined the many nightmares he was often plagued by. And after today, he knew a few more had just been added to the list.

"Do you have nightmares a lot?" Star asked, already guessing the answer.

"Yeah," the boy muttered, his pupils wide with fear. "Sometimes I don't sleep cause I'm afraid… I'll dream about bad stuff again."

"Me too," Star replied and Marco caught her gaze, sympathy and understanding layered beneath. She could see his need was just as strong as hers and she tried to think of some way to help comfort him, to ease his mind.

"Here, how about this? You can lay on me and if you start to have a bad dream, I'll wake you," Star suggested, giving him a warm smile.

"But what about you?" Marco asked in concern. "Aren't you going to sleep?"

Star nodded. "Yeah but I'll sleep easier having you here."

Marco didn't argue with that, allowing Star to wrap her arms around him, his head resting against her chest. He found Star's presence comforting and as he gently breathed in her scent he found his eyes slowly closing. In a matter of minutes, Marco was fast asleep in Star's arms.

The blonde, however, just lay there soaking in Marco's warmth as she thought over her long, exhausting day. For so long life on board the Maw had been pointless and empty. She had carried on day by day just fighting to stay alive for no other reason than her own will to live. She had felt like her life lacked direction or purpose whatsoever but still she had carried on through the darkness and shadows, hoping to find something that would make her miserable existence worthwhile.

And then Marco had arrived and suddenly, she had a reason to live again. To believe, to hope that maybe someday there could be something better for her out there. Because now she had someone to share that with. She had a friend. A companion. Someone she could lean on and that could lean on her and it felt like for the first time in her life she was at peace.

And as Star lay there listening to Marco's breathing as her own eyes began to slowly shut, she promised herself that somehow she would help Marco escape this life, they would leave this dreadful ship together. Her nightmarish world felt a little brighter on that day and as sleep finally took hold Star found herself dreaming of light and hope and Marco.

[supremeuppityone]

This was written for Klaroline Bingo @klaroline-events. Prompt: Murder. Caroline is having some growing pains learning to adjust to her new sensitivity as an Augustine vampire and needs some assistance with hiding her leftovers. Fortunately, her mysterious neighbor doesn’t seem like the squeamish sort.

Chapter 120: A Friend InDEAD

“A friend is someone who gives you total freedom to be yourself.” ― Jim Morrison

           “Why does every invite to your flat involve helping you hide a body?” Klaus heaved an exaggerated sigh as he stood in Caroline’s doorway, looking far too put together considering she called him in the middle of the night to come help her out. Again. If only she hadn’t taken that job at Augustine Labs. She’d been a lab assistant so incredibly entry level she didn’t even warrant a security badge when her boss’ boss randomly asked if she was interested in participating in a sleep study. She may have been a baby vampire, but she knew better than to tempt fate and run the risk of scientists discovering what she was. Unfortunately, they already knew.

           “You could’ve said no,” she told him flippantly, already moving aside to let him in.

           He favored her with a dimpled smirk. “Nonsense, I welcome the distraction from my shite painting.” He knelt down to study the body, a disinterested look on his handsome face as he flatly said, “I take it your date didn’t go well?”

           “This was a snack — not a date.” With an aggravated groan, she distractedly pulled at her messy waves, telling him, “I thought I was getting a handle on this Augustine shit; I swear I didn’t mean to, but he just tasted so good and I tend to not run into a lot of vampires in our neighborhood.” She hated how helpless she felt. Her former employer turned her into a ripper — something she’d managed to avoid when she first transitioned. Fortunately, she’d been able to apply her iron control to her new sensitivity and was able to curb all but the most extreme aspects of her bloodlust. But sometimes it just wasn’t enough.

           Suddenly, Klaus swept her into his arms, his normal smirk being replaced by uncharacteristic concern. “Shh, sweetheart. We’ll just tidy up here and set things right.”

           She breathed in his familiar scent of paint, her body instantly relaxing against him. Theirs was a bizarre friendship that had been forged after she escaped from Augustine Labs (she may have had to set a fire that turned into a surprisingly large explosion). She’d been running through a hiking trail when she tripped over a very surprised (and very naked) Klaus.       

           With smoke still clinging to her hair and blood-soaked clothes, she somehow landed in a whole new life with an arrogant, inconveniently attractive new friend (who enjoyed naked runs). Despite how close they’d grown, she still didn’t know that much about Klaus. He was an older hybrid (and didn’t that blow her mind to learn that a person could be two different supernatural creatures) and seemed to have a complicated family.

           “You hate the smell of bleach,” Caroline replied, her voice muffled against his henley.

           “But I like the smell of...those honey-cinnamon cookies you make,” he quickly said, awkwardly patting her on the back as he released her.

           Why was he being so weird? “Fine. I’ll make a batch tomorrow after I go to the store.” She finished tucking the ends of the old rattan rug around the body, motioning for Klaus to grab one end.

           He wryly observed, “You do realize that either of us possess the strength to lift this corpse easily? Must we keep up the pretense?”

           “Seriously?! It’s a corpse, Klaus. One that I created. You know, with murder? One that we’re trying to hide while we carry it up to your penthouse to dismember in your gigantic bathtub. If we run into our neighbors, we need to look normal.”

           “We could just compel them,” Klaus argued, his face turning into a comical exaggeration of pain as they began their trek down the hallway to the elevator. “And murder doesn’t always have to be a bad thing. I’ve been encouraging you to get a hobby.”

           “Murder is not a hobby!”  

           He winked at her from across the lumpy, rolled-up rug. “It is if you do it right.”

           Was he flirting with her? Caroline did her best not to react; she’d never been good at reading people. (If she had, she never would’ve been in this mess in the first place.) But then she never would’ve met Klaus. Feeling a blush start to creep up her neck at that distracting thought, she instead focused intently on the elevator buttons.

           She’d just begun to relax when a simpering voice called out, “Klaus! I thought I heard you out here!” Twit in 14C poked her head out, eyes going round with excitement as she spotted her prey.

           Caroline subtly tried to block the rug they’d stood up on one end, awkwardly standing on her tip-toes.

           “Ooh, Klaus, is that another of your magnificent art projects?”

           Trading a mildly panicked look with Klaus, Caroline hurriedly said, “Yes! It’s an art installation with a sort of...um, postmodern take on um...”

           “Clearly his deep-rooted angst that reflects his sensitive artistic temperament,” Twit in 14C swooned, fluttering her eyelashes at Klaus. “You’re an old soul, I can tell.”

           Well, that was an understatement. While Caroline wasn’t sure exactly how old Klaus was, she assumed he was at least a century or two. Fortunately, the elevator dinged, and they were able to clumsily wave at Twit in 14C while pretending to heave the rug with a gooey corpse center over their shoulders.

           “So, that’s still happening,” Caroline observed with a giggle, playfully nudging Klaus with her elbow.

           “Only because you won’t let me compel her,” Klaus grumbled.

           She winked, cheekily telling him, “Poor Klaus, it’s such a terrible burden to be so attractive.”

           As the doors opened to his penthouse, he seemed to perk up as he asked, “You think I’m attractive?”

           She rolled her eyes, not bothering to feed his ego with a response, and ducked her head behind the rug to hide the blush on her cheeks.

           The first slice with the electric carving knife always made her gag reflex kick in, so she rambled as a distraction. “If only some of the Augustine scientists survived.” At his startled expression, she explained, “After the explosion, I went back to the lab looking for answers. I even tried to track down the staff who hadn’t come in that day. Stupid waste of time — they’re all missing or dead.”

           “They didn’t know anything,” Klaus blurted out, hastily adding, “I mean, those in the explosion were probably killed instantly and odds are the higher ups were just the face of the organization without any useful knowledge...one would assume.”

           She raised her eyebrow in surprise, but found herself considering his words. It wasn’t how she thought her life would turn out, but maybe it was time to move on. Despite her aversion to gore, her monster found the clean snap of her meal’s femur immensely satisfying. Clearly, she was a monster and that was all she’d ever be. “I can’t be fixed.”

           “You aren’t broken!” Gray eyes widened in alarm at his outburst, and he quickly busied himself by bundling together some of the shorter bones, stacking them to the side of his enormous porcelain tub.

           Caroline whipped her head around to stare at him, suddenly breathless. No one had ever thought much of her when she was alive — and even less after she died. But Klaus made her feel worthy. Wanted. His loyalty and friendship had been so unexpected and exactly what she needed. But maybe it could be more? Before she fully realized what she was doing, she tossed the decapitated head back into the tub and grabbed Klaus’ henley to pull him in for a kiss.

           He made a surprised noise that turned into a little moan as he deepened the kiss, painting her blonde waves red with his gore-streaked fingers.

           Caroline pulled away hesitantly, voice tinged with concern as she asked, “Do you know what you’re doing? I mean, getting involved with someone like me could be dangerous. Just because I haven’t nom-nomed on you yet, doesn’t mean I won’t. And this ripper virus has made me really strong and I don’t want to hurt you.”

           He gave her an enigmatic smile, “I’m a bit sturdier than I look. Tell me, sweetheart, what do you know about Originals?”

[lets-get-shipping]

Hurt

This is gonna be a bit of a hurt fic, I got the idea for something but wanted to incorporate another aspect into it, leading now to a hurt fic that will have fluff, angst, and of course Esteomi.

---

When things got busy, they got busy. The port was being renovated, there was a festival being planned, and a royal was coming to visit in hopes of setting up a new trade agreement with Avalor. Naomi, being the busy body she is, was helping with the renovations, is in charge of planning the festival, and was helping to set up for the visit of the royals. To be said, she was busy and lately, hadn’t been looking to good.

The blonde haired girl swayed lightly for a few moments, causing Elena to look over worriedly, though she stayed quiet as she had already tried to get her friend to rest but it hadn’t worked.

After a few moments Naomi shook her head and began to work once more, looking over the list of details for the festival while she absentmindedly wiped down the tables in the parlor, muttering to herself softly as she worked.

Elena looked beyond worried, almost seeming on edge every time Naomi swayed or anything of the such. She wasn’t the only one though, everyone in the castle was worried for the girl and many had tried to get her to rest, but her stubbornness could not be deterred.

“Okay, I’ve triple checked the list and everything is in order. I’m gonna go get this to Armando so he can start preparations then I’m heading down to the docks to help out with some more of the renovations there. See ya Elena.” The blonde’s voice was chipper and bright despite her obvious over-exhaustion as she quickly turned and left the room, making her way through the castle until finally finding Armando in the main hall with Francisco, Luisa, and Esteban. “Armando, here.” She tossed him the list with a smile. “I triple checked everything just to be sure. It’s all there so preparations are ready to be started.” With that the blonde turned and went to leave but a hand on her shoulder stopped her and she turned to see Esteban, his grandparents behind them and all their faces taut with worry.

“Naomi, don’t you believe you should rest? You’re looking a bit pale mija.” Luisa stepped forward with a kind look in her eyes.

“I’m fine. Never felt better, now I gotta go. I promised my dad I’d come by to help with the port.”

“Naomi... please rest.” Esteban’s voice was taut and strained as he tried to keep some of his composure at seeing her looking so sickly and not wanting to admit she was feeling bad.

“Oh, Esteban. I’m fine... really. You don’t need to worry. I’ll rest tonight. The festival planning is done and almost everything is ready for the visit so I can rest, later though.” A small smile crossed her features and she stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek softly. “See you later.” With that she turned and was gon before any of them could say another word.

The Chancellor let out a sigh of sorts, his fists clenching by his side and his nails digging into his hands until his grandparents stepped forward and calmed him a bit. 

“She’s strong Esteban. She’ll be fine... I hope.” The last two words were said quietly but his ears still caught them and he finally just turned away and went to Naomi and his room, needing to think of some way to get her to rest before she ended up collapsing.

The sun was shining bright over the kingdom as Naomi made her way through the town, having decided to walk to the port instead of taking a carriage, wanting to look around at the town and bask in the peacefulness of the day. When she stepped onto the wood of the port, she was immediately pulled into a hug by Daniel Turner, her mother Scarlet laughing lightly nearby. 

“Heya dad. So, what all is still being done?” The girl gave her mom a hug as she spoke.

“Well, we’re trying to get some of the docks redone currently, putting down new wood and such. There’s also some ships waiting for the okay to dock, which I really need to get to. If you aren’t feeling to tired then you’re welcome to join the others on the building project.” Daniel gave a light laugh, knowing his daughter was going to go help either way. “Anyways, I’ll see ya later Nomes. Come on Scarlet, we got some ships to help dock.”

“Yes Captain Turner.” His wife gave a smile and followed him.

Naomi made her way to the other workers after a bit, checking their progress before grabbing a hammer herself and beginning to help put boards down, chatting and telling jokes with the others as the day stretched on. 

The dock they were on was finally done and everyone began to put things up, moving crates of extra supplies back to where they had been found and then many heading back over to Daniel and Scarlet to see what else needed to be done.

“I got this one.” Naomi stepped over to a man who was about to lift up a crate and smiled. “You go see what else needs done.” He nodded and left, leaving Naomi by herself on the dock as the blonde leaned over and picked up the crate with ease, being quite strong from working with ships for most of her life. She laid the crate down and stood, but went to fast and suddenly her head was spinning.

She began to panic slightly as her vision went white and her legs wobbly until a sudden wash of calm drifted over her and the next thing anyone knew, she had blacked out and hit the wood of the dock.

---

He knew it. He should’ve been more forceful, shod have made her rest instead of letting her go off and keep working. She was just so stubborn... like him. His eyes were watering and his face rested in his hands, his elbows on his knees as he supported his head, looking down solemnly, his heart clenching in his chest. Just a foot away, laying as still as the dead with skin as pale as snow and her breathing shallow, was Naomi. The bed sheets were pulled up around her and she had been changed into a different pair of clothes, along with a wound on her face having been treated, which she got when she hit the dock.

A chair was pulled up to the side of the bed and Esteban sat within it, cursing himself for not stopping her. For not making her rest.

The air was tense and silent, so thick that it could be cut with a butter knife, but if done then whatever small string was holding Esteban together would break as well. His breathing was ragged in a way a she tried to stay calm, not having been able to bring himself to look at Naomi since she was brought in... two days ago.

He had been excused from seeing the royals and the festival was currently going on, but he wouldn’t move from her side, his eyes watering as he continued to speak to himself about how weak he was. He couldn’t even bring himself to look at her.

His heart ached... his head was spinning... and he wished for nothing more than for her to wake up. You never realize what you have until it’s all on the line or even until it’s gone, something he understood all to well. This girl had accepted him... had accepted his past, his faults, she had even been the first to forgive him after he came clean about his part in Shuriki’s invasion. What if he lost her now?

What if he never saw those aqua blue eyes, filled with light and always shining with such kindness and determination. Or saw the way the sun made her hair shine like gold or the moon made it shine like silver. What if he never heard her laugh again, or make her playful remarks, or even hear that rasp in her voice that he use to hate but now was the most beautiful sound ever. 

He had to look at her... he knew that. His heart was cracked and his head was screaming for him to reach out and hold her hand, to look up at her face and search for any signs of her waking up. It took a while until he Chancellor finally shifted, selling himself as he turned his head and looked at the girl.

A bit of color had returned to her face and her breathing was more steady than when she was brought in. A soft smile found it;s way to Esteban’s face as he reached out and took hold of her hand, his smile widening slightly as he felt that she was warm instead of the odd  cold that she had been.

The Chancellor sat like that for a while, listening to the sounds of the festival outside and letting his mind wander until suddenly, he felt it, a slight squeeze on his hand. His eyes shot to the face of the one he loved to see that, slowly but surely, her eyes were opening, aqua blue peeking out until finally, she noticed him and turned her head so she could see him better.

“Esteban? Are you... crying?” She sounded confused and tired.

He hadn’t realized it but yes, he had started crying when she began to wake, the relief overflowing from him and days of worry lifting from his shoulders. “Yes... I am crying. I am just so relieved that you finally woke up.”

“What do you mean finally woke up?”

“You blacked out on the docks from overexertion... you’ve been sleeping for over two days.” He saw her eyes widen as she remembered being at the docks and then that sudden dizziness sweeping over, following by dark.

“Two days... have you, been here this whole time?” She already knew the answer but wanted to hear it from him.

“I haven’t moved since you were brought in. I was excused from meeting with the royal dignitary and I didn’t go to the festival that’s going on currently, because I couldn’t bear to leave you here.” His eyes shone with tears as he leaned in and pulled the girl into a hug, letting all of his worries slip away until he finally felt like his calm, composed self. “Don’t ever do this again. We tried to tell you that you needed rest. Please listen to us next time Nomey.”

Naomi let out a small chuckle at the nickname as she hugged him back, nestling her face in the crook of his neck. “I’m sorry Ban-Ban. I really thought I was fine. I had everything going well and it was all coming together... I guess my need to get everything right overshadowed my mind and made it where I couldn’t tell how tired I was. I promise that I’ll listen better from now on and to be sure not to take on to much work.”

Esteban let out a relieved sigh and moved closer, getting into the bed and pulling her against him as he hugged her closer. “I was so worried you wouldn’t wake up. I kept remembering all the small things about you that I wanted to see or her so badly.”

“Like what?” Her voice was muffled in Esteban’s shirt.

“Your eyes and the way they always have so much emotion. The way the sun and moon shines on your hair, your laugh, our playful fights. And then that rasp in your voice.” 

“I thought you didn’t like my rasp. Remember my Quinceanera +1? You told me to stop with that rasp in my voice.” She chuckled lightly at the memory.

“Yes, this is true. But now it’s the best sound ever because when I hear it, I know that you’re nearby and that always fills me with happiness.”

“Ah, how cute.” Her last word was interrupted by a huge yawn, causing a laugh to bubble out of Esteban as he pulled her closer and pulled the blankets up over them.

“You, my dear, need more rest. So go ahead and sleep, I’m right here.”

“Thank you... for everything.” With that said her breathing evened and she once again fell asleep.

Esteban stroked her hair softly and sighed as he fell asleep. “If I could have taken your place, I would. I would rather myself be hurt a million times over... than for you to be hurt even one more time.”

[imjustthemechanic]

The Price of a Soul

Part 1/? - Agent Russel Part 2/? - The Letter Part 3/? - Miss Lake Part 4/? - The Stewardess Part 5/? - An Assassination Part 6/? - Fallout Part 7/? - Face to Face Part 8/? - Deals, Details, and Other Devils Part 9/? - Baggage Part 10/? - Private Funding Part 11/? - Just Passing Through Part 12/? - Party of Four Part 13/? - Resolute Part 14/? - The Wreck Part 15/? - Body Snatchers Part 16/? - Out of the Frying Pan Part 17/? - A Miracle Part 18/? - A Matter of Circumstance Part 19/? - Nome

Somebody probably should have warned Howard.

-

Peggy felt a need to wash her face again before she went back to the infirmary to see how Steve was getting along.  She didn’t doubt he’d be just fine, as he always was, but there was a part of her that really needed to see for herself.  Like Howard wanting to stay at the crash site, it would be a while before she felt sure he wouldn’t simply vanish if she turned her back.

She stood in front of the mirror and tried to fix her hair a little, but in the end decided that was a lost cause.  It had been days since she’d been able to wash up properly, and while the redness and swelling from Kay’s chemical spray had gone down, the windburn of the long, cold helicopter flight was still very visible, as were the effects of her recent bout of tears.  She had no fresh clothes to put on, and no makeup to cover anything. She looked grotesque.

So of course when she sat down by Steve’s bedside, he smiled at her and said, “you look beautiful.”

“I do not!” she snorted, “and I ought to thump you one for such a lie!”

“You can’t thump me, I’m a sick man!” Steve protested, and wiggled down under the covers trying to look pathetic.  It failed, of course.  He’d been sitting up and eating when Peggy entered the room.

“You’re as well as you’ve ever been in your life, Steve Rogers,” said Peggy, “and I believe the doctors will take my side on that!”

One of said doctors – sporting a picturesque black eye from the earlier fight – looked up from a clipboard.  “I wouldn’t say that,” he said, “but he’s well on his way to recovery. Amazing.”  He shook his head.  “Never seen anything like it.”

“I hear that a lot,” said Steve, but his smile was gone now. “It’s really been three years?” he asked Peggy.

She nodded.  “Yes, darling.  We didn’t realize you’d gone so far north.”

“Huh.”  He looked away.  “I can’t believe you kept looking for me that long.”

Peggy’s insides twisted.  “Well… we didn’t, honestly.  Schmidt was dead and Hitler shot himself just a few days later, but there was still the Pacific theatre, and…”  She swallowed.  “Howard found the cube and we locked that away, but after that the army wouldn’t fund the search anymore.”

“Oh,” said Steve.

She grabbed his hand.  “If we’d known you were alive, we would never have let it go that long,” she promised… though that probably didn’t reassure him.  He must be thinking what she had, wondering if he might have had to wait centuries or millennia.  At least he hadn’t heard Kay tell Peggy that seventy years would have been more than long enough.  “I’m so sorry, Steve, but… well, we thought you were dead.  After a few weeks in the arctic…”  They’d been certain that even Steve must have perished, if he hadn’t been killed instantly in the crash.

“Right, right.”  He nodded, and brought a hand up to her cheek.  “Don’t apologize, Peggy, it’s… you were right, I should have given you my position.  I saw the ground coming and I… at the last minute there…”  He swallowed hard.

Peggy shut her eyes as tears threatened to overflow again, and wrapped both her hands around his to squeeze it tight.  Nobody could have foreseen this.  Nobody but a woman to whom it was already the long-ago past.

“Did you ever find him?” Steve asked.  “I mean… Bucky?  Or…”

She knew if she opened her eyes she’d find him looking right into them… and she also knew they’d be full of desperate hope even as he already knew what the answer would be.  “I’m afraid not.  The valleys there are impassable most of the year…”

“The Russians found him,” said Kay.

Peggy hadn’t even realized she’d entered the room, but when she looked up, she found Kay standing at the end of Steve’s bed.  Her blonde hair was askew and flattened by her hat, and her face, too, was pink and puffy from crying, but she still looked better than Peggy did.

“They were in the area at the time,” she added. “They knew HYDRA had a route through there and they were looking for anything that might have fallen from the trains.  They didn’t know who he was, but they found him and took him back with them.  The dead HYDRA men, too.”

Steve nodded.  “That’s good… I’m glad somebody took care of him.”

“It’s not quite as simple as that,” said Kay, “but I’ll tell you more when you’re feeling better.”  She turned around, and walked out of the room.

Steve sat up a little, as if he planned to get up and follow her, but Peggy and the doctor both took hold of him and gently pushed him back down onto the bed.

“Steve, don’t, she won’t tell you anything until she’s ready,” Peggy said.

“Captain Rogers,” the doctor said at the same time, “you need to recover your strength.”

“I feel fine!” Steve protested, but he must have been tired, because he lay back down and rested his head on the pillow.  “Who is she?” he asked Peggy.

“I… I’m not entirely sure,” Peggy replied.  “I know she’s Russian.  She’s told me a story about her past but I don’t know whether to believe it.  She did know where to find you, though.”  Kay didn’t seem to be an enemy, but Peggy still wasn’t sure she really counted as an ally, either.  She definitely wasn’t a friend, though, there was no question about that.

Steve nodded.  “If she can tell us where his grave is…”

“I don’t know if that will be possible,” Peggy warned. “The relationship between the US and the USSR has deteriorated a bit.”

She wondered if she should have phrased it that way. Would Steve wonder if other relationships might have deteriorated?  He now knew how long he’d been gone…

His thoughts must have been tending in that general direction, because the next thing he said was, “I know I’m late… but is there any chance we could still make that dance?”

Peggy ducked her head as if to hide a blush – but really to hide the tears that were welling up again.  “I’ll see what I can do,” she promised.  But even that was a lie, wasn’t it?  How could she have that long-delayed dance with Steve when she’d found somebody else?  Daniel wouldn’t begrudge her one dance, but would he believe her if she promised it would only be one dance?

She couldn’t tell Steve about Daniel yet.  Not when he’d only just awakened and had so many other things to catch up on, but the longer she waited the harder it would be.

- 

The Valiant had to return to its normal route patrolling the arctic ocean, so a couple of days later, when the doctors were satisfied that Steve wasn’t about to suddenly collapse, he, Masters, Peggy, and Kay were loaded into a small plane to take them to Nome, Alaska.  The crew of the carrier turned out in their dress uniforms with a band playing to send them off, and somebody had made a Welcome Back Captain America banner to hang from the ship’s superstructure.  Steve smiled awkwardly and waved to them as he climbed into the plane.

“Get used to it,” Peggy murmured to him.  “I imagine there’ll be a very similar reception waiting for you when we reach the mainland.”

“Oh, several of them,” Kay agreed.  “You’re going to have to make a cross-country tour.”

“Great, something to look forward to,” said Steve sarcastically.

“You’ve never liked being fussed over,” she observed.

“When I was little it usually meant they thought I was going to die,” Steve told her.

The plane took off into a clear blue arctic sky, heading southwest over Alaska to get to the town of Nome.  Steve sat looking out the window, but he kept his hand in hers, and she couldn’t help looking at him.  The cuts and bruises she’d helped him with after the train were healing quickly, as they always did.  In a couple more days they’d be gone.  There was already no trace to show he’d spent three years frozen in the sea ice. Physically as well as mentally, he hadn’t aged a day.

Peggy had been a year younger than him when he’d left. She wondered if she would now be considered two years older.

He glanced back and noticed her staring, and she quickly turned her head.  “Sorry,” Peggy said.  “I just… can’t quite believe you’re real.”

One of the things they hadn’t been sure of, one of the things Erskine had never been able to test, was the question of whether somebody who’d had the serum would age normally.  Not enough time had passed to see whether Steve was getting older, but the fact that he’d survived this latest ordeal made it seem unlikely that time could touch him.  What would happen if in twenty years, Peggy had gotten older and Steve had not?

During the war they’d both been ready to deal with that as it came.  Steve probably still was.  Peggy wasn’t so sure.

“What about you?” she asked, trying to distract herself from that uncomfortable thought and the problems surrounding it.  “What are you looking at out there?”

“Nothing, exactly,” he said.  “I’m just… thinking.”

“About what?” Peggy asked.

“About what Buck would have said if he were here. He, uh… he would have told me I’m an idiot,” Steve said with an embarrassed smile.  “He would have told me that if I’d given it a few more days I would have realized I didn’t want to die, and he’d be right.  In the last few seconds when I knew the water was coming in, I tried to get out.  But I couldn’t.  He wouldn’t have wanted me to die.”

“I could have told you that,” said Peggy.

“I’m surprised you haven’t yet,” said Kay from the seat behind them.

“I was saving it for when the initial joy wore off,” Peggy replied.  “Then I was going to give him a real earful.”

Kay giggled, but Peggy had to suppress a shudder.  His last thought being that he didn’t want to die after all, only for him to wake up and find he was alive but three years had gone by without him… that had to be enough of a shock.  Three years, however, was merely a hiatus – seventy was a lifetime.  She rearranged her fingers, lacing them through his, and wished Kay hadn’t painted quite so vivid a picture of it.

- 

There was no fanfare waiting for them in Nome, to Steve’s obvious relief.  When they landed on the little airstrip, there was nobody there to meet them but a few more military men, and Howard and Jason.  The ramp came down, and Kay was the first off the plane, followed by Peggy and Steve.  Howard was so happy to see any of them that he ran up to give Kay a hug.

“What do they feed you Russian girls to make you indestructible?” he asked.

“Various experimental versions of the super-soldier serum,” Kay replied.

Howard blinked and then held her out at arm’s length again to examine her facial expression.  She remained entirely deadpan, but after a moment he decided she was joking, and laughed awkwardly before turning to hug Peggy.

“I think you’re just too stubborn to die,” he said.

“Damned right,” Peggy agreed.  “I have far too much to do.”

He responded with a more genuine laugh and hugged her again, while Jason happily greeted Kay.  Steve had stood back for this, but then came up to take his turn saying hello to Howard, on the assumption that his friend was expecting him.

Peggy had assumed this as well.  She hadn’t told Jason that Steve was alive, but Captain Lewis must have radioed ahead to have somebody there to meet them, and would have surely told that person.  And since Peggy had told Lewis that Howard and Jason would be there as well, it seemed reasonable to her that one of the military men would have spoken to them.

Evidently this was not true.  Steve stepped forward with a smile on his face, clearly expecting a hug of his own, and said, “Howard!  Good to see you!”  But instead of returning the greeting, Howard stopped cold.  The colour drained from his face, and then his legs simply folded up underneath him.  If Peggy hadn’t caught him, he would have fallen face-first onto the asphalt.

“Is he okay?” one of the soldiers asked.

Peggy lay him down gently and took his pulse. “He’s out cold,” she said.  “I think he’ll be fine.  Does anyone have any smelling salts?”

One of the soldiers went to fetch some from the first aid kit on the airplane, while Steve and Peggy carried Howard’s unconscious body into a car so they could lie him down comfortably.  Once that was done, Steve stepped back and looked at Jason, somewhat worried about what his reaction might be.

“Captain,” said Jason.  “Dr. Jason Wilkes.  I work for Stark Industries.  I saw you once or twice during the war, but we never actually met.”

“Nice to meet you, Dr. Wilkes,” said Steve.  They shook hands.

The smelling salts brought Howard around, gagging. “What happened?” he groaned. “Peg?  I thought I saw…”

“You did,” Peggy told him.  “Steve’s alive.  He’s here.”

Howard sat up a bit to see Steve looking over Peggy’s shoulder, and after a moment in which he could only sit there with his mouth hanging open, he began to grin.  “Well, son of a gun!”

[lets-get-shipping]

The Sealed Legend-Chapter 2

(Festival time! Lets see how I do at this. Gonna try to write my own song for the singing part)

The sun reaching it's peak when King Joaquín arrived, Elena rushing to meet him along with her family and friends. She was dressed in a simple dress that went to her knees and had a off shoulder neckline with her normal silky material that hung down slightly from around the collar. The dress was a beautiful pale blue with white and green embroidering around the bottom that spiraled upwards slightly as well and she had a blue, yellow, and green flower vine braided into her hair.

She was almost hopping up and down in excitement  as she watched the ship dock, followed by the royal family walking out onto the pier and Isa immediately running off with Caterina to go play or get into mischief.

"King Joaquín! Welcome back to Avalor and thank you for accepting our invitation!" The Princess approached him.

"Elena, we are delighted to be here. The peace in Avalor is something for all to enjoy and to relish in. So what are we doing here? Lets go enjoy the festival!" The King hooked arms with his wife and the two walked toward the town square, Elena following behind and catching up with them.

It wasn't long until the festival was in full swing, children playing, the jaquins often picking them up and carrying them into the sky for a thrill ride, music playing through the city, and the forms of dancing people filling the streets.

Elena laughed happily as Mateo, who had asked her if she wished to dance, twirled her around, the crooked smile on his face.

Close by Isa and Caterina were playing with some of the other children, Gabe supervising the two to make sure nothing happened like at the Olaball game. Naomi was dancing around with her mother and father, not even noticing that Esteban seemed to look at her now and then before he ended up in a bickering match with Dona Paloma, again. King Joaquín and Queen Teresa were sitting down by the fountain, enjoying the sight of so many happy people.

Elena laughed loudly as she was twirled once more, the scene moving around her as she spun before the music came to a stop and she was left holding Mateo's hands, their chests pressed together and bright smiles on their faces. "This is so much fun!"

"Yes, it is. It was a great idea to set this up Elena, the town will be filled with hope and happiness for a while because of it." Mateo smiled wider before his mother rushed over and whisked him away, wanting to dance with her 'little boy'.

The princess shook her head softly and went over to the fountain, sitting own on the edge and just taking in the sight of her people.

Naomi laughed as her father picked her up and twirled her around, though her mom jumped at them a moment later and the three fell to the group in a heap of laughter and surprised shouts.

"Mom!" Naomi punched her shoulder lightly.

"I can't help myself Nomes." The red head stood and began to dance again, twirling around and around until her husband had stood and took hold of her hand, beginning to twirl her around himself.

Deciding to leave the two alone Naomi slowly walked away, a smirk covering her face as she watched a bickering match between Esteban and Dona Paloma come to an end, Dona stomping off toward her shop while the Chancellor stood there looking smug and proud of himself.

"What did she want to fight about this time?" Esteban hadn't noticed Naomi approach and he jumped slightly as she spoke.

"She wanted to set up a deal in her shop for the festival and I told her it was a horrid idea because no one would even go there right now, they're having to much fun here. She didn't like that much though." He gave a smirk as he turned and looked fully at the blonde now. "Why are you over here Miss Turner?"

"My mom and dad are dancing and I want them to have some time to themselves. Saw you and thought I'd come see if you were actually managing to have fun." She crossed her arms and gave him a playful look.

"Miss Turner, are you trying to say I don't know how to have fun?"

"No no no, nothing of the sort. You can just be a bit of a stiff is all."

"My word, I'll have you know that I can have just as much fun as anyone else. I'm having a fabulous time, I just told off Dona Paloma and now I get to have a bicker fight with you, I'd say this day is marvelous." His voice came off as matter of fact.

Naomi couldn't help herself and began to laugh. "You actually enjoy our fights? Oh, I know I shouldn't be laughing because I do to but to hear it said out loud is just to funny!" She ended up bent over as she laughed, Esteban frowning down at the girl. "A-Anyways, what else are you going to do."

A new, upbeat song started and Esteban's eyes flashed. "Perhaps you would like to dance Miss Turner?"

Her aqua blue eyes went wide for a second before her gaze softened and she gave a quick nod. "Sure!"

At that Esteban took hold of her hand and the two moved into the dancing crowd, beginning to spin and turn in rhythm with the song. They spotted Mateo being dragged into dancing with his mother an the two stifled laughs at the sight. Elena was watching them with a funny look but Naomi ignored her as she focused on Esteban who was spinning her around and around, letting out a laugh after a bit.

The song began to fade out and the Princess stood once more, rushing over to the band and borrowing one of their guitars before she moved to the fountain and jumped on the rim of it, beginning to play.

"Let us join together now, in perfect harmony. Today we celebrate, we celebrate peace" Her voice rose out above the sound and many began to turn to her, counting Esteban and Naomi, though their hands were still clasped.

"Shuriki has fallen, and danger has been banished. So join here with me and let us celebrate, celebrate peace." She gave off that infectious smile and Isa rushed forward to join her, her Abuelo grabbing a guitar and joining her as well.

"The evil seemed dark. But now the light shines through it all. Together we have won. Together we gained peace." Many of the towns people were joining in now, and Gabe moved forward to join them at the fountain, Mateo moving to them shortly after as well.

"So on this day let us celebrate. Let us celebrate peace." Naomi and Esteban began to join in.

"Come and sing this with me, Come celebrate with me. Together we won, together we gained peace." By ow everyone was singing and moving with the beat of the song, singing up with raised voices as they seemed to tell the lyrics to the very air and spirit of life around them.

"The light shines down. Upon all of Avalor. Let it fill you with love, let it fill you with hope." The group began to grow louder as hope fueled their song.

"As peace reigns us. We will grow and you'll see. The darkness is gone. And we are free." Now the entire town was filled with the song, even the jaquins coming down and joining in.

"Come and sing this with me, Come celebrate with me. Together we won, together we gained peace.

Hold your loved ones close. Let all hear your voice. Then come and sing this with me. Come celebrate with me." At word of loved ones many family members hugged each other, singing loudly together as they did so.

"Peace, peace, peace This day we celebrate, for finally we have... Peace." The last note was stretched out and then faded, leaving a feeling of hope and, of course, peace among the town.

(The song was written by me! Tell me what you think of it!)