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afraidparade · 2 years

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A Weapon That Weeps

Word count: 10,601 Content warnings: frequent mention of injuries & death, themes of oppression, various dark themes

(this piece is about faust's homeworld, and is mostly here for lore. it does not have any g/t themes, but will contain a lot of tidbits that may come into play later. the main characters will not reappear at any time in the general lufa story.)

(also, your life will be a lot easier if you give this a quick look over before reading ^^)

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Flurries of clangs rung out as metal struck metal, each attack barely granting so much as a moment to parry, let alone breathe. Both demons bounced on their feet, their bodies trained to either dodge or lunge while their minds were conditioned to seek out every opportunity for a potential advantage, resulting in a high-speed, deathly tango. The polearms they clutched — such disgraceful, low-class things, they’d been told, since true demons were beyond relying on physical weapons — were indeed for training purposes, but the blades were still sharp. They could tear through flesh. They could kill. And if they didn’t fight like their life depended on it, then that bleak dependency would soon be realized.

The shorter one was on the offense, grunting as she delivered slash after furious slash unto her opponent. Under such a barrage, a wavering defense could only last so long. Yet the same reasoning could apply to an unrelenting attacker. It was this razor’s edge between a calculation and a gamble that R-406 spent their life perfecting, and with every impact, their window of opportunity was getting ever closer.

It wasn’t an effortless strategy. To get to this point — where their muscles seared in pain, where their lungs faltered, where their open wounds screamed in bloody protest — it took every ounce of perseverance they had. Coupled with the additional knowledge of what awaited them should they choose to take a break…suffice to say, it was a powerful, dreadful fuel. So with at least a moment’s reprieve visible on the horizon, R-406 allowed their body to give in to the next attack.

They staggered backwards, allowing one hand to lose its grip on the staff and feign an opening. Their opponent’s eyes flashed with that same starving determination for this all to be over in those white-hot pupils, and with reckless abandon, she charged forward. The exposed demon’s eyes flicked downward expectantly, betraying no emotion when they saw one of their assailant’s steps wobble from the effort it took to sprint. They parted their lips to suck in a breath.

Predictable.

Within that moment, R-406’s body dropped low and pushed off the ground with their hands, all in time with their opponent’s next step. Before she managed to land her other foot in the dirt, a devastatingly precise kick swept against the side of her waist, stealing her balance and causing her eyes to fly wide. In the time she crashed to the floor, R-406 managed to use the momentum of their other leg to spin themself upright again, and having maintained a one-handed grip on their weapon during the lightning-fast exchange, brandished it in both hands a mere hair’s length away from the other’s neck.

The two of them finally — finally — paused, panting heavily as they processed the outcome of the spar. Eventually, the defeated trainee dropped her head with a sigh and released her own polearm.

“That move is so cheap. Why is that even allowed?” she whined hoarsely, though there wasn’t a trace of hostility to her tone. In fact, a small, exhausted grin had appeared on her dirt-caked face.

R-406 returned the smile, wiping a combination of sweat and blood droplets from their face with the back of their arm. “I don’t know, B-921. Maybe the question you should be asking is: why do you keep falling for it?”

Having lowered the blade, they offered a hand and assisted B-921 in getting back to her feet, though it required a great deal of effort from both of them. This was the ‘end’ that kept them moving — which, in bitter reality, was no end at all. This time to right themselves and resume their sparring positions was the only break they were permitted until their commanding officer was either content or bored with the day’s regiment. And based on the unmoving, shadowy, ever-watchful figure that seemed to tower over them (even past several rows of sparring Low Ranks), it was impossible to gauge when that time may be.

“Alright,” R-406 spoke as they readied themself several paces back, “Come at me. I’ll go easy on you this time.”

B-921 still trembled from the effort it took to stand, but she managed to take up a battle stance regardless. She laughed. “No you won’t.”

R-406 blinked, then lowered their head. “You’re right,” they stated simply, “I won’t.”

———

The day ended sooner than expected. It turned out to be a “train until one of you loses consciousness” days — not that Klaad felt the need to inform them of that ahead of time — and while those kinds of regiments could stretch far past the ending time of any normally scheduled training day, someone dropped much sooner than anyone expected. Thinking back on it, maybe their commanding officer had only decided on the conditions for the day in that exact moment. Klaad was a particularly nasty soul, after all, even among the most ruthless of High Ranks. R-406, being a relatively competent trainee, managed to avoid too many brush-ins with him, but everyone in the platoon knew what he was capable of.

Klaad had a rather peculiar method of encouragement. It involved tapping into the innate fear of consequence along with the driving force of competition: simply put, whoever performed the weakest on a given day would receive harsh punishment as an example for the rest of the trainees. At its core, it promoted a feeling of “I sure am glad that’s not me." That was the extent of their reward for making it through the day. Honestly, R-406 wasn’t particularly bothered by it. They were glad it wasn’t them. And they were stronger for it.

To the surprise of none, the demon who collapsed was the same runtish trainee that faced these lashings more than anyone else. The poor thing had barely been unconscious for more than a few seconds before he was collected for “encouragement” training and all the others were dismissed. While patching themself up to the best of their ability — healers’ efforts couldn’t be wasted on Low Ranks, naturally — R-406 idly wondered why that trainee hadn’t just given up and died yet. It certainly seemed like the easier option, and it was a hell of a lot better than ending up at Endstation. But they didn’t really care enough to find out. It just meant they never had to worry about being at the bottom. Furthermore, there was nothing to be gained from helping weaklings. They knew this to be true, and yet…

“Pfftt. You look like a dork with that bandage on your nose,” B-921 announced her presence with the snide remark. She limped towards the pile of empty, discarded crates R-406 had been sitting on while they nibbled at a ration bar, content with what used to be a quiet scene. Seeing as she sported a much larger assortment of bandages and ointment patches than they had, it didn’t make much sense that R-406 was the one being made fun of, but everything they could’ve said, they didn’t. After all, they were responsible for most of her wounds, so taking the brunt of a bit of teasing seemed like fair payback.

Despite their best efforts to uphold their ideologies, there was one weakling R-406 maintained a soft spot for. B-921 was a far cry from a model soldier, but when push came to shove, she was unexpectedly reliable. It wasn’t that R-406 needed the company, of course. They operated just fine on their own. It was just…convenient to have someone to talk to once in a while. That was all.

“Is that from me clocking you in the face too hard?” B-921 asked after a moment, gesturing again towards the nose bandage, “Sorry about that.”

R-406 narrowed their eyes. “No, you didn’t land a single hit on my face. This is just from the time I fell wrong.”

B-921 slapped a hand over her mouth as her cheeks upturned in sudden, unconcealed amusement. “Pff— hah! That’s way more pathetic! How the hell did you say that with a straight face?” she squawked, to which R-406 reddened. The flushed trainee clenched their jaw and whirled their head away from B-921, who settled on the crate beside them while snickering still. The moment calmed after a short while, as it always did, and she began unwrapping a small clump of rags that R-406 hadn’t previously noticed.

“Picked up an extra ration bar while I was over there. Wanna split it?” she offered, unveiling that the parcel in her lap did, indeed, contain two colorless, vaguely lumpy bars inside.

R-406 stared at the rations with an air of concern. “How?”

Already, B-921 had torn off a corner of one of the bars and began chewing it nonchalantly. “I beelined it there before anyone else and told ‘em to gimme the extra. Said I’d give it to that one kid. Y’know, Klaad’s favorite punching bag,” she explained, voice muffled by the half-chewed food in her mouth, “Either I’m, like, super convincing, or those dead-eyed Mid Ranks at Distribution just really don’t care.” R-406 bristled slightly at the overly casual name-calling of a higher Rank, but it went unnoticed by B-921. “I mean, if you don’t want it, then whatever, more for–“

“I never said that,” they snapped, and B-921 was laughing again. She broke the second bar in two and handed them a piece, and even with just a quick sidelong glance, they could tell it was the bigger half. That wasn’t logical at all, R-406 reasoned with a frown. B-921 was smaller than them. She should eat more, even if it was just a fraction. Of course, they could also benefit from the extra portion of the nutrient-rich substance. Plus, it’d just be annoying to argue with her over something so trivial. So they bit into the ration in silence, long since accustomed to the barely-there flavor that crumbled across their tongue.

“You shouldn’t do that, by the way,” R-406 mentioned after they finished their extra half. Only just polishing off her first full bar, B-921 glanced up with a rather dumb expression as she sucked the crumbs from her fingers.

“What, steal another kid’s rations?”

“What? No. I mean, probably, but that’s not what I’m talking about,” R-406 stammered with a shake of their head, “I mean don’t talk about higher Ranks like that. If anyone heard you say that — even if another Low Rank overheard it and reported you to Klaad — you’d be facing a terrible penalty for your carelessness. So watch your mouth.”

The grim warning seemed to bounce right off the girl’s skull, seeing as her initial response was little more than staring forward and blinking a few times. It appeared as if she were considering something, and for a moment R-406 believed that maybe she’d finally unlocked the gift of critical thinking. But they were wrong. “That’s stupid,” she decided, “This whole Rank thing is so stupid.”

R-406 felt as though the brittle reality around them had just cracked into thousands of tiny pieces. Their expression, usually cold and composed, morphed to horrific shock and incredulity. Reason kicked in just a heartbeat later, and they lunged forward to cover B-921’s mouth with their palm while desperately scanning the area for anyone within hearing range. To their relief, even the closest demons were a safe distance away, and this run-down recreational space was only inhabited by Low Ranks, anyways. Only then feeling safe enough to continue talking, R-406 withdrew their hand from the other’s mouth in favor of grabbing her shoulders instead.

“Are you completely out of your mind? More than penalized, that kind of statement could get us both killed!” their hushed, frantic tone was almost pleading, as if begging B-921 to take back her words. She didn’t, though. Instead, she scoffed and returned their panic with a casual grin.

“You’re over-exaggerating, R-406. Plus, there’s no one around to chop our heads off for complaining. It’s not like any of these guys care enough to report us in the first place, and the upper Ranks are too prissy to set foot in this dump,” she countered, gesturing to the other worn-down and injured trainees littering the visible area.

Unconvinced, R-406 swallowed. “W…what about…” their voice trailed off, and after a considerable pause, they stared past B-921’s form and into the distance. Following their gaze, she turned around to survey what was causing such an apprehensive expression. Low in the inky black sky hovered an impossibly distant red spot. It was a mysterious thing; the way it inched along the horizon in cycles, how it dimly illuminated their world, and the way one could simultaneously pinch its visage between their fingers while acknowledging its truly incomprehensible scale. No demon knew just how close or how far away this entity was, and such uncertainty bred mystifying tales explaining its existence.

B-921 turned back with a condescending smirk. “What, you mean the First?” she jabbed. R-406’s steadfast frown indicated their position on this matter, and she snickered again. “As in the First Elite? You seriously think that some guy got too big and powerful to fit on our world, so now he's just hanging out in the sky and watching us? That he’s gonna see a couple beat-up Low Ranks talking crap and go, ‘Grr, better use my infinite power to blow up some dumb kids!’ Wahaha! You still believe in dumb stories like that?”

R-406’s gray skin had gone red yet again from the teasing. “So what if I’m cautious? It’s why I’m still alive,” they retorted, though it did nothing to reduce their companion’s amusement regarding the matter. Growing more irritated by B-921’s annoying cackles, they allowed their composure to slip even further, a thoroughly frustrated grimace on full display at this point. “Stop laughing! All the higher Ranks say it’s true, so—“

“See? Doesn’t that seem a little off to you?” B-921 interjected, suddenly shifting to an expression that seemed just a tad more serious than usual, “It’s a really far-fetched story, but someone as smart as you believes it just because a higher Rank told you to. Weird, right?”

R-406 stared forward blankly. “I don’t follow.”

The shorter demon sighed, running a hand through her fluffy, wild hair as she pieced together her thoughts. “It’s like…none of it’s really real. Not just the story, but the whole Rank system. I mean, there’s no denying that our bodies respond to taking in life force, but why the hierarchy? If ‘universal domination’ or whatever was the real end goal, wouldn’t it be more efficient to help us Low Ranks get more powerful and make an army of Elites than to make us fight for our lives?”

She chuckled for a moment. R-406 couldn’t begin to guess what was so funny.

“My theory is that it’s not actually about any sort of noble pursuit, or that it has much of anything to do with the other realms. It’s just a power trip, that’s all. Everyone here is born at the bottom, so when you finally make it out on top, you wanna enjoy it, right? This whole cycle of abuse continues because of demons like that. And they’re all cowards. Every last one of them.”

R-406 couldn’t speak. What were they supposed to say? They didn’t think B-921 was even capable of basic critical thinking, and now she spouts a conspiracy like this? It was blasphemous. Utter sacrilege. They should report her, they shouldn’t even still be listening at this point, but…a terrifying, horrible part of them wanted to believe what she was saying might be true. And an even worse, irredeemably selfish part of their heart didn’t want to do anything that would harm her. It would just be…inconvenient. Yeah, that was it.

“But all those powerful demons should know how much it sucks to be treated like this! Why doesn’t anyone just do something about it, y’know?” B-921 exclaimed in a sudden outburst, and R-406 had to once again hurriedly remind her to keep her voice down. At least she seemed more like her usual self now.

“Well…what you’re saying is obviously crazy, but if I had to throw my own hypothetical input into this entirely unfounded theory…” They clasped their hands together and stared at the ground. This was a dangerous conversation. There was no logical benefit to prolonging it, and yet they kept talking. “It’s just as you said: it feels good at the top. Questioning the establishment would mean jeopardizing all that power, as well as negating all your efforts to get to that point. It'd mean wasting your entire life. It’d mean…death.”

A heavy silence pressed over them. After leaning back on her palms and letting her face tilt up towards the empty sky, B-921 muttered, “…You know, for a soldier, you sure do have a pretty big fear of death.”

And it was silent again.

B-921 swung her legs idly as she looked to the sky, while R-406 remained perfectly still with eyes transfixed on the floor. Neither were looking at anything in particular, as there wasn’t much to look at. Finally, B-921 spoke up again.

“Hey, here’s an idea!” she announced, whirling to face her companion, “Once we Rank up, we should just go ahead and change the rules!”

R-406 gave her an incredulous glare, hardly able to tell her meaningless jokes from her treacherous ideals anymore. “Did you listen to a single word I just said?” they deadpanned.

She blew a raspberry in response. “Well no duh it’d be impossible if it was just one demon trying to overhaul things, but just think about what we could do with our powers combined! Plus, there’s bound to be some other demons that are thinking the same things as us. We’ll just round ‘em all up and start a revolution!”

They laughed through their nose. It was an incredibly rare occurrence for R-406 to so much as smile, but it was such a ridiculous fantasy, they couldn’t help it. “Sounds like a recipe for disaster, if you ask me,” they noted.

“It’ll work! You’ll see!” she chirped, “And don’t worry — if anyone tries somethin’ funny, I’ll protect you!” As if to further drive this point home, the young trainee tapped a hand against her bicep and huffed triumphantly, and at this R-406 laughed again.

“Really now? Sounds like I have nothing to worry about, then,” they added fondly.

“Yep! So let’s promise, okay?” B-921 offered the sentence as more of a command than a question, but R-406 wasn’t all that interested in arguing at this point, anyways. It was strange, but even in the low light of the First, her black eyes still managed to glimmer with hope. “Promise that when we Rank up, we’ll shake things up around here. Together!”

Promises were such childish things, R-406 remarked internally. But maybe it would be fine to be children for just a little longer.

“Yeah,” they replied, “I promise.”

———

Eike. That was the name they were given at the Ranking Ceremony. Klaad bestowed it upon them himself, as it was customary for a platoon’s commanding officer to conduct the distribution of names after a successful mission. They met the High Rank’s eyes as it happened — taller now, but still eclipsed by their superior. He said that it suited them. That was a cliche line, Eike noted inwardly, since whether it suited them or not was truly irrelevant. What mattered was that it was theirs. That they earned it. They were finally somebody, and that was the first thing they’d ever received that couldn’t ever be taken away by anyone. It was theirs.

The invasion Eike had been drafted to had gone surprisingly smoothly. Out of the select few from their own platoon, as well as the assortment of trainees pulled from other groups, the battalion that was sent to the targeted world was largely Low Ranks. This formula tended to result in a rather hefty fatality rate, but surprisingly, very few of their peers died in the fray.

With any other world, this may not have been the case. The sentient inhabitants of this realm — fuzzy, bipedal creatures with six limbs in total, whose heights mirrored those of the average Mid Rank — displayed phenomenal arcane potential, but seemed to adhere to a strictly pacifistic lifestyle. It was such a waste of potential, really. Even after their attempts at diplomacy were met with bloodshed and the wiser of the survivors attempted retaliation, it was too late; their paltry days of preparation could never match the lifetime of training each individual demon had. Eike almost felt bad for them. Almost. But in truth, they were more frustrated that they weren’t met with a suitable challenge. Oh, well. Their life forces proved to be marvelously effective, and there would always be more assignments in the future.

Once everyone was dismissed from the Ranking Ceremony, Eike wandered through the crowd of fellow Mid Ranks aimlessly. For once, they weren’t quite sure what to do next. There had never been a day in their life where they woke up not knowing what to expect, nor had they ever had this amount of freedom at their disposal. It was…somehow terrifying. What if they messed up and overstepped their bounds as a Mid Rank? Or would the punishment for displaying a Low Rank’s cowardly obedience prove to be even worse? Before these worries could cloud their head any further, a friendly slap to their back jolted them back into reality, and they gasped.

Right, this familiar camaraderie was exactly what they needed to clear their head! B-921 hadn’t been assigned to the same invasion as Eike, so they hadn’t seen her since the days preceding their departure. There would be so much to tell her, so much to catch up on, and so much to look forward to when she Ranked up, too. Though they would have to scold her for being so rough with their back — which was still painfully sore from developing fresh wings — it would be such a relief to be in her crass presence again. They turned around, eyes flashing with an excitement they hadn’t felt in leaps.

Only the demon behind them wasn’t B-921. It was another Mid Rank — Reden had been the name he was just recently given — that Eike had gotten to know during the assignment. It would be a severe overstatement to say they were close, as their relationship mainly consisted of Reden jabbering about anything and everything for hours on end while Eike feigned interest with curt nods and brief remarks. He wasn’t completely inept, though; in fact, he actually rivaled Eike in terms of physical strength. There was at least some value in making acquaintances for now, but they still couldn’t help but feel a bit dejected by their own false assumption. It wasn’t as though Low Ranks and Mid Ranks could chat normally with each other anyways, so Eike did their best to abandon the hope of seeing B-921. At least until she managed to Rank up, too.

“Hey, there you are, pal! Congrats on making it to the end of the ceremony!” Reden burst into the conversation with an irritatingly loud voice, “What do you think of my name? ‘Reden’ sounds pretty great, right? Klaad said that it was pretty much made for me, and if a High Rank like him tells you something like that, you’ve absolutely got to take their word for it! And what about you? Your name, uh…”

“Eike,” they replied flatly. Reden still hadn’t removed his hand, and it made their flesh itch.

“That’s right! You’ve gotta love how that sounds, right? It’s good and strong. Hey, speakin’ of strong, we never did get a sparring match in! Sure, we were busy with the whole extermination thing, but now that that’s over, we can let loose! Come on, how ‘bout it? We can find out which one of us really is the strongest! Let’s head to the Mid Rank training grounds and try it out!”

His tone was chipper and his posture relaxed, but something about the way his grin stretched just a bit too wide gave Eike a feeling of unease. Was it just paranoia? Or did Reden have some sort of complex about being the indisputable leader of any group he was a part of? In a hypothetical situation, Eike was confident that their endurance would outlast Reden’s in head-to-head combat. As far as brute strength went, however…well, there was no question that Reden held the advantage in that regard. Perhaps that very notion was what spurred him to challenge Eike in the first place. They wouldn’t get a chance to find out.

“What’s with these two? All they think about is fighting,” a nearby demon sneered, their tone raised to a purposeful volume so that the two in question would hear it. Eike didn’t bother mentioning that they had precisely zero input in the spontaneous challenge when they considered who the voice belonged to. Another familiar soldier approached — this one had received the name Voss — flanked by two other Mid Ranks, who snickered at the previous remark. Although Voss hadn’t been much of a frontliner during the invasion, they were still a formidable ally; what they lacked in physical strength was made up for wholly in their skill as a tactician, and it was often the strategies Voss offered that led the troops to such efficient and ruthless victories. Eike certainly respected them, but frequently made it a point not to get too comfortable in their presence. After all, the most dangerous demons were the ones you couldn’t read.

Reden simply responded with a chuckle and a theatrical shrug, finally granting Eike the small reprieve of personal space. “What’s wrong with wanting to stay in shape? It’d be a damn shame if we worked so hard to survive our first invasion only to die in the next one,” he replied casually. Though they weren’t quite as enthusiastic about the prospect of a brawl, Eike did have to agree with the second part of the statement. It was easy for a fool to think life was a downhill slope after surviving one assignment, but in reality, safety wasn’t guaranteed even in their own world. Fortune favored the bold, but it also favored the wary; failing to find the balance between those had cost countless upstarts their lives.

“But it’s good to see you alive and well, my friend! And with such a wonderful name, too! That name being…” Reden’s voice trailed off, clearly cuing Voss to chime in. They didn’t bite. “Of course, it’s…erm…”

“Honestly,” Voss sighed through a tight, mirthless grin, “It’s not that difficult to listen every once and awhile. Though I suppose you are living proof that it really is impossible to have both brains and brawn. Isn't that right, Reden?”

Reden smiled in response. It was the same smile he put on when asking Eike for a fight.

“Quips aside, we were just about to head to the Mid Rank dormitories. There’s a chance we may land the fresher, more accommodating rooms if we beat the others to claiming them, and I don’t know about you, but I could certainly use a comfortable bunk after sleeping on those damned cots throughout the entire assignment,” Voss relayed as their entourage nodded vigorously in agreement.

Eike hummed, understanding the logic behind the explanation, but feeling lost as to why it was relevant to either them or Reden. Was it just to gloat? Or was there some tactic to this sudden conversation that they were just missing? “That would be wise,” they replied carefully, studying the other demons’ reactions to determine whether or not this response was adequate, “Best of luck to you, then.”

When the brief silence that followed was accentuated with a cocked head and raised eyebrow on Voss' end, Eike was certain they had missed some sort of deeper meaning after all. “You mean to say you’re not coming along?” they asked.

Now even Reden was giving Eike a confused stare, which only addled them further. What did he of all demons understand that they didn’t? “Am I…” they ventured, eyes flicking between the faces of all the surrounding Mid Ranks, “...Supposed to?”

“Well, when you put it like that, it sounds mandatory,” Voss laughed, “It was just an invitation. You know, between friends.”

Eike froze, their jaw clenching instinctively to prevent any more thoughtless words from escaping their lips.

Friends. Friends…?

This was what friendship was? They hadn’t known it could come about so easily. Throughout their life, such attachments were deemed unnecessary – both by themself and their peers. Fraternizing with weaker demons meant being weighed down, and latching onto stronger demons meant inevitably being disposed of. So then, Eike wondered, what came of grouping with others who were more or less equal? Perhaps there was a strength in numbers. Or perhaps it was a means of ascertaining one's potential rivals. A race to exploit each other’s weaknesses, maybe.

Well, there was no rule saying it couldn’t be all of the above. If it was beneficial to be “friends” even for a short time, then there was no logic in refusing the offer. Eike couldn’t say they trusted any of these new friends of theirs, but trust wasn’t necessary for friendship, right? They all had something to gain. That was what mattered. And maybe…it wouldn’t be so bad to have a place to belong. Just for a little while, anyways.

They drew in a breath, finally feeling clarity in their flurry of thoughts. “I–”

“Uh, ‘scuse me.”

All at once, that clarity raged into a tempest. Eike felt their veins run cold, felt their breath catch in their throat, as a voice more familiar than any other rang out in a place it didn’t belong. Not here. Not now.

“Sorry if I’m interrupting something, but I kinda need to talk to that tall one in the middle there. Eike,” the voice continued. The sound of their newly-earned name on her voice was clunky and unnatural, like trying to shove a key into a lock it wasn’t made for. “Oh, it’s private. Forgot to mention that. But I’ll make it quick, okay?”

Eike felt the others shift around them, but couldn’t find the strength in themself to turn around and face B-921. They didn’t understand why, but it felt like they had been caught doing something wrong. That was an asinine thought, though; they had done nothing to feel ashamed of, and even if they had, she wasn’t strong enough to threaten any consequence. So why couldn’t they shake this growing dread?

Voss was the first of the Mid Ranks to speak. “What’s that scrawny thing doing here? Think it was so dumb that it lost its group?” they snickered coldly, speaking as if the demon couldn’t hear their cruel words, yet meeting her eyes all the while, “Seems like you need a lesson in manners, Low Rank. Truthfully, I’d love to teach you myself, but we’re in a bit of a hurry. I’d be happy to inform your commanding officer of this little indiscretion, though.”

B-921 didn’t even flinch. “Believe it or not, that was me being polite,” she stated firmly. As Voss’ smile faltered, the air went frigid. “I’ll say it again for you, but seeing as you’re in such a rush, I won’t beat around the bush this time: shove off and give us some space. We’ve got somethin’ really important to talk about, and it doesn’t involve you. So beat it.”

A second passed in terrible silence. Another in horrifying stillness. One more, and Eike felt nauseous. This wasn’t bravery. This wasn’t even foolishness. It was suicide. B-921 must have known this, even despite her unrealistic ideals on the Rank system. What was so important that it couldn’t wait for a safer opportunity to be brought up? Just what was her end goal from this senseless provocation? And why did she have to drag Eike into it?

It was Reden who stepped forward next, already flexing his sharp, black claws. He’d used them to tear open flesh countless times before, and from the way his inky eyes glinted with dangerous intent, he would assuredly do so again. It was the final moment of calm before the storm, a last chance to grovel and flee before all hell broke loose. Still with their back to B-921, Eike prayed for the sound of retreating footsteps, or for the Mid Ranks to decide a whiny trainee wasn’t worth their time. Neither happened.

“And just who the hell made you an Elite overnight? I can’t tell if you’re delusional or just fucking stupid,” Reden began in a sneer, the facade of friendliness having been quickly replaced with unconcealed malice, “I already knew you lot of Rankless scum were useless, but you’re not even that much. You’re a parasite; being worthless isn’t enough for you, so you have to drag everyone else down to your level. You really think a cancer like you can tell a Mid Rank what to do? Huh?”

She laughed at that. The situation had become utterly surreal. It was as if a predator’s approach had been stopped short by the mere titter of its prey.

“That’s rich. Weren’t you all Low Ranks just a few leaps ago?” Everything stopped in that moment. Reden stopped moving. Voss stopped smiling. Eike stopped breathing. A line that should never be crossed had just been trampled over, and time seemed to simply cease passing. All that remained was the measly Low Rank who rejected common sense. “Besides,” she said, “My friend here will tell you the exact same thing. Neither of us think the Rank system is fair, so we’re going to change it.”

Eike could feel everyone’s gaze shift to their stiff figure. It felt as though an invisible cord had been wrapped around their torso, squeezing the air out of them, constricting their ribs so they couldn’t so much as try to take another breath. This shouldn’t have happened. None of it should have happened. Two worlds that were never meant to meet were colliding into each other with full force. Eike didn’t want to be a part of either, so how exactly did they get caught in the middle? Why did everyone else choose for them? Why couldn’t they speak up when it counted most? And why did everyone keep calling them ‘friend?’

“Eike,” Voss muttered, “Is that true?”

They just wanted to get by. They just wanted to survive. It didn’t matter if they excelled, it didn’t matter if they thrived, it didn’t matter if they were part of some grand cause. B-921, if she could just see that, if she hadn’t dragged them into this in the first place, none of this would be happening. If she’d just stayed in line like Eike had, like they always tried so damn hard to do, she could be traveling to the Mid Rank dormitories with the rest of them. They could all be friends.

“...C’mon, what’s with the cold shoulder? I thought you’d be excited to see me after so long,” B-921 addressed the statement towards Eike with a chuckle, but there was a considerable apprehension in her tone that had been absent in her prior declarations. “Are you feeling alright?”

That cord pulled tighter, to the point where it felt like they may keel over from the pressure. Stop talking, Eike pleaded inwardly, Please stop talking. Stop worrying about things out of your control. Stop dreaming of the impossible. Stop endangering yourself. Stop showing weakness. Stop thinking. Stop, stop, stop.

“Hey… You remember, right?” There were soft footsteps approaching slowly now, and though the other Mid Ranks had been ready to cut B-921 to her knees before, they didn’t dare interfere now. “That talk we had? You remember what you said, right? Hey, look at me.”

This wasn’t what Eike wanted, this was never what they wanted. How were they supposed to know B-921 was being serious when she talked about a damn revolution? They were kids! If she had been at the invasion, if she had Ranked up, if she had only tasted what it felt like to earn strength after being powerless for so long, she’d understand. They just wanted her to understand. They just wanted her to listen for once. They just wanted her by their side again.

The cord tightened, and tightened, and–

There was a gentle tug at the back hem of their uniform. “Hey, R-40–”

The cord snapped.

A rush of demonic instinct overcame Eike in such a furious wave, it blinded their vision with a searing white. Faster than they’d ever moved in their life, the Mid Rank swung their leg in a powerful arc and connected the side of their foot with B-921’s side. It was their signature attack – the very same one they’d spent a lifetime practicing and refining against the very same opponent – only now, instead of stunning her or merely knocking her off balance, it threw her into the dirt several paces back with a sickening crunch. There wasn’t so much as a second for B-921 to recover before Eike had thrown themself on top of her, pinning the Low Rank easily with their newly acquired height advantage. They ground a knee into her chest, deaf to her cries, no doubt putting even more strain on whatever ribs they’d fractured from the kick.

“Don’t call me that!” Eike bellowed through a positively animalistic snarl.

“I’m sorry,” B-921 whimpered, her voice hardly more than a pitiful wheeze, “Eike, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean–” Her babbling went ignored. “Don’t you EVER call me that! That’s not my fucking name, that demon doesn’t exist anymore! I earned this name, this Rank – I earned it! You wouldn’t know what it’s like to work for something like this. All you do is chase stupid fantasies! If you dedicated even a fraction of the time you spend dreaming utter nonsense to actually getting stronger, you’d realize how this world works. You’d grow up, you’d move forward, you’d– you’d STOP dragging me behind!”

A moment passed where all either of them could do was fight for breath. It was fleeting, but somehow, there was a bittersweet nostalgia to it all. Clashing, wrestling one another to the ground, staring at each other’s dirt-caked and flushed faces as they caught their breaths. In another time, this would be the point where B-921 smiled, sighed, and admitted defeat. And Eike would offer her a hand, help her get back on her feet, then limp together to Distribution for their rations. But B-921 didn’t smile. Instead, her face contorted into a grimace laden with pain, despair, and betrayal.

“You…spineless fucking rat!” she screamed, shoving her aggressor’s knee from her chest. The shrill sound reached every corner of the ceremony grounds, drawing the attention of more than just Mid Ranks, and even stunning Eike to the point that they didn’t stop her from grabbing fistfuls of their uniform. “You coward! You promised me! You promised! How could you say that, when you’re the only one I–!”

The ground rumbled from the force of a sudden impact, and the cataclysmic outburst was silenced in an instant as an imposing shadow smothered them both. B-921, enraged to the point of tears just a second ago, gasped and paled in sudden terror, and as soon as Eike looked up, they understood why. In a clearing of his own making, the looming figure of Klaad stared down at them, massive wings still outstretched from his brief flight across the grounds. The High Rank’s eyes would have been piercing even without his unique features, but the unsettling asymmetry of them made his gaze downright petrifying. While his right eye displayed the same pupil pattern one may find on an average Mid Rank, his scarred left eye evinced countless rings patterning the entire sclera. Such rings were a sign of a demon’s power level, and Eike had only heard rumors as to how Klaad attained so many, or why they were confined to just one eye. It was a mystery they certainly didn’t plan on pursuing any time soon.

“My, my. What a ruckus,” the deceptively diplomatic voice of the commanding officer reverberated through the weaker demons’ bones, causing them to tremble involuntarily, “And at a ceremony, no less. How very, very unseemly.”

Klaad bent forward with an inquisitive expression. The proximity reminded Eike that despite their own physical growth upon becoming a Mid Rank, they were still practically a sapling compared to the hulking form of a High Rank. It was hard to believe they were even the same species. “Hmm… Oh, this won’t do. Young lady, your training group is under my watch and jurisdiction, is it not?”

B-921 couldn’t respond. Klaad tutted with a shake of his head.

“To think one of my very own crops would instigate such an ugly scene on a day like today. Don’t you realize how this tarnishes my image? Oh, I do hope I haven’t lost my touch as a trainee officer. Age does make a demon rather sloppy, you know.” He redirected his gaze to Eike, flashing a pleasant grin that chilled them to the bone. “What do you think, Mid Rank? Have I become sloppy?”

“N…” Eike swallowed. It was bad enough that they’d already stuttered, but acting like a pitiful, wilting leaf in the presence of a superior was unacceptable. A true demon retained their dignity, even in the face of danger. They steadied their voice. “No, sir.”

“Well said, well said! So then,” Klaad snapped his focus back to B-921, a darker, more primal smile twisting across his face now, “Let’s see what you think, my dear instigator. If you’re able to even tempt the thought of smearing your grimy fingers on my reputation again by the time we’re through, then we can conclude that I have, indeed, lost my spark. However, if I’m able to render you incapable of opening that treacherous little mouth again – assuming you even survive what’s in store – well…I suppose I’ll have to start giving myself more credit!”

With a mere flick of his wrist, B-921 was suddenly pulled from under Eike by an otherworldly force, leaving them to scramble for leverage in the dirt while trying to ascertain the Low Rank’s new position. She was struggling now, effortlessly overpowered by a shifting gleam of arcane energy that suspended her high in the air. Their eyes met, only for the briefest of moments, as a desperate, final plea reflected in Eike’s terrified gaze. This wasn’t supposed to happen. None of this was supposed to happen.

With his rogue trainee secured, Klaad snapped his wings open once more, but paused briefly to address Eike with another smile. “Oh! Again, congratulations to you,” he offered, eyes narrowing in demented glee, “I do so hope you’ll continue living up to the name I gave you.”

And with a powerful gust of wind, he and B-921 were gone.

The following heavy stillness remained in place for a long time. The small crowd of curious onlookers that had accumulated eventually dispersed, not wishing to incur the wrath of another High Rank, while the original group of Reden, Voss, and the other Mid Ranks slowly crept back towards Eike. For as chatty as they'd been before, none of them said a word at that time. It was hard enough to process what had just happened, let alone resume business as usual.

After doing naught more than stare at the ground where their companion had once been, the Eike’s gaze hardened, and with uncanny, mechanical movements, they brought themself to their feet.

“We were going to the dormitories, weren’t we?” they asked. Even they were surprised by the chilling evenness of their voice. The other demons exchanged glances and a few hushed whispers, but Eike didn’t really care to ponder their meaning.

“Y-yes, of course we were, until that little…er, distraction came along. I’m sure there’ll still be plenty of good rooms left for us if we hurry,” Voss replied. Their tone lacked the usual smoothness and confidence it normally carried.

Even Reden seemed cautious to meet Eike’s gaze. They were all acting as if they were Low Ranks again, scared of their own shadows. It was pathetic. “Yeah, let’s get going. I think there must be something in the air here that’s driving us crazy,” he laughed in an attempted joke. “What a weird Low Rank. That’s what she gets for believing in fantasies and promises, I guess.”

As the group traveled and attempted to repair the atmosphere with light conversation, Eike remained quiet. A memory attempted to resurface itself from the depths of their mind, but they forced it back. Not here. Not now.

———

The memory of that day certainly smoldered in the corners of Eike’s mind every now and then, but in the leaps that followed, they began to learn what normal life meant for Mid Ranks. The dorms were, indeed, much more accommodating than the bunks Low Ranks were crammed into, but the ones they’d ended up with were no more or less notable than all the others. Voss made sure to voice their distaste regarding that. They were still kept busy, of course – Ranking up didn’t come with any sort of vacation – but rather than a repetitive and grueling training regiment every day, their schedules saw a welcome variety of other tasks.

Most of the time, they were assigned jobs that best suited their talents. They would change every so often based on the demand for a position, but most remained rather tolerable, and some Eike even found to be downright enjoyable. Organizational jobs like weapon inventory and preparing supplies for distribution were among their favorites.

There were also classes to attend every few days. Education at this level — reading, writing, basic math, et cetera — was a privilege only offered upon achieving Mid Rank, and Eike couldn’t get enough of it. They loved the feeling of filling in those blanks in their mind with new information, connecting the pieces of that which they already knew with that which they recently discovered, and achieving new heights as the steps passed by. It was a shame that these lessons couldn’t be every day, as Eike would have gladly traded all the jobs in the world just to keep on learning. It was almost an addiction.

Additionally, the Mid Ranks still trained frequently, but the only mandatory sessions were held once every few days. Everything else was left to each individual’s own discretion, and while some saw this freetime as an opportunity to take it easy and relax for once in their lives, Eike continued to practice. There was no telling when their next assignment would be, and there was no guarantee that it would be as lax as the last one. Plenty of Mid Ranks died in battle, and as far as they were concerned, sitting around doing nothing was merely a means of adding to that tally. Reden was usually happy to volunteer himself for the position of a sparring partner during these sessions, but when Eike wasn’t in the mood to deal with his loquaciousness, he didn’t press the matter any further. Not anymore.

It wasn’t that Eike’s “friends” avoided them. They still maintained a more-or-less stable camaraderie, and spoke to each other near daily. But after Eike’s unprecedented outburst, the group seemed a bit more apprehensive of them. Maybe it was fear, and maybe it was respect. Sometimes, they wondered if it was because the other Mid Ranks believed what B-921 had said, and thought that Eike secretly concurred with treacherous conjecture. Whatever the reason was, it didn’t matter. They welcomed the distance that others willingly kept from them.

Despite Eike and B-921’s disastrous falling out, a part of them hoped they could reconcile one day. It really was just a misunderstanding that had been blown out of proportion, and even though B-921 ended up getting hauled away by Klaad, it was seriously unlikely that he killed her. Eike liked to believe that after she healed up from whatever torment the High Rank put her through, B-921 learned her lesson, took some of Eike’s words to heart, and redoubled her efforts to Rank up. That way, they would be able to talk normally again. Eike would apologize, and B-921 would probably punch them, but ultimately they’d make up. That’s just the kind of demon she was.

There was actually one time that Eike had business near their old training grounds. They knew it wouldn’t be all that likely that B-921 would be out at the same time they were – and even if she was, a Low Rank and a Mid Rank couldn’t just have a casual conversation without raising serious suspicion – but a part of them still hoped they’d see her. Low Ranks at her age were prime for assignment selection, so there was at least an increased chance she’d be in the grounds preparing for that.

And as it would turn out, their hopes came true.

She was quite a distance away, but Eike recognized her wiry frame and fluffy hair even from across the field. It seemed as though she was attending some sort of assembly rather than training, given that the Low Ranks were all grouped together and unarmed. After a moment of deliberation, Eike realized they recognized that setting. It was an assignment debriefing, after all! That news made their chest swell. Everything they dared to hope for was falling into place, and they could hardly wait to speak to B-921 face-to-face. They wondered idly what her name would be, and just as they began to ponder whether or not she’d end up taller than them, something unexpected happened. Their eyes locked.

It might’ve been an accident that their gazes met, but now that they were more focused, Eike noted certain details they had missed at first due to the extensive span between them. She had far, far more scars than Eike remembered, including a severe gash that cut across her mouth diagonally. B-921 had always been somewhat thin in stature, but she’d never looked so…brittle. It was hard to tell from the placement of her many bandages, but it almost seemed as though certain bones were protruding from beneath her skin. Had she been eating properly?

Unease replaced the excitement Eike had felt a moment prior as they took in her appearance and anxiously awaited her response. Of course, they knew it would be far too foolish to wish for a smile, or even a polite nod. Even still, any acknowledgement – a scowl, a sneer, even just a slight frown – would have sufficed plenty for them. Anything.

But B-921 didn’t react at all. Eike began to wonder if she even recognized them. The Low Rank just stared through them, past them, glassy-eyed, empty, until she deemed the information of the assembly director more important, and directed her attention back to the task at hand. And that was the end of it.

Even that occurrence had been leaps ago. There were no more encounters with B-921, no more unexpected outbursts, and no more reminders of the past. All Eike could do was silently and privately hope that her invasion was going well, and that whatever realm she’d been assigned to was treating her kindly.

The shuffling of a stack of parchments elsewhere in the room grounded their focus once again to the task at hand. Eike sighed and carded their claws through their hair, ruffling the strands as if it might shake those nagging thoughts out of their brain. How shameful it was to become so deeply distracted during a job – especially one as unique and opportunistic as this. They had recently been recommended to fill in for a vacant position dealing with invasion archives, possibly due to their assiduous work in other organizational tasks thus far. It was a position typically reserved for more experienced Mid Ranks, as it required competence in both reading and writing, but apparently one of the workers had simply stopped appearing for his shifts, and the archives found themselves woefully short-staffed. Eike wouldn’t go so far as to say they were especially proficient in written language yet, but those lessons were among their favorites, and they often studied the subject independently. It was better than nothing, the Mid Rank archivists seemed to reason, so Eike ultimately landed the position.

For most of the day, they worked quietly and independently, only consulting others to fill in the gaps of their developing literacy. The end of their appointed shift was close, and they couldn’t help but feel a sense of satisfaction at how much they’d accomplished in the day. It was slow work, but invigorating all the same; after poring over so many records of past battles and conquered realms, how could any demon not feel pride in the accomplishments of their race? It was only when they stood up to begin tidying their work area that two other archivists walked in, each carrying a considerable stack of scrolls and documents.

“Bastard had to go AWOL without tipping us off about all the paperwork he had piling up, didn’t he?” one of them grumbled, dropping her burden onto a nearby table with an unceremonious thud. “Just look at this mess.”

The other one sighed in agreement, depositing his load in a similar manner before ducking and stretching in front of a wall of shelves with searching eyes. “Can’t say I blame him. I wouldn’t want to be in charge of the Endstation files, either.” He huffed a sigh. “Yet here I am. In charge of the Endstation files.”

Eike cast a cautious glance in the direction of the heaping pile upon hearing which invasion they covered. Naturally, every demon who lived and breathed knew about Endstation. It was the only realm in known history whose militaristic power was on par with the demons’ own, and they had been in a vicious stalemate since long before Eike was even born. The Elites evidently deemed that world too precious of a resource to ignore, and steadfastly refused to withdraw the troops from its surface. No one knew exactly what that "precious resource" was, but if even the Elites sought after it, there was no questioning its worth. It was even fabled that killing just one Endstationian would be enough to elevate a Low Rank straight to a High Rank, but it wasn’t as though any had succeeded in that attempt. After all, the Low Ranks that were sent to Endstation never came back.

It was supposedly some sort of distraction tactic the High Rank soldiers deployed to gain a momentary advantage, but whether it actually worked was somewhat doubtful. Everyone knew the real reason Low Ranks were sent to Endstation was to clear up space in the bunkers for new trainees. It was a humane execution, all things considered, to die with honor in a battle for their homeworld. That was what the Low Ranks were told, anyways.

“Seriously,” the first demon chimed in again, “How long has it been since he abandoned post? Two leaps? Three? That’s how much backlog we’re dealing with.” She plucked a rolled up document from the top of the pile and gave it a brief read, then pursed her lips in thought. “From the looks of it, he left just before the most recent draft. You think he had some sort of death wish and volunteered to chaperone the meat shields?”

Eike pondered that information with a slight frown. They hadn’t heard anything about an Endstation draft in the past few leaps. It did make sense, given that Mid Ranks didn’t exactly have to concern themselves with the looming fear of being sent to that hellish place anymore. Still, there was a strange mist accumulating behind their eyes. Their thoughts felt fuzzy. Just over two leaps ago…well, it was just an estimate, but wasn’t that the last time they had seen…?

Their legs began moving before their mind could catch up. Eike could tell that the two archivist demons were saying something to them – maybe that the shift wasn’t up yet, that it wasn’t time to go – but none of it registered. Eike wasn't sure where this was coming from. They weren’t worried about B-921, of course. They had no reason to be. She was still completing her assignment, after all. In a realm that treated her kindly. By now, she would have already Ranked up. She would have made friends with the other soldiers, would have given them a hard time and teased them just like she always did to Eike. And when she came back, when Eike apologized, they would hear all about the world she went to, and tell her about the one they visited, too. Because she never went to Endstation. Because she was fine. Because Eike needed her to be fine.

They started sprinting.

The route to the training grounds was ingrained into their body, even if their mind longed to forget it. Breath after ragged breath scraped through their throat, a panic settling in as the memory of that day replayed in Eike’s mind. B-921 said she needed to talk to them. She said it was urgent. It wasn’t until now that the Mid Rank realized they never found out what she wanted to say. It was so important that it couldn’t wait. It was so important that she risked – and received – a run-in with Klaad. But it was all just an exaggeration, right? It was just a misunderstanding! She always did stuff like that. She just had an affinity for hyperbole. It couldn’t have been this. It couldn’t have been.

Upon reaching the field littered with sparring Low Ranks, Eike’s eyes roamed the landscape frantically. It wasn’t hard to locate the ever-watchful shadow of the demon who had once been their commanding officer, and against their better judgment, Eike approached Klaad with as much composed urgency as they could manage.

His asymmetric gaze snapped upwards in an instant, calculating at first, probing the Mid Rank for some sort of silent explanation, before that artificial warmth spread across his features and he addressed Eike with a smile. “Well met, soldier,” Klaad greeted as he folded his hands behind his back, “If I am not mistaken, Mid Ranks have no business wallowing in the filth of the Low Rank sector. Has there been some sort of urgent complication that I am needed for?”

Eike withheld a tremor as they forced their eyes to meet Klaad’s. Dignity, even in the face of danger. That was what constituted a true demon. “Somewhat, sir. If you’ll excuse the vague answer,” they began trepidatiously, “I was sent from the invasion archives. A Mid Rank in charge of the Endstation documents has abandoned his post, and left many gaps regarding the recent developments of the battle in his wake. We would like to request a list of the Low Ranks drafted in the most recent attack at your earliest convenience, sir.” Klaad’s grin grew thinner. “Yes, I’ve been made aware of the…untimely disappearances. I must admit, they’ve been a real thorn in my side.” Eike’s head tilted slightly as they briefly wondered if he’d misspoken. Disappearances? “But, ah, you silly thing! I’ll wager you’re new to the archives, given your status and the nature of your request. See, all the necessary paperwork was submitted leaps ago, and a list of trainees is not among that. Affairs with Endstation are only documented when demons with Ranks are involved, so I’m afraid the document you’re requesting doesn’t exist.”

Eike swallowed. They had to keep trying. “Be that as it may, sir, there’s something we wish to check regarding an outstanding Low Rank. I understand that this request deviates from protocol, but is there any way a list could be formed regardless?”

For a moment, Klaad’s interest seemed piqued. “What was this outstanding Low Rank’s identification code?”

In the moment that Eike faltered, the outcome of this confrontation was decided. They couldn’t reveal that it was B-921, or their intentions would be transparent. Even still, their reluctance to answer was proof positive of the unstable lie. The game was over. “I’m sorry, Sir, but I can’t—“

“That’s enough, then,” the High Rank declared lowly with a small flick of his barbed tail. In an instant, Eike felt a paralyzing force pulse through their veins like a formless venom. They tried to speak, but couldn't; it was as though the shimmering force occupied the open space of their throat, choking them into silence. It felt much too hot, much too foreign, and the way the magic energy seemed to prick every surface of their body from the inside out was utterly nauseating. Seeing as their feet still met the ground, though, this must have been a fraction of the power Klaad had used previously against B-921.

“You know, for a moment I thought this infantile charade of yours might actually bear a shred of useful information. It would seem I became the exact sort of fool you took me for, hm?” he sneered, stepping far too close for Eike’s comfort. “Where you mustered the audacity to pose such a fatuous request is beyond me. A list of condemned Low Ranks? Do you honestly think I file a report for every single shit I take? Do you?”

If they had the capacity to vocalize any sort of discomfort, Eike was certain they’d be just shy of a scream. The pressure of the arcane energy multiplied in intensity all around them, threatening to crush bone or tear skin if it persisted much longer.

“You forget your place, Mid Rank. You think that just because you sprouted wings and had yourself a little growth spurt, you’ve made it to the mountaintop. The harsh reality, though, is that you’re hardly even out of the valley; the only thing that separates you from these festering maggots is the measly handful of lives you took,” Klaad gestured to the training grounds, where several of the braver Low Ranks dared to look on in curiosity, “That’s all you are. You’d do well to act like it.”

Just as the strain from the tortuous magic became unbearable, the energy dispelled, leaving Eike to collapse and hack up bile onto the ground. Klaad whirled around to bark threats at the trainees that had paused their regiment to spectate, then, once satisfied, resumed his downward glower at the Mid Rank’s heaving form without a trace of emotion.

“It would seem you need to sharpen yourself even more, soldier. Sentimentality doesn’t become you.”

Eike didn’t respond. Klaad allowed it, turning on his heel as he set off in another direction. “Consider the outcome of this encounter an act of mercy on my part, but know that there will never be another. We have no need for a weapon that weeps.”

It was over.

They wiped their mouth, stood up, and trudged back towards the dormitories. It was all they could do. Everything kept moving, regardless of whether Eike could keep up with it or not. Everything would continue to change, yet everything would always stay the same. Those who were strong survived. And those who were weak perished. That was the only constant of this world.

But strength did not equate bravery, and weakness did not equate fear. Eike understood that with painful clarity now. There was no room in this place for a trainee unfit to be a soldier. There was no hope for a child who dreamt the impossible. There was no good deed that went unpunished. There was no kind heart that went unbroken. Everything kept moving. The constant remained.

Somewhere, in a dingy corner of the Low Rank slums that not even the light of the First could reach, a young demon wept, alone. Their cries went unanswered, so they thought, until the shuffle of little footsteps approached them slowly. Looking up, they saw a girl, steady on her feet despite being in vastly worse shape than themself. She crouched in front of them, wiped their tears, and smiled. It would be alright, she said. Things could be scary on your own, but they were together now. So it would all be okay.

And what a wonderful thing that was, the young demon thought with a small smile of their own. To have a friend must truly be the most wonderful thing in the world.

#glossary:#day = day (there are no nights as the first doesn't set)#week = step #month = leap #i tried changing day to something else as well but it just got confusing :'D #anyways. holy fuck this took forever but i'm glad it's done #writingtag #angst #worldbuilding #not g/t #i feel like there's so many sensitive topics idk how to tw them all but if you want me to add a tag please just lmk #lufa lore

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thesunisatangerine · 6 months

Text

against all odds (to wait for you is all i can do) – part ten

alexia putellas x photojournalist!reader

warnings: none (im pretty sure)

(a/n in the tags) [parts: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve]

word count: 5.8k

The melodic chirping of birds in time with the gentle beat of Alexia’s heart roused you, your back delightfully warm, and for what seemed to be a long time you felt well-rested–felt as if the leaded weight that made its home in your bones finally melted away because, truly, you’d forgotten the lightness of being one felt upon waking from a night’s sleep or, even more so, the lightness one felt when waking in the sheltering arms of a lover. So you sighed, content and at peace, as you breathed Alexia in when you nestled further into the safety of her neck where faint wintergreen and her delicate, earthly scent lived, familiar and evermore comforting.

When you finally drew your eyes open, the world came to focus and revealed, in its center, Alexia already awake, her head propped on her arm with her honey eyes, just like molten gold in the resplendent glow of the morning sun, lidded as she gazed at you with a lazy smile, soft and relaxed but it ignited you with a gentle flame all the same, whose radiance only intensified upon meeting your eyes.

“Good morning.” Alexia greeted you and it struck you just how much you missed the sound of her voice in the morning, low and soft with just the right amount of rasp that never failed to incite the desire to kiss her right then.

“Good morning.” You replied in the same tone, cheeks warming to a gentle simmer in the face of your lover’s tender demeanour. She brushed the back of her fingers on your cheek while a silence filled the space between your eyes, intimate, as you soaked each other in. But when you could no longer sustain the weight from her gaze–when you chest had filled twice over that it felt in danger of bursting from the sheer joy of being looked upon by such earnest affection–you whispered, “you’re staring.”

Alexia tucked your hair behind your ear before she countered in a voice so tender your heart ached.

“And you’re beautiful.”

No words could translate the gravity of what you felt in that moment, so you spoke the only language that could ever come close to conveying it: you cupped her jaw and caught her lips between yours, seared the missed ‘good morning’s’ and the lost ‘hello, how are you’s’ into the kiss, the pace languid but sweet, savouring the way her lips parted in this silent conversation–relishing the way Alexia tasted like summer on your tongue.

Alexia tugged you closer, and closer still but still not close enough, with a gentle pressure from her hand against the small of your back, the other now over the nape of your neck.

But the conversation was cut short, too short, when a small gasp reached your ear, electrifying you in an unpleasant way your eyes flung wide open, darting immediately to the direction of the sound to find Elisa standing at the last step of the stairs, her hair ruffled from sleep, her loose shirt creased and draped slightly to the side, mouth wide open in disbelief as she gawked at the sight of the two of you.

And what a sight the two of you must have been.

In your haste to extricate yourself from Alexia, you ended up flopping down against the tiled floor, the carpet doing little to cushion your fall, but you recovered quickly and now you stood there not quite knowing what to do with your arms or what to even say. Alexia, on the other hand, remained half on her back and half sitting up, her weight against an elbow, the other arm frozen outstretched towards you, a clear attempt to save you from when you fell down. If the situation had been different, you probably would’ve laughed especially at Alexia’s expression: her face contorted in part mortification and part worry, brows upturned, eyes agape, and lips partially opened–if only you weren’t too flustered yourself to do so.

Alexia got her bearing faster than you, though–damn her and her athletic condition–because she, too, now stood from the couch (and did so with a lot more grace than you did). She cleared her throat, fumbled with her hands as it looked like she tried to stick her hands in her jacket pockets before it dawned on her that it remained still on the coffee table, so she resorted in putting them in her jean pockets instead.

“Good morning, Elisa. How are you?” Alexia said in English and her voice wavered at the end, the question infused with a guilty inflection.

With bated breath, you waited for your daughter’s reaction as trepidation filled you, which only worsened when Elisa’s eyes darted at you, then to Alexia, then back to you again. Numerous scenarios fleeted through your mind and out of all the images your mind conjured, what happened next was not one them: you didn’t expect the way with which Elisa’s surprise morphed into smug delight, her once opened mouth now curved into a coy smile, not dissimilar to a cat’s, that only served to accentuate the mischievous gleam in her eyes.

“Are you guys dating?” Each word deliberately drawled out as Elisa posed them, punctuated by a teasing cadence that set your ears and cheeks aflame. The question, thankfully, brought you back to yourself because only you could save you and Alexia from this situation.

“Okay, I think I need to have a conversation with you so up you go, young lady, back to your room for now.” You said as you approached Elisa who you guided towards the stairs with a gentle hand on her back but not before you placed a good morning kiss on the crown of her head. Elisa whined, but she heeded your words nonetheless, although she did sneak a wave and a cheeky thumbs up to Alexia on the way up, leaving you with an amused smile on your lips at her antics as you thought fondly, shaking your head, ‘Oh my god, this child.’

When Elisa was finally out of sight and you heard her bedroom door shut, you let out the breath you were holding. That really could have been a disaster, and when you looked over your shoulder, you found the same thought written in Alexia’s face. You dragged your feet back to where Alexia stood who, as soon as you got close enough, was quick to pull you back into her gentle arms. With your cheek pressed against her collarbone, her arms loose around your waist, and her chin resting on your head, you were grounded back to the moment, your muscles relaxing as apprehension began to leave you.

“That was mortifying.”

Alexia let out an airy laugh, the remnant of her nervousness still apparent. “I know. At least we didn’t do it last night.”

“Alexia,” you groaned as your cheeks burnt anew, “please, don’t–I don’t even want to imagine that right now.”

Melodic laughter filled your ears again before it tapered off which, once again, left you two blanketed in the subtle refrain of the waking world and the warmth of the sunlight that streamed through the window. You didn’t know which of you moved first but in the next moment, you found the both of you swaying to a gentle rhythm as you held each other.

“So, what now?” Alexia asked, breaking the silence.

“I… I don’t know.” You answered truthfully. Sure, the both of you agreed to take everything slow, but where to even start? When intimacy and familiarity were already there, strong and incessant in their pull, how could torn lovers begin to mend the fragments–to keep everything tentative and slow? Where should the lines be drawn, the boundaries set, when a profound desire that transcended physical affection already made its home in your heart, a yearning that constantly craved for not only Alexia’s company but also her thoughts? Because with Alexia, you wanted–and would always–want more.

“I think, for now, I need to talk to Elisa about this–about us.” Sighing, you continued, “what do I even tell her?”

“Well, she seems to approve.” At that, the both of you chuckled, then Alexia spoke again, serious but her tone remained light when she did. “Tell her whatever you’re comfortable with. Slow, remember? No labels for now, it’s just you and me.”

She placed a kiss against your ear and you hummed, nuzzling her neck in gratitude.

Another pause.

“I think I should go.”

Hard as you tried, you couldn’t hide your disappointment at what Alexia just said even though it was probably the best thing to do right now. There were much you needed to talk to Elisa about alone: her nightmares and her therapy, and now this. The only thing that eased your heart was the fact that Alexia seemed as reluctant to go, too, with the way her hold on you tightened and you responded to her touch by falling further into her, clutching the fabric of her shirt in an attempt to let her know you’d rather she stayed.

“I know. Me, too,” Alexia sighed seeming to understand what you were feeling as she kissed your temple. “How about this? If you and Elisa are feeling up for it, I could take you some place tomorrow? I did tell you before that I’d show you around.”

At the reminder, the memory fleeted through your mind and a sense of melancholy filled you but you swallowed it down before it could take root. Then you hummed in agreement, “I’ll ask Elisa about it. What’s on for you today?”

“Apart from waiting until tomorrow comes?” Alexia joked which made you giggle. “I’ll probably visit La Masia, check with Josep for next week’s schedule, then head home or visit Mamá and the family.”

“That sounds fun.” You said as you began to kiss her, knowing that your time together for the day would end any second now. As you punctuated each word with a kiss, you continued, “alright, I should let you go now, then.”

The rumble from Alexia’s chuckle radiated beneath your palm on her chest as she whined, “you’re making it really difficult to leave.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll stop now,” you giggled and just as you began to pull away, Alexia cradled the nape of your neck and sealed your lips together again for a deeper kiss. Then she pulled away but not before dragging down your lower lip with her thumb as she untwined herself from you and gave you a look that made you burn all over.

“Call me later?”

You nodded.

Alexia grabbed her leather jacket, gave you a smile and one last peck on your cheek, before she strode out of the door.

The feeling of loss that arrived upon her departure did not go unnoticed by you but before it could settle in your heart, you made your way to Elisa’s bedroom. As soon as you entered though, Elisa shot you a question without any preamble, practically buzzing in her excitement.

“Mom, why didn’t you tell me you’re dating Alexia?”

Your cheeks burnt at Elisa’s bluntness.

“Before we get to that, ladybug, I need to talk with you about something first.” You said as you set yourself down next to her on the bed. Elisa regarded you with a look that said she already knew what you were going to talk with her about. You wrapped an arm around her and squeezed her shoulder. “I’m worried about your nightmares and your therapy. Do you think we need to switch to a different therapist?”

Elisa gnawed on her lower lip before she spoke in a soft voice. “I like my current one. She’s cool and she makes it easy for me to talk about what happened. But I can take more sessions if you want me to.”

“Do you think you need more sessions?” You looked at Elisa pointedly, emphasising the fact that the choice was hers to make. “All I want is what’s best for you and your wellbeing, Elisa. I’m not trying to make you do anything, especially if you know yourself you don’t need them, but I also can’t just stand by and watch so I’m just here to tell you that there are options. If you need more sessions, we can do it. If you want to change therapists, we’ll both find you a new one. As long as it’s going to help you get through this, we can do it.”

“I’m not sure… Can I–” You caught her eye again and you raised your brows at her chosen word, and you watched as Elisa nodded, understanding what you meant, before she began again, “I will talk to my therapist about it and see if I do.”

You beamed at her, proud as you squeezed her shoulder again. She smiled back.

“So, what do you think is causing this spike in nightmares?”

“I… I don’t know. I think I’m just nervous? Also, maybe too excited?” Then Elisa added with a small laugh, “or both? I don’t really know.”

“About what, ladybug?”

“Going back to the Academy.”

At this information, you couldn’t help but frown, confused. “Is something happening in the Academy?”

Concern must have been too apparent in your tone because Elisa quickly looked at you and said as she waved her hands in reassurance, “it’s nothing bad, Mom, don’t worry! It’s just, Coach told us there are scouts coming some time around the end of the year and I’m… I really want to play for Barça, Mom.”

You understood her apprehension but her answer didn’t tell you why her shoulders looked like they’d taken on an invisible weight again with the way her spine curved inwards, almost dejected.

“That’s a really big opportunity, ladybug, so I understand that pressure is there for you to perform your best. Is it the pressure that’s making you think about what happened?”

Elisa shrugged, quirking her lips to the side in an unsure manner. A moment later though, she nodded and admitted in a small voice. “I just don’t want to let them down. I don’t want to let you down.”

“Elisa,” you took her hand in yours. “Never, never. If your parents were here, they would tell you how proud they are of how far you’ve come already. You’re so strong, ladybug, and you don’t even know how much. And if you happen to fall down, we’ll be here to support you until you’re ready to stand back up again. Just know that whatever happens, you will always be enough. Always, Elisa. ”

Elisa leant her head against your shoulder then she turned her head and gazed at you with wide eyes. “You really think I can make it?”

“I believe in you, ladybug. Do you?” You pinched her arm playfully which earned you a giggle from her. When she looked back up at you and you saw the determined gleam in her eye, the worry in you was put to rest.

“Yes.”

At that, you couldn’t help the warmth that surged through you and you hugged her. “There you go. I’m so proud of you, ladybug.”

After a moment of silence, Elisa asked in a teasing tone, “so… Alexia, huh, Mom?”

Your cheeks warmed. “What about her?”

“Are you together?”

“It’s… complicated right now, ladybug. We’re working on it.”

“Was that why you always looked sad whenever we talked about her? Before now?” You raised your brows in surprise. You’d always tried your hardest to school your features whenever Alexia was brought up because you didn’t want Elisa to worry but you didn’t think that you were that transparent.

“Did I really?”

“Yeah. I don’t know how to explain it but whenever you tried to smile, it didn’t quite reach your eyes.”

“Oh.” Pause. “I… I didn’t know. I’m sorry.”

Elisa shook her head. “There’s nothing to be sorry for, Mom. And it’s different now. Now you look happy.”

“I am.” You admitted with a small smile. “How… how do you feel about us, though?”

“I’m happy that you’re happy, Mom. It’s going to take awhile to get used to the Alexia Putellas being around but I’ll be fine. And as long as she treats you well, I’m alright.”

Your chest expanded at her words. “Thank you, ladybug, that… that means a lot.”

Elisa hugged you then and you hugged her back.

“Speaking of, Alexia offered to take us around the city tomorrow. What do you say?”

At that, Elisa practically jumped up, unable to control her excitement and you laughed.

True to her words, Alexia pulled up in her car the next day a couple of hours before noon. Alexia looked comfy in her white sneakers, ankle length socks, shorts, an oversized t-shirt, and a baseball cap, and upon opening the door for her, she took you in her arms and kissed you. Her eagerness amused you and you laughed against her lips but you tangled your fingers in her hair to deepen the kiss anyway.

“I missed you.” Alexia spoke between kisses.

“It’s only been a day,” you smiled into the kiss, charmed. “And I missed you, too.”

Time slipped you as you lost yourself in Alexia’s arms and lips, and you didn’t know how long the both of you were there by the open door, but it was apparently long enough that Elisa needed to interrupt you two. A terse cough made you pull away and, turning to look at Elisa who was standing just beneath the archway that lead to the living room, offered your daughter an apologetic smile. Elisa only stood there with her arms crossed, clearly unimpressed with the way her brows were creased.

“Hola, Elisa.” Alexia said with a shy wave which drew your attention back to her and you bit your lip at the state of her face. You reached out to wipe away the faint smudge of your lipstick on the corner of her lips and, upon realising what you’d done, Alexia quirked her brows up as she smiled at you, sheepish.

“Hi, Alexia.” A pause. “Wait, should I be calling you Aunt Alexia now?”

Alexia opened her mouth then closed it, seeming to be completely disarmed by the question. And when she looked at you with plea in her wide eyes asking you silently how she should answer it, you knew just how much the question definitely caught her off guard.

“Uh, if you want to.” Her words lilted with so much uncertainty it sounded more like a question than a statement.

Then Elisa grinned at the both of you, practically beaming. “I’m just messing with you, Alexia.”

She then continued to skip between you two, bounding through the door and down the porch stairs, and you held your laughter in as Alexia looked after her with a bewildered gaze, mouth agape. Once Elisa got to where Alexia’s car was parked, she started to wave the two of you over.

“She’s… she’s very funny.” Alexia laughed nervously, eyes still fixed at Elisa. Then she whispered conspiratorially, pointing to Elisa for good measure. “Are you sure she’s the same kid I met at the Olympics?”

“Yes.” You chuckled as you locked the door and began descending down the stairs. “She’s only like this when she feels comfortable around people. So, do you know what that means?”

Alexia shook her head.

You smiled at her, cupping her cheek before you pressed a light kiss on the other. “It means she likes you.”

At that, Alexia smiled back at you with lightness in her eyes before she grabbed your hand, intertwined her fingers with yours, and kissed the back of it. And the gesture warmed you more than Barcelona’s summer sun ever could.

Then, once the three of you were in Alexia’s car, you asked, “so, what do you have planned for us today?”

Alexia adjusted her rearview mirror to look at Elisa at the back seat, smiling. “First of, who’s hungry?”

After a delicious–and a quite scenic–brunch at a restaurant located by one of Barcelona’s waterfronts, the three of you took a short walk down a nearby landing connected to the port. By this time, the sun had already reached its peak, and with the vacant sky and the high tide, the view was one someone would expect to have come out of a film; the blue tinge of both the heavens and the sea was so vivid that you knew your camera would have trouble capturing the essence of it. Image after image, you captured your surroundings and as the three of you walked on, rolls of film were exposed to the light of Elisa and Alexia, and these images, you knew, you would cherish forever.

At one point during the walk, Alexia asked you to teach her how to work your camera, and so you did. With Elisa between you looking over at the sea, you guided Alexia’s fingers over the camera and taught her how to hold it properly, before you told her about the rest. As soon as she got it, she slung your camera around her neck and immediately started taking photos of you and Elisa. You laughed when she held the camera at arm’s length in an attempt to take a selfie of the three of you, adjusting it as best as she could to get the right angle before she set the timer. You told her as all of you returned to her car that you’d send her the fruit of her labour the moment you developed the negatives.

About half an hour later after hitting the road again, the three of you ended up at the second stop for the day: Camp Nou’s Barça store–much to Elisa’s delight. When Alexia parked the car at a less crowded spot and began to take her seatbelt off, you fixed Alexia with a reluctant gaze, speaking in Spanish so Elisa wouldn’t understand.

“Is it really wise for you to just march in the store? You’re the Alexia Putellas, after all, there’s no way no one would notice.”

In response, Alexia held a finger up to indicate you should wait and shifted so she could grab the hoodie that was hanging over the back of her seat. She put it on, zipped it up and pulled the hood down over her cap, then she put on a face mask and her sunglasses, her light brown hair spilling out to frame her face.

“Voila!” Alexia waved her open hands. “What do you think?”

You looked her up and down. All of her tattoos were covered but even with her attire and her face concealed, you could still recognise her–maybe you could chalk that up to you intimate familiarity with Alexia’s being but still. So you said as you schooled your features, your voice monotonous. “Wow. You really look like a whole new person.”

Alexia threw her head back, laughing. Then, “we’ll treat it as an experiment and see if they will.”

“That’s very modest of you,” you countered, tone still dry.

“Thank you,” she retorted in a saccharine tone while she flipped her hair over her shoulder, and that, in turn, made you laugh.

So then it was decided that you and Elisa would also wear face masks as all of you went on ahead in your quest to infiltrate–as per Alexia’s words–the store. Much to your surprise, Alexia’s disguise worked although she did draw some unwarranted glances, ranging from suspicion to pure amusement, due to the nature of her getup. And to your chagrin, once the three of you got back to the car with your bags of merch, Alexia smirked at you, smugness all too evident in the curve of her lips.

After that, Alexia took all of you for a drive up a mountainside with the windows rolled down that let the fresh, summer breeze rush inside. With the wind in her hair, she began to sing along with you and Elisa to the music playing on the radio, nodding her head to the beat of the music. At the end of the ascent, Alexia parked the car at your third stop, which turned out to be the Tibidabo Amusement Park.

You knew this place was pretty high up, but the moment you stepped out of the car, even from the parking lot, the view hit you: it was incredible. The city of Barcelona stretched out far into the distance, expansive and seemingly never-ending, and you could just see the strip of blue that bordered the ports, and the colours of the city’s structures were made ever-vibrant by the radiance of the sun. The view pulled you towards the edge of the parking lot, where you put the viewfinder to your eye to capture it.

“The view is stunning, isn’t it?” Came Alexia’s voice from beside you.

“Yeah…” you said, breathless, dragging you eyes from the cityscape to Alexia and as you did the remainder of your breath was completely taken away, cheeks warming when you found Alexia gazing at you, her smile as tender as her eyes, while her loose brown hair fluttered to the breeze which added to the softness of her demeanour. The urge to kiss her then became too much so before you fall into temptation, you closed the distance and simply rested your head against her strong shoulder, an arm around Elisa’s shoulder when she stepped into the space beside you.

Soon, you began a short trek upwards to get to the entrance, and if the view from the parking lot took your breath away, it was nothing compared to what you found at the top: from the regal immensity of the structure of the Temple of the Sacred Heart of Jesus that greeted you, to the Torre de las Aguas de Dos Ríos that stood proud just behind the Temple, to the perspective that overlooked the other side of Barcelona. After another round of picture-taking, the three of you finally entered the park.

The day went by as the three of you amused yourselves with the park's attractions. And since you'd all forgone wearing masks, Alexia was, as expected, recognised by people and was stopped more than a handful of times for photos and signatures during different points of your excursion. And you watched with Elisa on the sidelines, appreciating the way Alexia interacted with her supporters, and smiled at her with encouragement and reassurance whenever she looked at you two with an apologetic gleam in her eyes.

By the time the three of you left the park, the sun had begun to set.

It was another drive around the mountain side that lead you to the last stop for the day: Mirador d’Horta. Alexia parked the car in such a way that the trunk faced the cliffside before she urged the two of you to step out and you gasped.

You’d seen some magnificent scenes today, but this one was definitely your favorite.

There you stood, taking in the way the lights of the city burned like embers embedded in the earth. There was something about witnessing the city at night that never failed to make you feel connected, elevated, when you see the million tangible proofs of existence: under each light was a person, a family—lovers—all in their own worlds at their corner of this world you shared with them. And in your corner, in the opened trunk of Alexia’s car, was your world right beside you, and there was nowhere else you’d rather be. The three of you sat there in silence, Elisa in the middle of you and Alexia gazing over the city lights.

It wasn’t long until the day finally took its toll on Elisa, and she ended up settling her head on your lap and dozing off into slumber. You smiled down at her, brushing back her hair behind her ear as you watched her breathe deeply, feeling relieved when you noticed the peaceful smile on her lips.

“So her battery does run out. Sometimes, I forget just how much energy kids have.” The pure awe in Alexia’s voice made you let out a quiet laugh.

“It has its way of catching you off guard.” You shook your head fondly before you met Alexia’s eyes and teased, “I can’t believe she tired you out; aren’t you supposed to be the athletic one?”

“Hey! I’m only human; thank you very much. And what’s a thirty-year-old compared to a twelve-year-old?" Alexia raised an eyebrow in challenge.

“Touché. Ah, to feel young and full of energy again.”

Alexia cringed before she laughed out. “Please, stop. You’re making me feel old.”

“I’m making us feel old.”

The both of you chuckled, then took a momentary pause. You turned to Alexia and asked, "Did you run your parents ragged as a kid?”

The inner corners of her brows lifted—it was subtle, but you were familiar enough with the intricacies of her demeanour that you caught it—exposing more of her eyes, which looked pensive in the dim light, her lips pressed in a melancholic line before she smiled, wistful.

“Oh, yeah, but I’d like to think I wasn’t a menace. It’s just—you know, when you get so focused on something that you forget the time?"

You nodded. She continued.

“When I was much younger, there were times I was so intent on winning that I’d forget about dinner. So, one of them would look for me around the streets or the square. But after I got into Sabadell, my energy finally found the right outlet, and most days I’d gone home tired. Papá–” Alexia bit her lip, her eyes glazing over for a moment as she receded somewhere—a tender memory—then she shook her head. You watched the way her throat moved as she swallowed before she continued, voice raspy and quiet, “He, uh, he’d always exclaim, ‘She’s finally tamed!’ whenever I’d slump down on the couch after a practice. It was ridiculous, but it never failed to cheer me up.”

You grabbed her hand and squeezed it, expressing silent gratitude for the memory she imparted, as you smiled at the image of young Alexia with red cheeks in a sweat-soaked shirt, hair matted to her face, being chased and dragged back home to have dinner.

“No, I can’t imagine you being a menace. Mischievous, yes, and probably hot-headed, but never a menace.”

She laughed, winking at you. “Yeah, hot-headed is probably what people who knew me then would say about me. And I can’t imagine you being a menace, either.”

You raised your brow at her, smiling slyly. “Are you sure about that?”

Alexia opened her mouth as if to reassert her claim, but you saw the way her confidence wavered as she regarded you. Then she closed her mouth, now looking more unsure.

“Wait, are you being serious right now?”

You allowed her confusion to linger for another moment before you finally broke your character. “No, I wasn’t a menace, but you really should’ve seen the look on your face.”

Alexia squinted at you and muttered just loud enough for you to hear, her tone dry. “Are you sure about that?”

“Hey!” You yelled quietly, giving her shoulder a playful nudge but being careful not to accidentally jostle Elisa awake before you took her hand again. You intertwined your fingers together and pressed a kiss on the back of her hand, meeting her eyes. Then you took a moment to soak her in.

“Thank you, Alexia, for today. You don’t know how much this means to Elisa... how it means to me.”

Alexia squeezed your hand, smiling softly.

“I’m glad you both enjoyed it.” Alexia squeezed your hand as she regarded Elisa with a soft eye. Then a sincere smile lingered on her lips as she caught your gaze and said, “I think I needed something like today more than I realised. It feels good to be spending time with you again.”

Warmth bloomed in your chest, clearly understanding what Alexia meant.

“I know the feeling,” you whispered. And I missed you, too.”

With her other hand, Alexia reached out over the space between you and brushed her thumb over your cheek, tucking a strand of loose hair behind your ear as she smiled at you with her eyes and her lips. With the city lights behind her, the soft glow of the car light bathing her features in its golden glow, and the summer breeze playing with the soft strands of her hair, Alexia looked so tenderly human, the embodiment of warmth and all that the word entailed, gentle and, oh, so soft.

The two of you sat in silence, just soaking each other in, until a ping from Alexia’s phone interrupted the moment. Alexia looked down, read it, and then locked the screen with a sigh. When she met your eyes, hers were apologetic. You smiled in understanding.

“Time to go?”

“Yes.” Alexia sighed as she stood up and tucked her phone back into her pocket. “It was Josep. He reminded me I have a full day tomorrow.”

You nodded. You gently roused Elisa, watched her drag her feet to the back seat, and nearly chuckled when she fell right back to sleep after putting her seatbelt on and closing the door. You turned to Alexia, and as soon as she closed the trunk, you cradled her jaws in your hands and pulled her down for a kiss. Immediately, Alexia wrapped her arms around your waist, pulling you closer to her.

“I wanted to do that all day.” You whispered against her lips.

Alexia gasped when you nipped at her lower lip before she buried her fingers in your hair, deepening the kiss. “You have no idea.”

On the way back to Derek's house, Alexia kept one hand on your thigh. And with the radio playing softly as the car passed under a tunnel with lights overhead, it felt like you were in a movie.

After Elisa had gone back inside the house after thanking Alexia for the day and bidding her farewell for the night, you kissed Alexia’s cheek in gratitude. Then her lips.

With her forehead resting against yours, she whispered, “I’ll see you Tuesday?”

“Yeah.” You brushed your nose against hers before you kissed her again. You began to pull away. “Have fun tomorrow.”

“I will. I–” Alexia’s cheeks flushed before she smiled. “Bye, for now.”

Later, when you were in bed about to go to sleep, you received a message from Alexia. She sent you a link to a tweet containing a photoset that contained pictures of the three of you but mostly pictures of a hooded Alexia taken from a distance by the photos’ grainy quality, captioned, 'Alexia, what are you doing????’ followed by a string of laughing emojis.

At that, you couldn’t help but laugh. Her disguise was ridiculous in person, but captured like this, you thought it was a work of pure comedy.

You messaged her back, 'I guess you do have reason to be modest after all.’

#ap11 #not proofread #mine #my writing #a/n:#this was meant to be longer but i decided to split it into (or else this wouldve been like 10k long or something lol)#sorry for not updating last week id been in pain for the last 2 weeks so it was hard to concentrate #not to mention i got hit by a writer's block so i needed to just take a step back lol #anyway i just need to tie up some loose ends in the next part and then against all odds will be finished in two weeks time 🥲#also i apologise for any style inconsistency #i may or may not have been rereading frankenstein while going through some parts of this lol #will fix any grammar/spelling/prose mistakes later #woso x reader #alexia putellas x reader

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