Don't Bother

     “He shocked you? Uh, sorry… Bad Fozzy. Don’t shock people,” she chided the plush, wagging her finger much like a stern mother. The Jolteon, if he heard at all, ignores the timid voice of his trainer and continues to paw at Elrena’s leg. Light jolts of electricity sparked out from his spiky white collar; they weren’t meant to hurt, they merely displayed his enthusiasm.

     Dawn simply sighed at the antics of her Pokemon. Fozzy tended to do this with other Electric-type Pokemon, and it was a prime indicator that he wanted to play. But wait, did this woman say that his shock didn’t… Hurt? Did she have some kind of aversion to electric shocks? …Was she some kind of human/Pokemon hybrid?

     “He’s… A Jolteon. An electric Pokemon. Fozzy likes other electric-types, so… I-I dunno if that means anything to you,” she said, arms curling around her form like a security blanket. The comment about the leash makes Dawn’s whole body shudder; she couldn’t imagine treating her Pokemon like common house pets. They were her family. She decides to push that comment away into the far corners of her thoughts, left untouched.

     “Again, I’m… I’m sorry. He’s not dangerous, I promise,” she murmurs, looking down towards the plush of her Pokemon companion. Fozzy lets out a chorus of playful yips and cries, running around Elrena’s feet in a circle. Play! Play! Play!

    Fozzy? A Jolte-what? Larxene’s confusion was slightly evident on her face by the arched eyebrow and her mouth slightly agape. In all of her years of “existing,” that was the most confused she had been; only possible in Wonderland of all places of course.

     Feeling the slight tinges of warmth, Larxene moved the plush slightly with her foot and give it an evil look, “I have many questions right now and your little thing,” Larxene motioned to the “Jolteon” that she had recently pushed away, “is at the center of them.”

     Elrena felt yet another warm shock hit her shin and a snarl tore from her windpipe, “Knock it off you little shit!” Larxene let out a larger does of electric shock towards the “Pokemon” and...it wasn’t fazed by it.

Strelitzia looked on in shock as the dramatic flourishing unveiled a…a children’s toy. She pursed her lips together as Elrena began to huff, sparks literally threatening to fly. It would be…so so rude, so rude to laugh. Plus, it’d hurt. 

So she wouldn’t. 

She…definitely….definitely–

“Pft–”

The first little giggle escaped, followed by a series of short, choppy laughs that bordered on wheezes. 

“Oh–Oh no! Oh no ow! Oh!” She couldn’t stop herself from laughing, even if it hurt. “Ohhhh it looks so sillyyyyhehehehe–!” 

She propped herself up to a sitting position, her smile wide. She wiped tears of genuine mirth from her face, coughing slightly. She stopped for a moment, breathing in and out, hand fanned over her chest to recover before lifting it up. With a pulse of light and flower petals, Strelitzia summoned her own. 

“Mine’s still bigger,” she teased lightly. Then, she tilted it to lightly tap against Elrena’s Keyblade, surprised to hear a slight ting, as if the foam were actual metal. “Boop.”

    If it were anyone else, Elrena would have thundered the person to the point that they were just a twitching mess on the floor...but to see Letzie be in such blissful joy after what happened...it destroyed any rage that built in her. Hearing the laughter that spilled out of Letzie caused Elrena’s face to burn hot, her heart to start beating quicker...and for her to start laughing with her. Her pride was hurt slightly due to her Keyblade being modified, but that was nothing compared to the relief of finally being able to laugh with Letzie again. Elrena could feel the tears start to fall down her face from how long she was laughing. This was great. This was good. This was...perfect.

     Seeing Letzie summon her own Keyblade and poke hers, Elrena faked a huff, “So first you laugh at my Keyblade and then you make that joke? I am deeply offended.” Sarcasm was dripping on Elrena’s voice and the fact that there was a grin threatening to break on her face added to that. She couldn’t really be mad at Letzie...it just wasn’t possible.

She jumped, then winced at how–

How this simple, human little reaction, caused a ripple-effect web of aches and pains to shoot through her body. Her entire chest ached with it. Or…Or maybe it was because she was seeing Elrena cry. And that–

Had that happened before? No, Strelitzia realized. She’d seen Elrena emotional, a few tears here and there, but this? This was something new. Something she hadn’t even seen before, back in the Age of Fairytales. 

Be strong. Be strong for her, this time! 

So Strelitzia swallowed, and dried her own tears. She gripped back, trying to sit up a little in bed, at least so she didn’t feel like she did back with the Hanahaki. 

“Mm–mm. N-nnnnope.” 

The words came out in a thin rasp, but Strelitzia smiled when they left anyway. It was genuine, despite how small it was, because Elrena deserved that, even if Strelitzia couldn’t give her precious friend the big bright grin she wanted. 

“You don’t…g-get…to blame yourself,” Strelitzia said slowly, carefully. It hurt to talk, but she’d deal with it. “It’s…because you were with me…that I got here, safe and sound, right…? I-I…remember seeing you wi-with, your Keyblade. It was so pretty…”

     Hearing Letzie’s voice should’ve calmed Elrena’s nerves and guilt, but everything just intensified ten fold. Her voice held so much pain that Elrena felt her stomach fall into the darkest pits of hell; where it deserved to be.

     Quickly wiping her own tears, Elrena loosened her grip on Letzie’s hand but made sure to still hold her hand, “I-I mean...technically yeah...but if I was just a little faster then...then that bastard would be fried right now,” Elrena felt a similar anger started to bubble in her chest when thinking of how royally she fucked up that night, but she couldn’t feel like that right then. She needed to be there for Letzie.

      Hearing the other’s comment about her Keyblade, Elrena felt a surge of pride bloom in her chest, something that was rare as of late since she regained her heart.

      “Yeah...it took its sweet time coming back,” Elrena moved her right hand to her left hip and acted like she was unsheathing a blade, but instead a flash of light and a minimal current of lightning occurred and, “Wh-WHAT THE HELL!?”

      Elrena’s face morphed into a comedic level of shock and anger when her Keyblade’s form appeared, “THIS IS LIKE MY FOUDRE ALL OVER AGAIN! I’M GONNA SHATTER THAT STUPID PIECE OF THAT GLASS!!!!!”

@cutthroat-nymph

TW: Injury mention.

Beep. Beep. Beep. 

Strelitzia woke up and immediately wished she wasn’t awake. Her chest was tight and sore, her heart a weeping mess, her lungs fluttering and weak; she wasn’t even completely sure she was breathing under her own power. The more aware she became, though, she realized she didn’t have that–that awful tube down her throat. 

Just the ones in her nose. Eugh. 

…How many times?

Strelitzia swallowed–or tried to. Her throat was dry. Her skin felt itchy and tight; like it’d been days since she’d had a proper shower. For all she knew, it might have been.

How many times…am I going to end up like this?

It’d happened as Nyctoblivia. Then during the Hanahaki incident. And now, this. Her hands clenched into fists and she focused only on breathing, trying not to cry. If only some good were coming from this–maybe more memories, anything!–it wouldn’t hurt so fucking much! But all she could remember was that devastated expression on Elrena’s face…and a…a Keyblade?

And…

“I…I love you…”

But that…that couldn’t be right. That couldn’t be right at all. Strelitzia bit at her lips and dragged an arm over her eyes, trying to force back the urge to cry.

    The hell that Elrena had gone through while Letzie was recovering was worse than Sora killed Larxene and reformed again. She watched through the window of Letzie’s room to just see the other’s chest rise and fall, the sign that she was still alive. Flashes of that night kept her up to the point that hallucinations started to frequent her vision, but thankfully the last two nights she slept a little, so no more hallucinations.

      For the first couple days of Letzie’s stay in the hospital, the medical staff wouldn’t let Elrena in. The first time Elrena started to yell at the poor nurses, who didn’t have fear in their eyes, but sympathy, and tried to sooth her. That just pissed the blonde off more and security had to escort her out. After Letzie was out of critical condition, a nurse notified her that she could enter Letzie’s room.

    “...th-thanks...”

     Slowly entering Letzie’s room, Elrena felt her head and eyes pulse with every beat of her heart; Letzie still looked so still, but the small movement of her chest and the eventual tightening of her fists told her that she was still alive.

     Elrena rushed to the side of Letzie’s bed and grabbed her hand and squeezed, “Th-thank god...” words couldn’t express how Elrena felt right now and she hated it.

“You’re…right,” he managed through a tight throat. He stared down at his friend’s grip on his arm, face crumpling. The pressure in his chest as unbearable, but he savored the pain of it as much as he resented it. 

“You’re right,” Marluxia repeated, gazing upon the opened corridor. “There are things I don’t know. And you’re being awfully cagey.” 

“If I didn’t know any better, Larxene, I’d think…you were planning to betray me.”

It would be rather funny, in an awful sort of way, wouldn’t it? Together he and Larxene had betrayed the Organization, had tried to do it again with Xehanort–only to fail–and as sages were fond of warning, ‘third time is the charm’, after all. But Marluxia did know better; for as caustic a person Larxene could be, when one earned her loyalty, it was through thick and thin. 

And they’d been through the thick of it plenty of times. Hadn’t they? 

So, uncaring of the clothes he still held over his arm, he followed Larxene through the portal and arrived within her abode, immediately inspecting it curiously. 

    Hearing Marluxia’s line about betrayal irked her slightly, shouting through the portal, “There’s a reason for me being ‘cagey,’ and you’ll understand once I tell you!”

    Seeing Marluxia walk through the portal, Larxene immediately sat down at the table and put her head in her hands. She didn’t know how exactly Marluxia was going to react...there would probably be some yelling; Marluxia would probably try and rush over to Letzie’s apartment and see his sister again (she wouldn’t really blame him to be honest), but she was more so worried about how he would react to her...not telling him everything. She tired to protect them both and she was about to get a verbal beatdown of the century.

     Sighing, “I’m just going to be blunt: Letzie’s alive. She’s in Wonderland. She has amnesia. The reason I didn’t tell you the moment I saw you is because if you suddenly drop the truth bomb that you’re her brother it might kill her or something. I don’t know what exactly the Mirror did to her, but her Chirithy told me not to pressure her and to go slow with the memory recovery...and I don’t want to lose either of you...not again...”

“I can’t…”

“I can’t think in terms like that!” 

His voice rose before he could consider controlling it. The snap of temper was much unlike him, this Marluxia–Lauriam–knew, but like he could help it. Larxene was suggesting that…

That they just stop trying?

It was unthinkable. His little sister was all that he had left. How could he ever, in good faith, give up on her without a second thought. He remembered all too well the years on the streets, hand in hand together, living off of nothing but the pity of strangers. Lauriam and Strelitzia had both agreed not to find replacements for family, not when the threat of separation lingered. 

“I…” He looked around and noticed prying eyes, drawn to their location by his outburst. He cleared his throat and spoke softer. “I simply can’t give up hope like that. I can’t let her be alone any longer.

“What if she’s scared, Elrena?” His voice broke on the word, face collapsing into a tortured expression.

     Hearing Marluxia’s voice raise, Larxene’s head snapped up and her eyes widened. There have been a handful of times that she’s heard that voice be raised in such away...and it was never good. For once she agreed with the hurt her Heart was telling her to feel, but it all still pissed her off. She wanted to tell Marluxia about Letzie- Strelitzia, but she knew that if the flower boy rushed off to be reunited with her...it could hurt them both. Severely.

     Rushing over and grabbing the other’s arm, “I know that you don’t want to give up, and neither do I. Don’t ever assume that Lauriam,” she ignored her usage of the name, “but understand the circumstances that we’re in right now.”

     A voice filled her head, “You should tell him...he loves her too.”

     Larxene knew that was Elrena talking to her and her immediate reaction was just to ignore the voice...but this was something too serious to ignore.

     Sighing, “Clothes shopping will have to wait,” Larxene waved her hand and a corridor opened, “let’s head back to my place...I need to explain something...”

“Hey, don’t flick my ears!” Chirithy hopped out of Strelitzia’s grip and landed on Elrena’s shoulder, lightly tugging on one of the long locks of hair. “Since your Chirithy isn’t back yet, it’s up to me to look after you too! You think I’d let my best friend’s Chosen wander around helplessly? Prepare yourself for nagging!” 

Strelitzia watched and giggled, though Elrena speeding up did surprise her. The loose grip she had on the other girl’s fingers slipped, and Strelitzia didn’t mind it that much. She had to up her own pace a little, but there was something so…so gentle, and warming, watching Chirithy and Elrena interacting. 

It was enough to send her heart fluttering. Then Strelitzia became aware of pounding footsteps; heavy, deadset, coming in fast. Police? Strelitizia turned around, hands held up in surrender. 

“Ah, mister officer, please don’t arrest us, we’re going to the SSA I sw–”

TW: Blood, Violence, Injury (Extreme)

Keep reading

     Hearing the footsteps as well, Elrena summoned a single kunai but kept it hidden when Letzie started to talk. Elrena turned and- the knife was already in Letzie’s chest. The world stopped. Elrena’s heart stopped. She even felt Chirithy stop tugging on her hair. She faintly heard Letzie’s words as she saw the blood trickle down her clothes.

This can’t be happening, right?

     Something in Elrena started to form, bubble, and course through her body; it wasn’t like the rage she felt when Flea Bag sent out those fucking letters...this was beyond just simple rage.

It was desperation.

     As she started at the masked man, the Killing Joke, drop the card onto her, a bright light suddenly shown from her right hand where she hid the kunai that she summoned...it was Epee de Foudre...her keyblade. Without much thought, she raised the point of the keyblade at the bastard,

     “Thundaga.”

      A large flash of lightning shot out of Eppe de Foudre.. She didn’t know if the spell connected with her target, they didn’t matter.

She needed to make sure that Letzie didn’t die again.

     It took every ounce of self control to not stick around and shock the bastard until he couldn’t move a single muscle in his body but still conscious, but Strelitzia was more important. With tears streaming down her face Elrena, slowly picked up Letzie and put her Keyblade on top.

     “Cure. Cure. FUCKING HEAL HER DAMMIT!” As Elrena shouted the healing incantation and small yellow sunflower bloomed over the wound, and stopped some of the blood flow...but her healing magic just wasn’t strong enough right now. Running on pure instinct, she knew that she needed a place that could help Letzie.

     “Clinic. Chirithy, hold on. Tight. Teleporting.” Without much warning Elrena started to teleport away.

     While teleporting, Elrena kept on eye on Letzie, worry eating at her.

    “...don’t die on me...you c-can’t....you fucking can’t p-pull this shit a-again Letzie...I...I love you....”

      It didn’t take long for Elrena to get into the clinic. Looking around, she saw everyone’s eyes lock onto her and then onto the bleeding girl she was holding. For once, Elrena felt was Letzie called “anxiety,” and felt her knees buckle and she fell to the ground while still holding Letzie.

     Between broken sobs, “S-Someone...h-help L-Letzie...”

     A loud man suddenly appeared, Elrena saw briefly the name “Will” on a name plate before Letzie was suddenly out of her arms.

@cutthroat-nymph

Things were…

A little scary, in Wonderland. 

A spree of killings, a bodycount that ticked higher with every phase of the moon? The Darkness would have had a party in Wonderland, if Heartless could manifest here. Strelitzia was relieved on that note; if Heartless were in Wonderland, they’d be drawn to the Keyblade. It’d put Elrena in danger. It’d put anyone in danger, really, but Strelitzia wasn’t too bothered. 

It was okay…to be a little more protective over your Fated, right?

Not that she was certain Elrena was hers. She’d yet to ask Elrena to show off her ankles, and she didn’t want to push. They were still good, good friends, the best, and Strelitzia was content with that. Even if she was Fated to…to someone else, that didn’t mean she couldn’t be with Elrena, right? 

The bonds between Hearts is stronger than even destiny, Chirithy told her quietly. I wouldn’t worry too much about it.

“Thanks,” she whispered to her Dream Eater, before she swung the hand holding Elrena’s playfully. “What a spooky memory we’re making, huh? Listen…I don’t want you going off alone in the dark, okay? I know you’re a big girl and you can take care of yourself, but why take the risk? We can have a sleepover! I’ll make you those cookies you like so much!”

You, cooking? I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.

“It’s baking, Chirithy, it doesn’t count!” she whined, before summoning the spirit to their true form with a huff, holding them out under their stubby little arms. “I can bake better than I cook, for sure, b-but I’m getting better!” 

“Better at burning, maybe,” Chirithy teased. 

“Ugh, you’re the worst.” 

“Hee hee. Anyway…” Chirithy’s floppy ears twitched. “You two really should start to hustle. It’s not safe out on the streets this late. Plus, do you want to get caught breaking curfew, Elrena?”

     The talks of a serial killer now being in Wonderland put Elrena on such an edge that she was sure that her lightning was shooting out everywhere; she knew of course that that wasn’t the case...but this was hitting too close to home. Memories of the first time that Letzie disappeared and finding out...what really happened. It made her walk to the other’s apartment even quicker. She needed to make sure that Letzie was okay.

    Eventually the two did meet and had their dat- hangout session. Feeling Letzie’s hand hold her own felt right. For once in a long time, Elrena was happy. She was reunited with Letzie, Lauriam was back, the only missing piece was for the two siblings to meet, but that needed some planning in order to not overload her girlfrie- friend. She needed to stop slipping. Nothing’s been confirmed yet between them. She didn’t want to pressure Letzie into anything.

     Chuckling, “Listen, the darkness has nothing on me, especially when I got youuuuu and Chirithy here!” Elrena tried to play off her little slip up, “and let’s be honest, I can just shock whoever tries to mess with us.”

[ Below are various starters of things that muns have said that we thought were just plain funny. Definitely contains some NSFW. ]