The Life of Lula by Fullmetal Pyromaniac
Some times Lula forgot where she came from.
That wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but remembering again hurt.
It wasn't easy growing up in the household she did. Lula wasn't wanted. She knew that much. It had been an accidental pregnancy and her mother couldn't stomach an abortion. Didn't mean she hated Lula any less.
Her father didn't mind her as much, bottle feeding her and clothing her when her mother didn't want to. Her father had to work long, hard hours to support them, Lula's mother fell into depression, drinking and drugs followed. Then came the violence.
Her father had come home one night and had an argument with her mother on where all the money was going. Her mother 'didn't know'. The argument grew more and more heated until bam! Or well, shink...drip...drip...thump!
Lula carefully walked out of her room to see her mother holding a knife that was embedded in her father's throat. He was gasping wildly. Her mother pulled it out and he fell to the floor.
Then came her mistake, she let out a squeak of fear. Her mum turned to her and grinned. Frozen with fear, Lula can't move. Her mother presses the blade to her neck and whispers in her ear.
You aren't wanted
You aren't loved
You're nothing
You'll die here and no one will care
No one will find you
But then there's a crash and Lula's tears break free, streaming down and lying on the blade on her neck. The police come in with big guns and point them at her mother.
"Freeze! Mrs May, you're under arrest for alcohol and drug abuse, murder and attempted murder. Step away from the girl"
She does, maybe she feels defeated. Maybe the weight of her crimes and neglect have come down on her and she's seeing reality. Lula doesn't know, her mum steps away and drops the knife. A nice lady police officer comes and gentky takes a shaking Lula to the ambulance. She looks back once more and sees her mothers eyes.
They're empty. She turns away and goes to the ambulance, hoping that her life gets better.
...
It doesn't. The foster home is boring, loud and crowded. The adults don't care and Lula finds that hitting too close to home. But there was a girl, she was the oldest resident there, and she had more control than any of the workers.
She was magic. She was an ace with cards, she could know what you were thinking, she could vanish at random and almost everyday an unfortunate incident happened to her, however within the hour she was as fine as she was that morning.
Lula became entranced by her, and one day -after an extremely funny prank which involved a knife and her arm and a lot of blood- Lula asked if she would teach her magic and she agreed.
Lula then devoted her time to learning the ways of escapism, hiding animals in her pockets and vanishing into thin air, that, she was particularly good at. Hell, she even pulled a hat out of a rabbit. No one wanted a trickster magician for a daughter so Lula stayed and watched everyone go.
Until one night her mentor left. Ran off in the middle of the night. Her only real friend in this place, simply gone. She had no reason to stay so Lula did too, but she did it differently. Using mirrors, cards, and filling the main hallway with a plethora of birds, Lula escaped and ran. The children cheering from their windows into the night.
She was caught, unfortunately, and sent to another home where she began her plans for escape once more. Each escape different from the last, Lula ran from homes all over England until she was simply referred to as 'The Vanisher'.
So when she was sixteen, Lula decided to vanish once and for all. She just left in the night and was forgotten, living on the streets. Broke, homeless and forgotten, Lula was forced to make money from the only real skill she had- magic. And thievery.
Everytime she stole a wallet, or other means of money from an unsuspecting onlooker she felt horribly guilty, but once she learned of the Eye she didn't feel it anymore. After all, she'd be repaying them all massively one day. They just wouldn't know it.
...
The first time she saw the Four Horsemen, Lula was in love. Henley was so charismatic, so inspiring, Merritt was wonderfully sarcastic and goddamn hilarious, and Atlas was the ringleader, the glue of the Horsemen. Jack was...something else entirely.
Lula nearly burst into tears when she saw his car crash on that bridge, until she realised one detail that ensured his life. By that time she was already acquainted with Dylan and working within the Eye, mostly doing coffee jobs and organising meetings and other magick-ey things.
When Henley, Atlas and Merritt jumped off the roof it was breathtaking. So perfectly executed magic.
Then that was it, they were in the Eye. Dylan found them, brought them in and told them to be patient. Lula didn't know how many times she had seen them, Jack especially was a mystery. He was so young, although maybe a bit older than her, yet he was skilled and precise. She wanted to figure him out, all in due time. For now, she had coffee to deliver (and a dove to smuggle into the meeting room for a laugh)
...
Meeting Daniel Atlas was just as she imagined, he was a control freak. He acted like he knew her off by heart- disarming her guillotine and expecting her to be hiding under the cushions on the couch. Lula knew how to escape and how to hide, surprisingly the truth was to hide in plain sight.
She knew how to push his buttons, how to make him angry, make his rope binds sloppy. He acted surprised when she vanished. Henley was a sensitive subject for them all and Lula wasn't a bitch, she wouldn't bring her up again.
Meeting Jack and Merrit was eventful. Atlas wasn't happy to see her, Merrit looked confused and Jack unimpressed. She annoyed them, that's much was certain for Lula, they also seemed a little concerned when she mentioned her mother knifing her dad so casually. Jack is just as beautiful in real life, his intense gaze burns away at her heart.
Lula feels kind of bad when she's allowed onstage but he isn't, so she defends him...kind of, "Which is a crime, I might add, have you seen that mans face?"
Jack doesn't look surprised, only a little annoyed. Though that may be because he's been in the shadows for a year.
Lula can barely take her eyes off of him.
...
The show goes worse than expected, and suddenly they're in China being offered a chance to start anew by a seemingly sociopathic billionaire who takes pictures of unconscious people. Lula almost laughs at the absurdity of it all.
They have to steal a computer chip of some sorts, Lula, Jack and Merritt decline but, of course, Daniel accepts with the idea of taking control over his life, and they're all doing that task now because Horsemen help each other out.
The worlds oldest magic shop doesn't disappoint and Lula finds herself amazed with her fingers caught in a Chinese finger trap, which Jack has to help her out of. (They end up cutting it off)
While Daniel is sorting out supplies with the woman at the desk and her grandson, Lula and Jack try throwing cards, the person who can catch the most wins. Jack does of course.
Its 0-52 for Jack but it doesn't matter that he's won, the two are laughing away. Sharing jokes, they begin to pick the cards up and Lula lets it slip.
"So, what about girls? You know, like, relationships?"
An unreadable expression fills Jacks eyes and smile, he looks half smug, half guilty. It's like he's trying not to smile to widely but remorse is in his eyes, barely readable. He lets out a sigh and begins gathering the deck.
"Ah" he groans lowly.
"What?" She asks, just noticing how much she's staring. She focuses her attention in the cards.
Lula doesn't notice how he stares at her though, one eyebrow raised in a curious manner, trying to pry into her secrets. Wondering if she's nosy, naturally curious or has an ulterior motive.
"Look, it's not something I'm proud of" he begins, "but...every girl I get close to, I end up taking their trust"
Jack looks so vulnerable in that moment that Lula can't tear her eyes away. He won't look at her while saying that. Comedy is his defense mechanism, his past experiences with women have clearly affected him in some way.
"...and then their wallet" he finishes, nodding his head sheepishly while picking up the remainder of the cards. There's the deflection. He's acting like he expects Lula to get up and walk away, but she doesn't, instead she nods in understanding.
"You take their wallets?" She asks, digging in her coat pocket, revealing a battered and worn leather wallet filled to the brim with -probably stolen- money. Lula goes in her other pocket.
"You ever take their belts?" Jack looks almost impressed. "What about peanuts from the hotel bar? I'm not too sure why you had those"
Jack's speechless, nodding wordlessly as she drops the peanuts on the floor. Lula places her hand on his shoulder,
"Oh, I'm sorry did you think that I was like those other girls?" She taunts.
His silence is a clear 'yes'.
"Oh Jack" Lula smirks, hitting his shoulder lightly. She doesn't say anything else, getting up wordlessly and strutting away, leaving a slightly bewildered and very amused Jack behind her.
As soon as she knows he can't see or hear her, Lula has a little inward dance to herself.
...
'Shit'
She's missed the card, it should be safely lodged in between her pointer and middle finger. But it isn't. Merritt is a life saver though, perhaps literally, he practically dives and catches the card in his hat, improvising some story about big white rooms and dancing.
But they're not safe yet, they've still got to go through the metal detector. Jack goes, she goes, Daniel goes. Lula stalls a little, signalling that she's missed the card. The cogs in their brains all turn in sync, organising a plan. Daniel stands by a large metal plate, Jack casually asks for his wallet back and Merritt ties his shoes.
Bang! Daniels belt hits the metal plate, Merritt throws the card down, Jack takes his wallet through the metal detector and Lula fixes her big, fluffy coat, encasing the card against the silky inside fabric of the coat and her clothed stomach.
Then they're legging it, playfully scolding Daniel while trying to be as calm as possible because they've just pulled off a heist! Adrenalin is pumping through her veins, Lula hasn't felt like this in years. As they're running out, Jack gives her a smile and everything's right in the world.
...
The chips a fake. Dylan was almost murdered by a businessman with a grudge and his freakazoid of a son. The Horsemen are all sitting in the magic shop with Li and his grandmother.
Morale is low and tensions are high.
Lula doesn't like it. The Horsemen are meant to be loud, funny, constantly joking back and forth with each other. She tries to life their spirits,
"Somebody got the better of us, okay? Somehow"
The fire returns to their eyes.
"I think we got a whole lotta something"
And suddenly everyone is hungry for revenge, clinking their cups and sipping their chai tea. This is the beginning of the end.
...
"Start with her"
There's shouts of protest as a knife is brandished in front of her, being held loosely to her throat. Lula shrieks and suddenly she's a little girl again, staring into her mothers grin, mollified, feeling her father's blood pool around her shoes.
"Danny, give him the card!" Someone shouts, Lula isn't sure who. Maybe it's Merritt. She twists in her chair, trying to distance herself from the gleaming knife. She's the Vanisher, she can disappear at any moment, within seconds.
She's decapitated herself, hung herself from the attic of her old care homes, she's jumped off the roof of another, she's had an electric saw through and amputated her arm. But Lula doesn't think she can survive a knife through her throat. Not this time anyway.
"Give him the card" Jack seethes coldly, he's standing now, being held back by two body guards. Merritt is glaring at Atlas now, having grown find of Lula and her antics. Dylan just looks ashamed.
"Danny, just give him the card" Lula says, voice shaking slightly, trying not to show her fear.
"Daniel, come on, man" Jacks impatient, understandably. He looks murderous, eyes glinting like the cold steel of the knife being pointed at Lula.
Danny gives up the card. The knife is pulled away from her and Lula relaxed slightly, her mother still lingers at the back of her mind, grinning manically. But she's pushed away, at the moment there's bigger fish to fry. Danny, Merritt and Jack argue over the card, Lula can't get over how Jack acted. Something catches her attention.
"What? Oh, to save your little girlfriend we all have to get royally screwed over?!"
"To save my litt- he had a knife to her throat!" Jack cried, Lula narrowed her eyes and glared at Atlas.
"I'm a Horseman, you dick" she shouts over the rabble, Henleys shoes are too big for Lula it seems. She'll never replace Henley and Daniel needs to get that in his stupid head. Remembering their plan, Lula directs her anger at Merritt who gets the ball rolling.
Walter confirms the card isn't a fake, leaving them all baffled. But it doesn't matter.
It's time to test their acting skills.
...
When she kisses him it's like the fireworks that explode around them. It's picturesque, the heroes save the day and seal it with a kiss. Nothing's felt better than Jacks lips against her own -and of course the fact that Walter and Tressler will be put behind bars for a multitude of crimes- they're hesitant but grow confident.
They all hug on that boat in the middle of the Thames, Merritt and Daniel hugging Lula and Jack from behind, they all laugh and remain calm despite the fact that police are surrounding them from all angles.
Lula's never had a real family, not really. Everyone she's met has eventually left her, intentionally or not, they all vanished. So she did too. For a while vanishing was the only thing she was good at. The only thing she really knew how to do, besides hang herself them show up to dinner five minutes later.
But Lula sits on her bed a year later, the Eye has been quiet for a while, allowing the Horsemen to settle down in their mansion, she stares out of her bedroom window while sitting on her bed. The stars gleam down from above and Lula smiles.
Her boyfriend of just over a year -Jack- is lying next to her, a muscular arm draped over her waist. Merritt has become the father she never had, taking in the 'over protective' role whenever she went out on dates with Jack. J. Daniel Atlas became her annoying older brother, but a trustworthy one, one she could confide in and have prank wars with.
Dylan and her became better friends than colleagues, him being invited to the weekly movie marathon on a Saturday night with the Horsemen.
Because, as Merritt had yelled before they were and weren't tossed out of a plane:
I came into this life with the wrong family, but I'm leaving with the right one.
The end.
A.N. Hello, it's me again. Long story short, I watched both movies in one night and fell in love. Lizzy is my favourite, Dave second and of course Jesse and Woody close third. Have you seen Zombie Land? It's amazing!
I'm always worried when I post to a new fandom, so stuff may be missing or wrong and I'm sorry for that. I'll be posting more Jack x Lula in the future! Lula needs more love, definitely!
As for my Seven Deadly Sins stories, well writers block is killing me, so is school, so I'm posting a few one shots over the next few days/week/weeks to help me get over it. Leave me a review on this story or my others and tell me what you thought!
See you soon!
- Ruby! xxx