Hey guys! So while I've been unable to type very efficiently because of an injury, I've pretty much decided to release a few chapters of some fanfics that I started but never continued. I just feel like some of them deserved to be read, and who knows, I might feel like continuing them.
Anyway, please excuse any typos or mistakes, as some of these have been written as long as three years ago. All of them are Oc-centric, so I'm sorry if that isn't your cup of tea!
Actually, this one in particular is Heavily Oc-centric. I'd planned on placing my character in canon events, but it has not happened yet, so I hope you understand. It was supposed to be a long StingXOc fic, with one sided OcXRogue.
This was actually a pain in the butt. I had a tough time with starting it and the exposition because the whole thing stemmed from ideas I had for the future. My other fic with Wyeth was the opposite; the beginning wrote itself and I had plans for the middle, but nothing else.
I really liked this one, in the end, but I couldn't make the bridge from the beginning to the end.
But there is still a chance of continuation….
Enjoy!
There is a limit to how much shit a human can take. I like to think that my limit is unusually high, but it still exists.
I had to get out...
I grew up in something akin to a castle. My father was extremely wealthy, so my childhood was comfortable and I was spoiled terribly. Looking back, I'll admit that I use to be a brat. I terrorized my nurses and all my pets, I purposely tore my clothes and made messes, and I refused to listen to any parental figure in my life, other than my father.
My behavior only worsened when he remarried. My mother had died shortly after my birth, so I had never known her, but I still despised my step-mother and her two daughters. They hadn't even been too terrible at first, but Heaven forbid I settle with being Daddy's second girl. He was the closest person in the world to me, and selfish little me didn't want to share.
My step-sisters tried to befriend and appease me, but I'd be damned if they succeeded. Euffie and Madeline were twins, and three years my senior, but they stood no match against my tyranny.
Poor Madeline had a giant crush on the gardener's son, Vin, even though she probably didn't even know his name and had never spoken to him before. Out of spite, I forcefully made him play with me, and I made sure she saw.
But I grew attached to Vin on accident, and despite how pushy and bossy I was, we somehow managed to become close friends. When I wasn't being tutored in mathematics, sciences, history, and swordplay, I was outside in the garden. Vin and his mother lived in the servants' quarters, outside by the greenhouse, and I liked spending my time there.
Vin's mother Gina was a pretty, young, lively blonde woman. I didn't know about his father, but Vin had obviously gotten his looks from that side of the gene pool; his hair was dark and as straight as straw, and his skin tanned easily. Gina was fair and had brown eyes, while his were grey.
Vin and I were nearly inseparable, but I could never bring myself to tell my father that I was friends with a servant. I was scared that he would disapprove and fire Gina. I never mentioned Vin to Madeline to make her jealous anymore, and I purposely played in the parts of the garden that weren't visible from the mansion's windows. I don't think Vin ever noticed, but Gina certainly did. Sometimes she would suggest where we should play, secretly encouraging me.
Over the years, Camille, my stepmother, gave up on becoming my maternal figure. She barely spoke to me throughout the years, and she grew to return my feelings of hatred. I suppose I pushed her to it.
Much to my step-sisters' chagrin, little old me had been showing potential Mage material, while they had not. Things began to float when I was angered and kettles and pots melted. Another tutor was hired to hone my magic power, and eventually, my skill was developed. I used the same as my mother, unsurprisingly: teleportation magic. My poor caretakers could never keep watch on me, and I never had to listen to anybody. I made a habit out of popping in and out of rooms, and I constantly stuck my nose into other's business. No one could stop me, and I terrorized the whole house; except for my father, that is. Even Vin got annoyed with me, and Gina scolded me once for frightening her. I grew into a skilled Mage.
When I was around seven, strange visitors began to pop up in my life. They were usually older men in suits that matched my father's, or several times, doctors. Around every two weeks, they would come for a 'check-up'. My father would make me sit in a bed (never in my own) while my layers of clothing were removed one by one, and my body was revealed. I was hooked up to tubes, or flipped on my stomach and prodded, or tested on what I'd recently learned from my tutors. I was dying to know what it was all about, but I didn't dare ask my father. I hardly ever saw him, but during these lengthy visits, he was always by my side. I liked that enough to forget about being humiliated, confused, and experimented on.
Vin helped me cope with my insecurities, which I was grateful for, and soon they became very routine and even comfortable. If my breasts were examined, I would think about what book to read next. If something they did actually hurt, I would wonder what game I would play with Vin the next day. Eventually, nothing the men did was new, so I could expect what would happen. My father always held my hand, so I knew they wouldn't cause me any ill harm.
The last visit was quite different from the others, however. That day was forever etched into my memories; I had been in the garden with Vin that morning because I had finished my fencing lessons early. My tutor, Felix, had been more and more lenient lately, God knew why.
Vin was about a year and a half younger than me, but he was still my height, if not a little taller. We were down by the apple trees, secretly stuffing them in our pockets and taking bites. We made competition over who could pick the most, and it was always Vin who won because of his reach. I ended the game by chucking my uncompleted pile at him. He dove into a small stream to evade apple bullets, his clothes and all, so I teleported to the water's edge. My arm was back and ready to throw when he came up for breath, but Vin had other plans. He leapt into the air and tackled me, dragging the two of us into the stream. I had to punch him in the stomach to get him to let me go so I could teleport out. I could use my magic with objects, but I could not with other people. Vin had discovered my fatal flaw himself during a wrestling match, and now he had a way to keep me from 'cheating' during our other games. I wrangled out of his grasp and flashed back to land, spitting water out of my mouth.
"Aww, don't be such a girl!" Vin teased in response to my glare, walking out of the stream himself. I hated when he made fun of my gender, and he knew it. Sure, I was always in a gown when we played, but I pushed myself to do everything he did. Vin laughed at the face I made and peeled his sopping wet shirt off.
I had to rip off my dress so that it could dry off in the sun. Thankfully, I had underclothes, but they were almost the same as Vin's dull work clothes, which he always wore. Speaking of Vin, the trouble maker had declared a game of hide and seek in which I was 'It'. He'd run off into the raspberry bushes before I could protest, and left me alone to count to fifty.
I had counted to twenty when a hand on my shoulder made me jump.
"Vin!" Gina whispered fervently in my ear. She had snuck through the bushes and was now leaning over me. "Quickly, you must come home. They will be here any minute now for Rory, and we can't be here when they do." She pulled painfully on my arm.
"What-!?" I began, only to be shushed.
"Quickly, I said, they can't know you exist! It's too late for poor Rory, but not for you!"
I was dragged for several yards. Gina was deceptively strong, and I couldn't break free, or even slow her down. I supposed with my plain clothes, and wet hair, I looked nearly identical to Vin. While he wore his hair long for a boy, mine was still a great deal longer, and my bangs were cut straight. Now it was plastered to my head, just like Vin's when he was wet, and the length was difficult to determine. Now that I really thought about it, we both had the same dark, nearly black, but still brown, stick-straight hair and grey eyes. Both of our chins were dainty, our noses were pointed and small, our ears were rounded, and our skin tanned easily. There was also similarity in the curve of our lips, and the hollow of our cheeks. Yes, Vin and I were nearly identical, and it was no surprise Gina had mixed us up.
"Stop fighting, we don't have time for that!"
"What's wrong!?" I shouted, still struggling.
"It's like how your father warned us; they're coming for her, and he needs to transfer his notes! He needs to hide them," she panicked. "Poor, poor Rory, poor Rory," she murmured. Tears were pooling in my eyes.
"Wait! Let go!" I cried. Gina had always been nice, motherly, and level headed. They way she hysterically rambling while pulling onto my arm scared me.
"...Mom...?"
Gina shot her head to the left, her eyes wide. Vin had emerged from the brush, his shirt still off. His lips were tight in concern and he tentatively stepped closer. All the color on his mother's face drained away in seconds, and her eyes fell back on me in a terrible silence. Her grip loosened enough for me to break free.
"Oh... Lorelei..." Gina finally breathed. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, just like me. "I'm so sorry," she turned away.
I was already teleporting to my room, forgetting about my wet dress on the rocks.
Hours later, after I had somewhat calmed down, my father knocked on my door. I let him in, and a man with a medical bag followed him. His face was obscured by a mask.
"Let's get started right away," he mumbled, pulling a chair up by my empty bed. My eyes were as wide as saucers, I couldn't speak, and I trembled in my boots. Father smiled warmly at me and knelt to my level.
"Lorelei, you've been such a good girl," he whispered. "I know I've asked a lot of you, but this it the last time, I swear," he brought me in for a hug.
"This is the last visit...?" I squeaked, confused. No one had mentioned them ever coming to an end. Gina's hysterics echoed in my head, and I gulped in fear.
Father stroked my back. "It'll be fine. Nothing bad will happen," he criss-crossed his pointer over his heart. "I promise."
I copied the familiar motion. "Alright, Father."
I had nothing to worry about, I told myself. Father would never let anything happen to me. This visit would be any different than usual; it would just be in my room, after a grown woman had a mental breakdown. Nothing but coincidences.
I stripped at the masked man's instructions. I got into bed, over the covers, and lay on my belly. The man dug into his bag, uncapped a marker, and drew on my back. He had my father stand on the other side of the bed with a notebook open. I couldn't lift my head to see what it was, for when I tried, I was instantly scolded by the man.
"Don't move. I absolutely cannot make a mistake, no matter how minor. The marker tickled my back some more. "Double check this section, Otto," he said to my father, who replied with approval. "Right, now flip," he ordered me.
I laid on my back as he sketched over my stomach, breasts, and hips. I barely even breathed. Craning my neck would mean to move, so all I could stare at was the ceiling. Around forty minutes after he began, the masked man again asked my father to make sure everything was as he intended. Of course it was, I thought, he went so freaking slow that a mistake would be impossible.
"It's perfect," Father breathed after several moments, relieved. Finally, I was able to look at my body.
I was speechless. Swirling blue lines of ink flowed over my skin. There was a large circle with foreign detailing on my stomach, with two other overlapping. One encased my chest and breasts, and the other began at my belly button and ended near my thigh. No wonder it had take so long; there was hardly any skin peeking through the design. It was beautiful. What did my back look like? It hadn't taken nearly as long, but my front did have more complicated body structures, such as ribs, belly buttons, hip bones, and boobs, no matter their size. The man had taken great care on these areas, and the lines appeared closer in proximity.
My father saw my shocked face. "Don't worry, Lorelei, this will only hurt for a minute." He criss-crossed his heart.
Before I even comprehended his words, Father was at the foot of my bed. He began to chant, his hand outstretched over my body, or rather, over the circles on my abdomen.
"Father?" I cried, alarmed. The ink had gradually grown warm, and I realized it began to glow a vivid blue.
For maybe five seconds, the ink was too hot to bare. I cried and screamed, thrashing, but I couldn't control my body. I was stuck, and I couldn't move.
Then the five seconds was over, and sweet relief washed over me. The glowing dimmed down.
Except, it didn't really; I just passed out.
The next day, I examined my body. The marks were still there, but they weren't blue from ink; the were pink, like scars. My back was the same as my front, only backward and awkward. Actually, I realized, my back was the right way, but it appeared flipped in the mirror. I knew then that the areas that had the closely drawn designs had been areas that changed and grew differently than the rest of my body. My breasts would grow more than my stomach, so they had compensated; more then just that, but they had calculated the exact size that I would most likely grow into, and they had converted it into the circles. That had to have been a purpose of one of the previous check-ups. They intended to mark me for my entire life.
I was happy to see that my most simple tank top hid the majority of the tattoos. With my normal dresses on, I wouldn't even have to worry the slightest bit about anything peeking out. Speaking of dresses...
I slipped into my new outfit for the day before effortlessly teleporting back to the spot by the stream. My dress was no longer on the rocks. I supposed Gina or Vin had taken it to their home, so I flashed to their place, the scene from yesterday replaying in my head.
I was worried about what I would say to them. But when I knocked on their door, waited for several minutes, and then zapped into their house, I realized that I wouldn't have to worry about that particular issue. Because they were gone, and the house was completely empty.
One December day, when I was around nine, my father suddenly felt a little feverish. No more than seventy-two hours later, he was on his deathbed. His deteriorating health hit me like a bat to the temple, and I was inconsolable. I curled up into him on his bed for hours on end, and I threw a tantrum when anyone else but the doctor wanted to see him. He never told me about the tattoos, and I couldn't bare to stress him out in his terrible condition, so I never brought it up in a last-ditch effort for answers.
He passed away in his sleep. For months after his death, I wore only black and spoke only a couple of words. It was like losing Vin all over again, but this time, I had no one to cling to for comfort. Father wouldn't be there for me anymore.
Felix gave me a gift for consolation. I now had a new Rapier, my first full sized. It was too large for me at the moment, but I would grew into it. Apparently, the sword was somewhat famous, and my father had been searching for it as a hobby. It was entirely black, even the blade, save for a sapphire on the hilt. Father would have loved it. However, even my new gift didn't perk me up.
It's hard to say that I'd ever break out of that rut of depression if I hadn't heard about my father's will. His lawyer had met with Camille in my Father's study, and he hadn't allowed any children in to listen. Camille had ordered Demetria, my current nanny, to keep me in her sights at all costs. She vanished through the doors, the lawyer right behind her.
I immediately began clawing at Demetria's iron grip on my wrist; recently, she had discovered my fatal flaw, the one that only Vin and Gina had known about. While I could teleport any object I touch directly, as well as animals, humans were a different story. My magic pulled me through a portal, but for some reason, even the weakest hold grounded me.
I resorted to digging my nails into Demetria's wrinkled flesh, whining and growling as I tried to break free.
She shook me, hard, and lowered her face to mine.
"Lorelei-sama, please listen to me," she whispered vehemently. I ignored her words and growled again, kicking her.
She shook me again, rattling my head. I bit my tongue, and the pain stunned me.
"Lorelei-sama, you don't have much time!" Demetria glanced up at the closed door and leaned in even more. I gaped at her in shock as she described my father's study, a room I had never been in before, in great detail. I couldn't go anywhere if I couldn't picture it in my head, and father had forbade me from entering any of his work rooms, and I actually listened to him.
"Behind his book case, at the right of his desk, there's a secret room. It's rectangular, four by six, and the stairwell from the ballroom makes up it's ceiling. Hurry now, before you miss anything," she urged, releasing my wrist. I wasted several precious seconds gaping at her in utter shock before she shooed me away.
With nothing else to do, or with nothing to argue with, I teleported inside that very room, dumbstruck. Sure, I had been trying to get away from her, but that had been because my pride prevented me from being obedient. I wouldn't have gone into my father's study anyway, not that I could have, but I would've ran to my room, or the garden. If I had gone into the study, Demetria would've interrupted the meeting anyways. But she helped me instead.
What did Demetria want me to hear so badly? Or more importantly, what did Camille NOT want me to hear?
I peeked through the books, crouching on my knees to help stay hidden. I didn't dare examine the secret compartment for fear of missing something.
Camille sat no more than three feet away from me at a desk. Several documents were laid before her.
"What the hell did you just say!?" She all but screamed. I tried to conceal another gasp, so I covered my mouth with my palm. I had never seen my Step-mother raise her voice.
"...Otto left everything to his biological daughter," the lawyer sighed. "The mansion, the money, everything. You won't ever get a cent."
Camille slammed her hands on the desk.
"You've got to be fucking kidding me! We were married for four years, and he still left everything to that little brat!? She's nine, what's she going to do with the money!?"
The cool headed lawyer shrugged. "She won't technically inherit anything until she's twenty-one. Until that day, the money will be frozen in the bank, and the mansion belongs to the city."
"So we're getting kicked out for twelve years?" Camille shrieked.
Their words hit me like bricks; father had given me an inheritance, THE inheritance, but I STILL might lose the mansion. This was where I was born and where I was raised. How could the city do that? What if Vin and Gina were to come back, only to find that I hadn't waited for them?
"Relax, Madam. They were prepared to offer us a deal. Keeping the grounds shouldn't be an issue."
I accidentally sighed in relief audibly, but thankfully Camille's own sigh had masked it. Now I was relieved for two reasons.
"Still, about the money," my step-mother pressed. "Is there any circumstance where... Lorelei wouldn't be the heir?"
My eyes narrowed in suspicion.
From the look on his face, I wouldn't say that the lawyer was happy to share the answer, but I supposed he was required to give the truth by law.
"If she were to pass away before she reaches twenty-one... Her guardian will receive everything immediately." He saw the hungry look gracing Camille's face. "But that's only if the death is an accident. Any possibility of foul play will lead to the best investigation this kingdom has to offer," he warned.
Camille scowled. "Relax, I'm not a criminal. Is there any way she could just simply lose the inheritance?"
"Well... Unless she willingly just signs it over..."
Camille swore and rubbed her temples.
The silence was so tense that you could cut the air with a knife. I wanted to leave very badly, but I was afraid I would miss something.
"Sometimes I wonder if Otto even loved me at all," Camille whispered, her face in her hands. When she finally lifted her head, I caught a glimpse of her green eyes. Chills ran down my spine at her metamorphosis. I almost didn't recognize her from her expression.
Determination. Spite. Pain.
With that one look, I could tell: Camille Pianna-Regalia would do anything to get her hands on my inheritance; possibly, even kill me.
The lawyer sighed.
"If the biological child was the offspring of an illegitimate relationship, all the inheritance would immediately belong to you..."
Camille froze. "What are you saying...?"
"You'd need proof through blood tests, but if Lorelei isn't the daughter of Otto AND Katherine Regalia, the money and house are yours."
"...But why would that even be an option," Camille gripped the desk until her knuckles were white. "What. Are. You. Implying?" she grounded out.
The lawyer rubbed his temple. "Madam, Otto and I knew each other for decades. We were close; not friendship-wise, but business-wise. I know many things that he would have never admitted himself-"
"Get it over with."
I held my breath.
"The Regalia fortune is actually the Oswald fortune. Katherine Oswald was nearly twice as powerful as Otto before they married."
Camille leaned forward in her chair, speechless. "You mean... So if Katherine isn't... Then who..."
"Your gardener recently resigned, yes?"
"Oh. My. God." Camille screamed, her head hitting the desk.
Oh. My. God. I screamed in my head, my legs trembling.
I didn't stay to the end because my heart was racing, and I didn't want them to hear it. I was slightly disoriented, because my eyes had been adjusted to the dark and were suddenly exposed to the brightness of the hallway. Before I found my bearings, Demetria was already squeezing my wrist. She was careful, and made sure she had ahold of the very same arm as before she had allowed me to pop away. Camille didn't come out for awhile yet, but eventually she stomped into the hallway, the lawyer at her heels. He bid me a bow in farewell and hurried out the hallway to the mansion's exit.
Camille smiled at me in mock sadness, her eyes revealing her true feelings.
"Lorelei, do you happen to recall our last gardener's name? It seems she never received her last payment, and it would be a shame if it didn't get to her."
Like I said; Lots of shit.
Enter Sting and Rogue.
"Come on, Rogue," a blonde man drawled. He slung his lean, muscular arm over his companion's, Rogue's, shoulders. Normally the dark haired teenager would hate all and any physical contact, but this person, this blonde boy, was special.
"You know that girl over there s'been eyeing you, just go say hello," he half-teased. Rogue looked up from the countertop. He quickly averted his eyes when he met gazes with a girl across the room. She was looking past the noise, and the people, and the tables, straight at him. He hadn't looked of very long, but the quick sight he caught of her told him she was quite attractive. Her hair curled in perfect spirals and her lips were full. She was resting her chin on a manicured hand. What was even better was her shy demeanor; she was like Rogue, not his companion.
The pair had come to the diner to eat, Rogue wanted to point out, not hook up, as his companion was so intent on doing. He supposed he should have suspected the blonde's true motives when he insisted Frosch and Lector stay at the apartment and get some rest, and that they could save some of the food and bring it home for them.
Rogue sighed when the blonde boy nudged him again.
"Not now, Sting."
Sting just chuckled. "What, are you gay?"
What a stupid question, Rogue thought. The dark haired teenager had had girlfriends before, just not like Sting, who was an early bloomer and felt he needed a new girl every month.
"No, I'm not gay."
"Asexual?"
Rogue shot Sting a dirty look, but he shrugged it off.
"Hey, I gotta know, otherwise I'll go over there myself," he glanced at the girl from the corner of her eye.
Rogue scowled. "Go ahead."
Before Sting could jump up and take him up on the offer, a waitress slid two plates onto their table.
"Thank you," Rogue nodded politely as Sting lounged in his seat and checked the worker out. She blushed and scurried away, but she appeared to enjoy the attention. Rogue rolled his eyes. That's just how Sting was.
He hardly believed they were only sixteen. He often warned Sting to be less promiscuous, but apparently the blonde took his advice with a grain of salt.
"Man, it sure is nice actually having some cash," Sting chewed up his meat, the girl and the waitress forgotten. Rogue couldn't really disagree with that.
Joining Sabertooth had been the best decision they had ever made. He just wasn't too keen on the way Sting brought up their guild so often. They had been members for over a year now, and Sting probably brought it up everyday. He was very prideful, Sting, and he never covered his guild mark.
The two finished their plates, and Rogue asked for boxes. They rose from their chairs and tipped the waitress something generous.
"Oh my..." she gasped when she noticed the sum. Sting just laughed and twirled a strand of her hair around his finger.
"It's for being so beautiful."
He had to leave it at that when Rogue grabbed his arm and dragged him towards the door.
"You need a leash," he joked. Sting laughed.
Soon the friends were on their way down the street. People murmured.
"Look at their guild marks..."
"Wow!"
"Sabertooth Mages?"
While Rogue didn't care much for the attention, Sting ate it all up. Of course, after a year of it, they were well accustomed by now, and these small crowds didn't do much to surprise them.
The two were almost home to their apartment. The crowds were fewer now, and the night was nearly silent. Sting began to whistle.
Their current rooms were in the Sabertooth dorms, which were on the other side of the Guild Hall. The Duo continued on towards their waiting friends.
Suddenly the doors to the guild swung open.
Thanks for checking this out!
So because I'm not continuing this (although that isn't exactly set in stone), I am willing to answer any questions about the future, if you were just DYING to know! Just review or shoot me a PM.
Also, I'm not opposed to the idea of adopting this out.