Hey! Don't worry, still writing! Still don't own I, Frankenstein. Reviews, favs and follows are ALWAYS appreciated ^_^ and y'all are awesome at it! Enjoy!
10 years later
"No, absolutely not." Gideon shook his head, crossing his arms firmly over his chest.
Leo clenched her teeth and slammed her palms on the table. "Why not?! I got my Tabard 53 years ago, today. And I STILL haven't been out scouting! Why can't I go with you?"
"Because it's dangerous, Leo!" he tossed his arms up in exasperation.
She groaned, stomping her foot. "But I'll be with you! How dangerous could it possibly be?!"
He stepped closer to the tan girl. She hadn't changed a bit since she was seventeen except for her chest getting a bit larger and her face becoming a bit more mature. "You always find a way to make situations more dangerous."
"Gideon!" she growled angrily. "You can't just keep me here forever!"
He stepped closer, forcing her to take a couple steps back. "I can, and I will. I can't risk you getting seriously hurt out there. You're a liability."
"A liability?!" she snapped. "Says the man who comes back from every mission with a new scar!"
Gideon now had Leo pressed against a wall and he growled lowly, "Exactly. You've already got too many scars and if you go scouting you'll come back with worse than a few scars and I can't risk that."
"Why not?! I'm a warrior, just like you and Levi!"
"You're a child!" he spat.
That one hit her deep and the hurt was evident in her honey eyes. "Wait, Leo, I didn't..." Gideon sighed as she slipped away from him and sprinted from the room.
"Nice one, Gideon." the gargoyle muttered to himself, grabbing a map from the table and rolling it up.
There was a knock from the doorframe and he looked up to see the Queen. "Majesty." he half-bowed.
"Did I hear yelling?" she raised a perfectly sculpted eyebrow.
He sighed, leaning against the table dejectedly. "Leo is becoming more and more difficult to control."
Leonore laughed lightly. "She's a spirited young soul, that's for sure. But you also can't control her, you must know that, Gideon."
"I know, but sometimes I just wish I could." he grumbled, tossing the map into a chest.
She sat down in one of the chairs and watched him. "So, what did you do this time?"
Gideon groaned and collapsed into the chair opposite to her. "Leo wants to go with me on a scouting mission and I told her it was too dangerous. She argued that she's a warrior like me and Levi-"
"Which, she is." the Queen interjected.
"And then I told her she was just a child." he shook his head as if he couldn't believe he'd said such a thing to her.
The Queen nodded gravely, "Well, clearly, there's only one thing you can do to fix this."
"Majesty, no-"
"She's waited many years. And she's been ready and capable since she was seventeen. She deserves a chance to prove herself. Let her go with you, Gideon."
"But-"
Leonore rose from her seat and gave him a severe look, "That's an order."
"Yes, Majesty." he muttered as she left the room.
Later that day, he went looking for Leo, but she seemed to be purposely avoiding him. Not that he could blame her. After years of teasing, flirting and toying with one another, to have him call her a child was just cruel.
He knew deep down that she was beyond ready, but he couldn't help but be worried about her. And he doubted he would ever stop being worried about her.
"Ophir, have you seen Leo?" Gideon stopped the deeply tanned gargoyle in the hall.
He frowned at the commander and nodded. "Yes, she was talking with Keziah, but I know for a fact that you are the last person she wants to see."
Gideon clenched his jaw and nodded, walking past him in search of the two women. "Leo, I know that you're upset, but you have to try and understand where he's coming from." he heard Keziah's voice and peered into a room.
He saw Keziah pacing back and forth and Leo laying on a bed with her legs propped up against the wall. "Oh yeah? And where's he coming from?"
"You're only seventy years old, Leo. To him, you ARE a child."
"I'm half human too, you know! For a human, I'm looking pretty fucking fantastic!" she growled.
Keziah winced and tossed something at Leo's head. "Language. And look, you know he feels bad about it. When's the last time Gideon got in a fight with you and wasn't the first to apologize?"
"That isn't the point, Keziah! He's been flirting with me since I was sixteen! Back then I could understand him calling me a child, because I was! But now?! We don't know how long my lifespan is! I could be years from death!"
"Don't say that." she scolded, still pacing. "Look, eventually you'll go scouting and-"
"Ugh! Keziah!" Leo tossed her arms up before letting them drop onto the bed. "I'm not upset about the scouting...well, okay I AM upset about that, but I'm really just upset that he would call me a child!"
Keziah stopped and crossed her arms, watching Leo squirm angrily on the bed. "Leo, I know you wish for more with Gideon," the gargoyle felt his neck get hot and swallowed roughly at the thoughts running through his head. "But don't you think it's time to give up this...childish fantasy?"
Leo sat up quickly and turned to give Keziah a poisonous glare. "Sure, as soon as you give up the childish fantasy you've got for Ophir."
"Shut up." Keziah snapped after a moment of shock. "And besides, even if we both got the fantasies we wanted, it's against the Order's rules and you know it."
Leo lay back down with a huff and groaned, throwing her arm over her eyes. "Keziah, sometimes I wish you'd never found me on those steps and brought me in."
Keziah couldn't answer the girl, however, because Gideon had grabbed her and pulled her out into the hallway, shushing her.
The gargoyle stepped quietly into the room and closed the door gently behind him, walking towards Leo.
"Keziah?" Leo asked without lifting her arm from her eyes, still playing drama queen.
Leo sat down beside her and slid his warm, calloused hand over her small, softer one. "Not exactly."
She gasped, and jumped up, grabbing her daggers instantly. "Woah!" he held his hands up in surrender. "I know you're angry, but I came here to make up."
Leo gulped, her cheeks turning light pink. "How much did you hear?"
"Enough." Gideon gave a small smile.
The woman coughed lightly and slid her daggers back into their rightful places. "So, why are you here? Come to tell me more about what a child I am?"
He sighed and looked down. "Leo, it was wrong of me to say that, but Keziah was right. To me, being as old as I am, you are like a child-"
"Then stop flirting with me!" She shouted angrily, eyes narrowing harshly.
"Woah, hang on, I wasn't finished." he soothed, grabbing her flailing arms and pulling her close. "But I understand that seventy years is a lot, you've been alive long enough. You're a strong gargoyle and a strong human...and you deserve a chance to go scouting."
Leo's honey eyes lit up excitedly. "You're taking me with you?!"
"I am." Gideon nodded.
"Oh, thank you!" she gasped, flinging herself into his arms and laughing happily.
Gideon felt heat roll through his entire body as he squeezed her back and couldn't help but smile softly. "But," she pulled away. "You can't keep toying with me."
"Keziah was also right when she said that it's against the Order's rules." Leo's arms slipped from Gideon's neck and she looked down. He paused, instantly feeling guilty and needy and pained all at once.
He bit his lip, knowing it would be a bad idea, but also knowing he had to do it. "So...we can't get caught."
Her eyes shot up to meet his and she grinned, hurling herself back at him and pressing her face into the crook of his neck.
Gideon felt his stomach clench nervously, but held her tightly, wincing as she ground against him. "Leo...oh..."
The next morning, Gideon groaned and tried to roll out of bed, but found a small body in the way. "Shit..." he muttered to himself, watching as Leo slept soundly, her steady breaths slowly calming his initial panic.
The large gargoyle couldn't help noticing the scars that lined her smooth, tan back. Two in particular stood out and they seemed to be exactly where her wings would normally come from.
He gently traced the bumpy scars and reveled in the warmth she gave off. "Leo!" a knock came at the door and Gideon leapt up to find himself completely bare.
Leo sat up lazily and looked at the door before noticing Gideon standing before her. She looked him up and down appreciatively and gave him a sly smirk.
There was another loud knock at the door and Gideon growled lowly, "Shut up!" and jerked his head towards the door before opening the door to Leo's bathroom and stepping in.
Leo grinned and ran a hand through her short locks, getting out of bed and opening the door. She winced at the bright light and Keziah winced at Leo's naked form.
"Leo, when will you stop sleeping in the nude?" she snapped, looking away from the woman.
"Never, if I can help it." she smirked.
Keziah rolled her dark eyes and stepped into Leo's room. "Have you even started getting ready?"
"...Ready for what?"
The gargoyle spun to look at her and immediately regretted it. "The scouting mission!"
"Is that something I need to get ready for? I thought we just left with our weapons...maybe a toothbrush." Leo mumbled, rubbing the back of her neck and suddenly wishing she had clothes on.
Keziah seemed ready to start twitching, "Pack clothes and extra weapons, you also-" she paused, noticing clothing too big for Leo on the floor. "That's not your cloak."
Leo swallowed roughly and bit her lip. "...Could I put some clothes on?"
"Leo, those are NOT your clothes." Keziah rounded on her. "I know that cloak-" she gasped, seeing two familiar blades on Leo's night stand. "Is Gideon here?! They've been looking for him for hours!" Keziah whisper-screamed.
The woman leapt forward, slapping her hand over Keziah's mouth. "Shh! Yes, Gideon was here. Nothing happened! He just came to make up and ended up sleeping on the floor! He's taking a bath..." she finished lamely.
"Oh, I bet he came to make up. He came to make up yesterday afternoon!" Keziah hissed, ripping Leo's hand away from her face.
Leo slumped where she stood. "Look, Keziah, please. You know that if anything happened between you and Ophir, I wouldn't breathe a word."
Keziah pressed her lips together and crossed her arms. "Fine. But don't get caught by anyone else, Leo! You could be punished severely. You're already distrusted by many in the order, and being caught wouldn't help."
"Oh," she tried to give the older woman a hug, but Keziah immediately stepped out of the way.
"Don't touch me when you're bare, Leo." the woman shook her head and walked from the room yelling for Leo to pack and hurry up.
Leo rushed to the door and shut it hurriedly, locking it while she was there. Gideon stepped from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist and Leo felt her cheeks flame.
"Keziah knows." he stated, his own cheeks turning a little pink at both the thought of Keziah knowing and at Leo's naked form. She was...thick...and it was good, to say the least.
The young gargoyle coughed nervously and gave a short nod, trying to avoid looking at Gideon's well formed torso.
The older gargoyle noticed and his playful nature, that only showed when Leo was around, beat his momentary embarrassment. He grinned and in two strides had her pulled against him, "Are you well, Leo? Your cheeks look a bit flushed. Maybe you should sit this scouting mission out."
Leo tried to argue but Gideon had bent down and started brushing his lips against her neck making her words catch in her throat. "Gid...eon...stop!" she managed to pull herself away.
He held tightly to her waist and cocked his head to the side. "Something wrong, little angel?"
The back of her neck heated up at the nickname and she pushed him away. "Keziah is right, we can't get caught. You need to get dressed and ready for the mission and make sure no one sees you."
"Leo," Gideon tried to pull her back, but she shook her head, already starting to pull on clothing.
"Gideon." the severity in her tone made him stop and compose himself, suddenly feeling extraordinarily foolish wearing just a towel.
He reached down and picked up his clothes, pulling everything on silently before grabbing his blades and securing them. By the time he turned around, Leo was packing for the mission and avoiding looking at him at all costs.
"Meet in the throne room in half an hour." Gideon ordered coldly making Leo flinch and bite her lip.
She turned to the ticked gargoyle and grabbed his large hand, "Gideon," he was oddly pleased to find that her voice had softened. "I'm sorry, I'm just...nervous."
"Leo, we just need to be cautious. We will not be caught again." he pulled the small woman closer and this time, she didn't resist.
"Not that, Gideon...I'm nervous about scouting." she admitted.
The gargoyle smiled and held her tightly as she wrapped her arms around his torso. "I will not let anything touch you."
