A/N: Well, I guess I've promised you guys fluff, so, here it is! Disclaimer: I only own Lori so, everything else belongs to Julie and some Grecian dead dudes.
Puck's POV
Lori's eyes widened as she saw all the minions and souls and other obstacles. "I'm glad you came to rescue me but how do we get out of here?" She hissed.
"We're going that way." I pointed to Lethe and Phlegethon rivers. The Hellhounds were resting by the trod.
"We're going through lava, some blue river, and some HUGE dogs with razor sharp teeth. Okay. Let me know when you come up with a plan that WON'T kill us." she crossed her arms. I snorted and grabbed her hand, pulling her to Lethe. She blinked and looked around. "Where are we?" The Lethe was already taking effect. The Lethe is the river of forgetfulness. I began to forget some of Meghan's early years. I pulled her into the water. She was about to shriek but I clasped a hand over her mouth before she could.
"Don't make a sound or we're dead." I hissed. She nodded and pulled my hand away. She kept a tight hold on my hand, never going more than an inch away from me. I heard yells and looked back over my shoulder. The harpies were watching us with hungry eyes. "Swim!" I let go of her hand. She looked back and screamed, starting to swim. I followed her and reached the other side before she did. She gasped for air and leaned against me. I quickly grabbed her arm and pulled her onto the bank with me. The Hellhounds were barking and snarling. I looked at the Phlegethon river and sighed. "Come on." I heard a screech. "Duck!"
She furrowed her eyebrows. "Why?" A harpy was a few feet away from her.
"Lori! Duck!" I tried to grab her arm but the harpy already tackled her to the ground. She screamed, kicking her feet. The harpy bit her arm. I quickly sliced off the harpy's head. "Why don't you ever listen to me?" I helped her up from the ground. She glared at me, then burst into tears. I glanced at her arm and noticed all the blood running down from her elbow to her hand and dripping onto the ground. I sighed.
"Robbie," she sobbed "help." She began to sway, losing her balance.
"Lori, don't try to move." I grabbed her upper arms.
"Robbie," she whispered, losing consciousness and collapsing. I cursed under my breath and picked her up. Her bleeding arm dangled down to the floor.
I kissed her forehead gently. "Why is it that you collapse when I want to tell how much I want you to be mine?" I sighed. "I love you." I began walking to the Phlegethon. I saw a few boulders that were floating in the lava and hopped onto one. She made a small noise but stayed motionless. I jumped onto the next one. The boulder drifted to the other side. I hopped onto the bank. The Hellhounds all started towards us. I set down Lori and drew my daggers.
"STOP!" Hades' voice boomed. I looked back and Lori was completely healed and awake, trying to sit up. Thick, black vines were beginning to wrap around her, completely encasing her body. She began to scream and struggle against the vines. I started towards her. Muffled yells and screams reached my ears and I picked up the pace. The same vines began forming a cage around me. "Hades, let her go." I glanced at the vine cocoon. "Please." My voice cracked. The vines tightened around her and she stopped struggling, screaming, and yelling. My heart stopped. "Hades, please!" I gripped the vines of my cage. They continued tightening around her neck, chest and stomach. "You're killing her!"
"I'll let her go if you promise not to kidnap her from me." The vines continued wrapping tighter around her.
"I promise not to kidnap her. Let her go!" It doesn't count as kidnapping if she wants to go with me. Hades disappeared and so did the vines. I quickly cut my way out of the vines, rushing to sit next to her. I tried to get her to breathe but she wouldn't respond to anything. I did the only thing I hadn't tried. I gave her mouth to mouth. She suddenly sat up, gasping for air, slapping me and coughing. I pulled her into an embrace. She pushed me away. "Lori, are you okay?" I asked. She shook her head.
"Can't... breathe." She rubbed her neck. I quickly pulled her to her feet. She doubled over, throwing up. I held her hair back. She groaned and straightened up. "Robbie?"
"Puck. But yeah, I'm here." I tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
"Why were you kissing me while I was dying?" she crossed her arms.
"I was saving your butt."
"By kissing me?" she rose an eyebrow.
"CPR." I rolled my eyes.
"Oh." She blushed. "Puck, can we leave soon?"
"Yeah. Let's go." I pulled her to the trod. We stepped into Winter territory. She shivered, still dripping water from the Lethe. I had (without having any idea how) dried up. Lori's teeth were clacking. I took off my hoodie, handing it to her and staying in my t-shirt. She slipped it on and smiled.
"Thanks, Robbie." She bit her lip.
"Puck. And don't thank me." I began leading her toward the Wyldwood, which wasn't too far away.
"But I really mean it. Thank you." She blushed. "You saved my life."
"I was just keeping my best friend alive."
"Yeah. Best friend." she mumbled.
"Lori, listen, in this world, when you say 'thank you' it means you owe them something. Someone could ask for your first child or for a memory. You can't use those words. EVER." I sighed.
"Oh. So what do I owe you?" She looked down at her toes.
"Nothing." I shrugged. I only want you.
I led Lori to the Wyldwood. It was getting dark. She trudged next to me. "We should rest." I led her to a tree. She sat against the bark and I sat across from her. "Is it true?"
"Is what true?" She smiled. I almost lost my head. She looked into my eyes. "What?" She raised an eyebrow.
"What Hades said? That you missed me?" I decided against asking her about the other thing.
"Well, no duh. Of course I missed you, Ro- Puck." Her emotions shined through and I took the chance. I asked her if she really wished we were more than friends. She seemed startled by the question. "I... uh... I don't know. Why would you care?" She brought her knees to her chest and crossed her arms. She looked away and rested her chin on her upper arm.
"Because I have a little crush on you." I confessed. She looked up and our gazes locked. I leaned in to kiss her, hopeful. She jumped. I wasn't able to steal a kiss. Her eyes were really wide. Lori looked away. "Campbell, say something." I searched her face for a sign of emotion, any emotion, but her face was blank. Somehow she was managing to hide her emotions using glamour.
"I...I don't know what to say." She opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. I tilted her chin upward, looking into her eyes. She shook her head. "I'm insane. I keep changing my mind about you over and over. You're like a brother to me, you're kinda cute, we should go out. What's wrong with me? Why am I just saying everything that I'm thinking? Why don't you stop me?" She clasped her hands over her mouth. I chuckled and pried her hands away. "What am I doing? I can't be falling for you. I'm putting you in danger." She shook her head and tears formed in her eyes.
"If that puts me in danger, I want to be in danger. Campbell, look, I'm crazy about you and I was desperate to tell you." I cupped her cheek with my hand. "I just want to be with you." I kissed her forehead. Her eyes looked conflicted, angry, and full of love.
"I can't." She leaned back against the tree, sighing. "I want to but I can't. We'll get caught up in our emotions and lose focus. I'm sorry, Puck." She broke into tears, curling up into a little ball at the bottom of a tree.
"Campbell, now you're sounding like a winter. You know, besides the crying." I scooped her into my lap and held her to my chest. She stayed in a little ball. "We should give it a shot. We won't get distracted. Come on." I shook her shoulder. She looked up.
"When the whole problem with Hades goes away, I'll give it a thought." She sniffled.
"What if today's the only day we've got? What if it never blows over? Don't hesitate just because some jerk wants you to himself. What if I never see you again? What if we die tonight, our only regret being not making our love known?" I kissed her cheek. "What if we don't get a chance to escape? I need you to be mine." I sighed. "Campbell, if I don't ever see you again, I'll die knowing I let you get away. Tomorrow's never a promise. Don't tell me you really want to wait?" I had already let one love slip away and I wasn't about to lose another. I thought about her every day until Lori's thirteenth birthday. I had let Meghan Chase slip right through my fingers. I hadn't seen her in twenty years besides Elysium and political meetings. It still hurts deep, deep inside. But a new love came around. I loved her more than I've ever loved anyone. Even Meghan. I loved Lori.
"I'm sorry but I can't even..." The sun rose. She stood and stared in shock.
"What is it?" I stood and saw the smoke rising. No. Not that. Anything but that. Not her. I started running. She followed me, sprinting. She yelped and I looked back over my shoulder to see her on the ground, face twisted in pain. I shook my head and kept running.
"Puck!" She called. I kept running. "Puck?" She sobbed. I continued running. I would come back for her. I ran until I reached the old cottage. I heard the scream. My sister was being held by a humongous dragon. She kicked.
"I don't know where he is!" She kicked her legs. "I haven't seen him in ages!" She tried to convince the dragon. I was about to come out of hiding and kill the beast but he roared.
"YOU DARE LIE TO ME? YOU SHALL GET WHAT'S COMING TO YOU! THE INEVITABLE!" Flame came out of his mouth and engulfed my sister. I fell to my knees and punched the ground repeatedly. My sister was killed because of Hades and his stupid minions. Why? Why her? It should've been me. I had such a happy, long life and she only lived for eight hundred years. My little sister's gone. I ran back to where I had left Lori. I felt like killing Hades. He was the reason my sister was dead. Sure, we weren't close but I still loved her. I mean, come on, she was still my little sister.
I went back to where Lori had fallen.
She was gone! Had Hades gotten to her already? I heard muffled sobbing and looked around. She was sitting behind a few trees, her face buried in her knees. Her arms held her knees to her chest. I sighed and sat next to her. She scooted away, sobbing louder. "Are you okay? How's your ankle?" I rubbed her arm. "How'd you get over here?"
"Get away from me. You left me behind! I could've been killed." She looked away. "What if some monster came and ate me? What if some random evil faery person suddenly decided to just kill me? What if Hades found me and forced me into marrying him?" I bit my lip. "I wouldn't mind never talking to you again!" She yelled.
"Come on, you know that's not true. I only left you behind because my sister was in trouble. I lost my sister, Campbell." I tucked a strand of her loose hair behind her ear. She looked back at me and immediately pulled me into a hug.
"Puck. Puck, Puck, Puck." she squeezed me, allowing me to bury my face in her neck. "That must be terrible."
"She was the only family I had left." I heard the low growl and stood. "How's your ankle?"
"Twisted." She rose an eyebrow. "Why? What happe-" I picked her up bridal style. "And you're carrying me now." I took off running. The creature was on our heels. I cursed under my breath and picked up speed, running as fast as I could. Then our pursuer started talking.
"Goodfellow, I am not here to harm you or the girl." The Big Bad Wolf's voice stopped me dead in my tracks. I turned around. Lori whimpered at the sight of a giant wolf.
"No, no, no. It's okay. He's an old friend." I whispered. She nodded and looked at him in fright. "If it isn't Big Bad." I smirked. He curled back his lips.
"Goodfellow, the Iron Queen will be in the Summer Court for the next few weeks." He started walking away.
"Is she there now?" I looked back over my shoulder.
"Yes." the Wolf disappeared into the trees. I smiled and started to the castle. Lori gave me a questioning look.
-/ At the castle/-
"So, Puck, who's this lovely little gorgeousness you have here?" Meghan smiled at Lori who was limping out of my bathroom. She had just taken a shower and was wearing dark jeans and a pink tank-top, running a comb given to her by her grandfather through her wet hair.
"She's Lori, my best friend and... your, erm, niece." I felt my face redden as Lori gave me a shy smile.
"You meet a girl like THAT and you're in the FRIEND zone?" Glitch was obviously checking her out. I narrowed my eyes at him. He apologized as Meghan glared at him. Lori giggled.
"You're so sweet." She smiled at Glitch. I felt my heart shatter into a million pieces. "But I'm thinking about my answer, Puck." she sat in my lap, kissing my cheek. I felt a
stupid, goofy grin spread on my face.
"Answer to what?" Ash looked back and forth between the two of us. Meghan giggled and whispered something to him. He nodded and smiled warmly at us. "At least you're not in love with my wife anymore." He crossed his arms.
"What?" Lori's face fell and she looked at me, standing up again, facing away, and crossing her arms. "How long did you love her?" Glamour flickered around her. She was hurt and sad.
"For a while." I tried to put it how she would like it most.
"How long?" her voice cracked. It pained me that she was doing this.
"I can't answer that right now. I don't think now's really the ti-" I placed a hand on her shoulder. She shrugged it off.
"Let me know when you've finished counting." She left and slammed the door behind her. I sighed and raked a hand through my hair. Meghan gave me a sympathetic smile.
"Go talk to her, I'm going to bed. Ash, you comin'?" She took his hand. He nodded and they left. Glitch left to go to his own room.
-/castle gardens/-
"Campbell?" I sat next to her on the fountain. She was still catching her breath.
"Finished counting yet?" Icicles dripped off her words. I wrapped my arm around her.
"I didn't need to." I pulled her side against mine.
"So, you were so in love that you kept track?" She crossed her arms. Are girls always setting traps for everything you could possibly say?
"No. I didn't need to count because I knew already. I'd been keeping track until you were thirteen. That day, my god! You looked so beautiful." I tilted her chin up, lowering my forehead to hers.
"I'm too tired to push you away right now and you're taking advantage of that." Her eyes closed. I felt her breath on my cheek.
"And I'm too close to let you get away." I began to move my lips closer but something stopped me. I heard the screech and grabbed Lori's hand. "Get inside!" I pulled her into the palace and looked out the window. "How did he find you so quickly?"
Meghan came rushing towards us. "What's going on? What happened? I was changing into my pajamas and then I heard-" another screech "that." I sent Lori off with Meghan to hide in the safety of the underground bunker. I ran back to the courtyard and narrowed my eyes.
"What do you want, Hades?" I crossed my arms over my chest, ready to kill this guy. He wants my girl? He wants MY girl? He'll have to kill me before she rides away with him on his little flying monster.
"Give me the girl. I know she's here." Hades jumped down from his ride.
"Why do you want her?" I already knew why. She was worth A LOT of favors. And she's also, well, you know, beautiful.
"I want her hand in marriage. If she refuses then she is my hostage." He chuckled.
"You only want to marry her for her power, right?" I couldn't bear the thought of him forcing her to give him children. It was just too much to imagine that happening to Lori. She's my everything. If it wasn't for her I'd still be moping about Meghan choosing Ash over me.
"Oh no, Goodfellow. She is such an exquisite creature. Her figure's not bad at all. She's bound to give me handsome boys." He smirked. "Wouldn't you agree? She has that-that attractive figure." He made an hourglass figure with his hands. "I would love for her to be the mother of my childr-" I cut him off.
"She's only eighteen, you freak!" I exploded. "You think you can just force her to have your kids? She's a person too, ya know. She has free will and a brain for making decisions. Why on earth would she choose someone like you? You're such a freak! That's just on creeper level. She's eighteen and you're already thinking about having kids with her. You're sick." WWLD? What would Lori do? She would freak out. She would throw up. She would punch him. I WILL punch him.
I rose my fist and punched him straight across the face. He chuckled and kicked me in the ribs. That would definitely bruise. I cringed but punched him again. He punched me in the face. I staggered backwards. Hades kicked me where it counts and then in the hip, pushing me down to the ground and mounting his dragon. "I will eventually get my hands on the girl. And when I do, you will be sorry that you didn't get enough time to be the father of her children." He flew away. I got the girls out of the bunker and sighed as Lori looked away from me.
"How much did you tell her?" I knew Meghan must have told her something about my love for her.
"Everything." She replied.
"Everything?" I gulped.
"Every torturous detail." Lori grumbled. "Every time you begged her to pick you. Every time you would do something that was obvious that you loved her. Even that kiss." She sniffled.
"I didn't want to but she squeezed everything out of me. I'm sorry, Puck. I didn't mean to tell her anything." Meghan gave me an apologetic look.
"Campbell, look at me." I grabbed her hand. She complied and bit her lip. "You weren't even born yet. I didn't know you yet. I wasn't in love with you yet. But I am now and Meghan's just a friend." I framed her face with a hand. "I love you and that's how it'll stay." I lowered my forehead to hers.
"Puck, you're so sweet." Her eyes slowly began to close and she sounder eager. I leaned in for a kiss.
_
A/N: Me: Awww. Lori: *eye twitches* umm... Puck: *blushes* Me: Review to see if Puck finally gets to kiss her