A/N) Okay, so, out of the 50+ people who read my last one-shot, literally 0 of them reviewed, and it's been like ten days. Are you one of them? *Gasp and clutches heart* Did you not review? I mean, was the story really that bad? If it was, I would at least expect one of you to say so. I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to be so bad. Geeze. Unless . . .

OH! Is it because of the way it ended? I didn't mention that it was gonna be a two-shot, did I? Sorry not sorry for scaring the heck out y'all. What can i say? I'm evil. It kinda just flows out of me, ya know? I just hope you guys don't hate me. But, either way, I still love you. See? I just killed you guys. With kindness. Seems so out of character for me, huh?

So, yeah, this is PART TWO of a Darella story. Haha, you guys are probably ready to murder me right now. Well, at least read the story first? And maybe review this time? Thanks.

So, without further adieu, part two!

A Darella Story (part 2)

It had been two years since the Biana Incident.

She and Tam seemed really happy, though. I used to feel jealous whenever I saw the two of them together-especially ever since they put their relationship to the public and got their Matchmaker's scrolls. They are "officially" a thing now, given the fact that Tam was Biana's number 7 and Biana was Tam's number 6.

Lucky them.

Okay, yeah, I get that I should stop sulking. I mean, it had been two years. And, you would think that i had forgiven Marella by then, but whenever I saw Biana and Tam together, i just thought about what might have been if I hadn't involved that double-crossing Pyro in my plans. And, I had kind of been avoiding her for the past two years, too. The fact that I had gotten into the Elite Levels with my friends and she hadn't (because of her ability) kind of helped with that. I mean, I kind of feel bad for her, ya know? Just because of a special ability she was born with was forbidden and caused her to be marked as a Talentless, she wasn't allowed to move on to the Elite Levels. That last day of Level Six, when I had told her about my plans to tell Biana how I felt, was her last day of Foxfire.

Ever.

Mine was a couple weeks ago. My friends and I were all graduated from Foxfire for good now. The graduation ceremony was truly amazing, and the fact that I could now be an Emissary, or if i wanted to work for the Council, I could! And to think that I was the son of a bad match. Who cares anymore? I had my own life to lead. And if Biana wasn't apart of it the way I wanted her to be, I would be okay with that. I would be the mature adult that I now was and be okay with it.

I hope . . .

…

I thought it would go away. And it did. And I was . . . happy. I was happy-of course I was! I mean, now I wasn't constantly feeling guilty of what I did between Dex and Biana. And, I'm pretty sure he's gotten over it? I'm not sure, to be honest. He's been avoiding me, I can tell. I can't say I blame him, though. I would probably do the same thing.

But now, it's been about two years since the whole thing came crashing down. And, with my previous feelings being set aside, I think I'm ready to go up to him and try being his friend again.

If he'll have me.

I just didn't plan on doing it so soon . . .

"Marella?"

I turned around in the wacky Slurps and Burps shop to find a certain strawberry-blond-haired man standing behind me. And, whoa. He . . . changed. But, like, in a good way. Like, a really good way. By Level Six, I had thought he would have stayed that way through the elite years, but nope. His shoulders were broader, his hair was a little darker and somehow styled even better than before, his features had gotten a bit more chiseled, and i could tell just by looking at him that if her flexed his arms, there would be some muscle there. But none of his features were over-the-top. He had just enough of everything, and he looked amazing.

But he was still Dex.

Nerdy, quirky Dexter Dizznee. I could tell. Especially when he grinned and his two dimples showed up.

"Mare, is that really you?" he asked, a small laugh escaping his mouth.

"Uh," Say something, Marella! "Yeah? Hold on, Dex?" He nodded, even though I already knew it was him. "Oh my gosh, hi!" I honestly hadn't expected to see him here. Yeah, I know, his dad owns the place, and he used to help out around here. But, he hadn't worked here since Level Six! The elite levels held him up, and since graduation, I hadn't heard anything about him coming back. I was simply doing some innocent elixir shopping.

"Did you burn something in your house again?" Dex asked, glancing at the elixir I was holding. I whipped it behind my back.

"What? No. I . . ." I sighed, which made him laugh. Gosh, I'd missed hearing him laugh. "Yeah. I moved to a new place a couple weeks ago. The air there took some getting used to. For some reason it makes my flames ignite a lot . . . easier. And, uh, because of that, my dresser might have caught on fire?" We made sure to keep our voices a bit low, because no one else-except for a select group of people-knew I was a Pyrokinetic. Barely anyone else was in the shop, but it was still a good idea to stay safe.

Dex laughed. "You haven't changed at all."

"Well, maybe a little," I hinted. "It has been two years."

"Oh, yeah. About that-"

"Dex, you don't need to explain yourself," I interrupted. "Please. That was years ago, and it was my fault. What would you even say? You're sorry for including me? I don't think so." I shook my head, making my way to the register. He followed. "I'm sorry about what happened that day, Dex. It wasn't fair to you. I'm sorry."

He was quiet until we were outside. "I think . . . we should talk. Catch up a little. Can I come over to your place? I can help you apply the elixir onto your dresser."

I bit my lower lip. "You wanna talk?" He nodded. I looked down at my feet. "I mean, I guess the dresser is a bit big. The job would be done quicker with two people . . ." I let out a quiet sigh. I really hadn't been planning to do this today. Taking out my home crystal, i handed him the elixir and took his free hand, trying to hold it in a way that made it seem like i wasn't starting to get feelings for him again-because I wasn't.

"Alright. Let's go."

…

"Whoa."

Mare lived here? I mean, I had been to her parents' house before, and that was pretty impressive. But now that she lived alone, I hadn't been expecting this.

"Yeah, i know. It's a working progress," she told me as we walked down the shimmering pathway.

"Are you kidding? This is . . . wow." Her house was huge. Its walls were made of color-changing crystals that shifted from red, to orange, to yellow-just like the flames of an ongoing fire. Everything was trimmed with gold-golden doors, golden window frames, even the path we were walking on was golden. And the climate, don't even get me started. It was so strange. It was hot, but there was a strange coolness to it, almost freezing. But it was like you were burning at the same time. But it felt so good. But it also made me wanna put on a thicker cape and take off my shirt at the same time. It was weird.

But the best part was the view. It was the first thing Marella showed me when we got there. She led me up a small hill and at the very top was a cliff, which looked over . . .

"A volcano?" I asked, slightly panicked. I watched as the volcano-which was actually pretty far away-oozed out it orange-red lava in a slow, almost calming motion. It moved down the slope of the large volcano from the vent at the top and into a bubbling pool of lava, and from that pool were thin streams were the lava separated and cooled, hardening into smooth, ropy rocks that created some of the most amazing structures I've ever seen.

"Beautiful, isn't it," she said almost wistfully. The look in the blonde petite girls eyes made me ask, "Isn't all the lava and heat a bit of a problem for your ability?"

She blinked and shook her head. "No, not really. Forkle is the one who helped me choose this place. He knows how well I can control my ability, but when he brought me to this place for one of my training sessions about a year ago, i fell in love with it. The house hadn't been here then. When he heard I was looking to move out, he and some gnomes built this place when you guys were in the elite levels. Have you noticed the strange climate?" I nodded. "Yeah, well, he got me and your mom to do this trick that made it this way for, well, ever. So, once me and my ability get used to it, controlling my ability should be a breeze."

"Wow," was all I could think of to say. It was . . . really cool. And my mom helped with this? I never thought a Froster and a Pyrokinetic could make something so amazing together. I looked at her and asked, "Have you chosen a name for this place?"

She nodded, and when she did, I noticed she still had a few braids spread throughout her wavy hair, like old times. I never thought I would be able to act so naturally around her again. She looked up at me and smiled.

"Welcome to Firefalls."

…

"Whoa, you really outdid yourself this time, didn't you?" Dex joked as he eyed my blackened, and, thankfully, whole, dresser.

"Yeah, well at least its salvageable," I told him matter-of-factly. "Here." I handed him a towel that had been soaked in the elixir. I had one of my own, and we set to work. The way this certain elixir-which Dex had made as an alchemy experiment when we were younger-worked, was: Let's say you have an object that had been caught in a flame, but once you put the flame out, you saw that the object was still complete and okay, but it was just blackened and scorched. If that's the case, then all you need to do is soak a couple towels in the elixir and rub it onto the object. It doesn't matter what the object was made of. It would work no matter what. You would just leave it on, and it would go away by itself. No extra washing required.

Dex was such a genius.

"So, uh, how's the rest of the gang?" I asked after a few awkward seconds of rubbing the elixir onto my dresser.

He stopped for a moment to look at me. "You haven't kept in touch with them?"

I shook my head. "Not really . . . it's been a while."

"Oh. Well, everyone's together now. Like, uh, Keefe finally asked Sophie out-or, at least, I think that's how it happened-Fitz and Linh are a thing now, and . . . uh, Tam and Biana are still together, too. And then they all got their Matchmaker's scrolls, but Sophie's had a few complications. But when they figured it out, they were all on each other's lists, and now they can all be official." I felt kind of bad for Dex, considering the fact that all his friends were paired up, and he wasn't. Unless . . .

"Have you met anybody?" I asked him, focusing on the circular motion I was moving the towel in.

I could see him shake his head out of the corner of my eye. "No, not really. Uh, what about you?"

I shook my head. "I don't have time for that stuff."

"Really?"

"Yep. Life got in the way of everything, you know? And, I can't really meet anyone and start a relationship like that with them without telling them I'm a Pyrokinetic. If I didn't, then I would basically be lying to them everyday."

The conversation seemed to end there, and we just continued to work in silence. When we eventually finished, we stood, and I reached over to take the towel I had handed to Dex. But he stopped me from pulling it out of his hand.

"Hey," I started to say, but when I looked up at him, I stopped. Something about the way he was looking at me was . . . different. But i don't think it was in a good way.

"Why did you do it, Mare?" He asked quietly.

"Do what?"

"You know what I'm talking about."

I looked down, and he released the towel. I walked away to put them down, and I stayed across the room from him. We both needed space. But he wanted answers.

"You know why," I told him, hugging myself and leaning against the wall. "I practically screamed it at you that day." Silence. "I also told you I was sorry."

"But, were you really?" He asked, taking a step towards me and hurt dancing around his eyes. The same periwinkle eyes that I had loved so much.

"Of course I was-am! I'm still sorry, Dex. Every single day. I wish I could tell you that, but you avoided me. How do you think it made me feel to be shut out? I mean, i would've expected it for like, a month maybe. But two years? I . . . ugh!" I slammed my hands down at my sides, trying to control the flames that wanted to burst out and feed on my rage.

"Can you really blame me?" He asked, his voice getting louder. "This whole thing was partially your fau-"

"I KNOW THAT!" I screamed. "I'VE KNOWN THAT FOR YEARS, DEX, YEARS!" I took in several deep breaths, both of us recovering from my sudden outburst. "I know," I repeated in a whisper, my knees giving in as I fell to the ground. "And I know you'll never accept this, but I'm sorry. I've been sorry ever since that night. The fact that I had hurt you hurt me more than you could imagine. I liked you so much, Dex. So much. But I had to get over it. I knew you would never forgive me. And, I did get over it. Not seeing you everyday helped with that. But then, seeing you today, and talking to you again, made those feelings come back. I know it's probably the last thing you want to hear from me, but I'm not gonna bother hiding it again. The last time I did that ended horribly."

I couldn't believe all of that came out of me. I expected him to let out a rage rant on me after that, or just walk away and leave. But, instead, he had somehow made his way over to where I was on the floor, and crouched down beside me. My head snapped up when he put a hand on my shoulder and i actually acknowledged how close he was to me. And his eyes. They were looking at me differently again. And, this time, in a good way. I think.

"Marella," he whispered. "I . . . I'm sorry. I shouldn't have reacted that way. Shutting you out was a mistake, and it was wrong. I guess I just . . . didn't react to the fact that Biana was know with Tam that well."

I snorted, but it was more of a sniff. That's when I realized I was crying. Great. "That's an understatement."

He nodded. "Yeah, it is. But I don't know how else to put it. Unless you want me to say I was a complete and total jerk."

"That would be nice."

He smiled sadly. "I was a complete and total jerk. I'm sorry." He held out his hand to me. "Forgive me?"

I stared at the hand he was offering. "Only if you forgive me."

"Deal."

I shook his hand, and, while I did, he pulled me back up. Once i was back on my feet, I pulled my hand away and leaned back against the wall, wiping the remainder of my tears away.

"So, uh, we're friends again?" I asked after a second.

But, he shook his head, and I could feel all the hope that I had built plummet back to the ground.

Stupid hope.

Or, maybe not.

Because he took a step closer. And then another. And another. Until there was barely any space between us. He leaned down to look at me, our foreheads practically against each other. My breath caught.

"I don't wanna be friends anymore," he told me quietly, but like, in the way that makes the rhythm of your heart go bananas. And makes everything around you fade away.

And in the same way that makes things end in a kiss.

Before I realized what was happening, he had already-very surprisingly, might I add-closed the rest of the space between us and pressed his lips against mine. I sucked in a breath and my eyes widened, but not for long. He pressed in deeper, and I couldn't resist any longer. I lifted my head up a bit and moved my hands to his head, my fingers running through his hair, and our lips melting together. Tingles shot through my body as I felt his hands run down my back and settle around my waist, a feeling that i never thought I would feel. And I never thought that if, by some miracle, I actually did kiss him, it wouldn't last this long, or flow so naturally. Not that I was complaining. Because I definitely wasn't.

But then we broke apart, panting for breath. In the brief seconds, I asked him, "What are you doing?" It was so unexpected for him to act like this-at least, with me.

He let out a short laugh. "What do you think?" Before I could answer, he was kissing me again. Did this mean that he actually liked me? I mean, obviously, but still. It was hard to believe.

…

At first, I was unsure about what I was doing. I mean, I was kissing Marella. The girl who ruined things for me and my chance at being with the love of my life. But . . . Biana used to be the love of my life, and even then, was it really her? Because i knew that sometimes I would think about Mare on a whim, and I wasn't necessarily sure why back then. But now? I mean, I was kissing her, for crying out loud! And . . . it felt good. So, so good. She was waiting for me this entire time, and neither of us knew it. We had both abandoned our feelings, but then, when we saw each other again, we figured everything out on the same day.

But she suddenly pulled away, and my eyes searched her for what was wrong.

"Wait, wait," she whispered as she caught her breath. Her hands rested on my chest, and her forehead was against mine.

"What's wrong?"

"I . . . hold on." She pulled away completely and crossed the room within seconds, fanning her face with her hand. "I . . . this is . . . my fire . . . it's too much. I just need a second. I think it's reacting to my emotions." Her big ice blue eyes met mine. "Like, whenever I get really angry, my flames threaten to spark. I think it's the same thing with . . . this. Us. Don't worry, i can control it. It just came on so suddenly, and-" I crossed over to her, placing my hands on her shoulders to silence her. I knew she probably needed space, but I think I had a better idea.

"It's okay. We can take our time. I don't mind." My hands ran up and down her arms, which seemed to calm her down as she took in deep breaths. I reached up and tucked one of her braids behind her ear, leaning down and kissing her cheek. "It's fine."

She let out a breath, leaning against me. "Thank you."

"So, then," I said, burying my face in her hair. "Do you wanna make things official? Or would you rather-"

"No, I wanna make things official, or as official as they can be. I mean, I'm pretty sure I won't be on your Matchmaker's scroll, because I'm technically Talentless," she told me.

"Well, then I guess it's a good thing I've decided to not get my Matchmaker's scrolls."

She pulled back to look up at me. "Wait, really?"

I nodded. "Getting them would just mean I approve of the system, and I don't. I guess I'm following in my parents' footsteps and becoming a bad match-unless you don't want to." I would hate to drag Marella down like that. If she didn't want to, then it was okay.

"I think . . ." She bit her lower lip. "If being a bad match means being with you, then I'm okay with that. Do you honestly think I care about what others think about me?"

I laughed as I shook my head. "That's my Mare." I pulled her against me, wrapping my arms around the young petite woman.

"Yeah," she whispered against me. "I'm your Mare."

A/N) Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Uuuuuuuuggggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

I dunno. I don't like it. Yep, it sucked. I don't know why I decided to post it, but i haven't posted anything in ten days, so yeah. Sorry, guys. Didn't mean to disappoint. But if i did, do you think you could actually tell me in the reviews this time? Please? I love hearing from you guys, and the way i do is through reviews. So please please please review! Pretty please? With mallowmelt on top?

Okay, fine, i'll stop begging. But, guess what the next one-shot is?

One I'm sure all you SoKeefe shippers who read Flashback have been dying for.

KEEFOSTER ONE-SHOT IS NEXT! YAY! I miss doing the original ships. So, doing a Keefoster ship is bringing me back. Hopefully, it'll be better than this sucker. Sorry again about how bad this one was. And, also, the Keefoster story that's coming up will be the last one-shot for this part of the series. After that, it's gonna be a shorter part that was requested by ProjectMoonlark101 a while back, and one that a lot of you seemed to like. It's gonna be a one-shot (or multiple one-shots) of the KotLC characters when their all grown up and with kids! So, here's what I'm thinking:

Keefe and Sophie

Fitz and Linh

Biana and Tam

Dex and Marella

And for all you Sophitz shippers:

Fitz and Sophie

And we can do Dex and Biana, too. And (you guys tell me if you want this one or not) Tam and Marella? Yes? No? Let me know, ok? Ok. I've got some names for their kids in mind, but if any of you have any kids' names in mind, let me know your ideas in the reviews! I can use all the help i can get!

So, thanks again for reading! I love you guys so much! Don't forget to review! (I mean, how can you forget after i mentioned it like ten times?)

BYEEEEEEEEEEEE!