It was D-day.

Due to the fact that it was her birthday, Lucy was far too giddy inside to force herself into a tediously long practice for the school dance. Not really caring that it was a mere week away, she took off as soon as her last class was finished, not even bothering to stop by her locker and drop off her things. Being as she already had her sweater and purple jacket, she was good to go. She didn't even care about the fact that she was carrying her violin case with her. She wasn't about to risk running into Daphne at her locker just because she wanted to drop it off.

Quickly escaping school property, she bound her way to the heart of town. She had one objective in mind, and she'd be damned if anything got in her way.

It wasn't horribly long before she had made it to her destination and snuck quickly inside Mr. Gold's pawn shop. Reasonably pleased when she peaked around and noticed that there was no one there, she closed the door and locked it, while flipping the sign on his window. It was presumptuous on her part to do so, but she didn't care. She wanted to be alone with the man she loved, and she wasn't going to risk interruption.

She turned, just in time to see Mr. Gold appear from beyond the curtain that hid the back part of his shop. She beamed at him, even as nervous flutters erupted inside her stomach while a small smile made its way onto his lips.

"Well isn't this a pleasant surprise," he stated, his scottish brogue washing over her and sending shivers down her spine. Lucy didn't respond as she quickly she made her way over to where he stood, and he was delighted to note the little spring in her step. She seemed more cheerful than he recalled ever seeing her before, and for a moment he wondered if it was simply because it was her birthday, or if it were something more.

"I came for my birthday kiss," she replied as she stood before him, her hands folded in front of her and holding onto her violin case as she looked up at him expectantly. Mr. Gold couldn't help the chuckle that escaped him, or the way he looked down at her with soft, tender eyes. He found her... bubbly-ness extremely cute.

"Did you now? And whom precisely is privileged enough to deserve such an honor?" he asked, his mouth becoming that lopsided, wolfish smirk she loved so much as he teased her.

Lucy looked thoughtful for a moment as she turned to her side. She crossed one arm, holding onto her violin case across her chest, while her other arm propped up against her chin. "Hmmm... well surely if he has to ask, than I must rethink my choice of candidate and find someone more worthy," Lucy replied, in mock disappointment.

Mr. Gold couldn't help chuckling. Gabbing hold of her hips, he pulled her to him and placed a kiss on her jaw, where it connected with her neck. Immediately, Lucy straightened and bit on her bottom lip as heat coursed down her neck and little shocks tingled a trail down to her core.

"Was it there, you desired your birthday kiss?" he asked, his voice lowered. "Or perhaps, here?" he asked, now moving his lips to her pulse point, relishing in the feel of her body in his arms, and how she seemed to melt into him, even as she stood sideways against him.

"Hmmm, you're getting colder," Lucy replied, her voice caught as he placed another kiss, this time on her cheek. "Warmer," Lucy smiled, as he reached with one of his hands to tilt her face towards him. This time, he placed a kiss on the corner of her mouth. "Hotter," Lucy stated, her eyes fluttering closed in anticipation as his mouth moved over hers and she could feel his breath on her lips.

When their lips met, Lucy dropped her violin case unceremoniously and reached with her hands, entangling them in his hair as she pressed her lips to his more urgently. She was glad to note his hands grip her more tightly, and pulling her impossibly closer to him. As she relished the soft feel of his lips against hers, moving together sensually and passionately, she couldn't help sighing in contentment.

She had missed him so much. She couldn't believe that being parted from someone could feel so painful and yet hollow. As their lips continued to move against one another's, Lucy's tongue eventually venturing to taste his lips and then slipping into the cavern of his mouth, Lucy felt the heat between them increase impossibly. Without any conscious though, she felt her body moving against him, pressing closer to him and mewling at his attentions.

The air seemed to become charged and she felt something in the air shift as her mind became completely blank. She could feel his pelvis pressed tightly against her and when she'd turned to be able to kiss him more fully, one of her legs had wedged itself between his. As she continued to flick his tongue teasingly with her own, Mr. Gold moaned. Reflexively Lucy felt her hips buck into Mr. Gold's. Her center pressed against his leg, sending jolts of pleasure shooting through her, causing her to moan at the delicious feeling.

Suddenly, Lucy felt she needed more. Merely kissing him did not seem enough. However, as she started to move her center against him, attempting to gain more friction, she felt his hold on her hips become impossibly tight as he firmly tried to disengage himself. Opening her eyes languidly, due to the sudden heaviness of her eyelids, she looked up into his eyes questioningly. She was sure her cheeks were flushed from the heat of their kiss, and noted the faintest tinge of pink on his own, slightly tan skin.

Mr. Gold scrambled in his mind for an explication for his sudden end of their kiss. One that would not wound her. Mr. Gold smiled finally after a few second of consideration, before leaning down to place a kiss on the tip of her nose. "Happy Birthday, dear-heart," he whispered, placing another kiss on her forehead. Lucy closer her eyes, and relished in the feel of his tenderness though a part of her felt inexplicably disappointment about the fact that he so suddenly put an end to their kiss, and that there were now a couple inches between their body.

For a moment, they both panted, before Lucy finally looked up into his sparkling brown eyes which were trained on her. She smiled slowly at him, even as her heart clenched at the thought of having to leave him soon. Somehow, the idea of spending this day of all days away from him, seemed unbearable.

"I've got something for you," he said suddenly, pulling away from her as a look of surprise and mild confusion spread across her face. Lucy watched intently as he turned away from her, grabbing his cane where it had leant against a counter. Lucy furrow her brow as she watched him pick something out from beneath his counter and set it atop the glass a moment later.

"A birthday present?" Lucy asked uncertainly as she stared at the heavy, beautiful, wooden box he had set on the counter.

"Not exactly," he replied enigmatically as he walked around the counter so that he stood next to her. "Close your eyes."

Lucy regarded him for a moment suspiciously, but after a second did as she was told. Though so much about Mr. Gold made her feel uncertain, and though she knew that he was a difficult man to trust, she knew that if she had any hope for them to work, that she had to learn to trust him.

Vaguely, she heard the click of a box opening. A moment later, her breath hitched as she felt Mr. Gold's fingers brushing her hair to one side, his fingers ghosting over the skin at the back of her neck and shoulders. A few seconds later, she felt a weight settle around her neck. Furrowing her brow, she reached a hand and touched the pendant she felt settling on her sternum, just beneath her collarbone and felt a familiar, cool stone.

Her breath hitched,and her heart skipped a beat as her eyes snapped open. Looking down, she caught sight of a familiar purple gem, surrounded by little diamonds. Turning around swiftly, she looked at Mr. Gold with wide eyes uncertain why he was doing this, but knowing that as much as she wanted, the gesture touched a part of her heart. "Why- I... this was payment, it's not-"

Mr. Gold leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. Lucy's eyes fell shut automatically and opened almost immediately as the kiss was a chaste one. "It belongs to your Lucy," Mr. Gold replied, looking down shyly as he thought, Just like my heart.

XX

Lucy sat, staring into her vanity mirror with a far off look. Her hair, which now fell to her waist, lay lose in curls, thanks to her sister Trista. Her fingers absently touched the amethyst necklace Mr. Gold had returned to her... evidence that she meant more to him than at least one of his deals.

"You okay?" Trista asked as she finished gathering up her things so that she could take them back to her own room. Lucy slowly let her eyes focus on the mirror before her and looked back at her sister with bleached blonde hair. Lucy nodded absently, as she turned her attention back to her reflection. She was dressed in her signature purple, silk dress with off the shoulder sleeves and a black ribbon which tied at the waist, the hem falling nearly to her knees.

She looked back at her sister as she considered her question once more. Though it was her birthday, and she was in love, somehow she still felt incomplete. She kept turning the matter over and over in her mind and knew what the problem was, however, she wasn't certain if she was really ready yet. Somehow... with her mother's necklace hanging from her own neck, she felt her loss all the more sharply today and at that particular moment... this was the kind of thing her mother should have been there for, one of those moments where her absence seemed particularly pronounced and painful, even after all the years that had passed and even though Lucy had a hard time remembering her.

"How do you know?" Lucy asked. Upon receiving a blank look from her older sister, she knew that she'd have to elaborate. Getting up and turning around slowly, she stared almost critically at Trista.

Trista was wearing a red dress, that fit her like a second skin and only came down to about mid thigh. Though it had long sleeves and covered all her front, it had an open back that was anything but modest. She was wearing a black set of thigh-high, leather boots with a stiletto heel that seemed to be made of a very shiny metal.

While she had never been the brightest of the bunch, and was rather unmotivated, Trista was very grounded and seemed to have acquired more life experience than any of the rest of them. At least where certain matters where concerned, so while Lucy knew that asking Trista she'd be exposing herself to inquiry, she didn't know who else to go to.

Minerva, if she'd ever had sex, had only done so with Ruby and somehow Lucy didn't think that was quite the same as having sex with a man. Marina, Adelaide, Daphne she knew were woefully unexperienced and Elaine... well she wasn't sure about her. However, she knew for a fact that Trista had experimented a bit and knew that if she was going to ask anyone, she was better off asking Trista, Trista at least would not be terribly nosey, nor judgmental.

"How do you know if you're... ready?" Lucy asked, looking at Trista seriously. Trista furrowed a brow over her crystal blue eyes.

"Ready for what?' she asked, a little too loudly for Lucy's liking. Walking over to her door, she made sure that it was shut before turning back to Trista who still bore a confused expression on her face.

"For sex," Lucy replied, walking back over and sitting on her bed. Trista's eyes widened. Her painted red lips opened in shock, however, she seemed to recover after a few moments. Furrowing her brow, she sat down on the bed.

"Why?" she blurted finally, apparently her mind unable to get past this to be able to answer Lucy's question.

Lucy shrugged. "I'm eighteen, I've never done anything with anyone... I'm just... curious," Lucy replied simply. That wasn't the truth, obviously. She knew how sex worked, she was also aware of how her body worked thanks to a painfully embarrassing visit to the doctor's office when she'd first started getting her period, due to the fact that her father had not wanted to have to explain these kinds of things to them, nor did he have the time. She'd also played with herself... often and enjoyed more than a fair few orgasms at her fingertips, after all, though she was a virgin that did not mean she did not have a perfectly healthy sex drive.

Trista looked skeptical at this but appeared willing enough to let it go. "Well I suppose I should say that you should wait till marriage, right?" Trista teased with a small smile. Lucy merely raised a sleek brow at this, not particularly in the mood to joke around at present. "Luce... I don't know. I don't really think I'm the person you should be asking."

"Who else am I gonna ask who isn't inexperienced or won't freak out?" Lucy asked ironically.

"True," Trista conceded. Running her fingers through her hair, she sighed. "I suppose you just... know. If you have any doubts about yourself, or the person you're with, than you're probably not ready. Sure you'll always be nervous but when you're ready... it will feel right, I guess," Trista explained slowly, with a final shrug to her shoulders.

Lucy nodded slowly, mulling over what her sister said as Trista got up and headed for the door. "Luce," looking up, she stared at Trista, who had one hand on the door and a serious expression on her face, an expression she'd never really seen on her before. "Just make sure it's with someone you love your first time... trust me, you don't want to regret it every time you have to look back on it because you gave it to some random guy, for the wrong reasons."

Lucy nodded slowly, for the moment focusing solely on the pain in the crystal blue eyes. Trista nodded and exited her room, leaving Lucy to wonder who had hurt Trista and wondering why she never noticed before.

XX

While dinner was a somewhat... monotonous affair, Lucy rather felt Ruby's idea was a rather inspired one. Though she thought Karaoke night at the same bar they had already been to for Trista's birthday was a bit cheesy and she was not particularly in the mood to party, she was happy to see her sister's having fun. Although, she'd been a bit disappointed that Minerva had opted out, as was Ruby.

Their group, which had originally only been made of up Ruby, her sisters, and herself, had expanded to include the members of Siren Song. Thus far, almost everyone but Marina had been up to perform a song, to the enjoyment of the other patron's. Presently Lucy was particularly enjoying Trista's rendition of Last Friday Night by Katy Perry with Marina and Ruby.

As she watched her sister animatedly singing, she couldn't help thinking about their conversation earlier. Though it had been several hours ago, as it was quite a bit past midnight, Lucy really hadn't been able to get the topic off her mind. While she was curious about the story behind the look of sadness in Trista's eyes, she was rather more concerned about the advice Trista had given her.

Though she was nervous at the prospect of her first time, and thought there were still doubts lingering in her mind and heart where Mr. Gold was concerned, she really didn't want to wait. Somehow, she felt that it was an eternity that she had been waiting for this moment to come along, and she didn't want to wait anymore. She was ready...

Now her only problem was convincing Mr. Gold of it and making love to him without appearing like a whore for sleeping with him without... well even knowing his first name! However, Lucy wasn't particularly troubled by the fact that she didn't know the man's first name. She wasn't sure why, but she felt in the grand scheme of things it wasn't a huge deal... not when considering how many secrets she imagined that the man kept.

Not that she was any better, where secrets were concerned. She'd always been a rather... private person. She'd never really been one with sharing, not even with her sisters. She knew that in a way, Dr. Hopper had helped her become a bit more open in their sessions, but now that they were at an end... mostly by her own decision, she knew that she still had more progress to make in that department. However, she was unwilling to part with all of her walls.

"Lucy, you're up!" Lucy looked up and found that she was suddenly surrounded by her sister's and Ruby.

"What?" she asked, having been startled out of her thoughts that she didn't protest and just went along when her sisters pulled her to her feet. It was only belatedly that she noticed that she was being dragged to the stage.

"It's your turn," Ruby said, shoving her on the stage. "Knock 'em dead!" she winked before laughing and turning around to join her sisters. For a moment, Lucy glared after her as the people in the bar clapped to encourage her. Lucy felt a something tighten in her stomach at the prospect of performing, the nervous flutter only momentarily giving her pause before she overcame it and took the mic. Staring at the prompter, she listened for the music cues, wondering who had picked her song when she noticed what she was singing.

"When I was younger I saw my daddy cried, and curse at the wind. He broke his own heart as I watched as he tried to reassemble it. And my momma swore she would never let herself forget, that was the day I promised, I'd never sing of love if it does not exist," Lucy started slowly, keeping with the tempo as the bar suddenly quieted. "But darling you are … the only exception, you are … the only exception. You are... the only exception, you are... the only exception.

"Maybe I know somewhere... deep in my soul, that love never lasts. And we've got to find other ways to make it alone, and keep a straight face. And I've always lived like this, keeping a comfortable distance. And up until now I'd have sworn to myself that I'm content with loneliness. Because none of it was ever worth the risk," Lucy sang, going back into the chorus and ignoring the ache that suddenly seemed to swell in her chest. It was an ache that she was familiar with, though she was sure she'd never grow numb to the feeling... longing.

"I've got a tight grip on reality, but I cant let go of what's in front of me here. I know you're leaving in the morning when you wake up. Leave me with some kind of proof it's not a dream, oh," she sang, closing her eyes as she strained to hit the last note before going back into the chorus. "And I'm on my way to believing. Oh and I'm on my way to believing."

The chorus of applause had Lucy opening her eyes. Smiling, she took them as gracefully as she could while ducking her head. Mentally she prepared herself for what awaited her when she got back to her table as she discreetly wiped the excess moisture from her eyes.

XX

Lucy felt her stomach knotting itself as she knocked on the door. For a moment, she stared at the stained glass window. Due to the fact that it was dark out, you couldn't see the colors, but Lucy had passed by the almost salmon colored house enough to know what they looked like. It had always struck her as slightly strange, the outer décor of the house and had often wondered what it's insides looked like.

It was nearing two in the morning, and she had finally managed to give her sister's the slip. Being the birthday girl, it was difficult sneaking away and she had to wait until they were, for the most part, wasted enough not to notice her. She knew that she'd probably be in trouble when morning came, or at the very least face six very curious girls- seven if they informed Minerva- but she figured that if all went well it would be worth it.

Now if only he would open the door, Lucy thought dryly to herself as she wrapped her jacket a little tighter around herself. Being as it was late March, it was still cold out, especially at nearly two in the morning when wearing a short dress and being drizzled on by icy water. The curls her sister Trista had fixed her hair up in had long fallen out, returning her hair to it's naturally straight condition once more.

Lifting her hand, Lucy was about to knock once more as she wondered just how long she had been standing outside. However, before she could raise her fist, the door opened.

"Lucy?"

TBC...

A/n: Sorry about the cliff-hanger. Suppose you will just have to tune in and wait for the next update. As always, please review. I hope there aren't too many mistakes in this chap, but I was too excited to get it posted that I didn't really go through another edit before posting.

DFPnotloggedin: Thank you for your review, I also couldn't wait for the start of the new season, which was awesome! I'm glad you enjoyed the flashbacks too.

Iroquois: Yeah, her more or less being let in Operation Cobra was an apprehensive decision, which is probably why I chose to not really do it until now. Although, once the curse "breaks" it won't matter too much, which is why I chose this point. And I'm glad you liked the bit at the end of the last chapter. :)