Chapter 25

City of Angels

Small murmurs flooded through the crowd as they watched this unusual reunion between the small girl and the much larger sea Captain. Many questioned the way the girl was hugging him, they knew for a fact that Vriska was not one for hugs, especially full on embraces that involved her being picked up. Cronus was mainly questioning what was going on sexually between the two.

"I hope ye'vwe been doin' wvell, Vwris…" Dualscar stated putting the smaller girl down.

"Well enough, I guess… I mean I am back home, so that's nice… How have you been out on the ocean?" she asked.

"Good… Made some good hauls, but ye knowv the ship isn't the same wvithout ye…" he chuckles softly.

She smirks, "Well I have someone for you to meet…"

Vriska grabs Dualscar by his cape and lead him past the crowd, who dispersed making an open path for the scarred male. She takes the captain right up to Eridan, who had felt like he shrunk when the larger sea dweller towered over him. Cronus walked up by Eridan's side, and just stared up at the man in pure awe and admiration.

"Dualscar, this is Eridan. He is your descendant…" she says with a light chuckle.

"Wvowv… He's so small…" he laughed playfully.

"Hey, I am not small…" He pouts crossing his arms.

"Yeah, he is my height," Vriska remarks.

"Yeah… and ye are small too," he scoffed.

"You are just too big!" she complained.

He grows a cocky grin just giving Vriska a smug look with his eyes that just said, 'Ye knowv I am'. She opened her mouth to say something, but just kept quiet shifting her eyes downwards in embarrassment. Dualscar let out a light laugh under his breath, and gives her a pat on her back.

"Nowv this guy isn't short… I see ye are an Ampora… Cronus… Right?" he asked.

"Yeah that's me, Chief… Hovw do you knovw my name?" Cronus replied smiling softly.

"Wvell ye are me blood… I should at least knowv yer names… I am surprised howv old ye twvo are nowv… I havwe only seen pictures of ye wvhen ye are grubs," he chuckled.

"You vwere allovwed to knovw about us?" Cronus asked.

"Wvell being so close to the Empress I get special privwileges… I wvould of liked to knowv if grubs wvere made from me…" he laughed.

"So wwhat's it like bein' the Orphaner?" Eridan asked wide eyed.

"Hard… It is hard wvork… Ye got to be strong… Let go of the fear of death, because yer life is on the line the minute ye go out to sea…" he stated. "I see ye got crosshairs kinda like mine…"

"Y-yeah," Eridan nervously flings his weapon off his back holding it out. "It is an exact replica I had made of your original one wwhen you first became the Orphaner…"

Dualscar picks it up and inspects it with a raised brow. "Impressivwe… I remember me first crosshairs… Ye take good care of these," He hands it back over to his tiny descendant.

"So hovw long vwill you be wvisitin'?" Cronus asked.

"About a wveek. Me men got to get supplies for the ship, plus I need to catch up vwith me little deckhand here…" He replied putting a hand on Vriska's shoulder.

"So you plan on stayin' on your ship, or at an inn?" the middle Ampora questioned.

"Actually I am probably gonna stay at Vwriska's hivwe wvith her," he stated.

Cronus raised an eyebrow, his suspicions growing. "Oh is that so?"

"Yes. Wvell it wvas nice meetin' ye twvo, maybe ye can stop around for dinner… For nowv I need to talk wvith Vwris… Make sure her head is in the right place," he teased messing her hair up.

"Hey my hair!" she whines.

"Oh hush… It wvas already messy…" he chuckled.

As Vriska and Dualscar strolled back to her hive, the crowd regrouped looking at Eridan and Cronus in shock. They didn't know whether to be amazed or slightly fearful of the larger troll, most of them haven't even seen a troll that big or old. Cronus' eyes darted to Eridan, anxious to share his assumption with his littler dancestor.

"WOW VRISKA WASN'T JOKING…" Karkat stated.

"i FEEL SLIGHTLY TERRIFIED…" Tavros muttered.

")(e was dreamy…" Feferi twittered.

"FF, come on. He ii2 ju2t another fii2h diick," Sollux grumbled.

"He seemed much more respectful and mature than some sea dwellers. He was a magnificent highb100d," Equius replied sweating some.

"... DON'T B3 CR33PY…" Terezi muttered stepping away from Equius.

"Well, I Have To Admit Dualscar Does Have Some Admirable Qualities," Kanaya giggled.

"I can agree to that," Aradia replied.

"Guys, I figured out somethin'," Cronus states.

"W)(at is it?" Feferi asked.

"Okay so…. Wvriska… and Dualscar…. are fuckin'!" he yelled.

"WWHAT?!" Eridan yelled.

"Woa)(... Lucky," Feferi mutters.

"LANGUAGE!" Equius yelled covering Nepeta's ears.

":33 I know what that means, Sweatquius" Nepeta muttered.

"What how? Who told you?" He gasps.

":33 I am eleven sw33ps…" she grumbled.

"OKAY… OKAY… AND WHERE IS THIS RIDICULOUS FUCKING ASSUMPTION COMING FROM?" Karkat shouted.

"Yeah… Vvris isn't sleepin' wwith Dual... She can't be… She wwouldn't do that…" Eridan murmurs.

"That explains vwhy she broke up your black… She already had an Ampora…" Cronus reasoned.

"That's bullshit...She broke up wwith me because of Fang!" Eridan shouted.

"OKAY AGAIN! WHERE IS THIS COMING FROM?" Karkat asked.

"Did you see they vway they hugged? And he is stayin' vwith her… Spendin' the night vwith her? Sleepin' vwith her?"

"TH3 HUG W4S W31RD…" Terezi stated.

"It wwas a hug… Doesn't mean she is sleepin' wwith him…" he huffed.

"I vwould keep an eye out because it is happenin," Cronus scoffed.

"You wwish, pervv," Eridan muttered.

Dualscar smiled looking around Vriska's hive as he stepped through the threshold of the door. "Nice place. I can't remember the last time I wvas actually in an actual hivwe."

"Yeah, I have been cleaning it up lately because when I got home it was a disaster," she chuckled.

"I figured…" He says before holding her cheeks. "Wvhat happened to yer eye?!" he gasped.

"Oh I popped a blood vessel. It is no biggy…" She muttered.

"Wvell that's no good… I can't havwe yer pretty eyes gettin' messed up," he huffed pinching her cheeks.

"Hey… Stop…" she grumbled blushing some.

"Still… Yer eyes are too beautiful to get messed up," he stated leaning in, flipping her glasses up and kissing the eyelid to her hurt eye.

She blushed darker mumbling, "Hush."

"Ye are so precious wvhen ye blush," he chuckled.

"Stop treating me like a wriggler," she whines.

"I am not treatin' ye like a wvriggler… I am just bein' affectionate," he says rubbing his cheek against hers.

"Ah Dualscar… Your face is all scruffy… It tickles… Stop," she laughed loudly.

He smothered her face with kisses, nuzzling his face against hers. "Ye knowv ye havwe missed it. Besides I havwen't had yer lovwely hands to shavwe me wvhiskers."

"Well come sit down in the kitchen and I can take care of that," she giggles.

"Wvell gimme a kiss first. I havwe been so lonely… I missed ye…" he groans playfully.

"Man up… You are the big bad Orphaner," she teased.

"A man can still miss his little matesprit… It has felt like forevwer… I missed talkin' to ye and spendin' time wvith ye," he replied kissing her wounded eye again.

She smiled softly pulling her glasses back down, and putting a hand on his cheek, her thumb petting at his facial hair. "I missed you too," she says gently.

"Then gimme a kiss," he laughed pulling her close flapping his fins, knowing that would make her smile.

She laughed softly, "Oh alright… Just because I love you."

Vriska leans in wrapping her small arms up around the larger sea dweller's neck. He smiled softly running a hand up through that beautiful silky black hair that he had longed to touch once more. She leaned in pressing her lips against his, her eyes falling shut as she pulled the man closer to her. He eagerly kissed her back, having the need to have the smaller girl back in his life and with him. The front door slammed open, interrupting the two and causing Vriska to jump in surprise. She looked to see who it was, relieved to see that is was just the chef, and not one of her other colleagues.

"Vrissy! Ya think it is okay to just run off with Captain, without giving me a hug or sayin' hi for that matter," the chef shouted picking Vriska up over his shoulder.

"Dualscar was just eager to get his jollies off, Chef…" The first mate stated walking in. "But I am also upset that Vriska didn't even say hello to me…"

"Hello you two…" Vriska gasped as she was squeezed by the big chef.

"Hey, that is enough. Put her down," Dualscar chuckled patting the chef's arm.

"Well I thought my little Vrissy forgot about me," Chef murmurs setting her down.

As Vriska was lowered she lets out a small sigh chuckling lightly to herself, "How could I forget you? Especially how every time I see you, you squeeze the life out of me."

"So have ye been takin' care of yerself… Ye are still skin and bones so that obviously answers my question… I need to put meat on yer bones. A real woman has fat on her," Chef boasts.

"Okay, maybe you could cook me one of those delicious meals I love," she teased.

"I will start now!" he laughed running to her kitchen.

"Wait Chef …" she called out, but he had already left the room. "Damn it…"

"So did you really miss us?" The first mate asked.

"Yeah… How couldn't I miss the crew of crazy inappropriate men? Just my kind of people," she chuckled.

"Good because they are all going to cram themselves in here for dinner," he stated with a smirk.

"Wait… You are joking right?" She asked.

The first mate just gave a wide grin and just walked off into the kitchen with the chef. Dualscar laughed lightly shaking his head, patting Vriska on the back to calm her down. Vriska takes Dualscar's hand and leads him to the kitchen, so she could shave his face. She gets a large bowl full of warm water and a soft wash cloth to dampen up his face and neck. She then retrieves some conditioner and a straight blade razor setting them down. She runs conditioner through his facial hair humming softly to herself; Dualscar was relaxing in the chair his fins fluttering in pleasure. The room was soon filled with the smell of whatever chef was cooking on the stove, and the room was quiet for the most part, it was peaceful. The peace was short lived though because Eridan and Cronus busted through the front, and came into the kitchen.

"Um… Can I help you?" Vriska groaned.

"See I told you!" Eridan yelled at Cronus.

"Told him what?" she asked confused.

"Cronus said you wwere probably blowwin' Dualscar or somethin' right noww," Eridan yelled.

"This means nothin' they could be bonin' later," Cronus scoffed.

Vriska and Dualscar just looked at each other awkwardly going quiet, unsure what to say. The first mate and the Chef just snorted in amusement at this, watching the expression of their Captain. Eridan narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms inspecting the two.

"Wwhy are you shavvin' his face?" Eridan asked with a sneer.

"Because… Dualscar wanted me to do it. His big meaty hands are no good with holding such a small blade," she replied. "I mean look at his fucking hand," she scoffs picking it up. "The dumbass would probably cut himself open," she laughs playfully trying to pull it off like Dualscar was just a friend.

"It is surprisin' to see you holdin' a blade to anyone's face wwihtout tryin' to kill them," Eridan scoffed.

"Wow... That was rude," Vriska hissed going back and shaving Dualscar's face.

"Sorry that wwas the black emotions comin' out," he chortled scratching his head.

"Wvait… Me little descendant is yer kismesis," Dualscar asked looking up at Vriska.

"Former kismesis. We are just friends now," she stated.

"Yeah, after the wwhole Fang thing, Vvris thought it wwould be best if wwe ended it… You see our relationship wwas based off of wwhat you and Fang had… Wwe had cosplay outfits and evverythin'," Eridan chuckles.

The first mate tried to hold his laughter back at this awkward conversation and tension it caused. Vriska felt like she was dying slowly and painfully inside, she just wanted to leave this planet. Dualscar was just glaring at Vriska, a bit annoyed that she hadn't told him the crucial piece of information.

"I see… Vwriska, ye should of told me ye wvere black wvith me little descendant," he chuckled menacingly.

"...Yeah…" she muttered shaving his face.

"So… back to the issue at hand. So are you tvwo fuckin'?" Cronus asked.

"Um no…" Vriska mumbled.

"You sure about that, Wvriska?" he questioned.

"Yeah, Vwriska. Ye sure?" Dualscar teased in a mocking manner.

"Positive," she replied. "Now get out of my hive. I will see you two for dinner, okay?"

"Okay Vvris, later," Eridan stated walking off with Cronus.

"So… that wvas interestin'... Wvasn't it Vwris?" Dualscar chuckles with a twisted grin.

"Yep…" she muttered shaving his chin.

"So… That wvas yer former black mate?" he asked.

"...Yep…"

"Me little descendant wvas yer kismesis?" he muttered.

"This is fucking awkward as fuck," The first mate laughed.

"It is like a soap opera…Secrets uncovered… She was sleepin' with the Captain's descendant…. Is this the end of DualVris?" The chef chuckled.

"DualVwris?" Dualscar asked raising his eyebrow.

"It is the shippin' name the crew gave ye two…" he laughed.

He growls shaking his head before turning his attention back to Vriska. "So ye and him wvould dress up like Fang and I and… fuck?"

"... We would flarp…" She mutters.

"Wvhat the fuck is flarp?" he asked squeezing the bridge of his nose.

"It is fatal live action roleplaying… It is actually really fun… Honestly I think you would like it… You get to nearly kill your friends in the process and most of the time they won't be pissed as long as you are in character or role…" she boasts.

"So ye are a dork," he muttered.

She growls finishing up his face. "There all done. It is good to know you got a problem with who I am… Didn't know it was such a big deal…"

"It's my fuckin' descendant! Ye could have told me!" he yelled standing up.

"Wow Captain, you jealous?" the first mate laughed.

"Ye shut the fuck up!" he yelled.

Vriska growls, "Well I am so sorry. Glad to see how you are when the big bad Orphaner doesn't know everything."

She throws the blade down, it sticking into the wood of the table. The girl storms off to her room slamming the door shut in anger, her eyes growing watery. Dualscar's fins droop down and he sighs sadly realizing how harsh he was with her. He is always so use to barking orders and knowing everything, he forgets he has to be delicate with her. He goes up the stairs following the sounds of crying, his heart hurting as he got closer to the noise. He walks up to her door and slowly opens it, so he could peek in only seeing her sobbing into a pillow on a bed. Knowing Dualscar preferred a bed over a coon, Vriska took a pailing stand and made it into a bed for him, using only the finest pillows and blankets to cover it. He sighs walking in and sitting on the bed slowly pulling Vriska into his lap, holding her close.

"Vvris… I am sorry… but can ye at least understand wvhy it upset me so much… It is somethin' I wvould of liked to havwe knowvn," he sighs.

"I know… but when I spent more time with you and began to like you in a red manner I kind of forgot about what I had with him… I only remembered about it when I got back and he started flirting with me… I broke it off with him because I am loyal to you, and our relationship was based off of Mindfang's journal and I don't want that in my life anymore… I am sorry I didn't tell you, but it was kind of embarrassing…" she sighs wiping her tears.

"...Are ye embarrassed by me?" he asked.

"No, of course not," she replied.

"Wvhy didn't ye tell him about us then?" he sighs.

"Because Eridan gets really jealous… guess he gets it from you," she teased. "But if he knew he would be freaking out that I am with you, not him, and I am with his own ancestor. He would then harass you trying to run you off to get me back… and I didn't want that for either of you. Eridan looks up to you… and I didn't want him to get pissed off with you because you stole his girl or whatever… I didn't want you to become his Mindfang…" she says looking down.

"He's got to knowv sometime…" he replied.

"Now isn't that time…" she whimpers.

"Okay… but wve need to tell him together… This invwolvwes me too… and I wvant to support ye… maybe it wvould soften the blowv for him," he replied taking her hand.

"...Okay…" she sighs giving his hand a squeeze.

"Sorry I made fun of yer flarpin' thing, but ye havwe to admit… It is kinda dorky," he chuckles.

"Whatever," she pouts.

He grins nuzzling his face against her cheek. "Ye are me little dork though…"

"Dualscar stop~" she giggles whining some.

"Ye knowv I lovwe ye to death, evwen if I get mad I still lovwe ye… Ye make me ship float and put wind in me sails… Ye are the lovwe of me life and me wvhole wvorld… I missed ye so much… I longed for yer touch and company… I missed cuddlin' ye…" he purrs smothering her.

"D-Dualscar… your armor is crushing me," she gasps.

"S-sorry…" he chuckles.

Dualscar sits up undoing his cape and armor just leaving him in his long sleeve black top. He then grins grabbing Vriska and pulling her down against her bed next to him, his arms compressing her to him. She giggles putting her hands on his cheeks pressing her forehead to his.

"I love you too, Dualscar… You remind me of what's good in the world…" she giggles kissing him.

"It has been too long…" he whispered.

"I know… I wish you could stay," she kisses him.

"Me too… but I got good newvs…" he chuckles kissing her cheek.

"Oh what is it?" she asked with a small smile.

The sea dweller sits up some and pulled off his shirt showing off his tattoos on his arms. The once cocky Mindfang mermaid was now a gentler coy Vriska mermaid with glasses. She giggles tracing her fingers along the hair of the tattoo mermaid.

"I love it…" she says smiling wide.

"Good. I knewv ye wvould! I also got this done…" He says showing her the back of his neck. The little spade he had, with Mindfang's symbol in it, was now a little heart. "It used to be a spade, but nowv things are different."

She giggles, "Dualscar, I love it. None of my matesprits ever tattooed anything about me on them… Then again I have never had a matesprit."

He smiled kissing her chin, "Wvell, ye havwe me nowv."

The two cuddle and kiss enjoying the warmth and comfort they found in the arms of each other. After a bit there was a knock on her bedroom door causing Vriska to sit up slightly, from under Dualscar, with a huff. Her hair was all messy and her shirt was pulled up over her chest. Dualscar was still kissing at her neck, his hands on her back trying to unhook her bra. There was another knock on her door causing her to groan.

"Who is it?" Vriska asked.

"Me…" The first mate says.

"Go awvay… Wve are busy…" Dualscar growled still kissing at her neck.

"You got visitors, Vriska…"

"Is it Eridan?" she sighs.

"No, it is some group of trolls, one of them is licking some short grumpy troll and another is talking in third person cat puns, and one keeps saying glub… That's just a few of them…" he replied.

Vriska groans getting up out of bed, pulling down her shirt and fixing her hair some. She opens the door looking at the first mate slightly irritated. Dualscar sits up from the bed pouting in annoyance.

"Hey, don't get pissed with me…" he chuckles.

"Tell them I will be down in a minute…" she sighed.

The first mate walked off alerting the group at the front door that Vriska was coming down. She had to go to the bathroom first and look in the mirror to see if there were any marks she had to cover and to fix her lipstick that was slightly smeared. She marched down stairs grumbling to herself as she went to go greet her group of bombastic allies.

":33 Vriskers!" Nepeta mewed.

"Hello, can I help you guys?" she asked.

"WH3R3 1S DUALSC4R?" Terezi asked.

"Sleeping. He is tired from his voyage," she lied.

"Aw w)(ale we wanted to talk to )(im. It is amazing to )(ave suc)( an incredible troll around. W)(at is )(e like?" Feferi asked.

"... I don't know how to describe him. He is a good man. Strong. Brave. Noble…" she shrugs.

"Noble…?" Equius says sweating.

"Um… Yeah…" she muttered.

"WHY CAN'T YOU JUST WAKE HIM UP?" Karkat huffed.

"Because he wouldn't want to answer your stupid questions right now… He is tired and needs his sleep," she scoffed.

":33 Then when can we talk to Dualscatch? AC has many questions to ask the fishy," the cat girl asks.

Vriska sighs, "Come by for dinner. Everyone will be here."

"Really all of u2?" Sollux asked.

"Yes it will be a party," she scoffed.

"Are You Alright?" Kanaya asked.

"Tired… Just had to put up with Eridan freaking out because he thought I am with Dualscar," she sighs.

"Y34H CRONUS W4S R4NT1NG 4BOUT 1T 34RL13R…"

"I KNEW IT WAS BULLSHIT," Karkat scoffed.

"Yeah… So I will see you guys tonight okay?"

"W)(o was that guy w)(o answered t)(e door?"

"Dualscar's first mate… You can talk with all his crew later… They will be here," Vriska muttered.

"Okay well we wiill 2ee you later then…" Sollux stated as the group started to leave.

Vriska was relieved when the group left and went back to her seafarer matesprit. She was happy to be in his large muscular arms once more and kisses at his fins and gills. He smiled taking her hands in his and nuzzles her face gently with his. It was funny how the ancestor of his hate could make him feel so young and happy, he would never be so soft and playful with anyone else. The sun soon set and the doorbell rang with the sound of people talking outside. Vriska sits up from the bed, a sheet wrapped around her and looks down at Dualscar. He smirks sitting up and kisses her deeply a hand trailing up through her hair.

"I guess it is showv time," he chuckles.

Vriska nods slightly nervous, "I wonder how my old friends will react to my new friends."

"Wvell the crewv lovwes ye, and yer friends should too. If there are any issues wve wvill just make the trouble makers leavwe," he replied getting up.

"Yeah… I just hope they get along," she sighs.

"They should. I wvarned the crewv that if they do anythin' stupid they wvon't be allowved to come back on me ship," he stated putting on his pin striped pants.

"It isn't the crew I am worried about," she sighed.

"Ye perhaps havwe a men's shirt I can wvear?… The one I wvear under me armor kind of smells like swveat… I wvould rather not wvear it…"

"I actually packed one of your tunics by accident…" she says getting out of the bed. She walks over to her dresser and pulled out the tunic, holding it up for him.

He chuckles taking it with a smile. "I put it in yer bag…"

"What? Why?" she asks.

"Because I wvanted ye to remember me…" he says softly.

"How could I ever forget you?" she replied smiling.