A/N: Welcome to chapter fifty! Even though some of them were super short, it's still chapter fifty and you guys are still here. There are no words to convey all the gratitude I'm feeling for all you. Thank you so much! Individual responses are at the end!
Once again, this chapter comes to you courtesy of REDEADED, who not only betas but makes me laugh. Now you owe me a chapter!
Regret
Lord Death looked Maka over as she entered his study. Now that she was up close and personal his worst fears were confirmed.
"How are you feeling?" he kept his voice carefully neutral as he ushered her into the chair beside Kid's.
"I'm not sure how to answer that." she said truthfully, "I feel okay physically, but I don't know if I am or not. "
Lord Death nodded, "And emotionally?"
"I can feel how upset Kid is, and I know how angry you must be with us." she forced herself to sound calm, needing to be strong even though she was quaking inside. She snuck a glance at Kid, who was a raging ball of turmoil behind a perfectly still facade. His eyes caught hers and he reached out for her hand.
"Father, stop being obtuse and get to the point, please. We all know that Maka and I did something you don't approve of. Now we'd like to know what the repercussions are."
"Repercussions, hmmm? Too bad you didn't think about those last night."
Maka shifted uncomfortably in her seat, scared and horribly embarrassed. The fear and anger she was picking up from Kid weren't helping matters, either.
"Please, Lord Death, this was all my fault," she blurted, "I talked Kid into the soul resonance. I couldn't stand waiting to see if I was still going to be able to use it, and I know it was wrong. Please don't blame him."
Kid opened his mouth to protest, but his father interrupted. "It was just as much his decision as it was yours. I've told him, and now I'm telling you, that neither of you is free to make personal decisions that may affect your professional roles. Your team is one of the strongest assets we have, and you and Kid have put that at risk. And as the next Lord Death, Kid needs to think about every living soul on this planet before he thinks of himself. "
He sat down behind his desk and rested his elbows on the embossed leather blotter. The worry and exhaustion etched into his face filled Maka with compassion, and then with confusion. Who was she to pity God? She knew one thing; she was disgusted by her rash, and ultimately selfish, actions. Time to grow up, she thought, and felt Kid's soul hum in accord with hers.
"I promise you that I'll never put our relationship first again," she promised fiercely, "And I'll help Kid in any way that I can. I'm so ashamed, and so sorry for worrying you. For worrying everybody." Maka's eyes stung but she refused to submit to the passive aggression of tears. Now was not the time to make Death feel bad for her, and only children tried to cry their way out of trouble.
"Everyone makes mistakes, it's what you learn from them that's important. However, as I've told Kid, some choices have permanent consequences. I hope you enjoy this bond you've formed."
"Yes."
"Of course we do," Kid added.
"Good. Because it's not going away. Ever. What you've done is, hell, I'm not even sure what to call it. You've blended somehow. It healed your wound, Maka, but you'll always be completely linked to Kid. I'm sure you both think that's great."
Lord Death paused, watching them nod in unison and smile at each other. He shook his head and sighed.
"You're sixteen years old,"
"Almost seventeen." Kid interjected.
His father snorted.
"Oh, that makes a big difference. Seventeen years. Out of how many? This may seem romantic right now, but what's it going to be like twenty years down the road? Or fifty? I don't think I have to tell either one of you that sometimes love doesn't last." he nodded toward the back of the room and Maka turned to see what was behind her. Kid didn't need to look; he knew his father was directing her attention to the portrait of Sophie that hung over the fireplace.
Lord Death stared at her beautiful face for a moment before continuing, "And if it doesn't last for you, you're in trouble because no matter where you are or who you're with you will always have this bond. You will always be aware of each other, always know exactly what the other is feeling; possibly even thinking. For the rest of your lives."
"Compared to Kid, I won't be around for a long time," Maka looked down at Kid's hand, clasped in hers, unable to imagine not wanting it to be there, "If something happens between us, if we don't stay together, it'll be awful but he'll only have to put up with it for a short part of his life."
The thought hit Kid like a blow and he bowed under the weight of her sadness and his own guilt. he turned and touched her cheek. The thought of it withering away and disappearing made his voice catch when he finally found the strength to speak.
"So what you're saying is that if we break up, my life might be uncomfortable for a little while, but yours will be entirely ruined?"
Lord Death thought about it for a minute.
"No," he said decidedly, "You're pretty much both screwed. And I don't mean in the good way."
"How do you mean it?" Maka stammered, so worried that she skipped right over the embarrassing sexual reference, "The bond will break when I die, won't it?"
"Sure. Problem is that you've got a Reaper's soul now. Or part of one, at least. You're not going to die. Not for a long, long time. Maybe not ever."
Her eyes widened and she choked back a sob.
"Did you know?" she asked Kid wildly, "Last night; did you know what I was doing to you?"
He shook his head, "We did it to each other, and no, I had no idea. Do you think I would have made a decision like that for you?"
He dropped Maka's hand and stood, "Dad, you're right. I'm an irresponsible idiot. I have no business taking over from you, ever. I-"
"Can it, Kiddo. I'm not up to any self-incriminating drama this morning. Go beat yourself up on your own time. Better yet, skip the hysterics and figure out what you're going to do about this." Lord Death waved his hand dismissively.
Kid stood still, shocked out of his downward spiral by his father's words. He looked down at the girl he loved, who was being rocked to the core by their combined stress and he knelt in front of her.
"You're right," he told his father as he put his arms around Maka and drew her forward, "The first thing we need to do is figure out how a way for us to buffer our link. We can't spend every minute being this close; we need to work on a way to damper the connection for daily use. And we need to see if we can still manage our team resonance."
"Now you're thinking. I can help you with that."
Maka looked at Lord Death over Kid's shoulder, "If I can still manage a chain resonance, we thought our new, uh, connection might really add some power to the team." she said hesitantly. Somehow it didn't seem like the fabulously exciting idea that it had the night before.
"We can work on that as well" Lord Death finally smiled at her, "Especially since most of your members are already here. Unless I'm mistaken, and I'm not, Soul got here about ten minutes ago. Kid, why don't you go settle everyone down; reassure him and the girls that I haven't killed either of you? Don't give them any details about Maka's new condition; that is strictly on a need-to-know basis until further notice. I want to talk to Maka alone, please."
"Yes, father. Of course." Kid kissed Maka on the forehead and headed for the door, pausing before he left to straighten his suit, taking care to smooth out the wrinkles.
"Nice to know that some things stay the same," Lord Death smiled again, somewhat relieved to see that his son hadn't completely changed overnight.
"You, on the other hand," he said, seating himself beside Maka in Kid's vacated chair, "Have changed more than you can possibly imagine. From now on you'll be studying with me on a regular basis. You're going to have to work hard to understand the Reaper energy and to learn to control it. Even I don't know the extent of this - as far as I know it's never been done."
"What does it mean, though? I know Kid's mother was human, but she was a Reaper, too. Is that what I am?"
"No, I gave her that power, she didn't come by it naturally. When you gave Kid that piece of yourself, I expected some kind of enhanced connection, but what you did last night created something entirely new. Kid provided you with the working material, but you've absorbed it and made it a part of your own soul. I don't know what that means for the long term; it'll be a learning experience for all of us. For now all I can say is welcome to the family."
Responses!
Evito: I'm glad to be back, too - thanks for waiting! It's a huge compliment to know that I can make someone's day a little brighter!
Musing Reaper: I hope you still like the direction it's going in, and I'm super pleased that you think I'm being true to the characters.
Enecs: Were your predictions right? If you like the idea, I hope they were! And Patty lives to torment Kid, even though she doesn't do it on purpose :)
Xenohawk: I'm glad that last chapter was worth waiting for, and I hope this one was, too! Now that I've gotten con over with for the year, the only thing getting in the way of writing are kids and exploding water mains :) I'm glad that finals are over and hope you like the direction this is going in.
REDEADED: There are no words good enough for you, dear pal of mine! None.
Wordfiend: I love you for the hilarious, hour-long convo about late 18th century portrait painting. Because tangents are fun and you are wonderful! In case anybody cares, the portrait of Sophie in Lord Death's office was painted by John Singer Sargent in about 1885. There are reasons for this ;)
bluejelly02: If I'm making you feel anything but exhausted by reading all of this, I must be doing something right. *hugs*
UnflinchingResolve: Not only do you have a kick-ass user name, your thoughtful review gave me a boost on a day when I really needed one. Glad we could help each other through a rough weekend.
Nini Hearts: I'm glad Kid's reasoning made sense - I didn't just put in it there for the laughs, so I'm glad the emotional impact showed through.
Sim: Hugs for liking the cliffhangers!
Arianna: Don't die! Don't die!
