p dir="ltr"strongAurora's POV: /strong/p
p dir="ltr"I woke up and found Laszlo sitting up in bed with his back facing me. I didn't want him to get out of bed just yet, so I rose up and inched closer to him. "Good morning." I said softly after I wrapped my arms around his shoulders. "Good morning sweetheart." He whispered softly./p
p dir="ltr"He placed one of his hands on my arm and gently rubbed my wrist with his thumb. "Laszlo, can I ask you a question?" I asked him curiously after a moment of comfortable silence. "Sure. You can ask me anything you want." He replied and I could hear the smile in his voice. "Is this real? What's happening between us... is it real?" I asked, feeling nervous as hell./p
p dir="ltr"I was so worried that all of this was just platonic affection on his end, and I was the only one falling in love. He slowly and gently removed my arms from around him before he turned so we were facing each other. "It's real for me, but... is it real for you?" He said in a soft tone with a mixture of emotions churning in his beautiful eyes./p
p dir="ltr""Could you love half a man?" He whispered softly. I knew he was referring to his withered arm, and it hurt. Especially since I've never thought of him as half a man. "You're no less of a man due to your injury, Laszlo. Personally... I think you're twice the man because of it." I said softly. His eyes filled with love and warmth after hearing what I said./p
p dir="ltr""What's happening between us is real for me too." I whispered. He slowly closed the distance between us and our noses touched. My heart skipped a beat and butterflies fluttered inside of my stomach. I could feel his warm breath against my skin, which made me want him to kiss me even more than I already did./p
p dir="ltr"He gently captured my lips with his and my insides melted instantly. I gently kissed him back, hoping I was doing it right; I've never kissed anyone before. His lips felt so soft and warm against mine, making me melt into the kiss. I gently placed one of my hands on the side of his face and played with his soft beard./p
p dir="ltr"We slowly broke the kiss and I felt myself blush when we made eye contact. His big brow orbs had a look in them that made me feel so warm and fuzzy inside. The only way I can describe them as are adoring puppy eyes. I'm sure I was probably looking at him the same way. "I love you, Laszlo." I whispered. One of his cute smiles spread across his handsome face before he spoke up. "I love you too, Aurora." He said softly as he gently caressed my cheek./p
p dir="ltr"I don't think I've ever been this happy in my entire life. I could hardly believe that someone as handsome and as sweet as him actually loves me back. The two of us cuddled for a few more minutes before we got ready for the day. I almost forgot that today I was officially being brought in on the case Sara and the others were working on./p
p dir="ltr"Deep down I wasn't sure if I was cut out for this investigation stuff, but I knew it would be very interesting and fun. I also knew that if I ever wanted to back out it was perfectly fine. Honestly, I don't think Laszlo would complain about be not wanting to be involved at all. But I couldn't deny my interest in the matter./p
p dir="ltr"After I got dressed I made some coffee and breakfast for us all. The whole time I don't think I was able to prevent the smile that was on my face. And I couldn't help but blush as I buttoned Laszlo's boots. It was like something changed in me knowing that he loves me the same way I love him./p
p dir="ltr"But I had to press my pleasant thoughts to the back of my mind for the time being. I don't think either one of us were really ready to tell the others about our blossoming relationship. At least not yet anyway. After I made breakfast and buttoned Laszlo's boots, we all got into the calash and headed to 808 Broadway. I wasn't as nervous I thought I would be, but maybe that's because I knew I was going to be amongst friends./p
p dir="ltr"When we arrived at our destination we entered the building and got into the elevator. Marcus had been waiting on us since the elevator operates on a pulley system. "Good morning Dr. Kreizler, Cyrus, Stevie, and Miss Perish." Marcus said with a kind smile. "Please, call me Aurora." I said with a smile. I knew their formalities was just a expression of respect and kindness, but I've always felt strange when people call me Miss Perish./p
p dir="ltr"The elevator stopped and Marcus pulled the grate open for us to enter the room. Lucius, John, and Sara were sitting at their desks looking over papers. The chalkboard I spotted the last time I was here looked as if there was more handwriting on it than before. That meant they had found more information about the case they're working on./p
p dir="ltr"John looked up first and took the opportunity of getting away from the mundane task he was pursuing. "Finally! I almost thought you lot weren't going to show up at all." He said, but a charming smile spread across his face, which made each of us smile in return. "Pardon us for our lateness." Laszlo said as we walked further into the room. After I was offered a seat, I sat down and listened to what the others had to tell me./p
p dir="ltr"Sara and Laszlo refreshed me with the facts of the mass murders, which I was grateful for. It seemed like a lifetime had passed since Sara first told me the details of the matter. "So, as you can see... we're at a stalemate." John said looking exhausted and irritated. I sort of sympathized with him. I sympathized with all of them./p
p dir="ltr"It must feel horrible when you're trying to get to the bottom of something and hit a brick wall. I sat there and mulled over the information that had been given to me. There was an awful lot to process and yet not enough at the same time. As the others talked amongst themselves I stood up and walked over to one of the large windows./p
p dir="ltr"The carriages and people who were passing by seemed to push my train of thought forward in a strange sort of way. "Poisoning." I mumbled under my breath. "What?" Stevie asked curiously. He was sitting in the nearby windowsill taking in the view of the city. "Did they find any traces of poison in the victims?" I asked loudly so my friends could hear me./p
p dir="ltr""No, but many poisons are still untraceable. The technology to detect them doesn't exist just yet." Lucius replied. "Exactly! What if it's an untraceable poison. None of them looked as if they had died of a gun shot wound, stab wound, or blunt force trauma." I said with furrowed brows. "The poison would have been placed in the food or drink they consumed." Laszlo said, writing a few details down on the chalkboard./p
p dir="ltr"Hours went by of just talking and theorizing. Laszlo ordered some food from Delmonico's, which Stevie and Cyrus brought from the restaurant. The food was delicious. But the entire time I was eating I kept looking over the various reports they were able to obtain on the murders. They were mysterious, but I had a strong feeling the families were being poisoned./p
p dir="ltr"I just didn't know how. It seemed as if the only way we would find out if there was another mass murder. I think my friends were thinking the same thing. We spent all day at 808 Broadway, and I figured Laszlo took a day off from going into the institute; Otherwise he wouldn't have been here. As the sun sunk in the sky we decided to call it a night. But not after we ate dinner at a lovely cafe./p
p dir="ltr""Welcome to the team, Aurora. I have a feeling you'll be very useful in our efforts to catch this killer." Lucius said, and his brother Marcus agreed. It was almost surprising that the brothers agreed on someone, especially since they almost always seem to bicker about everything. "Hopefully we won't scare her off with our investigative methods." John said with a smile./p
p dir="ltr""If we haven't scared her off by now I think there's a strong chance that she's here to stay. I mean, look at us. We're a bunch of misfits who band together to solve bizarre crimes." Stevie said, which made us laugh. "He has a point." I admitted. Once we said our goodbyes I climbed into the calash and Laszlo followed me./p
p dir="ltr"The quiet that settled in was occupied by the sound of horse hooves on cobble stone. I watched as the city came to life with less than savory activity, which was a common occurrence. It wasn't any surprise to anyone who lives here in New York. "Do you wish to go home, or will you be spending the night at my house?" Laszlo asked, taking me out of my thoughts./p
p dir="ltr"Deep down I wanted to stay with Laszlo tonight, but I was also aware that I hadn't stayed at the apartment in a while. I figured my brother would start to think that I've moved out. So I decided to go home. During the Laszlo and I held hands; I loved the way our hands fit perfectly like a puzzle piece./p
p dir="ltr"He gently caressed my hand with his thumb, which made my insides feel so warm. I wanted so badly to rest my head on his shoulder, but I didn't want to risk Stevie or Cyrus seeing us. When we reached the apartment I slowly let go of Laszlo's hand before we said goodnight to each other./p
p dir="ltr"As I walked inside I wished I would have stayed with at the doctor's place. I could hear my brother and his friends acting like buffoons. To my disgust Francis was there. He and my brother were drunk as skunks. "Oh, hello! Did you finally decide to come home?" Henry said giggling like a mad man./p
p dir="ltr"I knew that Francis was the one who brought the alcohol and coerced my brother into drinking with him. "What the hell!?" I said as I noticed the empty beer and whiskey bottles strewn about the place. "What do you mean? Has spending time with that emdoctor/em made you all stuck up?" Henry asked, slurring his speech. "No. And that emdoctor/em is someone you look up to." I replied./p
p dir="ltr""Dr. Kreizler, the infamous and secretly psychotic child murder." Francis said. He howled at his own tasteless joke. I couldn't believe that some people honestly believed that Dr. Kreizler had something to do with that little boy's suicide, Just because he stayed at his institute. It made me so angry./p
p dir="ltr""That's it! You aren't allowed back into this apartment!" I said with venom in my voice. I forcefully pulled Francis out of the chair he was sitting in and he fell to the floor. It was clear he wasn't going to walk, so I dragged him with all of my strength. It took a long time to get him outside, but I managed it. "You can't do this." Francis slurred./p
p dir="ltr""Watch me." I replied before I slammed the door closed and locked it behind me. I wasn't just angry due to the comment he made about Laszlo. I was angry because of the way he was treating my brother. Francis has been using Henry since the day they met and I was fed up!/p
p dir="ltr"My brother was on the couch passed out when I came back into the room. I felt sorry for him. Sorry that he had to seek validation from someone as cold and unloving as Francis. I grabbed a blanket and covered Henry's body so he didn't get cold. After dragging one man around I didn't think I'd have the strength to carry Henry to his room./p
p dir="ltr"While my brother slept I cleaned up all of the empty bottles that were laying around. Then I called Dr. Kreizler's residence. I wanted to let him know that I was probably going to come in late tomorrow morning. I needed to set up at watch my brother to make sure he didn't die during the night from alcohol poisoning./p
p dir="ltr"So I brewed a pot of coffee to keep me going and grabbed a book to occupy my mind. I didn't want to lose my brother, especially since he and I are the last of our family. I pushed my melancholic thoughts to the side and focused on the words in the book in front of me./p
p dir="ltr"strong+++++++++++/strongbr /strongA/N: Thanks for reading! Sorry for the long wait, I hope you enjoyed this chapter./strong/p
p dir="ltr"I woke up and found Laszlo sitting up in bed with his back facing me. I didn't want him to get out of bed just yet, so I rose up and inched closer to him. "Good morning." I said softly after I wrapped my arms around his shoulders. "Good morning sweetheart." He whispered softly./p
p dir="ltr"He placed one of his hands on my arm and gently rubbed my wrist with his thumb. "Laszlo, can I ask you a question?" I asked him curiously after a moment of comfortable silence. "Sure. You can ask me anything you want." He replied and I could hear the smile in his voice. "Is this real? What's happening between us... is it real?" I asked, feeling nervous as hell./p
p dir="ltr"I was so worried that all of this was just platonic affection on his end, and I was the only one falling in love. He slowly and gently removed my arms from around him before he turned so we were facing each other. "It's real for me, but... is it real for you?" He said in a soft tone with a mixture of emotions churning in his beautiful eyes./p
p dir="ltr""Could you love half a man?" He whispered softly. I knew he was referring to his withered arm, and it hurt. Especially since I've never thought of him as half a man. "You're no less of a man due to your injury, Laszlo. Personally... I think you're twice the man because of it." I said softly. His eyes filled with love and warmth after hearing what I said./p
p dir="ltr""What's happening between us is real for me too." I whispered. He slowly closed the distance between us and our noses touched. My heart skipped a beat and butterflies fluttered inside of my stomach. I could feel his warm breath against my skin, which made me want him to kiss me even more than I already did./p
p dir="ltr"He gently captured my lips with his and my insides melted instantly. I gently kissed him back, hoping I was doing it right; I've never kissed anyone before. His lips felt so soft and warm against mine, making me melt into the kiss. I gently placed one of my hands on the side of his face and played with his soft beard./p
p dir="ltr"We slowly broke the kiss and I felt myself blush when we made eye contact. His big brow orbs had a look in them that made me feel so warm and fuzzy inside. The only way I can describe them as are adoring puppy eyes. I'm sure I was probably looking at him the same way. "I love you, Laszlo." I whispered. One of his cute smiles spread across his handsome face before he spoke up. "I love you too, Aurora." He said softly as he gently caressed my cheek./p
p dir="ltr"I don't think I've ever been this happy in my entire life. I could hardly believe that someone as handsome and as sweet as him actually loves me back. The two of us cuddled for a few more minutes before we got ready for the day. I almost forgot that today I was officially being brought in on the case Sara and the others were working on./p
p dir="ltr"Deep down I wasn't sure if I was cut out for this investigation stuff, but I knew it would be very interesting and fun. I also knew that if I ever wanted to back out it was perfectly fine. Honestly, I don't think Laszlo would complain about be not wanting to be involved at all. But I couldn't deny my interest in the matter./p
p dir="ltr"After I got dressed I made some coffee and breakfast for us all. The whole time I don't think I was able to prevent the smile that was on my face. And I couldn't help but blush as I buttoned Laszlo's boots. It was like something changed in me knowing that he loves me the same way I love him./p
p dir="ltr"But I had to press my pleasant thoughts to the back of my mind for the time being. I don't think either one of us were really ready to tell the others about our blossoming relationship. At least not yet anyway. After I made breakfast and buttoned Laszlo's boots, we all got into the calash and headed to 808 Broadway. I wasn't as nervous I thought I would be, but maybe that's because I knew I was going to be amongst friends./p
p dir="ltr"When we arrived at our destination we entered the building and got into the elevator. Marcus had been waiting on us since the elevator operates on a pulley system. "Good morning Dr. Kreizler, Cyrus, Stevie, and Miss Perish." Marcus said with a kind smile. "Please, call me Aurora." I said with a smile. I knew their formalities was just a expression of respect and kindness, but I've always felt strange when people call me Miss Perish./p
p dir="ltr"The elevator stopped and Marcus pulled the grate open for us to enter the room. Lucius, John, and Sara were sitting at their desks looking over papers. The chalkboard I spotted the last time I was here looked as if there was more handwriting on it than before. That meant they had found more information about the case they're working on./p
p dir="ltr"John looked up first and took the opportunity of getting away from the mundane task he was pursuing. "Finally! I almost thought you lot weren't going to show up at all." He said, but a charming smile spread across his face, which made each of us smile in return. "Pardon us for our lateness." Laszlo said as we walked further into the room. After I was offered a seat, I sat down and listened to what the others had to tell me./p
p dir="ltr"Sara and Laszlo refreshed me with the facts of the mass murders, which I was grateful for. It seemed like a lifetime had passed since Sara first told me the details of the matter. "So, as you can see... we're at a stalemate." John said looking exhausted and irritated. I sort of sympathized with him. I sympathized with all of them./p
p dir="ltr"It must feel horrible when you're trying to get to the bottom of something and hit a brick wall. I sat there and mulled over the information that had been given to me. There was an awful lot to process and yet not enough at the same time. As the others talked amongst themselves I stood up and walked over to one of the large windows./p
p dir="ltr"The carriages and people who were passing by seemed to push my train of thought forward in a strange sort of way. "Poisoning." I mumbled under my breath. "What?" Stevie asked curiously. He was sitting in the nearby windowsill taking in the view of the city. "Did they find any traces of poison in the victims?" I asked loudly so my friends could hear me./p
p dir="ltr""No, but many poisons are still untraceable. The technology to detect them doesn't exist just yet." Lucius replied. "Exactly! What if it's an untraceable poison. None of them looked as if they had died of a gun shot wound, stab wound, or blunt force trauma." I said with furrowed brows. "The poison would have been placed in the food or drink they consumed." Laszlo said, writing a few details down on the chalkboard./p
p dir="ltr"Hours went by of just talking and theorizing. Laszlo ordered some food from Delmonico's, which Stevie and Cyrus brought from the restaurant. The food was delicious. But the entire time I was eating I kept looking over the various reports they were able to obtain on the murders. They were mysterious, but I had a strong feeling the families were being poisoned./p
p dir="ltr"I just didn't know how. It seemed as if the only way we would find out if there was another mass murder. I think my friends were thinking the same thing. We spent all day at 808 Broadway, and I figured Laszlo took a day off from going into the institute; Otherwise he wouldn't have been here. As the sun sunk in the sky we decided to call it a night. But not after we ate dinner at a lovely cafe./p
p dir="ltr""Welcome to the team, Aurora. I have a feeling you'll be very useful in our efforts to catch this killer." Lucius said, and his brother Marcus agreed. It was almost surprising that the brothers agreed on someone, especially since they almost always seem to bicker about everything. "Hopefully we won't scare her off with our investigative methods." John said with a smile./p
p dir="ltr""If we haven't scared her off by now I think there's a strong chance that she's here to stay. I mean, look at us. We're a bunch of misfits who band together to solve bizarre crimes." Stevie said, which made us laugh. "He has a point." I admitted. Once we said our goodbyes I climbed into the calash and Laszlo followed me./p
p dir="ltr"The quiet that settled in was occupied by the sound of horse hooves on cobble stone. I watched as the city came to life with less than savory activity, which was a common occurrence. It wasn't any surprise to anyone who lives here in New York. "Do you wish to go home, or will you be spending the night at my house?" Laszlo asked, taking me out of my thoughts./p
p dir="ltr"Deep down I wanted to stay with Laszlo tonight, but I was also aware that I hadn't stayed at the apartment in a while. I figured my brother would start to think that I've moved out. So I decided to go home. During the Laszlo and I held hands; I loved the way our hands fit perfectly like a puzzle piece./p
p dir="ltr"He gently caressed my hand with his thumb, which made my insides feel so warm. I wanted so badly to rest my head on his shoulder, but I didn't want to risk Stevie or Cyrus seeing us. When we reached the apartment I slowly let go of Laszlo's hand before we said goodnight to each other./p
p dir="ltr"As I walked inside I wished I would have stayed with at the doctor's place. I could hear my brother and his friends acting like buffoons. To my disgust Francis was there. He and my brother were drunk as skunks. "Oh, hello! Did you finally decide to come home?" Henry said giggling like a mad man./p
p dir="ltr"I knew that Francis was the one who brought the alcohol and coerced my brother into drinking with him. "What the hell!?" I said as I noticed the empty beer and whiskey bottles strewn about the place. "What do you mean? Has spending time with that emdoctor/em made you all stuck up?" Henry asked, slurring his speech. "No. And that emdoctor/em is someone you look up to." I replied./p
p dir="ltr""Dr. Kreizler, the infamous and secretly psychotic child murder." Francis said. He howled at his own tasteless joke. I couldn't believe that some people honestly believed that Dr. Kreizler had something to do with that little boy's suicide, Just because he stayed at his institute. It made me so angry./p
p dir="ltr""That's it! You aren't allowed back into this apartment!" I said with venom in my voice. I forcefully pulled Francis out of the chair he was sitting in and he fell to the floor. It was clear he wasn't going to walk, so I dragged him with all of my strength. It took a long time to get him outside, but I managed it. "You can't do this." Francis slurred./p
p dir="ltr""Watch me." I replied before I slammed the door closed and locked it behind me. I wasn't just angry due to the comment he made about Laszlo. I was angry because of the way he was treating my brother. Francis has been using Henry since the day they met and I was fed up!/p
p dir="ltr"My brother was on the couch passed out when I came back into the room. I felt sorry for him. Sorry that he had to seek validation from someone as cold and unloving as Francis. I grabbed a blanket and covered Henry's body so he didn't get cold. After dragging one man around I didn't think I'd have the strength to carry Henry to his room./p
p dir="ltr"While my brother slept I cleaned up all of the empty bottles that were laying around. Then I called Dr. Kreizler's residence. I wanted to let him know that I was probably going to come in late tomorrow morning. I needed to set up at watch my brother to make sure he didn't die during the night from alcohol poisoning./p
p dir="ltr"So I brewed a pot of coffee to keep me going and grabbed a book to occupy my mind. I didn't want to lose my brother, especially since he and I are the last of our family. I pushed my melancholic thoughts to the side and focused on the words in the book in front of me./p
p dir="ltr"strong+++++++++++/strongbr /strongA/N: Thanks for reading! Sorry for the long wait, I hope you enjoyed this chapter./strong/p