Hi everyone. I hope you all had a joyous Holiday season! May this next year be much better than the last year!
This chapter was a huge struggle to get through. I'd had a whole other chapter halfway written but then I ran into a writer's block. I took a couple of days to think things out and talked with my best friend fanfic rules and he's a fantastic sounding board.
For this chapter, I decided to switch things up and give you a glimpse into the gothic world of Leif and Sapphire when they're aren't with the other Miscreants. In this chapter you'll find out some surprising news regarding our dark couple. It's been in the back of my head since the begging of this fic and I've been fighting against this idea, but as usual, after a talk with my personal sounding board, the idea began to make more and more sense and I realized that it also would help push the story line along.
Now with my trip down the 'rabbit trail' out of the way, it's time to get on with the more important stuff.
Disclaimer: Power Rangers are the property of Hasboro. Any characters recognize from the show are not mine. However all OC's are my intellectual property. I make no money on this work of fiction, it's created for the sole purpose of entertainment and to help me better my writing skills.
This chapter comes with a warning for violence and foul language. You've been warned!
I guess that's about it. Strap in and read on. I'll see you at the bottom!
Angel Grove High School
Lilac, the newest initiate into the coven walked through the school halls on her way to meet with Queen Lydia. She was a petite young teenager just blossoming into womanhood. Her shiny black hair was pulled back into twin ponytails and her naturally pale face was made up in the most becoming goth makeup and her clothes added another layer to her well put together look. Basically, she was the poster child for Hot Topic and she was proud of it!
She was in a pretty good mood as she walked down the halls drinking her bottle of chocolate milk. She was just turning down the hallway by the auditorium when she heard a voice she didn't like. Her heart seized as she saw Brock Jameson standing with a familiar face; one that made her want to run the other way.
It was the man from the snapshot that was being passed around in the coven. She started to slowly back away when the football jock smiled at her. "This is one of those freaks that skulks around the school spying on people. I know she knows at least two of the goths that you're looking for."
Lilac swallowed hard and walked backwards as the man advanced on her. "Hey now, there's nothing to be afraid of, we're just going to talk for a moment. I'm a police officer, you wouldn't want me to have to arrest you for impeding an investigation, would you?"
Lilac found that she couldn't respond so she shook her head. As she took another step away from them, she backed into someone with a firm body. She looked up to see Rook standing behind her.
He gave her a reassuring look, wrapped an arm around her, and then looked up at the scary guys.
"I call bullshit; you are way out of your jurisdiction and if you were going to interrogate my homegirl, you'd be doing so in the principal's office and with a parent or chaperone present."
When the cop opened his mouth to protest, Rook gave him a defiant look. "Don't fuck with me. My uncle is a lawyer and I know the law. If you really wanted to interrogate Miss Lilac, you'd being going through the right channels and would have contacted the AGPD and let them know about your bogus investigation."
As the donut muncher advanced on him, Rook gently pushed Lilac behind him and stood his ground.
"You'd better consider your next step, Donut Muncher. You're nothing but a predator and you've got no crew to back you up. We both know that your hoe and golf buddy are locked up."
Officer Michaels was standing toe to toe with Rook now and the tall miscreant wasn't backing down. "You better back off mother fucker. I don't run from the enemy."
In the next second, the cop lunged at him. When the knife didn't penetrate his skin, he cursed loudly. Rook smiled coldly at him and lifted up his tank top. "When we heard The Little Piggy was going to market, I started wearing my gear to school."
When the cop swore loudly again, Rook added. "We've got eyes everywhere, you're the one in danger now."
Quicker than Rook could move, the Donut Muncher lunged again, slashing the side of Rook's face with his knife.. Rook felt the flash of pain and backed away covering the left side of his face. That second was all the cop needed to shove Rook against the wall and make his escape.
Adrenaline was pulsing through his body, so even though he momentarily saw stars, Rook was able to recover after a minute. When his vision cleared, he saw Brock standing in the same spot as before looking shocked.
"What? Are you surprised that he would stab me? That pig you're helping is a psychotic predator and you had no problem giving that guy everything like a 2-dollar whore."
He didn't wait for Brock to say anything back but put an arm around Lilac and guided her to the safety of the school's parking lot.
~M~
~Meanwhile~
The Moon Racer pulled into the parking lot.
After shutting the engine down, Leif leaned heavily into the headrest and blew out a soft breath. After another minute, he felt Sapphire's hand in his.
They'd just come from the doctor's office. It wasn't the first time they'd seen the female doctor, but the sonogram picture that he now carried in his wallet made everything more real.
Turning his head, he looked at his mate who gave him a worried look. "Hey, we got this. There is nothing we can't get through; even with a little night crawler on the way."
"You can't tell me you aren't worried; our crew doesn't even know about this. We need to tell them the news and soon."
Leif leaned over and pressed a kiss to her lips. "One thing at a time, My Love. Let's just get through this school day first and before we know it, we'll be on the plane and meeting up with our friends."
"I'm sorry, Leif, there's just so much happening all at once." Sapphire said as she started tearing up again. "Dammit, these hormones are the worst."
Leif shook his head. "It's okay, I've got you." He pulled out the bandanna he kept in his back pocket and held it out to her. When she'd dried her tears and had calmed down, she looked at him.
"Ready for this?"
Leif nodded and adjusted his shirt. "Yeah. I'm ready to do this. Are you?"
Sapphire sniffled and then inhaled and exhaled. "Yep, just let me fix my makeup."
As she pulled out her makeup bag, Leif got out of the van and picked up both his and Sapphire's book bags. As he slung the straps over his shoulder, he saw Rook walking with Lilac towards them at a hurried pace.
The young goth was one of the recent additions to Queen Lydia's court. It was tradition, in their coven that the first act of the ruling couple was to pick a pair of young initiates, one girl and one boy, to be part of their court. For Lilac's case, it was known that she came from a violent situation; Queen Lydia had used the tradition as an excuse to add some sense of security to her and she'd taken to the new life like a duck to water. She'd even started smiling more than she did when she first started the year.
Until now it seemed…
As they got closer to the van, Leif noticed that Rook was bleeding, and he instantly knew something was wrong. He walked back to the van and pulled out the first aid kid.
"Dude, what happened to you?" he asked.
"The donut muncher is here. He and Brock cornered Lilac in the hall. I confronted him and he stabbed me, but got my vest instead, so he made another attempt and got my face. It hurts like a bitch and head hurts even worse. I think I hurt it too."
Leif paused and narrowed his eyes. "You said Brock... as in Elisa's Ex?"
"Yeah, I saw everything that day of the fight. His old man was the one that was mouthing off at the meeting- Spouting all that crap about 'natural selection'."
Leif sighed. "Not a surprise there, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. If the dad's an asshole than the son usually is too. He had to learn it from somewhere."
As Sapphire took his place fixing Rook up, Leif pulled out his cellphone and called the Manor. Rocky was the one that answered him.
"Leif? Shouldn't you be in class?"
"He's here."
"The Donut Muncher?"
"Yeah. Rook had a run in with him. He got knifed and has a possible concussion."
The line went quiet for a moment and then Rocky spoke again. "Ok, I need you to get Rook to the ER. We need to make sure that he gets checked out. I'll call his dad and we'll meet you there.
"Should we call Officer Tesla?"
"I'll handle that. Just get going."
"Ok. We'll head out."
When the call ended, Rook was still sitting there.
"So, what's the next step?"
"That was Rocky, he's telling us to get you to the ER."
"What about me?" Lilac asked nervously. "I don't want to run into that guy again."
Leif paused and then looked at his mate. "My Love, can you get him to the hospital? We need to go see the principle…he'll know what to do."
"Yeah, she'll be safer with you. I'll make sure he gets seen."
"Rocky said the cops and parents will meet you guys there."
When Sapphire nodded, he gave her a small smile and rested a hand on her stomach. Rook raised an eyebrow but then looked away at the intimate moment. After pressing a soft kiss to her forehead and then her lips, he handed her the keys and whispered something in her ear and then stepped back.
When the van drove away, he turned to Lilac. "Alright, let's get you to the office."
Lilac wanted to cry inside and she hated that she was shaking as bad as she was. All she knew was that she didn't want to go back into the school, not when that scary dude was still in there. She could feel her panic settling in.
As if he could hear her heart racing, Leif paused and looked down at her. Before her eyes, his kindly demeanor changed and his gothic lordly persona took over.
"Milady Lilac, I know you're scared, but you've got nothing to worry about. That bastard is most likely in there, but I'm Lord Cold Stone and a knight of the court. You've got noting to be afraid of since I'm here to protect you. Even if run into him, I'll take charge. He won't be able to touch you."
Lilac relaxed just a little bit and under his reassuring gaze, she felt herself drawing strength from him. Feeling calmer she drew herself up. "Okay, I'm ready."
"Good. Let's go."
As they walked into the school, heading for the principal's office, she kept in step with him and he kept an eye out for trouble. Just as he predicted, they saw the Donut Muncher chatting up one of the teachers; the charming grin he was using on her was sickening and he felt Lilac shudder next to him. He put an arm around her shoulder and guided her into the office.
The receptionist, Miss Claire looked up at him as they neared the counter. "Welcome back, Leif. How did your appointment go?"
Before he could answer. He heard a door open and heard the near quiet gasp of fear from Lilac. He peered at the reflective surface of one of the framed inspirational posters and saw that the pig had followed them into the office.
Thinking quickly, he looked at the older lady again. "The appointment was eye opening. I've never tried chocolate peppermint wedding cake before. My bride is all for it though I think fondant leaves much to be desired."
When the lady gave him an odd look, he took the sign in sheet and wrote a quick note.
Get Principle Matthews, we're in trouble.
The receptionist gave him a look of mild surprise but went along with it. "I didn't think the wedding was happening so soon. I'm not a fan of fondant either, if I were you, I'd go for the butter-cream icing instead."
"That's what the caterer said. We were able to try a few variations to see for ourselves and we decided to go with that icing instead."
The receptionist nodded and picked up the phone. "Principle Matthews. If you have a moment, I need to see you."
When she put down the phone, she stood up seeing Lilac looking paler than usual. Ms. Livingston, what are you doing here?"
Before Lilac could respond, the door to the principle's office opened and the retired marine stepped out. He took one look at the visitor and he pulled out his side arm.
"You must be one stupid son of a bitch to show up here."
He leveled the gun at the cop and cocked it. "Leave my school before I have you escorted out."
"You sure you want to threaten an officer? I'm only here for information on a fugitive."
"Yeah. And I'm the principle of this school and a marine. I know exactly what and who you are, and I've never been more sure that you're unwelcome here. I won't say it again; get the hell out of my school." When the cop didn't move, the principle took another step towards him. "Unlike you, I'm working with the local police and the chief has authorized me to use deadly force if necessary. Don't make me take that step."
The cop gave him a long look and then shrugged nonchalantly. "I don't think that'll be necessary, I've got all the information I needed anyway." As he backed up, he gave Leif a cocky grin. "Congratulations on the nuptials, I hope you and your bride will be very happy!" Then he walked out of the office and hopefully out of the school.
When the coast was clear, Principle Matthews gave them a long look. "Well, I can clearly see that you're not his bride. Lilac, did you have some part in this?"
"She was cornered by Brock and that pig. Rook saved her and got what will probably be a most rugged looking scar on his face for his trouble. Sapphire is taking him to the ER as we speak. I just needed to make sure that Lilac is safe. I'll let you decide how to act now that she's a witness."
The principle nodded and then looked at the receptionist. "Claire, would you please take Miss Lilac to the nurses office?"
When the two ladies were gone, the principle looked at Leif. Step into my office so we can discuss what's going on here."
"Hold on, there." Said a new voice. Leif turned back to see both Taylor and Jen walking in the door. Both women were dressed in their security gear and had guns strapped into their thigh holsters.
Principle Matthews turned to them and smiled. "Feel free to join us; there's a lot to discuss."
About an hour and a half later
Taylor, Jen, and Leif sat in the car out in the parking lot.
"This is one hell of a plan and it's pretty risky." Taylor commented. "You sure you're up for all of this?"
"Brock is damned snitch; there's no telling how much he blabbed to the Donut Muncher. For all we know he told them about the manor and that Autumn and Kyle live there. It's better that the eye of Sauron is turned away from the manor and onto us. That way he's if he tries to crash the ceremony, you guys will be in the perfect position to take him down."
Jen gave him a long look and then the proverbial light went off in her head. "How long have you known?"
Leif didn't back away from the question. "Sapphire became suspicious the morning after of the cleansing ceremony. We've been active since the night were hand fasted, but the night of our rebirth, things got really intense. Sapphire's mom is a witch and believes that the evocation of the spirits also woke up the spirit of the baby. According to the lady doctor, the baby had to have been conceived soon after we were joined. This morning, Saph and I went to her appointment. We saw the baby for the first time today, it's the size of a peanut, but it's there.
Jen nodded. "Is there anything we can do to help?"
"We've got this handled for the most part. Saph's mom is an herbalist and was able to come up with a natural remedy for the morning sickness and we're slowly coming up with a plan for housing." Leif paused and gave them both beseeching looks. "Besides the two of us and our immediate families, and the doctors, only you two know about our impending parenthood. We wanted to let the others know when we get to Portland, so please keep this on the downlow."
"And are you serious about the wedding?" Jen asked.
Leif nodded. "Absolutely. We've had the wedding license for two weeks now. Our parents gave their written consent and paid the fee. Sapphire wanted to get married before she started to show."
"So people won't assume this is a shotgun wedding." Taylor surmised.
Leif nodded. "I've loved her a thousand years and a day…I don't want anyone to assume we're getting married simply because she's carrying precious cargo. That's why I don't want anyone else to know about this. I don't want any bigger a target to be painted on her back than is needed."
"And you guys going on your honeymoon would be provide a means of escape without anyone questioning you."
"Exactly. So, can you help us?"
"Count on it." Jen said.
Angel Grove Hospital
Pediatrics' Ward
"Dude, what happened?" Leif said as he walked into the Rook's hospital room. "I thought you were just going to be evaluated?"
"It's nothing, Cold Stone. The doctors want to keep me for observation. My CAT scans checked out, but there's a pretty dark bruise on my back from when I hit the wall. Who'd have thought I bruise so easily? Anyway, I've got a minor concussion, so the docs want to keep me here over night for observation. If nothing happens between now and tomorrow, I can go home.
Leif sat down in the chair opposite his bride and exhaled softly.
"So, what happened after I left?" Rook asked.
Leif gave his mate a long look. "Well, I was hoping to discuss this in private, but the plans are put in motion already."
"What plan is that?"
"The Donut Muncher was snooping around for information and may possibly know where the manor is an that Katsume is living there. If he tries to attack the manor, the kids or dogs might get hurt. So I made mention of us getting married. Now the pig knows about it and hopefully will forget about the manor and go after us."
Many emotions flowed across Sapphire's face but then she bit her lip and nodded. "I don't like this, but i understand. There's been too much bloodshed at the manor already. If he was willing to hurt Katsume, there's no telling what else he would do if he found the place."
Lief softened his gaze as he regarded her. "I didn't expect the wedding to happen this soon, but it's the best alternative. We need to get out of the city without being questioned or detained. Being a married couple on our honeymoon, would help in that."
"And that nice after party we talked about?" Sapphire asked questioned. "I wanted the whole crew there for it!"
"We'll hold one once we're safely away. When we meet up with our friends, we'll have a small feast and do everything you had in mind."
Rook chose this moment to speak up. "So, do I get to be your best man?"
Leif looked up at him, having momentarily forgotten he was there. "Absolutely. I wouldn't pick anyone else…not even other members of the coven."
"And what were you thinking of for the location?" Conner asked from the corner of the room. He'd been sitting there quietly watching everyone, but now chose to speak up. Kira who sat on his lap smiled at them. "Are you going with a graveyard theme?"
Sapphire looked at them with raised brow. "A lot of people would assume that we'd head for the closest cemetery, But it's not my first choice. I'd planned on asking Kimberly for the use of her garden, but now it's too dangerous to hold it there. Not to mention that it's already being used for Melanie's wedding. We may have no choice."
Conner gave them an assessing look. "I may have another option."
Sapphire gave him a look full of hope. "What would that be?"
Conner looked at her and then at Kira. "I think its time to visit the convent. The holy sisters might be able to help us."
Leif gave them a look. "You know the nuns?"
Conner nodded. "Well, we did save them from thugs earlier this year. Maybe they can return the favor."
So, is everyone still here? I know it's a lot but this chapter pretty much wrote itself. Please let me know what you thought about this chapter in the review section below!