Eighteen rang the bell once, twice.
No answer.
She felt a presence at the window and her gaze met that of a pet on the other side of the glass.
This was new to her; or maybe, not that much.
The GPS had taken Eighteen straight to the address she reread in the text messages, just to be sure.
Eighteen rang again, lost patience again. She turned her finger into a gleaming black rod and slid it between the door and the jamb, until the lock clacked satisfyingly.
/
Sitting in her office, at work, Leni worried about Carly. The executive hadn't let her go home, had stayed awake to comfort her until she had fallen asleep, mostly from exhaustion. Leni had left her a copy of her keys, now she tried to call her to find out how she was but only found voicemail.
Leni had warned Carly it was a bad idea…
She heard Brent's voice from outside; he sounded furious.
-Is that any way, throwing my girl in the Dorée? You crossed the line, mate.-
-Your girl?-
Brent and Seventeen broke into Leni's office.
-Yeah, MY GIRL. On whom you shall not lay a goddamn finger.-
Leni interrupted them, -Did you boys come to me to dispute Lillian's virtue?-
Brent chose to ignore the dry, mocking chuckle that came out of Seventeen's mouth.
-Hello to you, Leni. Tell him he behaved like a bastard and suspend him.-
-I didn't hurt her, case closed,- muttered the top ranger, leaving a document on Leni's desk for her to read carefully.
-My firearms licence. Give me my shotgun, now.-
-And who gave you a firearms licence?-
Leni got no answer.
She'd been standing in his way for nearly two years, but now that he'd got John's permission and approval she had to give him his service weapon, like any other licenced ranger.
-Shooting poachers again, here we go!- Brent complained. -Lenchen, didn't you hear what I said?-
-And what can I do?- Leni retorted. They had already made enough noise. -Lillian looks peachy to me; I can't stand up for her, it's on her.-
Brent left the office, indignant; Seventeen turned around to follow him.
-No, you stay. Can I talk to you a minute?-
The boy's furrowed brows looked even blacker, -I don't have time.-
-Damn right you do,- Leni kept her cool. -I just wanted to say that you can go home for today. No, I'm not firing you, just have the afternoon off. John will be fine.-
-I don't take orders, least of all from you.-
-I don't care, Seventeen!- Leni snapped, firm and serious.
Only with that did she get the attention of the little jackass, -Go and make up with Carly.-
Seventeen ran a hand through his tied hair, feeling nervous; he looked from Leni to the window, -Is that all?-
It was Carly's mistake, she had made him suffer: that was his reaction to the action.
Leni agreed, partially, -You're all upset, rightly so. But it's getting out of hand: Carly has a baby inside, and you are responsible for it. How can you distress her, don't you understand that she's delicate?-
Of course he did...
/
Seventeen still didn't know whether to pick Carly up at Leni's house or not. He wanted a moment for himself, first of all.
At home he watched Pencil brush against his ankles, releasing clouds of fur; he could almost hear Carly complaining that he hadn't brushed her.
The cat couldn't keep silent for a moment.
-I got it! Let me!-
Seventeen fumbled in the kitchen and rudely put a bowl full of kibble on the floor, which Pencil ignored: she was busy meowing, her body projected toward the living room.
"Can't you see, you wretch, that I'm not hungry?" she would have told him, if only she had spoken his language.
Pencil led her grumpy master's gaze to an armchair in the living room, on which Eighteen sat cross-legged.
-You finally came home.-
Seventeen wrinkled his nose and went back to the kitchen, without saying a word. Eighteen joined him, boldly, -I still hadn't come to see you. Congratulations, you always get better houses than I do. -
-Eighteen, it doesn't concern me. Begone.-
He spoke to her in a tone so cold that Eighteen dared not reply immediately. Seventeen wasn't joking, he knew his sister: she wouldn't have come to him without a favour to ask, some problem to pester him with.
Faced with that reaction which, after all, she had feared, Eighteen lost her façade of composure; her face flushed with colour, -No! Listen to me...I need you.-
She wanted her twin brother to be there for her, no ifs and buts, as he always did: sometimes everyone just needs to be listened to, and that Seventeen let her talk was all Eighteen asked.
She had so much to say: she had to tell him about Hacchan, she had to vent about Krillin.
-So, if I have a problem I can't talk to you about it?-
Seventeen didn't call himself a complaint dump, -Your problems don't concern me.-
Eighteen followed him to the open door; the threshold stone crumbled as he shot up into the air.
The cyborg girl followed him on the side of a mountain, higher than the tundra, a stone's throw from the perennial snows. Perhaps he had tried to lose her.
Seeing her there with him, an unwanted and annoying presence, Seventeen grabbed her by the collar.
Eighteen squirmed to free herself, -Have you lost your bloody mind?-
-I don't care about you and your fucking whining,- Seventeen snarled.
He shoved his sister into a rock wall, with intentional violence that rocked the mountain beneath their feet.
Eighteen had never seen her brother like that.
Seventeen was the one who had always supported her, Eighteen had never doubted him. And now that she needed him, he let her drown in her anxiety.
In their life they had quarreled, they had even come to blows, but this time it was different.
He was livid, his words were plain viperous.
And that same venom rose in Eighteen's throat, spread to her voice.
-How dare you?-
They hadn't fought each other since Gero had tested them. But if that was what he wanted, Eighteen would remind him whothe queen was. She had never allowed anyone to treat her like that, let alone Seventeen would claim that right!
-If you're in the mood for a beatdown, I assure you I am too!-
Eighteen shook the debris from her tattered jacket and assumed a disdainful stance, as if to urge him to strike; she'd teach him to shut it, she'd beat the crap out of him until he'd spit blood.
-Always remember your place. I am the firstborn, the one who matters: you are nothing but afterbirth.-
-Good.-
The world around Eighteen blacked out, the blow that Seventeen landed in her face blinded her for an instant; when Eighteen opened her eyes again, just seconds later, it seemed to her that nothing had happened. Seventeen was standing in front of her, as if he hadn't even moved.
The cyborg girl felt a throbbing pain in her nose, in her eye sockets, in her whole cranium, she saw blood dripping at her feet; drops falling one by one, like the beginning of a downpour. She exhaled all the air in her lungs and more blood spouted from her nose, but she couldn't get rid of a new annoying congestion.
Seventeen stuck out his chin, with satisfaction; his sister came to attack him with a slap that made him fall, but that caused her pain too.
That blow started a hand-to-hand fight between the two siblings, blows heavy with anger falling blindly. On the mountain, pieces of rock and slabs of ice fell down with each blow, falling in silent crevasses.
-I hate you!- Eighteen shouted, her bruised nose still dripping; she forced Seventeen into a supine position, straddling him, hitting wherever she managed, -I hate you when you let me rot in my anguish!-
Seventeen still didn't want to speak: his indifference was the worst answer of all, even worse than the contempt from before. Eighteen planted a mighty knee in his chest, a blow that he felt like an earthquake, painful energy rippling from that epicentre to his limbs.
Seventeen let out a low moan.
-I don't deserve to be ignored like that, I don't deserve it at all!-
Eighteen picked him up by his shirt, slamming him against the same rock wall he had made a hole in, using her; and on that occasion Seventeen lifted his shin and struck a violent blow to her side. It seemed that he didn't want to attack her, only to defend himself: while Eighteen groaned at the sound of her own bones cracking and the impact forced her to stagger and bend, Seventeen simply stood looking at her.
And the way he looked at her, with disdain, not even considering her as a threat, made Eighteen furious. She placed her blade-arm in the middle of his chest, lightly shredding his shirt.
-You don't have the guts to do that, anyway. I'll always be- -
-You wanted this.-
The blade cut through Seventeen's enhanced tissues as if they were paper.
At each mocking smile he still had the nerve to give her, Eighteen turned her arm, penetrating deeper and deeper and making him narrow his eyes.
-You stupid…- he coughed, struggling not to fall to his knees.
-Don't worry, you'll live.-
Eighteen watched with admiration the usual Seventeen keeping his head up high, wounding himself up to the wrists as he locked the blade in his strong grip.
At that moment, Eighteen had a distinct advantage: yet Seventeen's body was still more efficient than hers, more powerful. Blocked by that resistance, the blade infused with infinite energy and kachi katchin did not move, it even began to crack.
Seventeen exhaled with a sneaky grin, -I felt nothing.-
The female cyborg couldn't stand the provocation: she pushed the blade in and viciously pressed the male cyborg's chest with her other elbow.
The pain brought a deep, guttural moan from him; Eighteen took a hard hit to the cheekbone with a victorious smile; if the goal was to torture him, she had scored.
Seventeen persisted in hitting her out of desperation, but he no longer mocked her.
Eighteen regretted being so close to Seventeen when he made a face and threw up a gush of thick stuff, blood mixed with bile, over her blade-arm; she punished him with a punch to the cheekbone, in turn.
Seventeen wanted to leave that fight with a last gesture of defiance: he slowly pulled the blade out of himself with one hand (with the other he took the time to wipe his mouth) and shattered it into a thousand pieces with the sheer power of his muscles.
An impressive, but vain attempt: with a blink of Eighteen's eye, the blade regrouped and glistened in the sun, ready to strike and kill if the one who wielded it wanted to.
"Seventeen … You haven't yet learned when it's time to back out. "
Eighteen had already proved her superiority: she avoided piercing him from side to side and perhaps puncturing his lungs, even if she was tempted to do so.
Reading on his face that he might soon shut down, Eighteen realised she had done enough damage; perhaps, even life-threatening damage.
/
They had fought with perfidy, with the intention of hurting, rejoicing in mutual suffering.
Kate would have wept to see them like that.
When Eighteen arrived at the Kame House she left everyone in shock; no one thought the cyborg girl could ever look like that.
She walked lopsided, dragging her foot, her swollen face caked with dried blood, her clothes reduced to dirty rags; with each inhalation she emitted a kind of whistle.
-Fuck …-
Krillin walked towards her. He placed a hand on her hip to support her and felt a hollow.
Marron began to cry, seeing her mother looking like something else.
Their little girl's tears stirred Krillin's anger, -Who did this to you?-
He would have sorted it out with his own hands.
-We had a little argument, Seventeen and I.-
"Oh ..."
That was how cyborg siblings settled a matter; the urge to avenge the mother of his daughter wavered.
Eighteen gasped and sneezed, Roshi took the liberty of approaching.
-Let me see…-
With unusual docility, Eighteen took her place on a low stool and let the old man tilt her head back. Blood ran down her throat, making her cough.
Roshi saw that the cheekbone and the nasal septum of the almost invulnerable Eighteen were completely crushed.
-My goodness...Krillin, senzu bean.-
-Was it the other cyborg?- Tien asked, almost incredulous.
-Roshi knows the rudiments of first aid,- Yamcha pondered, -But he certainly never fixed your husband's nose…-
The magic bean would help, but a maneuver had to be done anyway. Master Roshi put two cotton balls in her nostrils, Eighteen gulped the bean and braced herself for the pain, knowing her way.
-Don't worry about me, y'all: Seventeen had it much worse.-
/
Coming back to Verny, Carly found the chalet door open, no sign of Lapis around.
She had just sat down at the table, listlessly stirring sugar in her tea, when Lapis burst into the house with a crash.
Carly gasped, dropped the teaspoon. Lapis walked past her, a bruise on his pale face, lips colourless and hands full of cuts. Carly stopped his run to another room, reaching out for his open wound.
-Lapis! Oh god!-
Seventeen would probably be as good as new in a matter of days, but Carly lost a heartbeat to see him like that.
He turned and went to wash the blood away.
-You come home to me like this and demand I don't worry? We have to go to the hospital,- Carly yelled at him.
He had no intention of going to any hospital. With a stab wound like that, they would have called the police.
-Don't bloody tell me how to come home. And unlike you people, I don't break.-
-Fine. But I won't let you treat me this way, you can't make me feel like this!-
Carly raced like a train up the stairs, slamming the bedroom door.
Seventeen busied himself with washing and wrapping his torso in several layers of gauze. His lungs were unharmed, but every time he inhaled deeper, he closed his eyes and stuck his teeth into his lip not to groan.
He filled a glass with cold water and forced himself to take a large gulp; a moan escaped him and his bandage went red again. It was like drinking pure alcohol. He could hear Carly fiddling, closing doors and drawers; he saw her reappear with a hand luggage.
-I'm useless to you, am I not? When you'll feel like being my boyfriend again and not a source of anxiety, come as well to pick me up in Central City.-
Seventeen spat a dark clot into his fist, with no regards for her.
-Tch. If this is how you want to handle things, I don't think we should see each other again.-
He was horrible. How could he treat her like that?
-You can't! You can't leave me now.-
-You're doing anything to leave me.-
Could she and Lapis really no longer work?
Carly told herself she didn't want to suffer for him anymore, especially if he chose to be like that.
Millions of women around the world got dumped while pregnant, Carly never thought she could be one of them.
But no, that was just a fight and she mustn't think like that.
Seventeen grabbed her wrist; he wanted Carly to stay in a moment when he felt broken, he desperately wanted her to stick close to him and calm him down, to stroke his hair and dab his wounds.
But Seventeen didn't give himself that right: if he was broken, it was Carly's fault in the first place. And then maybe he secretly wanted to be miserable; with those torments he wanted to justify all the anguish he was putting Carly through.
So, then, he let her go.
/
The senzu bean had healed her broken bones, but there were issues that needed to be fixed putting away pride and rage.
Eighteen found him sitting on the bed, silhouetted against the sunset light. He cried softly, big tears.
Eighteen sat down beside him, and he lowered his head, -I was a jerk. When you got back, in that state, I...It's my fault.-
-Krillin, don't.-
Krillin felt her stroke the sensitive skin on the back of his neck. He knew that with her he could cry, he cried until his tears soaked her chest, until the sadness was chased away.
-Eighteen, I know he's your brother but- -
-No, let go. He's had enough.-
Eighteen looked at Krillin as if to say "you know what I'm capable of".
Husband and wife stretched out on the bed to watch the sunset.
-I have considered. Maybe, one day. But I can't make promises, Krillin. And you...that is not the way to convince me. I could, maybe, but I need time.-
Eighteen and Krillin had ended up making up. With a calm mind, Eighteen recalled one of her oldest declarations of love, from the little memories of her life as a human that Gero had left her to remember: the blood covenant was the only circumstance in which Seventeen would have to shed any for her.
In the end, some deep reactions never change: Eighteen felt uncomfortable knowing that her brother was hurt.
And that it was her doing.
/
Another lonely evening had fallen on Verny. Seventeen hurt everywhere, from his lowest ribs to his shattered breastbone. It hurt to sag or stretch, he couldn't even swallow his own saliva.
He had crouched on the sofa, falling into a bad half-sleep. During that brief hibernation of consciousness he saw himself go home and find Carly at full term, as she would be at the end of the year. He saw her smile at him, then saw Lillian emerge from the shadows. In her arms she held a small child who looked like her, golden complexion and deep dark eyes; but his fine, pure black hair was not Lillian's.
He could have been a couple of years old, the same age of their friendship ...
Physical pain woke Seventeen: the cut was still bleeding, the bandage was soaked wet.
Seventeen understood that his stomach had been compromised. With pain perhaps more psychological than physical, he acknowledged that he was far from invincible.
It would have been a nearly fatal injury if he were still a basic human; even now, consequences such as dehydration and blood poisoning could be a problem.
Rather, a nuisance; he had experienced worse in his twenty-three years of life.
He kept lying on the sofa, lacking the strength to do anything: if he was waiting to regenerate like a Namekian, it wouldn't happen.
"Hm. Not bad."
While he was mad at Eighteen the sister, he had to acknowledge the worth of Eighteen the fighter.
/
It was 7am in Central City.
That time, George Der Veer was grateful to see his daughter get off the train at the Northern Station. He hadn't seen her in almost a year.
-Daddy!-
Carly ran to meet him, flinging herself into his arms like when she was young.
-Carly Jane, this was a surprise…-
George kissed her, Carly did not let go: she felt protected in her dad's arms.
-I see that my nine-pack is always comfortable,- George joked. It was Carly who had given that name, as a child.
-Always…-
If there was one man Carly could always trust, it was big George.
He could finally meet his daughter's eyes, under her dishevelled fringe. It was glaring that she was tired, she had just travelled for ten hours. There was also something else, Dad read it on her face, -Are you all right, princess?-
Carly stared at him for a moment: the tears she had promised to hold back broke the boundaries of her will.
-...No.-
Still on the platform, Carly covered her eyes and let herself go to a heavy cry. George continued to hold her.
-How about you tell me over some good fish and chips?-
Carly nodded, still whimpering, -With loads of salt and malt vinegar…-
-And what kind of fish and chips would it be, without them?- George took her luggage and walked with her out of the station.
/
Instead of recovering, Seventeen had only been worse.
Back at the Dorée flood site Lillian looked at him in dismay, instinctively taking a step back. He just seemed to emit electric waves of "woe to whoever touches me".
-Hey Sev...every inch of you is great, from top to bottom, but what the fuck?! You look like death.-
Lillian didn't get to have an answer, twin sister Eighteen landed nearby. She had come from who knows where.
Eighteen paid no attention to the human girl who, without her sending her away, preferred to disappear.
She found Seventeen grimier than usual: being superhuman still allowed him to have a normal day but two days of bleeding, without even getting a drop of water, had taken their toll.
-What do you want, Eighteen.-
-Not to apologize, no.-
He was the one who had started, she had only responded to his provocations, -But to help you, maybe.-
She flung a small bag at him, Seventeen opened it without curiosity. -Senzu beans?-
-Kril has some at home; eat one.-
Seventeen didn't feel like; he just shook his head, like a kid throwing a tantrum.
Was it possible that whenever Eighteen tried to take care of him, Seventeen had to drive her away? It made her lose her temper.
Eighteen was trying to fix her conscience, rather than her brother, -Come on.-
As she was used to with Marron, she waited for Seventeen to tire of throwing tantrums and trying to spit the senzu out. She placed it in the back of his throat, -It will heal your wounds and you will regain your strength immediately.-
From how Seventeen was straining, grunting with one hand on his chest, Eighteen thought he was having a hard time swallowing.
She forced him to sit down with her, -Suck it like candy. It's not a block of concrete, c'mon…-
Seventeen was physically down, but his mind was the same as always; he gave his sister a highly annoyed look.
When the senzu bean kicked in, Seventeen touched his chest in relief and stood up to face Eighteen, using each of his extra two inches.
-You made a hole in my stomach.-
-With surgical precision; you broke my face and hip.-
-That mongrel dog walk suits you. You tore my shirt to pieces!-
Seventeen had had to throw it away.
Eighteen too, -Do you think I kept mine?-
They had run out of arguments; as children they could go on for hours.
-You pulled a nice number on me, I'll give you that,- Seventeen admitted.
-And you shattered my super blade: that's insane.-
Seventeen could do that, it was food for thought.
-Forgive me.-
-You too.-
The twins sat close together, grateful to have each other.
Eighteen wanted to see clearly, -But in the end, will you tell me why you were like this?-
-Nothing. Argued with Carly.-
Eighteen would soon be married, she hoped they hadn't broken up just now.
-And you, Eighteen?-
She no longer felt like telling. She hugged Seventeen, placing a hand on his neck.
-Nothing. Sleep.-
Eighteen pressed a vital spot on the back of his neck, causing him to sink into sleep. She took care to rest his head on her chest.
"You are not heavy ..." Eighteen carried him on her shoulder, flew up to the chalet.
She laid him carefully on the bed, leaving him in his undergarments and covering him with the light duvet.
The firstborn hoped that her little Lapis would have a long restful sleep.
She had learned that technique involving vital points from Roshi; after all, the more she learned the better.
Before leaving, Eighteen made sure the back door in the kitchen was locked.
It was then that she saw a family coming home: a big lad, a boy of maybe four and a girl with dyed black hair. The latter, although frail, looked well into the second trimester.
"Ugh ..."
Lately Eighteen saw expanding families wherever she went.
/
Carly was surprised by the joy her father had shown when she told him she was pregnant.
She had expected him to be shocked, or to feel sorry for her. Instead he told her "what a nice gift you guys have given me".
-Don't you want to tell your mother?-
Carly had no intention of letting that stranger know; George would respect her decision.
A video game had eased the tension: George had missed playing with Carly, he had just missed being a dad.
Every once in a while he brought her some treats, -Do you feel like hot chocolate with marshmallows?-
-I don't.-
-Cinnamon rolls?-
-Nope.-
-Any cheddar scones? Mr. Cox sent them.-
Their neighbour who had always shared his culinary experiments with them.
-You're doing it on purpose, dad!-
Carly surrendered, taking a scone from the tray. She was also aware of her reticence in speaking about the fierce arguments with Lapis, for fear that George would think ill of him.
-I don't want you to hate Lapis. That mistake was on me and he...that's the way he is…-
-I could never hate Lapis,- George reassured her. -But you are my daughter, I don't want you to feel bad because of him. I'd like to talk to him, you know, man to man.-
Carly had felt very agitated those past few days, she had even embarked on a frantic train ride.
Had it been up to her she would have had an ultrasound a week, but now she was really in pain. George wanted to go with her and Carly wanted him to be there.
The day after she arrived in Central City Carly texted Lapis,
I'm going to see the baby, with dad. Are you coming?
Carly hoped he wanted to join her.
But Lapis visualised without answering.
/
Father and daughter sat in the room, waiting for Carly's turn. Meanwhile, on another floor of the hospital Sara was taking the pushchair in the elevator. She was there with Amelia for a routine check-up. Sara pressed button 2 and watched the doors close; at the last moment a lady blocked them to let a last passenger in.
Looking absently around, Sara saw the unmistakable features and colours of her middle school classmate, -Lapis! What good wind?-
-Haste.-
He hit the -1 button.
Sara didn't mean to see where Lapis was headed, but the board inside the elevator let her know: -1, Prenatal Care.
She stared at him, stunned, -Lapis?!-
Seventeen nodded curtly, -Yeah. See you.-
/
He pushed the doors to floor -1 just before Carly's turn.
When she saw him, she felt her heart do a double pike in her chest, -You came!-
She hugged him with all her strength; Seventeen let himself be hugged.
-Carly Der Veer? Come on in,- a friendly-looking doctor invited the pregnant girl and the two men to follow her.
Seventeen felt restless to see Carly lying down, her eyes glistening with emotion and her belly completely uncovered.
An unknown, warming restlessness.
The doctor set to work with a kind of scanner.
-It happened just like that,- Carly said serenely, perhaps to herself.
-Eh, at your age…-
The doctor's smile immediately rubbed off on the Der Veers, when the ultrasound machine showed the clear, defined silhouette of a small body.
-Babe! Look!-
Carly held her breath; she let out a tear and urgently sought Lapis's hand; she looked with him at the baby stretching, movements she could not yet feel.
-It's the first time for the future dad, isn't it?-
The doctor noticed his eyes, they looked like gemstones, and the slight quiver of his lip.
Seventeen always thought that the others didn't notice how he felt; he may be cross ( he bloody was) and pretend that he didn't care, but he couldn't remain indifferent to what he was seeing.
It had all become so real.
Every great experience was a thing in itself: Seventeen had lived incredible adventures, yet seeing with his own eyes that mini human figure, separated from him only from a few layers of thin skin, it left him breathless.
It had happened just like that, and it had changed the course of his life forever.
"My kid..."
George heard Lapis sigh softly, he paused on him; he saw again the sixteen-year-old bad boy coming to pick Carly up with his motorbike, and was moved.
-A baby growing in its mother's womb is a miracle. And that's yours, boy.-
Carly was made to live and love: he had given her a boost of life that the rich soil of her body had soaked up greedily.
The seed had taken, and now he was looking at the flower.
/
Thoughts of the author:
Eighteen avoiding stabbing her brother again, how magnanimous!😅 She had the upper hand here, hands-down.
Musings on my favourite characters:
Y'all always remember that 17 and 18 are not cute and cuddly. Their fight, full of anger by the way, had to be rough and raw.
Despite their progress, the two of them are not particularly efficient at assimilating their own emotions and living with them. Especially Seventeen. Eighteen can be very bitchy, but in the end she remains a good sister! I still see her as more adult than him. And Seventeen continues to act like a jerk with Carly, but in the end he is not indifferent to his child...
Nobody is perfect, I am always very careful not to idealize 17 and 18; I think I stayed IC. I hope so.
Last but not least, happy new year everyone! I hope you had snowy holidays (unlike us in the South of the UK), may 2021 be a serene year.
Don't forget to let me know your impressions!
