So I made this in honor of Valentine's Day, it's purely fluff (gagging sounds can be heard in the background), not too much attention to detail or characterization, just a cute little romance fic…Enjoy!
Also please note that it has been FOREVER since I read the Avalon books so if you see a mistake with anything from the book please tell me. I especially forget more Adriane/Zach things from the first series.
This was supposed to be a one-shot but it was huge so I'm breaking it down into three chapters, one for each couple. Anyways, enjoy (hopefully)
Readers-(all look at calendars) It's August…
Snowlia-(burns calendars) NO IT'S NOT!
Readers-O.o
Snowlia-DO THE DISCLAIMER!
Disclaimer-Contrary to popular belief (popular being no one) I do not in fact own Avalon…Now I'm sad…
A cool breeze blew soft auburn curls in Emily Fletcher's face as she stood outside Stone Hill Middle School waiting for her mom to pick her up. She had a project she had needed to work on and had to stay after school to finish.
"Stupid science project…" she mumbled as she pulled her scarf tighter around her neck. Last week's snowfall was just now beginning to melt and the slush beneath her feet made an unpleasant squishing noise whenever she took a step, not to mention soaking through her sneakers. Sighing she turned left and right, looking in vain for a clock to alert her of the time, she was needed at the Ravenswood Manor at exactly 5:30 and by the way things looked she was going to be late.
A bit after this realization she saw her mother pulling into the school parking lot, her lack of a clock made her unsure of exactly how late her mother was. Sighing she raced towards the car pulling her coat closer. "The guys are going to be so mad…"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Where have you been?"
"We're all ready late; the guys are waiting for us!"
"Nice call Emily…" She bowed her head a she took her punishment from her friends.
"I'm sorry guys, I had to stay after school for a project; I couldn't help it." She pleaded for their forgiveness.
Sighing Adriane leaned up against the library wall "It's all right; I just can't believe you left me alone with her this long." She dropped her tone so only Emily could hear.
"She couldn't have been that bad Adriane…"
"Oh, she could and she was." Sparing a glance back at the Blazing Star she continued upon seeing her safely inspecting herself in the mirror "She's been going crazy all morning, I can't take it anymore!"
"Emily!" her head snapped up to see Kara scrutinizing her now. "You're wearing that?"
Her tone of scorn caught her off guard "Well, yeah." She looked down self-consciously; she wore a typical Emily-ish outfit, a tee-shirt and a pair of old jeans with slightly worn sneakers. "What's wrong with it?" She looked back to Kara and something struck home. Kara looked as if she had spent even more time on her outfit then usual, from her slim fit red tee-shirt with a glittering heart to her perfectly polished black boots, nothing was out of place. Even Kara's ruffled black mini skirt was a little stand-outish, even for the bold Blazing Star. Her make-up was even more flattering then usual (if that was at all possible).
"Valentine's Day!" She yelped jumping to her feet in alarm. "I completely forgot."
"You forgot!" Kara screamed like it was the biggest atrocity she could have ever imagined.
"You seem rather upset there Emily, were you planning anything special for today?"
She froze realizing what she had revealed with her outburst, turning away so they couldn't see her blush she did the only reasonable thing and lied, badly, but lied just the same "No, I just feel bad for not dressing up a bit, I mean it is Saint Valentine's Day right?"
"Please," Laughed Adriane "No one even knows who Saint Valentine was; you just wanted to do something special with Marlin." She grinned cattily, hitting the nail right on the head. Honestly Emily had no set plan for what to do; just maybe being with the Aquatanian Prince on Valentine's Day would give her an excuse to get a bit…closer to him.
"Saint Valentine was killed on February 14th for refusing to defy God before the emperor but he healed some girl before he died or something like that…" Kara trailed off as she reapplied her eyeliner distractedly. Her rather out of place knowledge of the holiday was met by a curious silence that she didn't seem to notice.
"Um, yeah. See, I wanted to mourn for poor Saint Valentine!"
"Right," Adriane drug out the vowel in the word "anyway we'd better get going, they're waiting for us." As Adriane stood Kara laughed, smiling menacingly at them in the mirror.
"What?"
"I wouldn't be so quick to mock Emily; you're the one all dressed up!" Sure enough now that she had stood up Emily saw a brand new grey and gold AFI tee-shirt that fit her rather snugly and dark jeans that hugged her hips; even her Converse had lost the normal slightly dingy tint. She turned her head so her perfectly brushed onyx hair fell across her face, attempting to hide her light but still uncharacteristic make-up, she also wrapped her arms around her back, covering her sparkling black nail polish and red and black arm warmers Emily had never seen her wear before. "Trying to bring out the wolf in a certain Aldenmore boy?" she teased. Adriane flushed red, with what appeared to be a mixture of anger and embarrassment, Emily knew Kara had gone too far in her cockiness.
"Well at least I'm not wearing the shortest skirt on the market just to get felt up by some renegade prince…" Though her expression was hidden from them, Kara's back went rigid. She whipped around from reapplying her lip gloss with a murderous air.
"Well at least I'm getting something…" She had crossed the line, Adriane lunged forward, stone ablaze but Emily jumped in the line of fire.
"Stop it guys! What do you two have to complain about?" Blonde and Brunette tore their furious gazes away from each other to the distressed healer. "Kara you know you're gorgeous and the all of the Fairy Realms knows that Lorren thinks so too and he likes you too, not just your body; and Adriane! It's so obvious that Zach likes you as well! He spends every minute we're there with you!" she collapsed with her head in her hands into the arm chair behind her. For the moment being her friends put aside their differences to aid their friend who was at this point near tears.
"Emily!" gasped Adriane "What's wrong."
She sighed again behind her hands "Nothing really, I guess…I don't know…You guys are just so lucky, you're pretty and you're brave and you can get the guy you want." She dropped her voice "Marlin will never like me."
"Don't say that Emily!" Kara chastised "You should see the way he looks at you!"
"Yeah, but he'll get bored, he's a prince! I can't even get a regular guy's attention and now a prince? Am I crazy?" Kara opened her mouth to say something but Emily caught her "I know Lorren's a prince too, Kara, but don't even try to use that, you were born a princess, I might as well be the girl cleaning out the sea dragon stables…"
"Don't talk like that about yourself Emily! You're the only one who can handle Marlin, he listens to you, if it wasn't for you I can guarantee he wouldn't be allowed anywhere near the rest of us…"
"Gee, thanks Adriane…"
"You know what I mean!"
Kara flipped her golden locks over her shoulder nervously "I know I'm suppose to be a princess and all, but that doesn't stop me from being nervous around Lorren, I mean what if you're wrong and he really does only want me for my body, if at all…"
"Hell, Zach's not even a prince and I still can't think straight around him."
Emily laughed a bit, watching her friends confess their feelings for the other-realm boys. Both of them looked up at her curiously "We really should have these little girl talks more often." She patted their hands.
Before any of them had a chance to say anything more Ozzie came bursting into the room, a ball of brown and black fur. "Girls, girls, girls," he began frantically "the guys are here, they decided to meet us instead of us going to them!" the ferret panted from his spot atop the sofa.
"WHAT?" was the resounding answer. Kara leapt up and raced to mirror to continue her vain preening. Adriane jumped as well, ducking beside Kara to look at herself with a pessimistic look on her face as Emily ducked down in the chair, not even wanting to look at herself and debating with whether or not to say she was sick and avoid the whole confrontation.
Lyra and Dreamer trotted into the room, taking their place beside Adriane and Kara fussing with their appearance in the mirror.
"Are you all right Kara? You seem upset."
"I'm fine Lyra!" Adriane tried with no success to assure Dreamer the same thing. "Where are the guys?"
Lyra perched herself on a large armchair and cocked her head questioningly. "Most likely in Aldenmore…where we're supposed to meet them; are you sure you're all right Kara?"
All three girls froze and Emily whipped her head towards the giggling ferret trying desperately to cover his mouth with tiny paws. Unable to hold it in any longer he exploded, rolling down the couch onto his back. "That was too easy…"
"You little weasel!" Kara made as if to grab to Ozzie but with a swift motion he buried himself amongst the couch cushions. A muffled giggling could be heard.
"What's the big deal with this Valentine's Day anyway?" Dreamer asked curiously. "It doesn't seem too good if you are all so upset over it…"
Kara sighed, "No it's great, it's the holiday for love after all, it's just nerve racking…"
"Barbie, if you put on anymore make-up you're going to get some kind of skin disorder." Adriane scoffed as Kara raised her eyeliner brush for another coat.
"Leave me alone, it's none of your business!" The blonde retorted but tucked the brush away in her purse just the same.
"All right guys, we're all pathetic when it comes to those guys and you both know it. Can we have a truce for just a few hours, for good old Saint Valentine, whoever he may be?" Emily pulled up her legs and wrapped her arms around her knees. Warrior and Blazing Star narrowed their eyes at one another before reluctantly mumbling something that sounded like an agreement.
"I think we'd better get going or your lovers are going to start to worry…" For a lack of witty retorts all three girls leapt at the section of the sofa the voice had come from. After a moment of mild ferret abuse the three looked at one another and then to the door.
Crossing through the mirror was a sensation all of the girls were accustom to by now but each one of them felt a bit queasy after this particular time. They recognized their new surroundings instantly. What was once the Shadowlands spread out before them in a garden of lush vegetation, though they had been here before it still took all of their breaths away. After a few seconds of adjusting to the new environment, rather then the dusty ancient manor, they saw their counterparts, standing not too far off by a small fountain, a stone hippocampus rearing from its pail blue depths.
The three boys stood around it, none of them having noticed the girls' arrival yet. "Hey guys!" Ozzie called, starling all three boys; blue, green and brown eyes turning to meet the girls. The ferret bounded forward and leapt up onto the fountain's edge then turned to whisper something to the boys that sounded suspiciously like 'they're all crazy today'.
Zach was the first to greet them, leaning up against a tree stump, staring off into space his sandy hair falling across bright blue eyes. In a swift movement he leapt to his feet and hastily brushed the dirt from his dark jeans and light tee shirt, clothes Adriane had gotten for him. "Kara, Emily…Adriane." He paused a moment before speaking her name, attempting to keep his eyes focused on hers instead of roaming across her body and her obvious attempts at added beauty. "You look…amazing." He smiled "Not that you usually don't." he added in a rush and the warrior couldn't help but blush. Narrowly escaping an awkward pause Zach reached out and grabbed her hand, turning away so she couldn't see his tan skin redden. "Come on, I want to show you something!" and without another word, led her down one of the twisting paths.
Lorren was the second to move, he too had been leaning against a tree, standing eerily still. With a swift movement he was standing at his full height and crossed the space between himself and the girls in two easy strides. Kara had to tilt her chin up to meet his bright eyes. She wasn't sure how tall the goblin prince actually was but she was pretty sure Zach was about the same height as her brother who stood at 5'10, and Lorren was easily a good 3 or 4 inches taller then him. A coy smile tugged at the corner of his green lips. He took her in with a few swift glances. "You look as beautiful as ever princess." With that he bowed deeply before her.
"Always the charmer Lorren." She smiled, trying to keep her composure and not blush though she knew she was failing horribly.
Kara spared a quick glance over at an awkward looking Emily and Marlin and shot Emily a sly grin before taking Lorren's hand and leading him off down another path. "Come on Zorro; let's leave these two kids alone."
Emily flushed deeply as Kara led Lorren away, she caught the glance Lorren and Marlin exchanged but she couldn't quite decipher it. Marlin still hadn't looked at her. She looked at the ground and at her old sneakers, she had never thought of them as ratty before but right now she thought they looked disgusting. She looked back up at Marlin tentatively. He still wasn't looking at her, but his head was tilted in her direction as if he might be watching her out of his peripheral vision through his chestnut hair.
"You know you don't have to stand over there all day." His tone was light; she could tell he was smiling though she couldn't see his mouth. Anger began to replace her self-conscious demeanor.
"Well it's great to see you again too…" she grumbled, crossing her arms. He tensed at her uncharacteristic anger but relaxed slightly as she took a seat a few feet from him at the fountain.
Finally he turned towards her, his normally arrogantly proud expression had been replaced by a more humble one, perhaps a bit sheepish with a light purple blush covering his nose and cheeks. Emily bit the inside of her cheek lightly; he was making it very difficult to stay angry with him. "I'm sorry." He managed finally. Emily gently accepted his apology and guessed that, as a prince, apologizing wasn't something he did all too often. "I'm not use to…" he trailed off shyly, avoiding her eyes.
"To what?" she asked confused at his very un-Marlin-ish behavior. She closed the few feet between them so she was now sitting side by side with him, he was facing the fountain and she was facing away from it.
He shook his head and the nervous demeanor seemed to leave him. "Nothing, never mind, anyway, how you been since last I saw you?" He seemed a little more like himself, though she knew he was different around her then anyone else. He was more civilized and friendlier with her then others, but it was a start.
She nodded thoughtfully "I've been all right, not too much going on. Well, you know, besides the whole 'being a mage and having to save a world from evil forces' thing…" he laughed and she couldn't help but smile, she loved seeing him in such a light hearted mood. "Happy Valentines Day by the way." She added, watching the toe of her sneakers make patterns in the dirt.
"Huh?" she looked up at his confused expression. "Happy what day?"
"Valentine's Day…you don't have Valentine's Day here?" she sounded as shocked as Kara had when she told her she had forgotten the holiday, if you wanted to call it that.
He shook his head, earthy eyes sincerely confused. "Nope, what is it?" Emily looked swiftly to the ground, embarrassed. "What?" he asked startled. "Is it something bad?"
She giggled a bit and shook her head, curls bouncing. "No…" she swung her feet back and forth for a moment before continuing. "It's the holiday of love and romance." She spared a glance up at him, his eyes were wide with almost seemed like panic and he was staring at the fountain without really seeing it, she could practically hear the gears in his mind processing this. With a bit of a jerky motion he locked eyes with her and she just as quickly looked back at the ground, cursing the blood rushing to her cheeks. "I guess I was suppose to dress up, you know like Kara and Adriane but I kind of forgot, but I guess it's a lame holiday anyway so, you know, just forget I said anything…" she trailed off, trying desperately to stop herself from rambling like an idiot. God when had it gotten so hot here? She could feel her curls sticking to the back of her neck with sweat. 'Lovely' she thought to herself.
"The holiday of love and romance…" he stated slowly as if still trying to process this. She spared him another glance before nodding. "Shouldn't you be spending it with a human boy?" His words were like a knife through her heart. It was then that the term 'broken hearted' really hit home, it wasn't just a pretty saying, her chest ached. Her vision was slowly going blurry as moisture rushed to her eyes. 'No, no, no!' her mind screamed as she brushed the tears away from her eyes with the back of her hand. 'This is stupid I'm not going to cry' but her body didn't seem to want to comply.
"Yeah, I…I guess I should be…I…I don't know what I'm doing here…wasting your time…" she turned away from him. She had meant her words to sound strong and maybe even a little angry like she knew Kara or Adriane would have but they sounded pathetic and beaten, like a small child trying to sound tough.
"Emily!" she looked up at his shocked tone to see him staring at her dismay. 'If you look at him he can see you crying!' The voice yelled again. She looked down. "Emily," he moved closer so they were only inches apart. "I didn't mean it like that, not at all!"
"No, no it's all right, I understand." She managed.
He wrapped an arm tightly around her hunched shoulder and she blushed at his touch. "No you don't." He shook his head. His eyes were desperate, pleading to her for forgiveness. "I meant, shouldn't you be spending today with a human boy and not…" he paused a moment and forced a self-conscious sort of smile. "and not a fish?" he tentatively raised a webbed hand for her to see.
"Would you prefer I spend it with a human boy?"
"No!" he gasped then blushed at his own outburst. "I…I mean…I can't believe you chose to spend it with me. I don't think I've ever been more honored." His arm tightened a bit around her, bringing her closer into his chest. She bit her lip to stop a giggle and stared hard at the ground. "Stop that!" he snapped angrily, sounding more like himself then ever. She jumped a bit at his outburst and he closed his eyes a moment to calm himself again.
"Sorry…" she whispered, unsure what she was apologizing for.
"Then stop doing it!"
"What?" she yelped.
He sighed exasperated; this was the Marlin she knew. He brought his hand to her cheek, lifting her face to his a bit roughly. "Emily you're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen and you're making it very difficult to admire you when you won't look at me." She was breathless at his confession but she didn't look away and she couldn't help the smile that crossed her face. Every girl dreamed of hearing those kinds of words, but in a romantic way and said with love. Marlin had practically spat it, his tone dripping with annoyance with her unwillingness to comply. For some reason it made it all the better. Marlin wasn't exactly the perfect guy. He was hot headed, arrogant and impatient, but he was her Marlin through and through. She was surprised at how quickly she had become possessive of him but she knew he was hers. Emily wasn't an aggressive person but she couldn't help thinking she'd knock the block off of any pompous little princess who thought they could steal him away from her.
She laughed and leaned a bit closer to him. "You're so cute Marlin." She said it on impulse and didn't even have time to be embarrassed. He flushed purple, his arrogance still stood on his features but he had been taken down a few pegs. Shyly Emily placed a hand on the side of his face. She felt him catch his breath, his eyes widened a bit and his lips parted slightly. Slowly she slid her hand up through his bronze hair, she knew she must have imagined his shiver, there was no way she could have caused such a reaction from him. Marlin did the same thing to her, gently running his hand from her cheek to her auburn locks.
"It doesn't matter that you didn't dress up, you're always beautiful." He told her, obviously trying to sound bold but she saw his eyes cringe a bit in nervousness, his blush deepening. She blushed as well and forcibly held eye contact.
"No one's ever made me feel as beautiful as you can." She could have smacked herself for the lameness of that line but she couldn't help it, it was one hundred percent true. She no longer felt mousy and nerdy, how could she feel anything but beautiful with him staring at her like she was the one with royal blood and he was the commoner?
Emily shivered as she felt his other hand on her side, delicately holding her closer to him then ever before. He leaned into her and lightly brushed his lips against hers. It was softer then could have imagined but her heart was pounding like she'd been running a marathon. They separated all too soon and stared at each other like they couldn't believe what they had just done. Blushing furiously they both laughed a bit nervously and somehow their lips met a second time with a little less hesitation then the first time.
When they pulled apart the second time Marlin tried to compose himself more quickly then before. "I'm not use to having someone be happy to see me."
"What?"
He sighed again impatiently. "Before, I said 'I'm not use to…' I was going to say, 'I'm not use to having someone be happy to see me. Usually people are annoyed when they are forced to interact with me." He said it very calmly and slightly sarcastic in true Marlin fashion but Emily saw how much it meant to him to finally have a friend.
She smiled and took his pail green hand in her pail white one "I'm always glad to see you." she whispered and leaned in once more.
AN-Yeah, yeah, yeah gags-on-fluff I know! I was just in a romanticy (silly Microsoft that is so a word!) kind of mood so I decided to scribble this down. Hope you enjoyed it, if you didn't…well…I didn't just waste my time reading a nine page fanfic :P
Next chapter is Zach/Adriane, it's all ready finished but I need someone to look it over, any takers?