Title: Discovering Her Destiny : A Dance with Death. A Date with
Destiny.
Disclaimer: If I owned Alec, do you think that I'd give him to Max?
Summary: Part 1 of the "Discovering Her Destiny" Trilogy. The prequel to "Tempting the Fates". Max realises that she's not meant to be with Logan, but there's somebody who's just what she needs. M/A
Pairings: Max and Alec. If any two people were destined/designed to be together, it would be them.
Setting: 2021-2022
Spoilers: Anything and Everything from both the show's seasons can pop up somewhere. I have only just begun to watch Season 2 myself - Designate This aired on the 22 March, so if I'm not totally accurate; just know it's because I must've read the transcript wrong or something, and TELL me that it's wrong!
Chapter 4: Into the Woods
"Here we are!"
"Here?"
"Yeah. Told you it was close by. Nothing fancy - just the woods ouside Seattle. Umm...Max? You okay? You look pale."
All Max saw was Ben. Dead. In these woods. By her hands.
"Max?"
"I'm fine. Let's go."
She followed Alec silently, although all she wanted to do was beg him to take her home.
"This looks like a good spot."
Max just nodded her head without even looking.
"Nobody's around. We can just leave our stuff here. Let's take that hike, Alec."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~***~*~ *~*~*~
When they returned, it was starting to get dark. Alec had gathered wood while on the hike, and he started to set up the fire. They sat side by side staring at the glowing flame dancing in the still night. The light from the blaze highlighted his face, and Max caught her breath when she looked at him. He looked exactly like Ben. He caught her staring at her and she dropped her gaze in embarrasment. She impaled her marshmellow and held the stick over the fire.
"Hey Max! Scary story time. You first."
Max silently debated with herself about telling him.
"Max?"
She reached a decision.
"Once upon a time there was a nine year old girl. Her name was Max..."
"Hold on. I was asking for a horror story, not the story of your life!"
"They're one and the same, Alec. Now shut up and listen. This is the only time that I'm going to tell you this. Where was I?"Oh. Her name was Max. She had lots of brothers and sisters: Zack, Eva, Jack, Tinga, Brin, Syl, Zane, Jondy, Krit...and Ben."
Alec was finally paying attention
~*~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~***~*~ *~*~*~
"...and he begged me not to leave him there for Manticore to capture him. So I..."
She looked up and saw Alec's eyes staring at her in utter shock. She took a deep breath and continued.
"So I asked him to tell me the story of the Good Place, and then I broke his neck."
Alec cringed at the mental image.
"You killed him?"
Max's voice was devoid of any emotion. She felt numbed by having to re- live that whole horrible episode of her life.
"I had no choice. If I was in his place, I would've asked the same of him. Anything but Manticore."
"These woods?"
Max nodded.
"I'm sorry, Max."
"Renfro told me that I kill everyone I love. Tinga's dead. Zack killed himself for me, and now he's as good as dead. I'm poison, Alec."
Alec grabbed her arm.
"No. Listen to me Max! You're not poison. Renfro was just being a bitch. You understand? None of it was your fault!"
"Everything was my fault. If I hadn't refused to leave Seattle the first time Zack asked me to, then he wouldn't have had to turn himself in to save my sorry ass! If he hadn't turned himself in for me, then he wouldn't have been bugged. If he hadn't been bugged, Tinga's location wouldn't have been revealed. Tinga wouldn't have had to run, and her family wouldn't have been discovered. She wouldn't have had to turn herself in to save her little boy's life and she wouldn't have ended up dead! Most likely, the attack on Manticore wouldn't have taken place but it would have meant that Zack was alive and well, and I wouldn't have had this stupid virus..."
Alec sighed.
"Max. If you hadn't attacked Manticore, it would still be hunting you down; and the rest of us would still be their captives. Your sister Brin would probably be dead from the Progeria and Ben would have kept on his killing until Manticore got hold of him. Logan would have eventually exposed Manticore anyway and they would have killed us all. If you hadn't let everybody out from the fire, there'd be hundreds dead. You gave us all freedom. Besides, if it wasn't for you and your seizures in the beginning, you guys probably wouldn't have escaped at all. Everything comes back to you Max. The good stuff too. Not just the bad."
"So you're saying that it was all one big plan by some supernatural force?"
"They say that the Fates work in mysterious ways."
"Really? You believe that?"
"Well, not really. But otherwise we wouldn't have met!"
"Oh, I think that Renfro deliberately put you as my breeding partner. Just to rub Ben's death in my face. Mean, nasty, old witch that she was."
"Actually...they kinda set those up before we were born."
"What?"
"The breeding programme was mapped out while they were still playing with our DNA. They decided which partners would produce the best offspring."
"I so did not want to hear that!"
"Sorry."
"So, what you're saying is...I was MADE for you?"
"Scary thoughts. Bad mental images. But yeah."
" I used to make fun of the old fashioned belief of Destiny. You know...the whole 'Someone, Somewhere is made for you' story. Now I hear that science can make that happen literally? Technology has totally screwed up my life!"
"Relax, Max. We cheated Manticore out of playing Cupid. Nobody cares about who you hook up with anymore."
"No. I care! What if this means that if I...uh...have a kid with anybody but you, then it'll have a tail or fur or something? What if the hidden kitty-in-me emerges visibly in my descendants?"
"You want kids?"
"I'm talking theoretically."
"You want kids!"
"Maybe one day, when I'm older with more money...and have a lot less enemies...and can actually find another guy who's compatible with my DNA!"
"Well, there were more than one breeding partners assigned to each of us. In case of death or...inability to perform."
"I don't suppose you know who my other 'perfect matches' are, do you?"
"Well...all the breeding assignments were posted up on the notice board."
"You're kidding! Manticore had a 'Lonely Hearts' column? Who were your other partners?"
"Nobody that you'd know. You were the only '09 escapee that I was paired off with."
"Yeah, I remember how thrilled you were with the idea!"
"Hey, I didn't want to catch anything."
"Which is why you sleep with any woman you can get your hands on. STD regardless."
"A guy in need, is a guy indeed."
"Uggh. What about my other partners?"
"It was me, X5-493..."
"I was paired off with Ben?"
"Well, he has the same DNA as me. Makes sense. But it gets better. Your third match was X5-599."
Max looked like she wanted to throw up.
"Zack? They wanted me to breed with ZACK?"
"You know, when I met him...my guess was that he wouldn't have been too averse to the idea. But to your total non-delight, I was the only match available."
"Shut up! This conversation is starting to sound worse than any horror story."
"Is the idea of you and me so disgusting?"
"I'm not going to answer that question, Alec."
"Your favorite aversion tactic. Oh, before I forget. Under no circumstances are you to mate with the guy you called Krit."
"Well, I wasn't exactly planning to, but why not?"
"Your DNA is extremely similar to his. It would be the equivalent of in- breeding. You know - like mating with your real brother. Produces genetic mistakes in the offspring."
"Thanks for sharing that charming detail with me Alec. Next time I see Krit, I'll let him know. But what I want to know is: Do you want children?"
Alec laughed.
"Can you imagine me as a dad?"
Max thought about it for a moment.
"Actually I can."
"You can?"
"Can you see me as a mother?"
"I can see you strangling the kid. That is...if the poor mite isn't poisoned by your cooking first!"
"Very funny. Should've known that you wouldn't be able to handle a serious conversation for too long."
"If it makes you feel better, I doubt that any children you have will end up deformed. I mean, you said that your sister had a son."
"Yeah."
"And was he a freak?"
"No...he looked totally human, and the only difference from normal children was that he was 'gifted'."
"So you've got nothing to worry about...except maybe for that melted marshmellow on your face."
"What? Where? Help me get it off!"
Alec smiled and obliged because the next thing Max knew, his lips were brushing against hers.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~***~*~ *~*~*~
A/N Well? Please review! OK, I've only just watched Proof of Purchase, but I'm aware that Max tells Alec about Ben in Hello, Goodbye. This is just my fictional version.
Disclaimer: If I owned Alec, do you think that I'd give him to Max?
Summary: Part 1 of the "Discovering Her Destiny" Trilogy. The prequel to "Tempting the Fates". Max realises that she's not meant to be with Logan, but there's somebody who's just what she needs. M/A
Pairings: Max and Alec. If any two people were destined/designed to be together, it would be them.
Setting: 2021-2022
Spoilers: Anything and Everything from both the show's seasons can pop up somewhere. I have only just begun to watch Season 2 myself - Designate This aired on the 22 March, so if I'm not totally accurate; just know it's because I must've read the transcript wrong or something, and TELL me that it's wrong!
Chapter 4: Into the Woods
"Here we are!"
"Here?"
"Yeah. Told you it was close by. Nothing fancy - just the woods ouside Seattle. Umm...Max? You okay? You look pale."
All Max saw was Ben. Dead. In these woods. By her hands.
"Max?"
"I'm fine. Let's go."
She followed Alec silently, although all she wanted to do was beg him to take her home.
"This looks like a good spot."
Max just nodded her head without even looking.
"Nobody's around. We can just leave our stuff here. Let's take that hike, Alec."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~***~*~ *~*~*~
When they returned, it was starting to get dark. Alec had gathered wood while on the hike, and he started to set up the fire. They sat side by side staring at the glowing flame dancing in the still night. The light from the blaze highlighted his face, and Max caught her breath when she looked at him. He looked exactly like Ben. He caught her staring at her and she dropped her gaze in embarrasment. She impaled her marshmellow and held the stick over the fire.
"Hey Max! Scary story time. You first."
Max silently debated with herself about telling him.
"Max?"
She reached a decision.
"Once upon a time there was a nine year old girl. Her name was Max..."
"Hold on. I was asking for a horror story, not the story of your life!"
"They're one and the same, Alec. Now shut up and listen. This is the only time that I'm going to tell you this. Where was I?"Oh. Her name was Max. She had lots of brothers and sisters: Zack, Eva, Jack, Tinga, Brin, Syl, Zane, Jondy, Krit...and Ben."
Alec was finally paying attention
~*~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~***~*~ *~*~*~
"...and he begged me not to leave him there for Manticore to capture him. So I..."
She looked up and saw Alec's eyes staring at her in utter shock. She took a deep breath and continued.
"So I asked him to tell me the story of the Good Place, and then I broke his neck."
Alec cringed at the mental image.
"You killed him?"
Max's voice was devoid of any emotion. She felt numbed by having to re- live that whole horrible episode of her life.
"I had no choice. If I was in his place, I would've asked the same of him. Anything but Manticore."
"These woods?"
Max nodded.
"I'm sorry, Max."
"Renfro told me that I kill everyone I love. Tinga's dead. Zack killed himself for me, and now he's as good as dead. I'm poison, Alec."
Alec grabbed her arm.
"No. Listen to me Max! You're not poison. Renfro was just being a bitch. You understand? None of it was your fault!"
"Everything was my fault. If I hadn't refused to leave Seattle the first time Zack asked me to, then he wouldn't have had to turn himself in to save my sorry ass! If he hadn't turned himself in for me, then he wouldn't have been bugged. If he hadn't been bugged, Tinga's location wouldn't have been revealed. Tinga wouldn't have had to run, and her family wouldn't have been discovered. She wouldn't have had to turn herself in to save her little boy's life and she wouldn't have ended up dead! Most likely, the attack on Manticore wouldn't have taken place but it would have meant that Zack was alive and well, and I wouldn't have had this stupid virus..."
Alec sighed.
"Max. If you hadn't attacked Manticore, it would still be hunting you down; and the rest of us would still be their captives. Your sister Brin would probably be dead from the Progeria and Ben would have kept on his killing until Manticore got hold of him. Logan would have eventually exposed Manticore anyway and they would have killed us all. If you hadn't let everybody out from the fire, there'd be hundreds dead. You gave us all freedom. Besides, if it wasn't for you and your seizures in the beginning, you guys probably wouldn't have escaped at all. Everything comes back to you Max. The good stuff too. Not just the bad."
"So you're saying that it was all one big plan by some supernatural force?"
"They say that the Fates work in mysterious ways."
"Really? You believe that?"
"Well, not really. But otherwise we wouldn't have met!"
"Oh, I think that Renfro deliberately put you as my breeding partner. Just to rub Ben's death in my face. Mean, nasty, old witch that she was."
"Actually...they kinda set those up before we were born."
"What?"
"The breeding programme was mapped out while they were still playing with our DNA. They decided which partners would produce the best offspring."
"I so did not want to hear that!"
"Sorry."
"So, what you're saying is...I was MADE for you?"
"Scary thoughts. Bad mental images. But yeah."
" I used to make fun of the old fashioned belief of Destiny. You know...the whole 'Someone, Somewhere is made for you' story. Now I hear that science can make that happen literally? Technology has totally screwed up my life!"
"Relax, Max. We cheated Manticore out of playing Cupid. Nobody cares about who you hook up with anymore."
"No. I care! What if this means that if I...uh...have a kid with anybody but you, then it'll have a tail or fur or something? What if the hidden kitty-in-me emerges visibly in my descendants?"
"You want kids?"
"I'm talking theoretically."
"You want kids!"
"Maybe one day, when I'm older with more money...and have a lot less enemies...and can actually find another guy who's compatible with my DNA!"
"Well, there were more than one breeding partners assigned to each of us. In case of death or...inability to perform."
"I don't suppose you know who my other 'perfect matches' are, do you?"
"Well...all the breeding assignments were posted up on the notice board."
"You're kidding! Manticore had a 'Lonely Hearts' column? Who were your other partners?"
"Nobody that you'd know. You were the only '09 escapee that I was paired off with."
"Yeah, I remember how thrilled you were with the idea!"
"Hey, I didn't want to catch anything."
"Which is why you sleep with any woman you can get your hands on. STD regardless."
"A guy in need, is a guy indeed."
"Uggh. What about my other partners?"
"It was me, X5-493..."
"I was paired off with Ben?"
"Well, he has the same DNA as me. Makes sense. But it gets better. Your third match was X5-599."
Max looked like she wanted to throw up.
"Zack? They wanted me to breed with ZACK?"
"You know, when I met him...my guess was that he wouldn't have been too averse to the idea. But to your total non-delight, I was the only match available."
"Shut up! This conversation is starting to sound worse than any horror story."
"Is the idea of you and me so disgusting?"
"I'm not going to answer that question, Alec."
"Your favorite aversion tactic. Oh, before I forget. Under no circumstances are you to mate with the guy you called Krit."
"Well, I wasn't exactly planning to, but why not?"
"Your DNA is extremely similar to his. It would be the equivalent of in- breeding. You know - like mating with your real brother. Produces genetic mistakes in the offspring."
"Thanks for sharing that charming detail with me Alec. Next time I see Krit, I'll let him know. But what I want to know is: Do you want children?"
Alec laughed.
"Can you imagine me as a dad?"
Max thought about it for a moment.
"Actually I can."
"You can?"
"Can you see me as a mother?"
"I can see you strangling the kid. That is...if the poor mite isn't poisoned by your cooking first!"
"Very funny. Should've known that you wouldn't be able to handle a serious conversation for too long."
"If it makes you feel better, I doubt that any children you have will end up deformed. I mean, you said that your sister had a son."
"Yeah."
"And was he a freak?"
"No...he looked totally human, and the only difference from normal children was that he was 'gifted'."
"So you've got nothing to worry about...except maybe for that melted marshmellow on your face."
"What? Where? Help me get it off!"
Alec smiled and obliged because the next thing Max knew, his lips were brushing against hers.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~***~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~***~*~ *~*~*~
A/N Well? Please review! OK, I've only just watched Proof of Purchase, but I'm aware that Max tells Alec about Ben in Hello, Goodbye. This is just my fictional version.