Reviews :
ThoreLB : Oh! It was? Okay good! That makes me feel like I'm doing something right, I'm always worried my descriptions might eventually dissapoint you with eventual canon art I put out haha. Thank you so much!
Snake557 : Thank you so much! Yeah, Gideon's very protective of Ora... A flip switched and Gideon's like well I guess all y'all are going down with me lol.
Song Listened To :
The Light by CHPTRS
*Chapter 165*
Sezeke tilted his head in the mirror, he gently brushed his dark silver hair out of his eyes and relished in the light, freeing feeling he suddenly was blessed with. He felt thrilled at his new look, a clean cut that Kepa skillfully delivered, having never had such short hair before, he grinned and firmly ruffled the back of his head. Although he was well aware he'd miss his long braid, years of wisdom gathered, he heaved a long breath and was thrilled for this newness, clean cut freshness of a new start. In his thoughts, he perked up and knew that him, Beaux, Mara and Lash were due to meeting up shortly, so to station the lighthouse on the far wall of their courtyard and have their miniature lighting ceremony in Gideon's honor. Having put on his favorite long shirt, all cleanly pressed and paired with the soft linens he was always caught wearing, he bobbed a nod and swiftly moved out of his room and with a slow of footsteps as he approached Kepa's bedroom. Her door was ajar, he hovered for a moment and cutely cleared his throat.
"Kip?" Sezeke chirped kindly, he bobbed on the balls of his feet for a moment and anticipated her return, though he furrowed as there was no call. Upon further listening, there was no sense of movement. He softened and looked about in curious defeat, "Kippy, you almost ready? We gotta head out, soon."
With no single amount of even the slightest movement, Sezeke nervously pushed into Kepa's bedroom with cautious eyes. He knew barging in on either of his daughter's rooms wasn't wise, due to them requiring privacy for changing or anything else, though in said push, he began to feel that rush and squeeze of fatherly dread and protectiveness fall over him, so fresh and new, though merely revisits from paternal instincts he was gifted so long ago. He heaved a shaky breath and peered to her bathroom, the door agape. The only thing visible was her vanity, though her mirrors were heavily fogged, which told Sezeke that she was very recently showering, though no such noise was currently present.
"Kippy, you're worrying me, are you in here?" Sezeke stated with an authoritative voice, loud enough for Kepa to hear, though no such reply or sound was present. He flexed to dive into her bathroom on the off chance that maybe she fell and was unconscious, though he grit his teeth in the squeeze and allowed for one single more shred of gifted privacy to his precious daughter, "Kiprinka, I'm going to barge in here if you don't answer me and let me know that you're okay."
Due to the five seconds of silence allowed, Sezeke huffed a trembling breath and urgently shoved into Kepa's steamy bathroom, though as he scuffed to the damp tiles, he froze as to what he saw in her shower. Kepa stood with her face in her hands, her arms and elbows tucked in a curl in on herself into her chest, she stood hunched as her stone self in the corner of her shower with the water off. The tiling around her was fresh and wet, she stood nude with her back to the door, though she dripped with water, letting Sezeke know that she had only recently turned to stone. Sezeke heaved a shaky sigh of relief and felt the urge to turn away and give Kepa privacy with the new knowledge that she was alive and okay, though something stopped him. The gorgeous splay of artwork all over her body, the stripe work, the creamy browns that trailed to the ends of her limbs, he huffed a scoff of mild disbelief and shook his head. With the way Kepa was hunched, it was clear she was crying upon turning to stone, and though Sezeke stiffened and understood he was in an odd predicament, due to Kepa being nude and likely wouldn't want her father in her bathroom to comfort her while she cried, he sagged his shoulders and understood one thing; turning to stone in a fit of grief was a sure-fire sign of defeat, a sure-fire sign of wanting to stay stone forever, it was something Sezeke knew he had to shake off of Kepa quick before she succumbed to wanting to numb her life and forget it existed, the closest thing to a death sentence.
"Prinks," Sezeka whispered in a small, shaky chuckle of whole understanding, he braved her body and pulled the big, fluffy grey towel off of the railing nearest the shower, and with a loving drape, he wrapped Kepa's body in the big towel, from behind, and firmly rubbed her stone-cold upper back, "C'mon, love, we gotta talk... Come out from hiding, let's talk, I'm here for your benefit, I'm here to make sure you stay warm and fed, so... Let's keep that ball rolling."
Although Sezeke wondered if he'd now have to battle with his daughter for this notion, he flinched as his words revived her to flesh. Fresh water, held within her fur, splayed the ground in raindrops as she sagged to the flat of her feet and squeezed the towel about her bare body. Her wet ears and hair sagged as she lulled her dead eyes over her shoulder and merely glanced up to her father, to which he inhaled a huge breath of full relief and lovingly gripped her shoulder in guidance.
"C'mon, come sit," Sezeke whispered, he tenderly guided Kepa out of the shower and sat her down on the closed lid of the toilet as she adjusted the towel in a bunched-up self embrace, she heaved a trembling breath as tears reanimated on her face, fluid came back to her body and she did everything she could not to outwardly erupt into more tears. Sezeke knelt on one knee next to her and assessed her sweet face, darker wet fur adorned with the adorable, un-molted pelt of freckling she had as a cub, her beautiful pink hair was now cut into a cute, razored pixie cut, she was the epitome of adorableness just waiting to be scooped into a snuggly hug. She rubbed her damp nose and huffed a whispery cry, her voice was hoarse, it was clear the skies would be grey for awhile. Sezeke grimaced and gently moved some of her wet pink bangs from her eyes, he shook his head and dared the question, "Babe, who... Who painted on your stone figure?"
"... Gideon," Kepa loudly staggered, she grimaced into an outward gape of full despair and choked an inhale fully coupled with outward weeping of full despair. Sezeke equally grit his teeth with this implication and firmly began to rub Kepa's towel-covered shoulder as she loudly wept into her bathroom. The tiles sung with her sorrow, she gasped an inhale and messily continued on, "I KNEW it'd be permanent, but the second I met him, I-I just knew... I knew..."
"You love him," Sezeke eased in warm, bittersweet knowing, to which Kepa grimaced and nodded as she looked down to her wet, pink toe beans on her hands.
"More than I can even comprehend," Kepa whispered sorrowfully, she choked a tight inhale as the tendons in her neck strained, she trembled with exhaustion and shook her head amidst her weeping, "I-I don't care what kind of shit he's getting into, I don't care if he won by means of the cruelty of The Game, I don't care what needs to be done... I'd give absolutely everything to have him back in Litwak's. Anything..."
"Me too," Sezeke sighed, he looked off and felt a renewed sting of desire hit him. Although he was desperate to have Elkourra and Vye back in his grips, it was within this new desire to see his reunited daughter thrive and be happy that made him feel the urge to shelve his own desires, ones of which that seemingly felt more far-fetched due to the implications with Flint. He frowned into the side of Kepa's wet face and shook his head, "I hate seeing you in this much pain knowing there's nothing I can do to help, but just be here."
"I'm so happy I at least have you," Kepa whimpered as she long-blinked, her gorgeous dark pink lashes glued together, she peered her huge, teary eyes tight into her father's, "I'm so lost... He was my home, he was my everything."
"He's written in your future, Kippy," Sezeke stated in low knowing, he inhaled a deep, readied breath and nodded, "He's alive... He's left enough of a mark on your guys little bloom that rippled into a tidal wave of sunshine. This isn't something the universe will ignore, this isn't something little that will blow away in the wind. Absence is to love what wind is to fire... You know this well."
Kepa sighed through her mouth and fervently peered to her father for hope, she crumpled silently as Sezeke bobbed a nod and gently gestured with his hand.
"If it's a tiny candle, the wind will blow it out," Sezeke murmured, though he eased a gentle, cheeky little smile and shook his head with narrowed eyes, "But... The roaring fire between you and Gideon? Beaconed inside a massive lighthouse? My sweet girl..."
Sezeke erupted into knowing laughter and shook his head, as if to make clear to Kepa that viewing all of this from an outside perspective was a no brainer, and although the prospects of this toss out into the sky was quite literally a shot in the dark, he guffawed at his odds and smiled into Kepa's crumpling, desperate gaze as he lovingly tucked the shorter strands of her wet hair behind her bigger ear.
"This is a must... We have to follow through with the task at hand, if Gideon escapes and manages to come back home, it would disrupt a whole world of nastiness I can't even begin explaining to you," Sezeke mumbled knowingly, "So much darkness would crumple, so much healing would begin. You know Gideon better than anyone... You know he wouldn't stand for the horrible things Flint eventually has planned for the lot of them."
"If it harmed innocent people, no," Kepa rubbed her nose and shook her head, "I can't speak for other hardened individuals he comes into contact with, but... I just... Hope he wises up, I hope he comes home so I can give him a huge hug and then yell his ear off for the next forty-eight hours."
"You and me both," Sezeke erupted into laughter, such laughter that had a weak, shy smile sprawling Kepa's wet face, "You DO realize that if he miraculously decides to wise-up and come home that he'll be dealing with your father, right?"
"...I'm only just now realizing, yes," Kepa muttered with a wider grin that sprawled her face and a nervous, nasally giggle.
"He'd get a grace period to relax, but..." Sezeke sighed and looked to be secretively heated about these notions, "He ultimately broke my baby girl's heart... He'll have to answer for it."
Kepa felt her pupils tighten as she peered to the side of her father's face. A wise, gentle beast, Kepa felt her heart stop in cold dread, she knew, full well, Sezeke was like a sleeping giant, and any conversation Gideon would ever have with Sezeke, due to such heartbreak Gideon had caused, was certainly not going to be pretty. Although honored, Kepa grit her fangs and felt a twinge of remorse, for Gideon's sake, if all of this were to ever pan out in their favor.
"C'mon... get dry, get dressed, we got a lighthouse to ignite," Sezeke chirped as he squeezed Kepa's shoulder, stood and began to press out of Kepa's bathroom, though Kepa stiffened and uttered a collection of a teary request.
"Papa?" Kepa whimpered, to which Sezeke halted his movement and firmly peered into her eyes in a loving swing of curiosity. Kepa sagged and exhaled a trembling breath, "Thank you... F-For picking me up when I'm down, like this, I-I know it may not seem like anything helping but... It is. Thank you."
"I love you, Kippy," Sezeke concluded, as if his rush to her side was a no brainer; she heaved a gentle, shaky noise and felt nervous uttering the words in return.
"I love you, papa," Kepa murmured, she held her breath and was almost terrified that simply just saying the collection of words would cause her to molt, though she immediately sagged with the reaffirming notion that said words had to be directed in Gideon's name in order to cause her molt.
It was a blessing and a curse laid upon her life, she lulled her eyes closed in mild dread as Sezeke turned and left her to her privacy, and though she wanted to feel angry at Gideon for leaving his mark and then abandoning her, she felt a spark of hope light from the depths of her heart, the spark that she did, indeed, know Gideon better than anyone. She knew, deep down, Gideon was a better man than this, his excursion out into the world to prove himself was something she knew would come back to bite him, she knew he was quicker than this, she knew his intuition was likely due to eating him alive, sooner or later. She heaved a nasally sigh, stood and prepared to dry off and get dressed. Although revisiting the lighthouse wasn't something she wanted to be doing, she knew she needed to do this, for the the abundance of healing that she was desperate to take place.
After about a half an hour of getting dressed, dried, ready and amped for what was to come, the small group met inside the courtyard of their shared, humble little abodes. The wall they stood near was still a normal, blank wall, though as everyone else murmured into gentle conversing with one another, Kepa stood in Gideon's hoodie, with her hands dug into the big pockets, and allowed her aimless gaze to peer to said wall in almost prickled, frozen dread. She clenched her jaw and felt terror plague her, the last thing she wanted to see was her's and Gideon's big, round turquoise front door, one that lead into the little lighthouse abode they had conjured together. Tears hovered in her eyes, she grimaced as she stared at the wall, she almost wondered if she should turn heel, the pain of reliving all of this was too much to bear. Before she could duck out, Beaux's gentle voice broke her thoughts.
"I made cookies," Beaux's deep, sweet voice murmured in full, gentle, boyish nonchalance.
Kepa flinched, blinked back tears and peered up into Beaux's gentle, greyish hazel gaze. Having met Beaux a few weeks ago, she was happy at how fast they had garnered a friendship. Although Kepa had zero energy to give to anyone in this trying time, she was glad Beaux's gentle aura was a sanctuary of promised peace, a place promised to her that she was welcome to come and go as she please with no hard feelings. She scoffed a small giggle and understood that Beaux was definitely inviting her over for cookies and coffee later, though she also understood that this was his silent, tender way of promising life still held sunshine, no matter what, a promise that he somehow knew everything was going to be okay. Beaux began to turn into a compass for her, the fact that he wasn't crying or panicking somehow made her rest easy in all of this.
"What kind?" Kepa wondered, Beaux grinned and looked up to the courtyard wall.
"Sugar," Beaux chirped with a shrug, he cocked an eyebrow and gave Kepa a coy look of teasing knowing, "We can all get together after this and bask in the light of the lighthouse... Enjoy some cookies and coffee, tell stories... You're never alone, okay?"
"Thanks, Beaux," Kepa whimpered with a nod as Lash, Mara and Sezeke gently budged into their bubble, and with such, Lash slowly scooped Kepa into a gentle side hug upon noticing tears roll down her cheeks.
"Y'ready?" Lash wondered gently as he held his phone out, coupled with the floating holographic displays all prepared and ready to secure the structure of the lighthouse to the grid, once more.
"I'm ready," Kepa whispered shakily, though as everyone stepped back in anticipated wait, Lash gently cued for the lighthouse to present itself on the grid.
With a hefty thud of said structure, the eclipse it took to the setting sun out to the West, Kepa flinched as the wall of the lighthouse, that was shared with the front door, so pristinely secured itself into the courtyard wall, a perfect perch for the lighthouse to rest. Kepa hiccuped a small, nervous cry as the face of their lovely front door now boldly stared her in the face, and though she wanted to go tearing herself inside to see Gideon sat at the island, like he always was, she cupped her hands to her mouth in the swing of relived grief and did everything in her power to keep from loudly erupting into tears. Although composed, she still squeezed her eyes shut and silently wept into her hands as the group came about her in the swing of full camaraderie they knew to give. Lash and Mara were the first to glom to her in a group hug, tight squeezes as she buried her face into their shoulders and silently wept, the very image of the glowing front door Gideon was always coming in and out of had her brain viciously clawing at the wounds that had only just begun to scar over. She wept, unabated, she sagged in everyone's care and was glad they all stood in her tender, crying silence, prepared to stand here with her all night to comfort her.
"I-It's so beautiful," Kepa whimpered after a few moments of silence, all around.
"It is," Sezeke mumbled with warmth, having only just seen this structure for the first time. His eyes drew up the spire with kindness, the gorgeous eclipse the sun gathered about the mint and white stripes such beauty was crowned with. Sezeke finally softened and reached for Kepa's hands, "Remember what I told you... It's all about intention, here. You're allowed to be sad in this event... Just don't allow it to muddy your intention."
"Okay," Kepa murmured through tears as everyone gently pulled away from her in eager preparation to see the beacons this structure had to offer.
"I've rewired the lamp, it was actually broken and rusted over, so... It's all cleaned up and fixed, ready to go," Lash qiped his eyes and coughed a noise to clear his throat, "Just needs y'guys to finish it off, now. It's all in your hands, from here."
"C'mon," Sezeke cutely cued Kepa and gripped her hands, though as he unfurled his massive wings and assumed Kepa would do the same, he scoffed a small, knowing laugh as she only stepped tighter into Sezeke's figure and requested he fly the two up to the railing to the lighthouse's lamp, the sheer idea of her using her wings in these instances had her only remembering the sunny day Gideon taught her how to fly.
With unconditional love ready to give, Sezeke gently wrapped his arms about Kepa's upper and lower back, and in an easy swoop and a bend of his powerful legs, he allowed the lift off to bring the two to the top of the railing. A tiny loft of a few seconds of flight, Sezeke firmly flapped his wings a few times and sagged the two to the high, exterior walkway of the lighthouse's main hub of glass. As Sezeke gingerly released Kepa's body from his, he firmly got a solid swing of a look around and finally revisited his gaze back to hers in tender renewal. She heaved a trembling sigh and didn't dare look to the main door that lead back into the lighthouse's spire, the one that Gideon had outfit into one huge climbing tower. She squeezed her eyes shut and remembered her garden down at the base, every single last memory held captive inside like a frozen time capsule, she heaved a trembling noise of rising panic and shook her head.
"I-I can't do this, dad, I can't," Kepa loudly whimpered as she gripped Sezeke's lower arms and began to look entirely flustered, though Sezeke eased a small chuckle of understanding.
"Yes, yes you can," Sezeke murmured cutely, though he flinched as the higher-altitude winds overtook their figures and rustled their freshly cut hair and clothes about. He warmly raveled Kepa into his fatherly arms and allowed her to bury her face into his broad chest. With even pets through her now curiously short hair, he allowed his glorious gaze to gloss the insanely beautiful view they had from the tippy top of the lighthouse. A direct look out into the vast ocean to the west, Sezeke inhaled a trembling breath and understood this was probably one of the hardest things Kepa had to do, was to relive being apart of this structure she once shared with Gideon, "I'm right here with you... We can do this together. You know exactly the people we're doing this for."
Kepa whimpered a cry as the cold wind rushed about them in a spiral, the air was crisp and sweet, she inhaled a deep breath and relished in the warmth her father gaze, the shush of his deep voice, the easy pets to the back of her head, she gripped his clothes and silently wept as Sezeke's teary voice carried on.
"Gideon, your mother, your sister... Callum, Rancis, Sugar Rush," Sezeke tenderly listed, he shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut, "There are so many hearts currently in this hoping for one thing, and one thing only. A light home. A beacon of direction. We can provide this, however proverbial it all is."
"What if it's not good enough," Kepa cried over the wind, to which Sezeke scoffed another chuckle of understanding and peered down at her with a cheeky smile.
"Well, we won't know unless we try, now will we?" Sezeke stated with an uplift of happiness, such happiness that Kepa couldn't keep from smiling about. She scoffed a nasally noise of smiling irritation and shook her head as she thud the side of her skull into Sezeke's chest, and with one final squeeze and a kiss to the top of her head, the two finally pulled away, "Alright... You know your firepower comes from the gut, the depth of breath. You've been practicing your fire breathing, right?"
"No," Kepa whimpered, she shook her head and peered up into her father's eyes, "I-I was banned from breathing fire, at the castle... Gideon was the one to encourage me to use my fire breathing."
"Welp... It might be best to recall those memories, the good memories Gideon gifted you, that's fuel in of itself," Sezeke soothed, though he watched as Kepa stiffened and looked to be en-route to protesting. He lovingly cupped her cheek and shook his head, "I know... I know it's painful to revisit, but the intent is to remember what you've learned, to remember the good times, the sunshine you manifested and multiplied. Put that into your craft, you know this well, don't you?"
"Yeah," Kepa meeped with a nod of dreaded understanding, and as her eyes drew to the empty, glass housing of the lighthouse lamp, the contraption was awaiting a light, awaiting a burst of flame to hold onto for the foreseeable future. She inhaled a shaky breath and shrugged with a nod, "I'm not sure about my technique, but... I-I can get there."
"Speak, even if your voice shakes... Act, even if not fully backed in confidence," Sezeke stated wisely as he inhaled a few deep breaths and stood a few feet away from Kepa. The glass housing was opened, cleaned to perfection, ready for the breath of fire they were due to issuing into the lighthouse's beacon, and with a nod, Sezeke smiled into Kepa's eyes, "Y'ready?"
"I'm ready," Kepa murmured nervously, though as she inhaled a huge deep breath, held it and lulled her eyes closed, kisses of memories came rushing to the insides of her eyelids.
The beams of sunshine that casted down on Turbotime's blue ocean, the way Novus's deep, happy laugh glossed about their patch of sky, the gentle grip of Gideon's hands as he so tenderly unfurled her grip from Novus's saddle and lovingly set her free into the sky, she grimaced a small hiccup of a cry and allowed all the emotions to crawl over her. The press of his warm kiss, the drape of his big, comforting embrace, the youthful smirk he crowned behind the glint of fiery, golden eyes, Kepa grimaced a silent cry and yearned for every last ounce of it, all over again. She promised the universe she would do anything, any shred of due diligence, just to get the chance to tell Gideon that she loved him in return, just the chance to smile into his eyes and assure him that he is wanted, desired, loved, every ounce of sunshine was held inside his name. She knew her father was waiting on her mark, and just as she felt she couldn't possibly conjure the energy, she inhaled a huge breath, stiffened her stance and allowed a graceful splay of fire to stab firmly into the housing of the thick, warbled glass of the lighthouse. Due to her start, Sezeke equally inhaled a readied breath and allowed his splay of fire to melt into hers, to aid hers with the back of paternal strength, and with each other's hefty blow into the lamp, once and for all, the two ceased as the clip of said spinning light suddenly erupted from Turbotime's sky.
Kepa squinted as the hit of said beaming two lights methodically danced in a circled union, such cast of sunlight that carried on seemingly forever, it was here did Kepa feel the urge to fall to her knees and give up in this feeling, though she squeezed her wet eyes shut and allowed the hot feeling to marinate over her, for good. She allowed every last sound byte of Gideon's laughter to coat her soul, every last cute inside joke they had, even the roll of his confession to her hit her ears in firm, rattling remembrance, all things she knew she had to endure in order to properly manifest the full feeling of yearning. The action of feeling her feelings, of allowing the hit of sorrow to somehow fuel her next steps to happiness felt counter intuitive, though the more she melted into her beautiful memories with Gideon, the more hope she felt for the situation. Sezeke firmly rubbed her upper back as they both stood in the slow spin of their two lights combined, opposite of each other, the hit of warmth that came and went with each spin felt as if it were slowly filling Kepa's cup. She allowed all of it to hold her soul captive as she held her hands loose at her side and cried behind closed eyes, she whimpered out to the lighthouse's splay of light as a verbal plea, she hoped somehow, someway, these lights would reach beyond Litwak's, would somehow call Gideon back home like a ship lost at sea, she wondered if this was all too good to be true, though knew holding onto hope was the only thing she had left, the only lifeline keeping her going.
