Author's Note: How's it going, everyone? This actually came from an early plot bunny that is still tap dancing in my brain, so future one-shots might be connected to this one. I'll let you guys know if that's the case. I have to warn you, though; there is one part of this story that gets a bit steamy! It's not a detailed description, so it does follow Fanfiction's guidelines… I think.

Oh, and you may cry. A lot. Seriously, have some tissues ready.

This was inspired by PokerPair week 2k19's Day prompt – Coffee shop AU! Now join me down the rabbit hole – and bring a flashlight; it's too easy getting lost down there.

Warnings: PokerPair; Fem!Allen; Modern AU; Smut; Swearing in several languages;Some angst; Mentions of past cyber bullying and implied child neglect (I'm basing her childhood on Allen's, after all); Probable OOC-ness; Un-beta'd; And Road being Road

Disclaimer: I don't own D. Gray Man in any shape or form; same goes for any other IP you see in here… ;_;

- xXx -


Cafe Conversation (AKA: Why does Road have a YouTube channel, again?)

Ah, coffee. Such a peculiar drink brewed from dried beans picked off a tree. bitter in its purest form, and yet beloved the world over for how it kick-starts the human body via the caffeine hidden within. There were other drinks that had a similar effect, of course. Soda contributed to sugar rushes (plus diabetes); and tea, just as popular as coffee, also contained caffeine. Not to mention energy drinks. Still, if Tyki Mikk had to pick which beverage to give himself a much-needed boost…

"Tyki?" a young barista called out, breaking his customer's train of thought.

He walked up to the pick-up counter and said, "That's me."

The barista handed him his order (one tall espresso) and cheerfully wished him a good day. Drink in hand, Tyki walked back to his corner table by the window. Resting on top was a slightly out of date laptop with a Microsoft Word document already opened.

He sat down and scanned the document, trying to return yo where he had left off in his story. At the age of twenty-six, Tyki was considered one of New York City's up and coming authors. He had already published several well-received short stories, and now he was working on a manuscript for a novel his editor now nagged him to complete. Well honestly, Cell Roron didn't nag; the man was actually quite the timid sort. But still he could wail like a heart-broken banshee whenever Tyki got too close to breaking a deadline. It had been vaguely amusing the first time, but now was just annoying.

The Portuguese man sipped his drink as he stared at the screen. Writing a novel was certainly a much different experience compared to those regarding his previous works. Short stories were aptly named; you had to bring about the classic story structure in a shorter amount of page space, necessitating tighter story telling without leaving it too thread bare. A novel's length, by contrast, was much more negotiable; an author could take their time in crafting the narrative, characters, etc. But such freedom ran the temptation of overindulgence. He could list a number of books he had read over the years that would have been greatly improved if someone had decided to cut out unnecessary scenes or reduce a minor character's over-extended coverage.

"Well, this is surprising."

Blinking at the familiar but unexpected voice, Tyki turned his head and saw his distant cousin, Diego 'Mercym' Prieto Espina, standing in front of him.

"Mercym? What are you doing here?"

The Spaniard moved his left hand to draw attention to the large shoulder bag he was carrying. "I need to work on next week's lesson plans, and a colleague recommended this cafe's tea."

'That's right', Tyki idly remembered, 'he's a teacher.' Despite his large muscular physique and quiet demeanor, the older man was both fond of and great with young children. He was currently employed at a public elementary school, saying that his skills would be needed more there than at a private one.

"You need lesson plans for five-year old kids?" Tyki asked, very curious at such a concept. To him, Kindergarten didn't seem to need structure beyond nap times, snack times and story times.

Mercym nodded. "They may be young, but they still need to learn how to read and write. And I'm planning on introducing them on topics like environmentalism with future projects."

"Huh. Won't they find that boring?"

Mercym lightly smiled, "Not if I give them something fun to do."

Tyki gave a smirk in return. "Ah, sneaking education into leisure. I wish you good luck."

"Thanks, Tyki. Do you mind if I join you?" the teacher asked as he indicated to the other chair at the table.

"Not at all," the author shrugged before going back to his manuscript. The next few minutes went by in comfortable silence. That's one quality he appreciated about Mercym; the other man didn't try to force small talk. If only some other family members could follow that approach to life…

Shortly after, Mercym's order was called and he left to retrieve it. Tyki made more progress, but that was only with cutting down on the word length. When the teacher came back with his tea, Tyki let out a frustrated groan as he put his right hand in front of his face.

"Writer's block?" Mercym accurately guessed.

"Yeah," Tyki sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "I managed to cut out some unnecessary stuff, but that's all."

Mercym took out his tablet and began to go through his apps. "You're working on a novel this time, right? What's it about?"

Tyki nodded at the first question. "Thriller horror with urban fantasy elements. Basically half of the story revolves around an intangible serial killer."

"So is he the protagonist or antagonist?"

"Hmm… Hard to say, really. Joyd certainly goes against society with his actions. But with my writing style, I don't want to reduce him to being so easily labeled."

"There are such things as villain protagonists, you know."

"Eh," Tyki shrugged at the other's observation. "Still, I don't want him to be wholly bad. Just as I don't want the other primary character, his foil, to be wholly good."

"So they're the other person the book will focus on?" Mercym asked as he sipped his tea.

"Yeah, and it's a bigger pain to write her than the killer. I need her to be strong enough to go against him without coming across as too Mary Sue-ish, but also flawed enough without being a whiny load."

The other man hummed in thought as he worked across from Tyki. "That does sound like quite the challenge. Will you be able to make your deadline?"

"Don't worry about me; I'll make do. Besides I still have three months before I need to actually worry."

Mercym paused and looked up from his tablet. While his large sunglasses obscured his gaze (much like Tyki's downtime glasses), it was clear that he was looking at the other with surprise. "When did you start that manuscript?"

"About five months ago."

"Was that right after you signed the contract with your publisher?"

"Yeah."

"How long is it supposed to be?"

"My editor and I have a target of about 30,000 words. Which means that, technically, I'm writing a novella instead of a novel. But novel sounds better."

"How far along are you?"

Tyki now grew confused by Mercym's questioning. He looked toward the bottom of his laptop's screen to find the word count. "Uh, about 25,000 words. Mercym, just what are you getting at?"

The older man folded his hands over the table in such a way that it eerily reminded Tyki of how his guidance counselor would look as he talked to the then student about his future goals. Must be an educator thing. "You seem to be making good progress with this manuscript, Tyki."

"Uh, yeah. Present writer's block non-withstanding, I have."

"And you started the manuscript as soon as you signed that contract."

"I guess..."

"That was surprisingly proactive of you."

Tyki was confused by that statement. He frowned and asked, "Just what do you mean by that, Mercym?"

The other man shrugged his shoulders. "You've never really been one to start something straight away. And don't try to deny it; I remember overhearing conversations between your father and my parents when we both were still in school. Especially about your report cards. Those practically painted a portrait of you being the human embodiment of procrastination."

Tyki let out an annoyed huff. "That was back in school. Of course I would put off boring assignments. But how does that matter here?"

"Your procrastination habit, to be blunt, carried over to adulthood. Or do you deny the several times when Sheril, Road, or the Earl came across you rushing to complete a short story days before a deadline?"

Tyki now looked out of the window, but his silence clearly answered Mercym's question.

"And yet here you are, with a mostly finished manuscript and three months to spare. So what exactly motivated you?"

Silence continued to fill the space between them. Finally Tyki sighed and looked back at his cousin. "I have other plans, okay? And if I don't get this done now everything will go off the rails."

"You made plans with your friends, then?" Mercym asked, thinking of the small group of migrant laborers Tyki had been close with for years.

"No, with-"

Two different sets of musical chimes then went off, interrupting Tyki's answer. Both men realized that they were coming from their own phones and not anyone else's.

"Oh what now?" the author muttered as he checked his phone.

"It looks like Road uploaded her latest video on YouTube," Mercym replied.

"I still don't understand why she decided to start a weekly vlog. She already pushes her homework on others," Tyki groused as he remembered being forced to complete his niece's homework years ago. Though he wasn't the only one roped in; Jasdero, Devit, Skin and even the Earl had to help her out.

"Well, it does keep her occupied," the other pointed out. "You know how Road gets when she's bored."

Tyki felt a shiver race up his spine. A happy Road was already a handful. A bored Road? Oh, the chaos she could unleash…

"Besides, it's not like she's the one who has to edit the videos. Wisely is."

Tyki didn't even try to hold back his chuckle. Wisely, his nephew and Road's older brother, was probably the smartest member of their extended family. He was also very laid back to the point of outright laziness. Those traits practically ensured that she would make him her primary video editor and, when the Earl's assistant Lero was busy, secondary camera man.

Tyki noticed Mercym was now searching his shoulder bag for something. "What are you doing?"

The other man pulled out a pair of white earphones and plugged them into his phone. "I'm done with all but Friday's lesson plan, so I might as well watch some of the video."

"Ah, how enviable," Tyki muttered as he frowned at his laptop. "I wish I could say the same..."

"You can take a break too, you know."

"Are you asking me to procrastinate, Mercym? How surprising!"

"Stop acting cheeky, Tyki. I may not be a writer, but even I know that trying to force yourself to write only leads to frustration. Besides, you'll need to watch some of the video before Road texts to ask you what you think of it."

"True," Tyki agreed and retrieved his own pair of wireless headphones. After putting them on and opening up Google Chrome, he went immediately to YouTube and clicked the Subscription tab. Road's video, titled WEEKLY VLOG: Oh the Places we've Gone, was perched right at the top of the page. He clicked it and was greeted by Road's cheery voice once the page loaded.

"Hi, everyone! Road here!"

As Road went on with her introduction, Tyki clicked on the video description. Because she ran a weekly vlog instead of a daily one, the video's run-time was an hour long. Thankfully, Wisely went and put timestamps for particularly memorable moments in the description. He idly scanned them until one stood out – 25:48 (Visiting Ellen).

He vaguely remembered Ellen mentioning Road and Wisely popping in out of nowhere a few days ago. But when he asked her how it went, she had simply said that they had been 'very enthusiastic'. He would have asked her to clarify that term (especially as it was used in relation to his dear niece and nephew) if not for their make-out session growing more… heated.

'Well,' Tyki thought as he clicked on the timestamp, 'now's the time to find out.'

- x -

The video jumped ahead to show Road and, surprisingly enough, Wisely sitting on the latter's bed. She was looking chipper as always, while he looked ready to lay back and nap.

"And now we've come to my favorite moment of the week!" Road excitedly yelled out while she bounced on the bed.

Wisely groaned as he was being jostled around by his little sister. "Calm down, Road! You're gonna give me a headache."

"Aw, don't be such a baby," she teased. "It was just a little bouncing!"

"It's never 'just a little' with you, Road. And you're getting off topic here."

"Hmph!" she huffed before turning back to face the camera. "But he's right; back to my favorite moment. You see,our school had a half day because of… some reason or another."

A blue text box briefly popped up on screen with the following information:

[It was a professional day for the teachers – Wisely]

"But that's not important to this video. What matters is how we spent those extra hours! We could have visited Daddy at work, but that would have been..."

The video briefly presented Sheril Kamelot, a ruthless politician and Tyki's older brother, excessively fawning over Road before cutting back to the two siblings.

"… predictable!" Ignoring Wisely's eye roll at that massive understatement, she pressed on. "There weren't any new candy stores that have opened up in the last week, the ones I've already visited haven't added anything new-"

[Like that has ever stopped you from ordering sweets – Wisely]

[You know that Mom went andset stupid limits on my daily sugar intake; now, shush! These boxes can't take up anymore screen space! Road]

"-and I refuse to resort to dumpster diving for views!" That last point was punctuated with a glare in Wisely's direction.

The teenage boy just shrugged in response. "I still think it could've been done. Kinda like a blind bag reveal, only more Eco-friendly.

"Whatever," Road huffed. "Point is, we were at a loss on what to do. But as we waited for someone to pick us up, I noticed something interesting." As she finished that last sentence, the camera transitioned from her and Wisely indoors to a random storefront outside. The viewer could see that it was now focused on a colorful flier taped to the inside of the store window.

"That's when I got an idea!" she half sang out in her voice-over.

[An awful idea – Wisely]

Across the top half of the flier, 'Black Order International Dance Troupe' was written in bold, fancy cursive script.

[Road got a wonderful, awful idea – Wisely]

"Here we are, folks!" Road cheerfully shouted out as the video abruptly cut to a close up of her grinning face. "May I present to you…" The camera was now turned away to face a concrete structure that perfectly mimicked a medieval stone tower, "the Black Order International Dance Troupe!"

[FYI: the Black Order International Dance Troupe is a dance troupe that not only performs several forms of dance styles, they employ dancers and other personnel from all over the globe too. They're most famous for their elaborate shows on the behalf of charities – Wisely]

Wisely could be heard sighing out loud, the audio quality indicating that he was physically present at the scene. "Just as gaudy looking as ever."

Road gave a nonchalant shrug. "Better to be unique than to drown in a sea of conformity. Now onward, my minion!"

"Don't call me that."

"We've visited the dance troupe before,"Road commented while she and Wisely were shown entering the building and talking to the receptionist, "So we knew where we needed to go."Now a scene of Road skipping down a hallway, ignoring the curious and questioning looks they got as they went on their merry way,played out on screen.

"You're sure that she's on this floor, Road?" Wisely asked his sister as they approached their final destination.

"Yup!" Road cheerfully shouted. "The receptionist said Ellen wasn't scheduled for any performances this week, so she's just using one of the dance rooms for a light workout."

"Ugh," he groaned in response. Anyone who was a long-time subscriber knew how much he loathed the concept of exercise. "That doesn't mean she'll be able to see us, though."

"Oh, stop being a party pooper! What could possibly stand in our way?"

Cue the Gilligan Cut.

"What do you mean we can't see Ellen?!"

The stern-faced blond man now on screen replied as he glanced at the tablet in hand, "exactly what I said, Miss Kamelot. Ms. Walker is too busy at the moment to receive guests."

[That's Howard Link. He's a grim, uptight, dour, joyless wet blanket who insists on spoiling the fun for everybody! Road]

[She means that he's one of the Black Order's administrators – Wisely]

[Same thing! Road]

"But the receptionist said she's only working out right now! And it's not like she has a show coming up this week!" the young girl pointed out through gritted teeth.

"That is true, which is all the more important that she finish it in peace. As for shows, just because there isn't one scheduled doesn't mean it will stay that way. Should the Black Order book a new show, all relevant personnel will have to pour more time into it. For dancers like Ms. Walker, that means they put in extra practice and go over routines created by our choreographers. Which would be severely hampered by distractions like unplanned visitors."

"Oh, are we really that distracting?" Wisely dryly asked.

Link narrowed his eyes at them. "There have been several incidents to support that. The most recent one being the last time you two visited unannounced."

Road huffed in impatience, "We didn't do anything wrong! That Kanda guy is always advertised as having 'ninja-fast reflexes, especially during sword dances'. Can you blame me for wanting to see it in real life?"

"Based on the type of projectiles you were using at the time, I can and will. As for you," Link now turned his attention to Wisely behind the camera, "you didn't even try to stop her. Instead you sat back and provoked Kanda with rather tasteless comments."

The camera bobbed up and down, indicating that Wisely had shrugged his shoulders in response. "It's not my fault he's too easy to get to."

The adult now sighed as he massaged his temple with his free hand. "While Ms. Walker and Kanda have a… complicated dynamic, she would have at least tried to stop you two, if only for your own safety. That is, if she hadn't been whisked away earlier by someone."

"Tyki just wanted some alone time with Ellen," Road angrily defended her favorite uncle. "They were barely able to see each other for nearly two weeks since the Black Order decided it would be a good idea to schedule several back-to-back demonstrations and performances before then."

Link frowned at the not-so subtle dig. "How this dance troupe is run has nothing to do with you. The fact remains that Ms. Walker needs to practice right now and you two will only serve to distract her. Wait until after she's finished if you want to see her that badly."

The camera then cut back to Road, and judging by the dark look on her face she was very unhappy.

"Thankfully, before Road got us kicked out of the building," Wisely's voice-over interrupted the tense scene, "we were spotted by-"

"Road? Wisely?"

All three of them turned and looked in the direction of where the voice came from. It came from a woman at the other end of the hallway. Because Wisely hadn't yet zoomed in, it was hard for the viewer to see her exact features. What they could see was the woman was slim, had light skin and hair, and was wearing a T-shirt tied up to reveal her midriff and form-fitting dance pants.

But her looks weren't important right now. Her identity was.

"Ellen!" Road shouted with glee as she ran full-stop towards the older woman. Wisely also moved towards her, albeit at a more relaxed pace that Road's.

By the time Wisely made it over to Ellen, Road had launched herself into the other's arms. Ellen would've been bowled over by the force of the tackle had she not braced herself. Now the viewer got a better look at her pleasing facial features and striking silver eyes.

"Hello there, Road," Ellen smiled as she patted the girl's shoulder with one hand while keeping her secured with the other.

Road giggled in response, still dangling as she kept her arms wrapped around Ellen's neck. "Hi, Ellen. We missed you so much!"

"You guys saw me a few days ago."

"Which was a few days too long!"

Ellen shook her head in amusement at Road's quip and turned her head towards the camera's, and therefore Wisely's, direction. "And it's good to see you too, Wisely. But aren't you two supposed to be in school right now?"

"It's a half-day today, so we thought we'd visit you for Road's vlog. And don't worry; we already called Mom and told her our plans, so Dad will know too."

"Well, that's a relief," Ellen sighed as she put Road down. "For a moment I was worried about getting a frantic call from Sheril telling me you two were kidnapped."

[Such a call would be mainly about Road, BTW – Wisely]

Road giggled, then perked up as she realized something. "Oh, right. This is the first time you'll be on the vlog," she sang out as she positioned Ellen in front of the camera. "Is this good, Wisely?"

"It's perfect."

"Good! Ahem; Ladies and gentlemen," Road said in a dramatic fashion as she began to gesture to the woman at her side, "may I present Ellen Walker: Black Order dancer specializing in aerial silks and acro dance; twenty-two years old, and Uncle Tyki's girlfriend! Sorry, all you singles!"

Ellen blushed and asked, "Was that really necessary, Road?"

"Of course the introduction was necessary! The viewers don't know who you are yet."

"I think she meant that last part, Road. About her relationship with Uncle Tyki?"

"Oh… Well, it's even more necessary! Can't have anyone watching this try to track her down on the mistaken belief that she's single, now can we?" she firmly stated, causing both Ellen and Wisely to sigh at the same time.

Link, who had been essentially ignored up to now, finally regained their attention with an annoyed clearing of his throat.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Link," Ellen apologized to the blond man. "We got a little bit carried away just now."

The older man raised an eyebrow, but declined to comment on it. "Weren't you still using Dance Room 2A, Ms. Walker?"he asked instead.

"Ah, I was, but then I had to use the loo. I was just on my way back when I saw you three here. So, what were you all talking about?"

But before Link could start explaining, Road beat him to it. "He told us to go away!" the young girl shouted as she sent him an angry pout.

"Wait, what?"

"He told us that seeing you would interfere with your work," Wisely chimed in off camera.

Ellen looked at her co-worker with confusion and disbelief written on her face. "Link, is this true?"

The adult man tried to rein in his irritation; not an easy feat since the camera revealed Road sticking out her tongue from beside Ellen. "I told them that it would be better for them to wait until you're done instead of barging in without a care. Especially given the last time they visited without calling ahead."

Ellen winced at that. "I understand that they can be… somewhat high spirited. But they do mean well, Link. Besides," she hastily added as Link's frown grew deeper and Road's face smugger, "I've finished most of my workout routine. All that's left is a final run down and then some cool-down exercises. Surely there's no risk of harm if they stay for a half hour or so?"

Link was silent for a few moments, then sighed in defeat. "Keep them close until you're finished, then. But next time they need to let someone know ahead of time that they're coming. Is that clear?"

Ellen gave the older man a wide, radiant smile. "Very, Link. And thank you so much!"

Her thanks resulted in a light blush flickering across the blond's face before he finally excused himself and went off in the opposite direction. Road blew a raspberry at his retreating back until he was out of her line of sight.

"And so we got rid of the pest-"

[Wrong use of the word 'we', there – Wisely]

"-and finally met up with Ellen!" Road finished with triumph clearly intoned in her voice. "Then she took us to the dance room!"

[And began TORTURING US! Wisely]

Those comments opened up what could only be described as a training montage, complete with peppy workout music. It included Road producing workout clothes out of nowhere-

[HOW DID YOU GET MY GYM UNIFORM?! Wisely]

[You'll be surprised what fan-girls are capable of given the right incentives~! – Road]

-Ellen showing them some of her daily exercises-

[I knew that she trained a lot, but 300 one armed handstand push-ups every day? Now that's hard-core! Road]

[I think the word you're looking for is 'insane', actually – Wisely]

-Wisely being forced into attempting to exercise which backfired, such as regular push-ups-

[Really, Wisely? Not even one? Road]

[Well, your kick certainly killed anything that was left of my motivation – Wisely]

-Road attempting some acro dance moves for beginners with Ellen's help-

[Dad's going to freak out once he sees this – Wisely]

-and above all, just having a good time together. As the music faded away, the camera focused on a shot of Wisely flat on the floor. The teenager stared up at the ceiling with its fluorescent lights, greedily sucking in as much air as he could get into his out-of-shape lungs.

Road giggled off camera as it zoomed into her brother's face. "Did you enjoy yourself, Wisely?"

Wisely looked askance at her and started to raise his right arm.

"Be careful, Wisely," she brightly warned him. "Do remember that my videos aren't categorized as 'Adults only'!"

Wisely paused, curled in all of his fingers save for the thumb, then pointed that digit straight down.

All he got in return for that was more of Road's giggling.

Oh, and a water bottle. Wait, what?

"Here you are, Wisely," Ellen said as she placed the bottle by his head. "I thought you two would like something to drink."

The boy moaned in thanks as he forced himself up and grabbed the bottle. The camera then moved from him rapidly chugging down the water to Ellen's look of bemusement as she watched him.

"I don't suppose he'll stop himself before he chokes?" she asked Road as she walked over to her and gave her a bottle of apple juice.

"Eh, it's 50/50 at this point," Road shrugged.

Ellen chuckled as she opened her own bottle of mango juice. The video cut forward to what was probably ten minutes later in real time, and Road asked her an interesting question.

"Hey, Ellen?"

"Hm?" Ellen stopped sipping her drink and looked over at the younger girl. "What is it, Road?"

The camera switched from Ellen to the other side of the room, where two long poles connecting the ceiling to the floor stood guard in front of wall-to-wall mirrors.

"Why do you guys have those poles installed here?"

Road switched back to the woman's embarrassed face, though a curious Wisely could now be seen in the background.

"Well… we use them for a certain dance," the dancer sheepishly replied.

"Oh? What kind of dance?" Road's tone of voice clearly indicated that she already knew the answer, but she still asked the question for her own amusement.

[Sadist – Wisely]

[Takes one to know one – Road]

Ellen waffled a bit, then sighed as she ran her free hand down her face. "I know I'll regret this later," she muttered under her breath before looking back into Road's face. "Well, the reason is rather quite simple: we used to have dancers who formally specialized in pole dancing."

"So they're no longer with the troupe?" Road asked, acting rather nonchalant compared to the average person who automatically linked 'pole dancing' with 'stripper'.

"That's right," Ellen nodded. "Two of them, to be exact: Gwen Flail and Tina Spark. They left a few months after I joined, so I can't tell you much about them. Klaud Nyne does knows how to pole dance, but she's now a choreographer instead of a dancer."

"So now they're just gathering dust," Road sighed out in disappointment. "It seems like such a waste to not use them."

Ellen just looked to the side. "Yes, it is…"

"Hey, Ellen," Wisely began talking to the older woman as he moved closer into view. "You said that none of the dancers 'formally' specialize in pole dancing, right?"

She blinked at that question. "Yes. Why do you ask?"

"Well, that doesn't rule out dancers who 'informally' specialize in it. So," Wisely questioned as Ellen stiffened up, "is there someone like that here?"

Road, who had quickly realized where her brother was going, turned around and focused the camera solely on Ellen. "Yeah, Ellen, is there~?" she asked the other in a sing-song voice.

Seeing no way out, the British woman went ahead and confessed. "It's me."

Wisely choked on the sip of water he was drinking at the same time Ellen answered and began coughing ferociously. The video skipped ahead to when his cough dwindled down to just a tired sigh as Ellen gently patted his back.

"Are you okay now, Wisely?" she asked.

"Yeah, I just… just wasn't expecting that it was you instead of one of your friends," the teenager reassured her.

"Don't worry about Wisely," Road chirped behind the camera, though her arm was seen reaching out and clasping his shoulder as well. "He'll bounce back from hacking his lungs out by this time next week."

"Gee, thanks a lot Road," Wisely sarcastically replied as he rolled his eyes. He then turned back to Ellen and asked, "So how do you know how to pole dance, anyway?"

Ellen looked up to the ceiling as she contemplated her answer. "Well, to make a long story short, I was introduced to it by a… lady friend of Cross' after I graduated 12th grade here in America. And I've kept up practicing it since it helps me with my aerial silk moves."

"Really? How?"

"Both pole dance and aerial silks require the performer to have enough upper body strength to climb the respective pole or silks. Each performance is done as they're suspended above the ground with only what they're climbing on to support them. And finally, they must be flexible enough so that the moves appear graceful and effortless to the audience."

"Wow…" Road breathed out, her impressed tone the only indicator to the viewer on how she was currently feeling. Then she gleefully asked, "Can you show us some moves?"

"What?! Why?" Ellen blurted out.

"Well, you only showed us some acro moves so far, despite being specialized in both acro dance and aerial silks," the younger girl pointed out. "It's not fair to the viewers that they can't see examples of both."

"It's not like I knew you two were coming," the dancer reasoned, "or I would have asked Johnny or another technician to set up the silks today."

"Ah, but you don't have to set up the poles," Road countered as the camera switched back and forth between Ellen and the equipment in question. "And you said yourself that the two styles are quite similar."

"You can't deny that, Ellen," Wisely interjected with a smirk.

She shot him an irritated look. "And you are being the polar opposite of useful in this situation."

He just gave her a shrug in return.

"Aw, c'mon Ellen," Road cajoled her uncle's girlfriend, "just show us."

"No, Road. Not today."

"Please?"

"I said 'no'."

"PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE-"

"NO NO NO NO-"

"This went on for a while," Wisely's voice-over stated the obvious as the video transitioned to a sped-up montage of Road pleading and Ellen refusing. "But she eventually caved in." The following scene showing a resigned Ellen being hugged by a pleased-that-she-got-her-way-yet-again Road confirmed that statement.

As the video now showed Ellen stretching in front of the dance poles, it was Road's turn for a voice-over.

"Alright, everyone, here's a nice bit of trivia: whenever Ellen pole dances, she uses a special playlist on her phone that she made herself!"

"She does have good taste in music," Wisely confirmed.

"Yup! Unfortunately, due to Youtube's stupid enforcement of copyright, we can't play the original audio. Worse, we can't use the entire routine either!"

"We need to keep the video's total length to about an hour, Road. So instead, here's the abridged version with royalty free music. There are links to which songs she used in the description. And no, I'm not going to upload the entire routine later on. It would be too much work."

"Hmph, lazy bum! Oh look, it's about to start!"

And so began Ellen's pole dance routine. It started off low-key, with Ellen simply approaching one of the poles with a languid pace. She then gripped the pole with her left hand, looked over at the camera with a sultry gaze, then started to perform a few ground moves. She twisted and twirled, finely walking the line between sensual and trashy. Soon she climbed up the pole to perform the suspended moves: sits, high kicks, hooks, inversions… each move was not only technically graceful, they carried a certain energy that signaled that Ellen truly enjoyed what she was doing.

Wisely's editing skills were on full display as well. Despite the moves not flowing into each other as they would during a live performance, he had carefully arranged the clips so that they matched the music, note for note. He also apparently had fun mixing moves using the stationary pole with those that required the rotating pole.

Alas, all good things must come to an end. That didn't mean said ending should be on a sad note, however. The last move Ellen performed was a very complex one: she practically hugged the pole with the left side of her body as her legs were in a full split, rendering her parallel to the floor. It really was something that invoked a feeling of shock and awe.

"That was incredible, Ellen!" Road praised as the camera now showed her giving the other a great, big bear hug.

"Thank you, Road, though it wasn't that amazing," Ellen smiled as she returned it with a more sedate measure.

"Are you sure you don't want to formally add pole dancing to your list? You're so good at it!"

Ellen sighed in response. "Yes, I'm sure. I like to keep it as just a secret way of working out. Well, as secret as I can keep it after this video," she dryly amended as she looked at the camera.

[Yeah, not gonna happen – Wisely]

Road giggled, then turned to fully face the camera. "Alright, everyone! This has been our visit to the Black Order. Thanks again for performing for this video, Ellen!"

"You're welcome, Road. And I hope your viewers all have a good day."

The last scene at the Black Order was of Ellen waving to the viewer.

"Ah, that really was a great day," Road happily sighed out loud as the video now showed her and Wisely back in her room.

"Hmph," he grunted as he turned his back towards the camera.

"Huh? What's wrong, Wisely?"

"Hmph."

"Are you still mad that we made you exercise?"

She then burst into laughter once she saw his answering blush painted on his ears.

"Aw, c'mon Wisely," she teased her brother. "It wasn't that bad. She was going easy on you-"

"Easy?!" Wisely scoffed at Road's word choice.

"-and besides," she continued as if he hadn't interrupted her, "we even got her to show us her moves. The viewers will love that!"

"Maybe too much…"

"Hm? What do you mean?"

Wisely sent a mysterious gaze to the side. "Let's just say that Uncle Tyki shouldn't look at the comments section..."

- x -

Tyki let out a soft chuckle as he paused the video. 'Well, now I know what happened that day,' he mused as he let what he just watched sink in. Though now he wondered why Ellen didn't try to fully explain what happened the first time he asked. Maybe she just didn't want to relive how stressful their visit was? He wouldn't have blamed her; Road and Wisely seemed to have put her through a lot with their visit. And given what they were doing at the time…

Or maybe she was just reluctant to admit that she could pole dance. But why? Tyki had already seen her using those aerial silks, which was sexy in its own right. Plus he knew that behind Ellen's wholesome persona she presented to the world, there laid a more seductive and mischievous side that could bring any man she wanted to her feet. Only the manners instilled into the dancer by her late father kept her from unleashing it on the world.

Though she could, and regularly did, unleash it on Tyki. Who didn't mind in the slightest. There was just something so arousing about dating a woman who could successfully pull off both the ingenue and vamp. How she would secretly tease him with dirty whispers and heated looks, then innocently tell him to be patient because they were in public. How those deceptively thin arms could easily rip open his shirt and her hands raise goosebumps to match the groans his mouth spilled out from her nipping at his throat. And oh, how despite him fully pinning her to the mattress (really, any flat surface) and controlling the pace of their love-making, she could still get him to do what she wanted with just a moan or a squeeze or a kiss or by purring out, "Oh please, love, just a little bit harder. Harder. Hard- Yes, that's it! Oh, yes yes YES YES YES-"

'Fuck,' the Portuguese man mentally groaned as he clenched his eyes shut, trying not to let the results of his earlier fantasizing show. 'I better quit while I'm ahead.'

Well, at least Mercym was still busy watching Road's vlog. That way some of Tyki's dignity remained intact.

It was probably a good idea to have another go at his manuscript. Sure, there was no guarantee that his mind wouldn't stray, but at least he would look busy for a while.

However, just as he was about to switch back to Word, one phrase from the video suddenly echoed through his mind.

"Let's just say that Uncle Tyki shouldn't look at the comments section..."

What exactly did Wisely mean by that? Now very curious, he instead started to scroll down the page.

Despite having just been uploaded half an hour ago, the video already had many comments posted. Most were from Road's subscribers who gushed about either one point in the vlog or another. There were even a few about how Ellen looked so cool on the pole (He couldn't help but feel proud on her behalf). And of course there were those meme comments that obeyed neither rhyme nor reason regarding why they were posted there at all. Really, Tyki couldn't see why Wisely had made that enigmatic remark in the first place.

But then he did.

"¿Qué cojones (What the hell)?" Mercym cursed out loud as a sudden wave of fury washed over him. He looked away from his lesson plan to find out where that negative energy was emanating from. Much to his shock, the source turned out to be his normally laid-back cousin.

"Tyki, what's got you so upset?"

"Comments."

"What?"

"Comment's section. Ellen. Road's visit. Aqueles filhos de mães(Those sons of bitches)!" Tyki gritted out as he kept himself seated… though with great difficulty.

With only those clues, Mercym had no choice but to search both Road's vlog and the comment's section to figure out why Tyki was furious. It only took him a few seconds to see the problem.

"Hostia (Shit)…" Mercym breathed out as he rubbed at his temple. He chanced another glance at Tyki, then winced at what he saw.

To any stranger looking on at the Portuguese man, he appeared rather calm. His eyes were still affixed to his laptop, but his hands were no longer gripping the edge of the table and his face had smoothed over from its earlier rage. But Mercym knew better. Tyki wasn't one for ranting and raging, like Sheril over Road's male friends or Skin over a lack of sweets. Instead his fury was tranquil, kept quietly tucked away until an opportunity came for him to unleash it. And when you factor in Sheril's connections, not to mention the Earl's…

Right. Best to nip this in the bud.

"Tyki, can I just ask you something?" Mercym ventured. The author finally looked up, a spark of curiosity glimpsed among the darker emotions swirling in his eyes.

"What?" he nearly growled out at his cousin.

Mercym just pressed on. "Would Ellen carry out conjugal visits if you're incarcerated for murder?"

Had Tyki been drinking his now surely cold espresso, he most assuredly would have spat it all over the Spaniard. "W-what?" he sputtered in complete bafflement. "Why the hell do you ask that?"

"So that you'll stop yourself before you go too far," Mercym bluntly stated as he sipped his tea. "I'm not an expert at dating, but I do know you need to take into account your partner's feelings before making decisions that affect them. And you going to prison would be one such decision."

"… I wouldn't necessarily be charged with murder."

"Tyki, be honest with me. Not even the best defense attorney in the world could help you get anything less than murder in the third degree. Besides, can you sincerely tell me that your own girlfriend won't be able to tell that you're lying to her about the deaths of those men?"

Tyki kept up his defensive gaze, then looked away. "No," he reluctantly admitted to the other man.

Mercym saw the lingering anger and frustration and took pity on him. "Look, Tyki," he addressed the author, "it's natural for you to be upset. No one wants to read anonymous, sexual harassing comments about their significant others. And from what I know about Ellen, which admittedly boils down to what Road tells me, she deserves them the least. Still, she won't appreciate you going around and knocking them down six-feet under."

"… It wasn't just them," Tyki mumbled out.

"What was that?"

"I said that it wasn't just those comments," he re-iterated in a louder voice. "Yeah, reading about how some stranger wanted to bang my girlfriend did piss me off. But they were only half of it. No, what was truly infuriating…"

Tyki didn't care that the fury he still felt leaked out of his voice as he snarled out the remaining half of that sentence.

"… where those montes de merda (pieces of shit) calling her a 'zero-talented slut who should just kill herself'."

Mercym grimly kept quiet as he processed what he was just told. Truthfully, he had missed those comments as he looked through the comment section. By sheer coincidence they had been buried further down the page, leaving just the sexual harassing comments for him to see.

So, now he had the full picture. Problem was, what can he do about it?

- x -

As Mercym contemplated what he should do next, Tyki went back to his manuscript and ferociously edited it. His anger was especially useful as he went over Joyd's scenes, upping the ante on his more violent acts. As he went on writing, he began to reminisce on certain memories; moments of post-coital bliss with Ellen wrapped up in his arms as the two just basked in the other's company. She was so peaceful, so unguarded during those all too brief moments that she would share not only whatever was on her mind – she would even tell him bits of her past, information that not even her closest friends were fully privy to.

Many times she would talk about her father, Mana Walker: a silly but kind clown who ignored all the warnings he received on adopting a "foul-mouthed, stubborn tomboy" and gave her all the love and warmth she always wanted, but the rest of the world taught her to never expect. And despite dying just a few days before her 11th birthday, he proudly called her his daughter with his last words, even managing to leave her his childhood home in his will.

Sometimes they would be about her former guardian, Cross Marian. A man of baffling extremes. He didn't hesitate to leave her with a small mountain of debt, drank like a fish that had the soul of a wine-snob, and the lodgings he stuck her in weren't always 100% child appropriate. However, Cross never deliberately placed her in harms way. He made sure that she applied herself to her schoolwork, regardless of which country they were living in at that moment. And even up to the current day the man still sent her birthday presents, like her Pomeranian Timcanpy.

But then there were those times when Ellen shared less… positive memories. Like how a blind date back in college accused her of being frigid just because she refused to sleep with him that same night. Or when some female classmates in high school, jealous of all the attention Ellen got once she joined the Black Order's under 18 division, blasted her social media accounts with photo-shopped pictures that heavily implied she slept for her spot. And then there was the time one of Cross' slimier debt collectors proposed that the then fifteen-year old work off the other man's debts via "the oldest profession in the world"… starting with himself!

Hearing about that last type infuriated Tyki. It made him want to track those jackasses down and give them a sample of how their behavior affected Ellen. For they did have an effect on her. She was never able to truly relax if she wasn't in the presence of those she trusted, played down the well-deserved compliments she received on her performances, and used to turn down the vast majority of those who asked for a date – until Tyki came along, that is.

But while he longed to make them pay, he ultimately knew that Ellen wouldn't want that. She tried to live by her father's motto: "Don't stop, keep walking". Words that both amused and exasperated her boyfriend. On one hand, it meant she didn't let old hurts (save those inflicted by Kanda) blind her from living her life. On the other hand, it also made her vulnerable to silently pushing herself beyond her limits when she should confide in someone about her problems.

Tyki's previously frantic fingers slowed their assault on the keyboard until they finally came to a stop. He let them hover over the keys for a moment, then just let out a sigh of exhaustion as he cradled his head in his hands.

Before he started dating Ellen, his life had been rather simple. Balance his familial duties with his writing career and hobbies. Complete the Earl's requests; entertain Road and Wisely; stop his brother from getting too touchy-feely; attend the monthly family dinners without letting the others bother him too much. Finish his current story; hang out with Clark, Momo, and Eeze, and cheat any poor sucker who joined them for a poker game; play with his Papillon, Tease; relax with a cigarette or a day of fishing. Dating as a concept barely factored in, actually – he preferred using one-night stands to fulfill his sexual needs.

And then, about one year ago, he met her. Though in a very odd way: she had wandered into the same sports bar he and his friends like to meet at and asked if she could join in on their game. The men agreed to one round, all the while silently pitying this thin and frail looking young girl and thus deciding to hold back their cheating so that she would have a fighting chance. Instead they were the ones left with a great deal less of cash as she ruthlessly laid down a royal flush, then left with her winnings and a polite goodbye.

Tyki was shocked, flabbergasted… and a little intrigued. A few days later he saw her at the same crosswalk he was using and, without thinking, went over and challenged her to a rematch at a nearby cafe. And he lost; in fact he lost so badly that he would have been left in his boxers had it not been for the venue's "No shirt, no shoes" policy. But Ellen just gave a soft laugh as she agreed not to hold him to giving her his clothing, and even suggested meeting up again. "Next time, why don't we just talk," she lightly teased as he blushed in embarrassment.

And so they started hanging out. These meetings weren't anything that could be traditionally labeled as dates; rather, it was just about having fun and relaxing with no other expectations. At least at first. Soon they began to slowly learn about the other's personal life. Little things to start with: favorite foods, current hobbies, what they thought about a certain movie, etc. Next it moved onto topics such as their jobs, the reason for Tyki's scruffy clothing despite his well-paying job and why Ellen joined the Black Order in the first place. They even introduced the other to their respective friends, which either ended up being very hilarious or traumatic.

As their conversations and meetings grew more intimate, their mannerisms towards each other did too. The physical distance between the two gradually shrank. Casual remarks transformed into very subtle teasing. Even the text messages shared between them seemed to take on some additional, secret context that was just one step away from being decoded.

He couldn't point out the exact moment when he fell in love with Ellen, but he could identify the exact day he finally realized it. They were at another bar, observing New York City's nightlife through the window next to their booth as they played another game of poker. As the cards were scrutinized and discarded, they kept up a steady stream of conversation regarding whatever came to mind. Then it turned to a topic neither of them had previously brought up: relationships.

- x -

Ellen blinked her large silver eyes as she stared at Tyki. "Excuse me, can you repeat that?"

Tyki, dressed in more refined but still casual clothing, shrugged and said, "I asked if you ever had to deal with an ex still not over you?"

Her pink lips moved into a concerned frown as she set down her cards. "Are you in trouble, Tyki? If you need help, I could introduce you to Lavi so that he could tell you what options you can take legally."

He couldn't help the rush of warmth spreading through his body at her caring nature. "Don't worry, menina (girl), I'm fine. I only ask because someone called in to my favorite radio station yesterday and told them all about her ex-girlfriend stalking her. It made me curious about whether you gone through similar situations since you're a famous dancer and all that."

"Oh, is that so?" Ellen sighed in relief as her hand came up and clutched at where her heart was positioned. "That's good- ah, not for that woman, obviously. I do hope she gets help regarding her stalker. Still, at least you don't have to worry about that… right?"

"I'm perfectly fine," Tyki smiled as he reached out and gave her shoulder a reassuring squeezed. Neither of them seemed to realize that his hand lingered a few seconds before withdrawing. "I don't date all that often, so my list of exes is considerably shorter than one belonging to someone like – oh, I don't know – Cross. Plus I make my intent clear to them from the start."

Ellen couldn't help the snickers let loose by that jab to her former guardian, but raised an eyebrow as she processed what else he said. "And just what is your intent?"

Tyki felt himself stiffen up when she asked that question. Suddenly he wished that they were at a bar that allowed smoking, if only so that he could at least stall by lighting up a cigarette. "Well," he sighed out, "I'm not looking for anything long-term, so I try to keep things… non-committal."

That raised eyebrow transitioned into narrowed eyes and a small frown. "You mean… like friends with benefits?"

"No, nothing like that," Tyki tried to explain as a sudden spike of apprehension rose within. "It's more like… I meet someone at a bar or someplace else; we start talking to see if we want the same thing, and if we do, well… you can figure out the rest."

"And they've never said that they changed their mind and want something more serious?"

He couldn't help but scratch his head as he wondered how to answer that. "Well, it's not like I hand out my cell number to whoever asks for it," was his admittedly weak response.

Ellen sighed heavily and looked down before she moved to pick up her cards.

"You know," Tyki commented while resting his head in his free hand, "you haven't answered my question."

She stopped and looked at him with a questioning gaze. "Do you really want to hear about my past relationships?"

"I shared mine, menina. It's only proper for you to share yours."

The young woman rolled her eyes at his justification, but then an amused smile slipped on her face and she acquiesced.

But as she started to talk about her own dating experience, Tyki felt something start to build up in the pit of his stomach. It was a dark and unfamiliar emotion; similar to irritation or anger, but more… selective, for lack of a better word. And it grew in intensity as Ellen moved on from talking about the blind dates a well-meaning Lenalee set her up on to her long-term boyfriends.

Who didn't seem to be bad people, if he was being honest with himself. The descriptions given by her varied in details, but they all sounded like they were the kind of decent young men caring parents would dream about their children dating. Hell, even the eventual breakups were more amicable than not!

And yet it was those same men that caused Tyki to silently grit his teeth behind a facade of calm, all the while that same dark emotion thrashed around and snarled like never before. Only the news of the relationships' ends stilled its fury and let it relax with almost a… smug reassurance. Especially when it was Ellen who initiated the breakup and not them.

'Really, it's almost as if-'

"So, does that answer your question?"

Tyki blinked for a few moments, trying to get his bearings after Ellen cut through his train of thought. Then he smirked and said, "It sure does. I don't see why you were so reluctant to talk about it. You're better at picking dates than most people I know."

"Yes, well..." Ellen sheepishly shrugged her shoulders before picking up her cards, "when you live with a man like Cross, you quickly learn how to read other people and their intentions. As much as I hate to admit it, I do owe him for that."

"Enough to volunteer to pay for his visit to the liquor store?"

"Hell no!" she snapped back in a rare, public display of anger. "And if you ever say that again, I will strip you of everything you own the next time we play!"

"Alright, calm down," a slightly nervous Tyki said as he hurriedly laid his down his cards and raised his hands up in appeasement. "I was only joking around."

Ellen kept her angry stare fixed on him for several more nervous-sweating seconds. Then, once she saw he was properly cowed, let out a satisfied huff and went back to her cards.

'That was close,' Tyki thought as he let out a silent sigh of relief. He had already seen the consequences of when Kanda pissed her off with one too many comments, and he had no desire being the target of that fury.

But that was Ellen for you. She might seem like just another nice young lady, but underneath that pure outer layer was an ever-shifting mix of contradictions that continued to surprise and amuse him as time went by.

'Really, it's just another thing to love about her.'

That one absent-minded thought, something that flitted though his mind as he fondly stared at how Ellen concentrated on her cards, started a mental avalanche. Tyki suddenly stilled, cycling through several emotions before he arrived at his final destination.

Confusion.

'Wait, love?'

Rationalization.

'Well, she is my friend. That's a kind of love; platonic love.'

'And really, what's not to love about Ellen? She's attractive, bright and cares for her friends. Anyone would want her for a girlfriend.'

Denial.

'Not that I do.'

Suspicion.

'Though that feeling I kept getting while she talked about her ex-boyfriends… that wasn't normal. I've never felt that way hearing about Lulu Bell's exes. Yes, she's family, but Ellen is important to me as well.'

'It also eased once she mentioned the relationships ending...'

Realization.

'Wait…it was jealousy.'

'I was jealous of her exes, because I want her for myself.'

'Because I love her…'

'… merda.'

- x -

It took time for Tyki to come to terms with his feelings for her. Not much; it was laughably easy for him to mentally list out just why he loved her. But then came an even more daunting task: what to do about it. He had basically shot himself in the foot that day when he said he didn't go for serious relationships. A smart woman like her probably wouldn't believe any claims of love and commitment after that. Besides, while she always played along with his teasing, she never did anything to indicate that she wanted him in a romantic way.

And yet…

Tyki wasn't one for working hard, outside of his writing. He was perfectly fine with passing through life on minimal effort. Honestly, most of it was saved for dealing with his very eccentric family.

But now, for the first time ever, he met someone who he wanted to be with. Someone who deserved all the effort he had, not what he could spare. And he would not just stand by and let someone else sweep her off her feet. So he resolved to ask her out on a date the next time they met up.

That time soon arrived. But instead of Tyki telling Ellen that he loved her, it was the other way around.

Interpreting his blank expression as a sign of confusion, she hurriedly began to explain why she confessed. Like Tyki, Ellen had also recently realized that she saw the other as a love interest rather than just another friend. In fact, and here he really kicked himself, she would have told him that night at the bar had he not told her of his previous preference for non-commitment. But after spending a day in contemplation, she decided to just risk the (to her) very likely chance of rejection and tell Tyki how she felt. "Of course," she added, starting to feel discouraged by his prolonged silence, "I'll understand if you only want to stay friends…"

Realizing that he was messing up once again, Tyki's brain commanded him to 'do something, seu bobo(you idiot)!'

And he did. Quite clearly. Yes, suddenly reaching out and pulling Ellen into a crushing kiss all the while in the middle of the sidewalk wasn't exactly the same as verbally telling her he liked her too and really wanted to go on a date with her. But given the way she melted into the kiss and wrapped her arms around his neck, the intended message was received.

Their first date, first make-out session, first official meeting with the other's family, first time having sex together – so many relationship milestones were achieved as time went on. They did have problems, of course – all couples do, no matter what they claim otherwise – but they managed to work through them all. And the days wore on, Tyki began to suspect that they were going to stay together for a long time.

"-ki."

So just why, why couldn't he do something about those fucking comments?

"-yki. Tyki!"

The Portuguese man snapped back to reality. He turned his head to the left, where Mercym was standing with tea and shoulder bag.

"You finished, then?"

"Mercym nodded and said, "Everything's ready for next week. Which is good, seeing as the sun has almost set right now."

Tyki blinked, then looked out of the window. Just like Mercym had said, the sky was now a narrow bar of burning orange buried under a gradient of pink and blue. The shadows solidified with each passing second, kept only at bay by the streetlights, passing cars, and the odd illuminated sign.

"Huh, time really does fly…" he idly observed.

"It sure does. Well, see you at the next family dinner."

"See you, then. It's next Thursday, right?"

"No, next Saturday. It was moved to then because Jasdero and Devit's parent-teacher conference was rescheduled."

Tyki smirked at that piece of news. "I don't know who to pity more: the twins, the Earl, or the teacher."

Mercym chuckled and started to turn towards the exit. However he then paused and looked back at Tyki. "One more thing: if you're going to see Ellen later today, you two should talk about Road's vlog."

Tyki quickly realized that he was talking about more than just Ellen's part in the video. "Mercym-"

The teacher held up his hand, cutting the other off. "Communication is vital in a relationship, Tyki. The last thing you want to do is sweep what bothers you under the rug. And she would want to hear it from you rather than though another source."

"Oh? Are you going to tell her, then?"

"I don't need to. Wisely is great at accurately predicting what's on a person's mind… and will reliably blurt it out at the least appropriate moment."

Damn. He had a point there.

"… It won't make a difference, Mercym," Tyki slumped in defeat. "She'll just tell me to ignore them and that she won't let negative attention get to her since she has me and her friends. But it still does; I can see how it makes her rely more on her mask in public and keeps her from relying on us."

"Then work on it, Tyki. Tell her how it affects both of you when she tries to shoulder the burden alone. That by not wanting to bother you or others, she instead makes you all worry for her. Remind her that she needs to trust you with all her major problems. You two are in it for the long haul, after all."

Tyki sat there, blinking in astonishment at everything Mercym just told him. "We've only been dating for six months."

"Which, in contrast to your dating history, just proves that you're serious about her. If you're not at least engaged by this time next year, I'll give up my shades."

The Portuguese man let out a snort at the Spaniard's quip. "I thought you said you weren't an expert on dating."

"You'll be surprised at what you'll learn as a teacher."

And with that last remark, Mercym finally made his goodbyes and left for home.

Now Tyki was left in a noticeably quieter cafe, wondering what to do now. He didn't think he'll make anymore progress with his manuscript, and he plenty of time left to work on it.

'I should just go home,' he decided as he saved his progress. Tease was undoubtedly waiting for his return and hadn't yet grown out of his biting habit. Plus he could call Ellen over so they would cuddle and flirt… and talk.

'It's time we discuss this, once and for all.'

However, just as he powered down his laptop and started to gather up his things, his cell phone chimed to alert him to a new text message from Road.

[hi, Tyki! did u see my vlog video 2day? Road (5:30 PM)]

That's Road for you; she went straight for the jugular whenever she wanted something. He sent a quick reply back.

[Yeah, I did – Tyki (5:31 PM)]

[great! :D which part did u like da best? – Road (5:32 PM)]

Hmm… give her an honest answer, or just mess with her? Yeah, option #2 sounded a lot more fun.

[The part I watched – Tyki (5:33 PM)]

[: ( TYKI! : ( – Road (5:33 PM)]

[DON'T MAKE ME TELL DADDY! – Road (5:34 PM)]

[OR MILLENNIE! – Road (5:34 PM)]

Uh-oh, she was getting huffy.

[Sorry, Road. But I did only watch one part – Tyki (5:35 PM)]

[hmph! : why not da whole thing? – Road (5:36 PM)]

[It's 1 hour long, Road. And I was working – Tyki (5:37 PM)]

[is that what u call it? – Road (5:37 PM)]

Ouch.

[Very funny – Tyki (5:38 PM)]

[^v^ - Road (5:38 PM)]

[so what did u watch then? - Road (5:39 PM)]

[it was Ellen right? ¬‿¬ - Road (5:40 PM)]

Huh. Well, that saved him some time.

[Yep – Tyki (5:40 PM)]

[:D – Road (5:40 PM)]

[:DD – Road (5:40 PM)]

[I KNEW IT! - Road (5:41 PM)]

[Tyki ure such a perv only watching her dancing XD – Road (5:42 PM)]

[Hey, she's my girlfriend – Tyki (5:42 PM)]

[LOL – Road (5:42 PM)]

[oh right i wanted 2 show u something~ – Road (5:43 PM)]

[wisely cut it from da video – Road (5:43 PM)]

[but i think ull really like it~! – Road (5:44 PM)]

Tyki raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

[Oh? What is it? - Tyki (5:45 PM)]

In response, Road went ahead and sent a two-minute long video a few seconds later. The thumbnail showed Ellen, indicating it was from Road and Wisely's trip to the Black Order.

When Tyki hit the play button, after lowering the volume so that only he could hear it, the video began with Ellen already on the pole in the same complex pose last seen in the vlog. He realized she had been using the rotating pole then, as now she was slightly moving to the right. Then she slowly, sensually transitioned into a sit. All the while the last musical notes of Beyoncé's Drunk in Love echoed throughout the room.

Her closed eyes fluttered open as the next song – electropop, judging by the opening notes – began to play. She twirled as she slid down the pole, stepped down to the ground but kept one hand gripped tight.

"Hey, Ellen?" Road chirped from where she sat close by the poles.

'You're the light, you're the night; You're the color of my blood...'

"Yes, Road?" Ellen sighed as she hooked a leg around the pole and began to twirl around.

'You're the cure, you're the pain; You're the only thing I wanna touch...'

"Isn't there anyone you want to give a shout-out to?"

'Never knew that it could mean so much, so much...'

The older woman tilted her head in mock confusion as she knelt on the floor, her back arched like a crescent moon. "Oh? Like who?"

'You're the fear, I don't care; 'Cause I've never been so high...'

"Road's thinking it should be someone special," Wisely chimed in off screen. "Someone that watches the vlog and who you're very close to."

'Follow me through the dark; Let me take you past our satellites...'

"Do you know anyone like that, Ellen?" grinned out a knowing Road.

'You can see the world you brought to life; to life...'

"Hmm..." Ellen looked towards the camera and let out that soft laugh Tyki just loved to hear. "As a matter of fact…"

'So love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do…'

The dancer got up and performed another spin move that brought her in close. Each move after that grew in intensity, matching the progression of the chorus. Some Tyki had already seen in the vlog; others were clearly new to him.

Finally Ellen stopped. She motioned Wisely to zoom in, and the teenager obliged. When the camera presented a clear shot of her face, she kissed the palm of her hand and gently blew it forwards. Her eyes glowed with love and tenderness, and a smile sincere smile stretched her face.

"This one's for you, Tyki."

'What are you waiting for?'

Tyki stood there, surprised into silence, for a few minutes after the video ended. Then he just laughed.

'Ah… you always seem to surprise me at the most unexpected times,' he thought as he gazed down at his phone.

And so Tyki finally left the cafe with his laptop, one very cold espresso and a lighter spirit.

He was on his way home; a place where the most fascination woman he ever met should be waiting once she got his call.


- xXx -

Cultural Notes:

Mercym's new name – So yeah, I decided to give him a new name for this story. Since Hoshino listed Mercym's nationality as Spanish, I went to Behind the Name's website for Spanish names. And since it's customary for Spaniards to have two surnames (the first is their father's first surname, the second is their mother's), he's got two surnames as well. I decided against giving him two first names, though.

'Diego' (First name): Possibly derived from the Greek word didache, which means 'teaching'. Famous name bearers include Saint Didacus (or Diego), a 15th century Franciscan brother; Mexican muralist Diego Rivera; and Argentine soccer player Diego Maradona.

'Prieto' (Father's first surname, or apellido paterno): Derived from a nickname meaning 'dark' in Spanish. Refers to someone with dark hair or skin.

'Espina' (Mother's first surname, or apellido materno): Means 'thorn' in Spanish. Originally given to those who lived near a thorn bush.

Dance troupes – Pretty self-explanatory, but I thought I should mention a few things about them. As they are a company, they have a board of directors and education administrators as well as directors, producers, dancers, etc. The types of dance companies are as numerous as those of dance styles. There is evidence that they were first formed during Greek and Roman times; they worked in theaters and performed musicals, entertaining high class patrons.

Aerial silksA style of performance where one or more people perform aerial acrobatics using one single or two looped pieces of fabric. Tricks fall into one of three categories: drops, climbs and wraps. Origin isn't clear, but was started either in the late 80s or 90s.

Acro dance Modern dance sub-genre that combines classical dance with precise acrobatic movements. It's very athletic and is popular with amateur dance competitions, professional dance theaters and contemporary circuses. The performers must wear special footwear to protect their feet from the rough dance floor.

Pole dance This is also well-known in pop culture (via strippers and gentleman's clubs), but does deserve a few more details as well. Pole dancing is a good way to exercise since it can be used for both aerobic and anaerobic workouts; there are several (non-nude) pole dance competitions that are held around the world, with some people even pushing for its inclusion in the Olympics; the pole itself is either hollowed-out chrome, steel or brass and works best when attached to the ceiling; using poles for exercise can be traced back at least 800 years ago to the Indian sport of mallakhamb;and both genders enjoy performing as mainstream acceptance grows.

- x -

Wow… The latter half went to some dark and deep places, huh? I was planning a more gallows humor scenario regarding what Tyki saw in the comments, but my brain decided it was angst time instead. Really, I spent quite a few minutes crying as I typed this out. But at least it ended on a high note.

I do hope you guys didn't find Mercym's relationship advice too cheesy. I'm a novice when it comes to writing stuff like that. Though it looks like I've made him the family therapist as well as a kindergarten teacher…

Oh, here are the songs from Ellen's playlist (in no particular order):

Love Me Like You Do – Ellie Goulding

Breathe Me – Sia

Skin – Rihanna

Bring Me to Life – Evanescence

Drunk in Love – Beyoncé ft. Jay-Z

I got them from a YouTube playlist created by Shell Tomlin. It's titled 'Pole Dance Playlist' and has artists ranging from Britney Spears to Nine Inch Nails!

Another plot bunny bites the dust! Which one is next? Probably a historical AU; seriously, I'm coming up with so many that are set in this or that century it isn't funny.

Please leave a review or PM me! Your attention is what keeps me going!