Chapter 74: Be Mine
It is now mid-February, and while the bitter nip of winter is soon to be a thing of the past, its clouds still linger. Citizens look to the skies wondering "Will it?" or "Won't it?" regarding snowfall, and bundle themselves in warm jackets and the like.
...All except for Alura. Having grown up under a "vampire's" roof, she was used to the cold. In fact she found it very pleasant.
So while she worked her job in her usual gothic style t-shirts and pants, her co-workers Jeff and Stewart were wrapped up in thick ribbed jackets and what looked like two layers of pants.
Jeff in particular was on the stepladder attempting to fidget with the heater in the back corner.
Stewart rubbed his gloved hands together as fog blew from his mouth, "C-C'mon man, I'm gonna become a popsicle here! And not the good kind either!"
"N-N-Not my fault this things older than your mom's toenail fungus!" Jeff twisted some wires together and then closed the grate, whacking it shut with his wrench.
After a few seconds the heater whirred and Jeff threw his arms off, the stepstool wobbling around beneath him until he bent down to hold it in place.
"Hell yeah!" Stewart immediately began to unzip his jacket only for his whole body to tremble fiercer than before.
As he zipped back up Jeff glared at him and said, "It takes a while for it to heat up, idiot."
"I-I remembered that!" Stewart said with wildly impossible levels of confidence.
After folding up the stepstool Jeff went to sit in his chair beside Stewart and melted into his seat. He then turned his attention to Alura who, at the moment, was tending to a customer.
"That'll be 15.98 ma'am." She said in her stoic tone, holding up an electronic card reader for the middle-aged lady to use.
As the lady paid for a CD she bobbed her head in appreciation and remarked, "Thank you so much. My son loves Fire Storm Crackin'."
"Yes," Alura nodded slightly in turn, "I like their music too. People say that they are...the bomb diggity."
"Oh you're precious," The lady wagged her free hand down and then, once taking her card back, leaned a little bit closer to Alura and whispered, "Say are you free tomorrow? My son's looking for a date and I'd just love to hook you two up."
Alura just stood there tilting her head with a deer in the headlights look. Fortunately the lady stopped any further awkwardness herself by mentioning, "Oh? You must have plans...F-Forget I said anything. Thanks again!"
She then left the building. Alura continued to tilt her head as she wandered back to her seat near the two nitwits, where he guitar rested in wait for her.
"Good job holding the fort, Alura." Remarked Jeff.
"No kidding, that's your third sale today, a new record!" Stewart followed, clapping twice.
Alura struggled to smile and turned away from the two with a shy giggle. Then she picked up her guitar and pick and started to play around with it.
When the heat came on, finally, Jeff and Stewart shed their winter wear a little and Stewart stretched his arms high.
"Mmmm! Goddamn! I hope it ain't like this tomorrow..."
Alura poked her head up and wondered, "What's tomorrow?"
Jeff and Stewart froze up, stared at one another in shock, then Stewart took the lead in explaining, "You don't know what Valentine's Day is?!"
He sounded incredibly offended. Jeff put his hand up to his face and then tried taking a more...softer approach.
"Every year on February 14th we celebrate Valentine's Day."
"Its a day to feast on chocolates and go make-out with a bunch of women!" Stewart cheered, "O-Or men...in your case. Unless you swing the other way...W-Which would be totally cool but-"
Jeff gave a couple rough coughs and then sighed, "I mean that's what we do NOWADAYS but in truth Valentine's Day is supposed to be a commemoration of St. Valentine, a religious man who stood up against the prejudice of the Roman Empire in-"
"NEEEEEEEEERD!" Stewart shouted with his hands cupped around his mouth.
After flinching to a stop Jeff glared over his shoulder at his friend and then back to Alura...who was simply tilting her head around and looking a little dizzy.
"Haaaa," Jeff raised and twirled his hand around to get to the meat of this topic, "Basically its a day of love."
Alura stiffened in place and remarked, "...Love?"
"Yeah. Maybe you spend time with someone you really like, or maybe you work up the courage to confess your feelings to them."
"I see..." Alura nodded slowly. She understood the message...Just not exactly how much weight it carried.
Stewart leaned comfortably into his chair and remarked, "Just don't be surprised if you get rejected."
Jeff turned and said with a dry chuckle, "Yeah, you would know."
"Bah!" Stewart scoffed, "This year's my year dude! I'm going to get so many ladies it'll fill this entire building!"
Jeff rolled his eyes and faced Alura once again, who immediately asked him, "How do you 'confess your feelings'?"
"Uhhh, good question." Jeff was left gawking for answers.
Stewart shrugged his shoulders and remarked, "Jeffy boy's only had one date in his life and that's with his rosy palms."
Jeff widened his eyes and turned, hissing through his gritted, "S-Shut up, she doesn't need to hear that!"
Stewart grinned and stood up, gently brushing his hand out at Jeff's face while telling him, "Scoot aside and let an expert handle this."
"Oh this ought to be good..." Jeff pulled his chair away but kept close just in case he needed to intervene.
"Alright Alura..." Stewart walked in front of her and then jerked around, thrusting a pointer finger up towards her face, "Step one! You walk up to the person you like and tell them you want to talk to them."
"Ok...?" Alura nodded obediently.
Stewart then backed away, turning around and raising his second finger behind his back, "Step two! You take the person somewhere romantic and bring them a gift."
"Oh, this sounds like Christmas again." Alura remarked.
"Exactly!" Stewart snapped his fingers, "Except this time when you give them a gift you follow it up by saying 'I love you' instead of 'Merry Christmas'!"
"I see..." Alura closed her eyes and liked this idea of Valentine's Day, "And then...?"
"Step three!" Stewart raised three fingers before his lips and then squeezed them into his fist, "You pucker up, and give 'em a big fat kiss on the lips!"
Alura's eyes suddenly thrust open and a pinkish tint appeared in her cheeks, "K-K-Kiss...?"
She had heard of kisses through books and some movies. Two people press their lips together while very beautiful music plays.
She's felt her heart fluttering every time she witnesses a kiss and, hearing the word now, the feeling's no different.
Its something she's never experienced and the lack thereof has left her feeling empty in her chest. Confounding her further was that the first thing she thought of when the word "kiss" was mentioned was a brief flash of Joe Dark's face in her mind.
She sucked her lips in and cooed like she was in misery, but not loud enough for the two to pick up on. In fact Stewart was trapped in his romanticized little world, imparting one last bit of advice like it was the key to eternal life.
"And finally, if it all works out, your love will carry you to the nearest bed where you'll-"
Jeff threw the nearest empty water bottle at Stewart's head and told him, "Alright casanova put some ice on those loins, you've made your point."
Stewart rubbed his forehead and grumbled incoherently for a bit. Then he turned to Alura and told her, "Yeah, what he said. Even you ought to get what I'm saying, right Alura?"
Alura paused for a few moments, resting her hand on her chest until the beating in her heart slowed back down to normal. She then let out a tiny breath and muttered, "I-I see..."
"Valentine's Day is a day of love. But...what is love?" Was a question bearing many thorns.
Jeff patted Alura on the back and said, "Don't fret over it. Nobody finds love right away."
"Uhhhh..." Stewart crossed his arms and scoffed, "You...you're kidding right?"
As the other two stared at him Stewart gestured a hand out with a smirk and said, "Its obvious who Alura's in love with. That Joe Dark guy!"
"Meep!" Alura squeaked while Jeff's eyes bulged out.
"Y-You're kidding me..."
"What, you didn't notice? Seriously, dude?" Stewart craned his head back proudly and chuckled, "THIS is why I'm the expert."
He closed his eyes and flaunted his expertise right in his friend's face, "I mean come on the signs are all there...She's always joined to his hip, she always eats his lunches and never anything else, she's got her clothes in the same style as his..."
"Oh good grief..." Jeff hunched over and covered his face in shame.
And during this rundown Alura was frozen stiff with her eyes wide open and her face looking increasingly pinker over time.
"Don't know what you see in the guy though," Stewart shrugged, "He's moody, thin as a toothpick, looks like he could turn into a serial killer at the drop of a hat..."
"Alura...?" Jeff raised his head and looked at her, but she had completely shut down, refusing to respond even as Jeff waved his hand before her face.
"Oh crap I think you broke her..." Jeff murmured.
Stewart reeled back, teeth grit in a grimace, "Oh SHIT I don't want to be his first murder!"
Jeff tried waving his hand in front of her again, following up by saying, "Alura...do you actually...love Joe Dark?"
"I-I-I..." Stuttered Alura, her mind sinking back a ways to a horrible memory...
"I don't want her to walk the same path I do."
Joe Dark's words that day squeezed at her chest whenever she happened to think about them. She laid both her hands over her chest and murmured, "I-It hurts..."
Jeff roughly shook his head around and said, "We should drop this, man...I don't feel right getting involved."
"No." Stewart remarked in a blunt manner.
Jeff looked rather pissed off at him and said, "Dude, seriously."
Stewart raised his hand up at Jeff briefly and then faced Alura to say, "I don't know what's going on with you, Alura, but its a bad idea to bottle up your feelings."
"If you really do love him, then you're disrespecting the bond you two share by not telling him that," He paused and sighed, "You just... got to be prepared for the very real possibility that he might not love you in the same way."
Alura's mind was a whirlwind of confusion. So many strange new emotions were firing off all at once and she barely understood any of them at even the most basic level.
But she did know pain. And this was the worst its ever felt. Suffocating, intoxicating, a poison on her soul, and a venom on her peace of mind.
But nobody can understand pain if the victim remains silent, and silent she stayed, for she knew no other way.
Jeff and Stewart took up the brunt of the work for the remainder of the day, leaving Alura to strum her guitar slowly. There was this heavy vibe in the building that didn't go away until closing time.
Then Alura was picked up by Joe Dark, continuing to remain silent on their ride home, while she also avoided looking him in the eyes.
This continued on into dinner time too, but there Julius' watchful eye came into play. After the plates were cleaned and Alura quietly retreated into her bedroom, Julius walked up to her doorway and gave it a couple soft knocks.
"May I come in?" He stood at the doorway until Alura barely mustered the effort to look his way from the comfort of her bed.
He then strolled up beside her bed and took a seat, taking care not to sit too close to her. She shifted away from him and crumpled her pillow up below her face.
"Something has got your spirits low tonight," Julius remarked, "Care to talk about it?"
"Mmmrrr..." Alura dug her fingertips into her pillow and tucked her legs into her stomach.
Julius sat there for a couple minutes and then slowly pulled himself up, remarking in dismay, "When you're ready, you know where to find me."
Alura trembled and shook with feelings of anxiety and, in that moment, let slip, "Julius...what is...love?"
Julius had his hand on the door and held onto it tight. With a deep, heavy breath he turned around and simply uttered, "Ah."
He returned back to her bedside and remarked, "Feeling your first Valentine's Day blues, Miss Alura?"
Alura flipped onto her back with her pillow clasped tightly against her chest, a bit of her flushed face poking up from up top.
"I...I don't understand, Julius...Love sounds like its supposed to be...good. But whenever I think about it, my chest hurts so much..."
"Its because you're not used to feeling that way," Julius pondered on that for a few moments and then, tapping his fingers on the bed, let out a sigh as he remarked, "No that's not correct. Rather..."
He looked her in the eyes to say, "Its because you feel very strongly about a certain someone."
He gazed fondly into the distance and murmured, "Love is something...magical, beautiful, yet unfathomable at the same time. We love to fill the emptiness inside of us, we love because we care for the people around us, we love because we want more from those we know. Love explains away irrationality, yet is irrational all its own."
"These twists and knots in your chest are normal, Miss Alura, I can assure you. And just because you don't understand why you feel this way, doesn't mean its unnatural that you're feeling it."
"But I don't want to feel this pain," She stuffed the pillow against her face and her voice started getting muffled, "It hurts, it really, really hurts."
Julius rested his hand flat on the bed and whispered, "Then let it go."
"H-Huh?"
"Set your heart free. Tell the person you love exactly how you feel, and that pain will go away..." Julius smiled and closed his eyes softly, "That's not to say you might not experience another type of pain, but...I feel confident that he will, at the very least, understand how you feel."
He then patted her bed twice and stood up, whispering, "If you need anything else, I'm here to lend a ear."
He then left the room and finally, Alura slid the pillow off her face. With a groan of discomfort she murmured, "Tell him...how I feel?"
Her heart was pounding.
"Mmmmrrr..." She rolled onto her other side and reached for her drawers. In the top shelf was a folded up piece of note paper that she slid out and opened up.
Inside she had written down some lyrics for a new song she had made up and had planned to show to Joe Dark as a Christmas gift...
But now, looking back on it...WHY did she make it for him to begin with? Looking over her words just made her heart beat faster, and her breathing quickened.
She clamped the paper against her chest and tried to calm down, but her body was in a cold sweat and the pain in her chest was so tight it felt like her heart was about to burst.
"Mmrrr...!" She laid her hands over the paper, clasping it down as hard as she could, and pulled her head back while paddling her feet against the bed.
"I don't want to feel this pain anymore..." She murmured all to herself, trapped in a cage of wild emotions.
After resting on this pain for a few minutes, she slowly pulled the paper up and stared at it, remembering Stewart's advice about how to confess one's love.
"...I have to do this." She slowly sat herself up and found her hand drawn towards a pen atop her drawers. Staring longingly at this paper, she took her pen to it and began to write.
"I-I'll...tell Joe Dark how I feel tomorrow." This was her determination, even if she still didn't understand what she was doing.
The next day arrived and went by relatively quick. Alura kept her paper close at hand and practiced her guitar all throughout her work day. Then she returned home with Joe Dark, her heart beating louder and louder as they headed inside the manor.
"Man I'm beat..." Joe Dark said as he flicked her shoes off beside the door. Then, as he undid his tie he walked towards the kitchen and remarked, "Hey Julius, what's for dinner tonight?"
Julius walked out of the room with a sigh, "Forgive me Master Joseph, but I seem to have run out of vegetables for our meal. I just need to make a quick run to the store."
Joe Dark waved his hand around and said, "I could do it faster with my powers."
"Not necessary," Julius smoothly walked over and put his hand on Joe Dark's shoulder, "I need some fresh air anyways. I'll only be a half-hour."
He then made his way upstairs to grab his wallet but, in the meantime, he winked at Alura.
Alura tilted her head and then after a few moments flinched upright with wide-eyes. Joe Dark tucked his hands in his pockets and mumbled, "Guess I could nibble on something in the meantime..."
"J-Joe Dark?" Alura spoke up with a meek whisper, making the boy creak his head over his shoulder.
"Hey, you're talking finally," He said with a halfway joking smile, "What's up?"
She had her guitar in one hand, and the piece of paper in the other behind her back. Her face started to turn red, and her heart began beating fast.
All she had to do was say a few words and it'd all be over with. So, why was it so hard just to say one?
"I-I-I..." She immediately started to feel dizzy and turned her eyes away from Joe Dark's anticipating face.
"I-I-I...!" She was trying to force the words out with all her strength but her fluttering heart kept getting in the way.
It was a crippling blow to her confidence going in, if she ever had any to begin with. Her hands began to shake, squeezing the paper enough to make a sound.
"Huh?" Joe Dark's sudden remark made Alura freeze up in place, "What was that sound?"
As he began to lean around her and say "You hiding something, Alura?" there was suddenly a knock on the front door.
Alura squeamishly turned her eyes at the door and felt Joe Dark slowly pull away remarking, "Huh? Who'd be here at this hour..."
He was about to go for the door when Julius silently descended to the foyer and remarked, "Allow me."
He opened the door and standing out there was Mew and Maria, the latter bundled up in some warm clothes and carrying a heart-shaped box against her chest.
"Why if it isn't Mew and Miss Maria," Julius said warmly, "What brings you here?"
The two walked in, Mew with his hands behind his head, "Oh you know, just wanted to stop in and say hello to my favorite brother!"
"Oh and..." Mew looked down at Maria, "Maria has something she wants to give you, Joe."
"What?" Joe Dark peeled away from Alura and she let out a tiny gasp.
"Well, I'll be off then." Julius then made his way out the door.
"Mmm!" Alura stretched her hand out but nearly revealed the paper in the process. Quickly putting it back behind her, she stared at Joe Dark as he approached Maria, who raised her box right up on both hands.
"Happy Valentine's Day!" She said in her cheery tone.
"I-Its Valentine's Day...?" Joe Dark widened his eyes and whispered, "I forgot that was even a day..."
Maria closed her eyes and her smile was positively beaming as Joe Dark reached down and pulled the lid of her box, revealing an assortment of individually wrapped chocolates.
Alura's heart skipped a beat. Chocolate, the candy of love, according to Stewart.
"Oh cool, this is all for me?" Joe Dark said with a tone of mild delight.
"Uh huh! I made them all myself with mama's help!" Maria cheered proudly.
"And I helped her make the box," Mew grinned, "So feel free to indulge in my love, brother!"
Joe Dark stopped before picking up a piece of chocolate to comment, "Don't make me start to hate chocolate, Mew."
He then picked up the piece at the edge while Alura stood by with a horrified stare from her eyes.
"S-S-She...made him that chocolate?"
Joe Dark unwrapped the rounded piece of chocolate-y goodness, saying "Well its not after dinner but..." before stuffing it in his mouth.
His body immediately jolted upright as he let out a surprisingly hefty moan.
"MMM! This is pretty good!" He mumbled as the chocolate melted down thoroughly to every corner of his mouth, attacking him with more sweet, sugary robust flavors than he could count.
Alura's face turned pale watching Joe Dark indulge himself in this girl's devil candies.
"Chocolate...love...Gift...Joe Dark...!" She understood this much: That this was essentially Maria butting in and stealing her love confession on Valentine's Day.
And the smug smile the little girl flashed at her only proved this to be true.
Alura's heart wrenched with a terrible ache and then started beating faster.
"Maria's got some talent!" Mew proudly rubbed the smug girl's head and she giggled, further rubbing salt in Alura's wounded heart.
"Mmm...!" Alura began to squeeze her paper tightly.
"Want some more?" Maria nudged the box closer to Joe Dark's face and he happily stretched his hand out towards another chocolate.
"Sure, why not?"
Alura's eyes widened fully and she found it very hard to breathe. Her heart was beating faster and faster, sounding the engines of fury.
"...!" All her eyes saw was red, her mind a distorted jumble of runes and static.
Without warning she dropped what was in her hand and dashed forward, throwing all her strength into slapping the box of chocolates onto the floor.
There were gasps from the others, and while Alura felt joy in the moment...
"Alura..." Joe Dark's voice came crashing down upon her sounding nothing but disappointed and confused, "What the hell was that for?"
Alura jolted upright with a bundle of twists and knots in the pit of her gut. She slowly turned around, watching Mew, Maria, then Joe Dark, stare at her with the same sense of disappointment and confusion looming over them all.
She stared down at the chocolates scattered and mushed up on the floor, the box lying in a bent up shape near Joe Dark's feet.
Her breathing worsened and she started to step away, Joe Dark's gaze following her all the while. She suddenly clasped her hands over her mouth and turned away, making a mad dash out the front door.
"Alura!" Joe Dark stretched his hand out and took a couple steps after her, but then stopped and clutched his fist by his hip with a scowl, "What...in the world is up with her?"
Mew snuck behind him and bent down to pick up the piece of paper on the ground. Joe Dark's attention towards this was grabbed when Maria walked up to Mew and commented, "What'd you got there, papa?"
"Huh?" Joe Dark turned around and Mew did the same, fluttering the paper around beside his face with a closed-eye sigh.
"Oh boy, you're a real heartbreaker, Joe..."
"What?" Joe Dark gave an unamused answer and tried to reach for the paper, only for Mew to smoothly pull it back beside his head and fold it up with just a few fingers.
"Ah ah ah, no peeking," Then Mew handed it off to him with the caveat of, "We need to find Alura first, then you can give this back to her."
"Tsk...!" Joe Dark scowled and remarked as he snatched the paper out of Mew's hand, "Y-You're right. She couldn't have gotten far."
Mew patted Maria on the back and said, "Alright, lets help them out."
"Haaa, ok papa..." Maria said, unenthused.
The three first made a couple scans around the manor grounds but had no luck. Joe Dark quickly walked his way down the hill to try and catch up with her but she was still nowhere to be found.
Thus, the three of them made their rounds around town at Alura's usual hang-outs. The music store, the ice cream parlor, the local park, the pet store, but nobody had seen hide or hair of her all day...
So they hurried on back to the manor, thinking that Alura might have made her way back while they ran around town. But inside and outside, they couldn't find her at all. Its like she had vanished off the face of the Earth...
Joe Dark collapsed onto the porch and buried his face in his hands, letting out a muffled scream of frustration, "Damn it Alura, where'd you run off too?!"
Mew crossed his arms against his chest and thought aloud, "I want to know how she got away so fast. Never took her for a slippery sort..."
Mew then gazed briefly at Maria before remarking, "We'll take another look around town, Joe. You just wait here and see if she comes back."
"Haaaa..." Joe Dark raised his head and muttered, "Sorry for the trouble, Mew."
"Forget about it." Mew shrugged and turned away with Maria to take off to the city.
Joe Dark let out a heavy sigh and drooped over, his hands hung between his legs, "Why do I feel like this is my fault...? Alura..."
The door creaked open behind him and Julius poked his head out curiously, "Master Joseph? What appears to be troubling you?"
Joe Dark flinched back and muttered "J-Julius...you scared me" before trying to sit a little more upright.
"Yes well, I've been back for a bit now and saw the disaster you left behind in the foyer..." Julius slipped out the door and stood behind Joe Dark, "I take it something has happened with Miss Alura?"
"How did you guess?" Joe Dark replied dully.
"Heh." Was Julius' sole answer.
Joe Dark laid his hands against his cheeks and remarked, "I don't know what's up with her. She smacked some chocolates Maria had brought out of her hand, then freaked out and ran out the front door. Now we can't find her no matter how hard we've looked."
"Hmmm, Miss Maria brought...chocolates?" Julius rubbed his chin and murmured, "Oh my..."
"What...?" Joe Dark stood and turned around to face Julius, who merely often a gesture of his hand in response.
"Never mind me. You claim to have checked everywhere, correct?"
"Yes...?" Joe Dark stuffed his hands in his pockets.
"Everywhere?" Julius restated.
"The manor, the city, everywhere." Joe Dark said, partially annoyed.
"Both down...AND up?" Julius waited for Joe Dark to give him a weird look before slyly gesturing his thumb upwards.
Joe Dark craned his head back and took a couple steps back to look up on the roof. With a sour look on his face he looked at Julius and remarked, "...Thanks for the help."
"I'll leave you two be." Julius bowed with a smile and then started to back away inside.
But as Joe Dark turned around the butler made one last remark, "Ah, but before you leave Master Joseph."
He came back out holding on to Alura's guitar, "You may want to bring this with you."
Joe Dark grabbed onto it, nodded, then flew on up to the roof. It was a little slippery up there but a little levitation got around that. He then looked around, shouting, "Alura! Hey! Show yourself! I know you're up here!"
He moved on up past the center and then started to head down, where the roof flattened out a little more and made it easier to stand on. As he got near this part he paused and looked around.
He felt something odd in the air, like something was there but at the same time appeared missing. He stopped in place a few feet away from the edge and closed his eyes.
"There you are." He remarked.
An illusion began to fade before him, revealing Alura sitting on the edge of the roof and sniffling.
"What are you doing up here, you really had us all worried." Joe Dark attempted to reach out for her, but she quickly turned and slapped his hand away.
And in doing so, he saw that her face was covered in tears, which had run some of the make-up around her eyes down her cheeks.
"Hic...!" She immediately turned away and rubbed her eyes, muttering, "G-Go away..."
"No," Joe Dark said grumpily, "You realize what you did to Maria's chocolates? She worked hard on those and you went and ruined them."
"Good...!" Alura said with a firm "Hmph!"
Joe Dark glared at the back of her head, "You're sounding like a spoiled brat right now, Alura."
He tried to take one step forward and ask, "What's the deal with you lately. You're acting even stranger than usual."
"Shut up, you don't care...!" Alura squirmed forward and barked back at him, "Jerk Dark!"
Joe Dark grimaced his teeth into a scowl, his patience at a peak, "ALURA!"
She instantly jolted upright trembling from head-to-toe. Joe Dark then grabbed her shoulder and forced her to turn and look him in the eyes. And he was furious.
"If I did something wrong then I want you to be honest with me. But enough of this damn staring out into space bullcrap!"
Alura froze up before him with both hands slowly rising towards her chest. He saw that her heartbeat was going strong, and the words freed from her lips were a little painful for her to say, and him to hear...
"I-I-I...It...hurts..."
Joe Dark's skin went cold and he slowly withdrew his hand as she sniffled, placing it into his pocket.
"It...hurts?" He murmured.
Alura hung her head to stare down at her chest, giving a brief but steady nod in response. Joe Dark looked at her chest and murmured, "Your heart?"
She nodded again, digging her fingertips into her clothes.
"Why?" He inquired.
"...I-Its your fault, you're the reason I'm in pain." Alura murmured.
"MY fault?" Joe Dark recoiled in disbelief, "How the HELL is it my fault...?"
Alura pulled back and muttered, "I-I-I don't know...!"
"You can't use that as an excuse this time," Joe Dark whispered, "You need to tell me what's bothering you, NOW."
Alura feverishly shook her head and muttered "S-Shut up! Jerk!"
Joe Dark arched his brows and grumbled, "I really should've brought Julius along for this..."
"S-Sure, just...just leave me in someone else's care, cause you don't care at all, Jerk Dark!"
Joe Dark's eyes thrust open as he gasped in disbelief, "I didn't come up here in the friggin' cold because I don't care, Alura! You're the one making this difficult on yourself, and its driving me crazy!"
As he swung his hand out Alura flinched and pulled herself away sideways, biting her teeth down hard.
"It doesn't matter...you're just going to leave me behind someday anyways...!" She blurted out.
Joe Dark stopped and stared gawking at her, "...W-Where did you get that idea?"
"A-A...a month ago...You were talking to Julius, and..."
"Oooooooh crap," Joe Dark's eyes widened and he clasped the side of his head, pulling his hair back and gritting his teeth in embarrassment, "You...you WERE listening in on that conversation, weren't you?"
Alura nodded and Joe Dark hissed out a "Shit!" before growling loudly and throwing his hand towards the ground. He then growled some more before turning his attention towards Alura.
"I swear I was planning on telling you when it seemed appropriate."
"A-And when would that have been, Joe Dark?" Alura cuddled her trembling hands tightly against her chest and barked, "The day you abandon me?"
"No, no..." Joe Dark shook his head and tried to take one step closer, "I wanted you to be able to understand what I was planning to do..."
Alura tugged herself away and he froze in place. She creaked open her eyes and muttered, "I understand plenty about abandonment...and running away. This wouldn't be the first time you did this to me..."
"Khh...!" Joe Dark was stunned into silence.
Alura then swung back with her trembling eyes widened a little, venting a tiny amount of rage through her glare, "Why...why do you want to leave me behind again, Joe Dark...? Is...is there something wrong with me...?"
She laid a hand on her chest and raised her voice slightly, "Am I not cool enough...? A-Am I not...smart enough? A-A-Am I not...sexy enough?"
Alura's body started to glow and with one blink of the eye, Joe Dark suddenly saw Shina standing before her, except she had Alura's hair, and clothes.
"I can be anyone you want. I can look however you want me to..."
Joe Dark blinked again in stunned disbelief and now he saw Lunis with Alura's same features, only it was a tighter fit on the moon goddess' body.
"Please tell me what I have to do...! Please!"
Joe Dark immediately thrust his hands into her illusionary form and grabbed onto her real shoulders. The illusion broke, leave her aghast and tears crawling down her cheeks.
"Stop it! I like you just the way you are now."
"T-Then why...?"
"Haaaaa..." Joe Dark loosened his grip and pulled away, rubbing the back of his head roughly, "I just...god...I didn't want you to be burdened with me all your life."
He got that out nice and quick, but Alura was left tilting her head in confusion.
Joe Dark had to look away just to keep going strong, "I'm going to become the President no matter how long it takes. Its not going to be easy, but...This is what I've resolved to do."
He then faced her to continue on, "You deserve to chase your own dreams, Alura. And if you stumble and fall, at least you'll have Julius around to-"
"I don't want Julius...!" Alura feverishly shook her head and with the bottom of her eyes soaking wet she squeezed her fists before her chest and remarked, "I want you, Joe Dark!"
Joe Dark flinched but took what she said in relative stride, "I-I appreciate the sentiment, Alura, but...We're just friends. Sometimes friends just...go their separate ways..."
Alura forced her eyes shut and suddenly screamed "You jerk!" and while he was stunned she combo'd right into telling him, "I-I-I don't want to go our separate ways...!"
"Alura..."
She clasped her hands over her chest and trembled, "E-Every time I feel you pulling away, my chest hurts...Every time I think about you anymore, my chest hurts..."
"There's so much hurt inside of me and I don't know how to make it go away...And i-it's all your fault...! Because...because..." Alura hung her head low and said with the softest whisper, "I think I...love you..."
Joe Dark's skin went cold and a sinking feeling in his chest made his body go numb. He slowly raised a hand to his chest to confirm his heart was still beating, and it was. Just so quickly that no pulse monitor would be able to count it.
"Y-You...what?" Joe Dark's mind drew total blanks as he stuttered out, "A-Alura you...love...me?"
Alura bobbed her head like molasses, then curled her fist up below her chin and trembled harder.
Joe Dark let out a gasp and turned aside. His eyes wandered the cold, cloudy skies for a while in deep contemplation. He then let out a sigh and draped his hands down behind his hips.
Then he turned and gestured his hand out, a sole word being caught at the back of his throat, "I..."
He hissed through his teeth and squeezed his numb fist tight. He then shook his head and muttered, "I don't know..."
She raised her head up and asked, "You don't know...what?"
"I don't know!" Joe Dark lashed out in anger, "I just...don't know!"
He threw his fists down with a frustrated grunt and reeled his head back, turning himself away in the process, "I...I never wanted this to happen..."
He then suddenly turned right back around and slapped his chest in exasperation, "Why me?"
"W-What...?" Alura stuttered.
"Why have you fallen in love with me...?" He demanded to know.
Alura curled her fingers and sank her head with a blank look in her eyes. After shaking her head a while all she could respond with is her usual "I don't know..."
And Joe Dark was about to lay into her for it, when suddenly she reminded him, "I just...don't understand what love is."
His anger all but fizzled out, leaving him a silent, grumpy mess that collapsed on his rear and flattened his arms atop his knees in defeat.
As he began to rub his head Alura stared down at him and began to speak up, "B-But..."
Joe Dark looked back at her as she tensely tried to translate what her heart felt into words, "I know that you saved my life...And you listen to me, even though everyone else thinks I'm weird...You try and help me understand things, even if you're not as good at it as Julius..."
Joe Dark grumbled a little at that snide remark.
"It makes me feel...happy. And...I don't want this happiness to go away..."
"Mmmrrr..." Joe Dark brushed his hand up beside his face and got blunt with her, "You don't understand, Alura...Being a President will be a full time commitment. I-"
"You're right, I don't understand...!" Alura squeezed her fists and stared Joe Dark right in the eyes, "And I don't want to understand, because what you're saying is stupid!"
Joe Dark froze up looking at her. Such intensity was in her eyes given the rest of her expression looked the same as usual.
"I-I can't follow you where you're going...? Liar...You're just making excuses!" She jiggled her fists around before her chest and puffed her cheeks, "I crossed entire galaxies to see you again...! So it doesn't matter how far away you go, I can keep up...!"
"I-I-I..." Her lips quivered until suddenly, a burst of energy came rushing to the surface and out her mouth, "I want you to rely on me, Joe Dark!"
"Ack...!" Joe Dark's mouth went agape with a stinging feeling in his chest.
"Alura, I..." He felt worn down all over. Little by little this struggling girl was chipping him down emotionally, and all he could say to himself in response was, "Am...am I just being stubborn, or stupid now...?"
Perhaps a little of both, if he's being perfectly honest.
He pulled himself up on his feet all looked her square in the eyes, "You'd really follow me anywhere...?"
Alura nodded.
"Even though neither of us know what the future might hold for us...?"
Alura nodded harder.
"Even if...I end up being a huge disappointment?"
Alura shook her head feverishly and then thrust her eyes wide-open at him, "There's nothing you can do to disappoint me, Joe Dark. I'll walk the same path as you, and you can walk the same path as me...We can share this hurt in my chest together...!"
"I...I..." Joe Dark stumbled, then let out a very, very long sigh, "I give up...You win, Alura."
He laid a hand flat on his hip and cracked a tiny smile, "You really know how to wear a guy down."
"Ah...!" Alura's eyes lit up and she ran on up to wrap her arms around Joe Dark's waist. He stumbled back, surprised at her momentum.
"T-Take it easy now, geez...!" He said, his cheeks bright red.
"I love you, Joe Dark..." She whispered fondly.
With a brief sigh he put his hand on her head and said, "I love you too, Alura."
She giggled and dug her fingertips against his stomach, brightening up with a smile.
She then pulled away, wiping her face dry of tears. Joe Dark then tucked his hands into his pockets and felt something he had almost forgotten about.
"Oh right...!" He pulled the paper out and waved it towards Alura, "So what was up with this?"
Alura flinched and tore the paper right out of Joe Dark's grip, pressing it firmly against her lips as her face turned bright pink. She glared at him scornfully from the corner of her eyes and mumbled, "Y-You didn't peek, did you, Jerk Dark...?"
"N-No! Trust me, Mew put the kibosh on those plans..."
Alura glared some more but then pulled the paper down, unfolding it before her eyes.
"So...you going to tell me what it is?" Joe Dark said, his curiosity at a peak.
"..." Alura tucked the paper into her right pocket and then meekly gestured at the guitar Joe Dark had laid down behind him.
Joe Dark picked up the signs and then handed her her favorite instrument. She wrapped the strap over her shoulders and plucked the pick from the strings.
She looked right at Joe Dark's face and murmured, "I-I...made a song for you, Joe Dark. Its...its a work in progress though..."
"A song...?" Joe Dark stood comfortably by and went quiet for her sake.
"O-Ok..." Alura took a deep breath in and started to sing, strumming her guitar nice and slow in rhythm with her lyrics.
"Shadow, shadow...
Creeping over me.
Shadow, shadow...
You're surrounding me.
Your heart is black and your touch is ice
I don't think you're very nice
Shadow, shadow...
Always following me.
Shadow, shadow...
Always there for me.
You don't understand what its like to feel alone.
Cause you're always with someone whenever the sun has shone.
Shadow, shadow...
Why do you quiver?
Shadow, shadow...
What message must you deliver?
I see you every day but you never say a word
Your silence is haunting, and your presence is disturbed.
But there is no one else I could see at my side
You've always been there for me, even when I cried.
Shadow, shadow...
Creeping over me.
Shadow, shadow...
You're the one for me.
They see only darkness
But you are my light
I know only your warmth
Every day, every night
Shadow, shadow...
Let me fall asleep.
Shadow, shadow...
I feel your arms around me
Shadow, shadow...
Hug me forever.
Shadow, shadow...
I love you...forever."
As Alura strummed the last note she let her arms fall and the sound of her guitar linger in the air.
Then silence fell between them, and Alura puckered her lips with a rosy red tint in her cheeks, "I-I made up that last part just now..."
Joe Dark found his hand on his warm, beating chest, and a smile across his face. He was melting away, into a sea of bliss.
"...You have such a beautiful voice, Alura."
She gave off a pleasant vibe of embarrassment and happiness from her wobbling smile. She brushed up the side of her hair and mumbled, "Y-You really think so...?"
Joe Dark couldn't nod more assuredly if he tried, "I think you'd make a great musician someday."
"T-T-Thank you..." Alura could barely look Joe Dark in the eyes.
Joe Dark then propped his hand on his hip and chuckled, "You should try speaking up a little more. C'mon, isn't there anything else on your mind...?"
"Ummm..." Alura fiddled her hands around her chest and then gently put her guitar down on the roof beside her. She then looked him in the eyes and laid a hand flat on her chest, while her face turned fully red.
"B-Be honest, Joe Dark...Am I sexy?"
Joe Dark's voice fled his throat with a mousy squeak and he tossed his hand around while stuttering, "Y-You're cute...AND THAT'S FINE BY ME!"
Alura hummed loudly for a bit and then remarked, "Are you SURE you're ok with the way I am now...?"
Joe Dark's eyes darted towards the sky as he INSISTED loudly, "Yes! Positive! You don't need to be sexy all the time!"
"Hmmm!" Alura closed her eyes and muttered, "I don't believe you."
"Ghhh, don't you start on me too, Mew gives me enough crap as is...!" Joe Dark said, tightening his fists in his pockets.
"Heh heh...!" Alura snickered, "I want to be sure, Joe Dark. Cause I'm going to look like this forever."
"What? You serious?" Joe Dark remarked.
"Yes," Alura nodded rather nonchalantly, "My fa-...Dracula, kept me from aging. I will be 16 forever."
"...I don't think that's true." Joe Dark put his hand on her head and she paused with shock.
"I think you've gotten taller since you started living on Earth."
She craned her head back slightly and her face positively glowed with joy, "Really?"
"Just a couple inches though." Joe Dark playfully rubbed her hair and she smiled even wider.
"T-Then there's still a chance!" She snickered, "Some day, I'll be even sexier than Lunis...!"
Joe Dark groaned, "Please, for the love of GOD, stop using that word..."
But he was thinking about her looking like that, loathe as he was to admit it, "A-And don't get cocky just because you've grown a couple inches. That might be all you had left."
Alura puffed her cheeks and grumbled, "Meanie...!"
"Haaa..." He took his hand off her and looked into her eyes, "You're not stuck in that bastard's shadow anymore, and you don't have to think it lingers. You're free to be whoever YOU want to be, Alura."
"...Y-Yes, you're right." She said softly.
"Couldn't you at least try to sound a little excited about that?" Joe Dark nervously rubbed the back of his head and after one more sigh remarked, "Alright, you know what, I want you to see you raise your voice...just once."
"Raise my...voice?" Alura tilted her head.
"You know...scream? Like that one time where you..." Joe Dark grumbled and then stepped on up to the edge of the roof, "Let me give you a demonstration."
He started to cup his hands around his mouth but glanced aside as he told her, "First you want to think of something that makes you very emotional. Then just let it swell up until its ready to burst and let it ALL OUT...!"
He cupped his hands and shouted at the top of his lungs, "FUCK RETAIL!"
His voice echoed across the sky.
Alura flinched but then pumped her fists up by her chest. With a firm nod she murmured, "I-I understand...!"
With a warm-up couple of coughs she turned towards the horizon and cupped her hands around her mouth, "I-I really like ice cream...!"
Joe Dark scoffed and brushed his hand against her head, "Come on what was that? Louder!"
He cupped his hands and shouted, "SPIDERS SUCK ASS!"
Alura pushed her head out and proclaimed, "Doggos are cute!"
"LOUDER!"
"I-I like laying in my bed and staring at the ceiling!"
Alura's heart began to race, empowering her voice to heights she could only imagine reaching when she sang, "I-I THINK BLACK IS A COOL COLOR!"
Joe Dark grinned and then continued shouting as well, "I'M GOING TO SAVE THE WORLD, YOU HEAR ME?!"
"FUCK YOU, DRACULA, I'M HAPPY NOW!" Alura's voice was surprisingly deep and mature when she really got into it.
And that left Joe Dark taken aback, completely disarming him to the little girl screaming at the top of her lungs with a massive smile, "I LOVE JOE DARK!"
Joe Dark's heart beat fast as Alura dropped her arms and panted heavily, but it was mostly laced with joy.
Her eyes were so bright and energetic, with her pale skin glistening in the cold air. And her smile was precious, a memory that he would keep with him forever.
"...See, was that so hard?" He chuckled.
"...Mmmm!" Alura moaned, her body feverish with a cold sweat.
Without warning she leaped at Joe Dark and wrapped her arms around his neck demanding of him, "I want to kiss you, Joe Dark!"
"H-Hey...! H-Hold on a second...!" Joe Dark's face was beet red but his concern was more in his balance being thrown off.
Her forcefulness knocked him flat on his rear, where the slick surface proceeded to propel them both right off the roof and into the backyard pool.
After making a mighty splash the two quickly surfaced gasping for air.
They then looked at each other soaked wet from head-to-toe and started laughing. Then, Alura paddled up to him and pecked him on the cheek, retreating with a hung head and meek smile.
Joe Dark froze and rubbed his cheek, finding it hard not to smile back.
"Heh heh...Can't do anything normal, can we, not even a first kiss..." Humored by the situation he nevertheless hastened to mention, "B-But we should really get out of here and dry off before we catch a cold.:
"Mmm hmm." They swam to the edge of the pool and climbed out, Joe Dark helping Alura when her tiny arms gave her trouble.
Then Joe Dark held her close to keep her warm while they made their way for the back door. Suddenly, both their stomachs started growling, and they gaze at each other in embarrassment.
With a grin he mumbled, "Oh yeah, we sort of...skipped out on dinner, didn't we?"
"Oh..." Alura rubbed her belly.
"Why don't we have Julius order us take-out while we sit down and watch a movie?"
"...I-I think I'd like that," Joe Dark, Alura said blushing, "Its a date!"
And so these two awkward idiots went aside to relax and enjoy themselves.
They deserved this peace.
And they deserved each other.
"After all..."
Akumu observed this unfold from the spectacle of one of his many floating souls, echoing out a slow, grim chuckle, "My herald is to be born through his seed, and they shall grow through blood, and fire, and sin. So I have spoken, so My will be done."
He snuffed the soul out with a breath, and darkness consumed what has been seen...
Next Time: The Driving Chapter