Chapter 80
It's pretty late in the morning when I finally wake up. As expected, another snowday followed the previous one. Regardless, it wasn't my internal clock that woke me up today as it usually does.
"Morning sleepyhead." Nepgear playfully speaks while still a little groggy herself. Yeah, she stayed over last night. Sadly the snowball war tired us out when it restarted later in the day, so we really only felt like sleeping the night away.
"Morning beautiful." Every now and again I try out a cheesy line that Maurice taught me just to see how it works out in the end. I think it worked well this time all things considering.
Nepgear snuggles in closer and puts her head on my chest. "You're just saying that." She closes her eyes and proceeds to use me as a body pillow of sorts.
I kiss the top of her head much to her delight. Soon I wrap my arms around her and pull her closer. Since we weren't wearing a lot to begin with, the warmth of both our bodies mixes together extremely well. Currently I'm wearing just a plain white shirt with some boxers, and she's wearing a long white shirt and some panties.
She moves her hands down but brings them back up, this time from under my shirt. My body is already warm, but her hands only serve to warm me up even more. Her fingers finding every groove the want to find, even a brief passage over my scars at one point.
"Someone's excited today." I make a playful remark while she feels the upper half of my body. I thought she'd get embarrassed by something like this, but it seems like when we're alone that we can express ourselves in new ways.
Nepgear lightly kisses my neck and looks up at me. "It's not fair if I'm the only one into it." She stops the kissing for a moment to pout at me. I can take the hint Nepgear.
I put my hands on Nepgear's waist and start to kiss her with passion. She doesn't fight my advance, instead she gives in to the pleasure that we both create together. My tongue glides through her mouth as if to assert dominance.
"Mmhm..." Nepgear wraps her tongue around mine, a sign to go further. My hands move up from her waist and under her shirt I stop just below her breasts. She's not wearing a bra right now, so that's one less complication.
"Now who's not into it?" I break our kiss to get smug with her. Two can play at this game Nepgear.
She pouts at me again before trying to remove my shirt. I have to free my hands to take it off fully. I won't fight it, I'm ready this time.
Now we're fully sitting up on my bed and making out again. Once more I put my hands under her shirt, but this time I try to take off her shirt since she took off mine. At this point I get her shirt up around where my hands were last time.
*Creak* "Hey Jack I was wonder..." Maurice opens my door without knocking first. What the hell? He should be at work right now!
A moment of silence passes before us, all of us just staring at each other with no clear indication of who should speak first. For me it's embarrassing, but I can only imagine what Nepgear feels like now.
"Uhh... Am I interrupting something?" Nepgear and I still don't move a muscle. It's like we're deer in headlights right now. Except it's less deer and cars and more seeing an almost naked girl in your brothers bed.
"Ah!" Nepgear lets out a scream and then hides underneath my blankets. I on the other hand get out of bed and rush towards the door, shoving my brother out along with me while shutting it closed.
My breathing is heavy as I look at Maurice. "Knock haa... haa... first..." What did he even come back here for anyways? It had better be a good reason.
"Sorry dude... I just wanted to know if I could have the rest of your potato salad for lunch." The reason he came back home was for some potato salad? Fucking potato salad?!
"Really? That's why you came back?" You know looking back I should've know that his reasons would be this stupid.
"I never left though, we were told to come in later today." So that's why he's still here, it all makes perfect sense now.
"Sure, you can have it, just knock next time ok?" I shouldn't have to say these things at this point but whatever can help me stop future events like this must be good. At least that's what should happen but knowing my brother he'll forget by the end of the day.
"Thanks man, I won't be back until later tonight, so... you kids have fun." Maurice walks back to the kitchen while I'm still staring in disbelief at the current situation.
I walk back to my room after a few moments and see that Nepgear's still hiding under the blankets. I give her a hug through them while gently her head through the blankets.
"You alright Gear?" I'm gonna see if a nickname works with her.
"Your brother almost saw me naked..." She sounds more angry than scared now, I can kind of see that, I'd be pretty angry too if I was her.
"Only you're allowed to see me like that..." Nepgear's voice goes quiet when she says that. All I can do is just give her another hug through the blankets. It's a small gesture, but one that will calm her down hopefully.
After a couple moments pass, I see two purple eyes look at me while surrounded by blankets. Then a face and eventually a full head of hair. There's enough extra blanket space for me to crawl in next to her.
Once more, the warmth of our bodies mixes together for a feeling that can't be replicated alone. She stll looks shaken, but she's starting to calm down at least a little bit.
"You alright now?" I ask while cuddling closer to her. I still don't have a shirt on, so her hot and ragged breaths feel really good on my skin.
"Yeah, I'm fine now." Nepgear's body wraps around me more. It's touching more than anything really. But I'll take a touching moment any day of the week as long as it's Nepgear at my side. I love her, and nothing will change that.
"I don't feel like it anymore, do you?" I was in the mood so much a minute ago, now I just don't feel like it anymore. Knowing Nepgear she'll probably feel the same.
"Yeah, I'm not feeling it anymore either. We can still cuddle though." You never have to be in the mood to cuddle, it's just so convenient.
I move in closer to her and wrap my arms around her body, soon followed by our feet touching with the playful dance of our toes intertwining momentarily afterwards.
It may not be what we were going for this morning but I'll take cuddling with Nepgear over nothing. And besides we have all day to just laze around and do nothing, maybe it'll happen later today. Only time will tell.
So we'll stay like this for a while anyways, it's not like we have anything. Whatever happens today, as long as I have Nepgear I'm sure that it'll be fun.
"Here you go." I hand Nepgear a bowl of cereal with a spoon in it. When we decided to get out of bed, neither of us really felt like cooking so cereal was the next best option. I'm still sore from the battle, both actual and snowball so I've earned a little comfort.
"Thank you." She takes the bowl from my hand and sets it in her lap. I sit down next to her on the couch with my own bowl in hand.
It's early in the afternoon at this point, so we decided to have breakfast and just watch TV for the time being. Honestly, I don't know what we're going to do for the rest of day.
For now I'll just watch TV with Nepgear. It's not the most exciting plan but I have Nepgear with me so it's not all bad right? As long as I don't have to watch something that'll make me want to blow my brains out.
"What's on right now?" I grab the remote and turn the TV on, only to be met with some comedy that I couldn't tell you the name of.
I look to Nepgear to see if she's interested in this. She shakes her head to me. I change the channel to find an action show next. Already I know that this won't be good for either of us, so I change it away without any hesitation.
A few minutes pass by without finding anything that interests either of us. After some more duds I eventually ask Nepgear what she would like to watch today.
"What show are we even looking for?" I probably should've done this at the beginning but hey, better late than never am I right?
"Um... well... if it's not too much trouble, could we find a romcom?" A romcom? Ah hell the prophecy Maurice spoke of is coming true. First the girls make you feel weird inside, then they make you watch bad shows.
*Gulp* "Sure, sounds wonderful." I have to bite my lips as I say that. It's just, I can say no everyone else on this planet... except Nepgear of course. It's impossible for me to do no matter what, I can't explain it no matter what.
"Alright! Let's find one." Nepgear takes the remote from my hand and starts to flip through the channels again.
A few more minutes pass by until we stumble upon a movie that came out a few years ago that's a romcom. After pointing it out to Nepgear we finish our cereal then set ourselves up on the couch for a comfortable viewing position.
I'm lying down against the armrest of the couch while Nepgear lies down between my legs, using me as a backrest almost. Our finers intertwine as the first part of the movie gets underway.
"So, the girl's moving back with her daughter to her hometown?" I'm trying my hardest to understand the plot of this movie. It's just... it's so much like other movies that I can't see any differences from this compared to all of them.
"Yeah, and the first person she see's when she gets back is her childhood crush." Nepgear points out the obviousness of the movie as well. So far it doesn't seem like she's into the plot either.
"And the kid somehow has more wisdom than any of the adults." It's like this movie is the exact same as so many other movies before it.
"I know that I'm not familiar with shows in your dimension, but this isn't that good." My thoughts exactly Nepgear. Everything about this plot just seems so... manufactured.
The both of us lie down further into the couch, well she leans into me more than anything just from the thought of this movie. It's just so puzzling that the same movie keeps being made and people keep buying into it like it's some kind of revolutionary new concept.
*Click* I turn off the TV to end our self induced suffering. In all reality, it's Nepgear's fault that we spent the last two hours watching that shit. Then again I could've protested at any point so is she really the only person to blame for this?
"Well now what do we do?" Our plans after waking up ended in failure and now the TV's out to ruin our day too. And to think that all we wanted was for a single day together for everything to go right.
"I don't know... it seems like no matter what we do something happens." Let's see, the first thing was ruined because of my brother getting to come into work later than usual, and the second was due to romcom's being terrible.
I lean forward and kiss Nepgear's ear lightly. Lately we've been exploring new ways and places to kiss, as weird as that sounds. Neither of us has ever had a proper relationship before so we've kind of just had to go at our own pace. It just seemed right for the time.
Nepgear giggles at this, either it's funny or it tickles to her. So she doesn't dislike it from what I can tell. I kiss her ear again a couple more times earning a few more cute giggles in response.
"Hehe, that tickles." She leans back closer to me and grips my hands tightly. Her bright smile and bubbly laughter only make me smile and laugh with her. I really like it when I can feel like this and not brood like I usually do.
"I love you Nepgear." I can only say that after I'm done laughing, but my good mood still hasn't left me.
Nepgear turns her body to where our chests are touching and firmly kisses me on the lips. The warmth of our bodies plus the new position we're in only serves to make it feel even more passionate between us.
"I love you too Jack." Nepgear gets up off me and sits on the other half of the couch. I sit up too and take up the other half.
I'm happy that we're at the point where we can blush and smile at each other rather than be completely awkward around each other. I never knew what loving someone could be like before I met her.
"Hey Nepgear... would you maybe want to go on a date later?" That question however is the only one that can make my expression nervous around Nepgear now. It makes my heart race as much as it makes my blood pump.
"Hmm? I thought we were already on a date?" Nepgear looks puzzled by my question. Was it really that odd at this point?
"I mean like go out out. Let me treat you to a restaurant and do other things out on the town." We've only had a few dates like I've described. Hell it's been so long since we've last been able to go out like that.
"Why would you treat me? Don't you remember that we have a lot of this worlds currency?" Oh yeah, they are kinda rich aren't they? But that begs the question, if everyone took the time to get houses in our world, then why did Neptune settle for an apartment?
Oh wait, Neptune probably thought that an apartment would be cozier than an actual house. Does that sound like Neptune logic? I think it sounds like Neptune logic.
"Well, you know, it's the guys job to treat the girl right?" That's what my dad told me before he suddenly vanished. Maurice also told me that... which could explain where he learned it from now that I think about it.
"It's alright, let me treat you for once." Nepgear puts a hand on my chest and lightly pecks my cheek. I almost cry at this but I hold my emotions back. I just really love her right now is all.
"Let me go over and get changed. You get ready too." She gets off the couch and finds some pajama pants. I wouldn't think that she'd want to walk over with just a shirt on but I could be wrong.
Nepgear then walks out the door to her own apartment so she can get ready. She left a set of her clothes in my room, so I guess I'll throw them in with laundry and get them back to her later.
I need to get ready myself, so I'll get dressed for the weather like she's doing. We both had showers last night, so that cuts down on our getting ready time. All that's needed now is to pick out some clothes for our evening together.
I'm about to go on a date with the girl that I love. The girl who helped me out of the darkest pit of my life. And the girl who gave me life when I needed it the most. There's no way I'll ever be able to repat her, but I'll keep trying as long as she's next to me.
After I get my pants on I hear a knock on my door. It's probably Nepgear coming back after getting ready. I put on a shirt and open my door, like I expected, Nepgear stands in front of me.
"Ready to go?" She asks me. Currently, she's wearing a fuzzy purple coat with some actual winterized pants unlike her sister. Seriously, even in the dead of winter Neptune refuses to put on a damn pair of pants.
"Yeah, just let me get my coat on." I walk past Nepgear and grab my coat that's hanging on a kitchen chair. I put it on and meet Nepgear by the door.
Without saying a word, we start to hold hands and walk away to the place we'll have our date tonight. There's nowhere really good in town to go on a date except the place we've literally started all of our date on. The old billiards.
"Alright kids, here you go." An employee comes out with a massive tray with plates piled on it. As usual, we both ordered burgers from this place. Except for today, I'm getting mine with most of the toppings rather than plain.
Nepgear and I wave to the women and she takes her leave. It doesn't take long for us to dig into the food in front of us. I don't know why I felt like getting toppings today, they just seem kind of appealing right now.
"Huh... this isn't that bad with toppings." The only one I wouldn't budge on is pickles. I hate pickles.
I used to get these plain before because that's the way I've always had them. It never really felt right to add anything to them until now. I regret not adding condiments sooner.
Nepgear gives me a chuckle before taking a bite of her own burger. The look on her face is nice to say the least. It tastes as good to her as it does for me. I don't know what the food in her world is like, but I doubt they'd have burgers going on what I've been told.
"We really need to come here more often." I say in between bites of my burger. This place already holds significance for us, so why shouldn't we visit it more often? I just really feel good whenever I spend time with Nepgear.
"I agree, this place has a good atmosphere to it." On that we can agree. Every time I've eaten here it's been a delight. Whether it's been with Nepgear or Maurice, and even one time with my mom, it's been pretty good here.
It takes a while to finish our burgers due to how big they are, but eventually we make it to the end. I'm not gonna lie, both of us have stupid grins on our faces from just how good they tasted.
We look into each other's eyes for a brief moment before having a laugh for no reason other than being together. It feels really nice to have not just brief moments, but days where I can enjoy myself.
After all that we've been through, we deserve this much at least. And once we kill the Third Bound Deity we'll take another day just to relax. We may even take a week depending on how tough this one turns out to be.
"Say Nepgear, want to play some pool? As long as we're here, we might as well take part in what makes a billiards a billiards.
"Sure, don't go easy on me though." You know with how sappy we've been today it would seem like I'd go easy on her. I'm an advocate for equality though, so she's not getting off that easily.
We make our way over to the play area and pay for a game. Since I'm the one who set up the balls, Nepgear's the one who'll beak. Hopefully she breaks good so I can beat her easily later.
*Crack* Nepgear hits the ball with her cue, breaking apart the crowd not as well as I would've hoped, but still good enough to work with.
Most of the balls are fairly dispersed, but there's still that cluster of balls that I don't entirely trust. Sure I could break them up more, but there's also the chance I'll hit the 8 ball in like it's nobodies business. It always seems to do that when you least expect it.
"Phew... here I go..." I line up my shot to the cluster in the middle. There's one hell of a risk involved, but it's a risk that I'm willing to take.
*Crack* I hit the cue ball intended target. Luckily for me the rest of the balls disperse. I even manage to hit one in to my surprise.
"Alright, looks like I'm stripes... and ahead." My observation and gloating doesn't go unnoticed by Nepgear. She pouts at me, then returns her attention to the pool table. I know that look all too well, I'm probably about to get my ass kicked.
Well, she'll have to wait for my extra hit to end. Maybe I'll hit more balls in this time and keep my winning streak going. *Crack* I hit the cue, knocking away more balls than I meant to hit this time. Sadly, I don't manage to hit any in.
"I'll get serious now." Nepgear lines up a shot for herself to turn the tide in her favor. She hits the cue ball against the wall, then the ball ricochets between two solids, knocking them both into pockets, making my previous good mood stop cold.
As soon as those two balls go in, two things happen. One, Nepgear jumps and cheers for joy. And two, she takes the lead in our game. No more games, I have to win now, my pride won't allow it.
Nepgear retains her smile, but calms down enough to take another shot. *Crack* She hits some more of the balls again, this time much like the last, one of the balls she hit goes straight for a pocket. Lucky for me though, it narrowly misses and I can take my turn.
"Playtime's over... phew, *Crack*" As usual, I lined up my shot and hit. It looks like my intended target will be hit this time too. With this, I can at least tie up the game, then try to get ahead with an extra turn.
"Well, you got one in, but you scratched." Nepgear pats me on the back to comfort me. Sure, I tied up the game as I meant to, but I lost my extra hit.
"Just take your turn already..." The only thing I can do is sound defeated. What else can I do though? I always forget just how smart and calculating Nepgear can be behind her aloofness.
"You'll have to catch up when I'm done." I both love and hate it when she gets playful with me. Sure it's nice and everything when we're having fun, but it's also a thing that she knows can rile me up to no end.
*Crack* Nepgear strikes and hits another solid in. At this rate it'll be impossible for me to catch up to her. All I can do now is something that I never do. Pray for a miracle.
Nepgear happily moves around the table to take another shot. If there were any time that I needed divine intervention it would be now. Is it weird to ask for divine intervention when there's a Goddess right next to you?
*Crack* The cue ball crashes into a small cluster, sending one of her targets towards a pocket. More interestingly though, another ball that was near the cluster starts heading for a pocket as well.
"Come on baby, come on." This ball going in is my last chance at winning. I love Nepgear and everything, but she invoked my competitive spirit.
"W-Wait? Don't!" I look more intently at the table and see if the 8 ball that she accidentally hit will go in. Goes to show that no matter how smart you are, randomness will always ruin your day when you would really like it not to.
The stray 8 ball heads straight towards a pocket. This is my lucky day, it just needs to go in. Please, just go in.
"Yes!" I shout out in excitement, earning a few curious looks and even some laughs from the billiards patrons. I duck my head as soon as I realize this and start to blush. I really need to keep it in check, or else I may have to revert to my old self in embarrassment.
"Oh no... I lost..." Nepgear looks to the pool table in shock, suffering a defeat that many people suffered from. I probably should do something now that I think about it. I'm not a complete monster despite popular opinion.
I step closer to her and pat her back a few times. The pats turn into rubbing as I try to bring her out of the dumps. Maybe asking for divine intervention was the wrong call when I could've just practiced a little more pool before this.
"There there, we've all lost like that before." I can personally vouch for that claim. The few times I've played against Maurice, both of us have scratched on the 8 ball numerous times. It feels bad man.
"I know, it just never feels good to lose." True, who doesn't hate losing is a better question. No one comes to mind when I think on it.
I mean, it fees like we're losing all the time, but if I think about it we've been doing great lately. Maurice and I are closer than ever and I trust Nepgear now through all we've been through.
I pat Nepgear on the shoulder a couple of times and smile when she looks up at me. Of course I'm still happy at my win at her bout of bad luck, I still have to comfort her in the event of a loss. Mostly because she'd do the same for me.
"We can go for another round if you'd like." Maybe she wants to play another game to reclaim her honor. Well honor in a silly game, but honor nonetheless.
Nepgear shakes her head at me, "I'm good, it's getting pretty late, so let's head back." I look out a window and see that it has indeed gotten dark outside. The street lights are already on, just how long were we in here?
Well then again we did walk here slower than usual just to talk longer. On top of that wait for our meal combined with the time eating took up a good chunk of our time. It all makes sense now...
I walk back to our table and leave the tip as usual while also grabbing our coats. After we put them on we hold hands and leave the billiards, immediately we're met by the chill of the outside air.
Nepgear grips my hand tightly in response. My grip tightens on her as well, retaining some of the hear between us. Without a word between us we start to move on towards our homes.
For a while we don't speak to each other, instead we just focus on pushing through the cold, which has gotten worse since we were inside. Despite the cold, we'll probably have school tomorrow since the roads are mostly clear now.
I glance to Nepgear and see that despite the overwhelming cold right now she has a smile on her face. It warms me up just a little, which is more than enough to keep me going for a little while.
A few more minutes pass by in silence before we reach a part of town where the streetlights have gone out. It's kind of depressing sight since they've been broken for a couple of years now. It's dreary, but at least it's the shortest route home.
Still, the sight of a darkened street doesn't set well with Nepgear... or me for that matter. We hold each other's hands tightly and walk slowly down the sidewalk. Even if this part of town is mostly abandoned at this point, it's still unsettling to say the least.
"Is it just me, or does this place freak you out?" I think anyone would be scared at a time like this.
"N-No, it's not just you." Nepgear scoots closer to me and clings to my side, while I'm still unnerved by this place. Just being near her comforts me.
I stop walking and so does she. Without warning I give her a hug in the dark street. Like the first time I kissed her, it just felt right to do at the moment. Even more so than our night we spent together.
This hug takes her by surprise at first, but she eventually goes with it and hugs me back. The warmth of another person in the freezing cold is a sensation that will always make my body feel light.
Our cold cheeks touch for a moment before I kiss her again, a gesture that earns a giggle from her and causes me to be kissed in return. The love and passion between the two of us is enough to forget our surroundings, and just embrace each other's feelings.
We break off our hug and stare into each other's eyes the best we can in darkness. All I need to make out her beauty is a little dim, winter moonlight.
"I love you." Nepgear says to me before I can get the chance.
"I love you too." My chest feels all warm and fuzzy when I say that. It's a feeling that I haven't gotten tired of since I first felt it.
*Whoosh!* I hear something fly by before feeling a sharp, stinging pain in my cheek that burns even more in the cold. I wince in pain and Nepgear doesn't know what's going on with me, all she can do is grip my shoulder and try to hold me up.
"I'm afraid that this precious moment will have its curtain call." A dark, mechanical voice speaks to us. We start to look around the area to find the source of the voice. Just from our rapid glances we can't seem to see anyone.
"Who's there?" I keep looking around but to no avail. Whoever it is seems to blend in with the darkness extremely well.
I put a hand on Nepgear's shoulder to calm her down the same way she tried to calm me down. My breathing is heavy, not helped by the cut on my cheek, but it seems like for now we're calm and collected.
From an alley near us, I see two glowing red circles, likely the lenses of a mask light up and rise slowly. The limited moonlight with the eye lights of his mask give off a metallic appearance for his mask.
"You got lucky, my knives usually hit their mark." He waves his hands and from nowhere a black knife appears in his hand. Black... no wonder I couldn't see anything, it blended right into the dark. This fact may seem insignificant, but it scares me a lot.
Whoever this guy is, he means business. Judging from how he looks, I don't think we can take him as we are now. My heart pounds in my chest audibly, my blood feels heavy and I can't seem to move. I'm paralyzed, I'm terrified, and I'm in his sights.
"Nepgear... run..." If I can distract him long enough, then Nepgear can at least get out of here. Goddesses are the main targets of our enemies, I'm just the side dish for these guys. I don't know if it's Arfoire's minions yet, but I'll bet my life on it.
"Do not run, I'm not looking for a fight. But if you make it one then I will have no choice but to engage." The way he speaks is calm and methodical, although that could just as easily be his voice changer.
"If you're not here to fight then why did you throw a knife at me?" It takes a lot of energy to speak through my nervousness. I can still feel Nepgear shaking next to me. I have to be brave for her so we can make it out of here.
"I didn't throw it at you. I said it missed my mark. I meant to hit a building to get your attention." He didn't mean to hit my cheek? He just meant to get my attention? Just who is this guy? I tense up and tighten my hand on Nepgear's shoulder, I need her to get through this.
"I will not lie, I am one of the Bound Deities you have sworn to defeat." Just hearing this confession sends shivers down my spine. We killed one a little more than a week ago and now another one shows up so soon, in our world no less.
"If you're one of them, then why reveal it to us?" Nepgear asks him a question, full of fear in her voice. I'm with her there, I'm shaking on the inside and it's more than just the cold.
"The answer is simple Goddess. I have come to take you with me." He extends a hand towards us. This guy came to take Nepgear away? Deep inside me I can feel a seething rage welling up in my soul.
No. No. No! That can't happen to us now, we were doing so good together that it can't be taken away from me now! If he tries anything to take her away from me I'll... I'll... I'll stop him no matter what!
"I won't let you hurt Nepgear!" My shout makes Nepgear take a step back. It's been a while since I've truly gotten this outwardly angry. I need to make sure that I don't lose control to the one who wants to take it from me.
"Oh, so this dog has bark. But can he bite back?" This bastard tries to taunt me. If he actually wanted to rile me up then he fucking succeeded. Keep calm Jack, keep calm... remember what happens if you lose control.
"Leave him alone! It's me you're after isn't it?" What are you doing Nepgear? You're a Goddess, you can't be taken by this guy. Do we even have a way to defend ourselves in this realm?
"Correct, if you come with me quietly then there will be no need for conflict." No conflict my ass. If he didn't want conflict then he wouldn't have come here to harass us!
'Take action already, you're always so indecisive when it comes to these things.' If I can hear his voice that means I'm losing control. Keep it together, I have to keep it together!
"And what if... we don't comply?" It feels like to just speak. It would probably hurt a lot more to let him take control. My head feels heavy from the mental scratching from Blake. Even in a time like this he wants to seize control? I just want the suffering to end already!
He raises an arm up and points to us. "I will take her by force." This final statement causes something in my head to snap. I won't let him take control... I just need to borrow his strength right now, no matter how deadly it is. I'll let my body go to him just to save Nepgear.
'Kill him"
"Agh!" I run up to this monster while shouting and throw a punch at him. Nepgear tried to hold me back but she couldn't hold back my charge just from how sudden it was. I know it's a bad idea, but my body acts before my mind, I just can't let him take Nepgear!
He dodges my punch swiftly, almost fully autonomous and fluid movements. I throw another punch at him but he dodges it in the same manner as before.
"You cannot hurt me as you are now. Only in another form could you even scratch me." More anger rises even more in me after being called inferior by one of my enemies.
"Just Shut Up!" I throw another punch with all of my strength and speed. This one will hit him for sure, then he won't belittle me. As my fist gets closer I see that his two glowing red eyes fade into the darkness. Suddenly my hand stops and won't move from its place.
The red eyes flash back on brighter than last time, bright enough to where I can vaguely see what's going on. The eyes he has illuminates his face, which like I thought is a metal mask, devoid of any features except eyes and a nose.
One of his hands holds my fist tightly in place. In his other hand I see him manifest a knife from nowhere. For some reason this doesn't concern me as I continue to struggle to get my hand free.
"You lack focus." One of his legs hooks behind mine and sweeps out from under me. After my feet leave the ground, he lunges forward and brings me to the ground faster than I would've naturally. The impact to the ground knocks the wind out of me and only makes me more angry!
Once I fell, he pins me in a way where his knees were over my arms. The initial pain distracts me for a moment, but when I look up to him, all I feel is a knife pressed against my throat heavily, and two red eyes looking down on me.
"Get off me! Monster!" A surge of rage causes me to flail underneath my enemy. No matter how angry I get, I can't break free. Why can't I just break free?!
"A monster you say? A monster is one who would accept the power of one you wish to kill." Is he talking about Blake? How does he even know about him?
"After all, your eye is as red as my masks." But... my eyes only change color when drawing on Goddess powers. And it's only my left eye.
"Get off of him!" Nepgear runs forward and looks like she's going to hit him His other hand moves up, and projects a handgun in the same way he makes his knives. He can make guns too? Just how strong is this guy?
Nepgear stops dead in her tracks at the sight of his firearm. It's hard to make it out, but it sounds like she starts to whimper at the situation. This and the feeling of a blade against my throat make me cry too.
I'm useless... I can't even protect one person that I love from an attacker. If I had the strength I'd kill him where he stands. I'd make him pay for making Nepgear cry!
"Goddess, it doesn't have to be this way. Come with me, and I will not ham the one you love." His voice... his dam voice is still calm. Show some emotion dammit!
A few moments of silence pass by, feeling like an eternity as I'm pinned to the concrete. Then, Nepgear takes a deep breath. "If I go with you... you won't hurt Jack?"
She's holding back her tears, I can tell that she's in a lot of pain right now. Why would she go so far just to keep me safe? Nepgear should know that her life is more important than mine, I'm just a nobody who thought he could help.
"I do not lie, I only seek to capture a Goddess. You were simply the easiest to go after for the moment." Wait, this all happened because Nepgear was the easiest to capture? Does this mean that our date was the reason?
If the date I suggested we go on is the reason for this I'll never forgive myself. I swore to protect Nepgear, not put her in danger...
"Don't listen to him Nepgear! Don't go with him!" I struggle more but to no avail, the position and knife make it impossible for me to escape.
"Then... I'll go with you. Just don't hurt him anymore..." Nepgear's voice is weak. It hardly sounds like the girl I know, the girl I fell in love with. He dematerialized his gun and knife, soon he beckons towards the end of the alley.
Nepgear slowly walks the way he told her to. As she passes I hear something drop by my head, but I can't see what it is now. "I'm sorry..." I have to hear the pain in her voice again, the painful voice that makes my heart break.
"Don't go..." The masked man looks down at me again after she leaves my sight. I didn't see her even acknowledge my words... I can't believe this is happening, this is a nightmare!
"I will not kill her yet, she still has a use for us. Don't hate my actions, you have your job, and I have mine." Before I can even yell in response his entire palm covers my face and glows. Everything goes black after that.
"Ugh... Where am I?" My head is heavy to the point where I can barely lift it. The cold air stings against my exposed face as I lie here. The cut on my cheek burns even more than any other part of my body. I don't know where I'm at right now, but I don't feel so good about this.
I try to pick myself up off the ground, but I fall back down soon after. After a second attempt I make it to my knees, but I still to hold myself up.
As I catch my breath, I feel something under my palm. I move my hand and see what it is, a D-Pad from a controller. Then it comes rushing back to me.
The sight of a mysterious figure in a metal mask fills my mind. Holding a knife to my throat and a gun to Nepgear. Then Nepgear walking into the shadows after that. My vision turns back to reality with a brain splitting headache that only lasts a moment.
I clench the D-Pad tightly and start to form tears. This has all got to be a bad dream, a bad dram that I'll wake up from any second now.
"Nepgear?" I quietly call out, hoping for some kind of response.
Nothing. Nothing but the wind is all I hear.
I finally get to my feet with only little bit of stumbling. I scan around the darkened alley as best I can with every fearful thought filling my mind. We had a goal. We had dreams that we both wanted to see come true. Is this how it was supposed to end?
"Nepgear?" I call out louder this time, still hoping she can hear me. But much like last time, wind is all I hear in response. The tears in my eyes start falling even harder this time.
My legs start moving sloppily towards the exit of the alley. I have to get to the streets, maybe she's there, hiding from me and playing some sort of sick joke that Neptune would put her up to. I'd forgive her for that, I wouldn't mind if that was the case.
The street is the same as the alley, empty. I move out a bit more and look around, still nothing to be seen. I can feel my heart beat through my chest, my legs feel like rocks are crushing them, a body that doesn't feel like a body.
"Nepgear?! Where are you?!" Maybe yelling will get her attention. I don't care if people could hear me. I just don't care if my body falls apart on me now. I'll be shredded if that's what it takes.
I just want to see Nepgear. She can't have been taken, she just can't have been taken!
I limp my way down the frozen sidewalk, looking for any sign of her. I'm stopped in my tracks when I accidentally look into a building window and see my reflection.
"No... this can't be..." When Nepgear gave me her divinity, one of my eyes becomes like hers when the divinity is invoked. But this... this begs a question...
Why is my other eye red now?
'Isn't it obvious? You were so desperate to protect that girl that you drew on any power that you had. Whether or not it was good or evil.'
Blake's reading my mind again, I can feel clawing away at my mind trying to force his way in. I hate him, I hate him so much that it just makes me so furious!
"Get out of my head!" I howl at the person inside of me who's nothing more than a parasite. It's his fault that I even have Arfoire's power in me right now. Why is he lecturing me about good and evil?!
'Admit it, you wanted to let Arfoire's power course through you. That girl may die, so why don't you embrace it?'
For a brief moment I feel a surge of anger go through me, followed by a stinging pain in my eyes. I won't let Arfoire or Blake control me ever again! I know Nepgear's still here, that she'll still be alive and where she always is.
"I said get out!" Two flashes of light, one purple and one red come from my eyes, and he leaves my mind. Looking back into the window, my eyes look normal now, but I can still feel them burn like hell.
Not even just my eyes, my whole body hurts even more now too. I almost feel calm for a moment in the sharp cold before returning my attention back to the hair ornament in my palm. I start to whimper, a new wave of the same emotions that I've felt for the past moments.
Crying follows afterwards, like I though it would. I couldn't protect her, I was useless. Who knows what's going to happen to her now? Whatever does happen, it'll be my fault though. If she dies, that means I'll have killed her.
The thought of Nepgear, let alone any of my friends suffering makes my stomach hurt. My body goes even colder than the air around me at the thought of what could happen to her, to any of us at this point going forward.
I'm so sad, so angry and frustrated! I just want to kill the person who did this to her. I'll tear him limb from limb when I find him, make him regret ever siding with Arfoire and fucking with us!
But for now... I just want to cry and yell. At least that'll help, if only a little. I just want someone to hold, to tell me it'll be ok, to hold me through the night and keep me warm, to keep my bad dreams from ever coming back again.
"Nepgear!"
A/N: I was debating having this chapter split in two or just keeping it whole. Spoiler alert, it's the whole version. It would've been released sooner but... Nerofest farming may or may not have been involved heavily.
Regardless, I have a question to ask all of you. I've been considering updating the early parts of this story, and by early I mean pre reveal that they're Goddesses. I'll do it at some point, but I want to know, do you guys want it sooner, or later?
In my personal opinion, the early parts of the story aren't very good in terms of writing. The main plot points would be the same, the same order of events would happen, but there'd be plenty of changes. Like removing Magic as a thing in this story because keep in mind, I was a Sophomore when I started writing this story. Another thing I was considering was changing what year of high school they're in, because it only occurred to me that the way it is now could potentially lead to a plot hole I want to avoid.
Other things would change like some Goddesses would wear different clothes if they wouldn't fit in with our world. These are just some of the things I'm considering, but I want to hear what you guys think about it.
Anyways, I've rambled on long enough, I'll see you all in the next update.