Taste of Love—Seventy One through Eighty
by taitofan
Rated PG-13 for yaoi and potential incest
Disclaimer: Was Melt playable? Was Lezard a recruitable alchemist? Did they confess their sweet love in the end of the game? No? Than obviously I don't own Star Ocean 3!
Author's Note: Yes, yes, I have a fetish of sorts for describing Lucien as a marionette when writing LucienxLezard things. …This would be a lovely time to plug my oneshot Marionette consequently. Also, somehow I managed to get the majority of these drabbles to be one couple, though I wrote them all out of order. Funny how that turns out. Ah well, Lucien and Dribe fans should be happy.
drabbles100 themes: #71-80; related drabbles: 71 and 72.
Flames do nothing but make me laugh, although I'll listen to any CC you have. Please read, review, and enjoy! Finished 03-26-08
071. Broken (100)
By his mid teens, Lucien was broken. He had a sadistic younger brother who knew how to pull his strings like a puppet and who wasn't afraid to do just that. Lucien was Lezard's perfect little marionette, and they both knew it. And just like a child with a toy that no longer amused them, Lezard threw away his puppet once he'd thoroughly broken it.
"Lucien… Come on, I'll take you home with me." He didn't say a word as Dribe helped him to his feet and led him to the other boy's house. Broken toys didn't talk after all.
072. Fixed (116)
Dribe wasn't like Lezard. He didn't want to be Lucien's puppet master; he wanted to be Lucien's lover—had for a long time. It was hard, of course, to take a boy who'd been broken almost to the point of no repair and make him believe that what he'd had with his brother wasn't love.
"Lucien… Stop teasing me and go faster!" Luckily, it hadn't been impossible. With some work, he'd built the other boy back up and made him into the smirking, smartass teen who needed to go faster dammit!
"Just be patient, will ya? Enjoy the moment…" Well, he was just as frustrating as he's been at thirteen, but at least he was fixed.
073. Light (162)
The first time Lucien and Dribe spent the night together, the older teen made a very important discovery.
"I know you were scared of the dark when we were kids, but… Still?" Dribe, who was clinging tightly to his waist, nodded fervently. Lucien might have laughed if Dribe wasn't so terrified.
"Yeah, I'm sorry. You must think I'm such a baby…but I still keep a lamp on during the night." Lucien only had lamps in his room meant to light the entire space, and he didn't trust leaving a candle lit while he was asleep, but… He reached blindly through the dark, mindful of the boy attached to him, until he found what he was looking for. He pulled the curtains on the window over his bed back, filling the room with pale moonlight.
"Lucien… Thank you." He laid a kiss to his lover's lips then held him close.
"Eh, don't mention it."
Dribe slept better than he ever had that night.
074. Dark (113)
Dribe wasn't too proud to admit that there were things that scared him. Like…anything dangerous. The phase "fiery depths of the underworld" came to mind. Oh, and the dark. Dribe hated the dark more than anything. It hid lots of dangerous creatures, and it was the one thing he'd always been afraid of, to an almost phobic degree.
"How are you doing?"
"I-I'm fine…" But he had to admit that lying outside beneath the stars wasn't too bad. Not when Melt's arms were holding him close and keeping the danger away. He might never stop being afraid of the dark, but he had a feeling he could at least come to tolerate it.
075. Shattered (142)
It was raining. It was dark and cold, and he just couldn't take it anymore. He really didn't know why he'd done it—why he'd wasted so much time with someone who obviously was only using him. He did know that this was the end though. He was leaving; he was going out into that cold, wet night and not turning back. Ever.
"Wait! Melt, you can't go! You can't leave me alone! I need you, I—I love you!" Melt's hand slipped from the doorknob as the sound of broken sobbing met his sensitive ears. So, it seemed that he really did feel more than he let on…
He turned and dropped to his knees, pulling his distraught lover into his arms. Lezard was excellent at putting up masks of indifference and superiority, but that night, the illusion was finally shattered.
076. Rebirth (122)
It was like he was reborn. Lucien woke up one day and everything seemed to have changed. He no longer felt the burning hostility against Roger and his friends. He didn't want to do anymore dangerous Real Man contests just to humiliate them. He didn't want to start anymore fights with Dribe purely to make him angry…
…But he did still pick a fight that day. It turned out that Dribe was really cute when he was flustered. He wondered why he hadn't noticed it before…
It took him a few years to realize that his sudden spiritual rebirth was simply his hormones waking up and kicking him out of the closet. Whatever, Lucien thought. After all, Dribe hardly minded, didn't he?
077. Paralysis (148)
Lezard built his traps to catch Melt and Dribe; they all knew it. They also all knew that they never worked. Well, usually. One day, a trap, a simple rope mechanism attached to a tree, was hidden well enough to catch them off guard. Melt noticed it first and pushed Dribe out of the way. It caught his ankle and he hit his head going up, and by the time Dribe returned from the village with help to cut him down, he'd lost consciousness.
Lezard was paralyzed with fear once news that Melt still hadn't woken up met his ears. He'd never wanted to hurt either of them, especially not Melt. He didn't know what he'd do if Melt…if he…
Once the boy woke up the next day, he told himself he'd just been overreacting; the tears had meant nothing. After all, Melt was nothing but his rival.
078. Disease (100)
"I dunno what to think of ya sometimes… We fight a lot, but I still kinda like bein' around ya… It's like a disease or somethin'!"
Dribe stopped himself from shouting when Lucien said he was like a disease; after all, the cat humanoid had an uncanny ability to make even the most positive things sound downright horrible.
"Cause, yanno, whenever I see ya, my head gets all fuzzy and I can't think straight… I don't really mind though. You're definitely better than the flu."
Dribe smiled and leaned further into Lucien's embrace. He loved it when he was right.
079. Agony (153)
"Oh, what agony! My life is over!" Roger and Melt just stared at their overdramatic friend as he moaned and flailed his arms in the air.
"…Ah, what's wrong?" Dribe just wailed, while Melt hummed softly to himself, nodding his head as he thought.
"Yes, I believe I know… Lucien's birthday is in two days." …Ah yes, Dribe's crush. Roger thought they'd be perfect—they were both a couple of drama queens.
"Is that all?"
"Is that all?" Dribe all but screeched. "I have to give him something to show I love him, but I don't know what and if I don't someone might steal him and then I'd really wanna die and—"
"Just kiss him." Dribe just stared at Melt; Melt stared back; Roger watched the clouds until they were done.
Two days later, after an unconventional birthday present, Lucien and Dribe started dating and Melt felt very proud of himself.
080. Healing (173)
Lucien lay on his bed, his leg in a cast, feeling very bored. He'd broken it just a few days ago in a Real Man contest, and now he'd be in bed forever. …Well, a few weeks at least, but it would feel like forever.
"Lucien, can I come in?" The cat humanoid's ears perked at the voice outside his door. Lezard had been helping him the past few days, but that certainly wasn't his brother. It was someone he knew on a more…intimate level.
"Yeah, come in Dribe, it's unlocked." The door slowly opened, and his boyfriend slowly walked in, carefully carrying a tray with soup on it. Lucien could only stare.
"I told Lezard I'd help you out and he could go spend some time with Melt. I knew you wouldn't mind. …Lucien, quit staring and eat your soup. Your leg is broken, not your arm." Lucien did as he was told, not taking his eyes off the sight before him. Where in the world had Dribe gotten a nurse's outfit?