AN: Aww, thank you all so much for your reviews, that aws great this morning when I woke up and had to go off to horrible, sucky work.
Joise: I'm glad people wereable to pick that up, Tristan has changed. It's a combination of having grown up a little and other outside factors. You'll see what I mean more in this chapter.
Kate: I love the friendship bween Rory and Finn too, it's so beautifully platonic. I'm bringing in another character here though that tends to change the dynamics between Rory and Finn.
Disclaimer: I own nothing and especially not GG
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Nobody wants to be alone, so how did I get here?
The Jock table turned to watch as Rory and Louise walked by them in the cafeterial, their hips swaying in time as they walked.
"Well it shocked the hell out of me," Louise was saying, "I had no idea he was coming, and that is saying something".
Rory smiled, that was saying something, Louise always knew what was going on.
"He's changed," Rory mused, pinching her lip as she slid into place beside Finn who was sleeping with his head on the table.
"How so?" Louise asked.
"I don't know...he's...quieter..." She trailed off, that was the way the old Rory talked. Onto happier topics. "So, Blake's party, is it gonna go off?".
By no stretch of the imagination did their little band rule the school, although, an outsider might have thought so. Sure, they were popular, but only due to their own notoriety. Everybody at Chilton knew their story, and everybody at Chilton backed away when they came face-to-face. They were invited to the best parties, hell if they weren't the ones throwing them they were at the top of the invite list. But there was something about them, something about the gang mentality they'd developed over time that left them cloistered. Although, after everything they'd been throuh together, that's how they liked it. Paris was the one exception to the rule. When Louise had taken her seat her school shirt had ridden up, displaying one of the tattoos the six shared, the Tara Crown Claddagh mark which symbolised the love andunity they'd pledged when they were younger, more careless, some of them reckless. Louise tugged her shirt down quickly, as though it burned for her promise to be seen so openly.
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Across the cafeteria Luna slumped next to Tristan and leaned her head on the table.
"Why T? Why did you bring me here?"
He ignored her, used to her predisposition to bitch and whinge, thank God she was cute.
"Hey!" She slapped him.
"Did I just say that out loud?" He asked, a smile in his eyes and she rolled her own.
"Thank God I'm cute?" She asked with a raised eyebrow and he laughed, slinging an arm around her.
"You know you'redoing the right thing Lu, after all, you're the one with herheart set on Harvard and I was able to give that to you on a silver platter".
Sh rolled her eyes again and flicked her long, blonde plait over her shoulder. When her hair was brushed out it, he imagined it would almost reach her hips, but he'd never seen it out.
"Whatever DuGrey...how's your first day going?"
He nodded slowly but didn't answer. "I think someone's trying to get your attention," Luna said quietly, leaning into him.
Tristan looked up to see old friends, all still gathered together. All, he imagined, still talking about the same things, bitchin about the same people. They waved at him and he furrowed his brow, he couldn't deal with them anymore, couldn't be their King. He didn't have the heart anymore. Luna squeezed his arm.
"Come on, let's go say hello," she suggested.
He shook his head silently. "Come on," She wheedled, "you have to spend the rest of the year with these people, and then some. I know how you feel but you can't crawl into a hole".
He shrugged, but stood up. As she did too he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and drew her in for a hug, leaning his head on hers, knowing that every eye in the cafeteria was on them.
"Let's go...preare yourself,"
She laughed but she knew he was deadly serious as he led her to the table.
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Rory watched Tristan move slowly through the cafeteria, wondering who the girl was on his arm and only mildly surprised at the viscious pang of jealousy that stabbed at her. It wasn't so strange she realised later, that he had meant so much more to her once he'd left than when he'd been there. She smiled when she remembered the way they'd been so long ago, at least, it seemedso long ago. She couldn't really deny that she'd pined for him when he'd left. She'd had Dean, but that had only lasted another week or so. In class she'd found herself doodling his name on her page and writing down that stupid childish equation
Tristan Janlen DuGrey
LOVES
Lorelai Leigh Gilmore
52051
7256
9711
1682
71410
8551
13106
4416
857
1312
443
87
She was always girlishly thrilled with that percentage likelihood of them being together one day. She made up scenes in her mind where he came back and they ran into each other. She'd imagined that perhaps it would happen that summer, or one Christmas. It never did of course, but it didn't matter so much when the boys arrived. They'd kept her entertained. That didn't mean, of course, that she ever stopped looking out for him or listening for snippets of conversation. But her priorities had changed, she had changed. She wasn't Mary any more, with her nose permanently in a book. Life had begun to happen. Sometimes she couldn't believe that the past two years really belonged to her, to Rory Gilmore. Those horribly bittersweet years that she wanted to bury and relive all at once.
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Tristan introduced Luna as a friend from North Carolina, well, that's what she was. And with her cute face and bubbly personality she was swallowed whole by his old friends. He sat between Hamish and Andy, two from that time he genuinely liked after a fashion.
"Did you see it this time?" Hasmish was asking Andy.
"See what?"
"Grant's tat when she sat down,"
"Damn," muttered Andy, "I missed it again?"
"Missed what?" Tristan asked, only half listening.
Andy turned to him.
"Louise Grant's tattoo, legend has it the whole group has the same one."
Tristan nodded coolly.
"The whole group? Legend has it? What is this "The Lord of the Ring's"?"
"Yeah...man you've missed alot. Chilton's got it's own little gang over there," He swept his arm to indicate Rory Gilmore's table. Tristan's eyebrows shot up.
"Gang?"
"Well, of sorts...it's regular folk lore around here man," Andy piped in. "Met Finn yet?"
Tristan shook his head.
"That's the guy sitting with them, he arrived here not long after you left with a couple of other guys and they formed their little group,"
"Nobody ever goes in an nobody ever comes out," Hamish joked in an ominous voice.
Tristan rolled his eyes.
"Oh fuck off, people used to say the same shit about us"
"Nah man, it's seriously weird, they're all like obsessed with each other, they have tattoos that symbolise some suicide pact or something," Andy insisted.
"Yeah and every full moon they dance naked in the woods, 'Welcome back to Chilton Tristan, same shit, different day'". Tristan scoffed.
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Rory walked to her locked to find The Icon leaning with his back against it and his eyes closed. A non-issue grey beanie covered his dirty blond curls. She swatted his arm playfully.
"Hey fucker, where have you been all day?"
When he opened his eyes she saw it was one of those days. She ran two fingers up and down his forearm, on anyone else it would have been patronising but the ghost of a smile on his lips assured her it was okay.
"So we're going out tonight?" She asked.
He nodd mutely and kissed her cheek, motioning he'd meet her after school.
From across the hall Luna, Tristan and Andy watched.
"That's one of the guys that came with Finn...he never talks, it's kind of creepy." Andy concluded.
"And he's kind of hot!" Luna exclaimed.
Tristan laughed at her and nudged her side..
"Down girl,"
She shrugged and poked out her tongue.
"Come on dork, we're late for class."
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Rory scribbled a note to Madeline in ther final class of the day. The Icon sat mutey in front of her, determindely doodling on the single piece of paper he'd 'borrowed' from her.
The Icon says we're going out tonight, suit up and pass it on, meet in the car park after school.
Madeline read the note and raised her eyebrow at Rory who just nodded gravely and Madeline took out her Sidekick, typing quick texts to the others.
Finally the bell signalled the end of the day, and Rory threw only the absolutely necessary homework into her satchel, she wouldn't be doing much tonight. Finn had the locker next to her and met her there to walk out together. They passed Tristan on the way and Rory smiled at him. He seemed to stare straight through her before noticing. He looked at her strangely, as though he couldn't understand why she would be smiling at him before he uncertainly smiled back.
"Just a sec Finn,"
She walked over to Tristan. "DuGrey? What are you doing on Friday night?" She asked, finally, she had her chance. He lookedat her like a deer caught in the headlights.
"Uh...tucking myself into bed alone at 8pm?" He guessed.
"Wrong," Se said with a flirtatious smile, "There's a party, a big one, you're my plus one," She smiled again, flipped her hair and turned on her heel.
"Well...she was...forward," Luna observed, nodding in Roy's direction with her eyebrows knitted together.
"Yeah..." Tristan replied half-heartedly, still a little confused.
"An old friend?" Luna asked cheekily.
Tristan shook his head,
"No, not a friend".
Luna looked up at him, confused but his frown disappeared soon and he lifted his satchel. "Come on, let's get out of here".
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When Rory and Finn emerged from the school she was grinning and Finn was teasing her until they noticed The Icon standind by his bike smoking a cigarette.
"You ready for this?" She asked Finn.
"Always am sweetheart,"
Rory handed him her bag and ran to where The Icon stood, launching herself into his arms. He caught her, like always as the others arrived...the five of them now.
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AN: So you've met The Icon, but who is he? What is his relationship to the 'gang'? Read and Review to let me know what you all think. Oh, and if anyone was wdering I dropped a little Aussie Pop Culture in there, Hamish and Andy are two local comedian's from my city whom I adore! So I just had to put them in here!