Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of the Demashitaa! Powerpuff Girls Z anime.
The storyline and any OCs are my ONLY property.
This merely serves as entertainment for the viewers!
(Warning: This story is rated T; it contains violence, vulgar language, and minor suggestive adult themes. Read at your own risk.)
Butterfly's P.O.V.
It was already the next morning, very early morning. My head hurt badly but it wasn't from the alcohol. Thankfully I had restrained myself to a few drinks or else who would've known what kind of fucked up shit I might've ended up doing.
Staying away from him really helped me calm down from all that was going on. Having to be with him for the mission and seeing him last night just solidified the fact that I wasn't ready to face it. Now, I just had to focus on our mission.
Bright and I got up at roughly the same time with her just finishing getting dressed. Bloom had set up another meeting to talk about what we found last night. With Boomer leaving just a while ago, we were already in the clear.
As Bright and I sat on the bed, we had our compacts ready for Bloom's call.
And just like clockwork, Bloom's name flashed on the screen.
"Hey." She greeted us as soon as we answered the call. "How are you guys feeling?"
"Nothing that Tylenol can't fix." I replied.
"I feel fine." Bright said.
"Good thing too, I don't think Boomer is ready to face drunk Miyako yet." I teased, snickering, which led to her lightly slapping my shoulder.
"That's a relief." Bloom said, "I looked over Keishiro's file and tried to start researching that stone last night, and I was able to find more information about it after we found out that it's actually called the Osiris stone."
"Oh, Momoko, did you at least get any sleep?" Bright asked, worry evident on her face.
"With the big discovery? I could hardly sleep a wink just thinking about it so I just said fuck it and began to dig deeper into this." Bloom answered with a chuckle. "Don't worry, I'll nap in a little bit, let's just get right to it so that we can finish earlier."
Her face then became serious. "Let's talk about Keishiro first." She said. "From the file, it says that his name was changed to Shiro Kawashima. He was captured and then put under testing for the blood experiments. However, during one of those experiments, he manifested the power of intangibility.
"The file then goes on to how they were able to get Keishiro to finally succumb. They talk about how in the first months Keishiro was very resistant, but he was sent to Your Highness's office once every day. And by the fifth month, Keishiro was finally made an official agent, and his previous records as a prisoner were erased and he was finally given a new identity."
"Dear God…" Bright said, covering her mouth in shock and horror. "Keishiro…"
"Those fuckers brainwashed him?!" I exclaimed with my fist tightly clenched. "Why I oughta…"
"Girls, please calm down for a second." Bloom said with a sad look on her face. "We'll rescue him, I'll make sure of that, and I'll tell you how, but first let us get through the other thing we're here to discuss before we plan."
As soon as she said that with a small sigh, she then pulled out a sheet of paper. "So here's what I found out." She started. "The Osiris stone, as the Professor and Bright found out, was made by Ra from a piece of Osiris's heart. It was used by the God Anubis as a resurrection stone but he had put a curse on it to stop the people from using it maliciously.
"Now here's the bit we didn't know: To use the resurrection stone, it must be done during a certain time. From the hieroglyphs I found yesterday, it mentioned Khonsu and Shesmu. They are the god of the moon and the god of blood respectively. And from what I can deduce from the passage, I think it's talking about a blood moon, a total lunar eclipse."
"Hmm…" Bright interrupted, "That seems odd, aren't lunar eclipses fairly common? They didn't think to take advantage of those?"
"I thought about that too. At first, I thought it might just be because they haven't completed the stone yet, but I think there's another reason.
"You see, the number seven is very significant to this story. Set tore Osiris's body into seven for each of the two regions of Egypt, so fourteen in total. So I did some more digging and I found out that Anubis had actually made it so that the Resurrection stone could only be used on a specific total lunar eclipse that occurred as elevenfold of the number of Osiris's torn body pieces in a region."
"So it can only be used once every 77 years." I concluded.
"Exactly."
"But how do the blood experiments fit into all of this?" I asked.
"That's the disturbing part." Bloom replied, "The hieroglyphs also mentioned something about cleansing Osiris's heart. It is said that with Shesmu's most divine wine, which I assume is actually referring to blood, can remove the curse that Anubis placed on the stone, which would grant the user with Osiris's powers that still resided with the stone.
"And that's what I found out so far."
I took a big sigh. "That's a lot to take in."
"So they were trying to find the perfect blood sample that could get rid of the curse." Bright stated. "They might have been testing it on the shards they've found."
"Seems like they're so desperate too to have to take more samples from multiple people." I added. "Dare I ask just who are they trying to bring back?"
"They could be trying to resurrect the God Anubis itself for all we know." Bloom sighed, "Sadly, that was all I could find last night. I'm still waiting on the Professor to translate the final passage which can hopefully give us more insight. But he did message me about something today, he said that he had arranged for Professor Jones to meet us later."
"Really?" Bright said. "That means we have to…"
"Unfortunately, yes, but asking Professor Jones what else he knows about the R.I.D. and Keishiro will help us to put an end to this and to reunite him with his son again."
"What time do we meet him then?" I asked.
"I need you two to handle this while I go and try to find out more about the Osiris stone. He's expecting you in an hour."
"Seems simple enough." I said. "Although, I can already imagine how he's going to react once we tell him the truth. It's not going to be pretty."
"He deserves to know." Bright said with a small, encouraging smile. "And it will hopefully help him understand just how important it is for him to cooperate with us."
"Miyako's right. So make sure to contact me right away once you're done."
"Understood." We both said in unison.
Bright's P.O.V.
Both Butterfly and I remained in the room. After confirming that Boomer was still busy at work, we sat in silence awaiting Professor Jones's call. Butterfly sat on the bed, her head leaning against the bedpost with her eyes closed.
"Ne, Kaoru." I said with my head tilted to the side.
"Hmm?"
"Has Butch tried contacting you?"
"No, why?"
I shook my head. "Nothing, just curious, that's all."
Sighing, Butterfly opened her eyes. "I wonder…" She whispered, "Is this really where it ends?"
I was about to answer her when my compact started to beep. As soon as I took it out, we were both met with Professor Jones's solemn face. He didn't seem to be in a jail cell as he should have been, but rather a small room with dark walls and a small window.
"Good day, I presume you are Ms. Bubbles and Ms. Buttercup?"
"In the flesh." Butterfly responded, sitting beside me to get a better look at him.
"Good day to you, Mr. Jones, please try to refrain from calling us that for now." I said, "I am not sure how much the Professor has told you, but we are currently undercover."
"Yes, I understand, my apologies."
Butterfly squinted her eyes a bit. "If you don't mind me asking, where the hell are you?"
"The Professor has arranged for me to be temporarily out of my cell." He answered, "Rest assured, no one can listen in to our conversation. I believe some of your colleagues are guarding this room as we speak."
"How much do you know so far?" Butterfly asked.
"I am aware that you have been working undercover and are currently residing in the R.I.D. headquarters. The Professor didn't specify for how long now, but seeing as though he had gone through the trouble of having me here, I assume that you have been there long enough to have discovered something there."
"I see, then we should have no problems then." I started before taking a deep breath. "First things first, we would like to say something important. I must warn you, it's not something you want to hear."
"It's about my son… isn't it?" He asked, his face turned to one of sorrow. "Is he… did they really…"
"He's alive." Butterfly bluntly said.
"H-He is…?!" He exclaimed, the tears starting to well up in his eyes. "Oh, thank Heavens… My Keishiro…"
"However, the issue lies in finding him." Butterfly continued with crossed arms. "We need your help."
"Anything."
"Well, to start, we have found his previous hiding place." I said, "It was located behind the library walls. Do you know anything about it?"
"Yes, of course, I had built it in the event that my experiments would succeed." He explained, "You see, back when the R.I.D. was still starting, all our operations were done underground. Once we recruited more and more agents with strange abilities, we started to construct the place.
"We were only about fifty members then, and we were all required to help. Unbeknownst to them, I had also built that room."
"But why though?" Butterfly asked. "It seems really weird for you to suddenly build a hidden room, you couldn't have been sure that the R.I.D. were going to take him."
"That's the thing, I'm afraid. I knew for certain that they were going to take Keishiro away before he was even born."
"What do you mean?" I wondered.
"It is because when the R.I.D. started, they had already begun conducting the blood experiments." He answered, "I presume that they still keep the prisoners down in the dungeons. Agents who joined after the official headquarters were established don't know this, but that dungeon was the first thing that the R.I.D. built. It was the very foundation of the organization."
"Goodness…" I said, "Then that means their goal has been set from the beginning."
"Correct."
"What can you tell us about these blood experiments?"
He took a deep breath. "They have been trying for years to rid some sort of crystal of a certain curse." He answered. "At first, we used our own blood to see what would work. When we realized that none of it was working, we set out to recruit more agents. When that still wasn't enough, that's when we were ordered to acquire more subjects.
"Forgive me if I spare you the details. Your Highness harbors a power in which no man can resist. The R.I.D., especially in its early stages, led me to both witness and participate in acts I wish to not look back on."
"It's okay." I reassured him. "You don't need to tell us anything you don't feel comfortable sharing."
"Yeah, just the important stuff is fine. We're running on a tight schedule too."
"You and the R.I.D. both." He replied. "It is not long until the Anubis's blood moon will rise."
"Wait, what do you mean?" Butterfly asked in a confused tone.
"Anubis's sacred ceremony," He started. "A blood moon once every 77 years that occurs out of the normal eclipse season. It cannot be predicted by ordinary astronomers, but only by those who know of Thoth's many sacred texts. And wouldn't you know it, Your Highness, even at the very start of the R.I.D., knew that twelve days from now will be the day that the blood moon shows its face."
"So soon?" I wondered, my voice wavering with a hint of nervousness.
"I'm afraid, yes."
"So the sudden rush with the agents… It was because of this." Butterfly concluded. "How are they even able to find all these fragments? Did Anubis leave any clues?"
"Have you found out just how far they have progressed with the retrieval of the Osiris stone?"
"They are about less than eight-percent away from completing it." I answered.
"Then that must mean they have already completed the contraption." The Professor said as he let out a big sigh. "You see, Anubis did leave behind clues. However, it only got us so far. So, we sought to create a contraption that would help us detect and find the shards ourselves.
"Such a task was easier said than done, however. And by the time I left the organization, we still weren't halfway through completing it."
"Those sons of bitches are going to complete it in no time then." Butterfly exclaimed. "We need to get the shards before them."
"The only way we could though is by either getting a hold of that contraption or go over the clues they had. Who knows? Maybe they overlooked something."
Before I could get another statement, however, Professor Jones said, "Oh dear, haven't Ms. Blossom told you?"
"Told us what?" We asked in unison.
He took a long pause. "You see, when Ms. Blossom and I first talked, I couldn't mention anything about the Osiris stone for I was bound to secrecy by Your Highness. It was only a few days ago that I was rid of the spell. Because of that, I was only able to explain what I could to the R.I.D.
"When I mentioned some of the people I know from the organization, however, that was when Ms. Blossom's whole demeanor changed. She said that that meant there was someone around them who was lying. It was then that she explained that I was to mention nothing about our conversation to anyone but her and the Professor.
"I still don't know what she meant by that, but I trust that it is something important that might help you with this mission of yours."
"If you don't mind me asking," I said, "Do you remember what you told her?"
"It was a man by the name of Gouriki Rui."
Both of our eyes widened as our heads turned to look at each other in disbelief. Gouriki Rui was one of our seniors in LUX, one gifted with powerful vision. He was one of LUX's best spies. It was about four years ago as well that we had heard about his death.
If that name triggered something in Bloom, that meant she knew something that we don't. And that meant that we needed to talk to her as soon as possible.
"I'm sorry to cut this conversation short, but it must be time for me to get going." He interjected. "It won't be long now before the guards back at LUX notice that I am gone."
"Of course," I said.
"Thanks a lot for what you told us." Butterfly added, "We'll find Keishiro, we promise."
A sad smile flashed on his face as he bowed his head before wishing us farewell. As I closed the compact, Butterfly and I looked at each other with a look of worry and confusion.
What was Bloom hiding from us?
Narrative P.O.V. / Third Person's P.O.V.
"Man is he a piece of work sometimes." Boomer said in an over dramatic tone.
"Stupid face, stupid hair, stupid in general, I honestly can't think how anyone could like him." His brother Brick replied, counting off what he said for emphasis.
"Not to mention he's a pervert."
"And arrogant."
"And irresponsible."
"And a pussy."
They then slowly turned their heads to look down at their other brother. Said man laid face down on his bed, not bothering to move or even retort at his brothers' antics. The best they could do was elicit an annoyed groan.
Boomer sighed. "Well, insults aren't working, what else do you have in mind?"
"I could always just burn his ass."
"That actually doesn't seem like a bad idea."
"Would both of you just leave me alone?" Butch said in muffled words, still not moving his head where it laid. "I ain't getting up."
"Dude, just try talking with her." Boomer said, plopping down next to him. "Nothing's going to happen if neither of you are willing to talk. And technically, you're the one at fault here."
"She doesn't want to talk to me anymore."
"Then that means it's over then?" Brick shrugged. "You're going to give up just like that? If so, then that means she's going to be…" He then moved closer to whisper in Butch's ear. "With Masaru?"
Butch groaned and thrashed in his bed before hitting Brick's face with a pillow. As the red-haired man stepped back from the impact, he let out an exasperated groan of his own. "Just tell her what you feel for fuck's sake!" He then pinched the bridge of his nose. "Try for one last time and see if she's willing to listen. If not, then we'll figure out what to do then."
The raven-haired man sighed, finally turning his head to look at his brothers. "She told me to forget about her." He said in a soft voice. "Easier said than done. I still want her to know the truth, but I don't want to fuck everything up and hurt her again."
"It's the only way for you two to actually talk this shit out, you know." Boomer said.
His brother just replied with a sigh before burying his face yet again in the pillows. Boomer then looked at his eldest brother who had his arms crossed with eyes shut. Letting out a deep breath, Brick said. "We'll try to help you. I'll help you get your shit together before talking to her. Meanwhile, Boomer will…"
He then shot Boomer a glance, which made the latter grunt in frustration. "Fine, I'll try to get Bright to talk to her."
Butch then jumped up and faced his brothers with starry eyes. "Will you really?"
They both rolled their eyes playfully, "Yeah, yeah."
"I love you both so much!" He exclaimed as he suddenly grabbed Boomer and hugged him tightly.
"Gwah!" Boomer yelled as he began dodging Butch's attempts to kiss his face. "Get off me, idiot! Brick! Help me!"
"And that is my cue to go get us lunch." Brick said, laughing hard at the sight of his brothers. "I'll be right back, so you kids have fun."
"You asshole!"
"Hey, are you free this evening? I want to talk to you."
Her eyes widened from the sudden question. Tucking her hair behind her ear, Bloom replied. "No new missions for me so I guess I'm free later." Laying down on his couch, she continued, "Seems a bit out of the blue for you to ask this." She answered.
"I told you last night, didn't I?"
"I meant that I didn't expect you to ask this soon." Bloom said with a soft giggle. "Why not now?"
"I'm helping Butch with something, and I have something to attend to first."
There was a short pause. She contemplated on whether or not she would say it, but Bloom knew that he deserved to know what she felt. "I miss you."
"I know, I miss you too." She smiled. "So, tonight? I might be a little late so let's say 10? 10:30?"
"Still busy with work then?"
"Yeah, sorry, I really wanted to meet you earlier if only I could."
"It's fine, you have a lot going on." Bloom said. "10:30 it is."
"Okay then, don't forget to dress up. We're going out."
"So I unknowingly agreed to a date?"
"D-Do you not want to, then?"
Bloom let out a chuckle. It was rare to hear Brick stutter, and even just from the sound of his voice she could tell how nervous he was. "I'll see you at 10:30, Romeo."
He let out a relieved sigh. "You sure know how to give a guy a heart attack, Ice Prince—" Then a loud voice interrupted their conversation. "Briiiiick! Help me rehearse!"
The familiar voice made Bloom giggle. "Butch auditioning for something?"
"Yeah, to be the Prince Charming for your sister." He answered with a groan. "Don't tell her yet, he's still a mess."
"Help him get his act together then, and tell him to try not to be an idiot again."
"I will, don't worry." He replied. "Talk to you later, okay?"
"Okay, see you." She then ended the call from her M.D.P. before sighing.
Was he going to tell her his own feelings? Was he in love with her the same way she was with him? If this were high school, Bloom would have acted like a lovesick fool and already agreed to be his girlfriend the moment he asked her.
Maybe she was overthinking it. Brick didn't seem like the relationship type anyway. The thought of that, however, bought a tinge of pain in her chest.
Snapping back to reality, she looked at the screen of her laptop that laid on the coffee table. Before he called, she was deep into researching more about the Osiris stone. And it looked like she was close to finding something, she just waited for her program to work and get her into another secret database.
Normally, she would have asked for the help of the Professor. However, with the final passage still waiting to be properly translated, Bloom didn't want to burden him further.
'Of course the final passage had to be the one with unknown hieroglyphics.' She thought while she stared blankly at the screen.
Before she had the chance to type more to assist the process, her compact began to blink. She took it out of its compartment and opened the small device. Instantly, she was greeted by the faces of her friends.
"That took longer than expected." Bloom said. "Were you able to gather more information from him?"
"Yeah." Butterfly replied, her face wary. "We have less than two weeks before the lunar eclipse, so we have to move fast. That and…" Butterfly's words trailed off as she averted her gaze.
"Is something wrong?"
Bright looked at her from the screen with a sad look. "Momoko, is there something you aren't telling us?"
Bloom's eyes widened as she felt her heartbeat thump faster than normal. "What do you guys mean?"
"Professor Jones told us about your meeting with him from before…" Bright stated. "He said that from the mention of Gouriki-san's name, there was something odd about you."
Taking a deep breath, Bright continued. "Not only that, but a few nights ago, Chief Kyoshi called me and said something about us being on leave. You told us that this was a secret mission, but going as far as saying that we are actually on leave so as to fool them more… aren't you violating too many rules right now? And to what end? You never really told us the reason why."
Bloom hung her head low at the sudden questions. This made Butterfly raise her eyebrow at her. "Momoko, you can't keep hiding this from us. We're so close to completing this mission. We deserve to know what you know."
The red-haired girl let out a deep, long sigh. Mustering up the courage to look at her friends, she slowly opened her mouth. "Okay…" She started. "First of all… You guys need to understand that the only reason why I decided to hide this from you is because I didn't want to believe it myself…"
She then crossed her arms over her chest. "Just so I know where to start, what can you guys remember from Gouriki-san's death?"
Both Bright and Butterfly looked at each other as they tried to recall. "He was on a mission, right?" Bright said. "But then there was an accident which ended up killing Gouriki-san…"
"We were told a few days after by the other seniors of his passing." Butterfly added. "By the time we knew about that, he was already cremated."
"Well, at least you guys still remember what they told you." Bloom responded as she leaned back onto the couch. "But Gouriki-san was not alone during that mission. There were three of us on that mission; him, me, and Miura-san, one of Tatsuya's mentors in the medical field."
"Wait, what? How come you never told us?" Butterfly asked.
"Because I was told to keep quiet about the incident." Bloom explained. "The day of the mission, I was assigned to act as a lookout while Gouriki-san and Miura-san were trying to retrieve an item that was stolen from LUX.
"We went to an old, abandoned factory in Kasugai. It served as a group of rogue Gifted people. We got in pretty easily as we went straight to where they hid that item in one of the locked storage rooms; I stood guard at the entrance and waited for my signal.
"However, not long after, I heard a scream from the room. I immediately ran towards them, and that's when I saw Miura-san kneeling on the floor with Gouriki-san's bloody body in her arms. He was bleeding at the mouth and he had sustained what looked like puncture wounds on his chest. Even at first glance, I could tell just how grave his injuries were.
"In a panic, I asked Miura-san what to do. She then told me that we needed to leave as soon as possible. She didn't wait for me as she activated her flight suit with Gouriki-san's body. Looking back in the room, I scanned around one last time before making my exit as well.
"Back at LUX, I went straight to the medical room as Miura-san and her team began operating on Gouriki-san behind closed doors. Within the first few hours, Gouriki-san's mother and brother came to wait with me. After another couple of hours, that's when we got the news of his passing.
"I stood back as both his family went into the room. Not knowing what to do, I waited for Miura-san to come back out. But after another, someone tapped on my shoulder. To my shock, it was Gouriki-san's brother, along with Miura-san.
"He asked us to keep the incident private, stating that seeing Gouriki-san in that state is too much for both of them. Miura-san and I agreed to his wishes, but not before he whispered something under his breath about how his brother would have still been alive if only we had done our job right.
"The next day, Miura-san and I notified the chief and the other seniors and said that they would take care of everything regarding his family and funeral and whatnot. That's why ever since that day, both of us didn't mention our involvement."
Bright and Butterfly's eyes opened in shock. "Then… how can it be?" Bright asked. "You saw him with your own eyes. There's no possible way that he could still be alive."
"That's what I thought too until Professor Jones." Bloom said with a deep sigh. "I asked him many times if he was sure. I even asked him to describe what he looked like and what his power was. And sure enough, Professor Jones hit every nail on its head with the description he gave me. Gouriki-san is very well and alive, and is a member of the R.I.D."
"That has to mean one of two things then." Butterfly said. "It's either Gouriki-san faked his own death and fooled everyone, or everyone fooled us and lied about his death."
"Now do you see why we have to keep this mission a secret from everyone?" Bloom asked with worried eyes. "I don't want to believe it either, but ever since I talked with Professor Jones, nothing made sense to me anymore."
"One way or another, that means someone is lying to us…" Bright concluded. "What should we do now then? It's not like we can take on the whole R.I.D. on our own."
"Yeah, as if getting a few two-faced bastards as backup from LUX will help our situation."
"We need to keep this between the ones who know about this mission for now." Bloom explained. "Don't worry, I have a program running right now on my laptop, and I'll sync it with the compacts so that when it finds anything useful for us, both of you will get the results. It's scouring any and all databases it can."
"Then for the meantime go and rest." Bright said. "We'll take it from here."
"Yeah, we're here for a reason, you know. We'll try and gather more information or help the Professor with the last passage. With twelve days left, we need to move even faster."
"Make sure to keep me updated."
"We will."
7:00 PM
A dark-haired man paced around his room. A small bouquet of flowers is laid on the bed along with various other stereotypical gifts that a girl may like that Butch could think of. With each step, the more frantic he became.
Butterfly's words echoed in his mind.
Better yet… just forget everything.
It stung. It hurt like a fucking bitch. Those words completely sunk deep into his heart, something he didn't know he even had.
He knows he fucked up. He asks himself, what the hell was he thinking? He liked her, but he did the one fucked up thing that would cause their relationship to collapse.
Relationship.
What relationship exactly?
Butterfly was right. They had no commitment to each other. They weren't exclusive. Hell, they never even confessed to each other. But Butch would be damned if he didn't admit that he doesn't want any other man to be with her.
He didn't know if he was being selfish, and he didn't care. Something in him was aching for her, longing for her to be back in his arms. Something in him pleads that she forgives him. But thinking it over, Butch asks himself the one thing he doesn't want to answer.
Did he deserve her forgiveness?
For far too many times than he could count, he only considered what he experienced, what he thought, and what he felt. He felt hurt, angry, frustrated, and sad, and he just wanted to have her by his side. But what about Butterfly? What about what she's experiencing? What's she's thinking? What she's feeling?
He knows he hurt her as well, far more than how he'd hurt her. If he was in her situation, would he forgive her? The more he put himself in her shoes, the more he saw how much of an asshole he truly was to her.
Maybe now is not the right time. Brick and Boomer were right that Butch needed to tell her what he truly feels, but he has to be more thoughtful as to how she might take it. It might be too soon. He wants her, but he doesn't want to hurt her further.
Placing the items on his nightstand, Butch laid down on the bed. He wants to talk to her so badly, but what matters now is that he gives Butterfly the space she needs. Only time will tell whether or not they'll reconcile. However, Butch didn't care about that.
What he cares about is Butterfly's well-being. If Butterfly chooses to forgive him, then it might as well be the happiest day for him. If not, then he would accept it. If she believes that they will not work out, then Butch will take a step back and not bother her anymore.
It's frustrating to think that, but Butch knew that deep down, he didn't just like her, he loved her. And even if she didn't love him back, he wanted the best for her.
If it meant getting to see her smile, then Butch didn't care how much it will hurt.
10:25 PM
Bloom sat in her room, laptop in hand and head resting against the headboard. Her lips shone a bright cherry red as her face was covered in a light dose of makeup. She was out of her normal clothes and wore a simple maroon dress that she had in the closet, albeit something she wasn't aware that she owned.
As her fingers scrolled through the touchpad, her eyebrows began to furrow more. The screen on her laptop showed a plethora of articles. However, they weren't about the Osiris stone, rather, about the ruby of the red-dressed woman.
It had caught Bloom's interest ever since it came up from Keishiro's book. The diamond of the samurai warrior she can understand why Keishiro would think that that would be what they were trying to assemble. But now that it has been confirmed that the Osiris stone is what they were after, why did Keishiro mention the ruby in the book?
It was a stone that essentially brought powers as well, but it seemed to only belong to one individual. Right now, Bloom is assuming that the ruby was maybe giving powers to the head of the R.I.D. with the blood sacrifices being done. Still, something didn't sit right with her.
It seemed so out of place; it was a gut feeling, but Bloom could sense that something deeper was afoot.
Just as she clicked on a new article, her MDP began to beep. Pressing the answer button, she placed the device close to her cherry-red lips.
"Hello?"
"Hey, it's me." The familiar voice said on the other line. "I'm just about done, do you mind if you meet me in the lobby or would you prefer that I pick you up?"
"It's fine, I'll be done in a few."
"Sure, can't wait to see you, Ice Princess."
"Me too."
Quickly shutting down and putting her laptop in its vanity compartment, Bloom quickly made her way out of the room and into the elevator. As it descended down, the pounding of her heart grew louder. She was sure that that translated into her cheeks turning a faint pink as well.
With the doors finally opening, she stepped out onto the lobby floor. It was less crowded than in the morning, still a busy environment nonetheless. As her eyes scanned the area, a sudden voice caught her attention.
"Hey, over here!"
Turning to face left, Bloom was met with fire-red eyes. Her own eyes widened at the sight. Brick was out of his own casual clothes and was in a black polo with its sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He had a pair of gray dress pants along with matching dress shoes.
As Bloom made her way over to him, she couldn't help but giggle. "I didn't know there was a dress code. If I would have known, I wouldn't have come so underdressed."
"Please, you're gorgeous." Brick replied with a toothy grin. "Let's go, don't want the candles to melt so soon."
Offering his hand, Bloom took it with no hesitation and followed him as he made his way to his office. Gone were the dozens of scattered folders and empty coffee cups as a small red-clothed table was placed in the middle of his office. On it were a few candles along with two entrees and two slices of peach cake.
Leading her to her seat, Brick made sure she sat comfortably before going to his own seat.
"Didn't know you could be such a gentleman."
"I try." He said, before getting a look of panic. "Shit, I forgot to ask if steak was okay with you?"
Bloom smiled. "I love steak." Looking at it, Bloom couldn't help but feel amused. "Cooked it yourself?"
He shrugged. "I had a little help." He said with a chuckle. "Don't let me stop you, dig in."
Feeling excited, Bloom quickly picked up the fork and knife. Slicing into the perfectly pink steak, she took a bite. Brick looked at her, well, more observed her as his eyes were full of panic.
"Is it good?"
"Heavenly." Bloom replied, which caused Brick to breathe a sigh of relief. "What about this cake?"
"Want dessert so early?"
"No, silly, I'm just curious if you made it yourself."
"Trust me, no amount of help would get me to make a perfect cake like the one they have at the cafeteria."
"I'm looking forward to eating it then." Bloom said with a laugh.
As the dinner went on, both of them began to talk about many kinds of things. This ranged from common fascinations with technology up to debates as to what was cuter: a red panda or an actual panda. Needless to say, their night was filled with laughs, banter, and smiles.
As they were on their way to finishing dessert, which Bloom agreed was such a delicious piece of cake, Brick began clearing his throat.
"So, actually, I wanted to show you something."
Gesturing her to follow him, they made their way to his office balcony. As the sky was a beautiful midnight blue, Bloom is left in awe at the bright moon that shone over them.
"The sky's so beautiful tonight."
"It is, isn't it?"
"Mhm."
As Brick stood behind her, he couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle as he watched her look at the sky with such innocent bliss. Softly, he placed his hand on her arm, a gesture that didn't make her flinch at all. Instead, she brought her hand up on top of his.
Feeling her warmth, Brick took one deep breath before digging into his pocket with his other hand. There, he brought out a small red velvet box. As Bloom felt his other hand move away, she turned to face him before she was stopped by Brick's voice. "No, just face the sky."
His voice didn't seem malicious nor threatening, so Bloom followed. After a few moments, a cold sensation found its way around her neck. Looking down, she saw a small silver pendant that resembled a rose, albeit it was bigger and had more petals.
Turning to face him, Bloom couldn't help but let out a smile. "What is this?"
"Well, because you keep calling me Romeo, I thought I'd give you something of Juliet's" Brick explained. "It's the Juliet Rose if you weren't aware of it. Took 15 years for it to be made and costs a fuckton of money. I think it just suits you… The most beautiful and priceless flower that ever existed."
"Brick…"
"Honestly, I don't think it comes close to how I see you, Bloom." Brick interrupted. "When I see you, I see a woman so beautiful that nothing else compares to her. When I see your smile, I never thought I'd see something that would rival the moon, the star, and the sun with how it brightens up everything that exists. Your eyes are the same as mine, but when I look into yours, no gem on earth shines as bright. When I hear your laugh, you put every instrument to shame with how sweet it sounds.
"When I'm with you, I don't want to imagine another moment without you. It sounds so fucking cheesy but I couldn't care less because it's how I feel about you. You've done fucked me up, Bloom."
"Are you saying… that…"
"I…" Brick took a sharp breath. "I love you."
Author's Note:
Hi, everyone! I can't believe that it's been MORE THAN 1 FUCKING YEAR? I'M SO SORRY FOR THIS LATE UPDATE, FORGIVE ME. It has been one hell of a year for me, a lot of good stuff and a whole lot of bad stuff. One was that I got a new laptop, but I lost my story outline that contained all of the important notes I had for upcoming chapters. That and this year had just been overall stressful for me as I'm nearing the end of college. Next semester, I'll start with my thesis and so, wish me luck.
We are 6 chapters away from the finale, and please stay tuned because this story WILL be finished! I have re-done the story outline and hopefully, I can get another chapter out before semester break ends. Other than that, here's an early Christmas for all of you!
I just want to say a huge thank you for everyone who has favorited, reviewed, and followed this story, especially those who have stuck around for years. I read all of your feedback and words can't express how much I'm grateful for all of you.
See you in the next one!
Happy holidays!
~Disastress