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moonflower1605 · 1 year

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Chapter - 29

(Ella's POV)

We stood in the shadows of Valencia Boulevard, looking up at gold letters etched in black marble: DOA Recording Studios. Stenciled on the glass doors: No Solicitors. No Loitering. NO Living. It was almost midnight, but the lobby was bright & full of people. Behind the security desk sat a tough-looking guard with sunglasses & an earpiece.

Percy turns to us. "You remember the plan?"

"The plan," Grover gulped. "Yeah. I love it."

Annie said, "What if the plan doesn’t work?"

"Don’t think negative." I told her.

"Right," she said. "We’re entering the Land of the Dead, & I shouldn’t think negative."

I put my hand on Percy's shoulder.

"I’m sorry, Percy. You're right, we'll make it. It'll be fine." Annie said. I nudged Grover.

"Oh, yeah!" he said. "We got this far. We'll find the bolt & save your mom. No problem."

Percy gave me a grateful look & said. "Let’s whup some Underworld butt."

We walked inside the DOA lobby. Music played softly on the speakers. The carpet & walls were steel gray. Pencil cactuses grew in the corners like skeleton hands. There were people sitting on couches, people standing up, people staring out the windows or waiting for the elevator. Nobody moved, or talked, or did much of anything. But I could see through their bodies.

The security guard’s desk was a raised podium, so we had to look up at him.

He was tall & elegant, with chocolate skin & bleached-blond hair shaved military style. He wore tortoiseshell shades & a silk Italian suit that matched his hair. A black rose was pinned to his lapel under a silver name tag.

Percy read the name tag, then looked at him in bewilderment. "Your name is Chiron?"

He leaned across the desk.

"What a precious young lad." He had a sort of accent-British, maybe. "Tell me, mate, do I look like a centaur?"

"N-no."

"Sir," he added smoothly.

"Sir," Percy said.

He pinched the name tag & ran his finger under the letters. "Can you read this, mate? It says C-H-A-R-O-N. Say: CARE-ON."

"Charon." Percy repeated.

"Amazing! Now: Mr. Charon."

"Mr. Charon," I was trying hard not to laugh.

"Well done." He sat back. "I hate being confused with that old horse-man. And now, how may I help you little dead ones?"

Percy looked at me. "We need to go to the Underworld," I said.

Charon’s mouth twitched. "Well, that’s refreshing."

"It is?" Annie asked.

"Straightforward & honest. No screaming. No 'This must be a mistake, Mr. Charon'. How did you die, then?" I nudged Grover.

"Oh," he said. "Um...drowned...in the bathtub."

"All three of you?" Charon asked. We nodded.

"Big bathtub." He looked mildly impressed. "I don't suppose you have coins for passage. Normally, with adults, you see, I could charge your American Express, or add the ferry price to your last bill. But with children alas, you never die prepared. Suppose you'll have to take a seat for a few centuries."

"Oh, but we have coins." Percy set three golden drachmas on the counter, part of the stash we'd found in Crusty's office desk.

"Well, now..." Charon moistened his lips. "Real golden drachmas. I haven’t seen these in..."

His fingers hovered greedily over the coins. Then Charon looked at Percy.

"Here now," he said. "You couldn't read my name correctly. Are you dyslexic, lad?"

"No," he said. "I'm dead."

Charon leaned forward & took a sniff.

"You're not dead. I knew it. You’re a godling."

"We have to go to the Underworld," I insisted.

Charon made a growling sound deep in his throat. Immediately, all the people in the waiting room got up & pacing, agitated, lighting cigarettes, running hands through their hair, or checking their watches.

"Leave while you can," Charon told us. "I'll just take these & forget I saw you."

He started to go for the coins, but I snatched them back.

"No service, no tip." Percy said.

Charon growled again-a deep, blood-chilling sound. The spirits of the dead started pounding on the elevator doors.

"It’s a shame," I sighed. "We had even more..."

I held up the entire bag & took out a fistful of drachmas letting the coins spill through my fingers. Charon’s growl changed into something like a lion’s purr.

"You think I can be bought, godling? Eh...just out of curiosity, how much do you have?"

"A lot," I said. "I bet Hades doesn’t pay you well enough for such hard work."

"Oh, you don’t know the half of it. How'd you like to babysit these spirits all day?Always 'Please don’t let me be dead' or 'Please let me across for free.' I haven’t had a pay raise in three thousand years. Do you think suits like this come cheap?"

"You deserve better," Percy agreed. "A little appreciation. Respect. Good pay."

With each word, he stacked another gold coin. Charon glanced down at his silk Italian suit, as if imagining himself in something better.

"I must say, you're making some sense now."

Percy stacked another few coins. "I could mention a pay raise while talking to Hades."

He sighed. "The boat’s almost full. I might as well add you three & be off. Come along."

We pushed through the crowd of waiting spirits, who started grabbing at our clothes like the wind, their voices whispering things I couldn’t make out. Charon shoved them out of the way, grumbling, "Freeloaders."

He escorted us into the elevator, which was already crowded with souls of the dead, each one holding a green boarding pass.

"Right. Now, no one get any ideas while I'm gone," he said to the waiting room. "And if anyone moves the dial off my easy-listening station again, I'll make sure you're here for another thousand years. Understand?"

He put a key card into a slot in the elevator panel & we started to descend.

"What happens to the spirits waiting in the lobby?" Annie asked.

"Nothing," Charon said.

"For how long?"

"Forever, or until I’m feeling generous."

"Oh," she said. "That’s...fair."

Charon raised an eyebrow. "Who said death was fair, young miss? Wait till it’s your turn. You’ll die soon enough, where you’re going."

"We’ll get out alive," I said.

I got a sudden dizzy feeling. We weren’t going down anymore, but forward. The air turned misty. I blinked hard.

When I opened my eyes, Charon’s creamy Italian suit was replaced by a long black robe. His shades were gone. His eyes were empty sockets-totally dark, full of night, death & despair.

He saw me looking, & said, "Well?"

"Nothing," I managed.

Grover said, "I think I’m getting seasick."

When I blinked again, we were standing in a wooden barge. Charon was poling us across a dark river, swirling with bones, dead fish, & other, stranger things-plastic dolls, crushed carnations, soggy diplomas with gilt edges.

"The River Styx," Annie murmured. "It’s so..."

"Polluted," Charon said. "For many years, you humans threw everything -hopes, dreams, wishes that didn't come true. Horrible waste management, if you ask me."

Ahead, the far shore glimmered with greenish light, the color of poison. Panic closed up my throat. What was I doing here? These people around me...they were dead!

Percy grabbed hold of my hand. I understood how he felt. He wanted reassurance that somebody else was alive on this boat.

The shoreline of the Underworld came into view. Craggy rocks & black volcanic sand stretched inland about a hundred yards to the base of a high stone wall, which marched off in either direction. A sound came nearby, echoing off the stones, the howl of an animal.

"Old Three-Face is hungry," Charon said. His smile turned skeletal in the greenish light. "Bad luck for you, godlings."

The bottom of our boat slid onto the black sand. The dead began to disembark.

Charon said, "I'd wish you luck, but there isn't any down here. Mind you, don’t forget to mention my pay raise."

He counted our golden coins into his pouch, then took up his pole & ferried the empty barge back across the river.

Link to the next chapter is here.

Link to the prev chapter is here.

Comment, like & share.

Take care my lovely readers.❤

Alice signing off.

XOXO.

#percy jackson #x reader #percy jackson x reader

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accendimi · 9 months

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A Family Reunion { The Go Family + Drakken}

In which Drakken needs some supplies and the pair accidentally into her brothers- or well most of them.

When: Early July

@dr-drckken

SARINA

It wasn’t that Sarina disliked being in Italy, in fact she had been back home within the last two years or so. But still the streets made her feel off, like her brothers would show up at any second and recognize her.

It had to be nearly a decade now though since she had seen them. Maybe they would just pass her by if they did show up.

Besides if she said no she would have to explain to Drakken who knew she had siblings but maybe not how bad she had left everything and that meant she was keeping it close to her chest. (As if she hadn’t ranted about how stupid they were before.)

No she was here to get a job down and as Drakken turn down the wrong street she grabbed his collar.

“Sometimes I wonder how you ever survived without me. We’re not supposed to turn right for another couple of streets.” Sarina started unintentionally slipping into her Italian accent. It was hard not to, with so much Italian around her.

DRAKKEN: Drakken let out a series of strangled sounds as his shirt tightened around his neck. His arms flailed, his feet trying to go in reverse to catch himself at the very sudden, and very rude, disruption to his strides.

“Sarina!” he complained, slipping out of her grip so he could round on her. His eyes met her with a glare, frown tugging down the corners of his mouth. After a moment he grumbled to himself, tugging on the lapels of his coat and fixing the shirt underneath from where it had come loose from where it was tucked into his trousers.

Of course he had no rebuttal to this because it was true. He had only merely survived without her, thanks to that Possible girl actually getting him locked up. There was no doubt he would have turned up in a worse state in a town like Swynlake. When he felt properly put together again he was frowning at her again.

“What do you mean another couple of streets? It was a right 12 streets after the stop light! This is 12! I counted,” Drakken told her, one arm frantically waving to the path they’d come down that lay just behind her.

SARINA

Sarina blinked at Drakken, dropping her hand back to her side with a raised eyebrow.

"Question. Why are you counting streets instead of I don't know reading signs?" Sure they weren't in English but how hard was it to read a name.

"Would you like to try your way? We still have time if we get lost."

DRAKKEN:

“It’s easier that way,” he sniffed. Coming from the guy who could barely remember anyone’s names, only caring to when the person was of use to him or had become some sort of attachment to, he had no intention of memorizing a street name he’d only ever go to the once. Granted it was for something very important but ugh. Numbers were much simpler.

“Nooo, no, I insist! You’re the Italy know it all,” Drakken stepped sideways so that she could take the lead. “If you think you can get us there faster then go right ahead!”

This was all said and done with the utmost amount of sarcasm he could scrape up. Which was to say, a lot.

SARINA

“How kind. It’s nice to know you’re finally seeing sense.” Sarina stated simply trying the hide the tip of her smile as she walked forward turning when she needed to. Drakken would follow he always did. The same way she would follow (reluctantly) if he was right.

Even if he mumbled and was sarcastic as well throughout it.

She just didn’t want to spend more time in this country then she needed to.

“Am I doing the talking? What was the vibe? Threatening non-threatening?”

DRAKKEN: As he always did, Drakken was in fact quick to follow, having to take a few extra steps to match her stride at her side.

“What’s the vibe?” he repeated, turning to fix her with a look of disappointment and a little bit of betrayal. Drakken shook his head, tearing his eyes away. “You sound like one of the ridiculous teenagers I’m stuck having to teach. Vibe, as if that’s supposed to mean anything- nyah! Whatever. The vibe is going to be perfectly fine. We’ll get in, get the mutagenic agent, and get out. I will do the talking though I am sure you will have to translate. We shouldn’t have to resort to anything threatening but, you know, if they get weird or fidgety or think they can con us out of it then we can certainly start threatening them.”

He had not traveled all the way to Italy just to be bamboozled!

SARINA

Sarina grinned, it would probably be fun to threaten some people, she had been itching to for awhile. Constantly these days she was having to reign herself in to make sure her people were okay and it was pissing her off.

So yeah if she could fight some assholes she was ready to do so.

Walking into the building Sarina was quick to take stock of what was around and what would be useful. Who would be useful. The girl at the front desk in pink would not be useful.

Quickly conversing in Italian, Sarina gestured for Drakken to speak. “She’s asking what we’re here for and if we have an appointment with someone.”

DRAKKEN: Drakken went to the desk, eyes going back and forth between Sarina and the…secretary? Concierge? Assistant? He didn’t really know but was sort of impressed. Usually people just kept a minion or a goon of some sort to keep watch over visitors. He could only hope they were paying her enough for the position.

“Of course we have an appointment, that’s why we’re here. Tell them Dr. Drakken is here to get what I came for and that I don’t like to be kept waiting,” he said to Sarina. Then he glanced at the lady at the desk and felt the need to add, “Only say it with a little more umph! Like we’re angry at the audacity of them not expecting us.”

He turned to scowl at the woman to give the desired effect, hands folded together behind his back, as he waited for Sarina to relay the message.

SARINA

Sarina’s lips quirked into a smirk before she repeated the words with the necessary umph. To her credit she didn’t flinch, in fact she raised an eyebrow as if they were stupid to try and challenge her.

But as she picked up the phone alarms sounded and doors shut and locked behind them.

“Whatever the fuck is going on we didn’t sign up for this or did we sign up to get locked in.” Sarina glared her hands ready to spark and fire up as the lady ignore them frantically calling numbers.

DRAKKEN: He had been smiling very smugly at the woman, nodding along with Sarina’s words despite not being able to understand them. When she picked up the phone and alarms started going off he tried to rationalize that, oh, maybe this was just their procedure. It was an alarm that would call their escort out to take them to the mutagenic agent. Sure it was rather annoying but he figured that was just the Italian way. Loud!

Then the doors shut and locked and Sarina seemed on edge. All signs that this was not just the Italian welcome he had hoped it would be. He took a step toward Sarina out of wanting to be closer to the source of protection and also so that they didn’t somehow get separated.

“Of course we didn’t!” he had to yell this in order to be heard over all the noise. Drakken looked at the woman on the phone and reached forward, wrestling it from her hand so he could hold it against his own ear, other hand covering his other ear in an effort to make out the voice on the line, “Yes, hello? Hello? There’s been some sort of mistake! This is Dr. Drakken, I’m here for the- oh you don’t know what I’m saying.”

He slammed the phone down on the receiver. The woman made to pick it up again, and Drakken just yanked the whole contraption from its spot until it came unplugged so he could throw it to the floor.

“Fine! Sarina, get the door,” he gestured to the one that looked most like an entrance to the rest of the building that sat behind the desk on the other side of the room to the exit. “If this is how we’re being treated, we’ll show ourselves in.”

SARINA

Sarina ignored Drakken as he yelled and stormed around to the phone. The slam barely registered to her as she looked around to find what she needed. A way out of here. The doors and windows were sealed shut and maybe with heat she could manage to make a hole but to make something they could both fit through and without alerting people…. It wasn’t worth it.

Further inside it was.

Glancing at Drakken, she shrugged before heading to the door as the receptionist told her to stop. Well she wasn’t going to do that.

Grabbing the door handle, Sarina lit her hand aflame melting the lock before kicking it in.

Here it was more obvious something was wrong as alarms blared and people ran from room to room and around the corner a booming voice.

“Never Fear! HeGo Is here!”

Blinking Sarina stopped in front of the door way.

She did not just hear her brother’s name. She was obviously hearing this.

Obviously.

DRAKKEN: Having not expected Sarina to stop Drakken nearly ran right into the back of her, but he managed to catch himself, the toes of his shoes digging into the ground just behind her heels. He staggered back, waiting for her to move forward. When she didn’t he frowned, trying to peer around her to see what the hold up was.

All he could see were bodies running from one side of the hall to the next, blurs of shapes and colors in the long passage that was flooded with the noise of the grating alarm. What even was this, some sort of fire drill?

“Uh, Sarina,” he said, glancing back over his shoulder to give the woman at the desk who was still looking at them and yelling. Drakken smiled at her, awkward, as this was not the dramatic exit that they were supposed to have left with. He turned back, “Why are we stopping?”

SARINA

Yeah, Drakken was here. Not her brothers. Not her family. That was beyond a small chance. Not that she was that good with math to know what the chances were but that was something she would worry about later.

Especially with all the crashing about.

They needed to get out sooner then later. Reaching behind her Sarina grabbed Drakken’s sleeve so she didn’t have to worry about leaving him behind before she moved further in quickly but quietly just in case.

The hallway opened into a another room but beyond that a large warehouse and in the corner a large crate lifted in the air and wobbling as a person walked.

Yeah that was definitely her brothers. At least the older ones.

Until two young boys scrambled infront of them screeching at they broke crates with supplies worth thousands of dollars. Potentially even the stuff Sarina and Drakken had ordered.

“Wyatt. Wendall??”

“Sarina!”

“Hector! It’s S-” The twins barely got out her name a second time before she jumped forward to muzzle them with her hands.

“Hush up you two.”

DRAKKEN:

He made a noise of surprise when she grabbed him again, wondering what was in the air today or if the jacket he was wearing had something particularly grabby about it, but could do nothing except to stumble forward in the direction she pulled him in.

Well they were moving. He supposed that was good except…something seemed wrong. Drakken couldn’t tell what it was exactly, because they were used to this. Breaking and entering. In the dead of the night, in the light of day, into highly secure strongholds, into someone’s unlocked backyard gate. This shouldn’t have been something new that she took the side of caution on.

If Sarina was acting off then Drakken felt uneasy, stomach clenching and bravado stepping down to its lowest level. She continued to guide them down the hall and he kept checking over his shoulder, as if waiting for someone to be following them. Or to drop down from the ceiling. Ugh, he hated when people did that. Jump scares! Cheap! Horrible!

Once they had entered the larger area, the ceiling height far taller hanging over them and the expanse easier to see, he did change his tune a bit. Now that there was more commotion and he saw someone actively destroying product, product that could have very well been rightfully theirs, his anger took over that place of fear.

Before he could yell out for them to stop that, or for Sarina to go make them stop, everyone started yelling roll call. And, weirdly, they seemed to have recognized Sarina. But what was the weirdest of all was that Sarina seemed to know them, too. Drakken hung back, observing with a very confused look on his face.

SARINA

The twins continued to talk underneath Sarina’s hands, despite her holding them tightly. Her mind racing as she looked up at Drakken with wide eyes. For once she didn’t really know what to do. What did you do when your past collided with your present as you committed crime infront of your brothers that were minors.

“Excuse you! Neither of you are 18 yet. What the hell are you doing?” Sarina pulled her hands away to glare at them.

“Saving the world”

“One Criminal organization at a time”

“Yeah! We’re destroying the warehouse”

“There’s a whole lot of magick things in here and if they people who own them can’t have them”

“We destroy them!”

Smacking her hand on her forehead, Sarina sat there cursing out loud.

“Language!”

“But since you’re here you can help us!”

“Yeah! Set everything on fire.”

The twins continued to rattle back and forth as Hector called out for the boys.

“WE”RE HERE AND SO IS SARINA!”

With another carton flying Sarina’s eldest brother joined the fray.

“Sarina!”

“I’m going to kill them all. That’s what I’m going to do. Murder them.” Sarina muttered to herself as she stood up just in time for the warehouses security to show up pointing guns at them.

DRAKKEN: The look Sarina was giving him was new. He didn’t think he’d ever seen her like this. Even when a plan would go wrong she never seemed to be upset or otherwise bothered. Not in the way he would get, and certainly not to the point where she was looking at him like she was… he didn’t even know what name to put to it, and didn’t have time to think about it as she spoke to the-

What even were they? Teenagers? They certainly seemed young. Ugh. What was it with this younger generation and this do-gooder attitude they all seemed to have? Didn’t anyone want to get involved with crime anymore or was this a dying business?

Several times Drakken thought he understood what was going on but then someone else would say something, or finish someone else’s sentence, and he would be thrown off all over again. And as soon as the much larger gentleman joined the scene he accepted that he had simply lost the plot.

The puzzle of the situation would have to wait, Drakken’s spine straightened as soon as he noticed the armed men, hands raised to show that he wasn’t a threat. His gaze flew to Sarina, worried.

….for himself, of course! As he was the only one seemingly without magic and because the person whose job it was to make sure he did not get shot was distracted.

SARINA

Sarina was surrounded by idiots.

Two of those idiots were allowed to be idiots considering they were kids but everyone else. Including Drakken because although he was being quiet- wait he was being quiet. Maybe she wouldn’t add him into the little murder spree she was planning.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you. We’re just here to get what was taken and then we’ll be on our way.” Hector stated first which made Sarina tilt her head at him.

If it was that simple they shouldn’t be making so much noise but instead they were bumbling around and just asking for guns to be shoved into their faces and considering she had her younger brothers around her she couldn’t help but usher them slightly to the side of Drakken.

She could at least protect all of them-

Nope the twins started to create duplicates of each other, their real bodies now focused on Drakken as the duplicates rushed the guards.

“Who are you and what are you doing here?”

DRAKKEN: Drakken was waiting for Sarina to get on with the flipping and the punching and the disarming. Instead all she did was brush the 2 kids off to him.

And then 2 turned into 4 and 4 into more, making Drakken startle and let out a, “GAH!”

He watched as most of them ran off, head turning this way and that to watch, until his attention snapped back to the pair that stayed right next to him. Who had the nerve to ask him who he was! Ugh, he had known this whole undercover and lying low in a small town thing was going to do irreparable damage to his street credibility but it felt like a whole new low to not be recognized by teenage do-gooders.

“Yes, I do believe some introductions are in order,” he said. Figuring the clones, or whatever those things had been, Sarina, and the larger gentleman could take care of the firearms just fine, he wanted to rectify this issue. As well as get in the know as to how Sarina knew them.

“I am Doctor Drakken!” he proclaimed, then waited for any signs of recognition. “Evil mastermind? On the brink of world conquest? Ring a bell?” His hand came up to shake an imaginary one to emphasize the point. Then he sighed, “Whatever. Who are you? And who’s that guy? And why are you here destroying the place? Don’t you know there are some very valuable things in this-! …this….hm, what would you say this is? A warehouse? A hanger? Depot?”

SARINA

Sarina groaned as her younger brothers tackled the guards, gun firing shooting into the air and instead of her eldest brother rushing to protect them he started to lecture her.

In one ear she had to listen to him and in another the ramblings of Drakken and well she wanted to tear her hair out.

“I’m going to hurt you all.” Sarina muttered jumping into the fight disarm the guards as he brother followed still lecturing her.

“Do people actually still try to take over the world?”

“That’s so weird.”

“Maybe he doesn’t mean literally?”

“Look at him he looks like he’s being literal.”

The twins went back and forth even while Drakken spoke.

“There’s stuff in here that hurt magicks so we’re here to get rid of it.”

“That way no one can use it! Yeah!”

DRAKKEN: At this point the sounds of fighting and chaos happening around him had become background fodder to what had become important: the two children arguing with him.

“It’s not weird! It’s a perfectly valid goal to have,” he scoffed at the pair. Something went hurling through the space between where he and the twins stood but he paid it no mind. Obviously Sarina had everything under control. “Of course I’m being literal! How else would one use the term take over the world? Why does no one ever believe me when I say it!”

He sighed, his glare growing more angry as he listened to them. Until they actually gave him valuable information.

“What? No! Rid of it how? I came all the way here for something and I am not leaving here without it! You better not have done anything!” he said, then turned, trying to find Sarina among the crowd of the many copies of the young ones and the guards. “Sarina! Can you hurry this up, I need to get in there to see if my mutagenic agent is still intact!”

SARINA

Between her and her brother, the guards were easily disarmed though Hector was sure he didn’t accidentally hurt anyone, In fact he kind of just picked them up while Sarina was willing to knock them out.

“Sarina you really shouldn’t be so rough with them. You’ll hurt them.”

“If you keep saying my name in front of them I’ll do a whole lot worse and considering the fact, you brought the twins with you?” Sarina groaned as Hector tied up the rest of them. “Why are you even here?”

“To destroy all the stuff they are selling illegally.” Hector stated as if it was obvious… which perhaps it was but that didn’t mean that it was the best course of action.

“So you brought the twins, who are what? Are they even 18 yet? To a place where there were guns because you decided that you were what? Better then everyone for this job?”

“When no one takes it seriously then yes. People let others hurt Magicks all the time. You used to do this kind of stuff too.”

It was amazing how her family still didn’t get it. Sure they were helping magicks but at what cost. If her brothers were found they would be going to jail because they were basically criminals.

She just wanted to scream at him for risking their lives for a lost cause.

And then Drakken- Sarina took a deep breath spinning on her heel.

“You two shut up and unclone yourselves. Get the hell out of here before I make you and people with bigger guns come here, Because guess what. The people here will kill you for the millions of dollars of damage you just created.” Sarina lectured, both boys undoing their clones but not moving.

“Drakken go find whatever it is. I’ll be there in a sec.” Turning on her heel to Hector. “If I get back here and all of your- no if the twins are still here I’m going to murder you.” And with that she stalked off to wherever she thought the thing was.

DRAKKEN: When Sarina turned around he waited to be yelled at but was surprised to find that her anger wasn’t entirely for him. Huh. Imagine that! And when she did speak to him it was as if he were an afterthought. Which would have been offensive had he not felt like he had been torn off the hook in place of the other three gentlemen that surrounded them, talking to her like they knew her and she knew them. In their fancy get ups and with their magic to boot, talking about destroying merchandise for the good of Magick kind. Maybe they’d met when she had gone off on her own? But…teenagers? Good?

He hesitated for a moment after being granted permission to go searching for what they’d come here for, thinking that maybe he shouldn’t leave her alone with the three of them for one reason or another, but then thought better of defying her. She hadn’t put him in her cross hairs so it was probably best not to place himself there for the moment. Plus, it would be such a pity to have come all this way to leave empty handed.

Drakken walked off, carefully stepping over lost weapons or unconscious men in uniform, to get to the inventory. He began picking over the closest pile of toppled boxes, removing the crushed containers out of his way. When Sarina joined he didn’t say anything at first but then the silence and curiosity was simply too much for him to keep quiet.

“Soo…,” he started, going for casual. Like it wasn’t a big deal, like he didn’t care all that much even though he did. “...can I ask or should I wait until you’re not so angry?”

SARINA

Sarina took a deep breath as she walked away from her family, it wasn’t the first time she had and it wouldn’t be the last time either. But if they were still there when she came back she was ringing someone’s neck.

Drakken’s voice was the only thing that knocked her out of her murder walk and her head popped up a little like she had forgotten him in the couple moments she told him to walk ahead.

“They’re my brothers. Three of four though if three of them are here I’m sure the fourth one is too.”

DRAKKEN: Drakken’s eyes went wide with that sudden realization, the shock of it written all over his face. But they were so-! And she was-! He blinked, schooling his features and clearing his throat, continuing to act as if it wasn’t a big deal. At least, not for the reasons that she might think. If anything he was just fascinated to learn anything new about her. As much time as they did spend together, he always felt like there was a limit on things he could ask after. Family was one of things.

He was an open book, of course, always rambling about his childhood and his mother would call him more often than not. She’d come to stay with them over the holidays, even more open than he was! And, yes, he had known about her having brothers, but he had never met them. He never thought he would, either. Which, he also realized, made this first meeting very unfortunate.

“Why didn’t you say something! I made a terrible first impression!” he huffed. “And I’m sure whatever you’ve already told them about me isn’t going to help! Agh.”

He sighed, angry for a reason that didn’t really make any sense to him. Why did it matter if her brothers liked him or not? He didn’t even really know if she liked him all that much but it was too late to change that opinion.

Drakken tossed more scraps out of his way, one board getting moved away to reveal a medium sized metal box with the pictogram for danger against genetic defects. Ah ha! That must have been what they’d come here for! He bent down to grab the handle and pull, but it didn’t budge under all the other things that were piled on top of it. He tried again, with both hands. When it still didn’t move he placed a foot against the pile, then the other. Finally, he gave up, collapsing back.

“Sarina!” he called, slightly hesitant since he hadn’t exactly helped the situation but would need her now. “I found it!”

SARINA

“They made a terrible first impression.” Sarina muttered, still annoyed they were even here. This should have never happened. They never should have met- oh god Drakken had actually met her brothers. This could be amazing, or this could be horrible - no it could only be horrible.

She continued to mutter under her breathe. Mostly curses at the whole situation but she wasn’t far behind him.

Running her hand over the boxes as if it would help her locate whatever it was they were getting. She obviously didn’t find anything so she followed his voice.

“Where is it?”

DRAKKEN: “Over here,” he said, waving her over. As she approached he bent down to point out the metal box that was wedged under everything. “This one!”

Drakken stayed where he was, to keep her at bay for a moment while he explained, “Now it’s important that you be firm but careful. If the box is damaged or anything it could be loose, and it would have…unwanted effects on anyone who came into touch with it.”

He clambered out of the way after the PSA only to hover just behind her, whispering, “Steady….steady…careful…steady-”

SARINA

Sarina tilted her head to look at Drakken with her eyebrows narrowed. Sure she had listened to the instructions and she wasn’t planning on breaking it but did he really have to hover?

“I am only being steady so I don’t have unwarranted effects not because you say steady over and over.” Sarina huffed out rolling her eyes before she got back to work.

“Actually you know what take like 5 steps back or I’ll fling this at you.”

Before she could get back to pulling it out Hector showed up. “Are you trying to move something heavy? That’s my specialty!”

DRAKKEN: Drakken frowned but did step backwards out of her personal space since he, too, did not want any sort of mutation to befall upon him. Though he made a point to make it 4 instead of 5, as if to show that he still had some authority here.

He turned his head to look as the larger gentleman approached. The gentleman who was Sarina’s brother. One of Sarina’s brothers. One of four. And now he was envisioning her having to grow up in a family of 5 children, all with magic. It had never really hit him until that moment, having to look directly at someone of her past standing right next to him and who may have had a direct impact on who she was today. It also made him wonder why she seemed less than pleased to see them.

Maybe some sort of fall out had happened. Especially since they were on the side of do-gooders while she was…not.

“Uh uh,” he protested, raising his hand to stop the big fella from walking any closer and keeping him right at the 4-steps-away line with Drakken, even if it was very clear that he could probably snap Drakken across his knee like a twig. “You’re one of the reasons it’s stuck under there in the first place! Leave this to the professionals.”

SARINA

“Then it should stay there!” Hector stated simply but he didn’t move to get around Drakken, In fact he just peered his head around the other. “Nothing here is stuff you should want to take.”

Sarina just rolled her eyes as she put her back into it getting the debris off of it, the box now free for Drakken. “Save the lector Hec. Just take the twins and go and then I’ll go and then we don’t have to worry about whether or not it should be here or not.” Sarina mused as another box fell in the distance.

This was all giving her headaches.

“You know never mind, Drakken and I are going to go-”

“Oh that’s another question, who’s this fella, you boyfriend?”

DRAKKEN: Drakken had also rolled his eyes. Ugh. Heroes. So annoying with their morals and quitter attitudes. He was about to go off about how he had paid for this fair and square, so it was well within his right to take it! But then he heard the shifting of the wood and other junk, and turned to find that the box was out from under it all. He gasped in delight, leaving his post to go fawn over it.

So engrossed with his, yes his!!, mutagen was Drakken that he didn’t even hear the back half the pairs conversation. Only when he had the box hugged against his chest and walked to stand beside Sarina did he hear the last word.

And he frowned, turning his questioning gaze on her.

“Boyfriend?” he repeated, then blinked over at the larger gentleman for a moment to reassess. When he had finished he looked back to Sarina, “...I thought this was your brother? For goodness-! Is there anyone else I don’t know about that’s here? A cousin? An old roommate? Another criminal mastermind you’re working for that I don’t know about?”

SARINA

Sarina blinked at her brother, before shaking her head in disbelief. She barely had the words to use to disagree with that.

And then Drakken’s, it sent a shiver up her spine and she had to pretend to gag.

“Not me, you!” Her brother corrected Drakken and Sarina was already lighting her hands up.

“I swear I’m about to murder everyone if we don’t just leave right now.”

DRAKKEN: Oh. Well that was rather a relief actually, for a whole multitude of reasons…that he couldn’t get into because the heat of Sarina’s magic had him shrinking back. Right. Yes. An angry Sarina was not the kind of person one wanted to mess with. He had learned that lesson. Even if it had taken him quite a few times for it to actually sink in.

“No murdering necessary! We’ve got what we came for, ” Drakken reassured, hugging the metal box closer to him. He turned back to the brother, and- hesitated. What did one say to the brother of a colleague who was working for the opposing side? And the wrong side at that, the hooligans.

Just as he was about to come up with something, he frowned, peering around. “Wait, what about the other two?”

SARINA

Yeah. Where were the twins. Had Hector just left them. Sure they were 18 by now…. 17? They were probably capable. But that didn't mean you should just leave two agents of chaos on their own in here. And on that where was Melvin.

Usually he was the braincell the four of them shared.

And that spike of worry was not a feeling that she enjoyed.

"And Melvin. Is he here."

"Nope!" Hector popped the p smiling at Sarina as if nothing was wrong.

There was so many things wrong with this situation.

And there were more crashes in the distance.

"Will you go get the twins. You've done enough damage to this place I'm sure your job is done. Our job is done so we can all get out of here." Saraina stated softly. Calmly. Though her hands still glowed.

She just wanted to get out of here.

"If I do, do you want to get ice cream later?"

Sarina deadpanned as she looked at her oldest brother. "No. Go get them before I drag the three of you out of here."

Apparently this time her murder glare was enough as he tucked his tail and ran away.

"Can we just go now" Sarina stated to Drakken, already exhausted as she gesture toward where they came in.

DRAKKEN: Drakken remained silent on the sidelines, eyes moving back and forth between the siblings as they exchanged words. While he had known Sarina had brothers, he had never thought of her as a sister. She had so many other facets to her person but that was one he hadn’t seen in person. Until today.

It was odd and yet it wasn’t. He didn’t have siblings. The closest he had were his cousins, but he had never had much of a relationship with them. Aside from Eddie, but they hadn’t grown up together like he thought Sarina must have with these three. And maybe this Melvin person who had been name dropped. It was just another piece to the ever evolving puzzle that she was to Drakken, something that fit when he hadn’t expected it to.

At the mention of ice cream Drakken lit up only to have to school his expression back into something serious a second later when Sarina shot it down. Unfortunate. He had been looking forward to Italian shaved ice while they were there. Or was it gelato? Whatever it was called.

“You mean you’re not even going to say goodbye to-” The sounds of more things crashing and hitting the ground, echoing across the large room, made him startle. Drakken nodded and started off in the direction she had just motioned toward, “Yeah, okay, let’s get out of here.”

SARINA

Nope, she was not going to say goodbye to them. She would hang out outside the building until they got out and she knew they were safe but they didn’t need to know that.

No one needed to know that. Especially the brothers she had to spend so much time saving back then.

Sarina didn’t want to start doing that again. It was exhausting. Even being in the same room as them had her ready to pull out her hair.

So she just lead the way out. “Yes my brothers are idiots. Don’t let this colour how you see me.” Sarina warned.

DRAKKEN:

Drakken followed, only stumbling once over a stray piece of debris that he turned to glare at before they left the room, back into the corridor that led to the entrance. There were a lot of questions he wanted to ask, things he wanted to say. A part of him was even thinking he could take the opportunity to make a joke. There were so few moments that occurred where it felt like he had something over her rather than the other way around.

This was family, though. People that were close to her. Or, at least, they had been at some point. It seemed like a line he shouldn’t cross without a good plan on how to get back to the other side of it.

And he also wanted to keep his head on his shoulders.

“No one but you could do that,” he replied, scoffing a little at the thought. Especially after only one meeting. And when they were trying to destroy the precious piece of scientific innovation. “If anything, they only proved what I already know to be true.”

SARINA

Sarina smirked a little bit, it was good her personality was enough that people knew how competent she was. She couldn’t stand being compared to her brothers these days.

“And what is it that you already know to be true?” With everyone concentrated on the mess inside the warehouse it was easy to slip through the halls to the exit.

DRAKKEN: There were many ways to answer that question. None of which Drakken was going to say freely and directly to her face. She already had so much on him, he didn’t want to just hand over ammunition like that by complimenting her and inflating her ego. Plus, that wasn’t really how they did things. Just directly telling her? Blegh. No.

The actual answer could be found in the other things he did, like ducking behind her during a dire situation or not even questioning whether she would be capable of taking out anyone in her way. He just knew she was. When he asked her to do the hard parts of a plot, like the fighting or the breaking and entering or the driving or the guarding. As it was abundantly clear, Drakken was self centered and egotistical in the most fragile of ways, and yet he trusted her with helping him achieve his life’s goal.

“Now, now, if you want to fish for compliments you’ll have to throw bigger bait,” he said as they reached the door she had melted, still ajar and leading into the room where the desk sat. The woman was no longer there, thank goodness, but the door to the street still remained shut and locked.

SARINA

Sarina hummed at the challenge, because that’s all this was. Both Drakken’s statement and the locked door. Both puzzles she could figure out.

And she would. One of them she had to because if she didn’t they would be stuck and that was no good, and the second because as much as she complained about it, she really did enjoy figuring out what made Drakken tick.

He was an interesting guy.

“Is the fact I can just bait you with helping jobs not good enough for you these days.” Sarina stated as pulled out a few lock picking tools and got to work waiting for the proper click to get one set of doors open so she could get to the actual door.

DRAKKEN: He gave a snort, like she was joking, busy inspecting the metal box he was still cradling in his arms. His mind had shifted into thinking about his plans for what was inside, how he was going to use it to make-

Then he thought about that statement again and blinked. Drakken looked up at her as she worked to reassess, then decided to be offended. Mostly because he was confused and didn’t know if that was a compliment or she was making fun of him. Despite all the time they’d worked together, and lived together, he still never could quite tell.

Which meant that he was going to default to being on the defense, as it was just his learned nature to be.

“What is that supposed to mean?” he griped.

SARINA

“That I help you with jobs and that’s enough of a reason for a compliment?” Sarina stated simply though yes she was teasing him before and just trying to get out of it now before he got too huffy and she couldn’t do a thing about it.

The second door unlocked just as easily, enough to make her think they should have just done this in the beginning instead of trying to get the supplies. But oh well, what was done, was done.

“Do you wanna head back to the meeting point? I’m going to make sure my brother get out of here in one piece.”

DRAKKEN:

“I didn’t know you required positive feedback in order to do your job,” he shot back now that he understood. As if she needed compliments from him when he was sure the whole world was picking up more than enough of that slack. She was a bartender, surely tips alone inflated her ego, aside from the inebriated people hopped up on liquid courage telling her about her obviously superior physical qualities. Ridiculous.

Drakken stepped forward as he heard the clicking of the locking mechanism, hand reaching for the handle to pull it open. The outside air rushed in, and he was about to cave to give her a backhanded compliment when she suggested splitting up.

He hesitated, eyes flickering to the corridor they had just come from. Where the destruction lay and no doubt whoever owned this facility was going to be upset with whoever should be left in the building when they arrived. Or if someone had called the authorities due to all the noise and they arrived first. He wanted to give an excuse, say that they were fine, that they were capable of walking, or point out that he had almost gotten them lost on the way there because he had no idea where he was going. But it was pointless. They were her brothers, after all. And he knew she could take care of herself.

“I’ll see you there,” Drakken said with a nod. “And don’t be late. “

#dr drckken

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