1x1 for Lady Ligea and Red

[Lady Ligeia]

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[Lady Ligeia]

((I'm very sorry about how long it's taken me to reply to this. My personal life has prevented me from getting online for long enough to do anything productive for the last few months.))

[Lady Ligeia]

Anya's reply was soft, but spoken in the clear tone she always used when bordering between angry and annoyed. "I'm very glad to hear that it isn't anything too important. We can't very well risk me knowing things, you know." She realized with some pain that those were almost the exact words that she had last said to Lewis. Lewis wasn't her first boyfriend and she hadn't dated him for a particularly long time, but she did consider him her first love. Their entire relationship had just imploded upon itself just three days before she was taken to the centre. Anya wasn't a sentimental person, though, and deliberately avoided thinking about what her life used to be like. It only made her depressed.

She shook her head, as if trying to physically shake the memories away. She was only half listening as Light said something to direct her towards his friend's apartment. She jerked her head in the general direction of Ed's apartment and muttered an indecipherable word of assent under her breath. Not bothering to wait for Light, Anya started down the hallway, unsure of exactly where she was heading.

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Quick flashes of various possible plots ran through Dallas's mind. The laboratory was more than likely specifically designed to make any invasions difficult for even small creatures. And, of course, neither his nor Moka's normal animal forms were even worth jokingly considering. If they could shift into something like a rat or a beetle, however, they could probably get in. He thought he had read, or maybe seen on TV somewhere, that rats could squeeze into spaces the size of coins and hold their breath under water for several minutes. They could swim up through the pipes, if it wasn't too tight of a squeeze or a long distance. They would have to plan very carefully to be able to pull it off without a hitch.

He turned back to Moka, and for just an instant felt startled by her smile. It was the same one she had always worn back when they were together and creating their vivid little plots of conquering the facility, the state, the country, and, finally, the world. Nothing more than fantasies, of course, but her smile oddly seemed to serve to remind him that, however, it may result, the plan they made would change everything, and not necessarily just for them. The stakes were raised. "Alright," he replied, "Any specific ideas?"

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Lady replied to Ed's words with a weak smile. It wasn't difficult for her to see his doubt in his own words, but she also sensed his intense determination. A slight feeling of hope fluttered in her heart, and her forced smile was replaced by a wider, natural grin. "If anyone can turn this situation into a happily-ever-after, it's you Ed. I have full faith in you." She was earnest in what she said. Determination and motivation, Lady had always contended, were at least as important as skill; she was certain that both she and Ed had more determination and motivation than any scientist.

[Princess Porcelain]

[Any plot twists you'd like to suggest? Also, just so you know, I've been doing some thinking lately and I've decided I'm bi. So if you are into mxm and fxf pairings and you ship two of our characters, feel free to let me know. c:]

Light simply rolled his eyes at Anya's comment and followed her out the door, locking it behind him. He didn't want anyone snooping around in their apartment while they weren't home. He then quickly walked ahead of her and arrived at Ed's door, knocking on it. As he waited for an answer, his thoughts kept him company. When was the last time they had actually seen each other in person? Two years ago...? Three...? It had been too long, that was certain. He ran a hand through his light brown hair, his amber-colored eyes searching the area around them. Railing lined the walkway that they stood on, preventing anyone from falling over the edge and dying. The village lay three stories below, the highest rooftops of the buildings level with the concrete of the walkway. There were sets of apartments above and below them, and below that, there were the laboratories and the cells, from which he had just been taken. He shuddered inwardly at the thought of the cells. Sometimes the scientists had forgotten to feed him, and so he had had to shift into his animal form and hunt the mice and rats that lived there. It was unpleasant business, especially because a snake's digestive tract was a pain and it took him days to digest the tiniest thing. His thoughts switched to Anya. How could his luck get any worse? The scientists hadn't been joking when they told him she was going to be his polar opposite. They had barely been in the same apartment for a day and they were already mad at each other. He could tell this was not going to end well, if in fact it had started in the first place.

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Moka continued to smile as she thought of what they could do. It would be rather easy to sneak in through the pipes into the laboratory if they figured out how to shift into some small aquatic species like a goldfish or a minnow and then escaped and shifted into something bigger like a rat to sneak around as. She tapped into Dallas's mind and realized they were thinking along the same lines, just like in the old days. They used to fit together perfectly and were as happy together as any two people could be. But then there had been issues...She tried not to think about it, and when her old feelings began to resurface, she reminded herself of all the pain she'd gone through in the past few years and suppressed it, not wanting to put herself through it again. She didn't know if she could deal with it. It had almost driven her off the edge last time, and she knew that if she got hurt like that again she would lose it completely -- they would have to kill her just to keep her from destroying everything in sight. It had never been that bad with Tsukune, despite the fact that she had dated him considerably longer than she had Dallas.

She had been with Tsukune for four years before she had been taken here and had gotten over him in a matter of months. She had gone out with Dallas for barely half that time and yet now, two years later, she was not completely over it. She knew deep down that the real reason she was with a new guy every week and that she was never at home was not because she hated Dallas's guts, but because she still cared about him and wanted to give him a reason to be jealous. It seemed a bit melodramatic even to her, but there was no way to get his attention otherwise. If they spoke, it always turned into a yelling match. From time to time, they even fought physically, shifting into their animal forms and duking it out. Moka, however, being much stronger, had always won. She had never tried to kill him on purpose, though at one point she almost succeeded in doing it -- he had been wounded so badly that the scientists had had to take him down to the laboratories for three weeks for treatment and even for a month after he was brought back up they had had to monitor him closely. During those weeks, she had hated herself for what she had become. She wished she could be someone else. She wished that she could revert to being who she had been with Tsukune, the happy, bubbly, pink-haired optimist who always saw the bright side. She was now her own polar opposite, cold and cruel. And she regretted it, but she had no idea how to change. Finally, she came up with her answer, wording it carefully. "Well, I'm thinking that maybe we could shift into something like goldfish or minnows, or maybe something smaller like bacteria, and and try to swim through the pipes and down to one of the laboratory toilets or sinks and once we're out we could shift into mice or something and try to collect information that way, maybe by stalking one of the scientists or something. If we get caught, the worst that can happen is they will send us back up here, so we could always try again if it doesn't work. Maybe if we find other people who can help us, we can all work together."

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Ed didn't say anything back to her; he just smiled to himself, reveling in the fact that Lady had confidence in him. He pulled her in closer and hugged her more tightly, determined that he would keep her safe at all costs. His friend Light ran through his head, and he wondered if the Japanese-born man had changed at all in the last few years. He knew he had changed immensely -- he never thought that he could be devoted to anyone any more than he had been to Winry, but then he had met Lady. He heard a knock at the door and kissed his wife on the forehead before hurrying to answer it. Finding Light standing there, he smiled and said, "Hello, come right in," gesturing for Light and his new mate to enter the humble abode. He looked around the living room, realizing it was a bit unkempt, and ran a hand through his honey-blond hair, saying, "I'm quite sorry about the mess. Lady and I haven't been too focused on cleaning as of late." He did not mean the statement in any sort of derogative way toward himself or Lady; they had simply been spending too much time with each other to really notice the state of their apartment, which needed attending to badly. They had repainted and re-furnished the guest room to resemble a nursery in the hope that Lady might become pregnant and they would eventually have children.

[Lady Ligeia]

(I don't have any plot twists or pairings in mind right at the moment, but I'll definitely think on both of them. ^^)

Anya focused her gaze on the back of Light's head as she followed him across the little walkway that led to Edward's apartment. It was all she could do to avoid looking down. The height was dizzying, it felt to Anya that they were fathoms above the safety of solid earth. It was a rare struggle to keep herself collected for her, a battle between a fear of falling and making a fool of herself. Her pride was the only thing that kept her from panic. The relief she felt as they finally stopped before a door and Edward invited them in was beyond measure. "Thank you," she replied to him with the most charming smile she could manage. She replied with the same weak smile as he apologized for the cluttered state of the apartment. She tried and failed to find something appropriate to say, and was silent in its absence.

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Dallas listened to Moka motionless except for an occasional nod and in total silence. Her plan was solid enough, though he doubted that the penalty for being caught would be anything nearly as simple and painless as only being sent back up. Still, it was true that there was very little that he still had left to lose. He wasn't sure of how to voice his concern, though, so he stayed silent for a moment that seemed longer than it really was.

"Okay," he finally said, his emerald green eyes glittering. "We should look into what animals would be best for this. You know, the strongest swimmers we can find. And possible paths. I don't think we'll have another chance to do this if our first try fails, so we have to be prepared. We can't take any more chances than we already are. He paused for a moment, wishing that he had thought his words through before he had started to talk. "Do you know anyone we can trust to help us?"


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The state of their home seemed to strike her at the same moment it struck Ed. "I swear that normally we're pretty neat," Lady added, straightening a stack of books and movies. She joined Ed by the door, straightening her dress and white blonde hair before offering her hand to the woman. "Pleased to meet you," she said. "You must be Light's mate. I'm Lady, Ed's fiancée." It had taken her weeks to decide to call herself and Ed fiancées. They weren't technically married, and "mate" was too cold and clinical sounding. "Anya," Light's mate said, accepting her hand. Lady was unprepared for the quick rush of emotions she felt at the contact. She released her grip a little too soon, and then offered her hand again, this time to Light, too soon. This time, she braced herself as she should have done before. Ed had said that Light and Anya had been arguing. She shouldn't have been surprised.