ι'м ησт qυιтє нυмαη, вυт ι'м ησт qυιтє α мα¢нιηє {Rue}

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron lowered himself onto the ground, choosing a relatively dry spot a few feet from her. "It would be easier to talk if you were human," he said.

[assassinrue]

Valerie changed, the dried mud bursting from her in an explosion of dust. She sat with her arms and legs crossed, a scowl on her face, her growl dying in her throat.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron watched her warily. "I don't know what to say, Val." He glanced up at the sky and grimaced. "I don't think there's anything I can say."

[assassinrue]

Valerie scoffed and rolled her eyes, other than that she didn't move or speak, just waited.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron took a deep breath before going on. "I shouldn't have done what I did. Will you at least give me a chance to explain?"

[assassinrue]

Valerie continued to glare but she did not refuse his explanation.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

"Burn told you about Martin, right?" Aron said. "Well, he's alive. When the Legion soldiers took me and brought me to Noxton, he was the first person to talk to me there." He paused and his shoulders slump. "I couldn't just leave. He was a father to me in every way but biologically. I'd thought he was dead for years, and then he showed up... I felt like a boy again."

[assassinrue]

"Okay." Valerie said curtly. She stood up, "call your freaking watchdog off me now so I can go home."

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron watched her sadly. "Home where, Val? Not to be mean or anything, but last time I checked you don't really have anywhere to go."

[assassinrue]

"Anything is better than being here. I bet I can get Isaiah or someone else to take me in and worst case scenario I go to the pound."

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron lowered his eyes to the ground. "I wanted to be with you. I just thought you should know that. I'm not sure what to call what I felt for you, but it was real, and that's something I've never known before." His voice dropped to a whisper. "I don't want you to hate me."

[assassinrue]

Valerie scoffed again. "It's a little too late for that." She glared at him. "Call your pet off before I rip out your throat. I am going home."

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron lowered his head and took a deep breath. "Okay," he said softly. "Okay, Val. I'm sorry." He stood up and stepped forward, his hands up. He unchained her and then turned his back, returning inside Burn's house.

[assassinrue]

Valerie glared after him and then unexpectedly, burst into tears. She wasn´t sure what she was crying for. But she couldn´t stop.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

A few seconds later, Aron's face appeared at the window, watching her with an anguished look. If she let him... if she didn't hate him so much, he wouldn't have left her again. He would have stayed, whether may come of it, but she didn't want to be near him. And he would respect her wishes, because yeah, he feared he might have fallen in love with her in the short span of the few days they'd had together.

[assassinrue]

When Valerie gathered herself enough to stand, she stood, straightened her shoulders, took one glance back at the house, smiled ruefully at Aron's face in the window. She knew exactly where she was going.

The coffee shop was dark and filled with people with laptops and books. It was a writer's haven and Isaiah sat at the same table he always did on Fridays. Valerie approached him cautiously "Hi, we've met before right?"

Isaiah looked up at her and a reluctant smile broke out on his face. "Yes you were the woman who told me my dog died."

Valerie winced. "I'm sorry about that, I truly am. I wish I could fix that." She wished she could fix a lot.

Isaiah motioned at the empty chair across from him and shut his laptop. Valerie sat and waited while Isaiah went to get her a cup of coffee. Maybe this could work.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Aron had a long discussion--mostly an argument--with Burn before he managed to convince the warlock to make a portal for him. He returned to Noxton before anyone even noticed his absence, but he couldn't continue his duties the way he had in the days before. He was absent and withdrawn, and everyone noticed it, especially Martin.

[assassinrue]

In a matter of two weeks, it seemed to Valerie that Isaiah was spending most of his free time with her. He even shared his writing with her, which was so much improved since the last time she had heard it in her other form. Instead of telling him that, she gave him the best feedback she could. He had even invited her over to cook her dinner. It was comforting to be with Isaiah again, although her heart and soul still smarted from Aron's sudden and angry abandonment.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Eventually, Aron gave up. He got in trouble with his superior for being distracted and screwing something up, and Martin was definitely not happy with him. About a month after he'd left Valerie at Burn's, he left the Noxton in the middle of the night. He didn't say goodbye to anyone, because they'd most likely try to stop him from deserting in one way or another. He paid a warlock to portal him home, shelling out extra to keep the man quiet. Even though logic warned against it, he returned to New York. He missed the city, missed the life and lights and excitement. Most of all, he missed Val, and somehow being there made him feel close to her. He would have gone back to his apartment, but it was the first place the Legion would look for him. With his cash reserves, he rented a motel room in Brooklyn.

[assassinrue]

Valerie couldn't sleep. It was happening less and less now, especially with the more time she spent with Isaiah. She looked at him as he slept. Some nights, like this, she would stay here with him. It was better than the bridge and it had been home to her for so long, it felt strange to be here as a human. Isaiah rolled over and reached am arm out to her. Valerie kissed his forearm and curled against his side, he squeezed her lightly in his sleep.