#hdsc-ace

[hdsc-ace]

Ivy Walls || Newt - Maze Runner

Rest of my work.

Warnings: none.

A female greenie arrives and Newt is tasked on looking after her. That's until she remembered her name.

She remembered nothing. Nothing of how she got there or even why. All she knows is that she's in a metal cage-like box that's heading upwards quite quickly.

The girl was stuck to the floor, the pressure from the box going up was too much for her body to comprehend. Her hands were tightly wrapped around the bottom of the box in fear. It didn't help that it was nearing the top of what seemed like a never ending ride.

The sudden stop made the girl groan in pain as her body jumped, her head slamming against the thin bars.

A blinding light filled the box as the lids were flipped open. 15 or so boys gathered around to see the new arrival.

In fear, The girl scrambled into a corner as a young blonde haired boy dropped down into the box. "It's a girl." He announced as he drew closer to the girl. She still tried to crawl further  into the corner, more than she's able to.

Muttering from the group above didn't calm the girl in any way, they were all shocked from a girl finally being allowed into their maze.

"You're okay." The boy reassured, stepping closer to the girl he reached out a hand for her to take. Once the girl did she was pulled to her feet and taken out of the box onto an area that made it look like they were caged.

The boys that were scattered around were whispering to one another still but quickly stopped as their leader began to walk up to the two. "Welcome to the Glade, Greenie.''He welcomed with an accent very different to the one the boy that pulled her out.

This only created more questions for the girl. What's the glade? What the hell is a greenie? But without another thought she took off, running down the grassy plain. Her legs could go on for hours except she couldn't. The girl stopped as two boys ran in front of her. Turning to run again two appeared in front of her again. The two boys from earlier pushed past the boys to the girl. "Running is not the best answer here, greenie." The boy with the odd accent tells her. "Well unless you're chosen as a runner." He jokes

"Do you remember anything? Like a name?" The leader asked as the girl calmed down.

"No." The girl said in an accent similar to the boy she met first.

"It'll come to you eventually, if not we'll let you pick one." The girl nodded again as some boys brushed pass the girl to gather stuff out of the crates in the boxes.

"Im Alby." The leader says, making the girl turn her attention back to him. "This is Newt." Alby then points to the boy who pulled her out of the box. "He'll show you around, find you somewhere to sleep and explain what we know about this." Alby tells the girl, which seemed more like he was ordering newt, before walking off. Everyone slowly departed back to their jobs soon after, leaving Newt and the girl alone.

"You're not out of place anymore, Newt." A boy joked to Newt as he walked past but Newt didn't even react.

"Shall we get started then?" Newt asked while gesturing for the girl to walk next to him. Before following, the girl spots Newt's small limp but doesn't think too much about it. "The glade is what we call this place." Newt says like he read the girl's mind. "Outside the walls are the maze, only the runners are allowed there." As soon as Newt mentions the runners two of them exit the maze. They both waved to the girl as they passed. "You're going to be the talk of the town." Newt joked as he watched the two runners pass.

The two began walking. "Everyone here gets an assigned job. We've job Runners, which I explained. Cooks, pretty self explanatory. Slicers take care of livestock. Track-hoes do the hard work around the plants, like trenching. Gardeners take care of said plants. Med-jacks are our healers. Brick-nicks and Bloodhousers are basically builders but build different things. Baggers take care of our sadly passed friends and Sloppers take care of the work no one else does, usually because they're not good at something." Newt rambles on. "Tomorrow we'll start letting you have a go at some of these roles to see what you'll do. From what I saw earlier, being a runner isn't the worst idea."

"What do you do?" The girl asks quietly with her arms wrapped around her small torso.

"I do bits and pieces of everything." Newt replied, finally stopping to take an actual look at the girl. Her red hair was meaty tied back into a braid running all the way down her back. Her green eyes sparkling as the sun caught them slightly. "I was a runner." He mumbles slightly.

"And now?"

"Second In command." He almost instantly answered. "Alby's second in command." Newt corrects himself. The two just stood in silence. The girl is silent as she tries to self answer her questions and Newt just stands there examining her, trying to guess what she's thinking. "I suppose you've got questions?" He asks to only receive a nod. "Ask them over lunch."

The two made their way to the lunch area. They got their food and sat down away from everyone else. "What's a greenie?" The girl asked while picking at her food.

"Something we call new people until they remember their name." Newt responds quite calmly as he watches the boys at the other tables.

"What if they don't want to remember it?" She asked again, her eyes locked on the table. This made Newt stop and stare at the girl.

"You remember it?" He asked as calmly as he possibly could to only receive a nod from the girl. "We've never had that problem before." Newt responded, turning the conversation back onto why the girl didn't want to use it. "I mean if you say it's something else no one will know."

"You'll know."

"No one else will." Newt told the girl, sending a small reassuring smile towards her. "So greenie, what will it be?"

"You can choose." Newt once again was taken back from the girl's words. He didn't expect her to allow him to choose what she'll be called for the rest of her time in the Maze.

"You sure?" He asked, receiving a nod in return. She was certain. Newt's eyes scanned around the area as he thought. Something that'll suit her. As he scanned his eyes fell on the vines that exited the maze, Ivy vines. "Ivy." Newt responded with a smile which sent a smile to the girl's face. "Like the maze ivy vines."

"Ivy it is then."

With that Newt stood up and climbed onto his seat "Hey!" He yelled, gaining the attention of the surrounding boy. "Meet Ivy! Our latest Glader." Newt smiled down at the girl as everyone started to clap and chant her name. As Newt sat back down, everyone began to settle down.

"Thanks." Ivy thanks the boy as they finish eating.

Once the two finished they started walking again, this time towards the maze doors. "Why did you stop being a runner?" Ivy asks but as soon as she does Newt stays quiet. "I'm sorry if I brought up a bad memory or something."

"No, No. It's fine." Newt quickly says, attempting not to allow the girl to go into a bad mood. "I got into a bad accident with someone who got stung in the maze. Alby thought it'll be better if I stay in the Glade more. I'm glad the Grievers got him instead of me."

"Griever?" Ivy asked.

"Some monster in the maze that kills people left in the maze at night." Newt explained as he directed Ivy towards the maze doors. He walked to the side of it which had names carved into it. "Names of everyone here. Dead and Alive." Newt said as he admired the wall. Ivy's hand ran across the name cravings but stopped when it ran over Newt's. "Alby was the first." He said as he passed Ivy a knife. "And you're the latest." He smiled as Ivy scraped the knife against the wall, barely making a dent. Newt picked up a rock and placed his hand over the girl's. He directed her hand as he hid the end of the knife with the rock, making the craving.

"So he's got his second running around with the greenie?" A voice says from behind the two. Ivy turned around to see a guy with a rounded face standing behind them with his arms crossed. "Woo, look at Newt making a move on the new girl." He says as he spots Newt's hand on top of Ivy's. As soon as the boy mentions it Newt quickly moves his hands anyway from the knife.

"Gally you have a job to do." Newt practically orders Gally to go away without using them exact words.

"Just wanna meet the greenie, relax." Gally says while walking up to Ivy. "Gally, keeper of the builders." He greets.

"Ivy." She responds timidly. Her eyes darted to Newt for reassurance.

"Time to go." Newt told them while patting Ivy's shoulder. She shot Gally a small smile before following Newt.

[hdsc-ace]

Kilig - Gil Rizzo || Grease: ROTPL

Part 1 - Errands

Masterlist Rest of my work.

Warnings: none.

Felicity Blanchet does the last errand of the summer, running into a date for the evening in the process.

The summer was the worst of Felicity Blanchet's short life. The entire time was spent running errands for her mother all across town and she had barely any time for herself and friends. The time she did have was so little that Felicity spent it reading a couple pages from her books. 

However, during the last day of summer, Josephine Blanchet still had her daughter running around town like a mad man to complete numerous errands. There were tasks that Felicity loved to do, like walking over to the post office every week or so to receive any packages from distant family, but there was also tasks Felicity despised doing. An example of this would be going to the deli to pick up large amounts of ingredients her mother 'Required' for the week's meals. 

It wasn't the place itself that Felicity wasn't fond of, it was one of the workers. Whenever Felicity came in to receive her mother's order, Gillian Rizzo was conveniently always working at that exact day and time. If there was more than one person working the deli, which was rare, Gil made it his mission to serve Felicity despite how many customers he had to serve before hand.

It would be a laugh to call Gil a Nice Boy however that's the only words Josephine ever described Gil with. Felicity could think of so many words that contrasted her mother's ideas of Gil. 

The only reason Felicity wasn't fond of Gil was from the first time they met at the start of the summer. Felicity had no clue what she had to get from the Deli after her mother's verbal shopping list that she completely embarrassed herself in front of the T-bird. He was nice to Felicity but Gil being Gil gave off some disturbing vibes. It was obvious he wasn't like any of the boys at Rydell, if you compare him to the Socs.

One of the last times Felicity had to visit the Deli on behalf of her mother was at the end of that very summer. However, she had another task to complete at the Deli. 

"Inquire about a job at the Deli as well!" Her mother called out to the girl before she left the house that day. It was either Felicity grew some balls and asked herself or her mother doubted her daughter's ability and asked about it ahead of schedule. Either way Felicity was dreading the trip into the Deli. She postponed it until the last minute.

"Hey beautiful!" A voice called out from the back as Felicity made her way into the store. She instantly recognised his voice as cheerful tone. "I'll be right with you!" One thing Felicity didn't appreciate about the Deli was the obnoxious bell that welcomed her presence every time she entered the store. Every time it rang Gil's voice accompanied it.

The sound of boxes falling over from the back announced Gil's entrance into the front of the store. He was unfazed by the boxes that crept out of the back and into the view of the front.

Felicity shook her head with a smile as she watched Gil almost fall over said boxes but he quickly recovered and pretended nothing happened. That was the only reason Felicity appreciated coming to the Deli: the laughter that came from accidental (Or purpose) accidents Gil always seemed to create.

"What can I help the lovely lady with today?" He questioned, tapping his hands upon the counter top, "Another pick up for Blanchet?" Gil's eyes moved to behind him to scan the shelf of pre-packaged deliveries. 

"It's almost as if it's a weekly thing." Felicity joked, her eyes scanned the shelf as well from the other side of the counter. She was surprised that Gil remembered her last name. It took weeks for him to get the girl's first name right at the start of the summer. 

"So..." Gil dragged out as he struggled to find the bag, "How's the summer?" He asked finally spotting the bag with a "there we go" accompanying his achievement.

"Boring," Felicity responded, "Especially when you're stuck at home all summer." The girl rolled her eyes at the thought of having every summer like the boring one she'd just had. She couldn't help but glance out of the window to see the common faces that overcrowded the Rydell High's cheer team having fun with their boyfriends beside them with his jacket over her shoulders. It made Felicity feel sick that they had lives like that whilst Felicity was stuck at home with a shitty one.

"Well if it makes you feel any better my summer wasn't that great either." Gil explained, placing the bag onto the counter before grabbing an empty one to place beside it. He quickly moved to a different shelf to receive a different thing for Felicity's mother. "Spent all summer working and not with my friends."

"The poor t-birds," She joked as Gil returned in front of her. He jokingly through a piece of tissue at the girl before proceeding with packing Felicity's order.

"Keep us out of ya mouth." He joked with a smile, pointing at Felicity as he wiped his hands on a cloth. "We don't need people like you ruining our reputation."

"What reputation?" Felicity joked again a smile slowly crept onto the girl's face as she scanned the contents of the first bag. It was filled with the usual vegetables: onions, carrots and celery. Not the greatest choices Josephine could have made.

"Right," Gil began, continuing with the joking tone as he began to finish packing Felicity's bag. "How about I show you how much of a reputation the T-Birds have tonight at the drive in?" He asked.

"This a joke?" Felicity questioned. Out of all the people to ask her to go to the drive in, it had to be a t-bird. "No joke." Gil lifted his hands up in defence with a smile on his face. "Genuine question."

"That's new." Felicity smiled at the thought of going to the movies with Gil, "You guys can barely fit in the car without me coming in." She explained, politely denying Gil's request as he slid another bag towards the girl. She didn't want to be a bother.

"It's a real watch tonight," Gil explained, "i'm sure we can shove potato and Richie into the trunk." He smiled before placing two more bags onto the counter.

"The t-birds never come to the movies to just watch." Felicity added, her eyes scanned the bags as she thought of the best way to carry the bags back to her dad's car.

"Maybe this will be an exception." Gil smirked as Felicity pulled some money out of her skirt pocket. "$7." He told her the bill.

The girl nodded before carefully counting the money she pulled out of her pocket. One five dollar bill and two dollar coins. Felicity placed them onto the counter and grabbed two bags. She stuffed one into the crook of her elbow, securing the second one in her left hand and against her chest before attempting to grab the second one.

Gil reached the bag first. "How far you gotta go?" He quickly placed both bags out of Felicity's reach.

"My dad's car is at the end of the block," Felicity explained, reaching for the bags Gil took.

"I'll walk you." he smirked, moving to place the bags onto a shelf behind him before walking to the back a bit. "Betty!" Gil yelled.

"I can walk alone it's fine." Felicity protested but Gil didn't listen.

"Betty!" He yelled again, his voice echoed through the Deli.

A small set of footsteps soon came hurrying down the hall. Arguing soon accompanying the footsteps. "What!" A young girl yelled as she entered the front.

"Tend to the front for five." Gil told Betty. He quickly grabbed the bags and move to the customer side of the counter beside Felicity.

"Why can't you do it? It's your shift?" She argued, moving into Felicity's view.

"I've covered you before, give me this one." Gil subtly begged, stepping in front of Felicity to look at the girl.

"Fine," Bettty reluctantly agrees, glaring at her older brother as he turned towards the door with Felicity. "Have fun with the sleep-talker!" She yelled to Felicity.

"Sleep talker?" Felicity questioned through a small laugh, turning to Gil as they began walking down the street.

"I went through a phase!" Gil defended himself. But Felicity wasn't convinced and still found the idea funny. "I ain't afraid of hitting a women." He joked.

"Oh wow, great defence tactic." Felicity informed him sarcastically. "Violence."

"Shut up." Gil smiled, accidentally bumping into Felicity. Gil didn't wait for Felicity to become stable on her two feet again before walking down the street without the girl. He only turned back to smirk.

"Wow!" Felicity laughed, quickly making her way back to the man. "So childish." She joked.

"Well, that's Betty for ya," Gil twisted the comment onto his sister rather than him.

Felicity bumped into Gil playfully before asking, "Is she your sister?" Gil didn't stumble as much as Felicity did when Gil bumped into her.

"Unfortunately," Gil sighed, "Real pain in the deli. Four of them in total."

Felicity inhaled through her teeth at the idea of having four younger siblings all of the other gender. "That must suck. But I get the pain of siblings. My brother's on 24/7." Felicity agreed, remembering the numerous times her own brother annoyed her.

"Older or younger?" Gil questioned, becoming more curious on learning more about Felicity.

"Twin actually." Felicity shrugged, knowing not many people were fond of the idea of twins. They were copies of each other to most. "Complete opposites though."

"How come?" Gil questioned, looking at the girl with intrest.

"He's a socs. I'm in band. Nothing more opposite then that." Felicity explained, adjusting her hold on the bags as she spoke.

"You're in band?" Gil asked before adding a joke, "I didn't know they allowed anyone in without two left feet.

"Thanks?" Felicity accepted the comment as a compliment whilst not exactly knowing how to take it. "The no social life is a down side.

"Better then being a thespian," Gil added and Felicity nodded.

"Better than a T-Bird." Felicity joked, gaining a small push from Gil in return.

"Don't go dissing our name again," he smirked. His eyes followed Felicity as she skipped ahead to an old car, placing two bags onto the hood as she reached it.

"I wouldn't dare." The girl smiled, "Watch the bags, i'll be two seconds." Felicity stated, backing into the building the car was parked outside of. Gil simply just nodded and turned to inspect the car.

Felicity cautiously entered the laundromat to find her dad talking to the manager. "Hello Mr Sloane," Felicity greeted, interrupting their conversation. "Apologises for the interruption but can I have the keys?" She quickly asked her father, holding her hand for the car keys.

Mr Blanchet's eyes moved past Felicity to Gil by the car with the grocery bags before moving back to his daughter. "We were in the middle of a conversation. He explained before switching the topic completely, as he placed the keys into his daughter's hand. "Get that no-good off of my car."

"Got it," Felicity nodded, quickly leaving after she getting the keys. The girl smiled as she walked out of the building an towards the car, "I've been told to get you off of the car." Felicity called out, causing Gil to lean against the car even more.

"Y'know you never gave me an answer," Gil explained, passing the grocery bags to Felicity to put into the car.

"To what question?" She smirked, knowing that Gil wasn't going to drop the topic of taking her to the movies.

"Six O'clock good enough for you?"

"I can do six." Felicity nodded, "Just don't anything T-birdy outside my house." She explained, "You don't want to see where that ends."

[hdsc-ace]

Acosmist - Moonknight

XV. Scarab

Masterlist Rest of my work. Part 14

Warnings: none. Steven enters the neighbourhood and is almost convinced by Harrow despite Lucilla's involvement.

"Weird isn't it?" Jen questions once the door shuts behind Harrow, her curiosity peaking over her calm façade as she sipped gently on her drink.

"What is?" Lucilla replied, moving to place her bag on a chair that was placed by the door.

"This place," She smiled softly at Lucilla in a way that was almost comforting. "You'll get used to it over time."

However, Lucilla didn't focus on Jen's emotion. "I'm not planning on staying. I help Harrow, Harrow helps me and then I'm out." She explained in a cold tone and it was the honest truth. She's killing 3 birds with one stone: Ptah, Marc, and her history.

"Wow.." Jen dragged out, " Your life is really together." She sarcastically commented, leaving the two in an awkward silence.

Lucilla broke it once Jen moved to the kitchen once again. "Harrow said there's a room for me to stay in until we leave?" She questioned, following Jen with a distance.

"Yes." Jen nodded, "Follow me." She ordered, moving her way into a short corridor. There was directly three rooms at the end of the hall. "Your room is the one on the right," Jen explained gesturing to the room before point to the middle one, "That's the bathroom and my room's just opposite. So, umm.. shout if you need anything."

Jen smiled awkwardly at Lucilla as she moved to her bedroom but paused at the door, turning to Lucilla for a moment. "Or if you need to talk." She shifted back into her room.

"Thank you." Lucilla called out a loud thanks to the girl before walking into her own room.

It was small, no bigger than Lucilla's own room. The room matched the simple decoration as the rest of the apartment but the bed remained different with contrasting colours. A set of towels was set at the foot of the bed as well as a white bear sat by the pillows. It was the average guest room.

"Lucilla," Ptah's voice echoed around the small room.

"Yes, I know." The girl replied, moving to sit upon the neat bed as the God appear at the bottom of it. It was very clear what Ptah was going to say: that she shouldn't be trusting Harrow.

"Egypt is still our priority." He explained.

"I am aware," Lucilla retorted as she reached into her pocket to pull out her phone and a set of earphones. "We're still going to Egypt." She rolled her eyes as she placed a earbud into her ear and began to scroll through the music on her phone.

"With Arthur Harrow, not the avatar." Did he want Lucilla so close to Marc? Even after she made it clear she wouldn't go anywhere near her brother willingly. With Harrow, Lucilla can easily enter Cairo, help Harrow and then complete her business with Ptah before heading back to London alone.

"I am going to Cairo either way." She explained, finally pressing play on her music. Angelica by Wet Leg. Lucilla smiled to herself and she shifted to lay down on the bed.

It felt like only a blink of the eye when Lucilla awoke to the sound of a knock at the door. "Shit," She muttered. Falling asleep was the last thing Lucilla had expected. The room was now dark so Lucilla quickly moved towards the door.

"Hold on," she called out as the knock repeated. "Yeah?" The door opened to reveal Jen sheepishly standing behind it.

"Sorry to wake you," the women quickly apologised before explaining the interruption. "Arthur wants you to meet him on the courtyard. I'll wait by the door for you." She quickly moved back towards the main room. Lucilla followed, needing no time to get herself ready.

Jen happily lead Lucilla to meet Harrow in the courtyard where Harrow currently stood with Marc.. or is it Steven. Steven. If it was Marc then Harrow wouldn't be standing with a hand on his shoulder.

"He's upset Khonshu." Ptah informed Lucilla as the wind began to pick up around them. The girl's eyes jolted as a bin was thrown past her.

"Lucilla!" Arthur greeted the girl once he saw her carefully avoid Khonshu's destruction. "Kinda of you to join us."

Unlike Arthur's bright smile, Steven's is filled with fear. "You're with them?" He nervously questioned.

"No, just assisting with a deal." Lucilla explained as Harrow slapped a hand on both the Spector's backs.

"Come," Harrow smiled before walking ahead of the two. Lucilla quickly fell into place a few paces behind Steven as they blindly follow Harrow. "See, this neighbourhood used to have the highest crime rate in the city." He began to explain the area to Steven just as he did with Lucilla earlier on in the day. "There was so much suffering, so much pain…"

A smile braced Harrow's face as he started greeting people once again. "It was truly heartbreaking. Now people don't lock their doors at night. They feel safe." He continued to flaunt his achievements before getting distracted by someone walking past with a box full of fruit.

"But you don't want to tell anyone, no. People don't want to hear good news. They'd rather cling to their fear, cling to their pain." Harrow continued, letting his eyes wander to Lucilla at the last sentence but the girl simply let her eyes wander to anywhere else.

Steven's obvious observation of "Goat.." at the bleating of the animal brought Harrow back onto the main topic of conversations before quickly getting distracted again.

Harrow happily walked up to someone, speaking Mandarin as a football was tossed to him. He tossed it back as the group passed by.

"You all talk Chinese?" Steven questioned.

"Ah, Mandarin." Harrow replied smugly. "We all aspire to learn three languages. So, we teach each other. We share our knowledge." He was easily pleased by his own accomplishments.

Steven muttered a sign that the idea was impressive but Harrow quickly changed the topic as they reached the hall. "You hungry?" He asked in steven's direction, not even acknowledging Lucilla. "The food's free. You're a vegan, right?"

"Yeah," Steven answered, barely taking notice of anything that's not the building they were in.

"Yeah, so am I. You might wanna try the lentil soup. I made it this morning. It's Victor's recipie." Harrow began to ramble only stopping as he spots Victor sat on the wall widdling a spoon. "Gracias, Victor." He calls out before turning back to Steven. "He's from the Yucatan. He's.. No, he's very funny."

"Here," Harrow moves to pass Steven a tray then Lucilla. She quickly declined the tray and moved away to find a table for the group instead as the two men spoke.

"Khonshu isn't convinced by Harrow."

"Well, neither am I." Lucilla muttered quietly, keeping her head down as she sat at a table. "He's not the most convincing person in the world despite all of this." The girl flinched as the sound of soft metal slams together.

"He-" Ptah began to comment on khonshu once again but Lucilla cut him off.

"I think I've established Khonshu isn't convinced." She rolled her eyes as Harrow began walking towards her with Steven.

"He often throws temper tantrums, like a two-year-old." Harrow explained to Steven as they sat down beside the girl. "None of the gods respect him. Perhaps that's why he's banished."

Lucilla smirked as her eyes drifted to Ptah stood a few meters away from the group. Of course he wanted her to follow Khonshu, because no one else would.

"What's he saying now?" Harrow questioned as Steven moved to look behind him, probably searching for khonshu. "I am real justice." He mocked.

"Can you hear him?" Steven asked nervously.

"Not anymore." Harrow answered, focusing on his food. He moved an apple Lucilla's direction before touching his. "I was his former Avatar. Before you. I was the first of vengeance."

"I'm not the fist of anything," Steven shrugged as he touched his own food. "That's the little American Man living inside of me."

"That's uhh… Thats" Harrow began to question Steven's awareness of Marc but Lucilla cut him off.

"Marc." Steven nodded at the girl. She took the apple from Harrow and took a few bites.

"Soup's… Yeah, it's very good. It's ace. Yeah, it's lovely." Steven begins to fill in the silence.

"Khonshu punishes those who have already walked an evil path. His retribution comes too late. By the time his fist of vengeance arrives, people have already suffered." Harrow began to explain, "Ammit knows this too well. She tears evil up from the root, casting her judgment before any evil's done. That's why we must resurrect her."

"Wait," Lucilla jolted in her seat that the words. That was nothing on what Harrow explained her into a deal on. She never agreed to Ammit's resurrection.

"I did warn you." Ptah muttered in the back of Lucilla's head as the two brushed her away. "Leave"

"Right. But… Isn't that a bit dodgy? Like, trusting the judgment of a weird crocodile lady?" Steven questioned. He knew the most about Egyptian Mythology and even he was concerned.

"I didn't sign up for a resurrection Harrow." Lucilla argued but Harrow simply ignored the girl.

"You don't need to doubt her judgment." He told both of them. "Ammit will light the path to good by eradicating the choice of evil, which brings us to the scarab." The tone of the room instantly shifted as soon as the scarab was mentioned.

It was easy to say Harrow knew what he was doing. "That scarab functions as a kind of compass, leading us to Ammit's tomb. She's out there, waiting, longing to be freed." People began to stand and surround the table. They are expecting a fight.

Steven muttered a quick "Hi," to the people approaching them as Harrow continued.

"While the cruel masses deserve to face her judgment. And in the wake of their screams, evil eradicated. Steven, to exist at that moment? Heaven on Earth. So, the scarab." Harrow asked, hoping Steven would just hand it over.

"Oh, I don't have it." Lucilla glared at Steven. There was no chance in hell Marc would let Steven throw away the scarab, even if he refused to tell anyone about it's purpose.

[hdsc-ace]

Acosmist - Moonknight

IV. Help

Masterlist Part 3 Rest of my work.

Warnings: none.

Lucilla Spector arrives home and goes remembers the issues.

"Jesus." Lucilla sighed as she slammed her apartment door closed. "I'm sorry Mr Harrow but I haven't spoken to my brother within the past hour." She bagan to mock, head falling back to rest against her door. "I lived better at the Shiva than today."

If the girl ranked how bad her lies were; she'd rank today's on the top. It was absolutely pathetic. She wouldn't be surprised if Mr Harrow knew what Lucilla was hiding already. Heck, the girl didn't know what she was trying to hide herself.

Before this one the worst preforming lies from Lucilla Spector was her Mother's Shiva. That day Lucilla couldn't tell what was the truth or a lie.

She knew Marc was contemplating attending before she even saw him. He never had a good connection with their mother, especially after Randell. However whether his lack of attendance was something Lucilla couldn't figure out of reason for.

Whether it was guilt or anger, Lucilla didn't know. The only thing she knew was she remembers Marc across the street from her as she was about to enter the house, a bottle concealed within a bag in his hand. She couldn't still remember the small smile they gave each other as Lucilla waved to her brother. Marc only watched her for a moment before he left.

Their entire family that attended the Shiva questioned Lucilla on where Marc was and she couldn't give an accurate answer. Instead the common answer she thought of was that "he's spending time with Layla."

That was the first lie. The next where built upon the girl's life which she continued to lie about. Back then, Lucilla had no life and no purpose. This was even before Ptah.

"Ugh!" She screamed, throwing her phone across the room as it was the only thing in the vicinity. It landed with a loud crash and crack to add to the array of imperfections on the screen. "I can't I do one simple thing." Lucilla groaned.

Lucilla never lied.. well never did. She never lied because she was quite frankly never good at it because when she did the situation only ever got worse and never better.

The only reason she began to lie was once she met Ptah, after her life began to fall apart.

Lucilla never accepted help either. It pained her that Harrow seemed like he wanted to help the girl. She could of easily accepted it if she admitted she needed help when it was offered.

She was always taught doing something alone always gave the best results. "I can't do anything right." The girl grumbled before curling up into a ball. "I can't accept help."

"You did once." Ptah reassured the girl as he appeared sat next to Lucilla. "I say that was progress."

Twice. She ever accepted help twice in her life willingly and only one of them stuck around. The other left when she didn't want it to.

"One encounter doesn't matter." Lucilla shrugged, "This left me with nothing."

"No one said mortal life is easy." Ptah explained, "Being an avatar is no help. I am aware of that. However Khonshu has provided you an opportunity."

"Marc won't listen." The girl shrugged, wrapping her arms around her legs. "He never even cared. Besides I only stayed for Layla."

One thing Marc never saw Lucilla as was family. Not even as his sister. He lasted long enough with Lucilla by his side until he dumped her on the side of the road.

The girl had no friends at the time and it was only Marc until he left home. It wasn't until Layla found her and took her in. She didn't know Layla and Marc were connected until he find Lucilla sat in Layla's living room one day. He wasn't happy to find his sister and wife were close.

He probably didn't want a another thorn in his side again.

"Try and trust again, Lucilla." Ptah argued, "This is an alternative circumstance. I am certain he will listen to you now."

The girl forced a smile at the hood. There was an odd second of silence in her head before the thoughts began piling in again. "When will you re-pick?" She questioned, sliding her legs away from her chest.

"Not for a long time." He responded, "I see no need to switch to an avatar that doesn't provide accurate results."

"At least I'm good for something." Lucilla chuckled slightly as her head rested against the door.

A comfortable silence washed over the duo as time pasted. Ptah stayed beside her, never once leaving as the girl's mind skimmed over the day's events.

It was strange to see Marc again after two months but he wasn't exactly Marc. But there's no surprise that he didn't want anything to do with Lucilla.

"Phone." She pricked her head up at Ptah's mumble before glancing in the direction of her phone. It laid across the room with its screen continuously flashing as a jumble of messages pile through. Which was odd, only because Lucilla had no one to blow up her phone like that.

She didn't move towards the device. Whoever it was that was trying to contact the girl most likely was Layla. However, she didn't care at this precise second.

"Answer it." Ptah commands, his figure appearing above the phone as if he was looking at the contact. "It will help." He added, turning around to look at Lucilla as the room was filled with only the small buzzes from her phone.

The girl groaned slightly before crawling over to her phone. She once again slid down against the wall, pulling her phone into her hand.

The continuous flashing of the screen didn't phase Lucilla as much as the new crack that formed upon the screen. It was more than a crack, the whole screen was shattered but wasn't at the same time. She really should've invested in that screen protector. The bottom half of the screen was completely broken to the point where Lucilla slid her thumb across it, making her thumb bleed. It stung almost as much as a paper cut.

Lucilla shook her hand in pain before placing her thumb within her mouth so she could suck away the blood.

The top half of the phone, on the other hand, was fine. Apart from the few cracks that has been there for many years. At least she could see the numerous of notifications piling through.

Her breath hitched as she began to read them.

Miss call from Marc Spector Unread message from Marc Spector New voicemail

There was at-least seven of them that repeated a similar cycle of being from Marc.

At times like these Lucilla questioned what goes through Marc's brain. One minute he was acting like her never wanted her there but the next he's blowing up her phone. It was usually something most people would assume was him caring but was actually him trying to cover up his mistakes.

Was she happy to see Marc again? Sure, she was, however one thing Lucilla wasn't looking forward to was what would occur if he did stick around.

Lucilla carefully unlocked her phone and tried to decipher the words upon her screen. She had 15 voicemails. All from the past hour. All from Marc.

There was no doubt Khonshu had a plan which made Marc do this. The God knew Ptah wanted to help, but it just dragged Marc back to Lucilla.

Her fingers grazed over to her messages, where more notifications from Marc sat unopened.

Luck. Answer the call. Please. I just need to talk. For Layla's sake. Answer. Lucilla. Please.

It didn't take long for the messages to become repetitive; repeating the same line over and over again. He never had anything new to say.

Lucilla inhaled deeply before switching back over to her voicemails. She scrolled through the beginning as more began to pile through. Ignoring the new ones, Lucilla pressed play on the first voicemail and sat in silence.

"Hey Luck." Marc greeted in an out of breath tone. "I know I made the impression earlier that I didn't want you here but I need you. You're the only one around here I can talk to about this, that will actually understand."

She scoffed at his words. He didn't need her. He didn't need anyone. "Can you please call me back? I'm sorry but I can't take no for an answer right now. J-Just don't disappear."

"Need me my arse." Lucilla mumbled, knowing Ptah could hear her and the voice message.

"He came back." The God reasoned as Lucilla watched his figure stand before her.

"You did say Khonshu would crack." The girl shrugged, resting her head upon her knees that were against her chest once again.

"That was no act of Khonshu." Ptah stated through thin air.

Lucilla frowned at her phone for a moment, allowing her expression to soften quickly as she let out a small laugh. Of course it was Marc choosing to come back to her. It was definitely a change in events for once. However, this only meant he needed something from Lucilla.

Silence filed the room again as knock hit the door. Lucilla froze before quickly placing her phone down. "Who is it?" She called out cautiously. There was a numerous number of people who could be at the girl's door and only one of them was someone she wanted, Layla.

"Marc." The stranger introduced themself through the door. "Luck, if we can talk for just a second." He began to explain.

"Go away Marc." Lucilla ordered loudly, making her way to the door. "I saw nothing, right?" I always see nothing."

Her tone dropped as Lucilla opened the door to Marc covered in sweat, just like he ran a marathon. He was out of breath as-well. A part of the girl wanted to question so many things about her brother but she couldn't.

"Luck." Marc breathed out softly, "I'm sorry."

Lucilla completely ignore the apology and changed the topic, "what did you steal?" She didn't want to continue to listen to the meaningless comments again.

"Can we talk about this inside?" He gestured inside Lucilla's apartment. The girl stood for a moment before pushing her door open even further, allowing Marc to walk inside.

[hdsc-ace]

Acosmist - Moonknight

II. Jackal

Masterlist Part 1 Rest of my work. Warnings: none.

Lucilla returns to the museum to help Steven for Marc and gets wrapped into Marc's mess.

Most of the day was spent with Lucilla perching in random corners of the museum's displays, watching Marc work. Her mind was spinning with questions for Marc but these are ones she'll never ask the man himself.

However, as the girl made her way through the Egyptian exhibit, a voice called out to her.

"This is pitiful." Ptah states, appearing beside the girl as he glances across the displays. "These are almost all incorrect." Lucilla watched as Ptah's hand reached towards a statue of himself, brushing his hand against the dirt upon the statue's chest.

"I think it's fitting." Lucilla shrugged, her eyes scanning over the inaccurate statue of the familiar god. "It captures your curvature perfectly." She joked before moving across to another display case.

"I'm please that you're amused by this." The god responded, his voice coated in sarcasm.

Lucilla just smiled at Ptah's comment, stopping at a particular display before her. Her eyes were preferring to linger upon a imprint of stone. Once the girl got closer, she pulled her hand up to trace the symbol's outline. It was a weird shape, a cross but a loop accompanying the northern tip.

"Ankh Djed-Pillar." Lucilla recalled, her eyes not leaving the imprint as she pulled her arm up beside it. The girl's sleeve was quick to drop to reveal a similar symbol upon her arm. However unlike the stone's imprint, the one upon Lucilla's was made from scars on her forearm.

The two matched almost exactly.

The Ankh Djed-pillar upon Lucilla's arm wasn't something the girl liked to gaze upon. After years of trying to figure out what the mysterious symbol meant, she only came upon a few meanings.

Two symbols made up the design; the ankh cross and the djed-pillar. The ankh cross displayed eternal life whilst the djed-pillar showcased stability. Two things Lucilla could never have.

When the symbol appeared upon the girl's arm one day, Lucilla was deep within her buisness alongside Ptah. She could never recall when or where the scars appeared on her arm. The only thing Lucilla could figure out about the scar was that they would never go away.

"Excuse me, miss!" A voice interrupted Lucilla's thoughts, causing the girl to quickly bring down her arm as she turned towards the strange man.

He wore Arabic-like clothing but held an American accent. It was highly likely he was a tourist, possibly visiting on a... business trip? Most Americans never wore such items and most Arabians didn't hold an American accent.

However he held a strong soft smile as he approached Lucilla, a cane to support him as he did.

"Hi." The girl greeted back, "Sorry, can I not touch these?" She was quick to point to the stone beside her, there was no denying he didn't see her against it.

"Honestly, I have no idea." The man responded with a small chuckle, "I don't work here but I say as long as there's no damage you should be fine." He took a step closer.

"I couldn't help but notice the print on your arm." A small gesture to Lucilla's wrist accompanied the man's comment, the exact one that the pillar rested upon.

"The pillar." Lucilla responded, gesturing to the pillar behind her with a shrug. Her hands instantly fell to secure the called sleeve around her wrist to prevent it from lifting.

The man responded in a nod. His eyes reading the imprint behind the girl before talking again, "Do you know what it means?"

"No," Lucilla forced a laugh. "I got it at some party, we were all drunk and-"

"Strange thing to have at a party." The man stated, both of his hand now rested upon his cane as he interrupted Lucilla's lie. "Especially when most people state that it's Osiris's backbone."

Lucilla only nodded, curiously watching the man as he walked to stand beside her. His eyes were locked onto the display beside the young girl.

"Or if you're like me; it's a hieroglyph of Stability." The man added, "I guess that's why it's Osiris's backbone. It's where the body gets the most stability." He was quick to turn to Lucilla as he spoke before turning back to the display case.

"The cross is Eternal life." Lucilla stated, her hand pulled up her own sleeve before brushing her hand across the cross of the pillar. "I know that much. The rest is a mystery."

Lucilla couldn't help but take a glance at the man's own wrist; a set of scales was imprinted upon his forearm. A symbol that could possibly mean an action having an equal and opposite reaction to follow on. Newton's third law.

"Well, it's a benefit that you're in a museum." The man smiled.

"Yeah.." Lucilla shrugged, knowing that the symbol isn't the reason she came to this museum. However being here could be a benefit to her instead of being one to Layla.

It didn't take long for the man to leave Lucilla in a world of her own. The words he spoke were nice but odd shivers were sent up her spine from him. He creeped her out.

The next couple of hours, Lucilla spent wandering around the museum until it closed. When it did, she hid until she could search for Marc.

Staying until the museum closed wasn't the plan Lucilla had in mind however as Marc didn't leave the museum until late and the girl needed answers, it soon became the plan.

"Having fun?" Lucilla called out the question as Marc was left alone in the gift shop. She was quick to waltz over to the man as he held a confused look.

"What are you doing here?" Marc questioned, placing his scanner onto the counter so he could talk to Lucilla. "The museum is closed." He continued to hold the same British accent, like he was a completely different person.

"I never got the answers I need." Responded Lucilla. A small smile was placed on her lips as she pushed herself to sit on the counter that Marc was scanning plushies at.

"You used to love this sort of stuff." The girl stated, eyes flickering above her to the glass roof. Stars were barely breaking through the clouds.

"We always snuck into places when we were younger." Lucilla added after a moment, in hopes of getting something different out of her brother. "Not as expensive as this but we still had fine." She shrugged before glancing at Marc once more.

"I still have no clue what you're going on about." Marc responded, making a quick move to return to his task.

"You really don't remember a thing about me?" The girl's tone quickly dipped as she watched her brother. He really was a different person now, there was no trace of Marc in him.

"Steven." Lucilla called out, gaining no response in return. She didn't even get an single glance in her direction.

"Steven." She called again, jumping off the counter to face Marc fully in attempts of gaining his attention.

She didn't move; she stood like a statue. All she wanted was answers to the questions she had from Layla's phone call but with the new questions forming from this.

"What do you remember?" Lucilla enquired, scanning Marc for any differences to how he was in the past. There were many; his posture was a lot more slumped; his hair lacked gel, falling loosely to the side of his head; he wore a British accent.

A lot could happen after not seeing someone for numerous years but this was Marc Spector and through knowing the man Lucilla could safely say that Marc Spector did not change. He doesn't change at all, no matter the subject of change.

But that still didn't answer why he kept insisting that he didn't know anything after telling the girl to stop following him and go home. Maybe it was his way of getting Lucilla to leave.

She watched as Marc stumbled across his words in attempt of answering but before anything allegeable could form, the museum lights slowly began to turn off; even the gift shop's. Each sector turned off individually, only leaving the lights highlighting the artifacts.

Lucilla was quick to scan across the dark sectors around them in a cautious manor as Marc quickly put away the stuff he was scanning. He was quick to return to silence; speaking no word to Lucilla as he began to leave.

The girl was about to make her way towards her brother as a small whimper echoed in the distance, causing both Spectors to pause in the place. Marc's gaze flickered to Lucilla (who wore the same confused face as him) before glancing at the cleaners entering the room. They were clearly unfazed by the noise, almost as if they didn't hear it.

"You allow pets in here?" Lucilla questioned, making eye contact with Marc to only receive a small shake of his head.

The siblings were quick to begin to search for the noise's origin. Marc called out random names of people that he knew, hoping it was a form of a prank, before calling out to the animal itself.

"Behind."Ptah's voice stated faintly. Lucilla quickly listened, turning around to watch the area behind her. Marc continued to walk on, still calling out to the creature as it's whimpers formed into growls.

"That's reassuring." Lucilla muttered at the change in noise. Marc's calls to the animal grew quieter as the girl began to travel in the opposite direction to him, the exact direction of which the growls grew louder. Definitely not friendly.

Lucilla was quick to soften her steps as the creature continued to grow in volume with the closer she got. The girl was quick to brush her left palm against her thigh as she walked, a small dagger forming into her hand as she did so.

After following the noise, it just stopped. Out of blue. This caused Lucilla to halt in walk and instead begin scanning her surroundings in the very dark display room. It was near impossible to see around her, making it near impossible for Lucilla to predict the creature's next move.

"Steven Grant of the Gift Shop." A voice echoed around the building through the PA system. A familiar voice which was quite similar to the man Lucilla spoke to hours before. "Give me the scarab and you won't be torn apart."

"Scarab?" The girl questioned in a tone that was above a whisper. What would a mercenary need with a scarab?

It was a lie to say that Lucilla was shocked in what Marc had gotten himself into. The man was a mercenary for many years and always got himself into trouble. There wasn't a day where he did something beneficial for anyone and there wasn't a day where he didn't have trouble chasing after him.

The girl's head quickly snapped towards a loud growl that echoed in the distance of the museum. That was enough for the girl to take of sprinting towards the noise. Her hand was tightly gripped against the small dagger.

Before Lucilla ever saw a glimpse of light, a large figure threw her against a wall with a large form. Her back slammed into the nearby wall, knocking the wind out of her lungs as well as throwing the dagger out of her hand.

The large strength pinned the girl against the wall in a position that stopped almost all movement. However it's claw slowly righted around Lucilla's body.

Lucilla's eyes flickered against the useless wooden objected on the floor, quite a few feet away, and the creature limiting her movements.

There was no mistaking the creature for anything but a Jackal. It was definitely not the cute German Shepard-like canine but it was more of the undead more deadly looking kind. It was clearly hard to miss the different when it's face was centimetres from your own.

Marc's screams echoed through the empty halls as Lucilla struggled against the Jackal's grasp. The girl continued to struggle as she manage to release her arm into the empty space beside her. It wasn't a lot however the area allowed for a sharp wooden object to form on her open hand.

Once Lucilla gained a tight grip upon the object, she slammed it down hard into the Jackal's arm. This caused the creature to pull back in pain, allowing for Lucilla to fall to the ground.

The girl didn't waste any time to take off down the corridor as the Jackal regained itself, running in hopes of reaching Marc instead of the Jackal reaching her.

As she ran, familiar fabric wrapped around her body. All in hopes of avoiding the brutal attack of a Jackal or two. The fabric wrapped around Lucilla's chest to her elbows, leaving for a small metal band to wind around them alongside bits of twigs twisted around it. The fabric travelled down to her ankles and up her neck with the occasional twist and turn of wood around a limb or two. It continued to travel until all that reach the girl's face was only twig. The wood wrapped and knotted around Lucilla's face, covering the space around her eyes.

"Leave, Lucilla." Ptah called out, his voice remained calm as he spoke after providing the girl with his gift. "He will be fine."  The god wanted Lucilla to fend for herself; or that's what Lucilla convinced herself of what Ptah meant.

"I can't leave him." The girl fought back, ignoring Ptah's wishes of turning the other way. Instead, Lucilla skidded to a stop at a couple tipped over shelves.

"Trust me." Ptah called out but his voice was very faint to Lucilla. She didn't know why; she didn't care why. All Lucilla cared about was finding Marc but instead the problem increased.

I was until a Jackal cried with the accompany of a sink barging open the bathroom's door, nearly hitting Lucilla.

[hdsc-ace]

Acosmist - Moonknight

I. Ptah

Masterlist Rest of my work.

Warnings: none.

Lucilla Spector Encounters someone she didn't expect to in London.

"I sense Khonsu has plans for his avatar." A voice called out from the back of Lucilla's mind before a figure appeared began walking beside her down the streets of London.

"Like you mentioned the past seven days." Lucilla groans, her hand sliding into her pocket to retrieve her headphones. The girl's eyes scan the people around her as she places one into her ear, playing no sound. "But we don't need to worry about him."

"One shouldn't doubt him." 

"Alright." The woman agreed, wanting the conversation to end. Every day for the past week, all the God would go on about was Khonshu and his so called plans. It was exhausting to listen to. However there was no arguing with Ptah.

"Even if he was planning something, we can't interfere. We already have the Ennead on our back." Lucilla reasoned, reminding of her old friend of the last encounter they had with the council. It was safe to say that one wrong move and the council wouldn't be just disappointed.

"The council will not see the truth." Ptah states.

"Mhm." The girl hummed, "they never do." She added sarcastically. From the amount of times Ptah stated the same phrases, they began to get stuck in Lucilla's head.

The girl continued to scan the people around her as she walked closer to a particular building. One that a particular God moved to rest upon the roof of.

"I say we just let it happen." Lucilla adds, stopping in her place to look at the God.

Ptah was a peculiar God in style. He had a sort  of curved blue head with a ball in the middle of it in the same colour. It was outlined with gold as well as his neck which was coated with beads. But to top it off the God held a long staff in a shape of a hammer at the tip which he was using to keep his balance on the roof.

"Khonshu would come to them when he's ready right?" The girl shielded her eyes as the sun blared from behind the God.

"Lucilla." Ptah says strongly, his grip on his staff tightening as he spoke. He clearly disapproved of the girl's idea for Khonshu.

"Ptah." Lucilla copied the tone of voice from the Egyptian God.

"Don't be so ridiculous." 

Lucilla chuckled slightly at the god's sarcasm. "You wish." The girl muttered similar to when the God first met Lucilla and recruited her to be his avatar.

On their first encounter, Lucilla was a nobody but a young girl living on the streets. But now, all Lucilla does is run across London to Wakanda doing tasks upon his behalf.

"Lucilla." Ptah called out once again, his tone got colder.

In the end the girl gave in with a small grumble, "Fine." She watched as the god before her disappeared from view. Her eyes shifted from the roof towards the people around her before she began walking again. "God sometimes I wish you didn't pick me as your avatar."

"No you don't."

Lucilla struggled to maintain a straight face at Ptah's words despite the God seeming like her only friend during the past few years. Travelling from country to country didn't have much benefits but the God did watch the girl's life crumble and then be rebuild numerous times over and over again.

"Y'know, Khonshu won't let us get close enough to his avatar to strike an attempt of contact." The girl stated in attempt of shifting the conversation back to the original topic as she slid her hands into her pocket. "He'll notice us from a mile away, alter him and then we're completely screwed.

"Khonshu will allow us," Ptah reasoned, "Don't worry."

The Egyptian deities always baffled Lucilla with their business and how everything worked despite how many times Ptah attempted to explain it. However in most of these situations, the girl usually manages to achieve what Ptah requested and be nothing of the wiser. It was a complete mystery how she spent a while as an avatar and never actually learned a thing.

"I'm gonna have to take your word for it," Lucilla grumbled in defeat at her attempt of trying to get out of another task. "Again." She added with a drag. The gods was Ptah's knowledge and The mortals were Lucilla's both held knowledge the other didn't. However having missing gaps in knowledge killed the girl. She didn't know a thing to go off of on some situations.

"Have you got a name?" The young girl questioned, praying the God hear something she never did in their time in London.

A name will be one step closer to their goal but it was unlikely Ptah heard more than Lucilla did as they scanned the streets of London.

"No." The god answered, immediately dipping Lucilla's mood.

"Cheers buddy." Lucilla thanked sarcastically as a loud buzz interrupted their conversation. The girl made sure to glance over that Ptah's form within the crowds before taking it out of her pocket.

Call incoming. Layla El-Faouly Accept or Decline

Lucilla's phone tapped against her phone case as she debated answering her old friend's call. The girl was quick to decide and accepted the call.

"Hello?" She answered, begging to pick up speed to cover the ground she lost whilst messing about with Ptah previously.

"Hey, luck." Layla's voice responded from the other end of the line through a nervous breath.

It had been a long time since the two last held a conversation. A few weeks after Layla's husband walked out and disappeared on her, leaving the girl completely in the dark on the reasoning. Originally back then Layla called Lucilla in hopes of gaining any answers that she might of stumbled across. But of course, the two siblings refused to communicate after Lucilla left.

However, now, Layla rarely kept in contact with her ex-sister-in-law. There was no need.

"You okay?" Lucilla questioned, noticing the shift from Layla's old tone in her voice. "You don't just call me out of the blue like this."

"Right." Layla stumbled, forgetting why she called the younger girl for a moment. "Something odd just happened. Not odd per say but..." The woman struggled to form a sentence but quickly took a breath to think before speaking again. "It was a call. From Marc. Well... it was his phone but it wasn't him. He had an accent of some sorts."

"So someone found his phone and called you back?" Lucilla questioned, "That's not a big deal right?"

"Maybe." Layla agreed, "I'm positive it was him on the other end, Luck, but it wasn't-" She began to fumble over her words again.

"You mentioned an accent." Lucilla interrupted, snaking off into a empty alley way that lead directly to the national history museum. "Define accent."

"British."

"He's in London?" Lucilla exclaimed in a rather loud tone, causing a few stares as she quickly quietened herself down. "Why is Marc in London?"

As the girl calmed herself down, Ptah appeared just out of the alley way, directing his attention towards a man barging through the crowds. It was a subtle and Ptah's way for signalling for the girl to follow him. And she did with a bit of a sprint, hanging up on Layla almost immediately by accident.

"The avatar is near." Ptah called out as Lucilla's eyes locked onto a familiar figure, loosing Ptah's target in the process. "Lucilla." He called out again, watching her appearance change.

"Marc?" The girl called out, attempting to catch up with the familiar man whilst barrelling through the crowds. Of course he chose a crowded area to be seen in. "Layla I'll call you back." Lucilla muttered before ending the call, the man never left her gaze.

"Marc!" Lucilla called out, this time much louder in a way that the man couldn't miss. The girl was quick on her toes as she squeezed herself past numerous groups of people to catch up to the man.

"Lucilla." Ptah called out again, attempting to maintain the original mission, but the girl refused to listen.

"Marc Spector!" Lucilla called out to him again, reaching her hand out for enough to grab Marc's coat.

Marc quickly spun around to face the girl with a scared look on his face but Lucilla didn't care. That man hurts people everywhere he went.

"What is wrong with you?" The girl questioned, tone raising with each new sentence that formed in her mouth. "Leaving her with no explination, no note."

"I'm sorry, what?" Marc questioned Lucilla himself but in a weird British accent. It was similar to the one Layla heard earlier that day. "Apologies but I think you have the wrong guy. This has already happened to me today and I'm not who you're looking for." The questions were quick to turn into an apology as Marc began to walk away, "Please tell your friend that."

Lucilla quickly grabbed Marc's wrist, pulling him back to her as she scanned his face. It was littered with faint scares for his time as a mercenary, there wasn't a chance that this man isn't Marc.

"Stop bull shifting me Marc." The girl's grip tightened against his skin. "Just because you left Layla doesn't mean I'm going to stop. You owe me." Lucilla was quick to state, releasing her grasp.

"I'm not ignoring anyone." Marc repeated in the same annoying British tone.

"What the hell is going on with you!" The girl asked, growing annoyed with Marc's constant act. She wants a straight answer and of course, like usual Marc can't give it.

"Listen," Marc spoke softly, "I don't know what you're on about, okay. I found a phone in my apartment and now two women are now calling me Marc. I don't even know a Marc. I'm Steven Grant."

Steven Grant. The name repeat replaying to Lucilla. It was familiar but the answer was so far.

As the girl went to answer, Marc's eyes began to roll into the back of his head with a stumble. He quickly regained composure before speaking.

"You need to leave." Marc ordered in his regular accent.

"No." Lucilla stated, holding her ground firmly as Marc attempted to move her away.

"Luck." Marc pleaded, "You need to leave.

"Not until you give Layla her answers." Lucilla stated, knowing that he can't stand hearing about Layla anymore. "That's the only reason I'm even talking to you right now." The girl explained, ripping Marc's arms off of her.

"Keep Layla away." Marc ordered, "She can't be here, and neither should you. Stop following us and go home, Luck."

He was quick to depart after stating his orders, making his way back to the museum. Lucilla continued to watch him stumble back a bit before looking around nervously again.

"The avatar." Ptah attempted to maintain the mission once again.

However, Lucilla wasn't up to dealing with Ptah's issues whilst dealing with Marc's in one day. So the girl muttered a quick "not today"

"You don't understand." The god attempted to persuade Lucilla to listen to him but she didn't.

"I don't want to." The girl stated, slowly making her way towards the museum. "Give me a day to figure this out for Layla and we'll get back on track with Khonshu." Lucilla proposed, "I promise I'll get back on track afterwards."

"Don't tell me that I didn't warn you." Ptah caved with a groan, leaving the girl in silence shortly after.

[hdsc-ace]

Acosmist - Moonknight

XIII. Deals.

Masterlist Part 13 Rest of my work. Warnings: None.

Lucilla begins to talk with Harrow about their next steps.

Deals are what the Gods usually make to benefit themselves. Typically, they never included the avatar's best interests unless the deal is made whilst the avatar is on the brink of death. The reason for that is quite obvious. It was even more peculiar if the deal included other humans that are or were completely oblivious to the Egyptian Gods' existence.

This was what made the deal Antony Huffman made with Ptah ever so interesting to Arthur Harrow.

"What do you mean that they don't make those kind of deals?" Lucilla questioned the older man in a hurry. She tried ever so hard not to let her eyes wander on the God behind Harrow.

"I'm not sure," Harrow explained slowly. He moved his hands to rest upon the table, close to the edge. "Can I test something?" His hands moved to lay palms-up in the middle of the two. Lucilla carefully placed her hands into Harrow's. It was weird to hold hands with a stranger but the girl didn't focus on that. Instead, the unusual weighing scale tattoo on Harrow's are begins to tilt from side to side.

"What are you doing?" She inquired. Lucilla wanted to take her hands away from Harrow's for her safety but the possibility of it altering something confused her more. The man before her held his eyes closed but as Lucilla pulled her hands from his, his eyes snapped open almost instantly.

"Interesting," Harrow hummed, completely unaffected by Lucilla's actions. "Your scales don't fall either way." Like most people, Lucilla had zero idea what Harrow was going on about and she had no clue what these scales were. She didn't want to ask about it either. The less Lucilla knew the better. "But that may explain it," he points towards the scar on the girl's forearm. The exact scar Harrow questioned the girl about just the day before: The Ankh Djed-pillar.

Lucilla moved back to hold her arm before the two as she tried to figure out what Harrow was on about. "The origin of this was not at a party." Harrow explained, "do you recall the true origin?" He could easily see through Lucilla's lies. That part was obvious with how little he believed her lie about the Scar.

"No.." She shrugged, just like she did talking to Harrow yesterday about the scars but this time didn't cover with a lire. "I don't remember much about them, not even when I first noticed I had it." That wasn't a lie. To Lucilla during the past few years, the scars on her arm had always been there. She couldn't pinpoint when or where they first appeared.

"Interesting," Harrow hummed again. "Death and internal life all in one. I'm surprised Osiris himself didn't choose you to be his avatar."

"Death?" Lucilla questioned. She hadn't heard the relation to death before. The countless days the girl had spent trying to look for an answer she had read almost everything but that.

"The djed-pillar was used as an amulet on mummies so they can present themselves in front of Osiris," Harrow explained. "You truly are a mystery Ms Spector, one not even I can decipher. But this is the doing of the gods in some form." His hands moved to point at the scars as Lucilla's eyes wandered behind Harrow to Ptah.

The God stood tall behind Harrow but no shift in movement. Neither did Ptah speak a word. There was a large possibility that he did know about the scar more than Lucilla did but there was also a large possibility that they didn't. Besides if he did know there was no way the god would tell her anything like that anyways. They had no need to. It was something for Lucilla to discover herself, even if it meant that the God's end of the deal wasn't upheld.

Harrow caught her gaze and glanced behind himself at where the God should be standing for Lucilla and turned back to the girl.

"Ptah cannot be the source of all the answers." Harrow explained softly, bringing Lucilla's attention back on himself as if he was reading her mind. "I can help you," he nodded slowly. 

"After I help you with your business?" The girl finished what Harrow was going to say. She knew his ideas already. "I thought me coming here was your answer," her eyes locked onto Harrow as she led back in her arms with her arms crossed.

Arthur, however, exhaled deeply before grabbing the walking stick beside him. "Everyone deserves opportunities to back out," He explained in a blank tone. 

"I need answers, you need assistance in Cairo." Lucilla established, "besides, you'd be doing me a favour. I have business that needs attending to in Egypt." 

"Then I believe we have a deal," Harrow smiled softly at the girl. His attention shifted over to a group of men walking past the duo. He didn't speak until they passed.

"We have a visitor arriving later tonight," Harrow shifted to his second point. "I would like you to speak to them before we leave in the morning."

"What visitor?" Lucilla inquired with her curiosity peaking.

"Your brother." Harrow answered, shifted in his position to push the chair back slightly before standing up. "I need your assistance in persuading him to help us."

Lucilla let out a forced laugh at Harrow's reasoning. Of course he wanted the girl only to get to Marc. "Great to know my purpose."

"I can assure you Ms. Spector, we did not request your help to recruit your brother," Harrow reasoned with the girl.

A pause of silence engulfed the two as Lucilla thought. Helping Harrow to persuade Marc in joining Harrow's mission could get her one step closer in moving away from Ptah but it could also mess everything up. Marc already seemed to have a strong opinion against Harrow, there was no way he'd give in without a fight. Steven on the other hand would be easier to persuade. It just depends if Layla got to them first.

"Marc isn't the easiest person to persuade to join you," Lucilla began to tell Harrow about Marc. "He'll never join you."

"We already suspect your brother won't allow us to proceed," Harrow agreed.

"I suggest talking to Steven. He doesn't know as much as Marc." Harrow slowly nodded at Lucilla's words.

"Thank you, Ms Spector." He thanked the girl with a smile. "If you wish to follow me we can get you a place to stay until we leave early in the morning." 

Lucilla only nodded and stood up to follow the man back into the alleyway with her bag weakly resting on her shoulder. "Unfortunately the living arrangements here tend to avoid allowing one person to stay alone," Harrow began to explain the arrangement for Lucilla. 

But as Harrow spoke Lucilla couldn't help to notice that as they walked throughout the street, there was eyes following their every move. Similar to her arrival, people just stood stationary to watch the girl pass by with Harrow. The most peculiar part of these people was that still acted as a singular person. They also all had a mark on their forearm, the same place Harrow had his however it was too dark and Lucilla was too far away to even make out the design.

"Jen's a great roommate," Harrow added to fill the silence. "We usually house people with her. She's a brilliant guide for the neighbourhood." He greeted people as they passed them.

"I'm sure she is," Lucilla agreed with not a care in the world about this Jen. There was no chance Lucilla would sleep so she'd probably never encounter this women more than once. She'd probably be strolling around the area instead. 

"She's one of the few here that's aware of your deal with Ptah, so she won't be alarmed if you start talking to yourself." Harrow reassured Lucilla on a thought she wasn't even bothered about.

"That wouldn't be an issue. Ptah and I aren't on speaking terms." 

"We're not here to question or judge. Simply just to help each other mutually." He reassured again, stopping shortly at a set of apartments.

Harrow approached the building's door and pressed a small buzzer besides it. It took a few minutes before the front door opened to reveal a young girl behind it. "Hello," She smiled in a strong Newcastle accent. 

"Jen," Harrow smiled at the girl welcomingly. "This is Lucilla, the women I was talking to you about." He introduced Lucilla with a small nod of his head, leaving the girl to wave softly at the stranger. 

"Lucilla, hi." Jen greeted, moving to open the door wider for the two adults to walk in further. Harrow walked in first, leaving Lucilla to walk in cautiously before Jen closed the door behind them. 

Inside, the room was cosy but basic for a British apartment. There wasn't a lot of personal items but there were the odd photo of a family on a desk. 

"I'm not sure how much Harrow has told you but just come to me with any questions," Jen explained. "Apart from showing you around the house, you're free to do whatever you want until we leave." Her smile never faltered as she moved towards the kitchen but paused before entering. "Does anyone want something to drink?" 

"I'm okay, thank you Jen." Harrow declined the offer, "Lucilla?"

Lucilla simply shook her head, "No thanks." 

"I guess I'll leave you guys to it then," Harrow began to bid the girl's goodbye. "I'm sure I'll see both of you in the morning." 

[hdsc-ace]

Acosmist - Moonknight

XIII. Deals.

Masterlist Part 12 Rest of my work. Warnings: None.

Lucilla makes her decision.

Usually Lucilla was good at making the right decision when it came to the Egyptian Gods. However ever since Marc came back into her life alongside the introduction of Arthur Harrow, it's not been as easy.

So, if Lucilla Spector told you that she legitimately debated on the matter, then you'd have to believe it. Because she genuinely did.

"Do not go to Harrow, Lucilla." Ptah explained as he watched Lucilla pace around the living room once Arthur had left.

"Because you've been as honest as he has," she stated sarcastically. "It took you so many years just to tell me you were with Ant. It took him a day."

"There was a reason I never told you any of this. Antony specifically ordered it."

"Oh to hell with what Ant told you Ptah. He's not here anymore so don't pretend to care." Lucilla snapped. She was sick and tired of hearing about bloody Antony from Ptah. It was all they were talking about now. "You wanted to go to Cairo, Harrow is how we get there." She reasoned, making her way back into her room.

"There are other ways."

"None that I can afford," Lucilla muttered. Flights from London to Cairo were over £100 and she was struggling to pay her rent as it is. A trip to Cairo would only scupper her only living arrangement. She turned to her wardrobe and pulled out a large rucksack. There was pause as Lucilla recognised the bag. It was the bag that was returned to Lucilla with Ant's items from his last trip. Over the past few years his things were emptied and moved to different places around the apartment but a couple items of his remained in the bag. A dark green cap and a small dagger lied at the bottom.

Lucilla recognised the dagger almost instantly. It was the one Ant gave to her the day before he left. She had wondered where it had gotten to. Must've gotten mixed up with Ant's stuff a few years ago during her move from the house.

It was surprising. If someone had told Lucilla a couple of years ago that she was going to loose the two closest people to her from Marc's actions, she simply laughed it off. She would laugh mainly because she had close to none contact with Marc back then and a good relationship with an easy life forming. Everything was going great for the girl a few years ago. However, in the end, life is a single circle with a few twists. The same actions and consequences have so return every so often to haunt you.

"Please don't kill me," Lucilla whispered under her breath as she made her decision. She wanted answers to every single question she had about the people around her, and at the moment the only clear way of getting them was through Arthur Harrow. It wasn't what Ptah or Ant could've wished for but Lucilla wanted to know what happened and why she's now involved.

To who she was requesting to avoid killing her was unclear, even for herself. But Lucilla dug her hand into the bag and pulled out the hat. The scuff marks where exactly how she remembered them. A small smile came to her face as she remembered the Ant's face when Lucilla used to throw the hat at the man before leaving the house.

The cap was quickly placed onto Lucilla's head and the knife was carefully slid into her pocket. The woman took a deep breath before filling the bag up with clothes. There wasn't much that Lucilla put into the bag however it was only the essentials. It was enough to last a week minimum.

Ptah remained silent while Lucilla got ready to leave the flat. There wasn't much for him to stop Lucilla, once her mind was set to something there was nothing to do to stop her. Besides, she would still be completing what Ptah required either way. He even remained silent as the girl left her apartment and headed towards the place Mr Harrow said he'd be.

And be there he was. He was stood directly in the middle of the square, leaning on his cane just watching the direction Lucilla walked from. He wasn't difficult to spot as he didn't wear anything similar to average Londoners. He wasn't surprised by Lucilla's decision.

"Ms Spector," Arthur greeted loudly as the girl entered hearing distance. "Glad, you accepted my offer."

"Ditto," Lucilla forced a smile as she greeted the man. "I help you, you answer my questions, right?" She questioned, adjusting her sleeves as she reached the man.

"I believe that was what I implied," Harrow nodded. "Cairo isn't going to be an simple task, so I hope that suits you as a payment. We don't have much else to repay you with."

"It works," Lucilla nodded ever so slightly at the man.

"Perfect," Harrow smiled as he shifted. His eyes moved across numerous groups of people around them before looking back at Lucilla again. "How about we head somewhere more appropriate? You can leave your stuff there whilst we discuss?"

Lucilla nodded again, moving forwards as Harrow gestured for her to continue walking. He moved to lead the way towards a group of buildings. They weren't like the rest of the houses occupying the streets of London. Well, structurally they were exact copies however they felt and present as something else. It was hard for Lucilla to pinpoint the exact vibe it gave the girl.

"There are quite a few of us housed here so I do apologise about the faces," Harrow apologised as groups of people stopped whatever they were doing to acknowledge Lucilla's presence in their community. There was everything from young children holding their toys tightly to elderly struggling to walk down the steps from their home. They all stood to watch as if they were one person. "We don't get many visitors like you."

"Like Me?" Lucilla questioned cautiously. Her eyes looked over almost every single person there before Harrow let them into the building. However, once Harrow opened the door to a large dining area that could fit a whole town, Lucilla halted. Ptah stood directly in the middle of the dimly lit room with his arms crossed.

"A friend of us," Harrow explained, catching the girl's odd stare in the blank room. "He's there, isn't he?" He asked the question as if he could see exactly what Lucilla could.

She drew in a short breath before shaking her head. "No," was all she muttered before walking into the large hall. Arthur only nodded, knowing that Ptah was with the girl no matter what and they weren't alone in the hall. It was only the three of them.

There was furniture scattered throughout the room. Sofas sat by a large tarp showing a documentary with table and chairs everywhere else. A few storage filled with food units was placed in between the two areas.

"We are a neighbour hood that tries to help each other whenever we can," Harrow explained the neighbourhood to the girl. "We share and teach others our knowledge, grow our own food that's open to everyone." He began to gesture to the shelves beside Lucilla. "We've really improved this place over the past few years. It used to have the highest crime rate but now we don't bother to lock the doors."

"That's impressive," Lucilla replied. Feeling so safe that you didn't feel the need to lock your home's doors was a big trust in your community. The current society couldn't even do that but Harrow managed it far better than anyone could imagine. "Not many can achieve that."

"Everyone knows each other well enough to do so," he reasoned as he lead Lucilla towards the tables. "Are you hungry? The food's free here."

"I'm fine, thanks." Lucilla denied the offer as Harrow sat down at a table. She quickly followed his actions as sat across from the man, letting her bag fall beside her.

"I'm sure you have a lot of questions," Harrow assumed, receiving a nod from the girl. "I'm afraid I can't answer all of it right now. If I did well, we wouldn't have an agreement here."

"What can you tell me now?" Lucilla questioned. She didn't care when she got the answers she wanted, she just wanted them.

"Your Fiancé was a good man," Harrow explained whilst answering the Girl's question. "He served us well throughout the time we knew him. It was a pleasure to know him before his death. I'm sure you had just as well of time?"

"He was," Lucilla agreed with a small smile. "How did he get into all of this?" She gestured to the building.

It was weird how Ant got into something like this. It was... weird. The community Harrow built wasn't normal. It was as if they were all one person.. sharing one mind.

A laugh exited Harrow's mouth as he smiled at Lucilla's questions. "Antony assisted a few of our residents over seas. He kept in contact with them afterwards for quite a while."

"And Ptah?" 

"I'm not sure about that part." Harrow paused to think for a minute, "I'd assume it was if he stumbled across Ptah's tomb in a moment of need but I can't be sure. He never spoke about it nor anything about the god's deeply." He watched Lucilla's eyes fall behind him to where Ptah stood. "Have you tried asking them?" 

"No," Lucilla stated, forcing her eyes back onto Harrow. "We haven't spoken much recently." "How come?" Talking to a God about anything was difficult, Harrow knew that with experience with Khonshu, but with Ptah it was even harder. Lucilla learned that from experience. Ptah never gave out information unless it was important.

"He was the one to tell me Ant was apart of this to begin with," She explained quietly. The last thing Lucilla needed was to spill stuff to the man who attack her and Steven last night. However, she had no choice. 

"And the deal they made?" 

"That i'd take over the role as protection once Ant was one." Arthur only hummed at their words as if he knew the God's deals well. "What?" Lucilla questioned. 

"Never knew a God to make a deal that protects anyone but their avatar."