it was the reason for the want to travel time; to rectify it. not to change everything; just the fact that he’d died instead of her. since, of course, other things had happened, and the harmfulness of her goals had only increased exponentially.

“don’t be.”

her stare was distant.

“i’ve learned better.” than to get close to people in their line of work—and in general. it was part of why she had such difficulty calling him by his first name. why she needed him to be the figure she’d painted him as in her head.

THEO BECKETT

☉

up until recently, he had been the same way. closed himself off, erected walls to keep himself isolated and safe because it was easier than experiencing all there was out there.

back then, no one could hurt him but himself.

"no..."

but now?

" i mean i'm sorry for pushing."

Lulu Flint

☉

the corners of her mouth wavered downwards and her shoulders hunched a little, eyes staring almost blankly at the rest of her burger. she sniffed lightly, having one of those rare how did i even get here sort of moments.

he didn’t receive a response. she might’ve at least said ’ok’, if not for the frog in her throat. she would choke on it.

a klefki rose from the shadows and floated over, utterly voiceless except for keys jingling lightly again at lulu, before it dropped into her lap, providing her with a distraction to fiddle with.

THEO BECKETT

☉

eventually, he closed the container, placing it back into the brown bag that was now slightly less drenched from the rain.

"lulu."

once again, his voice faltered ever so slightly.

"do i make you uncomfortable?"

Lulu Flint

☉

it must’ve been a bit cold, considering he’d also been drenched. lulu had thought to offer him something, but there was nothing here large enough for him, nor were there blankets. not even a sheet, or a bed.

she still didn’t look at him, finger running over the indentions of a skull key given to the klefki by kris flynn-edwards —its favorite key of all.

did he make her uncomfortable? it wasn’t so simple.

“no.”

she considered the next part for a moment, and then almost didn’t admit the rest of it.

“you make me feel safe.”

in a way, that in itself was very scary.

THEO BECKETT

☉

"oh."

it caught him off guard as he had expected a resounding 'yes'. her response made him feel something.

and so, he shared as well.

"you make me feel safe, too."

Lulu Flint

☉

it caught her equally off guard. even considering her powers, how could someone like theo get any additional comfort from her presence? she lacked his stability. she flew off the handle. she threw fists, and fish, and chairs at him.

it wasn’t pretty. it wasn’t good.

safe? all around him, little did he know, were her blueprints for the apocalypse.

to top it off, she’d already proven that she could save no one. not rinc, not the kid on the boat that day with Bill Anderson , and not even herself.

“you shouldn’t.”

with a deep sigh, she got up, tossing the keys back into the air. the klefki lingered near, concerned.

“i’m a fool.”

THEO BECKETT

☉

you shouldn't.

if only it were that easy.

actually, it probably could be, but he didn't want it to be.

"you aren't."

he sighed as well.

"it doesn't always end that way, you know."

with loss.

Lulu Flint

☉

but it did always end, and the risk of loss was too great to open her heart to anyone.

she stood but didn’t move away, eyes lingering idly on a piece of equipment across the room. her arms crossed over her ribs, feeling a similar discomfort as last time, only something was different.

“maybe not. it doesn’t matter.”

THEO BECKETT

☉

"maybe."

he remained sitting while she stood, eyes following hers across the room to a piece of equipment that he didn't recognize.

after a moment, he spoke again.

"i was like you once."

a beat.

"scared, afraid to open up again."

Lulu Flint

☉

her eyes widened a little, because to someone like lulu, this was like a sucker-punch and a call-out. she turned towards him, clearly offended.

“i’m not scared,” she corrected firmly, “i just know better.”

it really came down to semantics, mostly, but the idea of further exposing her fears to theo made her quickly defensive.

THEO BECKETT

☉

"do you?"

it really did come down to semantics. where she grew defensive, he was suddenly forced into the opposite role, but it was where he often was.

now was no different.

"just sounds like you're scared to get hurt."

Lulu Flint

☉

she didn’t have many words to hold up her argument, but she doubled down on her assertion anyways.

”i’m not scared.”

yes, she was, and there was so much more to it than just that.

her expression was nearly a glare, built up hard enough to keep from crumbling.

THEO BECKETT

☉