Match of the Millennium

Description: A chance reunion turns intimate, then poisonous, as Lyraelle learns that what she lost didn't disappear - it just found a new face.

[RAFFERTY]
It's an appropriately sunny day in Sunshine City. The weather is resting pleasantly around the seventy degrees Fahrenheit mark and the humidity is low. The time is just before two on a Tuesday afternoon, meaning the streets are reasonably quiet, due to most of the residents still being in school or work.

Stepping out of a sleek silver sports car and on to the sidewalk, is a blond-haired young man, dressed simply in a white t-shirt and beige linen pants, with a blue denim jacket worn over the top. On his feet are a pair of tan leather sneakers and covering his bright blue eyes are a pair of aviator sunglasses. The ensemble cost him four thousand, three hundred and twenty six dollars.

The man runs a perfectly manicured hand through his perfectly groomed hair as he makes his way into the building in front of him. It's painted stucco cream and displays a sign spelling out 'Natural Earth Food Store' in forest green lettering. This place is great for getting all the right ingredients for clean eating. It also happens to be stocking a new skincare range, for which the man is the brand ambassador.

Strolling elegantly down the wooden floored aisles, he follows the directions to the health and beauty area, excited to see the packaging for the product. It will be his first time witnessing it in the wild, as the launch only went live last week. Finally he finds the right shelf and soon spots the stone-effect resin tub with the bone white logo and lettering. 'Stone and Sea.' The organic moisturiser lists volcanic ash, glacial clay, marine algae extract and blue spirulina amongst it's ingredients.

Picking up the tub, the man holds it in the palm of his hand, studying it from all angles. His decision to demand design rights on the product, as well as just posing with it for pretty photographs was the right one. His vision has truly come to life. He lifts the moisturiser to his face and then pulls out his deep blue iPhone pro max 17 and positions it perfectly to snap a selfie. He then sets about posting it to his socials, selecting some hashtags.

#StoneAndSea #SkinFirst #HydrationGameStrong

[LYRAELLE]
It's been long enough now since her descent (ascent?) from the throne of the Demon Queen that Lyraelle Lightheart (nee Darkheart) has finally started to view the need for skin care products to preserve her vivid visage as routine rather than 'something the plebs do.' Even wearing pants has lost its horror for the former always-on avatar of Envy. The jeans she's got on manage to be cute *and* comfy. She's wearing sneakers instead of stockings or thigh highs (sayonara, zettai ryouiki) and a lightweight, pale lilac hoodie over a white tank top. She even started to post a #NormalGirlDay selfie on InstaSlam with a pink organic strawberry and cream smoothie (#PrincessFuel) and decided to... just drink the smoothie instead.

Maybe she's turning into a pleb herself.

She's mid-slurp turning the corner at the end of the skincare aisle when something catches her peripheral vision.

That guy is cute. What's he doing?

The normal human habit of taking an interest in what other people are up to is a forgotten muscle memory for the Sparkle Princess, and she hasn't had enough metaphysical therapy yet to make engaging with it look natural. She leans back into the aisle, still sucking on her smoothie as her green eyes lock on the man - he's definitely a model, isn't he? - who's weighing up what looks like the kind of thing she came here for.

Maybe she should ask him what he's got there. That's something #NormalGirls ask people, right? She leans back out of view, quickly finishing what's left of the smoothie so she won't be slurping in front of the cute guy like a weirdo. Unless he's one of those #slurpbabe simps. That hashtag is so meta. It's all literal thirst traps.

Doing her best to turn off the imaginary socials stream in her head, she wanders up the aisle to where Rafferty is... posing? Perusing? Pondering?

"Hey," she greets him, one hand tucked in her hoodie pocket. "Whatcha got there--"

She blinks a couple of times as she gets a better look at the blond's face.

He's not cute. He's Rafferty!

"It's you!" she blurts out.

[RAFFERTY]
"It's you!" he blurts back.

It's been a long time since Rafferty set eyes on Lyraelle. He was a mere boy of seventeen when their paths had last crossed. Back then he'd been attending the Southtown school of Pacific High and dating a robot named Nena.

He'd heard rumours of course. There'd been extensive gossip both on the street and online about the former demon queen's drastic change of image. Out went the wings, tail and horns. In came the family-friendly princess who seemed like she'd stepped out of the screen from a Disney movie.

Today though, Lyraelle is looking relatively normal. Of course she's still incredibly cute, but in a way that is more off-duty prom queen than potentially lethal predator. Rafferty is also pretty sure this is the first time he's seen her wearing pants.

"How are things?' The blond asks, his tone edging closer to friendly as he recovers from the shock of seeing his former employer in a Sunshine City supermarket sipping on a smoothie.

Realising that he'd been asked a question himself, Rafferty returns his focus to the skin cream, smiling rather smugly. "This is Stone and Sea. Grounded by nature and refined by science." As he says the words, he seems to shift into a subtle pose as if speaking directly into a camera. "It's formed by the elements." He adds vaguely, before handing her the pot to inspect. "It will also look total fire on your bathroom shelf. I helped design it."

[LYRAELLE]
The declaration of recognition from model is equal parts disarming and debilitating for the pink-haired poser princess. Rafferty was one of the few people who'd managed to make her feel small, however briefly, as the Demon Queen. Johnny Cage had been partially to blame for that. She'd endeavoured to do the same afterward, treating him as an expendable asset, but she's pretty sure that she never really succeeded, which she used to attribute to him being too airheaded to detect when he'd been dunked on.

Now, though, the vibe is totally different. If she'd been in Sparkle Mode, she's sure she'd know how to handle running into her ex-employee. Probably grabbing a selfie with him, being Sparkle Princess Lyraelle's usual charming self, then going off to her apartment to eat ice cream alone afterward. Now, she feels like skipping straight to ice cream at home.

"Oh, uh, you know, just looking for some moisturizer," she confesses, laughing awkwardly. "And drinking some hashtag princess fuel. Still doing the whole modelling thing?"

The question hardly warrants asking, as by the time it's out there the blond has already gone full commercial mode. Maybe the airhead thing wasn't just a phase. Still, though, she finds herself reaching for a pot to inspect. "You haven't seen my bathroom shelf," she points out, thinking in optics but speaking in unintentional flirt. Her face turns a shade closer to her hair when she realises how it sounded. "Seems weirdly classy." Read: seems classy, and that's weird. Rafferty wasn't all class last time they were on speaking terms. Possibly because she was paying him to wear PJs with her face on them.

"What's the price tag?" she asks, casually committing the most plebeian of fashion offenses.

Is she the kind of person who cares how much things *cost* now??

[RAFFERTY]
"Well this moisturiser is actually amazing." Rafferty enthuses. "Look at my skin. I've been using it as part of my regime for the last month." He casually lies. "My pores have practically vanished and I've no signs of ageing." The nineteen almost twenty year old claims.

"I am still doing some modelling." The Californian confesses. "It's gone up a level now though. I'm usually asked to be the face and voice of products instead of just the former."

There's a flicker of a smile on his face as he continues to talk about his career. "I've also been doing some acting. I was in a show back in Southtown as the second male lead. I think this might also be the year that Johnny Cage and I make that buddy cop movie." The blond beams. "I'm turning twenty in two and a half weeks, so I think I might finally be believable as a rookie."

Rafferty sends a flirty look Lyraelle's way, as she mentions her bathroom shelf. "Well we can change that if you want. I'm single these days. Are you living in Sunshine City or just visiting?"

He has to lift another tub of the moisturiser up to check the price label on its base, since he has no idea how much it is retailing for. "It's fifty bucks." He answers, the cost seeming remarkably cheap to someone with such expensive tastes. "It's a bit of a bargain for something so classy." He comments, choosing to ignore the weirdly part.

[LYRAELLE]
Lyraelle can't help but think that Rafferty is definitely showing signs of ageing where she's concerned - he doesn't look like the same slightly effete and fragile teenager he used to. (Then again, everything looked fragile when she could punch holes in brick walls.) It's a sharp reminder that she's now crested to the other side of her twenties, a fate she'd once thought she'd never have to endure in the physical sense. Invidia's effortless skin care regimen had been one of the best perks - even better than the infinite capacity for property damage.

"The voice of products, huh? Looks like choosing you as one of my minions was as brilliant as the rest of my decisions as Demon Queen," the off-duty influencer says, claiming some of his shine for herself. Old habits die hard, it seems. That gives her a little more confidence to step amicably closer as she says it.

Maybe he's not a reminder of what she lost. Maybe he's a reminder of what she's capable of.

"You guys still haven't made the movie yet, huh? Let me know if you need somebody to write the script. I'm pretty good at coming up with drama." Feeling more confident, she leans a little onto one hip at his question. "I've got an apartment here from back when the NFG was on that I've been using while I do some digging for prospects. I've been in discussion with a studio over the rights to a Lyraelle cartoon, but... it's tricky. Darkheart Enterprises are trying to claim that the Demon Queen isn't my IP. Which is totally bullshit. Stupid VTuber AI crap."

Realising her empty cardboard cup has become inexplicably crushed in her hand, she blinks a couple of times, then clears her throat. "Yeah, I'll add it to my collection. It doesn't have star anise in it, does it?" She puts the pot she's holding in a little bio-friendly shopping bag. "So, where are you staying nowadays? Don't worry, I won't come swooping through your window at night. I don't do much swooping nowadays."

[RAFFERTY]
Unbeknown to Lyraelle, Rafferty's skin secrets are from the same source she previously enjoyed. He stays silent on the subject though. The lawyer had told him it's important to be discreet.

He laughs lightly at Lyraelle's desire to share his shine. He's got no qualms about her doing so, since there's plenty to go around. His hand brushes against her hoody as he puts the moisturiser back on the shelf. "Is the L range still going?" He wonders. "Do you still see much of Shermie and Velvet?"

He seems somewhat uncertain about Lyraelle's writing ambitions, although he can't deny the former demon queen has a flair for the dramatic. "Johnny might want to choose his own people." He ponders. "He's been in the business for quite a while now."

Rafferty's blue-eyed gaze shifts downwards to Lyraelle's shapely hips as she adjusts her position. "Oh yeah, the whole NFG thing. I was here for a bit while that was happening. I didn't see any of the matches though."

His handsome face briefly darkens at the mention of the Vtuber, but his expression is back to bright and breezy by the time Lyraelle has chosen to purchase the Stone and Sea. "You won't be disappointed." He approves. "The ingredients are all natural but none of them are star anise. That gives me an idea for another range though."

He waves the thought away for now, choosing to focus on the present. "I'm kinda global." The model/actor muses. "I came back to Cali for Christmas and then arrived in Sunshine City last week. I'm not sure where my next stop will be. Wherever the work takes me I suppose. I'm getting used to living out of a suitcase. A super stylish one of course." He quickly adds.

"The swooping wasn't totally unwelcome by the way." Rafferty admits. "It was kinda equal parts thrilling and terrifying."

[LYRAELLE]
"I think that the last time I saw Shermie in person, she was suplexing one of my minions," Lyraelle muses as she brings up her phone and scrolls through a seemingly-infinite gallery of digital photographs with uncanny speed. Bringing the list to a stop, she pulls up one of the images. "Aha! Here it is."

Turning herself against Rafferty's side so that he can see her screen, she reveals an image of a portly pink imp and the famous CYS keytarist in a white minidress lying next to each other in a daze. "We totally DM sometimes though. I follow her hamsters on InstaSlam."

Demon Queen Lyraelle would have responded to Rafferty's uncertainty about Johnny Cage by asserting that she'd be sure to convince him, in that case (regardless of any past faux pas). Normal Girl Lyraelle starts to say that, but a sudden high-speed flashback to the incident where she'd gone full succubus to get a selfie with the Cage only to have her plan to bait Hitter into thinking he was her new boyfriend scuttled by the world's douchiest sunglasses changes her mind. "Well, maybe you could get me a... cameo?" she suggests, looking slightly deflated.

Luckily, the conversation switches topics swiftly to something that's firmly in her domain. "It was really good! I mean, nobody died, at least. That we know of. It was nice giving back to the young--" She cuts herself short. "--less experienced fighters out there. You know, sharing my expertise. I can see why you weren't interested, though. Fighting was never your thing, was it?"

She wrinkles her nose briefly at the fact that her mention of star anise has inspired the model. "So you heard that I'm allergic to star anise and your first thought is, 'I know, I'll make a whole range of beauty products with star anise in it?' That's so insensitive," she huffs, sticking her tongue out at him.

Rafferty's claim to fame makes the pink-haired influencer pause to consider whether she's still 'kinda global.' Technically true, right? The internet is everywhere, regardless of viewership decline.

"I miss being equal parts thrilling and terrifying," she says with a full-figured, wistful sigh. "Oh, well. At least I'm still terrifying, right?" she says, hooking her back over her arm so she can lift her hands to make little horns at either side of her head and bat her eyelashes with the intensity of a former full-time succubus LARPer.

[RAFFERTY]
Rafferty leans in to look at the phone, getting glimpses of all kinds of intriguing images before Lyraelle finds what she's searching for. As the screen is presented to him, the blond blinks before breaking into a loud laugh that causes a tanned couple in kaftans to stare. "Poor red minion. He always did seem to get a rough deal. I totally follow Achu and Ururi too."

There's a nod of enthusiasm from Rafferty in regards to the cameo. "Oh yeah, I'm sure we could find something like that for you. You know, I've still got those sunglasses Johnny gave me the first time I met him. I never wear them though. I wouldn't wanna lose them."

Listening to Lyraelle reminisce about her time as an NFG mentor, a strange expression appears on Rafferty's face. "Actually. I did take part in a fight last year." He admits, eyeing her with caution. "I'm guessing you didn't catch it on the streaming."

The switch back to skin care sees Rafferty relaxing again. "It will be named Star and Smoke. Whereas Stone and Sea focuses on getting your skin glowing for the day ahead, the new range will be for night time soothing." He says in a smooth and silvery tone. If he's bothered by the appearance of the pink-haired woman's tongue he doesn't show it.

"I'd say you're more thrilling than terrifying." Rafferty responds to Lyraelle's hand horns. "Or at least that's how I imagine it."

[LYRAELLE]
Most of the images on the phone are selfies, as one might expect - many of them from the POV of both the Demon Queen and Sparkle Princess versions of Lyraelle sitting on various opponents. Though, some of the opponents don't appear to be actual fighters. Some appear to be other celebrities, influencers, and... possibly Patreon fans?

Those give way in the more recent images to more generic fan selfies, slice-of-celebrity-life pics, pictures of her three imp minions, and eventually things like smoothies alternating with clothing and makeup shots. The fact that the scroll was previously lingering in the older parts of the phone's history might be telling.

"Yeah, I guess those must be a real keepsake for a fan," Lyraelle admits with a quirk of her lips as she stretches her atrophied empathy muscle to consider the blond's perspective on one of her biggest humiliations outside of #Sugargate. "I get a lot of little girls who want my tiara or my sparkle wand - and little boys, for that matter. Also non-little boys and girls. I never really had the same thing as the Demon Queen -- wasn't really part of the brand." That had been part of the point -- being unique and unattainable by mere mortals. Not that there hadn't been plenty of cosplayers copping the look.

Lyraelle's internal doomscroll of her infernal highlight reel causes her to almost miss the part about Rafferty fighting on-stream. "Oh, right. I missed NFG round two. I'm surprised you put your face on the line for something like that - was it a silk pillow fight?" she asks teasingly, grinning up at him.

She almost drifts back into existential crisis when he starts talking about night time soothing with a product she only imagines as hive-inducing hell, but she's reeled back in by his last note, green eyes blinking as they find his face. She's... thrilling? To a non-pleb? "Imagine... what?"

[RAFFERTY]
"Do you have your own dress-up range?" Rafferty wonders, his business senses twitching. "I imagine there'd be a market for Sparkle Princess dresses, tiaras and wands. Maybe even pink wigs. As for the Demon Queen, I'm pretty sure I've seen plenty of homemade Halloween costumes. None of them looked like the real deal though."

As talk turns back to fighting, Rafferty explains. "I wasn't in the NFG Season Two, thank goodness. I hear the competitors got stranded on some island survivor style. You know, I was actually booked for a Mediterranean cruise on the Mermaid that the fighters were staying on. I decided to cancel once I realised."

Rafferty reaches a hand up to smooth his hair, even though it's still perfectly in place. "I took part in something called a Saturday Night Fight. It was pretty fancy actually. The venue for the match was a chateau about an hour's drive from Paris, so obviously the shopping was incredible. There weren't any silk pillows but I was wearing a silk shirt."

He looks back at Lyraelle with a slow smile when he realises she's fixed her green-eyed gaze on his face. "Come on, Lyraelle. You might be fooling the kids with the Disney Princess vibe but I'm pretty sure you know exactly what I mean. The first time we met you sat on me. It makes a boy wonder and a man wanna do something about it."

[LYRAELLE]
"Of course," Lyraelle answers Rafferty's merchandising query with the world-weariness of someone whose world has become far too monochrome pink in recent months. Years? She smiles a little at the mention that none of the Demon Queens he's seen looked like the real deal, until she remembers that the real deal is no longer her.

"I didn't turn out for Season Two, myself. Season One was a publicity disaster. I mean, Demon Queen me might have been proud that one of her proteges turned herself into the PFW's Most Wanted and nuked the roof on Metro City Arena, but that was totally toxic to the Sparkle brand." In the interest of avoiding toxic associations, she decides against mentioning that she's arranged an appeal for one of the people involved in the Zack Island fiasco - the only one who suffered the legal fallout of the events.

"Saturday Night Fights? They took you on? God, I can only imagine if I'd still been working there and had to read your name out on the card --" Feeling an ojou laugh rising up in her belly, Lyraelle quickly clamps down on it, tucking her phone in her hoodie pocket and disguising the instinct with a sudden cough. "I would have been so proud," she claims.

And then, Rafferty drops his at-least-somewhat-less-cryptic clarification of her question. She remembers silk against skin. Casual dominance. Unintended side effects.

Sugargate.

"Didn't I also threaten to--" she starts to say, before cutting herself short.

Instead, she tilts her head to one side, then walks two fingers playfully up Rafferty's jean jacket, leaning in as her gaze slowly follows. "You gonna finally let me call you 'minion'?~" she asks, her voice low and coquettish as she lets her unnatural instincts kick in.

[RAFFERTY]
"You seem surprised about my appearance on Saturday Night Fights, Lyraelle." Rafferty teases before narrowing his eyes slightly as he awaits what she will say next. He suspects what she speaks aloud is the result of a quick mental edit but he accepts the compliment, genuine or not. "Thanks so much. I was pretty proud myself, although I admit, I definitely didn't want to take part initially."

His dark defined brows raise as she alludes to her previous threat, given in his room late at night in what now seems another lifetime ago. "You did." He murmurs.

He watches her dainty digits walk up the denim of his jacket and decides. "You can call me minion if it turns you on, but I think we both know it won't be true. Why don't you go and pay for your produce and I'll start the car. It's the silver Porsche 911."

[LYRAELLE]
There's a brief moment of hesitation when Rafferty concedes Lyraelle's query as indulgent fantasy. Her lower lip pauses in its roll against her upper teeth, her green eyes locking on his blue ones. Then, with a smirk, she pushes her half-crushed empty smoothie cup into his hand and leans up to his ear. "Get rid of that for me, minion."

With that, she turns away and saunters off to the register with her bag draped from her wrist and a sashay to her hips that can be recognized regardless of the layers of fabric she's wearing, the smirk still lingering.

==*== SOME TIME LATER ==*==

The bedroom of Lyraelle's Sunshine apartment is starting to dim as the evening sunlight fades in the picture window overlooking the city. Hoodie, jeans and sneakers lie discarded on the floor; the pink-haired influencer, freshly showered in the wake of a strenuous afternoon, is pulling her tank top back on as she emerges from the en suite in her undies, letting out a blissful sigh as she does. She pauses deliberately in front of the Ultra HD television opposite the bed to stretch her limbs and back. "Whatcha watching, minion?" she asks, before flopping backside-first onto the mattress and scooting up to snuggle against the blond still lying on it.

[RAFFERTY]
Rafferty flicks through television channels casually as he reclines on the bed, pleased by the warm tones of pink, peach and amber that are lighting the apartment. They are incredibly flattering to his smooth golden-tanned skin. There's a smile of satisfaction on his face which brightens further as a sweet-smelling Lyraelle sashays back into the bedroom. He briefly sees a reflection of her much admired rear view on the screen before she joins him back on the bed.

"Nothing in particular." He answers, moving her bangs aside to plant a kiss on her forehead. Then an idea comes to him.

"Do you wanna watch my Saturday Night Fight match?" He wonders, already switching to streaming in preparation. "They have all the old ones, as well as showing the live matches when they're on. There's probably some of yours on there too."

[LYRAELLE]
Lyraelle closes her eyes in appreciation as Rafferty's fingers and lips grace her forehead. For the first time in what feels like years, it seems as though she's finally found an equilibrium between designs on world domination and doomscrolling despair. Maybe it's because she finally feels a bit like a princess.

"Sure," she says, slipping a hand up onto his shoulder as she presses against his side and uses him to rest her head amidst the myriad plush pillows. Her eyes turn to his face as her hand slips up to play with his hair. "You know..." she says in a playful, sensuous tone, "After executing your duties so admirably on behalf of the Crown, I think I might just be willing to promote you from 'minion' to 'Prince.'" She plants a peck on his cheek. "Or at least give you another opportunity to convince me."

[RAFFERTY]
When Lyraelle agrees, Rafferty starts to search for the match, scrolling down through the list of options and talking as he does. "You know you promised me I could be a Prince before. I was rather taken with the idea."

A memory of being caught by his roommate Ryan, twirling around and claiming that Prince Rafferty had quite a ring to it floods the blond's brain, causing him to shake his head as if trying to erase it. The motion means his hair is pressed further against Lyraelle's hand, like a cat demanding further petting.

Finally he finds the match and clicks on it, causing it to circle for a second before loading. The screen shows Rafferty dressed in a short-sleeved vivid green silk shirt and black silk pants. He's standing in a room with a black and white chequered floor that resembles a chess board. Luxurious red velvet curtains hang from the vast windows and there's statues of a skeleton-like figure clothed in robes and an imp-like creature with angelic wings and a single claw.

He's soon joined by a large man in a long fur trench coat. Lyraelle will likely recognise him as Leo Whitefang.

[LYRAELLE]
"I always keep my promises," Lyraelle claims as she continues to caress the blond's scalp. "...Sometimes it just takes a while." She leans closer, breathing in his scent. "You were right, by the way. That stuff does look bangin' on my bathroom shelf."

Turning her face toward the TV, she lets her head rest sideways and settles in. "Oh, nice. That place looks classy - I'd've totally shortlisted it for the Midnight Channel."

She blinks a couple of times when the figure in the furry coat enters the frame, finally taking note of the other challenger's name and sitting up straighter. "Wait, what? Leo Whitefang? What were you doing fighting him? How are you in one piece?" she asks incredulously, falling nearly into laughter at the notion. "You're not a clone, are you? The real Rafferty isn't in a dozen pieces in a box somewhere?" She tweaks at his cheek as if the gesture will somehow confirm or disprove his genetic authenticity.

[RAFFERTY]
"I knew it would. I'll take a look when I next go in. I'll arrange for you to be sent the whole range if you want. Free of charge of course." Rafferty offers.

"The place really was beautiful. It's name is Chateau De Colde. It's the ancestral home of Charlotte Christine de Colde."

Lyraelle's shock at seeing Leo enter the chateau is to be expected since when she last knew Rafferty he was cowardly in the face of conflict and frequently had two schoolgirls acting as his bodyguards. "It's the opponent they chose for me." Rafferty shrugs. "I suppose they must have believed it would be a fair fight."

He laughs off the idea he is a clone. "Of course not. I just changed is all." He says, his voice soft and his eyes fixed firmly on the screen.

The fighters introduce themselves to each other very politely and then the action gets under way. As Leo comes at the younger man with swinging swords, Rafferty brings up his right hand to defend himself, which rather strangely seems to extend. Surrounding his flawless flesh is a glowing green replica. When he lifts up his natural hand, the green one perfectly mirrors its movements.

The model's blue eyes then shift to green, complimenting the shirt he's wearing wonderfully. They seem to flash with energy before glowing green psychic lasers shoot from them, causing Leo to stagger backwards as he lets out a roar of pain.

[LYRAELLE]
"That's really nice of you," Lyraelle says softly as she shifts her weight, bringing her feet up under her seat as she leans forward to watch what's happening on the screen closely. "Charlotte de Colde, huh?" For a moment, Lyraelle finds herself fantasizing about being the kind of legitimate nobility that would live in a giant chess castle.

She still doesn't believe that PFW could have reasonably believed Rafferty was a valid rival for Leo. She's peeked behind the curtain of how Saturday Night Fights are curated - hell, she was the curator at one point. Rafferty wasn't even a registered fighter, and even prodigies could rarely compete with someone like Leo Whitefang.

And Rafferty was definitely a total wuss. Even her vampiric tail hadn't tried to taste his power when she'd been a darkstalker. Which means that either she always had the wrong read, he's been through some miraculous scar-free training...

Or something has changed.

The green hand appears, the shade mirroring her eyes as they widen.

And when the eye lasers fire, they go blank.

"How long have you been able to do that?" she practically growls, the affection draining from her voice.

[RAFFERTY]
How long has Rafferty been able to do that?

"I can't remember exactly." He answers truthfully, turning to look at Lyraelle as he detects the shift in her tone. "I mean, the date and such. It was when we fought the dinosaur though."

Something stirs inside the Californian and he starts to feel like it wasn't such a wise idea to show his bed mate this match. He'd really wanted to though, For some reason he thought she'd want to see.

"Then I used them on the ghost girl when she was going to assassinate me." Rafferty recalls. "It was a few months after that I got the email about competing in the Saturday Night Fight. I mean, I suppose I agreed to it before then. It felt like the right thing to do. You know, for my career." He tries to explain.

As he talks, the screen shows the two blond men continuing their bout. Rafferty is reaching out to try and grab Leo's throat with his glowing green grip.

[LYRAELLE]
Lyraelle's eyes flash with such brightness that, for a moment, it almost seems like they might themselves issue forth lasers to annihilate the television on the wall. "That is /my/ move," she declares with all the conviction of Tia Langray in court. "I mean, it was hotter when I did it, but seriously? /Green/ eye lasers?"

The accusatory orbs turn their intensity on Rafferty's face. "Dinosaur? What dinosaur?" A thought crosses her mind. Didn't she book a test run for a raptor-bot on the Midnight Channel once? And wasn't that on behalf of -

"Was it Ultratech?!" Lyraelle's posture has turned totally toward Rafferty now, her body imposed directly into his field of vision as she demands his full attention. Ultratech - the company that had engineered the technology that had stolen her demonic power from her, releasing her supernatural rider into the aether. She'd lost her power and, overnight, much of her media empire to some imposter in her old skin. Her hands reach for his shoulders as the heat in her eyes turns to tears. "Did you steal my crown, you princely little prick?!"

[RAFFERTY]
"Yeah, green eyes lasers. Pretty cool huh?" Rafferty grins before his brain catches up with what Lyraelle actually said. "Your move? What do you mean? I came up with Smoulder myself."

Not that he had actually sat down and planned it, other than choosing the name afterwards. The eye lasers had just kinda happened in the aforementioned fight with the dinosaur.

"It was a robot dinosaur, and come to think of it, yes, Ultratech did create it. They were after Nena see. Simon used to work for them and she was one of their creations." This is all supposed to be super secret but what did it matter now? Nena no longer exists, other than that time he'd heard her voice in a diner in this very city, but that was years ago.

He finds his shoulders being grabbed and looks back into Lyraelle's teary eyes. "No I didn't steal your crown. I have a feeling someone may have given it to me though. Come to think of it that lawyer said he represented you. You know, the one who looks like James Spader. Is your real name Elisabeth Jones?"

[LYRAELLE]
"'Smoulder?' What kind of a stupid name is that? You're just ripping off my Balefire Gaze!" Lyraelle accuses. She'd specifically requested fiery green eye lasers - imagined them? - as part of the Demon Queen's arsenal. Nothing says domination like being able to destroy someone with a look.

The Ultratech confirmation only sharpens her expression. She doesn't care about the intrigue with some robot cheerleader or whoever this 'Simon' is. The fact that suspiciously similar powers appeared in an Ultratech-adjacent event possibly directly following Invidia's separation from her as its avatar feels too correlational to be coincidence.

But it's what Rafferty says next that seals it. Not the James Spader thing, because who the heck is that guy? But the other name. The one that she's never told anyone. The face she's long forgotten.

That means the lawyer must be the one who...

The tears stop. Lyraelle's expression darkens. Her hands slide down from his shoulders, fingers digging into fabric.

"My name... is Lyraelle Darkheart."

With sudden violence, she brings the pillow whirling around, aiming to smack it into Rafferty's face. "Now give me my power back, you fucking thief!"

She's not planning to stop with the first blow, either - though, invested as she is in her own comfort, the silk cover and featherlight stuffing are unlikely to match the intensity of her wroth.

[RAFFERTY]
"I like the name." Rafferty defends. "It works well with the rest of my move names. They all come together to form a coherent brand."

He appears to be staying calm on the surface but inside there's a sense of growing dread. Surely he realised deep down that these magical abilities couldn't come without a price? Is this woman that he's just spent a very pleasant afternoon with the one who paid it?

Rafferty is too caught up in his own ruminations to see the pillow coming and takes it straight to the face. A muffled shriek sounds out from beneath the silk fabric, an echo of a former version of himself.

He opens his blue eyes and blinks them rapidly. "Are those really sparkles or am I seeing things?" He gasps, pushing the pillow away with force and sending it flying across the bedroom.

"As for your power, I don't think I could give it back if I tried, and truthfully, I don't want to."

[LYRAELLE]
"Your brand?! You just took my brand and put your name on it!" Lyraelle accuses as she's disarmed of the pillow, which goes crashing into a wall without further harm. Fortunately, she has plenty more, and immediately reaches for another.

"And then" - *SWING* - "after all this time" - *WHOOF* - "you have the nerve" - *WHIFF* - "to invite yourself over" - *PIFF* - to Netkicks and chill!" *PAFF*

Sparkles continue to fly painlessly (as long as Rafferty doesn't look at them too closely) from the pillow as the princess works herself into a frenzy.

"I NEVER CHILL! YOU MADE ME DO IT!" she absolves herself in tearful rage. Chest heaving, she catches her breath, then sharpens her expression. "The mirror! Do you still have it?! Where is it??"

[RAFFERTY]
"I'm talking about the names." Rafferty huffs. "You didn't create them. They were all my own work."

As the pillow attacks come in, he manages to duck and dodge to avoid any further blows but there's still a red mark on his face from the first one.

"I definitely did not make you do it." He protests. "You were totally into it. Both times."

As the tears start to flow, he reaches a hand out to stroke Lyraelle's back if she'll let him get anywhere near it. "You mean the mirror the lawyer guy sent me?" Rafferty checks. "That was to replace the one you broke. Why did you do that anyway?"

[LYRAELLE]
"I don't care what you call them!" Lyraelle is bellowing as the room sparkles with puffs of energy motes still slowly falling through the air. "And so what if I was into it? I was only into it because my existence is meaningless, and that's your fault!"

Her body is shaking as he approaches. She flinches as he reaches out, but allows him to touch her - though, only for a moment. Her face turns sharply up at his.

"Broke...?" Her red-rimmed eyes narrow. "Why would I break your mirror? I never cared that much about you."

She reaches a hand up to his face, expression suspicious, aiming to take hold of his jaw and working his visage about in an attempt to look deeper into his eyes. "Are you in there, Invidia?"

[RAFFERTY]
"Whatever, Elisabeth." Rafferty smirks. "You were fine before you saw my fight. Maybe you're just jealous."

He shrugs his broad shoulders as she questions her motives for breaking his mirror. "I have no idea. It seemed weird to me, but that's the story the lawyer told me.

When her hand grabs hold of his chiselled jaw, he looks back at her in defiance. For a moment, his blue eyes flash green, but it's so brief that it could have been a trick of the light.

"I think it's time for me to go." He decides, prising her hand from his face and getting off the bed. He starts to quickly dress, his back towards her. "I'll still send the skincare to you at this address. I know you'll need it without other means to maintain your glow."

[LYRAELLE]
The name sticks like a knife in the pink-haired princess poseur's gut. It leaves her almost paralysed as he pulls her hand from his face - though not before she glint of green registers. She starts to quake as he starts to dress. "No, you don't! We're not finished here! I know what you are!" she blurts out, moving to try and grab for him before he can make his escape. Her voice starts to become more plaintive, though no less forceful. "Take me to the mirror! We can - we can both have the power! Just show me where it is!"

[RAFFERTY]
Rafferty reacts rapidly as he senses Lyraelle make a grab for him. Instead she simply tugs at his white t-shirt, causing him to look back at her on the bed. "Look, it was fun, but I'm leaving. I'm not feeling the vibe in here anymore."

He moves away from her, pulling on his denim jacket over his other clothing. When he's at a safe distance he turns fully to face her. "I don't think we could share by the way. He said there can only be one chosen at any time. I made sure he wasn't going to kill you or anything. and he said you wouldn't be forced. I thought you were on board. I guess not."

With that he heads out of the room, then the apartment, and shortly after, Sunshine City.

[LYRAELLE]
A near silence falls over the apartment as the door shuts behind Rafferty, leaving the pink-haired girl alone with the sound of the TV, her hair not even fully dry yet.

She turns to the screen, picking up the remote from the side table and pausing the match on the screen as the camera cuts close, Rafferty's face frozen in freeze frame, his eyes glowing unmistakably green.

She leaves it there as she walks out.

There's a sound of a freezer door opening and closing, a drawer sliding, the tinkling of cutlery.

Then she walks back in, sits down on the edge of the bed, picks up the remote and resets the stream to the start of the match.

She presses play.

'I am your challenger, fine Sir. My name is Rafferty Laurence Stewart from the city of San Gabriel. I may be of humble origin, but I have worked hard to rise in status.'

With her eyes glued to the screen, she slowly removes the lid from the tub of strawberry swirl ice cream before jabbing her spoon vengefully into it.

Log created on 13:29:18 01/27/2026 by Lyraelle, and last modified on 15:38:02 01/30/2026.