Welcome to Gaia! ::

Europa and Oenone were returning from patrol when they felt it, a dark mass of chaotic energy positioned squarely in Florence court. And. Upon closer investigation, in their living room. “********,” said Europa, with uncharacteristic brusqueness. “It’s Avalon.” Sailor Europa could not very well walk into Tallulah Cowden’s apartment, she thought, sighing heavily. She powered down. “I know what she wants. Go wait at the coffee shop. I’ll text when she’s gone.”

Europa powered down, her uniform sliding away from her in seaweed-like ribbons and revealing the sundress and sandals beneath. She gave Oenone a quick kiss on the cheek, took the long way around the building, and headed into her apartment, preparing herself to be shocked and scared.

It wasn’t hard. The general pretty much radiated malice and cold. Even when she was sitting at the kitchen table reading a bridal magazine.

“Avalon,” said Tallulah shakily. “What are you doing here?”

It sure had been three months, thought Tallulah sourly. Three months of desperately trying to plan a wedding she didn’t really want to have while trying to cram in a whole semester of classes because she was horribly, desperately behind. And it wasn’t so much she didn’t want to marry Nick so much as if she’d had her choice she wouldn’t be marrying him now. She’d never imagined herself as a young bride and always thought she’d at least be out of college before anything so permanent as marriage entered the picture.

But the general had a significantly different plan and she had a very sharp sword capable of enforcing it, so there was that. “And I’ll have one,” she said. “In a month.” The venue had been booked. Arrangements were being made. She’d fought off more than enough questions from friends and family about how last-minute this all was and her mother’s family was more than a little scandalized. (Her father’s family was not on speaking terms since Kat’s disappearance, three years prior.)

“I’m not waiting for Paul,” she said, trying to find it within herself to cry on cue and managing the barest tremble in her voice instead. “I know he’s not coming back. When people in this town disappear, they don’t come back. But you have to give me time.”

God, she’s a psychopath, thought Tallulah, although she knew she couldn’t say that out loud. How she wished she’d come through the door as Sailor Europa instead, magic blazing, and that she’d made Avalon fear her, really tremble before all the wrath that the ocean’s depths could bring forth.

But instead, she’d walked in as Tallulah Cowden: meek, mild-mannered, newly engaged. And she was going to have to deal with those consequences. “You never told me that before,” she said, thinking about all the plans she’d made. They could- They could have a civil ceremony and then do a bigger ceremony later, right? Right, she decided. This could totally be made to work, and then maybe Avalon would be satisfied and leave her alone.

That, or tell her to have a baby. Tallulah tried not to wrinkle her nose. It could definitely go either way.

“Why the change in schedule?” she asked Avalon.

Tallulah breathed over her teeth. Should have come in as Europa, she thought again, never mind that the gig would be completely up. Avalon was not stupid, and she would want to know what a senshi was doing in Tallulah’s apartment. “Okay,” she said. The sword was very sharp, and the end result wasn’t changing. “Okay, fine, I’ll move the schedule up. But don’t expect an invitation.”

Once the general vanished, Tallulah settled down into her chair and stared at the wall. It was dishonest, she knew, to want to keep Nick as uninvolved in all this as possible. But her fiancé was in a fragile mental state, and she didn’t want to aggravate it. So when he came in, she stood up and put her arms around his neck and stood on her tiptoes to kiss him.

“Let’s elope,” she suggested.