Dark Hearts

[Dragongal]

"I'll just have to surrender, then," Jack laughed and held his hands up.

Adira pulled away and looked up at him with wide eyes. She hadn't anticipated the kiss getting that... heated.

 

[sugakookie]

Maybelle giggles at him. After a round of test driving, everyone gathers back inside for breakfast, family games including charades, then lunch. After lunch, everyone gathers in the pool room to swim.

Mathias tilts his head curiously. "That was nice. You okay, though?"

 

[Dragongal]

Adira just smiled and simply said, "Yeah. Almost got a bit carried away."

A week later is New Year's eve. Em, Matt, Adira, and Mathias are hanging out at a lively bar. Em and Adira had become rather good friends in the recent days.

Conroy and Maven were sitting on the roof of Conroy's apartment building. He'd cast spells so they could stay warm. From up high, they could see the celebrations below, and soon they'd see the fireworks as well. Christmas had passed wonderfully for both of them, and now they were just cuddling and talking on a blanket they had laid out.

 

[sugakookie]

Matt and Mathias are sitting and laughing together, having a nice time catching up in person.

Eli and Mason are towards the front of Times Square, waiting to see the ball drop and watching the concert in the meantime. Maybelle, Jack, Max, and Be are further back but still in the crowd. Even Theory had shown up for the celebration and found Mason. So Mason invited him along, and now he is with Eli and him.

"How much longer 'til midnight?" Maven asks Roy.

 

[Dragongal]

Em and Adira were joking around, mostly about how their soulmates were coincidentally best friends. Adira leaned in and said, "And Mathias? He can sing."

Eli was keeping close to Mason to keep warm in the cold winter air. To make Theory feel included, he asked, "So, you and the guy at the candy store are a thing?"

Jack asked Maybelle, "Why is this celebration important?"

Beatrice and Max still had a lot of talking to do, but they were at least talking some. And not panicking, of course.

Conroy checked his watch. "About fifteen minutes. Then the fireworks will go off and you'll get to see the way mages celebrate new years."

 

[sugakookie]

Em laughs. "That's pretty cool. Matt can sing, too, but he never sings for more than a few seconds. He's usually being silly," Em says.

Theory nods. "Yes. More or less. We managed to be able to talk telepathically so we can keep in touch," he says. Mason keeps his arms loosely wrapped around Eli. He has a face mask over his nose and mouth and a black baseball cap pulled over his forehead to cover a lot of his eyes.

"It's celebrating the new year. One year ends, another one begins," Maybelle says, standing in front of Jack with her back pressed against his chest.

Currently, Max and Be were singing along to their favorite group performing.

Maven looks up at Roy curiously. "Really? That sounds so exciting!"

 

[Dragongal]

Adira paused, then quietly asked, "Is he good...?"

"Oh that's great!" Eli said. He looked up at Mason and said, "I wish we had a telepathic link."

"If it is about endings and beginnings, why is there not a celebration each day?" Jack was honestly curious. He didn't understand why a year was more important than a day - he had spent too long with very little concept of time except that every day would be agony.

"It's very beautiful. Only mages can see it. I'm not part of the casting this year, but I was in years past." He looked down at her and wrapped his arms around her more tightly. He had an important question to ask her in fifteen minutes.

 

[sugakookie]

Em nods enthusiastically. "Oh yes. I think so, at least," she says, looking at her boyfriend who is taking shots like his life depends on it.

"I'm pretty sure half human-demons can't do that. Also you're just a boring human," Mason teases, leaning to place a kiss on Eli's temple.

Maybelle shrugs. "I'm not sure. Maybe because a year is more significant. The last number in a date finally changes. A year signifies a long time. Day-to-day is short and finite. In a year, you can do so much. Then the next year, you can start a new chapter in your life."

"Wow, then I'm glad I'm a mage now. Is it like fireworks?" She asks.

 

[Dragongal]

Adira smiled and looked over at Mathias who had had quite a few beers by this point. "Hey Mathias? Why don't you sing something for us? Matt can join in too! Don't even get on stage!"

Eli acted insulted. "Yeah well you're... you're.... You're just a big penguin!"

Jack slowly nodded, then hugged Maybelle around the waist. "I think I like that idea."

"Yes... but better. You'll see soon, cher." Conroy chuckled.

 

[sugakookie]

Matt shakes his head rapidly. "Don't pull me into this, I haven't sang with this kid since living in the barracks," Matt says.

Mason squints. "WHAT? It's so loud here, I can't hear you! Oh wait, yes I can. Penguins have better hearing than humans."

"It's not too out of control and loud here for you, is it?" May asks.

Maven nods excitedly and holds Roy close to her.

 

[Dragongal]

Em sighed and said, "Please Matty? I bet you'll both sing so beautifully."

Eli laughed and leaned back more against Mason. "You're too cute." He felt bad for Theory, who didn't have Orion with him.

Jack shook his head. "We're far enough from the mass in the center, I'm a little on-edge, but okay. I won't... freak out."

Conroy absentmindedly runs his fingers through her hair. "This has been a good year."

 

[sugakookie]

"Yeah~ Please Matty?" Mathias grins, tipsy and ready for fun.

Matt looks at Em, then Mathias. He sighs. "Okay, babe. Only cause you asked," Matt says to Mathias, a stupid grin on his face.

Mason laughs. "Thanks," he says. The trio wiggles their way closer to the front until they're right up against the fence things as midnight nears.

Maybelle nods. "Okay. Let me know if you get too overwhelmed at any point," May says.

"You can say that again," Maven says. She then looks up at him. "But don't actually say it again."

 

[Dragongal]

The next song to come on is "Shut Up and Dance," and Mathias and Mason immediately formed perfect layered vocals.

Adira slid her phone up from under the table to discreetly record them, and Em does the same. Both of the ladies are grinning widely.

Eli made sure to keep Theory close - he didn't want the guy getting lost in the crowd, since he was half angel and half demon and who knew who was around them.

Jack nodded. "On one hand, it is nice because I can blend in. On the other, I know that others can blend in too which is a risk. I'm just trying to remember that we aren't alone in this crowd, we have others that we know here."

Conroy smirked. "See? You know how smart-allecky I am. I love it."

 

[sugakookie]

Matt even stood up and danced around in front of Mathias while singing.

Mason, Eli, and Theory dance and mess around.

Maybelle nods. "Yep. And we have someone who can protect us a heck of a lot, too. So nothing bad will happen."

Maven giggles. "Good."

 

[Dragongal]

The whole bar watched their performance and applauded as they finished. After they took their seats, Adira pulled Mathias close and kissed his cheek. Em laughed with Matt.

The ball is about to drop and people begin to count. Eli joins in.

Jack looked down at her curiously but didn't get to question it as everyone began counting all at once.

Conroy settled Maven in his lap as people began counting, and said, "At exactly midnight, look at the stars."

 

[sugakookie]

As if on cue, people start counting right after the boys finish singing. Matt counts super loudly and keeps Em close to him. As everyone yells Happy New Year, Matt takes Em's face in his hands and kisses her hard.

When the counting ends, Mason pulls down his face mask and leans over to kiss Eli.

Maybelle turns around to Jack. She stares him in the eyes. "3... 2... 1... Happy New Year, Jack," she says, then leans up to kiss him.

Maven stares at the stars so she doesn't miss anything.

 

[Dragongal]

Adira kissed Mathias slowly and sweetly as the midnight was rung in. She held the kiss for about a half a minute, then let him go.

Em returned the kiss happily. When they separated, she laughed. "Happy new year, sweety."

Eli kissed Mason right back, then said, "Happy new year! Now we can go find some hot chocolate, right?"

Jack leaned down to properly kiss her in return. He didn't know why he was to kiss her at that moment, or why everyone else was kissing someone, but he would not complain.

All of the constellations light up as though they were real beings in full translucent colors, and they move about in a kind of show. This year, after a colorful display, Ursa Major had a bundle of flowers in his hand which he threw down to the earth below. A rose fell down on top of Maven and Roy. He picked it up and held it out to her. "Happy New Year, cher."

 

[sugakookie]

Mathias shows Adira a goofy grin. "Happy New Year. That was a very nice kiss," he says.

Matt chuckles. "Happy New Year," he says, giving her another hard kiss before going back to take another shot.

Mason laughs. "Yeah, we can. Happy New Year," he says. The crowd doesn't really move because they're busy cheering, but Mason starts leading the way out of the sea of people.

Maybelle ends the kiss and looks up at Jack. "See? This is what people do. They kiss somebody when midnight comes."

Maven's jaw drops. She stares in awe at the rose and gently takes it. "This is real?" She says in a hushed, amazed voice. She expected something beautiful, but didn't know it would be that breathtaking.

 

[Dragongal]

"Well it takes two, you know. I only get half the credit for that kiss." She kissed his cheek then gave him a grin.

Em took a sip of her wine, then said, "How about another duet, boys?"

Eli followed Mason and held his hand to make sure they could stay together in the crowd. He kept an eye on Theory, to.

Jack grinned wryly and asked, "And they kiss after midnight too, right?" Before pulling her into another kiss.

"Yes it is," Conroy said with a grin. The fireworks started going off in the distance, and he decided that now was the time. He shifted her off of his lap and moved to get on one knee. "Maven... I realize that you may not understand what I'm doing. It's not marriage, but it's... it's kind of more. I love you with everything I am and I only want to see you happy." He reached into his pocket and pulled out and opened a box with a gold ring in it. "I'm... I'm literally pledging my soul to you. No matter what happens, ever, I will always love and support you and it is impossible for me to willingly hurt you. It means that rather than see you hurt, I'd rather give up my soul and protect you. I'm trusting you with my very soul. It's in your hands. And there's nobody I'd ever trust it with more than you. I love you. Will you accept this ring and with it, my heart and soul?"

 

[sugakookie]

Mathias chugs down another beer. "I'm down," he says.

Matt downs two shots and starts obnoxiously singing along to the next song.

Maybelle giggles and kisses Jack back.

Maven looks at Roy in awe and surprise. "Roy, I... of course. Yes, absolutely," she read something brief about mages pledging souls once before.

 

[Dragongal]

Mathias cuffed Matt's shoulder and started singing nicely, insinuating that Matt ought to do the same.

Adira was happy to just watch Mathias sing - or really just to look at him in general.

At the hot chocolate booth, someone comes out of the crowd and pulls Theory into a hug. It's Orion, who had managed to get away from his family early.

Conroy grins and stands up, then helps put the ring on her finger. It was simple gold with a single small diamond set into it. He starts laughing with relief, then admits, "I was so scared you would say no...." After a few moments he paused and said, "It's funny. By all rights I don't even own my soul any more, it's yours, but I have never been so happy in my life."

 

[sugakookie]

Matt pouts but starts singing normally, leaning on Mathias for effect.

Theory gasps and sends a defensive electric shock into Orion just enough to have him let go and stumble. When he sees it's Orion, he gasps and hurries to hug him. "I'm so sorry! I didn't know it was you!" He felt so guilty but was happy to see his soulmate. The shock radiated out of Theory so much when it happened that even Mason and Eli felt a little tingly.

"Why would you think I'd say no?" The thought of having his soul did lay a little heavy, but she figured it was fine if Roy was so happy. "I'm just as happy as you are," Maven says, then places a kiss on his lips.

 

[Dragongal]

Adira videotapes the singing again, but more for her own later viewing.

Orion was stunned by the shock, but the next thing he knew he was being hugged by Theory. He returned the hug and smiled. "It's okay, I shouldn't have surprised you. A shock for a shock, I guess...." He looked over at Mason and Eli and flashed them a quick smile.

Eli shifted uncomfortably from the sensation of the shock, but at least Theory seemed happy. "So you're Orion?"

Orion smiled and nodded. "Yup. Nice to meet you both."

"I was just scared irrationally." He smiled and gave her a quick kiss. "You know how I do that."

 

[sugakookie]

"It's stuffy in here, let's go out," Matt yells over people after the song is over. He's more than tipsy by this point and the bartender is even hesitant about giving him more. Matt is a happy drunk, though, and stumbles over his feet as he makes his way to the bar door to go outside. He doesn't wait for anyone.

Theory stays clinging to Orion and looks at his friends. "These are my friends Mason and Eli," he says. "Mason's half demon, too."

Maven nods and stands in front of Roy, wrapping her arms around his waist. "I know. I'm glad you asked anyway."

 

[Dragongal]

"I got him," Em said as she rushed after Matt and finally took his arm. "You trying to get away from me?" she joked,

Adira looked up at Miles and said, "Let's go home. But neither of us are driving."

Orion looked up at Mason and said, "Oh, cool! I'm half too. Again, nice to meet you both." He didn't say what his other half was for a reason.

:And I'm glad you accepted." He said and kissed her cheek as he pulled her into a tight hug.