And the Sunlight Clasps the Earth (Chaelisa)

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In all honesty, Alissa didn't know what she was doing, traipsing alone through narrow lanes in a strange city. She was royalty; everything had always been done for her, and she realized she was wholly unequipped for this. Even after escaping, it'd been Remi who had protected her. Her inaptitude became painfully obvious as she rounded a corner and found herself being roughly grabbed, a sharp edge of a knife pressing against her neck.

"Women like you shouldn't just wonder around these parts," a male voice whispered in her hear, his breath smelling rotten and repulsive. "Especially a pretty thing like you."

Alissa wasn't able to move, the fear paralyzing her. She could feel the man's fingers unpleasantly digging into her side, and she realized there and then that she was probably not getting out of the situation unscathed. About to plead for her life, to peg for the man to just take her coins and let her go unharmed, a voice somewhere in the shadows startled them both.

"Get the hell away from her, you scoundrel." Something hit the side of the man's face and he slumped, rather unceremoniously, to the ground.

Alissa whirled around, coming face to face with Remi who looked nothing short of furious. Alissa had never been more relieved to see anyone in her life, which is probably why, in a moment of weakness, she lunged herself at the other woman and wrapped her arms around Remi's neck.

"Hey, it's all right." Remi's arms wound around Alissa's midsection, and she had never felt so safe.

Hand stills trembling slightly, Alissa pulled back, her cheeks coloring as she realized how she'd reacted. For a moment, neither of them said a word.

"Would you, uh, maybe be willing to accompany me for a little while longer after all?" Alissa asked, swallowing her pride. "For a guinea, of course."

Remi gave a lopsided grin. "Of course."

---

This was it. Lisa was going to do it this time. From the confines of her car, tapping her fingers rhythmically against the wheel, she followed people moving in and out of the building. Yes, she was absolutely going to do it this time. In all honesty, she'd lost count on how many times Jisoo had been on her case about it, had practically pressured her to make an appearance.

Boston Police, South Boston Neighborhood Station was written in white letters on the sign on the other side of the street, and Lisa felt the first tremors in the tips of her fingernails.

"For fuck's sake, this is ridiculous," she muttered, willing herself to let go of the wheel and grab the handle of the door. The door felt like it was made of lead, moving the handle turning out to be a nearly impossible task. With all the willpower she possessed, Lisa managed to crack it open, just a tiny bit, but to her, it felt like she'd just climbed Mount Everest. A drop of sweat slid down the side of her face as the trembling in her hands gradually intensified.

It was nearly going the way she'd planned, until the unplanned happened in the form of two ex-colleagues walking down the street towards the station. Graham had once been a good friend of hers, until she promptly cut him out of her life after the shooting. His partner, Killian, Lisa was never particularly close with, but there was always a certain level of trust among the people you worked with on the force.

It was turning out of be just too much, the idea of being the sole focus of Graham and Killian's mocking eyes, because she wasn't strong enough to get over the tragedy, because she wasn't strong enough to not get her partner killed. Tears stinging in her eyes, Lisa closed the car door with a little more force than necessary and grabbed the steering wheel again. Her knuckles turned white as she willed the tears not to fall, only to realize it was a losing battle.