Our Forbidden Love 2

15: Starley

2021, Records Room, Oceanum Villa
Piper leant into him pulling him closer and pressed her lips against his and began making out with him; deep and open mouthed. Walter calmly waited for her to finish what she wanted. He knew this wasn't what she really wanted, but she let her go for it anyway. Her hand was at the back of his head pushing him closer to her. She broke apart from him and sat back in her chair.
"C'mon, Piper, we both know it isn't me you want," he said, trying to imagine that what had just happened hadn't happened.
"I'm sorry," she said, looking down at her lap. "I want Fred, not you."
"I know, Piper. I know. But I am not Fred, and if this happens," he gestured between himself and her, "then our children are absolutely screwed; and I don't particularly want to encourage the act of incest, which I'm sure you don't want either."
"It's for him and her," she said, nodding though still looking ashamed. Silence.
"Would you rather me kiss you back?" Walter asked, hoping it would help her guilty conscience and meekly Piper nodded in response. "Okay, what about Alex and Starley?"
"Walter, I don't think one kiss will matter. And if the futures start shifting then we'll deal with it then, but I'm sure Fate will know how to help us if that happens."
Again, Piper reached her hands out to the side of his face and pulled him in closer to her. He reached out too and placed one hand at the base of her neck and the other on the side of her face. Their breaths started to mingle together and slowly their lips joined. Both of them felt equally as guilty; though both of them continued along with it.
No regrets, they told themselves. For Alex and Starley.
Walter couldn't imagine how this would be okay with Fate and how Alex and Starley's future could stay written, but he continued anyway.
Piper felt incredibly guilty for kissing Walter in the first place; now he felt like he had to kiss him back.
They broke apart and looked at each other awkwardly.
"Just the once," Walter said and Piper nodded.
"Yes. Just the once."

***

I jolt awake so quickly. I throw my eyes open trying to remove the image from flooding to my brain, but it keeps coming. The vision of Daddy and Piper is melding with the actual view of my room. I get up out of my bed and begin swimming the length of my room, slapping the palm of my hand to my forehead. Alex wakes up to the sound of something I accidentally knock off the dressing table. Thank goodness Bubbles isn't sleeping in our joined room tonight. I don't know where she is, but luckily she isn't here. The vision still hasn't gone away and Alex swims to be in front of me. He reaches his hands out and grabs the upper part of my arms and holds me still.
"Babygirl? Are you okay? What happened?"
His voice is still stuck in 'morning voice' mode and it takes me a lot of energy to actually pay attention to what he's saying, rather than get lost in the sound of it.
"Alex... vision... private... didn't want... wish it didn't... finished... can still see." I start a million sentences but I don't think I finish any of them and Alex just looks at me confused. Very slowly the vision of the past fizzes out and my eyesight is back to normal. Alex is still waiting for me to answer him. I think he's still trying to make sense of what I said before. Even though the actual vision is gone, my brain is still swimming with the thought of what I've just seen.
"Alex, I saw the vision again... the same one... Daddy and Piper... I know why... didn't want me to see it." My sentences are still broken up but I think he manages to make sense of it.
"Why? What was in it?" he asks. I collapse against his chest and he wraps his arms around me.
"They were making out..." I say, my voice shaking and my eyes screwed tightly shut against Alex's bare chest.
"Oh," he says, and I think it's all he can say. He too, seems to be confused, or trying to picture it.
"Alex," I say, "don't try to imagine it, please. It was awful. Fate, why the hell would you want me to see that?"
The future is beginning to shift. I hear a voice in the room around us. It's deep and commanding. I know it doesn't come from any of the Government members in my head because none of them sound like that voice. I look up at Alex and it seems he's heard it too.
The only way to save your future is if you take the Stonal Shell to New Zealand and he becomes a full merfolk. Otherwise, the future will be rewritten.
Then it hit me, the source of the voice.
"Fate?" I ask, and surprisingly I get a response.
Yes.
I'd never talked directly to Fate before and it felt kind of cool, but also weird. I'd never thought of Fate as a person but a bunch of purple magic that was present all the time but only acted if it was called upon or needed. Like my initiation; Fate was present the whole time, but they were only called upon to initiate me, which is when they used their magic.

Alex and I break out of the hug which we'd been holding until now.
"What did you mean 'Fate'?" he asks, super confused.
"That's who was talking: Fate."
"Right, okay then." He still looks confused. I change the topic.
"Well, uhh, Alex. Since Binah doesn't think I'm capable of much work anyway, let's go to New Zealand," I suggest and he nods eagerly.
"Yes, please. I'd love that."
"Thank you for doing all of this for me."
"It's okay, baby. There's nothing to thank me for, I love you. I'm doing this for us and according to Fate it needs to happen soon." I nod. He heads straight for the bed again and falls asleep almost instantly.
My brain is still whirring with the vision I've seen. I can feel the presence of Fate in the room, a huge magical reserve of power. There's no way I'm getting back to sleep now, so I sit at my dressing table and start planning out a map.
Yes, Starley. It's best to plan.
Thank you, Fate.