-The Loophole-

I Found Love Where it Wasn't Supposed to be

The sky had begun to cloud over as Stricklander made his way towards the travel agency. A distinct sound of thunder rumbled in the distance. The man was not having a well-off day.

"Just make it to your office, Walter," he whispered under his breath as he typed in the code to the elevator, "all you have to do is make it to your office and you'll be fine." He got off of the elevator and began to speed-walk to his office, clicking and unclicking his pen, opening the cartridge and closing it. He matched his footsteps to the sound of the pen in order to keep himself thinking straight. He rounded the corner to see Bular sitting in his office. "...No."

"Wh--" Bular began.

"No. Just--no." Strickler stormed into the office and sat down in his office chair heavily, rubbing his brow. "Bular.... what--and I mean this most sincerely--the fuck.. are you doing here?"

"Well, I was hoping to have a chat about--" The troll was cut off once more.

"No. Absolutely not. I don't care. I don't care if your sword handle split again. I don't care if you need a wound sealed. I do not care what the reason is. I have a meeting in less than five minutes, and your 'chats' famously take upwards of thirty, and I swear to the Dark Underlord, if you delay this meeting in any way, shape, or form, I will get you kicked off this project faster than that small, pea brain of yours could even try to comprehend!" Bular stared at him for a moment.

"You dare talk back to me, Impure?" The troll stood. The man cowered, realizing what had just happened. Unfortunately for him, Bular's fist moved faster than the man could attempt speech.

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I raced through Trollmarket, making a beeline for Blinky's library, nearly running right into Draal, who stepped in my way at the last second. I stopped myself inches from impact, shoes squeaking loudly through the traction against the ground. The troll chuffed in amusement upon seeing me nearly fall backwards.

"You are back. I figured after destroying your honor, you'd not show your face here again.. I suppose I was wrong." I furrowed my brows.

"Yeah. You were. And so what? This weird, 'code of honor' stuff is bullshit, you know that? If you're wanting validation, just make some friends. Real ones that pick you up when you're down and aren't assholes to people unless they deserve it. You deserve to have that in your life, you know. Regardless of how you've convinced yourself otherwise."

"Why do you smell of Bular the Butcher?" He leaned down, pointing at me.

"Well, in case you haven't noticed, I have been nearly incapacitated for a few days, and stuck on the surface. Not to mention the conversation I had with him before I came here in the first place--and I don't need to be telling you this 'cause you're the one that put me in this position, anyways." Draal was about to speak, but I didn't have time for that, so I gave his arm a small punch before heading into the library, where Blinky's face was buried in a book. I slammed my hands on the table, causing him to jump. A small noise escaped his throat as he did so.

"Oliver! You are back!" He exclaimed, smiling widely.

"I--yeah. I am," I replied, sitting across from him. His nose twitched slightly before he sniffed the air a few times. I watched his face twist in suspicion.

"Have you... been anywhere recently..?" He asked hesitantly.

"You mean, besides the hospital, school, and my house? No." I crossed my arms. "Why?"

"Your scent is.. different. One might even say familiar."

"What are you trying to say?"

"It is not every troll that smells of brimstone and cinnamon, Oliver. You've run into Bular?" I shrugged.