Catch the Thunder

The Justines

Laxus stood on a street corner, the same spot he always stood at this time on this particular day.

As punctual as a Timex, a limousine pulled up, and the driver stepped out.

"Mister Thor," he greeted, and he opened the car door, allowing Laxus to climb in. Flute music played in the limo, and there was an elderly lady with powder-pink hair in the backseat.

"Nice to see you again, Mister Thor," she greeted. "A drink first, or your arm?"

"Not thirsty, Porlyusica," he grumbled, and he handed his arm over to her, palm up. She began to massage his wrist as the driver took off. Then she reached up and rubbed a spot just behind his ear.

"You're tense," she commented.

"It's been a rough week," he said sullenly.

"Well, try not to inconvenience the Justines."

Laxus said nothing as he rode along in the limo with blacked-out windows.

After a bit of a drive, the car stopped, and the driver opened the door. A butler stood waiting, dressed primly, face gaunt and serious. Silently, he led Laxus through an underground parking garage, into an elevator, and through some halls. Laxus walked behind, but when they came to the door which the butler held open, Laxus hesitated.

'It means nothing. Freed knows it means nothing. He's fine with this. It's all fine. Just because it's his father, Freed knows it means nothing. He's just a client. It doesn't matter who he is.'

"Sir?" the butler asked quietly.

Laxus jolted only a little before striding through the door. It shut and locked behind him.

Inside were two people, a husband and wife. The man had brown hair and wore glasses. Laxus had to admit, he saw the similarity between this man and Freed's sister, Evergreen. The woman was thin with flowing green hair. Seriously, how could he have not realized it was the same shade as Freed's hair? He just never really looked at clients, and especially not at Liberty Justine, since she was not a person he worked on. She was just a spectator.

This time, however, Llewellyn was not already naked. Both husband and wife wore nice clothes, something tailor-made and probably a classy brand, although Laxus hardly cared about that sort of thing. They also stood a bit apart from one another.

Liberty spoke with a chime-like voice. "Thor, sorry for making you come all the way here, but we had no clue how to contact you besides returning to that ... club." She tried to make it not sound distasteful, she really did. She totally failed. "We regret to inform you that your services are no longer required."

It was the most formal dismissal he had ever received, and Laxus' mouth dropped. "What?"

"I know, you've been very indulgent with our ... unique arrangement," she said stiffly. "However, this will no longer be an issue. Llewellyn and I are getting a divorce."

"Divorce?" he asked in shock. Normally, he would have just said "Oh," and demanded some sort of payment for wasting his time. Now, knowing who these two were, he was worried. Freed thought the world of his parents—his reaction to the news about his father showed just how much he thought they were a perfect, happy family. He was going to be devastated.

Llewellyn cleared his throat and explained, "You've been instrumental in keeping us together for the past four years. However, now that our youngest child has gone off to college, it's time for Liberty and I to stop fooling ourselves. Even with this arrangement, it just won't work."

"We do sincerely appreciate your ... indulgence," she said, again picking her words carefully. "We will of course pay you for the full amount today, and a severance pay for breaking our contract with you without warning. If there are any ... hidden fees ... hush money ... we will pay that as well."