The Second Moonlark: A KotLC Fanfic

Chapter Eleven (Stars and Sisters)

A.N. Mushy alert!!!

What was Sonia going to do?

While she had told a lot of secrets to the group, she had held back the fact that Sophie was her sister. She had even tried to drown the truth in her subconscious, but her dreams didn't let her forget. Eventually she would have to tell someone. Maybe... Maybe Ruy would understand.

Sonia strode purposefully out of her room and into the living room. She knew that his favorite place inside the house was the armchair in the corner, but when she checked, he wasn't there. She thought for a moment. Where else would he be? Then she remembered that he had said a long time ago, when they had been locked up in a Neverseen facility, that he loved looking at the stars. Perhaps he was on the porch.

She stepped out into the small chill of the night. Sure enough, Ruy was lying down on the stone surface. He was staring up at the sky, but his eyes quickly flicked towards her as the sliding door shut.

"Hey," he said, and then he turned his attention back to the stars. She murmured hello, and then lay down next to him. She waited a while, then judged it fine to start talking.

"I think I've been in the Whiteout." He was surprisingly calm, only turning his head towards her. She hastily explained more.

"You know how, for a while, Gethen made a point of saying that I looked a lot like the Moonlark- right after his mission to grab her from her human house?" His eyes widened in shock.

"You think she's your sister."

"Yeah."

"But... How would you remember? The Whiteout doesn't leave memories behind."

"I know. But I can remember, probably because of the power issues and my impenetrable mind. And I know that I was taken." He paused for a moment, contemplating what that might mean.

"So... Umber and Trix aren't your parents?" She hadn't thought of that. It certainly put a different skew on her memories, though.

"I don't know. All I know is that I'm her sister." They looked at the stars for a while after that. Sonia could see the struggle on his face, even through the darkness. The one that told her he wanted to say something.

"I know what it's like to have a past you can't escape." That was... Interesting. She hadn't expected him to say that.

"My face has to be hidden at all times because of my mother. I look so much like her that it would be hard to be an agent without my addler. I even got Static to erase my picture and personal info. But... I just feel like I have to tell someone."

"That's exactly how I felt with mine." She paused. "So you weren't raised in Mysterium?"

"No. I actually lived in the Neutral Territories for a while after I turned... Eight, I think. It was rough, but not more than living in the Cities would've been."

"Who's your mom?" Sonia immediately regretted her choice of words. A please would've been nice, maybe a no pressure. Why did she have to feel so idiotic around Ruy? It was driving her crazy, how she could never get her thoughts straight when he was talking to her.

"Well." Long pause. "Councillor Clarette." Oh. That was why. She had wondered why he couldn't look like his mom, but that actually made a lot of sense from what he told her. Everyone would have known what a Councillor looked like, so he would have had to wear the addler everywhere- just like he said. She noticed him fiddling a little bit with an earpiece that she'd somehow never noticed before. Right before she was able to wonder why it was there, she blinked- because his face had changed. Like a curtain, the normal nondescript face and gray eyes dissolved into what he really looked like, under the addler.

He had tousled jet black hair that looked like he had forgotten to cut it once or twice. His turquoise eyes shifted from the stars to her, with a kind of warmth that made her face go up in flames. His skin's color rippled from a shadowed gray into a sun kissed tan shade. He turned to look at her, and she had to acknowledge it.

She had a major crush on Ruy Ignis.

His voice tore her away from the planet she'd been walking on.

"This is what I really look like." He paused, with his brow furrowed, like he was phrasing out words in his head. "You look surprised and grumpy aaaaaaaaand... I'm going to say a little conflicted. Do I not look presentable?" He ran his hand through his hair. "Is my hair fine?"

He was making the most hilarious and adorable concerned face that she had to laugh.

"You're fine. In fact... I think it's the best I've ever seen."

"You really think that?" He looked so hopeful.

"Yeah. I do."

She didn't have to say anything else.

A.N. Yes they are an item now... This one was more of a 'developing Sonia's character' than a 'developing the plot'. Anywaaaay, them being together does have a significant effect on the story. Stay tuned!