How Did We Get Into This Mess - KOTLC Oneshots

If We Die

Elwin took out the 'Just In Case' bin Keefe had asked him to give to Sophie if...Elwin hated to think about it. Tearing up, Elwin pushed the letter into a fluctuating beam of light.

~Havenfield - Yes, I just did that~

An envelope with Sophie's name on it plopped on her desk. The heart-wrenching detail was the sloped, messy scrawl.

Sophie slit the envelope open with a spare throwing star and unfolded the worn paper.

Hey Sophie, it's me, Keefe. I...didn't make it if you got this. Sophie bit her lip, not letting herself cry. She had wasted years worth of tears already. What matters is that you did. I was gonna wait a bit to tell you this, but, surprise! I love you. Those were probably my last words, sucker that I am. They had been. And Sophie hated herself for not realizing it sooner. Don't hate on your cute obliviousness. He knew her too well. Sophie opened her mouth and screamed, wanting the whole world to hear, but nothing came out. If you love me like that, could you say that out loud? Maybe I could hear that, wherever I am now. 

Sophie pocketed the letter and walked outside. Beside Calla's Panakes was a tall, slender tree, with pale bark that resembled broken glass. Ice blue blooms and bleeding hearts adorned his branches among soft, fluffy leaves doing The Hair justice.

"Oh, Keefe, you adorable idiot. I love you, I love you, I'll love you." WIth every soulful sob, Sophie banged her head on the trunk. "I love you, and you knew it before I did,  you stupid, stupid boy." Sophie couldn't even think of Keefe in the past tense. So she stumbled to the ground, entire body weakened by emotions, and continued reading the letter.

Love, your most bestest friend, Keefe

That was it. Sophie hadn't expected it at all, but relentlessly craved more. Sophie had been breaking off and on, and now her mind decided to replay her memory of her speech at Keefe's Wanderling Ceremony.

~Flashback~

"I never meant to love him that much, but I did. Even though it wasn't safe to. What I regret most, if I could change one thing, I would have told him. He died saving me, you know. His last words were 'I love you', and he never got the chance to hear me say it back.

I could tell you he was always there for me, or make comments about his jokes. But  his public diary has it all. I'm pretty sure the subtitle was, 'If you publish this, Ro will get you'?" A sea of nods rolled through the crowd. "Keefe didn't deserve to die. Whenever you look up at that statue in Atlantis, remember Keefe. No one deserves to be forgotten." Sophie wobbled off the podium, dressed head to toe in green. She had inset one more emerald teardrop under her eye, this one in the shape of a heart. It was Keefe.

~Flashback~

God, why did it take Keefe's death for Sophie to finally understand her own feelings? Sophie flipped the letter over, noticing writing on the back.

Problems to Solve

Matchmaking system

Talentless Prejudice

Dealing with guilt

I'm sure there are more, but we can solve these ones together. Underneath each topic was a list of flaws in the problems, and possible solutions. Sophie did what Keefe would have done if he'd only had more time.

Sophie single-handedly destroyed the matchmaking system, making it look foolish, and turning the program to building a giant Elvin family tree. She put a lot of elves out of work, not that they needed it. She created a therapy institute under Keefe's name with major results. Sophie gave the Talentless equal standing, chances for better jobs.

At the end of every day, Sophie would visit Keefe's Wanderling and pour her heart out. It felt like Keefe was right there with her. The gap in her soul never stopped hurting, and Sophie had the recurring nightmare of Keefe diving in front of her, shaowflux to the heart. Seeing the Alicorns still made Sophie burst into silent tears. As did beaches, the caves, emotion candy, Prattles pins, Base Quest, Batman, hair products, the halls of Foxfire, Tam, eyeliner, and gulons. Sophie would often find herself holding hands with empty air, which couldn't be healthy, and leaning on a non-existent shoulder.

Lord Cassius had been surprisingly nice about the whole thing. The cold man even gave Sophie the gold notebook, Mrs. Stinkbottom, and Keefe's Batman shirt. Sophie couldn't decide if Lord Cassius actually had feelings, or if he just wanted less clutter.

Ro became Sophie's bodyguard- to Bo's dissent- and that simple action made everything better. Just because.

(This is a revised draft of When Panakes Blossoms aren't enough. I also have a third, but it's way too depressing. Killing Keefe was torture. Just know I would never do it in a fanfic! This is pretty long though. SEE! I LOOK AT POLL RESULTS!)