Moy Mell 47

Elly cried herself softly to sleep on a wave of crushing anxiety and tranquilizers.

Aizawa carried her to bed and dragged his worn yellow sleeping bag into her room so he could stay by her side until she woke, keeping his promise. As he lay on the floor and listened to her panicky, shallow breathing he ran through the turn of events in his mind. He had misjudged Zoro, but unlike him, did not blame himself for the other man's outburst. She was safe, and he would not make the same mistake twice.

They would deal with the situation when she was clearer headed. The other man had agreed to be placed in a holding cell without a single word of protest. In fact, Zoro told security he would stay there for as long as necessary. He was currently sitting motionless in a corner of the room where he was confined, staring at the wall.

Elly slept for almost half an hour, and when her eyes opened the first thing she did was call out his name. "Shota?!"

Aizawa's eyes snapped open. "M'here," he slurred, throwing an arm up onto the bed. "Floor. On the floor." He dragged himself up with his lower half still cocooned in the bag.

"Oh," she gasped, catching him in a huge hug. "You stayed."

"I promised."

"Yes." Elly was starting to believe him when he made such a claim. She examined the small bandage on his cheek closely and was pleased to see it hadn't bled. "This doesn't hurt?"

"No." He wriggled around, kicking off the end of the bag so he could sit beside her. "It's just a scratch."

"It's kind of late. How about I make some coffee here and we can talk?"

"Sounds just fine."

Aizawa yawned and paced the area in front of the kitchenette while she bustled about. Soon the smell of fresh brew filled the suite and she handed him a cup.

"Thanks."

"Mm hmm." She sweetened hers with cream and motioned towards a small table nearby where they could sit. "Man, this all sucks."

"I wish things hadn't turned out this way as well." He took a long swallow and reached over with his free hand to take hers across the table. "We need to decide what to do about Zoro before we discuss the matter in general. I would normally make the call myself, but believe you would like some say on the matter..?"

She sighed deeply, rubbing one arm with a small frown. "Yes." He squeezed the hand he held and she smiled weakly at him.

"Do you wish him expelled from the compound?"

"No."

He nodded. "I thought so. I have another suggestion. We can send him to a far corner, like the forest."

"Or one of the weyrs. I - I think that might do him good. Maybe he could choose where to go, if you choose how long."

Aizawa had taken his hand back and was entering some quick texts. "Yes. Smart, safe and fair, my queen... I will let him know. Do you want to see him?" He raised his eyes to hers over the phone.

Elly hesitated. "I don't think so. That is, I do, but I don't want to cause him any more ..." She shook her head. "Discomfort. I guess. I doubt he would accept that he's in pain."

"Are you certain?" His gray eyes were concerned. "If you regret this later, it will be too late. I'm giving him a strict no-contact notice for a year."

"Yes. It has to be this way."

"I'll get immediately on it. I'm sure you don't want him to languish in that cell all night." He slipped his phone into his scarves as he stood, bending down to kiss her forehead. "Try to get some more sleep. It will all be over when you wake in the morning." He ducked into her room to grab his sleeping bag and left, dragging it out behind him.

Her tail curled around the chair and she watched him leave with a melancholy sigh. She knew she was not going to sleep for the rest of the night.

Aizawa wearily made his way to the security office. It was not long due to the fast transportation, but he made sure the night staff had printed a copy of the rules he wanted and informed Zoro he was on his way.

Once there he grabbed the copies on his desk and went downstairs to confront the swordsman. He looked over his shoulder when his name was called, but continued his silence.

"Please come forward."

He got slowly up and moved to the front of the cell.

"It has been decided that you are to have a year of suspension - away from the main compound. You may pick the area, but it needs to be of the farthest reaches of Moy Mell." He handed him a small pamphlet. "There are other stipulations that are covered here, such as no contact. I emailed you a file as well."

Zoro stared dully at the papers he held in his hand. "More than I deserve."

"It may be, but she doesn't want to throw you out or press charges. If it had been anyone else, things might have gone differently. Chris?"

Chris Redfield opened the door. "Sir?"

"You're going to need to escort Zoro to his suite to pack. He'll be transferring to a distant sector." He rubbed at the back of his neck. "Text me with the decision. I won't need to be there, we'll let the regional boss take care of the confirmation."

"All right."

The big man spoke no more; he reached down, took his swords back from the bin they had been laid in and placed them back under his sash. Chris spread his hand out, indicating the door, and they walked out to gather the rest of his possessions for the move.

Aizawa spent a few minutes composing a quick email to everyone on his staff explaining the situation and letting them know that he would be extremely busy all day. He delegated responsibilities and set everything up to run as smoothly as possible without him so he could devote himself completely to Elly and her well-being. He knew she must be devastated, but she appeared to be taking things a bit too well.

It worried him.

The Joke's on You

The school had arranged to host several guest speakers for a special assembly. As usual, the teachers stood along the sidelines while the students filed slowly in. Hizashi, Nemuri, Aizawa and Elly were standing together in a loose group when there was the loud sound of laughter from behind them.

"Hey, look who's here!" Present Mic snickered when he caught sight of a flash of green hair.

Aizawa glanced up and his face absolutely fell. He looked like he had swallowed a stink bug the way his features twisted.

The woman Hizashi had pointed at flung herself at him, giggling with glee. Elly's eye started to twitch and she stepped back from the crowd.

"Oh, dear." Midnight sighed.

The green-haired woman wore garish orange clothing resembling a jester's costume. She linked her arm with the scowling Erasure Hero. "My handsome man!" She crowed loudly.

Every bit of Elly's fur on her tail fluffed out and her ears snapped back so flat against her skull they folded completely into her hair. She bared her fangs as she growled. "Who the hell is that?"

Present Mic cleared his throat and spoke in a deep game announcer's voice resembling the one from Mortal Kombat. "Emi versus Elly. Fight!"

Midnight elbowed him in the ribs, though she had to press a hand tightly over her mouth to stifle her laughter. "It's Ms. Joke," she explained to the distraught counselor. "She, ah... has a thing for Aizawa."

Meanwhile, the newcomer was continuing to harass him. "I thought we could go to Hawaii for our honeymoon! Wouldn't that be sweet?"

"Not marrying you," he declared flatly, and crossed his arms, hoping she would drop off. She only tightened her grip, however, causing him to scowl harder in disgust.

"You want to skip right to the having kids part? That's okay too!"

Elly growled. The paw gloves on her hands tensed, and a deadly steel sound accompanied the metal slivers resembling claws as they unsheathed. She stood still for a moment, her head down, before starting to walk towards the other woman.

"If anyone even mentions 'cat fight' I'll clobber them," Nemuri warned. She held her arms out to block the male heroes, who were clearly panicking at the Insanity Hero's expression. "She's not gonna actually kill her."

"I hope you're right."

"Our babies would be so cute..." Unaware of her possible impending doom, she kept babbling.

Aizawa didn't even dignify the woman latched onto him with a reply. He glanced up as the cat woman walked past, his eyes widening slightly. "Hey, Ches, are you -"

"Dropped your guard, sweetie!" Ms. Joke took this extremely rare opportunity to quickly dart over and kiss his cheek.

"Ouch," Mic murmured. His green eyes filled with sympathy. "That was uncalled for."

"Oh, my." Midnight sucked in a breath of air, her eyes twinkling with mischief. "She might maul her a little now, and I might agree with her."

She did neither, but what occurred was upsetting nonetheless.

Elly's head suddenly and shockingly vanished. She was not one to use her quirk like this, and it came as a surprise to all of them. She brushed past the teachers and hurried down the hall, flickering completely out of sight as she did.

Aizawa pushed away from the woman clutching him, crying out and scrubbing at his face. "Damn it, woman - back off!"

"Aww, cute."

"What the hell? Where did Cheshire leave to?"

"Uh, we don't know."

"Yeah."

"She could be anywhere, Eraser."

Ms. Joke scrunched up her face. "Why're we talking about her? She probably had to pee really bad. That's what it looked like..."

"Well, she needs to be here for the assembly," he said firmly, ignoring her again.

"Yeah, but who's gonna find her?"

"True. She's invisible and knows how to stay silent." He scratched the scruff on his chin.

"I'm not so sure she's going to be so quiet, Shota." Midnight shook her head. "Or hard to find, even... especially if you're doing the searching. I bet if you listened a little harder, you could find her easily."

He went to her office first, thinking that was the most logical place for her to hide. Of course nothing could be seen, but when he entered quietly he heard a faint noise.

There was a muffled sound of sobbing coming from the corner of the office. He frowned and walked over as if he was going to look out the window, and as he got closer it stopped all at once.

"Don't make me use my quirk, Ches."

"Please don't." She gasped raggedly for air.

He shook his head and trained his burning eyes on her, canceling her invisibility. What he saw when she came into view caused him to falter. She was crying, but he had known that. What he hadn't expected was the amount of pain in her large, purple eyes. She flinched and tried to cover her face with her hands, but he reached out and brushed them away.

"The hell's wrong?"

"Nothing!" She launched herself past him, desperately trying to get away. Aizawa swore and jumped nimbly after her.

Ms. Joke had followed after him despite the other teachers warning her that she might be better off leaving him alone. It was just as well, for when they burst out of the counselor's office the small group was just around the corner.

"Uh, I kind of don't want to be the bad guy, but you may want to look over there." Midnight reached over and physically turned Joke's head so she faced the hall where Aizawa had grabbed hold of Elly's arm.

"Let me go," she pleaded, tears falling messily everywhere. She really hated crying and it was so much worse doing it in front of the unflappable homeroom teacher.

"Come here," he grunted shortly and tugged so she spun around into his waiting arms. "Look. Look at me."

Elly cringed but did as he asked. "I didn't do anyth -"

He pointed at his cheek. "Make it better," he snapped.

"I don't..."

He sighed wearily. "Just kiss me. Don't argue."

She lightly brushed her lips on his stubbled cheek, trembling as she did. Aizawa, however, turned in the middle of the kiss so their mouths met. He rumbled with approval and heard her start to purr. Elly threw her arms around his neck as her tail lashed wildly behind her. They stayed that way for a very long time, and eventually his hands cautiously wrapped around her lower waist to hold her tight.

Joke stared blankly at the sight, the smile fading from her face for the first time since any of them had known her.

"Fatality," a voice snickered softly on her left. Then, seconds later and a lot louder, "ouch!"

Short Hair (Zashi)

"Oh, honey," Elly sighed weakly as she ran her hands through her boyfriend's long blond hair as he lay facing her. "You're so gorgeous it kills me."

Hizashi snorted laughter, gently taking hold of her wrists and placing them on his shoulders. "Babe. Seriously."

"I am serious!" 

"Aww." He kissed her on the nose. "You can't keep your hands off my hair lately. What's on yer mind?"

Elly blushed. "Oh, that."

His mustache wiggled. "Yes, that."

She giggled good-naturedly. "I wish... I sometimes wish I had longer hair. I'm always playing with yours and you say it feels good."

He grinned mischievously at her. "Feels good when you tug on it when we're foolin' around, too."

She yelped when he tickled her ribs lightly, and slapped at his hand. "Zashi! I mean it."

"So do I, love." He paused. "Do I not pamper your little head enough?" He pouted sadly. "Poor thing. Here, look - I'll wash it for you tonight."

She must have stared at him oddly, because he burst into laughter. "No, really! It's one of the best things you do for me. You'll enjoy it, I promise."

"If you say so, sweetie."

"Hooray." He stood, stretching his arms over his head with his fingers interlocked. "Hmm, let me just get ready." He unlaced his fingers and held a hand out to her to help her up. As she stood, he tilted his head down to kiss her softly. "It'll be just a minute."

He called her in shortly after she heard the squeaky tap turning. Hizadhi had taken his shirt and socks off, so the only thing he had on were his piano key sweatpants. His hair was tied back in a long, flowing ponytail. 

"Hey, babe," he welcomed her with a crooked grin. "You wanna take your top off too, so it doesn't get wet?"

She smiled and did so, sitting down where he indicated on a surprisingly comfortable bathing seat. "It smells good in here," she commented lazily, sniffing at the sweet steam filling the room.

"I added something I use to the water," he admitted. "It won't leave a lingering scent, but it smells nice when you use it." He lifted her neck, stroking the short hair so it didn't get caught under the curve of the hair washing bucket. 

He rinsed with warm water, getting most of the product out before gently massaging the shampoo in.

Elly leaned back with her eyes closed in bliss as his fingers delicately rubbed. "My god."

He grinned and kissed her forehead, still rubbing. "Told you."

"How is this somehow one of the sexiest things you've ever done for me?"

He smirked. "You think it's an accident that we make love every time you wash mine?"

"I guess I never realized." She laughed a little. "We do that a lot, you know."

"Mm, well, now you know. Here, baby, I gotta rinse you. Then you're done."

"Aww."

"Don't worry," he hummed seductively in her ear. "I only mean your <i>hair</i> is done. I'm far from finished with you."

Short Hair (Shota)

"He looked so incredibly sweet, Nemuri - you should have seen it." Elly sighed and propped her face up on her palms, her elbows on the table. She stared so lovingly at Aizawa that the other woman groaned.

"Ugh."

"Eri's so much happier now. I'm glad. But I can't help but be the tiniest bit jealous that he doesn't play with my hair. It's too short."

Midnight pursed her lips and stared appraisingly at the woman mooning over the Erasure Hero.

Elly eventually went back to her office to do some filing and talk with students that needed her counseling. Around lunchtime there came a knock on her door.

"Come on in."

Aizawa poked his head around the door. "Hey. What's this about your hair?" He walked in and frowned at the shiny purple style, swept up from the bottom.

"Oh," she muttered. "Midnight told you."

"Well?" He laid both hands flat on her desk, his gray eyes boring into hers. 

"It's really nothing," she coughed. "I just... wanted you to do my hair. Or just play with it like I do with yours." Her voice trailed off with embarrassment.

He shot her a withering look. "Cheshire, please. That's ridiculous."

Her ears wilted. "I know. I'm sorry."

"I didn't say I wouldn't do it." Aizawa huffed impatiently, gesturing with his hands. "Come here. You asked for this."

Some tome later, Elly was beaming as she bounced down the hallway like a schoolgirl, her tail and ears perky and alert. She had a huge grin on her face and a light blush staining her cheeks.

Hizashi blinked several times, rapidly, as she passed by. "Ah... you wanna tell me why Cheshire's got rat tails dangling on either side of her face?"

"Shh," Midnight poked her head out of a nearby classroom, covering her mouth to stifle her smile. "Her side locks were the only hair she had that was long enough for him to braid."

The Clean Apartment

"Is she okay?"

"Ms. Cheshire?"

"She hasn't moved for fucking three minutes. Call the nurse or something."

"Maybe she's doing it because we're not speaking English, ribbit? It's Mr. Mic's class, after all."

"He's not here yet. We don't have to do squat. Plus, why's she <i>bleeding</i> then?" Bakugo pointed.

Mineta squinted professionally at the older woman's face, especially the trickle of blood running from one of her nostrils. "I recognize that look, you guys."

Everyone ignored him.

"I'm going to go see." The girl with the light blush staining her cheeks approached the counselor carefully. "Ms Cheshire? Do you need us to call the -"

As soon as the student got close enough to her, Elly moved, snapping the phone she had been staring at flat on the desk to hide it. "Yes! Uraraka! I'm fine!" Her ears had a crazy skew to them and her purple eyes were glazed over, but at least she was talking.

Present Mic showed up and, although a bit confused at her dazed expression, his enthusiasm snapped her out of it enough to get through the class. Elly hurried off to the bathroom immediately after, however, to splash cold water on her face.

Her phone buzzed silently in her belt again and she picked it up with trembling fingers. She gulped and looked down. There it was, the image he had texted her that had shown unexpectedly up right before class. 

Aizawa wasn't <i>completely</i> naked. He was laying on their bed wearing a black mesh shirt and a black bow tie. The fine webbing had been pulled up to expose his muscled abdomen and his erection below, which laid heavily on his thigh. He held one finger crooked at the camera in a "come hither" gesture and was grinning that evil grin of his. 

He had sent her a message after the photo, and she read it now, her heart hammering heavily in her chest. 

<b>Aizawa</b>: <i>I cleaned the entire apartment today so I could fuck you on any surface without hesitation</i>

<b>Aizawa</b>: <i>I'm ready</i>

<b>Aizawa</b>: <i>come home soon</i>

The Gift that Keeps on Giving

"Happy birthday!" Toshinori leaned in and hugged the Insanity Hero in a genuine display of camaraderie.

Aizawa groaned lowly at his computer, not really paying attention and still half asleep. Great, now he was going to have to acknowledge this. And why was All freaking Might holding her that long..?

He looked over and froze, the drink pouch he had been slowly draining falling from his slack-jawed mouth to bounce off his keyboard unnoticed.

The bastard kissed her!

His brain didn't quite register what had happened enough until the tall man walked out of the room. Elly was chatting with their colleagues about something, and he just sat there in his chair with his bloodshot eyes huge.

Maybe he had just whispered to her. It could have been that. He had nearly convinced himself of this when Midnight strolled past.

"A smooch from Toshinori, hmm? Most ladies I know would die for that kind of birthday gift."

Aizawa squeezed the empty drink pouch into an unrecognizable wad of foil. One of the edges cut his palm and he didn't even notice.

She went on, apparently oblivious. "I mean, now that they know who he is. Or was. Can you imagine how she must be feeling right now? Must be why she left so quickly."

Hizashi frowned, bending over to peer at his friend's face. "Uhhh... you okay, Eraserhead? Shota?"

"Coffee." He stated this single word firmly and loudly, then got up and stormed out of the room.

Midnight waited until the door swung shut behind him and then let out a whoop. "Hooked him! Now let's see if he does anything about it."

Elly had been surprised when Yagi had kissed her on the cheek, but figured it was a touching yet purely platonic gesture from a friend. She left afterwards because Aizawa was looking uncomfortable and she had to use the bathroom. He wouldn't want to have to take part in any of the office banter and he didn't care for birthdays. She yawned, stretched, and washed her hands before heading out to grab a can of coffee from the machine.

She was intercepted by another teacher before she could get there, and stood chatting around the corner. Aizawa, in the meantime, had shuffled over and stuck his coins in the slot.

"Hey there, purty lady. I noticed Aizawa looked pretty pissed that Yagi gave you some sugar back there." Snipe leaned on the wall. He was grinning, and in on the whole deal as well, but she couldn't tell behind the mask he wore.

Aizawa cracked the can open, his face like a thundercloud. That fool cowboy was about to get an earful from him about talking behind his back...

She sniffed. "Oh, please. It's not like he's jealous or gives any percentage of shit at all. I mean, I'd much rather have gotten a kiss from him anyway."

He stopped just as he was raising the can to his lips.

"The hell with propriety, too - I'd like a knock down, hold me up against the wall tongue wrestling match. Now there's a birthday gift I could get behind."

Her voice vibrated with intensity as she spoke this last and with growing nervousness he realized why.

She was purring.

Purring at the thought of him kissing her. And not just the peck on the cheek type, either - she had been rather blunt about her desire.

Holy crap.

He got through the rest of the day on autopilot, which worked well because his normal mode was deliberate and his voice monotone anyway. He paid very careful attention to when the cat woman left her office at the end of the day and followed her back to her apartment, staying close and using his capture weapon to hover out of sight occasionally.

When she turned her back to him to fumble her keys out of her bag, he slipped from the shadows and caught her unawares. Elly's ears shot up when she saw who had snuck up on her.

"Um... hey, what's up, Aizawa? Need something?"

He said nothing and moved fast, grasping both her wrists and pushing her up against the door. She flickered out of sight almost immediately, but he used his own quirk to cancel hers out and she reappeared. Just as quick, before he lost his nerve, his mouth was crushing onto hers, his tongue meeting her own when it thrust past her lips. She gasped loudly and sagged in his hold, closing her eyes but pressing into the kiss as feverishly as he was.

It was a very passionate kiss.

And that was going to be it; his idea was to surprise her and then wish her well on her day. Later, they could discuss what this had meant. Possibly at her party, which would be at the bar the teachers frequented tonight.

When she mewed softly in the middle of it, however, something simply snapped in his mind. The laconic man groaned in the back of his throat, a deep, resonant sound, and moved to her neck.

Elly cried out, her eyes widening, as he latched on to the most sensitive area of her throat where the pulse was beating wildly under the skin. "Wuh - wait," she choked. "Everyone will see..!"

"Waited too long," came the reply. "Now you're mine."

Her knees gave completely out and he caught her completely in his arms, nibbling and sucking. There would be a mark, and he knew she would not hide it. Oblivious to the world around him, he teased the pale skin until it turned red in an impressive love bite. Only then did he step back, panting hard, to admire his work. She was teary-eyed and blushing, her chest rising and falling in a rapid rhythm and her ears askew. The mark seemed to glow on the very light skin of her neck.

He wiped the corner of his mouth with a thumb, nodding in a pleased sort of way. "Happy birthday."

She stared at him as if he'd gone mad. "That was my gift?!"

"No." The biggest, creepiest grin she had seen yet crossed his features. "We can talk about that after the party." He gave her a rather scrutinizing look. "You may want to wear something simple. I dislike things with too many buttons and hooks."

The blush on her face deepened as he walked off to his own apartment.

Moy Mell 46

Sanji leaned back on the wall of the entrance hall and blew a cloud of harmless, flavored water to one side. He had taken the final step and removed the addictive tobacco, swapping it for various fruit flavors and spices instead. It was some time after breakfast and he was about to leave to head over to All Blue on the dock.

"So he keeps bugging her."

"And there's no way to contact him unless he answers to his name." Aizawa grimaced, one hand stealing around to rub at the back of his neck under his scarves. "I have a hunch he doesn't want to see me just yet."

"He'll come when he's ready."

"Yes. But then I have to be as well, don't I?"

Elly was on the phone with her girlfriend as Aizawa discussed matters with the cook inside. She was lounging by the pool, exhilarated by yesterday's events yet nervous as well.

"He told me he loved me yesterday."

"That's great!"

Elly fidgeted on the edge of the chair. "But Bella, I'm so freaking scared. What if he sees me - the other me -- and everything changes?"

"Someone that really loves you will love you no matter what," her friend insisted. "All those others said they did but they were liars! Besides, if you're so scared just let him see. You said he likes cats."

"You know I don't look like a cute little kitten," she said acidly. "Unless, of course, I want to."

"I really think this guy's different. It's something in his eyes when he looks at you."

She groaned loudly, then waved to reassure the guy that was helping Shaggy with his pool duties that afternoon. "We're talking about looking at me. You think he would have the same eyes for me with my hideous demon face?"

She took a deep breath. "No, I know - I'm sorry. I don't mean to yell at you. My emotions are all over the place and ... what's going on over there? The hell?" Elly paused, her ears alert as she heard yelling inside the house. "I'm going to have to call back. Something's happening!"

Sanji left for the restaurant with a casual wave, and Aizawa was about to join Elly on the deck when he heard a low voice nearby.

"We need to talk."

One glance at the man pulling himself to his full height in the corner and he knew talking was not what he had in mind. Aizawa dropped into a crouch, his eyes narrowing. "Go on."

"I saw you two yesterday."

"Great," he said drily, blinking his bloodshot eyes. "So you saw us kiss, I presume? And you're jealous."

Things went progressively downhill after that. Elly heard the screaming and ran inside to find a horrifying sight.

Aizawa stood his ground, his hair waving upright as the scarves around him floated in readiness about his shoulders. He had a cut on his cheek that was bleeding and his bodysuit was slashed in several areas, but he was smirking.

Zoro was standing in a familiar pose in front of him, all three of his swords out with a vein pulsing in his neck that spoke eloquently of his rage. He had dirt on his robes and the black bandanna he wore. Elly doubled her speed when she saw it, knowing he only wore the cloth over his hair when he was deadly serious. She strained to hear so she would know what was going on.

"There's no need to fight," Aizawa was insisting. "You're being foolish."

"The hell I am!"

The smaller man ducked neatly under a slice from all three blades and countered by whipping his thread out, wrapping around the swordsman's arms in an attempt to incapacitate him. Zoro snarled and was about to use the one he held between his teeth to cut himself free when she threw herself between them.

"What are you doing?! Her scream was understandable, given the situation, yet her glare was directed at her former guard only. "Stop fighting!"

He relaxed, and Aizawa unraveled his weapon, drawing it back to lay calmly about him again.

"As you wish."

Fuming, she turned to him and saw his injuries. Her face grew several shades whiter very quickly and she mewed with anxiety, her hands lightly touching near the cut on his face. "No," she whimpered.

"I'm fine," he assured her. "Just a few nicks and bruises."

Her ears folded back all the way and he was touched to see how upset she was at his injuries. "Doctor's," she commanded brusquely, pointing in the general direction of the on compound clinic.

He nodded and started to walk. Elly turned around and crooked a finger at Zoro, who was standing there with an enraged expression, as if he were being insulted. "You," she hissed. "Follow."

Black Jack was in the office today. The patchy man took one look at both men and laughed out loud.

"Finally decided to have it out?"

Elly gave him a scathing look. "Shut up, Jack, and make sure Sho's okay."

"What about..." He jerked his thumb at Zoro, who was standing there frowning.

"He can go later. Besides, we need to have a talk."

Aizawa looked like he wanted to say something, but he was ushered inside before he could speak. The door closed behind them and she whirled around, hissing with anger.

"What is wrong with you? I - I'm so angry I can't even see straight!" She directed the full force of her fury at the big man, shaking and upset. "Why did you hurt my Shota?!"

Zoro regretted it later, but he had reached his breaking point upon hearing her speak his rival's name that way. He leaped from the chair and, catching her by the upper arms, swept her around until he pinned her to the wall. Several things inside the medical cabinets rattled or fell and there were cries of alarm in the back. Instead of fighting she became terrified of the man she had been so close to only a few months ago. She struggled futiley in his grip but froze when he shouted at her.

"Because I fucking loved you for fourteen years and he comes along and steals you away in a damned month!" His single brown eye was filled with a hopeless, searing agony.

Elly became completely immobilized by his startling confession, coming so soon after the other man's yesterday. She simply sagged limply in his hold, her purple eyes blank as she struggled with what he had just told her. She hadn't much time to consider, however, as Aizawa slammed the consultation room door open, his weapon out and his eyes ablaze.

"Let her go!"

Zoro was rattled by the force of the scruffy man's blow. Aizawa punched him almost as hard as he could, blinded by the sight of him holding his beloved so roughly. He was ready to do more damage, but the other man let go immediately, registering that he had failed. Not only that, he had scared and upset the woman he professed to love.

Elly was gathered up in her bodyguard's arms and he scanned her for injuries, breathing easier when he saw there were only a few red marks where the big man's fingers had sank into her arm. He kissed her cheek and she simply fell apart.

Zoro flinched when she started to cry. These were not ordinary tears, either, but terrible, wrenching sobs that came from deep within. Too much had happened and she was overwhelmed, unable to stop as she trembled and clung to Aizawa tightly. He stroked her hair and murmured quietly to her in a soothing voice.

"This isn't good," he said after several minutes, so worried he slipped unconsciously into his native language. "Can't you give her something to help calm her down?"

Fortunately Jack knew Japanese and understood him. He nodded. "She has to be still enough to inject her, though," he warned.

Aizawa stepped things up, kissing her forehead and rubbing her ears. "You need to calm down enough so the doctor can help," he pleaded softly. "You'll feel better, and I won't leave you, my queen, I'll hold you for as long as you want. There... shhh. I love you, I've got you. You're doing great." He jerked his head at the doctor when she quieted slightly and he stepped up and administered the shot in a single swift movement.

"Shota? Shota, b - but Zoro said..."

He shook his head. "No. Calm down first, then you can think. Right now you concentrate on me, okay?"

"But -"

He kissed her so fervently that she relaxed and responded, her senses taken over completely by him. He stood, and, still kissing her, walked over to a chair and sat down. "That's better," he husked when she started purring. "No, look at me, not over there." He stroked under her chin.

"Over there" meant where the fully shamed Zoro was hunched in the corner. The extra security guards that were always following her had detained him easily but they were allowing him a moment to pull himself together before escorting him to the head office. He said nothing, since he knew it would be useless now. He only grunted when he stood up to indicate he was ready to leave.

Aizawa made sure she was distracted so she didn't see the once proud man's disgraceful exit.