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"that hurt more than i thought it would."
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[ y/n's ] pov
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"i sweat that i'll return to your side princess veronica!" griamore promised my sister as all three of us were there for her support. veronica looked towards the side.
"okay, fine." she turned back to face the trio once more, "gilthunder and howzer! i'm counting on you to babysit griamore!" veronica told them as griamore looked shocked. howzer started to laugh. gilthunder gave her a closed eye smile.
"of course, m'lady." he told her softly. he put his hands on margaret's shoulders. "i'll be going now, margaret."
"i'll be waiting." she smiled at him. ellie and i glanced over at howzer who was jealous of the two. we giggled together. they hopped on their horses and left the scene.
"be careful, you three!" i yelled at them.
"yeah, make it back safely!" ellie yelled to them after me.
"now i'm worried.. those three are idiots." i sighed. my sisters nodded in agreement.
"[ n/n ], are things worked out for you, too?" veronica asked me.
"pardon?" i ask them, confused.
"you know, with meliodas leaving?" ellie restated.
"meliodas, leaving?" i put my fingers up to my chin.
"surely you're not that delusional. he has to move on..!" veronica knocked me on the head with her palm.
"oww.." i rubbed my head as i looked up at the sky.
"veronica, you shouldn't hit her." margaret sighed.
"she was being dumb." veronica shrugged.
"you shouldn't call her dumb either.." ellie sweatdropped.
"she's probably in fantasy world right now thinking about going on another adventure with him." veronica pointed to me.
"hm? what were we talking about?" i ask shaking my head back into reality.
"told you!" veronica cheered victorious.
~
"meli!" i called out to him as i opened the door to the tavern. he looked over to me, pausing from wiping the cup he was holding.
"hey there, [ y/n ]!" he smiled at me.
"i have a important question." i smiled back as i walked towards him.
"i'm all ears." he responded.
"is it true you're about to go on a journey?" i ask.
"sure am!" he continued cleaning the cup.
"coolio, then i'll start getting ray and i ready to go, too!" to be honest, i wanted to go with him and the others, so bad. whenever i'm with them i feel so alive. i've been stuck in a suffocating box in this kingdom. the classes, responsibilities, and keeping an act up in front of everyone. yet, with them, i don't have to do any of that.
"no need." he said leading down to put up the cup. i paused shocked at his answer.
"but meli..?" i walked up to the counter, "you said that when this incident was over, we'd set up shop together again." i reminded him.
"doesn't sound like something i'd say. you sure you didn't mishear that?" he asked me as he stood back up and turned away from me. he picked up a ale bottle.
"what happened? you're not acting like yourself at all." i question him as i put both my hands on the bar's counter. there was a long pause before he vanished in front of me. i felt a gush of wind and noticed that my underwear was showing. meliodas who was now behind me pushed my dress up.
"still think i'm acting strange?" he asked before latching himself on my leg and rubbing his hands and cheek against it. "i'm the same as ever." i look down to him angrily.
"no!" i rip him off of me. "you're not doing this to me." i told him as he looked up to me in shock from the ground. "you can't just go and do things like that to me and then leave me behind as if i'm nothing but used trash to you!" i yelled at him. "all this time we spent together, the way you acted towards me.. i feel extremely led on." i turned around and walked towards the door. "thank you for saving the kingdom, meliodas. then, goodbye." i opened the door and walked out.
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[ no one's pov ]
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"damn." meliodas put his hand in his air to move back his bangs. "that hurt more than i thought it would." he chuckled, as tears wanted to release themselves from their current position.
~
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[ y/n's ] pov
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"the captains not acting like himself?" diane asked me as we sat on a bench together. she was now human sized and still looked adorable.
"well.. yes. but, i kinda went off on him." i nodded as i looked down at the ground.
"went off?" she repeated my words.
"well.. since he wasn't acting like himself. i told him off because i felt like i was just used trash he's thrown away since he's moving to the next town." i explained as i put my thumbs together in my lap and fiddled with them.
"hmm.." she put her fingers to her chin, "come to think of it, remember that huge tremor yesterday?" she reminded me.
"yes." i looked up to her, "everyone was so surprised." she looked up at the sky.
"right after it happened, for a split second, the captain seemed like something was really bothering him." diane revealed to me. i looked back down at the ground.
"i wonder what could've happened to get such a reaction out of him." i ask out loud. diane giggled at me.
"you're really watching the captain closely, aren't you, [ y/n ]?" diane smiled at me. i looked up to her, and my face heated up instantly.
"whoa, don't pull that, anyone can see meliodas was acting strangely." i wave my hands in defense. "i just told you he made me feel like i was chopped liver." i sweatdropped at my best friend. apparently she didn't have a valuable thing called common sense.
"but he just made you feel as such. doesn't mean you actually are to him. what if he's got a reason for it? what would you do?" she questioned me. okay, maybe she did have the valuable thing called common sense. i sweatdropped.
"i'd.. hear him out." my hands fell back to their original place.
"be honest with yourself, you're in love with the captain, aren't you?" diane dropped a bomb of a question onto me.
"well, you see.." i began taking in a deep breath and rethinking my choice of words, "i honestly cant be certain. i've never felt this way about anyone before." i told her. she moved closer to me.
"felt this way?" she asked me.
"whenever i'm near him, i feel so content. it's not suffocating like being in the castle and attending all those classes. how i find myself thinking of him when i'm alone. i find myself worrying a lot about my future, but when i'm with meli all my worries vanish. i can just live in the moment without expectations." i explained to her my feelings towards meliodas.
"but hey, isn't that.." she started. i looked at the ground.
"i do love him." i bluntly told her.
"then you should tell him how you feel right away, and catch the captain for yourself!" diane told me. my eyes wander onto a little boy and girl running past us. i close my eyes.
"i can't." i told her. "i have to keep it tucked away." diane jumped up.
"what are you talking about?!" she took a step back from me. i stared at her. "you have to tell him how you feel!"
"diane, did something happen to you?" i ask standing up and putting my hands on her shoulders worried.
"i.. remembered everything." she looked down with sad eyes. "after all this time, i finally remembered." she stared to cry and i put her face into my shoulder. "and it's just my luck he left me behind again and went off somewhere." she pushed herself further into my shoulder. "because i never told him how i felt!"
"i'm so sorry, diane.." i told her as i wrapped my hands around her back.
"what am i gonna do? if he never ends up coming back, what am i gonna do?" she grips onto the fabric of my dress. "i love king so much it hurts!" tears fell down her eyes onto my back.
..
we released each other as she calmed down. to be honest, i sympathized with her. meliodas is about to leave me behind for another adventure. it hurt, deeply. yet, i couldn't change his mind. if he didn't want me to come, i wouldn't go. i can stay here and continue to suffocate myself to my duties, that's fine with me too. "see, years ago, king said something to me. that he's always love me. but i didn't say anything back to him. because i was sure he already knew. so this time, i'm going tell him to his face." she put a pigtail over her blushing cheek, "'i love you too, king.'" she recited what she was going to confess to him. i smiled at her.
"honestly i'm envious. your feelings are mutual." i looked to the ground.
"that's why you have to tell him how you feel, [ y/n ]." diane told me.
"as i said before, it's okay." i closed my eyes and reminded myself of the girl cain told me about. i reopened them with a saddened look. even though i went off on meliodas, it didn't mean i hated him. i was cold, but so was he. i didn't want this to be our goodbye.. i never wanted to say goodbye in the first place. yet, i did. diane said something to me but i was too deep in thought to notice what she was saying. she pulled me up off the bench, i groaned because i wanted to mope around a little more.
"you're not with guila?" she asked guila's brother, zeal. she let go of the fabric of my dress as i now had stood up.
"gui...la? who's that?" he asked diane. we both stare at him in shock. she smiled and put her hands on her hips.
"what's the matter, zeal?" she asked him.
"who? i don't know. who am i?" zeal asked himself as he put his hand in his hair. tears began to flood his eyes. diane picked zeal up as we started to look around to find guila. we spotted gowther and her together.
"something happened! zeal's acting strange!" diane called out to guila as i ran behind her.
"who might you be?" she asked us.
"come on! what are you talking about?" diane looked up to her after she put zeal down. "something happened to your little brother!"
"my little brother?" guila pondered the idea. "i don't have a little brother." diane and i looked at her in shock. zeal was crying his eyes out.
"what are you saying?" she looked down to zeal, "this little boy is your brother, zeal!" she told guila.
"i'm sorry. this man is my only family." she pointed to gowther. we both jump in shock at this new information.
"gowther. you didn't.." diane stuttered out. we stood still, as gowther didn't respond.
~
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[ no one's pov ]
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"get a hold of yourself, hawk!" meliodas held hawk in his hands as he slapped his nose, "it's because you keep gobbling up whatever you find on the ground!" he yelled at him.
"what did he eat?" merlin asked meliodas. though, they weren't on the best of terms. they both continued to work together, since the ten commandments had returned.
"whatever was in a bottle someone tossed outside." he turned to face merlin as hawk started to speak to himself.
"must've been the magic stabilizers i gave gowther." merlin put one finger to her chin. "if that's the case, then this doesn't look good."
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[ y/n's ] pov
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"wait, you manipulated their memories?" diane asked him.
"it was both a necessary action and process for me. to build a relationship with guila, her brother's existence wasn't necessary." he explained to us. our jaws had dropped at what he was telling us. "i wish to have a heart. a heart that can comprehend emotions." his face seemed saddened. i felt horrible for him, but memories aren't something you can mess with. i'm sure he doesn't know what he truly did. "i've attempted to learn about friendship from the captain and ban, but in the midst of their battle the other day, i observed an even greater emotion with my own eyes. that emotion is love." he paused and picked his head up to look at the both of us. "i decided that i should study love, rather than friendship. and for that, this woman suited my needs perfectly."
"what a minute, you faked saving guila as she was about to turn into a demon?" diane raised her voice while speaking to gowther.
"actually, i did save her. demons blood rampages due to feelings of inferiority towards others, and rage at oneself for being weak." he looked to guila and put his finger on her chin, "after erasing such memories, i replaced them with memories of her being my betrothed, my apprentice, of having had a happy childhood." diane began to shake in anger, "although it took a while, the procedure was flawless."
"no matter the reason, there's no way it's ever okay to manipulate someone's memories!" diane yelled at gowther in fury. as we both watched gowther cup guila's cheek.
"guila's previous memories were filled with pain." he said as he turned to us, "are you still going to tell me that she'd be happier with her real memories?"
"you're damn right. no matter how painful they may be, the memories guila made with zeal over so many years are precious! you cant just replace them, understand?" i didn't know what to do to help decrease the tension.
"incomprehensible." gowther said, "the love guila and i share has no need for such an existence."
"gowther, that isn't love.. it's manufactured by your powers.." i softly said to him. he looked at me. "you used your powers to make memories between you that didn't happen. if you want to love someone, you have to make memories that aren't fake." i explained to him. he looked at the ground.
"this is going nowhere!" diane mumbled as she put a protective hand over zeal and i. "[ y/n ]! bring the captain or merlin here!"
"diane..." i sadly look over to her.
"just hurry!" she told me.
"right.." i turn and start running away.
"i wont let you get in my way, friend." gowther said as he tried to send an attack but diane stopped him with a bolder.
..
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[ no one's pov ]
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"that's enough, gowther!" diane told him. "if you keep this up, there will be a huge commotion!" she said as she watched him jump back a few feet.
"i admit that a commotion would be annoying." gowther looked up from the ground and summoned his sacred treasure. diane jumped at the sight. gowther sent an attack called blackout. this attack made every single living creature with a small power level unconscious. "in the end, memories are just information. easy to both create and delete. i wish to learn what is beyond that. about emotions."
"me, too." diane clenched her fist, "i don't know why, but i'd forgotten my precious memories with king. and i can never forgive myself for that. but i got them back." tears prickled in her eyes, "probably because they were carved so deeply into my heart! erase precious memories.. nobody can do that!" she yelled at gowther.
"incomprehensible."gowther rushed to her, and jumped in the air. diane leaned back to the ground and sent multiple sharp points to him.
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[ y/n's ] pov
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i was standing in a bright lit field. i looked around, confused. why was i here.. and what was i doing prior? a paper flew in front of the ground and landed beside me. i picked it up, and it was a wanted poster for meliodas. "that's right. i'm searching for sir meliodas." i heard footsteps coming from behind and me shortly stop. i slowly turned filled with anxiety. meliodas stood before me, he looked exactly like the wanted sign. "meliodas? is that you?" i question him, as i blinked. suddenly, ray was behind me as well. i looked back to him, and he growled at meliodas. it felt as if they were having a standoff and i was in the middle of it. a tense silence filled the air.
"[ y/n ]! [ y/n ]!" someone called out to me. "come on, snap out of it!" i slowly opened my eyes. i look to find meliodas sitting beside me. i sit up and put my hand on my head. "meli..-meliodas?" i look around, "ray.. where's ray?" i ask, frantic. i didn't want to be around meliodas right now. he shook his head.
"what a relief. are you alright?" he asked me with a smile. my eyes glance over to merlin.
"merlin.." i changed the way i sat on the floor, my hand never leaving my head. i was feeling a sharp pain. "i had another dream, what do i do? my head is hurting.." i ask her. meliodas looked towards merlin as well.
"another dream?" meliodas turned back to me. i looked to him and nodded.
"i've just been having weird dreams and merlin's been helping me with them." i told him as i stood up and went to merlin's side. "this time, at the end of my dream. ray and meliodas seemed to have a standoff.. but i don't know why because they don't have anything against one another." i told her softly as i didn't want meliodas to hear. "oh wait, where is ray? i haven't seen him in such a long time." i ask her. "he was with you last."
"i don't know." she put her finger up to her chin.
"hm.. alright. then, what happened?" i ask, not pressuring the topic. ray could handle himself.
"gowther used his magical power to make everyone in the kingdom black out." meliodas answered me as he walked up to merlin and i.
"right! it's terrible!" i remembered what i had been doing before. "gowther and diane are fighting! we have to hurry!" i told them as i pointed to where i had come from.
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[ no one's pov ]
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diane used pretty foot skills to dodge gowther's attacks. gowther summoned his sacred treasure since he was outmatched without it. diane who was pretty pissed at this post summoned two minions out of rock. gowther hijacked them and sent an attack towards diane. diane punched through both rocks before coming close to landing a punch on gowther. a bright light engulfed the area.
..
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[ y/n's ] pov
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we managed to make it to the scene. i went over to check on guila and zeal. meliodas checked on diane. then, merlin checked on gowther. after we made sure they're okay, meliodas walked to where merlin was standing. "gowther. do you realize what you've done?"
"please lock me up. away from everyone else." gowther begged as he shoved his face in his knees. "and hurry, before i cease being myself."
"merlin, we'll continue our conversation later." meliodas told merlin.
"all right then." she nodded.
~
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[ no one's pov ]
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"the bottom line is i don't understand." a almost naked yet covered with a darkness blonde haired girl said.
"it's surprising enough. that we find a castle standing where there was nothing for 3,000 years." one with a white cape commented. "but how did it get into this wretched condition?"
"it seems an explosion of magical power radiated from the center of this castle. quite an intense one, at that." one with light purple hair told the others.
"so deep. looks similar. 30,000 feet. residual magic." one black blob with a bunch of masks commented.
"i see." giggled a redish pink haired boy with that was protected by a green shield.
"no doubt about it. this is meliodas' doing." the spiked haired boy crossed his arms. "damn him. what was he doing here?"
"oh, let it go, zeldris." the purpled haired girl told him. "i know we're all excited to go and collect her. yet, lets relax and enjoy ourselves. we haven't been in this world for so long, after all."
"estarossa," he turned to face the male who he called out to, "what do you think?" he was laying down. "brother!" he opened one of his eyes.
~
"oh? who knew gowther was a doll?" hawk commented. "this world is full of mysterious things, huh?"
"that doesn't make sense coming from you." meliodas told hawk.
"a talking piglet!" slader put his hand up to his face.
"hawk, are you feeling better now?" merlin asked him.
"i was feeling kinda spacey for awhile there, but after pooping, i'm all better!" he answered merlin.
"you're a digestion machine, aren't you?"meliodas commented.
"hey, captain, did you know? about gowther?" diane asked meliodas. he turned to face her.
"nope. i just found out today." he answered her.
"i had no idea, so i refused to believe him. i bet gowther was completely serious about it." diane sadly looked to the ground.
"don't worry about it, diane. gowther will be fine!" meliodas told her.
"you're amazing, captain. you're not at all surprised!" diane complimented him.
"well, i guess it's because i've seen all kings of people before now." he explained to her, "and besides no matter who gowther is, he's still our cherished comrade, and one of the seven deadly sins, right?" diane smiled and nodded her head in agreement.
"you sure are a lucky guy, gowther." slader told gowther who was now a doll. diane giggled.
"captain?" diane said before pausing. she touched her head, "what's going on? my head feels fuzzy."
"hey, slader. how about joining us for a while?" meliodas asks slader. "since we're missing two of our guys, it'd be great to have you on board."
"fine by me." he nodded. "his majesty told me to help out you seven deadly sins, after all."
"would it be okay for [ y/n ] to come along too?" diane asked meliodas. his bangs covered his eyes.
"i told her before. the battle for liones is finally over. there's no longer any reason to put her in danger." he told her. i shook my head in disapproval.
"you told me to speak my mind more, so i will take you up on that." i looked up at him. "i thought we were in this together. you told me that i was one of your comrades, too. was i really the only one who felt that way?" i yelled at him. i was angry, actually.. furious. like gilthunder told me back at the forest of white dreams, being a grain of sand that everyone walks by.. that's how i felt right now. "or am i.. truly just, some girl you met that means nothing to you..?"
"that's exactly right!" he answered me. diane came to my defense and punched him in the face.
"captain, you jerk!" he yelled at him. hawk back kicked him in the air.
"how dare you, you stinkin' pig!" he yelled at him. i rushed out the door so he couldn't get the pleasure of seeing me hurt.
"[ y/n ]!" diane called out to me.
"okay.. that hurt." meliodas said as he landed upside down from being pushed into a wall.
"read the room! are you gowther?" hawk scolded him. i stood outside leaning against the tavern, not wanting to communicate with anyone. i took in the words he told me. he was right, there was no need for me to continue traveling with them. yet, even so, i still wanted to.
"honestly. that man has no tact at all does he." slader commented as he walked up to me. i slid down the tavern wall and my face fell in between my knees.
"he's right. i get it." i told him as he looked down at me. "i want to believe that he said it because he doesn't want me to be in danger." i looked up to him, meeting his gaze. "truth is, that's why i want to help him. being the idiot that he is, he's always saving me without any concern for himself." i told him with a smile on my face.
"then you should express your feelings with actions, not words." slader told me.
"actions, you say?" i repeated him.
"yes. a woman may rely on a man's words, but for a man it's a woman's actions that count." he moved closer as if he was going to whisper to me, "that's my pet theory, anyway." i giggled with him.
"thank you slader, it means a lot." i told him smiling softly.
"it's no problem, let's head back inside." he pointed to the tavern. i nodded as he helped me stand up. we both walked into the tavern. "what's the sound?" slader asked merlin.
"we're changing our initial plan. we're heading to the royal capital camelot immediately." i've detected an abnormal surge of magical power." merlin told us.
"immediately? merlin, what's going on?" diane asked as we disappeared in thin air.
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