The final chapter (s)

There shall be no more XP

"Mom...?" Mint sputtered.
"Oh my god," Tessia sputtered back. "Oh my god, Mint...?"
Before the either of them could remember what had happened, they were inside the house. Mint was sitting at the table, across from the boy. Her brother... maybe?
"Mint... I don't know if you know this or if you even want to know... but I... I didn't mean to abandon you... I had done some reckless things that had consequences..." Tessia began and trailed off.
Mint felt her mind boggle, going back to the dream that she had had almost a month ago. "You did reckless things... like Ruecian?"
Her mother gasped at the language she used. "Mint, is that any way to--"
"Mom! Its not as though he forced you into it! You were the one who was lustful! Don't blame anyone for your actions! You left us all behind, you all but destroyed the morale of East Heaven, you caused me to grow up a weirdo who didn't give a damn about anything but herself... I think I have a right to yell!" Mint screamed as tears began to stream out her eyes. She buried her face in her hands.
Tessia smiled a sad smile. "You're very right, Mint. But honestly... he was disgustiing and naïve... how could I love him? I had to leave because of the consiquence that would ensue... it would cause both our deaths..."
She looked over at the young man with white hair. "He... was the consiquence."
The boy closed his eyes... it looked like he'd heard this a hundred times.
"Mother, may I leave the room?" he asked in a near silent voice.
Tessia didn't respond, her face stony. The boy stayed put.
"I'll have you know, Mom, you're little boyfriend caused East Heaven a lot of trouble."
"What did he do?"
"He tried to steal one of East Heaven's relics... DewPrism."
"What happened to him?"
"I killed him." Mint said this sentance with such venom and cruel calmness.
Her brother let out a little noise, like a mouse being stepped on. Besides that, there was silence.
"You did... what?"
"I killed him. You should have seen him screaming in shame at being killed by someone like me. He was bleeding all over the place... I'm surprised that it was so easy..." Mint felt the words slide out like verbal diarehha. It sort of felt good to tell her mother and her bastard brother how Doll Master had died.
The boy at the end of the table let out a sob.
"Mom... can I go?" he asked, this time more fervent.
"Be quite!" Tessia snapped at her son.
Mint slammed her hands on the table and stood. "I had always hoped that perhaps you were loving, you know, that you actually cared. The way moms in faery tales do, until they die and the evil step mother takes over. But you know what, Tessia? You don't deserve the title of 'mother.'"
She looked across the table to the boy. He had tears trickling down his cheeks. "I'm sorry for what I did to your dad. But... we're siblings, right? You can come hang out with me, if you want. I live above a bar."
The little boy looked up. "...Me?"
"Yea. C'mon, I'll let you smoke a hookah if you come," Mint smiled.
Like that, the kid stood like a rat being lead by a piper, and they left.

It was late at night when Aimé heard the door of his room creak open.
"Mint...?" he called out weakly into the darkness.
"Get out of bed, we have a guest," Mint demanded. He obliged.
"Who is it... Rue?"
"No. He's kind of my step brother..."
"Oh...?"
"We'll sleep on the floor tonight."
"We?"
"I can't sleep in the same bed with him, he's my brother."
"Oh...?"
There was a bit of a struggle which ended in Aimé laying on the floor under one of his covers, with Mint clinging to him in a strange way. "I met my mother today. I... I couldn't leave him there."
Aimé nodded. I guess I'll tell her tomorrow.

Tomorrow came.
Mint woke with a shriek. "R-r-r-ruecian?" She screamed, looking at the man she had been hanging on to during the night.
Aimé looked around groggily. "Fuck."
"What do you mean, 'Fuck'?" Mint yelled even louder. "You lied to me this whole time!"
He made a desprite face... it had been his face that gave it away in the first place, after all... the black stone that was stuck in his forehead was her chief indicator that this not the man she thought it was.
"I...I can explain..." he fumbled over the words.
"You better be able to explain! I kissed you and you fucking fucked my mom!"
Aimé's face contorted into sort of a half-confused, half- sheepish face. "Yeah... but..."
"Not to mention nearly killing me and Maya!" Mint was off her rocker now. She started pacing back and forth, muttering "ew ew ew" under her breath.
Her step-brother was still sleeping.
"Mint... please, give me five minutes, ok? Five, that's all I want."
She made a sour face and sat down in front of him. "Speak, you bastard."
He sighed. "Mint, I... Yesterday I remembered my life. And I remember you and Rue and Maya and Tessia and the Masters and... everything! Before I knew you... I remembered... oh god, Amala... and... I remembered finding my way to Ephlesia and..."
Mint grew impatient. "And!"
"And dying! I know, it sounds stupid. But, I... I remember... seeing a black chariot out in the desert... A white haired man came out, and I recognised him... he was me. But when he spoke, he was every voice I'd ever heard. He said, 'You've cheated me long enough, Ruecian. It's time for you to join us... all of those you killed'."
"BS," she said.
"But then I woke up in some weird ruins... and everything was there for a while, all my memories, but they faded..."
Mint sighed in an exasperated way. "Well... As much as I don't want to believe you, for some reason it makes sense."
Ruecian looked up. "What?"
"Not the reaction you were expecting, eh? Well, I know what it is... You made it to the Ephlesian relic and regenerated yourself... but because the Ephlesian relic isn't as powerful as Dewprism, it didn't remember to fix your memory."
He was aghast. "...What?"
"You have an extensive library, if you ever care to read it yourself," Mint said as she pointed to the pile of books against the wall. "I've sort of not thought about Ruecian for such a long time... Maya convinced me not to hate him for what he did... according to her, it was his duty to do all that shit he did. But still... What are you're thoughts on me?"
"I love you, Mint. You know, memories can be inviting... but some are all together scary... and I wanna live in the present from now on," he said, after the first line, his eyes dropped.
She stared at him. He looked sincere as ever.
"You're not, you know... lying, right?"
"I'm not lying, I promise."
Her head was spinning.
"I..."
He kissed her, gently. "I'm sorry," he whispered into her mouth.
She leaned into him until they fell and they lay on the ground in an embrace, their faces close to each other. All that they could hear was the other's breath, and that was all that was needed in their egg of ignorant comfort, oblivious to the way the other had tried to kill the other, the way they hate hated each other so passionately. Some say the line between love and hate is slim, and Mint supposed this is what they ment... all the passion from the hatred was there... but the hate... it was gone.
"Hey..." a voice ventured in to break the silence. Mint's little brother and Ruecian's son stared down on them. "um... Good morning..."
Mint slowly sat up, she didn't want to, she reallly didn't want to let go of him. But she new that she had to be there for him more than her mother was.
"Jita..." she said. Dammit, why did he have such a womanly name? "I'm... I'd like you to meet... well, this guy is your dad..."
Ruecian had sat up only seconds after her, and he looked a little ashamed... sheepish even. "I'm sorry that I couldn't be there for you."
Jita looked a little confused. "Mom abandoned you."
Ruecian looked up at him in surprise.
"She would tell me about it... whenever she was angry, she would tell me it wasn't my fault she was ruined for life... it was yours... then she'd say that that was the reason she had to leave you, because it was all your fault I had to be born..."
The older mans face fell. He sputtered out his words in a choked fashion. "I... see... She really did hate me then..."
Mint felt a wave of confusing feelings she hadn't ever felt before for a man at this degree. It was such a feeling of pity. He was so sad, and it made her sad. She put her arms over his shoulders and draw her body near him, so that her chest rose and fell against his back, and she coulld feel the sobs there that wanted to escape, the sobs he needed to but would never cry.
"It doesn't matter, Ruecian... you've got me now, and I won't ever leave you," she said. I am lying in a horrible way. I have to go back to East Heaven at some point...
"Do you promise?"
"I do." I can't...
He smiled. He was so childlike when he smiled in the gentle way he did, the way he had taken to smiling at her only just recently. She liked it.
"Would you... would you marry me, Mint?"
She was taken aback. "Don't you think... we should give it a bit of time first?"
"What time do we need?" he said loudly, sitting up. "You've said all there is needed to be said, and that was that you'd stay with me! What more could we wait to learn!"
His voice grew to a fevered pitch.
"Jita... get out of here," Mint said softly. "This might get a little messy, bro."
Jita did as told.
"I remember why I didn't like you back in East Heaven..." Mint began, her hands trembling as magic itched to seep through. "You were so... possesive!"
She threw her hands forward, a blast of lightning sending him through the wall into the next room over. The sparks danced on her fingers. It was good to be back, she smirked.
A tattered Ruecian climbed through the hole in the wall his beloved had made. "It's interesting how all my marriage proposals end in this way..."
Mint held her hands out. It was time to test that new magic Maya had taught her...
Ruecian felt himself seize up inside, like someone got a hold of his muscles or organs. "W-what?"
The princess's smile grew. "Maya's become a bit ruthless, don't you think? She's the one who taught me this... it allows me to manipulate whatever's underneath your skin. I could twist your intestines around your stomach or make the heart come burst out your chest, but I'd rather have a bit of fun, first..." she motioned toward the cieling, and he was yanked skyward, crashing hard into the plaster. Chunks of adobe and wood fell about her.
Ruecian's face contorted at the pain he only had a vague memory of. This spell was Valen's-- and he had experienced it before. She let him fall to the ground, where he curled up. Slowly, while shaking from head to toe, he struggled to his feet. His face was beaded in sweat.
"Only Valen knows that spell... And that means you must be Valen... So what is it this time, Father? Is it because I haven't taken care of my stupid brother Rue? Its always about Rue with you, since he's the special one!" He rocked back and forth, tears streaming from his eyes. "God damn it, Dad, why did you have to do this to me, be so damn cruel... you don't love me in any form!"
Mint stared at him as he rattled off on her about Rue. Oops... to much pain has clouded his logic...
"If he's so great, why did you even make any of us? Me and Ruehi and Ruenis... and... and everyone! What did we do to deserve your hate?"
"Would you shut up, you lunatic, its just me, Mint!"
Ruecian looked at her. "Like hell it is!" he charged her, pushing her to the ground putting her in a strangle hold. "Do you want to see what kind of monster you made me, father! I'll show you!"
His arm began to morph into somethng disgusting- a giant appendage with a leathery hide. She'd never seen it before, but from the way he acted, it had existed long before this day. The black-purple flesh was hard on her own soft, pale neck; it almost burnt her. It smelled awful, too.
"Don't act so surprised, Father! This is your doing! You made me this... thing!"
"I'm not your father, you stupid asshole!" Mint shouted, flinging her hands up un defense as she tore his body from hers, smashing him up against a wall. Blood burst out his mouth upon impact, spewing all over the floor.
Mint took this opritunity and ran with it, literally. She stumbled down the stairway and grabbed Jita up from where he sat. Jita followed, though he had no clue where he was going.

The cieling...
His eyes opened, staring up.
It was such a useful invention, the cieling. The way it was there to protect you from anything outside who would hurt you. The way no one ever truly thanked it.
The strangest pain grew in his belly, like someone had just tried to wrench out his intestines...
Wait, someone had. Valen? No, that girl... Mint.
A smile grew on his lips. It had always been this way. It felt so natural. Was such normality what he longed for? He had never really liked her...
But he had been so happy.
He felt a stinging tear burn from between his eyelips.
"Stop it."
It wasn't even the voice this time. It was himself.
He sat up. It was time to do as he always did. Even though his internals hurt, he'd lived this way before.
He was downstairs and in the bar.
" Where have you been?>" the bartender asked, a bit ticked off. " It's noon, Aimé. I've let you slack off since you got yourself a new girlfriend, but its gettiing rediculous!>"
" It won't happen again... That's for sure...>"
" Had some trouble?>"
" You could say that...>"
" For that, I'll let you off the hook about that hole in the wall. I know how difficult those things can be...>"
" Yeah... sorry about that... whole... hole thing...>"
The bartender walked away with a smile on his face.
What a great guy, was all Ruecian could think. He didn't have much time to think, though, because somebody tapped him lightly on the shoulder. Before he could even turn around, he heard a menacing, female voice behind him demand, "Give me one reason not to kill you."
He recognised the voice in a second.
"Ruehi..." he said quietly, before spinning around, ducking and landing in a crouch on the floor. Simultainously, the threatening woman's clenched fist put a large dent in the bar.
"One reason, bro." She said, turning to him. "Make it snappy."
"Does it have to be a good reason?"
The sat still as statues, staring emotionlessly at each other. She was something to behold-- a tall, handsome woman, dressed richly, like an indulgent pirate, her costume a mix of reds, blues and purples. About her forehead was donned as scarlet headwrap, beneath which was a stone which encompassed her soul. She also wore odd earrings: these of a dangling affair, with large, purplish diamond shaps. Inside each was a bit of a gleam.
Ruehi let out a laugh. "It's good to see you again, Ruecian!"
She swooped down and embraced him. He laughed as well-- he cried in fact. "Ruehi, Ruehi, I thought you'd died!"
She held him at arms length. "The hunter should never become the hunted."
"So that means..."
"Yeah- see my left earring?"
"You are a brutal and disturbing creature," the brother doll grinned. "What did I ever do without you?"
They embraced once again. Then, Ruehi, with incredible strength, pulled Ruecian to the bar by his bicep.
" Two, please,>" She said with a sweet and toothy grin.
The bartender brang over thier drinks and plunked them down before them. " You're paying for the dent, bub,>" he said, bemused.
" Hey, man, I'll handle, it,>" the woman said cheerily. " Anything for my favorite brother.>"
"More like the only one of us you won't kill..." Ruecian said dismally, taking a swig of his beer. Ruehi seemed impressed by the retort.
"Now, you must tell me everything from the time you and I parted ways."
"I'd bore you to tears. A lot of moping."
"Did I turn you into a moper? Dear me, I apologize profusely."
"Well, honestly, Ruehi, you aren't going to like it all... or any of it, perhaps..."
She looked a little dissapointed, like a child denied a cookie.
"Lord, I did turn you into a mope!" she exclaimed, turning her nose up at his state.
"It's not like that! My... my girlfriend tried to kill me last night..." he sighed. "Usually, I'm all smiles and sunshine."
Observing him slowly, she felt heat rise into her cheeks. "You... had a girlfriend?"
"I thought you were dead, Ruehi. I really did... I wouldn't have broken any of our promises if I had known you were alive..."
"Hey, don't sweat it, dear. I had a few flings since those days..."
He put his arm around her shoulder.
They smiled. It was time to do what they did best.
To kill.

Mint sat in her fresh hotel bedroom, Jita curled and sleeping underneath the blankets on the bed opposite hers.
This sucks! she thought. I gave up a ton for that creep! And how does he repay me?Asks me to give up more! And now I have to deal with the brat...
..I WON'T turn into my mom. No.
The sun was about rising. Ruecian would be awake soon, if he had survived. But then again... when she had preformed the spell, there had been a foreign object inside him she had chosen to ignore. But, there it had been- some sort of magical item in place of his heart. Did all dolls have that? I wish I had that damn book that was always laying around at Ruecian's place.
But if he had survived... would he come after her, mistaking her for Valen? She doubted it. He had been crazy then, consumed by hate and loathing for his father. They were a lot alike, she and Ruecian. Both had father's who expected something from them that they could not do, or even pray to do, outdone by their more capable siblings, looked upon with shame.
Why did I love him so much? she felt a tear meander down her cheek, slowly but surely as it dripped past her chin, falling onto the comforter with a soft "plut".
Slowly, she found herself wrapping her body in blankets and falling asleep. No more tears came though. There was no reason to be sad when you where making the best decision of your life.

Day came abruptly with the door opening. Mint jumped out of her skin, turning quickly to see a man, or perhaps a boy-- but someone she knew.
Rue. And he was pissed.
"Mint! Come here and fight me!"
"What the hell?" she barked back. "Why don't you knock before barging in on people?"
"Don't lie to me! Kirrielle told me the whole story!"
"Kir--" Mint thought a moment. Trap Master had called Mode Master Kirrielle... Could he really mean the same person?
"That's right! I know about you and Doll Master and your conspiricies!" he shouted.
What the hell was he talking about? That was yesterday! I didn't even know I was with Ruecian until then! And at that point, we tried to kill each other! "Why are you so berzerk!" she asked furiously. "I didn't have anything to do with Doll Master!" Little white lies make the world go 'round.
"It's because of you and him that Claire is dead!"
She rolled her eyes. "Will you shut the fuck up about Claire?"
"Don't you insult her like that!" Rue lost it, lunging forward, Arc Edge slicing through the dusty air.
"Big mistake." Mint cast the spell she'd used on her ex-love yesterday. Rue remained suspended in the position he had assumed.
"Now, Mr. Rue... Did Kirrielle cast some sort of spell on you?"
"No! She's the only one I can trust out of you, anyway!" he snarled in a beastly fashion.
"Uh...huh..." the princess, said in a flat tone, while she began to recall an article in that damn book about dolls Ruecian always had lying around. Doll's had a simple growth in their brain that made them more suseptable to control spells of certain kinds. Specifically, they were created for Valen to control them, but there where certain methods (which remained unmentioned) in which anyone else could posses them. She figured the last thing Rue would do was sit around and talk cheerily with Kirrielle over tea and crumpets.
She would have to pinpoint that part of the brain... and smash it. One foul move and Rue was braindead.
Won't be much of a change from the present... Mint thought as she mentally scanned the exterior of his brain.
There it was. Keep focused, remember what Maya said.
She clenched her fist.
There was a thud as Rue hit the floor.
She opened her eyes from their previously squeezed shut state.
Rue lay in a pile. He no longer held the Arc Edge in his hand; it was several feet away from his open hand.
OH SHIT! I KILLED HIM!
He made a groaning noise.
Whew.
Slowly, the doll sat up. "Mint..? Where am I?"
"Kirrielle musta possessed you... You're lucky I didn't have to kill you." And I'm lucky I left out the fact that I actually might of if I hadn't been so well informed.
"Mint! I went to find the Ephlesian Relic, but it was gone!"
"Dammit! You know, if I had Kirrielle right now, I'd ring her neck... She probably blacked you out while you were fighting and made the illusion it wasn't there so you'd give up!"
"Mint... Don't talk so badly of her..." he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I can understand why she'd want me to kill you."
She looked out the window. "What the hell do you mean by that?"
Rue stood. "You killed one of the most important people in the world to her... just the way Doll Master did to me. Now, I'm plenty happy that he's dead, but I just... I understand her viewpoint."
Mint stared on out the window.
If you only knew.

Author's (final) Notes: Well, guys, it's been quite a ride, and I'm pretty damn glad it's over! This Last Chapter was my favorite, because things sort went back to normal. And Mint became badass. AND RUEHI APPEARED. OH MY GOD, DID I LOVE RUEHI. This is the first doll that I made up that I didn't hate like 2 weeks later. Ruehi was great... Cuz she was so psychaoticly against Valen. I t occurred to me a few month after writing this that Ruecian really isn't psychaoticly against Valen, and I think that that is why I sort of ended up hating this story XD. If I had ever had the will (or gall) to finish this, I would have taken out Ruecian's freaking out and just made Mint try to kill him. And yeah...

HERE WAS TO BE THE REST OF THE PLOT:
-Rue and Mint try to find the Elphesian relic and gasp IT REALLY IS GONE!
-Ruecian and Ruehi come to kill Rue (Ruehi's earrings are made of Other dolls Dewstones). Also cuz Ruehi hates Valen Dolls. :P
-UM Ruehi and Ruecian have a thing going on OO Yes, Incest... XP
-GASP! Aimé really ISN'T Ruecian! He's the reincarnation of Ruecian's memories, which built themselves around the Ephlesian relic. That's where it went!
-The relic's... spirit? posseses uecian and Ruehi like... pulls it out of his chest!
-I couldn't decide ifI wanted Ruecian to live or die. I think I probably would have killed him. Cuz yeah. I'm mean.
- Mint Sad :( Don't worry Mint, i can pair you with anyone and not mind (CEPT RUE)
-Ruehi doesn't kill Rue.
-The relic is... defunct... or like... not very powerful. Mint get's all stampy.
-Ruehi like... goes off searching for other dolls to kill and doesn't mind Rue cuz he hates Valen too.
-Mint looks back on all 'o this and smiles.. The last paragraph would be ultra cheesy.
-OHANDI forgot to mention. Claire is revived. Yeah.