To Save, Rule or Destroy (PAFP)

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    Leo was confused why she turned down his offer for help but shrugged it off. He happily held her hand the entire way, though still had a negative opinion on this man. He would make sure this was the last time she had to help anyone walk, he would get bigger and do those things for her.


    He wondered why so many people looked over at the three walking back to the house. It was an odd sight but Leo wasn't aware of that. When they reached the house he let go of her hand and rushed over to the door after receiving her want for help. Something he could do to help! This made him happy, plus the sooner they were in the sooner she could let go of that man.


    Leo gripped onto the doors handle and opened it with ease, it swinging open much like a better crafted and newer door would. He wondered why she had struggled with it before, not aware that others did not possess the same abilities he did. Once getting the door fully open he rushed back to her side, smiling up at her proud of himself helping.

    Celeste blinked as she watched him swing the door open with such ease he made it look like it was far too easy. As he came back she nodded her approval. "Thank you for the help." She seemed grateful for the help as she helped shepherd the man inside. Once inside she was very tempted to letting him go right now, but she didn't think he would make it back to his room without collapsing. Making her way into the tiny house she didn't bother to kick off her shoes instead going past the kitchen towards the rooms. She bit back an annoyed breath as she paused to push the bedroom door open and he swung his free arm knocking over a flower pot she had sitting on a nearby end table. Instead she worked to get him into his bed.


    Once he had settled down she turned to leave, but was stopped by his hand snatching up her wrist. "Max let go." She said tugging at her wrist, but his grips seemed solid as he pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her neck. Starting to worm her way out of his grip she didn't get out quick enough before he planted a kiss on her cheek. "You're a peach." He smiled before letting go completely and falling uselessly back on the bed.


    The Elf wiped the spot he had kissed with disgust coming out of the room shutting the door behind herself with a huff. Rubbing her cheek for a couple seconds she looks down at Leo suddenly remembering her promise. "Alright how about we go make something?" She suggested clapping her hands together in front of her wanting to move on from the drunk man to something more pleasant.

    Leo was happy to be praised and walked close behind her as she entered the home. He paused in following her to shut the door, being careful not to do it to harshly or else he would have broken it. Since the hinges were rather aged and he could understand enough not to break the door.


    He then resumed following and fixed the vase back upright when it had been pushed over. His eyes watched as she helped the drunk man to his bed and set him down. Once he was in the bed Leo was glad she was finally no longer in contact with him. A foul feeling filled him though when the man grabbed onto her wrist before wrapping his arms around her neck then kissed her cheek. Leo was not sure why he felt upset at this but he could not stop a negative expression forming on his face as he glared at the man. A faint crack appeared in the wall beside him as well as a faint temperature drop.


    When Leo saw her exit the room he smiled up at her at her, his mood instantly getting happy at her words and he gave a nod. He grabbed onto her hand before leading the way to the kitchen. "What will we be making?"

    Celeste felt a shiver go down her spine as she walked out of room. It felt a little colder in the hall for a moment. She was pondering if she had possibly left a window or something open, before his tiny hand grabbed her’s and pulled her towards the kitchen taking her attention away from the slight shift in temperature. She laughed softly at just how eager he seemed. She let go of his hand as she looked around wondering what to make. “I haven’t thought that far ahead.” She admitted tapping her temple as she looked around still trying to think.


    “We could make cake or pie. I’ll let you decide while I go get some ingredients.” She decided as she turned to go down into the cellar again. She could be heard slowly making her way into the darkness. A few moments later she reappeared with milk, eggs, and some jarred fruit balancing very carefully in her arms as she made her way back up. Setting everything carefully on the counter she glanced over at Leo. “Alright have you decided?” She asked wiping her hands off on her skirts not seeming to mind much if they got dirty.

    Leo had to think a moment to recall what those types of desserts were again and went with what he felt more sugary “Let’s do cake!” He stayed cheerfully. He had more expressions then he did the other day, though was still generally emotionless, was getting better.


    Whenever their was something he could ello with when making the cake he would do it right away. Though he felt a bit upset when he couldn’t reach anything in the higher cupboards.


    At one point he accedently got a lot of flour on his face when he tried to pull it down from the counter.

    Celeste laughed clearly approving of his choice. She let him help with things like mixing and pouring although she ended up having to retrieve and ingredients that were too high for him to get himself. She turned her back for a moment and when she turned back around she was met with Leo and his face white as a sheet from the flour. Blinking for a moment she then started to laugh, finding his antics endearing. She shook her head and took a rag from the counter. She dampened it before she bent down and began to wipe the flour off his face. "It shouldn't be long before you're big and then you won't have any trouble getting flour." She smiled as she finished before looking down at the flour now staining the counter and the floor. Deciding to focus on it in a minute she put the cake in to bake. While they waited she went off to find a broom.


    Right as she came back she heard a loud thud from somewhere down the hall. Her eyes widened and she ran down towards Maxwell's room, as she momentarily forgot about the cake and the mess. As she pushed the door open the man was sprawled out on the floor laying at an awkward angle. Walking in she stooped down to help him up yet again. "Max are you okay?" She asked, but only got a slight grumble as a response. The Elf sighed before starting to hoist him back up on to the bed although she was clearly struggling with it.

    Leo could not help but watch curiously as she put the tray of mix inside the hot container. Continuing to watch as the door shut and she went to get a broom. “So this will turn into cake...” he spoke to no one in particular in an excited tone.


    He looked over to her as she restirned with a broom in hand. He recalled the mess he had made and walked over about to offer to do with when a loud sound came from the other room.


    As she ran in the direction of the loud sound Leo followed wondering what had fallen. He looked in through the door after she had opened it and he could not help but find the drunken man having fallen on the floor a bit amusing. This due to how displeased Leo was before with her attention on him.


    The sour feeling came back as he watched her go over to help the man back into the bed. Leo walked over and decided to help push him into the bed. Not really enjoying her attention back onto this man.

    Leo's help was just what Celeste needed to push the man back on to the bed. She sighed putting her hands on her hips as she put her hand on Max's forehead to make sure he wasn't sick or anything. "Thank you Leo for being so helpful." She smiled lightly although she didn't know how much his added strength had actually helped her. She put her hands on her hips as Maxwell's eyes fluttered open and he groaned lightly. He looked around blankly catching sight of Leo first instead of Celeste. "Who are you?" He asked frantically trying to sit up in bed, but completely failed at it managing to only sit up a tiny bit.


    "His name is Leo. The better question is why were you in town drunk?" She questioned although he frowned looking at the kid for a moment before he shrugged. "Just had some money to burn. I need some more sleep." He mutter softly before he slowly rolled over giving a soft groan. The Elf stood there dumbfounded not sure what to make of it. Huffing to herself she looked over at Leo. "Let's go finish making that cake." She offered with a smile as she moved out of the room shutting the door heavily behind her.


    Moving back into the kitchen she looked at the mess of floor. She grabbed the rag and started to wipe down the counter humming to herself as she did so.

    Leo smiled cheerfully at her. Feeling gleeful from the praise, it felt good to be of use to her. His mood turned sour though when the mans voice entered his ears asking whom he was.


    He stuck close to her side, grabbing onto a small fold in her skirt and looked over at the man blankly. A cold glare hidden at the back of his eyes as he looked to him.


    Once she returned her attention to Leo he was smiling again and gave a quick nod. “Yes!” Excitedly he headed black with her to the kitchen.


    (Time skip?)

    (Sure)


    Celeste grabbed an oven mitt to grab the pan. Pulling it out she set it on the counter before bringing out plates and a knife to cut pieces. "Alright alright." She chuckled as she stood back waiting for the cake to cool.


    ------


    Celeste yawned loudly as she rolled herself out of the bed. With Maxwell taking his usual bed Celeste had to share her bed with Leo, not that she minded all that much. Although she knew that he was going to have to figure out a better sleeping arrangement, but figured that she had some time since Leo was relatively small. She stretched and quietly went down stairs leaving Leo to sleep as long as he wanted.


    When she got down Max was standing in the kitchen leaning heavily on the counter. Celeste shook her head not bothering to greet him instead going on about her business. She put the broom back and leaned against the counter as she considered what else needed to get done. Her thoughts were interrupted by Maxwell's voice. "So, is that kid staying here permanently?" He inquired at least seeming more alert now.


    The Elf shrugged and shook her head a little. "He's staying." She sighed loudly before she walked towards the front door and slipped on her shoes to go out and check on her little garden that was tucked away on the side of the house leaving Maxwell alone in the kitchen.

    The cake had turned out quite well. Leo felt rather proud since he had helped make the sweet treat and it took a lot to patiently wait for the cake to cool. He only knew to wait since he had burned his hand the last time he grabbed something straight from the hot waves of light.


    —


    He got to sleep beside her last night! Oh how happy it had made him when he had realized he would get to sleep beside her.


    He had almost not slept at all that night, instead watching her with curious eyes as he had laid curled up beside her. Although he could lay for hours just watching her sleep he soon drifted off himself after rolling as close as he could next to her and gripping onto a piece of her clothing.


    He had been sleeping so well he could not help but feel upset when she had gotten up that morning. Instantly stirring awake when she had gotten out of the bed. If he had been able to, he would have tried to hold her their longer with him. But he had only been gripping onto a piece of her shirt so it would not have succeeded.


    It would seem from another’s eye that he may have imprinted in her much like a child with their parent. Though it was similar to that, it seemed a bit different.


    He got out of the bed then stretched his arms in the air. A small yawn escaped his lips before a smile formed on them as he let his arms drop by his side. I wonder what we will do today!


    He headed out of the room and down the small hall towards the kitchen. A frown replaced his grin as he saw she had already left to go do something and the only one there was the drunken man from last night.


    Well, all he would need to do was look for her. He gave a small look around and inhail of air and was pleased to see she was not very far, just to the side of the house fairly close.


    Before that though..


    He walked deeper into the kitchen heading over to a small bowl of fruit and grabbed an apple. He then glanced over at Maxwell, his eyes this time did not bother to hide his glare. Instead he seemed to go heavier with it, the room growing colder along with it.


    He then walked over, looking at him innocently before sniffing at the air. Then he made a look of disgust.


    “ You smell aweful.” He told him in a unpleased tone. “Stop spreading that disgusting scent around here. It’s bothersome.” His eyes narrowed slightly at the man. He was referring to Maxwell taking her attention, he really hated it. “If you weren’t to die soon I would just be rid of you now so that I can breath in without wanting to hurl” He stated plainly before husband expression fell back to a innocent smiley omen as he headed over to the front door and went out to find her at the garden.

    The young man had not even been aware of the kid coming down the hall. Still leaning on the counter he was looking out the window with his free hand still on his head trying to recover from the massive headache his drinking had caused him. Hearing footsteps he turned to look at the boy narrowing his eyes when he caught the look of hatred that Leo had when looking his way.


    Maxwell wondered exactly what his problem with him was considering he only remembered snaps and glimpses from yesterday. A shiver went down his spin as it suddenly got noticeably colder in the room. Maxwell frowned in return as the boy seemed to flip suddenly and began insulting him. "Who do you think you are you little brat?" He sneered before narrowing his eyes as Leo nonchalantly informed him he would get rid of him if he weren't already slated to die then he would get rid of him. This left the young man in stunned silence staring after Leo as he scampered out as if he hadn't just threatened him.


    Celeste was down on her knees gazing down at the small bed of soil when she heard heavy door open. She looked up waving as she noticed Leo coming out. A bright smile appeared seeing the young boy up so early. "Morning." She said cheerfully before she went back to looking at the plants that were growing neatly in little rows. "I was going to let you sleep if you wanted to." She commented getting to her feet and starting to dust off her skirts.


    "But, since you're up why don't help me get some of these weeds pulled?" She asked motioning to the weeds scattered around. Bending down she started to take hold of any weeds she could see, pulling them up and then threw them off to the side for now. She grunted as she struggled with a stubborn weed.

    Leo glanced over to the tall weeds. Glancing across trying to figure out which was weed and what wasn’t. He locked into the weed she was struggling with and crouched down beside her. He then reached down to grip a part of the weed to help rip it out with ease.


    He then focused as he looked around and found a similar looking plant, Ah this was a weed as well. He went over and gripped it, this one also came out with ease. If he had realized how odd him being this strong was, perhaps he would have tried to seem weaker.


    He went around and within 30 minutes the garden was clear of weeds. He stood up straight and wiped his hands off on his old cloak. During the process he managed to dirty his ankles, arms and face even more then before. It would seem he may need to wash up.


    He looked over to her and smiled brightly. “I pulled them!!!” He rushed over seeking praise.

    Celeste blinked as Leo effortlessly yanked the weed from the dirt while she had been struggling with it. She tipped her head to the side, but tried not to think much of it, deciding that maybe it was just because both of them had been pulling on it. She smiled before tossing the weed to the side. She was working her way through the garden herself seeming to find it quite adorable how excited he seemed to help her even do rather mundane things.


    The Elf then went back to her weed pulling. She was making decent progress taking a few tugs to pull up most weeds. Her eyes widened a little as she caught him pulling up a weed with no trouble at all. She tipped her head to the side for a moment before shaking her head and focusing back on finishing what she was doing.


    The weeding took a quarter of the time it would have taken her to do it all on her own. She stood back for a moment as she dusted her hands off on her skirt not seeming to care much if she got them dirty. As he walked over she laughed a little at his smudged face and hands. "You did such a great job." Celeste praised the boy as she looked around at his handy work.


    "If you can finish water the gardening for me then we might be able to go inside and get some of that leftover cake from yesterday." She suggested with a slight chuckle. The only reason they had any cake leftover was the fact he passed out after several pieces and a glass of milk. She offered the watering can to him.

    At the praise Leo smiled brightly. A small giggle like sound coming from it as he could not contain his glee. He had a slight skip in his step as moved around the garden.


    Watering..what could be used..ohh. He spotted a watering can beside a small bucket. He skipped over and picked up the bucket which had rain water in it. He then would dip his hand inside before walking around the garden to spread the water evenly among the plants.


    Once he was done he placed the bucket down and skipped back over to her. He then grabbed her hand and began pulling her. “Cake!Cake! Let’s go!!” He stated in a excited tone. This really was a bi leap from his previous behaviour.

    She turned her back to him once he started to water the plants. She moved to behind the house to the small chicken coop. Humming she started to throw out cracked corn to the chickens who were scratching and pecking at the ground. She walked around throwing out the last of the corn. On her way to the coop she picked up a basket. Ducking inside she moved around to get the eggs inside the coop.


    Just as she was emerging from the coop she saw Leo come sprinting up sending chickens flapping as they scurried away in a panic. She had to hurry to catch up with him as he grabbed her hand and took off to the house. "Alright let's go." Celeste chuckled as she scrambled after him. The basket was rocking on her arm as they went.


    She paused to push the heavy door open before going inside. Setting the basket on the counter she moved into the kitchen. She took out the cake from the hiding spot she had put it in. Slicing the remaining cake up she then turned and offered a plate to Leo. It seemed Maxwell was no where to be found now.

    Leo was pleased to see the kitchen empty when they entered the home. His feet quickly carrying him over to the counter while he waited for her to pull out the cake. As soon as the plate was offered, he was quick to grab it. He then took it with him to the table before cheerfully digging into the delicious sweet.


    It did not take long for him to finish, not even a crumb remained as he stood from his seat and brought the plate over to the sink. He then rushed over to where she was, smiling cheerfully. "I really love the cake you made!!" He told her. He seemed unable to keep still, rather energized looking.

    After slicing him a piece of cake she took the last piece for herself. Following him to the table she began to eat her own piece of cake smiling to herself seeing how eagerly he devoured the piece of cake. She giggled as he already finished his piece of cake before looking down at her own half eaten cake. "You helped out quite a bit making the cake." Celeste quickly finished the last few bites of her cake. As she stood up to wash her plate she heard the loud footsteps of Maxwell coming back down the hall. As he came into the kitchen he halted abruptly catching sight of Leo. Frowning deeply he looked around the kitchen abruptly seeming to be trying to locate Celeste.


    He gave the child a suspicious look before catching sight of the Elf moving to the sink. Max swiftly moved across the room giving Leo a wide girth. The young mane seemed extremely unsettled by the child. She paused and watched him as he tried to walk around Leo. "Um..Celeste can I talk to you for a minute..alone?" He muttered softly narrowing his eyes as he glanced back at Leo over his shoulder.


    The Elf began to wash off her plate only bothering to give him a slight glance. "Why Max?" She raised a brow stopping to look at him fully. Maxwell glanced over at Leo before shaking his head slightly. "Never mind I'm going to go to work." Maxwell added quickly before turning tail out of the room losing his courage.

    Leo felt rather proud to have been so much help with the cake. This making the cake taste even sweeter as he thought about it. He hovered around her, smiling cheerfully as he went over to a vase of flowers and reached up an arm to pock at a soft pink petal. Then he noticed the man enter the room at the corner of his eyes.


    Since she was here he continued to smile, not looking over to him even as he made his way over to Celeste. His ears, however, focuses in as the man muttered something to her. Catching the words Leo's mood fell a bit sour, displeased with Maxwell wanting her to speak to him alone. He grew pleased when she didn't even pay the man a glance and kept to where she was. As Maxwell left Leo turned to face her and walked over to stand beside her.


    "So! What are we going to do next today?"

    Celeste finished rinsing off the plate she turned just as she heard the heavy door swing shut with Maxwell’s leaving. She turn to face Leo thinking for a moment. “We could take a walk through the woods and see what we can find.” She hummed lightly in thought. She looked around to the plants in the window before she picked up the basket that was on the counter. In the window sill there were various herbs growing in several pots. She walked to the door opening her hand to offer it to Leo.


    Walking out through the door she started to make her way over to the small dirt path that lead the way into the forest. It was midday by now as she looked at the individual plants as they walked along. She ideally was starting to consider the past two days and the small little things she started to think about as she looked at Leo.