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There's always multiple sides to all stories. Every person has their own lives that they live. Things that they do. People that they meet. They all fight their own little battles. And as Jace was going about obtaining a sword, Stella and Jersa were having their own battle. A silent one, as they both stared into the distance, leaning on either side of the pole that held the sign that read 'Dead End'.

Both of them were mad at each other for the exact same reason that the other was mad. Of course, each one was mad for other reasons, but the main reason for their anger was clear; "He hates us now."

"Well, if he does...it's because you kissed me," Stella said, watching a bit of garbage blow down the empty road. It was always so eerily quiet near the wall this time of day.

"Only because you begged me to," Jersa retorted.

"I did not beg," she snapped. "You just made it...sound so good," she mumbled.

"Well, was it good for you?" Jersa glanced back with a bit of a smirk, watching as the bat turned bright red.

"Yes," she mumbled, now Jersa's face went red.

Several minutes of silence went by. "Well, we've probably ruined our chances of ever getting a kiss from him."

"At least you got one. All I got was a secondary kiss from a flat bitch."

"You can insult how I look all you want, I've heard every damn insult you can imagine." She folded her arms, kicking at the ground a few times. "They don't hurt anymore."

There was another long silence. "You got picked on a lot?"

"You have no idea. So feel free, come at me with your best shot. I've heard it all." Jersa glared at the ground in front of her, waiting for Stella to try and get to her.

"People make fun of me, too." That had not been anything like the response she had expect. "A lot of it is cus I'm a fruitbat, and there's not many of those in the city, let alone an albino one... All it boils down to is them saying I look funny."

There was a pause. "Well, you don't look funny." She glanced back at her before looking at the ground again. "It's more like...exotic," she waved her hand in the air to emphasis her point.

"Mmm." Stella looked back at her. "Why do you think we fight so much?"

"Pfft." She looked back at her again. "That's pretty damn obvious. We both want the same thing. It's like..." She waved her hand vaguely. "A dominance thing, or something."

"Well, we could share?"

"Fat chance milk tits."

They stared at each other for a few seconds before they both laughed. "Yeah I don't see that happening."

Jersa folded her hands behind her head, looking up at the sky as she calmed down. "I dunno. Now you got me thinking about it. Most guys aren't interested me. And the ones that are are only interested cus they think I'm a guy. Or are so not my type."

"Like Skagger?"

She shuddered. "Don't even fucking joke. That disgusting rat makes me wanna puke."

Stella smiled a bit. "Well, we agree there."

"Besides, I'm pretty sure him and Burce are a thing."

"Really?" She paused. "Good gods how does that even work?"

"I don't wanna think about it."

"No, I mean like...who's on top in that pairing?"

Jersa physically gagged. "I said I don't wanna think about it! If they're happy, that's whatever, but I do not want to even think about that little greaseball anymore than I have to! Let alone think about him-" She gagged again, heaving slightly.

Stella laughed, taking quite a lot of joy in watching Jersa retch and try not to lose her lunch. "Sorry, sorry," she said, wiping away a tear.

It took a few moments before Jersa finally stood up, leaning against the pole. "Gods...gonna be hard to get rid of that mental image..." She pointed at Stella. "If I can't sleep tonight, I'm blaming you."

"Oh come on, he can't be as bad as-"

"He chews his toenails!" Jersa snapped, coming around the pole to look at Stella in the face now. "At breakfast! And eats them!" She grabbed hold of Stella's shoulders, trying to make her stop laughing. "He eats his toenails, Stella! He steals peoples used socks, and he neeever bathes." Her head sagged a bit.

"There there," Stella said, trying not to laugh as she patted her head.

"Those years in Gruska were glorious. Just to be away from him. And then-" she stopped.

"You met Jace."

Jersa reached up and touched her crooked nose. "Yeah...is it bad that I like a man that can kick ass, even when it's mine?"

"No." She smirked. "Though some would say you're just kinky." Jersa slapped her shoulder, but Stella just laughed. "Ow. Hey, no, I'm not into that," she said, putting her hands up in mock defense.

"No, you're more into this-" she pinned Stella up against the pole, using her body to hold her in place.

She gasped and glared up at Jersa. "Don't start what you aren't going to finish."

"Oh yeah?" she said as she leaned closer. "You think I won't follow through?"

"Right here, in the open?" Stella smirked. "You don't have the guts, little ferret..."

"You wanna talk about guts?" she said as she leaned closer, pressing her mouth against her throat, eliciting another gasp from Stella. "Oh how easily I could spill yours. Then I'd have him all to myself."

"Y-you wouldn't dare..." She moaned as Jersa ran her claws against her stomach. Her face turned bright red as she grabbed at her wrist. "O-okay! I give! E-enough!"

"So soon?" She dragged her fingers downward, sliding them along the rim of her pants. "But I still want to play with you...your buttons are so easy to push..."

"St-stop...you win..."

"Yeah?" She ran her tongue across Stella's throat. "You'll give up on him?"

She jerked a bit, trying to keep herself from moaning again. "Wh-what? No. N-never."

"Good." She came back up, locking their gaze together. "I'm not gonna lie..." She licked her lips. "But gods are you beautiful...and boy do I hate you so much because of that."

"Jersa...you really know what to say to make a girls heart melt..." she said as she smiled up at her. "And up close...you are just so cute." Now it was Jersa's face that turned bright red. Stella reached up, gently brushing some dirt from her face. "You shouldn't try so hard to hide it..."

"That's who I am..." she muttered, looking away.

"But it's not who you want to be." She smiled. "You could be so pretty."

"I'd probably just look like a crossdresser. Or...or something..."

"Maybe." Jersa glared at her. "But you'd be a real cute one."

"Maybe..." she muttered, looking away. Her face felt like it was on fire.

"Not that I'm not enjoying it...but are you gonna let me go anytime soon?" she said as she wiggled slightly against Jersa.

She blinked and then quickly stepped away, turning away from her quickly. "S-sorry. I really got...caught up there."

Stella put her arms around her waist, and pressed her bust purposefully into her back. "It's more than fine. We learned a lot about each other..." She smirked and bit her neck. "Om."

Jersa let out a yelp, covering her mouth immediately, shocked that she could make such a noise. "What the fuck, Stella."

"Do you really think he hates us?" she mumbled against her neck.

"Probably..." Jersa said as she leaned back against the bat. "I just... He seems so broken. He was so confident and sure of himself." She wrapped her arms around herself, holding her shoulders. "I want to follow him forever..."

"Me too." She sighed softly, resting her chin on Jersa's shoulder. "He's always been that way...even as a kid, I always felt like I was chasing after him..." She closed her eyes. "The way he moved...the way he spoke...everything he did..."

"You sound obsessed."

"Yeah..." She looked down at the ground. "I am...I thought it was just some childhood crush...something I'd get over. But I never did. And four years ago, when I spent the summer back home..." She laughed softly. "Gods I completely locked up at the sight of him. Just watching him...so full of confidence...an air of strength all about him... I couldn't even say anything to him. And he didn't even notice me..."

"Well, you are good at not being noticed," Jersa said as she nodded.

"You're so full of compliments," she said with a bit of a giggle.

"I could go back to insults, if you'd prefer." She put her hands down, gently grasping Stella's arms that were still around her.

She shook her head, rubbing into her shoulder. "No...I like cute, sweet, happy Jersa a lot more than rough, mean, mad Jersa."

"Well, at least someone does..." she muttered.

"I'm sure he likes you, too...otherwise he wouldn't have kissed you like that."

"You really think so?" She looked up at the sky again.

"Yeah..." Stella said as she closed her eyes.

They stood in silence a moment, both for the first time simply enjoying each others company.

"Hey...I just got an idea," Stella suddenly said, pulling away.

"Hm?"

"C'mon." She grabbed hold of Jersa's wrist, pulling her down the road and into Dead End.

"Wha-what are you doing?"

"Just come on! If Jace thinks skunks are fine, then they must be fine."

"I'm not bothered by skunks." Her eyes narrowed a bit. "I just don't like that look you're giving me."

Stella grinned. "C'mon! This'll be great!"

~

"This is not great," Jersa said, folding her arms.

"Oh it's not that bad."

"I feel ridiculous." She looked at herself in the mirror again, glaring at the dress.

"Oh you look absolutely adorable!" one of the skunks said, clapping her hands together. "I'm so glad we went with the skye blue over the red."

"I dunno," said the other skunk, looking Jersa up and down. "I still think she would have looked really good in red."

"I think Ms. Stella would look better in red," the skunk said as she leaned towards Stella.

"Hrm..." The other skunk held up measuring tape, getting a rough measurement of Stella's back, causing her to have a bit of a giggle fit.

"I would have preferred black," Jersa said as she eyed the dress again. It annoyed her how well it fit around her hips. Baggy around the chest and stomach... But it had it's advantages. She could hide a lot up the long baggy sleeves, not to mention all the room actually under the dress. But then there was the makeup...she felt that had been a bit much, especially after they had scrubbed off all of her dirt. Or as she liked to call it, 'gutter camo'. After all, it was easier to blend in if you didn't stick out, and nothing sticks out more than clean.

"I think you should listen to the experts," Stella said with a slight smirk. "It is definitely your color. Matches your eyes. And they did such a wonderful job with cleaning you up. I hardly recognize you~"

"I will stab you," Jersa said as she examined her reflection, turning this way and that. She hated it so much, but she had to admit to herself that she felt...pretty. They really did know what they were doing if they could make her this pretty.

"Oh my? That's a smile. I think she likes it, girls." The two skunks clapped excitedly.

Jersa spun, glaring at Stella as the dress billowed about her. "I...it's not...I just...I..." she faltered, feeling her face turn red.

"Next time, I'll get a dress as well," Stella said with a large smile as she counted out coins onto the table.

Both skunks gasped. "Oh yes! Please come anytime!"

"It's always so lovely to see people who aren't skunks coming to Dead End," one said as she moved quickly to the other side of the table.

"After coming here, I don't see why. I'm very glad we came. Right, Jersa?"

"Hm?" Jersa was watching herself in the mirror, turning this way and that, testing her maneuverability. "What?"

But to Stella and the skunks, it looked like she was just checking herself out. Which is also a bit of what she was doing. "I said, next time we come I'll get a dress as well. That way you wont feel embarrassed out in public."

"What do you mean? There is no way in hell I'm wearing this out-"

The building shook to a loud crack of thunder. Both their attentions snapped to the door. They had completely forgotten about their job.

~

He felt great. Whatever had been in that gloop really had done the trick. He had seen himself out after Pin and Anvil got into an argument over price. Anvil had tried to give him the sword for half, Pin had argued, and Jace had paid them double, which made them argue even more. The line, "He's rich, he can afford it!" had come out of Pin. They needed the money, he could tell.

A shiver ran down his spine as he stepped out of the building, eyeing the cloaked figure at the end of the street. No Jersa or Stella in sight. He walked calmly into the middle of the street as the figure approached. "I see now you have a blade." He recognized the voice immediately belonging to Leo, and was confirmed as he pulled back his hood.

"Quite," he said as he turned to face the lion.

"A duel," he said as he removed his cloak, tossing it to the side.

"Honorable combat," Jace said with a frown.

"No tricks," the lion said as he rolled up his sleeves. "Sword verse sword." He pulled the blade device from his wrist, tossing it to the side.

He wondered if he was truly up to the task. The lion had skill...and that worried him. "I accept," he said after a moment, removing his cloak and wrist bolt launcher, laying them gently down behind him.

"You sound so sure of yourself." He unsheathed his cane blade, tossing its holster to the side. "Much more calm than you did before."

"It is a matter of resolve." He drew his sword as well. "It took someone reminding me who I was."

"That is quite poetic. What is it from?" The lion set his footing, the sort of stance one wields with a rapier.

"Nothing that I've read." He held his sword loosely to the side in a rather relaxed posture.

"All words come from books, Mr. Ozymandias." He shuffled his feet, slowly approaching.

"You have it backwards. Books are made of words, words that people put in them. Books come from words." He shifted his grip, twisting the handle slightly in his hand.

"And yet those books outlast those who would write them. It stands to reason that that makes them superior. Your name is evidence of this." He lunged.

Jace stepped back, twisting the blade in front of him and deflecting Leo's off to the side. "But they were put there by a man." He was doing his best to remember all the training he had received. Focus on the tick of his watch, keep his heart rate down, stay focused.

"A man whose kingship amounted to nothing. Who in the end had no kingdom. No subjects. Nothing but words." Half-hearted blow after half-hearted blow were aimed at Jace, each one deflected with ease.

"But they were still put there by a man." He found it odd that Leo was far more interested in debating than fighting. He was not taking the fight seriously, and Jace was worried when the moment would come that that would change. He was struggling to defend himself, apparently his injuries were not healed as well as he had thought.

"And what would your words be?" Leo said with a smirk. "What would be the last words you leave upon Terra?"

Jace knew it was coming. But after a few more deflections, he smiled. "Never lose sight of who you are."

Even though Jace had expected it, he was not truly prepared for the speed. Even as it met his blade and began to turn, the lion leaned and the blade hit home, puncturing into his chest bellow the pocketwatch. Without even thinking he reached up, grabbing the blade before it could sink any further and stepped back. "Tsk. Close."

Jace swung upward and Leo leapt back. He put pressure on the wound, the blade had hit a rib and that had kept it from getting any deeper. "Damn it..." he muttered as he watched Leo clean his blade with a flick of the wrist.

"A bit higher and you would have been dead. I do try and extend some courtesy to those that I fight, offering them final words and-" Jace lunged awkwardly low, swinging downward. "Too predictable. Don't you-" He stopped and raised the blade to block. The awkward lunge had planted his foot on top of Leo's, who had abandoned his stance to gloat.

Lord connected with Leo, splitting into his collarbone and into his ribs as though his sword had not even been there. The lion spluttered as he fell to his knees, Jace ripping his blade out with a smooth movement. "You are good...better than me," Jace said as he took a few steps back. "But fucking hell are you a cocky little shit."

The lion spluttered up blood as he held his shoulder on. "What...imposs-" he coughed up more blood.

"Skunk blade," Jace said as he took a few more steps back. That had been exhausting, physically and mentally. "Also known as Sword Breakers. Heavy...dense...hard to use. I'm sure any other blade, you would have easily deflected it." He was...out of breath? That single moment of exertion had tired him out this much?

"I...always...win..." Leo said, and in a shocking movement that surprised Jace he threw something at him.

Without thinking he slapped it back towards the lion with the flat of his blade. He had just enough time to register the shock on the lions face before everything went white.