It was a grand wedding. The chapel was glossed in silver and glitter. The guests were dressed in vibrant colors and the groom stood at the altar in his best gray suit. The doors to the room open to reveal a beautiful bride in a cream white gown and veil being escorted down the aisle by her father who was dressed head to toe in a sky blue tux. Her father kisses her hand and lets her walk the rest of the aisle by herself until she finally makes it to her groom. They exchange their vows and rings, and seal their oath with a kiss.
The party goes on after with everyone having fun and talking and getting to know they're new relatives. Everyone was getting along well, except for one who stood in the back of the room drinking away the red wine.
Morbius: "… Joshua."
Joshua: "… brother. I see you're as happy as you wanted to be. You married the woman of your dreams, as you put it."
Morbius: "As spiteful as ever."
Joshua: "Hey, I'm not the one that asked for an invitation. You're new "loving" family insisted I come, since we're brothers by blood. Think it's got something to do with their tradition."
Morbius: "No shit. I can't say anything about it since I need to stay on my father-in-law's good side if I want to stay with her."
Joshua: "So true~. You should go say hi and thank him for this grand and immaculate wedding that you insisted on having for her."
Morbius: "Quiet you."
Joshua: "Oh wait. My bad, you wife wanted this kind of wedding. You know, because it followed her family tradition. You remember what that was, right?"
Morbius: "What in the realms are you babbling about?"
Joshua: "… I guess you forgot what the in-laws have been telling you the past year since you've been dating. You don't get to take her family name. And she doesn't get yours either. Remember?"
Morbius scowls at Joshua and storms off into the crowd. Joshua stays in his place by the wine and takes another sip of his glass when he spots the bride dancing with her father in the center of the room. She looks as though she just returned to the ethereal realm. Her plane of birth. Her raven black hair tipped at the end with white like snow, her skin gave an afternoon spring glow to it as if she was outside, but that is only her natural complexion. Her eyes black like onix. Her smiling lips glossed in a rose color. The gown gently hugging her thin, delicate looking figure and shaping her soft curves as the skirt fans out and hugs her legs throughout her dancing. She is truly a beautiful being of the three realms. She stops dancing with her father suddenly and takes Morbius's hand next with a bigger smile of pure bliss and pink cheeks and they begin to dance away in the crowd.
Joshua finishes his glass and downs another one before wandering out the doors for a smoke. Not long after, the bride's father steps outside to join him.
Alvonius: "Looks like the wedding hit you harder than it did the bride and groom."
Joshua: "Hm?? Oh. Sorry. I'll put this-"
Alvonius: "Keep it. You seem to need the rest. A sibling rivalry of love is a harsh thing to overcome, I know. I get how you feel."
Joshua: "… I see. He's gonna need to face one hell of a reality soon, since they're going to be following your tradition for this wedding."
Alvonius: "… if he hasn't made up his mind yet, this ceremony will reveal to the house of Orion what he truly intended for out of all of this. You and that wicked man are hard to read after all. So we won't know until the end. Whether he is the right one for her, or if you are."
Joshua: "Still hoping for me to take her back, aren't cha?"
Alvonius: "An old soul can still hold dreams."
Joshua: "Heh. Sorry you gotta wait a while, pops."
Alvonius:(chuckles) "No need for that. It's not like you can control anyone's heart. Just be sure to watch over the new house as their guardian, alright?"
Joshua: "… right. There was that rule too. Since I haven't been disowned yet. Though… are you sure it's fine for me to take a name blessed from the ether plane?"
Alvonius: "The plane of your origin doesn't matter. So long as you are accepted as blood, that is all you need to be blessed by the star that has chosen your new family. And you are still part of that family."
Joshua: "… sure… what would happen if I was removed after the ceremony? That's something I didn't think of before."
Alvonius: "… if that happens with the blessing on you all, then you will be removed from the house… and your branch that connects you to us will fall from our tree. Unless you marry into the family directly, you won't ever be able to return to us. Or them. Not unless they seek you out first."
Joshua: "… great. Now I'm walking on glass."
Alvonius: "Good luck, son of the nier. Protect them well."
The bride's father, Alvonius, goes back into the party. Joshua stays to finish his smoke slowly until the party ends.
Years later…
Morbius:
"Lidea, if you don't get me in contact with the Martor Company head....! That Bastard set us up, I tell you!! We were set up!! I'm going to bring that fucker to court!! … what??? What do you mean I don't need to?? Why!? What??! It's gone…?? How!? I didn't send in any…!? Come again… it was taken care of by who!? Tell me clearly so I can understand, Woman!"
The door to the house opens with Jashua walking in with a bag of food and ingredients.
Joshua: "I'm back, rodents."
A game gets paused as a pair of boys hop off the sofa from the living room and race to Jashua with big hugs around his waist.
Micheal/Kastiel: "Welcome back, uncle Jashua!'
Micheal: "We'll take those to the kitchen."
Kastiel: "Mama's waitin' for ya there."
Joshua: "Aright. I'll be there in a bit."
Morbius: "Not before you tell me what you did to my company, you nosy bastard."
Joshua: "… oh. Did you get a call about that debt of yours? You know I was gonna leave it alone and all that but…"
Morbius: "Out with it!! What did you do to pay that off! How!? I know that shit in the wall job you took as security doesn't pay you nearly enough to even leave a dent in that number."
Morbius' wife enters the room with a ladle in her hand and an apron on with her hair tied back neatly in a braided pigtail.
Meridian: "I asked him to pay it off for you. With how things were going, I knew it wouldn't hold for long after you lost your name dear. I was hoping it wouldn't come to this, but we don't have a choice now that the Madibond family name is no longer holding a standing since you took over after marrying me."
Morbius: "Meri… d-don't! Don't say it like that! You make it sound as if it was your fault. It's not anyone's fault but mine, I… I should have seen this coming sooner or later after all. I didn't prepare for it properly…"
Meridian: "Morbius… I asked him to take care of it for you. So you don't have to while you keep working on building our name up with your new idea."
Morbius:(sigh) "… without an official brand, it's going to be difficult. How did we even end up in such debt? I don't understand."
Meridian: "Well it's gone now. Just focus on that pitch and we'll do what we can on the sidelines for you. It's a glorious idea, so you've got this."
Morbius gives Meridian a kiss on the cheek with a sigh of relief.
Morbius: "Yes, dear. You're right. Thank you. I'll get that asshole back if it's the last thing I do. He'll get what's coming to him soon. I'll make sure of it."
Morbius leaves the room and goes to the basement, leaving Joshua with Meridian.
Joshua: "… any new updates on the snitch in the company, mer?"
Meridian: "It seems his secretary has been failing to sell his pitch drafts to the rival company. She thought the new name would fail as soon as it was announced and didn't even bother to give it a second thought to sell out the studio work to Martor&Co."
Joshua: "Anything you want found there?"
Meridian: "Do you think you can bring the company down a peg with a few scandals of their own?"
Meridian passes a magic camera drive to Joshua and he takes it with something else similar to payment for him. A large dark stone from the Nierreal realm that helps strengthen dark energy. Joshua puts the stone in his mouth and swallows it whole as if it were candy, licking his lips in satisfaction.
Joshua: "Cake walk. I can have the agency dig into a few of their dark sides, hire some good reporters. Want some bugs too?"
Meridian: "If you would, please. I know it's a lot to ask, but you're the only one holding that company on its last leg right now until he gets his pitch sold. He is amazing at his job. He's a true honest salesman, but the world doesn't seem to like that side of him as much as his… darker expressions."
Joshua: "Understandable. But you like that devious side to him too. Why not let him do it that way and make it easier on him?"
Meridian: "He needs to work his way back up the ranks for it or they'll eat him alive and destroy us all for that idea alone."
Joshua: "Right. I'll work on the rest of this tomorrow night after the day shift."
Meridian: "Please don't stay out too late this time, Joshua. You need more rest than you give yourself."
Joshua: "I'll do my best, dearest sister."
Meridian: "Joshua."
Joshua: "Hm??"
Meridian: "Thank you for being here for us. And stay safe, my friend."
Joshua: "… pfft. Keep that fool out of trouble."
Meridian smiles softly as Joshua wanders back out the house and shuts the door behind him with a wave of his hand before vanishing in the streets. Not even a week had passed since Jashua returned from the Job Meridian gave him to sit comfortably on the sofa in the living room with his nephews enjoying some television time for the weekend.
Morbius: "Meridian!! Meri! My lovely Meri! I got it! My pitch went through!! Finally!! Haha~!"
Meridian: "Morbius! Calm down, dear! You're going to scare the boys."
Joshua: "Little late for that, sister dear. Congratulations, big brother. You're finally making it big again."
Morbius: "Don't you mock me, you imp!"
Joshua: "I wasn't. I'm genuinely happy for you. You did a good job. How did you get through the competition, by the way?"
Morbius: "Humph! You're so skilled at finding out everything, look it up in the news letter later. Come, Meridian! Boys you too! We're going out to celebrate!"
Joshua: "Well isn't that nice."
Morbius: "Come on, don't dally. Get an outfit set to go out to wear for this late afternoon. Let me know where you want to go my dear and we shall make it so."
Meridian: "Morbius. The children are watching."
As Meridian and Morbius talked about where to go Joshua sends the boys out of the room. Joshua changes the channel on the television to the news channel where an old man was being forced out of a company building with his hands cuffed behind him shouting at the crowd of cameramen that were gathered there.
Joshua: "… Oi, Morbius. Ain't that the old man that turned you down last time? Says he's got a history of project theft and fraud. Pocketing company and project money and all that. The man is a right loon here."
Morbius: "What!? Let me see that! … that is him! That man brought down my last project too! I don't even know why I bothered going back to that old fool… wait. That man after him is the competition… what the hell?"
Joshua: "Really now? Says that one's the old fool's accomplice. That company is either going under new management or getting shut down all together… Why not take it under your name? Take advantage of the chaos and take all the employees. They're gonna lose their jobs either way."
Morbius: "Humph! I'm no cur like that lot. But I won't let those good people go losing their jobs over this trife."
Joshua: "That's the good businessman we know. You'll make that company much better with what you know."
Morbius: "After I've talked to the head corporation about it. I can't just walk up to the parent company and say "hey, boss. I want that building.""
A month later…
Morbius: "I got the building! He just up and gave it to me without me even asking!"
Joshua: "… huh."
Meridian:(whisper) "Joshua…"
Joshua: "Wasn't me this time. That's just his lucky stars."
Meridian: "Goodness. You think he'll be alright?"
Joshua: "I can check."
Meridian sneaks a large dark stone into Joshua's hand.
Meridian: "Would you be a dear?"
Joshua: "For now, let him have this. He earned it at least."
Meridian: "He did."