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"Jesse, listen. I'm not going to beat around the bush here. The last time we saw each other? With the... Ocelots and the Witherstorm and everything? I'm not happy about how things went down and, well, I want to patch things up. I'm tired of us not talking to each other, so... I'm sorry."
...
We were both wrong. No, I'm the sorry one.
You have nowhere else to go.
"Wait. YOU'RE apologizing?" Petra asked.
Lukas shrugged.
"I mean... yeah. After all I just up and left. Left you to deal with the Witherstorm all on your own. I... shouldn't have done that. Or should've come back at least once I'd saved my--" He paused. Stared. Then cleared his throat. "Well, once I'd dealt with my... business, anyway."
You have nowhere else to go.
Jesse snorted.
"You mean saved your former 'friends'? What do they call themselves these days -- the 'Blaze Rods'?" He made sure to adopt a mocking tone for the name. "Must've gone really well. You know, until they DITCHED you. And now you come crawling back to us, huh? Classic."
"What? No, I--"
"Jesse!" Petra scowled at him. "What is wrong with you?"
"I did save them, they just--" Lukas let out a frustrated sigh. "Jesse, I don't know why you have it in for me but--"
"Well, guess what. We're not friends either."
Lukas' expression tightened.
"You're right, we're not." His voice grew quiet. Breathy. "But do you think we ever could be?"
"I doubt it."
"Why?" Petra threw in angrily.
Jesse crossed his arms over his chest.
"Hey, I don't need to justify not liking someone."
"No...," she said slowly, squinting at him. Then she put her hands on her hips. "And usually I'd be all 'you do you', you know? But in this instance... Let's just say some things don't quite add up." She turned and proceeded to pace about the hall, hands clasped behind her back. "I wasn't there for all of it and then I had my own problems to deal with, as you know, but... Lukas was just gone from one moment to the next. And I noticed the way he glared at you during your speech."
Jesse narrowed his eyes when their gazes met but let her continue regardless.
"You see, I thought the Wither Sickness had twisted things. Things like your disputes with Lukas. I couldn't trust my own perception."
Jesse's eyes kept following her movements.
"So I consulted Olivia and Axel to get a clearer picture. Fully expected them to immediately jump to your defense and tell me how wrong I am." Petra stopped pacing and looked up. "They... did not."
When Jesse wouldn't budge, she approached him, mouth pressed into a thin line.
"Jesse. This isn't about you two not getting along anymore. I don't know what happened exactly, and I can only judge this from my own observations and the things I'm told but... at this point? Yeah. It's bullying."
Jesse drew his head back in surprise as Lukas averted his gaze, rubbing the back of his neck.
He was tempted to immediately go with the most indignant retort because WHAT? Him? A bully? When the notorious leader of the Ocelots was RIGHT THERE?
But it was Petra he was talking to. One of his closest friends whom he respected and whose opinion he valued. And he did not want to antagonize her.
"Oh come on Petra, you can't mean that."
"Yes, I can! And I do. Your treatment of Lukas has been awful for no reason and I just can't wrap my head around it. What did he ever do to you?"
Jesse gaped at her as if she'd lost her mind.
"What did he-- Petra, he's my adversary!"
"What?" Lukas' voice was full of confusion that was as misplaced as a sheep in the Nether. "I thought that was a joke! What are you talking about?" His eyes flicked around in thought. "I mean, maybe at Endercon building competitions. I guess. But that's all they are. Competitions. Outside of those, we were never on opposing sides."
"Of course we were! ARE. You can't just rewrite history."
Petra turned to Jesse, one brow raised.
"Maybe your rivalry was more one-sided than you thought."
Jesse grunted in anger.
"Well, what about him trying to take Gabriel's amulet? Or his tantrums during our search for Soren? Am I supposed to just ignore his irritating behavior?"
"Oh, I remember those." Petra crossed her arms. "You told me he was being a jerk."
"A jerk, huh?" Lukas cast Jesse a glare before turning to Petra. "Augh! I TOLD him it was because I was worried about you, Petra. But he wouldn't tell me what was going on. I was just trying to help."
A look of surprise flashed over Petra's face, mixed with a hint of regret, before it hardened again when she faced Jesse.
"Olivia also mentioned a shelter you kicked him out of. In the middle of the night. In the rain. Even though it was his idea and he helped build it. And then you went on to decline the apples he brought you the next morning?" She shook her head slowly. "That's... that's cold, man. I mean, even Axel came around and he was certainly no fan. What kind of grudge are you holding?"
"Hey, that shelter was my idea too, okay? And we could have built it without him. Plus, I didn't kick him out. He chose to leave."
Lukas visibly tensed up.
"Well, you didn't exactly back me up either. Why would I want to stay in a place where it's obvious that nobody wants me?"
Petra put her foot down with an audible thud, fists clenched at her sides.
"That's not true! Jesse doesn't speak for all of us."
Jesse turned away. His eyes fell on Reuben's memorial and he remembered his friend taking pity on Lukas and offering him his cookie. Thinking about the little pig made him sad. And he wasn't exactly doing a good job of honoring that particular memory...
Still.
"I didn't ask him to follow us around like some stray cat that's hoping for a treat every once in a while."
A beat of silence.
"Stray cat?" Lukas asked with quiet indignation.
Petra threw her arms forward in frustration.
"Oh but you never gave him a chance! You gladly accepted his resources, his help and his great ideas but you never accepted HIM -- like, as a person. You just... shoved him aside, every time he tried to be part of the group." She scoffed. "You know, when I said he was useful -- that's... not what I meant. But I kept hoping you'd come around."
"Me too," Lukas said quietly, holding his arm.
Jesse dismissed them by rolling his eyes.
"Why are you bringing this up now?"
"Because you just keep bullying him! Right in front of me! I mean, I wanted to address it either way but, with Lukas gone, it wasn't immediately necessary. Now though? I want answers." Petra's eyes narrowed. "So what is it? What's up with your weird hatred? And why is my word not enough to make you reconsider?"
...
He just sucks. He's too perfect.
That's none of your business.
"... So? Got anything to say? Or are you trying to come up with a reason just now?"
Weighing his options, Jesse kept staring at her. Then he looked over to Lukas who held his gaze with a steadiness that didn't quite match his apprehensive expression.
He frowned. The silence stretched. Eventually, he decided with a defeated sigh that he might as well just go with the truth. Even despite how uncomfortable it was. He owed Petra that much.
He's too perfect.
Fists clenched at his sides, Jesse threw his head back with a groan.
"Ugh, it's because he's so perfect, okay? I mean look at him!" He jabbed his hands in Lukas' direction, then flailed around a little. "He's this... totally handsome, smart, charismatic dude that everybody seems to like for some reason and I'm supposed to believe that he simply wants to be part of OUR team all of a sudden, with no ulterior motive? Step down from being the leader of his own gang and hand over the reins to ME?" He made a pause for dramatic effect. "Yep. Not buying it."
Lukas blinked at him as he took a moment to process the information, then squinted.
"What?" he half-asked, half-laughed.
"Yeah, what?" Petra joined in, one eyebrow raised high.
Taking a measured step toward Jesse, Lukas placed his hands on his hips.
"That's what you've been worried about? Are you saying I've been TOO nice to you?"
"Well, yeah! Seemed pretty suspicious, you know." Jesse gestured at his face. "Even your stupid hair always looks excellent."
A pair of slow and deliberate footsteps thudded on the carpet as Petra moved to wordlessly shove the weird look on her face into his field of view.
Jesse turned to her and threw up his arms.
"What?!?"
"Jesse. What on earth are you even saying? This doesn't make any sense."
Lukas raised his hands in a placating gesture.
"Wow. Okay. You know, you could've just told me that. I thought that was how I make friends. I could've been rude too. I could've kept our supposed 'rivalry' intact if that's what you needed. I just... I thought it was a smarter and more honest approach to just be nice." He took another step towards him. "Jesse. All I ever wanted was to be your friend. You have to believe me." He offered a small smile.
It had the opposite effect of what Lukas had probably hoped for. Although that was mostly due to his choice of words...
Jesse furrowed his brow in anger.
"My friend, huh?"
"Yeah..." Lukas' smile faltered a little as his eyes darted to Petra for a moment. "You DO have a point with the whole me crawling back thing though..." Raising a hand, he scratched the back of his head. "I-- I don't want to be a bother. And believe it or not, I've got some sense of dignity too. So just say the word and you'll never see me again. If you truly can't stand being around me..." He averted his gaze, chuckling uneasily. "(Which I'm still hoping is not the case...)"
Jesse blinked at him as he considered his options.
...
Let me think about it. Good. Now leave.
Stay?
Tilting his head, he looked Lukas up and down. Took all of him in. The bleak look on his face and the slumped posture. His new armor and the goggles on his head. The wistfulness in his steel blue eyes as he looked up when Petra raised her voice.
"Where will you go? Do you have any other friends?"
One corner of Lukas' mouth twitched up for a second.
"I'll... I'll manage. Don't worry about me."
With a sad but encouraging smile, she touched his upper arm.
"I'd rather have you with us, you know."
"Thanks Petra. I appreciate that."
Jesse's heartbeat faintly thumped in his ears as the seconds ticked by, each feeling like a lifetime.
Here he was. Lukas. Leader of the Ocelots. And yet, somehow part of his team. Now it was Jesse's decision whether it would stay that way. So far, Lukas had always come around, had always come back, no matter what. Until the cave incident, that is... And that made him realize a few things.
A sensation he'd forcefully buried a long time ago pulled at his heartstrings. Maybe he'd been wrong. Maybe Lukas wasn't trying to manipulate him after all. Maybe there was still a chance. In any case, Lukas was not to blame for his personal shortcomings. He was simply the easiest target to take his frustration out on. Because he was the source of said frustration.
But to think he might leave for good? That he'd never see him again? No. If Jesse was sure of anything, it's that he did not want that. And now he could finally admit it.
Stay?
He sighed, shoulders sagging a little.
"Lukas? Please stay. I'm sure we'll find a way to make this work."
Eyes widening with hope, Lukas turned to him. He released a surprised breath and slowly, a tiny, uncertain smile appeared.
"Really? Oh that's-- you have no idea how relieved I am to hear that, seriously."
There was no need to voice it. Jesse had in fact never seen anyone look this relieved before. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a big grin spreading over Petra's face.
Lukas blinked a few more times, suddenly standing much straighter.
"You won't regret it, I promise. Trust me. I'm here to help. I won't let you down. I'm-- I can be useful. To you."
Jesse couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the weird phrasing but gave a nod of acknowledgement anyway. Then he offered his hand and a thin-lipped smile.
"Welcome to the New Order of the Stone, Lukas."
Lukas' eyebrows shot up. He hesitantly took the offered hand and shook it gently.
"Thank you, Jesse."
Petra placed a firm hand on Lukas' shoulder and gave him a warm smile.
"No need for thanks. You earned your place here. And man am I glad you're finally staying for good!"