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Description
The past several months had been quite eventful. Arguably a great deal more happened to Elly, her friends, and those she considered practically family during that time than in the past few years.

"(Or at least a lot more important things, I guess.)"

She mentally ran through a list of the more notable things she had either seen or actually experienced for herself:

More unexpected appearances by someone from another dimension ending up in her reality, after she'd already met 'herself' - Allie - from one much earlier. Both times afterwards had involved not alternates of herself or others she knew, but children from some yet more alternate versions. Sephira and then Mazda, a pair of daughters each from two different versions of the same father Dyne, with the older girl's mother a different Allie from the one she knew.

"(I feel more like an aunt in that case, and she treats the 'other me' like a mother. Even though we consider each other more or less twin sisters, we're kinda sorta the same person...)"

Elly shook her head.

"(Best not to think about that too much.)"

And another situation involving the evil twin/alternate version/clone? - that particular mystery still hadn't been resolved yet - of one of her best friends happened some time after that. Vixen had always been a nuisance, but her teamup with the far more serious and capable Maxima had made things more dangerous than ever. Especially since they were clearly out for blood that time, and would certainly have claimed at least three lives that night if things hadn't thankfully turned out okay in the end.

"(Though Allie had to relive her own nightmare when trying to figure out how her pendant suddenly had powers, the crushing weight on her heart from her past finally started to fade away. So that was a big plus.)"

Better than okay for two of those lives, as the romantic bonds between Cole and Mercedes upgraded from a long dating relationship to getting engaged that same night. Barely surviving that nightmare together had helped both lovers realize they didn't want to risk either being uncertain about his or her true feelings any longer. The wedding was merely a few months later, to almost no one's surprise by that point.

"(And Allie's own love life finally worked out too, getting married again to the only other man that she let herself fall for.)"

The actual surprise came months later, when the young boy named Ferrari showed up. Like Mazda and Sephira, he was the child of two friends from a different reality. Unlike them his parents were alternates of Cole and Mercedes, and even more shocking was the reveal Ferrari was actually from Allie's reality, several years after she'd made her own journey!

"(First time we'd had visitors from the same place. Allie had some trouble coming to grips with that, which took some time. But as always, everything ultimately worked out in the end for her. She's certainly full of luck in that area...)"

Elly found herself smiling.

Though she was joyful at the happy outcomes, the smile on Elly's lips faded in moments. Feelings of joy turned into an unwanted mix of frustration, guilt, and... jealousy? None of which she was comfortable with, but knew she couldn't simply ignore.

Especially when - at least in this reality, as far as she knew - she'd been in a romantic relationship for much longer than either of the other couples. However, both of those had advanced more quickly and even blossomed into marriages by now. Yet Elly was still in the same spot as she'd been for a long time.

She had never doubted that Tim loved her, nor she him, and those facts were as true as they had always been.

"(That's what makes this so irritating... if that's the case for both of us, then when? When do we get to have what our friends have?)"

Elly turned her eyes upwards, acting as if she were begging the sky above itself for an answer.

"(When do we get to be together like that?)"

Only the faint sounds of the trees rustling as the wind blew through them came as a response. Elly sighed as she pondered the situation, and what she could do about it, if anything. Then one idea came to mind. One she never imagined herself considering until now.

"(What's the old saying? Desperate times...)"

*Time passes*

She wondered if her friends would say she had gone crazy.

She honestly felt like she couldn't blame them for thinking so if they would.

"(And yet, here I am. But hey, sometimes crazy works.)"

Taking a deep breath, she walked right up to the main entrance to the compound she'd visited several times before. Although 'visited' wasn't all that correct of a description. Something more like 'been brought to and held captive in' was far more accurate, but right now desire overrode logic.

The guards at the door spotted her well before she reached them, but made no move to stop or intercept her. Perhaps they were caught off guard by her brazen and direct approach?

"(If they're surprised by this, wait until their boss learns of my plan.)"

*One exchange of dialogue later...*

She was certain the man had never imagined a meeting like this, half-expecting him to immediately attempt to capture her again on sight. Given how deep within the compound she currently was, and how all the guards had her hopelessly outnumbered as well, it wasn't the most unlikely outcome imaginable.

But she had to admit, the unmistakably confused look on his face when she'd told him her proposal... that had been the best part of the day so far.

"So... what do you say, Parasyte?" she asked, silently asking herself if she was truly sure this would work. "Will you help me out by kidnapping me again?"

When her longtime adversary nodded his agreement, Elly knew there was now no turning back. And that the odds of her carefully thought out plan could just as easily be a success, or end up a complete disaster. Even she admitted this was crazy.

"(But hey... sometimes crazy works.)"

To Be Continued
____________________________

Elly's up to something, and just in time for her obligatory April 1 picture. Will 'crazy' work in her favor?

Description
The past several months had been quite eventful. Arguably a great deal more happened to Elly, her friends, and those she considered practically family during that time than in the past few years.

"(Or at least a lot more important things, I guess.)"

She mentally ran through a list of the more notable things she had either seen or actually experienced for herself:

More unexpected appearances by someone from another dimension ending up in her reality, after she'd already met 'herself' - Allie - from one much earlier. Both times afterwards had involved not alternates of herself or others she knew, but children from some yet more alternate versions. Sephira and then Mazda, a pair of daughters each from two different versions of the same father Dyne, with the older girl's mother a different Allie from the one she knew.

"(I feel more like an aunt in that case, and she treats the 'other me' like a mother. Even though we consider each other more or less twin sisters, we're kinda sorta the same person...)"

Elly shook her head.

"(Best not to think about that too much.)"

And another situation involving the evil twin/alternate version/clone? - that particular mystery still hadn't been resolved yet - of one of her best friends happened some time after that. Vixen had always been a nuisance, but her teamup with the far more serious and capable Maxima had made things more dangerous than ever. Especially since they were clearly out for blood that time, and would certainly have claimed at least three lives that night if things hadn't thankfully turned out okay in the end.

"(Though Allie had to relive her own nightmare when trying to figure out how her pendant suddenly had powers, the crushing weight on her heart from her past finally started to fade away. So that was a big plus.)"

Better than okay for two of those lives, as the romantic bonds between Cole and Mercedes upgraded from a long dating relationship to getting engaged that same night. Barely surviving that nightmare together had helped both lovers realize they didn't want to risk either being uncertain about his or her true feelings any longer. The wedding was merely a few months later, to almost no one's surprise by that point.

"(And Allie's own love life finally worked out too, getting married again to the only other man that she let herself fall for.)"

The actual surprise came months later, when the young boy named Ferrari showed up. Like Mazda and Sephira, he was the child of two friends from a different reality. Unlike them his parents were alternates of Cole and Mercedes, and even more shocking was the reveal Ferrari was actually from Allie's reality, several years after she'd made her own journey!

"(First time we'd had visitors from the same place. Allie had some trouble coming to grips with that, which took some time. But as always, everything ultimately worked out in the end for her. She's certainly full of luck in that area...)"

Elly found herself smiling.

Though she was joyful at the happy outcomes, the smile on Elly's lips faded in moments. Feelings of joy turned into an unwanted mix of frustration, guilt, and... jealousy? None of which she was comfortable with, but knew she couldn't simply ignore.

Especially when - at least in this reality, as far as she knew - she'd been in a romantic relationship for much longer than either of the other couples. However, both of those had advanced more quickly and even blossomed into marriages by now. Yet Elly was still in the same spot as she'd been for a long time.

She had never doubted that Tim loved her, nor she him, and those facts were as true as they had always been.

"(That's what makes this so irritating... if that's the case for both of us, then when? When do we get to have what our friends have?)"

Elly turned her eyes upwards, acting as if she were begging the sky above itself for an answer.

"(When do we get to be together like that?)"

Only the faint sounds of the trees rustling as the wind blew through them came as a response. Elly sighed as she pondered the situation, and what she could do about it, if anything. Then one idea came to mind. One she never imagined herself considering until now.

"(What's the old saying? Desperate times...)"

*Time passes*

She wondered if her friends would say she had gone crazy.

She honestly felt like she couldn't blame them for thinking so if they would.

"(And yet, here I am. But hey, sometimes crazy works.)"

Taking a deep breath, she walked right up to the main entrance to the compound she'd visited several times before. Although 'visited' wasn't all that correct of a description. Something more like 'been brought to and held captive in' was far more accurate, but right now desire overrode logic.

The guards at the door spotted her well before she reached them, but made no move to stop or intercept her. Perhaps they were caught off guard by her brazen and direct approach?

"(If they're surprised by this, wait until their boss learns of my plan.)"

*One exchange of dialogue later...*

She was certain the man had never imagined a meeting like this, half-expecting him to immediately attempt to capture her again on sight. Given how deep within the compound she currently was, and how all the guards had her hopelessly outnumbered as well, it wasn't the most unlikely outcome imaginable.

But she had to admit, the unmistakably confused look on his face when she'd told him her proposal... that had been the best part of the day so far.

"So... what do you say, Parasyte?" she asked, silently asking herself if she was truly sure this would work. "Will you help me out by kidnapping me again?"

When her longtime adversary nodded his agreement, Elly knew there was now no turning back. And that the odds of her carefully thought out plan could just as easily be a success, or end up a complete disaster. Even she admitted this was crazy.

"(But hey... sometimes crazy works.)"

To Be Continued
____________________________

Elly's up to something, and just in time for her obligatory April 1 picture. Will 'crazy' work in her favor?