I HAVE RISEN FROM THE DEAD.

‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

she was doing better than he had expected her to.

his men weren't too keen on the idea of him choosing a child (read: teenager) to be his right-hand when they have been with him for longer and now the workings and operations. he cut them a deal, if she still didn't understand the inner workings in one month's time, then she would be replaced.

what they hadn't expected from the young girl was her knack for numbers and organization. she had almost all of his shipments marked and labelled withing the first week of her being there, never allowing anyone to move or even touch anything until she was finished with it.

it was almost terrifying how well she slid into the role.

one of his men had taken things too far, so far into their resentment that they did not realize just how unmatched the fight had been. if it could even be called that.

"you don't deserve the spot i've worked so hard to get! you'll never be anything more but a street rat!" he had yelled, charging at her to take her down in own blow. she simply side-stepped him at the last moment, sent him stumbling down to the ground by simply sticking her leg out, and glowered down at him.

"i ain't a street rat, ya fuckin' gremlin!" she sneered, "call me that again, see what happens next time."

yeah, she was already a monster when he found her. all he was doing was helping her grow into her talents. he shivered in delight; how terrifying.

‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

"if he had known...hell, if i had known how fast i was going, he would have done something. big dog...he was an asshole, cruel in every way, but he had a soft spot for the younger members. we all knew it. if either of us knew how bad i was gonna get...maybe it wouldn't have gotten so far."

"what happened?"

"i grew into myself sooner than any of them thought. i was already able to fight, could hold my ground against dudes thrice my size, and knew how to run the operations when big dog wasn't around. by six months, i was officially given the title of right-hand of big dog."

"you were fourteen?"

"i was fourteen."

"...but...then, how did you-"

"how did i become top dog?"

"mm."

"well, it was threemonths after that, that i realized that he was basically dumping all of his work on me. at this point, i was running his damn gang for him while he would go off and do whatever the hell he wanted. everyone came to me about any inquiries. where the next run was, how much the runner should carry, what route they should take, who not to sell to, which alleys to take on the way back, and who to turn in the money to when they returned. the total should be exact as i would have left the prediction of the packet. i had everything in order and i thought... i thought, what if i was was the leader and not him?"

‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

"get away from me, ya fuckin' perv!" she screeched, running away from big dog like her life depended on it. she hopped over various furniture in the base, ducking around henchmen left and right with big dog hot on her heels. "i said no!"

"it's just hug!" he shouted back as if it were a decent argument. celeste didn't really do hugs- well, at least not from creepy old men from their gang. she would hug her brother all day long. but these guys? she'd rather be caught dead than to be affectionate towards these jerks. "come on, i'm leaving tonight and you're not going to hug me goodbye?!"

"hell no!"

especially not when the plan was supposed to be set in motion after his departure.

her betrayal to the man who took her under his wing when she began to lose herself.

a coup d'etat.

while she had a rocky beginning with the underlings, they had eventually grown to respect her as her achievements grew. they also noticed that she did all of big dog's work for him, she hadn't expected them to be so chatty. she had more support than she had originally thought.

it wasn't even her idea to stage the coup.

nicolas, one of the younger recruits, had told her that she would be a better leader. that she should be the leader. he was the one who began to 'innocently' implant the idea into the others' heads, and slowly, the plan was set up behind big dog's back. 

not that his back was there enough to have to do it so discretely.

obviously, they strayed away from those solely loyal to big dog, his closest underlings. they knew they would have to fight back against them, so their numbers were only boosting their confidence a bit. they knew their abilities, while dwindling in numbers, those who were on big dog's side were no joke. celeste could take them one-on-one. but in an internal gang war? she would need numbers to take them out.

"fine, i give up." big dog slowed, catching his breath. he shook his head in amusement, "i'll be back in three days. this settlement shouldn't take any longer than that. if i'm lucky, it'll be over sooner than that."

celeste cautiously strode back towards the man, eyeing him warily. she jerked away when he hooked an arm around her neck, rubbing his fist onto the top of her head. she yelped, struggling to escape his grip. he cackled as she growled at him to let her go before releasing her. 

"as usual, i trust you'll take care of everything while i'm gone?"

she rolled her eyes in response, shoving her hands into her hoodie's pockets, "it's my job, after all. don't really have a choice."

"you always have a choice."

she paused, eyes flitting up to meet his. he was smiling, but it didn't quite reach his eyes, the glint in there showing something she hadn't seen before. she wasn't sure what it was, but it made her hear pick up and her hands became clammy in their hiding place.

"you just have to make the right ones."

she tilted her head, eyes filled with curiosity. 

"and if i don't?"

he didn't say anything for a moment, still looking at her with that weird smile before watching it dim. 

"then you have to live with the consequences."

‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

"i think he knew. the way he looked at me...it was like he was waiting for me to crack under the pressure and spill my guts and beg for forgiveness. but i didn't. and he was telling me that i would have to live with that. and i did. i still do."

"you aren't sure? with how this is going, i would have thought that you would know if you confirmed his suspicions after confronting him during the coup."

"one would think so, right? except..."

"except?"

"it's something i look back on often. when i'm lost in thought and my mind returns to those days- to that day specifically. the night he left for that settlement...

that was the last time i saw him."

‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵