Elora had never really understood the phrase 'world tilting on its axis'.

I mean, sure, she'd heard some pretty fucking crazy things, and she'd been through some shit, but she'd never felt such shock that her whole body numbed before, or such anger that her whole body shook.

Until now.

She looked at John B, her voice half frail, and half fight. "What?"

"She was working with him," John B told her, taking his hands off her shoulders but never removing his gaze from her. "And Ward, and Scooter Grubbs. All four of them were working together to find it."

Elora shook her head.

"No," she said immediately, hand coming up to her forehead, chuckle evident in her tone. "No, you're wrong. My- John B, my mother only cared about two things; the next paycheck and the next hookup-"

"Elora," John B snapped. "I'm. Being. Seriou-"

"You fucking can't be, John B!" Elora yelled at him. "You didn't know her."

"Elora, listen to me, please," John B implored.

She sighed, turning to him. She knew he wasn't right, and that what he was suggesting was fucking insane, but she also knew he was her friend. And on this occasion, she needed to hear him out.

"Okay," she said finally, looking down. "Come on, let's hear your bullshit theory."

John B ignored her, and pursed his lips, raking a hand through his hair before coming out with it.

"Ward knows about the gold," he started, clenching his fists. "He- he said something about Redfield on the Druthers yesterday, and then he tried to kill me."

Elora looked at him, very confused. "But how does he know about Redfie-"

"He killed my dad, Elora!"

His voice was loud enough to make Elora jump, which is what she did. That was before she took in what he was saying.

"What the fuck?" She asked, eyes wide, no bite behind her words.

"He killed him," John B said, looking down, eyes filling with tears, fists clenched. "Nine months ago, when they were on their search for the Merchant. They were out at sea and they were arguing and then Ward pushed my dad and- and he got injured. Unconscious. And he didn't wanna have to deal with that, so he... he just dumped him. In the ocean."

In the silence that remained after this story, Elora took a chance to ask her first question.

"Who told you this?"

"Lana Grubbs," John B said. "She knew all along, and-"

"And what exactly does my dearest mother have to do with this?" There was as much anger as there was sarcasm in her tone.

John B took a deep breath.

"She was with them," he said finally, not looking at her. "She was- she was on the boat, with Ward and with my dad, and she found out what happened and she- she didn't..."

She didn't do anything.

She sat by and watched as Ward dumped Big John Routledge in the ocean.

Elora felt sick. Her body was shaking, her eyes levelled down, tears filling them.

"And then, for the last nine months, she and Ward and Scooter looked for the gold," John B said. "Remember when... when you complained that your mum had gone to live at that week's boyfriend's house? She was looking for it, Elora, she wasn't with him."

"No..." Elora shook her head, because it wasn't true. It wasn't. Her mum wasn't a gold hunter, she just wasn't-

"And that's how Scooter Grubbs died," John B continued. "During Agatha, Ward ordered him to go out and search a random island with that goddamn Grady-White, and that's where he- he found the compass."

I mean, it made sense.

But holy shit, did she not want to believe it.

However, there was one last puzzle piece that didn't make sense. One last thing to slot in.

"So why did she leave?" She asked John B, wiping her tears. "She went missing the day of Agatha, so she wasn't with Scooter."

John B was shaking his head, his lips pressed together.

"Lana didn't know," he said, shaking his head. "It's the one thing she wasn't able to tell me."

Elora looked down, her face in her hands, silent sobs wracking her body.

"She only told me that-" John B heaved in a breath. "That the day before she went missing, your mum, she- she had a fight with Ward. In the Grubbs' house. Lana said that it was so loud, and that... that your mum just kept screaming 'it's not true'."

It's not true.

It could mean a number of things, it could mean everything and nothing.

It meant shit to Elora.

But then again, she was now just learning that she hadn't really known her mum at all.

"Elora..." John B put a hand on her shoulder. "I know it's a big shock, but you have to trust me, I'm going to-"

"No..." Elora shook her head, in absolute disbelief. "No, this can't be true, it can't-"

"It is," John B said. "It makes sense, you know it does-"

"NO IT FUCKING DOESN'T, JOHN B!" Elora screamed at him, wrenching his hand off her shoulder as her whole world disintegrating around her. "My mum, she was- she was a fucking asshole, a slut, a whore, but she was NOT a treasure hunte-"

"Elora, she was, you have to believe m-"

"IT'S NOT TRUE!" Elora screamed, repeating her mother's words. "IT'S A LIE! SHE'S NOT A TREASURE HUNTER AND SHE'S JUST MISSING WITH ANOTHER COUPLE BOYFRIENDS-"

"Elora, you have to listen to m-"

"I'm leaving," Elora told him as she panted lightly, her throat torn apart. "I need to process this. If you have any sense in that jackass brain, you won't follow me."

But the real reason she was leaving was not to process anything.

It was to break without an onlooker.

𔓘𔓘𔓘

She was shaking, and crying, and she couldn't really see or breathe properly.

She had ran from her house. John B was free to do inside it whatever he liked. She knew he would likely leave just after her, having to go and see Sarah, or the other Pogues, or something else.

But Elora wasn't thinking about that.

She was running, and her legs were burning, and her head was spinning and she knew it was only a matter of time before they both gave way and she collapsed completely.

She didn't care.

She. Didn't. Care.

Her mum had been a murderer. Okay, so maybe not a stone cold, 'kill them in their sleep' kinda of murderer, but she had stood by and watched as Ward dumped Big John in the ocean, and had kept it a secret for nine months.

Yes, Elora had hated her, and thought she was a whore that loved sleeping around, but she had never imagined this.

And if her own mother was a murderer, and did that kind of stuff, and had inadvertently killed Big John and her own father, then what was Elora set to turn into? Worse? Was she just a ticking time bomb, waiting to expl-?

Thump!

"Argh!"

Elora screamed, or grunted, or did something as she crashed into a solid chest, arms wrapping around her.

"Elora?"

She recognised that voice. It was soft, and warm, and welcoming, and Elora wanted to hear it agai-

"Tyler," she panted out, as she began to hyperventilate. "Tyler, I- I can't-"

"Elora, are you okay?" Tyler pulled back, looking into the girl's eyes as she panicked even more, looking around.

She was in the Cut, on a road around a minute away from the Chateau. But the road was all blurry and her world was spinning and her heart was beating so fast she could hear it in her ears, and-

"Elle, stay with me," Tyler said, voice gentle, her eyes snapping back to his.

"My- my mum-" she began, but Tyler shut her up by wrapping her back up in his arms.

"Shhhhh, shhhhh..." he whispered to her, rocking them slightly. "You're having a panic attack," he murmured. "You need to breathe."

"I-" Elora tried. "I- I-"

"Shhhh..." Tyler whispered. "Breathe with me, okay? Slowly. In... out... in... out..."

He continued to slowly talk her through breathing, Elora following him. Slowly, her surroundings came back into focus, and her breathing and heart rate slowed. She didn't fail to notice how warm Tyler's embrace was, or how safe she felt there. She ignored this, however.

"You're shaking," Tyler told her, once she had calmed down enough for him not to talk her through her breathing. "Are you alright?"

Elora shook her head, glancing up at him.

"I'm not burdening you, though," she mumbled, eyes going down. "You've got enough on your mind."

"Elora," Tyler said seriously, loosening his grip on her. "If you don't tell me what's going on, I'm going to lose my mind with worry."

Elora didn't even let herself comprehend this before words were spilling out of her.

She repeated everything John B had told her, and added stuff. Stuff like how worried she was that she'd turn into her, that she was worried people could so easily take advantage of her the way she had done, that she was worried that her mum might stand by and watch as another person was hurt or killed, namely her.

And Tyler listened. He didn't say anything, or move a muscle, just listened.

But when she was finally finished, tears flowing freely, he took a hand, cupping her face and murmuring. "You're not gonna end up like her."

Elora scoffed. "Tyler, have you seen me?" She gestured to her blue eyes, her red hair, her face. "I look exactly like her. And if I look like her, then I'll have inherited other things as-"

"You're not like her, Elora," Tyler's voice was firmer, but still gentle. "You're nothing like her."

"You mean, I'm not a slut," Elora nodded, trying to make a joke out of it. "But look. My mum's now sat back and watched as she killed two people, and not cared one bit. It's in my blood."

"That's not how it works," Tyler said immediately. "We can't change where we come from, Elle. Only where we go."

Elora gave a wet chuckle. "You get that from some psychology shit? Tyler, just think about it. I've already slapped you and Sarah, and countless others."

"Yeah, and we deserved it," Tyler said. "You're not a villain, Elle. You just believe in justice."

Elora didn't believe him.

"Everyone around you thinks you're a good person," Tyler doubled down. "Me, the Pogues, everyone. Your mum and Topper and my psycho mother, they're wrong. You're a good person, Elora."

Elle bit her lip, a sob caught in her throat.

"Y-you know, our last conversation before she disappeared was an argument," she told the boy. She hadn't told even the Pogues that. And now she was talking about it, the words yelled that night ran through her head, prompting a shiver down her spine.

"You're an ungrateful, spoiled brat! You don't deserve me, you don't deserve any of th-"

"No YOU don't deserve this! And I deserve fucking better than YOU!"

"Elle..." Tyler murmured. "You don't have to tell me this."

"I want to," Elora assured him, eyes brimming with years. "It's just- well, talking helps, doesn't it? You not learn that with your psychology shit?"

She chuckled drily. Tyler didn't. When he just looked at her, she solemned up, and began to talk.

"She told me I was a brat," she looked down, a tear falling. "Told me I was ungrateful... that I didn't deserve her."

She chuckled, biting her nails. "And of course, I told her I was better than that. Better than her. That's the last words I ever said to her, and now I find out that she's a gold hunter and I'm turning out just like her, so yeah, I'd say that I'm pretty much on par with h-"

She cut herself off as Tyler used a hand to cup her cheek and wiped her tears with his thumb.

"You were right," is all he said. "You were right to say that."

Elora looked up at him, the tension in her body starting to ease the slightest bit.

"Thank you," she whispered, lips twitching in a smile. "You know, if someone told me a couple weeks ago that Tyler Thornton would be stood right here, helping me through this I would've-"

"Slapped them?" Tyler teased, prompting a giggle.

"Yeah, probably," Elora smiled. "Turns out they were right."

"Yeah," Tyler smiled down at her. "They were."

And she didn't say it, as he led her back to the Chateau where the rest of the Pogues (bar John B and Sarah) were, but she was pretty damn thankful for it.

𔓘𔓘𔓘

They docked the HMS Pogue right next to the Druthers, the dark sky above providing not much help as the five Pogues looked on at Tannyhill.

"He's not gonna be there, guys," Elora said immediately. "Ward literally killed his dad."

Between her and Tyler, they'd updated the Pogues on all the recent information that had come to light. Now, their mission was to find John B, and by extension Sarah. Then, they needed to go and get the gold if Ward knew about it.

"Well, we can play dumb," Kie shrugged.

"Play dumb?" JJ chuckled.

"John B was going crazy, guys," Elora said.

"Yeah, I think we should be going to the cops, not here," Kie gestured up at the huge house.

"The cops? To say what, Kie?" JJ demanded. "We can't accuse Ward of killing Big John, we have zero evidence."

"Lana Grubbs might give a statement," Tyler shrugged.

"No," Elora shook her head decisively. "We're not going to the cops. Shoupe's a dick and he'd never believe us."

"Thank you, Elora!" JJ nodded.

"Hey, I see Ward," Pope, who was looking at Tannyhill with binoculars, said.

Kiara turned to him, holding out her hand. "Let me see."

Wordlessly, he handed her the binoculars, and looked.

"Doesn't look dead to me," Pope shrugged. "Let's go home."

"Wait, what?" Elora demanded, as she watched him head over to the wheel.

"Uh..." Pope stopped, looking guiltily at her. "Okay, so obviously Mr Cameron is fine, and even if John B was here, he isn't now, okay? Plus, I have the biggest, most important moment of my life in six hours!"

Oh, of course. Pope had his scholarship interview tomorrow. Well, today, as it was past midnight by now.

Kie, meanwhile, spoke harshly to him. "Well, our friend is in trouble!"

"I'm in trouble!" Pope fought back. "Guys, I haven't been home in three days. My dad's probably put all my shit on the street by now."

"Okay, so that's it?" Kie was speechless. "In a time of need, you're just gonna bail? Just walk away?"

"Okay, yo guys, can we not do this right now-?" JJ started, but one look from Kie shut him up.

"Hey," Pope ignored him, looking at the girl. "Hey, I have a scholarship interview in the morning, I can't-"

"Well, what about John B?!" Kie demanded, her voice cutting in hard.

"Why is it always about John B?!" Pope yelled.

The silence that took over after this was deafening. Slora, who had been stood next to Tyler for the duration of this, suddenly stepped forward. "Pope, you know that's not true, it would be any of you-"

"Oh, bullshit, Elora-"

"No it is not!" Elora screamed.

"Elora, let's face it, you don't understand this!" Pope yelled.

"Pope-" Tyler started.

"Don't understand what?" Elora snapped loudly, marching up to face him with narrowed eyes. "Pogues? Friendship? Fucking sticking together even when-?"

"Family!"

Pope was seething, spit flying from his mouth as he stared down at her. "Let's face it, Elora, you don't understand family!" He screamed.

Elora looked up at him, her eyes clouding over. "Pope-"

"My dad's going to be fucking pissed at me if I miss this interview, but you don't have a clue what that's like, do you?" He snapped, being malicious for the first time in his life.

Tyler was clenching his fists. "Pope, man-"

"Shut up," Elora was looking up at him, a tear slipping down her face. "Shut. U-"

"No!" Pope shouted, silencing her. "You don't understand, Elora, cause your mum's gone and your dad's dead, and you don't HAVE a family!"

He hurled the word at her, screaming it, engraving it into her very brain.

For one second, everything was silent.

A tear slipped down Elora's cheek.

Pope's eyes widened slightly.

JJ, Tyler and Kie all looked at each other, their faces a mix of shock, horror and anger.

Then Elora moved.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH-"

"Oh yeah? Is that what you want? Is that what you really wanna do right now-?"

"GET THE HELL OFF M-"

They were shoving each other, tears streaming down Elora's face as they did, her whole body shaking. First finding out her mum was a gold hunter, and now this?

"Hey, get off her!"

It was Tyler who had yelled, but it was JJ that pulled Elora off Pope, the redhead still sobbing as Tyler got in between them.

"You had no right to say that," he snarled at Pope, face to face with him. "No right."

Pope didn't reply, just holding the angry gaze as Elora kicked in JJ's arms before going still.

All the digs about her family had hurt, but what had hurt the most is when he'd said she didn't have a family.

Because she did. She may not have a mum and a dad, but she'd always have the Pogues. Or at least, she thought she did.

"If I'm the one mediating," JJ said loudly, causing Elora to flinch slightly as he was still holding her. "Then we've hit rock bottom."

"Right, you're going to the stern, and you're going to the bow, and you're not speaking to each other until you can sort this out without yelling," JJ said in a weird moment of clarity, letting go of Elora and guiding her to the back of the boat. "Pope, I'll drop you off."

Elora sat, knees bunched up to her chest, a tear slipping down her cheek as the wind whipped her face and the boat took off.

Tyler came over to sit next to her, and she was all ready to tell him to shut it if he tried to speak, but he didn't say anything. He simply sat there next to her, and as much as she hated to admit it, Elora was happy for him being there.

So she unclenched her fists, squeezed her eyes shut, and tried to ignore the considerable weight in her heart.

But that was easier said than done.

𔓘𔓘𔓘

"Are you alright?"

Tyler's voice was soft, and carried a certain amount of concern.

Elora nodded instinctively. She and Tyler were still on the Pogue, sat up at the back. Pope, JJ and Kie were all gone, the first having been dropped off and the other two having dipped about a minute ago. Tyler and Elora weren't planning on going anywhere, though. They were just sat there. Talking.

So Elora spoke.

"Yeah," she told Tyler, trying to stop her voice from wobbling but not turning to face him. "Yeah, I'm fine. I- I need to go home. T-to my house, I mean."

Tyler sighed audibly. "Elle, I don't want you to be alone."

Elora turned to face him, eyes narrowed.

"Well, according to Pope tonight... I am alone," her bottom lip quivered, her eyes glossing over. "And I mean... Pope's always right, right?"

Her eyes were brimming now, threatening to spill over. "Right?"

"Elora, Pope was a dick for saying that to you," Tyler shook his head. "And he was wrong."

"But what if he wasn't?" Elora snapped back, her voice breaking.

"He was," Tyler shook his head. "And if you're going to your house tonight, then I'm coming with you."

Elora shook her head. "No, you're not."

Tyler laughed mirthlessly. "I haven't been home in a day and a half, Elora, I don't think another night's going to hurt."

"You need to go home," Elora murmured, eyes unfocused as she stared down at the bottom of the boat.

Tyler shook his head. "I'm gonna pass on that one."

"No, you're fucking not," Elora turned to face him.

"If you want me dead, then I'll go," shrugged Tyler. "Topper's probably already told our dear mother about stealing from Barry, and then she'll find out I've been hanging around with you guys, so no, Elora, I'm not going home."

The word 'home' hung in the air between them. It went unsaid, but it was because really, neither of them had a home anymore.

Then Elora suggested something. It was a half baked plan, really, and it really fucking scared her, but... she was gonna do it anyway.

"How about... you come to mine?" She asked tentatively. "My- my house."

Tyler looked up, his eyes going wide. "You... you'd be okay with that?"

"Yeah, I mean..." Elora bit the inside of her mouth, looking down. "I mean, it might become more than a house with two people in it, right?"

And as Tyler nodded with a small smile, helping her up and letting her lead the way, only one thought occupied her mind. One that she didn't voice out loud.

It might become a home.

𔓘𔓘𔓘

"So... yeah. This is it."

Elora had never really shown anyone round her house before.

When she was younger, and her dad was still alive, showing someone around wasn't really necessary. And once he died and her mum took over, she only really spent time out the house or on the direct route to her room.

But letting Tyler in, showing him round, letting him sleep there, it felt... different. She felt too exposed, too out in the open. Like she was bearing her heart to him, begging for him to take it.

And he was looking around too much. He was looking at everything, and it was making Elora's stomach crawl. He was looking at the worn family photos on the fridge that her mother had never bothered to remove, at the art projects from a five year old her that had been longsince tossed aside.

"It's not..." she was feeling strange. Like she needed to make up excuses for why the place was a state. "It's just- my mum's been gone a while now, and what with the gold, and everything else going on, I just-"

"Elle," Tyler stopped her from rambling any further, his face a slight smile.

Elora looked at him, frowning.

"This is great," he said, smiling slightly. "Greater than my house, anyway."

Elora was confused. This was a boy that had grown up in a two storey, clean, carpeted, rich household, and he was impressed at... her house?

However, another thing had just crossed her mind. Her mother's room was locked. Elizabeth had installed a lock straight after her husband's death, and Elora hadn't been in there since.

Which brought her to their next problem.

"Um... so my mum's room is locked, but... you can sleep in- in my room," she gestured to the door, feeling insecure again. "I'll just... I'll sleep on the couch-"

"No," Tyler objected immediately.

Elora frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You take the bed, I'll take the couch," Tyler said.

"No, it's fine, I really don't-"

"Elle, I insist."

Elora looked at him, biting her lip. There was one more option. Her bed was shitty, and small, but-

"Let's just share it."

The four words tumbled out her mouth before she could stop them, and now, she had to live with it.

Her eyes instantly widened and her cheeks redened. What she had just said was- it was crazy. She and Tyler had hated each other two weeks ago. And now this was happening?

She wanted to run. She wanted to forget this stupid idea and this stupid boy and just pivot. But she was committed now.

And Tyler was shrugging.

"O-okay," if she wasn't so caught up in her own thoughts, she might have noticed his red cheeks, or his wide eyes. "L-let's do that."

Elora nodded, looking down.

"Shower's through there, if you want," she said, gesturing to the bathroom. "But just a warning, it'll be cold. Not any of your warm water Kook shit."

Tyler chuckled slightly, nodding. "Thanks, Elle. And I don't need cold water. I'm a Pogue now, through and through."

Elora rolled her eyes.

It was a little awkward, that night. Tyler had his shower, but ended uo coming out in just a pair of joggers because he forgot his top. Elora had quickly averted her eyes and tried to stop herself from looking at the tanned, toned, muscled skin on display, chucking it to him. She had then made sure to check three times over that she had all her clothes with her before taking her own shower.

They'd both eaten barely anything, insisting they didn't feel hungry. Elora genuinely wasn't, but she still thought Tyler was just trying to be polite.

They were stiff as planks when they finally got into bed next to each other, both lying on their backs staring up at the ceiling. Elora's whole body was on fire, her heart beating out her chest.

She was half asleep when Tyler muttered. "You're a good person, Elle."

She tried not to smile, rolling her eyes slightly as she did what she did best. Ran from feelings with sarcasm.

"That's what you think, Ty."