Chapter 35: 35. Love never needed a Cupid.
For Rose this has been the happiest time of her life. Because for the first time in her life she felt the warmth of a family. Sure she knows where her biological family is but the huntsclan mind wiped them of their memories of Rose. For them Daisy is their only daughter.
Yes, Rose knows about her family because of that entity which was inside the mind of someone named Jonathan Keyes. When leaving that entity imparted information about her family in her mind which she later told Jake. For Christmas Jake received a skateboard made out of flexible carbon fibre, Haley received various kinds of paint, canvases of various sizes and a long range telescope.
While Miss Long received a picture pendant made of Platinum which also doubles down as a portable energy shield generator capable of withstanding tank rounds and Gramps received a pair of nano shoes which can turn into any texture, design and size while Rose received a lot of novels of various genres.
Rose isn't overly keen on reading but those books are actually a necessity because the finance of the huntsclan just keeps getting dire because most of their remaining funds are being funneled towards equipment making food too little and entertainment nonexistent.
Many may think that the huntsclan is just a simple brutal training ground for mindless killers but the huntstudents may be killers but never mindless. They have curiosity, feelings and needs for entertainment. Some may say," In Naruto Shimura Danzo was able to cultivate mindless puppets with vastly inferior resources compared to the huntsclan. So, why can't the huntsclan?"
The answer has always been simple which is the difference in the application of technology. Even in the 1980's of this world entertainment has been available to the most poorest of the people granting people broader perspective. But in Naruto till the Fourth great ninja war technology such as wired communication, televisions and radio communications was powered by chakra or chakra metal batteries. For most people the only source of entertainment was tea houses, hot springs, brothels and ninja wars.
Yes, ninja wars. A jonin or tokubetsu jonin is technically considered best among the best and his entire life he has practiced his arts to near perfection.
Missions can't show off the full extent of a jonin's powers so war is the best theatre because they would rather die showing off their might than live life like a hermit monk in the shadows but this tendency went extinct during the era of seventh Hokage Uzumaki Naruto where technology suddenly started to leap frog which in turn also created a solid foundation for the entertainment industry.
The gloomy ANBU even became lively because there was not as much as thought of survival because the term hostile shinobi nearly ceased to exist because of the peace agreement between the 5 great villages.
Now the most interesting development is that many huntsapprentice actually got the permission to do part time work due to the shortage of funds after meeting their individual needs they are urged to give the rest of their hard earned money to the huntsclan which is refused by them instantly because who wants to give away their hard earned money to a bunch of guys who abused them their entire life and as a result so many apprentices deserted that only the New York division could stay open.
The part time jobs also taught them that humanity doesn't give a damn about magical creatures because earning money is more important than chasing after fairies and pixies. The huntsclan was able to wipe out magical creatures?
Who the heck has time to give a shit about a cult that probably takes LSD and huntsclan can't match the world's military because of the sheer difference in technique, ideology, training and equipment. The huntsclan's training revolves around killing outmatched magical creatures while a conventional military trains in order fight other humans.
Also, Infinitum Finance is their choice for financial transactions because in our banks they could not be tracked by the huntsclan and I.S.F has also been helping them locating their parents dead or alive. Many harbour a great resentment for getting kidnapped as a baby by the huntsclan. They formally left the huntsclan by mailing anonymous letters to the New York branch and this action made certain that they remain safe when Rose makes that wish using the Aztec skulls.
The books are for Rose to read herself and rent to others at 5 dollars for 4 hours. Rose is suddenly broken out of her thoughts by the scent of incense smoke. Jake was doing mental training using the combat smoke simulation where Lao Shi was emulating various monsters and scenarios but to her surprise Jake was winning every single one and then Jake started imagining some space marine level stuff and kept going at it while at first he didn't last more than 3 seconds it slowly kept increasing and finally he was able to last more than a minute against a swarm of Tyranids.
Seeing the intensity of Jake's training Lao Shi quickly poured water on the incense stick which disrupted Jake's mental training. Lao Shi yelled," Jake!!!! Why are you picking such intense opponents? Tyranid rippers, biovores, tyrant guards, neurothropes. Grandson, have you gone mad? I don't know where your father found the sadists to write that hamwarmer or something but these things are not something a human or dragon should face.
Mental damages can be transferred to your real body which will either break you or make you stronger and the fact that you can hold your ground against these things for more than a minute proves just how high your physical and mental fortitude has become.
Look at your body now!!" Jake saw his well toned body in the mirror and felt that his muscles had become more tougher. Jake felt that his mind had become more focused and also felt that his sense of danger had also increased. " Yo, G what's wrong? I just want to get stronger so that I can protect the ones I love." Asked Jake in a confused voice.
" The problem is that you're pushing yourself too much. You need to take a break." Jake just sighed, nodded in affirmative and left. At that moment Lao Shi came in front of Rose and said," Rosaline, a word with you." Lao Shi poured Rose some tea and then himself.
" Rose, I need you to spend more time than usual with Jake and help him relax." Said Lao Shi. " Oh, sure. That's easy after all the love cruise is in the evening and it's the perfect time for a relaxing, romantic date." Lao Shi nodded in understanding and said," I understand and sincerely hope that things go well."
At that moment the Cupid came and Said," Lao Shi!! How long has it been papi?" " It has indeed been quite some time. What brings you here Cupid?" Asked Lao Shi. " I'm going on a vacation to Cancún so I need you guys to keep an eye on my bow and arrows." " No problem. Enjoy your vacation Cupid." Said Lao Shi. Fu flung the quiver using his mouth which resulted in an arrow getting flung out of the quiver going through a series of unmanned actions and finally it landed on the quiver of a decorative Cupid statue of a moving truck.
Jonathan saw all this happening through Deltah Null and he tracked down the destination of the truck and it turned out to be the cruise ship that is hired by Jake's school. " So, that's how you're going to play, eh universe?" I thought to myself as I ordered Deltah Null to take two more Cupid arrows discreetly from the quiver.
Jake Pov:
Jake was walking through the streets while contemplating what he should wear during the love cruise. Suddenly he came in front of a flower shop where freshly cut Roses were put on display at the front. Jake picked out five roses which seemed the most vibrant in colour and while picking them his finger got poked by a thorn and he subconsciously said ouch in a medium voice and as COINCIDENCE would have it Rose at that exact moment came behind Jake and seeing him shake his finger she asked in a concerned voice," What's wrong, Jake?"
" Just pricked my finger on a thorn. Also these are for you." Said Jake while giving Rose roses. Rose eagerly took the Roses and smelled them. " You know, this is the first time in my life I've received flowers and I'm glad it's from you, Jake." Said Rose and gave Jake a light kiss on his lips before he could say anything and then she said," See you at 5." Jake nodded, waved Rose goodbye and she waved back.
4:55 P.M (3rd person Pov) :
Jonathan was helping Jake with his tuxedo. It was a deep red tuxedo with an abyss black collar, a white shirt beneath with a black bow tie and black pants with leather shoes which have gold engravings on it.
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Rose arrived in front of Infinitum Tower and from the garage a black limousine came out and it's end part came to a stop in front of Rose. As Rose was about to open the door the driver came out and quickly opened the door for her. She felt awkward but still went in and sat beside Jake.
" So, Mr. Long went above and beyond?" Asked Rose. " Yes." Replied Jake. " Now, I feel underdressed." As Rose pointed towards her One-Shoulder Satin Side-Slit Gown dress which looked beautiful on her along with her imitation diamond earrings. Jake after a few moments of hesitation said," I know it's tradition to give bouquets of flowers but I went a little bit beyond that and I would love it if you can accept my gifts which I have arranged using my own money."
Jake retrieved two boxes one large and other small. The large one contained a black One-Shoulder Satin Side-Slit Gown dress while taking out a set of 24 carat diamond earrings which had a lighter aesthetic in design same as her own imitation jewellery.
Rose was overwhelmed for some time before she could give an answer and she finally said in a sad yet happy voice," Jake, thank you for the gift but you know I can't take them because the huntsclan will confiscate and sell them. While the dress even if not used may not fetch a very high price despite being a designer cloth while the diamond jewellery will be sold for a great price." Hearing my explanation Jake suddenly starts to look for something in his pockets and finds it.
Turns outs it was a little black square and Jake asked me," Do you have your Neuroclock with you?" " Always." Replied Rose. Jake took the watch from Rose and put the square on top of the screen and it merged with the watch. Jake gave the Neuroclock back to Rose and Rose asked curiously," What did you do, Jake?" " Oh, nothing much just dad sending a upgrade for your Neuroclock as it can now transform into any design you can imagine while also giving the watch a 2 cubic metre volumes worth of storage space in which time is on a standstill.
Jake goes to the frontal part of the limousine and after five minutes Rose calls Jake back and Jake's jaw dropped on the limousine's floor. The black dress, glistening diamond earrings, black high heel shoes and a silver wristwatch made her look like a gem. " You look beautiful." Said a mesmerized Jake. Rose seductively comes forward, puts her hands on Jake's shoulders which slowly slides down by the collar and she says," Looking sharp yourself, Am Drag." She leans forward and kisses Jake and Jake accepts.
The limousine arrived at the dock where Rotwood was taking the attendance and checking for suspicious things. The limousine attracted a lot of attention and when Jake got out everyone was discussing in a hushed voice and then Jake went to the side facing the ship, opened the door from which Rose came out and grabbed Jake's extended hand wearing a black One-Shoulder Satin Side-Slit Gown while wearing two sparkling diamond earrings.
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With her tied up blonde hair she looked like a goddess. All the boys had their jaw dropped to the ground except Rotwood as he looked at Rose with indifference truly a man of integrity. While the other girls were either seething with jealousy or feeling regret for not treating Jake better in the past. Jake kissed the upper part of Rose's hand and said," Shall we go to the party, my lady?"
" Yes, we shall." Replied Rose. As both of them made way towards the boarding ramp everyone made way for them. Spud and Trixie came as soon as they saw Rose and Jake. Spud said," Looking sharp in the suit, Jake." Trixie also complimented Rose by saying," Forget dragons honey, with these looks you can slay the entire huntsclan." Which earned her a chuckle and a thanks from Rose.
" Shall we go to the dance floor, my lady?" Said Jake while extending his right hand. Rose took Jake's hand and said, " We shall." Both of them made way towards the dance floor and started dancing meanwhile Kyle Wilkins and Stacey Wintergreen were sitting in a corner because turns out their dancing rhythm doesn't match one other making their dance very awkward.
Seeing the chance both Trixie and Spud proposed to dance with Kyle and Stacey respectively. Kyle readily agreed while Stacey hesitated for a while but finally relented and danced with Spud for quite sometime but she still pretended to hold her barf as a way of preserving her reputation.
Little did she know her two friends were too busy with their own love life to notice her and their boyfriends were no less peculiar than Spud considering their snobby personality. One was dating a goth boy with blue tipped spiky black hair while the other one was a bandie with a heavy metal aesthetic choice and lots of earrings and those snobby girls looked actually serious about their relationship.
Brad Morton remained dateless and depressed while he did have the idea of trying to score with Rose but remembering the video he didn't continue with his plan. He came to the punch bowl for a drink and at that moment he saw Jake and Rose going out for a little air. He saw the Cupid statue on the stand holding a bow and arrow with the quiver on its back. Brad took the bow and an arrow from the quiver because the arrow at the hand of the Cupid was plastered with the statue.
As FATE would have it the arrow was the one from the quiver of the original Cupid. Brad fired the arrow towards Jake while Rose noticed the arrow it was too late as the arrow hit Jake and blue upside down hearts fell down. Rose instantly put distance between her and Jake because she perfectly knew what hit Jake as it was Cupid's arrow. Those arrows are enchanted with one of the strongest mind charms in the world.
Those charm can create the illusion of love or hate depending on the feelings one has for another. Jake said in an evil and creepy voice," It's time for the huntsgirl to be hunted." Jake turned into his dragon form and tried to rip Rose to shreds using his claws Rose dodged and for the first time she understood if the dragons didn't have the no kill rule the huntsclan would have been toast a long time ago because Jake's claws sliced through the Stainless steel railings like a hot knife through butter.
Armoured like a tank, claws equivalent to monomolecular blades, weights nearly 300 kg when in adulthood, fire breath hot enough to melt steel from a distance of nearly 100 meters, flight speeds reaching subsonic speed, being easily able to lift a ton, chi doppelgangers, natural born shapeshifting abilities are the abilities of a dragon and Jake being a hybrid makes him more stronger.
Rose finally felt the true terror of facing a serious dragon. Rose tried to reason with Jake as she continuously yelled," Jake!!! Snap out of it. I know you can do it because I love you and you love me." Jake was able to pin Rose at the floor and was about to roast Rose alive but Rose stopped struggling.
She smiled and said," Jake, I love you, I really do and I'm glad to have met you and I'm even more glad to be loved by you." She was preparing for her inevitable demise but suddenly she was picked up by human hands and she was kissed on her lips. She opened her eyes and saw Jake kissing her.
Jake broke the kiss and said," I love you too and I'm glad to have met you huntsgirl." " Jake, how did you break the Cupid's charm?" Asked Rose clearly astonished but glad nonetheless. " Well, a presence of hate tried to overwhelm my conscious but thanks to the combat smoke simulation training I was able to defeat it." Replied Jake.
" Well, looks like my intervention won't be needed." Said a neutral yet a known voice. Both of them turned to see Sage. " Yo, Sage my man. Why did I suddenly get enchanted?" Asked Jake. Sage explained how Cupid's reckless actions causes a lot of his unused arrows to end up in places all over the world and how a Cupid arrow due to carelessness of Fu ended up in a Cupid statue's quiver and how Brad Morton coincidentally fired that specific arrow towards Jake and how Brad saw everything and then how Sage's men were cleaning up Jake and Rose's mess while also wiping Brad's memories of said incident.
" Well, I hope you kids have a wonderful love cruise and good bye." Said Sage while getting on a CH-47 Chinook along with his men. After a few brief moments of silence Jake said," Well, want something to drink?" " Yes!!!" Said Rose dramatically. Both of them went inside where Stacey was sleeping on Spud's shoulder while Spud leaned his head over Stacey's head and Trixie was sleeping on Kyle's shoulder while Kyle's head was straight but sleeping nonetheless.
Jake served punch for both of them and while drinking Rose suddenly said," Hey Jake, thanks for going easy on me all those times we fought." Jake didn't reply but kissed Rose on her left cheek and yes Jake did take pictures of the sleeping proto couples.
The ship finally reached the harbour and Jake dropped Rose to the abandoned subway station in her old clothes but during the entire ride Jake and Rose did have a smooch session. They also tried the french kiss and loved it also Jake's forked Dragon tongue only made it more unique.
It was night where both Jake and Rose were able to relax. Meanwhile, at Cancún Sage AKA Jonathan was using the neuralyzer to modify Cupid's memories and yes Jake broke the enchantment using his own willpower.
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