Ash stood to one side, Akiye in the middle and Vance to the other side. Close yet far.
The chancellor stood up at the same time as Vance turned, "they are here."
Akiye moved towards Vance but Vance's heart stifled as he stepped away from her. Ash smiled a little- it was both endearing and self mocking. She was uneasy, yes. She had denied herself to be together with Vance. Yes. What right did she have to be uneasy knowing Vance had been with someone else before her?
She had no right and yet, when Akiye moved close to Vance, she didn't like it. That feeling didn't last long though. Vance moved away from Akiye so quickly that the small unease vanished into the light of endearment she felt towards Vance whenever he did these little acts of thoughtfulness.
And this wasn't the first. When Ash had gone to see Akiye, being healed by the old Madame, Vance who had been in the corner of the room, eyes closed, head laid back smiled a little before he continued his half dozed state. Ash too felt his presence strongly, no matter where he was. And the closer they were, the clearer she felt these things.
The front door to the chancellor's office opened and Ash stood face to face with the man she wanted to see least of all.
It took her a moment to move her eyes away and meet with two other people. The royal guards of Sanguine knights, she recognized them in their near identical attire, formal suits of dark red and black with a signature carving of the three red swords pointing up down and across.
Her own surprise was doubled by Vance. "Captain?"
But where she had the urge to leave the room, he felt happy, immensely relived and happy. Whoever the knight was, he was not going to make things difficult for them. It was her father she ought to worry about.
Neither of them moved from their positions. But the captain, Ash trained her eyes on, watched all of them with a mild smile and address Vance, "when you sent the emergency signal, the investigators were on their way but as the member of the committee heading the investigation, I had to answer the call. What is going on? Why did you send a high alert signal?
Ash spoke out of turn, "since the moderator is here, I suppose there is no need to keep up pretenses. You know what happened already. We don't have the time to chit chat. Many of the university students are engaged in active battle with the fairies as we speak. None of them are equipped for it and we have taken a substantial loss."
The eyes of the team widened. Her father spoke up. "I was only informed that the fairies have found a way to break contract and planned to summon a goddess to harness her power. What happened since then?"
Ash looked at the other, following her father' lead. In such a dire situation, moderators were always allowed to take over. She swallowed her unease and answered him. "They gained some power but not all of them did. Those close to the circle gained the most and lesser as they went outwards."
"Circle? Ancient language magic?"
Akiye finally spoke up. "Blood magic. I was injured and they planned to drain me. Unfortunately for them, these two rescued me in time."
Akiye did not know what conspired when she was passed out and Vance, for once, sided with her, agreeing not to mention to anyone what happened within that circle. As Akiye narrated her version, it sounded like her blood was drained and the goddess descended but was unable to come fully. Instead what had really conspired was that the goddess had descended but Ash had served as a vessel and absorbed much of the impact rather than let the fairies take advantage. What worried her more was that they had not just wanted the goddess of darkness but also the sun god, the god of light to descend upon Vance.
Akiye had the same thought. She looked at Vance once and turned back to the team. "They only managed to call one god partially but I think they wanted to get two. They have been moving around Vance, trying to incriminate him in cases of their doing.
Captain stepped forward, more worried than the rest, "incriminate him? How?"
"Bree's case last year was actually committed by Vance, a fake Vance, a golem who could turn into Vance. The fairies had hypnotized a large group of people in the university and got aid to make these golems."
"There are more than one?"
On this, Ash agreed with Akiye, even when Vance hesitated. "Many more and some students are still trapped there making golems or who knows what."
"Wait. Tell us everything, from the top." his father spoke. Ash wasn't the right person for that. She looked to Akiye and gave her an encouraging smile.
Akiye swallowed thickly.
"Lasy year..." she began, motioning for them to take a seat. Ash moved out of the way, as her father's arm extended toward her. Vance smiled tightly from his friend's shoulder and sat down too.
Ash kept standing, "before you start. I should take my leave. There is still much to do."
The chancellor nodded and somewhere from the back, old Madame floated in. his father stood up, "old Madame."
The old Madame refused to look to him, "I will give an account. Let the children go."
Of course, none of them refuted a seer.
As the three of them filed out, she could feel her father's eyes on the back of her head and Vance's utter determination and relief. He was exhausted, as was she, working for the past 24hrs to keep the university from being overrun by fairies.
As they made their way, back to the deserted main building, they had the clear view of the iron wrapped gates at the main entrance where rows and rows of people were jumping out of trucks, rounded and transported here to help the university.
She wasn't looking at Akiye or Vance so when Vance came around and blocked her view, she frowned. Vance scowled but it didn't suit him. Between his handsome features and big glasses, the scowl just made him look cute.
Akiye said, "Ash is on my side. No point scowling at her."
Ash turned, "huh?"
Had she mixed some context.
"I want to apologise to Vance but he wouldn't accept it. You have to help me."
Ash looked at Vance who gave them a flat expression. "there is nothing to forgive. If there was, you are forgiven already."
Akiye gave him a the same flat look, a poor but hilarious imitation. "Is that so?" she asked, not believing him and reached across from her to catch his hand.
Vance frowned at her. She could clearly read there, why aren't you stopping her?
She raised a brow and Vance folded his arms on his chest. Akiye sighed, "I am sorry. I really am. Half the time, I wasn't myself and when I was, I should have told you instead of breaking up with you like that. I will make it up to you all my life... I will.."
Ash paused and Vance paused. They exchanged a quick look. Ash wasn't shocked to learn this, she had suspected it but the intensity of Akiye's feelings she did not realise. Vance too, imitated her emotions. There was a slight panic too.
In a splite second, Akiye realised the two of them had stopped. When she turned Vance joined her, standing between her and the witch. "I do forgive you but between then and now, a lot has changed."
"Are you together with Drew?" Akiye said disbelieving.
Vance's heart stilled and Ash had to stop herself from laughing. What he was about to do, settled all her doubts, even though it did not make their relationship any easier.
"No. But... I found my mate."
Ash dare not look over Vance' shoulder.
Silence first. Then Akiye sucked in a great breath, as if all the air around them had to be sucked in. "Impossible. If you have a mate, why I haven't we seen you with her over the past two weeks."
Vance could not answer immediately. He was unsure how to answer it. Ash pinched her eyes once and bit the inside of her cheek.
She stepped out from him behind Vance and answered for him, "because it is complicated."
Akiye looked between the two of them, gasped once and stepped back. Once. Twice. Stopped. Again stepped back twice and stopped.
"You two. It is the two of you. I did think why you were suddenly so involved with Bree's matter. At first I thought you were really good friends with Bree but for you to be so driven to protect Vance."
Akiye burried her face in her hands and groaned, "I feel to embarrassed. Don't take anything I said too seriously. I am not in love with him or anything. I just wanted to make it up to him for pulling him into trouble."
Ash didn't know a single assurance from Akiye would work the magic that a thousand assurances from Vance could not. For a moment, she stared. "You don't like him?"
Akiye opened her mouth in horror. "I did. I am not going to lie. I did like him once but it all got too much for me when I started loosing my memory. Things like liking someone takes back seat, even fade away when something of this magnitude happens. I am not the same person I went in being and I doubt the person I am wants someone like Vance for life. Sure I like him but as you have discovered, feelings are not enough to get together with someone. It's a lot more complicated than that."
Relief, complete relief took over Vance and seeped into her soul. She couldn't help look back and it was written all over his face. Akiye must have seen it too.
"I never knew he could made any other face than that flat look. You truely are his mate, capable of bringing out the Vance we have never seen."
She felt Vance surprise and saw his expression dead pan. The women laughed at his quick change and continued to walk. Akiye sighed, "thank you for forgiving me. And thank you for telling me the truth. Though I still feel indebt to you for saving me. If there is ever anything I can do for you, never hesitate to ask."
Ash agreed easily.
The three of them rounded the building, for the first time finding the illicit place behind the university used as a lane for medical help.
BANG
BANG
As the bang echoed in the air, Ash started running and Vance ran past her. Akiye lifted her in the air and together they were in pace with Vance.
Ash knew in her her heart that the battle had just begun. It was the first trial of the life that had just begun for her. The life of trials that the old Madame saw and the life of cleansing Ash was responsible for.
For a moment she looked at Vance running and wondered if he will be able to survive through what was coming for her, for them.
As soon as Vance stop, she saw Bree step up beside him with Drew and others. Ash landed on the other side of Bree with Akiye and felt it without trying, a thread if darkness taking room in some of their mind.
THE END