Planning

"So … this is what you came up with?" Leo asked in disbelief.

"Yes," Aurora said, a bright smile on her face. "Don't you think it's brilliant?"

"No," Leo said without hesitation. "It's an awful plan."

"What? I spent the entire night coming up with it."

"What do you think this is? A game of traps? This isn't a cartoon." Leo scolded.

They are looking at a piece of paper full of scribble lines and nonsensical shapes are drawn all over. Aurora called it 'My Master Plan To See What We Can Do about Miss Before She Kills Everyone While In Her Snake Form', it involves a series of intricate traps set out for Meraki, once they awakened her.

"I didn't say that it's a cartoon," Aurora complained. "Look, I'm at the end of my straw here. Do you have any better ideas?"

"I am sixteen and you are hundreds of years old. Shouldn't you have infinite knowledge or something?" Leo asked, squinting at the paper and trying to make out between the lines but it was too complicated.

"I have one brain cell," Aurora said, putting her index finger up. "It's resting now because I used it too much the entire night."

"This is unnecessarily complicated." Leo looked up from the paper, "So you're going to release her in a secluded forest. Then place traps everywhere … for what?"

"I don't know. It was such a good idea last night, where did it go wrong?" She laid back against the couch, frustration building up in her.

"It went wrong the minute you thought releasing the snake only to trap it again was a good idea." He said, "And why are you in such a hurry all of a sudden?"

Aurora unbuttoned the first two buttons of her dress shirt and sighed, her hand draped across her face. "I went to check on her last night before we went to bed and I saw the symbol slowly fading in some parts. The cage, itself, also seems to be eroding away. I guess my exhaustion is finally catching up to me."

Aurora is maintaining the barrier on the house along with the illusion and also keeping Meraki confined in her cage. Only she, Leo, Meraki and one other person can leave, as well, as enter the barrier.

She forgot to erase the presence of Leo she placed in the barrier because she was too busy getting drunk. Thankfully, nothing bad happened, she was unreasonably lucky that day. If anyone had broken in and attacked her, there was no way she could defeat them.

"That's really bad. How long do you think we have?"

"I don't know, three hours? I have never felt this drained in a long, long time. I have this feeling, Leo," Aurora tried to push herself off the couch, only managing to prop herself up a little, looking as drunk as she felt the day before, "that Miss might be draining some of my magic while asleep in the cage. Otherwise, it is a surprise that she is still alive after being asleep with food or water this long."

"You said that the cage will disappear in three hours right?"

"Yes," Aurora replied, her eyes half-lidded.

"I have an idea. You work in some kind of military thing, right? Call them." He handed her the phone and Aurora began to dial a number.

"Why do you want me to call them?" Aurora asked, getting weaker by the second. She couldn't hold her body upright anymore so she leaned against the armrest instead.

"Ask if they have any enemies they need to take out. Any criminals."

"We're playing with lives here, Leo. Lives!" Aurora kept the phone and threw it across the room.

"There is no other option. It's either them or us. Death is inevitable. We aren't in some superhero movie where we get the luxury of choosing not to kill. It doesn't work that way. So you choose." Leo crossed his arms and stared down at her.

Frustration boiled in Aurora as she contemplated her options. But just as Leo said, they really didn't have options and time is running out. Aurora's mind felt muddy, she couldn't organize her thoughts and her body kept growing weaker.

Is there no other option? Even if there is, I can't think straight. This is it, I guess.

Better others than you right?

No. It's not better but I don't have another option. This is out of my hands.

Excuses. Again. Remember, you made this choice on your own. Whatever are the repercussions, they are yours to bear.

Fine.

"Pass me the phone, Leo."

Leo already had the phone in hand, ready for Aurora. She took it and dilled another number.

"Hello?" A voice called from the other end of the line.

"Hello? Yes, Rose? I have a favour to ask." Aurora pinched the bridge of her nose as she tried to summon her strength.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

"I was so surprised when I got your call. You never ask me for help or anyone else for that matter." A woman with black hair tied in a ponytail appeared at the door. She was a refreshing image to see when compared with Aurora's, now, haggard appearance.

She looked at Leo and her expression changed, "Is this why you ask for leave? You have a child?"

"Huh? Leo? Oh yeah, good boy." Aurora smiled and patted his head. She fell forward, just in time for him to catch her.

She is really out of it now.

"Please come in, I will prepare tea." Leo stepped in, helping Aurora to the couch again while Rose entered the house.

"What is this feeling?" Rose murmured, a heavy, suffocating feeling surrounded her the moment she stepped foot inside the house. "Hey, kid. Is there something going on here?"

"Huh? Oh, wait, give me a minute." Leo placed Aurora on the couch where she promptly fell asleep.

"What's going on here?" Rose asked, walking to Aurora. She ran her hands down her head, 'scanning' her.

"Her magic is depleting at a tremendous pace. Something seems to be absorbing it. I could easily trace the absorbed but she seems to be protecting it. You, why did she call me?" Rose glared at Leo, "Tell me what happened and don't leave anything out."

Leo stared at the woman, swallowing back his fear. She is ten times scarier than Aurora and, judging from her aura, much deadlier too. She won't hesitate to kill Meraki once she finds out about her unstable condition.

This is a little bit scary.