Alley Encounter

Theo walked into Meg's shop in high spirits, certain that today he'd finally get the elemental spell down. Last night's talk with Zenith had chased away all his doubts and confusion.

But the instant he saw the person waiting in front of the basement door, his heart jumped all the way into his throat.

Darian cocked her head at him. "Hey, Theo."

"H-hi." Theo wished his voice didn't come out sounding so much like a squeak. Still, he'd been so relieved about settling things with Zenith that he'd forgotten all about the other person who'd been there.

Darian had seen him run away. What must she think of him?

A click startled him; Darian had pushed the door open. She gestured "after you" and Theo numbly stepped inside.

They headed down the basement stairs in silence, the only sound their echoing footsteps. But Theo barely heard it over the storm raging in his head. Should he bring up last night first, or should he act like it had never happened?

When Darian's footsteps suddenly fell silent, Theo started. He turned to see her staring at the wall, expression impossible to read in the darkness.

"So...how are you? Sir Zenith told me you were feeling better."

The thought of Zenith talking to Darian about him made Theo's face burn. But he realized he wasn't the only embarrassed one here. After all, he'd never heard Darian like this – almost hesitant, with none of her usual confidence.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said quickly. "Um, sorry about, um...what happened...."

"Don't worry about it," Darian said. "I should be saying sorry, anyway. It must have been a shock."

"Ah, that's – "

"I don't know what impression you came away with," Darian continued, a defensive edge entering her voice, "but it isn't what you think."

Theo swallowed. "I know. Zenith explained it to me."

"Good." Darian sighed, her shoulders slumping. "Still, perhaps I should have told you about it earlier. It's not....it's not like I do these things for fun. It's part of my duty as his liege. Everything is for my duty."

Regaining some of her usual poise, she clenched her hand into a fist and lifted her head. Looking at her, Theo couldn't help but remember the words Zenith had spoken with such fervor. 'She gave me the strength I needed to protect her. For that, I will forever be grateful.' He'd thought Zenith's devotion to his duty came from being a homunculus, but maybe he had learned it from the one he had pledged himself to as well.

Even so, a horrible question began to rise inside Theo's throat. 'So you don't have feelings for Zenith?' No. He absolutely could not say it. It wouldn't be fair when Darian had outright stated that she didn't. Maybe she was lying, but what did Theo gain by pressing her? Besides, she might start to wonder why he wanted to know, and he had no idea how to even begin explaining. He didn't even know if his feelings for Zenith were romantic in the first place.

It was stupid, it was childish, to think of Darian as a "rival" because she kissed Zenith. People could do those things without romance involved. Still, some part of Theo couldn't help but feel a little sad about treating that kind of intimacy as just another duty.

"Theo?" Darian's question jolted Theo out of his thoughts. Swallowing, he looked back up at her.

"It's – it's okay. I understand."

"That's good." Darian's posture subtly loosened. She must have been just as uncomfortable with this whole conversation as he was, if not more.

"So, uh, let's get to training, okay?" Theo's voice came out too loud, making him wince. But Darian relaxed further, and even in the darkness he made out her smile.

"Right," she said, and started heading down the stairs again. Theo turned around and hurried down as well, not sure if he felt relieved as well or just more confused.

~*~

Sam stretched and cracked a big yawn. She'd lost track of time while training, and it had gotten so late the sun had set. The night was peaceful, fireflies dancing in the gardens and crickets chirping. So she took her time strolling along, soaking in the ambiance.

No worries her parents would be upset. After all, her younger brother often came home in the middle of the night reeking of pot. Compared to him, she was pretty much an angel.

Today had been a good day. Theo finally seemed to be in a better mood, after acting weird for the past few days. He'd even managed to cast the elemental spell for the first time, causing Zenith's sword to glow with blinding light.

Not that Sam had been slacking off herself. She'd started learning countering shields, spells that not only would protect her familiar but bounce back attacks. Meg had had her practice by throwing erasers at Darian, who gamely played along even when Sam's early attempts had all resulted in her getting pelted. But by the end of the day, every single one of the erasers went flying back at Meg instead.

Every day, she only got stronger. Once she got herself a familiar, they'd be unstoppable.

A big grin spread across her face as she pictured a woman in dark red armor and a blazing spear. If Ryllis was already this strong on her own, who knew what kind of flames she could create with the help of an elemental spell?

As always when she thought about Ryllis, a wonderful floaty feeling filled her chest until she thought she might burst. Okay, maybe she was getting a little ahead of herself. After all, she couldn't forget how Ryllis had spat, 'I'm not gonna be a wizard's lapdog.'

But that just made Sam more determined to partner with her. Maybe Ryllis had bad experiences with other wizards; maybe they'd been jerks like Ryan. Sam wanted to show Ryllis that she was a different kind of wizard, one who wanted to work alongside her instead of bossing her around. Just like Theo and Zenith.

Why it mattered so much what this spear-wielder from another world thought about her, Sam didn't know. She just knew that she'd never met anyone as cool as Ryllis before.

A sudden tug at her Levia made her start. Frowning, Sam glanced around. It wasn't quite the same feeling as when she sensed an arena – it was much fainter, for one thing – but it felt strangely familiar.

She took a few steps forward. The tug grew stronger, though only a little bit. She wouldn't have noticed if she hadn't been paying it any attention.

Maybe it was nothing; maybe she was just imagining things. And if it was really an arena, she ought to stay clear from it. Wasn't like she had a familiar to help her fight.

But, well, Sam had never paid much mind to that saying about curiosity and the cat.

She closed her eyes and cast out her Levia like a net, the way Meg had taught her. She didn't have to extend it far before she felt that resonance again. Slowly, she spun in its direction and opened her eyes.

And found herself staring down the mouth of a narrow alley between two buildings across the street. It was so dark Sam couldn't see anything inside.

'Okay, this is definitely not a good idea,' the minuscule voice of caution that she possessed warned her, but Sam cheerfully brushed it aside. Besides, she had the sense that this faint, prickling little power wasn't enough to hurt her.

She crossed the street and squeezed into the alley. Inside, she still couldn't see much, but the tugging at her Levia had grown stronger.

Her heart flipped when she heard a scraping, shuffling sound and a shuddering breath. She wasn't alone in here.

Without thinking, she whipped out her phone and turned on the flashlight. Holding it up high, she aimed the beam down the alley.

A loud clank of metal. A voice hissed, "Shit!"

Something cringed away from the light. Like a rat, except it was a person. A person wearing a battered suit of armor, a long spear tucked in the crook of her arm.

"Whoa." Sam's jaw dropped. "Ryllis?"