8: Guess There's More Tension Between These Two Than Realised

The punching bag swung as she punched it, channelling all those emotions into her fist. She jumped a step back and spun her leg around, kicking it. She felt a bead of sweat trickle down her temple.

She had been at this for forty minutes, and still all those pent up emotions fought to get out.

Wow, she thought, glaring at the punching bag, Do I really bottle up my emotions that much?

‘Agent Fowl?’

Ugh, that voice. It wasn’t really helping.

She turned around to face him, crossing her arms, ‘Yes, Agent Hal?’ His eyes raked over her before coming back up to meet hers.

He took a step forward and held out a hand, ‘Care for a spar?’

She didn’t answer, instead she lunged at him, feigning a punch to his right. He caught her feint, and grasped her fist as she swung it to his left.

Rowan spun her around, twisting her arm behind her back.

Celaena called to the blood flowing through his hand, and commanded it to let go. Slowly, one of his fingers pried off.

He realised what she was doing, and she heard him growl.

‘Control your temper, Celaena!’ he growled as the rest of his fingers came off. She snarled back and twisted around, driving her elbow into his abdomen. It forced him back a step, and he winced.

She shot at him again, this time aiming a punch to his jaw. He immediately ducked down and grabbed her wrist, tightly.

‘Like you’re one to talk,’ the redhead snapped, and swept her leg at his ankles. He reacted quickly, and jumped over it.

He slammed her against the wall, pinning her wrists, and her violent anger switched to a cold feral rage.

‘At least I can leash my temper so it doesn’t reach the point where I start to disobey direct orders,’ he said through gritted teeth, his green eyes glaring down at her. She glared right back.

To hell if he was her boss.

‘As if,’ she spat, her chest heaving from the panted breaths she was taking.

Like he’s an absolute good boy.

They stayed there for a few seconds, glaring at each other, when he released her wrists and stepped back.

‘If all you wanted to do was lecture me about my temper, why did you come here?’ she leaned back against the wall.

‘I was looking for the new Agent Thompson, for your information.’

‘Well, wherever he is, he isn’t here. So you’d better be on your way.’ She threw a glance at him, hoping that her body language and tone indicated that she didn’t want him here. He rolled his eyes, and she considered snapping his neck when he was out of the room.

‘This is way too loud,’ Teal covered his ears, sitting on a stool beside Mareena.

‘Oh it’s perfect.’ The bartender placed down her glass of red wine in front of her, and she picked it up with a ‘Thank you’ to him that made his ears turn pink.

She took a sip, then ran her tongue over her lower lip. She was equally aware as him of all the men that were eyeing her. And a small part of her enjoyed it. She knew she was frustrating them with her looks, and Mareena’s personality.

‘It’s way too crowded for my taste, though,’ Mareena grumbled.

‘Right.’

‘Hey there, you two,’ a female voice said from behind her. She turned her head around to look at the source.

A young woman sat on a stool, her brown hair twisted back gently into a half updo, marble-like green eyes glittering in a friendly way.

‘Why yes, hello,’ Mareena smiled.

‘What are you kids doing here? You look a little too young to be drinking at a bar.’

‘We’re both in our twenties, thank you for your concern.’ She said back with a snarking tone.

‘Oh, I am sorry,’ she said apologetically, ‘You two look young for your age, you know.’

‘It’s okay.’

‘I’m Huma,’ she held out her hand.

‘Mareena,’ She shook it. Huma had a firm grip, and her hand was soft, though she could feel the callouses where she no doubt held the hilt of something.

‘And you are?’ she asked, looking at Teal.

‘I’m Teal,’ he mumbled out.

‘He’s very shy,’ Mareena told her new friend, and she nodded.

‘I can see that.’

‘Papa?’

‘Yes, love?’ Ash looked up from his book and at Astrid.

His seven year old daughter stood there. Her ebony hair was tied back into a braid, thrown over her shoulder. She was clasping her hands in front of her, bouncing back and forth on her heels.

‘Can I go outside and play with Regan?’ she asked hopefully.

‘Of course you can,’ her sky blue eyes immediately lit up, and she clapped her hands together once, before rushing out of the room.

‘Just be careful,’ he said to her.

‘I will!’ she called back. He wasn’t worried much, to be honest. She was trained well, and knew how to use her powers excellently. Not to mention her fighting skills. Rowan had told him once that her skills were no joke. She was at their level.

He turned his gaze back to the book.

‘What is it, you two?’ Agent Hal raised an eyebrow, ‘And where in the world is Agent Fowl?’

‘Well, you see, she said something about not being in the mood to see your face today,’ Jason said nervously, and Hal nodded.

‘I see,’ he said, as if understanding. What was it that he didn’t know?

‘Now, what did you two come her for?’

‘Okay, here’s the thing, sir,’ Loki started, ‘We actually have no freaking idea what to do about this ‘Code 000’. Jason hacked into their database, but there was nothing about it.’

Regan peeked inside the room. She was sleeping.

He was hungry. There was no one home except for her, and she was sleeping. The go wake her up, you say. No!

She already scared him too much, with her red eyes that reminded him of demons. He didn’t want to see what would happen if he woke her up. She’d tear him apart, then probably cook soup with all the pieces. He shuddered.

But I’m hungry! His stomach complained.

Man up, you wimp, and go wake her up! The stupid side of his mind said.

Nope, not gonna happen, the sensible side of his mind opposed.

Then he did the stupidest thing ever. He quietly stepped inside the room, and walked over to her bed. She actually looked less scary while sleeping, he noted.

Slowly, he extended his hand, and gently poked her hand with his finger.

She stirred a bit, and mumbled something. He poked again.

‘Miss Celaena?’

She blinked her eyes open, ‘What?’

‘I’m hungry,’ he pouted. She blinked again, registering his words, then sat up groaning.

‘Okay, fine,’ she grumbled, getting off the bed. He immediately stepped back to a safe distance.

‘Just give me a few minutes.’ And then disappeared into the bathroom.

Well, that went better than expected. He was still in one piece.

Reyna knocked on the door, and Celaena answered it.

‘Reyna?’ she questioned, ‘What brings you here?’ The girl looked like she had just gotten out of bed a few minutes ago.

‘Hello to you too, Celaena,’ she smiled, ‘Is Jason home?’

‘No. He and Loki are at the agency.’ She stepped aside, and gestured inside the house. Reyna stepped inside.

They went to the living room, and sat down on the couch. Barney was on the TV, and Regan sat in the armchair. He was eating a bowl of Froot Loops, while watching the TV.

He was sure having the time of his life.

‘Hi Regan,’ Reyna said to him.

‘Hey Reyna,’ he said, then turned his attention back to Barney and his friends singing.

‘They’ll be back, in like, ten minutes or so,’ Celaena told her, and she nodded.

‘Why are you home, though? If they’re both at the agency?’

‘I didn’t feel like seeing his face,’ she muttered, then quickly added, ‘No offense to you.’

‘Nah,’ Reyna shrugged, ‘I can understand why.’

‘Obviously you’re in about this Code 000?’ Celaena asked her, pulling the bobby pin holding her bun together. Her hair unraveled slowly down to its full length. She noticed Reyna's eyes flickering to her hips for a moment.

‘What do you think?’

‘How’s baby Nico?’ Reyna bit back a chuckle. Celaena, being twenty three, considered Nico a baby. And so she called him a baby. Nico, as expected, didn’t appreciate that.

‘He’s fine,’ a paused before she continued, ‘How was Evangeline? I haven’t really talked to her. Like ever.’

‘She’s nice, though she hates men,’ Both of their lips quirked upwards at that.

‘I wonder how she deals with Rowan.’

And that was when her phone rang. Reyna’s face was confused when ‘Baby Shark’ started playing all of a sudden.

‘Speak of the devil,’ Celaena hissed, then picked it up from the table. She swiped at the accept button, then pulled it up to her ear.

‘What?’ she snapped through gritted teeth.

‘Relax, you don’t have to see my face, you just have to hear my voice.’

‘Couldn’t you have told it to Jason and Loki?’ she said, huffing.

‘No. Anyways, I just wanted to tell you that you don’t have to do anything about that right now. Not until we figure out what it is.’

‘And who exactly is this ‘we’?’ she raised her eyebrows.

‘That’s classified for now.’

He could probably sense her agitation, as he chuckled, ‘Now now, don’t get too angry.’

‘Angry? I’m not angry, Agent Hal.’

‘Then what?’

‘I’m furious.’

‘Would it make you happy if I offered to let you beat me around?’

‘That would be amazing. Now if only...’

Thoughts that told her she wasn’t in her right state of mind right now started forming in her head.

I seriously need to stop talking to him, a sensible side of her muttered, it’s making my mood worse.

‘That would be worth a try, but unfortunately for you, Celaena, I’d sense you from a mile away.’

 ‘That’s certainly a wrench in my plans,’ she snarked, and he chuckled, bidding her farewell as he hung up.

Reyna was looking at her when she put the phone down.

‘Hard time?’ she asked, and Celaena nodded grimly.

‘Hard time.’ She agreed.