I knew that the Prides shared rivalries and didn’t always see eye to eye, but here, in this microcosm of a larger whole, there were few rivalries that I could see. In fact, it was more a case of Aventis looking out for Aventis. That made me feel I was part of something special. But there was someone who made me feel special in a different way. He came round on Tuesday afternoon to see me, and he stayed until visiting hours ended.
Duncan Armand Avenir.
I apologized to him, telling him I’d messed up our date for the Saturday.
He told me not worry.
He filled me in on happenings about the school, the fact it was closed for a week or two. We talked about what the news channels were saying about the attack on the Academy. The Prides had admitted the attack on the Academy was orchestrated by Crimson Crescent. However, there was no mention of Fragments or Artifacts…or Familiars.
I broke down. Maybe it was post-traumatic stress – I simply don’t know – but I broke down. Everything I’d been keeping bottled in burst out of me in a torrent of tears.
Duncan held me and said nothing. He just held me until I ran out of tears.
Then he continued to hold me until he was certain I’d calmed down.
From my private room’s en-suite bathroom, he came back with a moist hand towel that I used to clean my face.
Afterwards we talked some more before our time together came to an end for the day.
He came to see me every day until I was released on Friday afternoon.
The doctors explained the degree of recovery my body had experienced.
I would have to be careful. No strenuous exercise. No heavy lifting or running, or anything that might place a load on my body. It would take at least another week for me to heal. I might even be excused from physical education class, pending on how far my recovery had progressed.
That Friday morning, Simone Alucard came to see me.
She was almost completely healed. As I said before, being a natural Aventis had its advantages, though she too was advised to take it easy and was due for a checkup the following week.
We spoke about what happened, and I agreed to keep what I’d heard a secret.
Simone assured me she would do everything in her power to help me, and protect me.
She said that the experience had left her shaken, and she was still coming to terms with it.
But she saw me as a sister-in-arms.
We’d faced the enemy, and we’d lived to tell the tale.
I agreed. Oddly enough, I agreed.
I felt closer to this girl, the mysterious Vice-President of the Student Council.
Then Simone surprised me.
She asked me to join the Student Council. She said she had spoken to the President and he’d left the matter in her hands. It seemed he was pre-occupied with his own battles.
I asked her for a few days to allow me to consider her offer.
Simone agreed to my request, but begged me not to keep her waiting.
She said she was counting on my support, and winked enigmatically at me.
#
(Haruka)
I was sitting on my hospital bed.
Today was Friday, and I was expecting to be discharged in the afternoon.
The doctors wanted to perform one more scan of my body after midday. If it went well, my parents would be notified and could come around to pick me up.
So for the time being I was reading the news articles on my palm-slate.
Simone had come by and we’d talked for an hour.
She had left a short while ago when I heard a knock on the door. I assumed it was a nurse dropping in to check up on me.
I didn’t expect Caprice Steiner to pay me a visit.
She sat down on the cushioned chair beside my bed.
“I wanted to come by sooner, but whenever I did your family was here, or your boyfriend was with you. So I decided to wait for a better opportunity.”
She kept her hands on her lap. I realized she really was demure. A very prim and proper girl.
She cleared her throat. “I need to tell you…about Caelum.”
I felt my stomach turn to lead. “What’s happened—what’s happened to him?”
“He was injured. He fought against Celica. He fought…the best I’ve ever seen him fight. But she was better and she injured him.”
Caprice’s eyes were tearing up, yet her face was a picture of calm.
She continued softly. “They brought him here, and he’s been recovering. He was discharged yesterday. They told him he can’t do strenuous activities for a while. His wound hasn’t fully healed. Being a Familiar, our bodies can make use of the Symbiote in a way that allows us to heal faster from injuries that might kill an Aventis. His injury would certainly have killed a member of the Prides.”
I felt cold, deathly cold. My heart was being squeezed so tightly I almost groaned in pain.
Caprice raised her hands gently. “He’s fine now. He will be fine. In fact, he’ll be training with us again in a week’s time. You don’t have to be concerned. I just wanted to tell you because I had a feeling they weren’t telling you about his injuries.”
I took a number of deep breaths.
To my surprise, Caprice stood up and embraced me hesitantly. I returned her embrace, and then I heard her whisper in my ear.
“Haruka….I love him.”
I felt my heart jump and my chest begin to ache. She held me a little tighter.
“I love him more than anything in this world, or all the colonized systems.”
I held onto her as she gave a voice to her heart.
“I will protect him, Haruka. I will give my life to keep him safe.”
I burst into tears.
It took a long while for me to calm down, and to find my voice. When I did, all I could muster was a hoarse whisper.
“I know, Caprice. I know you would. And I know that you love him. I believe you….”
This is the way it should be.
This is the best way to let him go.
To hand him over to this girl who treasures him and will always treasure him.
A girl who has the courage to love him the way I couldn’t.
For a long while we held onto each other.
Then we broke the embrace by mutual consent.
Caprice looked down at me. Her face was showing the barest of emotions, but I saw the tears drying on her cheeks.
I swallowed and cleared my throat, pushing past the emotional lump I felt there. “You’ve got some competition. The Countess—I think she’s serious about him.”
Caprice nodded. “I know.”
I smiled up at her. “You have my blessing.”
She nodded again. “Thank you…Haruka.”
“I’ll help in any way I can.”
“You’ll support me instead of the other girl?”
I rocked my head from side to side. “I guess I will. I’ll help you win his heart.”
I thought about the way Caelum looked at Caprice when she wasn’t looking, or when he thought she wouldn’t notice. “Caprice, I wouldn’t say this if I didn’t think it was true. But I believe Caelum has strong feelings for you.”
“Oh….”
“But I think he’s having trouble accepting those feelings.”
She was quiet for a short while. “Thank you. That gives me hope.”
“Hope?”
She nodded. “Hope, that I will be the one to win his heart.”
She sat down the edge of the bed, but neither of us said anything for a while.
Then I remembered something she’d said. “By the way, Duncan isn’t my boyfriend.”
“Oh…why not?”
“Huh?”
“Why isn’t he—?”
I waved a hand quickly. “We’re taking things slow. One step at a time.”
“Do you like him?”
I looked into her emerald eyes.
This girl is a beauty. Why can’t Caelum see what a treasure he has beside
him?
I took a quick breath. “Yes, I like him. And maybe I’m falling for him.”
She gave me that faint smile that she often bestowed on Caelum. But there was a different meaning behind it.
She was saying that she understood how I felt, because she loved a boy too.
I took another breath. “Yeah, I think I am falling in love with him.”
She reached out and squeezed my left hand. I squeezed her left hand back.
A knock on the door grabbed our attention.
Caprice stood up quickly off the bed, however she chose to remain beside it.
I watched two girls walk into the room.
Siobhan and Alistair carried flowers in their hands.
I sat up a little straighter. “Siobhan? Alistair?”
They looked at each other, and then they looked at Caprice.
Siobhan cleared her throat first. “I…I mean we…have something to say.” She looked at me. “To Haruka.”
Caprice nodded. “I’ll wait outside.”
Siobhan stepped into Caprice’s path. “And to you.”
Caprice tensed but Alistair spoke quickly. “No, it’s not like that. Please, just hear us out.”
Caprice eyed them warily and took a step back toward my bedside.
Siobhan said, “Haruka, I’m sorry. We’re both sorry. We…we have certain preconceptions and misconceptions about Familiars. They made me see Familiars as failures. As less than us Aventis. But I also saw them as freaks. I shouldn’t have done that. I’m really sorry.” She turned to Caprice. “And I’m sorry for treating you like you didn’t exist. You’re a part of our class. I won’t treat you that way again.”
Caprice was confused. I saw the subtle frown on her face. Then she nodded and said, “Thank you.”
Alistair spoke up. “My brother is the Student Council President. My name is Alistair Kell Avenir. I try to keep that a secret from the rest of the school. I used to be compared to him a lot, but now most people don’t remember that we’re related.”
I had an inkling of where she was going with this.
Alistair paused then continued. “My brother told me that it was Familiars who fought against Crimson Crescent and they fought to protect us and our school.” Her lower lip trembled. “He said you, and Caelum Desanto, and Maya Khayman, and Rina Sayen all fought against Crimson Crescent…and you did it to keep us safe and to protect our school.”
Caprice gave her a very faint nod, but remained silent.
Alistair covered her eyes. “I was so scared. I was really so scared when the shooting started and the buildings shook.”
I watched Alistair tremble for a little while. The girl calmed down when she started breathing slow and deep.
She lowered her hands and gave Caprice a steady look. “I’m sorry for treating you like you didn’t matter. I’m really sorry. I’m sorry for thinking you were no better than us. I was wrong, and I’m sorry.”
I glanced at Caprice.
She was standing deadly still.
Then I saw her nod very faintly once more, and give them that faint smile of hers.
“I accept your apologies. And I’m sorry for not being able to do more to protect you, and your school.”
Siobhan took Alistair’s hand and pulled her closer to Caprice and I.
She said, “These are…just a little something. To be honest, I don’t know how to express our gratitude.”
“You’ve said enough,” Caprice replied, her voice even and yet not quite emotionless.
I swallowed and spoke up. “In that case, why don’t we try being friends.”
Alistair and Siobhan looked worried, then they looked at Caprice.
Siobhan said, “Would you…like to be friends?”
Caprice didn’t reply right away. She studied the two girls for a while, before nodding gently. “Yes, I think I’d like that.”
Alistair sighed in relief then she started to laugh. She reached out and took a hold of Caprice’s hands. “Yeah, I think I’d like that too.”
I turned away and looked out the window.
I was feeling in a good mood, and I wanted to cement these feelings in a good way.
I said, “Hey guys, I get released this afternoon. How about we do something fun?”
Alistair frowned. “Won’t your parents come by to take you home?”
I shrugged casually. “Yeah, but that’s just to sign the discharge papers.”
Alistair didn’t look convinced but gave me a nod. “Okay, if you say so.”
Siobhan planted a hand on her hip. “So, what do you have in mind?”
I sat back against my pillows. “I want to do karaoke.”
Alistair and Siobhan gave me concerned looks.
Caprice appeared intrigued.
Siobhan muttered uneasily, “But Haruka, you can’t sing.”
I gave Siobhan a dirty look and threw her one of my pillows.
Epilogue.
(Caelum)
Sunday.
Island Three, Habitat Three.
Inside the entrance to the mag-lev station in District Seven.
I arrived thirty minutes beforehand.
New clothes, updated look. I had to thank that girl at the shop for attending to my urgent needs once again.
I looked about, wondering if I’d spot Prissila’s bodyguards keeping an eye on me.
I refrained from rubbing the Fragment bracelet under the sleeve of my right forearm.
The truth was, I wanted to be the one to protect her.
The mag-lev station clock displayed ten a.m.
I checked my palm-slate.
Yep, definitely ten a.m.
I took a series of deep breaths, hoping to calm down but now that the hour was upon me I felt even more nervous than that time I went to meet the Countess.
I wondered what Prissila would be wearing.
Something worthy of her fine figure and magnificent bosom.
My fingers touched my lips, and I thought of how soft Prissila’s lips were.
That kiss was something I replayed a number of times in my mind.
It kept me up at night.
I was still touching my lips when a beautiful girl stopped before me.
I forgot all about that kiss.
You could say I was completely blown away…by cold surprise.
I cleared my throat when I remembered how to use my voice again.
“Wh—what are you doing here?”
The Countess smiled and curtsied. “Surprise!”
“Huh?” Panic made my eyes dart about. I feared Prissila would show up and see the two of us standing here.
“Ara ara, looking for someone?”
“Yes—I mean no. Not at all.”
“Really, then why are you here?”
I ran a hand through my hair. My body trembled in dread. “Ah, well. I just thought, beautiful day, nothing to do—”
“She’s not coming.”
I felt my heart jump into my throat then land back in my chest. “What?”
“Prissila isn’t coming.”
I leaned forward in disbelief. “What? Why not? But I said yes to her!”
“Ara ara, did you now?”
“Ack!” I’d put my foot in my mouth. “It’s not what you think.”
“Of course it is. She asked you out on a date, and you agreed.”
“Eh…well…I—I really had no choice. I couldn’t say no!” I was starting to sound like a man desperately pleading his case before being condemned.
The Countess smiled. “It’s alright. I understand. But unfortunately she can’t make it.”
“Ah, why not?”
The Countess smiled. “She’s been grounded…for a month.”
I gasped. “A month. A whole month.”
“Ara ara, aren’t you disappointed.”
“Gah—” I swallowed and straightened guiltily. “Why is she grounded?”
“Something about her mother discovering her reading habits. Apparently her mother
was not amused.”
I remembered Simone making fun of Prissila for reading those steamy, raunchy novels. “Oh, I see. It’s those books she was reading—wait! You told her mother.”
The Countess laughed haughtily. “She only has herself to blame.”
“But that’s so cruel.” I fixed a puzzled frown on her. “How did you find out about today? Prissila wouldn’t have told you.”
“I had an inside source.”
“Meaning what?”
“She paid the nurses at the hospital to keep an eye on you.”
“She did what?”
“I paid the nurses to keep an eye on her and you.”
“You did what?”
The Countess planted her hands on her shapely hips. “As I said, she only has herself to blame. The silly twit pulled that stunt straight out of a book she read. She told me about that story at the end of last year. Naturally, when I was lying in the hospital bed, I began to suspect she was up to something. And I was right!”
Simone smiled wickedly then flashed a victory sign.
“Her loss, my win!”
“You’re a devil.”
“In the flesh,” she replied.
“That was so unfair to the Princess.”
“Hey, all’s fair in love and war. I’m not about to lose to her. I plan to win. I’m in this for the win.”
I suddenly realized what she meant by winning.
I gulped loudly.
Simone sidled up to me and looped her left arm through my right.
I felt her impressively firm, yet undeniably soft left breast push into my arm. “Gah—Countess, you’re too close.”
But seriously, there is nothing in the universe that compares to this sensation. Absolutely nothing.
Simone giggled slyly. “Caelum, act like a man. Besides, you were fully prepared to do this with Prissila.”
I froze and paled a little. She was right. I had been steeling myself for such an event. I’d actually been looking forward to it.
My heart jumped and I hurriedly looked away.
Simone’s low cut halter top was revealing much more than just a hint of her charms.
Don’t look. Don’t look. But I want to look! Let me look! Damn it—let me look!
My neck was beginning to ache from the struggle between two sets of opposing muscles.
She made it worse by pressing into my arm even more. “Right, shall we then?”
I swallowed nervously, worrying I was starting to sweat. “Shall we what?”
Pride X Familiar ReVamp (Pride X ReVamp Book 1) Page 39
