by Tara Chau
I hesitate, and it's enough for him, "Don't do it, Di, you're more likely to make it worse."
Shaking his hand off me, I narrow my eyes, scowling up at him, "I know what needs to be done, and I can pay for it later. Right now, we have bigger problems. I'll deal with it all later."
"Later?" Gabe hisses, "There may not even be a later. And if there is, if we all do somehow manage to make it through this, your problems that seem so small now will just grow bigger, and they'll be everyone's problems soon enough."
“No, they won’t. I can assure you that, Gabe.”
“No, Dianna, you can’t.”
That comes as a slap to the face. How he speaks and looks at me now, it's just riddled defeat and exasperation, his eyes holding none of the warmth that I had lured out of him. My full name on his lips is a foul thing; when it's used, it's usually used with anger, but he says it now as if it's normal, and as if he's said it like that for months, with no emotion, no love.
"I have to do whatever I can, Gabe, to help everyone. This is how it has to be,” I say, searching his face for any sign of affection, coming up blank.
"No, you choose the easy solution." He sighs, looking away, "There are other options; better one's that we can explore."
“We don’t have the time,” I say, desperate for him to understand. “If we had more time, if he hadn’t already done so much evil, then I would absolutely look for a different solution, you know I would, but we can’t.”
"Sometimes, the easy path is not the best. Sometimes, the hard path is what is needed to succeed, to finish it all in one, to know that it is done,” he says, bringing his face back to mine.
“And sometimes, you need to take a path that is somewhere between, one that will allow you to finish first,” I say softly.
The last paper slips out of the copier. Gabe takes up the copies and walks towards a small bookshelf where there are small, battered books stacked carefully. He hands me the papers then kneels down to one of the shelves that hold children's books. I watch as he scans the spines tiredly, eyes careful not to skip over one book without reading the label. Finally, he slips one book out slowly, rising to dust it off.
It's old, very old. A picture book, downsized. It's battered and thin, a square shape, rounded on the corners. The edges of its cover are frayed and lifted, fold marks decorate its spine, indicating that it's been read a lot. Tilting my head slightly to the side, I squint to see the fading title.
The Turtle and the Hare.
The title stirs something in the back of my mind, I can't quite remember it, but I know that it's been read to me before. By my nanny when I was a little girl, maybe four?
Gabe hands it to me delicately, watching me as I flip through the limited pages. The paper has coloured over the years, turning a faint shade of yellow, the writing also faint. Stain and marks decorate some pages, ink, chocolate, even crinkles where it’s obvious water was spilled on it.
“You-you want me to read this?” I ask doubtfully.
"I think you need to,” he says, nodding as he looks at the book again.
“I’ll try not to be offended,” I scoff.
Gabe doesn't laugh. He just walks back to the others, silently excepting the copied plans I hand him minutes later. We all rise, packing everything up and saying our goodbyes. I watch as Gabe strides away, not once looking back.
Are you here to stop me, join me, or to simply observe quietly and see how far down stupid avenue I go, only then to resort to option one?” I ask, stopping a few metres from the entrance to the local library.
“Undecided,” Gabe says, walking up to stand next to me.
"Well, Chip, make sure to tell me when you decide, but in the meantime, I'll be in there,” I say, pointing at the doors.
“Di,” Gabe sighs, grabbing my hand, squeezing it lightly before letting go.
I turn around, steeling myself for the lecture. I can feel stirring, "Yes?"
“I-I was lying awake last night, thinking,” he starts uncertainly, “And, I realised that… I’ll back you up, whatever you do, and I’ll trust you.”
I let out a heavy breath of relief, not realising how much I needed to hear him say those words, not realising how uncertain I am myself.
“That’s how it has to be with the two of us.” Gabe nods, gazing into my eyes, “You rise, I rise, you fall, I fall, whatever we each do, we’ll do it all together.”
Tracing the emotions in his eyes, I know that he's allowing me to see everything he's feeling. I know that he wants me to see, to understand. I lunge into his arms, wrapping my hands around his neck, burying my face into his neck. Gabe holds me tightly, his head resting on mine, his hot breath rustling my hair. I silently shake, enclosed in his arms. I let myself shed every worry tugging at me. Though no tears flow, I still quake in his arms, as if I am silently wailing, unable to control myself. We stand on the edge of the footpath, just two people needing to be with each other, craving closeness, craving safety.
Finally, Gabe pulls back, drawing my hair away from my face, his other hand caressing my cheek. He kisses me firmly on the forehead, holding me here for a second longer before letting go of me.
“Come on, we don’t want to keep the old witch waiting,” Gabe says bitterly, yet something in his shoulders, his eyes, has lifted.
“Ten bucks says she heard that,” I say, trying to conceal my grin.
"Oh, I know she did. I just don't care,” he smirks with a casual shrug.
We both walk through the doors, sighing in pleasure as the cool air blast at us, swirling around like a slight breeze. Casually walking to the back of the library, I feel a jolt of power pass through me as we enter Vain's glamour. Gabe shows no sign of surprise.
“Now this is awfully familiar,” A cold voice booms.
Vain steps in front of us, first looking at me with a wicked grin, then glancing at Gabe with a glare that would send normal boys running.
“What is it this time?” she snaps, gliding over to a booth, motioning us to sit impatiently.
“Let’s get this done as quickly as we can,” Gabe says in a low, threatening voice.
“Oh, spare me your wan-a-be male lead antics,” Vain spits. “You want to protect the girl you love, correct? Well, this one doesn’t need a boy to keep herself safe.”
Gabe glares at her, going as far as to bare his teeth.
“Stop it, both of you,” I snap, "We're here for a reason, Vain. We need your help."
Her head snaps to me, eyes going cold, devoid of any slightest emotion. “You want my help? That’s funny girl, as I recall, you still have yet to repay me for my previous aids,” she sneers.
"And I will, but right now, I have bigger things to worry about. So, I need one more favour,” I beg.
“A time will come, Dianna, where you will be called to my service, and you may not like it.”
Ignoring her words, I begin to explain what I need. Which info and what part she would play in the final plan. All the while, she is silent, nodding slightly when she approves of one specific point. Every minute that passes, I can feel Gabe growing restless and tense next to me, see his hand slowly inching towards his dagger sheathed at his side. My own body betrays me, also instinctually keeping one hand close to a weapon, my leg bouncing up and down the whole time with nerves.
“Can you give us those things?” Gabe questions once I’m done explaining.
“Lucien and the whole of the Xavia hides in a closed down part of the underground train systems, directly underneath the old town square. As for containing and portaling him, I can do that,” she says with a determined nod.
“Great,” I say with a sigh of relief. “I’ll give you the details once we’ve figured it all out.”
Gabe stands, sliding out quickly so I can follow.
"Always good doing business with you, Vain,” I say.
“Likewise,” she agrees before a gust of magic throws us out of the warded area, right into a bunc
h of people.
Gabe and I jump up efficiently, reaching down to help up the three people we had knocked down. One of the two boys looks me up and down, taking in my completely black clothing and sorry expression. Gabe apologises to them for the both of us, shaking hands with the other boy and smiling charmingly at the girl.
"Hey, girlie, me and my mates are going to the beach. Want to tag along?" the boy asks with a sly fox smile.
It makes me shiver; I feel like a shower just so I can wash off his lingering looks. Before I can respond, Gabe steps in close to me, wrapping his arm around my waist protectively.
“She’s spoken for, mate,” Gabe says, no longer charming in any sense.
I can see him sizing up Gabe, his mind playing out multiple possible situations, before he simply shrugs. “Sorry,” he mumbles grudgingly before walking off with the other two.
I wait for them to get out of earshot before I burst out into a fit of laughter. Gabe pulls back in confusion, watching me cautiously.
“What is so funny?” he asks, eyebrows raised.
“Nothing, nothing,” I wheeze, “It’s just that with everything that’s been going on, I forgot that normal stuff like that could happen.”
“Oh? You forgot that perverts like that usually just pick out a random pretty girl and ask for a date?” He asks, annoyed.
“Yeah!” I say, doubling over. “A-and I also forgot about the jealous protective boyfriend part.”
“You forgot how the jealous protective boyfriend reacts to jerks seeking out random pretty girls?” he says sceptically, crossing his arms.
“Correct, but that random gorgeous girl would have reacted herself had the protective jealous boyfriend not stepped in,” I say, trying to reign in my laughter.
“Had the boyfriend not stepped in, that guy would have taken your stunning smile as an invitation.”
"I-it was not a 'stunning smile'; it was a polite smile. And I would have told him, no, but this random pretty girl was distracted by the normality of it all,” I say with a shrug.
Gabe shakes his head, uncrossing his arms, “Do you remember what I said to you when you asked me what this was?” he asks, motioning between the two of us.
“No,” I drawl, gliding one step towards him. “Remind me?”
"No one else can have you. You're mine,” he says in a low soft voice.
“I’m yours, you’re mine, and no one else can have you,” I mumble. Standing on my toes, I plant a kiss on his lips. "You want to protect the girl you love, correct?" I dare.
Gabe grunts, his eyes closed, forehead pressed against mine. Not a no or a yes. A smile tugs at my lips as Gabe leans in again, placing my hands on his chest. I push him away, stumbling a few steps back myself.
“Protective jealous boyfriend gotta upgrade his moves,” I say with a grin.
Gabe huffs, but a grin plays on his lips as he takes my hand, and we walk out the library, Gabe glaring at the three teens on the way out.
“Okay, so we need to find a plan for the layout of the”
“Hey Gabe, stop?” I cut him off, stepping aside with his hand still clasped in mine.
“Yeah? What’s wrong?” he asks worriedly.
“Why does something have to be wrong?” I ask, letting go of his hand to throw my arms in the air.
“Then what?” he says.
“I just want to have one walk, one nice walk on one nice day with my boyfriend and not think about Lucien or the Xavia, just one,” I beg.
Gabe seems to mull over this for a few moments before his lips break into a broad smile. “Okay,” he nods, taking up my hand again, “just one walk.”
I smile up at him happily, which sends him grinning with his usual charm. As we walk down the street, I think over all the events that have happened lately. Everything that had driven me to go to Vain. Thinking about everything that we've all done.
“Hey, Gabe, you need to stop being so worried about me all the time,” I say, looking up at him.
He looks down at me, a glimmer of amusement sparking his eyes. “One nice walk on one nice day without thinking about Lucien and the Xavia, ha?” he asks, eyebrow raised.
“Sorry,” I mumble, rolling my eyes.
Another minute passes, the sun streams down as the streets become fuller the further we walk into town.
"And you gotta let me fight and take risks without lecturing me or trying to stop me every second,” I add, only to look back at the street upon seeing Gabe’s sceptical look.
"And…" I stop as I catch Gabe's eye roll and the amusement on his face. "I'm being serious!" I say, tugging on his hand firmly. "You have got to stop, it-it's annoying,” I admit.
Gabe laughs, continuing to walk ahead of me.
“What is funny, Gabe?” I ask in an accusing tone.
“Nothing,” he says, trying to compress his smile, looking down at his feet, “But do you really think that asking me not to worry is literally going to stop me from doing so?”
“I think that it will at least bring your attention to how absurdly overprotective you are,” I say with a shrug to disguise my annoyance.
“Yeah, no,” he says, lips pressed into a thin line.
I let out a huge groan of irritation, falling upon Gabe’s back, making him stumble onto the grass along the sidewalk. Gabe props himself up onto his elbows, looking down at me next to him.
“We are never going to be a normal couple that has nice walks on nice days, are we?” he sighs.
I shake my head, confirming his accusation as he hauls me back up onto my feet. We brush off the recently cut grass and gravel, Gabe watching me the entire time.
“You are mine, and I am yours,” he begins, swallowing down his hesitations, “And, I protect what is mine.”
“Gabe, I am yours, yes, but I can protect myself,” I argue.
"Really? Because right now, all that you seem to be doing is running into danger without a thought, just because you think you will die,” he snaps.
“So much for a nice walk,” I mutter.
“I thought we already cleared up that we’re not those kinds of people,” he grumbles.
"Gabe, you can try to protect me; just don't try to control me,” I say, looking him in the eye.
“Never,” he promises, “I’ll never try or want to control you.”
“Good, so then cut it out,” I say, punching him in the stomach.
Gabe blocks me easily, throwing me off balance slightly. He smiles, but it does not reach his eyes this time, "Fine, I'll attempt to not be so… insistent on your protection."
“Yes, and you’ll try really, really, hard,” I say, nodding at him like he is a three-year-old.
“I said I would attempt to, don’t push it,” he mumbles, rolling his eyes.
A thought occurs inside my brain, and I grin up at him madly. “Do or do not, there is no try,” I say in a wise voice.
Gabe looks down at me, his expression lightening to great heights as he realises what I just quoted. “I guess you weren’t asleep the whole time we were watching Star Wars.” He grins.
“No,” I admit, “only the boring parts.” Gabe lifts his eyes brows, looking at me as if I am a puzzle, “That just so happens to be the majority of the movies,” I add.
I dodge to the right as I see him coming at me, avoiding his annoyed attacks and pointed glares.
“Come on then,” I say, looping my arms through his with a pleased smile, “This supposedly nice walk is quite boring. I suppose I’ll just have to accept the fact that I am too advanced now to go on nice, boring walks.”
* * *
Ty throws down a big scroll, yellowed and ripped around the edges by age. Unravelling it, he shows us the layout of the underground train station that Lucien is currently occupying. Ty does nothing to hide his irritation as he glares at the map.
“We had to walk around that hell hole for hours taking in every detail, every nook and cranny, all the while trying to
stay clear of approximately five hundred Xavia,” Ty growls, taking another breath to continue his rant, only to be cut off by an equally annoyed Anne.
“And then, when we went to map the damn place, we realised that we didn’t have anything to copy the layout onto! We then spent another hour searching the Xavia tents for a piece of paper. Ended up with this old parchment or something, so don’t go blaming us if it rips on you,” she fumes dramatically.
Taking out my phone, I take a quick picture of it, careful to get it all in.
"Explain,” I request, sitting down at the table, waiting patiently for the others to take their usual places.
Ty leans over the table, taking a led pencil and pointing to what I assume are train tracks that divide the two platforms. “Train tracks,” he confirms.
Taking the pencil from him, I lightly right the word next to them.
“These two platforms,” Ty says, taking the pencil back to point at the two large rectangles on either side of the tracks, “have been taken over completely by the Xavia. This one,” he says, pointing to the platform on his right, “has huge tarps strung up, they take up the entire platform.”
"Back here," Anne begins, placing her finger on the jagged lines, "these are stairs that have obviously been blocked off; Lucien has strung his personal tarp just in front of them. It's the closest to any exit plus entrance he can be."
“The exit is just at the top of the stairs; you slip through the loose boards that they’ve nailed over the exit, and you’ll come out in a dead-end ally in the town square. It’s also the only way to get in,” Ty says regretfully.
“And are there any other exits?” Gabe demands.
“Yes, but only one other,” Anne nods, pointing to the other platform at the very edge of the page. “There is obviously a wall here, but there’s a door as well. You open the door, and it will lead you to a long hall. Follow it all the way to the end to another door that will open up to a small dark room. The last door you open will let you come out into the new station, and you will have realised that you have just emerged from the janitor's closet. You will not be able to go back in once you come out. The door to the closet can only be opened by a key, and the door before that to the passage can only be accessed from the inside."