by L. C. Mawson
Hate gave a humourless snort. “I think we both know it isn’t something else.” She sighed. “I mean, we had to know that this was going to happen eventually. No relationship is ever perfect...”
Love frowned, getting more than a little annoyed. “This hasn’t been a problem before because we’ve always been honest with each other. We’ve always managed to work through things because we talked about them. That has worked for us for almost a year, I don’t believe that it would stop working now.”
“Has it been working? Or have we just been lying to each other?” Hate looked away. “I mean, do either of us truly know the other, or does being an Aspect inherently mean that we have part of ourselves that we keep locked away from even those closest to us...”
Love frowned, wondering exactly what Hate meant by that. “Sure, there are some things that I’ve had to bury to deal with my life as an Aspect,” Love eventually admitted. “But we no longer have to hide those things. If we can retake the city, we can have regular lives again. No need to keep certain parts of ourselves buried anymore.”
Hate didn’t reply for a few moments, keeping her gaze out across the city.
Love could have sworn she saw an extra glimmer in Hate’s eyes, shining with moonlight.
Was she crying?
“What if we don’t like what we find?” Hate eventually asked.
Love gave her a reassuring smile. “That’s impossible,” she said without hesitation. “I love you, Hate. Every part of you. There is nothing you could say that would chase me away. I promise I want nothing more than for us to start a real life together. A real life like Justice and Loneliness are going to have. One where we can see a future together, one where we can have normal things like getting married and having children.”
Love realised that Hate had, indeed, been crying, a single silver tear slipping down her face.
Before Love could ask her about it, however, Hate kissed her with a passion that Love wasn’t sure she had ever seen from her before.
Serenity’s words about Hate doing this to distract her rang through Love’s mind, but she pushed them away.
Even if Hate had been crying, maybe they had been tears of relief...
The reasoning sounded weak, even to Love’s ears, but she ignored any lingering sense of worry, not wanting to ruin the moment.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The building work continued steadily over the next few weeks, and Love was more than surprised when they reached the point at which she could look behind her and see nothing but wall.
As the weeks went on, however, Justice seemed to only get more agitated, despite their real progress.
“You have to go back to the Tower,” Justice said, for what felt like the dozenth time.
Love tried not to listen in on the conversation, she really did, but Justice’s voice tended to carry...
Loneliness just folded her arms, responding in the same way she always did. With an unamused glare. “I’ve told you before, I’m not just going to leave everyone here to deal with my mess.”
“It isn’t just your mess, and this could be really dangerous, Lo. You need to be around a real doctor.”
Empathy sighed, rolling her eyes. “You know, I’ve told you a thousand times that I have the expertise to handle this. I’m as good as any doctor. She’ll be fine.”
Justice shook her head. “I’m sorry, Empathy. This isn’t about not trusting you, it’s really not, it’s about the fact that you are still a teenager. As much as you can absorb someone else’s knowledge and expertise, I would feel better if Loneliness was in close proximity to a hospital.”
Loneliness rolled her eyes. “What do you think is going to happen?”
“I don’t know! That’s the point. And you don’t know either. This can be dangerous, Lo, and I don’t think you are taking that danger seriously.”
Serenity stepped in at that point. “Okay, I think it’s time to stop arguing for the day. If we haven’t managed to reach a resolution in the last fortnight, I don’t think we’re going to manage it tonight.”
Empathy stormed off, and Love decided to follow her.
“She doesn’t mean to dismiss you, you know,” Love said once she and her sister were out of earshot of the others. “She’s just worried about Loneliness, and that has her worked up.”
Empathy sighed, folding her arms. “I know. Trust me, I know. The problem is, when I’m around her, I get worked up too. The really awful thing about these powers is that, when tensions run high, I am incapable of de-escalating the situation. I just keep making it worse in one great big feedback loop of anger...”
“Then maybe you shouldn’t work with Justice. Switch out with someone else from a different team.”
Empathy groaned. “I would if there was another team where someone wasn’t upset.”
Love frowned. “Who else is upset?”
“Practically everyone. Loneliness is as worried as Justice, she’s just better at hiding it. And Serenity is upset because she is now fixating on what a future without Love – I mean, the previous one – means to her. And then Hate is still worked up about things between the two of you, and you’re just burying them, which is hardly better.”
Love frowned. “Wait, what do you mean Hate is still worked up about things between the two of us?”
Empathy gave an exasperated sigh. “I mean that you were supposed to talk with her and figure out exactly what was wrong. I’m going to take a wild stab in the dark and say that you didn’t, and instead you’re just letting things fester between you and assuming that everything is okay because she’s not talking about what’s bothering her.”
Love looked away sheepishly. “Yeah, okay. Maybe I am doing that... But I tried to talk to her about it, and she just said a bunch of cryptic nonsense. I have no idea what she was talking about, and she was so clearly upset about it... I didn’t want to bring it up again...”
“If you don’t bring it up, how are you supposed to figure it out? It’s been weeks. Maybe it’s time to take another stab at it.”
Love nodded. “Yeah, okay, fine. I’ll talk to her about it again. Anyway, what was that stuff about Serenity?”
Empathy shrugged. “The usual stuff. I mean, I felt like she was pretty clear about it when you asked her what she hoped to get from reclaiming the city. She’s been an Aspect for a long while now. When we take this job, we give up everything. You already knew Hate when you took the job, and you found out who I was fairly soon after that. Not to mention, you’ve already rebuilt your life once. For the rest of us... We stripped everything away. Every ambition for the future, every hobby, every friend and family member... All we have is being Aspects. If the last Love were still alive, Serenity would have her. It would be something to focus her idea of the future around. But with her gone, Serenity isn’t sure what this newfound freedom will mean for her.”
“Do you think there’s anything I could do to help? I mean, I always avoid talking about the last Love with Serenity. It always feels so awkward...”
Empathy sighed. “I think there are some things that we can’t fix.”
“That’s... Depressing...”
Empathy shrugged. “Maybe, but just because we can’t fix it doesn’t mean that it won’t be fixed. I mean, the really depressing thing about our lives is that we don’t get to go out and meet other people. We only really know the other Aspects. Which is fine for you and Justice, since the people you were dating beforehand were also Aspects, but the rest of us are pretty limited when it comes to dating. And while she can’t meet anyone else, Serenity is never going to get over your predecessor. Not entirely, which means that she will always feel as if Love was a part of her potential future that was taken away from her.”
“Hate was already an Aspect when she and I went on our first date,” Love pointed out.
“Yeah, but she was breaking the rules. I don’t think Serenity would ever do that.”
Love sighed. “Well, hopefully, reclaiming the city will mean t
hat Serenity has more freedom to find someone else.”
Empathy nodded. “Hopefully. And speaking of reclaiming the city, Vengeance should probably start orchestrating scouting missions. If he takes me, Jealousy, and Pain, they can act as training as well, and between me and Jealousy, we should be able to get a good map of the city and figure out where all the nests are. If we do that, hopefully, your job will be easier when more of the wall has been built.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Love had meant to talk to Hate, she really had, but every time she was going to, it seemed as if whatever was bothering Hate wasn’t really bothering her anymore.
She knew that Empathy wouldn’t have talked about it if it wasn’t still bothering her and that Empathy’s insight was far better than her own, admittedly weak, ability to read people.
But she just couldn’t bring herself to bring it up...
She didn’t want to upset Hate by bringing something up that she very clearly didn’t want to talk about.
After another week passed, it became more than easy to push aside any thought of talking to Hate, as they had an unexpected visitor.
They were halfway through their work one day when a dropship appeared in the sky.
Loneliness immediately went to grab Justice’s hand in hers, obviously worried that whoever it was had come to tell them that their little project was over. That they wouldn’t be allowed to continue trying to reclaim the city, and that Loneliness wouldn’t be allowed to keep her child.
They waited with baited breath as the dropship settled down in a nearby open field.
They all went out to greet whoever had arrived, only to be surprised as the door of the dropship opened to reveal Perception.
“I wasn’t expecting another Aspect to show up,” Justice said as she greeted him.
Perception shrugged. “Bennett asked me to come out here and check on you. She figured it would be too dangerous for anyone other than another Aspect to make the trip.”
Loneliness raised an eyebrow. “Check on us?”
Perception nodded. “Just make sure that everything is going according to plan.”
“Well, I can assure you that it is,” Loneliness said, a little sharply.
Perception just smiled. “I’m sure that it is, and I can see that you are telling the truth as best you know it, but you do have a personal stake in this. Bennett is going to need my first-hand account if she is going to believe that everything is going as well as you say.”
Loneliness folded her arms. “Then go right ahead. We have nothing to hide.”
“I never thought that you did.”
Love glanced around, only to see that her sister had disappeared.
It wasn’t unexpected. Perception’s predecessor had been their father, and Empathy had trouble being around him, given the connection.
In all honesty, Love couldn’t say that she wouldn’t act exactly the same if she remembered their father. She wasn’t entirely sure if the fact that she didn’t was a blessing or curse in this situation.
She made her way through the city, hoping that Empathy hadn’t gone far.
Thankfully, she appeared to have just returned to the building that they were currently camped out in.
“You okay?” Love asked as she approached the corner where her sister had sat down.
Empathy sighed, nodding as Love sat down next to her. “Yeah, I’m okay. I just... I wasn’t expecting him to show up.”
Love nodded. “Yeah, I figured.”
“I’m sorry, you must think me incredibly childish for this...”
Love shrugged. “I think it’s perfectly understandable. You still miss our father. I could never think you childish for that.”
Empathy nodded. “It feels so weird to be next to you when I’m thinking about him. It’s like you have this crater where your feelings about his death should be...” She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have phrased it like that. You know what I mean.”
“I don’t have the same attachment you do,” Love said. “I know. How can I? I don’t remember...”
She felt a pang of anger, remembering that Empathy had been the one to take those memories away from her.
Despite the fact that she hadn’t said anything, Empathy winced in response.
“Yeah, okay, I deserve that,” Empathy said.
“No, you don’t, you apologised.”
Empathy shrugged. “Maybe there are some things apologies can’t fix... But never mind. That doesn't matter. None of this does. I’m fine, we can get back to work now.”
Love sighed. “You don’t have to lie, Empathy. And you don’t have to be okay about this. It’s more than understandable that this might take you a while.”
“Yeah, but I’ve had more than a while now. It’s been years. I can’t keep letting this get in the way of my work as an Aspect.”
“That simple, huh?” Love asked, remembering how distressed Em had been the last time Perception had shown up at their Tower. Of course, Love hadn’t known about him replacing their father at that point, so Em had also had to deal with the realisation that Love didn’t have the same associations as she did.
But still, Love didn’t think she would just be able to let it all go overnight.
“Not simple, no,” Em admitted. “But I have to try.”
Love smiled. “I’m proud of you,” she told her. “Truly. This is a lot to deal with, and you’re handling it in a really grown-up way.”
Em replied with a wry smile. “Well, I’m channelling you right now, so, technically, I’m sixteen. And maybe you should hold off on being proud until I actually do something, rather than just saying I will.” She sighed as she stood up. “Speaking of, come on, we should head back to the others.”
Love nodded before getting up to join her.
Despite her resolute words, Love couldn’t help but notice how slowly Em was walking. Still, she couldn’t complain. Love had to admit that she wasn’t in a hurry to see Perception again either. Not because he reminded her of her father, he was just creepy.
Sure, Empathy could see inside of her head, but it took her days to get attuned enough to see anything below the surface.
Perception had no such limitation, he could see right through anyone and get any truth he wanted.
Love wasn’t exactly someone with much to hide, but it still unnerved her more than she cared to admit.
As much as she might want to, however, she couldn’t just hide away with Empathy. It would be rude, and it might be taken as a sign that they had something to hide.
Like maybe her powers not working entirely as they should...
As they arrived back, they saw that the others had returned to their work. Perception stood a while away from them, watching carefully as they went about setting up the wall.
Usually, by now, Vengeance, Jealousy, Pain and Empathy, would have gone to scout out the city. They were still building their map of what remained of the ruins, as well as all of the nest locations.
However, it seemed that, with Perception’s arrival, they had decided to help the others build the wall instead. Possibly to give him less to critique, or to give him a more optimistic timeline of the wall being completed. Not that it was going slowly with the scouting, but more hands didn’t hurt.
As Love helped Loneliness to slot the plates into place, she kept feeling eyes on her.
She looked over her shoulder every couple of minutes to see Perception watching. Though, after a couple of times, she realised that he wasn’t watching her. He was watching Loneliness.
In fact, his gaze didn’t seem to go anywhere else, confirming that Lo was the primary reason he was there.
Loneliness appeared to notice him watching as well, glancing out of the corner of her eye every few moments as a frown formed and then deepened across her brow.
Eventually, just about when she looked as if she might murder someone, she disappeared completely.
Love supposed she'd done so to spite Perception’s starin
g, but she couldn’t help but wonder if his abilities allowed him to see Loneliness despite her invisibility.
At that moment, Love realised that Perception wasn’t the only one watching them, as Justice stormed up to him, apparently having realised what was going on.
“Is this really necessary?” Justice demanded. “Staring like this is incredibly rude, not to mention unsettling.”
Perception sighed. “I’m sorry, but I have to make sure that everything is going according to your plan.”
“How are you supposed to see that if you’re constantly watching us? It’s putting all of us on edge, Loneliness especially. If you can see so much, surely you can see how much feeling as if people are watching and judging her bothers her. Hell, do you know how long it took her to be able to do simple tasks when I was in the room with her? She spent so much time being told that the way she does things is wrong that whenever she feels she’s being watched, she freaks out and then can’t do anything. We were fine before you showed up, and you’re not going to see us at our best while you’re watching.”
Perception nodded. “I am aware of that. And yet, there are certain things that I have to see for myself.”
“Like what?”
“Like whether or not Loneliness’ power is affected by her current situation and condition. That she is not losing her abilities.”
Justice raised an eyebrow. “You just watched her disappear without a trace, I think it’s safe to say that her powers are fine.”
“Indeed,” Perception agreed. “She is invisible even to my eye. It appears it would take more than this for her power to decrease significantly enough to cause worry.”
“Then, with all due respect, why are you still here? You’ve already seen that her powers haven’t been affected. You don’t need to stick around, and your presence is causing anxiety, which is the last thing Lo needs right now.”
“Unfortunately, it is not that simple. While assessing Loneliness’ power was my primary objective here, I was also sent to assess the rest of you.” As he said that, his gaze turned to Love.