The Sixth Line of Defense

by Shiva Winters

  * * *

  Despite their late night, none of which was spent packing for their planned move, they both woke up reluctantly but quite early the next morning for what Vala would call a naughty shower, since there was barely enough room in the stall for one of them, much less two. Afterward they returned for a somewhat frenzied, clothing optional, session of packing. As much because Shiva's gift as because Vala hadn't really brought all that many things from home, they were done about the time people began to stir outside in the hallway. Reluctantly dressed, they went downstairs for breakfast in the mostly empty cafeteria, before returning upstairs for a few more hours of sleep tucked under a blanket on one of the bare mattresses. As promised Professor Isine arrived a short time before lunch was set to start to insure that everything was ready for the moving crew that wasn't far behind her. With her assurances that everything would be in their new room in a few hours, and armed with keys marked with their new room number they dressed against the steady rain falling outside and left her old room behind. They had an even quieter lunch before following the tunnels out to the far edge of their extent. A touch annoyed that it was still raining and just a little worried that all their stuff might reappear wet, they stood beneath a sheltered awning and at loose ends as they watched silently as the rain continued to fall a short distance away.

  "We could try to go back into the city if we can find a cart." Vala suggested softly. All the places she could name on campus would probably be filled with other students trying to stay dry and out of the cool fall air without simply being trapped inside their rooms all day, but those weren't exactly places where they would want to wait out their time.

  "We could go hide in Seila's library.." Shiva countered gently. "For as much as we could do in town, I'd rather not take the chance that Devin or school security would get annoyed with my constant escape attempts." She added with a sigh as she leaned back in Vala's arms.

  "The Dean?" Vala asked again surprised by how Shiva could refer to that person as an equal with such calm.

  "She did tell me I could come hang out every once in a while." Shiva assured her, as Vala considered the idea it did occur to her that maybe it was a good idea since the Dean might be the one capable of answering some of the questions that had popped up. Shiva had told her that Seila and Devin were both Series 3 and Shiva's lecture the previous day had given her some insights into her own life and the life she knew felt certain she wanted to share with Shiva.

  "I do think I would like to talk to her for a bit.. so let's go." Vala agreed hugging the younger woman before they shifted to walk hand and hand across the unsheltered distance that separated them from that far distant point. Vala was very much surprised when they stepped out from under the stone awning and were not immediately assaulted by the rain. She looked up to find an invisible dome hovering above them catching the rain and shedding it out all around them.

  "I don't feel like walking in the rain today." Shiva murmured with quiet amusement as she leaned in close and rested her head on Vala's shoulder. Touched by her thoughtfulness and again amazed by her easy use of her surprising ability, Vala chuckled, kissed the top of her and leaned her cheek against Shiva's hair to walk in loving silence. Unhurried and protected it took them some time to cross the considerable distance before Shiva was leading her through the border that separated adult sanctuary and off of neutral territory. They entered the large beautiful house through a glass sun porch and kicked off their shoes close to the many pairs that had already gathered there. Shiva lead her inside and through the halls like someone familiar with the scene around them, and pushed open the two-way swing door to peer into the kitchen beyond.

  "Seila?" All the teachers gathered inside froze and the conversation stopped as a sudden nervous tension struck through the air. It seemed obvious what, or perhaps rather who, had been the topic of conversation just seconds before.

  "Yes, sweety?" The Dean called back with a bright amused smile for their appearance as Shiva stood hugged to her side and leaned heavily against her.

  "They are moving Vala and I to a new dorm room, can we hang out in your office for a little while?" Shiva asked as if she were completely unaware of the kind of meeting she just interrupted.

  "Of course you can." She agreed seemingly even more amused by that innocent question. "We should have your schedule all wrapped up here soon."

  "Thank you." Shiva murmured before letting the door swing closed before leading Vala away from the sounds of renewed conversation.

  "They were talking about you." Vala commented to her with a nervous giggle.

  "That's okay." Shiva murmured back to her with a sigh. They were soon curled up in a warm basket chair in among a chaotic scene of books. Shiva had selected something to read but it simply sat nearby barely touched as the two of them whispered softly to one another about anything and everything that came up. It was more than any hour later that the sound of approaching feet warned them of the Dean's arrival, she gave them an adoring smile as she spotted them in the distance. She pulled a chair over close and leaned back to rest her feet on the edge of the basket.

  "Don't you two look comfy." She teased completely at ease and all together unlike the formidable figure Vala had heard about and seen during the previous years..

  "I certainly am." Shiva murmured back rubbing her cheek against Vala's shoulder as if to demonstrate that fact.

  "Your schedule is all done and as promised it is pretty much the same as Vala's. The fact that she seems able to contain your mischief was a good argument to shoot down anyone's high minded ideals of trying to challenge you academically." The Dean told them with a pleased smile for Vala's nervous gaze. "Though I suppose I should be more displeased than I actually am that you even found a way to get into trouble in the first place. But I guess I can write all of that off as a necessary adjustment period."

  "I'm sorry.. mostly." Shiva murmured back to her softly with just a touch of a guilty expression. "Vala wanted to ask some questions if you aren't busy."

  "For you two I am never too busy." She assured them with a soft sweet sounding kind of laugh. "Come on Vala, we'll keep this private and let your pretty little girlfriend get the nap she seems so ready to take." Vala was surprised to find the Dean offering her a hand as she slipped free of Shiva's presence. Shiva smiled at them as she resettled and finally opened the half forgotten book in her lap. The Dean lead her back through the house and onto the sun porch where the sight and sound of the rain spread a calming influence without getting either of them wet. "For starters, I don't want any titles from you young lady, it seems to me that when it comes to keeping Shiva out of trouble we are in this together, so call me Seila."

  "Yes, Seila." Vala agreed a touch nervously.

  "I am glad Professor Isine was able to find you two a spot in Titania house. I know we say that it is reserved for our upperclassman, but in truth we try to get as many of our secretly talented children in there as possible. To give them an environment where they don't have to hide what they are. I know a lot of them expressed concerns over you.." Seila informed her cautiously rubbing Vala's arm and making it hard not to set aside the fact that Seila was the Dean of the school.

  "I know a few of them, though they can't really seem too friendly to me without.. you know, risking their own social standing. And it's all right I couldn't get in earlier, chances are some of them would have a lot more trouble with more crowded space than I do." Seila gave her a truly grateful smile at that, proving that Vala's first instinct had been correct on that score.

  "If what Professor Sloana told me last night is true, it is perhaps best to get Shiva into a more relaxed environment where she won't cause trouble over rules she doesn't want to follow." Vala couldn't help the remembered laughter that bubbled up at that. She had wondered if their dorm manager had suspected even the slightest hint of foul play in Shiva's little stunt. "That confirms that.." Seila agreed with a warm
amused laugh. "Still for as much trouble as she could cause I can guess she has been holding back a bit now that you are here."

  "I think so to.. in all honesty that is related to what I wanted to talk about.." Seila gave her a slightly nervous but interested look, perhaps sensing Vala's own uncertainty at some of things she was about to bring up. "She told me.. she didn't ever want to lie to me.. before.. she told about her origins."

  "Oh.." Seila's expression became somber as her eyes grew dark with thought. "I had wondered if you might end up hearing some of that.."

  "She probably didn't tell me all of it, and she certainly didn't tell me what her life was like before she was woken up. But I heard enough to guess at some things, and see why she does have these problems.." Vala added slowly, working her way towards the real subject of her question. "With all the secrets that she hasn't yet shared.. she probably didn't even think about the fact she revealed one of yours.. the one you and Devin share." The Dean smiled at that as her good mood seemed to return just a little as she displayed her tattoo rather proudly. "She said you were a member of Series 3, and.. well.."

  "It's okay Vala, there isn't a lot about my past that I find offensive, and truth be told I have a feeling you are already deeply embedded in this conspiracy of ours." Seila told her rubbing her arm encouragingly when she faltered.

  "Even if I wanted to.. I don't think I could ever deny the strength of my feelings for Shiva.. I mean, I can honestly say even after only three days that I love and adore her with all of my heart, and I know she feels exactly the same." Seila smiled brightly at this and gave her an understanding nod. "What I wanted to ask you, is if you remember anyone or heard about anyone from yours or the other groups who reacted to another person like Shiva and I have reacted to each other?"

  "Such a good question!" Seila told her with the giggle of a woman a third of her age, even as her eyes became thoughtful. "As a matter of fact.. yes, I can remember four.. no.. five couples that just seemed to look into each others' eyes and just seemed to be madly in love within hours. And now that I think about it.. one of my friends said she did a little research on the subject. Nothing formal, mind you, just interviews, a bit of after hours research and the like. She came to believe that with the appearance of our new gifts, that it created a bridge or opening within our psyches that the right person or perhaps the right talent could fill.." She murmured in slow thoughtful sentences. "Oh.. this very much makes me long for the old days when I could get a hold of just about any classified data I might want when I wanted to investigate something that caught my eye."

  "Did.. those couples stay together?" Vala asked adding that concern before Seila's thoughts wandered too far off target.

  "The ones I kept in touch with most certainly did.. as a matter of fact a lot of them seem more in love now than they were way back then. Oh.. that makes me so very happy that you two found each other.." Seila murmured with a deep relieved sigh as some of her tension drifted away. "I was so very worried about Shiva when she first came here.. before I was released into civilian life, I did a little work trying to help some of the people from Series 4.. and she so intensely reminded me of those days. But seeing you two together.." Seila smiled as she caressed Vala's cheek tenderly. ".. I feel almost positive that the two of you are going to be all right." Vala let herself relax enough to smile. Sometime later after a few more questions and a far more relaxed conversation, Shiva appeared at the far side of the room and smiled at them as she wandered over to curl up in Vala's lap.

  "So tell me, Shiva, would Devin had reached home by now?" Seila asked as their current topic drew to a close.

  "Not for a few more hours." Shiva told her after some thought, and probably a few calculations.

  "Well then, I shall have to give him a call and talk about old friends." Vala gave a bright smile at seeing a mischievous light in the older woman's eyes. "Since you both wandered in dry as bone, I don't suppose you two brought a cart?"

  "No, but if you wanted to go to your office, we can walk with you to collect my schedule and see if our room is ready." Seila gave her a questioning look even as she smiled and nodded in agreement. A short time later they were wandering back out into the rain, the Dean made a surprised noise and then smiled at Vala's backwards glance.

  "It didn't make sense to try and stick you in any of our math classes, so if it's all right we are just going to continue private lessons with Professor Gant." Seila told them as they moved past the gate.

  "He probably won't complain too much as long as its' close to his office." At Seila's urging Shiva told them both the story of that first meeting and both of them laughingly agreed that his complaints probably wouldn't be too loud. They reached the Administration building found Professor Isine and were assured they were ready to unpack, got a copy of Shiva's near identical schedule and wandered back outside to wait under the protected shelter of the outside. Professor Isine eagerly suggested she drive both of them down there for their tour and the specialized rules of that distant sanctuary.

  "What did you two talk about?" Shiva asked as they curled up in the outer doorway.

  "Us.. mostly.. I wanted to ask her if other people from Series 3 had reacted the way we did to each other."

  "Such a good question!" Shiva giggled up to her.

  "She thought so to.. I think she is planning to do some research with the help of her old friends, which is why she was asking about Devin." Vala informed her, Shiva nodded and seemed perfectly at ease as the sound of the falling rain returned to fill the silence. A short time later Professor Isine pulled up in one of the carts that were reserved for school personnel.

  Titania house was the smallest of the dorms on campus, and it was the one most distant from the class rooms. Practically on the border of the teacher's territory and the school grounds, it was quaint three story building set in a thick pocket of trees down near the waters of the lake. Its' greatest feature was that all the two person rooms had their own private bathroom, and for as much as Vala liked the idea of naughty showers, she really missed being able to soak in a hot bubble bath. Too small to have its' own cafeteria and far too distant to make an early morning trek for food feasible, the dormitory had a communal kitchen and a cooperative approach that provided breakfast and dinners to its' residents. Perhaps its' most promising feature was the seclusion, the sheer distance from the great many minds of their fellow students. While Vala had learned to adapt to the mental 'noise' of being in crowds of people over the years, both she and Shiva seemed to relax just a little bit more as the distance spread out behind them. A small fleet of carts exclusive to that dorm meant that walking the distance between the main areas of campus and home wasn't truly required of them. The reason Professor Isine seemed so eager to escort them there soon become all too clear when they arrived and discovered that a welcoming party was already starting up for them with almost all the other girls' who lived there in attendance. While Vala had suspected many of them of having some secret and had been told by some of them of their talents, she was nevertheless surprised by the warm welcome both of them received, though Shiva's was understandably more cautious than Vala.