Chapter Text
Class VII, minus Rean (and Crow, of course...) met in the common room in their dorm. After the Chancellor had revealed himself, a whirlwind of activity has surrounded them... They'd been whisked out of the castle by Altina, and it was only a day before they were sent back to Thors. It seemed that various powers wanted things to get back to 'normal' (whatever that was) as quickly as possible.
There'd been an orientation day for everyone at Thors. Apparently the term would be extended by a few days, but otherwise the instructors would be trying to make up for lost time so that the students still got their year's worth of instruction. There was a little recognition that they all had a lot of practical experience from the war, and the instructors wouldn't duplicate that, but otherwise the emphasis was on continuity, as if the war hadn't happened.
They had an extra free day tomorrow, the last unusual occurrence before getting back to the normal schedule. Class VII had just finished eating dinner, and Fie and Gaius were washing dishes while Jusis and Machias made tea and coffee for everyone. The stray sarcastic comment or insult, mostly involving the relative superiority of tea and coffee, followed by a warm chuckle from Gaius or a snort from Fie, drifted in from the kitchen. The others smiled at each other, letting out a laugh from time to time after a particularly good quip from one or the other of them (mostly Jusis).
Eventually Jusis and Machias emerged from the kitchen, each with a tray of mugs, and set them on the table near the couches. A few moments later, Gaius and Fie joined them, taking turns drying their hands on a dishtowel. Everyone sat, taking a mug from one or the other tray, quietly thanking either Jusis or Machias for the hot beverage. There was a companionable silence for a few minutes, and then Alisa raised the question everyone had been thinking:
"Well, what do we do now?"
Jusis was the first one to bring up the idea that he couldn't go for a second year at Thors. He sighed and said, "I will be needed to administer Bareahard and Kreuzen." Everyone but Machias reacted, shocked. Then Gaius spoke up, saying something similar about Nord. "My country will be vulnerable, positioned as it is between the Empire and the Republic. Especially after what is happening in Crossbell." He paused, and everyone thought of what the Chancellor had set Rufus to do: annex the city-state. "As much as it pains me, I have been considering returning home to consult with my father and the elders about what to do."
"But is that even possible, to finish in one year?" asked Laura.
Machias said, "Well, Class VII has a lot of experience now... our part in the war was kind of like an accelerated course in everything we've been learning here at Thors." Emma spoke up and said, "As class president, I'll speak with Sara and the other instructors to see if it would be possible for any member of Class VII who wishes it, to graduate at an accelerated pace." She added, "I think it will mean a very heavy course load for the next few months. It would have been heavy in any case, because of the time we missed in the war. But this would make it even harder."
Fie groaned. But they all nodded. Conversation wandered to Rean. What would he do? None of them knew what was going on with him, just that he was a provisional military officer, involved in the annexation of Crossbell. They had been separated from him almost immediately following the events in the Infernal Castle, so no one had had a chance to speak with him about any of it. They debated about why Rean would choose to serve the Chancellor in supporting the annexation of another country, after everything that had happened with Crow. Rean had told a few of them about Jurai's absorption into the Empire, and what had happened to Crow's grandfather because of it. Why would he then support the Chancellor in doing it again to another country, especially so soon after Crow's death?
Machias hypothesized, "I think it makes sense, knowing what we do about Rean and about the political situation. We'd need a powerful force like Valimar to deter the Calvard Republic from trying to stop Erebonia from annexing Crossbell. And Rean would want to stop bloodshed, prevent war. Valimar would do that -- remember what Rean told us Rufus said, on the Pantagruel? That the Soldats, which are really just a poor copy of Valimar and Ordine...," he paused for a moment; he wasn't the only one thinking of Crow. He recovered, and finished, "They are all about intimidation and mobility, not firepower."
Alisa said tentatively, "But what about Rean and the Chancellor? Could he be working with him because... you know."
There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment, but then Jusis said, "I don't think so. We can't know what Rean is thinking, and what it means to learn about his parentage this way." And who among them knew more than Jusis about being surprised by their parentage? "But... we've all spent so much time with him. It's hard to believe that everything we know of him would change that much. That what Crow meant to him... would be forgotten that easily."
Machias sighed and nodded, then said, "If some of us should choose to leave at the end of the term... where does that leave him?" Emma responded, "It's just a decision he'll have to make for himself, when he returns." There was a moment where everyone wondered if he would return.
That seemed to be the end of the conversation. Most people were done with their tea or coffee. Everyone slowly filtered out one at a time, dropping their mugs off in the kitchen, apparently thinking about their next steps, until only Emma and Elliot remained, sitting on the couch together. No one had noticed that they were sitting together.
Elliot looked at Emma. "So... will you stay?" Emma admitted, "I have been thinking of going back to my clan. I've actually been thinking about that for a long time. But I'm not sure yet."
Elliot said, "It's far away, isn't it? We wouldn't see you." She nodded.
He sighed sadly, looked away at the front door. He said, "Well, if everyone else is leaving, I don't know that I want to stay here... and my father said I had his blessing, if I wanted to go to music school. I guess I'll have to think about it a lot more.""
Emma nodded. "By the way," she said, a little nervously, "Speaking of music. Would you have a little time to come sing with me in the old schoolhouse?"
"Sure," he said, "But my violin needs new strings." Emma said, "I'd like it if you could just sing with me, actually."
"Sounds great, then," Elliot said, smiling. "When?"
Emma flushed, and said, "Well... I have a feeling things are going to get really busy as soon as I talk to the instructors about this, even if some of us stay, they'll have to prepare things for people like Jusis and Gaius who already know they want to leave at the end of the term. And I'm planning to talk to them tomorrow. So... how about... now?""
Elliot was surprised. "Isn't it after curfew? Students aren't supposed to be out of the dorms after eight in the evening, unless there's a special event going on."
Emma flushed deeper red and said, "Well... I have ways to make us more stealthy. And... I think Class VII has earned a little latitude on the rules."
Elliot was shocked that the class president would be willing to break the rules like this. Emma wasn't the kind of person to do it. As if she knew what he was thinking, she said, "I've been really thinking about my own path now. No one -- not my clan, not Thors instructors -- is going to keep me from what I think is right." Elliot looked at her with new appreciation. He started to think that maybe this wasn't just about singing...
She continued, "I think it's within the spirit of the rules for us to sneak out briefly for a little practice session. It might be our last chance, and tomorrow is still a free day, so staying out late isn't a problem, and we are completely capable of handling any monsters nearby. I think the curfew is about safety and about responsibility for studying, so..."
Elliot laughed. "Well, I can't argue with the class president, can I?" So they went. Emma said a few words, and a kind of silence fell over them. Elliot admired her, as usual; she was always particularly beautiful when she was casting a spell.
The two of them snuck off to the schoolhouse, and Emma opened the locked door with another spell. As they entered the schoolhouse, she said, "Yes, it's as I thought. I sense nothing at all inside. Now that Valimar has been Awakened, this place is completely quiet."
Elliot nodded and they walked in. They sang together for a while, and then they kissed for a while. Elliot got a little too enthusiastic at one point, accidentally touching her breasts. Horrified, he broke away, and apologized.
Emma said, "It's all right, don't worry, Elliot. I know you didn't mean anything bad by it." He nodded sheepishly. He couldn't deny that he wanted to do it on purpose, but only after asking. Just the same, it had broken the mood.
She did look a little unhappy, so he said, "Emma, what's wrong?" She said, I'm sorry, it's just that everyone is always so obsessed with them. I... it really upsets me."
Elliot said, "You *are* really beautiful, Emma. That's definitely true. But... when I think of you, the first thing I think of is how kind you are. And the next thing I think of is how mind-blowingly smart you are. *Then* I think of how beautiful you are."
She nodded at him, a little tearfully. "Thanks."
Elliot said, "I don't think anyone means anything bad about you when they make comments about your... you know." Her face fell, and she looked down, and said, "I know... but, it just..."
It dawned on Elliot that it didn't just matter what people meant to happen, he saw how it affected her anyway. He leaned close, put his arms around her, and said softly in her ear, "I see how much it hurts you. I didn't realize. I'm sure they don't mean it, but I'm also sure they don't want to hurt you. Maybe they don't realize this is how it affects you. If it happens again, I'll... I'll say something."
She looked up, a little surprised. Shy Elliot, speaking up? "Wh-what would you say? I never know what to say." Elliot said, "I'm not sure yet, but... maybe something like, 'That's not the most important thing about Emma.' What do you think?"
Emma said, "I don't know. It's hard to know what would help. I think I need to learn how to say something for myself. But thank you for offering, and maybe you can help me think of what to say, in the future." He gave her a quick hug, and she kissed his cheek. Then his nose, then his mouth, and then they were kissing passionately again.
Then Emma said, softly, "Elliot? would you like to... do more than just kiss?" Elliot flushed, nodded, and said, "How much more?"
Emma got shy again, but said, "All of it?" Elliot's eyes widened, his thoughts racing. Then he said, "This is kind of our last real chance, huh, if what you think will happen will happen? We won't have a free night like this again if we're trying to finish up this year." Emma said, "Yes, especially for me as class president." It was unspoken that she meant, "For me as the top academic performer in the class."
Elliot took a deep breath, and said, "I'm really nervous about it, but I do want to. I've never done this before." She smiled and said, "Me either. The Clan teaches us spells, you know, to do it safely, and to make it feel even better, and I know those, but I've never used them."
Elliot laughed a little nervously. "Well, Class VII as a whole is one big experiment, so I'm used to just trying it and seeing how it goes." And he calmed down a little and stroked her right cheek, tracing the line of her jaw from chin, to ear, and then down her neck, and very tentatively around to the side of her breast, looking up, checking to make sure it was okay. She nodded and smiled, and he said to her, softly, "I do want you." She leaned in to kiss him as his hand traced further down, and she whispered in his ear, "I want you too." And she started whispering words in the ancient language, and then there were no more words.
~*~
Back on her favorite bench on the rooftop of the Thors academic building, Celine woke with a start. "Oh, my!" the cat exclaimed. Normally, as Emma's familiar, she didn't get full-blown visual images, just vague feelings. But she suddenly had a very clear image of partially-clothed Elliot sitting below Emma, her long legs wrapped around his waist. It took no imagination at all to guess what they'd been doing, and what it was that had awoken the cat. As the image faded, she sensed the two of them wrap their arms around each other and hold each other close. She caught just the barest sense of Elliot before the feelings faded back to background levels. She'd never sensed a human other than Emma in this way before, but she liked what she felt. Elliot was a sweet kid, and it was nice to think that the two of them had made a... connection. Celine wasn't quite sure what the policy was on this sort of thing for members of the clan, but... he didn't seem like much of a risk to her, and Emma had clearly been very discreet about it. In fact, Emma had been taking all sorts of things in her own hands lately, heh. Even if the clan disapproved, Celine wasn't sure Emma would care at this point. "Hmmmm, well, done, Emma..." she drawled to the empty roof, flashing a toothy, feline smile, and then curled up again to go back to sleep, purring softly.