Somewhere in the manor, a discussion took place.
-"I know, Plume, but it was one of the only ways to make him realize that returning is no different from a death sentence."
Hands moving against and with each other. Quick, explosive, a reproach.
-"If Jeanne had told him at the beginning, there was a risk that he wouldn't believe her. The two have a good synergy; they helped each other, and I didn't want to risk that. And you know that I'm right."
A sigh, then the hands restarted their dance. Slow, lingering, a concern.
-"Even if he interacts less than before, he still eats, and his recovery has not been impacted."
Fast, sharp, a correction.
-"Yeah I saw it too; he had a lot on his mind. Nephis had told me that he cried his first night here, and from what I saw, it's a recurring matter... He needs help, Plume."
Soft, sorrowful, a reality.
-"I know that we can't help someone who doesn't want it. But you can't tell me that you haven't seen it in him. There's a reason why he had only allowed Jeanne to touch him, and the both of us know what it is."
Short, intrigued, a question.
-"I think I know why... But we can't help him if he doesn't open up about it..."
Shy, small, a secret.
-"Plume? Please, tell me more about it..."
A moment of waiting, and then a mute answer was given.
-"Thank you, Plume..."
The door opened, and the dean left the room with a motivated expression. While on the other side of the building was a woman standing next to a bed...
...
...
......
No more words were shared while someone stood outside the guest room against the closed door. As she looked pleased by the ending, her gaze moved to look at the small figure hiding poorly behind a cupboard.
A slight move of the hand was given to tell the child to follow her as she moved away. Small footsteps appeared to join her as a hand grabbed her arm with passion. They didn't talk until they left the floor, walking in the direction of the garden.
It was only once they were outside that the dean spoke.
-"I'm surprised that you came to his room. I thought that you disliked him."
Beside her, the girl with burning gray eyes answered after a moment of silence.
-"I despise weakness. But I respect those who don't give up. He may lack conviction, though... "
They kept their pace until they reached a training ground. It was their way to talk. Not around a table or with some tea but with the sweat and hardness of a sparring. Ashe wasn't truly a fan of that method, but that was one of the only ways to get some time with Nephis. Eating, learning, training, and sleeping—all that to start again the next day.
It was a sad thing for a child to be at ease only with a sword in hand. But she had to assume the responsibility for her mistake, and so, after a little bow, they moved.
Her granddaughter was used to sparring with a Master, but Ashe was still an awakened. So she would still need to not be too harsh with her.
Dull swords clashed in sparking beauty; still, the dean had the upper hand by her higher height and greater weight. Nephis looked at her with a little smile and turned her ankle, pivoting her entire body as her sword slid against Ashe's. The steel moved past her face as she dodged it, already moving to strike again as a follow-up. She was never standing still, an everlasting and ever-changing movement. The style of her family was truly a beautiful sight to observe.
Still, the plan was dismissed quite easily; both used the same battle art, but one was far more used to it. As the fight continues, so does the discussion.
-"So... After those three weeks, what's your verdict, Nephis?"
A sword was deflected, missing the knee by an inch.
-"He is no fighter. Far too passive. And yet..."
Dust flew as a child took a step aside to dodge a thrust aiming for her shoulder.
-"He is... weird."
-"Yes, he is."
-"So why did you save him?"
Ashe was taken by surprise; the last feint had worked quite well. Aiming the shoulder only to curve the blade to strike the fingers holding the sword. She obviously managed to escape it, but still... She was getting good, that little devil.
-"Did you know what's the worst kind of blade that you don't want to fight?"
Thrusting her elbow to push her back, they finally stood still a moment. Both were taking their time to take back their breath. Nephis looked intrigued but still tried to answer.
-"An unstoppable one?"
Imitating the sound of a buzzer, Ashe's lips curl up as she gives the good answer.
-"Wrong. It's the one you didn't see coming. You can prepare yourself as much as you want, but a blade that struck you when you least expected it can do far worse than any other blade."
-"Okay... but that didn't answer why you saved him."
-"True."
And their spar resumed with far more intensity. Nephis was pissed off; she didn't like abstract things. A question needed an answer, and waiting for one was far more unpleasant than taking a hit from a war hammer. Not that she had been struck by one before, but she could imagine the pain of it, and she still chose it over the wait.
Ashe was more on the defensive than before. The girl needed to vent out her frustration, so she met every attack until she couldn't move her arms anymore.
-"You want to know why? Because I preferred to have a wild card of my own than letting it wither away or being used against me. Train him, turn him into an ally, and I could promise you that your enemy would be far more afraid of him than they ever would be of you."
-"Him ? A danger? He won't even harm a rat."
-"It's not good to lie, sweetheart."
A swift movement of the wrist, and the sword of the small girl flew away, out of her hand. She was defeated, but she was far more annoyed by the discussion than by the loss itself.
-"He is a danger; that's why you kept an eye on him since he arrived here. Plume had to step in by walking into his room to be sure that he wouldn't even notice you. You are the one that volunteered to watch over him at night. Even during the round-table accident, you were the one who reminded the other of his presence."
Ashe's posture was straight, looking more like a teacher than a grandmother.
-"You know that he could be dangerous; otherwise, you would never have threatened him head-on. Nephis, you can lie to me, but never to yourself."
Moving forward, the child walked toward the doyenne... until she punched her in the stomach. She was not strong enough to hurt the Awakened, but it was the gesture that counted. Ashe let out a little sigh as Nephis walked away. Still angry about something.
- "You know, I am not heartless... Even if it can surprise you, I can care for someone because I want to, and not only out of fear. It's the first time I met someone my age since Dad died, and also, you called me a liar, but you are a terrible liar yourself, Grandma. You took him because of something else... And I'll discover it myself since you won't tell me."
The girl left, grumbling about knowing what she had done or something like that.
Alone in the middle of the training ground, Ashe walked toward the sword that she sent flying before, a grin on her face. Her plan had worked better than she had expected. Nephis was a good girl but awkward due to the lack of interaction; she needed a little push for her to do the things she wanted.
Now, she can use this as an excuse to interact more with Sunny. Letting out a long sigh as her shoulders lowered.
-"You're making my life difficult, you know that? Gods, kids these days… "
Nephis would have never acted like this before… it seemed like she just needed someone to connect with. It was the best option, the scenario she could have asked for with her condition. Not too greedy, far from perfect, but the seed had been planted.
Her Fate should be acting for now…