"Please just call me Farah," the fairy insisted. "Saying 'Miss' makes me feel…"
"Old?" Saul teased.
Farah's jaw dropped open. "Well, I wasn't going to say it, but ouch!" She sighed and faced Aiki again with a grin. "Besides, we're friends, aren't we? Can't friends call each other by their first names?"
"R-Right, sorry." Aiki laughed softly, although it was more genuine this time rather than a deflection. "I'm more used to being told to be respectful and stuff." He hesitated before letting go of Farah's hands and carefully opening the plate of food so he could eat something.
After Aiki released her hands, Farah rose to her feet again. Saul stood behind her and "helped" her up with his hands on her waist. Not that she needed the help, he just wanted to be close to her. Once she was standing, he pulled her against his chest and kissed her hair. She sighed, closed her eyes, and let her back melt against him while allowing her calm feelings envelop the room. The couple was rarely able to be together that they learned to make the most of the brief amounts of time they got to be "alone" together. And "alone" wasn't even really alone most of the time. Like now, they were with Aiki, and other times they were with Ben. Farah and Saul put excessive trust in the people they chose to openly express their relationship around.
Aiki didn't think much of Farah and Saul being in a relationship, but that didn't mean he especially wanted to watch them be touchy-feely and lovey-dovey with each other, so he just kept his attention on the food that they had brought him. They seemed most interested in the chicken and rice; those reminded them the most of home, so they were more comforting. He sighed softly as he ate, zoning out a bit, but trying not to think about how homesick he was. "Um… what time is it?" They asked after a while, although they didn't want to interrupt Farah and Saul.
Farah's eyes fluttered open at Aiki's question. "I'm not entirely sure," she said, reaching into her pocket for her phone.
"One of," Saul replied with a grin.
"Shut up," Farah shot back, easily elbowing him in the gut.
Saul grunted, but it was mainly to be dramatic.
Farah opened her phone and read the time aloud: "17:50."
"Farah, not everyone uses the 24-hour clock," Saul mumbled in her ear, causing Farah's eyes to widen.
"Oh, right! Sorry. Um…" She did the quick calculation in her head. "5:50 pm."
Aiki listened to them banter and then to the time, already trying to do the mental math in his head by the time Farah translated. "Alright… I guess that's a reasonable enough time to be eating, then, but it'll be a while until I can sleep without completely screwing up that schedule." They sighed softly, eating some more of their rice. "I'll probably feel better after eating, anyway. Sucks to feel awful most of the time." He shrugged.
"You can spend the night if you like," Farah offered kindly. "And we can open the gateway to your house first thing in the morning. That way when you see your family again, you'll be well-fed and well-rested."
"I guess that's fine, yeah…" Aiki still seemed a bit uneasy, but kept eating regardless. "You think that Rosalind will let me leave? I don't think she trusts me…" He decided to eat some of the fruits and vegetables that had been brought to him as well.
Farah and Saul exchanged a look. "She should," Farah responded slowly. "If she didn't, she would have to deal with us."
"And she wouldn't want that," Saul added under his breath, popping his knuckles aggressively.
"Calm down, darling," Farah whispered. "Everything's alright."
Aiki winced at the cracking noise and shuddered, his tail bristling as chills ran down his spine. "Y-Yeah, I just… I wanna go home… I wanna see Eiji again, and… I-I don't want my friends and family to worry. I've been gone for a while already." They took another bite of food, their heart starting to race.
"We know. Would you like to stay the night? If not, I can go talk to Rosalind-"
"Farah Dowling, not by yourself you won't," Saul cut in, shooting her a challenging look.
Farah gave him a look right back. "I am quite capable of handling myself, Saul Silva."
"I-I wouldn't want to be any trouble. I can go in the morning… it's fine. It'll be better if I get some rest anyway, right?" Aiki still looked a bit drained and not quite themself. He was usually pretty upbeat and chipper, but now he seemed tired and like something was missing. Something in his eyes wasn't quite right. "Then none of us have to talk to Rosalind."
Farah nodded absently. "Right." Obviously, she was going. She'd learned the hard way during her time at Alfea if you sprung things on Rosalind last minute. And, she hadn't told them, but Alfea's headmistress had ordered to see her. "I actually have to get going. I need to talk to Luna about… how her princess duties are going." She looked at Aiki briefly. "Luna is my friend, the princess of Solaria. That's the realm we're in. Anyway, I have to go." She pecked Saul's lips in a kiss and waved to Aiki. Before either of them could stop her, she was out the door and down the hallway at a frightening speed. She couldn't be late to a meeting with Rosalind, another lesson she'd learned the hard way.
Saul looked from the door to Aiki. "We're following her, obviously."
Aiki listened to Farah's explanation, looking a bit confused and overwhelmed by all of the new information. She was definitely acting strangely all of a sudden, and it worried them. He jumped a bit when Farah abruptly left the room, glancing up at Saul with a bewildered expression.
"Uh… yeah. She's acting really weird. Is something wrong?" They asked as they got to their feet, pulling on their shoes so they wouldn't be running around barefoot. "Her whole mood just changed out of nowhere… and who is this princess Luna… whoever, lady?" He quickly tied his shoelaces and stood beside Saul.
"There are seven realms in the Otherworld. The one we're in now, the one Alfea is in, is called Solaria. And Luna is actually the princess of Solaria. Farah, Luna, and Ben's girlfriend Rose were suitemates last year, but since Farah's still here for the battalion, and Luna is at the palace, and Rose is a year below us and still in school, Farah is living by herself this year. She hasn't talked to Luna in weeks. It was a horrible excuse, really." Saul shook his head. "But I have no idea what's actually going on with her. My guess… she's going to see Rosalind. She always gets super flighty before meeting Rosalind."
"Um… alright." Aiki said after listening to Saul's explanation, although he clearly hadn't really understood any of it. They headed out of the room with him, trying to get their hair to behave as they did so. "Why would she need to go talk to Rosalind, though? I told her that I was fine to go tomorrow morning… she doesn't need to talk to her right now or anything, does she?" He asked.
"I don't know, and that's what I'm worried about," Saul answered, taking long strides down the hallway. "There were times last year when Rosalind made Farah come to her office after our runes class at 2 in the afternoon, and Farah wouldn't get back to her suite until 11 or midnight. But whenever Rosalind calls, Farah goes." As he spoke, his fingers curled into fists.
"How does Farah know she's being called?" Aiki asked curiously. "Is it a fairy thing or does she just like… text her?" He tried his best to keep pace with Saul, although he had to exert more energy since he was shorter. They shook their head a bit, exhaling as they picked up the pace.
"I'm not sure, so it must be a fairy thing. Farah and Rosalind are both Mind fairies," he answered, rounding a corner sharply. "The headmistress' office is just up this way."
"Mm… I guess that makes sense." Aiki sighed softly and kept following Saul. He seemed uneasy as they neared Rosalind's office. Even from the limited interaction they'd had with her, they weren't comfortable around her.
Saul glanced back to make sure Aiki was keeping up, and he noted their unease. He didn't have to be a Mind fairy like Farah to see that being around Rosalind made Aiki extremely uncomfortable. "We don't have to go in," he said. "At least you don't. I might. Who knows."
–
Farah reached Rosalind's door and took a deep breath to calm herself. Rosalind no doubt already knew she was there, but Farah knocked anyway.
"Come in," Rosalind's voice answered immediately.
Farah opened the door and stepped inside. The sight of the books lining the walls was familiar and comforting, but the woman behind the desk was not. She was looking pointedly at Farah, not even trying to cover that she had been waiting. The room wasn't cold, but Farah shivered.
"Close the door." Farah did as she was told. "Come sit." Rosalind motioned toward one of the chairs opposite her desk, and for a moment, Farah hesitated. This was new. She paced over and slowly lowered herself into the chair.
"I'm… I-I'll be alright. It's fine. We should… we should check on her." Aiki sighed shakily and shivered, wrapping their arms around themself. He could hear voices from within the office, but the specific words were difficult to make out since he wasn't really focusing on it. They could smell fear lingering heavily in the air, but it was nearly impossible to determine if it was their own, Farah's, Saul's, or some mixture of everyone. He shook his head a bit, overwhelmed by all of the subtle smells and sounds all happening at once. They couldn't tell whether it was cold or not, but they were shivering nonetheless. "What should we do…?"
"We wait," Saul said reluctantly. "This is my least favorite part."
–
Rosalind never took her eyes off of Farah. She wore a chilling smirk on her face and held her head high, again overcompensating in demeanor. Farah was a solid 5 inches taller than Rosalind and stronger as well, but by forcing her to sit and be afraid, Rosalind had taken away almost every physical power advantage Farah had without her even realizing it. She blinked, and when she opened her eyes, they had changed from their piercing blue to a stony grey. Farah stiffened as Rosalind's power seemed to wrap around her. Her own brown eyes turned silver-blue as she fought to push away Rosalind's influence. Their power struggle was purely silent.
Aiki still seemed uneasy, his heart racing as he stared at the closed door. They listened closely, but neither Rosalind nor Farah were speaking, so they had no clue what was going on within the office. He looked up at Saul and shook his head a bit, stil shivering. After a while of waiting and considering, and not really being sure whether or not they were cold, they formed a small flame in their hands and kept it close to their chest.
Saul's eyes widened at the flame, and he stepped to shield Aiki from anyone who could potentially see while they were walking down the hallway. "Keep it small and keep it close," he muttered, still listening anxiously for any sign of what was going on in the office.
–
"Give in, Farah," Rosalind sneered, pushing harder at Farah's mental defenses, making the young woman gasp quietly in pain. "Just let me have what I want. It will be much easier for both of us that way."
Farah winced, but she said nothing and kept her guard up. Pushing through someone's mental defenses was supposed to be painless, but Rosalind consciously chose to make it hurt. "I'm done…" Farah got out through gritted teeth. "Letting you… win."
Rosalind's smirk vanished. Her face turned cold and emotionless. "I offered you the easy way," she cooed before letting her magic unleash and crash on Farah like a tidal wave.