Lilac the Dragon Girl, the heroine of Avalice, fell to her knees with tears in her eyes.
"No." She cried. "Please..."
The Magister of Shang Tu ignored her pleas. "Because of your crimes, your murders, you will be sentenced to death."
"No. I didn't do it, please!"
"Men, take this criminal away."
Lilac felt herself dragged up to her feet. "No, no, no! I'm sorry!"
Being led by the unseen hands, she exited the throne room and entered her prison cell.
"I'm sorry." She wept, leaning up against the cold, steel bars.
She looked up to see Carol starring at her, an ugly look on her face. "Please, help me."
Carol only stood and stared. "How does it feel?"
She fell to her knees. "Carol, no. Don't do it."
"I used to think we were friends. But you always gotta be a hero, don't you?" She turned and walked away.
"Carol, don't. I didn't mean to." She tried to follow, but her arms and legs were bolted to the metal table.
She heard a slow, sinister hum, and she began to scream as electricity coursed through her body, burning her flesh.
Please stop...
It stopped.
"Time to go." A voice said into her ear.
She fell, and her legs began to carry her through the dark halls.
A door opened in front of her into a room illuminated by harsh green light.
She felt a stabbing pain in her chest.
"So, you think you're special? That you're a hero?"
"No..."
She stepped to a small, white body, shivering on the ground.
"I didn't want to."
She raised a long, sharp knife, drenched in green acid.
"What makes you so special?"
The knife fell onto Milla's neck.
Lilac jerked awake, breathing heavily, her face drenched with sweat and tears. She blinked, trying to understand why her vision was dark.
It... it's night. I'm in bed. I... I didn't... Was none of that...
From on top of her bed, she quickly leaned up and looked for her friends. She found Carol, dozing lazily in the bunk under her, and to her left, tucked in the corner, she saw Milla's small cot, with the young hound resting peacefully, tucked underneath her blanket.
Lilac sighed, wiped her wet eyes, and rested her head back on her pillow while adjusting her blanket.
It didn't actually happen. Just like every other night for the past few weeks.
Although, this dream had been particularly bad. She had been awoken in the night before, but never like this; her body covered in a cold sweat, shivering with fear, tears streaming down her face.
This is stupid. It's been weeks, and I'm still having nightmares like a child! I've got to do something about it.
She rolled over on her side. Her eyes itched from fatigue, but she was scared to close them. The images from her night terror were too fresh in her mind. She couldn't help but be afraid they might return when her eyes shut.
She tossed and turned, wishing she could fall asleep. Carol and Milla had noticed how tired she was on most days, and were becoming concerned for her. She didn't want to worry them anymore.
Minutes passed, but to a mind that was torn between being asleep and awake, it seemed like hours.
With a sigh, she soon sat up and threw her feet over the edge of the bunk bed. As silently as possible, she slid down to the smooth, wooden floor, and snuck away from her two slumbering friends.
I'll have some tea. That'll calm my nerves.
She entered the small kitchen, set out a small kettle, poured in water, lit the gas stove, and set the kettle over the flame.
As the water boiled, she gathered a small bag of Red Petals, and gently lowered them into the water.
Then, she sighed, sat on a small wooden chair, and waited.
Time passed, and Lilac's mind raced.
Why is this happening to me? I don't want this anymore. I just want to forget. Forget everything.
She sighed and put her head in her hands. Why can't I control myself? It's my mind for the Ancient's sake! Can't I tell it what to think about?
The sound of a quiet whistle interrupted her mind's torturings. She stood, wiped her leaking eyes, and carefully lifted the hot kettle off of the stove. After pouring the hot tea into a cup, she walked to the small sitting room and sat on the soft couch.
She sighed and gently blew on the hot tea, watching as the thin trails of steam floated away and dissolved like wisps of ghosts. She raised the cup to her lips and prepared to take a sip, when she caught something out of the corner of her eye.
Outside a window, resting on a branch of the tree, was a figure that shone with a pale white against the black of the night.
Lilac cried out softly, jumping up and almost spilling the tea, when the figure raised a finger to his lips. Silently, he pointed towards the front door of the treehouse, and then vanished.
Lilac stood stunned, tea still in hand, not sure what to think. A single, sudden knock on the door snapped her out of her surprise, and she set her tea down to answer her night time guest.
She stepped to the door, slowly turned the knob, and opened it up to the blackness of the night.
"Spade." She said coldly.
The white cavy stood there, flipping a card across his fingers and staring intensely at the dragon. Instead of his usual ninja attire, he wore only a long sleeved jacket over a black shirt and a pair of blue jeans. He only nodded, not responding to her cold greeting.
"What do you want?"
"I thought I'd visit."
Lilac glared at him. "How long have you been out here?"
"Not long. I've been trying to decide if it was worth my time."
They stood quietly for a moment. "So, can I come in? Or do I have to say please?"
Lilac frowned, but stepped to the side and gave him room to pass.
Spade stepped in, flipping the card into his sleeve, while Lilac closed the door and followed. Spade's eyes scanned the treehouse as Lilac guided him to the small parlor.
"Nice place you've got. Cozy, or whatever."
Lilac raised her eyebrow. Did he just say cozy?
"Thanks." She muttered.
Spade sighed, and sat down on the long sofa, while Lilac awkwardly looked towards the kitchen. "Um, I was... making some tea. Do you... want some?"
He shrugged. "Sure."
She turned around and walked to the kitchen. She pulled out a second cup, poured in the last of the tea, and walked back to the parlor, steaming cup in hand.
She handed the tea to the cavy, who nodded in gratitude. She then picked up her own cup, and sat on the sofa, trying to keep a distance from Spade.
The two remained silent, each sipping from their cups, neither sure what to say.
Eventually, Lilac spoke up. "Um... Carol told me how you... helped to save me... you know, from that base in Jade Creek. So... thanks, for that."
"I wasn't trying to save you. That was just a side effect."
"But..." She sighed and looked down at her tea. "What are you doing here?"
Spade didn't answer. Instead, he let out a deep sigh. "Did you kill him?"
"Wh... what?"
"Brevon. That alien slime who murdered my father, brainwashed my brother, and almost destroyed my world. Did you kill him?"
"I... I didn't… no, he got away."
He sighed. "You let him go?
"No, of course I didn't."
"Then you at least were trying to kill him?"
"N-no… I didn't… I didn't want to…"
"You didn't? After all he put you through?"
"Well, kind of. I... I was angry. I didn't..."
"So you were trying?"
"I was angry. He... he did horrible things to me and my friends."
"Just answer me. Were you trying to kill him?"
Lilac sighed, and looked at the ground sadly. "Maybe. I'm not sure."
Spade set his cup down. "Would it have satisfied you if you did?"
"Stop it! Just… stop." She stood up and crossed her arms. "What are you doing here? You've been gone for weeks, and then you suddenly show up on my doorstep in the middle of the night? What do you think you're doing? What do you want?"
Spade sighed. "I've been thinking lately."
He stayed quiet for a moment. "Yeah?" Lilac asked. "About what?"
"Well, frankly, I've never liked you."
"The feeling's mutual." Lilac growled.
"Yeah, of course it is. But, well I guess I'm lying, I did used to like you; back when we were kids in Shuigang, just messing around all the time. We were pretty close friends, once upon a time."
"Yeah. Then you turned into a jerk."
Spade gave a cold smile. "Feeling hostile?"
Lilac glared at him, but he just chuckled. "Sure, I turned into a jerk, mostly because I've had to do some things that weren't all that fun. But you know, this isn't the perfect world you think it is. I'd bet you've got a few confessions to make yourself."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, that when we were kids, you were different. You didn't care about being a hero."
"I... I'm not trying to be a hero."
Spade laughed. "You really think that? Ever since you showed up that day, begging to join my little club, you've gone out of your way to help those in need and wrap yourself up in some righteous cause."
"I'm not trying to be a hero when I do that. I'm just... trying to do the right thing."
"See now, there's your problem. When you were a kid, you didn't care about doing the right thing, you just did it anyway."
"So what's the problem?" Lilac felt her chest start to burn, and she was getting an urging need to hit Spade. Hard.
"The problem is that you've gotten it through your head that you're a bad person."
"What?"
Spade looked away from her. "You weren't happy in the Scarves. You felt guilty about what you had to do in there."
"How..."
"So, to try and 'make up' for all the things we forced you to do, you started to go out of your way to help out the small and defenseless. Like your little cat friend."
"I..." Lilac was speechless.
"But somewhere along the line, you got it in your head that if you don't keep doing things to help others, day after day, they'll only see you for what you are: A sad, petty criminal."
"Shut up." Lilac growled.
Spade smiled. "Pardon?"
"I said shut up. You don't know anything about me. I'm not scared about what people see me as."
"Well than why are you so obsessed with being a hero?"
"Stop calling me that!" She said, her voice raising. "I'm not a hero! I'm never gonna be a hero! I'm always going to be just what you say I am: A Sad. Petty. Pathetic. Miserable! Criminal!"
She sunk down onto the couch, covering her face with her hands, as a deep sob clawed it's way out of her throat.
The smile had disappeared from Spade's face. "You know." He said quietly. "I didn't say you were a criminal."
He sighed and stood up. "I said you think of yourself as a criminal. That you're afraid people see you as one."
"What's the difference?" Lilac whispered softly.
Spade heard her words. "Well, that's exactly it. There is no difference. If you've got it stuck in your head that you're just some worthless outlaw, that's exactly what you're going to be, no matter what you do to try and change it."
"You know, coming from you, that's not very comforting." She shot back, a razor's edge in her voice.
Spade chuckled. "You've got a point. You joined the Red Scarves because they were your last hope. I jumped right in because I was bored one day."
He laughed. "I can't tell you how stupid I was back then. So carefree, thinking the world was such a fun and happy place…"
"You call that stupid?" Lilac interrupted. "I looked up to you back then. I thought you were the best thing that ever happened to me. But when you left and joined that..." She paused. "You changed. You became cold, unfeeling, soulless. You turned into something that I didn't want to get close to again."
"Hmph." He scoffed. "'Cold, unfeeling, soulless.' You make it sound like those are bad things."
"What are you talking about?"
"You think I wanted to be like this? I didn't. I had to change because that's the only way you can survive in a life like that. You have to learn how to not care."
"Well then why did you go in the first place?"
"I told you; I was stupid. I was a poor, neglected boy who wished his father loved him, and that he could actually amount to something someday!"
Lilac couldn't remember the last time she had seen such an outburst of emotion from the cavy. "I... I..."
He stood up and crossed his arms, letting out a long sigh. "You know, sometimes, I like to imagine I wasn't as stupid as I actually was."
He remained silent. "Why?" Lilac asked at last.
"Because..." He turned to her. "I went to you. Before I left, I came and asked you to come with me. If you had said yes, if we had tackled it all together, I think I wouldn't have become what I am."
"I... I'm sorry."
He sighed. "It doesn't matter."
"No, it does." Lilac stood up as well. "I'm sorry I didn't realize you needed me. If I did understand, I would have gone with you."
Spade smiled. "Oh really? You would have followed some worthless criminal into a dark and violent life?"
"If... if it meant keeping my old friend."
He laughed. "See? There's your problem. You're so idealistic. You think that, if you had made all the right decisions, the world would have become a perfect place. And you beat yourself up for decisions that end in anything less than perfection."
"I..." Her mind drew back several weeks ago to a small cave, sheltered from the pouring rain, and her best friend with tears in her eyes, yelling at the top of her voice.
"Maybe..." She muttered.
Spade sighed, and walked to the window. "You have to stop thinking that if you aren't perfect, you're not worth anything."
He paused, thinking. "You know, I said I didn't like you."
Lilac turned away, crossing her arms and looking towards the floor. "I know."
There was silence for a minute, until she heard Spade's voice directly behind her. "But frankly, that's not a bad thing."
She turned around, to see Spade's green eyes staring into her own.
"Because I'm a nobody. I'm a criminal and a villain. I'm the furthest thing from perfection. You on the other hand: You're the best person Avalice has ever seen. A real hero."
"Spade, I don't..."
She was silenced as Spade suddenly leaned forward and pressed his lips onto her own. She was stunned, but couldn't do anything as she shared a kiss with an old friend that she had believed was lost forever. She closed her eyes, blissfully enjoying the sweet feeling.
Please don't stop...
It stopped.
She opened her eyes. Spade was gone.
"Spade?" She turned around to see the cavy walking towards the front door.
"You just need to see yourself as one." He said.
"I..."
"Here." Without turning around, he flipped something behind him. The small square flew towards Lilac until it rested gently at her feet. "Keep that, just because."
Lilac bent down and picked the object up. It was a card: A red Ace of Hearts. What is this for?
"Spade, I..." She looked up to see the door close shut. She walked to the window and barely saw, in the darkness of the night, a figure slowly walking away.
Lilac stared through the window, watching until she could no longer see him in the distance. She stood there silently, trying to understand all that just happened, until a voice interrupted her ruminations.
"Lilac?"
Lilac spun around in surprise to see Milla standing behind her. "Milla..." She realized she had tears in her eyes and quickly wiped them away. "What're you doing?"
"I... heard yelling. I wanted to see what was happening."
"So, you saw all that?"
Milla nodded. "Um, what did he give you?"
Lilac raised the card and showed it to Milla. "It's just a card. I don't know what it does."
Milla took the card and looked at it. Slowly, a smile spread across her face. She handed it back to Lilac. "He gave you his heart."
"What?" She looked down at the single, red heart. "Oh. I didn't know... I didn't know Spade was like that."
"Do... do you love him?"
Lilac looked up at Milla. "I... no, I don't think I do."
"Why?"
"I don't know... I just..."
She sighed and shook her head. "It doesn't matter. C'mon, let's go back to bed."
Milla nodded. As they walked back to their small bedroom, and Lilac climbed back up onto the top of her bed, careful not to disturb Carol, Milla spoke up from her own bed across the room. "Um, Lilac?"
"Yeah?"
"I... I just want to tell you that I think he's right. I think you are a hero."
Lilac smiled. "Thanks Milla."
Milla smiled. "You're welcome. Good night Lilac."
As Lilac laid back onto the soft pillow and shut her eyes, she gently held onto Spade's gift, pressing his heart closer to her own