I'm afraid that I'm only posting one chap today, though actually I generally don't post on Sundays at all..


"This place takes your breath away!" Prince Phobos was aware of his gardens' beauty, though he saw few fit to journey with him through. Elyon was not one of these few. It was early morning and the breeze was icy; the mist of dusk dampening his idea pf the flowers' splendor, and Prince Phobos did not feel particularly well enough to chore himself through a tour of his own gardens, but Lord Cedric wasn't wrong to suggest. Phobos had to keep Elyon's faith with himself, and if it meant letting her grow a carnality that she would be sad to ever think would be reciprocated, while they cantered around his gardens playing fools, then it was what must be done.

Elyon stroked one of the rabbit-like creatures and with a glinting smile she didn't see, Phobos wondered if now would be the appropriate time to tell her that if she scared the creature, it's defense was simply to turn inside out around her hand and let digestive fluids do the rest. He decided against it, instead only placing his hand gently on her shoulder, causing her to jump up and flush inappropriately from her cheeks, redding further to a charming smile, "I knew you would like it."

It was despicable, but nevertheless it would do him fit justice to play on her emotions, so he let his hand sweep down her back, flatly resting on the bottom curve of her spine as he gently pressed on; walking now back towards the castle, not because of a lack of scenery, but simply the fact that he'd had enough and as much as the Prince enjoyed power and terror and rage, scandal and lust were not necessarily in his own personal vocabulary. "The castle! These gardens! It feels like I'm in a fairytale!"

He hated her. He'd decided to herald dislike on meeting, dis-ownership the second day, but now as he looked into her dreamily clouded eyes with a false smile he knew for sure. Of all the people who had betrayed or fought him, Elyon Brown 'Escanor' was the person he most despised. She was filthy and he wondered if the Earthian air had purged her pure and cleanest blood. "Sometimes, fairytales come true.."

...

"Right, right, okay, this is where the end-trails are; this is where the heart is; to the left, is everybody watching me?" Cornelia Hale shot into her seat as the teacher once again turned to the board, having made it from the door at the back to her desk at the front of her oversized science class. "What's going on?"

Cornelia glanced back as Uriah Dunn from the year above grinned and chuckled, "Don't you know? This afternoon, it's D-day!"

"Huh?" Cornelia frowned, trying to make sense out of what the older boy had said, but not having a clue. She figured outfielders had their own language, and a criminal like Uriah, always nicking stuff from shops and breaking and entering and stuff, was probably lucky to be able to form almost fully coherent sentences.. Damn, sometimes they were even funny. Not very often.

Alchemy, directly next to her, with only the space between desks separating them, smiled sympathetically, having had been Cornelia's go-to girl on Sunday to rant about how much she could kill Will, the nicest part being that with the Caleb gossip, Alchemy was still angry, despite the fact that Cornelia had cleared it up as false. In fact, Cornelia had to admit that as innocent as it might have been, the image was still replaying in Cornelia's mind, and it was safe to say it was pissing her off. "Dissection-day. It's all this week."

"Ew!"

Cornelia ground teeth, the board exhibiting a clear diagram of a worm, and the thought of slicing it open making her stomach churn, but Alchemy grinned. "Oh, you don't have to do it alone! You can work with your lab partner!"

"But my lab partner was-" Cornelia's heart sank a little, and she looked at the empty chair beside her where Elyon would be seated, "My lab partner is Elyon.. She's.. On vacation still, so with no lab partner I can probably skip it right?"

At that second Uriah threw forward his fist next to her face, hand full of writhing worms, causing Cornelia to jump and scream with shock. The professor however only turned and frowned as the entire room burst into fits of laughter around her. It was this that made Infielders seem shallow she supposed; one second you're everybody's best friend, and next they laugh in your face. At least Cornelia had always known who her real friends were.. But everything had changed now. "Uriah, we don't start dissection until period three. Put those away."

"Will's partner is off sick today," Cornelia momentarily froze, before twisting her head to see Will's bright mop, slouching over her work; most people would almost think she was sleeping, but Cornelia saw it as a bad habit of Will's to write with her head leaning on her free arm for hours. It was just Will's thing, though she usually saved it for a bad mood or when she was upset, "So you'll probably be paired with her."

The head shot up and Will's eyes met Cornelia's rather than reading the next note on the board, but Cornelia could only scowl before turning away. "I don't think so."

...

Will stared down at her bleak meal, shifting the mashed potato with her fork, though she didn't have an appetite. It was fine, as most of the ninth or tenth grade girls weren't eating anyway; hoping to avoid any queasiness during the dreaded D-Day. But Will had seen Cornelia and Will had heard the whispers shared throughout the massive hall as Cornelia had tried to swap partners to Alchemy, causing a mad chaos of partner swaps as everyone tried to find someone they got on with to sit beside. "You're partnered with Matt; I hope you're happy." Silence dawned Taranee, Hay Lin and Irma as Will bit down, her staring down becoming harder as Cornelia stood behind her, still for a few seconds. When the blonde didn't get an answer Will had to wince at the clash of Cornelia's tray slamming onto the table, "I have had it!"

"Cornelia, we all feel terrible about Elyon," That was her job. Will was meant to say that, not Taranee. It was Will's job to keep them from fighting and to stop them from fighting and even to console them, but Will wasn't good at any of those things. She wasn't a leader, and she hated Caleb for ever trying to make her feel better by telling her that she could be. "But-"

"We thought we were protecting her." Will looked up to Cornelia, who was standing, fists holding onto the sides of her tray as she used it to lean against the table. "We thought Phobos would take longer to find her.."

"No, you thought that!" Will let her shoulders drop in defeat; Cornelia was right. The only person who'd actually agreeing with her was Caleb, and the only reason she'd believed it was because she'd never been smart enough to consider that Caleb might just pity her. "I am sick of playing follow the leader! My best friend is in the clutches of some creature! Things were going just fine before you came to this school!"

"It's not.. All Will's fault.."

Will closed her eyelids over stinging eyes, wondering if she would make it out of the room before someone spotted her, but knew Cornelia would only see it as another reason to yell at her. Stupid Will.. Weak Will.. Cowardice Will.. But Will refused to show how hurt she was. Cornelia didn't deserve to get to see her fall, though she'd much rather go, curl up in a ball somewhere and.. An image of her astral drop being held in a desperately tight grip, by Caleb flashed up and she found herself opening her eyes, simply so that it would go away.. "Whatever, but this protecting the Viel thing is becoming seriously un-fun."

"Cornelia." Irma stood, not quite matching tall Cornelia's fight, and Will wondered if she would maybe wake up any minute in her mother's car; her arms sleepily leaning on the dashboard.. "It's not an after-school activity! It's our duty to-"

"Well duty can lose my phone number!"