I'm terribly sorry about making you wait (again), hopefully I'll be getting around to updating more frequently now. Here's chapter 3.
3
-Changes-
He was waiting for her the next day after school.
Hornet was in a hurry; first of all, she wanted to get out of the gray, bare corridors as soon as possible, and second, she was trying to shake Liza. Liza was a tall, lanky girl from her class who refused to use her real name. She had freckles everywhere and a hole in her right shoe, but when someone pointed this out to her, she just grinned and shrugged. She grinned and shrugged a lot. And for some reason that completely escaped the smaller girl, she liked Hornet.
She always made a point of walking with her after the school and chit-chattering away, but she also had keen eyes and a fair amount of wit which she usually hid behind indifference. And that was why she immediately knew that something was up.
The odd pair was making their way across the playground towards the entrance gate and Hornet was doing little to hide her annoyance when she suddenly spotted him, leaning against the edge of a water fountain in the middle of the piazzale in front of the school.
She stopped dead in her tracks.
Liza shot first her, then Scipio a quick look.
„Boyfriend?" She grinned.
She ignored Hornet's glare.
„Well, he is kinda cute."
Hornet felt a sudden desire to twist Liza's neck. Confused at her own feelings, she realized in surprise that she was actually jealous.
He's my friend, she screamed at Liza silently, So back off!
She shouldered her bag.
„We're not together."
Liza skipped alongside her.
„Why not?"
„We just aren't, okay?"
„Can I have him then? How old is he?"
„No," Hornet snapped to hide her uncertainty. What was she supposed to say? Scip certainly didn't look like 16 anymore, but rumors about her and her and a near 30-year-old was the last thing she needed.
„21," she snarled.
„Not older?" Liza frowned.
„No. Bye."
She marched towards Scip and wrapped her arms around him slightly aggressively, still angry, before she realized how that had to look. She glared back at Liza, but the other girl just smiled and waved before heading home, whistling to herself.
„Friend of yours?" Scip asked with a confused frown.
Hornet crossed her eyes as she took Scip's arm.
„Come on, let's go."
They soon made a habit of Scipio picking her up after school. They went for walks, visited some tourist attraction or just sat in a café and talked. Hornet was now even more eager for school to end, but at home she didn't cry as much as she used to and occasionally she even laughed at Liza's jokes. When Ida asked where she went all the time, she pretended not to hear. She wanted Scip to be her secret, at least until he asked to see the others. She didn't bug him about it. He should decide. And until then, she was content just keeping him for herself.
„Did you mean what you said?"
Hornet raised an eyebrow. „Did I mean what when?"
Scipio stirred sugar into his coffee with hectic gestures.
„About introducing myself."
Hornet nodded, even if she wasn't really happy about it.
Stop being selfish! she scolded herself, they have as much right to see Scip as I do.
„Yeah."
She forced a smile.
„Yeah, I do."
Scip poured some more sugar into his drink, she was surprised he could still move the spoon.
„What about now?"
„Right now?"
More sugar.
„Yeah. If we don't go now, we'll never make it."
„Okay."
Scip looked ready to go back on what he had just said, but Hornet stuck out her tongue at him.
„Right now it is."
Hornet grinned over her shoulder as she unlocked the door.
„It's not as big as the Casa Spavento, but it's cute. You'll like it."
Scip nodded, only half listening. He kept glancing over her shoulder as if something dreadful was about to attack him.
„Scip."
He jumped and Hornet couldn't help but laugh.
„Come on in."
She pulled him into the dimly-lit hallway and pointed to the hooks on the wall.
„You can put your coat there if you want."
As he complied, Hornet listened for sounds around the house. There was someone moving in the kitchen, she heard the cupboard doors open and close. Before she could warn Scip, someone entered the hall.
It was Bo. He moved silently, barely glancing at Hornet, heading straight for the staircase. A cup was enclosed in his small hands .He was barefoot, his white pants and sweatshirt to his pale face made him seem even more like a ghost than usual.
Scip smiled carefully.
„Hey Bo."
Bo stopped. His face blank, he looked Scip up and down, held his gaze for what appeared to be forever. Nodding in acknowledgement, he turned and disappeared silently up the stairs.
Scip had paled when he raised his head to look at Hornet.
„Is he always…"
He gestured helplessly.
Hornet nodded.
„Yeah. Always."
Scip sighed, rubbing his forehead.
„I didn't figure it was this bad."
Hornet nodded again to show she understood.
„It scared me sometimes. How much we've changed."
Scipio opened his mouth nervously, but Hornet shrugged and grabbed his hand.
„Come on, I'll give you a tour."
Hornet felt like she was enjoying the beautiful home Ida had built them for the first time. She had so much fun showing Scip all the little nooks and crannies, pointing out the birds nest in the attic and the little painted angels on the kitchen ceiling she completely forgot about Ida and Victor until she opened the sitting room door to find them sitting on the sofa. She could tell from their guilty looks that they had been talking about her.
„Hornet…" Ida stammered.
Victor noticed the tall man behind her first.
„Who are you?" he demanded, jumping to his feet.
„Scipio?" Ida asked.
Scip nodded, reddening slightly, ducking his head to step into the room.
„Well, this is a bit of a surprise…" the woman sighed, narrowing her eyes at Hornet who pretended not to care.
Scipio looked at Hornet, and she could see him changing from Scipio Massimo into the Thief Lord.
He shrugged.
„Yeah, well, I thought I'd drop by."
Ida smiled half-heartedly.
„Well, would you like some tea?"
Two hours later, Hornet's worst fears had been confirmed. The two adults terrorized them with questions as if Hornet had introduced Scip as her new husband. Even the Thief Lord lost his momentum every now and then, and dreadful silence settled between them every few minutes.
„And what have you doing since you've met?" Victor demanded, his eyes narrowed.
Scip gnawed at his lower lip; Hornet had to blink away the image of Prosper sitting there instead of him. She shook her head quickly and looked at her watch demonstratively.
„Hey, didn't you have to be somewhere at 5?"
Scip looked at her own watch.
„Oh, is it that late already? I'm afraid I have to go."
Hornet could tell Ida and Victor were not convinced by their acting but stood up anyway.
„Come on then, I will show you out."
She closed the kitchen door behind her and groaned.
Scip grinned.
„Yeah."
Hornet sighed.
„Scip, I'm really sorry. They kept treating you like my new boyfriend, not an old friend."
Scip blushed, and she could tell he wasn't the Thief Lord anymore.
„Well, it's not like they have to worry or anything, right?"
She grinned mischieviously.
„Oh yeah?"
Before he could reply she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, shutting the door in his face.
Scipio walked away slowly. He was confused, his head hurt. He had never really seen Hornet as a girl, always just as the person who seemed to see right through him; the one he felt stupid around. He stared at his gigantic hands as if they could give him the answers he wanted so badly. He had always thought being a grown-up meant knowing what to do, how to behave. But he didn't. Hornet made him nervous. She was so strong and vulnerable at the same time, so tom-boyish and yet so delicate. He had never felt this way about a girl before. Why did it have to be Hornet?
He did not know Hornet was still leaning against the old oak door. This couldn't be happening. Her loyalty belonged to Prosper. And when he had smiled the way Prop always had, she had felt a sting in her heart. It was as if Prop was reminding her. She coulnd't betray him like that. She couldn't.
But Scip…
A soft noise caused her to look up. Bo was standing in the doorway, pale, emotionless like a ghost, come to haunt her, to remind her of everything once again..
And Hornet buried her face in her hands and cried.