A/N: Thank you to all my reviewers – here's the next chappie, I hope you enjoy!
Chapter Six – What Love Can Do
"So…let me get this straight," Red began. "Nuala was brought back to life by your sisters – so that she could destroy humanity?"
Avani nodded.
"And to stop them, you brought back to life the one who, out of the two of them, wanted to destroy humanity in the first place?"
She nodded again.
"And you have no idea where she is, or what she's going to do, or how Nuada is going to help?"
"Correct."
"And finally – and this is my favourite part," he said mockingly, "-you want us to risk our lives again because of someone else's mess?!"
She looked regretful. "Yes. I am sorry." From her position seated on the floor, Avani got up and began to pace. "I cannot – and will not – blame you if you chose to turn your back on this. You have done enough to be honoured for a thousand years." She looked up and out of the small bower of trees that the three of them sat in. The prince had disappeared, but she knew where he was. "I must find Nuada. And I hope you will have agreed to help me by the time we return."
Inexplicably angry with Nuada, she struck out on a direct path for the orchard she'd planted only that morning. The trees were bigger now, about double the size they had been. She found him where she knew she would – sitting on one of the lower branches, legs swinging gently. She stopped at the foot of it and crossed her arms. "Running away. I had not realised you were a coward, Nuada."
He dropped out of the tree to land cat-footed, and without a sound. "What do you suggest I do?" he demanded, moving closer. "Sit and parley with people who would as soon kill me as look at me?"
"Yes," she replied. "Though you are wrong. As long as you mean them no harm they won't try to kill you." And as long as I am around, they can't, she thought privately.
"What have you told them?"
"As much as I have told you."
"Which is not much," he pointed out.
"You're quite mistaken," she told him. "I've told you all I can, Nuada. You're not ready for more yet."
He narrowed his eyes. "Yet?"
"I will," she promised. "But Nuala is the immediate problem. If you still want to hear more afterward – then I will tell you."
He nodded slowly. "That sounds fair."
"Then will you come?"
He set his mouth in a grim, resigned line. "Lead the way."
When they got back to Liz and Red, the woman stood. "We've been talking…and we will help you. At least, one of us will, but we need to know more first."
"Such as?" Nuada asked.
"Our friend Abe," Red began.
At Avani's side, Nuada bristled, and she shot him a curious glance. She had no knowledge of this 'Abe' person. And she had knowledge of every creature born on the earth. Frowning, she turned back to Liz. "Abe? Who is he? What is he?"
"An icthyo sapien," Liz replied.
Ah. That would explain it. A water-born, and water-dwelling creature. "What about him?"
"He loved Nuala," Liz said simply.
If Nuada's spine had stiffened anymore it would have snapped. "Your point?" he ground out.
"That we need to know what's gonna happen to the princess after we stop her," Red said. "We gonna have to kill her?"
"No," Avani said immediately. "I have given my word that she will not be harmed, but…" She trailed off, thinking hard. "You say that this Abe person loved her?"
They nodded.
"Does he still?" she asked.
The glanced at each other, shrugged, then nodded again. "Yup," Red said.
"Totally," Liz added.
Avani nodded slowly. "And did she love him?"
Neither of them was able to give a definite answer to that – it certainly had appeared that way, but then who could tell with telepaths? Aside from other telepaths, of course.
Avani looked to her left. "Nuada?"
He returned her look with a narrow-eyed glare. "What does that have to do with anything?" he asked with vehemence.
"Everything," she replied. Seeing him still reluctant, she put a hand on his shoulder. "Vaeri, Nuada. Thys os moraes."
Finally, he nodded. "She did," he said shortly. Though in the years of his exile their bond had faded, he could still feel strong emotion from her – and when she'd met Abraham Sapien there was a surge that no amount of separation could dilute.
Avani did not react to this outwardly, but inwardly she'd started to wonder. Even flooding her with their power, there was no way Sky and Sea could have completely drowned who Nuala essentially was. And Nuala was essentially love. She'd killed her brother for love. She'd stopped the destruction of the humans for love. She'd fallen in love with a man cast out by the rest of the world.
"I wonder if…"
"If?" they all prompted.
"I may have thought of a way to save Nuala."
"How?" Nuada immediately demanded.
"I do not think that she would easily kill someone she loves. Whether that is you as a brother or this Abe as a lover." She looked at Red and Liz. "Where is he now?"
"Looking after the kids," Red said. "But that's what we were gonna say. Don't get him involved."
Nuada, who had been opening his mouth to growl something to that effect, shut it again in surprise. Apparently not the only one, since Avani blinked. "Why not?"
"Because he's never got over her death," Liz said. "And there's no point in telling him she's alive if she's…"
"Evil," Red grunted.
Avani knew what Nuada would do before he did it, and somehow – and much time would have passed before she worked out how – she put herself between him and Hellboy. He'd moved almost too fast for the eye to follow, and there was certainly no way that the demon would have been able to block or dodge in time. The silverlance jumped into his hand, and he seemed to fly through the air–
And Avani managed to catch his wrist, point the blade up to the ceiling. It still managed to graze against one of Red's horn stumps. Eyes of both amber and green were glowing when they met. "Don't. Ci pyr byr tael air," she whispered urgently.
"Then he should learn to hold his tongue," Nuada growled back, his face inches from hers.
"Don't be a fool," she hissed back. "Ci tyr mostia shi seil sai vylyji o."
Finally, muscles still bunched with the strain of keeping his temper, Nuada lowered his weapon, and Avani turned back to Red and Liz, anger still evident on her face but her tone level.
"There is nothing evil about Nuala. There never was – what has happened to her is no fault of hers. I cannot imagine it happening to anyone with more goodness in their hearts than Nuala."
"So what do we do?"
"Most of earth magickind is looking. If you have any contacts with the humans that could help find her-"
"We don't," Liz interjected. "We stayed out of that after…" She nodded her head at Nuada. "It was safer that way for the kids."
"It took the humans even less time than I would have anticipated to tire of you," Nuada said.
They both shot glares at him, but neither said anything to refute his claim.
"Then we wait," Avani said.
"Wait a second. Johann works for the British government. Think he might help?" Red asked Liz.
"I guess."
"Johann?"
"Another you have no knowledge of?" Nuada asked. "So much for knowing all creatures."
"He has an ectoplasmic form," Liz said.
"Then he has no connection to the earth," Avani said. "So I wouldn't know of him," she added to Nuada. "But you say he works for the British government? What will they do if we tell them?"
"Probably try to kill Nuala."
"Then they'll fail. And whoever they send will lose their lives," she said flatly.
"So we need magic to stop her?"
"No," she answered. "Mere magic is too weak, too diluted. What Nuala now carries is far more primal than that. Which is why I suggest using something equally primal. Someone she loves."
"Well you're not using Abe," Red said firmly.
"I concur," Nuada said, surprising everyone. His next sentence erased it. "I do not want him anywhere near my sister."
A brief frown flickered across Avani's face, and she made a mental note to ask him about his reluctance later, but nodded. "Then, Nuada, we will have to use you." She turned back to Red and Liz. "What were you saying about only one of you helping?"
"One of us has to go back to Country Clare – the children," Liz replied. "Abe's looking after them now, but if we're not going to tell him that Nuala's alive then one of us will have to go home."
"Then which one of you will it be?"
"How long have we got to decide?" Red asked.
"However long it-" She cut off as Blaithin stuck her tiny head around the corner. Avani beckoned, and the faery settled on her shoulder. Have they returned?
Only with information that the princess is not in Ireland, my lady. They are searching the rest of the British Isles, and the call has been passed on, but it will take time for word to spread. Probably another day or two before all magickind knows, and then another two for a reply.
Avani nodded and thanked the faery mentally before turning back to the others. "About four days before we will know if she is on land."
"You mean she might not be?"
Avani shrugged. "If my sisters intend to use her to destroy the humans then she will need to be on land, so it makes sense that she must be."
"So what do we do in the meantime?"
Her reply was simple. "We wait."
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A/N: Review please!