As promised. A bit more build-up about people's pasts, particularly Chris's; unnecessary? Maybe not.
I find it's hard writing about a tournament and not including all the other little details that you could probably do without. It's good practise for me!
CHAPTER FOURTEEN: Interlude II
The Hiwatari residence was just as big as the Abbey, if not bigger. Liliana followed Kai up flights of stairs (after giving her coat to the footman), along oak-panelled corridors and velvet-curtained windows, and galleries with generations of stern-looking Hiwataris frowning down from the walls. From the aching of her legs, she reasoned that they had reached the fourth floor at least.
"Fifth floor," said Kai, turning yet another corner, and glancing back to see that she was still there. "Sorry. I told Chris she could have any room in the house, but she insisted on having one on the top floor, with the windows facing east."
Liliana tried to even her breathing as they slowed down, entering a smaller, quieter hallway with just one door set in the wall on the left. He stopped outside it and raised his hand to knock.
Why so high? Signalled Liliana, trying to catch her breath and gesturing wildly at the door. Kai shook his head, trying to hold back a laugh. "She said it was so she could watch the sunrise, the little idiot."
"I heard that Hiwatari!" came an indignant yell from inside, and the door was yanked open. Liliana stared, unable to contain her surprise; in place of her usual combats and colourful jumper, Chris was wearing an oversized shirt and grubby, ripped jeans, her blue hair scooped into a ponytail. Her annoyed, messy countenance rapidly changed to delight as she saw who he was with.
"Liliana!" she beamed. "Come in! Kai texted and said you were coming over." She stuck her tongue out at him. "Go away Kai, we're talking girly stuff."
And she shut the door. "Make yourself comfortable, I just need to finish something," she said, and dashed over to the cluttered desk that was facing the window, snatching up her mobile.
"Hello? Yes, sorry about the interruption…" as she continued talking, Liliana had a wander about the room, looking at things, quite content to wait. Opposite the window, set against the wall, was a neatly-made bed with a star-patterned red and gold bedspread. Several stuffed cats sat on the pillow. The floor was deep and soft, dark crimson, like the curtains; one whole wall was taken up by a wardrobe and a large bookcase, on which resided several classics. A shelf was devoted to photos. With a glance over her shoulder, Liliana moved closer and had a look. Each frame was devoid of dust, unlike some of the books; obviously she cherished them. On the far right was a snap of a man with the same blue hair as Chris, the same nose, and the obstinate chin; beside him, smiling, was a pretty woman with her eyes and her sensitive mouth. She was holding a bunch of flowers; the man was laughing. Liliana felt a strange ache in her stomach. So these were her parents. Liliana couldn't remember any photos of her own, but somehow, looking at this snapshot of the past, a freezing of a happy moment, she felt the ache lessen slightly, though it was impossible to explain why.
The next frame along made her smile slightly. There was her brother in the background, looking surly as usual; it wasn't long ago, judging by his looks. There was Chris, in the act of yelling something at Kai, though he was grinning, and by the looks of it, she was trying hard not to; and there was Tala. His face was brightened by the sunlight in the photo; his blue eyes were vibrant and full of life. He was in the background, but looking out, as though he could see her. He was smiling. He looked carefree, genuine, and undeniably handsome.
"That was taken just before you came," said Chris from the desk. The phone was still at her ear; it appeared whoever was on the other line had gone away for a moment. She smiled. "It's a nice photo, I wish you were in there too." Liliana felt oddly as though she had invaded something personal, so she tore her gaze away from the other photos and moved to Chris's desk as she began talking again.
"Hi. Yeah, I found the problem. One of the valves in the centre has come loose. Won't take a minute to fix, I've got some new bolts with me right here." Liliana looked with interest over her friend's shoulder. So this was the explanation for the hurrying home from school, the old clothes, and the oil stains on her hands: Chris fixed people's blades. In front of her, spread on newspaper to protect the wood, was a dissected orange blade, its parts carefully laid out beside a collection of spanners, screwdrivers, a soldering iron and a box of nuts, bolts and odds-and-ends. "No problem," Chris continued, grinning at Liliana, "it'll be ready for collection tomorrow. OK. See you." She breathed out a huge sigh and put down her phone. "Sorry about that!"
It's OK. Chris motioned her towards another seat. Knowing that however intuitive Chris was, and that it would be hard keeping up a conversation simply by sign language, Liliana brought out the pen and paper she had brought with her. How long have you done this for?
"About a year after I moved in," the bluenette replied, wiping her hands on a cloth and shaking out her hair. "It's always been a hobby of mine, and it's come in handy more times than I could count."
Do you get much from it?
Chris hesitated. "Enough," she said softly. "Kai's been telling me that I don't need to pay to live here, but I just feel guilty. So I put the money in his bank account, and he can't do anything about it." The grin was back on her face, but Liliana noticed that it was slightly pained. "At any rate, it's not enough to win over a dream, is it? Flying back home, hiring lawyers…" she shook her head and sighed lightly. "Anyway, enough about me, what brings you here?"
Liliana flexed her hand and began writing as Chris tinkered about with the parts on her desk.
I was curious about what you did, I hope I wasn't intruding.
"You're not," said Chris cheerily, smiling. "You're always welcome."
Thank you. And I wanted to know more about what you were talking about in Chemistry today.
"Ah." Chris looked slightly uncomfortable. She absently screwed a bolt into place, then set it down. "I won't hide anything. It's just that the prizes of tournaments are usually hugely desirable, not to mention your street cred would go through the roof." She pushed a hand through her hair. "And some people just won't stop at anything to make sure that if they don't get the prize, then you won't either." Liliana digested this, the bottom of her pen tapping thoughtfully against her lower lip.
So people get robbed?
"At the very least," Chris replied, looking surprised. "In fact, you're lucky if that's the only thing that happens to you. Robbed, beaten up, your blade nicked and destroyed beyond repair…" She turned abruptly back to her work. "It happened to me. I told you I started this business about a year after I came here; that was the same time after I had gotten through the prelims of another Balkov Abbey tournament. I was working my way up. Some people didn't like it, and showed it."
Liliana was horrified. Somehow she couldn't connect her friend with bullying and destroying something so precious to her.
Quick Silver got hurt?!
Chris laughed, and there was a hint of bitterness in it. "Unfortunately yes, and I was roughed up a bit too. Nothing I couldn't cope with, they didn't get away with a few bruises either." She sighed. "When I got home, Kai was absolutely livid. I've never seen him so angry. I figured it was because we were in the tournament together, and obviously his chances were going to be lessened too, if Silver was out of action. So I fixed her. It wasn't that bad, and Silver was just as good as, if not better, than she was before." She looked thoughtful. "It didn't seem to make Kai's mood any better though. He kept saying that I should've waited for him after school."
I can't believe that happened to you. No wonder Kai was mad.
"I couldn't figure it out," laughed Chris. "Then I realised that if it happened to him, I'd want to kill the bloody idiots that did it to him, so…" she shrugged. "He let it go in the end."
He cares about-
To her intense surprise, she found the rest of the page blocked by Chris's hand. She looked up, startled. The girl's face was closed.
"Can we not go there?" she said quietly. "I'm sorry, it's just…"
Liliana waited for her to continue, but she didn't. Slowly she flipped open a new page.
Sorry.
"That's OK." The girl smiled wanly. "I can't explain right now, maybe later. And I could counterattack that with something about Tala, but you'd probably rather not know."
Liliana shook her head, but it wasn't as emphatic as she thought it would be; her friend seemed to latch on to it too, for one eyebrow was slightly raised, crimson eyes thoughtful and questioning.
"Anyway, Liliana. The reason why I wanted to tell you that is because you need to be careful. You're new here, and I don't want it happening to you. Neither of us can afford to lose sight of the dream that we have, right?" Liliana nodded, and clasped Chris's hand gratefully. The girl was grinning again. "Not that it'll happen. Tala's been sticking to you like glue."
So I noticed.
At that moment, there was a knock on the door, and Tala's voice called out,
"Yo, girls! You done in there? It's getting late, we need to head back before it gets dark."
"Speak of the devil," muttered Chris, rolling her eyes. She opened the door. "Alright, we're coming."
The four of them stood by the front door as Liliana shrugged on and buttoned up her coat; the chill was rapidly increasing as evening drew near. She listened to the friendly banter going on between her other three friends and wished, not for the first time, that she could speak. Tala was so ridiculous, she would enjoy flattening him every now and again. As Kai and Chris waved them goodbye, they stepped out into the darkening air and set off down the road. Tala glanced sideways at his companion and wished she didn't always look so pretty; pretty girls usually made him rather eloquent, but not this one. She made him tongue-tied and uncomfortable, and all he ever wanted to do was just look at her. But of course, he had to make some effort at conversation otherwise they'd both be silent.
"Were you wondering what Chris was doing?"
Liliana nodded, deciding not to mention the questions that she had been asking.
"She's useful to have around," Tala laughed, and Liliana's thoughts soared back to the photo on the shelf, and the strange feeling that had struck her then. She hadn't realised what a warm sound it was. Wanting to avoid reflecting on it, she whipped out the notebook and wrote as they went.
How did Chris and Kai meet?
"Oh it was years ago," Tala replied, with a fond grin. "You should hear Chris tell the story, it'll give you stitches. It's basically this. They were both six years old when the Mikasukes were visiting the Hiwataris for the first time in a few years and they sent their kids out to play in the garden." For some reason, Tala hesitated, his mouth freezing as though he had mentioned something that he shouldn't have. His eyes flicked to Liliana very quickly, but she caught it; instantly she was suspicious. What wasn't he telling her? "Anyway, little Chris was wearing a dress because she had to. Kai said outright that she looked stupid in a dress, and offered a loan of some dungarees. Chris punched him on the nose and accepted." Tala laughed again. "Such a charmer, that Kai. They've been the best of friends ever since."
And what about you?
The question came out before Liliana could stop it. Curiosity drove her on.
"Me?" Tala stuffed his hands in his pockets. Suddenly he wasn't looking at her. "What do you want to know?"
Why didn't you enter the tournament?
"I told you," said Tala evasively, and shrugged. "I…just don't have a reason to do it."
Liliana looked at him shrewdly, and he held up his hands, grinning. "Hey, don't look at me like that! I swear girls have the most conniving ways to get answers out of us poor guys."
She shook her head and made a face of patient exasperation. They entered the Abbey together, with Tala's laughing protests following her, provoking that odd, bubbly feeling in her chest that turned the corners of her mouth upwards. She turned and faced him, held up a hand and scribbled on her pad.
You talk too much. See you later.
It was abrupt; but Tala knew that friendship had to develop in stages. He shut his mouth, but the smile was still on his face as he watched her ascend the curving staircase that led to her floor.
"Yeah, see you later," he said quietly. Then, he heaved a sigh, and the brightness dimmed slightly from his blue eyes. Boris had called him to his office again, and Tala never had many good experiences from these meetings. An ache throbbed in his chest as he thought about Liliana, and the progress he had made; it hurt him that soon, it would have to be completely destroyed.
Well, end of fourteen! I enjoyed writing the past two chapters; I really thought it was time to develop some relationships and open up the window on the vague ones.
More exams this month, huzzah. More from me later, but pleeease R&R!