The job of your dreams

There was no time to lose. So far, all of her efforts had served her to get to that point. She had the plan, the means and the impertinence to achieve it. It was about time she scored, and there was no further delaying that! It was time to get the job of her dreams!

"Lord Corrin!" Charlotte called as she pulled her huge 'platonic' friend to follow her. "We heard that you are looking for officials to lend you a hand. Here Benny and I are mere supervisors of the borderline, so we can't do much really… unless…" The blonde insinuated as her provoking appearance did the rest in her place. Only when Corrin stopped she noticed the prince wasn't alone. There was this pink haired maid with whom he held hands. Charlotte narrowed her eyes displeased, but only for a mere second.

"Charlotte, Benny! You two fit wonderfully! Do not worry about your rank, the soldiers you have to slow down are ordinary privates, and if any of them opposes to you, you can tell them you're following my orders. That should be enough." Corrin commanded, slowly getting the hang of imparting instructions.

"As you say." Benny nodded, forgetting about the plans Charlotte had made him learn by heart.

"Oi, Benny! What the heck did I tell you earlier?" Charlotte hissed him under her breath. When she noticed Felicia's gaze on her, the blonde hurried to put her mask back on and giggle innocently. "I mean, Beeeeenny, you silly. You shouldn't talk that brutishly in front of these likable people. Hee hee!"

Although Felicia stared at Charlotte, thinking back to something she was told about bigger boobs and wider hips, she broke the visual contact once Corrin hauled her to exit the realm and jump into action. There were just so many things to do.

The feminine guard's brow twitched: her mask was about to shatter. Benny kept silent and he only heaved a sigh when he remembered how nervous he had been when addressing the prince. Some people had looked for a fight with him for thinking he was looking down on them, which he wasn't.

"Benny… Did you freaking forget about our plan of making the prince ascend us? 'As you say' my ass! All you had to do was shutting your trap and letting me take care of everything, you good-for-nothing!" Charlotte yelled at him, grabbing him by the black shirt's neck.

"Wait, Charlotte. Even if we didn't get what we wanted, he's still counting on us." The tall man stuttered, intimidated by his curvy partner.

"And? I won't be getting him to attend my charms that easily: he's been taken already." The woman complained as she pushed him away, crossing her arms almost enraged.

"What about earning our promotion?" Benny proposed while he fixed his clothes, taking care of his appearance –that little he had learnt from her–. Charlotte turned to him to immediately cross that option out, but the more she thought about it, the more sense it made to agree.

"And here I considered you a brainless gorilla." She sighed scratching her head. "Fine. Meanwhile, I'd better start looking for some alternative plan to quickly climb-up the ladder…" She muttered, biting her nails.

Something got Benny's attention. When the tough guardian directed his eyes towards the man waving at him, he identified him as the prince's best friend. Benny waved back at him, making some muted gestures to tell him they were helping too. When the knight understood the message –and pointed his thumb upwards–, he departed elsewhere, Benny realized it could have been appropriate to leave that role to his mate. … Watching her peevish expression, he reconsidered his options and chose not to be yelled at again.

"Let's go, Charlotte. Don't you wanna save some people?" Benny motivated her as he began walking towards the portal. The provokingly-dressed girl remained still. She would have worsened her frown, but that could give her wrinkles.

"I wonder…" She replied, meaning more than the mere words could appear.

Knock, knock. The door echoed the soft hits with impartiality. The door didn't care who tried to enter, but only if he was allowed in or not… or if he carried with him a handful of picklocks to grant his own permission.

However, the door felt different that day. There was no living being passing through him. Maybe it was because it was closed with key and everything, maybe because of the shelf that was moved to block any attempt of entrance.

"Peri! We are required to help Lord Corrin!" Laslow tried announcing once again. "Are you there? Peri!" When he grabbed doorknob to pull it open, he realized it was shut tight. The grey haired man stared at the poorly collaborative door for a few minutes.

Unlike others, Peri's barracks were located at the main castle of the realm. She was given the chance to have her own house built with the dragon veins, but she said she preferred living in big old mansions, where she could have some servants stabbed every morning. Despite Corrin making her promise she wouldn't do such thing, Felicia had to defend herself a bunch of times already. Luckily for her, she was more than capable of fending for herself.

"Peri! Open up! I need to talk to you!" Laslow kept on trying the door open, to no avail. Nonetheless, he had more reasons to worry about her partner than just the lack of a response. When he saw her after the battle, she was unsettlingly… smooth. Why was Peri, the blood-loving girl, smooth after a battle?

The man entered the closest door to hers and opened its window. He could not be as successful as he wished with ladies, but it was never because he lacked resources!

Step by step, he gripped himself close to the wall and climbed his way to Peri's window. The curtains prevented him from checking on Peri from there, so he would have to force the window open. After a minute of trying the lock with a little knife of his, a click announced his victory over the security of locks! Odin told him a few times that he looked like a ninja when he moved like that, but Laslow was determined not to be a secret agent, or else he wouldn't be able to show off his skills in front of the ladies.

"Peri. Are you okay? Your door was blocked, so I thought you were trapped in here." The man said in advance, justifying whatever was going to happen due to his intromission.

The girl's room had fancy furniture. The wardrobe was resting on the entrance. Some clothes hung on its doors, and from some of the drawers a piece of lingerie showed up. Laslow closed his eyes as soon as he realized he shouldn't be looking in that direction, his colors quickly scaling up on his face.

Then he turned to the full-sized bed from which pieces of classy pallid pink altar cloths fell. Laslow moved closer, avoiding stepping on the stuff laying everywhere: lances, her chest-plates, leggings, boots, a pile of dusty boxes… A certain wolfskin would qualify that place as 'heaven'. Laslow was even tempted to start cleaning her room, but that would be beyond an intruder's possibilities.

"Peri?"

When he reached the bed, he discovered a girl wearing a white dress hugging the sheets sideways. Her blue and pink hair was no longer gripped into any ponytail, and her ribbon rested on the nightstand.

Laslow was no fool. He had entered the room prepared to fight for his life whenever she discovered him –Peri did teach him how much she loves eviscerating people during their tea together–. However, the woman was fast asleep, and didn't seem to have noticed his presence. Her cheeks were dried red, her maquillage staining the white sheets. Her now uncovered legs tangled with the cushions. Looking closer, her eyes twitched under her lids, and an unpleasant curve had formed on her lips.

With that sole response, he instantly decided what he would do next. Peri wasn't fine, so she would do great to rest as much as she could. Besides, Laslow could handle her share of contribution to Corrin's needs on his own.

Sneaky, the man exited the room the same way he entered. Although his face could appear to be focused, he was really upset about her. The fact that she loved bloodshed always bothered him, but now that he saw her that out of her usual self… Something had to happen in the last battle. … Some research was in order. … Oh! He could even ask the psychologist for help. The issues he desired to discuss were most fragile, and an expert could definitively cast some light on the matter. At least, that's what Laslow hoped.

"Don't let them scape!" The voices of the soldiers echoed behind them.

Tiana was the self-proclaimed archenemy of Layla, but she couldn't be any more relieved to know that she had gone away before the attack occurred. Tiana was able to give the alarm to her fellow performers, but the spread of their advance was fast and beyond comprehension. Why were they so thrilled to assassinate cyrkensian citizens? Was that the real face of the empire they signed peace with?

The juggler twin brothers had been entertaining the public too many hours that day: they had long ago surpassed the limit of their resistance. Running away from blood-thirsty soldiers wasn't in the schedule, precisely.

"We got them! There's nowhere to run now!" A nohrian celebrated as they pushed Tiana and her companions to a dead end of the opera.

The singer put herself between them and her partners, raising both hands protectively.

"You are looking for singers, aren't you? Then take me, but leave everyone else in peace." She proclaimed, fear competing with courage to taint her voice. The soldiers that trapped them began walking towards her, evaluating the things they could do with her.

"We will be taking you indeed. We are going to check how good your singing is… making you scream like a whore, that is!" One said as he raised his axe to throw it to the performers.

"No! Wai-"

The axe had been thrown, its curse determined to take a life. However, before it could reach its destination, the walls of the hallway moved to apparently squish the entirety of the performers. A red substance dripped from the joint of the two sides, staining the purple carpet with deadlier shades. The axe bounced on the stone and fell noisily.

Tiana's eyes twinkled in disbelief. Reality was hard. The people she had grown to consider like her family… slaughtered in front of her eyes… in a mere blink. Her knees gave up and she collapsed onto the floor.

"What the-" One of the group of nohrians was about to curse, when a hole in the ground opened under the singer and swallowed her whole. After the same process, its interior appeared to close mortally around the girl. When the sight of its brutality ceased to be seen, more blood spilled from it, almost reaching the ceiling as a violent spring of brutality.

"This is why I prefer doing things myself." A voice said behind the soldiers. An elegant blonde wearing a formal suit with a long dark cape walked slowly towards them. "If you are going to kill them anyways, just do it quickly and stop stalling. Not that your pathetic lives were any more useful to my father: you're only tarnishing his name. I wonder if I should tell him one thing or two about your ludicrous habits.

"No, Prince Leo! Everything but that! We beg you!" The soldiers bowed down before him, a sickening smell reaching their nose.

"Then get out of my sight and start looking for any performer at the warehouse! They must be hiding there somewhere!" Leo ordered with a sweep of his arm. Seconds after, he was alone again.

He crouched and touched the red substance to then take it to his mouth. Unluckily for those soldiers, they would find nothing at the warehouse: he had already checked there to make sure. The devil's luck wasn't on their side.

"Too bad I had to mix this tomato juice with the scent of fetid plants. Their absence would have meant them realizing it's not blood." He sighed, gazing at the crack formed by the torsion of the stone he performed with his Brynhildr. The performers were safe and sound behind the rock. They were lucky his divine tome did not only bend life, but gravity and earth as well.

"Lord Leo, I see you've already taken care of that group of condemned rats. Were their death succulently painful?" A dark wizard asked the prince from the intersection of the corridors. Leo tensed his body upon recognizing his voice.

"Iago. I thought you were with Father. You should leave the dirty work for us." The blonde responded, standing up with a perfect and formal stance.

"Why? I love doing dirty work. Especially when it's to wipe out the miserable traitors that conspired to harm our king." The masked man said with a pleasant grin. Leo remained still, without moving an inch. "Is anything the matter? If I may, you seem pale. I suppose you're not hiding anything from me, are you, sir?" Iago pointed out, starting to smell the scent on the air.

Leo tightened his grip over his wrist behind his back, fulminating the wicked wizard with his stare, almost wishing he could kill him right there.

"Such insolence! You should know I have always been rather pallid. I won't tolerate your insults forever, Iago, and you would do good to heed these words." Leo retorted with authority, not batting an eye.

Iago looked at him mistrustful, sarcastic even! He walked around the prince, examining their surroundings carefully. That brooding fool… he was probably trying to identify the scent of blood nearby. When he was about to take a taste of the red substance on the floor, Leo reacted.

"If you're so eager to please your eyes with the corpses of Father's enemies, you should have just stated so." Leo complained, careful not to permit his voice waver. The walls behind them opened and showed a huge plant with a big belly. Through its semi-transparent surface, it was possible to see multiple bodies shaking in agony.

"I thought of giving them a slower death by being dissolved in gastric acids. Maybe you want to take a dip with them, Iago." Leo offered, practicing the most sinister of his smiles. He had a lot of reference, so he was even capable of making him shudder.

"A thousand pardons, milord. I just knew your Greatness had something better reserved for those sneaky cyrkensians." Iago apologized, bowing his head. That is why Leo was his favorite from the royal siblings. His heart was just as putrid as his mind.

"Am I allowed to make one last question, Lord Leo?" The wizard requested before moving on.

Through Leo's mind the idea of being discovered beamed: the girl underground. She hadn't been rescued by Lilith's portals yet. Had Iago noticed…? And if so, how was he going to solve that mishap…? … … If he could save all the performer's lives at the cost of one of them… it was a deal he was willing to accept as a last resource. He'd crush that singer before Iago discovered her. His hands opened Brynhildr discreetly behind his back.

"Why the tomato juice? What did you earn from punishing those soldiers? Not that I have a problem with that, milord. On the contrary, that is just how a true prince of Nohr should behave." The long haired black mage smirked, pleased to see at least one of the King's descendant was worthy. He'd make a great king one day… one in which all the sentimentalism and honor of that irritating Xander got him killed.

Lea swallowed up the sigh of relief he was about to breathe. He couldn't afford making any mistakes when his fake appearance was so well-built.

"First, tomatoes are my favorite vegetables, and secondly, I did not punish them. I made the whole spectacle to clarify them what was expected from them. We don't pay those derelicts to go wild on anyone, but to follow orders. If I ever catch them doing anything behind my back, being squished instantly should be the least of their worries." Leo smirked, pointing his finger towards the shaky plant dissolving the 'performers'.

"Those marvelous words are music to my ears. Please, proceed, milord." Iago grinned before waltzing away in a good mood.

"Iago." Leo called with a deadly tone of voice. "That goes for you too." The prince glared intensely. Iago widened his grin even more; enjoying the chills he was given. However, that crooked man was different from Niles.

His retainer was a good actor indeed, but there was a limit to every performance. Despite his desperate attempts to picture himself like the former outlaw he was, he was a good person at heart. On the other side, whenever Leo talked with Iago, he couldn't feel anything. That man was empty. There was nothing but a nauseating love for death and power. … Leo would like seeing that psychologist trying to explain Iago… was that only possible…

The faint moan of a singer showered in tomato juice was unnoticeably heard from the cracks of the floor. When Leo was alone, he dismantled the acid plant with the pieces of wood that faked the 'dying performers'. With a magic command, he pushed the ground below Tiana to return to its former location. Upon seeing the prince responsible for the massacre, the girl tried to run away, but Leo grabbed her wrist before she gave his trickery away.

"Calm down. Your friends are alive. They've been taken to a place where no harm will get anyone of you." Leo explained, not letting go of her before he was done. Tiana hushed little by little, noticing the liquid staining her costume wasn't blood, but tomato juice!

"If you would be so kind, follow me to that refuge, miss Tiana." Leo offered as he landed a gentle kiss on her fingers –he wanted the tomato juice–. Even after everything that had happened, the singer couldn't help skipping a beat.

"Milord? H-how do you know my name?" Tiana muttered, blushing for being exchanging words with such a handsome man. And a prince, of all things!

Leo remained silent for a few seconds, thinking back to all the times he went to the opera with the vain hope of finding… her… in there. … He… he never thought he'd be seeing her again in such a way… singing in front of everyone… casting some kind of curse on his Father… There was no disguise that could hide her identity from Leo!

"Any proud prince should be familiar with the most important figures of the world of art. If your voice had been forever extinguished, tonight would have been the most tragic day in the whole kingdom of Cyrkensia." Leo replied while a portal opened behind his back.

His confident grin, his stunning red eyes, his tongue gratifying from the tomato juice… Tiana had it hard to endure it against his charms. She almost fainted. Leo caught her between his arms, carrying her to safety before returning to the opera. The night was far from over.

When he returned back to work, a shiver ran down his spine, letting the thought of killing the singer with his magic come back to haunt him. He… he really readied himself to slaughter her. If Iago had been any more attentive, her luck could have been much… much worse.

Few details were given about the peak of the world's end. Prophets put on lens to discern the ultimate destination that awaited the realm of existence, and some of them even lied to fulfill expectations and gain glory. However, their findings were naught. The dialectic of the reason of why had thinkers busy for the entirety of their lives: that's how philosophers were born. So, why? Why did Odin have the feeling to know what it was like to gaze into the void of inexistence?

He was sitting on a bench of the residential area, now only lighted by a few oiled torches on some high stands. Few people were outside their homes at that time of the night. Although Odin pressed onto his knees, his legs had yet the will to shake wildly.

The time was near. Fate moved slow, but unavoidably unstopping towards him. The distant sunset remembered him of the promised he had to keep. He coughed to clear his voice.

"As it was appointed, I have come to highlight the dream of your dreams!" He proclaimed in an impetuous tone. "No, too much energy at this hour would displease her." He noted to himself, starting to think of another approach he could use that night.

"As promised, I have made my way to your side, here in the discernable realm, and soon, in your rest too." Odin rehearsed, trying a more humble approach. He frowned as the colors came back to his face. "I can't say that. I mean, yes I am going to give her that dream, b-but it's embarrassing to say it aloud. I can't take it seriously!" He moaned, holding his head between his hands as a mean to scape reality. Didn't work.

Why did that have to happen? He was really comfortable with the relationship they had before: he would just be himself while Selena scolded him off for being an irresponsible dummy and, from time to time, he would calm himself down as she showed some of her rare charming honesty. For Odin, his antics were more than just a hobby: they helped him expressing whatever was on his mind, no matter its complexity. That, aside from the mental training imagining epic duels against legendary foes implied.

"Odin Dark is a warrior destined to greatness to its full extent. However, no man is without any weakness. Fear is a decrepit spired that crawls on every mind, weaving its web over our eyes wickedly, sealing the light of reason out of reach." Odin began dramatizing, getting up and talking to his absent audience. The bench couldn't complain to have him stepping on it.

"The hero is now afflicted by an uncertainty. One that spears though flesh and bone, all its way to the heart! There is no training that can be carried out for countering that shortage. He had the destiny of one of his dearest friends on his hands… and a decision had to be taken, for better or worse. The valiant savior of the future trembled with the idea of hurting her in any way, but what was he about to reply? Did he feel… the same for her? Whenever he pondered about that question, the deadliest silence flooded his mind, painting of white the layers of his thoughts, and a shade of ill icy blue, to pierce his chest in fright!" He said sweeping his arm through the air. Then, he looked at his arm, missing an old mark of his lineage, his identity, his inheritance. Whenever he looked at it, it just bothered him, like if he had lost the reigns of his life.

Laslow told him not to worry too much about it, since Odin was far more memorable for his 'charisma' than for his brand, and he was right. At least, the blonde appreciated that his life-long rival tried to cheer him up, which only made his mood the better.

When the newcomers met him, they always avoided him, scared of not knowing how to react to his theatrics. That Miles had been a nice change of pace for Odin, but ever since he was told how people evaded him for being too reactive, Odin toned down his drama in front of others. The day Selena noticed that, she said in a mocking tone 'You seem rather sad. Did anyone crush your sensible heart again?' and smiled one of her mean smirks.

Thanks to her, Odin resurrected stronger than ever, determined to be the best version of himself he could ever be, and that implied lots! No. Loads of drama and action! Nonetheless, he made more frequent use of the respectable technique 'dropping the act' to allow others to understand him.

"But how am I going to do anything properly tonight when I myself fail to understand the content in my heart? Even if don't dress any of my words with fantasy, what words am I going to use?" He muttered to himself, closing his eyes, pained to fail at reaching an answer to his dilemma.

"Ooodiiiin!" A voice called for him. After the called bounced in surprise, he turned to check who demanded his attention in such a critic moment. It was Laslow, and he was been followed by quite the handful of people.

"Odin, will you help us? Corrin needs us to distract the king's soldiers the best we can to give the performers a chance to flee." Silas explained, being that the tenth time he delivers that information.

"Or you could help rescuing them by takin' them here." Mozu added, proud of her noble role in that mission. She would have loved to invite Miles, but she heard from Elise he wasn't feeling very well, even if he tried to hide it from her.

"A mission? Mission is my second name!" Odin smiled, ready to jump into action. However, a particular thought almost made him collapse. His mouth couldn't extend any wider, but he wasn't smiling.

"What's the matter, mission? Not feeling well out of sudden?" Niles asked, hiding his smirk behind his hand. Beruka remained quiet. There was something in her mind, but she failed at recalling it completely. It had something to do with Selena, and it was important for her.

"Ah, no, um… it's just that I… um…" The blonde started sweating bullets, quickly reflexing about a way out of that disaster. Nyx studied her magic partner, trying to make a sentence out of his stammer.

"Come on, Odin! You should count the number of performers you save this night. When we finish, the loser pays the bill for the drinks!" Laslow defied, using the best method he knew to motivate his friend into a competition.

Odin stuttered in agony a little longer. When Silas was so merciful to remember about this hypothetical situation, interrupted the interrogation that was being held.

"Ou! Odin! You, um, you had this urgent thing to attend, didn't you?" Silas defended him, not giving any details.

"What are you talking about, Silas?" Mozu nosed around. Beruka raised her head suddenly.

"You're going to leave me in the lurch? What if I get too carried away with the soldiers?" Niles smirked, imagining the kind of absurd places he'd make them search with every fiber of their being.

"I will take his place and keep your leash short." Beruka volunteered, unforgiving and determined to bury her axe in that man's head. Niles turned to her and returned a defiant glare.

"Oh? Is that so? I will have you know that my bite is worse than my bark. Woof!" The white haired archer insinuated, not troubled to keep the assassin's powerful stare.

"What about Selena, then?" Laslow frowned, having a hunch about what was going on.

"We will take care of that, won't we, Laslow?" Silas giggled, hanging on the dancer's neck. Laslow exchanged a look with him to them give up, sighing a new resolution.

"Thanks, Silas. I'll treat you to some tea when we're over." He promised.

"Oh! I want hot choco, silly bee!" Mozu joined, raising her arms over her head. "And another one for Nyx here!" She added when she discovered the quiet girl trying to start her way home. Mozu wouldn't let her off the hook that easily!

"For me black coffee." The archer nodded, jumping on every boat he could to benefit from other's generosity.

"Milk." The assassin said, ignoring how shocked Niles was about that. Just what was his decrepit mind thinking in? What was wrong about having a glass of milk? If Selena was there, she would probably smack him in her place. … …

"Eh?! That's too many! We will have to compete over that! The loser pays the bill!" Laslow grinned. He was sad about not being able to face off with Odin, but they would do, and if he won, he could rub his victory over Odin's face later.

The blonde watched them in silence, knowing that he would have loved to participate in that competition… and probably Selena would have fought to be the winner above everyone else.

"Laslow, go get the victory for the three of us." The mage commanded to his friend, raising an arm that sought a reply. And Laslow replied by raising his.

"I'll do my best!" He beamed, as happy as ever. … No wonder why he sometimes forgot about the other world: having such nice companions there made it dizzy to contemplate their future depart. Despite their nostalgia to their homeland and their old friends, the allies they had now were almost as important.

Fate was tragic, but Odin did never accept defeat against it. He had great plans in mind. Ones that not even his closest friends knew about. The spark of hope; the shine of the Chosen One.

As tranquility returned to the streets of the residential area, Odin began hearing the pulsating of his heart. The sky had no longer live colors, not even at the horizon. Twilight gone, promises had to be fulfilled, and Odin Dark could be many things, but none of them was promise-breaker. Destiny awaited. Onwards.

There are several types of mirrors. Mirrors that showed your real age, mirrors that acted as windows to other worlds, cursed mirrors, mirrors as big as lakes… Some of them weren't even proper mirrors, like the reflection of a nicely oiled blade, the shine on someone's eyes or the surface of the wine served on taverns. If so you want, you can find a mirror almost anywhere you look, if you know where to look.

Nonetheless, Selena didn't need any fancy mirror, just one with which she could care for her appearance. Every day she put so much effort into being the prettiest she could, it was hard for her to be even better. But she had to! Normally, she cleaned her face whenever she was going to sleep, but that time was different: she had to be at her best. But if she applied too much makeup on her face, her bed would get stained!

The large mirror resting on the light-grey colored wall showed her the image of a frowning woman worried about more things than she could handle. After gulping down her anxieties, Selena took a risky decision: no maquillage for that night.

Once she cleared her face of makeup, she stared at the imperfections of her skin. …

"There's no way I'm showing myself like this! Maquillage on it is!" Her hand reached for the foundations, but before she covered her face in beautifying lies again, she glimpsed at herself once last time.

Selena decided to wear a loose dark-red dress with black flounces, which didn't hid her shoulders or her thin arms. She was stuck with the idea of being the loveliest she could be for Odin, and as such, the redhead took a good amount of time to choose that dress. It had a special meaning for her, given that it was the one Odin said that would suit her nicely the last time they shopped in Windmire. The absence of her makeup could have another meaning: that night, no mask would defend her from who she really was, and how she really felt.

The girl clenched her fists over her nicely cared legs, feeling yet once again that ache on her chest. Why did that have to occur? Why did Odin… was the way he was? How could he? Did he know no shame? … And why did it make her so jealous? The mirror warned her of the grumpy face she was making yet again. Her clean grumpy embarrassed face.

The neutral door was knocked, announcing the visit that waited at her entrance. Selena stood up bouncing off the ground, making her a little dizzy. Her house wasn't any mansion, but she didn't really mind that. She slept at her living room, on the comfortable double bed of brown sheets. The cuisine, with the last remains of all the food she prepared to beat Peri at cooking, was locked to hide the disaster it was.

Selena quickly returned all of her foundations to the bathroom, making multiples trips to return the little bottles that fell from her grip. Then, she embraced all of the clothes she laid on the bed and pushed them into her swamped wardrobe. The clock was ticking, and Odin waiting.

The redhead gave a final twirl to check once again everything. Ready or not, she went to the door and pulled its knob. Her long ponytails were still following the trace of her moves when she found his eyes.

"Hey, you came." Selena said without her usual sarcastic tone. Odin looked at his hands, then showcased himself moving his palms down in an open gesture and nodded.

"I did." He would have dressed his words much fancier, but the tension built up in his body had been greater than he anticipated. Regarding how he dressed himself, a casual short sleeved golden shirt with a brown sash around his waist, over some white big trousers with golden marks on the sides.

"You love yellow, don't you?" Selena murmured, trying to calculate the amount of different golden outfits she had seen him wearing.

"My uncle and my cousins can have the noble dark blue, for I will reign over the brilliant tones of the golden hero of legend!" Odin couldn't help getting carried away, sweeping his arms in exaggerated gestures. He had it in his veins, after all. Nevertheless, Selena didn't reply anything. Instead, she just drew a little smile on her lips and raised a knowing brow.

Then it was Odin's turn to actually realize what she looked like. When he noticed she wasn't wearing makeup, a sudden dread sprouted within him: the last time he almost got to see her like that she threatened him with kicking his rear, and she was well capable of doing so. On top of that, she was wearing red.

"D-didn't you hate red?" Odin questioned, breaking the absurd pose he adopted to behave properly. The redhead scratched her cheek, looking at the ground with distant eyes.

"It's not my favorite color… but I don't hate it." Selena corrected, finally placing her eyes on him again.

"I think it suits you wonderfully. You look amazing in that dress!" Odin smiled, a bit uncomfortable with being that honest when his honesty was going to be tested soon. Selena shrugged with surprise, her eyes unable to look away from him. He really said it!

"Hmm… Come on in." She offered hiding her face behind a hand. It was too soon to blush. Mental strength, Selena, mental strength!

Odin followed her and, as soon as he was in, his eyes started devouring every nook, for that was the place Selena called her home. The girl glared at him once she discovered his doing. She was supposed to stare at her, incapable of freeing his eyes from her spell! Before she burst enraged, she shook her head to calm herself down.

"I'll get you some tea. Wait here. Don't. Touch. Anything." She warned as she disappeared behind the door to her kitchen.

The coalition of doors shared many secrets. One of them was how both of the humans sighed after the girl exited. Odin wavered around, gazing everywhere as a mean to recollect his thoughts.

His ears were always attentive to the sounds Selena made in the kitchen, but his eyes were soon captured by the view of her bed. He had been to her room a few times already, but as it had been nighttime he could never appreciate any detail. Only her sleeping expression illuminated by the moon.

It was the first time she actually asked him to cast his spells on her sleep. He really didn't mind drawing for her the best dream he could create, but seeing their old friends was an easy feat compared to that he was supposed to perform that night. What was he going to do anyway? Pretend to be her boyfriend?

Dreams were blur scenes in your mind. With a little pull from magic and some special herbs, you could suggest another course to the storyline. He first researched that magic in an attempt of being able to live his own fantasies and reinforce his persona. However, when he first casted the spell on her dreams, he never thought he would end up in that situation!

"Here you go." Selena put the board with the tea cups on her bed.

"T-thanks." Odin nodded, moving mechanically to sit next to her.

"I have to confess - I didn't think you were actually going to come." The redhead said, handing over the tea to him. The word 'confess' made her stammer a little. … She couldn't do it after all. "Y-you don't have to do it, you know? I'd feel bad for forcing you into this." Selena muttered, taking a sip while looking sideways.

"Odin Dark does not hesitate to take on any challenge!" The blonde exhorted, victim to his aching blood. "I mean, I did promise it…" He added in a much softer voice.

"But I was unreasonable! There's no chance you would really do it…" Selena discarded as she approached the cup to her lips again. "…o-or is there?" She asked before drinking any more tea. Odin choked.

"Jeez, you got your shirt stained. Those don't come off as easily if you let them be." Selena scolded off, grabbing his clothes. "Nude."

"Hey! I'll do it myself. Where's the toilet?" Odin complained, not letting her force his shirt off.

"Just nude!"

The redhead beat him at stubbornness, so she entered the bathroom to wash the tea away. Odin didn't mind exposing his chest in front of her –there wasn't much difference with her mage suit–, but being in her room half-dressed was a dangerous thought.

"It will be dry in a while. You'll have to stay until that's done." Selena informed shaking her shoulders to loosen her tension.

"Then let's get to it." The blonde replied with a dead serious face. The girl didn't expect things to take that turn so quickly, but fighting it would only delay the unavoidable. The idea of being rejected in her dreams visited her mind. Her body became shaky, her nerves on edge.

After taking away the board with the drinks, Selena lied on the bed and tried to chill out. She had to be asleep for the magic to work. However, having him, of all people, staring at her while she tried to rest wasn't the most natural of contexts.

"Why don't you tell me one of your stories? They help me getting sleepy." Selena smirked with her eyes closed.

"WHAT?! How can you possibly get sleepy when awesomeness is being displayed in front of you? Have I never talked you about how I conquered the bellowing dimension of the Dark Quartz? The Sacred Stones? The key to immortality?" He blasted. Selena yawned.

"Hah! I won't let you rest tonight, Selena." That sentence by itself aroused the girl, who curled up in response. "I will have you hear the black path that my eyes has discerned from within the nonexistence in order to master the mysteries of the unknown!" The later one, however, made her consciousness fade away without resistance.

"Selena? Did you really fall asleep already?" Odin asked in confusion, taken aback by his ineffective methods. There was no reply from the sound asleep girl.

The mage took out the little bag in which he carried the herbs and picked a bit with his fingers. He zooned out for a few minutes, glancing from Selena to the herbs, but with more frequency to the former.

Sitting next to the Moon's Daughter, Odin realized something: the question concealed in his heart was unimportant. He hadn't been asked whether he held or not the same feelings for Selena. She asked him to give her a good dream in which she could let herself go unraveled.

If… Odin had to put in clearer words what he was going to do with her feelings… he'd just say:

"I accept the content in your heart, star within mortals. However, I still don't get it. Time and time again you've told me to stop acting the way I did. … … Wait." He suddenly realized. "Back at the world we saved from utter chaos, you once cheered me up and told me never to give up who I wanted to be." Those memories were engraved into his skull like few others.

The redhead was fast asleep, so any answer she could utter would just be an incomprehensible moan.

"Even though I've known you for a real long time now, you're yet surrounded by a veil of mystery indecipherable to my expert eyes. Just who are you, Severa? How could you tell the words… I never imagined I'd hear you saying to me?"

Silence, tainted with the soft breath of the sleeping redhead, was everything left to answer.

"You will have to forgive me, for I won't be your destined one tonight." Odin decided, tightening his grip over the herbs. "Following your advice, I won't be pretending to be something I am not. Meanwhile, I will do my best to make your rest enjoyable. You deserve everything good that could happen to you. Hereby, I am here to grant you no less."

After those resolved words of determination, Odin muttered the ancient spell to make the herbs perform their magic on both of them. He would be literally joining Selena in whatever dream she was having. There, he'd just be himself and work hard for making her smile, all while he tried to find out the responses to his unanswered questions. A date, so-to-say.

He rested right next to her. He couldn't get himself to sleep as easily as she did with his antics. For some reason, looking at her slept expression made him relax. He accepted a long time ago that she was beautiful, anyway.

When his eyelids got heavy, a beam of light at the other side brought him next to a redhead with crossed arms and a nervous expression. Upon exchanging looks, Odin blushed.

"What took you so long? You kept me waiting…" Selena sighed. Then, she smiled at him in such a charming way; Odin's heart couldn't help but to race. He didn't know she could make that face. …

"Heroes are always late." He smiled back, inflating his chest with pride. Selena giggled as she made her way to hug him, cuter than Odin believed possible. … … She fit riskily well between his arms… …

Melting away became a danger to avoid. Eye-contact was embarrassingly difficult to maintain. Just who was Selena?

I swear it was a coincidence. I didn't mean to finish this chapter around this date. Date. Hahah. Get it? … I mean, February the fourteenth… a romantic scene. How curious.

Anyway, there were a few things I wanted to comment here. (*) To begin with, did you notice just how many things could be misunderstood in a funny sexual way? Third, do the comments of their inner thoughts enlarge the scenes too much (making it hard to read, I mean)? Forth, but not least, did you notice this should be the sixth instead of the forth remark (madness overflow with a mix of nonsense)? And secondly, am I the only one who starves to know how their date went like?! …

I guess I should save my opinion on that matter. Shipping, relativity, different opinions, diversity… I won't be saying that my ships are better than any of yours just because I focus on the psychological side of them. … However, you'll have it tough to make me change my mind about them. You've seen it. I haven't answered Odin's questions yet. This is far from over. *Laughs evilly*

Ugh… this is getting too large (*). To sum up: Leo. He's just so cool, so clever… I can go on, but that wouldn't be summing up, would it? Odin x Selena, um… what else? Laslow and the others. … Oh! And Charlotte's topic. Find out more, in the next chapter. *Wink, wink* *Elbow, elbow*

PD: This is story is no longer just a translation. I add too many new scenes and rewrite whole sections from scratch to consider it merely a translation. You may ignore this parenthesis. I didn't actually mean anything with this. A simple curiosity, so to say.