[chapter_7]

Bella all but drags herself into the dorm, fatigue pulling at all of her limbs. Her denim backpack slips off her shoulder, down her arm, and onto the floor with a heavy thud. She leans back against the door as it closes, sagging against the jackets hanging off the back of the door. She releases a long sigh and squeezes her eyes shut - she's looked at so many letter and numbers that it feels like the impressions are burned onto the back of her eyelids.

Maybe this is why she has hardly any reaction when she opens her eyes to the sight of Rose standing in front of the backdrop she uses for her Instagram posts, puckering her lips at Alice, who is taking pictures with her phone. She's too exhausted by studying that she can't summon any energy to be surprised by what is a common occurrence in the dorm.

What day is it, again? She's been studying so much for finals next week that she's lost count of the days. If not for one of her roommates regularly pushing her into the dining hall, she probably would have forgotten to eat, too. Finals are important. Vital. Essential. The one time she cannot afford to mess up, not even a little bit. She is striving for perfection. She has to.

The studying though - that's a necessary evil. Because of finals she has been gaming less this week, something that Master Culler understands. Apparently he's a student, too. He'd implied something about his own finals and they had arranged a time this weekend to begin training for the competition. Bella is using her time with Master Culler as a reward system. Study well, play well.

Observing her roommates, she is somewhat mystified that neither of them are studying as much as she is - even Leah is hitting the books with a certain dedication that only unearths itself at the end of the semester. Rose and Alice, on the other hand, seem to have everything well in hand.

Bella is just the slightest bit jealous. But she doesn't begrudge them, especially as she knows that Rose is using this time to earn money to put herself through school.

Bella watches from the door a moment more. "What is it this time?" she asks tiredly, managing to shuffle into the common room to peer at Rose over Alice's shoulder.

"Lipstick," Rose answers.

Ah. Well, that would explain the pucker and the brilliant crimson on her lips. Rose has managed to find a shade befitting her name and has carefully applied the color to every curve of her lips. She has cleverly paired the lipstick with a muted makeup look, champagne glitz on her eyes and cheeks so the color of her lips is obvious, unable to be missed.

As Alice adjusts the camera frame, Rose flips a cascade of beachy waves over her shoulder and presses the closed tube of lipstick against her lips. She manages to mesh a playful expression with one of seduction, an innocence that appears effortless.

Bella squints her eyes to read the label. "It's liquid?"

"And cruelty free," Rose says. She arches her brow thoughtfully, and Alice captures the image. "There's been a 175% increase in the sale of vegan makeup since 2013. Cruelty free is the way to go - this brand is clever for being openly vegan friendly."

"And even more clever to have you advertising for them," Bella notes. She is nonplussed at the seemingly random spout of facts - she would bet anything that one of Rose's final projects is exploring those types of sale analytics.

"They sent a lot of colors," Alice says. She puts down the phone and happily rummages through a box of a dozen tubes of liquid lipstick, then pulls one out to pass over. "Here Bella, this is your color. It's even subtle the way you like it."

Bella takes the tube, rolling it between her fingers. The shade is a shell pink, a soft hue maybe one shade darker than the natural tone of her lips. Alice is right - when Bella bothers to wear anything more elaborate than SPF moisturizer and tinted balm, she does prefer more subtle, natural looking products.

"Thank you," she says to both girls, tucking the lipstick away.

Rose, of course, waves her thanks away. Her attitude for the samples sent to her has always been what's mine is yours, a certain generosity most people don't possess. Bella is thankful all the same, even if Rose is uncomfortable hearing it.

Alice, meanwhile, has donned an exaggerated moue. "I'm so jealous of your complexion. You can wear any color, meanwhile I'm stuck as a winter forever," she complains. "You're so lucky."

Bella huffs a laugh. "Lucky? I can go from pale to lobster in 60 seconds flat!"

Rose snorts.

"That does sound inconvenient," Alice admits.

"You have no idea," Bella tells her, completely serious. Even now she can feel the phantom pain of the terrible, awful, horrible sunburn she had visiting her mom in Arizona one summer as a kid. She has used sunscreen religiously ever since.

Rose shifts, sitting down on the red bean bag chair that has been dragged to the corner. With the backdrop being mostly white and Rose wearing a denim vest over a white tank, the color of her lips and the bean bag are vibrant. Bella can see Alice's hand in this, the way the colors coordinate to make a statement, to draw attention. Rose looks so casually cool it's almost unbelievable.

That's modeling, I guess, Bella muses. More power to Rose that she's comfortable doing it. Bella can't relate at all.

"Hey, do you have time?" Rose wonders. "I know it's your time to turn into a study beast with finals around the corner, but Ali and I could use a second hand. If you want."

Bella releases a breath, a valve releasing pressure. "Honestly, a break sounds nice. If I look at another textbook I might actually cry."

Alice studies her for a moment before reaching over to pat Bella on the shoulder. "You do look a little tired, honey," she says sympathetically, tone lilted with the softest twang.

Bella's shoulders droop. "Finals are hard..."

And it's true - finals are hard, twice as hard as midterms and twice as exhausting. But the hardest part is the pressure she puts on herself. She isn't quite a perfectionist, she doesn't think, but she does have a set standard that she has to meet. It isn't a matter of wanting the best grades, but rather a matter of needing the best grades. The path she has chosen for herself isn't an easy one. It's demanding, time consuming, and double the workload - but it is the path she wants to walk. She likes the challenge, but the challenge is a double-edged sword. Equal risk for equal reward, except the catch is that the slightest slip means she won't be getting back on the path so easily.

Finals are hard because Bella needs the scholarship that helps fund the additional classes she takes. No scholarship, no financial aid. Such is the tragic state of the American education system. This is only one of the ways she is trying to avoid a lifetime drowning in student loan debt - and it's the most important one. This scholarship is everything.

"The double major strikes again," Rose surmises.

Bells nods, equal parts grim and resolute.

"Does that mean you'll be doing a summer quarter again?"

"Its unavoidable," Bella says truthfully. There aren't enough hours in the day for Bella to attend classes for two majors. Her course schedule is something she spends hours agonizing over each quarter, and the only way to arrange the classes and give herself enough time to live outside of the library means she takes classes year-round.

It isn't so bad, really. She gets to spread her course load over four quarters, which lightens some of the load. Working with her academic counselor, she's even managed to find elective courses that coincide with requirements for both majors. All the year-round classes really mean is that, unlike her peers, Bella doesn't take the whole summer off. The payoff is worth it. If she's lucky and can keep to this pace, she might even be able to graduate a bit earlier.

"Well, I'll be here to keep you company this summer," Alice says brightly. She's rooting through the lipsticks again, comparing shades with no clear intent. "I have to make up that class from fall quarter."

Rose clicks her tongue, shaking her head with mock sadness. "You poor things. You'll be here studying while I'll be spending some quality time with the ocean in SoCal."

"Nobody likes a braggart, Rose," Bella chides.

"I disagree. Brag if you can," Rose asserts. "Being humble never got anyone anywhere."

Bella is less than surprised to hear the most confident and proud person she knows say something like this. And it isn't that she disagrees exactly, but she also can't fully support the idea. Charlie Swan raised his daughter humbly, after all, and always said that strong moral character was more impressive than temporary achievements.

To each their own.

Alice frowns at Rose, dropping the lipsticks back into the box. "Did you forget about the internship?"

Rose frowns right back. "Do you really think we'll get it?"

"It ain't over 'till the plump lady sings," Alice drawls, sugar-coated and sweet, punctuated with a little huff and a nod as if agreeing with herself.

"She does have a point," Bella says. She reaches around Alice, picking Rose's phone up and bringing the camera app up again. She points the phone at Rose, who is sending her a skeptical look. "We do still have the interview."

Alice snaps her fingers. "Speaking of the interview! Don't you think we should dress the part?" Alice's idea is met with two blank stares. She looks back at them expectantly. "You know, play up the geek girl thing? Since it's a tech company?"

"No," Rose says flatly.

It's a tone that brooks no argument, so Alice turns her round eyes to Bella, looking for support.

Bella snaps a few more pictures of Rose. "Uh…" she hedges. "Aren't I already a geek girl? Don't I already dress like that?"

Alice runs her eyes over Bella's current attire. To be fair, Bella is more ruffled than usual because of all the studying, but the fact remains that she is wearing a hoodie emblazoned with various mushroom heads of Super Mario's Toad character. She almost feels guilty, and maybe even a little offended, when Alice's assessment ends with a muttered, "I guess that's true…Can't get any more geeky than that…"

"The best impression is an honest one, Ali," Bella says coolly.

Bella presses her lips together, shooting a look at Rose. It's a silent exchange they've all perfected to some degree - when one roommate is getting an ill-advised idea in her head, someone needs to step in to be a voice of reason. Or at least attempt it.

Rose leans forward, elbows on her knees with her chin propped on the palms of her hands, and sighs. Bella quickly captures the picture, even as Rose starts to speak. "Listen to her, Ali. You don't need to play a part to get where you want to go. Just be yourself."

Alice looks between them - and if Bella didn't know her any better, she would think that Alice had been successfully convinced.

And yet she does know better, and Rose seems to feel the same way. The last picture Bella takes is Rose, winking with a conspiratorial pucker to her red lips.

Paparazzi
Should I be concerned that
Ali is going through your closet?
Like
REALLY going through it?

Sleep Talker
What does that mean

Paparazzi
Means have fun cleaning up this mess
(Picture Attachment:
Clothes spilling out of the closet onto the floor,
clearly ransacked)

Sleep Talker
Brb going to cry for a bit
(crying emoji)

Paparazzi
Lol
No worries
Your mess of a closet will be here when you return

Sleep Talker
Read at 2:12 pm

Bella has had the dubious privilege of being asked out by boys - and sometimes girls - all her life. It's always been something she has found to be awkward at best and uncomfortable at worst. After surviving Mike Newton at Forks High she should be well-practiced at an artful rejection, but truthfully Bella still stumbles over how to convey her disinterest, especially when the one asking is persistent.

Today is such a day.

Bella walks out of the library around noon, ready to follow her stomach to the nearest source of food, and almost walks right into a tall, thin boy with longish dark blond curls tucked behind his ears. He has a serious sort of face and wears rimless glasses, both hands fisting the leather backpack on his shoulders. His eyes widen behind the glasses, their color a dark indistinguishable color.

"Oh! Sorry!" she says, backing up a few steps to edge around him. He's standing in an awkward spot, right in the middle of the landing between the two sets of concrete stairs leading to the library building. She thinks, at first, that she must have not been paying attention and had almost knocked someone over.

But then he says, "No problem!" and he kind of looks at her in a way that clues her in. Even before he tips his hand with his next words, Bella has a feeling she already knows what he's after. "Hey, you're Bella, right? Bella Swan?"

Bella halts and looks up at this tall stranger. "I am," she says, running her eyes over his features, trying to place him. She draws a blank. "Do I know you? I'm notoriously bad with names and faces, so I'm sorry if I'm supposed to know you. I swear I didn't forget you on purpose."

Twin spots of pink appear on his face. "N-no, you wouldn't know me. I'm a freshman."

"Oh." Bella falters. Had she made a mistake in her assumption? A freshman seeking her out - maybe he's someone that takes classes at the Huang Center? She offers a polite smile. "Is a Professor looking for me? Professor Lee, maybe?"

His face grows redder. "As far as I know, no," he answers, doggedly maintaining eye contact. "I'm Jasper Whitlock, majoring in Anthropology…and I'm the one looking for you."

So my assumption was right, she thinks with a muted sense of despair.

"Oh. Well…Hi, then." She waits for him to say something, but he just continues staring at her, seemingly frozen by nerves. How rude would it be to just…walk away? Terribly rude. Bella can't bring herself to be so awful to a perfect stranger - she isn't sure she could even be that mean to someone she knows, either. Bella sighs. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Can I buy you lunch?" he blurts out.

Internally, Bella winces. On the outside, though, she offers a slight smile tinged with apology. "I actually have plans for lunch."

"Dinner then."

"Eating with my roommates."

"Coffee?" he tries, clearly grasping at straws at this point.

Any boldness he had in coming to find her to ask her out is swiftly slipping away, and Bella actually feels some pity for him. It can't be easy to be in his shoes. Bella knows that she could never have this much courage, not in this. She eyes him sympathetically, and her smile grows more sincere. "I'm sorry, but no," she says gently. "Please understand, I'm not interested in dating right now."

Jasper deflates. "Oh."

"Yeah…" The silence stretches, increasingly awkward when Bella's stomach audibly rumbles. She hooks her thumb over her shoulder and says, "I'll just…go now."

Jasper nods, not really looking at her anymore.

Bella eases away, casting one more glance at Jasper Whitlock and trying not to feel too bad about turning him down.

If there was anything that Renee Higginbotham and Sue Clearwater-Swan ever agreed about, it was that no woman should ever feel bad about rejecting a man they are not interested in - and they should never agree to date someone just because they feel sorry for them. As her mom says, Women get into too much trouble being nice. Stick to your no. It's probably some of the only useful advice Renee has ever given her, and she follows it heartily.

He seems like a sweet kid, she thinks. He'll bounce back.

After all, it wasn't like she was mean about the way she turned him down, right? She has no reason to feel bad.

Bella puts Jasper Whitlock out of her mind and follows her nose to the nearest dining hall.

Bella Swan ʘthelittlecygnet
No sleep until finals are over we die like men

L Clearwater ʘClearlyFlimingThis
So, how many of those espresso beans did you have?

Bella Swan ʘthelittlecygnet
All of them ʘClearlyFlimingThis

Seth Clearwater ʘchangethisquil
RIP ʘthelittlecygnet

L Clearwater ʘClearlyFlimingThis
ʘchangethisquil She fell asleep like this lmfao
(Picture Attachment:
Bella slumped over a desk covered in books, highlighter in hand, drooling.
Someone has drawn a smiley face connected by freckles in black pen.)

By Friday night, Bella finally gives up. Her brain is mush. She can't stand to look at another book, highlighter, or challenge question at the end of textbook chapters. She's been halfway monosyllabic for the entire day and Leah has started giving her these looks, like she's a hairsbreadth away from stealing all of Bella's study materials and locking them up for her own good.

She treats herself to a luxuriously long shower, the tension melting out of her shoulders as the soothing honey-and-lavender scent of her bathing products eases the stress from her mind. She stays in the shower until her skin is pink, takes her time rubbing lotion onto every inch of her skin, and then puts on her favorite pajamas, a white long-sleeved sleepshirt with a snoozing sloth embroidered over the pocket square. She locates her blue-light-cancelling glasses to be kind to her eyes, retreats to her bed with her laptop, and snuggles between her pillows with a pack of chocolate covered peanuts.

Already sufficiently relaxed, Bella logs onto Dawn of Warcraft, prepared to catch up on her daily quests, something easy so her mind can drift freely. She takes it as a positive sign for her plans to wind down from the week when she notes that Janeway isn't logged on - and that means there isn't any gossip floating around. What a win. Bella smiles to herself and sends Swansong through the rigors of collecting plants and hunting down rare mushrooms.

At some point, Leah slinks into the dorm, takes in Bella's makeshift fortress of pillows, and mutters, "How is that relaxing?"

"I'm very relaxed," Bella says to her, eyes never leaving the computer screen. "This is the most relaxed I've been all week, maybe the most relaxed I've been in my whole life."

Leah flops onto her own bed, kicks her backpack onto the floor, and says mirthfully, "I seem to remember you being much more relaxed when we accidentally ate those brownies Cousin Emily made."

Bella pauses. "That's fair."

"So, is this what you're doing all night?"

"Yep. Why? What are you doing?"

Leah groans. "I've got a goddamn study group again. I have to leave in, like, fifteen minutes."

"Poor Leah."

"I know, right?" Leah heaves a sigh and sits up, resigned to her fate. "Since I'm going out, I thought I'd stock up on stuff to survive next week. Requests?"

"A bunch of those Starbucks energy drinks," Bella says quickly. She pauses her control of Swansong, glancing at her sister, who is nodding in agreement. "The spicy ramen noodles, too."

"Oh, yes. And sunflower seeds."

"Poptarts?"

"Only if they're blueberry. Rose won't eat anything else."

"Alice likes those cherry mash things, if you can find them."

"I'd kill someone for a Payday, too," Leah says. She tugs her phone from her pocket, quickly tapping out the list of must-haves to survive finals week. A thought seems to pop into her head, because she looks up at Bella with wide eyes. "Oh, my God. How could we forget the danish?"

"Take my bank card," Bella tells her. "Get me all the bearclaws they have."

"Your wish, my command." Leah makes a beeline for Bella's wallet, which rests on the shelf between their beds, a simple white leather booklet with tiny cactus printed on one side. The stress of hell week must be getting to Leah too because she doesn't make any more of her normal teasing comments after she finds the card. Leah tucks the card into her own wallet, scoops up her backpack, and blows a kiss over her shoulder as she leaves the room. She closes the door behind her, leaving Bella alone with only her game as company.

Swansong finishes two daily quests and is in the middle of a third one when it happens.

At first, she doesn't notice anything is wrong. Swansong is hunting a wild boar, a low-level monster that is supposed to reward kills with skill books to bolster player skills, and barely registers the blip of another player on the edge of her area. The hunting ground is open to all players, of course, so there isn't anything unusual about seeing a fellow gamer.

What is unusual is when Swansong is lining up her kill, already locked onto the target, and the other player comes out of nowhere and kills her boar. Swansong's attack goes wide, and the other player turns around, dashing toward Swansong in a blatant attack.

Bella's first thought is, This is a scrap-picker. If he kills me, he'll get my equipment - Master Culler's equipment.

Swansong is no stranger to dueling, and manages to fend the other player off. The other player might be swift and may even be a skilled scrap-picker, but Swansong is better. She lands several hits against him, lowering his health points enough that he is forced to retreat before he dies - although he is sure to take the skill books from they prey he stole before he disappears.

Swansong is left on the hunting grounds, standing beside a boar she did not kill and without the skill books she needs to complete her daily quests. There are other players around her, those who were drawn in by the commotion, and Bella just knows the public chat is already firing up about this.

Bella is fuming as she logs out of the game, flinging her glasses onto the bookshelf between her bed and Leah's. She puts her laptop at the end of her bed, rolls onto her side, and pulls her knees up to her chest, hiding herself under the covers.

She writes off the whole week as being completely awful and eventually falls into a disgruntled sleep, dreams a scape of nothing but exhausted blackness.

Dawn of Warcraft - Forum - NorCal Server - Free Discussion

Someone Stole Swansong's Prey!

Posted 05.29.2020 by PipPippin

So, here I am just minding my own damn business when out of nowhere some scrap-picking menace actually had the balls to steal Swansong's prey - and right in front of my salad! I can't believe it. Scrub tried to wipe Swansong for her equip but you know how it is, Swansong obviously sent him packing.

But still! Someone committed the cardinal sin against SWANSONG? Ugh, I can't believe it.

Luckily, I was wily enough to take a video. Here, check it out and be pissed right along with me.

(Video Attachment)

Discussion

Laurr
Wow cant say I'm shocked though, someone had to take Swansong down a peg

Nussun
Are you stupid? Swansong kicks your ass once and you never forget the beef. I hope she kicks your ass again and sends you afk forever

Fils
Man this sucks. If even Swansong is getting scrap-picked, what about the rest of us?

GoGoGadget
Kind of want to hunt this fool down

Lemme
I hope Swansong is okay

Weavel
Swansong is fine just look at how fast she reacted

PipPippin
You guys don't even know. Idk if I could have reacted that fast. I'm still shook. Swansong is iconic.

GoGoGadget
Are we finding this guy or what?

View More Comments

Bella's no-good, very awful week gets better on Saturday night, albeit in a roundabout way. Taking refuge in her room, she logs onto the game in less than a good mood, having had the unfortunate pleasure of stumbling across a post about herself when she was searching the forum for any updates on the inter-server competition over the summer. It's a dubious fortune, she thinks, that people are offended on her behalf - dubious only because she already knows how fickle people can be about her in particular. This week she's a victim, next week she's a villain. Even if she tries not to pay it any mind, it's difficult to not having any feeling at all about it.

When Janeway finds her online, Bella tells her that she already knows about the forum post, which Janeway seems to think is a good thing. You should know how many people really admire you, she says to Swansong. I know people gossip, but you have more supporters than you think.

And then Janway asks, So, what are you going to do about that scrap-picker?

Nothing, Bella tells her. Of course she's not going to do anything - what's the point? It happened, it's over, it's done with. It sucks that someone stole a kill right from under her nose, claiming all the work she'd done to bring down the boar's health points, and then also stole the skill book prize, but it's still just a small annoyance at the end of the day. She still has the equipment Master Culler gave her, which would have been the worst thing to lose.

She's upset by the incident, because she's human, but she doesn't think there is anything to do about it.

Yet she seems to be in the minority of this belief. Janeway thinks she should do something. Most of the forum agrees that the scrap-picker needs to be dealt with. And Master Culler - well, even he has an opinion about it.

When the time comes for Swansong and Master Culler to meet at their agreed point, she arrives to an empty field at The Crater. She finds this a bit unusual, as Master Culler has a habit of being punctual. She doesn't have to wonder where he is for long, though, because soon enough their private chat pops up on her screen.

《 Master Culler: change of plans

》Swansong: where are you?

《 Master Culler: The Canyon

《 Master Culler: we have something to do first

Before training? Surprising. Bella knows she and Master Culler haven't been allied for long, but his character is one that comes through strongly in the game - he isn't the type to just put off training or be late to meetings for no good reason. Whatever it is that has prompted this change of plans must be important. She asks for his coordinates on the map, finds the western sphere where The Canyon is, and transports Swansong there.

The Canyon is in a dry, desert climate in the game. Surrounded by three towering mountains, The Canyon is settled deep into a valley filled with saffron-yellow sand and craggy, deep-cut walls of rock. The Canyon itself is something of a twisting maze, punctuated only here and there by outdoor stalls with sun-bleached fabric awnings that sell medications and other goods. The markets of The Canyon are some of the best places to find marked-down supplies and is well-known for trading among scrap-pickers.

Something like suspicion takes root in her mind as Swansong walks through the narrow passages of red rock - and the further the stalls become, the more suspicious she becomes. Surely Master Cullen wouldn't go this far on her behalf. Right?

Except her suspicions prove correct, because soon enough Swansong is standing beside Master Culler's blindingly white form, their characters facing the struggling form of a now-familiar character. The scrap-picker - Hive - is leashed to a tall pillar of red rock, held in place by a crackling blue lightning whip that is infamously part of Master Culler's personalized equipment.

Bella blinks at the screen, stunned.

Master Culler is holding the scrap-picker that thieved her hostage. Who even does something like this? It's - it's - Bella doesn't even have the words to describe what it is. Incredible, maybe. And probably not in a good way.

》Swansong: what is this?

》Swansong: revenge?

《 Master Culler: retribution

《 Master Culler: you need those skill books

Maybe she does. After all, skill books can be very useful, especially when preparing for competitions. If she can level her skills up enough, she'll be able to speed up the power and damage of her attacks - maybe even to be on-level with Master Culler.

But there are other ways to get skill books. It would take time, of course, because gaming is one big time-suck, but she does have her summer holiday off and that's surely enough time to collect the skill books she needs.

And honestly, she doesn't see the point in any of this.

》Swansong: he won't give them to me

《 Master Culler: he will

》Swansong: oh really?

《 Master Culler: he's in a compulsion loop quest

Which means he can't log out until the quest is complete - and he can't die, or he has to start over from the very beginning. Failing compulsion quests can also drop player levels, too. In other words, Hive is stuck here until he cooperates unless he wants to sacrifice his own level to escape. And he's high-level, too, which means he probably won't want to be doing that.

How convenient.

》Swansong: I see

Master Culler says nothing, but his character does take a step back, a silent encouragement. For what, she isn't sure at first, so Swansong just stands there doing nothing for a solid 30 seconds. And then she realizes that Master Culler wants her to take over the proceedings.

He got Hive here, so apparently it's Bella's turn.

She bites her lip, not sure how to proceed. She isn't sure how comfortable she is with all of this either - Hive certainly as it coming, but to this extent? She would prefer a duel. But Master Culler probably chose this path for a reason, right?

Bella sighs and decides to go for bluntness.

》Swansong: well

》Swansong: are you going to return the skill books you stole?

《 Hive: you can't hold me here forever

》Swansong: I can't, but he can

》Swansong: he has more than enough magic points to keep you here indefinitely

》Swansong: and you're on limited time aren't you?

《 Hive: fuck you

Well, that's rude, she thinks, lips pressed together. She's starting to feel a lot less bad about this situation.

《 Master Culler: watch your language

《 Hive: fuck you too

《 Hive: go ahead and try it

《 Hive: you're not getting shit from me

《 Master Culler: there are always ways of getting what we want

It sounds vaguely like a threat, but it proves to not be an empty promise. To Bella's dismay, Master Culler suggests that she draw a weapon from her inventory. The implication is clear - hack away at Hive's health points until he gives up the skill books. And Master Culler wants her to take care of it because it's her problem.

She just doesn't understand why, exactly. Skill books are important, but she has more than enough time to find others before the competition. There's something else here, something in Master Culler's head that she doesn't quite get. But all the same, she can feel the chilly rising tide of her anger over the whole incident the day before, which is why she pulls out the twin daggers that are part of her current silver equipment.

《 Master Culler: not those

《 Master Culler: damage points are too high

Bella's brows shoot up, mirroring her surprise. But…Master Culler does have a point. Killing Hive too soon would be kind of like mercy because it just means he'll be able to restart his quest sooner. Drawing it out provides a kind of pressure, something to tip the scales, a psychological attack to compound the physical one.

It's - devious, actually. Merciless, too. She wouldn't have thought about something like this in a hundred years by herself. And given the way Hive continues spitting curses through the chat window, she doesn't feel too bad about drawing out her beginner sword, the one that has the lowest possible damage. She sets it to autoattack, hacking blood points away one at a time.

《 Hive: my hp is too high

《 Hive: this will take hours to kill me

》Swansong: that's the point

Swansong steps back alongside Master Culler and watches impassively as Hive's health points slowly, but steadily continue to decline. At some point, Master Culler tells her that he has to take a phone call so he'll be away from keyboard; she takes that opportunity to scroll through her various social media accounts, takes a few silly Buzzfeed quizzes, sends a text to Sue to make sure her dad is sticking to his diet.

Time goes by and eventually Hive stops spitting acid on the chat - instead, he's engaging in some spat with a tarted character called Cherry Lane, a Human dressed in what is little more than a bikini. Cherry Lane looks somewhat familiar. Bella has definitely seen her somewhere before, and recently. A player armored like that and with a name like that is hard to forget.

When Cherry Lane starts going on about how she'll free Hive and save him, Bella finally feels a need to step in.

》Swansong: this is a private matter

Predictably, Cherry Lane immediately turns her attention to Swansong, which gives her a chance to study her player details. Barely even past Level 20, none of her skills maxed out. Not a serious player. Barely even a player, in fact. It rings a certain bell, doesn't it?

《 Cherry Lane: you're bullying him!

《 Master Culler: mind your business

Master Culler's return is abrupt, and Bella leans back against her pillows to watch. This whole thing seems like it's spiraling out of control. Where did Cherry Lane even come from, honestly? She just kind of appeared out of nowhere. Probably a friend of Hive's, looking for him and found this instead? It's possible. It would explain why she's so adamant he be freed.

《 Cherry Lane: you high ranked players suck!

《 Cherry Lane: you're bullies!

《 Cherry Lane: how would you like it if this got out?

Bella shakes her head with a sigh. Cherry Lane really is a casual gamer - otherwise she'd already know that the entire server already knows about the issue between Swansong and Hive. And what the server's opinion about it is. Frankly, she doesn't think anyone will be too torn up to hear about what happened to Hive if it does get out - the forum is already looking for him for the same reason.

《 Hive: really Cherry leave it be

《 Hive: I do kind of deserve it

《 Hive: and I'm ready to return the skill books

Sure enough, a notification from the game system alerts Swansong that Hive is gifting her the skill books. She accepts them without delay, putting them into her inventory until she can apply them and upgrade her skills.

《 Cherry Lane: I'm telling everyone about this!

《 Hive: really don't bother

《 Hive: look the score is already settled on the forum, I posted an apology

《 Hive: can you release me now?

Master Culler sends a quick private message to verify that Swansong got the skill books back, and when she confirms it, he wastes no time releasing Hive from the lightning whip. Another message from him is quick on the heels of that action.

《 Master Culler: meet me at The Crater

Master Culler disappears in a whirl of white-blue as he is transported to another area of the map; Swansong is swift to follow.

The Crater is in the deep north of the game map, a remote area that resembles the surface of the moon in many ways. The game designers have taken great pains to make the greater north as desolate as possible, a wide expanse of rocky land marked by deep gouges to the surface, some smaller craters filled with glistening silver water, others homes of withering skeletons and corpses. The Crater itself is the largest crater in this area of the map, a flat pit with sides the curl up like towering stalagmites that reach toward the twin moons and the green-blue northern lights above. Here at The Crater it is eternal night, the sky above a seemingly endless expanse of black with only a few stars in sight.

It is here that Swansong materializes next to Master Culler. He stands next to a short alter that has been split in two by the Sword of Selene, which is still stuck in the rock, a tool that is required to complete one of the more challenging upper level quests. Swansong has not completed that quest; Master Culler has. This serves as a reminder of the differences between their levels.

This is perhaps why she is less than surprised by his next message.

《 Master Culler: you should have taken care of this yourself

《 Master Culler: I stepped in this time out of necessity, but I will not do it again

Bella frowns at her laptop screen. She's being chastised and warned in one breath, not something that happens very often. She tries to wrap her mind around how drastically different this night has been than what she expected, tries to figure out what Master Culler's motivation for all this was. It's surely nothing simple, not with the way his mind seems to work. After all, it is not an easy thing to go out of his way to capture a scrap-picker, secure him, and then direct Swansong through it all. In fact, if he wanted, he could have done it all himself.

So why had he gotten her involved? Certainly not for the same reason she went along with it, which was her residual anger over the whole incident. Unless - well, no. It would be silly to think that Master Culler had been angry on her behalf and that is why he went to such lengths.

No, there is something else here, something elusive that she can't grasp. Master Culler is definitely on a whole other level. They might as well not even be playing on the same field.

But all the same, she feels it's important to get one thing straight - Master Culler needs to know where she stands in all of this. He said his intervention was a one-time thing; he should know that her willingness to go along with it is also something rare.

》Swansong: good

》Swansong: it was a nonissue for me in the first place

《 Master Culler: were you not upset?

》Swansong: I was, but because stealing prey and scrap-picking is rude

》Swansong: there are always other skill books

》Swansong: correcting wrongs in this way takes a lot of energy, don't you think?

Bella watches the private chat, waiting for the next incoming message. What will his response be at her subtle chastisement? He seems to have thought she was upset and acted accordingly, which is a novel concept. Almost chivalrous. Not that Bella needs anyone taking care of her, but the thought that Master Culler would take these misguided steps for her - well.

It's something new, for sure. She isn't sure if she welcomes it or not. Good intentions are worth a lot, though.

《 Master Culler: you're right, but you're also wrong

》Swansong: oh?

"How am I wrong?" she asks the screen, narrowing her eyes at the white avatar standing beside her own. On the screen, Master Culler is staring off in the distance, not even facing Swansong, the picture of a man lost in thought.

Bella prepares herself for an explanation, and she isn't disappointed.

《 Master Culler: Hive picked you for your equipment thinking you were an easy target

《 Master Culler: you aren't and you fought him off, but you didn't complete the job

《 Master Culler: now you have

Bella leans back against her pillows, with a long, slow release of air. She's been playing catch-up trying to understand where Master Culler is coming from - and now she has a reason.

She shakes her head, caught between disbelief and dismay. Master players really do think differently than the rest of us, she muses. Here she is, trying to have some moral high ground over what should be an insignificant event, and Master Culler is on the other side of the screen thinking leagues ahead.

Even before she sends back her reply, she has a sense of where this is going. Master Culler's actions have been three-fold the entire time. Capturing Hive and getting those skill books back was an action that accomplished three tasks simultaneously - it was rightful justice, a way to send a message to the NorCal server, and a lesson for Swansong all in one.

》Swansong: so this wasn't just retribution

》Swansong: it was also about sending a message

《 Master Culler: the competition doesn't begin on the first official day

《 Master Culler: it starts now

《 Master Culler: an image of strength is better than any ultimate skill to intimidate the competition

What's that meme Seth is always wheezing over? Galaxy brain? Bella bites her lip, tapping out a response. This is some galaxy brain level stuff. I can barely keep up with what this guy is thinking.

It's exciting, in a way. For Bella, it's usually the other way around with people struggling to keep up with her - now the shoe is on the other foot and she's left wondering what Master Culler will do or say next. He's almost unfathomable to her, and she doesn't think she dislikes him for it.

》Swansong: you're talking about reputation

《 Master Culler: yes

》Swansong: reputation is fickle, just like people

《 Master Culler: maybe

《 Master Culler: but not for this

And he's right. From a strictly tactical standpoint, projecting an image of strength and protecting that reputation is the best way to launch a long-game attack. It's a first step, a foreshadow, a warning all in one. Having a reputation as players that aren't to be messed with will get them a long way in the upcoming competition - it's like moving a pawn to make way for a knight on the chessboard.

But that's just the tactical side of it.

Maybe it's because she's wired differently or pumped full of estrogen or simply has different core values, but Bella can't completely let this slide. Master Culler might be a master tactician who's planning their victory several steps ahead, but that doesn't mean he's totally right about all of this. At least as far as Bella is concerned, Master Culler needs to get a message through his head.

》Swansong: my worth isn't defined by what others think of me

》Swansong: neither is my reputation

On this she will not waver, and she won't have her partner thinking otherwise. Tactical needs aside, Bella isn't the type of person who-

《 Master Culler: a fair point

《 Master Culler: but you are my partner and I won't tolerate you being disrespected

Her thoughts come to a screeching halt and a flush of warmth blooms from her chest. Master Culler doesn't want her to be disrespected? He…did all of this for the three-fold tactical reasons, but also because he was angered on her behalf?

Her heart flutters. Maybe her very first assumption hadn't been so silly after all. What does this mean for their partnership if it's true? Can she consider Master Culler a true friend? Does this mean that he cares about her beyond the competition?

She doesn't know. She's not bold enough to ask, either. But…it is something to think about.

》Swansong: I'll keep that in mind

A/N: Some things are happening. Now, isn't it interesting when the Leads don't see quite eye-to-eye on certain things, only for Lead 2 to surprise Lead 1 with emotions? That's my trope.

Scrap-picking is also shamelessly taken from The King's Avatar, which I have considered research for this entire story. It's another Chinese drama centered around gaming and recovering from grief. Watch if you want - what else do we have to do during quarantine? I don't think there were any other gaming-related details in this chapter. However, if you are at all into memes, then Galaxy Brain is always funny.

No updates on Handles!

As always, be brutally honest. I can take it. And stay safe out there - be smart, use common sense, listen to the CDC and WHO.

~Rae