"You can do this Neela, this is nothing," Neela hyped herself up as she sat on her bed alone in the dorm room. "You fought the leader of the White Fang, you took down a criminal wanted by several kingdoms, this really shouldn't be the hardest thing that you do all year." Neela looked at her scroll and her hand shook as she attempted to dial Eliana's number before standing up and pacing around the room. "Maybe I can't do it, I mean, it's not like the last time I talked to her things went well, and what if things get worse? I know that Emerald said I need to cross that bridge and try to move on with my life, but I don't know if I can do it." She breathed deeply and sat back down.
Calm down, Neela. You can do this, you got this. You've already said this, now you're just talking in circles.
"Okay, here we go. Time to take that leap I guess…" Neela told herself. She made the call and waited with bated breath, listening to it ring repeatedly. There was nothing to worry about, but Neela should have figured that much. She hadn't tried calling in the last month to try and let her mind settle since every time that she thought about Eliana, her semblance would act up and her body would shut down completely. A few more rings and at the very least Neela would be able to say that she tried. The majority of Neela hoped and prayed Eliana would pick up and at least hear her out, she felt like her confession of love had come at the absolute worst time, and she didn't say more than a few words to Eliana when they saved each other from the Chameleon. Why was it still ringing?
By now her machine would have picked up usually, she'd hear Eliana's voice, happy as could be, her greeting unchanged from what it had been while she was at Beacon. Hey there! This is Eliana Latherus! If I didn't pick up, it's likely that I'm with Neela… Yeah, that's the only place I would be, haha. Leave a message after the beep and I'll call you back when we're done hanging! Did that mean that Eliana was actively silencing her calls? Is that why it was ringing for an eternity this time? Was Eliana away from her scroll? Could it please stop ringing!? Neela could hear her pulse thundering in her head. Stop, I know she's not there!
Suddenly the ringing ended, and the scroll clicked like someone had answered.
"Hello?" A voice answered.
"Eliana?" Neela spoke softly. "Listen, Eliana, don't hang up! I need you to hear me out for a minute. I get it, okay. I understand that when I told you that I loved you that we were both going through a lot at that moment and I felt like if I didn't tell you that I'd lose you forever… but now I'm just hoping that it wasn't my telling you how I felt that drove you away. I need you to- I want you to come back, Elli. I can be your Little Hawk again, everything can go back to normal. We've all forgiven you, and Shadow doesn't even know what happened, she was asleep the entire time. Can we be friends again?" Neela waited a second for a reply. "Even if we just go back to talking to each other, it would be better than nothing."
"This is Neela, right?" The voice asked. Neela's heart crashed, stopping instantly as she realized that someone other than Eliana had been subjected to her heartfelt rant.
"Yes…" Neela slowly replied. "Who… why do you have Eliana's scroll?"
"Oh, how inconsiderate of me," they said with a laugh that annoyed Neela. "I'm one of Eliana's teammates, her new team leader in fact. My name's Fade. It's so nice to talk to you, it's safe to say that Eliana talks about you more than any other person from her past." From her past? What kind of phrasing is that?
"Really?" Neela optimistically questioned.
"Yes! She's told me all of the amazing things that you did together and that you did for her," Fade explained. "However, she also told me that she doesn't want to speak with you." Neela's mind blanked, everything fading to black around her as she stood up from sitting on the bed and stared out the window into the void. "I can tell that she did something to you that must have really hurt the two of you, but she says that she thinks it's better if you don't talk anymore."
"That… that can't be true," Neela said coldly.
"I'd let her tell you, but I think it would do more damage than good," Fade insisted.
"Let me talk to her," Neela demanded.
"Didn't you hear me?" Fade questioned, sounding confused.
"I heard you, but I want to hear it from her," Neela informed her.
"You'd rather cause her more pain?" Fade asked.
"Put her on!" Neela demanded.
"As soon as I get out of the shower with her I will!" Fade shouted into the scroll before hanging up. Neela looked at her scroll, the words worming their way into her brain. As soon as I get out of the shower with her I will… No… No that couldn't be… But, why else would she say that? Neela stumbled as her scroll slipped from her hands. Her head was pounding. As soon as I get out of the shower with her… It echoed through her body, reverberating loudly. But… Neela's semblance activated and everything stopped. It was out of control and she had no hope of keeping it in check. Time came to a crawl. She could see everything in the building, happening in slow motion. Natalia and Titus were coming up the stairs from breakfast to see if she was on her way to class yet. Natalia was about to drop her pencil to see if Titus would pick it up for her. He was planning to.
Tawney was hitting Cobalt in the arm for something stupid, and he had no intention of telling her to stop. Ilia was scolding Vin as they passed by on the sidewalk below, Vin struggling to keep up as she was walking ahead of him. Other students in their dorms getting dressed, showering, bickering, sleeping, turning off alarms, making out, all in slow motion, all invading Neela's mind… but Eliana was nowhere to be found and that's what her mind was looking for. She broke out in a cold sweat, doubling over and breathing hard. She needed it to stop… how did she make it stop?!
They'll always betray you… The words sounded real like someone was speaking them then and there. Time stuttered for a few seconds and Neela found her feet. Quiet. She needed silence. She needed to get away. She raced down the hall, tears streaming down her face, her scroll still laying on the floor of the dorm room. She nearly crashed into Titus and Natalia.
"Sorry!" Neela exhaled almost tumbling the rest of the way down. Titus watched her head down the rest of the way before handing Natalia's pencil back to her.
"That's a bad sign," Titus sighed.
"Should we go after her?" Natalia questioned.
"I think it'd be better if we give her some space this time," Titus admitted. "She can't do any more damage than blacking out. If she's not back in a few hours, we'll go look for her." Natalia nodded.
Neela crashed out of the dorm building, wiping tears from her eyes, unsure immediately of where she was sprinting to, but she needed to get away. There was one place that came to mind that was quiet and safe. She could head there. It was just a bit into the woods.
"Neela!?" Orin called out but she completely disregarded him, heading into the forest. He rubbed his chin.
"Where was she heading so quickly?" Yin questioned.
"I'm not sure, though I know that Mrs. Adel said that she's been having some personal problems," Orin explained.
"Anything specifically?" Yin inquired. Orin shook his head.
"Coco didn't divulge any more information than I needed to know," Orin said.
Out of the shower with her… The words continued ringing even as she entered the woods and maneuvered her way into the dark cavern. Eliana had already found someone else? Was the problem that Neela had waited too long? Was this all her own doing? She had to calm down, it couldn't be possible… she couldn't breathe, her chest heaved as her mind reeled. It's the same pain as when she left…
But she knew that it was totally plausible, especially with the Eliana she'd come to know and fall in love with. She was whimsical and carefree, someone easily could have swept her off of her feet if they tried hard enough… All Neela had done was tell Eliana she loved her at a time that Eliana had far more important things on her mind, like where her mom was and what she had done. Neela looked around the small cave, the light from the opening bouncing off of the Dust crystals and scattering about, like the memories of this place in her mind. The two of them passing out here on more than one occasion, leaving everyone to wonder what happened… but it definitely wasn't as severe as taking a shower together… that was something Neela wanted to do with Eliana…
"If only you'd listened," came a voice from the darkness. Neela looked up to see Athena leaning against the wall, her arms folded. "You could have saved yourself all of this pain and the Faunus wouldn't be damned to living under the humans until the end of time."
"Your views were skewed," Neela dismisses her. "You can't hurt me, you're just in my head."
"Isn't that almost worse?" Athena questioned. "Just give in Neela, you've had more than enough of them, haven't you? She hasn't even been gone for a full six months, to think that she moved on so quickly."
"We weren't… we weren't actually a thing… I can't blame her," Neela replied turning away but found that Athena was in front of her again.
"She's supposed to be yours, or have you forgotten?" Athena asked. "She said that she'd never leave. The two of you have so many memories together, several of them here. You're just going to let her slip through your fingers?" Athena laughed and shook her head. "If you let this happen then what was it all for? All the long nights, all the fantasies, all the memories? Reach out and take what belongs to you, Neela!" The room shattered around Neela and she was back in the dorm, Eliana stood before her in nothing more than her undergarments.
"Do you think I'm cute, Neela?" Eliana asked.
"Of course I do!" Neela shouted at her.
"Tell me again!" Eliana giggled.
"You're beautiful, Elli!" Neela said approaching her. Eliana's smile turned into a crooked smile.
"Good," Eliana told her. Eliana stabbed her with a knife in the back and Neela wretched at the pain. "I got what I wanted. You can leave."
"Elli…" Neela stammered as she fell to her knees.
"They'll always betray you," Athena repeated.
"This…" Neela gasped. She needed to catch her breath and keep her wits about her.
"Give in…" Athena breathed. This is all in my head. I need to stop this or I'll pass out again!
"You're not real! You're in my head!" Neela shouted at her struggling to her feet. She unsheathed her sword and swung around, breaking several of the crystals.
"Your semblance wouldn't be so uncontrollable if only she'd stayed, yet another thing that the girl is at fault for!" Athena yelled at her.
"I need to pull myself out…" Neela managed, her breath ragged. She saw Eliana and herself, laying on the floor with each other as they stared up at the ceiling.
"Is that an idea you've had?" Neela asked her genuinely.
"I mean, I can't run away without you, Neela. I have a thousand scenarios that have sprinted through my head, you know?" Eliana noted as she stood up and paced the small opening in front of Neela. "Running away would be the best, you know? Maybe we just wander the countryside, we could still help people that way and we wouldn't be restricted by the government or academies. We do that for a few years, or maybe a decade or so, and then we settle down and find ourselves spouses. Get married, houses right next to each other."
"What if we just married each other?" Neela replied blushing as she looked away.
"Huh," Eliana stated blankly staring at the ceiling. "I'd never thought of that as an option… our kids would be cute. Imagine if we had a little girl! She'd be a badass just like you and whimsical like me! She'd be perfect!"
"We could name her Alexandria," Neela offered with a smile. Eliana looked at Neela for a long moment with a tear in her eye.
"You might be a little too good at this 'what if' game," Eliana laughed, wiping her eyes.
"Elli…" Neela whimpered.
"Give up, Neela," Neela's doppelganger instructed her.
"What's the point of all of this?" Neela asked as she found her feet.
"You know that you made a mistake and you're punishing yourself," the fake replied. "Isn't that rather obvious?" She shook her head and pushed the real Neela back to her knees.
"No," Neela refused. "I was told it was because I'm subconsciously looking for Eliana."
"Isn't that better than telling you the truth?" The clone chuckled. "I bet it was a human that told you that too."
"Just stop it!" Neela demanded. As she found her feet again, she was tackled by someone and the scene shifted again. She was falling off of the cliff, and Raven was the one that had tackled her.
"If not for Eliana I would still be alive!" Raven shouted at her.
"Enough!" Neela called out again. She continued to fall. The scene wasn't going to change, was it? She'd hit the bottom. Then hopefully, by some miracle, she would wake up. And if she didn't? The best she could hope for is that they'd find her unconscious by the end of the day.
Out of the shower with her… Neela was back in the cave again and she swung her sword again, but this time in pure rage. She broke several crystals for real this time, and to her luck, they were gravity Dust and they didn't set off a chain reaction. She was thrown back into a wall. Her aura broke and her body ached, watching as the fractals dropped to the floor. Neela's mind panicked. No! What did I do!? She crawled across the floor and curled up in the middle, staring into the darkness of the small cavern.
Elli… I… I still love you…
"As soon as I get out of the shower with her I will!" Fade more or less screamed into the scroll before hanging it up, glaring at the device as her body heaved and she tried catching her breath. What the hell was this girl's problem that she couldn't even take a hint?! Fade shook her head and set the scroll down, glancing across the room at Desirae who was reading in her bed, watching Fade the entire time. She shook her head. "Don't say a word to Eliana, got it?!"
"How long do you plan on chasing after her?" Desirae asked. Fade gritted her teeth before quickly picking the scroll back up and deleting the recent call history. "She doesn't seem all that into you, Fade. You might always get what you want, but you can't make people love you."
"Everyone has a vice. Money, gifts, sex. Whatever I have to do to get Eliana, I'll do it," Fade told her. "I swear if you tell her, things won't end well for you."
"What are you going to do, Fade?" Desirae asked as she closed the book. "The headmaster doesn't tolerate bullying or violence, so it seems that those options are off the table."
"With the money and resources I have at my disposal…" Fade notified her with a twisted smile. "I could spread a rumor about you with enough credibility to make sure you never leave the slums of Haven ever again." Desirae trembled and felt the determination and heat flee her body. She shakily reopened the book and ignored Fade. "Wise decision." Fade turned towards the bathroom and slowly approached the door, knocking on it.
"I'm in here!" Eliana called back out over the running water.
"Just wanted to let you know we need to get a move on if we want to get there in time," Fade told her. "Mind if I come in?"
"Yes I do mind, and no we're not," Eliana replied. "That might have worked if you were my mom, but I'm well aware of what time it is and how long I've been in here for." Fade groaned.
"Are you sure I can't come in?" Fade pled. "I still have to get ready and it takes me forever to get my makeup perfect." Eliana sighed and shook her head. The glass door was frosted enough that Fade wouldn't be able to make out anything, ever since that time they'd both been in the locker room shower together, Eliana tried to avoid letting the girl see her naked, though maybe she was overreacting. Fade just gave off a sort of… vibe…
Ever since she decided that she felt the same about Neela, she found herself a little more attracted to women, and a little more embarrassed of flaunting about in the locker room. If only she hadn't ruined everything… she'd still be back with Neela… with Neela… which was the entire reason she was taking a cold shower this morning instead of a warm one like she normally did. She really had to stop having those dreams...
"Elli!" Fade called again.
"Sure! Yeah! Fine!" Eliana replied. Fade slipped into the bathroom, Eliana could make her out but just barely, lingering for a while with her body slightly bent and head tilted. "Keep staring and I'll have to start charging." Fade sputtered, which turned into a full-blown cough as she approached the sink.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Fade denied.
"Hey, I have a question for you," Eliana began.
"Okay…" Fade bit.
"Was my scroll ringing at all while I was in here?" Eliana inquired. "I have really specific ringtones for my contacts and thought I heard it going off. Probably sounded like some birds chirping at each other?"
"I didn't hear anything, but I can go check your missed calls if you'd like," Fade insisted.
"That's fine," Eliana sighed. "I'll check it once I get out."
"Are you excited to meet Sterling Stratford today?" Fade asked, beginning to work on her lipstick.
"I don't know if excited is the word that I would use," Eliana replied. "Nervous is more like it. I've never really been one for politics, but I understand that he's more or less a celebrity due to being on the council. I'm really more worried than anything that he'll just dismiss us and that nothing will change."
"He's not like that," Fade defended. "He's the youngest person ever appointed to head a kingdom on the council. He worked hard to get where he's at, and he doesn't hesitate to work right away to fix a problem. If I'm not mistaken he volunteered a higher percentage of troops from our military to help find the Fang than Atlas did." Eliana chuckled.
"And to think they just came right to us," Eliana laughed.
"Besides, he's not too bad on the eyes," Fade told her.
"Sounds like someone has a celebrity crush," Eliana jested.
"Perhaps," Fade joined in her laughter. "However, I think his girlfriend is far more stunning. Imagine having a strong, attractive, young woman like that in your life. I'd probably die of happiness." Eliana let the cold water wash over her as she turned off the shower and stood there thinking for a long moment. Why is it the more I try to push you out of my thoughts, the more you're in them, Neela?
"Can you hand me a towel?" Eliana requested. Fade glanced at the shelf before looking back at the shower stall and placing her hands on her hips.
"You can't just come out here and grab one?" Fade questioned.
"I'd rather not get water all over the floor," Eliana fired back. Fade grumbled and moved to the shelf, grabbing one and spitefully throwing it back over the top of the shower. Eliana just barely caught it, wrapping it around her as she opened the sliding door. "Did you need to use the shower?"
"Nope," Fade said, eyeing her teammate up. "Like I said before, just wanted to do my makeup before we head out for the day. Want to look my best." Eliana offered her half a smile before grabbing her clothes and heading out into the room, closing the door behind her.
"What's up with her?" Eliana asked Desirae quietly gesturing towards the door. Desirae sighed and shook her head.
"She's on the hunt," Desirae offered vaguely.
"Hunt for what?" Eliana questioned. Desirae looked at her for a long moment and smirked. Now I see why Fade was complaining about you being a bit dense the other morning.
"Don't worry about it," Desirae replied, closing her book before hopping up and creeping up towards Eliana. "Any chance you'd let me feel the girls or is that out of the question?" Eliana stared at her for a long moment before pressing herself back against the door.
"Sounds like something from one of Cobalt's books if I'm being really honest with you, so, hard pass," Eliana replied. Desirae frowned and folded her arms, pouting.
"Some girls just have all the luck in that department, huh?" Desirae asked. Eliana and she looked at each other for a few seconds before Eliana blushed.
"Do you mind… turning around?" Eliana requested.
"Why? We're both girls?" Desirae noted. Eliana blushed harder and looked away, staring at the floor. Is this what I sounded like to Neela? Oh, Oum, I'm so sorry, Neela. Desirae tilted her head before it hit her and she nodded. "Oh. Okay." She smiled. "Yeah sure, no problem."
"Thanks," Eliana gratefully replied. Eliana dressed while Desirae complied with her wishes, whistling awkwardly as she tried to find something to focus on, but the hyperactive girl was getting jittery.
"Hear any good gossip recently?" Desirae asked her. Eliana laughed.
"You can turn around now," Eliana instructed. "You just live for that stuff, don't you?" Desirae laughed and turned back to face Eliana.
"Yes!" She squealed. "So have you heard any?!" Eliana shook her head and smiled.
"No, but if I do you'll be the first person I tell," Eliana assured her. Desirae bounced happily.
"Yes!" She declared. "So, you and Fade are heading up to Stratford's Mansion today, huh?"
"Yep," Eliana confirmed nodding. "I need someone to hear me out about what I saw and was told the other night, and if anyone in this kingdom can do something about it, it would be him." Fade opened the door behind Eliana, waiting for her to sidestep before making a grandiose entrance.
"I'm ready!" Fade announced. Eliana furrowed her brow.
"I thought you said it would take a while," Eliana noted.
"It did!" Fade replied with a grin.
"By whose standards?" Eliana pondered out loud.
"I don't think she was in there for long enough," Asher chuckled as he entered the room from the main hallway.
"Who asked you anyway!?" Fade shouted at him. His legs went limp and he flopped to the floor. "And how many times do I have to tell you that I'm not buying that!?"
"We can probably go now," Eliana suggested. Fade unballed her fists and took a deep breath, smiling once more.
"Of course," Fade said. "Let's go!"
Sorry for the late upload, been a busy last couple of days. Coming up this weekend, Chapter 20: Meeting!
A big thank you to AG_Nonsuch, Helihi, Cadhla182, Carlomontie, Nliast, Y8ay8a, Sa-Dui, Diyaru4500, Demize00Zero, TheCipherNine, SketchHungry, Ookaminoki, Lightning-in-my-Hand, and Dishwasher1910. The artwork can be found at Deviantart, you can search Silent-Celica and under my favorites tab, I have a collection for NITE.
Until next week, stay classy!