Chapter Seven:

Chapter Seven:

The Present

"You wanted to talk to me?" Thierry asked, opening the door of his office to allow Thea to enter. She swept in, a bundle of anxiety and waited before his desk, dancing a bit. Thierry frowned at her, closing the door slowly and the second the lock sounded she burst.

"I want to help her!"

Thierry blinked, having barely taken a step. "Her…Selena?" he asked her before shaking his head and correcting himself. "Chime?"

"Yes. Chime." Thea bobbed her head as he came forward several strides. "I want to help her find Rayne. I want a happy ending to her life story."

Thierry paused and stared at her. "A happy ending." He echoed warily. "You want to help her find-" and his eyes widened as her meaning sank in. "Oh, no. No, Thea." He shook his head, "Bad idea. Very bad idea."

"Please, Thierry. Please?" Thea suddenly pleaded. She threw up any control she may have had and clasped her hands together. "She's lonely. I can feel it from her. And she's been living with that for years."

Thierry held up his hands, moving around her to stride toward his desk. "I understand exactly what she's going through, Thea. I've been through it-"

"You've been through it!" Thea interrupted quickly. "That's what you just said, right? That you had been through it?"

Thierry slowed as he rounded his desk and his dark eyes studied her face as she eagerly awaited his answer. "Yes, that's what I just said-" he answered her cautiously and he prayed his answer would not get him into any trouble.

Thea's expression was triumphant. "And would you wish it on anyone?" she questioned.

Thierry fell into his chair. Actually, plopped was more of the appropriate word. He felt like a fish out of water, mouth open to answer. But he hesitated and Thea's face softened.

"Would you?" she asked calmly this time. She came forward stopping on the other side of his desk, facing him across it. "Thierry, I just spent hours with her, reliving her memories." She said and she shook her head, grimacing, "I can't say I've been through what she's been through because I haven't. But you have, Thierry. Always with a second chance at being with Hannah."

Thierry merely gazed at her and Thea continued onward quickly before he decided she vaguely resembled dinner. "Chime has one chance, Thierry. Just one. And without help she has no chance at all." She broke off, hoping her sense of emptiness had somehow been transferred to the Night Lord through her words.

Thierry's hands met at the tip of his fingers, pressing his index fingers to his lips and he seemed to be thinking to himself. His dark eyes flew to the witch's face and he asked behind his fingers, "What exactly are you proposing, Thea?"

Thea sat on the corner of his desk, a mischievous smile suddenly lighting her face. "Somewhere in the records of the witches, dating all the way back to Hellewise there must have been mention of where the dragons are buried. Or held." She confided in a conspiratorial whisper.

Thierry arched an eyebrow at her. "I hope you're not asking what I think you're asking." He said, pulling his hands from his lips and he leaned forward, staring her dead in her eyes.

Thea felt a small shiver as she looked into his fathomless dark eyes. "What is it you think I am asking you…sir?" she nearly whimpered.

Thierry smirked. "I'm a vampire, Thea. My relationship to the witches is strained, to say the least. Especially since the death of the crone."

Thea shook her head quickly. "I know you can't help me with that. I understand perfectly well. But what I do want is your permission to speak with Iliana. As Witch Child she must have some access to those records."

Theirry's eyes widened a bit as he caught her drift and his hand rose to cover his face momentarily. Thea was almost positive she heard a sigh come from between his fingers. "Let me get this straight…" he said wearily, his voice muffled by his long, slender hands. "You want to go with Chime to visit Iliana. Is that what you're asking?" He didn't bother to wait for her answer. "And you want Iliana to risk herself to help a dragon she's never met even after what happened between her and Azhdeha."

Thea cringed faintly. She hadn't even thought of that in her excitement in working out her plan. But now that she was thinking with a clear head she realized there were a few chinks she needed to work out.

The Night Lord was still talking. "And there's always the chance that in going to Iliana the Night World will discover Chime with you and kill you both." Thierry added almost absentmindedly, as if Thea's death wasn't the most important thing at the moment.

Thea's jaw set as he spoke. "I don't care." She said, suddenly stubborn. She crossed her hands over her chest and gazed down at the Night Lord purposefully. "I want to give her this chance. This one chance. After we have the information it'll all be up to her but all I want is to give her the chance."

Thierry's eyes met hers again dead on and this time she didn't feel the need to cower. She felt stronger behind her convictions, strong enough to take on the world. Thierry seemed to sense this from her. He swiveled in his chair thoughtfully, turning his back on her.

Thea frowned delicately, suddenly wondering if he was the type of person to leave another hanging for an answer. If she didn't get his approval she would never be able to work out anyway to help Chime. The dragon would forever search for her soulmate fruitlessly. Thea's frame stiffened a bit as worry built up inside.

Thierry suddenly turned to face her once more, dark eyes veiling his thoughts. "You do what you will, Thea." He said finally, in a tired voice. "But you know the deal. You get caught, you protect Daybreak. Not a word or secret spilled. Do you understand? And you had better answer this question carefully because it might very well mean your life."

Thea's smile was positive and she knew she was glowing. "I got you." She vowed.

"Two tickets." Lupe Acevedo explained to Thea, sitting beside her on the living room couch. "These will get you to Washington. That's where Iliana's sanctuary is located. From the airport you and Chime will wait in the airport garage, north entrance, second floor, for a black van. License plate," Lupe pointed a slender finger to one of the papers lying on the coffee table before her, tip lying across a number, "23H-TC7. One of Keller's group will be in the passenger seat and there will be a second person, unfamiliar, in the driver's side. They will take you half of the way. Midway point you'll switch cars. Whoever is driving the van will switch you over to a jeep, white, license plate 438-H09. Another of Keller's group will be driving the jeep. The passenger from the van will go with you to the jeep and from there you'll be taken straight to the sanctuary." Lupe finished, her tone brisk and competent and she raised light brown eyes to the blond witch, who seemed almost dizzy with the information. "Questions? Comments? Aspirin?"

Thea blinked blankly. "What..?"

Lupe smiled at her knowingly. "We'll explain it to Chime, too, that way it's not just you having to remember it all."

Thea shook her head, snapping back into reality. "It's ok. I pretty much got it. Just need to remember the license plates…" she leaned into Lupe. "Can I see the tickets?"

Lupe grinned, pointy teeth glinting. "First class, baby."

Thea laughed. "All right. Almost set. Now I have to fill in Chime, whenever she gets in here-" she looked toward the doorway and then at her watch.

At that moment, as if on cue, Chime floated through the doorway, expression thoughtful. She looked up to the two women sitting on the couch and smiled, seemingly flustered. Even absentminded, her strides were graceful, and there was a healthy glow to her face. Her smile was turned on Lupe by way of greeting and Lupe smiled back. "I'm sorry I'm late…got caught up back there…" Chime said.

She wasn't about to say that her attention had been held by a bottle of brandy in a glass case in the kitchen. She had actually been early but in looking around she had found the bottle and where had the time flown after that? She didn't know. She shrugged to herself and came further into the room. "You wanted to see me?" she inquired.

Thea smiled gently and patted the couch cushions beside her. "Yeah, Chime. I did. I need to tell you something."

Her tone frightened Chime a bit and her happy smile faltered. "What's wrong?" she asked softly, almost sorrowfully. "Are you ok? Is everything all right?" she looked at Lupe who had averted her eyes and her alarm grew. "Why are you looking at me like that, Thea?" she came forward and settled slowly into the couch.

Thea held up to tickets and her wise brown eyes were on them as she began to explain. "These are airplane tickets. To Washington." She said.

Chime frowned.

Thea cocked her head and her subject was suddenly different. "Do you know the Legend of the Wild Powers?" she asked.

Chime blinked and the world briefly spun without her. "What?" she asked, shaking her head. "Do I know the Legend of the Wild Powers?"

Thea nodded.

Chime paused momentarily, looking down at the coffee table, eyes unseeing. "The Wild Powers." She mused and looked up after a second. "Yeah. The Four who will stand at the Millennium." She stopped and pulled back a bit, realization dawning upon her. "Wow. The Millennium is pretty close now that I think about it." She exhaled, shaking her head, "Wow…"

Thea waved her hand, almost impatiently. "Right, them. Well, so far Daybreak has found three of them. One of them is Iliana Harman, also known as the Witch Child." She stared at Chime, breaking off.

The dragon glanced from Thea to Lupe. "Iliana Harman." She repeated slowly, "Witch Child. Got it…" she hesitated, shaking her head in bemusement. "Is that…supposed to mean something?"

Lupe smiled faintly.

Thea waved the tickets at Chime. "As Wild Power, Iliana is pretty important. But as Witch Child even more so." She put the tickets down on Chime's lap and the dragon took them into her hands, her blue eyes never leaving Thea's face. Thea motioned to the tickets and Chime finally looked down at them quizzically. "We're going to visit Iliana and we're going to convince her to get us some information."

Chime was confused. "Information?" she asked uncertainly.

"Information." Thea echoed. And she inhaled deeply. "On the resting places of the dragons."

Chime blinked in stunned disbelief, the color draining from her face. She looked at the tickets again, lips parting as if to speak but no sound seemed to be able to come forth and her breathing was shallow, rattling faintly. She closed her mouth and swallowed.

Thea became worried. "Chime?"

Chime looked up into her brown eyes, still stupefied. Then she was raising a hand to her lips and Thea realized her hands were trembling, clutching the tickets tightly, almost enough to crush.

Thea gazed at her. "Don't you want this? Don't you want to do this-"

But her sentence was cut off as Chime leaned forward suddenly, throwing her arms around Thea's neck. For a moment there was no sound but the labored breathing of the dragon in her ear. And then she was babbling, sentences running on into a mess of words. "Oh, thank you, Thea! Thank you so much! So much!" she whispered, her frame trembling faintly. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Thea embraced her back, feeling her anxiety crumble away into happiness. "Thank me after we find out what we need." She said against the dragon's shoulder.

"Remember." Lupe said softly from where she sat in the back of the nondescript van. Her eyes shifted to Nilsson absentmindedly, focused on his immovable figure in the front driver's seat. "First the black van, airport garage…"

"North side, second floor." Thea intoned, bored. "We understand. We got you."

Chime's eyes were also on Nilsson, her thoughts a mass jumble. He hadn't changed at all in the passed eighteen years. It was almost scary.

"Chime?" Lupe asked.

Chime nodded, dragging her gaze to the werewolf. "Yeah, I'm here. I understand." She nodded, snapping back to attention. She looked at Lupe. "You'll be watching us?"

Lupe nodded, silver brown hair shimmering in the sunlight that streamed through the window. "All the way." She said. "The tickets are under the names Thea Harman and Selena Devlin. I figured I wouldn't be able to get you to respond to any other name in such a short amount of time."

Chime smiled at her. "I got it, don't worry. To tell the truth you're probably right. It took me a few years for Chime to sink in all the way."

Thea reached for the car door. "Are we set, then? Our flight is in a few minutes."

Lupe nodded once more. "All set. Have a safe trip."

"It's all we ask." Chime sighed.