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FICTION
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Chapter 15: Equals by Wits (3)
Beta-Reader: Ant0nius
~Hope's POV~
There were quite a number of different things that could easily leave Hope confused.
Most of them were the kinds of stuff she would find in homework for subjects she just wasn't attached to. There was a good reason why she trusted and relied on her newest friends to provide her support in exchange of her own help whenever they needed it.
The trust was impeccable, but this wasn't the reason that saw her eyeing Frankie's tired and slouched form with a perplexed stare.
She could remember earlier that morning when Traci spoke of their little dinner together and then of their late return to the campus. The story seemed to be filled with a few lies that didn't line up properly when Vixy started pressing for more details.
It was clear that the Fox Prime was concerned about any info she could get out of her current interest. Frankie had noticed, and that had done nothing but intensify the fascination the leader of the cheerleaders had for the young human.
Maybe it was the endearment of being accepted in that pursuit, thus making the whole process kind of a bonus instead of a tiresome path to a relationship- or maybe Vixy just liked the idea of her natural self attracting someone she liked without needing to change.
It was something that played well with her self-esteem and pride. While the pressure exerted by the girl was considerably more than anything Hope could've tried to achieve out of any discussion with the Tiger Prime, the truth was eventually told to the Ravenhurst.
Tiggs and Frankie… had done it.
At first, the novelty had left her surprised, confused even. She could remember the multiple times both friends had said that they weren't keen to go beyond friendship.
But while the act itself could bring closeness through the raw intimacy it propelled in a relationship, it was also true that sometimes it just helped make a bond durable and… more intense.
They were still friends. Tiggs repeated the statement multiple times to cement this as the only option.
The reason why the Tiger Prime hadn't said that to her best friend must be tied to the fact that Vixy would react badly at the news. At least, that was what Hope could garner from what she knew of the emotional landscape she was aware about.
Love was complex, and intervening in a relationship could end up becoming a boon or perhaps even screw up any chances of keeping a basic friendship out of it.
Which is why the Gazelle Prime was impressed by the two friends' maturity. It was rare for this to happen, and she could remember hearing about this from some of her father's subordinates whenever they were at the docks discussing potential relationships to explore.
While her young sister would quickly ignore these kinds of conversations, Hope did all she could to learn as much as possible about Love. It was only right for her to gear up for any potential chances to foster a closer bond with Shin.
Despite this incredible discovery that added a higher degree of respect for both Frankie and Tiggs, her green eyes weren't offering anything more than just worry.
Frankie looked drained and mostly unfocused. The real problem was that while Tiggs had managed to get a full rest from that 'full night', the human had seemingly failed to gain any decent sleep out of it.
She had her own imagination to help answer why the young man looked so sore while the Tiger Prime had looked so relaxed, but she decided against making it worse by asking Frankie with so many people around.
Professor de Diego was… distracted. The woman was still stealing glances in their direction as soon as she noticed the half-slouched form of the human, but the Leopard Prime seemed unwilling to bring up the fact that the only human in the classroom looked ready to collapse at any moment.
It wasn't like the teacher could reprimand the young man since he was awake and paying attention to the lecture.
Hope had thus decided against intervening now that the lesson was in full swing, opting to take the tired human away from public eye to get him to confess the matter and maybe help him back to his dorm room.
He clearly wasn't looking ready to go through a normal day. He needed rest. And she wasn't going to take a 'no' about giving him help with it.
The rest of the lesson was pretty simple to endure. Spanish was one of the few languages her mother had spent quite some time teaching Hope when she was younger.
They have such a beautiful set of words that conveys quickly a state of mind and soul…
Yep, it wouldn't hurt if she was a tad bit distracted for the sake of watching over her friend. A friend that had helped her a lot with Shin and… that had asked for so little in return.
It was clear that Frankie was embarrassed about asking for help about love, but he was quick to accept her counseling whenever she had something to give him.
It was odd to believe that she would get so close to him despite how little time they spent together.
Sure, all their encounters were unique and somewhat memorable one way or another… but surely there has to be another reason why she gave so much attention to him compared to others.
It was all for Shin.
Her mind was strangely defensive about it, making her heart throb and ache for some reason.
Curiosity acted as an intermediary of her confusion as she tried and failed to get some sense out of her own stance about the human.
They were friends, there was no issue in considering this a fact. But how close as friends were they?
That was the point that started the questions Hope couldn't find herself capable of answering.
Why?
That was a good query.
But for now, she was stuck in the present and… she was currently keeping an eye out for Frankie. The very moment something odd happened, she would quickly jump into action and make sure that he would be taken to the hospital ward.
For now he was fine, just tired. But having lived in a town where half of the population was made by humans, Hope knew when one was starting to show signs of a fever.
He was exhausted, and while that could easily be taken as a sign of bad sleeping, the redder shade his face was taking wasn't something to rule out only as mere exhaustion.
Humming, the Gazelle Prime had only barely turned to notice Professor de Diego calling for an end to the lecture.
Students quickly stood up from their seats to leave the room, but Frankie lingered a little bit, but still managed to lift himself off his chair just fine.
"Frankie," Hope muttered with a hint of nervousness, still unsure how grumpy the human currently was.
"Hmm?" He blinked, quietly turning to address her. "Oh, is there something you need, Hope?"
The girl sighed, glad that the young man wasn't that much annoyed by the world just yet.
"Actually, now that you're asking..." She hummed quietly, pulling him from his arm as they both started to make their way out of the classroom. "I would like to chat with you. And I was thinking that we could go to your dorm room to discuss some stuff."
The human frowned, still showing no sign of reluctance in getting dragged around by the young woman.
"What? Why and… what about the lessons?"
"I think your health takes priority over some lectures I can skip."
"Hope- you don't… you don't have to-" He was literally limping and leaning on her. She huffed tiredly, tempted to pinch the closest cheek of that insufferable dummy beside her.
"Nonsense, mister. You need your sleep and maybe some medicine with how feverish you're sounding."
"I'm… I'm not-"
"Say that you're not sick and I will personally strap you to your bed and force you to rest."
He snorted, shaking his head but offering no more opposition at that fierce decision. And in that moment Hope felt a strangely pleasant squeeze at her heart, as if that incredibly amusing exchange of words felt so right in her mind.
She smiled, humming happily as she calmly led the young human to his dorm room.
The place was, just as expected, devoid of anyone inside. After putting Frankie in his bed, she quietly checked the medicine cabinet in the bathroom. Nodding to herself after finding what she was searching for, she returned back to the occupied bed.
"Now Frankie, I know you don't feel sick- but you need to… and you're sleeping."
Eyes closed and head nuzzling closely to the soft pillow, the human had completely drifted off to dreamland.
Sighing, Hope crouched down to look closer at the silent young man. He looked so innocuous now that she looked at him from this position.
So calm, so serene… she was almost jealous of how peaceful he looked.
Seriously, she would kill for an extra hour of napping if school allowed her to do so. But slacking would only make her appear as a lazy girl and… she didn't want Shin to think that of her.
No, no- she needed to fight back against her thirst for sleep and focus on the reason she was there.
Despite how well the young human looked, the Gazelle Prime couldn't allow him to skip picking something to deal with the fever.
In fact, does he even have a fever?
Her hand pressed softly on his forehead, instantly retracting at the heat coming from it.
"Yep, you really need to take your medicines."
Her musing was soon followed by her shaking Frankie by his shoulders, slightly leaning over him.
"Frankie, you should wake up. You can't just fall asleep and leave me unable to help you with-!"
Her action got a reaction, but it wasn't the one she had expected to find.
Panic exploded in her mind as her face impacted quietly onto his chest, his arms catching her by wrapping behind her and pulling her closer to him.
His chin was nuzzling her forehead, the human blissfully unaware of the bold assault he had just committed… and Hope wasn't going to blame him for reacting like this at the external stimulus.
She would have remained to his side, and yet she just couldn't wait to get him to wake up properly.
A huff splashed over his shirt as the girl tried to carefully get out of Frankie's hold… only to discover that his grip was as strong as iron.
The nuzzling wasn't helping with her logical side of her mind. Part of her really wanted to just cuddle with a pillow in that moment, and that part was slowly but steadily gaining a formidable grasp over her current thoughts.
He was so warm, his perfume was nice and… she wanted to close her eyes and nap.
…
But then what would happen if someone walked on them?
That very question was what killed any interest in abandoning common sense for some hours of nap.
Prying herself once more against his arms, Hope smiled in relief as the hold binding her close to him had lessened just enough for her to get out of there.
This time, instead of falling for her same mistake, she actually started to give more pressure with her shakes.
Farnkie's eyes snapped open in a brief moment of fright, but he seemed to calm down with the girl's calm voice and words. Easing down with the tension, the young man was quite compliant with her request, and he took the medicines without much of a rebuttal.
Once this little task was done, Hope finally conceded herself a few moments of silence by lying on the bed beside Frankie's.
She stared at the ceiling, pondering about what had just happened and… why was her heart pounding so intensely. She shouldn't have been scared anymore of being caught in that awkward position any longer, and yet… her heart was beating loudly and so very distractedly.
But why?
A huff, then two, she turned her head to facilitate looking at Frankie's disposition and she breathed calmly over the peace he had once again found.
If only she could claim to be sick and get a nap herself. That would be so nice… but she just couldn't leave him be without someone watching over him.
It was a matter of responsibility rather than common sense. She had taken upon herself the duty of keeping him company and helping him through this situation and, hopefully, he wasn't going to find it any more awkward than she currently was.
He was her friend. A friend she cared a lot about. A confidant that she trusted upon to help her with her little mission. Someone that Hope couldn't help but admire while also criticizing with each turn…
And yet there was something that was missing. Something that she didn't feel the need to delve into and… that left her hurting.
But why and how… she couldn't tell.
"Why are you so… complicated to handle?"
The question which technically was directed at Frankie… was also meant for her to study. To think over as she waited for something to happen.
She reached for her phone, pondering about alerting the others.
Miles would eagerly accept any excuse to ditch classes at once and get some napping going, while Shin would come by while bemoaning the fact he was going to skip lessons he wanted to be there for.
But what about Vixy and Tiggs?
She could see the Tiger Prime worrying about this somehow being her fault. As much as she wanted to sound tough, the girl was still someone that was quick to blame herself for anything that could remotely be her fault, especially when it was about her friends being hurt.
But Vixy was a very particular case since she would want to use this opportunity to get closer to Frankie. Which was a good thing… and also not.
Ugh, why is this so complicated?!
Hope patiently looked through the contact list, stopping at one of the first names in there as a curious idea started to form inside her head.
Didn't Angel say that one of her friends had a minor understanding of advanced medicine?
The Bunny Prime seemed to mean well, plus Frankie was positive that she was a friend of his and that the feeling was mutual.
So maybe, just maybe, that could actually work well for her.
Maybe she could contact Angel first, and then call Miles and Shin.
About Vixy and Tiggs… maybe it was better if she spoke to them individually. Just to avoid Traci spilling the beans over what happened the night before out of guilt.
Yes, that will have to work…
~Naerie's POV~
Prism Uni was different from how Naerie had first expected it to be.
While the online pamphlet was exhaustive with its rich amount of information about the building and the curriculum, there seemed to be an inherent element that the document hadn't mentioned… but not out of maliciousness or laziness.
No, it was because people were already expecting this element to be common in all schools.
People talked, and when they talked loudly and without turn they would make an entire room chaotic and distracting.
Naerie had been present to many conventions that invited her mother to be there to give speeches, but the rules of quietness shared between these events and the classroom didn't apply to the end of the lesson.
It was like a curtain made of thin silence suddenly disappeared to make way for a degree of sudden noise. It wasn't truly terrible by itself, but the Bear Prime couldn't help but feel worried that the distracting voices would instinctively lead her to peer into the minds of those around her, ending with her overloading her brain with useless information.
The only anchor here that she was happily latching on was Shin. The White Tiger Prime was kind and polite, just like she had expected him to be even in this scenario away from his family.
It was his main trait to be good, but it was also true that there was some uneasiness at the chance of him failing his duty towards her.
She was certain he wouldn't, but directly telling him would mean confessing that she was constantly checking his mood and thoughts, which wouldn't help him in the long run.
Emotions were complicated when a single step could easily ruin a relationship.
Is this why Hope Ravenhurst had taken so long to mold herself a pedestal close to Shin? Maybe. The more time she spent around the boy and away from the safe walls offered by her family and home, the more Naerie grew certain of this possibility.
And this very notion highlighted something that she hadn't expected to find after joining Prism Uni.
Each step marked a lesson about dealing with romance.
Until now, her efforts were restrained by her unwillingness to part from 'safety', but now that she was away from anything that could cover her from an emotion-related fiasco, the redhead could understand why she needed to adapt and overcome her current obstacles.
A struggle to grow smarter and stronger, with the final goal of scoring a relationship with the kind blond.
It was quite simple to accept this idea, and her first day at Prism Uni seemed to go so well… until one of the teachers decided to call in sick and bring them out of the classrooms.
That disruption could have easily been taken as an opportunity for Shin to act bold. To show her around the city instead of lingering inside the campus… and yet the boy was incredibly nervous. The chances of failing her sounded loud with his mind, despite the lack of logical pondering about it.
Just as much as she was afraid of messing up, so was Shin the same with his own attempts to make her first day at Prism a good one.
They wandered away from the others, retreating to the dorms as the young man wanted to get some books so that they could stay by the courtyard.
What they found inside the dorm room was different from what they could've expected.
Three Primes, all women, were standing around the bed occupied by… the human.
Frankie Parker, the only human currently enrolled in Prism Uni, was unconscious and the small wet patch of white cloth that was currently on his forehead suggested that it wasn't something good.
"Hope-" Shin was the first one to react, addressing the one he knew the most about.
The Gazelle Prime almost jumped, her green eyes widening in surprise at the sudden call.
"O-Oh, Shin- I didn't expect you to-"
"What is going on with Frankie?" He quickly interjected, worry dripping copiously from his words.
It was rare to see the normally calm blond get panicky, and yet Naerie knew that the logical explanation was that the White Tiger Prime had grown rather close to the human.
A bond that the Crest of Wisdom had defined brotherly, the kind that only only sibling-like fellows could perceive.
Rather unexpected, but surprisingly unconcerning since it didn't threaten her chances of making Shin her boyfriend.
But the issue at hand soon subverted any calm thoughts she had.
"It's… Frankie hasn't been feeling well. At first it was tiredness, then he developed a fever that just kept worsening."
The Cat Prime wearing a white coat and a pair of glasses was trying to discern the truth behind the ailment thanks to the help offered by her Nanozell Spirit. The white figure was analyzing saliva and a small amount of blood recovered from the human… but Naerie knew that they weren't going to find a solution by scientific means.
As the cause behind such illness was magical in nature, and thus incurable by natural means.
"A-And you got something on him?"
"Not yet," The distracted woman mentioned, sparing no interest to the new arrivals. "But this is indeed a strange case."
Her name is Tiare.
A quick probe of her mind gave her that detail.
"I don't think you will find anything," Naerie muttered calmly, knowing that delaying her intervention would just put the human through senseless harm. "It's not a physical condition."
The comment finally drew the brunette's attention off the young man and to her. Her eyes widened in surprise as the Cat Prime recognized the redhead, but instead of questioning the legitimacy of this claim she allowed the Bear Prime to step closer to the bed.
The Bunny Prime wasn't of the same mindset. "And how do you know this? What does he have?"
Angel, that is her name.
Naerie blinked, but nodded in acceptance of the questions.
"Frankie is… dealing with a seemingly acute case of Wisdom Overload."
…
"A what?"
While the dark-haired woman looked more confused than else, Hope and Shin both looked shocked at this revelation.
It was common knowledge for those that were in contact with the knights trained in the Wisdom Clan to know about this specific sickness. It was something almost expected from anyone blessed by a magical affinity for Wisdom.
"Wisdom Overload is a common form of deficiency that happens when a user of Wisdom magic is suddenly 'activated' and forced to produce a large amount of magic," The Nanozell Spirit, Era, explained quietly. "The mind is unable to sustain this sudden surplus and forces the user's body to undergo strains to endure the immediate ill effects this can cause. It can be cured only by a fellow user of Wisdom magic that knows about the topic."
"Which is why I will take over from here," Naerie added politely. "I understand your concern, but I'm the only one that can work on this case."
While also fixing a mistake she was indirectly responsible about. She hadn't expected for his magic to get enabled just as she tried to probe his mind the day before.
The delayed effect wasn't unexpected as there were cases where the sickness would at least need three days to activate. For it to happen merely hours after the activation was indeed proof that his reserves and magical production were nothing to scoff at.
She sat down on the chair offered by Tiare, quickly reaching for the human's closest hand before starting to 'bridge up' with his mind.
This process wasn't something the Bear Prime was experienced about and it was going to be the first time she went through the practical part of it, having seen just her mother and her apprentices doing this.
Her eyes closed and she slowly succumbed to a complete trance.
But just as she was sure that the final steps were done correctly, her consciousness faltered as she could feel… memories overlapping one over the other. Some hers, some Frankie's.
W-Where am I? Where are Mom and Dad?
Blinking as I looked around for some clues, I could help but shiver as I tried to remember what happened.
This place… it wasn't anything I could remember being at home.
Short, confused… terrified.
I felt small, I was small. And it just felt right to be such in this circumstance.
Fright and nervousness- I couldn't remember how I got in there.
The place was massive, it reminded me of a palace and… I tried to recall how I got there.
Did Mom send me here somehow? Was she the kind of person that would do that?
Maybe it was Halloween time and… they wanted to scare me?
There was nothing that could actually put fright in me but… the chilling sensation this desolate location was leaving me with was more than enough to make me question-
Question what really happened and why I was here and alone.
This last bit soon was disproved the moment I heard a shrill shriek coming from the other side of the massive hallway I was walking through.
Panic swelled, the shivering intensified… but I kept on walking as I recognized the voice belonging to a fellow child. A girl to be more precise.
A large room welcomed me as soon as I arrived at my destination and… my eyes widened in a mix of surprise and dread as I saw the girl I had heard crouching down while trying to hold against the few malicious-looking shadows.
The girl looked incredibly afraid, and she was stuck in that position.
Why? What was going on? And were those… ghosts?!
The mere chance of having found some spectral figures was enough to freeze me up as I thought about the situation.
I could attack, and try to get her out of there… but what if I got assaulted as well?
Gulping nervously, my mind brought back something I had forgotten.
Sometimes you will need to pick fights you might end up losing, sport. Especially when an innocent life is put at risk.
Dad- He had said that to me and… I wouldn't be a coward.
No! I wasn't going to allow an innocent person to be hurt- not when I can do something about it.
Instead of standing still like a moron, I charged against the scary-looking fiends. They turned around to look at me, their appearance dreadful and horrifying at first … but I wasn't going to allow anyone to hurt someone like that.
Two punches and a kick. No aim, no focus- just attacking.
At first I thought my attacks were being dodged… but then I realized that I passed through the silhouettes and that they couldn't attack me in return.
They were just… holograms. Or something close to that.
They slowly faded away as soon as I realized this, leaving just the trembling fellow child that was still trying to handle the trauma.
I paused, unsure how to handle this myself. How do I approach this without being too abrupt?
Mom would just go ahead and be kind but… would this work with this specific situation.
…
Maybe.
A Bear Prime with a light-tanned fur. She had long red hair that partially hid a star like element on her forehead. A white ribbon combining parts of her hair in three different sections.
I took a few steps and… leaned forward. "A-Are you okay?"
My voice seemed to get a reaction, with her shivering growing lesser as she slowly opened her eyes to greet me.
I gawked as I realized that her light-blue eyes were so mesmerizing and… cute.
A blush appeared across my face and the girl blinked a couple of times before ultimately realizing that we were alone.
"W-Who are you?"
The question snapped me out of the staring and I nodded to myself. "I-I'm Frankie."
Her eyes widened. "Oh? Did you… come from the outside?"
Outside? What was she talking about? Is this place her home?
"Y-Yeah."
An awed appeared on her face. "Really? I didn't think Mama would've invited someone else besides Shin!"
Shin? Why does this name feel… familiar?
"W-Well, I wasn't actually invited. I just… wake up here and… I saw you being attacked by the scary ghosts."
The girl frowned. "Ghosts?"
"The things that were attacking you," I reiterated. "Aren't those… ghosts?"
She shook her head. "No, these were… I don't know."
A sad look replaced her awed one, prompting me to react in panic.
"I-It's alright- there are no more problems involving them ."
Blinking, she lifted her stare up to my smile with a surprised look.
"R-Really?"
"Yeah," I said determinedly. "In fact, I wanted to ask what your name is."
A hum left her lips. "I'm… Naerie."
My smile widened. "Nice to meet you, Naerie."
She smiled back. "T-Thanks… do you- do you want to be my friend?"
It was sudden, and I was quiet for a few seconds but… she looked nice. And she had such a pretty smile!
"Sure!"
And then, the world collapsed in a white light.
I woke up with a headache.
Groaning I tried to stand up from my bed- only for a few hands to reach out and stop me from properly moving out of the bed.
"Frankie, stop- you're still feverish and-"
Hope? What happened- and 'feverish'?
"You should listen to the girl. You sure looked like a goner for a moment," A familiar Bunny Prime commented. "That was a fright."
Angel? What was she doing here and-
"S-Sir, you should perhaps stay down and allow yourself to be treated properly."
I finally focused my stare upon the bright white figure hovering above me. I blinked, surprised by her nervous blue eyes.
A… Nanozell Spirit.
"So this is how I end up meeting you, Mr… Parker."
I turned to the side to regard an unfamiliar Cat Prime.
"You know me? Then can you… please tell me what's your name?"
"Rather blunt of you to ask, but I suppose you're still far from completely out of your fever," The woman sighed, nodding in acceptance of this theory. "My name is Tiare Mehran, and I'm Angel's roommate and friend."
"She's the one I told you that didn't want to be body painted-"
"Because you're too passionate about that art. It's… unnerving," The brunette rebuked at the smug-looking Angel.
"Hope," I muttered calmly, drawing the Gazelle Prime's attention on me.
"Yes?"
"Where is… Naerie?" The question got a surprised look from the girl. "I- I know she was here-"
"She left with Shin," The girl replied quickly, looking uneasy for a moment. "Why, is there something wrong about it or-"
"N-No, it's… It's private."
I'll need to address this once I get the chance to speak with the Bear Prime. What were those shadows and… were they the ones responsible for her unhappy composure?
AN
Naerie has yet to tell me what exactly happened to her.
Well, she didn't tell it to Shin, why would she do that for you?
Surrogate sibling? Maybe?
I think you're pretty far from making use of that card.
Mah…