Usual disclaimer. A/N: I lied about fluff in the last chapter, though there are is some awkward fluffiness between Elsa and Anna on this one. Important thing at the end I need y'all to read, if you would be so kind. Hey, by the way... We hit fifty follows! Holy bejeezus, I didn't even think we'd hit 25. Thank you so much, guys. You mean the entire world to me :) Warning: There is violence at the end of this chapter. If this triggers you, please skip over it. As always, thank you for reading and enjoy!
Update: next chapter is written. It's heavy as hell, but is necessary. Be ready.
"You do understand why I'm still hesitant to have you in my Line, correct?"
"Of course, my Lord. But please, understand that I am trying to progress forward past the image that my father made for the Isånd family. If you would please give me the chance to prove that I am different than him, then I will, my Lord," came the reply.
Elsa sat across from Lord de l'Eau, who sat stoically, listening to the blonde woman's request and reasoning for wanting to be part of his Line. The mountain of a man knew that, regardless, she would be in the Line by the end of the day. She couldn't be the Dame without being in the Line, and Tonna was set on having Elsa as her adviser.
He contemplated Elsa's reasoning in silence. There were multiple ways to disprove the theory that she was like her father to him, but one in particular stood out. One that Agðar would never be able to do.
"I'll let you be apart of my line, Dame Isånd… Under one condition," he said, "Take on our newest inductee as your apprentice." Elsa's dark eyebrows scrunched together.
"We have a new inductee?" She inquired, having previously thought that she was the newest member of the line. The man nodded his capped head in confirmation.
"Yes. Her name is — " he was cut off mid-sentence by the person in question herself.
"Lord de l'Eau!"
"Well, here she comes now," he said. Her eyes widened larger than moons. She'd know that voice in an instant.
Anna.
Elsa's heart stuttered over itself. She turned slowly as the most wonderful sight she could have possibly hoped to see was presented to her. Anna was dressed currently in the common garb of the Line of Fire, but the bag in her hand left no room for wondering that it was the common garb of the Line of Water, especially by the colors of blue and light grey of the clothes in said bag.
When Elsa and Anna locked eyes, sky met sea; the redhead's face split into a gigantic smile, and in the beat Elsa's heart skipped, she turned to the Lord Aqua Magus.
"You wanted to speak with me, my Lord?" Anna asked, the smile on her face broadening at the emphasis she placed on the fact that he was now her Lord, her commander. She was his subject now. Though it made her sad to have left her home in the realm of Fire, she now had a new chapter to begin: mastering Water.
"Indeed. I want you to get started with training as soon as possible, especially given the fact that many of our mentors are currently teaching several apprentices right now," he explained. His night black eyes shifted over to Elsa.
"Except for a few, that is." Elsa's heart started to pound wildly against her Laena, and she was surprised her white sash wasn't moving along with her rapid fire heart rate.
Of course, the blonde realized her reaction was completely unwarranted and over the top. She hardly knew Anna. She had gone on one date with her, and knew next to nothing about the redheaded girl. But there was no mistaking that there was a definite connection between them. A zing, as her once fellow apprentice Mable Drac had put it.
And, to Elsa's realization, she had never had a friend aside from Tonna. Of course, she'd had to have been congenial and had made acquaintances with various of her fellow apprentices prior. However, she lacked the desire to be closer to any of them. She loved her silence, the quiet lulls in the day that the other apprentices would spend talking to each other and having mock fights. Anna made her yearn for her company; even if they were not to mix well romantically, she knew that somehow their friendship would carry on.
"If what Lady Ek has told me is true, you have full control over your powers. That said, you are of mentoring capability, yes?" Lord de l'Eau asked. Elsa nodded, being taken from her thoughts.
"Then we might as well start with the most difficult form to master. Dame Elsa, I want you to take on Miss Anna Branansikt as your new apprentice," he requested. Both women's eyebrows went into their hairline.
Surely Vita has planned this. I never quite believed in Soul Weaving before, but now…
"Yes," she breathed. Lezigha seemed surprised. There was virtually no way that the pair of them could have met before. Having belonged to separate Lines — rival Lines, at that — left next to no opportunities for the two to meet. Right?
"That is, yes, I'll mentor her, my Lord. Thank you," she clarified, cheeks tinged pink as she bowed deeply. Her gratitude, he knew, was meant for more than just the opportunity to mentor.
She was thanking him for a chance to start fresh, for an opportunity to clear her family name. He nodded in return, and she rose.
"Dame Elsa… I leave the rest to you. Congratulations, the both of you. I wish you well," he said. Lezigha then regarded Anna.
"When you are done, Miss Branansikt, return to me. I will put you under Lady Kovalski's tutelage after you are done learning the ways of the Glaciem Magistri," he instructed. Anna vigorously nodded. Lord de l'Eau bid the women a final farewell, then went his way.
There was a brief moment of silence between the pair of them, eyes locking again before flitting away.
"Well, I guess we should get to know each other a bit better than last time, El-" Anna paused, realizing the title that her mentor now bore, "Sorry, Dame Isånd." The redhead's cheeks colored pink at the sight of Elsa's hand covering her oncoming chuckle.
"Please, Anna. Just Elsa will be okay," the blonde said through some small laughter. The younger woman's visage cracked into a smile despite herself.
"Care to join me for coffee tomorrow? There are a few things I'd like to discuss with you before we start training," asked Elsa, "and I've heard that Moana's is a really good cafe around here." Anna smirked at her in response.
"Are you asking me out on a date this time, Elsa?" countered Anna. It was the taller woman's turned to blush as the redhead giggled unabashedly, toothy grin spreading to her mentor's face (even though her ears and neck were still aflame).
"I suppose so," she replied. Anna's smile widened even further.
"Then I gladly accept," she responded.
Lezigha found Gita eventually, leaning more toward the very end of the convention as per her request. The large man had many things running through his head as of the moment; he had two new inductees in one day, and a handful of other matters to discuss, particularly the recent skirmishes that had been going with the Ignus Magum and Aqua Magus. They had always been rivals, but as of late tensions had been mounting considerably. It was a problem that was beginning to weigh heavily on his mind with each passing day.
They sat a table constructed by Gita's impeccable craftsmanship yet again. Lezigha sat down across from her, settling himself and finally beginning to partake in the feast part of the convention. His stomach rumbled at the delicious pig presented to him, and he took a sizable portion for himself onto his plate. He filled his cup with water and downed it quickly, before noticing a lack of Gita's best friend and advisor.
"No Pocahontas?" He asked, taking off his hat and saying a quick prayer to the Gods before finally eating.
"I'm afraid not, my friend. She's currently convening with Sir Smith. I think she may have taken a fancy to him," she replied, a chuckle tumbling out of her lips, "I do, however, wish to discuss Elsa with you." Lezigha slowed down his chewing and met the Lady's gaze. Swallowing quickly, he wiped his face of food before speaking.
"What of her? I have her inducted in, as per both yours and her request," he explained.
"It's not that, Lezigha. Her blood test came back, and we found an interesting discovery in her genealogy… " she began. The Nigerian Lord's back straightened.
"Oh?" He replied, unsure of where this was beginning to lead.
"Indeed. Do you know of Lukas Vinter?" she inquired. He nodded. Who couldn't? The man one of the most instrumental parts of stopping World War I and II. He was the single most powerful Aqua Magus since Matthieu Montagne, from 1509.
"She is his great-great granddaughter. We found evidence in her gene pattern that she has potential to become the next Aqua Magus, should she choose to send herself down that path," the Indonesian explained. The Lord seem to process it all for about thirty seconds, before inquiring upon something.
"And the genes show up strong? All of them?" he asked
"All of them, Lezigha. She's not just of the Glaciem Magistri. She has strong genes in all respects, but it seems that her genes lie most prevalent in the realm of Ice, which most likely explains her natural inclination toward it as opposed to other forms of water," she told him. He absorbed the information, and soon realized what it meant.
"She will have to come under my tutelage, will she not?" he asked. When the Lady in front of him nodded, he continued.
"And I will need to tell her. But when?" he inquired. Gita smiled.
"That, my friend, is up to you. It will be your choice, ultimately, to tell her and take her under your wing or let her live her life, unknowing of the vast potential she holds," she said, a slight frown grazing across her features, "I do hope you make the right choice, Lezigha. Meeting adjourned."
"Sir —" the desperate man pleaded. His eyes were covered by a rag, and only recently had his gag been removed, if only to talk his captor. His ribs were starting to show — he was a thin man to begin with — and he felt as though he had been here for weeks.
In reality, it had only been a few days. Enough time for Rí and his men to allow poke and prod at the man to leave him fearful and starving, a combination that never went well together.
SMACK!
"Your Majesty," corrected Rí, his smooth tone betraying his harsh actions. Rí smiled at the name he chose for himself. He was fit to be a king, after all. And by the end of his endeavor, a king he would be.
"Y-Your Majesty, I truly know nothing! Please, sir —" a punch to the gut had the man winded beyond belief. In the next moment, his head smacked against the stone wall as large hands grasped his throat. His wrists were tied and somehow all the magical energy in his body had been restrained by the cuffs that encompassed his hands. He could not use his water to slice through the chains. And this time, Rí was not so kind with his correction.
"Use the wrong title one more time, and I will crush your balls with my bare hands, you filthy fuck. Who am I?" he hissed out.
"Y-Y-Your Maj-Majesty," the man choked out, and Rí's gripped slackened immensely. He turned the man's chin to the side and gave his cheek a loud peck. There was simultaneous chuckling among at least five men. If the man had even a scrap of dignity left after the threat to crush his testicles, it was long gone now.
"And what is your name?" Rí asked, once again returning to the deceptively kind tone he had before. When the man failed to answer for a moment, beginning to lose consciousness, Rí sighed and lightly slapped his face.
"Stay awake now, and I won't kill you. You're about as much use to me asleep as you are dead," he told him. The man seemed to perk up a whole lot more after that.
"My… name is G-Gregory, Your Majesty," the man replied. Rí turned to his men and nodded. One of the older men came over, forced open Gregory's mouth, and shoved a bottle of water in. Gregory sputtered at first, but drank as much water as he possibly could. Rí knew that this was the only drink he'd had in days; the only reason he even considered giving him water in the first place is because he knew the barriers around his hands restricted him from using magic. A creation of his own design; one he was damn proud of, at that.
"See, Gregory? Just comply to what I ask and things will be a whole lot easier for the both of us," Rí explained condescendingly.
"Y-yes, Your Majesty," Gregory replied, his voice laced with exhaustion and defeat. Rí knew in that moment that Gregory was broken. Being broken meant answers, and answers meant progress.
"Gregory, I want you to tell me everything you know of the Line of Water. Anything and everything."
Anything and everything from Gregory, Rí knew, would not be enough.
But for now, it was a start.
A/N p. 2: Ohhhh yeah, things are starting to get spicy up in here. So anyway, the important thing I needed y'all to read. I'm going to be updating based on every 5-10 reviews I get*. It motivates me immensely when I get criticism/feedback, more so than a deadline of once per week or three times a month. A story I enjoy immensely, the Queen's Mercy (READ THAT ISH. IT IS SO GOOD AND THE PLOT IS SO GOOD AND UGH EVERYTHING ABOUT IT IS SO GOOD LIKE FUCK MY LIFE UP), does the thing that I'd like to start doing. I'll respond to your reviews as well at the end of the chapter, just like that author does.
Once again, I thank you for choosing to read my story in time that you could be doing something else. Every view makes me beyond happy, and every follow/favorite/review motivates me more than I thank many of you realize.
*Update: So, basically, I'm either going to update once a week or every 5-10 reviews, whichever comes first. I have the next chapter done and really want to share with you guys; it's long, dark, backstory filled, and full of plot.
Alright everyone, I'll see you next time! ~ Burns