Chapter 3

The sunrise of Valentine's Day was the moment of truth. Jay waited in the field of flowers at the Vista Point to meet his secret admirer. The sky still had a midnight hue, and the orange glow radiated from the horizon.

Jay sensed a presence behind him. He stood up, turned around, and gasped when he saw that his so-called "secret admirer" turned out to be Thyra. The young Radiant girl stepped into the flower field and gave a similar reaction upon seeing Jay.

Jay and Thyra pointed a finger at each other. "You!!" they yelled in unison.

"Don't tell me that you're the one who sent me all those obsessive love letters!" Jay said.

Thyra scoffed. "I never sent you any love letters, you filthy land animal!"

"Then what are you doing here!?"

"I got a bunch of letters telling me to come here to meet my secret admirer. I'd vomit if it was you."

Jay shook his head. "No, it's not me, so please try to keep your lunch down."

"I can't believe it. I came all the way here to meet a man with whom to share my love, and instead I find you!? This is an outrage!"

"So you really didn't send me those letters?"

"No! How could I fall in love with an Orerines?"

"If you didn't send me those letters...someone must have..."

"How should I know?"

"Don't you think it's odd that–"

Thyra cut Jay off. "You set this up! I don't know what you're scheming, but it won't work!"

Jay sighed. There she goes again. I'll just pretend I can't hear her...

Thyra turned her back and ranted on. "I can't believe I fell for this trick! That stupid Orerines...he would pull a stunt like this."

"I can't believe I've been tricked into coming here," Jay told himself. "I wonder who would pull such a stunt?"

"He'll pay for this, I swear it!"

"On the other hand, it is possible that we both may have a separate secret admirer. This is a very popular spot for couples to meet."

"Just who does he think he is!?"

"But then again, don't you think it's odd that our letters told us to come here at the same time? That can only mean..."

"That apostate Merines...if only she had fulfilled her duty!"

Jay shook his head and shrugged. "It's as though I'm talking to a wall..."

"After they used and killed so many Ferines, I'll never trust them, ever!"

"I honestly don't know why I'm still standing here."

Thyra turned to face Jay again. "What are you babbling about? Did you even listen to a word I said?"

Jay shook his head again. "There's no need to listen, because everything you say is pointless. And I suppose you didn't hear a word I said either."

"How dare you! I may not be the Merines, but that doesn't mean I can't eliminate an Orerines or two myself!" Thyra pulled her hand back and threw an open-handed slap to Jay's face. "You're the most annoying of all of them! I'll be glad to put you out of the way!"

She repeatedly slapped him in the face. Jay recoiled with each slap, but didn't seem to be hurt. After a moment, Thyra stopped and began backing off.

"Wh...why are you giving me that look?"

Jay raised an eye. "What look?"

"That! What you're doing right now!"

"This? This is my normal face."

"What?" Thyra backed away some more. "No...it can't be."

"Why are you so surprised? Surely you've seen my normal face before."

Thyra shook her head. "Never mind! Getting back on subject, I don't like you. You're an Orerines, and I will kill you one day!"

Jay narrowed his eyes. "That's highly unlikely. Lest you forget, I can use eres. Can you?"

"That doesn't matter. I'll find a way."

Jay shook his head. "No. Hate me all you want, but don't throw away your life by trying to kill me. I'm not particuarly fond of you myself, but I don't want you to die either."

"What makes you think I'm going to die?" Thyra snapped.

"You said you were going to kill me, correct? If you attempt such a thing, I will defend myself. Rest assured, once you see my blade, it'll be the last thing you'll ever see."

Thyra gasped as the warning sent a chill down her spine.

"Have we changed our minds?" Jay asked. "That's good. Now then, we should start figuring out who led us here."

"And how do you suppose we do that?"

"First, may I see one of the letters you've received?"

Thyra glared at him as she pulled out a letter and handed it to him. "I don't see why you'd need it, but here."

Jay pulled out one of his own letters, then held the two letters side by side. "Hmm, interesting."

"What's so interesting about it?"

"Notice how the handwriting on these letters is the same? This means that the letters to both of us were written by the same person."

Thyra looked at the letters. "What? Why?"

"Apparently, someone was trying to get us into a relationship."

"What!? Never! I would never start a relationship with you!"

"The feeling is mutual. At any rate, there's only one person I know who would try something like this."

"Really? Who?"

"Norma Beatty. I thought this was her handwriting, so I had assumed that she was my secret admirer. That's why I was surprised to see you instead. However, after seeing her handwriting in your letters, I understand now what she was trying to do. It's something she does quite often, actually."

"Norma...oh yes, I remember Norma. She has to be an Orerines to pull a stunt like this."

Jay sighed. "As usual, you use entirely confounding logic."

"It doesn't take a scholar to know that Orerines use people like this," Thyra told him. "They'd even do it to each other, since you fell for the same trick."

And I dragged myself out of bed at 5:30 in the morning for this? Jay turned around and crouched down low, grabbing his head. "Ahh..."

Thyra gasped. "Hey! What happened?"

She went over to Jay and helped him back up. Jay turned to face her with a puzzled look on his face.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

Thyra paused as she realized what she had just done, then staggered backwards. What am I doing??

She turned away, blushing. "Um...nothing."

"Really?"

"Yes, really!" Thyra screamed in his face.

Jay, startled by her outburst, gently pushed her away.

"How...how dare you push me!" Thyra gave Jay a rough shove of her own.

"Then have more respect for my personal space," Jay responded.

Thyra clenched her fist. "You..."

She lunged forward, tackling Jay to the ground. Jay threw Thyra aside, pinning her to the ground for a moment, and then stood up.

Thyra stood up and quickly tackled Jay again. This time they both tumbled down the grassy hill. Once they stopped, Jay pinned Thyra down again, and then stood up again.

"I'm leaving," he said. "I'm going to get back at Norma for luring me out here." He turned and began to leave the field.

Thyra picked herself up and brushed herself off. "Wait!" she called out.

Jay stopped and turned back to her. "Yes?"

"I...I want to get back at Norma too. If she's the one who led me out here for nothing...I want to get back at her."

Jay paused to consider her request. Considering that she had been threatening him a moment ago, he certainly had no reason to trust her. However, in this situation, Thyra was a victim as much as Jay was. It was only fair for her to get her revenge as well.

"Very well," Jay said. "We'll head to Werites Beacon and come up with a plan. Deal?"

He held out his hand to Thyra, who paused for a moment.

"Deal," she responded, taking his hand.

Together, they left the Vista Point.