"...No. Are you serious?"
"Dead serious. You think a guy like me is going to back down from a challenge? Psh... you obviously don't know me too well."
My head was spinning like crazy when two familiar voices brought me back to consciousness, both calm and casual. I fluttered my eyes open and squinted at the sunlight gleaming from a window to my left, meaning it was clearly day now. And while I tried to fully awake myself, my leg and cheek bandaged but still in agonizing pain, the voices continued their conversation.
"How come I've never heard this story before?" the first one asked, noticeably female.
"Hey... don't get suspicious of it just because I've never brought it up before. I've got plenty more where that came from," the second one, a male, remarked humorously.
"You expect me to believe you went up against a whole pack of werewolves? Doesn't that sound a little absurd? I mean, I'd believe you were raised by a pack of regular wolves because whatever runs through that thick skull of yours obviously isn't human," the female voice teased as she laughed lightly at her own comment.
"Ouch... okay. You got me on that one," the male voice replied as he also laughed, clearly not offended by what she said. Then, they both laughed louder.
I finally managed to adjust my vision and focus on the two on my right, using my hand as a shield from the sun. Maeve's crimson hair was the first thing that caught my attention, and then I took notice to Odis's bright smile across from her. The two of them were still laughing when they looked over at me, and both of them smiled even broader.
"Hey! You're awake!" Maeve exclaimed cheerfully as she placed her hand on mine. I tried to return her smile but doing that only made my cheek hurt so my smile ended up being a weak lip quiver. She caught on and pulled her hand back understandingly.
I finally took the time to take in my surroundings, feeling the comfort of a soft mattress underneath me and the feel of warm covers over me. I was in some kind of bedroom, average size, not too big nor too small. There was a window as I had mentioned, a mirrorless dresser across the room, a wooden door at my far right, another door (this one white) beside the dresser, and beside that seemed to be some kind of closet. There were a few paintings on the walls, all of your casual scenery; calm oceans, beautiful, rolling hills and such. There wasn't much to see, not that I cared anyway.
"We're glad you're okay. You gave us quite a scare back at the bar," Odis announced while glancing over at Maeve who gave an agreeing nod. Her look was sympathetic and gentle as she gave a weak smile.
"Yeah... Kade started freaking out, too. He thought you were dead," she chuckled. I tried to smile again but alas, it failed once more.
"I felt dead," I mumbled although the statement was a complete exaggeration. These guys had fought off God knows how many gargoyles and I could barely kill one. In fact, if it hadn't been for Odis, I'd've been gargoyle food. Who knew those things ate people? But thinking about it didn't make me feel any better.
"What about you guys? Are you okay?" I asked, scanning them for any wounds and finding nothing. Maeve waved her hand carelessly and gave that "oh please" look.
"Of course we are. Those gargoyles barely even touched us," she said. "But I can't imagine going up against the leader of em'. I've seen Xur in action and I can honestly say... no thank you."
"Oh please, the guy's nothing but a chump. I took him on and came out in top notch condition," Odis bragged boldly as he displayed a muscular arm for us to see. Like Kade, he was pretty built, but not necessarily my type since he seemed much older.
"Only because I broke one of his arms," I teased, managing to break a smile as he continued to display his muscles. He dropped his arms into his lap and gave a childish frown, hiding a smile. "But you did save me, so thank you," I added quickly as a laugh crept up my throat. He smiled proudly again and leaned back in his chair.
After a few moments of silence, I spoke up again. "So is Kade okay? It looked like he got beat up pretty badly," I mentioned guiltily. Both Maeve and Odis gave reassuring looks so I relaxed a bit.
"Oh yeah, you obviously don't know Kade. He's perfectly fine," Maeve said, pausing afterwards. "And although he was worried about you, he was also kind of upset that you stepped into the fight." She frowned at that last part and shifted in her seat.
"Why?" I questioned. Sighing deeply, she shook her head.
"He doesn't like the help of others, not to mention them risking their lives for him. But if he's needed, he'll be there...," she snapped her fingers, "just like that."
My eyebrows furrowed in confusion as my gaze shot back to the white ceiling and I touched the bandages on my cheek. Oddly, that sounded just like me. I didn't want these guys fighting to protect me, but I'd be there in seconds if they needed me... even though I barely knew them. They were obviously the good guys here, though, so why not? Why not offer the little assistance I could manage?
"Let's stop playing story time about Kade and get down to business," a sudden, deep voice added to the conversation. I nearly jumped at the sound of the new arriver and glanced over at the open doorway to my right. In it stood Kade himself, leading against the frame with an expression that hid a smile but displayed something nonchalant.
He strolled in casually and pulled up another, random chair to the bed, straddling it and laying his chin on top of his arms. His big, crystal blue eyes were gentle but seemed wild, as if he had trouble sleeping or didn't sleep at all. And if that wasn't enough to give someone that impression, his mildly messy hair also implied it. But at least he was wearing some fresh, clean clothes.
He turned his head toward Odis and Maeve who were watching him with curiosity, and arched a brow. "Mind if I speak to our guest alone?" he asked politely but with urgency. They both nodded silently and obeyed by leaving the room without another word. I watched as they closed the door behind them and looked over at Kade, my face practically expressionless because I had no clue what to say.
When he looked back at me, he flashed the same wave of sympathy from before. "You feeling any better?" he eventually asked after a few seconds of studying me.
I inhaled a deep breath and touched the bandages on my cheek again, feeling the rough fabric under my fingers. Although it was still hurting like crazy, I decided to lie a bit just to make him feel better. "Yeah... a little."
A nod of his head and then an examination of the room. "So... what do you think of my bedroom?" he questioned playfully with a smirk, as if thinking that would make me feel better. But it only made me feel tense.
His room? Did that mean I was lying in his bed? Under his covers? Yeah... that totally made me feel better...
"Your room?" I mumbled dumbly, looking around as if I had just taken notice to my surroundings. "It's nice..."
After a few seconds, he seemed to drop the kind act and frowned deeply, looking down at my heavily bandaged leg. "You wouldn't be in this situation if you hadn't stepped into the fight," he accused quietly-almost to himself-as he touched the back of his hand to my calf.
The contact made flush and tense even more, but I kept it causal and brought up my retaliation. "What was I supposed to do? Let Xur attack you while you were off guard?" Almost immediately, his eyes met mine and became seriously narrowed.
"I wasn't off guard. I could've easily taken on both Xur and Salazar. You didn't need to risk your life for me," he scolded.
"How was I supposed to know Xur was going to try to eat me?"
"Doesn't matter. My point still stands."
My cheeks started to become hot with anger but something told me it wasn't smart to get into conflict with a warlock, especially when he could probably burn me alive anytime he wanted.
"By the way, gargoyles haven't always required human meat as part of their diet. Salazar somehow added that a few years back just to make them scarier and more dangerous. How he did it, no one knows," Kade suddenly added, his attitude changing from angry to informative. I glanced over at him and then back at the ceiling, still not feeling reassured.
"Better he eat me than you," I mumbled. "Your people obviously need you. Me, I'm no one important. If fact, apparently my great grandmother was the main reason your previous leader died so I don't know why you guys are even helping me."
It felt wrong to accuse my grandmother of such a thing, but at the same time it felt right. If she hadn't asked the Freelancers for help and fallen in love with Thomas, he'd probably still be alive right now. It seems all their hard work was for nothing, anyway, because here I was, in the wrong time period with a messed up bloodline that consisted the DNA of who knows what.
"What your grandmother did was not your fault, nor did it concern you. We can't blame you for something you didn't do. And we didn't even hate Eliza, she was like one of us. We were happy to help her and were all devastated when she died. Thomas, too. The Abominations are the ones to blame," Kade attempted at reassurance, his voice gentle but bold. I locked my eyes with his again and decided to completely change the subject.
"Do you think I'll be able to go back home?" My voice cracked at the last word when the picture of our house popped inside my head, a "FOR SALE" sign planted in the front yard. Was time still going on with Mom and Dad realizing my absence and looking for me, worried to death? The whole idea gave me a headache.
Kade's eyebrows furrowed with concern. "You said the coin was what brought you back in time, right?" he asked.
I nodded.
"Galendale was the one who forged it, an old wizard known amongst almost every supernatural. He and a few other wizards were working on some kind of disintegration spell, but somehow ended up inventing a time travel spell. Odd that he was doing that on a freaking coin, yes, I know but I find it kind of impressive. Anyway, he disappeared awhile back and no one knows where he went, but if we can somehow track him down... maybe he can reverse the spell."
Kade sounded pretty confident but the way he said "maybe" kind of worried me. Maybe's never really worked out for me.
"And who exactly is 'we'?" I asked unnecessarily but just out of pure curiosity. He shifted causally in his chair and shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't know, really. Whoever we can get. I'm sure Odis and Maeve would like to tag along," he paused and fell silent into thought. "I know a few cooperative people so leave the search party up to me."
I smiled as he smiled and enjoyed the idea of Odis and Maeve tagging along since they could easily be the entertainment of the group.
"So until we can get you home, you're stuck in boring ol' 1903," Kade teased, although I didn't find it very funny. I flashed a fake smile anyway and took a deep breath.
1903, huh? Great, over a hundred years from my own time period.
***
"You think it looks okay?"
"Oh yeah. Kade will be all over you in no time."
I turned away from the mirror and rolled my eyes at Maeve who was smiling idiotically behind me, her vibrant green eyes holding that usual glint of excitement. When they met mine, she giggled childishly.
"I'm just kidding! Jeez," she defended. But then quietly and loud enough for me to hear, "But you guys already make a good couple."
I ignored her and looked at my reflection in the mirror again, examining the new outfit she had lended me. We figured with clothes from this time period (and since I had no other clothes of mine) I wouldn't look like such a "weirdo". The word being one she used to describe my style.
The short black skirt I wore only came partially down my thighs, but matched "my" white blouse perfectly, giving me that fancy feminine look instead of my usual tomboyish.
Maeve was wearing a white dress (knee length) decorated with red roses that matched her hair, and fit her physique exactly, as if the dress had been made for her. I smiled at how beautiful she looked and wondered if she always took her time picking out her outfits... considering she had when picking out mine.
In fact, mine would've been perfect if the bandages still on my legs didn't throw it off completely. I had to stay in (Kade's) bed for another two days before I could fully walk again; but in that time, the wounds on my cheeks healed entirely (thank goodness).
Odis, Maeve, Kade, and a few other Freelancers had continually gone to check on me, like a child who was severely ill, and showed me unnecessary sympathy. But like usual, I kept my mouth shut and accepted it gratefully.
"I think you look beautiful," Maeve reassured as she placed her hands on my shoulders, shaking me as if to add to my soothing.
I squinted unsurely and examined my short skirt again. "I didn't think women wore this in this time period," I mumbled.
She winked at me in the mirror and smiled. "We Freelancers have our own style. Especially us gals." I nodded my head and pretended to understand; although I did, I partially didn't at the same time. I liked the idea of not having to wear poofy skirts and scratchy blouses, so I guess Maeve's style wasn't so bad.
She spun around and examined her dress for almost the hundredth time. A smile spread across her face as she brushed down her crimson hair.
"And we Freelancers don't always follow the rules," she quietly added to herself in a low, ominous voice.
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Long and boring chapter, I know. Please don't hate me. ;(
Working on a more interesting chapter, I promise.