Chapter Seven - Part Three

“What happened after I left?” he said, finally. “And what did the witch say?”

Quickly, I explained both of Claudia’s visions, as well as her suggestion that Tidus and I take the truth serum.

“Ok,” Ethan said, nodding his head as if he understood, but his eyes told me otherwise. “Great. Now remind me again why it’s a good idea to keep this from the Elder?”

“Because I want to fix this on my own.” I replied firmly. “Tidus hasn’t told the Council, and I don’t want to say anything to the Leadership either.”

“So if Tidus jumped off a cliff does that mean you’d follow him? That guy is dangerous, and so is his crazy, homicidal family. Why are you so sure that you can trust him?

I didn’t answer right away, knowing very well how bad this all looked.

“I’m not asking you to trust him, Ethan, but I am asking you to trust me – at least long enough for me to take the serum. That way, I can prove to them that I’m not lying. But I do understand how serious this is. So, if Tidus and Claudia still don’t trust me after that, or if it turns out that they’re somehow lying too… then I’ll go with you to see Charles.”

“You’ll really do that?” Ethan replied, looking unconvinced.

“Yep, I really will.” I said, sweeping my hair into a quick pony-tail before sitting down on the cold, wooden floor to exchange my tennis shoes for the heels I would be dancing in.

“By the way, the Elder stopped by my family’s house last night.” Ethan said, taking a seat next to me and stretching.

“What for? Gossiping about me to Devila isn’t enough? Does my grandfather need to expand the circle?”

“Why do you have it out for your grandfather so bad? Mimi, he’s just trying to look out for you.”

It was odd to hear that nickname suddenly on his lips, and it brought back stirring flashes of memories from my past, including sweet Danny Preston.

“Oh c’mon Ethan.” I said brusquely, shaking off the nostalgia. “You and I both know that the only people on the Leadership who take me seriously are Lucas, and Mr. Newport. Even your Dad doesn’t bother acting like I’ll last.”

“Well, your family takes you seriously enough to throw you this big cotillion.” Ethan replied.

“That’s because it’s all for show.” I replied, bitterly. “Just like you’re only my date so we can look good for Diane and the Garou… shit. I’m sorry, Ethan. I didn’t mean it like that.”

“Yeah. I know.” he said quietly, nevertheless looking away.

“So, what did the Elder come over for anyway?” I said, glad for the reason to change the subject.

“Uh, yeah. Um, he just came over to shoot the breeze really. But then Dad got a couple drinks into him and he loosened up enough to mention some trouble happening over in Hasting. Apparently a couple of people have been found dead, so the Humans there wrote some article about a cult.”

“There’s a cult killing people in Hasting?” I repeated. “That’s awful.”

“It’s a little worse than awful, actually. Charles doesn’t think it’s a cult. He thinks it has something to do with a Witch Clan up there – The Order. He thinks they’re sacrificing Humans.”

“Sacrificing them? Jesus, for what?”

Ethan shrugged. “I don’t know. Charles clammed up at that point, so my dad kicked me out of the room. I don’t know what they talked about after that.”

“So do you think Charles talked to the other Leaders about this yet? Besides your dad?”

“I wouldn’t know. I just figured I’d tell you because I want you to see what it’s really like in our world, because I don’t think you’re getting the full picture. I mean yeah, Tidus probably won’t hurt you, Mimi. But there are plenty of other bad guys out there that will. So just… be careful, ok?”

I stood and looked down at Ethan, studying him for a moment before holding out my hand.

“I’ll watch your back if you watch mine.” I offered.

“Deal,” he said, and took my hand with a grin.

*  *  *

Ethan was smooth on his feet, as he twirled me around the room under the instructor’s careful guidance. He remained insufferably patient as I tripped and stumbled over my own feet, and was infuriatingly kind as he gently directed me through the right steps. And for the most part, it was the same as every other practice before it, except this was the first time I actually allowed myself to enjoy it. For the first time in a while, I wasn’t consumed by my anger with Ethan. I let myself forget it, and in doing so, I remembered again why I almost fell for him in the first place.

At the end of practice, laughing and breathless, Ethan picked me up and spun me around in celebration. And out of nowhere, he set me down and let me go. I staggered, struggling to hold my balance, but it was all to avail.

I crashed backwards, with my gut wrenching as my brain anticipated the fall… But instead, something incredible happened. I fell, but I never hit the floor. Instead, strong arms enveloped me, catching me at an inch from the ground. And suddenly, I was looking upwards into the frosty blue eyes of my hero.

“Tidus?”

But the next second, the world was blurring uncomfortably, and I had the stomach-clenching sensation of feeling impossible speed as I was carried away. I shut my eyes tight, only daring to open them when I was standing on my feet again, a few seconds later. At first my vision swam and all I could see was black. We were surrounded in it – drowning in it – until I heard a click as Tidus turned on the light. Immediately, I recognized the outline of a storage space somewhere inside the dance hall, and new we hadn’t traveled far.

Biting my lip, I waited for him to speak, his face illuminated behind the thin string of a bald lamp. It still shook and swung slightly from when he had held it.

“Our plane to JFK leaves tonight at 8:00. LaGuardia’s a bit closer to the hotel, but I find that JFK’s customer service is worth the extra cab fare.”

I stared at him for several seconds, unable to speak. My heart was still pounding.

“Um… It’s been over a month since I’ve heard from you, Tidus.” I said finally. “I thought that you would have been to New York and back by now.”

“Claudia’s sister is unwell, so I’ve been tending to her.” he said, looking down at me from those serious, piercing eyes. “But the primrose is almost ready, so it’s time.”

“Why did you change your mind about taking me? I thought you said you didn’t want me to go.”