Elizabeth Pov
2 weeks ago
The class was dead silent today, the complete opposite of how it had been simply a day before, instead all that lingered was the chilling thought that " he " will come
The area around the place " he " usually sat in was deserted, instead everyone moved themselves to different seats, all this because of what happened the other day
That chilling duel where a classmate of ours brutally tortured our senior all while wearing a smile, for what seemed to be an endless couple of hours we were forced to see it all unfold
There was no need to go that far, the duel could have ended immediately if he had wished for it, yet it didn't he wouldn't let it go until it was clear to everyone what the consequences of disrespecting him was and how brutal it is
When the duel had finally ended, I had left the arena as if running away, even as I returned to my room all I could think of was that duel and trying to sleep only brought nightmares instead of peace. Before I knew it morning has already come and I had to go to the classroom.
' I'm scared '
The very fact that he could enter at any moment made me feel suffocated and the longer he took to arrive only helped increase my heartbeat, at some point I started tapping my finger on the table counting the time as it went by
" Are you ok? "
Suddenly a familiar warmth enveloped my hand as I turned towards the soft voice, sitting there was Jake who had worried look on his face
" What? "
" You tend to tap your finger when you're anxious, you had that habit since we were kids "
" Ah "
Seeing how obvious I was and how it made Jake worried I couldn't help but feel a deep sense of shame overcome me, I was supposed to be a child of Ignis, a house built upon honour and courage bearers of the symbol of the loin always the first to stand at any fight and a shield that protected its citizens
But as if mocking all the principles that our house represented, here I was terrified of a man who hasn't even arrived yet, instead of being the one who reassured the others I was instead being assured.
' My hand is trembling and only now do I realize it... '
Feeling the warmth still holding my hand and looking into those beautiful blue eyes full of worry I could slowly feel myself calming down again as I rested my head on his shoulder
" I'm sorry I worried you, I feel better now "
Having heard me a small smile blossomed on his face as his grip on my hand eased a little, we didn't much after that as we waited for inevitable yet for some reason it felt much more peaceful.
Though as if betraying all expectations there was no sight of him appearing even after Isabella entered even as homeroom was about to end.
He already had a history of disappearing for days at a time, and thinking logically about it he must have been preoccupied with the aftermath of the duel, with the circumstantial evidence I reached that conclusion naturally, still even with that there was a subtle hint of suspicion was left
That maybe he actually will attend today just a little later than usual, and it seemed I wasn't the only one who thought so as multiple other students started to get restless
The sudden change in the atmosphere again seemed to have caught Isabella's attention as she went forward and clapped her hands lightly to get our attention, waiting until all eyes were on her before finally speaking
" Lord arcane and Christine will not be attending for a while due to some special circumstances, instead they will have the curriculum papers sent to them
Still while they aren't here you guys are so you must focus on class, ok?" Saying so she turned around as she walked back towards the board
Slowly the built-up tension that was clouding the room was cleared as a sigh of relief was unanimously released by the students whose spirits seemed to have risen from the dead
Yet as I was finally free my delusions a belated realization struck me
' Wait did she also say Christine? '
Turning my head around and checking the surroundings again it was the truth, no signs of Christine was found, I simply hadn't noticed because of how distracted I initially was
In fact, nobody else seemed bothered by it, her not attending was expected at this point, after all, Christine had always been extremely close to him always walking by his side, and leaving when he did
' It doesn't make sense for her to leave with him though '
But even before everything that happened yesterday something about their relationship felt off, there dynamic was different compared to all the other students, not to mention that there was no sign of her yesterday at the arena
For some reason I started feeling really uneasy, the thought of something bad happening to Christine flooded my mind, yet I didn't take a single step because the thought of getting involved with him anchored me in place instead
.....
' Purity '
That was the first thought that popped into my mind when I was finally able to get to know Christine.
Having largely been absent from most social events that noble scions usually attend, Christine had been a subject of many mysteries with endless rumours having been spread about her, yet none could actually be confirmed
But by a twist of fate not only did she happen to attend the academy at the same time as me but was also put in the same class
And that was when I first got to know her, though only for a day for some reason that felt like it was more than enough, she was in every sense of the word an open book
Just remembering the first time she spoke to her brought a smile to her face, how she spoke softly and was filled with embarrassment at any sign of teasing
Her eyes that shone with curiosity and goodwill at every word she would say to her, and her smile that could brighten up any room
She was a chick, yes that was what she was
Compared to all the other noble children who grew up to be snakes she was an anomaly held no malicious intentions when spoken to, someone who was endlessly naive about the world and showed curiosity about it all
' She is also dangerously cute '
But that cute blue chick always followed a black bloodhound, it would sit where it sat and eat what it would eat, as if endlessly trying to please it and when it left it always followed
She didn't know much but she knew that if the bloodhound wanted to, he could eat the chick hole and yet he never did it cared deeply about it instead
Even when it soaked in blood the hound covered the chicks' eyes as if to protect it from the truth, and lion cub who was watching it all unable to make up her mind decided to close her eyes as well choosing cowardice once more
.....
1 week later
The days passed by in relative peace as the class atmosphere slowly returned to how it was, as always me and Jake sat side-by-side talking about anything and everything that came to mind
This time we were talking about the new dessert that the cafeteria has made, last time was about the famous novel that was published a few days ago.
" So, I was thinking about going and trying it again this time with a strawberry milkshake by the side... "
But my words trailed of as the class turned quiet, watching how even Jake seemed to be frozen in place I turned my head to see what he was looking at
And there having just entered the room was Christine who immediately went to sit in her place with no signs of him appearing after
Yet as if blaming her for what little inconvenience they had felt they started shooting glares at Christine, and that's when I noticed it even from afar the subtle trembling of her shoulders
" Christine!!
What are you doing there come over !!"
I didn't know where the sudden courage came from even though I had just been a coward a week ago but seeing her like that I couldn't help but call for her.
Hearing my voice, she turned towards me as pointing at herself as if asking if what she heard was true, even that was cute, even more so when she smiled brightly when I nodded to her
Moving quickly beside us she sat beside me as her eyes glittered the same way it had before
' She's still the same '
For some reason it felt like a heavy load was taken off my chest as I saw that, still all we managed to talk about was a simple how are you before Isabella entered the classroom
Still, that was enough for me just the thought that everything was fine now made me feel in control of my emotions once again
Yes, that was how it was supposed to be case, if not for Isabella's next words