Kiramman Manor is more imposing than intimidating. The structure is just a tall building that's connected to another fancy, taller building. So on and so on, these buildings are connected in a way that looks more like a mountain than a house. I guess it's symbolic in a way, the elites stand united. If I know anything about power, it is that it encourages lies and betrayals. I'm still not sure about what to do with Caitlyn. If being her friend will make things easier on me and keep that future from happening, I have to play along, no shenanigans, if I can help it. Caitlyn pushes open the door and steps inside. As we walk in, we are greeted with what we Zaunites have always lacked our entire lives...pretty stuff. The Kiramman's didn't have the shiny stuff of other nobles when I spied through their windows. Instead, they have polished wooden carvings and furniture. Rifles of various designs are holstered as trophies on the walls. Lights hung from the ceilings, I forget what those swinging things are called. Despite all of these things that I have never seen before, there is still plenty of room for...certain activities.
"Try to keep your hands clean." I spoke gently to my guards. They both nod in confirmation. Lis placed an expensive-looking pocket watch back on the table. I've got to remind her that listening to me is more of a suggestion than a direct order. I can't give her the impression that I'm some strict dictator, that belongs to someone more fitting than myself.
"I'll fetch you three some drinks." Caitlyn insists as she waves for us to follow her. As we did so, we took time to remember the layout of her living room and every corner of the place, just in case.
"So, I was thinking that we should just tell her the truth as to why we need to see your mentor," she began as she flew about in the kitchen like a busy bee. Maybe that's not quite right. She's more like a waitress, like Gert, but better. Her movements are graceful, making the effort of placing three glasses on a tray and filling them seem effortless.
We sat down at her table, which was unnecessarily long. Summer and Lis chose to pull two chairs together to sit next to me.
"Would she believe the full story?" I asked as Caitlyn placed the tray down in front of us. "Because hearing it from me, well, you know."
Caitlyn's eyes shift to her left, then back to me. I noticed rustling in the background as we pulled the chairs together. We are being spied on. Given that I trust Caitlyn, to an extent, I would not expect her to pull anything traitorous. The culprit revealed himself to be a tall adult man in a suit. I can see Caitlyn's face on his.
"Caitlyn," he called out with a soft but stern voice. "Who are your...friends?"
She rushed to properly greet him. "Father, the boy's name is Owen, and the two girls are Summer and Lis."
He looked over to us, and we raised our glasses in greeting. "Hello, Mr. Kiramman."
He bowed his head slightly. "Hello, children."
Motioning his hand to invite Caitlyn closer to him, he whispers in a hushed tone. "Why would you bring these people to our house?"
The house is quiet, and the noise from outside wasn't loud enough to muffle that. At this point, I've grown tired of hating Piltovians, but these two aren't that bad. I can feel the animosity building within them. Although Caitlyn is now arguing on our behalf, I can't help but see her efforts are going up in flames.
"Deep breaths, you two." I suggest, as I took a long drink.
"Easy for you to say." Summer sips her drink and runs her finger along the blade of a butter knife.
Lis just huffed and took steady sips. Not sure if she even likes this fruit blend, it's not bad. Caitlyn and her father are masking their growing debate with practiced self-control and iron temperament. They walked side by side, further away from us. Neither of them gave up an inch in terms of verbal combat. Caitlyn doesn't seem challenging or intimidating at all. She stood alert and pleading, without seeming desperate. I would have either folded or hit someone by now. Direct eye contact like this has always put me on edge. They are staring daggers at each other while they debate. Eventually, Caitlyn and her father embrace in a hug. The debate seemed more like a conversation that ended in begrudging understanding. They parted ways, her father leaving the house and Caitlyn approaching us with a smile on her face.
"Good news, I hope?" From all that talking, it had better be good news.
She smiles with her hands laced in front of her. "No."
I frown. "What?"
"We have to speak with my mother next. That's the real challenge." She let out a breath, giving me the impression that Cassandra is going to make us fight for it.
"Hate to waste time then." I finished my drink. "It's your show, lead on."
She smirks. "You can just leave the glasses there, the maids will clean up after us."
"Really? Oh, that's nice." I turn to Lis. "Isn't that nice?"
She looks at me and rolls her eyes.
I walk forward. "Yeah, that's nice."
Summer steps up to Caitlyn, nervously. "Thanks...for the...drinks."
Caitlyn played the graceful host. "You're welcome, it's my personal blend." She turned to Lis, not put off by her dismissive posture. "I hope you liked it."
I run my finger over the surface of this fancy-looking lamp. Its soft glow drew me in like a moth to a flame. Thankfully, I'm not tempted to smash into it, I'm sure Caitlyn won't like that. She also wouldn't like it if it happened to end up missing. It's so pretty.
"Yeah." Lis nods as she locks eyes with Caitlyn. "It was good. Thanks."
Such a pretty lamp.
Caitlyn smiled in gratitude. "I can invite you two over whenever you have the time. I can teach you how to make it for yourselves." Her eyes caught me trying to figure out how this lamp is assembled. The sound of her clearing her throat drew my attention away.
"Huh? Still need a drink? Your throat sounds a bit rough." I pointed out.
She narrowed her eyes and approached me with a predatory aura. My two useful bodyguards hesitated on fulfilling their job description.
"Step away. From that vase," she calmly and strongly requested. A request that leaves no room for rejection, so I made room for a stipulation.
"Hold my hand." I reached my hand out. "Otherwise, I'm going to caress this beautiful lamp."
Her eyes sharpened in intensity, it's quite impressive to see her do that in person.
"Maybe my wish can come true." I continued and didn't see Caitlyn move, as half of my attention was on the lamp. As I felt her hand secure mine, I had only seconds before I could leave my print on it. Summer giggles as I'm pulled away by Caitlyn. We are in public again, walking towards the council tower. While the tower grew closer towards us, I'm overwhelmed by its presence. The last time I was here, deals were struck, my throat was almost cut, and I could have gone to jail. If I hadn't had two Zaun legends behind me, things could have gone worse than being locked up.
"Hey." Caitlyn squeezed my hand briefly. "I know it looks intimidating, just follow my lead and remain calm."
I turn to her. "You would be such a great big sister."
She gasped and looked around, assuring herself that whatever she's planning to do would result in few people taking notice. As soon as she released my hand, I slipped back behind my guards. Summer and Lis couldn't follow my movements as I took cover behind them.
"Please don't hurt me!" I plead. The people around us were too occupied with their own lives to pay us any mind. However, my antics are starting to draw a few eyes our way.
"Owen!" She is exasperated and rests her hands on her hips.
My guards finally relaxed and chuckled.
"Can you get serious?" Caitlyn chastised as she tried to fight her smirk. "You can't meet my mother like this."
"Oh? Why can't he?" An authoritative voice asked, followed by sounds of crunching.
Caitlyn straightened her back and turned to see her mother, Cassandra, eating a bag of crackers. She's dressed in a similar dress that drips with entitlement, because she earned it.
"Mother?" Caitlyn laced her hands in front of her. "We were just coming to see you."
"Hmm." Cassandra took a moment to look for the cracker she wanted and pulled it out. "What for?"
Her mother then offered Caitlyn the bag.
"It is a matter that I think deserves a quiet room to discuss." Caitlyn suggested as she took a cracker for herself.
As Cassandra pulled the bag back, she turned her eyes to me. My guards took cover behind my back. I'm beginning to think that they need to go through the boot camp.
"Owen, a pleasure. Haven't seen your signatures in a while," she informed.
I walked forward and stood next to Caitlyn. "I'm on vacation until I'm 18."
Caitlyn frowns and looks at me. "What!?"
"I know, right?" I replied, then I turned to Cassandra. "Anyways, I need to see my old associate. I think you know who I mean."
Silence fell between us. The people around us have enough sense to give us space.
"I will take you there myself. You wouldn't be able to get inside Stillwater, even with my seal," she explains as she waves for us to follow her. "Owen, next to me, please."
Lis places an assuring hand on my back as I walk forward. Keeping up with her pace was a bit difficult. Long legs run in the family.
"I require a favor in exchange for personally seeing to your needs," she begins.
Of course, she wants to personally benefit from my possible potential. But I'm just an idiot that got himself killed just to have lightning in a box.
"What could I possibly do for you? I'm still just...me." I pointed out as I tried to keep up with her long strides.
She chuckled. "Owen, you don't have to play coy, you aren't in court. You've studied under Hal. He was known for...pushing limits."
There she goes, exposing my failure. "Yeah, he starved for the universe and all of its secrets."
"That he has," she laughs in her throat as we board a ship towards Stillwater Hold. "You should have heard the debates between him and Heimerdinger. He always knew how to get under Heimerdinger's fur."
This is the first time I've seen her smile. I suppose that was a fond memory for her. The boat is large enough to take half of the Piltover population over to Stillwater. That thought made me smile. I'm sure most of them are as violent and prone to stealing as we are, they just do a better job hiding it. The boat rocked from side to side. It is a new sensation for me, and by the looks of it, my guards as well. Summer and Lis held onto the rails for dear life.
"What can I do for you?" I asked, wanting to get straight to the point. Caitlyn felt that it was necessary to steal a spot right next to me.
"I'm assigning you to take an apprenticeship under Sky, the woman who nursed you back to health," she announced as she offered me the bag of crackers, or cracker. "She's been asking for you."
Damn, I've been meaning to talk to her.
"I'd like that." I accepted and took the last cracker out and ate the whole thing in one bite.
Cassandra exhaled through her nose. "Please chew your food properly. I know you know how to eat."
I shove the cracker in the side of my cheek. "So you know I'm doing this because it might irritate you?"
I felt a pinch in my right side. Caitlyn is a lot like Powder when irritation comes into play.
"Fortunately, Silco warned me about your antics," she disclosed as we neared the docks of Stillwater.
"How is he holding up, by the way? You all playing nice?" I asked as I started chewing on the cracker that was now soggy against my cheek.
She looked down at me and grinned. "He's playing the game quite well."
We arrived at the docks. While the docking was considered smooth, Summer and Lis didn't handle it well. They both spit up a good amount of saliva over the edge before joining us on the dock. Cassandra led us all towards the entrance of Stillwater. The prison is a massive mountain of depression. Caitlyn tried to put on an unbothered face, but even she felt uneasy just by looking at it.
"They call this place a prison?" Lis spoke lower than a whisper. "It's a dungeon."
It is imposing, I'll give her that much. The constant bad weather around here doesn't inspire hope at all. The clouds above continuously swirl, as if they're digesting the sky itself and hate the taste while doing so.
"When we reach the front desk, no shenanigans. I expect absolute silence." She turned to the rest of us. "From all of you."
We all nod in silence, under her stern glare. She continued walking towards the front gate, we followed closely behind her.
"Next to me, Owen," she ordered. I hastened my pace to walk next to her.
"When we are told where your associate is, then, and only then, are you allowed to speak, understood?" she asked as her gaze fell on me.
Being in charge must be her way of life. Granted, I'd probably wind up in here by acting like an idiot.
"Got it." I'm doing my best to play nice, but her attitude is bringing out the best hooligan in me.
"Good." Cassandrea raised her head high, being proud of lording her authority over little old me.
When we approached the gates, they opened up immediately. Having a councilwoman here speeds things up, apparently. We are escorted inside without introductions. I'm getting the impression that she has made these trips many times. While I was considering looking behind me, a hand landed on my shoulder, then another hand on my other. I crossed my arms and touched their hands in assurance. As their hands left my shoulders, a wild thought crossed my mind. What if we find their parents in here? Or at least someone they care about? That would explain their need for physical comfort. They've seen worse so far. This place can't possibly make them that uncomfortable, unless they know someone in here. If they do, I can work on helping them out. We stopped in front of the desk. Sitting behind it is a giant of a man. Round, wide, and tall. With all that weight, I'm sure he has the strength to justify carrying it. Regardless, it only took one look at Cassandra for him to stiffen up and stand to his towering full height.
"Mrs. Kiramman!" I didn't expect you today.
"I'm here to see Errat." Cassandra plainly demands.
"Right." He sat back down and agilely opened a notebook. Scanning over the names with his stubby finger, it stopped. "Prisoner, 505. I'll escort you to her."
He gets up and brings his long iron cane along with him. His cane echoed down the halls as he slammed it against the concrete floor. It's harrowing. Hearing that sound as it stops outside your cell must be a spine-chilling experience. Getting hit by that thick rod would definitely kill me. Every prisoner that we pass regards this guy with varied reactions, most of which are hate, the most recognizable. Most expressed hate in their own way. Some cowered away from us, others gripped the bars until their knuckles cracked, wishing they were his neck. This guard must have enjoyed it, in a sick way. Whatever went on in here is clearly ignored by the council people, especially Cassandra. Finally, we stopped.
"Leave us." Cassandra commanded. And without another word, the guy nodded and did as he was told. That's what power looks like. No matter what your stature, you need to be born in a favorable position, or else your fate has already been made for you. Within the cell in front of me lies a barely moving figure. I can see her face, more gaunt than ever. She wears plain standard prisoner attire. The only covering for warmth she has are her bandages. It would have been comforting if it weren't for the blood that looks to have dried days ago. This is sickening, beyond sickening. Is this the Piltover that I want to protect? My ambitions for the future have been brought into question. Making peace with Piltover is the ultimate fantasy in a world of warm hugs and kisses, but I'm forced to live in reality. And this reality has a nasty, festering underbelly of rot. My chest fills with acid.
"Errat?" I called out with a raspy voice. She stirs, mostly from great effort. It doesn't look like she has much energy. The air around us is deafeningly silent and still. The only sounds that I can focus on are Errat's groans as she fights to move her head to see me.
"Owen?" Her voice calls out as weak as a starved mouse. "I can't...move."
No. Her voice. The voice that carried more life and confidence than the rest of the former professors is now reduced to this. A ghost of what was a proud and excited soul, seeking eternity. I grabbed the bars and focused on visualizing the metal melting. Not melting as in heat, but as in not being in front of me. Just go somewhere else. And in the instant of that thought, the formula was complete, and the metal, like water, vaporized into nothingness. Sharp gasps reached my ears as I walked forward and knelt beside Errat. She appeared even frailer up close. Looking over her, she appeared so fragile that I might kill her if I so much as brushed her greying hair. It's a shame too. Even though I barely knew her as anything more than a professor, she always seemed like a mothering type. Caressing my head as I survived the plunges into the beyond. I bet that she personally took on Hal for me.
"Owen. It hurts." Her confession snapped me out of it.
"I can heal you." I blurt out, knowing deep down that I can't.
She smiled weakly. "No, you can't. Not this."
"I can try." I reach my hand out, not knowing where to touch her without causing her pain. Then, it came to me. I laid my hand on her head and pushed her hair back.
She smiles weakly. "Just like I did for you, finally figured it out?"
"Sorry it took me this long." I apologized as my vision blurred.
She exhaled from her nose and then put all of her strength into her smile. Suddenly, her expression changed to irritation, then confusion.
"Owen," she whispers as her eyes become unfocused.
"Yes?" I answered, trying to grab her attention by following her line of sight. "Errat, I'm still here."
Her eyes focused on me again. "Show me the sea of eternity," she requests with a fading, raspy voice. "Help me find it, I'm lost."
Remembering the connection that Viktor and Jayce have, I connect my forehead to hers. In that moment, I moved through the layers of restrictions that holds reality together. Errat is lost within the primordial soup of dying and birthing stars. A faint whisper of a request, 'show me the way', echoes through my senses. The space that separates the Void, Rebirth, and Eternity pulls at Errat's being. She's being scattered in all angles. If I don't reach her in time, she will have to find all of her essence by herself. Ignorantly searching the cosmos for your essence, is a fate I wouldn't wish for anyone. Not much further now, I can hear her call out to me. Reaching my hand out, I concentrate of gathering the most important essence she has left. When I swept though the stream of the Divide, I recovered most of her mind and soul. Retreating to a safe distance, free of any other influence, I concentrate. There is no instruction of how to gather essence, only the desire to. My desire is to bring my former mentor back, make her whole again. Slowly, bits of her essence gathers in my hands. Bit by bit, her essence grew heavy. If I were counting by runeterra years, it would have taken 5 years to gather all of her together. She was the size of a nebula cloud, before she was whole again.
"Owen!" her youthful, vibrant, and energetic voice washes over me. Materializing to a more human form, she chose to appear as a young adult. Personally, I prefer this Errat, over the dying husk on the concrete prison floor. "Thought I took a wrong turn somewhere."
A wave of relief and joy washes over me. My body launched me forward, and I found myself hugging Errat.
"You would have ended me if you did that in the other world," she commented as she embraced me and rubbed my back.
"You freed yourself from the darkness." I noticed with my celestial awareness.
"Yeah, it was difficult at first. That darkness was with me for so long, it felt like leaving a loyal friend. But that darkness was nothing but poison." She explains as we drift on the tides of eternity.
"Hal couldn't free himself, could he?" I asked as I looked up at her.
Regret washes over her face, along with the foam of the cosmic ocean. "I wished I knew the answer then. In hindsight, the solution was so simple, but I just couldn't figure him out." She caressed my right cheek. "I tried, Owen, I really did."
I smiled. "That's all we can do, right?"
"Right." She patted my face gently. "You're too smart to be told that."
"Sometimes, I don't listen, even to myself." I admitted.
"You just have to allow yourself to grow. It will all come together with time," she advised.
"Thanks." I replied with a smile of gratitude. "I have to go back, don't I?
She nods. "You know you have to. Don't worry, no one would notice you being gone. Time being different here and all."
I hug her tighter. "Even though we never knew each other much, I'm still happy that I got to meet you."
"I would cry if this was our last meeting," she expressed as she released me.
"You're a crybaby too?" I asked as I kicked my feet to be eye level with her.
"And don't you go telling anyone." She points a finger in my face, jokingly, then smiles widely as our foreheads meet again.
Rough, dry concrete made my knees burn in pain. Pulling back from Errat's forehead, I look over her empty vessel. Despite knowing, only faintly, like a dream, that she's in a better place, it doesn't make it any easier. But she expects great things from me, it wouldn't be right to start disappointing her now. Standing to my feet, I wipe my eyes and turn to see two peepers. Caitlyn and Summer look reasonably morose, but Cassandra and Lis are nowhere in sight.
"I'm so sorry." Caitlyn offered a gentle hand on my arm and an invitation for a hug. I accepted the hug. I didn't need it, as I felt that Errat was alive and well in a higher state. It's mostly for Caitlyn. For some reason, she's fighting to hold back tears. Never would have figured her to play the tough act in front of us, maybe it's because of her mother? When Caitlyn released me, we stepped out, only for me to be assaulted by Summer.
"Sorry, I couldn't stop that from happening," she said as she crushed me in her hug.
"Can you stop this from happening?" I asked. Summer pulled her head back to look at me with water in her eyes. "I mean the whole crushing me thing."
"Oh." A smile of acknowledgement flashed across her face. "Yeah, sorry."
When she was done composing herself, I looked a ways down to see Cassandra standing in the center of the hall. In front of her stands Lis, holding the hand of a prisoner. Deciding not to interrupt that tender moment. I turn around to Errat's cell. I might not be able to heal living beings, but at least I know how to put materials back together. Visualizing the formula in the spaces where the metal was, I brought them back as if they'd never been touched.
"You have a gift, you know." Caitlyn stated.
"And you need a tutor, doing this by myself makes my head hurt." I said as I walked towards the other two.
"Are you saying that I can do all of that too?" She asked as if she swam all the way here.
"I would have to cram a lot of material into your lessons, but I wouldn't put it past you. We will see." I answered honestly.
"I won't let you down," she promised.
So this is what pride in another person feels like? I'm proud of my family, all of them. Why does it feel different with Caitlyn?
"...make us proud," the voice of a man requested as his hand grew weak and released Lis's grip.
She had to clamp her mouth shut to remain quiet. Too strong for her own good. I have to make it up to these two today if at all possible. When I returned to Cassandra's side, I saw the man that was holding Lis's hand. He was seated against the wall, with his head hung behind his legs. Surrounding him are drawings of profane ramblings and scribblings that make no sense to me. Lis is just standing there, with her hands clenched and shaking. Being the big boy here, I approached her.
"I'm here." I said as I stood beside her. She nods and looks away from me. "Let's get out of here."
She nods again. I grabbed hold of her hand and turned to Cassandrea.
"We're done here." I reported as I tried to search for any hint of humanity within this woman. To my disappointment, she knows what empathy is. To a deeper degree of dissatisfaction, her inner strength is what's keeping her from breaking down into a miserable pile of tears. It would have been better if she were an unfeeling monster. Her accident would have been poetic. Oh well. The ride back was a silent and solemn journey. Summer tried to console Lis, but she was unresponsive. Caitlyn stood by Cassandra's side, having a private conversation out of earshot. When we reached Piltover again, I've never been so glad to see a city full of arrogant people. It beats that nightmare of a hellhole any day. It was nearly pitch black outside. The only things that made the cities visible were the streetlights and the neon displays. Even with those, the darkness seems unusually thick, it must be my eyes.
"You will receive a letter from Sky tomorrow. Please, learn as much as you can." Cassandra requested as she began to walk home. Caitlyn followed closely behind her, only turning around to wave and mouth goodnight.
A good night is what I'm shooting for.
"Dinner is on me, not a request." I commanded as I marched to Jericho's. Thankfully, the two followed without rebellion. As we sat in a corner and ate, I couldn't help but notice how quiet they were. A maximum security prison might not have been the hotspot for sightseeing, but at least it can stir up an appetite.
"So I was thinking—"
While I was talking, Lis placed her bowl in mine and pulled out a balled-up scrap of paper. She pushed it in my chest and then stood to her feet.
Looking down at me with red eyes, she says. "Let me know what it means."
Then walks down the only empty street, haunted with flickering neon lights. Grabbing the paper ball, I can already see the symbols, begging to be deciphered. Summer's gaze lingered on Lis's back until she decided to stack her bowl on top of hers.
"I'll look after her," she promised as she stood and nearly tripped as she rushed after Lis. "We'll find you when things are good."
Here I am, trying to live a calmer life, and Fate decides to force my hand. Jericho gurgled and almost roared, followed by three distinct barks. The roar and barking sound more like a deeper effort of communication than an animalistic impulse. It's strange, I felt his intentions more than trying to understand them.
"They're fine. It's just been an exciting day, more than usual." I said as I placed the bowls on the counter.
He growls and throws the bowls in the sink. More sounds emerged from his throat that could be mistaken for speech.
"Everyone has their breaking point. Now that they know theirs, they can learn from it and will be better off." I encouraged as I placed five coins on the counter. It didn't take long before a familiar massive giant stopped in front of me.
"Boss," he stood in front of me with expected acknowledgement.
"Did you manage to get it?" I asked, as I have been expecting that rifle blueprint. Stealing a firearm may be more difficult than just swiping a blueprint document.
He reached into his front pocket and pulled out a crumbled and folded scrap of paper. I'm going to have to teach Zaunites to respect paper. I took it and just stared at it.
"I'm assuming that it's still readable?" I asked with a raised brow.
"Sorry," he shrugged. "Pressed for time. Where have you been?"
I shoved the paper in my pocket. "Can't have children leading armies, apparently."
He chuckled. "You know, it would have been kind of funny, having a kid commanding us."
He walks past me. "Waiting on your word, boss." Then disappeared into the night.
As I continued walking towards the Last Drop, I was plagued with options. Vander will be suspicious if I jump at the chance to study anything around the Drop. My studies have to be done under Sky from now on. When I opened the door of the Drop, I was greeted with the sight of Vander sitting in the booth, looking over documents. Showtime.
"Hey, Pops." I greeted him as I walked towards him.
"Owen, you are in big trouble," he grumbles as his eyes are glued to the papers.
"Uh oh." I leaned against his massive arm. "How many glasses this time?"
"Hmm? Oh, it won't be from me. Your big sister will handle it."
Mulling over the idea, I cracked my neck. "That sounds a bit scarier. I'd rather drink."
"Downstairs," he orders.
"Awww." I dropped my head and patted his arm. "Goodnight, Vander."
"Goodnight, Owen," he replied with amusement in his tone.
Every step down the stairs fueled the anticipation of my supposed punishment. When I reached the bottom, I saw Vi on my bed, reading a book. The rest of the room is empty, it's just us. As I approach my bed, I can hear snoring from across the room.
"Thought I'd die of old age before seeing that in your hands." I teased.
Vi lowered the book from her face. "We are going to be busy tomorrow."
"With your project?" I asked as I sat on her legs.
As I did so, she dropped the book beside her, locked me between her legs, and then got me in a headlock.
"You are such a brat!" she proclaimed as she pulled at my ear.
"And you just want attention!" I forced out as I tried to keep my fingers between my throat and her crushing bicep. "All you have to do is ask!"
"Where were you all day?" Vi asked as her grip around my throat lessened.
"With your best friend." I answered. For my reward, she flexed her legs, nearly crushing my torso. Before I could shout, she covered my mouth with her hands.
"Zaun doesn't sleep, things are moving, Owen, and we need you to focus," she explained as she relaxed her legs.
I move her hand. "I'm trying to be a kid, make up your mind, lady!"
She released me, and I rolled onto the floor, landing on my feet. She sat up and stood to her feet as well.
"We messed up," she began as her eyes fell to her laced hands.
I shook my head. "Picking up bad habits, what happened?"
"Vander can explain it better. But it's bad. Your chamber is running out of power," she finally disclosed.
"Oh, that's not so bad at all. All I have to do is—"
"No." She grabs my arm. "You can't do that again." Her face fills with worry.
"Well, why not?" I was going to say how much of a blast I had last time, but I decided to spare her, and myself mostly. "I've learned from my mistakes."
"There's a better way." She released my arm. "Ekko already thought of one."
"He would, wouldn't he?" I crossed my arms and shrugged. "Fine, I'll hear him out."
She nods in relief. "Good. By the way, you still need to be punished for coming back late."
I leaned my head back. "Fine, what's the punishment?"
"Round 2," she decided as she ran a thumb over her knuckles.