Nephis looked at Effie, confused. What movie? Her mind still had not come back completely from the panic attack, but bits of information were coming back to her.
"You know? The one they are making about us in the Forgotten Shore?" Effie, seeing Nephis struggle to remember, decided to help her out.
With a long breath, Nephis buried her head between her knees. "Right. That was today."
Now that Nephis thought about it, Kai had mentioned that there was something being made. Focusing more on those memories, she remembered that Kai had asked her questions about the journey to the Dark City that Cassie, Sunny, and she had taken. At the time, she hadn't cut a lock of hair from Sunny, so she was constantly looking at the two-hour timer, focusing on the opportunity to quench the need that constantly consumed her.
"I came to ask if we should go buy some outfits or just use our armor, but now I don't think..." Effie didn't finish. The blunt, practical huntress let the sentence hang in the air, unfinished, as she took in the sight of the blood on Nephis's neck and the stolen lock of hair gripped in her white-knuckled fist.
Nephis knew what Effie wanted to say: I don't think you can even stand up, let alone go shopping.
Nephis didn't look at her. She just hugged her knees harder, her forehead resting against her cool skin. The violent adrenaline was gone, leaving her body feeling like a hollowed-out shell. A rhythmic, bone-deep shivering had taken over her limbs, her muscles twitching with cold, small spasms that she couldn't stop.
Her chest was a dull ache, bruised from the inside by the frantic pounding of her own heart. The room was too quiet now, the silence pressing against her ears until it hummed.
She didn't know if she could do it. She didn't know if she could put on the mask of "The Changing Star" and walk into a crowd when her skin felt like it was made of glass. More than that, she didn't want to.
"Hey. It's fine if you don't go. I'm sure we can make something up with Cassie's help." Effie got close, her hand hesitating before being placed lightly on Nephis's shoulder.
An involuntary jolt came out of Nephis at the contact, which Effie saw and started taking her hand away, alarmed that she might trigger another panic attack.
"It's okay. I'm okay." A light touch stopped Effie from breaking the contact, followed by a small, tired voice. Nephis turned her head towards Effie and closed her eyes, their hands still lightly touching. Letting out a breath, she put a hand on the table and started rising slowly. Effie started to move close to help, but stopped. She didn't want to cage Nephis in, and thinking about it more, it wasn't like she could do much from a wheelchair.
It took a bit of time before Nephis could get her legs to fully respond. Now high enough, she sat at the edge of the table, her hands clasped in front of her, holding the dark lock. "I want to see him first." The words came out in a whisper, but in this empty room, they were easy to catch.
Effie looked around the empty room, somewhat uncomfortable. She really didn't like the energy that could be felt here. In fact, if they gave her the option to repeat the Crimson Spire attack or be in the same room while Nephis was having a panic attack, the huntress would have picked the first.
"Then you should put some pants on! Or better yet, stay like that and just put on a coat—that way he'll have easy access!" Nephis turned her head, speechless at Effie, who was just wiggling her eyebrows with a smug look on her face. The blush came and spread from her face all the way to her chest. Even her knees turned slightly hot, not spared from the effect Effie's comment provoked in her.
That's much better. Effie relaxed, happy that she was able to dissipate the tense energy in the room with a single comment. Man, I'm awesome! I should really make a business out of this, or I could become a crisis negotiator! Effie started nodding, proud of herself at the achievement. Now that she thought about it, Nephis had only calmed down thanks to her quick thinking. If Sunny were here, he would start talking about how much money I could make with my wits. The thought brought a smile to her face.
"Do you think he'll mind if I have my first time with his unconscious body?"
Effie's smile froze on her face, and her left eye twitched. What did she say? I must have heard her wrong, surely? Effie focused her gaze on her friend. Nephis had her head turned away; her hands were clutching the hem of her oversized black shirt, pulling it down and giving the illusion that she truly had nothing beneath.
Nephis's face started turning, and Effie could see the crimson blush that had taken over her friend's pale skin. Nephis's eyes were avoiding hers, as if the words that had come out were some deep, dark thought that Nephis was trying to keep at bay, but had slipped out instead of a joke meant to get back at her for the teasing.
The atmosphere in the room changed, and Effie didn't know if it was truly a joke or not, given how ashamed Nephis looked. Choosing not to let the silence stretch, Effie started thinking of what to say.
"I won't tell if you don't."
Nephis's eyes snapped to her after the response. The comment was made in a joking tone, assuming that what Nephis had said wasn't serious. But looking at her quiet form—the way her hands grabbed the hem a little harder, the light way Nephis's knees rubbed together, and the deeper red blush—Effie got the sense that she had just made a promise instead of a joke.
____________________________________
The distance from Nephis's manor to the Academy wasn't much—only a couple of blocks—but they took a PTV anyway. The streets, filled with different kinds of people, passed by as the automated piloting system of the vehicle drove them to their destination.
After the joke that Effie had made, a silence had descended between the two of them. It had only been slightly broken by the sounds of Nephis putting on some clothes, but now, inside the PTV, the silence had returned. It was a little less oppressive since there was the sound of the engine, and the atmosphere that had been present in the manor was gone. Still, the slight quiet between them made Effie constantly steal glances at Nephis.
The two of them sat at the front of the PTV, Nephis on the driver's side and Effie on the passenger side. Neither of them knew how to drive, but that didn't matter much since the automated piloting, directed by the city's general AI, took care of that.
Deciding that some music would be good, Effie turned on the radio and started to shift between stations until she stopped on what seemed to be an interview with a familiar voice. Turning up the volume, the voice became clearer. It was Kai. He seemed to be talking about the movie that came out today.
"...so Night, what can you tell us about the movie? Are you going to have a major role in it?" an animated, pleasant voice asked.
"Well, Lui, I wouldn't want to spoil the plot, but just know that I'm introduced a little later in the story," Kai's charming voice answered the interviewer.
"I see, I see. So if I'm correct, the story is the tale of the survivors of the Forgotten Shore, right?" Lui asked Kai in an inquisitive voice.
"You are correct. I can't say much, but the audience will see a portion of what the Forgotten Shore was like," Kai answered, his voice a little harder towards the end of his statement.
"Okay, okay. So if the trailer is correct, we will be seeing the Forgotten Shore from the perspective of the Changing Star from the Immortal Flame Clan, correct?" Lui asked, the sound of rustling paper coming through the radio.
"Lui, at this point, you're just telling me to reveal the entire movie." Laughter from both Kai and Lui followed the statement, making even Effie smile from her seat. "Yes, you are correct, and Lui, let me tell you a little secret: we will get to see shifts in perspective throughout the movie," Kai added in a secretive voice that made Effie roll her eyes, though the smile never faded from her face.
"Oooh, you hear that, people? We get other perspectives, isn't that exciting!" The sound of recorded cheers could be heard before slowly dying down. "So, last two questions: will we perhaps see the perspective from..." The shuffle of papers sounded from the radio as Lui looked for something. "Will we get to see the perspective of The Star's Dark Half? And is it true that both him and the Changing Star have a romantic relationship?" Lui asked, finally finding what he was looking for in the papers.
"Those are two questions that only the movie can answer, Lui," Kai answered mischievously.
"Oh, Night, you're killing me! Well, you heard it, people—go and watch The Song of the Split Star in theaters today. Now Night, wha—"
Effie stopped paying attention to the radio as they reached the gates of the Academy and looked outside the window. It started with one, then three; soon enough, thousands upon thousands of candles could be seen lit along the sidewalk in front of the Academy. The candles were a couple of colors—some blue, others green, and even purple—but most of them were black. Thousands of black candles that together created an ocean of darkness, which only grew deeper with the shadows cast by the small flames.
These candles started to appear not long after Nephis gave a press conference giving a brief overview of the unexplored Forgotten Shore and how they had escaped. At some point, a reporter had asked if she knew the boy who was still sleeping in the Academy. At that moment, Effie saw something that she never could have expected. A single tear had fallen from Nephis's eye before it was quickly swatted away, but Effie had seen it, and most of the press did, too.
After that, Nephis explained that Sunny had stayed behind since only one last person could come through the gate before the Crimson Spire collapsed. After that, the media started making news articles about the possible relationship between Sunny and Nephis. Some called it friendship, others said it was deep loyalty, but most wrote about the possible love between them.
Effie had been reading some of the articles only to embarrass Nephis sometime in the future. Of course, she had thought that there might be something between them; after all, she saw the hug those two shared in the Crimson Spire after Nephis healed him. At the time, Effie thought that the articles were a bit exaggerated, but now, after seeing Nephis like that back in the manor, she started to think that the articles might have fallen short. Honestly, Effie was kind of scared of Nephis, since the emotions her friend was showing towards Sunny went beyond what could have been considered love.
Effie turned slightly to look at Nephis and saw her trembling. Her eyes were shut, one hand covering her mouth as if trying to stifle any sound that might come out, the other hand inside her pocket where Effie suspected Sunny's hair resided. When had they fallen in love this hard? Effie turned back to the window, trying to come up with a timeline for this mystery
_____________________
It was quiet in the underground hall; the only thing that could be heard was Effie's wheelchair, which Nephis was pushing. She knew that Effie had no problem moving herself in the wheelchair, but still, Nephis helped her traverse the halls. She could feel that her face was still somewhat red from the brief crying fit that had hit her while going through the gate. Nephis always felt a heavy sadness every time she saw the candles that lined the sidewalk in front of the academy, but today, it seemed that it was just too much.
While moving through the hallways, Nephis's mind went back to the interview from the radio. The interviewer, Lui, had asked if the Star's Dark Half's perspective would be shown in the movie. That's what they are calling him now. After she had given that press conference, the public started to look for a title to give to Sunny, and they have settled on that one.
He would hate it. He never liked to be noticed, and now they have given him a title that has too many words in it.
Turning a corner, they reached the room where Sunny's pod was set. Pushing the door open, Nephis let Effie enter first and then followed, closing the door behind her. The room, like always, was clean; its grey stone walls showed no signs of being disturbed. From the middle of the room came a low buzzing sound that, if followed, would lead to a greenish metallic coffin—
It's not a coffin! It's not a coffin! It's a bed with a lid! Inside, the body of a boy could be seen. Contrary to Effie's comment, the boy had a full head of black, luscious hair.
See? I didn't cut that much. Nephis placed Effie's wheelchair next to Sunny's head as if to prove a point. Effie didn't miss the jab and smiled slightly.
"How are you doing, doofus? I can see you got a new haircut. Really dig the asymmetrical look you're rocking." Nephis blushed and turned away from the huntress, cursing to herself that she hadn't come alone. Effie, like always, didn't miss any of her reactions.
"Guess what, you goblin! You're famous! Can you imagine that they're making a movie about the cohort and you're in it? So I guess there's no more sneaking around like a creep for you!" Effie let out a booming laugh.
"Don't be mean," Nephis poked Effie on the arm, but the corner of her mouth was raised in a tiny smile.
"Well, doofus, the movie will start in a couple of hours, and I need to get ready. Being in a wheelchair is not easy, you know. I'll leave you with—" Effie looked at Nephis for a long time before a mischievous smile appeared on her face. "I'll leave you here with the future mother of your children."
Nephis stiffened. "Effie!"
The huntress only laughed harder at the indignation in Nephis's voice and started heading towards the door, her laugh never stopping for even a second. When Effie reached the door, she turned one last time to look at Nephis, the mischievous smile still on her face. "Princess, I know around this time your ovaries must be screaming at you. So squeeze him dry!"
The door closed before Nephis could even finish processing what Effie had said. From the other side of the door, maniacal laughter could be heard.
"That damned— I swear, one of these days—"
Nephis could only clench her fists and stare daggers at the door, where the laughter could still be heard, though faintly. Trying to recover from the humiliation she had just endured, Nephis sat on the chair next to the pod and tried to will the furious blush that now assaulted her to go away. It wasn't working. Deciding that she needed a distraction, she started to look through her purse.
Nephis had not used a purse for a long time; if she remembered correctly, she had stopped using them after her grandmother died. Nephis had only used accessories like purses whenever she would go out with her grandmother to run errands or make a public appearance. Her grandmother had done so quite frequently when she was alive to show that there was still hope for the Immortal Flame Clan, but after her death, Nephis became a recluse and never went out of the manor. The only interactions she had during that time were with the delivery services that brought food and other essentials.
Nephis remembered that this exact purse was actually the last one she had used before becoming a recluse. Curious about what could be inside, Nephis started to pull things out. The purse wasn't large, so there weren't many items. The contents were a time capsule: a travel-size cream, which she opened to confirm still smelled of vanilla; next, a pair of white wired earbuds, hopelessly tangled into a bird's nest, so Nephis didn't pay them too much attention. Lastly, a small, round, rose-gold compact. She clicked it open, staring at the cracked remains of a light pink powder.
Yeah, I don't think I'll be needing that anytime soon.
Looking at the inside of the purse, she could see that there was nothing inside, still out of some habit Nephis had from a long time ago, she took the purse by the base and gave it a little shake so that anything that might be inside fell to the floor.
Thud.
Unexpectedly, there was still something inside. Looking at it, Nephis could see the item was dark and metallic. What could this be? Leaning down from the chair and picking it up. It looked like a matte black square of aluminum, cold to the touch. As she picked it up, the single square unfolded in her hand—a strip of three, neatly perforated. Frowning Nephis turn the square package around her thumb, brushing over the raised silver lettering:
[Elite Condom: Ultra Thin]
The heat hit her face so fast it felt like a physical blow, and she reflexively looked at Sunny.