The Burning Flowers

Chapter XIII

Unsurprisingly, Scott and Ryokumo were forced to endure a painfully long and agonizing lecture, and as the girls properly put everything into perspective, he couldn’t help but feel a little bit guilty, for even though the plan had worked out for the moment, what they said wasn’t wrong. Both of the women shoved the potential consequences in their faces, reminding them of what could have happened had they been caught, and though Ryokumo was rather laid-back about the whole matter, Scott made sure he apologized to both of them profusely. After all, if Mallicent had realized what they were up to, he would have certainly incinerated Scott on the spot, and the subsequent fight might very well have pushed the boy to make good on his threat—to destroy the apartment building and kill those who were unlucky enough to be inside.

“If something like that happens and magic is exposed, the Citadel will not be able to ignore it!” Ilirianna had sharply reminded them. “Reiner, I’ll forgive you for this one since you’re not as familiar with our laws, but you, Caeli, should be far more careful! You understand what could happen if we’re forced into an open battle with Mallicent!”

“I do understand, Princess,” he assured her. “But we needed the realm dagger, and now we have some power over him! Yes, we took a risk, but because of that, he won’t be able to use the people against us! He can’t beat us in a fight, and if he starts killing anybody as retribution for taking the dagger, he knows we’ll react without mercy! Not to mention, Mallicent isn’t stupid. He’s well aware we can’t just leave him behind here in Omaruo, so he knows we’ll have to take him with us one way or the other. It’s in his best interests not to force our hand if he wants to live. Before, all he had to do was keep us at bay until the dagger could recharge, but now he doesn’t have that option! We have him backed into a corner!”

Ilirianna shook her head fiercely. “But even with all of that said, there’s no guarantee he won’t decide to start killing people! Because he’s in a corner, you might have made him even more unstable than he was before!”

Most of the heat fell on Ryokumo for what happened, and they ended up going to bed without settling anything. The wind mage was firm in his stance that he made the right choice, and Ilirianna didn’t budge from her own opinions. As for Abi, after berating Ryokumo for putting Scott in such a dangerous position, she fell silent and left the rest of the argument to the princess, who they had decided would keep the realm dagger since it would be safer with her than anybody else.

Throughout the night, Scott got very little rest, and that wasn’t just because it was yet another night spent on the couch. His thoughts were filled with fears of what Mallicent’s next move might be, and by the time the sun started to rise, he realized he probably only got an hour of sleep at best. He was exhausted, once again debating skipping out on school before deciding that he didn’t need Laura and Carmen getting any more on his case than they already were. When seven o’clock arrived, he dragged himself to his feet and grabbed his uniform from where it was hung over the washing machine before entering the bathroom to get changed.

God, I look like shit, Scott realized upon seeing his reflection in the mirror. Hell, I might be screwed regardless. Not showing up is gonna look suspicious, but showing up looking like this isn’t gonna help me much either.

Sighing as he straightened his tie, Scott walked back out into the kitchen only to come to a stop upon noticing Ilirianna sitting quietly at the table, sipping a glass of apple juice and seemingly staring into space. She noticed him pretty quickly, snapping out of her daze before smiling softly.

“Morning, Reiner.”

“Morning, Princess.”

Deciding he should have some breakfast before leaving, Scott walked over to the pantry to produce a box of wheat-based cereal before making his way toward the fridge to retrieve the milk. A part of him wondered if he should make idle conversation with Ilirianna, but having not really spoken to her much over the course of the last few days, he wasn’t really sure what he should say. Instead, the kitchen was filled with an awkward silence as he dropped his food off at the table before heading back to collect a bowl and a spoon. To his surprise, once he sat down and began pouring his cereal, Ilirianna broke the silence.

“Why do you call me Princess?” she asked. “I mean, I’m not complaining, but my title doesn’t really mean anything here, so I can’t help wondering…”

Scott glanced up at her, still somewhat intimidated and especially after the previous night, but also not wanting to be rude, he shrugged and answered honestly. “I don’t know. I guess it’s cause that's what Abi and Caeli call you. It seems weird for me to refer to you by name when they don’t, is all.”

“I suppose that makes sense,” Ilirianna muttered, mostly to herself.

Since she seemed satisfied with that answer, the kitchen fell silent again, but not wanting to get stuck in that awkward atmosphere a second time, Scott forced himself to keep the conversation going.

“I really am sorry about last night. I know it was stupid and risky, but I honestly thought it would help. I should have listened to you guys though.”

Ilirianna chuckled. “Yes, you should have… But regardless, we have the dagger so I guess we can’t consider it totally stupid.” The princess then glanced over to where the blueish-green blade was resting on the table, the light from the lamp above them glittering off of it. “It’s a priceless item, this thing. Powerful, too. Until just the other day, there were only three of them left in all of our realm. This one now makes four…”

Scott gazed at it as well, once again enraptured by its beautiful and intricate design. “You’ve mentioned that before…but I have to ask, why? If they’re so useful, why haven't you guys just mass-produced them?”

Ilirianna briefly turned her eyes away from the realm dagger to gaze at the boy, and for a few seconds, she seemed to be considering how to answer his question, or perhaps even whether she should bother. However, her gaze soon turned soft, and a gentle smile turned her lips as she rested her chin on the palm of her hand.

“Well, around eight-hundred years ago, we did.”

Seeing her distant expression, Scott realized this was a prime opportunity to learn about the things that Abi wasn’t as familiar with—that being the details of the multiverse itself. She had said that Ilirianna would be better at explaining it to him, and since he still had around thirty minutes before it was time to leave for school, he decided he should take advantage of this chance and quickly pressed her to continue.

“What happened then? What changed?”

She shrugged. “A lot of things. Something you should know first is that historians have separated Ijirian history into six distinct ages, those being the Ages of Shamans, Civilization, Expansion, Ascension, Destruction, and Prosperity, with each of these eras’ beginning and end marked by significant changes in our world. The third of these, as I just mentioned, was known as the Age of Expansion, and what marked the beginning of it was the discovery of other realms—other universes separate and very different from our own. You see how the blade is a rather unique color for a dagger? I don’t imagine you can identify the material?”

Scott shook his head, having initially wondered what it was made out of, for it was certainly nothing he had ever seen. “Not a clue, no.”

“Didn’t think so. In fact, I doubt this particular metal even exists in Omaruo.” She then reached out and gently grabbed the hilt before running her fingers across the smooth and beautiful blade. “It’s a very rare mineral that contains a class of mana we are still, to this day, rather unfamiliar with. We’ve never once encountered a biological being that could produce it themselves, nor have we ever found it in anything other than these gemstones. This mana can interact with the multiverse itself, opening it up and admitting us access to the other realms. Unfortunately, we could never figure out how to harness it while in its natural state. We tried smelting it like metal, but the mana was always lost when we did, and the stones became useless. The first one to figure out how to do it was a high nobleman named Fredrick von Meier III, and everything I’ve read about him indicates that he was a selfish and narcissistic bastard. Unfortunately, he was also utterly brilliant.”

Despite having so many questions, Scott couldn’t bring himself to interrupt, for he was already fascinated by what Ilirianna was telling him, and it seemed by the expression on her face that she was enjoying getting to show off her knowledge of Ijirian history.

“Based on his notes, Meier was fascinated by the strange stones and he conducted a multitude of experiments to identify what they could do. Through means he either did not record or were lost to time, he discovered a way to interact with the mana and activate it.” She smiled. “The few accounts we have say that he accidentally opened a portal to another realm, and vanished from Ijiria for around two months. We suspect he went to Kaira based on one of his books speaking of another civilization very different from ours, but for all we know, he may have simply popped into Hildegan for a few hours.

“Meier refused to tell anybody how he did it, but he certainly didn’t hesitate to start gloating about his discoveries to anybody who would listen, always boasting about how he entered another plane of existence” she explained. “When he was called a liar, he approached one of the princes and offered to take him to that realm. The prince agreed, and while we don’t know where they went or what they did, upon their return, he immediately went to his father, the king, and begged to increase Meier’s funding. With that money, he started an organization known as the Realm Forgers. This incident is what marks the beginning of the Age of Expansion.”

“So then expansion…” Scott began, finally breaking his silence. “I imagine that’s in reference to the expansion into the multiverse?”

She nodded. “Exactly. Over time, the Realm Forgers increased in number as Meier shared some of his knowledge with people he considered ‘worthy’, though it was a part of their creed to only keep that knowledge within their order. That being said, they were rather cooperative with the Iijis and the scientists of the age. After all, this discovery upended most of what we thought we knew about our world. Where science was once conducted only by a small few, and was regarded with very little respect, when the multiverse was discovered, scientists and researchers sprouted up everywhere, each one hoping to be the next person to find some groundbreaking information the way Meier did.

“The most prominent, and the one whose theories are still mostly held true to this day, was a man named Edvik Torral. He often worked hand in hand with Meier, and they were said to have been very close friends, to the point that he was even given his own realm dagger to freely use. Over the course of his seventy years of research, Torral helped map out the multiverse surrounding us, exploring the neighboring realms before spreading out to even the ones neighboring them.”

“Woah, hold on a second,” Scott interrupted, growing in confusion, for until that last sentence, he had been mostly following. “Neighboring? What do you mean? How can realms neighbor each other?”

Ilirianna chuckled wryly and shrugged. “Good question, honestly. We still don’t have even a slight clue about the composition and layout of the multiverse. We’ve never been in whatever exists between realms, if there even is space there, and it feels wrong to call it two-dimensional, but from what we’ve observed, realms have neighbors.” Still fiddling with the dagger, Ilirianna paused for a moment to ponder how to better explain herself. “We have a rough map of our section of the multiverse, which has Omaruo in the, for lack of a better term, ‘western’ direction of Ijiria. Then, going clockwise, it’s Kaira, Cansi, and Hildegan. For Omaruo, Ijiria is in its ‘eastern’ direction, with three realms in the other directions that don’t border Ijiria. Therefore, for you to reach Kaira from where we are now, you would then need to enter Ijiria first, then use the dagger again and enter Kaira. Or, you could go to the realm north of Omaruo, which would then border Kaira to the east, and enter that way. Does that make sense?”

Scott grimaced, managing a weak shrug as he tried to process what she was saying. “I mean, sure, I get it conceptually, but that’s odd as hell for the multiverse to be laid out that way.”

“Agreed,” she said. “And to make things weirder, the realms cross over only at specific points. You can leave a realm from wherever you want so long as you have a dagger, but you will always enter in a select few locations. One of the entry points for Omaruo is on a secluded beach not far from Wilham. Ijiria has, so far as I know, four entry points. One of them is located on the ground floor of the Citadel, which also happens to be the reason it was built where it was. There’s another one in the southern country of Norania, one in the northern country Trovia, and the third is in the western one, Dunnovia.”

Having realized he forgot about his cereal, which was now disgustingly soggy, Scott pushed the bowl aside and leaned his elbows on the table, furrowing his brow in thought. “Right… Okay, sure, I guess I kinda get it. We can go back to that Torral guy.”

“Of course.” Ilirianna cleared her throat and went on. “Torral learned a lot about the multiverse that I don’t have much time to explain, but what I should mention is the Torral Phenomenon, obviously named after him. It has to do with why you and I speak the same language despite living in completely different realms.”

Scott had certainly considered that strange, but when he broached the question to Abi, she told him that she didn’t know either. “Yeah, what’s the deal with that?”

“When crossing realms, Torral noticed something very confusing, and that was the fact that despite the realms being separate from one another, they were still very similar. In fact, they were too similar given that, as far as we know, our civilizations had never once interacted. You see, Reiner, every realm we’ve ever been to is on the same planet.” When he cocked an eyebrow, indicating he didn’t get it, she went on. “We are currently on a planet the same size as the one Ijiria is on, with a singular moon above us at the same distance away. We are also roughly the same distance from the sun, with the exact same planets located in the solar system. Our stars are different because we aren’t all existing at the same time in the planet’s lifespan, but otherwise, it’s the same place.”

“Wait, but then…are you saying we’re just different versions of the same reality?” he pressed, not seeing how that could be possible but also failing to find another answer.

“Possibly. For one, there are a lot of constants that evolved in every civilization we observed. Languages are the same, traditions, customs, and holidays resemble one another, similar to identical cuisine can be found, and humanity exists with almost the same biology, with the singular exception being the production of mana. It’s almost like humanity is destined to be the same in every realm, like some higher power is molding us repeatedly in the exact same image.”

“And…is there a higher power?” he asked hesitantly. “I mean, is there some equivalent of a god controlling the multiverse?”

Ilirianna laughed and shrugged. “Who knows? The logical part of me doubts it, but then I come to Omaruo and see my language spoken and food I’ve eaten, and I can’t help but feel like there isn’t a chance that all happened naturally. Maybe it was a god, maybe some cosmic wanderer spread the same teachings at some point in our histories… I honestly couldn't tell you. We know a lot more than you, but we still don’t know much.” The princess then glanced at the wall clock before shaking her head. “We’re running out of time, and I’ve gone off on too many tangents, so let me bring it back to the original question. Where did the realm daggers go? Why can’t we make more? That can only be answered by telling you about Kaira.”

Placing the realm dagger back on the table, Ilirianna took another moment to think. “Kaira was a magicless realm like this one and from what I’ve read, it was about as technologically advanced as Omaruo currently is. At the time, due to details I’ll tell you later, it was the only realm with a civilization we could properly interact with. The problem is that for as long as we’ve existed, the Ijirians have had a bit of a superiority complex.” Her voice turned slightly bitter as she said those words, her expression showing a bit of disappointment. “The Kairans didn’t have the strength that we did due to their lack of magic, and the great powers of our realm at the time realized that they were vulnerable and easy to manipulate. Back before Ijiria became an empire, there were plenty of powerful countries on our continent, and all of them saw a prime opportunity to be the first one to use Kaira for its resources and its manpower to gain an advantage over its rivals.”

Scott could already begin to see where the story was going, and a shiver went down his spine.

“Over the course of nearly a century, conflict between the magical powers engulfed Kaira, all vying for control of the realm,” Ilirianna told him. “The Kairans and their cities were ravaged and destroyed, with over ninety-percent of the natives losing their lives or being forcefully taken into slavery or experimented upon. It was known as the Kairan Genocide, and is without a doubt the bloodiest event in our history.” The princess tugged at a strand of her emerald hair, her eyes going slightly distant. “My ancestor, Oralia Iiji, was the niece of the Ijirian king near the end of the Third Age. Horrified by what was being done, she took advantage of her popularity among the populace and the people’s dissatisfaction with her uncle to lead a rebellion against him and usurp control of Ijiria to stop the genocide in the First Ijirian Civil War. The war went on for around four years and in the end, Oralia won, the king was executed, and change finally took place.

“The Realm Forgers gave her their full support, and they came to a consensus that the crossing of realms was dangerous—that it should never be done again. The leader of the Realm Forgers gathered together the entire order, and after a discussion of which the details were never revealed, they took every realm dagger in their possession, opened up portals, and all fled Ijiria with their families, never to return. Since only those in the order had the knowledge of how to craft the daggers, that was also lost to time. I imagine they concluded the only way to prevent such an atrocity was to make it impossible to access the multiverse. The three daggers we currently have were the only ones left—daggers that were hidden by countries we later conquered. This fourth one…” Ilirianna’s eyes shifted to the dagger as she once again picked it up. “Well, who knows where it came from. The realms have been practically shut off to us for the last eight-hundred years, by decree of the Oralian Isolation Act, and that act has never been repealed. We don’t meddle with the realms anymore, if we can help it.”

Scott leaned back in his seat, twisting his lips in thought as something occurred to him. “So then…that’s why you want to avoid exposing magic? You’re afraid of Ijiria coming into more contact with the magicless?”

“I am,” she confirmed, gazing down at her reflection in the blade. “Mallicent escaping here was something we never even considered could happen, and nobody back in Ijiria knows we’re in Omaruo. We can’t count on reinforcements, so the three of us have to do everything we can to handle it alone. Omaruo…should be preserved… Magic will only bring about death and destruction for the magicless… I hope… Well, I hope that satisfies your curiosity.”

Naturally, it didn’t come anywhere close, but it at least gave him a solid understanding of the events that resulted in the current state of Ijiria and its relationship with the surrounding realms, and for that, he couldn’t thank her enough. Ilirianna Iiji was still an intimidating person, but at the very least, he felt a little more comfortable around her now.

Not long after the conversation wrapped up, Abi and Ryokumo came downstairs, the latter gaining a rather cold look from the princess, though he didn’t seem particularly bothered by it. With Scott’s cereal ruined, he was forced to dump it down the sink and get another bowl that he practically inhaled before collecting his backpack and departing for school. Just like she had been ever since she arrived, Abi accompanied him, wanting to make sure he was able to reach West Wilham safely. Naturally, Scott didn’t utter one word of complaint, for it meant he got to spend some extra time with the beautiful young woman. Ideally, she and the others would be leaving Wilham in two or three weeks, and based on what Ilirianna had told him that morning, he would probably never see her again. That thought made him sad, but that was simply the way of things and he would have to force himself to accept it.

It’s not like I’d ever have a chance with her anyway, he reminded himself. She’s a girl from a world full of magic, working under the literal future queen of her country, while I’m just nobody from a random town in a boring magicless realm. Even if Abi got stuck here, I’d never have even a slight shot.

Glancing sidelong at the profile of her pretty features, Scott felt another twinge of guilt for going behind her back the previous night, and since she had left most of the berating to Ilirianna, he wasn’t sure exactly how she felt about him. So, wanting to clear the air a bit, he decided it was time to apologize once more.

“I really am sorry for not telling you about Caeli’s plan. I honestly did just want to make myself useful, but being secretive about it was wrong. I’m sorry, Abi.”

Abigail frowned, turning to gaze at him as they rounded another corner of the neighborhoods near West Wilham High. “No, don’t worry about it. Princess Ilirianna said all that needed to be said, and Ryokumo… Well, let’s just say this wasn’t out of character for him. I’m just happy you’re safe.” She smiled warmly and he felt his spirits rise a little more. “That being said, please don’t think you have to put yourself in danger for us. You hardly know us, and this isn’t your fight. I don’t want… Er, well…” Abi hesitated, seemingly trying to find the right words to express her emotions. “I don’t want you to die because of this. Okay?”

He understood her concern, and it was already painfully clear that Abigail was the type of person who protected everybody she could. Naturally, she would worry for him, but Scott knew he had to correct something she said.

“I appreciate that, but you’re wrong. This is my fight.” As he spoke, the faces of Laura, Carmen, and Brian all floated into his mind, and he smiled at the many memories spent alongside them in the clubroom those past three years. “I told you this the night you arrived and I’ll say it again: If Mallicent Malloway is a threat to my home and my friends, then it’s my fight. Simple as that.”

Scott then turned his smile towards Abi, wanting her to know that he truly meant that. Perhaps what Ilirianna said the previous night about him not taking it seriously and not feeling like it was a real threat was true, but regardless, he was not about to lose anybody important to him.

Abi didn’t give a response before they arrived at the gates of West Wilham High, so Scott bid her goodbye and parted ways as he joined the flow of students making their way into the courtyard, enjoying the few glances sent his way by the students that noticed him arriving with Abi. It gave him a sense of pride knowing that they probably thought she was his girlfriend and so between that and the previous night’s successful heist, his confidence was lifted as he crossed the courtyard and entered the school building.

It all vanished in an instant, being replaced by a crushing fear the second he saw Mallicent Malloway casually leaning against the wall just ahead of the doors, his arms folded across his chest and a cold smile on his face as he and Scott stared at each other. The students passing by were sparing Mallicent confused looks, most likely due to the fact that he was in casual attire rather than the school uniform. However, they must not have been too concerned since he did look their age, so nobody was questioning why he was there.

“Good morning,” Mallicent greeted with a wave of his hand, pushing off the wall to approach Scott. “I hope you don't mind, but I thought it was about time you and I finally got to know each other. Do you have a few minutes?”

Scott clenched his teeth, swallowing down the intense fear, forcing himself to keep his cool and think about the situation logically. Abigail would have sensed Mallicent’s presence in the school, so it was almost certain that he had ejected his mana to conceal himself. Ilirianna said that he’d done that once or twice, so if he was undetectable, that should mean he wouldn’t have enough magic to do too much harm.

And without the realm dagger, he can’t afford to cause trouble. If he starts hurting anybody, Ilirianna won’t hold back, and from what they’ve told me, he wouldn’t stand a chance against her. More likely than not, this is nothing more than a simple chat…

Scott shrugged causally, not wanting the other boy to know he was intimidated. “Sure, I can spare a moment. Do you want privacy?”

“No, we can stay out in the hall,” Mallicent replied. “I need some collateral, after all. Come. Let’s go over here.”

Scott begrudgingly followed him down the adjacent corridor to a less populated area before moving up to stand alongside the wall across from the lockers. Unfortunately, there were still handfuls of students making their way to class or retrieving their things from those lockers, so if Mallicent decided to use what tiny bit of power he had, Scott wouldn’t be able to save them.

But if he does… If he uses his mana, I’m not holding back either. I’ll beat the living shit out of him right here and now, regardless of who can see me do it.

“Alright, Malloway,” Scott began softly, wanting to take control of the situation immediately. “How can I help you?”

Mallicent snorted, a flash of disgust and a bit of rage crossing his otherwise composed features. “Don’t toy with me, you little bastard. You know exactly what I want with you, so let’s not waste each other’s time. Did you and Caeli think I wouldn’t figure out what trick you pulled on me last night? What I want is my goddamn realm dagger.”

Deciding to play dumb, Scott just shrugged. “No clue what you’re talking about. I was chilling at my house last night, working on my homework. My history teacher’s a big ol’ bitch, so I couldn’t afford to get distracted, you see. I don’t know anything about a realm dagger.”

“Oh you don’t, do you?” A shit-eating grin twisted his lips, and though Scott was trying to keep as controlled as possible, he couldn’t prevent his heart from skipping a beat when a dull orange glow appeared in Mallicent’s left hand. “Then perhaps frying a few of your fellow students would help to jog your memory, yes?”

“You wouldn’t dare,” he stated. “Abi and the others have already filled me in on this little conflict between you. Without that realm dagger, you don’t have leverage. You kill even a single person, they’ll kill you. I also know you’re severely outmatched here.” Scott forced his own smug smile as he shoved the boy’s powerlessness in his face. “So go right ahead. You’ll be joining them in death not long after.”

For a moment, the two of them glared at one another, drawing a few interested stares from the passing students, but thankfully, the mana in Mallicent’s hand withdrew, and Scott allowed a small sense of relief. Yet, it seemed the other boy had more to say as he leaned forward and lowered his voice even more.

“So they’ve taught you a bit about Ijiria, huh?”

“They have,” Scott growled, wondering why that particular detail had stuck out to him.

Mallicent smirked. “Then I imagine they’ve told you all about the Oralian Isolation Act and the punishment of erasure? Why wouldn’t they, right?”

“W-well…?” Furrowing his brow, Scott tried to remember if the term “erasure” had ever been brought up, but at the moment, he couldn’t quite recall it. However, the Oralian Isolation Act had been taught to him just that morning, so the details were quite fresh in his mind. “Yeah, I know you magicals aren’t allowed to cross realms without permission and I know that they want to keep our realms separate. After hearing all about that genocide, I can’t exactly disagree with that sentiment.”

“But erasure!” Mallicent pressed. “Have they mentioned it? Have they told you about what happens to magicless people that learn of magic? I mean, that act decrees that no magicless person is allowed to walk free once they find out about Ijiria. Did Ilirianna omit that?”

Realizing that he was just trying to get in his head, Scott scoffed and shook his head. “They’ve already promised to keep me a secret from their government. I—”

“Let me teach you what erasure is,” Mallicent interrupted sharply. “It’s an advanced magic that can alter reality itself! The Citadel has two erasers, one of which is related to Abigail and Caeli’s teammate, Album, and those erasers are tasked with the power to wipe people from existence! Hear me now, little magicless boy, if you are erased, then nobody in the entire multiverse will remember you ever existed. Your friends will forget that they ever knew you, your family will not remember they had a child, the world will alter its very nature to make it so that not even a scrap of your existence is left in the memories of those who knew you. If they have you erased, you’ll be gone forever.”

As the boy spoke, Scott knew without a doubt that the others had never mentioned it to him, for he knew he would have remembered something like that. The logical side of him wanted to instantly reject such a thing as ridiculous, but his logic had no place in Ijiria, and he couldn’t exactly say with certainty that Mallicent was lying.

“I can see in your eyes that this is news to you,” Mallicent whispered darkly. “It’s their way of being thorough. If somebody who encountered magic is erased, then every angle is covered, leaving no way for magic’s influence to taint Omaruo. Now why would they fail to tell you this? I thought they were gonna spare you, but if they ask their friend’s mother to handle you, then everything you’ve done will be lost to all. Do you understand me?”

“I…” Biting his lip, Scott failed to concoct an immediate response, and before he could even try, the situation deteriorated further.

“Yo, Reiner! Whatcha up to?”

The sound of Laura’s voice caused his body to go cold as he spun around, startled, to find the tall blonde girl approaching them, an almost exasperated look on her face as she glanced between him and Mallicent.

“This another cousin of yours or something?” she added, looking very clearly dubious.

And to make matters even worse, while Scott was stuck processing everything, Mallicent hopped at the opportunity, smiling cheerfully as he walked forward and extended his hand to the girl. “Oh no, I’m just an old friend of his. I’m Mallicent Malloway, nice to meet you.”

Laura’s eyebrows raised in surprise, but she shook his hand nonetheless. “Well that’s certainly a name I’ve never heard before, but I like it. I’m Laura Harrison. Nice to meet you, too.”

“Laura Harrison, hmm?” Mallicent glanced over his shoulder, and the dark expression in his eyes made Scott want nothing more than to rush forward and punch him in the face as hard as he could. “Curious. Now, Reiner, why don’t you ponder what we’ve discussed, and perhaps you can return my property to me…or else, well…” Walking towards Laura, he gently put a hand on her shoulder, his eyes never shifting from Scott. “I won’t be happy. I saw on a bulletin board back there that your school has a little festival this weekend. Perhaps I’ll see you then?”

And with those words hanging over Scott, Mallicent Malloway turned and stalked away, leaving the boy without any clue of what he was supposed to do.