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Frustration licked at Eutrope's heels as she trudged home. Her stupid ex-boyfriend had invited her out again, and like an idiot, she went. Angrily, she punched in the keycode to her home and entered, crossing the living room to grab a pillow from the sofa. Burying her face against it, she screamed.
Things were fine between them if they could stick to shallow conversations, but the moment she brushed against something deeper, he clammed up. She didn't know why he kept insisting on it, if that was how things were going to be. As long as he got his closure, screw hers, she supposed.
At least she still had Hector in her corner...
"What would I even say to him?" she asked herself aloud, muffled by the pillow. "Sorry, I tried to kill your boyfriend twice. It was the only way I knew to save you. Yes, it went against everything I believe in, and yes, it was useless in the end. But you see, Retsarra, when most people love someone, they care about what happens to them."
To broach that conversation, she'd have to break the taboo of the two topics he refused to discuss with her. The crux of why they split up and all that transpired after...and E'andhris Tia. Ever since their little spat before she was released from the infirmary, he shied away from sharing anything about the man with her. Knowing him, he thought he was protecting her feelings.
In some ways, that was true. Everyone else couldn't shut up about the new champion. Yaana and Neyuni adored the man. He and Eheeya were thick as thieves. His name was on every tongue in Alexandria, and not just for his meteoric rise through the Ascension Arcadia Championship. Yet she never thought about the tall hhetsarro as much as when Retsarra danced around his newfound relationship.
A spike of guilt shot through her at her uncharitable thoughts. It wasn't his fault that he'd been the right man at the right time and place to become important to everyone she ever cared about. Without him, they'd all be as good as dead. Knowing that didn't make the way he'd replaced her an easier pill to swallow.
Setting the pillow back where it belonged, she smoothed out the wrinkles her face left behind. What she needed was a distraction. Yaana was usually around in the afternoons...perhaps they could spar, just like old times. Hopping down the stairs to the gym, she paused at the door as she heard the voice of the very person she didn't want to see.
"There are other survivors around as well, believe it or not," E'andhris' voice carried through the door. "Treno trades with them, though as far as I could tell, Lindblum truly was ravaged."
“That there are still people living there after all this time…” Yaana breathed. “Are you going back to explore more?”
“I don't know yet. I'd like to, but it depends on what Shale uncovers,” he replied. “Maybe someday, though.”
“Oh! It's late,” Neyuni's voice interrupted them. “Eutrope will be home soon, if you still want to make yourself scarce.”
“It's not that I want to,” E'andhris sighed heavily. “I'd rather not muddy the waters and make things harder on her than they need to be.”
Eutrope bit her lip. So he was aware, at least to some extent. She wondered if Retsarra told him about their fight. The man had been conspicuously absent for the past few days, though she hadn't realized it was by design. Knowing that he felt similarly ill at ease around her made her feel a little better. Taking a deep breath, she squared her shoulders and opened the door.
"So the craven Wicked White has been avoiding me!" she called out as she entered the gym. E'andhris and her sisters jumped at her sudden appearance, though she only cared for his surprise. Her lip curled in amusement at the way he stared at her like a rabbit caught unawares by a snare.
“I have been,” he confirmed readily enough. Pushing up from where he'd reclined on the sofa, he recovered from his fear quickly, though she could sense the nerves lingering beneath the smile he flashed her way. “I meant no offense, but I don't wish to overstay my welcome.”
Yaana glanced between them with a frown, only just stopping herself from reaching out to catch him by the arm. As he gathered his things to leave, Eutrope felt another stab of guilt bury itself in her chest. “You don't have to leave just because I'm here now,” she said, stepping further into the room to vacate his path.
“Nonsense. I won't intrude on your family time,” E'andhris rebutted with a shake of his head. He turned to wave at her sisters, granting them a far warmer smile. “Thank you for hosting me. I'll be staying at the Backroom now, or with…well.”
It felt like watching the switch flip from Retsarra into the Howling Blade all over again, and she hated knowing that she was the cause of it in E'andhris. He hugged her sisters goodbye and squeezed her shoulder as he passed by her to reach the stairs.
Eutrope sighed. “I'll be back later,” she told her sisters before racing back upstairs after him. At the commotion, he paused in the middle of their living room and eyed her warily. “Hey. I think it's high time we talked. Take a walk with me?”
“Alright. I have some downtime.”
Together, they departed the gym. He matched his stride to hers as they walked in silence for a time, rounding the corner toward True Vue. At first, she didn't mind the quiet, needing a moment to gather her thoughts. She watched him watching her and suspected he felt the same.
The first thing she noted was just how tall E'andhris truly was. The last time they'd been so close, she'd dwarfed him thanks to the Levinsteed. Yet unenhanced, she had to crane her neck to look up at him like she did when she spent time with Hector.
The second thing she noted was how handsome he was. With his downturned eyes and bespeckled nose, there was a boyishness about him that even she had to admit was charming. His hair had grown since they first met, and his blue highlights faded. If they were friends, she might have offered to touch them up for him like she used to help Retsarra when it came time to bleach his roots. Instead, she kept her mouth shut and glanced down at his nails, manicured and painted a rusty red.
Just like Retsarra's.
Eutrope crossed her arms over her chest and tried not to imagine her ex-lover painstakingly painting E'andhris’ nails the same way she used to do for him. She failed.
“I've been wanting to apologize to you,” E'andhris finally spoke up as they reached the stairs leading down into the heart of the district, interrupting her train of thought. She sighed in relief. She had been so certain that she would have to be the one guiding the conversation.
“I'm afraid we've gotten off on the wrong foot,” he continued. “Have you been alright? After waking up and…everything else?”
His concern made her lips quirk into a small smile. So he was a foolish man, albeit sweet. No wonder he was well-liked.
“I'll be fine in time,” she replied honestly. “But I'm afraid I'll have to decline your apology. I did try to kill you twice. If anything, I should be the one begging for your forgiveness.”
E'andhris laughed, taking her by surprise. “I'm afraid you'll have to try a few more times if you want me to take offense. It isn't the first time a friend has tried to kill me,” he said as he grinned down at her. Just what kind of man was he? He patted her shoulder when he saw her look of confusion. “Consider it water under the bridge. I would have done the same in your shoes.”
“You'll make me feel even worse if you're going to be so nice about it,” she sighed. But a heavy weight lifted from her shoulders at his easy dismissal of any blame he might have leveled at her. That he'd extend his hand in friendship to even her… “Some friends you must have,” she added in a softer, coaxing tone.
“You'll meet some of them soon, I'm sure. Not ones that have tried to kill me, though,” he promised with another laugh, followed by a nudge against her side. “Speaking of friends, the same goes for you! Vamp Fatale and the Tyrant are something else, as are Hector, Honey, your sisters…”
“And Retsarra,” she added, nudging him back with a knowing look. The mage blushed, glancing away as they reached the bottom of the stairs.
“Aye, him too.”
“It's ok, Andhris,” she said, trying to smile at him without it looking like a grimace. “You don't have to tiptoe around it. If anything, I'm the one muddying the waters by hanging around when he's moved on. Not to mention the others…with your help, everyone did so well in my absence.”
That got him to stop smiling. “What?” he asked, eyes rounding. “No, Eutrope. This is your home. Your family. You're the one who belongs here."
Eutrope swallowed hard around the lump that settled in her throat, hugging herself tighter. “It's yours now, too,” she pointed out. Maybe it wasn't fair to treat him like a confessional, but his reaction made her feel like she could trust him. “You've become a brother to Yaana and Neyuni, you know? And you've accomplished a lot that I was never able to. Achieving the cure to psychonekrosis aside, you got Retsarra to spend time with my family and even managed to convince him to give up the ring.”
E'andhris’ frown only deepened the longer she spoke. “I had to force him, but after Hector…I couldn't risk losing another of you.”
With a sympathetic sigh, Eutrope looped her arm through his, leaning against him as they continued to walk down the strip. “Hector is fine,” she stated resolutely. Neither of them had failed on that account, thankfully. “Honey and Yaana showed me how the three of you managed to snare the Howling Blade, though. Masterfully done. It makes me wish I had thought of that.”
“Even if he resented you for it?”
His question made her laugh - a harsh, ugly thing - though there was a queer edge to it that made her wonder how the two of them had gotten past their own rough beginning. “He already does. What's one more red mark in my ledger?”
“He'll get over it.”
“What makes you so sure of that?”
E'andhris flashed a smile down at her, patting the hand holding onto his arm reassuringly. “He forgave me. Despite all the wrong steps I took, he moved past it.”
“You were a blank slate,” she pointed out. “Not someone he had a history with. It's different coming from you than someone like me.”
He acknowledged her words with an incline of his head. They fell into silence again for a few paces, and she could see the gears turn behind his mismatched eyes. “Has he told you how furious he was for stealing your name?”
“What? No.”
His smile grew. “A sick joke. Flagrantly spitting on your legacy,” E'andhris said as he slowed their steps, deepening his voice in a terrible impersonation of the Howling Blade. “He thought I was, pardon the expression, stealing your thunder.”
“It was a good move to establish yourself as a heel,” she said, unable to stop herself from laughing at his play-acting. She leaned into her own stage voice, speaking from her chest as she continued, “The beloved Wicked Thunder was poised to steal the champion's throne from the Tyrant and suddenly vanished, only for Wicked White to take her place months later? It's a good story.”
“I didn't do it on purpose,” he admitted, feigning sheepishness. His ears wiggled too much in merriment for the look to land. “In one of the places I've traveled to, it's an oath. By the gods! Wicked white!”
Eutrope smiled, shaking her head. She began to see what Retsarra saw in him. It felt impossible to hold onto her gloom in his presence. Like a mote of sunlight, shining amidst the darkness.
“So the Howling Blade thought to avenge my honor, is that it? He always was a foolish boy,” she sighed, reluctantly affectionate. “He hasn't been willing to share very much about you and your plans for the future. Are you going to be taking him away from us?”
E'andhris faltered at her question, almost tripping over his shoes. “I think…at least a small adventure would do him good,” he said haltingly. The warmth of his smile dimmed by several degrees. “He has you and Hector, though, and I know the others are far more keen on him now than they used to be.”
“It would be good for him,” she agreed softly. She would miss him, of course, but now that the opportunity presented itself…she resented what they'd become, but she could hardly fault Retsarra for running into the sunset with a dashing hhetsarro from a foreign land.
“Do you want to come too?”
Blinking at the question, Eutrope considered it. A part of her wanted to say yes. Everyone had been fine without her. Yet looking around at their surroundings, with all of its glittering lights and shadowed corners, she felt reluctant. Everything she worked so hard for was here. Her family. Her friends.
“Andhris, are you asking me to third wheel with my ex or trying to set me up with your boyfriend?” she asked, intending to pass it off as a joke. The man on her arm didn't so much as crack a smile.
“That's between the two of you,” he replied with a shrug that jostled her. “I'd not stand in your way. Especially not when I'm wed to another.”
Eutrope sucked in a deep breath at the revelation, only barely managing to contain herself. “You're married?!” she hissed, tugging at his arm until he was forced to bend. He brandished his hand, wiggling his ring finger, complete with a golden band. “Retsarra likes attention so much, I'm surprised he's willing to share you…”
E'andhris bit his lip, eyes darting to the side with such a queer expression, she almost demanded to know more. She would have, if not for the familiar silhouette that entered the strip from a side street. Hector. A rush of warmth shot through her at the sight of him, only to cool as she spotted him at his side. By their clothes, they were on their way to a gym to practice together.
Barely recovered and already he wants to get back into fighting shape…
“Don't look now, but Loverboy is just over there,” Eutrope said aloud, pointing to the other men with her chin. She smiled as she noticed Hector noticing them, his eyes rounding in surprise. He nudged Retsarra, and whatever he said to him made the bastard stiffen. In the time it took for his head to whip around to face their direction, she'd wrapped E'andhris’ arm around her shoulders.
The lovers locked eyes across the street, and she felt more than heard the champion's amused exhale as he tugged her to lean further against his side. “Is this alright?” he asked as if she wasn't the one to initiate the contact.
“More than,” she replied with a smile, snaking her arm beneath his jacket to curl around his waist. For good measure, she waved in Hector and Retsarra's direction. “Thank you for playing along. He's been impossible to talk to since I returned.”
“It seems that won't be an issue now,” he laughed loudly enough that it made Retsarra's ears flutter. Like he wasn't sure whether to lay them flat or raise them in alarm. His eyes were as wide as saucers as he tracked them, only looking away when Hector settled one large hand on his shoulder.
“You'd be surprised,” Eutrope said with far more bitterness than she meant to. “He's always been scared of confrontation. Hector says he's been like that for years and years.”
“Poor Howling Blade,” E'andhris drawled, sounding anything but sorry for the man. “So if he asks me what we were doing together today, I'll tell him we were on a date. That you're poised to steal me out from under his nose to ensure I don't befall the same fate you did. We'll be very happy, of course, with five children and two very large dogs.”
“Only five?” she asked, grinning at the ridiculous idea as a warmth bloomed in her chest. While she knew from her sisters that their new grand champion was a decent sort of man, she never expected to hear him express distaste over the way his lover was treating her. Maybe she had found a new friend in him, after all. “I like you. You'll be good for him.”
Her stamp of approval seemed to fluster him as red gathered at his cheeks before spreading down his neck. Biting his lip, he slowed them to a halt next to one of the bars. “Earlier, before you came home, Yaana, Neyuni, and I were talking about organizing a trip outside,” he suddenly said, pivoting to a new topic. “I'd like you to join us.”
“Is your boyfriend coming?”
“I haven't asked him yet. I thought to invite Hector, Eheeya, and the others as well, but if you'd rather ‘Tsarra not join us…”
“You don't have to worry about that. I'd love it if we could all go together,” Eutrope said as her heart softened further. She didn't have the heart to deny Retsarra his chance to finally, finally taste the freedom he'd so longed for. As she acquiesced, E'andhris relaxed, releasing a tension she hadn't realized he'd been carrying. Impulsively, she spun to his front, wrapping her arms around him. At once, he responded, folding her into his own crushing embrace.
She found herself reminded of Hector, with the way the tall hhetsarro towered over her. All she could think was how comfortable it felt. “Alright,” she said, growing flustered at her own sentimentality. “Let's not get carried away, unless you want to start rumors.”
E'andhris laughed, unbothered by the idea in a way Retsarra could never manage, and lifted her off her feet to twirl her in a dizzying circle that made her squeal. His attitude was infectious, leaving her breathless. “They'll talk anyway. Who cares?”
For once, not her.