Chapter Twenty-Four - Two’s Company

11 Seleszeni 10.076 Z.C., Night

Lilla reached across the table and put her hand over Nadine's, encouraging her friend to stay. Nadine ignored her and kept moving, until the vedalken dug her nails in. Nadine let out a satisfying yelp, examining Lilla with shocked, wide eyes.

Don't you dare leave me alone with this weirdo, she thought, doing her best to communicate her message with her face and eyes. Nadine rolled her eyes but nodded, glancing at Ouain before turning back to watch Mav in the ring.

Lilla checked Ouain from the corner of her eye as he sat beside her, drinking his mead and watching the fight, sitting straight as an arrow. Sighing through her nose, she turned her attention back to the ring when the crowd erupted into a combination of resounding cheers and boos.

In the ring, Mav’s opponent tapped out, surrendering the fight before his arm snapped. Lilla whistled and shouted along with the rest of the crowd. Nadine cheered loudest of all, leaping to her feet and sending Splatz hurtling to the floor. Splatz didn’t seem to mind, jumping to his feet and continuing to shout encouragement to Mav as well.

Splatz drained the last of his ale after the referee called the fight, Mav stepping aside for a moment as his opponent limped toward the healer outside the rings.

“Good ol’ Mav just made me a lotta zinos - who wants another round on me?!” Splatz cried. Awkward silence descended on the group as they gauged their cups and each other.

“I still have plenty,” Ouain started when he realized the girls weren’t going to answer first.

“I’ll have another,” Nadine ordered without looking at Splatz. “And come straight back,” she added with a haughty sniff.

“Me too,” Lilla agreed, smiling at Splatz. She sensed a sudden shift in his mood, but then again she always found Splatz temperamental and hard to read. Just like all goblins, she convinced herself as he grunted and collected their cups.

Once Splatz trundled off to collect his winnings and buy another round, Ouain turned to Lilla. Her unease grew as the officer studied her face, his eyes soft.

“Vedalken are pretty rare in the Legion,” he observed, an obvious lead into something else. “Especially ones so beautiful.”

Lilla avoided his eyes, her heart racing, feeling her cheeks darken as panic welled up inside her. At a loss for words, she turned to Nadine for help. Nadine did her best to ignore them, craning her neck to try and glimpse Mav as he toweled off his sweat in the backstage fighter’s dugout a level below them. Traitor.

Ouain cleared his throat, a hint of nervousness marring his otherwise-perfect brow. “Do you, uh, have family history in the Legion?” he asked. Lilla detected hope, probably an attempt to smooth the awkwardness of his ill-received compliment.

“I’m an orphan,” Lilla revealed with a great deal of internal satisfaction, her face blank and tone matter-of-fact. His eyes widened in surprised dismay when he realized his gaffe.

“I-I’m so sorry for your loss, Lilla. I-”

She held up a hand to cut him off. Even though she enjoyed his guilty backpedaling, she couldn’t afford to let him control the conversation.

“I don’t like to talk about family,” she commanded, arranging her face into a mask of sadness. She folded her hands in her lap and tucked her chin into her chest, projecting sorrow. That’ll keep him from asking too many questions.

“Who did you grow up with, then?” he probed with his piercing, sincere eyes. Her stomach flipped in anxious frustration and she curled her hands into fists. You’re supposed to be handsome, not nosy! Damn this dechead - if he catches onto me, it’ll ruin everything!

“I said, ‘I don’t want to talk about it!’” she shouted, a little louder than necessary to be heard over the din of the crowded bar.

Ouain winced. “My apologies, it must be a sensitive subject. I’m very sorry to hear of your parents’ passing, Lilla.”

They sat mired in silence until Splatz returned with fresh drinks, Mav trailing him with a large mug of his own. Splatz sat down next to Nadine again. She frowned, looking around for another chair for Mav. He shook his head.

“Don’t need one,” he dropped, sensing her motive. “Only got just enough time to finish this before me an’ Splatz are due in the ring.” He checked the rings over his bulging shoulder before turning back to the crew. Nadine looked down at Splatz with a cutting smile.

“Oh yeah! Like, I totally forgot you were fighting tonight,” she taunted with a casual laugh. Lilla laughed too, and Ouain chuckled along nervously, unsure of the joke.

Splatz balled his hand into a fist and beat it against his chest twice. “Yeah, well that’s what us real men do! We fight!” he declared, puffing himself up.

Mav ignored Nadine, ruffling his friend’s green ears. “Cool it, man,” he effused before gluing his tankard to his lips.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Splatz remarked, shoving his hand away. “So, did anyone else bet on boy wonder’s next fight? Mav never loses ya know - at least not as long as I’m here to keep ‘im humble!” he bragged with a laugh, giving Mav a playful punch in the side.

Ouain chuckled, as though Splatz joked. “Oh, I don’t gamble!” the officer announced with virtuous pep. Splatz rolled his eyes. Lilla glared at her date with disbelief. His expression shifted, confusion apparent as he realized he yet again miscalculated the group’s sense of humor.

Ugh! This loser is such an embarrassment! Why do these things always happen to me? Why did I even let Nadine talk me into this?

“Oh-kay, thanks Silver-Shield,” Splatz quipped. Lilla recognized the name from Nadine’s explanation of the Rocman serial scrolls. One of Rocman’s straightlaced compatriots, if I recall.

“So like I said, anyone else betting?” Splatz tested, focusing on Lilla and Nadine. Lilla realized she never considered betting. Glancing over at the chaos of the betting counter, she met Nadine’s uncertain look with her own.

“How do we bet?” she wondered aloud.

Mav grinned. “Dun worry, looks scarier than it is. Jus’ throw a few elbows until you get to the front, tell ‘em who you wanna bet on. Oh, an’ how much. You need to give ‘em the money for your bet. Then the’ give you a ticket. Dun lose it. If your fighter wins ya can turn it in for zinos until the end of the night. Odds’re on the board above the counter.” Mav chugged the rest of his drink, and Splatz did the same. Why does his voice change like that when he drinks?

“You set?” Mav checked as he slammed his empty tankard on the table. Splatz did the same a moment later, and the two sauntered away.

Ouain cleared his throat as he watched the men leave. “I’m going to have another mead,” he declared in a deep, authoritative pitch. “Can I get you ladies anything?”

How about lost? Lilla compared her half-empty cup to her half-empty fortunes, considering another. Nadine caught her eye across the table, and shook her head almost imperceptibly. Lilla frowned, realizing she’d already had several drinks.

“No ... We’re going to go make a bet on Mav,” she resolved. Ouain glanced between she and Nadine for a moment before nodding once with military precision.

“I’ll hold the table and wait until you’re back, then.”

As much as she hated to admit it, Mav was right. The lines at the betting counter moved fast; she and Nadine didn’t even need to elbow or punch anyone! They both placed bets on ‘The Boros Bachelor,’ although Nadine complained about the nickname to the crew behind the counter. They just smiled and clicked their lips, while the other betters around them laughed at Nadine’s expense.

“Get in line, honey,” a spirited older woman told Nadine with a thirsty gleam in her eye. “That prime piece of manflesh already has a fanclub.”

Bets placed, they retreated to the relative peace of their table, taking their seats just as the next fight started. Ouain excused himself to get his drink, and Lilla and Nadine settled in to watch.

Mav and Splatz squared off against a pair of Rakdos prizefighters, The Bearded Lady and The Fanatic. Judging by the roar of the crowd, the Rakdos fighters were crowd favorites; Lilla remembered the odds weighted the match in their favor. As the fight started, Lilla could see why.

The Rakdos team demonstrated impressive cooperative skills, and their flashy theatrics won over the audience in short order. Mav and Splatz, though, put on display their years-long unspoken bond. Although their techniques didn’t dazzle, they moved with a preternatural teamwork. In a risky gambit that riled the crowd; Mav hurled Splatz through the air at The Bearded Lady.

Ouain returned to the table with his drink, but Lilla ignored him for now, continuing to cheer for Mav and Splatz. I have money riding on this fight, Handsome can wait.

The Bearded Lady threw in the towel once Splatz started tearing off her braided locks, and the fight was over as quickly as it started. The announcers declared The Boros Bachelor and The Green Machine victorious. Lilla caught Mav’s expression this time, as the announcer called out his new moniker. His disgust delighted her; he hated the name even more than Nadine.

“Bache-lor, bache-lor, bache-lor,” she chanted, thrilled when those nearby picked up the refrain. Soon most of the bar chimed in.

When the din of the post-fight chant died out and they could hear each other again, Lilla and Nadine compared the fighting styles and showmanship of the combatants, Ouain commenting rarely. Lilla studied him throughout the conversation when he wasn’t watching. After he reeled in his excessive charm and stopped asking so many questions, he didn’t seem so bad.

He’ll need serious training if I do date him, but I guess he’s okay, she thought as his sharp eyes scanned the bar again. Still not a hair out of place, either, Lilla marvelled, before she noticed Nadine watching her ogle Ouain. She felt color rise in her cheeks and looked around for Mav, hoping he would appear to distract Nadine.

By the End-Raze, where are you Mav? She didn’t see him anywhere. She did spot Splatz dodging legs as he returned from the betting counter, clutching a small pouch.

“Nadine was just telling us about how cool you looked, Splatz!” Lilla exclaimed when Splatz rejoined them, plunking his winnings onto the table. He smiled, looking up at Nadine with an upbeat energy in his eyes.

“Hah, as if,” Nadine muttered. Splatz’ glow faded, but he presented his pouch to them regardless.

“Told ya he can’t lose! Not while I’m around!” he asserted.

By the time Mav rejoined the group an hour later, Lilla ran out of ways to divert the conversation from the dangerous topics of their recent initiate training and graduation earlier that day.

“Everyone ready to go?” she cued, standing up and facing the door.

Beside her, she felt Ouain stand too. “As you wish. May I have the honor of walking you home, fair lady?” he offered. Lilla looked to Nadine for help. Her traitorous friend shrugged.

“I’m staying the night at my parents’. It’s only a few blocks from here, but...” she teased at Mav through her lashes, pressuring him to offer to walk her home. “The streets aren’t really safe this time of night, you know.”

Mav ignored her, but Lilla noticed a muscle jump in his jaw as he stared at something over Splatz’ shoulder.

“I’ll walk you home, Nadine,” Splatz offered. Mav nodded, pushing away from the table.

“Very gentlemanly of you, Splatz,” he remarked before saying to Ouain and Lilla, “I’m heading back to Sunhome. I’ll see you all later.” Lilla’s heart pounded in her throat at the prospect of walking home, alone, with Ouain and his questions.

“I’m going to Sunhome too, Mav! Why don’t you join us?” she invited, smiling at him, ignoring Nadine’s strange look.

Mav kept his eyes on the door and shook his head with firm certainty. “No, thanks. I have, uh, a couple stops to make on the way.”

Liar.

“Well, shall we be off then, Lilla?” Ouain proposed, his expression guarded as he collected the large bouquet of flowers off the table.

Traitors, every one of them! If they were REAL friends they wouldn’t leave me alone like this!

“Alright, see you later Mav,” Lilla spat with a venomous smile, ‘playfully’ punching Mav in the shoulder as hard as she could manage; she’d seen him take a bruising hit there earlier. He winced. Think you can outplay me? Think again.

She followed Ouain to the door, dreading the conversation she knew would follow. She never imagined she would be cornered by one of the Boros from the raid like this. Stupid Beacon, bringing him right to me!

As they walked through the cool, dark streets toward Sunhome, Lilla did her best to anticipate each time Ouain drew breath to speak and began chattering about something inconsequential for a few minutes before letting awkward silence descend again.

“Lilla,” Ouain asserted with frustrated finality, cutting her off as she tittered on about the architecture they passed. “I understand you’re nervous. I want to explain myself. I’ve thought of you often since we met back in Griev, and regretted not getting your name. When I saw you on the front page of the Beacon after Guildpact Day, I knew I had to contact you. I thought I would never find you again - seeing your holo there in print felt like a sign from the angels. I hope you don’t find that too … creepy.”

She studied him, taking in the forthrightness in his voice and face as he walked beside her.

“Your note was pretty strange,” she agreed. He frowned.

“Thank you for inviting me along tonight anyway, Lilla. I enjoyed meeting your friends.”

Silence hung between them for about a block, and ahead, Sunhome grew on the horizon like a mountain range.

“So, do you enjoy being a medic?” Ouain mused, surprising her. What’s with this guy and all these damn questions?

Lilla thought for a few moments before replying, and inspiration struck. “Not really. I’m applying for sergeant training,” she answered honestly enough, hoping he would leave it alone. She expected him to talk her into staying a medic, but Ouain surprised her again with a thoughtful nod.

“You have a forceful personality. That’s a great leadership quality you just can’t teach. I’m sure they will accept your application for sergeant training. If you have any questions as you go, please reach out to me; I’m happy to be a resource for you.”

She met his earnest gaze, his eyes dark and warm in contrast to the chill of the night around them. A small shiver ran down her spine as he opened up to her, the sweet scent of roses drifting on the breeze.

“Thank you,” she murmured.

He really is sweet, this mystery admirer. Why does it have to be him though? If he figures out who I really was at the garrison when we met, I’ll be caught. He’s dangerous, whether he knows it or not. Still, she thought, slipping her hand into his, maybe I can use him somehow.

And he is handsome.