Chapter 2 – Memory
Ariel
I stride cheerfully through the halls, only flinching once when my long hair brushes against my cheek and I gasp, forgetting – just for a moment – that the secret’s out now and I don’t have to tuck my hair up under my cap anymore. I laugh at myself as I head down some steps, making steady progress towards the staff quarters.
As I go, I get mixed reactions from the Cadets I see. Some smile or wave cheerfully – probably those who easily accepted my change in identity from Ari the Shrimp to Ariel the Princess, either because they don’t care that I’m a girl or they respect what I did for the nation this winter.
Others, of course, give me sterner looks – confused frowns or outright glares. None of those bother to say anything to me, though, letting me walk through the halls unimpeded. I smirk, thinking that it’s probably my ability to light them ablaze with a thought that prevents them from commenting, as opposed to a fear of Jackson or Rafe or Jesse anymore.
Which is nice, really. At least I strike my own fear into the hearts of my less open-minded peers instead of having to rely on the men in my life for that service.
My smile grows as I reach Daphne’s door and lift my fist, giving a good, steady rap.
The sound of the sewing machine inside stops and footsteps come toward the door. There’s only a moment of hesitation before it swings open.
“Oh, thank god,” Daphne groans, slumping against the door frame.
“What?” I ask, my smile falling away when I see my friend close her eyes in relief.
“I thought it might be…the little demon one,” Daphne murmurs. “Although I should have known better – she’s never knocked before. Why would she start now?”
“Oh, Daphne,” I say on a sigh, stepping forward and wrapping my friend in a hug. Over her shoulder I see Mittens raise his head from his place on her pillow, peering at me with his shiny grey eyes. Daphne groans, laughing at herself and hugging me back. “I’m sorry – I should have come sooner.”
“You’re busy!” she says, laughing as she holds me tight and then tugs me into the room, shutting the door. “What with raising a new daughter and having your great gender reveal to the whole school and moving into a new house. Oh, and being pregnant. Congratulations, by the way!”
Daphne snaps her hands to her hips, cocking her head at me, glaring at me with a little accusation in her eyes. Because I didn’t tell her any of this, meaning she got all the news from someone else – probably Jesse.
“Oh geeze,” I say, sighing and raising my hands to my flushing cheeks. “I’ve been a bad friend. I’m so sorry that you had to hear all of that second-hand Daph –“
“Oh, I forgive you,” she says, grinning and turning away, reaching for the bottle of wine on her mantle and taking two wine glasses down as well. “I understand –“
“Um, just one glass,” I say, quite doleful, tucking my hands behind my back.
“What?” she asks. Then she glances down at the wine in her hands and groans, putting it back. “Oh my god. Now I’m the bad friend. Of course you can’t have any of this!”
We both laugh, falling easily back into our friendship, and Daphne waves me over to her bed, murmuring something about her company alone having to do for entertainment and hospitality. I grin at her, climbing up and nestling into her abundance of pillows. Mittens yawns, stretching his little shadow limbs and padding over the blankets to curl in my lap as Daphne settles across from me, snatching up a little basket of spare sewing to keep her fingers busy, as is her habit.
“So, what brings you by?” Daph asks, smiling as I stroke a hand over Mittens’ smoky little head.
“Just missed ya,” I say, grinning at her. “Wanted to catch up on the gossip. And see when you were coming by to see my new house.”
She grimaces a little, looking down at her sewing. “We’ll have to settle for the gossip then. Because…honestly, Ari, I don’t know how comfortable I feel with that. Midnight makes it very clear when she sees me that she very much does not want to.”
“Luckily, Midnight isn’t in charge,” I say, my voice cold. “We’re your friends, Daphne. You can come by whenever you want! She can’t stop you.”
“Yes, but you’re her family,” Daph says quietly, concentrating on the tiny button she sews onto a Cadet shirt.
I sigh softly, studying her, knowing that she’s right. Because even if Jesse and Mids no longer have a mating bond, Midnight is very much family now – no matter what.
But Daphne…she is too. Or she will be. After all, I firmly believe something is going to happen with Daphne and Jess. Even if they’re both, right now, pretending that it’s not.
“All right,” I say, forcing cheer into my voice and sitting up straight. After all, I do not intend to have all of my hangouts with my friends be so gloomy. “What piece of gossip do you want to hear about first!? The strange shock of my pregnancy even though I have been very diligent with my little green potion? Or my trip to the Underworld?”
Daphne’s eyes go wide as she looks up from her sewing. “You went to the Underworld?”
“Yah!” I say, grinning eagerly. “To visit my sister.”
Daphne’s face screws up in confusion. “What!?”
“Oh, you knew that,” I say, flapping a hand at her and sinking back into the pillows. “You were there when the Goddess told us that June was in the Underworld the day Jesse was taken – there, at the base –“
“Yes,” Daphne says, dry, narrowing her eyes at me. “Yes, in the presence of a Goddess on the most traumatic day of my life, I did register all of the fine details of that conversation –“
I burst out laughing, shaking my head at her. “Okay, yes, you’re right.” I launch into a quick rehash of what Juniper has been up to down in the Underworld, my smile growing with every word.
“All of this sounds very scary and awful, Ariel,” Daphne says, looking at me slightly askance. “Why…why do you look so happy?”
“Because when Midnight took us there to see her,” I say, my voice a little breathless as it always is whenever I talk about this, “we got a great surprise.”
Daphne leans forward, deeply intrigued.
“Tony?” I whisper, nodding to her eagerly. “He’s like…sort of alive.”
Daphne goes perfectly still, her mouth dropping open. She stays like that for a moment, completely shocked, before she blinks, tears lining her eyes.
“Don’t cry!” I say, laughing a little and leaning forward, reaching for her. “It’s good! It’s a good thing!”
“He’s – he’s alive!?” Daphne’s voice stutters and shakes as she starts to cry in earnest, dropping her sewing and pressing her hands to her heart.
“Well, no,” I say. My shoulders slump.
“What!?”
“I mean, he’s a ghost!” I grin, delighted even though I know I might just be making her more confused. “But a very conscious one! And sometimes Juniper can magic him so that he’s got a solid body! And he still has his wolf, and he’s…weirdly tethered to Juniper or something! But he’s around and I talked to him and apparently they’re coming up with a plan to bring him like…back to life or something!”
“Oh my god,” Daphne whispers, shaking her head at me. “That’s…that’s so insane…”
“I know,” I say, my eyes going wide. “And he’s like…kind of dating Juniper.”
“WHAT!?”
I burst out laughing, nodding eagerly, still a little in disbelief about it myself. But, well, Tony once told me that he likes ‘em mean. And if that’s true…he couldn’t have picked someone better than my spitfire little sister.
“Well, tell me,” Daphne snaps, snarling a little and whipping out a foot to kick me. “Tell me everything! I want to know exactly what happened!”
I grin, take a deep breath, and then start to tell the tale.
_ _ _
I squeeze Jackson’s hand, looking around this…weird little hotel room that we’re in.
Because…what?
Why…why does the Underworld have hotels? Who the hell is visiting?
I’m distracted from this very important question when someone gasps Midnight’s name. My eyes snap forward, landing directly on the –
Wow. On the incredibly good-looking guy sitting up straight in bed, his hair all messy, his morning stubble all smoky and sexy beneath his sculpted cheekbones. I stand a little straighter, my eyes flashing over him –
Jackson squeezes my hand, a growl making itself known in his chest, and I burst out laughing as I look up at him, grinning. Midnight and the man continue to bicker as Jackson glares at me, playful and I think entertained by what he can feel down our bond. He balances Marigold up on his other arm and I squeeze my mate’s hand back, letting him know that no one in the Underworld holds a candle to him.
But then I hear my name whispered and my blood rushes from my cheeks.
Because…I know that voice.
I whip my face back to the room, my eyes locking on the transparent blue figure sitting on the other side of the bed.
My mouth falls open and every muscle in my body locks as I take in the tall, lanky frame – that dark hair that falls into his face – his ghostly clothes – a Cadet uniform, of all things –
Immediately I begin to tremble from head to foot because –
Because it’s impossible –
He’s – he’s –
But Tony lets out a victorious shout, jumping up off the bed and dashing right through Juniper –
I flinch because – wait, how did he –
But there’s no time to consider it as Tony dashes for me, reaching. I burst into thick, sobbing tears, letting go of Jackson and stumbling towards my friend.