[[Day 10 of Month -3, Morning :: Grand Cathedral, Gless]]<br/><span style="color: silver">“Is it just me or did they seem oddly.. uncaring about the anchor point?”</span>Lethe mused aloud, brows furrowed as she mulled the meeting they’d just left.  The Councilors had remained behind to continue their discussions but for the sake of efficiency, she and her fellow Knight had been released to continue preparing for Eve’s upcoming attack.<br/><br/>“Care, Lethe.”  Guilford cautioned with a warning tap, his attention focused on  scanning the area around them.  Thankfully, the room outside the Council Chambers was empty; no one had heard her.<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“Sorry.”</span>They started walking down the hallways.<span style="color: silver"> “We can discuss another time?  Maybe after the thirteenth.”</span><br/><br/>“Maybe.” Guilford agreed, his mind focused on the remaining preparations for the upcoming attack.<span style="color: silver"> “Actually,”</span>He stopped walking at the sudden sensation of a hand in his; Lethe had turned to face him, grabbing his hand to keep him from moving. She looked contemplative, even as she voiced,<span style="color: silver">“Do you think--? No, never mind.”</span>Whatever she’d wanted to say, it appeared she’d decided against it.<span style="color: silver"> “I apologize.  I’m headed off to my quarters.  I’ll see you around.”</span>Her hand slipped from his even as she turned away,<span style="color: silver"> “May the Divine Light guide you and keep you safe.”</span><br/><div style="text-align: center;">~~~</div><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Do you think--?</span><br/><br/>The white Knight paused in her walk, turning to face the window and the courtyard it revealed.  The sun was high in the sky--near noon, she’d guess.  But despite the pleasant weather, her mind was not so happily engaged.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Do you think we should train together?</span><br/><br/>She leaned against the window sill; feeling her right side pulse against the wood.  Her wound had already been treated back on Palaugrim, neither scar nor ache remained, but it wasn’t the memory of pain that drew her attention there.  It was the reminder.  Guilford and her were terribly out of sync.  The years apart, spent training with their squads instead of with each other, had thrown their coordination into disarray.  There’d been a time when she could have predicted every response of his in battle and he hers.  Now--they were a mess.  He defended what she preferred to evade and he evaded when she expected him to block.<br/><br/>Her fingers involuntarily tightened at the memory, pressing against the glass pane.  Adair would have blocked it.  Adair knew the team stood behind him: no strike could reach past him to his casters and medic.  And she had been depending on that.  But Guilford was no tank, at least not in the classical way.  He attacked so hard enemies had no choice but to focus him.  But she’d grown used to a bulwark between her and her enemies.  Their fighting styles were completely different now.<br/><br/>Her head fell against the window pane, forehead resting on the sun-warmed glass. Oh<span style="font-style: italic">Light</span>, what were they going to do?  They’d<span style="font-style: italic">failed</span>to take down Eve.  Sure, some might argue they’d been exhausted and weren’t at their full strength but.. No, it was clear to her that they couldn’t take down Eve, not right now,  not even with their ‘special training’ and Light’s Blessing and what-have-yous.  If they wanted a chance of victory, they’d have to work as a team.<br/><br/>But when would they have time for that?<br/><br/>It was the tenth already.  Three days until Eve’s upcoming attack.  Guilford would be needed here and she would be sent back to Palaugrim.  She’d<span style="font-style: italic">demand</span>to be sent back to defend it.<br/><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-style: italic">“Yeah.. I don’t know. They’ve done some good, made some things worse.”</span> <br/><span style="font-style: italic">“I won’t say that the people here have ever been unkind, but uncertainty can lead to wariness. But ever since the Campaign and Luciano’s fall and your boy’s visit, it seems everyone has fully embraced the Divine Light once more.”</span></div><br/>There was no way she’d forsake those on Palaugrim.<br/><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-style: italic">“The attack is your fault! We’ve always been a peaceful village… until they came! All they’ve brought is trouble! We never had this trouble under Victorie’s rule! “</span></div><br/>Not again.<br/><br/>And besides..<span style="font-style: italic">Invidia will always love you.</span>Her body trembled as those phantom arms wrapped around her.  She didn’t dare--she couldn’t bear it if--<br/><br/>“Captain!”<br/><br/>She pushed away from her perch, almost stumbling from the sudden violence of her motions.  Catching her balance, the Seraph turned to face a concerned looking Seraphim.<br/><br/>“Is everything alright?”<br/><br/><span style="color: silver"> “Yes, sorry.  Just caught in..”</span>Lethe waved away the rest of her words, not sure what the right word would have been anyways.  Memories? Fears?<span style="color: silver"> “What are you doing with those?”</span>She nodded at the bag of books her squadmate carried under one arm.<br/><br/>The pink-haired woman sighed and rolled her eyes.  “Playing messenger girl for YunQiao.  He said these might have more clues about what they found in Santa Olivia.”  Seeing Lethe’s concerned look, Seraphim laughed sheepishly, “Well, I wanted an excuse to leave the room anyways.  Ugh, all those papers and maps and<span style="font-style: italic">thinking</span>.  Just let me hit something,<span style="font-style: italic">please</span>.”<br/><br/><span style="color: silver"> “You’ll need to get used to them, Seraphim, for when you take over your own squad.”</span>Lethe chided with a soft laugh, missing the complicated expression that passed over the other woman’s face at those words.<span style="color: silver"> “Although, I think right now we need to focus on the upcoming attack.  There are only three days until Eve’s attack.”</span><br/><br/>During their talk, the two women had reached Squad Ten’s squad quarters and Leon chimed in.  “Do you think it’ll happen?  We defeated Eve and the Sinners pretty thoroughly at Santa Olivia.”  Albeit it had required that massive rain of light that no one was quite sure where it came from and Captain tapping into Light’s Blessing (thank the Light there had been no screams of pain or shockwaves this time!) and her and Master Guilford going toe to toe with Eve, but the important point was that they had<span style="text-decoration: underline">won</span>.  “If I was Eve, after such a setback, I’d reconsider staging another attack so soon after losing”<br/><br/>Lethe nodded at Leon’s words.  It was a good point but,<span style="color: silver">“Except that it’s supposed to be a two-pronged attack, both Eve and Tethel.  What happened at Santa Olivia won’t affect Tethel’s troops and if our intelligence is correct, she’s getting a free source of Sinners from Tethel so she’ll be able to get replacements.”</span><br/><br/>“But If I was Tethel and I’d been counting on the Sinners in Santa Olivia to help me, the sudden loss of such an ally would make me reconsider.”  Leon rebutted, “There were a<span style="font-style: italic">lot</span>of Sinners and Reapers in Santa Olivia and we know,” he waved at the notes they’d collected from Santa Olivia, pinned all over the room, “that a major operation was going on there.”<br/><br/>“But we don’t know if Tethel was counting on those Sinners.”  Adair joined in, “Yes, there was an operation there.  However, it didn’t look like they were amassing for an attack.  Whatever was going on there,” green eyes cut to Lethe, having not forgotten about the ‘unknown seal’ excuse she and Guilford had given, “it seemed to naturally need that many Sinners and Reapers.  It’d be better to assume..”  The conversation turned into a lively debate regarding whether Eve truly would attack.<br/><br/>“<span style="font-weight: bold">Please</span>!”  YunQiao finally cut in, raising his voice to be heard over the ruckus.  “I’m trying to work here!”  He gestured at the notes and books that shared his table.<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“Are those from Santa Olivia?  You’ll have to put them aside for now.  Regardless of our debating, as we have no concrete knowledge that Eve has changed her plans, we must assume that Eve and Tethel will continue their attack on the thirteenth and prepare accordingly.  Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.  Now, Valiar, please ask one of the messengers to summon a doctor.  I want everyone to have a physical checkup before we leave.  Deimos, what’s the status of our inventory?”</span><br/><div style="text-align: center;">~~~~~</div><br/>Early evening saw the rare sight of Lethe leaving the Cathedral.  The doctor had come through and demanded all of them get more rest, her especially.  Yes, he understood that time was short and she had an upcoming deadline but what good would she do to anyone passed out?  And with those wondering words, he had personally escorted all of Squad Ten out the Cathedral and into the street.<br/><br/>The white-haired Knight had tried to circle back, only to see doctor guarding the gates with a ferocious scowl.  YunQiao was determinedly walking away, his overly stiff posture betraying, to her at least, that he had tried to slip back in to no avail.  Of course there were other ways in but..  blue eyes slid longingly towards a familiar street.  In recent months, she’d had much less opportunity to walk down it.  No, she really shouldn’t.  She couldn’t be slacking off and leaving all the work to Gil-Master Guilford. Again. Especially after she’d.. ‘asked’ Councilor Laith to keep her abreast of all the Council meetings instead of coddling her away like before.  And yet..<br/><br/>“Here you go, Master Lethe.”  She jerked back into the present, blinking in surprise as a bouquet of jonquils was laid in her hands.  The florist, an older lady probably in her sixties, was looking at her with a mixture of amusement and curiosity, too polite to ask but not polite enough to not speculate.  Lethe flared red but reached for her coinpurse, determinedly handing over the money despite the florist’s protests.  This is why she normally went in disguise.  However, it was too late so she continued the rest of the way, ending up in a familiar cemetery.<br/><br/>She paused at the first grave, wiping away some of the dirt that had gathered on Lark’s headstone.  She didn’t have the time, or flowers, to hand them out as she normally did so she had to be content with cleaning his tombstone.  Once done, she rose to her feet and headed for her destination.  As usual, she took a seat behind the familiar marker, leaning against the granite slab and closing her eyes.<br/><blockquote class="uncited"><div>[[Day 9 of Month -3, Afternoon :: Santa Olivia]]<br/>Solemn. Poignant.  There was a quality in the air that stole her voice away.  Blue eyes gazed reverently on the runes in front of her: elegant swirls and graceful dips, harsh lines and precise engravings.  They were--words could not describe the magnificence before her even if her voice should somehow return.  How beautiful.  How..<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">“Well, I admit I was hoping…”</span><br/><br/>Lethe startled out of her reverie, attention recalled to her fellow Seraph.  He did not seem similarly affected by the seal in front of them; if anything, he looked long-suffering at its discovery.  “What now?”<br/><br/>Purple eyes stared at her and it was only then she realized an answer was expected of her.<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“I-”</span> The word cracked unattractively as she tried to recollect her missing voice. <span style="color: silver">“No one else can know it’s here.”</span>  She looked around the room presumably in search of any other entrance.  In truth, she was just--she didn’t know.  Her thoughts were still scrambled and she found it too easy to be drawn back in by the magnificence of the seal before her. The silver-haired Seraph swung her attention to Guilford in an abrupt motion, trying to keep the seal out of her sight.  <span style="color: silver"> “We must ensure there are no other entrances and that it hasn’t been tampered with.  Then we’ll have to seal it away again.”</span>  She paused, throat clogging at the idea that she couldn’t study it any longer, enjoy the simple elegance of its design.  Somehow, during her scholarship under Lady Mei, she’d clearly grown much too fond of seals given all she wanted to do right now was bask in its presence.  Guilford and her may have helped in raising the islands all those years ago, but it had been like being a blind woman in a gallery of masterpieces: without seeing, one could not appreciate the beauty of Van Gogh.  Without understanding, she’d been little more than a battery back then.  But now..<br/><br/>“Hyuga and Leon will still know about these seals.  As will everyone who overheard us.”  Guilford pointed out, eyes watching his fellow Seraph carefully.  Her eyes were closed, hands firmly clasped together, and arms nearly vibrating with tension.  Again, when her eyes met his, she seemed startled, as she had when he’d first asked her for her opinion.<br/><br/><span style="color: silver"> “We’ll have to make some excuse then.  Unknown seal or something.”</span><br/><br/>“Hyuga will want to investigate it then.”  She was still staring at him a bit vacantly and he resisted the urge to look around him to see if something was amiss.  “Why don’t you go outside to figure out how to hide the tunnel?”  He suggested, no longer wanting her in here.  If there was some influence, it appeared she was more susceptible than him.<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“No!”</span>  The passion shocked both of them before Lethe shook her head.  <span style="color: silver">“No, I’m fine.  I can help here.”</span>  She insisted even as she pressed her hands against her forehead.<br/><br/>“Lethe.”  She looked up as Guilford took her wrist into his hand, drawing it away.  “Please.”  After a moment, she deflated in resignation.  <span style="color: silver"> “Alright.  I’ll figure out the seal for hiding this place and what excuse to announce.  You..”</span> She trailed off, just remembering he wasn’t one of her squadmates; it wasn’t her place to order him about.  <span style="color: silver"> “You know what to do.  Call me if you need any help?  I’ll just be up the tunnel a bit.”</span>  With a meaningless smile, Lethe retreated from the underground room and the treasure it held.</div></blockquote><br/>When she opened her eyes again, the sun was low in the sky.  There was only half an hour, at most, before night came.  With one last longing sigh at the memory of delicately drawn runes and majestic constructions thrumming with power, Lethe got to her feet.  The jonquils she placed in Eiji’s empty vase.  Had it really been so long since she’d been here last?  Before she would toss out the old flowers herself to be replaced with her new ones.  Now, the grave keeper had done so for her it’d been so long.  She heaved another regretful sigh but again straightened up.  She might regret, but there was nothing she could do.<br/><br/>With a glance at the sky, still twilight, the white Knight headed back towards the Cathedral.  The doctor was probably gone by now.  There was still much to do before she could properly rest.<br/><br/>Only two days left.<br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">~~~~~</div><br/>“What are you doing here?”  The words escaped him before his brain could catch up to his mouth.  An elegant woman in a kimono stood in the family shrine, presumably previously contemplating the pictures displayed there.  At the rude address, she had turned to reveal cold grey eyes, one eyebrow already arched in disdain.  YunQiao felt heat rise in his cheeks, both at his rudeness and her response, but he willed it away with experience.<br/><br/>“Am I not allowed to visit my ancestors, nephew?”  QianHua wondered archly, turning completely away from the photographs now.<br/><br/>The black-haired Knight shook his head and moved forward.  “No, of course not.  Forgive me, Auntie.”  He slipped off his slippers and entered the wooden floored room in his bare feet.  “I just wasn’t expecting to see you here.”  He walked to the corner of the room where the incense was stored, “You rejected every other invitation we extended.”<br/><br/>“Hmm,” was his only response, along with a smug smile.  He pulled out two sticks and lit the ends with the candle left there exactly for that purpose.  QianHua moved out of his way as he walked to the middle of the room, taking her spot.  Holding the two sticks, he lifted them in the air and then bowed.<br/><br/>Cao.  The character dominated the white scroll.  Another scroll was unfurled beside it: Xue.  Despite three different names, the families were all interconnected.  Before the Great War, they had shared one complex.  But that was now destroyed and the families scattered, only gathering occasionally.  With his father and brother dead, his mother had taken over maintaining the remnants of the family shrine, clinging to the role as if it was a saving grace.  Maybe it was, for her.<br/><br/>YunQiao placed the smoking incense in the censer, clapped his hands, and then stepped back.  The two Knights, one former and one current, stood silently in the room as smoke lazily curled through the air.<br/><br/>“Will you come in?”  YunQiao finally broke the silence between them, turning to face his aunt.<br/><br/>“I wasn’t planning to.”<br/><br/>“Then what brought you here?”  He asked, with a touch of reproof.  His mother had sent multiple invitations before and all had been rejected.  While the shrine was open for any from the three families to visit, it was rude to not also pay respects to his mother as the “shrine keeper.”  “Mother was looking forward to meeting you, Auntie.”<br/><br/>Grey eyes narrowed at the reprimand.  “I’m leaving Gless tomorrow.”  That, at least, was enough to startle him out of his disapprobation.  “I need to return home.”  If the attack did occur, there was no way she would be away from her children.  While she had no doubts about Ensei’s and Seien’s capabilities, she wasn’t fool enough to rely on luck against a foe like Eve.  She and Skassia would return to her orphanage; Ethera and Mei to their library.<br/><br/>“When will you return?”<br/><br/>The look she granted YunQiao made clear exactly how stupid she thought<span style="font-style: italic">that</span>question was.  Why in Light’s name would she come back?  She’d come solely to make sure Lethe didn’t kill herself and then had stayed only to make sure her nephew had some chance of survival.  However, she was happily retired and no matter how the Council might press her, she had no intentions of returning to the battlefield.  She and her sisters had done their share.  Now it was time for the next generation to bear their burdens.<br/><br/>The sound of hurried footfall broke their conversation and both turned towards the entrance.  A middle-aged woman panted softly for breath, one hand patting at her coiffure to ensure its neatness.  “Cousin QianHua!”  Blue eyes, paled by age, brightened at the sight.  “Welcome to the Cao house!”  The qipao-dressed woman stepped into the room and enveloped the startled QianHua in a hug.  “I’m so glad you finally decided to come!  You must stay for dinner! Myeong’s already starting to make some peach buns for you.”  QianHua smiled awkwardly; who was this woman?<br/><br/>“Mother,” YunQiao finally intercepted, ignoring QianHua’s suddenly deadly look.  “I’m sure QianHua would love to stay for dinner.  Do you need help getting out the table?  I think the courtyard might be a nice place to eat tonight.”<br/><br/>“Oh! Of course! What a good idea!  Come, we can just take a seat here and enjoy the sunset.  Can you bring us some tea as well, Yunyun?”<br/><br/>“Of course, mother.”  YunQiao smiled and helped his mother to her seat on the raised pathway with QianHua reluctantly following.  Had his aunt really thought he’d let her come and<span style="font-style: italic">not</span>meet his mother when his mother was so eager to meet her?  It was just as good Auntie was leaving tomorrow, he’d hate to see what his training would have looked like after pulling this stunt.  With a self-satisfied aura, YunQiao left to do as bade.