"I seriously hate this portal." Aerin gritted his teeth together as they traveled up the stairs. His golden eyes glowed in the darkness of the stairwell. Jexanna looked over her shoulder and rolled her eyes at her brother's response.
"You wouldn't have even known it existed if I hadn't taken you through myself, Aerin." She scoffed as they reached the roof of the building.
"It honestly shows a lot of skill on Jexanna's part Aerin." Shou smiled proudly. "For her to constantly support the portal miles away. For her to be able to keep it invisible from everyone shows great potential and power."
"Yes. Yes. I'm aware, Captain." Aerin huffed as he closed the door behind him.
"Besides, I don't remember you complaining when I made you that portal into the orphanage last year. That was a much higher fall." Jexanna smirked.
"That was a necessity," Aerin muttered as they walked the perimeter of the five-story apartment building.
"Was it a necessity for it to go to Risa's bedroom?" Jexanna crossed her arms as she lifted an eyebrow at her brother. His pale skin flushed pink as he shifted under her gaze for just a split second.
"I don't think I've heard this story." Shou stiffened, giving Aerin a stern look. After all, Risa was practically a daughter to him, the closest blood relative he had. He was naturally protective of his niece. Jexanna's eyes sparkled as she snickered under her breath as Aerin growled.
"And you weren't supposed to."
"What's the harm? He won't see you for at least six months, Aerin. And I doubt Risa will allow him to beat you up before we leave." Jexanna shrugged with feigned indifference. It served Aerin right for forcing her into this mission.
"He's a dhampir. He will remember the next time I see him." Aerin remarked as they stopped at the edge of the southwest corner.
"And I'm sure that he will be just as upset." Jexanna laughed as she waved Aerin off. Her feet climbed onto the edge as her heart raced. With a single step forward, she was dragged down quickly by gravity. Her body flew just for a moment, falling to the earth. The air danced against her skin as adrenaline rushed through her veins. Her eyes closed, savoring the moment. She wouldn't be able to do this for a while after today. For this one second, she could pretend that she wasn't going to leave. For this one second, she could pretend that she was completely free. Soon it came to an abrupt end. But instead of meeting the sidewalk of a busy metropolis, she landed on a soft pile of hay. Gone was the city, and now she was inside the very familiar barn of the orphanage.
The once empty and dark wooden loft above now filled with several boxes of what she presumed to be food and water. Aerin was always good at planning. How did she miss this last time she was here? But then again, the last time she came was months ago. It shouldn't have been such a shock to see so many preparations, but it still stung. It meant that Aerin had been planning this behind her back, to shackle her into this position, into this mission. She shuffled down and out of the way as the sounds of the portal crackled. Her poor brother fell headfirst while Shou cackled the way down.
"Don't ever do that again," Aerin growled as he popped up from the midst of hay, glaring at Shou who simply smirked.
"You still owe me an explanation as to why you needed a portal to Risa's bedroom when you weren't bonded yet," Shou replied as he dusted off the hay from his figure. Aerin didn't have a response as he came out of the hay.
"Is that- Jex!!!" A sound caused Jexanna to whirl around. Suddenly she found herself the target of a swarm of children, as was the custom when she came these days. They raced from their positions of play, chores, and studies to surround the young woman. She immediately lit up at their hugs and faces.
"Hi Alice, yes Everett, I see that you have grown a whole foot. Wata, that is a big scrape, please make sure you see Henry. Yes, Marsha, I will tell Ben to stop teasing you." Jexanna found herself trying to address each request. She loved these kids. They were halflings, hybrids, and they were her family. They were discarded and forsaken from their families and the world, just as she was.
"Hey, you lot!" A deep voice growled at the children who surrounded her. It was familiar. Jexanna looked up to see a very familiar mop of dark hair pulled back into a ponytail bouncing in the wind. She expected to see the gangly teen that followed her around the first few years she lived here.
But instead, now that teen was much taller and more defined. He actually would be attractive if Jexanna didn't vividly remember the days that he came sniffling into her arms as a small runt. The young man's eyes narrowed at the kids, as he waved a spoon in the air. "You can't just leave stuff on the stove! Get back before dinner gets burnt."
"What do you care, you're not going to eat it." A voice taunted back at the young man. Darius, the half-orc ten-year-old, was always a handful, but the amount of sass he had always surprised Jexanna.
"But you will. And I'll make sure you get the most burnt pieces." The man shot a grin at the boy.
"Screw you, Vaughn!" The boy frowned as if he had eaten a sour ball before stamping off into the building. Vaughn just cocked a brow at the rest of the kids. Soon the rest of the kitchen crew followed. The tall young man looked back at Jexanna.
"Hey, Jex. What do you think?" Vaughn wiggled his brows before revealing a toothy grin, showing off his fangs. His eyebrow piercing danced in the light. It was obvious he wanted to show it off.
"Please." she rolled her eyes at the dhampir before landing on the kids that surrounded her.
"Alright, everyone, get back to what you were doing." Groans and wines followed. "I'll be in for dinner, but I've got to do some stuff to discuss with Risa and Vaughn here." A tug came onto her leg as many other kids begrudgingly obeyed her. The bright eyes of a five-year-old girl, Wren, peered up at her curiously.
"Is Vaughn going to ask you out?" The little girl asked rather loudly.
"Wren!" Vaughn hissed, turning red as Shou walked over to Jexanna laughing hysterically. Jexanna smirked, but couldn't help but blush. She wasn't a fool, she knew Vaughn had a crush on her since he was little. She had just hoped he would have outgrown it by now.
"He can if he wants to. But that's a secret." Jexanna patted the girl's curly locks. "Now, can you go let Ms. Risa know I'm here?"
"Okay. Don't break his heart." The five-year-old beamed before wagging her finger at Jex. Jexanna's eyebrows lifted upwards as the girl vanished into the main building of the orphanage.
"God, she's a handful," Vaughn muttered, face still red.
"She's half succubus, she's going to be in tune with emotions." Shou shook his head. "Like desire." Vaughn's face turned even redder than before. Jexanna shifted a little, uncomfortable with the attention that both she and Vaughn were receiving.
"Vaughn!" A member of the kitchen crew called out to him. "Darius's food caught on fire!"
"That'll be my cue to leave. Don't leave until we can catch up, Jex!" Vaughn gratefully took the easy escape as he ran towards the kitchen. Jexanna smiled at the chaos that always ensued here. It had been a while.
"You know, he's still hoping." Aerin came next to her, finally free of all stray pieces of straw. "That you'll sense you're mates."
"Aerin, fae don't have mates. You were a freak accident." Jexanna shook her head at her brother, face turning just a little shade of red. "I doubt that my human half would have a mate. And for once, I'm thankful. But Vaughn probably does."
"I don't know. I haven't met mine." Shou scratched the back of his neck.
"That's because you're all work and no play." Jexanna teased the dhampir. "They're out there, but you won't find them in the FLA."
"I don't know. I found mine in the FLA." A sweet voice came from behind the three, and Aerin immediately rushed over to the owner of the voice. Jexanna turned to see a very round Risa carrying a large basket of laundry. Her doe-like eyes sparkled at the sight of her mate. Aerin's lips parted to display a grand smile. The two were still painstakingly love-struck, even though Jex had to guess that they had seen each other earlier that day. Aerin kissed his mate on the lips and took the basket from her arms before running a hand over her small belly. Risa grinned at him. It was a sweet moment between mates, almost sickeningly sweet.
"Jexanna, what brings you here?" Risa released a deep sigh before meeting Jexanna's blue eyes.
"I'm afraid that we have to talk about why I'm exactly here." Jexanna grabbed her friend's hand and pulled her away from her mate. Aerin growled for a moment. Jexanna narrowed her eyes towards her brother and with a flash of gold at his feet, Aerin found himself in the barn once again.
"Damnit, Jex!" His roar came loudly. Jexanna simply ignored it as she led Risa away.
"Let's go ahead and talk privately about your dear mate."
➰
"Aerin Cornelius Trellis!" Risa's screech was heard by the entire orphanage. Jexanna had finished telling her friend the current state of the world. And she wouldn't be surprised if her brother was down the hall, anticipating the two's next encounter, ready to either defend himself or beg for forgiveness. "That bastard." Risa kicked over a chair inside of her office. A habit that she had done when frustrated, particularly at Aerin. "He lied to me, Jex! He said that you volunteered to help him, not that he had to conscript you."
"He lied to protect you."
"Like I give a shit about that." Risa snarled, her eyes flashing deep red for a moment. Jexanna's body tensed. She knew that Risa would be pissed, but not to this level. The small woman's stance turned rigid as more and more time passed. A growl was emitting from her throat. Shit.
"He told me that the orphanage would be safe. That we would be safe. That this was just going to be a training exercise." Risa revealed that Aerin told her that he was taking a vacation and it would be best to use it to train the orphanage to be even more self-sufficient. Jexanna almost scoffed at that. She had arranged for it to be as efficient as possible.
"Risa, you will be." Jexanna slowly broached her friend carefully. She placed a hand on her shoulder to ease her.
"But not at the expense of closing my doors." Risa spun around to face her, eyes fully red and fists clenched. Her face was contorted deeply, tears streaming down furiously. "How many children will need homes once this virus is released, Jex? You've done statistical analyses on this kind of disaster. You're well aware of the hole that this orphanage could fill for those that survive. Not to mention, there is the new compound-"
"The only survivors will be humans and light creatures." Aerin's cold tone made them both freeze. "An entire town was wiped in a night. Do you think there will be any children left?" Jexanna's fist clenched, fully aware that he was right. It was obvious that this was a disease manufactured to leave no survivors, just like her father had found many years ago. Her eyes narrowed at the thought of that night. Looking up at Risa who stalked over to Aerin, Jexanna flinched as a flash of flames consumed the room, wrapping the two in a furious cyclone of hot flames. Shaking her head, she blinked and released a sigh of relief as she found them to perfectly fine. Both froze in whatever confrontation they were about to begin, staring straight at her. Worry was painted across Risa's face, and Aerin's golden eyes narrowed at his sibling.
Shit. Her teeth ground together.
Jexanna tried to even her heartbeat as the two continued to stare at her. One was a look of genuine concern while the other was a hard analytical stare. She knew what Aerin was thinking and needed to get out fast.
"Jexanna, are you okay?" Risa asked slowly.
"Yes." She waved her hand, hopping off of Risa's desk. Jexanna knew what was coming as she walked between the two, but hopefully, she could escape before Aerin said anything. "Just need to start packing. I'll leave you two lovebirds to straighten this out." She almost reached the door. One more step, she would be free.
"Jexanna, let's talk later." Jexanna froze in place. The damn bastard wouldn't let her get away that easily. Turning to face Aerin's narrowed eyes, Jexanna gave a nod.
"Fine." Before Risa could get a word in, Jexanna quickly walked out of the room as her teeth clenched together. Her pace didn't stop as fury and fear both filled inside her being. Damn it. That was over a decade ago. She should have been over it by now. But Jexanna knew that that night wouldn't ever leave her. How could it? After all, that was the night she killed her father. And a child never forgets that, no matter what age they were.
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