Evren and Mae chatted while the light of the evening faded into twilight and stars appeared in the sky one by one. She seemed reluctant to say goodbye, coming up with reason after reason for him to stay and talk just a little bit longer.
“Tell me more about your family,” she told him, invading his personal space once more.
He looked at her suspiciously, then answered with a sigh, “I have six sisters and I don’t want to talk about them.”
Evren had given up maintaining a safe distance between her and him. He couldn’t understand Mae's tendency to bump up against him as they were talking. How could she think that that was okay?
“What’s wrong, don’t you like your sisters? What kind of girls do you like?” she asked, unphased. Her hand slipped around his arm and back into the pocket of her hoodie, closing around his.
“I like quiet, hard-working girls, Mae,” was his reply.
She paused with a look of wonder on her face, saying softly, “I’m quiet and hard-working.”
“Then that means that you’re my type of girl,” Evren said with a grin.
She seemed to lose all strength all of the sudden and her bare knees hit the ground. He pulled her back to her feet with concern, and while he did so, he heard her muttering gleefully under her breath.
“I’m his type of girl… I’m his type of girl…”
He realized at that moment that it’d be better not to joke around with Mae. He was just about to excuse himself and go back inside, when Mae stood back up and turned to him. Her face was red as she offered a shy invitation.
“Evren… Would you like to come over and see my room? I think you would really like it.”
“Mmmmm. That sounds nice Mae, but it’s too late in the day for me to be visiting. Maybe another time?”
The smile faded from her face and her eyes lowered as she nodded in understanding. Evren could read her body language and see that she was taking his refusal very hard. He immediately followed up with a cheerful comment.
“I am interested in seeing your room someday! I’ve never noticed that doorway here before, and I've been around the neighborhood a lot.”
He wandered closer to her entryway. It was actually on the Zone E2 side of the triangle, just a couple of feet from the terrace’s edge. For Evren, it felt so dangerously close that if he left that room not fully awake, he’d fall headfirst twenty feet down into Zone F3.
It was to the right of E301, so it should be labeled E300, shouldn't it?
“Wait a second,” he exclaimed, taking a closer look at her door. “Your archway, there’s no room number. How do you not have a room number?”
He turned around and was shocked by the sudden appearance of Mae, right in front of him. He leapt backwards so fast, that he nearly fell over the edge. Only his excellent balance and the clothesline saved him from a long fall. This girl had once again been standing uncomfortably close to him, and he'd nearly paid for it with his life.
“Don’t do that!”
“Ooooh… Are you all right?” she asked, seizing him around his middle and trying to haul him back to safety. Evren marveled at her gentle touch. She wasn't helping at all, but he could feel her warm body pressed against his. She was no stronger than a child, but as he stepped back from the edge, he felt the urge to pretend to be supported by the arms of this tiny person. Her arms didn’t even reach all the way around him.
"Thank you, Mae. You can let go now."
She may have been small and weak, but her grip was persistent, and she wouldn’t let go of him until she had walked him safely back to the wall.
“I was soooo scared,” she complained, real tears appearing in her eyes. “I don’t know what I’d do if you fell into the Nexus while I was protecting you!”
“Protecting me?…” he asked bewildered.
“Yes. I’m older than you and I’m your type of girl, so of course it’s my job to protect you!”
“Oh…" was the only reply the Evren could produce, "That’s nice…”
Evren didn’t know what else to say. He’d never had a girl look out for him before. Not that Mae could do much in the case of a real threat, but the fact that she was willing to risk herself for him… Well, it was endearing!
He was blushing now, but Mae couldn't see his face in the low light. He had to think about something else. His blanket!...
He stepped forward once more and checked the comforter, smelling it. It still needed more airing, but the temperature outside was dropping and he’d need to bring it in soon.
“What’s that sound? Shhhhh… I think someone’s coming!” Mae whispered urgently.
Night had quietly settled in while they were talking, and though the sky was now full of stars, there were a lot of shadows cast that turned the Nexus into an obscured pit of darkness. Luckily, the four stairways were brightly lit and Evren could vaguely make out a pair of figures leaning against each other, climbing the stairs and making their way in his direction.
Their voices floated across the 100-foot distance between them. Two girls, speaking loudly and without regard for the late hour and the peace that they were disturbing. There’s no way one of those noisy girls was Lyra, right?
Evren looked down and noticed that Mae was nowhere to be seen.
“Mmmmm, she didn’t even say goodbye,” he noted quietly to himself.
“Goodbye!” a wispy voice called out.
It was Mae and the word came from nearby. Then he heard a scurrying noise, like a small animal running across the stones. Looking around in all directions, she was nowhere to be seen.
Evren remembered their first meeting together and understood.
“Is casting Invisibility the only way you know of getting out of a conversation?” he called after her, but there was no response.
He was just about to march up to the archway with no number and call in after her, when the two loud-talking girls arrived in his small neighborhood. Evren squinted into the dark, but couldn’t make out who they were. They obviously didn’t know that he was lurking there either. Should he hide in the shadows until they went back to their dorms?
He was still weighing his options when he heard the taller girl speak gruffly to the shorter one.
“Well, which room is yours? Where is my brother?”
“This one, over here. He’s waiting inside.”
He recognized the first voice. Deep and throaty, it hadn’t changed at all. It was his sister Dia speaking.
The second voice was without a doubt Lyra’s, though there was a strange quality to it, like she was sick or exhausted.
Oh no! Why was Dia here? Why did Lyra bring her back home with her?
Dia was older than him by just one year. They were the closest in age in all the family, other than he and his younger sister Mabel. She stood tall and curvy just like the rest of his sisters. He was vaguely aware of how beautiful she was, with her long dark hair, big eyes, and feminine features. He’d been told by many boys how lucky he was to live under the same roof as the Goddess Dia, but he never agreed. Despite her beauty and the fact that he was a head taller than she was… still, he was scared to death of her.
So far, in his Academy career, he’d managed to avoid her. It was a case of 'you don't bother me, ad I won't bother you' he suspected, but somehow, on the first day of his freshman year in this new world, Lyra was bringing her home for a visit. This was the worst thing that could've happened tonight... other than falling headfirst into the Nexus.
With Dia here, he already felt like he had to apologize to her. He imagined her first words.
"Were you spying on us, brother?" or "Don't act like you know me!"
Also, he could hear from the tone of Dia’s voice that Lyra was already in her bad books. She only used that annoyed tone of voice when she was moments away from slapping someone over the head. What had Lyra done that deserved that tone of voice?
He took a deep breath and called into the darkness, saying, “Sister, I am here.”
Abandoning the safety of the shadows, he lit a candle spell, letting it light up his face. His flickering flame revealed the imposing figure of his older sister. looking him over.
“Is everything okay?” he asked innocently.
“Yah, everything’s great Evren!” Lyra replied tactlessly, gracing him with a huge smile. She was as gorgeous as ever, but she was slouched over and leaning on Dia. “I met your sister at the dance!”
“That’s nice, Lyra,” he said calmly. Why was she acting so weird? He turned to Dia, bowing and saying, “Thank you for bringing my roommate back. It’s very dark and the stairs are slippery with condensation at this time of night.”
Evren’s eyes were adjusting to the light of the candle when suddenly a second candle spell was cast. It danced in front of Dia, revealing details he hadn't noticed earlier. She wore a shiny and intriguing outfit. An outfit that would've drawn the attention of every boy at the dance, he guessed.
It was very similar to Lyra's dance outfit, though the black leather seemed to suit Dia much better. The leather top was smaller and more revealing, barely able to contain her ample chest. He couldn't help but notice the plump underside of her breasts standing firm on her chest. The sight sent a jolt through his mind. Confusing feelings that he shouldn't have when looking at his sister. Her toned waist and belly button were also on display, a sight which he'd never seen before. There was no doubt that she was in amazing shape! But the hardest thing to keep his eyes off of was definitely her leather shorts. They were wrapped so tightly around her big hips and butt that they seemed to be painted on her body.
In the same instant, Evren looked over and his eyes registered something wrong with Lyra's outfit.
There was a long strap of leather wrapped tightly around Lyra’s neck. It was made from the straps that he had lovingly attached, just hours ago. It resembled a dog collar and leash, the former of which had left a red mark around her neck, and the latter of which Dia held firmly in her hand. Lyra was leaning against Dia, as if she needed her support for some reason.
“It is dark, Evren,” she said, “You shouldn’t be wandering about outside. There are perverts and other dangers out here.”
Her voice was just as commanding as ever, but this time it held a strange breathless quality that he’d never heard before. Then she turned back to Lyra and giving the leash a yank, her voice turned back to normal.
“Go inside, girl! I want to talk with my brother alone.”
Lyra looked alarmed, and she bowed deeply before, without a word, she stumbled into E305. The length of leather around her neck swinging back and forth while she walked. Something was wrong with this picture, but Evren couldn’t understand it. Was this really the same girl he had known?
And what about Dia? As he squared up to face his sister, he remembered the way she'd asked "Where's MY brother." Hearing the difference in her voice, he wondered now how his relationship with her... with all of his sisters, had changed.
“Why are you hauling Lyra around like an animal? What happened between you and her?”
Dia’s eyes met his. There was something different about the way she was looking at him. The hatred was gone, and she met him eyes directly with no sign that she loathed him. What was their relationship now?
“You speak about your new roommate as if you know her already,” she said. Her eyes twinkled in the candlelight, and her strong arms locked onto his forearms, in a move that almost sent him into shock. “But what I’m about to tell you will change your mind about her.”
Dia, and the rest of his sisters, had always avoided contact with him as if he had the plague. Now, with her fingers holding him tightly, stimulating his arms, he felt like his head was going to explode. She was talking again, and as she spoke, her head moved closer to his and her voice dropped lower.
“Your roommate got drunk at the dance, and she said some pretty disgusting things,” she paused to press a finger into his chest, “And some of them had to do with you.”