17 The Calm - Part 1

Seph woke up to a knock on the door. It was light and hesitant, but Seph hadn't been sleeping deeply to begin with.

Seph turned to her clock. Too dark to see the time, drat.

She let out just a bit of magic. The air in front of her fingers started to glow. She didn't use it to construct any rune, instead using the light to read the time. Three in the morning.

A soft yawn escaped her. She hadn't had much rest.

Another knock. Just a single one this time and quieter than the previous.

Seph rolled out of the bed and stood up. She lazily made for the door. She swiped up at a metal plate in the wall next to the it, which led to the room brightening up just a little.

She opened the door, only to find Callu turning her head in surprise. She had just turned away from the door, seemingly given up on Seph ever opening it.

"You're awake!" She whispered.

"Just woke up." Seph yawned.

"Oh!" Callu caught on. "Oh I woke you up, I'm sorry!"

Seph frowned. "I'm already awake now. Sorry won't change anything."

Callu looked down sheepishly.

"What happened?" Seph asked.

"...Couldn't sleep. Kept thinking about... Yeah-"

Callu didn't need to finish the sentence. Their group had ended up working with Lyk at one point. It turned out to be scarier than any of them thought it would be, especially for Callu. She could imagine what getting entangled in Lyk's business again would be doing to her.

Seph nodded and stepped aside.

"Come on in then." She offered.

Callu hugged her in the doorway instead.

Seph sighed. She held her and helped her in. A few moments later they were sitting on her bed, still hugging in silence.

"We'll be okay, right?" Callu muttered into Seph's shoulder, her voice cracking up slightly.

"Everything will be fine." Seph tried to reassure her. "This isn't much of a hard job. I doubt anything will go wrong."

And that was correct. The past couple of days of reconnaissance with Yurel had more than confirmed that the dagger wasn't handled with much supervision at all. It was less a matter of stealing it from Krys and Jach and more of a matter of just finding it unattended.

"But it's Lyk!" Callu protested.

Seph caressed her hair. "Even still. Everything will be fine."

Callu shook her head. "You don't understand! What if we get caught?"

"I won't-" Seph started, only to be interrupted by a squeeze from Callu. Seph sighed and caressed her cheek. Something damp trailed along her fingers—a tear.

"Lyk never goes for anything small. You don't just- You don't hire him to pull off a simple heist, there's something big going on here." Callu took a raspy breath. "This dagger it- it must be important, really important. What if they catch us trying to get it? What if they think we're working for him? They aren't just going to let us go! They-"

Seph squeezed her tighter. "Nothing bad will happen, Callu. Everything will go just fine."

"But—" Callu continued. "Okay, even if we succeed, what if it's part of some scheme? What if they still come looking for who stole it? We- We can't even decline or Lyk will... He will... " Callu sobbed. Yurel had demanded that the group work with him. If they didn't, he'd tell them about their role in the heist that took place over two years ago. "Seph, I don't want to lose any of you!"

Callu buried her face into Seph's shirt and broke out into a full-on cry. Seph held her close, patting her back.

"You won't," She whispered.

"I'm scared," Callu whimpered. "I don't want to be scared."

"I know. It's okay"

"I can't stop thinking about- about what can go wrong I can't- I..." She grasped at Seph's arms. "I don't want to think I..." Her breathing was too raspy and hurried. Too uneven.

"Hey," Seph held her by the shoulders and pulled her back. She looked deep into Callu's eyes.

"Hey, Callu? I need you to look at me. Can you do that, please?" Seph asked slowly, one word at a time.

Callu whimpered. Her face was a mess. Covered with tears. Reddened eyes. Shaking.

She was looking down and trying to wipe her tears. Seph immediately looked around her room for her handkerchief—it was on her bedside table—and grabbed it. She wiped Callu's tears for her. She then cupped her cheeks and tilted her head so she faced her and repeated.

"Callu? Can you look at me?"

She sobbed loudly, then nodded. It took some effort for her, but she looked Seph back in the eyes.

"You're panicking," Seph told her, keeping her voice soft. "You know how your mind gets when that happens, right?"

She nodded after a second. "Y-yeah."

"I'll try and help. Will you do what I ask you to?"

She nodded again. "I'll t-try."

Seph hadn't seen her in this state in quite a while. In nearly a full year. These breakdowns, they were rather prevalent for the time after the heist. It was a rough time for Callu.

Seph still hadn't figured out the best way to calm her down, but there were some things she knew did help. So, she ran Callu through them. She tried to get her to take deep breaths. She gave her some water. Talked to her constantly, trying to reassure her. She held her hand. Callu was not alone and Seph would try and make sure that she doesn't ever feel alone again.

When she had calmed down a little, Seph took her to the gardens. Walks always helped her. So did her friends. They walked for an hour and a half and then decided to lay down. Callu had calmed down a lot by then. They'd even had a laugh at what Callu had been thinking during that time. Who was the 'They' that would catch them, anyway? Was it the Queen's guard? The Academy? Even Callu didn't know.

Callu was starting to feel tired after a while. She hadn't slept at all, unlike Seph, and hadn't had a good sleep the past couple of days either. And so, they lay down. Seph watched over Callu as she slept.

Eventually, Hiila and Teak also made their way to the gardens. Seph had left a note for them at her door. They brought some food with them, which Seph appreciated greatly. She was starving and she was sure Callu would be too when she woke up.

When Callu woke up, it was already past time for the classes to start. The four decided to take the rest of the day off to themselves. Callu seemed much happier. Seph was glad.

Seph's happiness turned out to be short-lived.

A mana wave put her into alert. She could tell what it was from instantaneously. Yurel carried some mana flares with him everywhere he went. He would activate one whenever he had to notify Lyk about his plans. The mana pulse from it was strong, but nondescript. One wouldn't notice it unless they were specifically looking for it.

Or if they had a mana sense as strong as Seph's.

Yurel had sent a signal to Lyk. This might mean that they'd have to make a move that very day. They might have to make a move on the dagger right after Callu had gone through that breakdown. This scared Seph.

Unfortunately, her fears were soon proven to be true.