Sword and Shield | E. Lehnsherr

10. The Science of Friendship

Chemistry is essentially the science of combining elements and hoping they react kindly to each other. In successful reactions, novel elements are constructed or new colors are produced. When things do not go according to plan, bad substances can bubble out of control and destroy the experiment.

Ria feels like one of the latter. After Cuba, it had taken her two full days to recover. She had practically fallen into a coma, according to Hank who had monitored her in the meantime while also trying to disguise his own mutation. After waking, it had been a struggle to control the constant tremor in her hands, but she had eventually done it.

Now, with the school beginning to run and Moira off to the CIA with no memory, Ria knows that it is time.

As she and Charles silently stroll through the gardens with Ria pushing his wheelchair, she can't help but note everything she'll miss. The kids that run around the mansion fill her heart with joy to cover the tinge of sadness that always clings to her at the sight of smiling children. The blooming flowers bring her a strange sense of comfort she hasn't felt in millennia.

Most of all, she'll miss the people. Sean had gone home to his family almost immediately. She had checked on Darwin upon waking to find that the hospital had discharged him; she found him happily living his life, driving around New York in his yellow taxi cab. Alex was a wildcard, always either traveling or teaching at the school. Hank spent his days sequestered in his lab, but she could always coax him into a spirited discussion of genetics with some tea.

She had already bid her farewells to them. This will be more difficult.

Maybe he already knows, and that's why he's so quiet. The two had grown close since that day, but neither had ever brought it up. Sure, he had questions about her mutation which she put off on answering, but other than that, they keep their conversation geared towards philosophical debates.

As Ria stops them both before the lake, she sits down and lifts her dress to allow her bare legs to dangle into the water as they look out over the grounds together in silence. She presses her fingers against her chest; through her clothes, she can feel the emanating warmth from the crystal attached to her skin as she plays with the rings hanging from her neck. "It's a good thing you made her forget," Ria says eventually.

"Many would disagree with you," Charles replies.

"Well, I'm not many."

He lets out a small chuckle as he looks down at her. "You're leaving, huh?"

"Hank called me a cab. I'm sorry."

"You don't have to go."

"I very much do." Running a hand down her face, her spine arches painfully as she slouches. "I once described my power as a well that I closed with locks and a concrete slab. What I did that day...It blew away the locks." She can practically see them lying broken in her mind. "I honestly do not know if the people I run from can feel it, but I won't risk these children's lives. Not for my own happiness."

Charles stays quiet for a long time. "You're more than just a power conduit," he says after Ria had readjusted in her spot several times. "When I was in Shaw's head, I saw some of the books he read to find you. I suppose I wasn't too far off with Helen?"

Ria shrugs. "As I said, I fought in that war, but I'm not named in those texts as anything but a weapon. You won't find me as me in any stories anymore. I was erased from history, I think, when I left my homeland. Maybe it was kindness or rage, I don't know."

He sighs. "Though I don't agree with your methods, I never...I never thanked you for forcing me out of Shaw's head when he..."

Ria tenses, her muscles locking in place. Her eyes gaze out over the field as she dips her fingers in the water. "No telepath should have to feel someone's death. I hear it's a terrible thing," she mutters. "It changes a person." Biting her lip, she shakes off her fears. "You seem a bit disorganized in thought today."

"Well, I don't quite like the idea of you leaving," he replies. She can feel something hidden by his words, but she does not push—she knows better than to push a breaking man.

"Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. I'm more worried about you." Turning to face him, she presses her palm against her leg. "Are you going to be alright, Charles?"

"As alright as I can be, I suppose."

It's not the answer she wants.

"In any case, I'll have more than enough reading to keep me busy," he muses as he leans on the arm of his chair to grin down at her. "I still have to figure you out, don't I?"

She chuckles and rolls her eyes. "Will you never accept what little I give you?"

"I cannot for I wish to know who my friend is." His gaze softens a bit as her heart warms. "Will you be alright, Ria?"

"I'm used to being on my own." Straightening up, she tears her gaze away and takes a deep breath. "It'll be how it used to be. I'll find some job somewhere they'll never find me, and I'll disappear, I suppose."

"That sounds awfully lonely."

"Fate wills it so."

Charles looks out over the lake and clenches his jaw. "When are you leaving?"

"The cab will be here within the hour to take me to the harbor." It hurts to think of leaving, but it must be done. Not for her sake or even Charles', but for the children's sake. "Why?"

"That means we have an hour to talk." He meets her gaze once more, a softness she hasn't seen since Raven left twinkling in his eyes. "As friends do."

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End of Act 1! Get ready for some interesting stuff in the next act!

Hope you enjoyed!

-L