Power of Death (Agathario)

Chapter Seven

 Agatha tried to regain her composure as Rio set her down, clearing her throat and tossing her hair out of her face. She leaned back in her chair and propped her head against her hand, hoping her face was no longer red.

Rio went into her bedroom, coming out again only a second later, carrying a stack of books. She set them down in front of Agatha, who saw the books were spellbooks.

"Here," Rio said, "now you can save yourself next time."

"Why would I do that if I have you?" Agatha asked with a hint of sarcasm. She smiled, then picked up the first book in the stack. "'Best Counter-Curses for the Frequently Cursed.' Seems easy enough."

"Knock yourself out then," Rio replied, putting her hands on her hips.

Agatha looked Rio over. "Do you age at all? Or did you just, like, stop here for the rest of eternity?"

Rio raised an eyebrow, looking down at herself. "Well, I suppose I've just chosen when to grow. This just seemed like the perfect age."

"Amazing." Agatha absentmindedly looped a strand of her hair around her finger.

"What's with all these questions?" Rio asked, taking her hands off her hips.

"Uh well since the deal never specified how long I would live here, I wanted to know who I am living with," Agatha replied, taking the chance to sit up straighter and prop her elbows on the table, facing Rio head-on. She was starting to feel her leg again, and it felt as if her foot was being gently poked by hundreds of needles. "You know, just in case. You could turn out to be a real psycho."

Rio laughed. "I am a psycho."

Agatha shrugged, cracking a smug smile. "I know."

"I have to go," Rio said, then pointed to the pile of books in front of Agatha. "Read those."

Agatha watched as Rio walked out the door once again.

...

"I'm baaaack."

Agatha jumped (though it was more like a lurch since she was sitting) as Rio swung open the door, completely out of nowhere. Unlike the other times she'd entered, this time she wore a smile and her dagger was still in her hand as she walked in, holding out her arms like she was celebrating something.

Agatha resisted the urge to laugh. "What are you expecting? Flowers?"

"You know what? That's a good idea," Rio waved her hand in the air and a flower appeared in her palm. She held it out happily.

Agatha blurted out laughing. "What is this about? Did you kill someone you hated or what?"

"I collected the witches you killed," Rio answered, setting the flower at the table Agatha sat at. "First thing I did after I went out."

Agatha raised an eyebrow. "You didn't uh 'collect' them right when I killed them?"

Rio shrugged. "You needed saving. I needed to honor the deal."

Agatha doubted that was it, but she didn't push. In fact, she had no idea why Rio would hold out on collecting the dead, especially witches. It was obvious their deaths gave her something that she liked.

The only reason she'd ignore it if she was tempted with something else that was better— nope. She wasn't going there. She wasn't going to think about it.

Agatha smiled halfheartedly, trying to block out her thoughts. Why was it so hard to do that? "So, how long are you back for?"

Rio pulled out a chair and sat in it, lightly pushing her hair back. "I don't know. But it's dinner time."

She stared at Agatha, and it took a second for Agatha to tell what Rio was asking.

"W— oh, no," Agatha shook her head, pursing her lips. "No."

"Oh come on," Rio replied, rolling her eyes and giving an amused smile. "Hey, I carried you today. You have to do something now."

"I killed the witches for you, remember?" Agatha groaned, leaning back and closing the book she'd been reading.

"And I saved your life. That was part of the deal. Now you got to make up for the carrying." Rio nodded and Agatha shook her head.

Agatha closed her eyes for a second, then sighed. "Ugh, fine. You might as well have included maid work in the deal. At least I would have been prepared. You better not be expecting anything gourmet."

Rio put her hand over her heart. "Of course not. You probably grew up making stuff like porridge and dandelion salad and herbal tea."

Agatha got up, giving her a halfhearted glare. Rio wasn't exactly wrong, but that didn't make her any less annoyed.

"Here, I'll help," Rio stood and waved her arms. Agatha felt a rush of wind, even though they were inside, then looked over to where it came from. Now, in the corner of the room, stood an interesting metal device. There was a countertop that had one side of it cut with slots and underneath the cut side there was a fire.

"It's the new thing," Rio smiled and raised her eyebrows, holding out her arms like she was presenting a prize. "At least, it will be soon! I think."

Agatha stared at Rio. Those witches really did do something, because despite Agatha not knowing Rio for long, she could tell excitement probably wasn't normal for her.

Rio stared back at Agatha, then bit her lip, putting her arms down. "What are you waiting for? Make some soup or something."

Agatha held up her hands. "Okay! But I swear if you make fun of me—"

"I'll try not to," Rio replied, "'try' being the key word. But that doesn't matter."

Agatha sighed. "Fine." That was as good as she was going to get. She accepted her fate and started walking toward the pantry, very aware that Rio's eyes followed her with every step she took.

— 

We're getting closer and closer to something  and the next chapter will be here soon.

Have a good 24 hours!

-VictoryGreen8