HISTORY - The Order - Vera Stone

Loyalties and The Broken

"Melissa...."

The short whisper held a layer of emotions that swam through him as both stood opposite one another, one held sadness and regret. The other held...a knowing glint and the smirk that seemed to be permanently placed on her lips.

 "Long time...and here he is, the saviour of the very order that would wish to dissect him like a Frog..heh, it's poetic isn't it? The people you save, soon become the people who would do you harm."

Scoffing, the professor turned away as he knew her game, she was a great speaker. She backed that up with her raw potential and power. It was all there, the makings of a great leader, someone people would follow into the lowest pits of hell and back just to gain her admiration, respect even. 

"You are a great talker Melissa, you manipulated people's minds and I have no doubt that you are still doing so today. The power in your veins right now, the very feelings your channeling to use that right now. It won't last and it's only there because I gifted it to you without me knowing..."

A smirk lit up those bold features of hers. For once, she did not have that smug smirk on her face, she looked like the girl he had meant to tutor that day. The one who wished to see what History was all about until it got into her head that day that she was meant to commit...an atrocity. 

She stepped forward, standing a few feet away from him now as they both could do nothing but listen to the sounds of the wind gently breezing through the cells. The way her lips curled into a smile did nothing to soothe his thoughts on what was happening to her, she needed help and he wished to be the one to do so. 

"Xander, you have no idea about that day do you? Your power, what it does and how it reacts when coming into to contact with people who have experienced....the same loss as you, regardless in what form. Death, being abandoned, alone, wishing for that parent to come back and just tell you why...why they were gone, why they couldn't hang on and let whatever was stopping them go?"

It was the first time that he saw her this way, her voice cracked with sadness as he could already see in his head who she was talking about...Her mother, the very reason she wished to be held in such a regard, where she could be....feared and at the top of the food chain all because her mother wished to heal the world. 

"Your father....you never spoke about him in class, your mother was that for you, Mother, Father, and carer. She made sure that you didn't have the need for him, yet...you wished he would come back and be something for you, someone who could be the man you could look up too. Why do I have a feeling I am hitting the nail-"

And before she could even get another word out, she stopped. Noticing the way Xander was looking at her, a soft smile on his lips as he winked at her. Melissa raised a brow, wondering what the man was even doing, how he looked at her, she let him take the stage.

"You're right, my father was never the man I wished to be. I didn't look up to such a man, I had my brother. I had someone who was better than him for me. I had my family, don't think to compare us Melissa, it will be a mistake. Our lives are very similar but also different, who did you look up to? Why did you decide that the deaths of hundreds was necessary for one woman?"

And as she moved to speak, she was stopped once again, the inviting hand of that seer magic was stopping her as Xander showed a massive amount of control before pulling back as she could see in the last time since his...transformation that he was completely in control for right now. 

He had a loyalty within him, something that could not be broken and Melissa would not act like she wasn't shocked when she saw a golden tendril stretching out to her. Five more stretched out of the cell and elsewhere, many people had his loyalty, yet as what? A Professor or a Seer?

"That's the thing Melissa, I wanted to help you. I wanted you to see that your mother was leading you down a path that would leave you more broken than before. Trying to live up to a woman's expectations who was not there for you is wrong, can't you see that!? Can't you for one moment see that your mother is dead and she is not coming back! That trying out this crusade is going to leave you just like her!? Dead."

And the calm professor, looked at her and not with golden eyes but his normal colored eyes that had her shocked for a moment. No one had looked at her like that, the one person who she thought who would was dead and yet here he was, sticking his hand out for her. To make sure she was....what? Safe? 

What was he trying to prove here? That she was what? Good? No that ship had sailed long ago, he was trying to get her to see something. 

With a soft voice, one that she hadn't spoken since the first day of starting here at Belgrave, her voice did not shake, it did not waver, nor did it crack under the stare of her former Professor and Mentor. 

"What do you want from me Professor? I thought long ago that you had given up....Cause I know that look, that one, when you are trying to get me to see something. Just like you did in History, what is it now that is meant to have my....attention?"

Sighing to himself, he turned himself around as he realized that he had slipped into being the manipulator now. He could feel himself almost getting sick, yet he soldiered on with a hard look on his face as he turned back to face her, the same look stayed on his face as Melissa took a step back at it, slightly worried for what was to come. 

"In a few days, you will be questioned by Adepti Silver about the reasoning behind your cuesade, the moments that led to your crusade, and during the battle of belgrave. He is not to know about my involvement, regardless of what you think of me, you know what the Order will do to me if they find out a Seer is.....among them."

Tilting her head, the rogue witch seemingly planned in her head what she could do with this, It was right, the chance to try and get out of this hell. She could plan again, only she would have to do it one step at a time....and chaos was on her side, this was going to work, she would make it so...

"Fine but you have to do something for me first, talk to Vera Stone, I want something that belonged to my mother...."

Raising his brow now, Xander stepped forward, Melissa took another step back as her Professor right now was looking fearsome. He was bringing it to the forefront of her mind, she had to get out of his vicinity, yet in this hut of a cell, she felt like she was in a room with a dementor. 

"Fine. What is it?"

"My mother's grimoire....get that and you'll have a deal. Your involvement in the battle of belgrave would not have even happened in my mind."

For a reason he did not know, Xander felt like he was making a deal with the devil but before he could even think about It more, he gasped, shutting his eyes as he heard Melissa chuckle a goodbye. He was back in his history class

H.I.S.T.O.RY

Gasping, he looked around and noticed Veronica standing on the threshold of his door...she looked sad, almost angry at him. 

"Veronica-"

She stopped him with a raised hand and Xander felt sad at that, she stepped forward, looking into his eyes from a few feet away. They both stood there for a moment as finally, Veronica opened her mouth with a soft chuckle before smiling to herself. 

"I just wanted you to know that Hamish and Lilith are missing you, they think you've been spending too much time with us practitioners....so when you have time, they want to hang out with you."

Xander stood there with a straight face though, he could feel that she had just lied to him. She had a smile but she was upset with him for some reason...he nodded his head thanking her softly before moving back to face his desk, looking down at the papers he still had to grade.

Yet he had a very distinct feeling that papers were not going to be his problem for right now..things were about to get much worse as he heard Veronica's retreating steps.....