Jenn came back to the room as they were putting their boots on. “He thinks he has it,” she blurted out.
Gregory stood up. “Really?”
“He’s not sure, but he thinks it’ll work,” Jenn said, nearly vibrating with hopefulness.
“Let’s go,” Yukiko said.
“He’s serving us in our rooms. I asked to be served in yours. I hope that’s okay,” Jenn said.
“Yes,” Yukiko said, taking her hand and pulling Jenn along behind her.
Gregory chuckled to himself as he followed them. It’s hard to say which of them is the most excited and hopeful, though I’m not far behind, if I’m being honest with myself. I would’ve accepted the idea before now, if not for my fear of hurting them.
Dia stood in the hall when they came up the stairs. “Apprentices, Brown will be in to serve you in a moment. If you have any troubles, come for me. Do not hesitate or think it might pass. If anything feels wrong, come for me. Understood?”
“Yes, Dia,” they replied.
“I hope this is what you were seeking, or at least close enough to it,” Dia said, giving the three of them a knowing look. “If there is no trouble, I will see you in the morning.” Smiling at them, she entered her room.
Gregory opened the door to their room and led Yukiko and Jenn inside, but left the door open. He went to move the bow off the table so they would have space for their food.
“Is that the bow you made?” Jenn asked.
“Yeah,” Gregory said, passing it over to her. “It has a good draw to it. If you used your aether, though, it’d probably break.”
Jenn nodded as she took it and examined it for a few moments. “It’s a very nice bow, not that you’ll get much use out of it over the next year.”
“True, but it’ll be a good one for later. Oh, Yuki, can you make a cover for it?”
“I’ll ask Lavent, but I’m sure he’ll be fine with me doing so.”
“Thank you, dearest,” Gregory said.
Jenn handed the bow back to Gregory and he set it aside. Yukiko and Jenn had just taken seats at the table when a knock on the door announced Brown.
“Apprentices, I have your meal for you,” Brown said. “If this doesn’t work, I’ll try again, but I believe it will.”
Gregory turned to move to the table and he felt his eyebrows rise. Brown looked exhausted. “Thank you, sir,” he said as he sat down.
“I’m sure this combination of herbs is the answer,” Brown said. “Eat slowly, and if you feel yourself start to enter the right state of mind, stop eating and try to meditate. I know that can be hard if you aren’t on the spirit path, but it will help.”
“Yes, sir,” they replied.
Brown put his hand over the table and three plates appeared, followed by crystal glasses and a bottle. He quickly poured the wine and had them served. Nodding, he stepped back. “Enjoy, and do make sure to let me know if it worked.”
They agreed they would, and Brown left them to their meal, shutting the door behind him as he went. Gregory’s nerves began to kick up, and he grabbed the wine, taking a sip.
“Rosem wine,” Gregory said. “Been a while since I’ve had some… Makes me wonder how infused this is if he felt that this would be needed.”
Jenn didn’t respond— she was focused on the noodles and thinly sliced meat in her chopsticks. With a look at the other two, she ate it. Her eyes widened and her nostrils flared as she chewed. Gregory and Yukiko watched her with worry, both waiting for her to tell them how it was.
Once she could safely swallow, she did, then picked up her wine to take a sip. “It’s hot,” she wheezed, “and it ignited my aether, making it flare higher than anything I’ve ever had before.”
“We should let it sit, then,” Yukiko said.
“Not hot like that… spicy is what I meant,” Jenn said, picking up some of the sprouts on the plate and taking a bite. “Oh, that helped,” she said after a moment. “The sprouts take off some of the heat.”
Both Yukiko and Gregory exchanged a look before they sampled the food. Sweat beaded Gregory’s head on the first bite, while Yukiko didn’t seem to be affected as much. They agreed that the sprouts did ease the burn of the food, and the wine tempered the aether rush.
Slowly, carefully, and methodically, they ate their food. Each bite had Gregory hoping that the trance would come, but when they finished, they were saddened. They were mostly disappointed that the trance like the tea ceremony never came, but also partially because they had finished all the food.
“I guess it was a bit too much to hope for,” Gregory sighed before yawning.
“He did say he was still,” Yukiko yawned widely, “working on it.”
“Maybe the next dish will be the one?” Jenn murmured, her eyes growing heavy.
Gregory frowned and blinked slowly at both women. “Wait… do you feel,” he yawned again, “sleepy?”
“Yes…” Yukiko muttered, her eyes closing.
Jenn snored lightly, her chin resting against her chest as she lay back in her chair.
“Dia…” Gregory said weakly as he tried to get the energy to rise. “Need to… tell… Dia…!” His arms slipped off the armrests of the chair, and his head banged onto the table. “Need…”
~*~*~
Gregory jerked upright, looking around. The opulent bedroom he knew well from his talks with Darkness surrounded him. The corner Darkness normally inhabited was empty. “Darkness? Yuki? Jenn?” Gregory called as he climbed out of bed. “Anyone?”
“Dear one, what are you doing here?” Darkness asked him, the corner of the room suddenly shrouded in her namesake.
“Hoping to talk to you,” Gregory exhaled. “I guess it worked.”
“You have a dangerous amount of sleep root in you… all three of you do,” Darkness said, her voice becoming sharp. “He almost went too far.” There was a hint of anger to her tone. “Give me a moment and I will have them here with you.”
“Thank you,” Gregory said, both meaning for her concern and what she had said.
“Of course, dear one. I will always be concerned about your health and the health of those you call special. If they are special to you, they are special to me.”
Yukiko and Jenn appeared on either side of Gregory. Yukiko exhaled a sigh of relief and Jenn looked around, mildly panicked.
“We need to tell…! Dia?” Jenn said questioningly, her sentence fading as she looked at the room.
“Jenn,” Gregory said, touching her arm, “say hello to Darkness.” He motioned to the inky corner.
“Hello, Jenn,” Darkness said. Her voice was warm, as if welcoming an old friend. “It has been some time, though I know you do not remember me.”
Yukiko’s eyes widened and she felt a pit open up under her heart.
“It is okay, Yuki,” Darkness said. “You are his heart now— you have nothing to fear. Trust me, for I know him better than anyone. Jenn might be an old soul tied to his previous life, but you are tied to him now. You are the pinnacle of his love, surpassing even me.”
Gregory put his arms around Yukiko as she relaxed. “Dearest, she isn’t wrong. You are my heart.”
“Thank you, dear one,” Yukiko whispered. “It was what I’d feared for a moment… That Jenn was tied to you from before, and that I would be moved aside.”
“No,” Jenn said firmly, going over to embrace Yukiko. “I would never want you to lose him.”
A happy sigh came from Darkness. “So much love, not just for him, but for each other, too. Truly, my heart, you will never lack for love, and neither will your wives.” A hint of laughter touched her tone. “Besides, Yuki, you are also tied to his previous life. You were not his first love at the time. Then again, neither was Jenn, though she was a touch higher than you were.”
All three looked at the corner in shock— none of them had been expecting what she’d said.
“But you went to unwise lengths for us to talk, and we should address the pressing concern for our dearest,” Darkness said. “Do you trust me?”
“Yes,” Gregory said without pause.
“Jenn is the best one besides Yukiko to have beside you. How things happen from here is shifting rapidly, and the future blurs as this event sets many more into motion. Accepting her love and giving her a chance to have a place inside your heart will lead to many positive futures. Not accepting her will sour things— how could she not be hurt and rejected if you refused her? She will carry on for years, but that hurt grows and turns to hatred. In time, she would give her own life to hurt you as much as she felt that you hurt her.”
“I don’t want to hurt her…” Gregory said softly, his gaze going to Jenn. “I care for her.”
“I know, dear one. All three of us do. Neither of them blames you for being cautious. Both are touched that you care so deeply for them both, and that you hold off your young male hormones, to be sure.”
Gregory flushed red, and Yukiko and Jenn giggled at his reaction.
“If they knew the dreams you have had since Yukiko told you…” Darkness giggled.
“Uh…” Gregory’s face went crimson.
“It’s okay,” Yukiko murmured, kissing his cheek.
“Considering some of your dreams, it should be,” Darkness added.
Yukiko turned red as well before she pushed her face into Gregory’s chest.
“Oh?” Jenn asked, clearly hoping to hear more.
“Yes. They match yours quite well,” Darkness answered her implied question.
Now all three of them were bright red and unable to look at each other.
“Good. Now you all know how you feel about each other.”
Jenn bit her lip before she let go of Yukiko and bowed to the corner. “Thank you, Darkness. I will repay you in time.”
“Oh, that would be nice. Yuki still owes me for a few things,” Darkness said. “I have plans for things, but they are years in the future. I will hold the repayment until then.”
“Thank you for helping ease my worries,” Gregory said as he felt his face cool.
“I do want to help you, dear one, but please do not do this again. The tea house is fine, but not this meal… not until you are at least a magus.”
“Okay,” Gregory said. A memory touched him and he glanced at the corner with suspicion.
Rich laughter came from Darkness. “Yes. I stopped you from seeing this moment then. They were both trying so hard to build up the courage to ask you that I did not want it ruined by a glimpse of the future.”
“Oh, the glimpses that you denied him…?” Yukiko asked, knowing what Darkness meant.
“Yes. Honestly, it was better this way. It gave them both a chance to see the care and affection they had for each other without it being muddied by a vision.”
“It makes sense now,” Gregory sighed.
“Yes, and our time is over,” Darkness sighed. “You now know the truth. I wonder how you will act going forward?”
Jenn and Gregory shared a glance, both thinking about how things would change tomorrow. Yukiko smiled softly, watching them both until the room vanished.
