Dungeons and Dalliances

7.02 – Arrangement

"It's so nice to speak with you again, Natalie," Elida said with a smile. "Have you given my offer due consideration?"

Standing outside the training facility, with other students having headed for the cafeteria. She eyed the red-haired girl. Elida was as pretty as always. She couldn't help but notice this fact, which only annoyed her further. Elida's green eyes danced with amusement as she waited for Natalie's response. If she hadn't known better, she might even describe Elida as having a friendly appearance.

"You've been ignoring me when I tried to talk with you," Natalie said flatly. "Why shouldn't I do the same, now that you're willing to speak?"

"Ignoring you?" Elida asked in mock surprise, a hand going to her chest. "No, of course not. I wouldn't do something so disrespectful to a potential ally. You must have misread the situation."

Natalie crossed her arms and gave her a flat look.

Elida laughed. "I've made changes to the team," she said smoothly. "I have no doubt we'd make the strongest party in the year, if you joined us." She smirked. "That will also be true if you don't, but the gap would be larger, I mean."

"What changes?"

She asked not because she was entertaining the idea of teaming up with Elida long term, but simply because she wanted to know. Elida had already made allusions toward shuffling her team around as necessary—how else would Natalie have been given a spot?—which didn't sit right with her, but she also was curious what the composition of the best team of Tenet would be. Especially since they were enemies not just personally, but through the Beaumon and Parda-Halt political relationship.

"Vanetta," Elida said. "As our new rogue, to name one."

Natalie blinked. That surprised her for two reasons. "Aren't you your team's rogue?"

"We'll have two."

"Why?"

"Because it's worth it," Elida said simply. "Composition matters, yes. What matters more is having the strongest fighters of the year on your team. A little imbalance is well worth stuffing a squad to the seams with talent."

"She's that good?" She didn't even know who 'Vanetta' was.

"She's better."

"And who is she, again?"

Elida paused, then seemed amused. "You've seen her. Short. Black hair. Lots of scars on her face."

Natalie was briefly embarrassed that the description so readily summoned an image of the girl. It felt rude to describe her in that way, but there was no denying the facial scarring was the most immediately striking part of her.

"Ah," Natalie said. "She is good. But not that amazing, I thought? She's not in the top ten."

"She's sandbagging."

"Sandbagging?"

"She was somewhere in the thirties, when the rankings came out. But she's never trying her hardest. Or trying at all. Not in class, at least." Her brow furrowed. "I haven't a clue who she is, or why she would do that, which makes her an utter fascination." She shrugged. "In the dungeon, she's less restrained. It took a lot of convincing to get her to come down with me. Maybe she respected how I saw through her act. I can't say. She's hard to read. She'd been going solo, prior to that."

"Solo?" Natalie nearly choked. "Alone? Into the dungeon?"

"Yes," Elida said, seeming to sympathize with her surprise. "She's a monster, as I said. And now she's on my team."

Well, that wasn't great.

"In fact, I doubt whether I could beat her," Elida said.

Again, Natalie reeled. Not just because there was someone so strong in the first year of Tenet students who had slipped past her notice, but that she was so good even Elida would admit to possibly losing to her. Natalie could only figure that meant Elida absolutely would lose, since the girl clearly had an ego.

And how did Elida not know who Vanetta was? The Parda-Halts had vast resources to call on, rivaling any of the major houses, including the Beaumons. And they traded in knowledge; Natalie could only assume, at least by reputation, that they were even better informed than the Beaumons in that regard. And yet they couldn't dig up the story behind the scarred girl? How she had arrived to the academy, what her intentions were with keeping a low profile, and how she was so strong?

"Well," Natalie said, trying to orient herself to this surprising bit of news. "And who else?"

"Our healer and mage haven't changed. They're the strongest of the year without obligations that prevent them from teaming." Elida waved her hand as if to dismiss the topic. "You can judge us by our results, which you'll see first hand when you come into the dungeon with us."

"And you think I will, do you?"

"Yes," Elida said. "You want answers, which I'll provide only upon the completion of a test run. You will, without a doubt, accept my offer."

Natalie frowned. An enormous part of her wanted to refuse just to spite her … but she'd already known Elida was a bitch, and had discussed the topic with her team enough. Elida was right; she would be accepting.

"A full day expedition," Elida continued. "This weekend. We can get a feel for each other. See what we can accomplish when working together. Two people in our … situation." She smirked.

"Not three?"

"Three?" Elida seemed surprised by the question. "What do you mean?"

"Vanetta. If she's as good as you say."

"Oh. Oh, no. I doubt that. Something is going on with her. But it's hardly breaking historical precedent for Tenet to receive occasional … aberrants. Freaks of nature crop up from time to time, and they often filter to Tenet. The Dimming Herald attended as well, yes?"

"And after the test run?"

Elida smiled. "Afterward, you'll have realized that the only rational course of action is to continue with us, assuming you have an ounce of ambition."

Natalie kept her face smooth—or, at least, not changing from the irritated disdain she felt for the woman. She needed Elida to believe there was a chance she teamed with her, as completely ridiculous as the idea was.

She wondered how a Parda-Halt was so clueless to what motivated a person. Maybe she couldn't conceive of someone putting ambition second to decency. Or didn't realize how much Natalie disliked her. Or maybe, even, she wasn't as much a master manipulator as Natalie assumed. She was a Parda-Halt, yes, but was that coloring Natalie's judgment too much? Making her assume things that weren't true? Maybe Elida, despite her family name, wasn't all that great at reading people.

Then again, she'd 'read through Vanetta's act', which Natalie hadn't questioned for a second. Though she didn't share a class with the girl, either.

Did Elida have alternative goals taking her down into the dungeon? It couldn't be anything too devious, because Natalie was, in some roundabout way, under the protection of the Beaumons, thanks to Liz.

Maybe there were games at play, maybe there weren't. In any case, Natalie did have something she wanted from Elida.

"Even if I refuse to join," Natalie said. "We'll still talk afterward. You'll still give me answers."

Elida pursed her lips.

"Some," she said. "Some answers. And meaningful ones, yes, no trivialities. On my word. But I'll hardly go spilling all my secrets if you continue to declare yourself my enemy." She tilted her head. "Especially if you yourself are willing to have an earnest dialogue, I'll be amenable to the idea of sharing information. I have questions for you too, you realize? There aren't many like us."

Natalie frowned.

"This weekend?" she asked.

"This weekend," Elida replied sweetly. "I do so look forward to it."

THIS CHAPTER UPLOAD FIRST AT NOVELBIN.COM