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"I don't know what's worse." He sighed. "The fact that I'm lying to her or the fact that I may have feelings for her."
"Dude. Are you serious right now?" Sirius closed the steamy romance novel he was reading and glared at Jasper. "You do understand that this isn't some plot of a romance book? And if it were, the closest you guys would get to being with each other is the ending to Romeo and Juliet." He scoffed.
"I will finish this mission. I've just got to find a way around it." Jasper strides back and forth from either side of his room in thought. "I just really hate lying to her. She still doesn't trust me after finding out I was a bounty hunter, she's going to literally kill me if she knows the whole truth."
"I mean, it's not like you wouldn't deserve it. You weren't exactly sent to be her guardian angel." He snickers. "To be blunt buddy, Leader gave you a task, specifically a kill mission. And instead of killing who you were assigned, you're going to...what is it exactly you are going to do?"
"What if instead of killing her I capture her? Bring her back with me." He stops and looks to Sirius.
"So, you've just lost it at this point." He stands up, stretching his limbs out as though he were a cat. "You think it's a good idea to bring a royal to a DEN FILLED WITH ASSASSINS. I mean damn Jasper, this has to be the most desperate I've ever seen you." Sirius with his arms crossed, steps towards the balcony doors of Jasper's room. "You know, if it were me, I would just try to enjoy what I've got here until they send in you know who." With his back turned to Jasper he whisks the doors ajar and cold air fills the room.
Jasper huffs, running his hand through his hair. He walks outside, the frigid air cooling the bile rising in his throat at the thought of something bad happening to Adria. The fact that he's the one who brings her closer to danger. Maybe they won't be able to escape it, and he can't protect her from it.
"Listen Sirius, I know I screwed up. But I need your help man. If anything happens to her, I don't think I'm going to come back from it. I just...I need to find a way to fix this." Jasper pleads.
"Buddy. I've got your back, always." Sirius lightly shoves him. "And plus, I think you've noticed just how much of a fighter she is. In fact, with the right training...she could-"
"No. No way. I am not turning her into one of us. There's no way no one would notice anyways."
"Jasper, there aren't a lot of options here. And this way you can make sure she can defend herself on her own against the others."
Jasper groaned in frustration. His breath, a puff of steam outside. The cold dark city seemed on edge, and every night he was here he could feel it getting closer to imploding on itself. For what it was worth though, he thought the dark city was beautiful. Its inhabitants on the other hand were vile and destructive, giving it a bad reputation.
Releasing his tight grip on the patio rail, he stepped back. "Alright. I'll train her, but the plan stays between us." He walks back into the warmth of his heated room, striding towards the exit. With his hand on the handle, he pivots to face Sirius. "Oh and no matter what, she can't ever know who we are, or what we do." He leaves.
In the hall hovers over her door not able to knock, but not able to leave. If she knew what he does, who he is, or goddess forbid how he feels she'd probably see him as despicably vulgar. Someone who doesn't deserve redemption. She'd think he is a monster.
He wouldn't blame her, because deep down he knows what he is, and what it means for him.
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LILITH.
"So, your theory is- and correct me if i'm wrong- is to basically stay at this goddess forsaken majestic hellhole, and find our suspect who is seemingly here as well?"
"Yes."
Dalia's brows were raised high in surprise. "If our suspect is here, there's only two things they could be. Part of the staff, or he's a Beauvau.
"No way they're in the Beauvau. That group only lets people compete in their trial once biennially. Plus, someone in the Beauvau wouldn't have the time to use transporters to teleport all across Ecrea."
"If we were right though, and it really is an agency member posing as a staff member, then they were definitely at the gala. And the one we've been hunting probably knows who we are.
"Shit." I curse, frozen by Lilith's realization.