Fireshing barely heard the announcement of Unorganized Laundry's defeat as she faced off against the violet beauty. The fiery Awakened had measured and remeasured in her head how things should go.
It wasn't easy while Fire was also fighting for her life, but there was no getting around it.
Selecting the spot on the ground, she carefully maneuvered her opponent.
But Iza seemed determined to avoid the point at all costs. Just now, the graceful librarian stopped a step off of the goal.
'Come on!' Fire paused, scrunching her face.
Seeing the redhead's hesitation, Izayoi_Nii smirked and lunged toward her. Midstroke, the cutlass once again became a spear ready to skewer Fireshing.
However, the [Aching Ember] was a hair faster. Using the Memory's enchantment, Fire forced the tip between Iza's feet and lodged it into the crystal floor. Water seeped through the crack formed by the impact.
Like the fuse of a candle, the spear lit up.
Channeling her essence, the auburn-haired Awakened sent the final spark flitting from her hand.
'Fire in the hole.'
The deceptively tiny flicker of heat touched the shaft. It was the last straw.
'Run!' Fire was unsure if the blast would hurt her or not. She was immune to the flames, but any flying shrapnel from the floor could impale her.
In her haste, she nearly ran into her partner. The Blazing Bees locked arms. Shielding their faces against the explosion, they huddled together as the sky rained down shards.
Fireshing peeked to view her handiwork. A gaping hole had taken the place of the elegant Iza.
'Did…did it work?'
The Voice of the Dreamscape confirmed what her eyes saw.
"Izayoi_Nii has been eliminated. The Librarians are defeated. The Blazing Bees are the champions."
The crowd erupted into chants and cheers.
"I can't believe it!" Fireshing hugged her friend. They were both in pretty bad shape from the battle, but they had somehow managed to come out on top.
'You were amazing,' Bee's eyes swirled with excitement for her friend's performance.
'So were you!' Fire wouldn't take all the credit.
Queen Bee forced a smile behind her Fraudulent Facade. 'Thank you.'
'What's wrong?' Fireshing could sense her hesitation.
What was the problem? Bee couldn't exactly put her finger on it.
'I am just exhausted. I am sure the adrenaline of the win will kick in soon!'
The crowd erupted in frenzied cheers. Chants of both the ladies' names as well as their team were overlapping and colliding.
Around them, the leaking stadium was healing itself.
Fire and Bee realized that they, too, were returning to their unblemished states. While the emotional fatigue remained, the physical pain evaporated like morning dew.
Already Thane was standing again, ready to make a speech with a brilliant smile. "Congratulations champions! You bring glory to the Dreamscape. The performance was nothing short of marvelous. It is the duty of the Awakened to each become a true warrior and stem the tide of the Spell in these drastic times. I commend you on your bravery and celebrate your courage. Truly, you are the future of humanity. Today you showed how promising that future is!"
The Saint droned on with the measured words of a well-rehearsed speech, but Bee stopped paying attention. Looking around, she spotted Iza's return.
The Librarians were certainly due several prizes for their performance. While they could be given at a later time, as the Queen had done the year before, this ceremony was the easiest way to claim what was earned.
'Where's Unorganized Laundry?'
The man was nowhere in sight. She had hoped he moved past the incident, but it seemed like he was unwilling to return after his loss.
'Hopefully he is alright…'
"…present the prizes!" The Transcendent finished the speech with a flourish, bringing back Bee from her reverie.
A Master of the House of Night stepped forward. His purple eyes offset his winsome smile.
"That was quite a performance! The House of Night congratulates you on your victory!" On his signal, a ramp was set out for the Awakened to board the boat.
Under Queen Bee's urging, Fireshing went and accepted the prizes for both of them from the esteemed Master. He spoke kindly to her as transferred the Memories.
"My daughter is a big fan of both of you," he whispered. "Could I get your autograph later?"
Izayoi_Nii then accepted the praise and awards for herself and her teammate.
When it was all said and done, ocean spray filled the air like confetti in a rainbow of light and color. Bee couldn't help but smile.
She was Queen of the Dreamscape once more!
----------------
The following morning Noble yawned as she made her way across the Academy's campus. Fort had insisted on a celebratory dinner out, and thankfully none of the kids had asked exactly what they were celebrating.
In order to make up for the time she had been away in the tournament, the professor had stayed up late talking to her husband instead of going to the Dream Realm. She could make it another day without rest, but she still felt tired.
'After this, I should head to the cafeteria for some strong tea...'
The doors of the library opened and the amount of chatter inside the normally quiet halls told her exactly where she needed to go.
"I have told all of you that if you aren't going to read, you need to leave. This is a library, not the Dreamscape." Ren was perched on the counter with a frustrated expression. "Now, shoo!"
Discouraged, the patrons lingered for a moment hoping the woman would change her mind.
"What is going on here?" Noble asked sternly. "Ren may be too nice to throw you out, but I am not. I am calling security!" She nudged the spectators with a small taste of fear.
The threat and the foreign feeling were enough for the crowd to disperse. Ren relaxed.
"Thank you."
"Happy to help. Though I am ashamed to admit I came on a similar mission as those sycophants." Noble blushed slightly. "I came to congratulate you and Nickel."
"As long as you haven't come to ask for an autograph or a picture, your kind words are welcome," Ren opened a book on her lap and began to read.
"Oh, I am glad to hear that. Would you pass on my well-wishes to Nic? Where is he?" The professor glanced around the shelves.
"Here, Noble. What do you need?" Out of nowhere, the man seemed to materialize.
"I just wanted to say I saw you in the fight, and I was impressed." Noble dipped her head slightly. "Well done."
"You mean wounding a Saint? Most people wouldn't say that was my finest moment." Nickel placed the book in his hand back on the shelf.
"I meant your performance in the finals. You held your own against Queen Bee!" The professor could feel the conversation was getting away from her.
"Isn't Fireshing your friend? You should be congratulating her for her win." Nickel looked at Noble with an incredulous expression.
"I did, but I consider you and Ren, if not friends, then at least colleagues." The professor felt the bitterness emanating from the young man, though she wasn't sure if it was aimed at her or the situation.
"I read that the Blazing Bees are giving all their prize money to an orphanage in the outskirts." Ren glanced up from her book.
"Oh? That's nice!" Noble smiled brightly. The idea had been Sarai's. After hearing about Honey's adoption, the baker wanted to do what she could to help children in need.
"It's too nice," Nickel shrugged. "Give Fireshing my congratulations when you see her. I didn't make the awards ceremony to do it myself."
"I will." The professor paused. "Nic..."
"What?" the librarian looked irritated.
"I was just wondering. Did you let Queen Bee win?"
People had accused her of that very stunt the year before, and it had bothered her to no end. And now she was doing that exact thing to the person she had defeated. The words had come out before she had thought the better of them.
Nickel's face twitched slightly before taking on a neutral expression. The act would have worked on anyone else, but the woman across from him was an emotional lie detector. And she had made him angry.
The frustrated librarian picked up a stack of books from the helpdesk.
"Noble, I have to get back to work. Unless you need something book related, I'll head back to what I was doing."
"Oh, I am sorry!" Biting her lip, Noble gave an apologetic smile. "Of course you are busy. Forgive me for disturbing you. Congratulations to you both again!"
Leaving the library, the floating Awakened only had one thought on her mind.
'He didn't say no...'