In Pursuit of a Diamond [On Hold]

In Pursuit of a Diamond (Chapter 18)

Brief word from the author:

I'm am going to impart to you some words of wisdom.  Trying to keep track of Wattpad account during theater season is like trying to build a model airplane with your toes.  Sure, it can be done, but it will take a very long time, lots of work, you'll have no idea what you're doing, and the end result will be a mess.

In case you're curious, that's why it's taken me so long to get back to this story.  Uploading nothing at all is certainly better than uploading a mess.  My apologies to certain readers *cough* *cough* Star_catcher37 *cough*.

Anyway, at least I got around to it eventually!  Enjoy Chapter 18!

Yours in spirit,

RaeF1994

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The sound of the bedroom door slamming got Leslie's attention as Genny walked hastily out, frustration written clearly all over her face.  "No luck with Aubrey?" she asked mildly.

Genny sighed and sat next to her at the counter.  "He's just moping, that's all," she replied coolly, "Give him an hour or two and he'll be back to his old self.  Do you have anything to drink?"

Leslie rose to open the refridgerator.  "I don't know," she said edgily, "I wouldn't have been able to believe he could even get that upset.  Besides, that was pretty big news you dumped on him."  She scanned the shelves on the fridge door.  "Do you want water, milk, lemonade--?"

"Lemonade's fine," Genny nodded, "And don't worry, Aubrey'll be fine.  Trust me; you don't know him like I do.  Sure, he has a bit of a temper, but he doesn't let it eat him alive."  She tooked a sip from the glass Leslie set on a counter.  "No, what surprised me much more was your reaction."

"Mine?" Leslie repeated incredulously, "I don't remember reacting at all!"

"Exactly," Genny said calmly, stirring the ice cubes in the glass with her finger.  "You just found out that you were a sorceress-- erm, a half-sorceress-- and what do you do?  Nothing.  You didn't argue, you didn't freak out; you just sort of accepted it."

"Was that wrong?"

"No, not wrong.  Just a little... you know, strange.  That's all."  She drained the remainder of the lemonade and thunked the glass back onto the table.  "Say, do you have some paper?"

"Why?" Leslie asked, not disconcerted by the sudden change in topic.

"Aubrey told me how to contact someone from the Anti base he was trying to get to.  I haven't got the book, but I think I know how to enchant the paper so that it works the same way."

Leslie couldn't make heads or tails out of that explanation, but all the same, she pointed to the desk that held a stack of paper.  Genny took a piece and leaned over it, keeping whatever she was writing private.  It was several minutes before she returned to sit next to Leslie.  "I hope you don't mind," she began uncertainly, "They're sending someone over to your apartment to get me and Aubrey."

"Well, there are already three sorcerers in my apartment," Leslie conceded, "One more can't hurt.  So the two of you will be going back to Germany?"

Genny nodded, hesitated, then slowly said, "Well, that is, if you'd like it to be just the two of us."

"What do you mean?"

Her companion folded her hands anxiously.  "See, I was thinking, when I was talking with Aubrey just awhile ago.  About, well, the possibility of you coming with us."

"Coming with you?" Leslie gasped, surprised at the very suggestion, "What, just drop everything and go off to war base for a cause I know nothing about?"

"Don't say it like that, you're making it sound ridiculous," Genny replied indignantly.  "And first of all, it's not a war base.  We've never had any battles or anything, just a few raids and the like.  And Aubrey and I left everything behind for it, as well as countless other people."

"Well, maybe that's fine for you sorcerers, but I can't just leave everything behind and go off on some Les Misérables  reenactment.  My life is full enough the way it is."

"Unfortunately, this is just about you," Genny responded somewhat coldly.  "What about the Gemini Theory?  With you along, we can come that much closer to figuring out how power transfers work."  She leaned in closer.  "And what about Aubrey?  For the time being, you're the only one who could help him with his magic in any way at all.  And Leslie, one can only imagine what the two of you can do together with something like that!  Do you really want to deprive both Aubrey and yourself of something that amazing?"

"Now, Genny, I can see your logic, but it doesn't--"

"Or," Genny interrupted, holding up her hand to cut Leslie off, "You could spend the rest of your life living in some apartment, photographing local politicians and writing reports about art shows."  She smiled at Leslie's expression as she struggled to think of an argument.  "It's any journalist's dream, Leslie.  Isn't it worth the risks?"

Leslie sighed, momentarily lost in her own thoughts.  "When is this person coming to take you and Aubrey to that base?"

"Tomorrow morning."

"Okay," Leslie nodded, "Let me sleep on it.  I'll let you know tomorrow morning."

Genny rose from her seat with a nod.  "Sounds fair," she said pensively.  "I'll go see if Aubrey's doing any better."

The rest of the evening passed relatively uneventfully.  Leslie let the two of them stay in the bedroom and talk until she herself was too tired to stay out of their way any longer.  Sleeping arrangements were made; Aubrey ended up on the living room floor, Genny got the sofa, and Leslie kept her own bed.

However, for all the good it did her, she may very well have chosen anywhere else and gotten no better a night's sleep.  She lay awake for hours, thinking through her entire situation.  When she finally succumbed to sleep she found herself dreaming of sorcerers at war, casting spell after spell in the midst of a great battle, while she herself stayed to the sidelines, unable to do anything at all.

She woke with the sun the next morning and shuffled out to her kitchen, rubbing her tired eyes.  Aubrey was still asleep, but Genny was awake and searching through the kitchen cabinets for something to eat for breakfast.  When she heard Leslie arrive, she turned to give her a questioning glance.

"I've made up my mind," Leslie stated, sounding much more awake than she actually was.  "I'm going with you."