Her Broken Spell

Chapter 8

Dionne sparred with Theodore and Ghandi for a good two hours. She thought that Theodore must be bored out of his mind because he trained with her. Her limbs were sore after the practice fights so she thought of just retiring for the night.

But before she completely fell asleep, there was a knock on her door. It was Jugger.

"Hey, Dee. Von said you didn't have dinner tonight. I brought food."

"Is it alright if I just reheat it tomorrow? I do not feel hungry."

"Sure." He paused then continued, "Actually, asking you to eat dinner's just an excuse. I came here because of a certain gossip that I heard."

"Gossip?" She was terrified at the word. Gossip meant talking. Talking to Jugger was like a marathon. She felt tired just thinking about it.

"I do not want to gossip," she stated honestly.

"This will only take a few minutes. So, I heard some maids talking earlier. Want to know about it?" he asked like a little boy excited to reveal some secret.

"No."

"Not even when it's about you?"

"Still no. They talk about me all the time."

"Oh come on! I wouldn't disturb your beauty sleep if it's not controversial. I want to know about it before everyone in the family learns about it."

That sparked her curiosity so she stepped out of her room. The two walked aimlessly as Jugger began his gossip, more like interrogation.

"The maids said that they saw you talking with some human male earlier. Well?" he began.

"That is true."

"And the maids said that the man can pass as handsome. But of course, not to my level of handsomeness. Agree or agree?"

"Or. Beauty depends on perspective."

"Oooh. So you think the man is handsome," he nodded. "What's your relationship with him?"

"We are friends."

"How? We've been gone for only a week and something like this happened," he curiously asked.

"He asked if he could be my friend and I accepted."

"That's it? Seriously?"

"Why? What is wrong?"

"Nothing. I thought you won't agree right away."

Dionne contemplated if she could tell Jugger about her insecurities. She knew that the family members had social circles outside of the family, may it be around vampires or humans.

She was embarrassed but in the end, she told him that she did not have any friends and she wanted to know how it feels. She also asked him what her responsibilities as a friend entailed.

Jugger patiently listened to her as she shared this.

"Hmmm... how long have you two been friends?"

Dionne looked at the grandfather clock at the end of the hallway and replied, "About four hours, thirty minutes, twenty seconds and counting."

"Oh. That's oddly specific. Okay, you don't have to worry about your responsibilities. You're still new in the friendship so just see how it goes."

They ended up sitting on one of the benches in the hallway.

"There's no rule book on how to become a friend because everyone has different requirements."

"Should I ask him about his?"