Astral Odyssey: Dying Ember

World 5.24: Eva

"This is for you." Austin gave her a large brown box.

Eva felt genuinely surprised to be receiving a gift. "I didn't prepare anything for you."

"You don't have to. You already gave me something precious on my birthday. This is just something small in return." Austin said with a smile.

She took the box and Austin looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to open it, so she did. Inside the box was a pair of brown boots that would reach up to her calves. Just as she reached for it, Austin placed his hand over hers and whispered, "Be careful. There are hidden blades in the soles and here..." He moved his hand to take the boots up for her to inspect more closely. "You can store your smaller weapons."

Eva's eyes sparkled. She had considered creating something like this for herself but she had shelved the idea, prioritising ones that would help the bodyguards and Austin first. She remembered briefly mentioning the idea to him long ago but she had not breathed a word about her wanting it. Moreover, her plans always lacked the aesthetic appeal. She was more into the functionality and practicality. The ring that she made for him was indeed a first for her and she had to crack open her brain for that. In contrast to what she would have designed, the boots looked really neat. She could not wait to try it on.

BaoBao giggled to himself thinking that he was getting the knack of what to tell and what he could hide from Eva.

Austin saw the glee in her eyes and felt relieved and happy that he made the right decision. Before this, he had tried gifting her a simple necklace that has some diamonds and a rich pink gemstone called Kunzite as the main pendant. It was a gift for no reason or occasion. Although it had surprised her equally much and he could tell that she truly appreciated the thought, it did not sit right with him that she did not seem to genuinely like the gift itself. He also never saw her wear the necklace afterwards and later realised how he had acted without thinking things through properly again. He had wooed her in the same way he would woo someone of his social class, neglecting to think of she may feel that it was improper and unsuitable for her to wear something like that, at least when she was not his wife yet. As such, he became a little stumped about what he could get for her and how he could chase her. It was thanks to her gift to him that gave him an idea of what would please her.

"You can try it on now."

When he noticed her looking around at the crowd in the dining hall, he quietly led her away to a connecting room that was equally large but without a large dining table in the middle of it. Instead there were couches lining the wall and pretty paintings hanging on the walls. He brought her to the nearest couch to help her put on the boots.

Eva immediately started testing the way the hidden daggers could either appear at the front or back of the sole. She was also impressed with how comfortable it was.

Suddenly, BaoBao greeted her with news that would ruin everyone's festive mood.

There's a huge flock of birds approaching and there are explosives strapped to them! I think they're trained, they're homing in on the mansion!

What?!

Eva snapped her head to look outside the large window that spanned from the ceiling to the ground and was facing the front garden. The sky was too dark for her to see clearly but she immediately sprang into action. While walking towards Austin, she was already scribbling on her notebook as quickly as she could.

Austin was equally alerted by her sudden tense behaviour. He had been admiring her joyful expression when she suddenly froze then looked outside. He was already making his way towards her when she started writing on her notebook.