Amber was not a fan of this new Joy. Going after someone who was in a relationship was unforgivable to her. Having been the third party in a relationship where her boyfriend was being hounded by another girl, Amber could totally sympathize with Nina's pain. It does not matter if you think that the couple is bad together or if you would be a better match for the boy. Amber would have actually been supportive of Joy shooting her shot with Fabian now, if it hadn't been for her previous attempts while 'Fabina' had been together.
Amber wasn't saying that Joy was evil or anything. The girl was wicked smart and could keep up with Jerome on his most bitchy days. Amber had to applaud anyone who could do that. The two girls had never really been close, but they had at least been friendly before Joy had been taken. Fabian, Joy and Patricia had been a trio while Amber had hung out with Mick, Alfie and Mara. When Nina arrived all interhouse relationships had been shaken up. Patricia was grieving her best friend and better half, while Fabian had instantly latched on to the girl who was so like Joy. That really was the root of the issue, Amber reflected. The similarities between Joy and Nina had drawn Fabian in and driven Patricia away.
Joy would make an amazing Sibuna as she was sneaky, conniving and dastardly smart. That would never happen though since Nina would always come first in Amber's book. The American had been there to support Amber through her breakup with Mick and falling out with Mara. Amber was swept up into a wonderful new friendship before she had even hit the ground. It was for this reason that she wanted to get 'Fabina' back together. Fabian was not making it easy though as he refused to have a straightforward discussion with the girls. Amber watched as he banged into his locker during his attempt to 'escape' Joy's latest advance. She simply must step in, all three of them were constantly being hurt and Fabian had the power to stop it if he would just choose to do so. With her mind made up Amber headed over to the filling station to chat with Fabian.
"What's up Fabian?" she greeted refilling her water bottle. "Down in the love dumps?".
"That's one way of putting it. Is it that obvious?"
Well yeah, you jump a foot in the air whenever Joy shows up and you are like a puppy trailing after Nina. "Only to me" Amber lied, "but then again, I am kind of a dating guru. It's Nina, isn't it?".
"No, Joy"
"You're in love with Joy?!?!" she yelled.
"Amber! Inside voice. Please!" Fabian snapped. Grabbing her hand he pulled her into the student lounge while explaining. "I'm not in love with her, but I think she's trying to ask me out."
"Well duh! So the hunter has circled her prey for long enough and is now flat out asking you on dates huh..."
"Sorry, I'm her what?"
"And you're trying to put her off right?"
"Yeah... I guess" he mumbled
"Ok, I am going to need something more concrete than just, 'yeah, I guess'".
"I mean yes, I still like Nina and am not ready to date Joy yet" Fabian said firmly.
Well that would probably be the best that they would get reflected Amber. "You have done the right thing in coming to the guru for advice"
"Yeah, I didn't ask for..."
"Cause thanks to my experiences with Mick and Alfie I am well-versed in all facets of love and general relationship matters".
"Well... ok, do your worst"
"Right, whatever you do don't say yes. If you do you will give her the wrong impression and you will upset, her".
"Well not saying yes was basically just going to be"
"There's more" snapped Amber cutting him off. "And this is where it gets tricky. Whatever you do don't just say no either".
"Well that just sounds confusing. Why can't I just say no?"
"Because then you'll seem hard to get, you need to explain yourself so that she gets the whole picture. If there's one thing girls want it's someone we can't have. So at the most basic level, don't say yes and don't just say no".
"Well what do I say to put her off" he whined pathetically.
"Don't worry. We've just started silly. But I was supposed to meet Nina in the art room a few minutes ago so we'll have to talk more later". Shooting Nina a text to let her know she was on her way, Amber rushed out of the lounge towards the art studio.
*Tears of Gold – Tears of Gold – Tears of Gold*
"Ambs, there you are!" Nina called from her spot at a canvas. "I just have to finish up this piece for Mr. Roberts. Can you start grabbing string and bells?"
"Sure, where are you planning to build the practice web?"
"I'm thinking that we should use our room. That will lower the chances of people walking in and seeing it or asking questions".
Amber couldn't believe it, here was the perfect opening to talk about Lili and Jerome joining the Sibuna gang.
"Neens, you know how Liliana and I have started that online shop?"
"Yeah, you said it was going rather well"
"Oh it is! It has been so much fun. The thing is though... She has raised some concerns about where we keep disappearing off to."
"What?!"
"Yeah, I mean she's the first one since Victor to notice how we disappear for long periods of time".
"Ok, where are you going with this Amber"
"I think she would be a good addition to Sibuna, along with Jerome".
Nina put down her paintbrush and fixed Amber with an unamused look "I have told you many times that I do not want anyone else getting involved in all of this" she threw up her hand when Amber made to argue. "I can see the value of adding both to the team, but the stakes are too high".
Amber began to grow frustrated, "Yes the..."
"Even if we wanted to add them, we don't have extra amulets for both of them"
"Well they ca..."
"No. We will not be adding any new members and that is final."
Now Amber would like it to be noted that up until this point she had been quite reasonable and understanding. Her best friend could be so infuriating sometimes, and unfortunately between Fabian, and the quest and Nina's stubbornness Amber had reached a boiling point. "WOULD YOU JUST LISTEN TO ME FOR ONCE!" she shrieked. Nina reared back as if she had been slapped. "You have had your say, now I get mine. We are all at risk on this quest so we should all get a say. What do you think the spirit is going to do to us after killing you huh? We need all the help we can get. Whether it is extra researchers, people running interference or better athletes. We can cycle the amulets and take turns going down into the tunnels. They both have extraordinary skills which will help us kick that ghost lady's but! Face it Nina we need help and their questions will not go away. It's not like I'm campaigning for Joy to join us. This is Jerome, who is an official Sibuna that we have been icing out, and Lili a girl who is crazy loyal to both Jerome and Alfie and is personally invested in seeing us succeed even without the life stealing tattoo". Breathing heavily she searched the impassive face of the other girl. Shaking her head at Nina's foolishness Amber turned back to her task. She refused to back down or take back what she had said. Nina needed to hear the truth and Amber was apparently the only one willing to say it. The pair worked quietly for a while, Nina finished her painting and cleaned her brushes, while Amber searched for every piece of colored string that was in the art room.
Having found the bells on a tall shelf, just out of her reach, Amber tried to jump and get them. Suddenly Nina's arm was there snagging the box and bringing it down. Turning around Amber waited patiently as it was obvious the other girl had something to say.
"You're right and I'm sorry" started the brunet. "It is dumb to not accept help if others are offering it. And I'm sorry for talking over you, you are my best friend and I haven't been acting like a very good one recently".
"Oh Neens" dropping her bag of web materials Amber pulled the distraught girl into a hug. "You know we love you and just want you to succeed and live. Part of being a good leader is knowing when to listen to others and when to delegate".
"Yeah, you're right. I thought about what you said about Lili and Jerome. Maybe it would be good to have them in the know about the Quest".
"Yay!"
"We will integrate them slowly though since we only have a few amulets and we don't want Senkhara to find out".
"Ok. Maybe Alfie and I can tell them, since we are closer to them than the other Sibunas. You know, try to break the news that we are all cursed and marked to die gently".
"Yeah, that's probably a good idea" Nina agreed.
"Great! I'll fill them in and tell them to attend web walking practice tonight". The girls quickly finished collecting their supplies and headed back to the house.
*Tears of Gold – Tears of Gold – Tears of Gold*
Tying the final bell to the web Amber stood back carefully to admire her work. She would definitely be a master web walker soon since it's the only way to get to her bed, desk and wardrobe. The others would be arriving soon to practice with the new official Sibunas. The fire ceremony would take place the next day in order to fully induct Liliana and Jerome.
The door opening pulled Amber out of her thoughts. "Ok, one word. Wow!" remarked Patricia leading the remaining original Sibunas into the room. The awed looks on her fellow crew member's faces had Amber standing up straighter proud of her work.
"How did you do all of this?" questioned Fabian as he made his way over to Nina's side.
"We did a smash and grab in the art room explained Amber. It seemed that Patricia and Fabian were no longer paying attention as Lili and Jerome entered. They both had adopted rather panicked looks and were clearly trying to frantically create a workable excuse.
"Nina!" Fabian squeaked in worry.
"It's fine guys" assured their fearless leader. "I've decided after a lot of thought to ask Liliana and Jerome to sign on as Sibunas. This task is dangerous, and we need all hands on deck to find the mask".
This seemed to calm them both and they quickly welcomed the pair to the team. With the pleasantries handled Nina started to explain their latest task. "I took Lili and Jerome down to see the spiderweb and tunnels while Alfie and Amber were setting this up before dinner. Now that everyone is on the same page, we can begin practicing crossing the web. The goal is to get from my bed to Amber's vanity without touching any of the threads".
"When I touched a silver thread I got stung, but what do the others do?" asked Alfie.
"We don't know yet, but I'm sure it's not good. Luckily we have the weekend to practice our web walking".
"I still don't get it" argued Patricia. "How are we supposed to get over there without touching anything?".
"Allow me" taking a deep breath Amber entered the web.
"Amber are those the best shoes for web walking?" asked Liliana from her spot next to Jerome on the bed.
Turning back to glare at the other blonde Amber explained "These are my web-wedges Liliana. You are talking to a girl who can deadly hopscotch in formalwear". Flipping her hair out of her face Amber turned back to the task at hand, "Watch and learn everyone".
The first couple steps went smoothly. It was only as she went to duck her head under a red string that she found her hair clip caught in the web. Jerking her arm up Amber found that her bracelet had been snagged on another of the strings. Looking down she saw that her self-proclaimed web wedges had become tangled as well. Despite the giggles she could hear behind her, Amber tried to keep moving.
"How are those web-wedges working out Amber?" taunted Patricia
"Stop moving your arms so much" shouted Nina.
"I don't think this is going to well" chuckled Fabian from behind his phone camera.
Seeing Alfie and Fabian filming the whole thing made Amber struggle harder. Unfortunately she had to admit defeat since she was well and truly stuck. "A little help here" she called out, "I kind of feel like spider food". Liliana and Jerome hopped in to help her get untangled.
"We all will need a lot of practice" declared Nina.
"And I suggest a dress code of no heels or clothes that snag" suggested Patricia. The rest of the night was spent practicing web walking and trying to decide who the best Sibunas would be for this task. Alfie, Fabian and Patricia were super-fast, but Jerome and Liliana were more calculated in their approaches. Amber had improved a lot herself and was excited to try the task for real.
*Tears of Gold – Tears of Gold – Tears of Gold*
Saturday was devoted mostly to homework catchup for the various Sibunas. Alfie had filled her in on the gem eating goose they had smuggled into the house. Apparently, they hadn't had any luck with retrieving the gem. Amber remembered when her own dog, Prada, was having health issues, daddy had ordered Ruff Ruff's Pet Lax. Amber had sent the link to her boyfriend and apparently it was scheduled to arrive the next day. The sooner they got rid of the goose the better. There were far too many secrets floating around Anubis house, and they didn't need any of adults figuring out what the Sibuna club was up to.