(This chapter is universal between ending 1 and 3)
As the sun continued to rise, Edward marched down the mansion halls, shielding himself from the light where possible. His brow remained upturned as his determination glowed like the forthcoming morning. He needed to find the cause of the ice wall, the reason for the anguish that led to its creation, and with Rou unapproachable as of late, the only man he could trust to discuss such an urgent matter with was Vox.
Edward looked around at any and all soldiers and servants scattered around the mansion. His face was tense, clearly the rest had worn off sooner than expected. He felt himself reverting to old habits, but using his ability would be unthinkable during these uncertain times. With all his mental fortitude, he held back, put at ease by even the slightest chance that his lover had an answer. Then he saw him, through the library door was the man he was searching for, his only chance of an explanation.
The moment Edward saw those aquamarine eyes in front of him, he froze. The warmth of joy that he felt from being in Vox's presence far outweighed his despair. "Surprise, surprise." Edward started to jump, causing Vox to burst out in laughter. "I wasn't expecting to see you until later today.", the fae commented. "N-No!", Edward cried in fright, "I was wondering if you had any idea what was going on regarding a certain barrier around the mansion, isn't the magical barrier enough to keep out intruders?", he questioned.
"You know more than anyone that it didn't stop that young boy a few months ago. I asked Rou if he'd put in a few 'extra defenses'. it was the best thing to do in such a dreadful predicament.", explained Vox, without a word of a lie. Little did Edward know, the people he was keeping out were his own subordinates. "I mean to ask, what are you doing in the library, love?", asked Edward with playful curiosity. Vox chuckled, "Believe it or not, I was actually researching Rou's ailment myself. It was a promise to him after he put up the barrier.", he declared.
"I love you Vox.", remarked Edward, knowing his partner was always one step ahead of him. Vox placed a kiss on the boss's cheek, "You'll love me forever, right Eddie?", he teased. Edward chuckled, "Of course, of course.", he acknowledged. "I've already had some findings by looking at the syndicate's old records, he's dominated by his frustration during the day, right?", Vox asked in order to draw a conclusion. "Why yes, I do believe that's that case, is there a reason this is significant?", enquired Edward.
"I think you'd really wanna hear this baby, I think that Rou is under the black tea...", muttered Vox. Suddenly, Edward could see it, all the symptoms added up, dominated by irrationality, only active during the day, when people are awake, and memory loss about the experience afterwards. It wasn't a disease, but a very potent ability, belonging to one person Edward was very familiar with, Eve Renegard.
"The letters this morning, I should've known that at least one of the problems going on was because of her...", Vox grunted. Edward gently wrapped his arms around his boyfriend, "No Vox, don't blame yourself. This is simply a consequence of my wrongdoings years ago...", Edward stated in a melancholy tone. "Don't beat yourself up about it baby...", said Vox, trying to reconcile with him. "She left so suddenly after that night...", uttered Edward.
"It's the law of this land, I understand, but...", demanded Vox. "Look, I'm sorry, but it doesn't change the fact that she lied to me, lied to herself, and probably lied to you too, I'm going to fix it! You said you got letters while I was resting, right?", Edward enquired. "It's really a minor matter, nothing to be concerned about.", replied Vox. Edward shook off his lover, "Still, if it's about her, something has to be going on, not just here, but outside the syndicate too.".
The boss rushed out the door as quickly as he rushed in a few minutes prior, Vox continued to scan the records as he left. "If external threats start hacking away at this organisation, my plans could be put on hold.", he thought. "Damn it! I should've got my hands on those letters while I still could! I need to tell Lin the things need to speed up...". Vox put down everything he was reading and swiftly strode down the halls on the way to where Lin was hiding out. He didn't have much time to ensure his scheme was perfect.