"Argh! Argh! Ahh."
Sylva shot upright, gasping and breathing harshly as she gripped the sheets beneath her so tightly that her fingers hurt.
Her eyes were wide as she glanced around, sweat trickling down her face and neck, making her dark hair stick to her skin.
She was in her room. Was that… a dream?
Mom!
Immediately, she flung the covers away from her body, leaped off the bed, and rushed out of her room.
Lunethra sat by the kitchen counter, the polished marble glistening under the soft glow of the spiral crystal chandelier. Shadows flickered as light particles swirled around the sleeping cat before her, moving in response to her whispered words.
Her hands moved in slow motions, tracing patterns in the air as she chanted. The ancient Latin rolled off her tongue effortlessly:
"Sana te divina virtute mihi conlata. Omni parte familiari meo lumine meo perfundatur."
A faint shimmer pulsed over the cat's fur, the golden glow sinking into its body like sunlight absorbed by the earth. Lunethra's gaze remained calm as she guided the magic to heal the internally wounded familiar.
Then—
"Mom!"
Sylva's voice rang through the house, sharp and breathless.
Lunethra's chant faltered before coming to a stop, her eyes flickering toward the hallway just as Sylva came skidding into view. Barefoot and drenched in sweat, her long, dark hair clung to her damp skin—she looked like she had just woken up from a nightmare.
Lunethra's expression shifted immediately. She stood up, her brows furrowing in worry. "Sylva?"
Sylva didn't answer. She could still feel the echoes of Elita's voice in her mind, the weight of her final words pressing down on her chest. But she was here. She was home.
She took a shaky breath. "Mom…?"
Lunethra walked toward her with hurried steps, while Sylva also moved toward her. "Darling, what happened?!"
"Mom!" Sylva threw her arms around her, burying her face in her chest as she clutched the silky material of her mother's robe tightly.
"Baby? Tell me what happened. You're scaring me."
"I… I had a nightmare. It… it was so real, and I thought I wouldn't be able to wake up from it."
Lunethra's brows furrowed deeper as she looked down at her daughter, her fingers brushing through the dark hair covering Sylva's head. "Tell me, what was the dream about that scared you so much?"
"It was… it was… I was in a forest. People were living in a village. A baby was born… S-she had… she had silver hair. Then… then I don't remember. I don't remember what happened next." Sylva shook her head, her hands tightening around her mother.
Lunethra cupped Sylva's face and made her look up at her. "Hey, hey, it's okay. It's okay if you don't remember. It's perfectly fine, darling."
"But… but I feel scared even though I don't remember. It feels like I'm still there."
"It's alright. Just treat it like your previous nightmares and don't try to remember. Besides, isn't it better if you forget about it?"
Sylva stared at her mother's comforting smile and nodded. "Yes, it's better if I forget about it." She smiled slightly, burying her face in Lunethra's chest and breathing in her familiar scent.
"There, there. Don't think about it. Don't worry—I'm here, and I will always be here to protect you," Lunethra whispered before kissing her forehead and tightening her embrace.
'I'd die before I let anything happen to you.'
——
[Four Years Later, University of Exeter, Devon]
The air inside Exeter Martial Arts Gym was thick with the tang of sweat and adrenaline, the rhythmic slap of gloves against pads echoing off the padded walls. Overhead, fluorescent lights buzzed, casting stark white light across the sprawling training space. Heavy bags swayed slightly from their chains, while a group of students drilled takedowns on the mats in the corner.
At the center of the sparring ring, she stood—feet planted, muscles coiled, eyes locked on her opponent. Her breath came steady despite the sting in her arms from deflecting a recent flurry of strikes. Across from her, her sparring partner rolled his shoulders, gauging his next move.
"Keep your hands up!" a familiar voice called from outside the ring.
She barely spared her friend a glance, but the amusement in their tone was enough to distract her for half a second—just long enough for her opponent to launch a sharp kick toward her ribs.
Instinct roared to life. She twisted, absorbing the impact against her forearm before surging forward, using the momentum to sweep his leg out from under him. He hit the mat with a thud, exhaling sharply.
Her friend let out a whoop. "That's what I'm talking about!"
She exhaled, bouncing lightly on the balls of her feet, adrenaline singing in her veins. She had to finish this fast; her Pre-Fieldwork Training class was after this, and the time between them wasn't much.
Her opponent was already rolling to recover, and hesitation was a weakness she couldn't afford.
"Shit! Sylva, your class starts in twenty-five minutes! Hurry and finish him off!"
"Got it!" With one side of her lips curved up, she closed the distance, pivoting smoothly to avoid a desperate counterstrike. Her knee shot up, stopping just inches from his ribs—but her opponent was no amateur. He twisted mid-motion, using her momentum against her as he hooked an arm around her knee and yanked.
Sylva barely caught herself, planting a hand on the mat as she flipped back, landing with a light bounce on her feet.
"Not bad," she admitted, shaking out her arms. "But not good enough, Ralph."
With a quick burst of speed, she feinted left before lunging right, her fist snapping forward. Her opponent managed to block, but the force sent him stumbling. She didn't hesitate. A sharp roundhouse kick to his chest sent him sprawling, the air leaving his lungs in a rush.
"Match!" the instructor called.
Sylva extended a hand as her opponent coughed. "You good?"
"Yeah," he wheezed. "Remind me never to piss you off."
She laughed, pulling him up before taking off her gloves. She made her way to her gym bag and pulled out her clothes.
"Help me with my bag, Leila. I'm gonna take a shower real quick."
Leila snorted, then laughed. "What am I? Your servant?"
Sylva grinned, rushing toward her and not giving her any time to react before wrapping her arms around her. "Pretty please? I'll take you shopping before our fieldwork."
"Ugh! Let go of me, you stink!"
Sylva tightened her grip, nuzzling her face against Leila's. "Come on, please? Pretty please? You know I love you."
"Agh! Okay, okay! I will fucking help you with it! Just go shower," Leila yelled, struggling as she turned her face away from side to side.
"Thanks!" Sylva smiled, kissing her loudly on the cheek before letting go and jogging to the washroom, the instructor patting her arm on the way.
"You fucking bitch! You ruined my hair—my exquisitely lustrous vintage-inspired hairstyle! Argh!" Leila screamed, hurriedly pulling out a mirror and fixing her bangs, the voluminous waves cascading past her shoulders.
"I'm going to kill you if you don't fucking hurry, okay?!"
"Yeah, yeah, love you too!" Sylva called over her shoulder, laughing as she disappeared into the washroom.
Leila groaned, grabbing Sylva's gym bag and slinging it over her shoulder with a dramatic sigh. "Why do I even put up with her?"
Ralph smirked, still rubbing his chest where Sylva's kick had landed. "Because you love her."
Leila shot him a glare before flipping her hair. "Ugh. Don't remind me."
By the time Sylva returned, freshly showered and dressed in her usual casual-chic style—black oversized jeans, a fitted white turtleneck crop top, and her leather jacket—Leila was tapping her foot impatiently by the door.
"You took forever," she huffed.
Sylva grinned, grabbing her bag. "Beauty takes time."
"Yeah, well, your 'beauty' is about to make you late. Come on!"
They strode toward the car. Sylva threw her gym bag into the back seat and got into the driver's seat while Leila took the passenger's seat.
Starting the sleek white Toyota sports car, Sylva shifted into reverse, one hand on the wheel and the other on the gearstick. The engine purred like a satisfied beast as she smoothly backed out of the gym's parking spot. With a flick of her wrist, she turned the wheel, shifted into drive, and pulled out onto the road.
Leila let out a low whistle, sinking back into the leather seat with a dramatic sigh. "Just sitting in this car has made my day. The engine, the interior—God, if this car was a person, I'd marry it."
Sylva smirked, eyes on the road. "You'd divorce it the moment it got a scratch."
"I'd sue the scratch for emotional damage," Leila replied without missing a beat.
Laughing, Sylva accelerated down the road, slowly giving way to the sprawling green outskirts that led toward the university's secondary campus grounds.