William sat on the bench outside of the mage tower and sighed. Since that day many weeks ago, Lulu had not spoken a single word to him, and Lunari had not shown her face either. Not that he did not care about Lunari, but it was difficult to know that she was just attracted to the succubus taint. There was nothing to be done about it. Only Lulu knew how he truly felt, and she had fallen for someone who was just obsessed with HER succubus taint. She was blind to it. Or maybe... maybe she saw it and was using it. William bit his lip and considered.
So lost in these thoughts, he did not notice the person creeping up behind him, hand outstretched. He shifted and sighed again. The hand hesitated, hovering above his shoulder. William shook his head. It did not matter, he and Lulu belonged to one another, he just had to make her see it. The hand dropped down on his shoulder and William almost jumped out of his skin. Jolting away, he fumbled backwards, even as he readied a shadowbolt.
"I'm sorry!" The girl held up her hands. "Don't shoot!"
He dropped the cast. "Who are you?"
"My name is Lisa." She smiled and held out her hand. "I didn't mean to startle you, you just seemed so lost in thought."
William eyed her hand. "Uh, yeah. I guess I was." Shaking his head, he frowned at her. "What do you want?"
She dropped her hand. "May I sit?"
With a shrug, he scooted further down the bench. "It's a free kingdom."
She tucked her skirt under her legs and sat down on the bench. "Maybe we got off on the wrong foot. My name is Lisa, what is yours?"
"William." He eyed her for a moment, before turning his attention back to the tower. "What do you want?"
"I wanted to speak with you." She turned her body so she could look at him completely.
"And why would you want to do that?" The suspicion crept into his voice.
Digging into her bag, she pulled out a purple orb. "Do you know what this is?"
"It's a scrying orb. What of it?"
With a smile, she fiddled with the little orb. "Yes. However, this is a special scrying orb. This one is specifically used to detect succubus magic."
William's eyes went wide. "Why do you have it?"
"I'm glad you asked. You see, my mother was kidnapped by an evil man, and though she tried to resist him, he found her to be more... complacent with the help of a succubus. As a result, I was born. When I was a teenager, that same man, the man who would be my father, turned his attention to me. So, I ran. I ran hard and I ran fast. With no idea what to do, I went to some warlocks, who told me that I had been tainted by the situation of my birth. I also learned that it is more common than you would think. After that, I started searching. I started searching for those who would be my brothers and sisters in arms. People like me that had been born from a succubus forced mating. I have taken this orb and I have wandered far and wide... and you know what I found?"
By this point, William had become enthralled in her words. "What?"
"There are people like me all over the world. Well, I guess I should say, us. I followed my orb again, and I found you sitting here, all alone. When I touched you, I knew it was true. You are just like me."
"All... all over the world?"
"Everywhere." She smiled brilliantly at him. "Would you like to meet some of us?"
Without hesitation, he stood up. "Yes, yes I would."
"Come, let me show you my friends."
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Lulu hesitated by the door of the Mage tower. Hugging her books to her chest, she sighed.
"Come on, Lulu, it can't be all that bad." Abigail tossed her hair back. "I mean, I know you're never confident on your tests, but you always do so well."
"Oh, it's not that."
Considering her cousin and her friend, Abigail quirked her lips to the side. "You've got so much on your plate right now; I can't imagine which thing is bugging you at the moment."
"Well, it's just... William. He sits outside the mage tower every day and stares holes into my head until I'm out of range. I just can't take it anymore."
Cocking her head to the side, Abigail sighed as well. "I guess that would put you off. You can confront him again. Or forgive him."
Lulu violently shook her head. "Oh, I just can't forgive him. He's such an awful brat. No, until he gets it through his thick head that I love Nara and not him, it's just best if I avoid him altogether."
"Well," Abigail grabbed Lulu's shoulder and turned her towards the door. "You can't hide in here forever. You may as well step outside and get the glaring over with."
Peeking out the door, Lulu eyed the bench that William usually sat on. "Huh." She stepped out and put a hand on her hip. "He's not there."
Looking out, Abigail nodded. "See? Problem solved. Maybe he's on his way to figuring out he's a dumbass."
"Maybe..."
"Excuse me." A girl from class pushed past Lulu. "You're blocking the door."
Lulu stepped out of the way. "Sorry, sorry."
Abigail smiled and brushed her hair out of her own face. "Forgive us. Come on, Lulu. Don't worry about that pain in the neck. My wedding is in less than a week away. I want to go talk to Aunt Tuly."
"Alright, alright."
-------
Chrissy paced the kitchen, towel in hand. She had already cleaned all of the extra dishes, had already laid out dinner on the table. Gerald was late, but that was acceptable. She knew he worked hard for Elunara, doing whatever it was that she needed him to do as second in command at the SI:7. But she hadn't seen hide nor hair of William all day. The food was already getting cold. When the front door opened, she practically ran out of the kitchen.
"William?"
Gerald shook his head and tossed his jacket on the chair. "No, it's just me, Sweetheart."
Chrissy wrung her hands. "Damn it."
"Something wrong?" He raked his fingers through his hair.
"It's just... I haven't seen William all day. He didn't come by for lunch, and he's not home yet. I haven't seen him since this morning."
Considering, Gerald looked around. "Well, he's an adult. Young, but an adult, and it's about time he got out and did something for himself. He's been such a downer since Lulu got married, I think it's high time he found something else."
"I guess you're right." Chrissy sighed and bit her lip while she worried the dishtowel in her hands.