radicalducati 406 Perfect Balance
406 Perfect Balance
The morning came fast, and the palace didn't slow for anyone. Ann stayed in her office while the next round of reports came in. Coral had new lists. Eva was already on the relay waiting for Adam's call. Brad stood by the door with his usual focus,and his two trusted wolves posted nearby.
"Okay! The feed from the front line is live!" Eva said excitedly, "Alpha Nocturne is waiting for us to authorise the connection."
"Put him through," Ann said, stifling a giggle. It had been a while since she had heard him referred to as his Alpha title, and it brought a whole host of memories from when they had first met flooding back.
The screen brightened, and Adam appeared. His combat gear was obviously dirtied by dirt and grime from the battlefield and she wasn't sure, but she thought that she could see the tell-tale patches of brownish coloured stains that made her stomach turn.
But his almost boyish grin told her more than any report could.
"Lexi's arrival really did change everything," he blurted out quickly, clearly unable to contain himself, "I wish you could have seen it Ann. Bella's still flying. A fucking dragon! Seriously…Lexi is something else. The enemy broke the moment her shadow fell over them. They literally just turned and ran, and Bella's children?! Just…wow. I can't even describe it. You're going to be shocked when they walk through the palace gates…come to think of it..I don't even know where we're going to put them all."
Ann chuckled at the sudden look of panic on his face and a wave of relief washed over her.
"Well I'm pleased to see you in good spirits," she said as she relaxed back into her chair, placing her hands across her bump as their pups reacted to the sound of their fathers voice,
"It's impossible not to be." Adam answered, his face suddenly serious, "If Lexi hadn't arrived when she did Ann…we would have…"
"But she did arrive, and you didn't," Ann said firmly, not wanting to follow that thought any further. Her imagination was already running on overtime, she didn't need it having any new topics to pick apart and mull over in the early hours of the morning..
She forced a smile, trying to put it out of her mind and leaned forward.
"Lord Brarthroroz told me that Ximena and Aoife were alive as well, and Lexi brought them back with her. It's not that I don't believe him but…Is it true?"
"It's true," Adam laughed, "They came through with Lexi and Ximena…well, she's not what I expected."
"How so?" Ann asked.
"I mean, she's calm for a start," Adam said with a soft laugh, "As Lexi's mother, I was expecting her to be a little more…"
"Like Lexi?" Ann grinned back.
"Exactly!" Adam laughed, "Maybe we'll see more of the personality as she settles and actually gets to relax somewhere outside of a warzone but she's definitely calm and in control. You can feel the power coming off her though. It's not that she's trying to throw it around either, it's just sort of…there, Around her. And the other magick users have so much respect for her, as soon as she speaks, everyone stops to listen. It's like she's a living legend to them."
"So, her and Lexi are complete opposites then?"
"I don't want to say yes definitively," Adam said with a small laugh. "Things are different on the battlefield, but think of it like this. Lexi is like the raging fire that comes in and destroys everything and Ximena is the silence that follows it. When they're together, you can see the differences between them. Lexi charges in, breaks whatever needs breaking, and Ximena just…sort of fixes the air around her. It's strange, but it works."
"So basically one's chaos, one's customer service," Maeve said. "Perfect balance."
Ann smiled despite herself.
"It makes sense. Lexi always needed someone who could slow her down without dimming her, who could possibly be better than her own mother.."
"Well, she's definitely found that," Adam said. "Ximena's strength is quiet, but you can tell she's the oldest kind of dangerous. Even Bella listens when she speaks."
"I used to wonder what kind of woman could raise someone like Lexi." Ann said as her tone softened.
"Well, now you know," Adam said. "It's the kind who could unmake a mountain without raising her hand."
"I like her already," Maeve said. "That's who I want writing my eulogy."
Ann chuckled. "And Aoife?"
"She's different too," Adam said with a frown. "Still herself, but definitely more confident. Apparently, Felix's brother did kill her, and Narcissa was furious because Eromaug had wanted her alive. So Narcissa decided to resurrect her, but Ximena said that she lacks the skill, so it was botched. Badly."
"That woman had so much to answer for." Ann hissed, guilt flooding her again at the thought of Aoife taking her place.
"She won't be answering for anything else anymore," Adam said grimly, "Ximena made sure it was a painful end for her."
"As she should." Maeve sniffed approvingly, "I would have paid to see her grisly end."
"So, because of the botched resurrection, " Adam continued, "It's left her with gaps in her memories. Some memories came back; some didn't. She remembers some people, but not all the history behind them. Ximena's been helping her piece together what she can, but there are blanks that might never fill."
Ann frowned slightly. "She doesn't remember Felix?"
"She does," Adam said cautiously. "Not every moment that they shared together, but enough to know what he means to her. He's patient though Ann, so don't worry too much. He's trying not to push and sometimes he looks at her like he's waiting for a memory to resurface for her, but it never does."
"And she's handling it okay?"
"She's trying," Adam said. "She keeps herself busy. The work helps. She's leading the healers, and when she's busy, there's an aura about her that almost makes it feel like she was born for this. She looks whole, Ann, but it's when it's quiet that you can see how haunted she looks."
"That's worse than death," Maeve said softly. "Being alive and missing pieces of yourself."
Ann nodded, her expression hardening just enough to mask it. No matter how she thought about it, Ann still felt responsible for the hand that fate dealt Aoife but she swore that no matter what, she would help her through it however she could.