The Last Dainv

Chapter 283

The TTC bus rumbled down Neilson Road. Lily sat at the very back, occupying the corner seat by the window. In her lap, a bouquet of white lilies wrapped in brown paper. An invisible sigil sat on top of it, protecting it from most of the cold. On the seat beside her, a shopping bag filled with a dozen red apples.

Mom always did like apples.

Lily watched the suburbs pass by through the foggy window. It was already almost 9 PM at night, so the traffic wasn't too bad coming down to the hospital. The sidewalks were empty as they should be. A snowstorm had hit Toronto during the time they were in the rift. Downtown wasn't bad, but the suburbs had it worse.

What worried her the most was being gone for a month from her parents. And the moment she got back from the rift, mom had fallen ill, and it got worse and worse. After going to the ER, they found out it was just mild pneumonia.

A relief, but still bad. Dad was also working all the time. Lily sighed. They worked so hard for her to get into college, yet all she did was waste it on nights in Yorkville.

But something did come out good from this hospital visit. She'd at least see mom's health with more detail as she did have a full check up.

"STOP LOOKING AT ME! STOP FUCKING LOOKING!" A scream from the front of the bus cut through her thoughts.

Lily's eyes drifted toward the commotion at the front. A young man wearing a thin zip up sweater, probably in his mid 20s, stood in the middle of the bus. His hand gripped strongly at the pole, moving towards the back as the bus continued to move. Everyone looked away while he passed by.

"STOP. FUCKING. LOOKING. BITCHES," he shouted.

Drug addict, the mundane kind. The rashes on his exposed skin were issues that Aurians would never get. Mundane drugs no longer worked on them, only dust that would create a slight glow in an Awakened's veins.

Then again, a screaming man in a TTC bus was a common event. This was nothing new.

Pulling out her phone, she tapped on Tor Aurian Version. Tapping on the bookmarks, she opened up the Daily Witching, one of her favourite ways to pass a boring ride.

First article was boring. Something about the Baker family accusing someone again.

She scrolled.

Is Sombra from a Fallen Family from South America?

Definitely not. From what Jessica told her, Sombra was a Canadian based group and not an individual. Lily let out a single laugh.

Will Witch Ember Wear a Hotter Dress Than Last Year at the Summit?

Lily snickered. She already knew Witch Ember planned to go all out this year. Just like her personality, she always had a thing for flair, in the most literal sense. She had already shared it with Rachel, who shared with her the picture of her literal fire dress.

She kept scrolling.

Then stopped.

William Rejected by the Heir of the Ann Family over a Wild Boy

Lily clicked on it immediately without a thought. The article opened with a photo of William in a hospital bed in Neutral Grounds by the crack of the door.

Sources confirm that the heir to the Elisworth fortune was brutally rejected by Rachel Ann in front of none other than Lady Esther Ann herself. The incident occurred at Neutral Grounds, where hundreds of witnesses watched the young Miss Ann choose a mysterious 'wild boy' over the Elisworth family heir.

Lily rolled her eyes.

From what she knew, Erin and Gale had a test in Neutral Grounds. Usually, the arena grounds were closed off to the public. There was no way that there would be 'hundreds of spectators.' Based on Rachel's personality, she'd never allow that to happen publicly or even outright reject him.

She grinned, almost laughing. The Witching Daily really was the best when it came to gossip.

The identity of the 'wild boy' remains unknown, though witnesses from Neutral Grounds Toronto describe him as a young man of average height, wearing casual attire of a dark hoodie and jeans with a wild presence.

The next picture showed Rachel, Esther, and Erin walking down the hallways of Neutral Grounds. And just as she expected, the Witching Daily had mosaically blurred Gale, who walked beside Rachel.

If Lily wasn't connected to this group, she'd be hooked on this story, no doubt about it. 'Wild boy' probably had something to do with someone manipulating the news too. They wouldn't take it down, but she'd definitely get them to change it to that instead of something worse.

"HEY! OLD BITCH! I SAID STOP LOOKING!"

Lily looked up between the aisle of the bus. The drug addict had now moved from the front all the way to the back. An older woman sat beside the rear exit of the bus, the one he was screaming at.

The woman looked away, trying to ignore him.

"YES YOU WERE! I SAW YOU!"

The man's face was just inches from her head. Spit clearly flew from his mouth. Frequently, he'd constantly scratch at the rash on his neck while looking crazed.

Sighing, Lily shook her head. Today was supposed to be a happy day to visit mom at the hospital over a small illness. But this idiot on the bus was almost ruining her mood.

"Hey," Lily called out. "Shut it. Everyone's just trying to ride the bus."

The man turned around in a snap. One of his eyes was bloodshot, unfocused, and dilated.

"Huh? Bitch, you wanna fight?" He took a step towards the rear. His eyes dropped to the flowers, and a disgusting grin formed on his lips. "The fuck is that, huh? Flowers from your boyfriend?"

He laughed. "Some fucking boyfriend, giving you flowers in the middle of fucking winter."

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Lily yawned, and that caused him to grow even more heated. "Come on. Try your luck. Fuck around and find out."

"Bitch, you think you're tough? YOU THINK YOU'RE TOUGH? ALL YOU BITCHES ALWAYS LOOKING DOWN ON ME?" the man shouted as he took more steps towards her.

Lily whispered inaudibly. "Fjarvera núnings."

The man's foot slipped on the rough surface of the bus's floor. His head immediately hit the pole he hung on to, knocking him out immediately.

Now it was quiet again. The peace came back.

The other passengers stared at the unconscious man. No one seemed to be helping him, not even the bus driver stopped the bus.

Lily went back to scrolling, this time going to North Star, a news site more focused on political news.

United Knights had announced new bills on Aurian laws that will be submitted to Neutral Grounds for review. A trusted insider from the United Knights had told us the reason was due to the Patriarch of the Elisworth family. No news as of now on the contents of the bill. However, it is highly likely due to William's rejection and injury during an evaluation at Neutral Grounds.

Sucking her teeth, Lily never did like the families in Europe. Always trying to sway global rules to fit their needs rather than just minding their own business.

The automated female voice crackled through the speakers.

"Centenary Hospital. Centenary Hospital is the next stop."

Lily stood up. She gathered her flowers and her bag of apples. She stepped over the drug addict without looking down. Making her way to the rear exit, she didn't even hold on to the poles as the bus swayed and rocked as it came to a full stop.

Tapping on the railing of the rear exit, it hissed, slowly opening for her. She walked to the entrance of the hospital and towards the elevator. One tap of the elevator button, and the door opened with a ding.

Entering the elevator and tapping the 2nd floor, it arrived in just a couple of seconds. Exiting, Lily walked through the sterile white hallways that stung at her nose.

Room 6 was on the right side of the ward. Four beds, two on each side. Three of them were occupied by sleeping patients, and the fourth by the window was her mom with her long graying hair that was let down loose.

"Hey, Mom," Lily said softly as she approached.

Mila looked up from the book she'd been reading. "Lily! You didn't have to come so late."

Lily set the bag of apples on the bed beside her mom's legs. Then she placed the bouquet of white lilies gently into her arms. She didn't really mean anything about the lilies, just that they were Mom's favourite flowers and also the name she gave her.

Mila looked down at the flowers, smiling wide. "You really didn't have to. I'll be discharged on Tuesday."

"I just wanted to give you something nice."

Mila's eyes softened. She brought the flowers closer to her face and inhaled. "They're beautiful. Thank you."

She set the bouquet on the small table beside her bed, careful not to disturb the water pitcher. "So, how's work? Anything interesting?"

Lily's eyes narrowed, darting left and right at the other patients.

"Þaggaðu vindinn," she whispered inaudibly. In an instant, the air around the bed changed, and the hum of the air vents became dead silent from inside the bubble of the silent sigil.

Mila sighed. "You didn't have to do that."

"Just in case." Lily settled into the visitor's chair beside the bed, then put on a soft smile. "There was a demon haunting in Vaughan today. Well, Jeanne and I thought it was a demon."

"And?"

"Turned out to be a small imp. Tiny thing, barely the size of a cat." Lily held up her fingers to demonstrate. "It had this little silver dagger it was using like a sword. Kept stabbing at people's ankles."

Mila chuckled. "Sounds adorable."

"It wasn't adorable. When it loses its sword, it starts biting at your ankles with its triangular shark like teeth." Lily laughed.

"Did you catch it?"

"One silver bullet, and it was done," Lily said. "Problem solved."

"I'll never get used to hearing these kinds of stories from you." Mila sighed.

"What happened during that month you were gone? You seem... different after."

"Different how?"

"Happier." Mila chuckled.

Lily blushed, looking away for just a second. "It's nothing. Just... grew to like some really good friends I survived with in the rift."

"Friends?" Mila's voice carried a knowing tone.

"We went through a lot together. That's all. And somehow, we became close."

"That's good. You've always been so independent since college. Nice to know you're letting people in."

Lily gulped at that last sentence. Independent was one way to put it. All she really wanted to do was help with the family's finances, but that was really just an excuse at the end of the day.

"Did dad visit today?"

Mila nodded. "You just missed him. He went back to work." Rolling her eyes, she continued, "Something about a mountain of paperwork at the construction site."

Lily laughed. "Like always. Did he eat though?"

"I don't know. He looked fine."

"That doesn't mean he ate."

"You know him. He's stubborn."

"Right." Then Lily remembered. The blood test would show her whether mom ate healthily for the past couple of months. She'd been trying to avoid having the test since last summer. "Mom, where are the blood test results?"

Mila looked away towards the ceiling. "I don't know."

"The doctor said they'd be ready today."

"Maybe they're running late."

Lily reached over to her mom's side of the bed. Her fingers found a folded piece of paper tucked between the mattress and the side rail.

"Mom."

"I was going to show you."

"Right..." Lily unfolded the paper and scanned the results. The first thing that caught her eye was the cholesterol level indicated as 'high'. The rest were as expected.

Hemoglobin: normal. White blood cell count: elevated. Liver function: normal. Kidney function: normal.

Doctors said she'd be discharged by Tuesday, so the elevated white blood cell count was fine for now while in the hospital.

Lily looked up. "Your cholesterol is rising."

"It's only a little high."

"It's higher than last time. Are you really eating healthily these days?"

Mila sighed. "I try. But it's hard to be active in the winter. Everything hurts when it's cold."

"Then I'll get you a walking pad."

"Huh?"

"A walking pad. You can use it inside. Watch your dramas while you walk."

"That sounds expensive."

"I'll handle it."

"Lily, you really don't have to."

"Mom, I know you. Stop being lazy."

"Fine..." Mila sighed once more.

As Lily was about to let the subject go, a single tear rolled down Mila's cheeks.

"Mom? What's wrong?"

Mila shook her head, wiping the tear away with the back of her hand. "No, no. I'm fine. It's just..." She let out a watery laugh. "You've grown up so much. You used to be so aloof. Never wanted to talk, never even told us what happened to you day to day. And now look at you."

"Sorry about that. It was just a phase."

"A long phase."

"Yeah. A long phase."

Mila reached out and took Lily's hand. Her grip was strong despite being hospitlalized.

"Then is all this magic just a phase too?" she asked gently.

Lily laughed at that one. Couldn't help it. That one was a curveball of a question. "That one isn't a phase."

Reaching into the bag of apples and a paper plate from the bottom of the bag, she held an apple in her hand. Using just pure ether cast into thin blades, she sliced the apple in her hand into 6 pieces.

Mila clapped her hands together. "Oh! That's wonderful!"

"Mom, don't clap!" Lily hissed, looking around. "The others can still see us!"

Mila laughed, covering her mouth with her hand. "It's fine, it's fine. They're all old and sleeping."

Lily handed her the plate of apple slices. "There's about a dozen more in the bag. Make sure you eat all of them."

"A dozen apples? That's way too much."

"An apple a day keeps the doctor away."

Mila took the plate and picked up one of the slices. Biting into it, an audible crunch echoed in the silence of the sigil's bubble.

"You should go home," she said between bites. "It's already night time. Get some rest."

"I'm going." Lily stood up from the chair. She leaned down and wrapped her arms around her mom, careful not to squeeze too tight.

Mila hugged her back.

"Bye, mom. I'll visit again on Tuesday before your discharge time."

Nodding, Mila said, "See you then."

Lily released the hug and stepped back. She waved once, then turned and walked out of the room.

Moving back to the elevator and taking it down, she exited the hospital. The night had grown colder than it was an hour before.

"Hlýja sumarsins," she whispered, and a thin layer of air around her body warmed her right up.

Walking up to the Ellesmere bus stop, she waited for the bus. This wasn't the way home. Instead, she was going east towards dad's construction site. Might as well buy food and drop it off before she headed to Marine's place.

She pulled up her phone and quickly sent a text.

[Lily: hey, I'll be late by half an hour. Just wanna drop off food to my dad.]

[Marine: take your time. Jeanne isn't even here yet.]

[Lily: you think she'll be later than me?]

[Marine: 100%]