He started running back to the door. What happened next left him frozen as he saw the door open and Alaric's right foot stepping out the door.
"Fuck!" He cried as he halted and turned back. He looked at the the three other doors. If he could open one of them, he would be saved.
[Author's note: If you can recall the structure of the dorms, each room has five rooms. The first room with seats and tables that can host people. After that , there are four other rooms for each person in the dorm]
He pounced on the first door and reached the door but to his dismay, it was locked. He attempted the second and the third but they all were locked. He could only move back as Alaric was already drawing closer with a look that sent him shivers.
He was defenseless in the first place. There was no way his words would work on Alaric who was already pissed off. He was a fool for running away from his safe haven. But he only had himself to blame for falling for a trap. He could only man up and stood up like a dignified man.
He patted his chest and took a deep breath and heaved. He then started walking towards Alaric with a friendly smile, on his face was a humble look.
Alaric could only look at him with disdain as he approached the acting Rey. When they were inches apart, Rey had an idea and he dashed past Alaric heading back towards the room Aurora was at.
But Alaric had anticipated such desperate moves from him and immediately Rey dashed, Alaric moved his foot slightly and Rey unaware did not see the foot and he tripped into it and went falling forward.
But Rey was happy that he was finally able to get past that mad man and thus he got up on his feet and rushed towards the door and reached the handle opening it. He could already feel his road to freedom as he pulled the lock.
"Click!... Click!... Click! Click! Click!...." The door was locked! It was only then it dawned to Rey the situation he was in. He was a mouse in an arena with a lion as the opponent. It was obvious that he was doomed.
***
From the other room, Aurora sat patiently as she waited for them to finish their ruckus. She could hear Rey trying to open the doors and him curse at Aalric and at one point she heard something fall to the ground and she could only pity Rey.
She heard Rey desperately trying to open the door Alaric had locked and she shook her head for she knew what would come next. It was to be expected as she heard screams coming from the room.
It lasted for a while and all went silent. She was sure that the table and chairs in that room had all been upturned for she could hear them moving. She could already imagine the cat and mouse game going on the room.
When all went silent, it did not take long for a key to be inserted and a disfigured Rey stood at the door. Anyone would think he had a head on fight with a wild beast. His eye lids were all swollen giving them a purplish colour. The same for his cheeks.
His lips seemed to have gone through alot for they appeared to have been sagging at the moment. They were around three times their normal size. His hair was all a mess and some of his clothes torn. His t-shirt specifically hang on one side such that it kept his left shoulder bare and on the right of his waist was more sagging.
He had lost his shoes and his pants were torn in the knees. At this point, one would think he was a beggar who had come by accident. Alaric really did not go easy on Rey this time and made sure to thoroughly beat Rey.
From Rey's expression, it appeared that he really wanted to talk. He wanted to vent and curse at Alaric who was responsible for his disfigurement. He had attempted to speak but when he heard what Alaric said, he was forced to shut up.
"I thought only ducks have such kind of beaks. Never thought I would find another species," Alaric had said thoughtfully. Rey wanted to retort back but he went silent. That was an insult he decided to take lying down.
Aurora chuckled at the sight of Rey and she could not help but feeling pity for him. But she of all people knew that he deserved it. How many times had he blatantly provoked Alaric? It was only rightful that he got what he deserved.
Rey could not even pull an angry face because his expression would remain the same. What was more funny was that his lips appeared to be smiling. This was what hurt him most. He tried to pull an ugly face but no matter what he did, the smile still remained.
This was a taint to his reputation. He could not even show he was ugly. Worse, smiling with the state of his lips only made him appear like a clown. This was what made Aurora laugh.
Alaric chuckled and did not laugh that much. He was the one who had told Rey about his current appearance and Rey was utterly enraged. He glared at Alaric and attempted to speak.
"I guess its time for me to leave. I came to say bye because my oldest brother is already here for me. He says I will be leaving after noon. If I leave before you, make sure to see me off," Rey said. His voice almost as though he was placed in a bucket and told to speak.
This was obviously Alaric's doing. He made sure to force Rey to speak and then leave. Rey glared again but his expression was the same and the unintentional smile still 'graced' his lips. This caused Alaric to chuckle as he walked into the room and Rey left.
Alaric went to sit on the study table. Aurora never left the bed and she still had the blanket on her. She watched him who had a plain expression as he looked at her suddenly with a smile.
Now that she thought of all the moments she could recall of him looking at her, he had that same smile on him. Not even once did he look at her with any other emotion. He never even showed his anger when she was around and only an a calm look appeared on his face most of the time.
Even the first time he came to her, he did not show his anger to her for what they said to him. Instead, he had a smile as he attempted a flirt with a her that was successful. He had a soft side in him that only she knew about and this soft side was the true him.
Despite him always trying to put up a tough front and look cold, he was the opposite of that everytime he was alone with her.
"Is there something bothering you?" She asked.
"They will be back, you know." He replied, not saying exactly who but they both knew who they were talking about. Aurora nodded and she had a serious expression.
"They will likely send stronger people after you this time. The only thing we can do is to get stronger so we won't have to get afraid of them," Alaric said with a serious face.
"I don't want to burden anybody. I also want to protect myself and those around me. I must get stronger so I can do so," she said clutching the blanket tightly.
Alaric looked at her violet eyes and he could see the flash of determination in them. There was a lot they would talk about but they first needed to address the events that happened. It really did leave a dent in their lives.
"I will help you get stronger. There is a power that I uncovered and I will help you awaken your's too. I have yet to find a way to do so but I will find the way very soon," Alaric said without mentioning its name.
He too did not know what skill was used in awakening the soul and Sarah who had the answers was no longer around. This caused him to clench his fingers as he recalled the circumstances that led to him losing Sarah. He was going to make sure that they all paid for it.
Aurora looked at him and she did not miss the small action of him clenching his fist. She could tell that he lost something during the fight and that something was important to him. She was sure that his sudden increase in strength had something to do with whatever he lost.
The universe followed a simple law of give and take. It was impossible to get strong in a span of minutes as that would defy the law of the universe of give and take. You become strong by losing some of your time and resources.
The universes in exchange helped you get stronger. The way Alaric got strong too fast, he definitely defiled this law and for that to happen, he lost something precious. More precious than the time and resources required to make him reach the same level of strength in the normal span. And that thing, the universe needed it. Just what could it be?
"Thank you..."