"May I ask why you need to take my bodyguard Mr. Secretary."
"Please, call me Allan." Allan said with a small bow. "I just have something to… discuss with this one here."
"Anything you have to say to her you can say to me." Zenesha said her tone brook no argument.
Allan looked over to Laura with a helpless expression as if he were asking them to deal with the unwanted obstacle. This of course upset Laura, but she couldn't lash out. Not with him.
"Allan." She started, her voice low and measured as she kept her emotions in check. "Like her Majesty said, anything you have to say to me, can be said with her present."
The blond looked between the two of them, eyes squinted as if to study them. After a moment or two that dragged on for eternity as far as Laura was concerned, he sighed. He walked over to their table and took a seat.
"I'm assuming her Majesty knows what you are then. Did she summon you here?" He asked pointedly.
"Of course not, my Princess would never be so foolish as to summon one of my kind." Laura said, sounding offended.
Allan raised an eyebrow by the unexpected reaction but decided to shelve that for later. He then turned his attention to the woman seemingly controlling the void spawn. He was inclined to believe Laura since void creatures rarely lied, but he still wanted to confirm with the mortal anyway, much to the wolf's annoyance.
"You really didn't summon her?"
"Of course not." Zenesha said as anger rose inside her.
Allan studied her. It was if he was gazing through her instead of looking at the fox herself. Laura knew what he was doing, he was checking how truthful Zenesha's words were. He couldn't do that with her, but he can do it with mortals.
"Huh… then I'm assuming you randomly bumped into each other and made a de-"
"I would never." Growled the wolf. "Don't you dare insult me."
Energy flared around them, causing the air to feel charged with electricity. It quickly receded as Laura brought it under control, still wary of Allan.
"You're a forsaken and you expect me to believe you got this powerful without making deals?" He asked unamused.
"I don't care about your beliefs." She growled. "Just know I would never make a deal, especially with her."
Allan leaned back in his chair assessing the two of them again. There was something weird happening. The fact a Forsaken is even here with a mortal for seemingly no reason felt weird. Unless she's giving the woman a free service.
"Queen Heart, I know free help from these creatures seems beneficial, but it's a ruse to make a deal with them later more ape-."
"That isn't what's happening here." Laura said, cutting him off, disliking the accusations being thrown Zenesha's way. "Just tell me why you're here."
"I just want to know why you're here with Queen Heart and why I felt a sudden influx of void activity a while ago."
The void wolf didn't really want to answer the Angels question. She was also acutely aware he could strike her down where she stood along with Zenesha for… associating with her. With a sigh, Laura decided to tell the Angel what he wanted to know.
If only she had access to the full might of her powers.
"The reason for increased void activity is because they're looking for someone."
"Who are they searching for?"
"A rogue, that's all you need to know."
Allan frowned, but didn't push. While he knew Laura was a forsaken, he couldn't tell how powerful she was at the moment. For some reason she's making herself as mortal as can be. It was like that since she got here, and it looks like she only really noticed him after arriving in the building so her reason for doing this wasn't to hide from him specifically.
"Okay, then why are you helping a mortal?" He asked. "What are you planning?"
"Are you stupid?" Laura said exasperated. "Why would anyone tell you their plans when asked?"
"...."
"Look, I'm just here to be useful for Zenesha. That's it. Nothing else matters to me."
"What do you even get out of this?"
"Why does that matter?"
"Because depending on your answer I'll have to eliminate you."
"...."
"...."
"Sigh, the only thing I want from Zenesha is her happiness…. I… love her." Laura said.
"... You really expect me to believe that?" Allan scoffed. "Tell the truth."
"That is the truth, you Celestial slave!"
"I'm freer than you, you void spawn!"
The two of them glowered at one another, refusing to back down. Both of them felt sick to their stomach just being near the other. They were each other's own weakness making this standoff even more nerve wracking since no matter who was stronger the other wouldn't leave unscathed. One wrong move and everything could fall apart.
"Secretary Allen, can you please not insult my girlfriend." Zenesha cut in.
"What?"
"You may not believe her but believe me when I say she's no danger."
"Did you say girlfriend?"
"Yes, I did." Zenesha confirmed.
"... Are you stupid?" He gestured to Laura. "You believe this thing?"
"Trust me when I say she does love me, and I love her." Zenesha said. "Even if you don't trust that, she's listening to me, can't you just leave her alone for now?"
"... Fine." He turned to Laura. "I'm willing to give her Majesty a chance. Don't screw it up for her, you mistake."
With those parting words Allan stood up and left the room. Once he was gone Laura sunk down into her seat with a long, deep sigh. Never has she felt this frightened since escaping her family in the void all those years ago.
"Thanks Zenesha." Laura said.
"Of course." responded the fox. "Let's just finish lunch then first."
"Yeah."
=======
"Why would we help you?" Zenesha asked incredulously. "The moment you gain victory over them you'll just turn your attention back to us."
"Except there's something wrong going on over there. It's like every single one of their soldiers suddenly has essence." Empress Vera said. "Surely you've noticed."
"... There have been reports for the past two weeks, yes."
"They must've done something." She pushed. "You worry about what we'll do after winning, what about them? They're far more aggressive."
"So what do you suggest we do after beating them then?" Zenesha asked. "We can work together, but we need to discuss the spoils of war afterwards."
"We can do that afterwards, for now we must figure out how to beat them."
Zenesha frowned at Vera's attempt to push the matter aside. Determining who got what after taking a country was very important. The fact she decided it can just be dealt with afterwards didn't fill her with confidence.
'She must be planning something.' Zenesha thought as she continued the conversation as if there wasn't anything wrong.
'They'll probably try to claim the river leading from the lake to empty out into the Gulf of Commerce.'
The meeting continued to progress for a few more hours after that. By the time they finished the sun was already setting. The two stressed out companions made their way back to the Embassy.
"Today sucked." Laura complained once they were alone.
"No kidding."
"I don't feel like cooking right now, want to go out and eat?"
"Another dinner date then?"
Laura's attitude perked up instantly at this. She hadn't considered that, she was just too tired to cook tonight. Now that it was a date, she suddenly felt full of energy. With a wagging tail she shoved Zenesha into one of the showers before stepping into a separate room to use the shower in there.
She wasn't going to pass up on a dinner date.
Soon both of them were cleaned and dressed. They weren't going to go anywhere too fancy, but nice enough to feel like a proper date. They ended up going to a restaurant next to the large river the capital was built next to.
The two of them had a window seat, allowing them to look out onto the river all those taking a night stroll. The lights inside the building were low and warm, giving the place a cozy atmosphere as dinners ate their food.
"I never would've thought you would wear a dress." Zenesha commented. "Black suits you."
"Thank you." Laura said. "Your dark blue dress looks stunning on you as well. I also love what you've done with your hair."
The two of them flirted while looking through the menu. Eventually a waiter came over and took their orders while setting two glasses of water on the table for them. All the stress of the day, and Laura's worries for the future seem to melt away in the presence of this single fox.
"What?" Zenesha asked, seeing her wolf just stare at her with a goofy grin on her face.
"Nothing, just glad I'm here with you." She answered. "Nothing can make me happier."
"We- well, I am too." Zenesha stuttered blushing.
Their evening continued peacefully, as they put everything aside to just enjoy their time together. Come morning they'll need to return home and get back to work. However, that was tomorrow's problem.