The Last Swordmaster

Might As Well Be Married

When we got to my office, Jack closed the door and locked it. "No one can come in. This is a pretty serious ritual."

I got the candles that Andras showed me out of the cabinet next to the desk. "I know, I know. He told me that a long time ago."

We each grabbed a match and lit the dark purple candles, watching their red flames turn black. "Dark," Jack commented, "just like your soul."

"Of course. It'd dark and cold as ice. If you touch my soul you'll freeze to death, guaranteed."

"We all know that isn't true, though," he replied thoughtfully. "You have good intentions, you just suck at making the right choices."

"What do you mean by that?"

Jack grabbed the swordmaster guidebook and put it on the desk, surrounding it with the candles. "You could have been an angel, but you chose a darker path."

"Darkness isn't necessarily a bad thing. Dark nights reveal the brightest of stars," I mused. "Light is just a beautiful lie."

He shook his head with a smile. "Such a beautiful person surrounded by this... it's a crime."

"I'm beautiful?" I asked smugly.

"We all know you wanted to hear that from the man you love so dearly."

"Of course. Tell me when you find him, he doesn't seem to be around."

He rolled his eyes playfully and stood on one side of the book and the candles. I stood across from him, placing my hands on the table. Jack lightly placed his hands on top of mine and looked into my golden-brown eyes. His eyes were glowing, focused on me. He picked my hand up and put it on top of the book without looking away from me. "You're going to take the oath, all right?"

I nodded as he picked up a paper on the desk. "Repeat after me. 'I, insert name, pledge to use my authority in necessary ways.'"

I raised an eyebrow and repeated it, saying my name instead of 'insert name'. "I promise to hear the voices of those beneath and do my best to make choices that benefit them and myself."

After a few more lines of boring sentences, he looked back up at me. "Do you give yourself up to those you will lead, Elaine?"

"I do."

The candles' flames all turned purple as we both leaned back. "There," he said. "Now you just need to make me the deputy."

We both sat down since this ritual required it. We linked our fingers together and I sighed. This part had to be made up on the spot. There was no paper to read off of for this. "Jack, do you promise to serve me to the best of your abilities? To protect your fellow swordmasters without hesitation? To devote yourself to the others and me? And when the time comes, will you swear to take my place?"

"I do. And now, you may kiss the bride," he sang, winking at me with a grin. "This is like us being married. We're bound together now."

I huffed. "Maybe I should have picked Eve."

"What? Do you not appreciate my comedic relief?"

"Is that what you call it? I thought it was called being annoying," I replied as I stood up and stretched. "There. We're done. I get to go to my room."

Jack blew out the candles, leaving us in complete darkness. "You will need to move to the room that's attached to this office. It makes things more convenient."

A sigh escaped my lips as he flipped on the lights, causing me to cringe. "Warn me before you do stuff like that. My eyes are being assaulted. I'll move my stuff down right now, if that will make you happy."

Jack followed me as I left the room. "I'll go with you. It'll be my first job as the deputy."

I rolled my eyes and walked into my room, grabbing a box off of the floor. I put my old pictures, books, and other small items in it while Jack got all of my clothes out of the closet. We made several trips, and we were silent the whole time. When we finished, Jack leaned against the wall of my new room and watched me tape the pictures to the mirror on the wall. "You can redo things in here," Jack told me, gesturing to the gray, slightly blue walls and black carpet.

I shook my head with a slight smile as I started to hang my clothes up in the closet. "I like it the way it is. It's pretty. Calming, almost."

Jack started putting my books on the small shelf next to the mirror. "Okay. Just don't complain later."

"I love blue. As if I'd complain."

I could tell Jack's eyebrow was raised. "I see. Then why'd you dye your hair the opposite of blue?"

I shrugged. "Red looks better on me. Blue and dark purple will always be my favorite colors, but red is intimidating. I want to look like I'm meant to be a leader."

I heard footsteps behind me as Jack spun me around to face him. My breath caught as I looked at his blazing, fiery eyes. "I know you're trying to be strong, but you don't have to pretend with me. Elaine, you need to be able to vent to someone. You can't carry all of this weight by yourself. No one could."

I turned my face away, but Jack's arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me closer. He used his other hand to make me look at him. When I refused to meet his eyes, he let go of my face and let his hand run through my hair. "Elaine... you don't have to do this by yourself."

I looked back at him to see that he was looking at my mouth. My cheeks turned as red as my hair as he leaned down I turned away and shook my head, a tear slipping down my face. "No," I told him quietly. "I can't..."

His eyes were full of too many emotions for me to pick them out, but the hurt was obvious. "Why not?"

I took a shaky breath and looked straight into his eyes. "Because I don't love you. We're friends, Jack. I can't handle it. I'm a mess."

He sighed and nodded, becoming frustrated. "Of course. Excuse me. I was being too forward."

He started to walk off, but I grabbed his hand. "I'm sorry."

He laughed coldly and shook me off of him. "Don't apologize when you don't mean it." He shook his head and ran his hand through his hair. "God, I hate you sometimes."

Without giving me time to even explain, he was gone. I figured it was best to let him just go. He'd be better eventually. Hopefully.