Days after learning that Val could Jedi mind trick us just for shits and giggles if she wanted to, I agonized over whether or not to report this to Professor Markel. Although she could sometimes be a royal pain in the ass, never once had she ever used that magic on us. I trusted her not to. Likewise, she trusted us.

But this was my job.

Outlined in section four, article twenty-one of the government caretaker's responsibilities stated that discovery of any undisclosed and/or hidden trait of a netherfolk must be reported. It was imperative to do so in case a tenant from Weyera possessed weapons of mass destruction-level magic.

Val had clearly neglected to disclose that she could magically compel people to do as she wished.

A power like that definitely would have made Professor Markel think twice about letting her into Earth. It risked compromising my mental faculties, thus jeopardizing the government sponsoring me and the dormitory.

If that was the case, how did Ange manage to pass through initial screening? She clearly had magic to order people around, albeit possibly not as strongly as Valeanor's.

"Hmm… I wonder if Tarcosa knew. That pint-sized king could very well have let Val slide through on purpose."

Ange entered the room with two cups of coffee and handed me one of them. The fruity smell of roasted and finely ground kona reached my nose, but did little to ease my worry

"It's almost time for me to stream." She put the last word in air quotes, then took interest in what I was reading on the desk. "What do you have here?"

"Just going over Val's briefs again. I just can't believe she kept it a secret. It's put me in a real bind over what to do," I explained in distress.

"If it matters, Valeanor feels terrible, and you know feeling guilty isn't a shining trait of hers to begin with."

The succubus took a seat next to me and crossed one leg over the other. Her mode of dress had gotten rather… sloppish. It reminded me of Ines, who often walked around in baggy sweatpants and, depending on the weather, an oversized hoodie or casual tank top. Comfort became the name of the game for them..

Their style wasn't bad, but Ange had set aside her lingerie-like outfit for human clothing more often lately. Gone were the days of her original sexy succubus outfit. The same applied to the other tenants. It just went to show how nicely they were adjusting to living on Earth.

"You have been staring at me for a while, my love. Is this an invitation?" Ange asked as she raised the mug of coffee to her smiling lips.

"It's too early for that." I switched gears to another topic instead. "You've known Val since the war, right? Were you aware of her power?"

She nodded. "I did."

"Then… how come you didn't tell me?"

"It isn't because I didn't trust you, but because Valeanor Messier is a dear friend who asked me to keep this secret. It also wasn't mine to share," she said.

I was slightly hurt that my own girlfriend didn't confide in me, but she actually had with regards to her own secrets on many occasions. It actually made me feel better knowing the two of them were close.

Ange was also right. It wasn't her secret. It belonged to Val.

This talk only made it harder for me to come to grips with what to do.

Not wanting to take up anymore of Ange's 'streaming time', I left the room before she could force me to join and went downstairs.

Val was in the backyard, tending to plants growing in the raised garden beds. She snipped away wilting leaves and petals. The sight of her, unafraid to get her hands dirty, dressed in overalls and a sun hat, didn't appear like a queen at all.

Among the many blooming flowers were the purple hyacinths that Cresta had previously gifted her in apology. All of them looked so healthy and carefully taken care of. Most other flowers came from the potted plants in her room. She had been transitioning a lot of them outside ever since the raised garden beds were built.

A scene like this would have been worth sneaking a picture of. Too bad my phone was in my bedroom, and Ange was currently camming in there.

I walked out into the warm sun. California's winter was short lived. Back in Japan, most places were likely still freezing. Being pleasantly engulfed in sunlight while not battered by intense humidity was a nice change of pace though.

"I suppose you have come out here to speak with me about my powers, have you not?" Val asked without turning around.

"Well… I was going to be more subtle than that. You know, start off with the weather deck and segue into how pretty the flowers are. Then once all that is said, I would finally bring it up," I explained.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"What kind of fool narrates what he plans to do before actually doing it?" She stood up and sighed in my face.

Ignoring her, I knelt down to be eye level with the flowers that she had tenderly raised.

"I always thought it was weird that the papers I'm given tell me all about your lives, but they leave out parts like Tamara wants to go to human school, or Remmy might be depressed, or that you like gardening. Feels like that information would help me a lot more than what's actually typed up by some desk jockey."

Val started bundling up a cluster of flowers she had snipped and bound them together with wax paper into bouquet. They had spiral stems, but the buds had yet to blossom.

If I remembered correctly, they were called liverwic daisies.

"I didn't tell you about my powers because I thought it unimportant. Much like how the details you've read in my dossier are unimportant. Why should it matter that I was a queen? I no longer have a kingdom to rule. This power is just a grim reminder of my past life." She pressed the bouquet into my hands, and I was treated with a honey-like scent coming from them.

"If you're not a queen, does that mean I don't have to refer to you as Your Majestiest Majesty anymore?" I grinned.

"It sounds so gross when you say it." Val rolled her eyes. "I understand the procedure to come here. You wish to confess my powers to the elder human, do you not?"

"Yeah, but… there's a chance they might send you back to Weyera for lying. This is a big interworld no-no that you did."

In spite of that, she appeared prepared to accept the consequences. Maybe that was just her queen persona filling in to act stoic.

"By not doing so, I put you at risk, and by extension everyone else," Valeanor reminded me.

I was fully prepared to take this to the grave just like with Ange's secret about still possessing magic. However, after being with Ange every step of the way until she confessed to Tamara about being involved in her parents' deaths, supporting Val to do the same of her secret seemed to be the right thing to do.

Then why did I feel so uneasy about this?

In respecting Valeanor's decision to come clean, I made a call to Professor Markel asking if he could come by. Government officials involved in things such as interworld security didn't just 'go out' whenever they wanted to. I had to explain to him in detail why.

But I should have known from the tone of his voice that it was going to be anything but a simple visit. They already knew anyway. The magic tracker embedded into every netherfolk before arriving to Earth had sold them out the moment it happened.

The professor arrived with the special task force designated to handle netherfolks. They were armed with magic weapons and enchanted equipment. It almost looked like they were about to raid the dormitory.

I recognized some of them. They used to be so friendly to me, but now each of them had their fingers on the trigger, ready to put a bullet in me if I so much as twitched.

"What the hell is going on?" Ines came running out of the dormitory along with Remmy and Cresta in tow.

Professor Markel unfurled a parchment to read aloud its contents. "Valeanor Messier, you have violated the terms set forth by the United Nations and High-King Tarcosa by not disclosing a class-red magic power that you possess. We ask that you come quietly. You will be detained for the time being for the safety of yourself, the dormitory, and Earth, while a council deliberates on whether or not you should be deported back to Weyera."

"Wait, deported?" I put myself between Val and the professor. "This is moving a little too fast. I thought we would get to talk about it first! You gave Ange an injection to remove her magic, so aren't you supposed to do the same for Val?"

Cresta, Remmy, and Ines joined me in her defense.

"Akira, you underestimate the gravity of the situation. We can't let incidents like this slide. You're a new caretaker, so I forgive you for not knowing. It's one thing for a netherfolk's powers to be known and accidentally used in a fit of passion. It's another for their powers to be known and used purposefully. You will understand how careful we must be for everyone's sake once you have read this." He handed over a report sealed with tape that spelt out the word 'Classified'.

"I don't know what's going on, but I'll be damned if I let Val go!" Cresta unsheathed her claws, causing every special task member to raise their glowing guns at her.

"It's alright. I will go with them. It is my own fault that it has come to this." Val rested a hand on Cresta's shoulder to assure her and the others.

Not wanting to put us in any danger, she walked forward to turn herself in. They put chains on her wrists, and even then, guns were still trained on her.

I found my throat and tongue parched of anything to say. Where did I go wrong? I thought I was doing the right thing, but now one of my tenants was going to be sent back to Weyera. Was there really nothing I could do?

Before Val entered the back of what looked like a tank of a security truck, she glanced over her shoulder to me.

"I must admit, you are a lot more troublesome than having mere subjects and servants around. Thank you, Caretaker. In the little time I have lived with you and everyone else, I am glad to have made… friends." She cleared her throat and began to choke up. "Please, give my regards to the others, and take care of my flowers in my absence, will you?"

As they left, I held tighter the bouquet that Val had given me and watched the vehicles disappear into the distance.

I wasn't sure what to think anymore. It was like someone had ripped my heart out. No matter how it looked, I had failed Val.

"You're not really going to let Val just leave like that, are you?" Cresta asked me as she held back tears.

"I'm sorry, Cresta. There's nothing I can do…" I answered monotonously.

Cresta cursed under her breath and stormed back into the dormitory. Remmy and Ines chased after her.

I stayed outside until Ange emerged from the dorm to embrace me. She was shaking, too.

"You didn't want to say goodbye?" I asked her.

"We already have. I think Valeanor suspected this was going to happen," Ange said.

"How?"

"Liverwic daisies." She cupped my hand which held the bouquet of flowers and raised it between us. "They have a rather somber meaning in Weyera. They are given to family and friends when the person suspects they may leave for a long journey. Oftentimes, for good."

Holding Val's flowers in one hand and Professor Markel's report in the other, something clicked inside my head as I tried to come to terms with what just happened.

There was no way in hell I was going to let Val go that easily.