Anemone was, to put it frankly, a mess. The red team leader didn’t even have any time to reapply her makeup before Miss Rivers had dragged them all away, so she had simply wiped it away to reveal her bare face. It was actually kind of plain. This was, of course, completely natural for someone who had just been battered out of the sky by the firebolt that was Magnolia. It was a miracle of the Valkyrie that her hair hadn’t been singed in the rampaging fire of Pyrisous Mode. Ash really shouldn’t have, but the boy still took some cathartic enjoyment from her current state.

Oh right, there was one more thing that Ash had to do. Usually he would rather keep his cool, but after riding the high of his Valkyrie mode, he allowed himself to feel just a bit smug as he turned to the bubblegum haired girl standing next to Anemone. “Were you watching?”

“Shut up,” Mimosa groaned, her hands fidgeting towards her phone only to pause, grit her teeth, and turn away from the group. “You don’t have to lord it over me.”

“Mimosa is right, Whitelund, you know the terms,” the cowgirl teacher declared with a rhythmic tapping of her foot. Since this was merely a formal duel between Valkyries, there wasn’t any huge fanfare celebration after their victory. Despite the huge crowd, the aftermath was something that their homeroom teacher declared to be a private affair. Ash didn’t really mind, he’d go deaf if he stood out there a moment longer. “Now that the duel is over, all the grudges between you two have been settled. Leaders, shake hands.”

“Well Magnolia, this isn’t how I expected today to go. In fact, I never would’ve imagined it in my wildest dreams.” Anemone sighed as she held out one hand. “But it was a good game nevertheless. I… Had fun, odd as it is for me to say.”

The blue team leader stared down at the hand in front of her before shaking her head. “No.”

“Excuse me?” Miss Rivers narrowed her eyes. Ash gulped as he heard the menacing click of her revolver.

“The act of settlement is a right that only belongs to the leaders of each team, and that person is not me.” Magnolia took a step back from Anemone before turning his way. “Ash, you have the honors. You’re the real leader anyways. Without you, I don’t think any of this could’ve happened.”

Kyouko clicked her tongue. “Hey, weren’t you the one who insisted on being called the leader even if it was just on paper? I didn’t just imagine that, right Liesa?”

“Um, that was indeed a part of our preliminary discussions. As well as some other, er, incidents.” The green haired girl gave her fellow Wing candidate an awkward look. “B-But I do not believe we should pin blame on Miss Magnolia!”

“There’s no need to defend me, Liesa. To all of you, I… apologize for my conduct.” The Invincible Warrior lowered her head but she gave a sharp look in Anemone’s way. “But I no longer wish to be burned by the responsibility, be it of sin or glory, that others have decided for me. I want to achieve it with my own hands, which is why I cannot take this moment away from Ash.”

“Hm.” His partner hummed, her red eyes flashing as if she was breaking down the blonde bit by bit to examine her soul. Eventually, Kyouko turned away and let out a sigh. “You pass. Ash I’m not sure what you did to her while I was gone, but she’s a lot more tolerable now.”

“It is quite the dramatic change.” Anemone giggled before turning to face the Vintrkind with her hand stretched out. “You’re really quite something aren’t you, Vargr?”

“You still don’t have permission to call me that,” Ash replied instantly, before taking a wintry breath. The white haired boy took a step forward and, with a firm grasp, shook the hand of the troublemaker who had caused everything. He didn’t say a word, but the cold drop in temperature showcased his thoughts on the matter more than anything else. With this, their relationship had essentially been set to zero. Neither side would ever forget what they had just been through, but they would forgive it. The entire affair had been a rather cathartic release of emotion after all…

Well that and the alternative was Outlaw Justice shooting them in the face. But if Anemone tried to pull some shit again, then Ash wouldn’t hesitate to tear into her right back!

“Good.” Miss Rivers nodded, satisfied, before turning towards the decadent Asgardian wing candidate. “Now, I believe there were some other terms to the duel you agreed upon?”

“I suppose I couldn’t hide that from VEA, now could I?” Anemone gave a small smile before taking out her data pad. With just a few minor taps of his fingers, Ash’s own data pad rumbled. With lightning speed, he snatched it out of his pocket. On display was a deposit with more points- No, more money then he had ever held in his entire life. It was almost enough to make his eyes spin in circles. “There you go! Exactly enough points for you to take the C-Rank Valkyrie exam!”

“Ye- Wait a minute!” Kyouko shouted as she and Ash shared a glance. They had both seen enough Midgardian contract bullshit to realize what Anemone had just done. “Oh you bitch!”

It was exactly, to the digit, enough points. Which meant the moment they spent it to take the C-Rank exam their finances were essentially going to have a net-zero gain! They still couldn’t even pay for the rent for the new dorm!

“Well, I'll be going. Need to clean myself up before anyone spots me.” Anemone spun around and she began to walk out of the room before pausing. The messy blonde turned towards her black haired lackey while giving a faux sigh. “Shame about how this all turned out huh, Shizuka? Here, take this.”

Without even the slightest bit of care, the girl took her Einherjar out of her pocket and casually flicked it toward Shizuka. “I don’t feel like using this card anymore, so dispose of it. There’s only so far you can go while relying on other people, right?”

Anemone wasn’t looking at them, but that last part was clearly aimed at Magnolia as the door shut behind her. The asgardian wing candidate sighed, rubbing her forehead as she turned to look at the rest of her friends. “I’ll help you pay for rent. It’s my fault for not being more specific when it came to the terms of our agreement.”

“Always read the fine print Ash, that’s the first rule.” Kyouko grumbled, but there was little actual heat in her voice as she patted the larger trainee on the back. “No wait, that’s ‘get the agreement in writing’, which you didn’t do either. We’re lucky Miss Rivers was here or we totally could’ve ended up with jack squat.”

“I don’t believe you kids need to worry about that!” Ash had to suppress the sudden urge to jump out of his skin at Miss Peach’s sudden exclamation. Mostly due to the fact that she most definitely was not in the room a second ago! A fact which the rest of his friends seemed equally startled by, as the Vintrkind suppressed a wince at the chorus of high pitched shrieks.

“Amellia…” Miss Rivers groaned, adjusting her hat with a sigh. “At least tell me when you’re going to show up. But she’s right. Whitelund, congratulations. As of this moment, you’re being promoted to C-Rank.”

“The performance you displayed, especially in your fight against Mimosa, was more than sufficient enough to qualify you for a C-Rank even without taking into account your Einherjar!” The data analysis teacher paused before beginning to giggle to herself. “And of course, all of the C-Rank Examiners declined to participate due to the fact that no one wants to be hit by that giant laser of yours. Can’t say that I blame them!”

“Hey, wait a minute,” Kyouko spoke up. “Is it just Vargr who's getting the promotion?”

“Yes,” Miss Rivers stated bluntly, giving his partner a dead serious look. “Stop coming up with plans that involve you getting eliminated and then we’ll talk. Speaking of, you still have your personal safety counselling, Hagemu.”

“Oh come on! It wasn’t even intentional this time!”

“But you still expected it to happen didn’t you?”

“Having a contingency plan is never a bad idea…” Said the girl whose plans always involved everything going to pieces one way or another. “Fine! I get it! I’ll just pass the exam the normal way. Not like I didn’t do well on the first Valkyrie exam anyways.”

“Congratulations, Mister Ash!” Liesa cried, partially throwing herself at him as she rapidly shook his hands, stars practically visible behind the frame of her glasses. “You’re now one step closer to becoming a Wing! And now we don’t have to ask VEA for permission in order to take out a Valkyrie Gear anymore!”

“Oh, right.” Blue eyes turned their gaze at the machine on his wrist. “Does that mean I can keep this one?”

“Don’t be silly. That one’s registered school property,” Miss Peach laughed. “You’ll be issued your own personal gear soon eno-”

The glassy eyed woman stopped herself before turning her gaze to look at, seemingly, nothing. She hummed before fishing out a headset in her pocket and placing it into her ear. At the same time, Miss Rivers took out her own datapad and began to read the contents with a hum. “...It appears that there’s a guest for you, Whitelund.”

“A guest?” Who the hell would visit him? Or rather, who the hell did he know who could visit him? The only people who could visit him were those who were already in Asgard. Which boiled it down to only one person.

“Open the windows!” Miss Peach cheered, causing the windows to slide open with an automated whir. Ash realized with instant regret that his suspicions were wrong. Oh Odin, please no. Please don’t tell him that you sent that stupid bird-

“RETURN OF THE HUGINN!” Squawked a certain mechanical raven as it dived in through the window. With a flap of its wings, it flew through the air before landing on top of the Vintrkind’s shoulders. “Kah kah! Stupid Ash has not changed one bit, Huginn sees!”

“Why, of all people, did it have to be you?” Glaciers of ice ground their way through Ash’s veins as he tried his damndest to stay cool. Especially as that bird began to peck at his goddamn head.

“So this is the legendary scarlet raven,” Magnolia whispered with barely disguised awe. “To think I would one day get to meet the One Eyed Queen’s messenger in person.”

Magnolia’s sentiment seemed to be shared by all the Valkyries in the room, save for Miss Peach and Kyouko, who looked like she was trying to dissect the mechanical bird with her eyes. Ash knew that they were partners for a reason.

“Huginn sees! The Ash has found himself the brain he is sorely lacking!” Huginn preened as it lifted up a claw. Displayed upon it was a Valkyrie Gear, but unlike the usual simple grey mechanical bracelet, this one had been decorated in a stark white fashion, the symbol of a snowflake engraved upon it. “Huginn is the messenger of Odin, and has come bearing gifts! Take! Take!”

“Alright, I get it.” Ash grumbled as he took the Valkyrie Gear from the raven. Theoretically, he should’ve been happy about this, but dealing with Huginn always plunged his mood straight into the negatives. Slowly, mostly due to the heavy ass machine sitting on his shoulders, he took off his old gear and slipped on the new one. There was a brief glow before, with a click, it fitted itself comfortably onto his wrist. “Huh. Neat.”

“Neat?!” Liesa exclaimed, startling the Vintrkind and causing Huginn to fly off of his shoulders. “Only a select number of A-Rank Valkyries get their own decorated Valkyrie Gear Ash! Even then, statistically speaking, the chance of a non-Wing to obtain one is almost negligible!”

“To be awarded a decorated Valkyrie Gear is one of the highest honors one could achieve. Amongst all of Yggdrasil, it is only the One Eyed Queen has permission to do such a thing.” Magnolia muttered to herself before giving Ash a look. “Ash, I’ve been wondering this since you came to Valhalla but… Who are you?”

“The only male Valkyrie?” The boy in question guessed with a shrug. “I have no clue why Odin’s interested in me, so I can’t answer anything.”

“And neither does Huginn!” The bird proudly proclaimed before realizing it had just admitted to it’s own ignorance. “O-Of course Huginn does not know! Such matters belong to shitty Muninn!”

“Bah!” With a shake of its head, the bird began to fly back out of the window, vanishing into the artificial sky above. “Huignn will leave now! The Queen calls! Kah! Kah!”

“...Well, I don’t think there’s any point in worrying about it.” Kyouko gave a blasé wave of her hands at the sight that had just unfolded before her. “Come on! We’ve got points now right!? Let’s go out and celebrate!”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Right! They could actually spend points on food now! At the thought of food, Ash’s stomach growled louder than it had ever done before. He had used a lot of energy during the course of the match, and now that he noticed it he couldn’t deny the black void that sat where his stomach should be.

The group began to walk outside of the room as Magnolia held a hand to her cheek. “I can try to reserve a place, but the problem will be once we leave the facility. Our match was quite public so we will have to deal with fanfare and paparazzi for a little while, everywhere we go might be crowded…”

“Thank you for everything!” Liesa thanked the two teachers before quickly catching up to the rest of her friends.

“Hm, what are you in the mood for Vargr.”

“Everything,” Ash said immediately.

Kyouko made a face. “Why did I even bother to ask? That doesn’t narrow it down at all-”

Magnolia hummed, pulling out her data pad and scanning through it quickly. “Actually, I know a place that serves such a thing.”

“Seriously?!”

The group continued to chat in this leisurely manner before coming to a sudden stop the moment they left the restricted section of the arena. Or rather, Magnolia’s feet promptly turned to stone as she registered the woman who was standing there, waiting for her. She was wearing a simple, yet elegant dress and carrying a fan in one hand that obscured the bottom half of her face. Golden blonde hair offset cold blue eyes that seemed to freeze all who gazed into them. Seeing them side by side, Ash didn’t need to be from Alfheim to realize that this woman was probably her- “Mother.”

“Magnolia,” the woman replied in turn, before shifting her gaze to him. “And you must be the Vintrkind.”

The white haired boy froze his nerves as he stared straight into her eyes. “Ash Whitelund.”

“Hm, I suppose I should introduce myself as well.” She snapped the fan shut before picking up the hems of her gown and dipping into an elegant curtsey. “Cassandra Hale, current matriarch of the Hale family. I’ve come to apologize for all the trouble my blood has given you.”

“I already told Magnolia, I don’t need your apology.” Ash’s knuckles went snow white as he gestured over to the blonde in question, who couldn’t even begin to face her mother. “If anything, give it to her.”

“...I was already planning on having a discussion with my daughter.” The Matriarch's eyes opened as she straightened and turned to gaze at her flesh and blood. “Magnolia, will you please follow me?”

The Invincible Warrior collected herself with a breath, giving an apologetic look towards her friends. Then, with her eyes full of blazing determination, Magnolia stepped forward. “Yes, Mother.”

The duo began to walk off side by side, but not before Cassandara gave one last comment while looking over her shoulders. “Oh, Whitelund. The reason why you can make such comments is due to your own ignorance. I truly wonder if you could forgive us, if you fully understood the tragedy of Jotunheim.”

“Like I said, as far as I’m concerned it doesn’t have anything to do with me. Let alone Magnolia.” Ash replied back. “If you really think it’s your fault, then don’t make unrelated people carry the burden of your sins.”

The Matriarch of Ruin didn’t reply back. She merely nodded her head, but that was enough for Ash as mother and daughter vanished. The group watched with a worried look before Liesa spoke up. “What do you think they’re going to talk about?”

“...Who knows,” the boy sighed. “That’s not for us to know.”

That conversation was something private, just between the two of them.

----------------------------------------

Magnolia could never tell what her mother was thinking. Oh she could guess, Cassandra Hale made no secret about just what her goals were. In fact, she practically flaunted them. But what the woman was thinking, feeling inside of her mind? Not even her own daughter could ever understand. For the longest time, the Asgardian Wing candidate had thought that her mother was devoid of emotions entirely.

Until now.

There were many people who wanted to talk to Magnolia about the duel that had just occurred. Gossip mongers, Paparazzi, and just the average person on the street. The thought of it caused a burning hot flush of shame to dye her cheeks, as Magnolia realized that her moment of emotional weakness had been seen by all of Valhalla. There would be no doubt that she was going to be the center of attention for weeks, though not exactly in the way she hoped. Magnolia just wanted to go back to her friends or hide herself away for the next week or so, but she already knew that her mother would no doubt make her way into the public eye.

...Except, she didn’t. Contrary to her daughter’s expectations, Cassandra Hale ignored every single person who tried to confront her. Magnolia expected her to take this opportunity to promote or mitigate the damage to their family name, but instead the matriarch was as silent as the night. The shock had nearly caused Magnolia to trip over her own feet, but she still dutifully followed her mother into the private car that took them home.

They were in her room now. That damnable room, exquisite and elite, yet filled with nothing but useless clutter that held no meaning to Magnolia. The artificial sun in the sky had kept on burning despite the chaos, and the gentle glow of afternoon rays slipped through her window. And finally, there was the silence that had blanketed the two of them, thicker than a glacier. It was as if everything outside of these walls was nothing more than a fading dream.

Right then, only Magnolia’s mother existed in her world. And for the first time, she was sure the Matriarch was thinking the same thing. The older blonde had taken a seat at Magnolia’s table as naturally as breathing, and the Wing candidate had followed her lead. There was no escape or putting off this conversation. Not that she would run. Whatever punishment her mother was sure to dish out, the Invincible Warrior would take the blow even if it pierced her very core. Fiery eyes met a frosty gaze, waiting for the first strike.

Softly, her voice as small as a drop of water, Cassandra Hale began to speak. “Can you recite our family's sins?”

Magnolia didn’t even need a moment to think about something that had been branded so deep into her. “...Never being satisfied, the tragedy of Jotunheim being the direct result. All the sorrow and loss become our burden to bear, our repentance.”

Her mother nodded before pausing silently. After a moment, she finally released the breath she was holding. “Now, can you recite my sins?”

“Pardon?” That was… “Is that not the same thing?”

“You and no. Those words were only the result of them.” The Matriarch of Ruin shook her head slowly. “In my years, I have witnessed many moments of sorrow. Not just Jotunheim, but events long before that, and ones after that as well. And yet, never did I realize the true cause of it all… Until I saw my own daughter crying in front of me while begging for a reason to live.”

Magnolia’s breath hitched in her throat, her eyes going wide. Cassandra continued, but in her daughter’s eyes what was once an unending winter now seemed to be, dare she say it, worn down. As burnt out as her own daughter had been, though the weakness she now displayed in her gaze spoke of scars her mother had never truly let heal. “Magnolia, be honest with me… Do you think I am a woman incapable of love?”

“I…” The words died on her tongue. Not because Magnolia couldn’t say anything, but rather because there was too much. Emotions from long ago flickering back to life, her heart blazing with colors so varied she couldn’t possibly put them into words. All that she could do to express herself was turn her gaze towards the sunlit window. It was enough.

“..I see.” Her mother sighed before placing her fan onto the table in front of them. “In Asgard society, those who love to gossip refer to me now by that disgraceful name, Matriarch of Ruin. I used to bear the title as my deserved punishment, but now I see just how apt it truly is.”

Cassandra tapped her fingers on the table, eyes no longer looking towards her daughter but at the long distant past. “I was just another Hale, same as the rest of my family. Tearing our Realm down so we can build it back up in our vision of perfection. Now that it has become the Realm of Jotun, it’s too late to say just what kind of realm it would’ve been, but it probably wouldn’t have been anything good. If it had just ended there, then perhaps it would’ve been bearable, and yet after Jotunheim I still had not changed my ways.”

The older woman paused before taking in a long, deep breath. “...I told you that your father was a wrastel. Someone who had run away from his repentance to live in hedonistic pleasure. You, yourself, saw what became of that man. But what I neglected to tell you, what I tried so hard not to tell myself, was that it was my fault he became the way he is today.”

“W-What do you mean?” Magnolia stumbled over the words. The smokey, dazed eyes of her father flashing in her mind, causing her to clench her fists until her nails dug burning lines in her palms and her knuckles turned white.

“In the aftermath of Jotunheim, when all of Yggdrasil was looking for someone to blame, he was the one who drew the short end of the stick. All the curses, the hatred, your father had to bear them all.” The Matriarch of Ruin closed her eyes. “I, his wife, should’ve been the one to stand by his side and support him. And yet, I found myself being the most critical one of all. Ripping and tearing into every single mistake he would make, focusing my attention on the eyes of others, and never turning towards the one gazing at me. If we ever did have a spark of love, that was surely when it died out.”

Cassandra paused, and Magnolia saw the tiny ways the woman was trying to collect herself and keep calm before she continued, “I called it ‘duty’ and ‘responsibility’ but in truth, it was merely just shame. Was it no wonder then that he left such a cold woman like me to wallow in what could give him pleasure?”

...Seeing her mother so weak and vulnerable, Magnolia couldn’t deny the disgusting feeling of catharsis inside of her. A part of her, the child she had thought had long since burned away, wanted to scream and shout. To rip into her, to say it was all her fault and blame the woman for everything that had gone wrong in her life. And yet the words of vitriol died within her throat. Magnolia couldn’t say it. Not because a part of it wasn’t true, but because there was something else that fueled her wrath far more. With the resolution that she might never get this chance again, the Invincible Warrior shook her head and dismissed those feelings. “No, it wasn’t your fault. Your actions may have driven that man away, but you were not in control of what he did next. Wallowing in decadent pleasures was his choice to make, and the responsibility of running away from the world falls on his shoulders and no-one else’s.”

Her mother’s eyes snapped open. They were staring right at her. Magnolia looked back for what felt like the first time in both of their lives. “Ash… That man, he opened my eyes to the truth of this matter. We speak of duty and responsibility, but it really is all just arrogance in the end. There’s no such thing as a selfless duty, it’s always something that we choose to bear. Our own desire. Rather, it is in deluding ourselves that our actions are for the sake of others that we are blinded to the fire of selfishness no matter how brightly it burns.”

Of course, that didn’t mean one could just do whatever they pleased. Following Anemone’s path of indulgence would only lead to more hurt and suffering for oneself and for others. Life wasn’t so easy as to live free of consequences after all, every choice carried with it an equal burden. But…

“No one else can tell you how to live,” Magnolia Hale declared resolutely. “I refuse to let the sins of Jotunheim, the past I had no part of, define me anymore. The only responsibility I will bear from today forward, will be the consequences of my own actions and desires. This I vow, not as a Hale of Asgard but as Magnolia the Valkyrie.”

“...Is that so?” And then, the impossible happened. Her mother laughed. A bittersweet melancholic laugh yes, but the noise startled Magnolia. She could feel her heart beat in time with Cassandra’s laughs as the older woman put a hand to her forehead and sighed. “To think that would be something I’d have to learn from my own daughter. When you came back after running away from home the first time, you were so fragile that I was able to convince myself I was doing the right thing, but now, now you’re beginning to grow up without me.”

Cassandra Hale, the so-called Matriarch of Ruin, lowered her head to her daughter. Her voice carried its own resolution, sturdy but as vulnerable as ice. “There is no apologizing for the ways I’ve failed as a mother, how I hurt you so. And I do not believe I can give you the love you deserve. I no longer know if I am capable of loving myself, let alone another. Yet even still, from the bottom of my heart… I am sorry.”

The words froze Magnolia in place. What could she even say? ‘It’s okay?’. That would be a lie. It wasn’t okay, it might never be. And that probably wasn’t what the matriarch was saying either. Magnolia could never tell what her mother was thinking, but she could guess. This was not a request for forgiveness, nor did the older woman expect atonement for everything. It was just repentance.

The two sat in quiet silence before Magnolia spoke. “Raise your head... mom.”

Hesitantly, Cassandra Hale did so. Her eyes held no tears, for they had been frozen long ago, but there was still an ocean of sorrow within them. With shaky hands, she reached out across the table. Magnolia’s lips twitched as she took the hands that now seemed so thin and frail and grasped them, keeping steady. The two went no further than this. The chance for that had long since passed. Maybe it would come again in the future, but until now this was as far as either could go.

“...If you no longer wish to bear the burden of Jotunheim, then that is fine,” her mother finally said after a few precious moments. “Whatever you wish to do now, I will support you as best as I can. Provided of course, you take responsibility for your actions. Just, will you please tell me what that is?”

What she wanted to do now… Magnolia didn’t know. Her entire world had just been flipped upside down. She would need a long time to think about what her new purpose in life would be. She still wanted to be a Valkyrie, that was for certain. And even if she didn’t have the same desperate drive as she used to, becoming a Wing would be nice as well. As for what else she wanted to do, well- Ah. Of course, There was still another responsibility she had. One that she was willing to see through to the end.

Magnolia glanced around her room, so familiar yet distant at the same time. Following her heart, the answer was all so simple.

“I want to…”