"I heard the committee is having an important meeting today. Why didn't you go?" the chancellor cracked his back, backwards and moved this way and that. Ash asked, "what race go you belong to?"
The chancellor smiled a little, "you wouldn't believe if I told you."
"I thought you were human but humans cannot bend backwards."
The chancellor smiled and folded his hands behind his back. "Thank you for helping me out this week. Now you should go back to the student council room for regular meetings."
Ash smiled a little. She wasn't prepared to see Vance just yet but she never knew when she would be ready to see him. Now that the situation called for it, she wanted to face Vance and see how she felt again. She wanted not to feel those things again, hoped her head and heart had cleared but the eagerness would not go away.
Vots slipped into the seat beside her, "you have been distracted princess. Whats up?"
"I wanted to talk to you about something."
Vots gave her rapt attention and Ash asked, "I want to make a bargain with you."
Vots, the ever enterprising goblin, nodded, "let us hear it."
"I want you to be the goblin's representative this year and join the student council, in return, I will help you win. You need money, you have what it takes to make a grand sale and I will get you the biggest auction stall for that purpose."
Vots scrunched his triple pierced nose, "that's too small princess. I don't want that."
"State your terms then."
"I want you to buy everyone else a stall and ask for a share of their income. One percent would do and transfer all that money to me."
Ash's eyes widened, then she laughed. She thought too small. She looked behind Vots at Tror and Qoponk pouring over the area of auction and best spot to pick a stall. They didn't know what they had coming for them. Compared to Vots, Ash's was a fish in the water.
"I have been educated." She said and joined her hands in a formal bow. Vots leaned back in his spot proudly. "I also have another thing, if you can help me with. In return, I will do anything you ask."
Ash opened her ears quick. For someone as smart as Vots, she needed him in her corner. "You are in the student council. Right?"
Ash nodded slowly. Vots looked around, eyed a closely sitting goblin suspiciously and leaned closer, "the student council knows all kinds of student cases. Last year, a device of mine went missing." He pulled out a sheet of paper from his clothes and passed it to her. It looked like dentures, but made for vampires.
"What is this for?" Ash asked.
The goblin scratched the small tuft of hair on his head and looked away. Ash couldn't see his skin under all the piercing and ink but he might be blushing. "For my girlfriend to drink from me."
Though the goblin only whispered it, Ash could have guessed after the girlfriend part. She nodded quickly and asked, "did Tror steal it?"
Vots looked at the closest person and said, "let's go outside and talk."
The class was over. Vots hurried to his spot, collected his things and slid across the floor to accompany her out. once outside, Vots looked over his shoulder and said, "he didn't. I lost it from my pouch last year. Only that one item. I know I didn't put it somewhere else but I still went looking for it everywhere."
"Why are you so nervous about it?"
Vots scratched his head here and there and looked everywhere but at her. "Vampires over the years have stopped using blood directly from a body. There multiple channels for them to get blood, for all kinds of creatures and humans. So their punture teeth over the years have grown weak. They cannot pierce anything else other than delicate human skin. I made an invention to substitute normal teeth with metal teeth but I made it to accommodate all creatures. It's made of gold and alloys. Can pierce anyone."
A quiver ran down Ash's spine. When she looked at the goblin again, the man said hurriedly. "Don't say a word of it to other council members. Definitely not to your council head until you have found this or some trace of it."
Ash asked him an immediate question. "Do you have some way to access security footages or knows someone who can get access to them."
Vots gave her flat look, "I would have looked into things myself if I had that kind of access. Besides, it was a full moon that night so it was highly likely that the devices weren't working properly all over the property."
Ash thought it was persistent problem that the devices around did not work properly all over the property every full moon. It was not like the devices were made by humans. Every supernaturally sold device was marked with a powerful witch or warlock's seal to reduce such affects at every full moon gathering. "Over the years, more and more witches come here to study and the moon blessing becomes stronger and stronger but the college's systems are older the more they are laid out by the later priestesses. It is constant problem around here."
Ash did not comment on it. "Once you have joined the council you can help."
Vots looked down, "I was hoping you'd find it before I join." Before Ash could protest, his back straighetned, "but I will help you can't."
"Okay. I will look for it and you will join because you want to look for it too. As for buying stalls for others...."
Vots stopped walking, wide eyed. Then he laughed, "well played princess."
Ash shook her head, "I didn't do anything. You dug a hole yourself and threw yourself in it."
Vots asked, "what else can I do for you?"
Ash took out the snakelike thing she had bought on the first day of class. She opened it and slipped a scale like knife out of it. "Make a case for it."
Vots took the snake thing distastfully. "Crude little thing. You have to open it, slip it out, open your knife and then use it. Too much work. Use this thing to store medicines and such. That goblin played you. Look."
Vots took the snakelike thing and poked a long nail under a scale, picking it up. There are comparments inside and each one can store a different thing. The largest silver scale are at equal distance and probably the division between compartments. Since the professor said to get some money on the first day, he just sold the first thing on his hand and ran back. Ash remembering asking that goblin to make more of these and he ran off without answering her. He usually sat in the front of the class and Ash didn't have a chance to talk to him again.
Vots reached out and slipped the scale from between her hands. Ash stared at the lightness of his hand and asked, "could it be that another goblin stole it?"
"Maybe they did. But I have looked into everyone of them. None of them have any suspicious movements that night."
"Now I see why your girlfriend did not dump you despite the year failing."
Vots blushed again and looked at the scale carefully. "The handle is smaller in width but longer in height. I cannot turn it into a double knuckle ring. It looks light but is pretty heavy. Earing will also not work. An ear cuff or a pendent."
Ash liked the idea of an earcuff. But she said, "a pendent. Or something out of sight."
"An ankle bracket or an arm cuff. A permanent pocket on your body to store this."
Ash didn't expect so many ideas. She still liked the earcuff better. She said, "Make me one of each piece. I have never work any of them to know what feels better to carry around."
Vots pursued his lips, "people with money are different indeed. My girlfriend is not a spendthrift but she also acts like this a lot. If she doesn't know, but it all."
"I have got to meet this girlfriend of yours."
Vots shook his head. "Not before we find that gold of mine."
Ash agreed on that. Since everyone knew of Lady Bree's incident, getting involved in it without any clues would be kicking dirt on himself.
"I am heading to council room. Come with me now. I need to collect someone else who is joining today."
Vots shook his head, "not happening. Get me to win first."
Ash shook her head. "you will join anyway. Besides the council knows a lot more about the case that will help us narrow down who has your gold."
Vots hesitated, which surprised Ash. It looked like nothing mattered to him more than finding his gold but something else did. Instead of insisting, she gave him a way out. "I will just introduce you and you can be on your way out."
Vots nodded. "Alright."
Ash and Vots walked to the dig site and the goblin's face scunched up in distaste. "don't tell me we taking a dwarf along."
"Why don't you like them?"
"We? Huh. It's them. They look down on us. Does that make him likable?"
"Is being looked down more important or the share of stalls."
Vots grit his teeth and stared into the distance. "If he keeps his mouth shut, I will too."
"They won't but you will." Vots looked at her with unsaid greviances and Ash knew she had won. Turns out the grudges between them were no more than their personal interests.
"I am ready and I heard some unwanted voices...." the dwarf paused on his way up.
"I have been waiting all night. Not only are you late but the guest you talked about is a goblin?"
Vots was right, the dwarfs did look down on goblins. Vots turned his head away proudly. However, in the dead of the night, there was no one to build over the dwarf leader's words. The dwarf must have felt it too. "without my breathren, I am alone. For a goblin to deal with me will be easy. If my corpse turns up dead, you will be responsible for the death and you will know were to look."
Ash relaxed too soon. She intrupted the represntative quickly. "I noticed you have never introduced me before."
"I am Tharin Pebblemason and my other mason brother are..."
Ash began walking before the dwarf had finished. Vots snorted, "annoying."
"Are my shield and sword. And you will know the wrath of them first thing in the morning goblin."
The goblin snorted louder. Ash turned around. "the council is the place for you to bring your everyone to get together and work for the betterment of all students studying here irrespective of race. Do you think either of you would get your job done without my help? The least you can do is keep your mouth shut while we are in the presence of any council memeber."
"I have already repaid my favor," Tharin folded his little arms and Vots rolled his eyes, "mine hasn't been done yet."
Ash pointed at Tharin, "I will put the project on hold," and pointed at Vots, "and tell the whole council..."
Vots quickly started walking, "let's go. My mouth is sealed. Blackmailer."
Tharin stomped after the goblin, wordlessly united in his dissatisfaction with her.
Ash followed them silently.
Vance watched Karlene bicker with Drew at the end of the table and Dwera shift further and further away from them as he went through the list of representatives from all the other races and departments.
B walked in rubbing her temples, "what is this about?"
Karlene moved away from Drew and walked over. Vance, Karn and Sven looked at each other, planning to stay out of the matter. Sven pulled a chair out for Karlene but Karlene walked over and sat by him. Drew ground her teeth and Karlene huffed a smirk at her.
"Can we settle down. All the other will be coming in too. We will have enough tension on our hands as is."
"Vance can you please make some name tags and stick them on in a pattern that any of them do not fight."
Vance was facing the door and did not want to let go of such a vantage point. Karn got up with him, "I'll help. Ash said she'll bring two more people along but was not sure they'd stay. Better to keep their seats afar."
"I bet you that dwarf is coming." Sven said, trying to talk to Karlene who stood up after Vance, "I'll help."
Sven stood up too, "me too."
B took Vance's seat and called after him, "take my spot and precide over the meeting today."
Vance had to pause and rethink his idea. "Why?"
"just do it." B said. Vance wanted a chance to talk to Ash during the meeting, afraid she'd leave right after but if he was heading the meeting, his chance was gone. He was about to refuse her when he felt a quick swell in his chest. A swell of anticipation. Ash was coming.
"Thanks," B said, taking his silence for acceptance.