Music is "I Can't Fall In Love Without You" by Zara Larsson.

Picture is Claudia Doumit as Sarai.

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Xylocopa Caerulea

Commonly referred to as the blue carpenter bee, Xylocopa Caerulea is a relatively large species of carpenter bee that can be found widely distributed across Southeast Asia, India, and Southern China. The thorax and abdominal regions of X. Caerulea are covered with light blue hairs, giving it a striking blue color rarely seen in nature.

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Chapter Twenty-Five: Caerulea

"What do you mean you found nothing?"

"I mean that we found nothing, Rhodey. Not a thing. Not one bee. How about you tell me how you couldn't find our fucking friends?"

"They weren't there. Tony and Vision hacked the system, and they weren't there. We couldn't have gotten into the building if we tried, anyway. It was crawling with guards."

"So you just left Stephen and Loki with a maniac?"

"We don't even know if they were there at all!"

"At least we tried to do our job."

"Don't get snappy, Carol. We all failed."

I turn away from the arguing college students, away from the dorms, away from the chaos and towards the cold night outside. Since everyone has returned just a few minutes ago, they've been at each other's throats, tossing accusations and blaming each other for a problem that none of us created. We didn't get our part done, and neither did they. We're low on sleep, energy, and we've all failed miserably.

This is exactly what Max wants, a break-down in our ranks. Not only did he know I'd try to break in, try to destroy his creation, and try to stop it on its way to the Fair, he knew I'd recruit help. Not once, but twice. He's been three steps ahead of us this entire time. He's winning the game, big time, and we can't even figure out what the game's called.

A few minutes after I leave the dorm, I find myself being followed. When I turn, I spot Wanda walking quickly to catch up with me. She offers a sad smile and a jacket from her hand. I gladly take it, realizing I'd left mine at the dorm.

"Thanks," I sign. "You didn't have to follow me."

Wanda links her arm with mine and presses a kiss to my temple. "You look like you needed a friend." She looks ahead as we continue to walk. "You realize we're heading towards the occult shop, right?"

Coming out of my thoughtful daze, I see that she's right. Without paying attention, my feet have decided to take me back to Melizza and her hive. "I guess we are. I need to check on them, anyway. They're probably getting pretty restless, and I don't want any of them out in this cold."

We continue at a casual pace, soon leaving the campus behind and our misguided friends with it. "We need to make a Plan B," she tells me after a few minutes of silence. "We should have had one sooner, but I think it's up to us now. Our friends are fighting a civil war back there. They're in no mindset to work together."

I give a defeated shrug. "What can we do, Wanda? Really. There's no time left. It's, what, almost four in the morning? We have three hours before those bees are docked at the conference hall, and then the Fair begins an hour later. And you bet that your uncle is going to have all his beady eyes on that thing at all times. We won't get close. Not by a long shot."

"Well, we have to try. Since when are you one to give up?"

"Since I've been trying for the past day straight to get this handled, and everything I've tried--both alone and with help--has failed. I got Melizza's hive destroyed. I got my friends kidnapped. I got everyone else put on Max's radar. I'm putting you through losing a family member all over again. I..." I stop signing, letting the next sentence drop. "I'll never forgive myself if he gets away with all this."

"Then let's make another plan and act on it." Wanda stops, turning me towards her with a determination in her green eyes. "You were right. All along, you were right about Max. I couldn't see it and now, everything that's happened, I'm partly to blame. We have to keep pressing forward, Sarai, no matter the risks. For Melizza. For all the bees. And for us, too, because we're lost without them." She pauses. "I'm lost without you."

A small smile and accompanying blush works its way onto my face, and I lean forward to kiss her. She kisses me back, and we pull away after a moment.

"Better?" she asks.

I nod. "Much."

"Good," she states. "Let's go see Melizza."

I turn back to walking beside her. It only takes us a few more minutes to get the occult shop, and when we step through the door, we're swarmed by honeybees. At the front is Melizza.

"Did you destroy the hive and bees?" she asks.

My face falls, and I shake my head. "Max tricked all of us. We couldn't find them, and my friends are still missing. We failed."

Melizza makes a sad buzzing sound for a moment. "What do we do now?"

"We make another plan," I assure her. "We're not giving up, but we might have to execute the next mission during the Eco Innovations Fair, right under Max's nose."

"Will not that be dangerous?"

I shrug. "Yep. Probably. What other choice do we have?"

Melizza flies forward, landing on the hand I hold out for her. "Let us help, Your Majesty," she pleads. "Let my hive help you."

I turn to the rest of her extended family. "Are you all willing to do that?"

In unison, the bees make a cheery sound, something between a buzz and an exclamation through the hive mind. It sounds like singing. I know Wanda can hear it too because she smiles at all of them.

"Well, there's one thing for sure," I reply with a grin. "Max isn't gonna see this one coming."

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After spending less than an hour at the shop with Melizza and her hive, we come up with a Plan B. Ironically, the bees are a pretty big help in creating that plan. Several scenarios and ideas surface throughout the brainstorming session, but eventually, we all come to the same conclusion based on the best of what we could think of.

I tuck Melizza under my scarf just after five in the morning, and Wanda and I head back to the dorms. It's Saturday, and the early-risers of the world are just starting to come out of their slumbers. Daylight Savings was last weekend, so the sun should start to rise at any moment. I know that the bees are restless to leave the confines of the occult shop, but due to the danger and cold, I've convinced them to stay there a little while longer. Unless the plan goes south and I call on them for backup, they're safest where they are.

Except for Melizza, who is as stubborn as I am and refuses to be left behind.

When we get back to campus, to the dorm building, multiple friends are there to meet us. They look terrified and frantic, running to meet Wanda and I before we get to the entrance. The girls and Steve are the most worried since everyone else must be upstairs.

"Where the hell have you been!" Carol exclaims, eyes wide. "We thought you two had decided to do something stupid and reckless!"

"We tried calling, but you left your phones in your dorm," Pepper agrees.

"You can't just wander off after all that," Steve agrees, folding his arms over his chest. "We were really worried."

"You don't have to be," I sign, trying to alleviate their stress and concern. "Wanda and I went to check on the bees and make a plan. We're back."

"And you have a plan?" asks Natasha.

Melizza slips out from under my scarf. "A plan! We have a plan!"

Since Wanda and I are the only ones that can hear Melizza, we both laugh at the little honeybee. Everyone else just looks fucking confused.

"This is my friend, Melizza," I sign. "And she says we have a plan."

"She's a bee," Peggy states in a disbelieving tone.

"And?"

Peggy shrugs, brushing it off. "Magic, talking bees, I suppose the whole world's gone mad, but nevermind me."

Steve laughs and wraps an arm around her shoulders. "The world just keeps gettin' weirder."

Wanda nods towards the dorms. "Is everyone else still awake?"

"Probably," Natasha replies. "They're in their own rooms, though. We all kinda got into it with each other, but I guess that's part of why you left."

I take Wanda's hand and turn for the door. "Well, they'll have to cool off and grow up. The Fair opens in three hours."

"Think that's enough time?" Carol inquires.

"It has to be."

END CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE.