Amour Academy

Operation Sandstorm Part 1

A/N: Long time no see y'all! I know it's been far too long since I so much as touched this story, and I could go into why that is, but that's not why you're here. You are here to read some Amour Academy dammit! So I guess I'll see you at the end as always, enjoy!

*Sorry for any and all grammatical errors that you will...er... might encounter.
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(Ash's pov)

To say the atmosphere was tense, would be the understatement of the century. Nobody said a word for what felt like an eternity. I especially didn't know how to react, after all this was some serious stuff! We're not talking about some rag-tag group of thugs looking to cause the usual havoc in society, we're talking about civil war here!

I glance over at Serena.

She seems to be lost in thought, probably trying her best to process the situation without breaking down. It's clear she herself doesn't know how to react to all of this.

I place my hand on her shoulder, breaking her out of her trance. She looks up at me and I give her a meek smile and her shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

The two of us the turned our attention to Dawn, who was not handling this situation well at all.

She was trembling and mumbling almost at a nearly inaudible level.

"No, no, no, God please no..." She said.

Serena stepped over to her and stood about a foot in front of her. Dawn slowly tilted her head up to face her.

I stood there silently, partially from still being in shock, and from the knowledge that this was between the two of them, and them alone.

Serena moved her arm, causing Dawn to flinch. She was sure Serena was about to slap her with everything She had.

But, the opposite happened.

Serena pulled Dawn into a gentle hug. Dawn looked even more shocked now.

"W-what are you-?" Dawn began to ask, her voice shaking.

"Shhh..." Serena said. "It's okay."

At that, Dawn burst into tears. Crying hysterically, while Serena smiled softly, rubbing her back and continuing to reassure her.

While I on the other hand, continued to watch in awe. A light smile formed on my lips.

'Serena, you really are amazing.' I thought to myself.

This continued for a good twenty minutes. Dawn regained control of her emotions and the three of us took a seat on the sofa. As the depth of the situation final set in, my mind started to race and I began to feel jittery.

"So what happens now?" I asked, turning to Serena.

"We wait of course." Serena replied simply, still sounding distant.

"Hold on, what!? We wait? What do you mean?" I said, probably a little louder than I should have.

Serena let out a heavy, frustrated sigh.

"You can't be serious. Please tell me you aren't thinking what I think you are." Serena said, her hands on her hips.

"I'm pretty sure that's exactly what is happening here Serena. There has to be something we can do to help!" I said, standing up from my seat.

"Ash, please, this isn't a movie or whatever, this is real life. People will get hurt, and will in all likelihood be killed. We need to leave this to the military." Serena replied.

"But-"

"No buts, dammit!" Serena yelled, her frustration boiling over.

I was taken aback by her sudden outburst. I've never seen her so angry before. It's not like I could blame her though, I imagine I'd be on edge too if an "allied" nation was trying to stage a coup in my country.

Serena sat back down and looked down at the floor.

"I'm....I'm sorry, I shouldn't have raised my voice like that. I know you're just trying to help Ash, but it's just..." Serena trailed off.

I moved closer to her, pulling her into a hug and placing a soft kiss on the top of her head.

"It's okay Serena, really, you don't need to apologize." I reassured her.

Serena trembled lightly, as if she was about to cry, but she held it in. She was still trying her best to stay strong.

"Thank you Ash. I'm just so angry, not just because of the coup, but also I feel so helpless. I'm the princess of this country and I have no idea what I'm supposed to be doing. I'm not even allowed to attend the raid planning meeting. All because I'm too young. But, there must be some way to help beyond being morale support!" Serena lamented.

I continued to stroke the back of Serena's head, comforting her. Then out of the corner of my eye, I saw Dawn, who had been completely silent for a while now, turn this way.

"...Um hey, Serena?" She started to say.

I let go of Serena so she could turn to face her.

"Yes?" She replied.

"I think...I think I might actually be able to help." Dawn said.

Serena seemed to ponder this for a moment. She wasn't 100% on trusting her, but opted to at least let her finish.

"Is that so, how exactly?" She asked cautiously.

"It's my father, I can lead you to him."

To be continued...

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A/N: Annnnd that's a rap. Sorry again for the wait. I blame a cross between life and writers block for all that. It happens ya know. That aside, I'll be perfectly honest y'all, I have no idea how this story is gonna end. I have a couple ideas in mind, but I just can't seem to decide on which one to go with. It's awfully frustrating. Anyway, I sincerely hope you enjoyed this chapter and hopefully I can crank out another soon. Until then, take care!

-Tex