Oralie willed her knees not to shake as she dipped into a graceful curtsey. Thundering applause drowned out all of her worries. She had survived her commencement speech. And the audience had loved it!
Feeling like a boulder had been lifted off her shoulders, Oralie practically floated back to her seat amongst her graduating level. The rest of the ceremony passed by in what seemed a matter of seconds, and then, it was over. The Elite levels were a thing of the past. As was Foxfire.
Her family quickly found her in the crowd and Oralie was swamped in a hug. Somehow, having her parents and siblings near made the sadness worse and she had to take deep breaths to keep her eyes from getting teary. Foxfire had been her second home. But now she was forced to move on. To better things. But what exactly, Oralie wasn't sure. She figured she would look for jobs over the summer in Eternalia. The glittering city had always enchanted her. Surely there was a position somewhere that needed an Empath.
"Oh Oralie, dear, your speech was beautiful!" Her mother smoothed Oralie's golden ringlets and beamed proudly.
"It was indeed moving," a new voice said. Oralie's parents looked startled and she turned to see not one, but two councillors standing behind her. She recognized Terik, the famed descryer, along with Alistair, one of the longest standing councillors- aside from Bronte, of course. "Forgive us for interrupting, but may we speak to you for a moment?" Terik addressed Oralie. She nodded as her parents backed away, and after another curtsey, she followed the two councillors to the edge of the celebrating crowd.
"It is always inspiring to hear the Elite's top student present any sort of speech, but this year, you outshone your predecessors." Councillor Alistair smiled warmly and Oralie curtseyed again.
"Thank you, sir. It means a lot to me."
Alistair ran a hand through his dark brown hair and glanced at Terik. The younger of the two councillors cleared his throat and turned back to Oralie.
"I had heard from your interspecies law mentor that you are very good at writing papers- and speeches. Tell me, Oralie, do you have plans for your career?"
Oralie felt her breath freeze in her throat. What was he getting at? Did the councillors know of a job for her? Were they going to recommend her? Personally?
"Well, I do not have a solid idea, currently, but I planned to search for one after I finished the Elite levels..."
"Which you now have," Terik stated. "You see, the council may have a job for you- certainly not as a councillor or anything, but as a scribe if you will."
"We have decided the public should be allowed access to some of our proceedings. Some of them." Alistair emphasized. "If people can't make it to a tribunal, they can read publications about the event. And so, we want our society to be able to learn about our council meetings through the written word."
"It may sound like a menial task, but it could be a worthy vocation for someone as empathic as yourself," finished Terik.
Oralie was so flabbergasted, it took her a moment to fumble out a reply.
"So, what you're saying is that I would observe council meetings- at least some of them- and write publications about what was discussed."
"In a promising light, of course." Terik murmured, half to himself. "Your talents as an Empath may help the public, well, identify more so with the ideas of the council."
Oralie wasn't aware the council was so concerned about its image, especially when everything had been perfectly peaceful for centuries. The last disruption had been the pyrokinetic situation with Fintan, but even that had occured a few hundred years before Oralie had been born. Nevertheless, the idea of working with the council, in a way...It was beyond her wildest dreams!
"I am immensely honored to be even considered for such a position." Oralie said, hoping her soft voice didn't quaver. "I would be more than willing to accept. Though, if you don't mind my curiosity," Oralie hesitated, then glanced back at Alistair and Terik. "Why me?"
Terik folded his hands. "During your speech, I may have taken a reading- just to see your potential." He paused and Oralie felt her pulse quicken. "I strongly believe you will do great things. And our fellow councillors have agreed- we certainly need a scribe and you seem quite capable despite your youth."
Oralie curtseyed once more, hoping they could sense her swelling gratitude. "Thank you so much. I hope I will not disgrace your expectations."
"I highly doubt you ever would," Alistair said in a warm, friendly tone. We shall meet you in the tribunal hall next week at dawn." He and Terik moved back through the crowd and Oralie scampered off to tell her family and friends. The future had never looked so promising.
The sunrise stretched across the sky with shades of pink that matched her dress. Oralie fidgeted with her hair for the hundredth time that day and hoped she appeared professional enough to hang out with the councillors in all their regal attire. Not that she would really be interacting with any of them. She would sit on the sidelines, take notes, pay attention, and then write up a paper after the meeting finished. Still, that knowledge didn't keep her heart from pounding when all twelve councillors glittered into view several feet away. She wondered if they practiced arriving at once. Everything about them seemed so coordinated- so flawless.
"Oralie!" Councillor Alistair walked toward her like he was an old friend. "Everyone, Oralie will be our scribe. Be nice to her," he said, half-teasing as he glanced Bronte's direction. Oralie tried to keep her knees from shaking.
"Welcome." Councillor Emery spoke in his intense, authoritative voice. "I trust you know your job."
Oralie could only nod and curtsey.
"Very well, let's go inside and proceed."
The twelve councillors sat around a table behind the regular tribunal hall. Oralie had been expecting them to sit on their thrones on the stage, but she realized that would have been rather silly without an audience. She took a seat at a small desk near the corner of the room and watched the council settle themselves and begin the meeting.
To say it wasn't intimidating was a lie, Oralie decided. She felt as if she were eavesdropping from her time-out corner while the world's greatest celebrities argued. Which in a sense, was exactly what she spent the morning doing. She worked on her paper for the rest of the day, attempting to make it sound less chaotic than the debate had been. Finally, she tidied up the concluding remarks and crossed her fingers. Tomorrow she'd submit the article to Alistair, who would briefly review it and decide if she'd done a good enough job. Oralie prayed it would pass his approval. She was a perfectionist after all- she couldn't bear to fail- especially in front of the council.
The following day Oralie waited in front of Alistair's office impatiently. He had a visitor, which forced her to stand outside in suspense. After what seemed an eternity, the door opened and an elegant lady with waist-length dark red hair exited. Oralie nodded politely as she walked by, and Alistair appeared in his doorway, smiling sadly as the visitor light-leaped, vanishing in a quick, shimmering instant.
"Ah, Oralie, welcome." He took her paper and invited her inside.
"If you don't mind my asking, who was that?"
Alistair glanced up from the paper and gave another almost rueful smile. "Let's just say she's an old friend." He didn't offer any other information, so Oralie didn't press further. Instead, she forgot how to breathe as she watched the councillor continue to scan through her work.
"This..." Alistair shook his head and Oralie mentally panicked. Should she offer to redo it? Was she about to be fired after one try?
"This...this is excellent!"
Oralie's fears skidded to a halt. "You really think so?"
"Trust me. This is amazing. You took our dry arguments and gave them life and passion. Emotion. Yet you managed to keep everything respectful and positive too. I dare say some of our meetings are quite the opposite..." He shook his head again, evidently blown away. "Councillor Terik was right. You do have quite the future ahead of you."
Oralie ducked her head modestly, but she couldn't keep the grin off her face. The following day she wrote another paper. A week later, an entire stack of reports. Within several months, Oralie no longer felt her desk was in the time-out corner, rather, it was in the observatory. She learned how the council meetings commenced and adjourned, she discovered which councillors were the most contradictory and which were more acquiescing. They all learned her name, and after enough time, work was no longer so intimidating. They were just elves after all.
Six years passed in the blink of an eye. And then, one fateful morning, Councillor Alistair started off by telling Oralie not to take her usual notes.
"The public will hear this announcement soon enough, and it will be in announcement form, not just a publication. However, I must tell you all first so that preparations can begin to be made." Alistair stood from his seat and smiled sincerely around the room. "It has been the greatest honor of my life to be a part of this council. But now, my friends, it is time for me to step down."
"What?! Why?" Nearly half the council began asking questions at once.
Alistair held up a hand. "I have served over three thousand years. But now I'm leaving to do something I have never done. In fact, something none of us have done. I'm going to be married."
"Are you sure about this? You know you'll have to undergo quite a bit of memory washing." Bronte narrowed his eyes. "Your life has revolved around the council. If you leave you can never be a part of it again."
"I am well aware of that." And Alistair did look sorrowfully aware- but also happy. More excited than Oralie had ever seen him.
"Very well. We will miss you on our council," Emery said. "Have you given any thought to replacements?"
"Well the people will nominate-"
"Yes, but we always have the final say."
Alistair nodded as if to himself then smiled. "I actually have considered the matter and I think the choice is quite obvious."
"Really?" Councillor Noland frowned.
"Why don't you look around you?" Alistair replied.
Twelve pairs of eyes shifted around the room until they landed on Oralie. She felt color rise to her cheeks and her mouth nearly fell open in shock.
"Me?" She hoped the councillors didn't hear the squeak in her voice.
"You already know the council proceedings. You've been highly responsible these past six years and you also have a gift for eloquence." Councillor Alistair smiled. "Why not?"
The moments between that instant and election day passed in a blur of craziness. Oralie had been nominated, and though she was no doubt very young, her parents, siblings, cousins and friends were all popular with the nobility. And though Oralie herself had never been extremely popular, she had also been the nice girl. To everyone. And as it turned out, people appreciated her for that. Plus, the word about Oralie's work on the council's publications spread, along with the idea that a younger generation could help bring a fresh perspective to the council.
Eventually, the candidates were narrowed down to Oralie and two ancients. The more logical part of her repeatedly told herself not to get too worked up- how could she win against an ancient?- but the other half, the half that had dreamed of working in Eternalia and exploring the crystal castles, desperately wanted to win.
The votes were tallied up. Oralie waited. And waited. And tugged at her hair. And then came the results.
She was their newest councillor.