This will be a long one covering the backstory behind Mia's parents so three chapters are necessary.
"Topaz, you can't just waltz in here all the time, the Professor could catch you here," I warn her for the tenth millionth time. Her curls bouncing, she glances inside the cell.
"How's she doing?"
"What does it look like to you?"
"Alright relax, sheesh. You sound testy, you sure she isn't dead?"
"She's alive," I'm unable to hide the concern in my tone. If the Professor finds out she hasn't awakened in a whole day then she's not going to be a good mood. Is this what it's like when everyone waits for me to wake up?
"Hey, who's that guy? A new employee?" she asks urgently, forcing me to turn to get a good look inside the cell.
"Very good young lady. You could detect me in the shadows," he says while stepping over to Mia. Before I can get a ring to slide off my jacket he adds, "Refrain yourself, I won't be carrying her off, I don't want to deal with you. I'm doing a favor for a person who cares about her. Hm, an eradicated memory filled with childhood trauma." Kneeling beside her the man in the monk robe puts his fingers on Mia's temple. "I will open up the memory of the parents you misunderstand and uncap that memory you tucked away," he says to her as if she can hear him. "I can sense another troubling past in this room, you young man. Oh but you are not truly a man are you? You're something better."
"What're you talking about?" I have the feeling I know what he's talking about but how would he know? "And keep your hands off her!"
"I'm only here to help Mia see what she couldn't," and with that, the dapper monk fades away.
"Phoebe, you're up at the brink of dawn," commented Wisp gleefully. I opened my eye in the middle of my meditating and smiled at my spirit guide. "Your brother and sister are still fast asleep."
"Lazy kids, both of them," I chuckled while shaking my head. "For them to be masters of the Light, they must have the dedication. They're still young, they don't know that yet."
"You're far from being a master yourself!"
"But I'm closer because of my discipline."
"That's true. I'll be resting in the next room whenever you're ready to come back to bed." For a spirit of Light, Wisp could be so lazy. She was supposed to be pushing me to pursue my dreams, not telling me to go to bed. The sunlight peeked through the blinds, hitting me right in the eye. Unflinchingly, I opened the blinds and pushed open the window. Dad's flower garden was blooming despite it being so early for this time of the month. What day was it? I walked over to the calendar in my room, being quiet enough to not wake up Wisp. The eighteenth of Sunwalker's Time, the day of my exam. Getting some rest would be nice but with the sun so bright out today, I couldn't waste my time snoozing away.
"Pheebs, you got up early again?" Aggie asked, standing in my doorway in oversized pajamas, rubbing her eyes. "What're you doing so early?"
"Getting ready," I answered while taking my night gown off, and looking in my closet for my uniform. "You should be getting ready today too."
"But I'm so tired and we all know you're going to pass the test-" she yawned loudly "-with flying colors, so you don't need practice."
"You don't know that. Oh here you are," I took my white blouse and blue blazer and threw them on the bed. If Aggie had the discipline I had then she could pass too but I've never met a sixteen year old girl so laidback as she was. "Have you seen my pants Aggie?"
"I think Dad mixed up our laundry again." I put on my clothes meticulously, making sure I looked presentable, and headed out early without getting any breakfast. My excitement satisfied my appetite that morning. "Pheebs, lookin' sharp!" Paul complimented while coming out of his home. "You're dressed to get 'em Sis."
"You're coming to watch?" I asked, walking with my brother.
"Of course, why wouldn't I want to see my baby sister kick ass," he stopped to throw a couple of punches in the air, only to hit me in the shoulder. "Woops."
"Watch it-and I told you about the cursing," I reprimanded him with a light punch in his shoulder. Sun Gardia's most handsome boy was also another lazy person. Like everyone in Sun Gardia, he had dark blue hair but didn't cut it after passing the Gardia's Vista Exam the way most boys did. He wanted to stand out and by doing that he angered our parents and offended every adult here but caught the hearts of all the foolish girls here. That was why all the guys here "copied his style" as he constantly gloated. "You're going to pick up Mom right? Don't forget about her Paul, she will never live it down."
"Yeah, yeah, what time is it?" he looked down at his watch and gaped at it. "Shit, I'll see you at the test."
"Yeah, see ya." He was so irresponsible and such a doofus-how he passed the Gardia's Vista Exam, I didn't know. The drought from weeks ago had killed the terrain here and is just recovering and climbing these hills to get to the cart stop was terrible. Gardia's known for its hilly terrain like the nearby island Bove and its legendary droughts that got so bad that when my parents were kids, they almost died from dehydration every day. I hate thinking about it because then I wouldn't have been born, that must have been awful. But it was because they were paired in the same hospital room together they fell in love with each other.
While making my way up, I spot Daniel and his cousin Serena on the way up. "Danny, Serena!" I called out to my childhood friends, slightly more dedicated than my family. Dan's hair was brighter than most, his mother didn't drink much of seawater nectar while pregnant with him and his hair was now an obnoxious cyan. Serena lived up to her name and made me proud to have such a beautiful friend. She was just like me except she had a voluptuous body while I was a standard stick figure.
"Phoebe," said Serena drowsily. "I finished the book last night. You will not believe the plot twist at the end."
"I could barely meditate, you were crying over that stupid book," complained Dan. "What's up Pheebs?"
"Excited, that's what. Serena, you of all people stayed up to read when the Sun Gardia's Vista Exam is today?" I asked in disbelief. Serena would do something like that, why am I surprised? She shrugged as if were no big deal. "You don't understand, I had to know what happened to Edwin, I would've died if I didn't read on."
"Sometimes you're so deep in books you don't pay attention to what's going on around you."
"Says the one who wakes up at the crack of dawn to practice."
"Hey guys, trolley's here," Dan interrupted. "We better catch it quick."
' ' '
Gardia's stadium seemed bigger than usual because outside my parents, Dan's aunts and uncles, and practically everyone in Sun Gardia. Our teacher, Hiki, summoned our Wisp guides by our sides and was giving us a pep talk. Unfortunately I couldn't hear him because Wisp was commenting on how the uniforms looked on different people. I didn't care much how I looked, I did what every other girl did-left my hair down and made sure not get my skin dark from the blistering sun. "Mr. Hiki, what's on this test?" Brandon, an acquaintance of mine asked him.
"The day of the test you're asking?" said Mr. Hiki exasperatedly. "This test is a display of what you've learned, by out-brightening your classmates. I can only hope for your sake you did some meditating Brandon." The room was filled with snickers and Mr. Hiki and his Wisp silenced everyone. "Remember that your family is watching you and to fail this test would mean repeating this class," he seriously.
"Totally you Ricky."
"Shut the f-"
"Hush already!" Mr Hiki's Wisp shouted, permanently silencing everyone but my Wisp. "Didn't you hear me?"
"Yes," my Wisp admitted sheepishly.
"My apologies," I quickly said, glaring at Wisp for being such a chatterbox. I've got to have my head in the game now, I'm not repeating this class. I looked behind me, a sea of different shades of blue flooded the waiting room. I spot Aggie by the wall talking vigorously with our neighbor Andolus. The only reason she got pushed into my class is because Mom and Dad had pushed her so hard that she had caught up to me rather quickly. But when she had gotten into my class she had started to ease off-I felt like I was the only serious one in this family.
"Agnus Luz and Serena Flame, you two are up," said the announcer outside the stadium. Aggie moved through the crowd of blue, not seeing me wave to her. I really hope that she does well. "The next pair after them is Davin Drole and Phoebe Luz."
"Damn it!" Davin groaned up in the front. Davin seemed pretty average student, nothing unique about him. There was nothing unique about anyone here, even me and my family and friends, so I should be humble about it. "Good luck Pheebs," said Aggie when I made it to the front of the entrance. "We're gonna ace this," I replied encouragingly, flashing a reassuring smile to her and Davin, who had a dark blue bowlcut and looked elegant in his uniform. But he had too much hair on his chin for me to like him. He feigned a smile and pouted again.
"He's already lost," Wisp whispered when appeared right by my ear. I buzzed her off like a fly.
"Don't dismiss him like so," I replied in a hushed tone. He was whining to someone else about how unfair it was he had to go against me so thankfully he didn't hear us. Anyone had the potential to shine their brightest in the middle of a crisis. "I'm going to do my best and so will he."
"You're no fun," complained Wisp. "But I'll give it to you, he's a cutey."
"I'm not thinking about that now," I lied. The gates to the stadium were raised, letting in a huge light in. I stared straight at it, took a deep breath, and stepped forward into the sun's light.
The swaying of the breeze made my clothes flap in the wind. Sitting up from the hammock, I grimaced when I recall my argument with Korbin. He thought he knew everything all the time just because he was older. In two hours I was starting my classes, the argument happened an hour ago. But Korbin knew how to push my buttons so well, I wish I had some immunity to him. "Why the long face?" asked a woman coming up from behind the white sheet flapping in the wind. "Youngster."
"Mom, I'm not in the mood."
"Mom? Who's that? I'm a passing old woman worried about you, that's all."
"Mom I'm turning twenty-one tomorrow, can you cut it out? I told you I'm not in the mood," I snapped to my surprise. She threw the elder mask on the grass and stuck her tongue out. She had youthful face despite her age and a youthful attitude towards life as well. "You're acting like a child."
"What? Something's wrong with trying to make my child happy?" she teased, letting her hair down to put it back into a neater bun that the wind already messed up. I sighed, letting my feet dangle from the hammock.
"No-"
"He's your brother, come now," she spoke more like an adult when she wasn't fooling around. "Forget about the little fight you guys had."
"I'll try."
"There's your pudding cake waiting for you in the kitchen. If you don't hurry back, then it'll all be gone when Korbin and his friends get here," she nudged me off the hammock and put her arm around me. "My little baby is going to be an old man soon." She was such an immature prankster but always made me laugh more than anyone else. "What'll a mother do? Oh and you start the intermediate class for Darkness, what will a mother really do? You're killing me hun."
"Talk to Gran, she won't keep you lonely," I suggested when I escaped her embrace, stepping into kitchen through the back door. The soybean, almond-filled pudding cake jiggled on the counter. "Gran is old and boring, I'd rather talk to my favorite son."
"Don't say stuff like that."
"I'm kidding I'm kidding. Eat your pudding cake and get going to Abélard for class."
"You're giving me the whole cake? I can't eat all of this."
"I told you, you're my favorite right? Relax I'm kidding, Korbin will probably come by with his friends and devour everything in sight.
' ' '
"Welcome to Intermediate Darkness class. Last year you guys were just studying and doing the written and historic part of Darkness- and passed. Now you're going to grasp the physical and mental part of controlling the power of Darkness," said the unnamed teacher. Or maybe she did introduce herself but I wasn't paying attention. I kept tapping my pen against the desk, still agitated about that stupid argument. On the way to class I had remembered what it was about-Korbin was complaining about the Lanterns again and brought up the many times they've raided and attacked Shadow Gardia. I had countered by saying how Shadow Gardians recently raided a small village in Sun Gardia. Both sides of this island were stupid, both so cruel to each other. Mom said that's what I was training for, to put the Lanterns out for good-do I really want that?
"Dunstan why haven't you opened your box?" asked the teacher with raven hair with her gavel in hand. Turning pink, I glanced around to see a Shade spirit on everyone's desk except mine. Great Korbin, our silly argument got me in trouble already.
"I'm doing it now," I muttered, trying to figure out how to open the flat, jeweled box. "Um, how do you open it?"
"Use your fingertip to touch the jewel, I already explained that," she complained. I obeyed and the box opened up from all four corners. From the box, purple orbs collect to form a flying eyeball, my Dark guide Shade. "You were late," the spirit pointed out in a deep voice. I bowed my head curtly.
"Sorry."
"I'm Shade your spirit guide."
"Dunstan."
J.G.P.