A/n: Hey readers!!
It's Booksarecoolandnerdsrule, and I'm back with another KotLC one shot. I really hope that I don't sound like I'm bragging as I say this but, I BEAT THE RECORD!!! This is officially the longest one shot on KotLC! It's a little more than 6,000 words. So far the longest one was Copicrazeunwoltxnaa's 5,884 words "Gotta Go My Own Way," which is really good even though I ship Sophitz. But you know what I shipped more than Sophitz? Nothing actually. Sophitz is the best. But I also shipped Brant and Jolie.
Yup. That's what this is about. Brolie! Read on so you can see why they broke up.
Warning: They're are some bad words (:x) in this one shot. I through in minor words such as "hell" or "damn" but I did use the— dare I say it— F word once. Just a warning.
I worked really hard on this. I hope you enjoy. I think that if I get enough encouragement, I'll write a sequel.
And with that note I am proud to present. . . NEVERSWAN!
Neverswan
JOLIE
#499: Qui Oliman
#500: Naden Parke
As I put down my last Matchmaking Scroll, there were tears in my eyes. That's it. My last scroll. No Brant.
BRANT
Jolie rushed over to my house crying. "I got my last list," she explained. "You aren't on any of them."
I tucked a strand of hair in her face behind her ear and kissed her. "The Council can't tell us what to do, Jo. I still want to marry you."
"You want us to be a Bad Match? Everyone would hate us."
"So what? Isn't our love more important than that?"
I suddenly felt her lips on mine. "Yes, Brant. Way more. I love you."
And that was all that needed to be said.
JOLIE
My parents wanted me to go to the Elite Levels before I get engaged to Brant. I didn't care about the Elite Levels but it was the only way that my parents would agree with it, so I obeyed.
The Elite Levels were okay though. A lot of studying, I guess. Very educational. I needed a break. And Brant gave it to me.
Dear Jo,
My lips are getting lonely
Without yours on mine
Meet me at the Elite Levels emergency exit
At a quarter to nine.
Love you,
Brant
BRANT
Don't ask how I figured out how to sneak into the Elite Levels. It's a secret.
So there I stood at 8:45 at the emergency exit in the Elite Levels, waiting for Jolie. When she came, my eyes lit up.
She kissed me. "I missed you so much," she said into my lips.
I kissed her back. "I bet I missed you more."
She pulled her lips off mine and looked at me. "I don't know how I'll survive two years without you. It's so boring here. You make things interesting."
I smiled. "I know."
"What've you been doing while I was here?"
"Nothing much. I was mostly busy moping that you're gone."
That earned me a kiss, even though it was a lie. Sure, I missed her like crazy. But I had a job. I was in a force called the Neverseen. The sad thing was I could never tell Jolie.
JOLIE
I could sense that he was lying when he said that he was moping. Brant never moped. But I kissed him anyways.
I had secrets of my own. I was working with a group called the Black Swan. When I wasn't in classes or studying, I was with Prentice Endal, who recruited me to join his forces. He was the Keeper of the Black Swan and the Beacon of the Golden Tower.
The Black Swan was put together to make the world a better place, both in the Lost Cities and the Forbidden Cities. And I liked that.
BRANT
I leaped to the Neverseen Headquarters after I met with Jolie. Fintan, the leader, was waiting for me. "Where were you, Brant?"
"I was meeting with a friend, sir."
"Friend? The Neverseen are your only friends."
"I know, sir."
"Who were you meeting up with?" Fire shot up from his palm.
"My girlfriend."
That earned me a burn on thumb. "Well, your girlfriend could be a threat!" he argued.
I closed my eyes. "I understand, sir."
"Good."
As he walked away I looked at what he did to my thumb. It was still in pain, but that wasn't my concern. He burned a symbol into my thumb. An eye. The eye. The symbol of the Neverseen.
JOLIE
Later that day, I found Master Prentice, who gave me permission to exit the Elite Levels. He asked me into his office.
"Miss Ruewen, are you willing to become a complete member of the Black Swan?"
"Yes," I replied.
He nodded and handed me a tiny black box.
"A box?" I questioned, smiling.
"Not a box. I'll leave it to you to figure out what to do with."
He left me alone in his office and the box suddenly felt very heavy in my hands. I studied the box. There was a DNA sensor on the side. I assumed this meant that I should lick it.
As soon as my lick of DNA registered, the black cube flashed with a white light. Words appeared through the glow, a single sentence written in frills and loops. An oath that was far simpler than I thought it would be. But the words felt true. A promise that I could stand behind. Believe in. Uphold.
I closed my eyes and whispered the oath, drawing the words from my very heart. "I will do everything in my power to help the world."
The last word barely escaped my lips when the latch on the box snapped open. Inside I found a pendant made of curved black metal, shaped like the sign of a swan. Set into the center was a magnifying glass.
I hung the pendant around my neck and I noticed a tiny piece of paper still enclosed in the black cube. I opened it.
Explore your world through the small things.
I smiled. More crazy Black Swan mojo. I folded the paper and put it in my pocket.
BRANT
Two months later, I sent Jolie another meeting letter. I sent her other sappy ones, mostly poems and love letters. Enough to last three months instead of two. Fintan freaked me out last time, but I finally grew out of it.
Dear Jo,
Without your love,
It's getting harder to rhyme
Meet me in the same spot
That we met last time
Be there by eight
Don't be late,
Love,
Your Brant
I knew that I went against Fintan's words. But I loved Jolie. She was my heart and soul. And nothing would change that. Or so I thought.
JOLIE
I came to the emergency exit at eight and found Brant waiting there for me again. I ran into his arms. He picked me up and kissed me. I kissed him back.
"It's been so long," I said into his lips.
"Too long, Jo. Can you imagine waiting two more years?"
I frowned, but I kept my lips on his. "I don't want to wait two more years. I want to be with you."
"I want to so much more, Jo." He broke our kiss and hugged me. "I want to be with you forever. I don't want to let go of you."
BRANT
She rapped her arms around me and then I noticed it. A black pendant. It was sticking out of her shirt.
I let go of her. (How ironic is that, after saying that I don't want to let go of her?) "Jolie, where did you get that?" I asked her, eying the necklace.
She pulled up her shirt a little, covering the pendant. "Get what?"
I already saw it, but I wished that I hadn't. A black swan. The Black Swan. My Jolie was working the group that the Neverseen was working against.
"You work for the Black Swan," I whispered.
Jolie clutched her pendant. "How did you. . .?"
I wrapped my fingers around my thumb, praying that she wouldn't see my burn.
She noticed. "What are you hiding?"
"Nothing."
"You're lying to me?"
"Well, you lied to me!"
You know how people use their hands to motion their words? I did that, accidentally letting my thumb show.
She saw it in the split second of my clumsiness. "The eye?!"
I clenched my fists and closed my eyes.
"You're working against me?" she whispered.
I opened my eyes. But she was already gone.
JOLIE
Brant. My Brant. Was working against me. I have no idea what his force was called, but that eye! The Eye! That's what his force had on their uniforms. The force that tried to sabotage everything that we did. What was going on?!
BRANT
I sent Jolie a letter after I got home.
Jo,
I'm so sorry! You work for the Black Swan, huh. And I work for my forces. And we're working against each other. Yeah.
So what now? Is it over between us? I think I still love you, Jolie. Do you still love me?
You won't tell anybody who I work for, will you? I won't say anything about you.
You might want to burn this letter after you get it. If someone else gets their hands on this, we're both in trouble, right?
— Brant
I put my pen down and sighed. I suddenly felt sick inside. You know that feeling you get when you no someone's right, but you don't want them to be?
Well, your girlfriend could be a threat!
Fintan was right. But there was no way that I'd let him know that.
JOLIE
When I got Brant's letter, I didn't know what to think. Did I still love him? Why should being rivals make us break up? I think I did still love him.
So I wrote to him.
Dear Brant,
This is crazy. I still love you, Brant, and I mean it.
I won't tell anyone about you. But can you tell me one thing? What's your force called? I won't tell anyone. I'm just curious.
Love you,
Jolie
BRANTAfter I got Jolie's letter I sent her one back immediately.
Dear Jo,
Mega-crazy, Jo. That's how much I love you.
Thanks for keeping my secret. I'll never tell yours. My force is called the Neverseen. But you can't tell anyone or they'll ask you how you know. I'd probably get in huge trouble if my boss found out. No, I definitely would.
Write back,
Brant
JOLIEWe went on like that for months. I kept all of his love letters in a box and I put them in a safe in my room when I went home for the breaks. I cherished them. I met him a few times over breaks.
We knew that someone eventually would find out about us, but we didn't even think of that. As I said, over the breaks I met up with Brant sometimes. During the first week of summer, this happened:
So casual conversation with Brant. We were talking about Base Quest or something and all of a sudden, he asked me, "So. . . Any new projects in the Black Swan?"
My heart dropped. "Are you using me?" I asked.
He looked shocked. "No! I'm so sorry. Just a casual question. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But I just want you to know that your secrets are safe with me."
I nodded. "No, not so much happening with me. What about the Neverseen?"
He shook his head. "Nothing."
I looked around Brant's room. Brant loved drawing. He was great at it. In his letters there were always little pictures he drew to go with it. I found a drawing of me and him together. It was so realistic that I almost thought that I was looking through a dusty mirror. "Wow. You really have some talent for a Talentless."
He cringed as I said the word Talentless, but he nodded in reply.
I fingered the swirly lettering underneath the drawing.
Neverswan.
I looked at Brant. "A mix of the Black Swan and the Neverseen," he explained. "Us."
I leaned over and kissed him. "You are the best, Brant."
He laughed nervously. "Yeah."
BRANT
I wanted to tell her that I wasn't Talentless. I just didn't have the nerve to tell her that I was hiding a secret from her all these years.
What's wrong with being a Pyrokinetic, anyways? So what if fire shot out of our hands? Big deal. Water shoots out of a Hydokinetic's hand. Snow shoots out of a Freezers. What's the difference?
The Neverseen was the only place I felt accepted. They liked that I was a Pyrokinetic. They wanted me to use my ability, not block it out like the Council wanted me to. There wan another Pyrokinetic too. Fintan.
But I couldn't tell Jolie. Not yet.
JOLIE
"Miss Ruewen, Master Prentice would like to meet with you."
I look up from my book to see Mistress Kilo facing me. She was the Beacon of the Silver Tower. I nodded.
"Miss Ruewen, I know that it's not any of my business but why do you keep on meeting up with Master Prentice?"
I stand up. "You're right. It's not your business. But if you really want to know, he was my Beacon last year and he's quite fond of me." I leave the library.
As I entered Master Prentice's office, I made sure to lock the door behind me. "Kilo's on to me, Master Prentice. Or Mr. Endal. Or whatever I'm supposed to call you."
He looked at me. "The Beacon? I'll deal with her later. What I'd like to know is when you're planning on starting your missions."
"Can't I just help you with Project Moonlark?"
"You will be. . . Miss Ruewen, your mission is to be Project Moonlark's. . . mother."
I stared at him in shock. "You want me to have sex with someone?!" I practically shrieked.
Master Prentice bit his lip and smiled weakly.
"No! No, no, no, no, no! I'm not! You can't! I have a boyfriend!"
"And the father is married. You'll do great."
"I can't! If my boyfriend finds out. . ."
"He won't. I'm not telling anyone in the Collective. I won't even tell Project Moonlark when it's created. I'll lie if it ever asks if you're her mother. The only people who know about this are you, me, and Leto Kerlof, the leader of the project."
"Okay, so me, because I'm the mother. You, because you're the Keeper and Leto, because he's the leader. What about the father?"
He smiled weakly again.
"Leto?! No, I am not—"
"Not Leto! Me!!"
"You?! But you're like a million years old!"
"I'm only twenty-five, actually."
"I'm only nineteen! I don't want to have. . . it with you! You're freaking married!"
I was actually kind of liked Prentice. As a friend. Or a Keeper. He was kind. But two things:
1) He was freaking married!!
And 2) I didn't want to have you-know-what with him!
Master Prentice sighed. "Leto thought that we'd be the best option. No one would ever think that the Keeper or the new recruit would be Project Moonlark's parents. You aren't even giving birth to it, Miss Ruewen. It's only getting implanted inside of you. After you and I. . . do it, I'll have Project Moonlark removed from you. Nobody will know. I don't want to do this any more than you do, but it's a risk I'm willing to take."
"But I'll know! I can't do this, Prentice!"
"Please, Miss Ruewen. Project Moonlark could save the world. I need you, Jolie."
He was serious. He hardly called anyone by their first name. "But why me?"
"Because I believe in you, Jolie."
I stared at him for a minute, sucking in a breath. His words kept on replaying in his mind.
Because I believe in you, Jolie.
I let out a short sigh. "I'll do it."
BRANT
As the flame shot out of my hand, I felt free. Everblaze. A special flame only Pyrokinetics can produce. Our creation.
As I shot the ball of fire at the building I asked myself something.
Does this make you feel good?
Who knew how many humans I just killed by burning down that building? But why? Why does it bring people pleasure?!
Fintan. I swear, he was smiling as he heard the screams.
Gethen was laughing.
Me? I didn't know what to think. I just watched as the building fell in silence.
Is this what I've turned into? A human-killing-monster?
JOLIE
Screw that Leto Kerlof and Prentice Endal! I thought that sex thing would only last for one night! I had a baby stuck inside of me for an entire month while he had to make plans for the DNA or whatever. After a week, it was confirmed ready.
Project Moonlark would be implanted in a human's body to help the world. Eventually, it would return to the Lost Cities and the Black Swan would explain everything to it.
"That literally is the most messed up thing I've ever heard," I told Kerlof after he explained what was happening to Project Moonlark.
Leto Kerlof, the one in charge of Project Moonlark was meeting up with me for the first time.
He smiled sadly. "It's sad to give her up, but I'm afraid we must. I'll be disguised as her neighbor as she grows up, and I'll be her human mother's doctor when she gets born. I'll send you updates as often as possible."
I nodded. "Take good care of her."
"I will." Before he leaped away, he slipped something into my pocket. "Use this if you ever find yourself in danger."
BRANT
In a week, Jolie would finish the Elite Levels.
The exciting thought replayed over and over again. We would finally get married. We would finally be Neverswan.
Sadly, my excitement ended when Fintan came over to me. "Brant. I have an assignment for you."
I raised my eyebrow but nodded.
"I found out that the Black Swan recruited someone around your age."
That could be anyone, I told myself, but I knew that he was talking about Jolie.
"You look very tense, Brant. Anything you should tell me?"
I shook my head.
"If I find out that you're lying. . ."
"I'm not, sir."
"Good. The recruit. Her name is Jolie Ruewen. Do you know anything about her?"
I gulped. "She was in my class. I believe that she's in the Elite Levels now."
Fintan frowned. "Is she of importance?"
"Not really. I guess she's smart. She's a Conjurer."
"And her family?"
"Her father is an Emissary."
He nodded. "I want her eliminated by tomorrow."
My heart started beating really fast. "You mean. . . dead?"
"No, no, no, no, Brant. I mean killed. I'm assigning you to kill her. You could pass as a student and kill her."
But I don't want to kill her! I can't!
I wanted to scream that and run away to hide. But what could I do? If I didn't, someone else would, and believe me they would make it a long and painful death.
"Brant! I am ordering you to kill her! Go!"
I started breathing very fast. I muttered a quick, "Yes, sir," and ran away.
I've murdered so many people. But I can't murder Jolie.
JOLIE
I got a hail from Brant in my dorm. "Hey, Jo," he said weakly. He looked like he had just cried.
"Brant! Are you okay? You don't look so—"
"I'm fine!" he said harshly. He looked anxious now.
"Woah, you don't have to be so rude."
He shook his head. "Sorry, Jo. Um, can you meet me—"
I suddenly noticed the glowing Exit runes over the door behind him. "Wait. Are you at the emergency exit?"
"Um, yeah. Can you meet me here?"
"Why?"
"Can't talk. Come now."
"Brant, what's—"
"Now!"
"What is with you?!"
"Just come now." He hung up and I sighed. What could he have possibly wanted from me just a few minutes before curfew?
I got up.
"Where you going, Jolie?" Hana, my roommate, asked me.
"Getting some fresh air."
"Okey dokes."
I raised my brow and smiled. "What?"
"Short for 'Okay dokey.'"
I laughed and left the dorm.
BRANT
When Jolie came, she ran over and kissed me, per usual. I felt guilty kissing her back, knowing what I was about to do to her.
"Okay, Brant. What's going on?"
"Not here." I took out my home leaping crystal.
"Brant, I'm not aloud to leave without permission."
"Here's your permission. I hereby give Jolie Lucine Ruewen permission to leave the building. Now, let's go."
"Brant, I can't—"
It was too late for her to finish. A fire shot out of my palm to give the crystal light and I grabbed her with me as the crystal brought us to my house.
JOLIE
When we leaped, my mind couldn't concentrate on the leaping. All I could think was, Brant, just shot fire out of his hand and he's burning my hand right now by holding it!
When we finished my heart started beating really fast. "Brant, I could've faded!"
"Sorry, I—"
"Brant, just stop! I want answers. Now!"
Brant gasped. "You're skin and hair colors are changing."
"What?!"
"You're skin. It's turning darker. You look more tan. And your hair. It's turning brown."
"How? Why?"
"I don't know. Maybe losing concentration while you were leaping made you lose concentration on your appearance and that's why it's changing."
"Will it change back?" I asked worried. I slapped my palm against my forehead. "Stupid! I'm getting caught up with my damn features instead of getting answers! Get talking, Brant."
He let out a sigh. "Okay. The Neverseen found out that you've joined the Black Swan. They want me to kill you."
My heart dropped to my feet. "They what?" I whispered.
A tear slid down his cheek. "I don't know what to do, Jolie. If I don't kill you, the Neverseen will probably kill me and then kill you too. We'll both be gone. Neverswan will be over."
I felt my tears stream down. "You're going to kill me?"
"I have to, Jolie."
"How?"
He let out a long sigh. "I wanted to tell you this for years. I'm a Pyrokinetic, Jolie."
"That would explain the fire shooting out of your palm. So you'll burn me to death."
"That's what Fintan wants. I swear, Jolie. I love you! I don't want to fucking kill you!"
"I understand, Brant. Just do it. All of our love will be gone after this." I turned my head away. "Come on, Brant. Just do it."
Both of us were crying. Nothing made sense to me anymore. Brant, who probably murdered many times before was suddenly crying because he wanted to kill me. What made me different than anyone else he killed? That I was an elf? That I was his God damn girlfriend?! What made me more innocent than them. Brant took lives of people and I said that I loved him anyways. Was I insane?!
So as the flame surrounded me, I almost decided to give up. To just die. To let the Neverseen win. But then I remembered what Prentice said.
Because I believe in you, Jolie.
People needed me. I couldn't die. But I was trapped. How could I get out?
Use this if you ever find yourself in danger.
I reached my hand into my pocket. Kerlof's gift was still there. I unwrapped it. A tiny blue crystal. Kerlof knew that I'd get in trouble.
I had no idea where the crystal would take me, but I held it out to the fire, letting the brightness of it shine through it, letting me leap out of the Lost Cities.
BRANT
The fire burnt my whole house down. I don't know how I could even think that she survived.
I hated myself.
I hated that I killed Jolie.
I hated that I joined the Neverseen.
I hated being a murderer!
I had to make up an excuse for what happened to Jolie. When the (stupid) Council asked me questions, I pretended that my mind was sort of broken. I told Grady and Edaline that Jolie sneaked over to my house to see me and that the Black Swan came and killed Jolie and left me with a few scars and burns. That I tried to save her.
My whole life was lies now. I lived in a house made to protect me from fires because I was "scared" of them now (I'm a Pyrokinetic!). I worked for the people who made me kill my only love because I had nothing better to do. Grady and Edaline took care of me, because my parents had guilt when they saw my "scars."
Nothing made sense anymore. But in truth, I'm not sure it ever did.
JOLIE
I opened my eyes. I was in a house. But this couldn't have been an elvin house. It was too. . . plain. Elvin homes are bigger and sparklier!
"Who goes there?" a voice grunted.
"Um, Jolie Ruewen. Leto Kerlof gave me a crystal that led me here."
"Miss Ruewen?" an old wrinkly man said, coming out from a hallway.
"You're. . . human," I said, shocked.
The old man smiled. "I'm an elf, alright. It's me. Leto."
"Kerlof?" I asked. "What happened to you?"
"I could ask you the same thing. I'll go first though. This is my disguise. Whenever I'm in this disguise, you must call me Mr. Forkle. Now you."
"You mean my hair and skin? A leaping mishap."
"No, I mean why are you here? I said that you should only come when you're in danger."
"Does almost getting burnt to death count as danger?"
Mr. Forkle sighed. "I don't understand how you can be so calm about these things. Care to explain?"
I nodded and explained to him what Brant did.
"So he thinks you're dead now?" Mr. Forkle asked.
I nodded. "He probably thinks I burned in the fire. He couldn't have seen me get away."
"Do you know what this means, Miss Ruewen?"
"I'm assuming that I can't finish the Elite Levels. . ."
"You sure as hell aren't! Miss Ruewen, if the Neverseen finds out that you're alive they'll find you and kill you. You'll have to go into hiding."
"Where? What about my parents? And. . ."
I couldn't say Brant.
". . . my friends."
Mr. Forkle sighed. "They'll have to believe the lies."
"My parents. . ." I repeated. "They'll be horrified."
"Well, we have to keep you safe. Everyone thinks that you're dead. You can't go back."
I held in my tears. "Where will I go?"
"You can go to Alluveterre. That's where the Collective stays. I'll send someone to bring you. Until then you can stay here. Exploring the Forbidden Cities might teach you something."
"Um, okay. What if someone asks me who I am?"
"Make up a name. Oh, wait. I'll be at the Hospital tomorrow. I'm going to be Project Moonlark's human mother's doctor."
"That's a mouthful. So what am I supposed to do then?"
"I guess I'll have to take you with me."
I couldn't help but smile. It's a good thing that I taught myself how to speak English. The Enlightened Language wouldn't help me here. "Good luck."
BRANT
"Brant, this is Lady Gisela Sencen," Fintan introduced.
I grinned at the lady in front of me. "You're new here?"
"I've been a part of the Neverseen for ten years," she snapped.
"Almost ten years," Fintan corrected. "Brant, you will be going with Gisela to the Forbidden Cities today."
"For what?" I couldn't help but ask.
"Oh, the usual," he replied smugly.
I smiled devilishly. "Of course, sir."
JOLIE
"If anyone asks you who you are give them this," Dr. Stephano, Kerlof's latest disguise, tells me, handing me a paper. "They'll think that you work with me. Put it in your pocket."
I did as he said, putting the paper into a doctors uniform that I was borrowing.
He opened the door. "Okay, then. Follow me."
The hospitals in the Forbidden Cities are weird. There's people everywhere. Some were doctors and nurses, others are patients. Most of them are patients. I couldn't help but frown. Why were the humans so good at ruining themselves?
A doctor stopped us. "Where are you two headed?" the doctor asked.
Dr. Stephano sighed. "Room 228. We're here to assist Mrs. Foster."
"Your names?" the doctor asked.
"Dr. Abe Stephano."
I looked at the doctor. "Um. . ." I looked at a plaque on the wall. Sophie Ryan, Physician. "Uh. . . Physic."
Dr. Stephano laughed nervously. "It's her nickname. Her name is Dr. Sophie Stephano. She's my daughter."
I smiled. He used the plaque for inspiration too.
The doctor eyed us suspiciously. "Alright. Get along then."
We walked away. "Really, Miss Ruewen? Physic?"
This time I laughed nervously. "What? It was the third word that I saw!"
"You can read human runes?" he asked.
"You can't?"
"No, I can. I'm just surprised that you can too."
"What do you mean? I always knew how to read them."
"Intresting. That will probably effect Project Moonlark's education. She'll probably start reading very early."
"She'll be a girl?"
"According to the sonogram, yes, Miss Ruewen."
"You mean Physic?" I teased.
He smiled. "I suppose."
He opened a door to a room. He was shocked. "Mrs. Foster! You're early!"
"Good morning to you too, Dr. Stephano," a woman with dark hair and green eyes greeted him as we entered the room. "How many times have I told you to call me Emma?"
Dr. Stephano smiled. "I have trouble calling my own daughter by her first name," he said, eying me.
I smiled. "I'm his daughter. I'm Sophie, but you can call me Physic."
The woman shook my hand. "I'll call you that if that's what you prefer, but Sophie's a beautiful name." She patted her stomach. "Maybe that's what I'll name my little girl."
My little girl, I thought.
She smiled. "I'm Emma."
I smiled back. "Nice to meet you, Emma."
Dr. Stephano cleared his throat. "So, I'll be checking your blood pressure today. . ."
His words continued, but drifted off in my mind. My thoughts traveled elsewhere. My girl will be living with this nice lady, at least.
"Physic, did you know that your hair is so beautiful?" Emma asked, as Dr. Stephano took her blood pressure.
I smiled. "Thanks." I've been told that a lot, but my hair was blonde then. I was getting used to having dark hair. I liked how it looked with my eyes.
"It's so long. . ." she continued. "My hair used to be like that. I had to cut it because someone got gum in it! People these days!"
I wasn't even going to ask what gum was. "Such a shame," I commented.
She nodded. "I know, right. If you want to avoid those gum-chewers you should keep your hair in braids. They're the best."
"I tried them once or twice but I never really liked them."
"I won't believe it. You're so beautiful, you could pull off anything."
Dr. Stephano pulled the blood pressure thing off her arm and continued his checkup on her.
I smiled. "Thank you, Emma." Out of nowhere my hand just reached to my hair and started weaving it. I don't know what caused me to do it, but I loved the feeling of my hair braiding itself through my fingers.
When I finished, I found a mirror in the corner of the room. I actually kind of liked it. The braids look better on darker hair. I smiled and turned to Emma.
She smiled back. "See? Look what I told you."
This kind woman would be perfect for my daughter. I only hoped that Project Moonlark would believe that too.
BRANT
"So what do you exactly do for the Neverseen?" I asked Gisela as we poked through the trees of some forest in the Forbidden Cities.
"I'm in charge of Lodestar Initiative. It's a creation I've been working on for as long as I can remember."
"What is it?"
"It's kind of like an elf, but at the same time it isn't, because I created it. I told everyone that he was my son for a year now. My husband doesn't even know that I created him. But he will help the Neverseen one day. He'll make me proud."
"His name is Lodestar Initiative?"
"Of course not. His name is Keefe."
"Keefe Sencen. Got it. I have another question. Before, you called this creation 'it' and now you call him 'he.' Why? Do you think of him as a son or a creation?"
"He's my creation, which makes him my son. Think of it that way."
I nodded and we stepped out of the trees.
JOLIE
As I stepped into the black pavilion deep in the heart of the subterranean forest, I finally found the Collective. "Blur, Wraith, and Granite," I greeted them, using the names that Mr. Forkle told me. "I was sent to you by Leto Kerlof, who's going by the name of Mr. Forkle at the moment. My name is Jolie Ruewen."
"Jolie Ruewen?" Granite questioned. "But from what I've heard you're. . . dead."
"Far from it. I escaped from the flames before it could touch me."
"Then what is that burn on your palm?" Wraith asked.
"A Pyrokinetic held my hand not so long ago. I thought he was trustworthy, but he's as far from it as I am of death."
"But how did you escape the fire all alone? You can't conjure away a fire."
"You'd be surprised," I said, grinning. "But I leaped out of the fire, actually, with a little help from Kerlof. He wanted me to join the Collective."
They all exchanged looks. "Well, we do need a new member. . ." Granite mumbled.
"Prentice did say that she was amazing. . ." Wraith agreed.
"And she does seem pretty capable. . ." Blur added.
They whispered amongst themselves for a moment and then they agreed that I would join the Collective. I was in.
"You'll need a code name and a disguise," Blur told me.
"I would rather not walk around in stone all day, if you don't mind," I said. "What if I wore a mask? My hair and skin color changed in a leaping accident and nobody would recognize me."
They agreed that I could wear a mask, but I must wear it at all times. I agreed and they showed me to my new quarters.
"This was kind of last minute, so you'll have to share a room with our doctor," Granite explained when we got there.
I nodded.
He knocked on the door. "Juline!"
The door opened. "Yes, Granite?"
Standing at the door was someone I knew very well. Her name was Juline Dizznee, and I have to say that I was very shocked to find my aunt to be the one standing there.
BRANT
Someone yelled something in the human language as I set fire to an unfinished building. Gisela seemed to have understood it very well, because she yelled something back, and from what I can tell, it didn't sound so pleasant.
The building went down and I remembered my thoughts from not so long ago.
Does this make you feel good?
I smiled. For some reason it did.
JOLIE
"Aunt Juline?" I asked, once I was left alone with my aunt.
"Jolie," she whispered. She put her hand on my cheek, the slightest touch, but it made me feel so welcome. "You're alive. . ."
"How did you know it was me?" I asked.
"Your voice, dear. I must've heard it a million times."
I smiled. "You know that you can't tell my mother about this, right?"
She smiled sadly. "I know. It pains me that I get to see you while my sister's in the mourning of your loss."
"I never got to say goodbye," I croaked.
"I know, dear."
She combed her fingers through my hair, and I suddenly felt at home. This was my home now. And I actually kind of liked it.
BRANT
My life had no purpose.
I hid the thought in the back of my mind, trying to convince myself that it wasn't true.
But it was.
I lost my only love in the world.
My job was to kill people.
I lived all alone.
My life was pretty much over. But I knew that I wouldn't die for a long time.
JOLIE
About a year had passed since I joined the Collective. I didn't know how I felt about being in charge. It just wasn't. . . me.
Aunt Juline was very lucky. She was the doctor! It was always my dream to study medicines and to help people. And Aunt Juline was lucky.
"Aunt Juline, would you want to trade positions?" I asked her once in her office.
She smiled. "With who?"
"Me."
"Why would you want to trade with places with a physician? You're like the ultimate boss!"
"That's exactly why I would want to trade. You know I love medicines. I know everything about being a doctor. I wasn't made to be a leader. I think you were. You're very wise."
"Thank you, Jolie. Is this really how you feel?"
"Yes."
"Then let's tell the Collective. I think we have a new physician. What shall we call you?"
I smiled. "Physic."
And that's where my life began.
A/n: So that's it. Please review if you've enjoyed. If you would like a sequel or something also review. I'm so happy about this!