Well, if you read Chapter 3, IT WAS INTENSE! chapter four is slightly less exciting but necessary and full of emotion. WARNING: YOU MAY CRY WHEN YOU READ THIS. I did, and im the author!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything I mention.
Chapter 4
Before Paae and Saterina come barging in, I slip into the wardrobe and put on clothes I know will be fine for training: dark jeans that won't slip off my waist and a comfortable, form-fitting green shirt. Nothing to dangle and get in the way, but easy to move in, and I grin at my genius before shoving my feet into a pair of Converse and setting off down the hall.
I walk down the hallway, following the smell of maple syrup, and grin when I enter a relatively modern-looking kitchen. After the outer appearance of the castle and the ancient furniture in my room, I was almost expecting giant wood ovens. Paae stands at the stove while Saterina sits at the table, and I tap them both on the shoulder before waving hello and taking a seat. My habits of speaking reach me, and without anything coming out, I automatically mouth the words, Why are you guys servants here instead of working in the Faerie universe?
Paae laughs and flips pancakes on the griddle. "That's easy. We weren't quite so…obedient back in the Faerie kingdom. As in we snuck out to go party a lot. And since we were the Faerie Queen's handmaidens, well, she started to notice. One day she busted us and was trying to figure out how to punish us when her friend, your mistress Hana, came to visit. Hana went on and on about how it was almost time to go get her new apprentice, so the Queen had this brilliant idea and sent us here to help you out instead, to teach us a lesson!"
I grin. I'm glad you're here, I mouth. Do you miss it down there?
Paae laughs and nods. "Absolutely, but you're pretty entertaining! Now eat up!" She sets a plate piled high with pancakes in front of me, and I grin and dig in.
Scarfing down my pile of pancakes, I notice Saterina is being much quieter than usual. I rise and placed my hand on her shoulder, and she breaks into a violent sob. Without pausing to think, I reach my arms around her and give her a huge bear hug. In my mind I consider asking what's wrong, but realize I can't and sigh. Suddenly, a voice echoes in my head: I am well, Ari. Do not worry. I turn to stare at Saterina, who has already stopped crying and smiles at me. Her smile soon fades, and I heard her voice again: I am only very distressed at some news I have received from home. She holds up an ivory parchment, folded into three, and thrusts it at me before bursting into tears and rushing away down the corridor. Paaë and I gaze down the hall, watching her open her red wings and fly straight up. Paaë frowns and turns to me. "I had better go get her. Please read the letter, but as fast as you can; your mistress wants you in her chambers in twenty minutes." Then she pops open her own wings, and when I blink, she's gone.
After absorbing what I just witnessed, I return to the table and resume chewing my pancakes. I suddenly remember the letter in my hand and set it down next to my plate, swallowing my last few bites as I smooth out the creases in the fancy paper and begin to read.
My dearest Saterina,
I send this letter not with joyous news of your freedom; nor does it contain joyful news of any sort. I come to warn you that your beloved, Cantir, will be performing the rites of adulthood in three moons. At that time, as you know, a woman will choose him for her husband. He is quite handsome, with his red bandana around his head and his wavy blond hair, and I am depressingly sure that some female in the kingdom will snatch him up if you are not home for the ceremony. I beg you to ask the goddess for leave to return to the kingdom at that time so that you do not lose each other forever. In the meantime, Cantir and I will do our best to put off the ceremony and convince the Queen to give him more time. I pray you hurry home, dear friend, for these arguments will not prevail. My brother sends his love to you and has enclosed a token should you not meet again. I have hope you will return to us in time.
Your Dearest Friend,
Katya
I refold the letter and leave it on the table. So Saterina is in love with someone and has been taken from him: we have more in common than I thought. I glance at the clock and shoot up from my chair; I have to be in Neferet's room in three minutes. Stuffing the letter in the pocket of my jeans, I shoot out the door, deciding on my way to ask Hana to let Saterina go home in three months Still, as I walk, my thoughts distract me from the task. I'm about to start training, and while I despise Hana, I'm excited. I will unlock hidden talents, and I'll be one step closer to getting my power and destroying the goddess.
I knock tentatively on the door to Hana's room. A breezy "come in" floats through from under the door, and I push on it lightly with my fingertips. It opens up, and I step forward. The room is different this time: a sandy shore about fifty yards long reaches down to the edge of the water, where calm waves lap against the damp sand. The beach stretches for as far as I could see, and in front of me, Hana dances barefoot in the waves, her white dress tucked into her sash and her pale hair streaming through the sea foam. She exits the water as I approach, releasing her dress back down to her ankles. Placing her hands gently on my shoulders, she looks deep into my eyes. Welcome, child, to your first day among the eternal. The second voice of the day enters my brain, but Hana had not opened her mouth. In my head, I wonder, "How is that happening?" Simple, my dear. I jump at hearing her once again, and she smiles. Since all apprentices lose their voices, I am able to use telepathy. It is a special privilege; you do not have it, but gods and goddesses do. Faerie may also use telepathy if necessary, but it takes years of training and emotional control. She releases me and takes a few steps back towards the ocean. Snapping her fingers, her entire body is absorbed in a bright glow, and I had to shield my eyes. When it fades, she's dressed in a stretchy white outfit, ready for combat or any sort of training. There are four elements to teach you how to master. Today you will learn about fire. She gestures with two fingers towards the right of the beach. Follow me.
We walk for perhaps half a mile before coming to a black stone circle. At the bottom of it, orange circles resembling dodgeballs wait innocently. They look harmless enough, but as I descend into the ring they set aflame and begin to hiss and leap at me. I take a step back and allow Hana to descend first. As the circles of fire morph and approach her, she raises her hand, and in doing so lifts the flaming orbs off the ground. She lowers her hand and smashes the flames against the rock, after which they dim and hiss and roll to the other corner of the ring. I tentatively follow her path to the floor of the dark circle and stand next to her, waiting for instruction. She turns to me. "Verbal instruction may perhaps be better for this exercise," she said. "Now. I want you to focus on those balls of fire. Each element is controlled by a different emotion: fire can be mastered with anger or lust, whichever the being is feeling more of at that moment." She reaches over and shuts my eyelids with her fingertips. "Listen to your feelings. What makes you angry? What makes you want?" she whispers in my ear. I think of how she had taken me, of how I had lost my parents, my siblings, all the love in the world in a single moment, gone. I remember my rage at my bedroom door the night before: my knuckles still ache from trying to get out. I feel her lift my hand and murmur, "Now…release your anger! Your frustration! Use it to control the fire!"
Suddenly, I feel something very different. I feel something alive in my mind, angry and afraid. It's close to me, but also a little far away. I take a few steps forward and the feeling grows stronger, and I soon realize what it is: I had made a connection with the fire. I feel what it feels, and it does what I do. A constant struggle is going on in my mind: I want to control it and it wants to control me. I fight hard against the fire orbs, not wanting to lose complete control of myself. I wrestle with its fear and anger, and as I begin to lift my hand, I can feel the flames rising too. I make a fist and pull the fire towards me, feeling the heat as I choke it and pull it closer to me. I sense the circles crash together; I can see the fresh, blue flames in my mind. My rage overtakes me once again: this ball of flame, in its cage of stone, has decided to be against me, and I need to teach it a lesson.
I enjoy the feeling of power it gives me, knowing I can throw the fire and bring it back without really even trying. I play yo-yo with it a few times, as if I was practicing my baseball throws back home with Toby in the backyard, and decid to send that fire flying before I settle down for the day. I stretch my hand back as far as I can and thrust it over my shoulder, releasing my control over the flames. Unbridled joy courses through my veins as the fire pulses in my blood one last time before departing and soaring far, far away. I smile at the heat of my recent battle, lost in my chaotic thoughts.
I'm interrupted from this tired reverie by a scream, followed by a hiss and an anguished cry. I open my eyes and see two figures standing atop the edge of the stone ring: one completely white, the other, aqua and lavender. I fear the worst has occurred as Hana holds Paaë gently in her arms. I cry out silently and run for the top of the ridge, completely forgetting my exhaustion. When I reach them, I send a frantic message to Hana: Iseverythingallright? Wha happened? Is she dead? Hurt? Hana laughed and released Paaë, who glares viciously at me. I suppose I look pretty confused, because Paaë huffs angrily and turns around. Half of her lovely red braid is missing, and the rest of her hair has come loose. It's singed at the ends, and I think it looks pretty, but I can hear Paaë screaming with rage in my head: How could you do this? My hair! My beautiful hair! You burned it all off with that stupid fireball of yours, you dumbass! She opens her undamaged wings and flutters off, but she looks so much like an angry butterfly that I can't help but laugh.
Hana dismisses me with a wave. "You are much stronger than I thought, my dear. You have mastered fire already. Tomorrow we will try the element of air. Now, I would suggest you go try to repair Paae's hair."
I bow respectfully and take off after my friend, easily following the trail of smoke from her smoldering braid in the sky.
