Innocent Times — Logan
"You've grown so much, to see your skills you've adapted to astounds me." The Master had interrupted.
"But—" he paused. "You are still too rash in your thinking. The dangers you will face as a keyblade master are unlike any other you have seen before. You need to be able to focus and plan." He explained.
"I understand." I nodded.
"I know you care very much for your brother and Celina, as do I. You protect them with your light, Logan. I believe that you are strong enough to do so. You just need to think before acting, then you will have the makings of a true master." He smiled.
"Thank you, Master Eraqus."
"You are free to prepare as you please for the rest of today. Rest, study or train. Just make sure you keep the other two out of trouble." He chuckled walking back to staircase.
I still need to work on my studies, the others will surpass me if I'm not careful.
Becoming a Keyblade Master would give me the strength I need to remedy the past. I could be strong enough to prevent something like that from ever happening again. I never want anyone to go through the pain and darkness my brother and I have faced.
I'll protect others too.
"Logan!" Celina interrupted my thoughts. "Are we done with training for today?" She asked, approaching. She must have noticed I stopped after the Master left.
"Yeah, he cut us some slack today. I guess he believes we're ready." I laughed nervously.
"Well, you certainly sound confident." She smirked, "what did he have to say to you, hmm?" She questioned standing on her toes to reach my height as she jabbed her index finger at me.
"Same thing as he always does." I felt my face flush slightly as she huffed, obviously not satisfied with my answer.
"And what have we here?" Jackson had walked over to us. "You're not pestering Logan again are you, Cel?" He laughed lightly.
"Of course not but it seems he's the only one that's falling behind now." She spun around to face my brother.
"What no I'm not—" I defended myself.
"Well, since we are free for the rest of the day I believe I'm going to turn in early." Jackson interrupted starting away from us.
"Where you do think you're going Jacky?" Celina stepped in front of him.
"I'm tired, we've got a big day ahead of us tomorrow." Jackson answered flatly. I couldn't shake the feeling he wasn't being fully truthful. Over the last few weeks I noticed he seemed to drag on through training. Once I noticed him sneaking out late at night. I was always curious what was going on.
Maybe he was seeing someone?
"Well you're no fun at all, lazy bum. I had something planned for all of us." Celina pouted.
"Such as?" I raised a brow, facing her. My thoughts pulled back to our conversation.
"Oh you'll see." She smiled, taking off up the path to the summit. "Last one there handles all the chores tomorrow!" She shouted running along.
"That's not even fair!" I pushed Jackson aside, following after her.
"Really? I'm not going to let some childish—" Jackson started.
"Come on, Jack this might be our last evening as apprentices." I stopped turning back to him.
"Won't be yours." He smirked rushing past me. "You'll be late to your own exam tomorrow." He laughed, gaining a headstart on me.
"Oh that dirty—" I raced after him, it was close but I still wound up in last place.
"About time you boys showed up." Celina laughed turning away from the view. By now, the stars were beginning to peek out one by one. Even if we did find ourselves here every evening the scene was just as breathtaking as it was the day before.
"Well, n-now what's this surprise you wanted to show us?" Jackson asked breathlessly.
Celina turned from us again to gaze at the sky before us. "Is it true that each star out there is a different world?"
"So I've heard." I answered, finally able to catch my breath.
"To think my home is out there somewhere… I want to see them all." She continued. "I always found the night sky fascinating. Other worlds, new places to explore." Her face lit up with each word, I knew that she did come from another world. She wanted to know her past.
"You brought us up here to look at the same stars we see everyday?" Jackson remarked.
I glared at him. He always knew the best way to ruin the moment.
"No silly!" She playfully punched him. "We used to sit and search for the constellations. I thought maybe that's what we could do. Since we won't know what our Mark of Mastery Exam will entail." She smiled, taking her usual spot on the retaining wall.
I took my place next to her, glancing back at my brother. Something wasn't right, he isn't normally this antisocial.
"Come on now, don't be a jerk." I gave him a sheepish smile.
"Oh, alright." He gave in with a slight smile.
"This isn't the only reason I brought us up here." Celina fished through her pockets. "I made these myself. A little luck for tomorrow." She smiled, holding out a small cut of ribbon.
"And what exactly is that? Don't tell me you want me to tie my hair with a cute little bow." I snorted.
"Fine then. No ribbon for you." She turned away, handing Jackson his.
"Not only are they good luck charms but they keep us together. No matter what happens or how far apart we become, we'll always be entwined together. I may have also worked in some of my magic into to them too. Meaning they also give us a little boost with our skills." She added, turning back to me. "They may seem like a girly trinket but this will be your best accessory you ever own. So long as you're wearing it, the effects won't fade away." She finally handed me my ribbon.
"Thank you— this is thoughtful Cel."
It did worry me even though we had been through training for so long, our exam could be anything. We could be separated, tested on our individual strength, this could be the last time we sit under the same stars together… at least for some time.
"Thank you." Jackson quietly added, standing up. "Like I said earlier, I'm turning in for the night. I'll see you two tomorrow, best of luck for everyone." Before either of us could speak, he was already gone.
"It's not like him to actually go to sleep early. What's with your brother?" Celina stood up, stretching.
"I'm not sure." I partially lied, I couldn't be sure she knew he was sneaking out at night to do whatever it was he was doing.
"Whatever it is, he needs to get it together." She chuckled.
"Right…" I glanced back to the overlook, watching the stars. I was alone now after Celina left. Something was different about Jackson.
Ooh that boy might be getting into something he shouldn't. We'll find out soon enough in the next chapter. As always, reviews are greatly appreciated and welcome!
