Chapter 7.
A/N: Because I've been having quite a few people ask me, I'm just going to state this here: I probably read too many X-Men comics. I was reading one of my old comic books when the idea for this story kind of popped into my mind. Personally, I believe Marvel has the best superheroes. But before I go off on a tangent (because I could), I'm going to end this right here.
It kills me to see my name beside the number two. This has never happened before in all of my years at Volterra. I stare at the list until I can finally accept that it's reality, and this whole thing actually happened. So many thoughts run through my mind. I'm obviously not good enough. I need to train more. I have been getting soft on my training. I guess up until now I had no reason to fear anything. Oh how I completely underestimated Edward Cullen...
"Bella," Alice says, snapping me out of my thoughts. "We're going back to the dorms to celebrate. Are you in?"
"What?" I ask.
"I'm a level five now. I got the promotion." Jasper explains. He eyes me dubiously at my behavior. He glances at the new list for Elemental and sees why I'm acting this way. "I'm sorry, Bells. I had no idea."
I shrug. "I'm fine, and congratulations."
Emmett and Rose join us. Em has this wide smile on his face. "Damn! Did you see that?! Edward was all flame, flame, flame!" He makes little hand movements and then mimics an explosion. "And then he went all flame on! That was epic!"
I try to offer a weak smile but it comes out a grimace. Rosalie moves past Emmett to peruse the Elemental class list. "Number two?!'" She exclaims, tearing the paper from the wall. Emmett takes a look it over her shoulder.
"Can we take this to the dorms?" Alice gestures to our group.
They agree to head back home, but I decline the offer. "I've got somewhere to be," I tell them.
I leave the lobby area in front of the assembly room and turn down the second hallway to the right. The lights are off down this hallway except for a couple of emergency exit signs that light the walkway with a dim red. I opt for the stairs instead of the elevator. I walk down three flights of stairs before I reach the solid metal door. Surprisingly, it's unlocked.
My hand reaches for the light switch that I know to be nearby. The basement is engulfed with light. At the end of the hallway to my left is the simulation room. It always remains unlocked and deadbolted. I think there's also an alarm in place for if any of us get any ideas about breaking in anyway. To my immediate right is a large supply closet. After that are a series of doors leading to the different training rooms and a separate hallway that leads to the medical wing.
If I'm going to reclaim my title as best in the elemental field, I've got a lot of work to do. A thermostat rests on the wall beside one of the training rooms. I turn the temperature up to 99° and grab a row of dummies from the supply room. I wheel them into the room and set one up before me. I take a box of matches from the supply room.
I'm beginning to feel the effects of the temperature change, and I shrug out of my warm sweater, leaving me in a plain white camisole and a pair of jeans. I light the match and hold it to the dummy. It takes two tries for it to finally light on fire. The fire licks at the beige material, and a section of the beige turns black and the fire begins to die out.
I take another match to the dummy, and the flames begin to spread. I let the fire consume the dummy before I make my move. I envision that it's Edward before me in his fire form. I had noticed that he fire wasn't surrounding him, he was fire.
My eyes narrow at the fire. I extend my hand towards the dummy. The fire dies out as the ice continues to form along the dummy.
I pull my hair into a high bun. Ice forms over my fingernails forming ice extensions at least a foot long. They're shape to a point. The ice becomes denser. I walk to the opposite side of the room. I take a deep breath and take off running.
I build up a sweat as my feet propel me forward. My hand comes up as I approach the dummy. All it takes is one clean swipe. The dummy is cut four times at an angle. Each piece slides down and falls to the ground before me. The ice breaks from my nails and hits the ground as well.
I run my hands down the length of my body, changing the sweat to ice. I form the ice into shards in my hand, each one sharpened to a deadly point. I throw the icicles at one of the dummies. Every icicle lands on the head of the dummy, and the ice forms a nice circle. With a sigh of determination, I immerse myself into my training.
By the third day, I've replaced the dummies with punching bags. Not only do I need to work on my ice powers, but physical and combat training are also imperative. I've been training religiously for the past few days. I'm determined to get back on top.
I construct a glove of ice and land a punch on the large black bag. The ice shatters around my fist upon impact. The shards cut into my skin causing blood to surface at the cuts. I cradle the hurt hand to my chest. I mentally steel myself and form the ice boxing gloves once more, this time making them the densest, hardest ice I've constructed.
Then, I begin to punch the heavy bag continuously until the pain becomes number with each pound. I concentrate on the feel and coldness of the ice around my hands instead of the pain. I end up absorbing a lot of the shock from the punches in my hands. Once I'm satisfied, I remove the ice. My hand is bloody. I take a roll of bandages and wrap my hands up to my wrists. I put a hand on the punching bag. Ice covers the bag.
I take a deep breath and focus. I envision a snowy evening. Snow blankets the ground and there's ice. A person made of ice. I direct my attention to that blurry figure, hoping that it'll become clearer. I let out a sneeze. I can actually feel my body temperature lowering. I maintain that focus. Suddenly, that ice figure continues to get even blurrier instead of becoming lucid.
No. The veins on my forehead become more prominent. No. No. No! I had been so close. So fucking close. In frustration, My fist connects with the punching bag in an overhand punch. I don't even notice the pain that results.
My fists make continuous jabs at the ice as I train myself beyond what we've learned in combat class. Laurent would be proud. I remove the bag of ice from the hook attached to the ceiling. It's heavy, but I'm able to carry it with one hand and move it out of the way.
Soon, my hands tire, and I shake my wrists out. I construct a new punching bag of ice hanging from the barren hook. I move a few steps back and take a running lead. I jump two feet before the bag, turning my hip over to bend my knee, landing a sharp roundhouse kick. The ice instantly shatters, and shards go everywhere. My left leg is cut in many places, and a few shards manage to nick me in my arm. One particular ice shard came at such an angle that the part of the one inch fragment wedged itself into my upper left arm just below the shoulder. My fingers find the piece. I wince and hold my breath as I give it a pull. I find the end coated in blood. The metallic smell of the dark liquid reaches my nostrils. The sliver slips out of my fingers and falls the floor.
I go to pick it up, when I notice scattered dust before me on top of the many bits and pieces of ice. I stand back up as Jasper materializes before me with a rag. I take it from him and wipe the dark red blood that's seeping down my arm. I then use it to place pressure on the wound. "Don't do that."
"Do what?" He asks innocently.
"Reintegrate in front of me like that. You could've scared me."
Jasper's gray eyes scope the floor below him. He takes a step closer to me, and his boot crunches the fragments of ice. "Looks like you can handle yourself though."
I cross my arms over my chest. "Why are you here?"
"Why are you here? It's 2 am. You should be in bed sleeping."
I look down at the ground before reluctantly meeting his eyes. "I can't sleep."
He moves to envelop me in his arms. I smell his familiar scent and know it's as close to home as I'll ever get. "I haven't seen you around in a few days since..."
"You saw me earlier. Twice. Literature and combat practice."
"You need food." Jasper sighs, taking my hand and pulling me towards the door.
Spikes of ice form around his hold, pricking his hand. "Shit," He glares at me. Jasper sticks his knuckle in his mouth to prevent the blood from flowing. "What happened to your hands?" He scans my face and sees the bloodstain on the back of my left leg. I haven't stopped it from bleeding yet.
I place my hands behind my back so that he can no longer see my bandaged palms. "I've been spending a lot of time down here."
"No shit." He mutters. "When's the last time you've eaten? And don't lie to me because I know you weren't at lunch today nor with Garrett, and you never showed up for dinner. I took a look at the list of people who signed up for training this week. Tell me why you signed up for every available slot, and you're still in here from earlier."
I grab the next punching bag, but Jasper snatches it out of my hands. He gives me a look that says 'We need to talk'. With a sigh, I tell him, "I need to train."
"No. You need to eat. Now let's go." He pulls my hand again. "Garrett's waiting. We can either do this the easy way or the hard way." His gray eyes gaze at my hand, as if daring me to try something again. "I could easily break down your molecular structure, and force you to go with us, since you wouldn't be present to make any of your own decisions. And we'd have to hope that I collected all of the pieces or else your reconstructure could get a little nasty. Now which is it?"
I twist out of his hold and stand my ground. "I'll go on my own."
I grudgingly walk with him out of the training room and into the hallway where the sudden light blinds my eyes. Kate is standing next to Garrett with a flashlight in her hands. She gives it to Garrett and it immediately goes out. "We couldn't find the light switch for the hallway, but we did manage to trip over this dead flashlight." Kate says. "I gave it a little battery power and we were able to find which training room you were in."
Garrett averts his eyes from me. "I'll be back in a couple of minutes. You all go on without me." He phases out of the room.
Jasper keeps a hand on the small of my back as if he's afraid that I'll try something. Kate's eyes seem strained, but she does her best to make small talk on our way up the elevator. I reward her questions with answers because I know she's trying.
By the time we make it out of the school building, Garrett is waiting with Angela, a healer. She gasps at the sight of me but nevertheless forces a smile to her face. "Hello Bella," She greets with a timid smile.
Angela and I never crossed paths too much, but I know the level four second year from things I've heard about her. The consensus is that this healer is one of the most genuine people around here. I believe that. She wears black glasses and her dark hair is thrown over her shoulder. She's still in her pajamas, so I know that Garrett probably woke her up to get her to come.
I give a small wave. She approaches me, looking unsure. "May I?" Angela asks as her hands move closer to mine.
I nod, and she unwraps the bandages, letting them fall to the ground. She covers my hands with hers, and after a few seconds, she releases them. They look better than they did even better I started training. Soft and smooth now. Her healing fingers brush across my face. The bruises return to normal and the scratches fade. She leads me to the nearest bench so I can sit down. She rolls up my left pants leg and works her magic, ceasing the blood flow as soon as her fingers touch the cuts. Angela finishes and moves on to my arm and gives a small smile.
She places a hand flat against where my heart is. It stays there for at least ten seconds. The beating of my heart returns to normal and as each second passes, I feel myself gaining more energy. "Thank you," I say.
"No problem." She replies.
"Do you need help getting back to your dorm?" Garrett steps over, ready to be of assistance.
"I don't mind walking back," Angela insists. Without another word, she takes off in the direction of the girls' dormitory.
"I brought a change of clothes for you." Kate hands them to me. "Maybe you could change before we leave?"
I do as she says and return after changing to the group. They're waiting on me. "So where to?" Kate inquires, placing her hand inside of Garrett's.
They turn to me. I shrug. "I'm not really in the mood for anything in particular."
"I'm thinking Asia," Kate says. "I'm in the mood for Chinese. Remember that little restaurant in Beijing? Xiao Wang Fu?"
Garrett nods. I grasp hold his other hand, and Jasper takes mine. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. I open my eyes to a completely different scenery. It's light outside and looks to be mid-afternoon. We walk into the restaurant. It's a good thing that Kate speaks Chinese well. She may not be fluent, but I believe she knows enough to get around.
We take our seats and Kate reads aloud the menu, translating it into English. I settle for some beef dish, and we wait for the food to arrive.
"So Bella..." Garrett says. "How's training coming along?"
"It could be moving faster." I reply coolly, throwing a glare at Jasper.
Kate's expression gives way to worry. "Dr. Carlisle says that we should be careful not to overexert ourselves."
"I'm just fine."
Jasper shakes his head. "What is it that you're trying to accomplish?"
"I need to regain my spot." I sigh.
He nods as if he knows that's what it really boils down to. "You wont be first in everything, Bells. Don't sacrifice your health over this foolishness."
"Foolishness?" I laugh dryly. He doesn't understand.
"You resent him. I realized that the other day. Don't think that just because I wasn't around for a while in preparation for the assembly that it means I didn't notice anything. You hate him for whatever reason."
"Yeah well, I'm not his favorite person either," I retort.
He leans back in his chair next to me. "Edward doesn't hate you though. He may have some misconstrued thoughts about you and the way you've been acting, but he doesn't hate you."
"What do you know about Edward?"
Jasper shrugs. "I was curious about the person who had my little cousin so riled up. I had to check him out, so he and I had a chat."
Kate and Garrett sit silently during the whole conversation, probably too scared to speak. I calm myself. "I don't need your help, Jasper. I can take care of myself."
"You may not need it, but I never asked you for your permission," Jasper clarifies. "I'll look after you regardless, and you can thank me later."
I'm about to come back with a smart reply when the food comes out. After that, I'm a little preoccupied. Nothing is said for at least ten minutes after we start eating. I'm finishing the last few bites of the vegetables on my plate when Jasper says, "When we get back, just do me this one favor and get some rest. You look like shit, and that's an understatement."
Garrett stifles a laugh, and Kate busies herself with her meal. I roll my eyes. "Fine. But don't think that just because we went on this impromptu visit to China that I won't be going back to my training later."
"You're as stubborn as a mule," Jasper replies. "I figured there was no way of talking you out of it."
Kate pushes her plate away from her. "I'm full." She sighs. "Let's just pay for the food and go."
"You have yuans in your wallet, don't you?" Garrett asks Kate, referring to the Chinese currency.
She makes no move to reach into her pocket. "I didn't bring my wallet. I thought you had us covered." We notice the Chinese waiter glancing over at us.
"I guess that only leaves us with one option then." Garrett says, motioning for us to hurry and hold hands. "Let's go."
We join hands. It's a few seconds later when Garrett frowns. "That's weird. Usually I just envision the place and boom! I'm there. It didn't work."
"Try it again," Kate encourages.
He closes his eyes this time. Twenty seconds pass and we're still seated here in the restaurant. I'm beginning to get antsy, wondering what's happening. "It's not working," Garrett sighs. "I tried the northern courtyard, the training room, and even inside our dorm room."
I look over at Jasper. He's always got a plan. Jasper runs a hand through his ash-blonde hair. "Try just outside of the gate then."
It works. We're standing outside of the massive, black iron gates leading to the school's entrance. "Now what?" I say. "It's not like the gates are ever open."
Garrett grabs hold of the poles of the gate. "I can't get anywhere beyond the gate. What's going on?"
"Hand me your cell phone," I tell Jasper. His hands it over without questioning. I dial Alice's number and she answers on the first ring.
"Jasper? Where are you?" She questions worriedly.
"It's me, actually. I'm with Jasper, Garrett, and Kate outside of the gates." I tell her. "What's the issue here? Why can't we teleport anywhere on school grounds?" Through the iron bars, I can see the school far off into the distance. So close and yet so far.
I hear Alice call Rose over. She speaks again, nervously this time. "Your teleportation must have triggered the alarm. The force field is now up."
I groan. There's no way we can get back inside now, at least until the force field is deactivated. This means that the three headmasters are going to find out where we've been. And they won't be too happy. Consequences will result, and I'll never get my position as number one in elemental after this.
The world feels like it's crashing in on me, and suddenly all I see is darkness.
I wake up with a jolt. Kate stands over me. Her hand is poised at my side. "Sorry," She apologizes. "But it was necessary. We've been standing out here for almost an hour and you weren't waking up."
So she had shocked me into consciousness. "Why was I out for so long?"
Jasper gives me a hand, pulling me to my feet. "You used to pass out sometimes, but only when it got extremely hot outside. My guess is that this time fatigue and hunger weakened you; that can cause black outs."
"The headmasters are going have to let us in," I say, staring at the wrought iron bars.
"We know." Garrett sighs. And I have a feeling that this conversation had already been discussed while I was out.
Kate sits on the grass and pulls her knees to her chest. "Maybe we can ask Alice if she can try to phase through the force field," She suggests.
"If it didn't work for me, I doubt it'll work for Alice," Garrett replies.
A white brick wall lines the perimeter of the school grounds. The iron gates fill the opening of the wall. I place my hand along the clean white bricks. I notice the gap between the bottom of the iron gates and the ground. "Jasper," I turn to him. "Maybe you could work your powers and try to move me under the gate and to the other side, and I can try to help from there."
Jasper shakes his head. "You don't understand what that would mean. That's pretty much the destruction of your molecules. It's more complicated and painful than I make it seem. So, that's not an option."
"We're going to be in so much trouble." I sigh.
Kate responds, "Maybe they'll be lenient towards us." She pauses for a moment and corrects her own statement. "No, probably not."
Light begins to touch the trees, casting long shadows. The dawn begins to break. The sun can be seen on the horizon to the right. From the western courtyard walk three figures. They look dark against the backdrop of the sun. They walk nearer, and I'm able to identify the three as the headmasters.
The wrought iron gate cries out as it slowly opens. We enter the schoolgrounds and walk to meet the three. Aro, standing in the middle, wears a serious expression, whereas Caius seems to find this humorous. His eyes are alight as he takes in the situation. Marcus looks his usual self.
Once we meet the three, Caius motions for us to follow them. They lead us across the courtyard and to the headmasters' building. It holds an office, a library, and a few suites. I've only been inside the building once, when I first arrived.
The inside is as lavish as I remember. Beige and cream patterned tiles imported from Italy cover the floor. A center piece of a golden vase rests atop a rich brown wooded side table. Other than the table, the room is empty. The walls are a dark red and three gold mirrors line the wall.
Jasper gazes at the room around us. Four hallways branch off from this lobby area. We pass by the vase, and Jasper reaches out to touch it.
Headmaster Aro immediately spins around to face the four of us. "Careful. That expensive piece was imported from Japan. We don't anything to happen to it."
Jasper raises his hands to show he had meant no harm, and Aro only turns around once Jazz is a distance away from it. No wonder they hardly ever allow students in here. With so many valuable items, the headmasters don't want to take any chances.
We enter a room off of the hallway. It's the headmasters' library. There are tons of dark brown oak bookcases and a table with three chairs in the center of the room. There are block letters of gold spelling out each one of their names, and the names rest on the table. The walls are an olive tone and the carpet is a rich gold.
Headmaster Marcus is seated on top of the table, but Headmaster Caius is nowhere to be found. The four of us come to a halt as Headmaster Aro whirls around to face us. His eyes find each and every one of us. "There is a curfew instilled at midnight every night. There is not to be any coming or going out of the school. If someone tries to get in, it triggers an alarm, and the force field appears. If someone tries to leave, the alarm sounds and they won't be able to return. Do you realize the seriousness of this offense?"
"Yes," We chorus. But I wouldn't have even been here if Jasper hadn't decided on this visit to Beijing. Then again, they wouldn't have done this if it weren't for me either.
Headmaster Marcus finally speaks, "Surely a punishment is in order."
"Yes, of course." Headmaster Aro agrees. "I was thinking of probation. What shall it be?"
"Allow me," Headmaster Caius interrupts from behind us. He enters the room carrying something small in his fist. His blonde hair covers part of his face, including his right eye, causing him to look quite mysterious. We face him to wait for the impending judgment. "I think that they should not receive the same punishment. What's the point of that?" He laughs, and it's a little unusual and misplaced. Why is he laughing while dishing out our consequences? The youngest headmaster continues, "Garrett. The teleporter. Don't think that we've been ignorant about your disappearances throughout the day, those lunch outings and the like. We've allowed that to happen because it meant practice. So for you, no use of teleportation-"
"But Headmaster... sir!" Garrett cuts him off. His eyes look a little worried, especially after just cutting off one of the headmasters. Still he continues, "What about for my physical class? I need to be able to use my ability for my field."
Headmaster Caius cocks his head to the side. "Do you?" His green eyes are piercing. "By all means then, why don't you go ahead and try to bounce back to the lobby?"
Garrett looks even more nervous now, as he knows the headmaster is blatantly challenging him. "Okay," He mumbles. Garrett looks toward the door with uncertainty. I can tell that he's trying to use his powers, but it isn't working. Garrett wears a face of frustration.
But the headmaster only finds this amusing. Headmaster Caius smirks, and Headmaster Aro speaks, "Four weeks probation."
Headmaster Caius sighs and toys with the gold letter 'C' of his name. "When will you students ever learn not to use your gifts for selfish purposes?" He makes a 'tsk tsk' sound and faces Kate. "Kate, I have something special for you. Catch." Headmaster Caius throws something to her, and she catches it. It's the object he had in his hands earlier.
Kate opens her hands to find a simple rubber band. She looks up at the headmasters as if this is a joke. "What is this for?" She asks, but it's obvious that she really doesn't want to know the answer to her question.
He answers it anyway. "Have you ever tried to use electricity on one of those? You'll be wearing that. So why don't you try it on? Tell us how that goes." Headmaster Caius turns his attention to me. "Isabella Swan. Ice girl. The use of the training room is a privilege. One that you no longer have. Four weeks." He reiterates. "Instead, why don't you spend that time cleaning the training rooms after use?"
I give him a cold stare at using the training room against me. He knows that I've been training a lot. He's probably in favor of Edward remaining on top, and this is his way of making sure of it. The youngest headmaster quirks an eyebrow, as if daring me to challenge him. At least he isn't going to negate my abilities, I suppose. It could be worse, but still. "Yes sir," I say. I keep my eyes on the ground before me.
"And what about Mr. Whitlock?"
Caius contemplates. "I'm not entirely sure."
Marcus moves from his seat on the table. He gestures to the bookshelves behind him. "The shelves are looking a little dusty. He can work in the library after classes every afternoon."
As his words sink in, Aro looks a little nervous at hearing Jasper will be working the library. Beads of sweat form on his forehead. He looks like he's about to say something, but someone else's voice joins the conversation.
"Headmaster," a new voice says. Edward stands in the entrance of the library. "You called for me?"
"Ah yes." Caius steps forward. "You need to work harder to maintain your status in the elemental field, so I devised a training schedule for you to strictly follow by." He hands him a paper.
I know what Caius is trying to do here now. I'm not allowed to use the training rooms, instead I have to clean it every time people use the rooms. And Edward has to train often now. This means being around him more often.
Caius claps his hands together. "Alright. All of you. Dismissed." We follow Caius and Marcus to the lobby. Aro stays behind. We're escorted out of the building.
"What time is it?" I ask.
"Our first class hasn't started yet," Edward replies. He doesn't meet my eyes. "So why were you all in the headmasters' building?"
"We're on probation now," Garrett responds grudgingly.
The bell rings. It's faint, but we can hear it from out here. "Shit," Edward sighs. "That was the bell. We're late. Can't you just teleport us so we won't have to walk so far?"
"I can't."
"Wait a second," Jasper says. He pats down his pockets. "I think I left my cell phone in there. It may have dropped."
"I'll go with you," I tell him. We walk in the opposite direction. The doors to the building are surprisingly unlocked, so we walk right in. "Do you remember where you last had it?"
He nods. "It was with me when we were in the lobby area." Jasper and I make a right down the hallway. "So I guess it has to be in the library."
We hear talking coming from inside the library, so we pause for a second. The door is cracked. It doesn't sound like any of the headmasters' voices, but we don't want to interrupt anything. All I can make out is that someone with a deep voice is talking. Their words are unclear. I glance at Jasper and see that he's listening carefully. The deep voice is suddenly accompanied by one I recognize to be Aro's.
"Who is-" I start to say, but Jasper cuts me off with a finger to the lips.
Jasper slowly opens the door a little farther, enough for him to squeeze through. I watch him as he crouches down and crawls to grab his phone. I stand guard in the hallway until he returns.
I wait until we're safely a good distance away from the building before speaking. "Did you see who Aro was talking to?" I ask. "It didn't sound like either of the two headmasters or anyone I know."
He keeps his voice low. "The only person in the library was Headmaster Aro, and he had his back turned."
"Maybe he was talking to himself," I suggest.
Jasper shakes his head. "Highly unlikely. That wasn't his voice. Besides, it sounded like the headmaster was answering a question. I couldn't hear what the voice said, but I heard the headmaster say that he was working on something. I don't know what."
"Do you think something is up?"
"My working in the library could be highly advantageous. I'm a little curious about this, so I'll try to figure some things out." He replies. For now, we both agree not to speak about what he heard until Jasper finds anything else out.
It's been a few days now since we've been on probation, and working the training rooms after someone's used them has been horrible. I've had to clean slime, return reusable dummies to the supply room, throw what's left of practice materials into the garbage chute, and many more things I'd rather not do. It's not that I don't mind cleaning; I took care of the housework when I was living in Forks. I just would prefer not to clean up behind a bunch of mutants.
However, cleaning up after Edward's sessions are the worst. It's as if he does certain things on purpose just to get a rise out of me, as if everything is for his enjoyment. Having to come behind him and prepare the training room for its next use isn't helping my pride either.
Today is the last day of training room duty for this week though, as the punishment does not extend to the weekend. I'm standing outside of the third training room. According to my watch, it's 5:58 pm, and Edward should be finishing up in there within the next minute or so.
Right on the dot, the door opens, and he walks out. His green eyes meet mine. "You might want to grab a fire extinguisher," He says with a smirk. "And I'll be back in an hour for my next session." He's obviously making more work for me in purpose. I had seen him at the assembly. He's able to extinguish fire on his own; he's only choosing not to.
He starts walking toward the elevator. I unfurl my hand and the slightly inclined floor before him turns to ice. I turn to enter the training room, when I slip into a puddle of water. I fall right onto my ass, causing a huge wet stain on the back of my white pair of jeans. I glare at his retreating form. He's always one step ahead of me, but not for long.
I open the door to the training room only to find every single dummy on fire. At least ten of them are engulfed in red-orange, wild flames. The fire puts itself out as ice forms onto each of the practice materials. I throw the things into the garbage chute. This time, I take fire-resistant models this time to replace the others. I line them up against the wall for him to position as need be.
Once I'm finished, I exit the room. Dinner is already being served in the dining room, so I quickly eat and make it back to the school's lower level. At the present, the training room is occupied, so I know he's in there. The thermostat is back at 91°, his preferred room temperature. I had turned it down earlier just to piss him off. However, its increase of degrees indicates his presence.
I'm chilling outside of the room, when the door suddenly flies open. My eyes snap up to see his furious face as he storms out of the room. "You sabotaged my training, didn't you?" He accuses, eyes flaming.
"Sabotage?" I rise to my feet. "Would I do that?"
Edward laughs dryly and shakes his head. His reddish brown hair falls in front of his face."You're jealous, aren't you? That's a powerful emotion for someone so cold-hearted." I throw him a glare, and he continues, "Maybe I was wrong before. You're definitely a piece of work, but you're not unemotional."
"Don't you have somewhere to be?"
"Nope," He replies. "I've got nothing to do for the next hour now that I can't use the training room. You probably did this on purpose, interfering with my training so you could spend more time with me."
I make a face. "Hardly. Now, you might want to watch what you say, flame boy." Frost begins to cover my hands, encasing them in ice. Ice shards form at the tips of my fingers, each one at least six inches and sharpened to a point.
He glances down at my hands and back at my face. "Is that supposed to be intimidating?"
I lunge at him, crossing the three feet of distance between us. I raise my hand in the air, poised like a claw. Before I can get a swipe in, Edward grabs hold of my hand, throwing me off balance. The ice melts in his hand, and he watches curiously as it leaves my soft, pale flesh. His eyes meet mine. "You can't do it, can you?" He inquires. His tone is curious and innocent, like a child.
"Do what?" I respond. I try to move my hand, but he keeps it firmly in his grip. I feel impelled to remain there, and it's an unusual feeling.
"Turn into ice, like I do with fire. You only cover yourself with it. I'd bet that that's why you spent so much time training, isn't it?"
I narrow my eyes at him. How does he know? Asides from improving my combat skills, I was trying everything to be able to change into ice. But, I can't, and it is so infuriating. But how does he know? I ask, "Why are you watching me so carefully?"
Edward releases my hand, and I return it to my side. He replies, "You're interesting. Although, I suppose you only view me as competition, am I right? However, since our powers are so alike, perhaps I can help you."
"For what?" I inquire, getting to the root of his proposition.
"What do you mean?"
I sigh. "What do you want in return, Edward?"
He smirks and says, "Some people do things out of the kindness of their hearts without ulterior motives."
"Our abilities are polar opposites," I tell him.
"No. You said it before. Both fire and ice can destroy, but they can also create in a way, I guess. Either way, we're both in the elemental field." He checks his watch. "So, I'll see you tomorrow at this time."
I'm a little wary of what he's proposing, but I can't think of any wrong motives he'd have for doing this. Maybe once I'm able to do this, I'll be more even with him. There's only one thing. "I'm not allowed to use the training room. It's part of my probation."
Edward runs a hand through his hair. "Then let's go somewhere. I know the perfect place."
A/N: I just love Caius. And back to the aforementioned thing: Even though X-Men is my inspiration, this story and this school, Volterra Academy, have a lot of differences. #1 Difference: At Xavier's school, morals are taught. Here at Volterra, we only recruit the best and others that we can work with. If you've survived as a mutant this long, then you're fit to be at Volterra. We don't bother teaching morals because everyone's already at least 13-14 years old. You should've learned some stuff by now. And if you haven't and decide to act out, then you're put on probation (Caius negates your powers and you won't be able to use them.) Or, if it's a huge offense... well, we have someone for that too. ;)
Just wanted to clear a few things up, and see you all in two weeks for Chapter 8!
