My life changed, for better or worse, on that fateful day the Grisha examiners came. They came to Karamzin in their carriage, the hoofs of the horses and their methodical clicking on the gravel path. Mal and I were peeking out the windows when we saw their carriage, and ran through the empty halls, staying quiet as we could, giggling softly behind our hands as we ran to the railings above the sitting room. We knew that was where the Grisha examiners were going to be since Ana Kuya always brought guests to that room. It was always a special occasion whenever the examiners came since they only came once a year.
"How many do you have this year?" The Grisha examiner asked Ana Kuya.
"We only have two this year."
"Where are they then?" The Grisha examiner asked as they spotted Mal and me hiding behind the banisters. We tried to get out of view as quickly as possible, but we were too slow as Ana Kuya also spotted us.
"Alina, Mal. Get down here now. It's not polite to eavesdrop, is it?" Ana Kuya called up to us.
One of the examiners took Mal into the room adjacent to the sitting room while the other one stayed with me in the sitting room.
"What are you going to do to him?" I cry out, struggling to get free of the examiner's grasp.
"We are just going to see if he's Grisha or not," the examiner says in an unfazed manner. "Now give me your hand."
I do as I'm told and once I set my hand in theirs I feel this warm sensation in my body as if I were being bathed in sunlight, but also something like an animal trying to escape. Deep in my gut, I knew that if I let it out, I would be torn away from Mal. I pushed it down inside. Don't worry I'll let you out when the examiners are gone and I'm alone.
"She isn't a Grisha," the examiner says stating the obvious.
"Neither is he," the other examiner says coming out of the room with Mal following behind. "We must get going now, thank you for the hospitality, Mrs. Kuya."
Later, after all the chores are done and the examiners are gone, I head out to the woods. I'm scared to let the thing out, but I'm more scared of not letting it out and the animal-like feeling eating me from the inside out. I take a deep breath in, and out.
"You can come out now," I whisper, as I instinctively spread my hands palms up towards the sky and close my eyes.
At first, my hands feel a little tingly, then I get that warm feeling of being bathed in sunlight, but stronger. I open my eyes, surprised to see two spheres of light in both of my palms giving off the warmth of the sun. Instinctively I knew that I have to learn how to control my power and keep it a secret. Every day I would keep practicing, trying new things that came to mind, experimenting with my power. Never did I guess that this day would change my life forever.