I've decided to cut back on the typing…before, I was typing practically the whole story in one day! And I didn't leave enough time for suspense to build. So now, you can expect a chapter a day from me! Anyway, here's the second.
Chapter 2
Isabel
Everybody else is staring at Crystal, though none so much as Arkarian. Well, no surprises there! I mean, the only other person besides Arkarian I've ever seen with violet eyes was Lorian, and he turned out to be Arkarian's father! The kids quickly go back to their game.
After a few minutes, Crystal introduces herself. She was caught off guard before, when we were all staring at her, but she regains her composure quickly.
"Hi, I'm Crystal." We all wave nervously. Dillon goes around the circle, introducing each of us to his new girlfriend. I wonder how long this one's going to last…
As soon as Dillon's done, Crystal sits down right between me and Arkarian, and the two of them start talking. I decide to just sit there and try not to listen to their conversation…Yeah, good plan. One that lasts for all of 2 seconds, because the first thing that she asks him is "What's your father's name?"
It takes him a while to answer, almost as if he's trying to figure out whether or not he should tell her. Eventually, he does. "Well, his name was Lorian, but he's dead now."
Crystal takes a sharp breath. "Whoa. That's…weird."
"What? That my father's dead?"
She shakes her head. "No, that his name is the exact same as my father's! That means…I must have finally found the brother my mom was always talking about!"
I roll my eyes, but Arkarian seems to think different. "Hang on, are you saying that you're my sister?"
Crystal nods. "I grew up with my mom, but she was always talking about how my father had another child with a different woman. So after she died a while ago, I decided to search for you! I hoped to find my father along the way…but…"
I clear my throat and ask to talk to Arkarian privately. We walk over to the side. "What's wrong, Isabel?"
"How can you possibly believe her after all the lies and deception we've all faced over the years? Have you already forgotten about Chloe? Or even what Rochelle did? Of course, I know that Rochelle is good now, but still! How can you just believe the story of some random girl who decides to say it?"
"Well…she…"
I don't give him a chance to answer. "I don't care how convincing it sounds. Did you notice that she didn't say anything about names of anyone before she asked you your father's name? She could have made it all up! She could just be some creep pretending to be everyone's sister so she can get close to them and kill them!"
"You have a point." Arkarian sighs. "Would it make you feel better if I check her thoughts to see if what she's saying is true?"
Honestly, I didn't expect this. "Well…okay."
He does so, then turns to me saying, "Everything's fine. She's telling the truth about everything, and there aren't any walls hiding other thoughts. Are you happy now?"
"Yes, I am." Arkarian starts to go back, but I stop him.
"What now?" he asks. I pull him into me and kiss him. After a little while, we both go sit down. Crystal decides to sit beside Dillon now, which I think is a good idea.
The eight of us talk about random, meaningless things until we hear Blaze scream. We turn around to see him staring, wide eyed, at the chair he was hiding behind. Or should I say, what used to be a chair, but is now only a pile of ash.
Rochelle immediately rushes over to comfort her son, who is now in tears, while Ethan makes the ash on the floor go into the garbage and creates a new chair out of thin air.
Rochelle sees this and tries to point it out to a hysterical Blaze. "See? Daddy made a new chair! It's okay."
I sigh. "Am I the only one who sees the burns on his hands?" I ask. Rochelle looks at Blaze's hands and sees the burns as well. She looks at me pleadingly, so I heal them for him.
An uncomfortable silence breaks over us all, broken only by Ethan who, trying to make light of the situation, says, "Well, at least we know one of Blaze's skills!"
Neriah shifts slightly in her seat, and I feel bad for her. Out of the three kids, Ambrosine is now the only one who's powers haven't revealed themselves yet. Though most of us feel that, given the fact that both Neriah and Matt are Immortal, Ambrosine will be too.
After the chair burning incident, the remainder of the visit is pretty uneventful.
Once the kids get tired of hide-and-seek, they go upstairs to do something else for the rest of the time. None of us know how long we'll be staying for, but when 8:00 comes, Neriah, Rochelle, and I go upstairs to put the kids to bed. When we get there, however, we see the three of them fast asleep on the floor, their unfinished game of Monopoly Jr. still laid out in the middle.
The three of us smile, and Rochelle gets some blankets while Neriah and I clean the game up. Rochelle comes back with blankets, and we each place one on our child before turning off the light and shutting the door behind us. It's not until midnight that Neriah and I return to Blaze's room to take Ophelia and Ambrosine home.
There's the second chapter for ya! You'll have to wait until tomorrow for the next one, and it won't be in Isabel's POV…or Arkarian's. It'll be someone different this time. Who? You'll have to wait until tomorrow!!!
