Disclaimer: you know the drill.
Song for this Chapter: heregoesnothin → Nevershoutnever! Ahhh. I love him. He's so...the song is just...everything is like...well...you know.
Warning: You are about to read the most confusing conversation in fanfiction history.
Chapter 52: Going Golden
In the last chapter...
Romeli woke up after the previous night's conversation with James, torn between priorities. She had a large temptation to turn back while she still had the chance, but something held her back from cutting it off. About to get ready for the day, she forced herself to give in to her weakness and lean on James and her other friends for a change.
During her training with Numair, he explained that her ultimate shield was unlike anything he had ever seen before, and he was unable to get any information through research. He had no idea what it was. But they trained anyways, and he prompted her to block his dark magic with her ultimate shield. Almost dying in the process of the duel, Romeli grew frustrated with him, angered by the fact that they were pulling at nothing. Neither of them knew what they were doing.
That night, she finally got to talking to her friends. After dinner, they met up in James' room and she talked to them about the meaning of her scars and how James was tied in. She also told them about this new magic and that she's been training a lot lately. Exhausted from the day, not the mention a night's training with her Guardians, and a sleepless afternoon since she was being cornered by James, she fell asleep on James' shoulder.
Her Guardians pulled her into the Divine Realms and she asked James if he could carry her up to her room. He did so easily, and set her down on the bed, before walking towards the door.
"Don't leave me."
"When you are in love, you can't fall asleep because reality is better than your dreams." - Dr. Seuss
"Stop. Doing. That."
Romeli opened her eyes calmly, a breathless smile cast across her lips. She was sitting in the training grounds now, the ancient forest and moss surrounding her monumentally. The whole area was immersed with a wisdom she would never get used to. But at the moment, she merely stared at her Guardian, her brows raised. "Doing what?"
"Doing that." he repeated with more emphasis. "Jumping between realms like that. It's not supposed to be easy, you know."
She laughed like she had heard some inside joke. "Trust me, it's not." The warmth of seeping through the mortal and immortal realms to consciously talk to James still flowed through her.
"Well then stop doing it," he told her sternly. His black beady eyes pierced into hers seriously.
She shrugged off his intimidating stare. "Is it against the rules?" Her voice was as demanding as his own.
"No, but—."
"Then I don't see the problem," she told him lightly, settling herself more comfortably against the tree trunk she currently leaned against. She changed the subject quickly, her eyes darting back to his. "Where's Scylthe?"
"Cobra business," he answered curtly, shaking his head as if he were shaking off a coat of water.
She snorted. The idea of a cobra being obligated to do anything but eat and sleep was beyond her. Even for someone as important as the Patron God himself. "Mongoose problems?" She asked the question with sarcasm, her mouth twitching in a small grin.
He sighed, the heavy exhale escaping through his nose, though there was a hint of humor reflected in his black eyes."No actually, he just...had...a little..." His voice faded off then as a ripple began to flow and echo through the air.
...I will never leave you...
Romeli breathed in deeply, a warmth that had nothing to do with the air filling her lungs. An electricity that started at her hands sparked through her body, crawling up her arms, down her neck, sloping to her toes, and then landing at the pit of her heart where it jumped and picked up double time. Back, deep in the contours of her mind, in a whole different world entirely, a weight laid in her hand, a heat that thawed her continuously. She closed her eyes as it spread, reaching back in the black behind her sight and into the pit of her mind. There, the warmth was strongest, there it felt real, and with the muscles of her subconscious, her hand in his began to tighten.
When she opened her eyes again, Old White was staring at her, all-knowing, his look showing disapproval but a hint of observation behind it. "You've been rather happy lately," he noted nonchalantly.
She looked at him blankly. "It's nothing."
Old White gave her an all knowing look. "Sure. That nothing being a boy. A very cute one. That is sleeping in your bed right now."
She looked down as her heart began to tear. A flush began to creep up her cheeks quickly, but it began to drain away again double-time as a new grim atmosphere began to introduce itself to her. "I don't know what to think about that."
Old White sniffed.
Romeli gave him a weak smile. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I enjoy being around him. Really, I do." Her statement was justified by the electric current sparking through her arm, distanced. "But I'm currently balancing upon a moral dilemma. I want to be with him just as much as I want to push him away."
He looked upon her wisely. "But you are balancing, nonetheless. That alone is a victory."
"A victory among many failures," she countered darkly.
"Either way," he continued, shrugging off the statement. "If you just keep on fighting, you will be rewarded."
Her expression could have frosted the air. "Rewarded." She repeated the word blackly. "Rewarded with what? Information? Priceless." Pure sarcasm.
Old White closed his eyes. "You don't know what you will be rewarded with."
"And neither do you, I presume."
He didn't say anything.
She sighed sharply. "That's the problem with this whole situation," she continued seamlessly. "What information I do have, means nothing. Sure, I know what my scars mean. But that only gives me theories! I don't know what's going to happen! I can only guess! How is that supposed to help me win this?"
The tenor of his voice remained calm. It was infuriating. "No one knows what's going to happen."
Romeli was so close to standing up and walking away, then and there. "Brilliant. Absolutely perfect."
"But isn't that how it always is, Romeli? Do you think the rest of the world gets a two-weeks advance to their next dilemma? Don't start thinking the world is against you. That's hardly the case."
Her thoughts faltered at his words, and she bit her tongue for a moment. "I know, I understand. Everyone has problems. But most people aren't given clues to the future that lead to no concrete answers. Most people don't have to save the world three times a year." Romeli threw her hands up in the air. "Every other month! ...stupid Chaos Thoughts..."
"These clues aren't supposed to lead you to an answer, they're supposed to prepare you for the outcome. You have your answer already—the answer being the meaning of your scars. Anything beyond that is theory."
She pursed her lips, and then held her head in her hands. "This is so ridiculous."
Old White lowered his head but said nothing.
Looking up at him, she spoke again. "I'm so tired...of everything. I'm so tired of training, fighting, thinking, struggling. I've stretched to the limit, and now I'm running on empty. I can't function under all this pressure, under all these expectations. I'm so...tired. I don't want to fight anymore"
"Then by all means, sleep." Old White recommended, with a considerably brighter tone compared to Romeli's burdened words. "You'll have plenty of time this afternoon."
She looked at him deeply from under her dark lashes, her mouth fit in a tight line. "No amount of slumber can shake away the weariness I feel now."
He looked at her for a moment, seemingly unshaken. "You care for James correct?"
Taken aback by his sudden change in topics, she looked at him with raised brows. "You echo the thoughts of my own heart."
The gaze he put upon her was deep. His dark eyes folded into hers, and she found herself unable to look away as he gripped her. She sat, frozen. "The day you stop fighting is the day you stop caring."
A shiver ran down her spine as the words slowly sunk in. Suddenly she was immensely aware of the invisible weight in her hand. She could practically picture James lying next to her, his warm body pressed against hers.
So this was it then. She couldn't stop fighting. It was irrevocably impossible.
She sighed and gave him a defeated look. "I understand."
And in reality, she knew the underlying truth. She knew as much as Old White did that her fighting didn't just symbolically reflect her care for him. It was not a representation or the equivalent of a poetic metaphor. This was much more. It was life and death. If she were to discontinue her actions now, James wouldn't certainly die.
And so would she.
And since the idea of James' demise at her fault sent tremors of repulsion down her back, she knew that fighting was no choice—it was a requirement. And for the next few weeks, or however long it would take, it would be a way of life.
He nodded conclusively. "Good." He spoke the word with a higher posture, a brighter expression shining through his ebony eyes. "Now, I believe there is something you wanted to ask me." A grin reverberated in his voice.
Her brow furrowed temporarily until realization settled in. All of this time worrying over James, fate, and fight suppressed the burning question that throbbed in the back of her mind for the past three days. With the opportunity open to her now, she more or less blurted out the question rather than asked it.
"What is this so called 'Ultimate Shield'?"
Bingo.
Old White's expression brightened, eyes thoughtful. "Your question carries a lot of weight," he told her carefully. "And so I'll start with the most simplistic of answers. Your so called 'Ultimate Shield' is the beginning of your newest power."
Eyes widening considerably, she let the words sink into her. New power. The idea of containing anything more than she already did was beyond her. "New power?"
He nodded easily, his serious eyes never leaving hers. "Technically, I wouldn't exactly call this a 'new power', but more of a growth of new capabilities through an increase of strength. As your powers develop and grow stronger, new abilities will be opened to you. Understand?"
Her heart skipped a beat as a hint of anxiety settled in. Fundamentally it made sense, but the process of identifying and applying this idea to her seemed ridiculous. Nonetheless, she nodded.
"I find myself torn on where to start," confessed Old White observantly. "The whole idea of this is relatively confusing. So I shall start from the beginning. The beginning, of course, being your Chaos Thoughts."
Romeli nodded slowly, pursing her lips in the process. She kept her mind open, but the direction of his explanation had taken a turn she wasn't necessarily expecting.
"You remember the conversation we had at Pirate's Swoop before your first Chaos Thoughts correct?"
Looking up at him from her spot on the ground, she nodded. "You explained it as some sort of balance between existence..."
"Precisely," confirmed Old White. "Essentially, within you is an inner balance. One side there is the power of your Gift, and to level it out is the power of Nature, composed of wild and plant magic. Your Chaos Thoughts are triggered when the scale becomes out of balance. It is your responsibility to, quite literally, put life back to how it was: harmonious."
She gave him a nod. Nice recap.
That was just about as far as the review went however, and Romeli found herself treading in new waters when Old White spoke again.
"This may be a slightly hard concept to grasp, but in essence, you are this scale. You are what holds the balance of life in place. That scale is both your responsibility and your being. With this said, you are composed of three entities: Gift, People, and Plant. They are you, and you are them.
"You are, literally, the grass on the ground, or the alpine forests in the north. You are the cobra, or the wolf, or any other being of the People. Perhaps what may be the hardest to understand is that you are also the Gift."
The more Old White spoke, the deeper the furrow in her brow grew. When he finished his last sentence, she was frozen completely. "That...doesn't make sense. How can I be anything else but myself? I'm just...well...me. I have wild magic and plant magic...but it doesn't mean..."
Old White shook his head. "Just take my words with a grain of salt. Believe me when I say them, but don't try and fully compute them. That will all come in time, when you grow stronger, and you realize who you are."
Romeli's eyes widened and she blinked. "ookay."
"Right then, we continue. With your Chaos Thoughts all explained, it's time to move on to this 'Ultimate Shield' of yours. Which has a name, actually. We like to call it Golden Magic."
"Who's we?"
Old White shrugged nonchalantly. "No one in particular but the people who know about it."
Romeli's brows rose but she didn't question further.
He continued on with a look of warning. "The one thing you must remember about Golden Magic is that it is very powerful. More powerful than you can probably comprehend right now. It is undoubtedly beyond the understanding of the realm you live in. No one has seen anything like it, and most likely will never see anything like it again. Its power, of course, is raw and very difficult to control." He leaned forward at this. "That said, we will be dabbling with only a fraction of your full potential and your full power—even that will be enough."
At his words, Romeli's pulse began to quicken. She had no idea what Golden Magic was. She certainly had no idea that she had any sort of ability like that within her. What he was saying now made her excitement grow, but it was also terrifying. Something as powerful as what he seemed to be referencing... it seemed impossible.
"I suppose my lesson is this," he continued. "This much power needs a sturdy foundation of responsibility, moderation, and judgment. You must know when to use this power, and when to hide it. It's a magic that involves thinking, more than you probably know at the moment. Strategy is perhaps its biggest requirement.
"Now, as you probably felt when you summoned the shield to protect you from the dark magic, Golden Magic creates a sensation that you have never felt before. Am I wrong?"
Romeli shook her head. "Spot on, actually."
He eyes sparkled. "Of course. Hypothetically, if you were raised in a realm where Golden Magic is somewhat the norm, such as the Gift is normal in the Mortal Realm, then you would be much more attune to it. Your training would be much quicker, and you would certainly know what you were doing."
She looked at him with understanding. "Okay. Different realm good. Mortal realm bad. But how do I get the magic to work in the first place? I mean...during that duel, the shield came as a last resort. I've barely been able to get it back again."
His chest rumbled in a deep chuckle. "Oh no. One thing to remember. Golden Magic is more than just a shield. Much more than a shield, in fact."
"Right. Okay, but—."
"But now you want me to explain how it works," cut in Old White. Romeli silenced herself and settled down to listen. "Well the explanation is ironically simple considering the capacity that is holds. And this is where we return back to the Chaos Thoughts. As mentioned before, you are the balance that keeps the Gift, Plant, and People in check. You are the Gift, Plant, and People. Now...Golden Magic...is all three combined."
Oh.
"To extract your Golden Magic, all you have to do is call upon your Gift, wild magic, and plant magic at the same time."
Romeli's eyes grew wider slowly as the words sunk in. All this time she had been convinced that whatever this new ability was, was something new within her entirely. Some sort of mutant ability that for whatever reason only she could muster. Certainly it was only a shield, a shield of last resorts to be more specific. But this...this was...
"Caught up yet?"
She looked at him weakly. "Barely."
Old White pawed the ground, seeming to look deep in thought himself as he spoke again. "Romeli, I do need to make one more large point on this. If you put two and two together, logically you will come to the same conclusion as I do. In essence, your Golden Magic, which is composed of Gift, People, and Plant, is you. When you're extracting Golden Magic into the palm of your hand, you are extracting yourself. Does that make sense?"
Romeli clenched her jaw. She understood the logic. It was a basic equation. Gift plus Plant plus People equalled the balance, which is her. Therefore, Golden Magic, which is also Gift plus Plant plus People, also equalled her. The idea of applying it to real life, her life, was where she hit the roadblock.
She spoke her next words slowly, still trying to mull over the idea. "I don't see how this is...well...possible. You can't just turn the ingredients of someone's being into a superpower. We're made of blood, and bone, and systems too. Aren't I composed of those also? Am I taking out my femur every time I'm extracting my Golden Magic?"
"Two points for creativity, but not necessarily," countered Old White. "This is for two reasons, the first being that those with Golden Magic, you specifically, don't really follow the rules when it comes to 'ingredients'."
"Right. So now I don't have bones either. Great. Thanks for the news."
Old White ducked his head. "No you do. No worries there. What I mean to say is that through a meditative state, you are composed of those three entities. Really, it is what you are mostly made of. But literally, you have all those normal organs too.
"Now, the second point to make is that everyone is two parts: physical and mental. There's the physical: your hair, your face, you body, etc. And then the mental: your state of thought, and even that representation of who you are through those three elements. Did you know that ninety percent of who you are is that mental part? That external fraction is nothing but a shell to hold what's inside. Inside, you have your thoughts. You think all the time. It's what controls your actions, your words, your judgment.
So we return to your question. Are you really pulling out your femur when you're extracting your Golden Magic? Of course not. That is your outer shell, and who you really are is your thoughts and the elements that you consist of beyond that."
Romeli nodded slowly. "That's deep, Old White."
He chuckled again, laughing at some sort of inside joke.
"So. The Catch." Romeli said the three words all knowingly. Everything came with a catch.
Old White's eyes narrowed. "Catch. I guess there always is a catch. Even divine powers such as this."
He paused for a moment, obviously lacking of one to say. It took only a couple of seconds for his eyes to light up.
"Well I suppose the catch is this. When I come to think of it now, this is the reason why Golden Magic, apart from any other power, requires strategy, thought, and wit. This is because Golden Magic can only affect what it is composed of. With more explanation, your Golden Magic can only affect the Gift, plant magic, and wild magic."
Romeli froze. "Oh." Well that certainly changed things.
"You're viewing this as a bad thing," observed Old White. "When first mentioned, yes, a regulation such as this seems constricting. Using Golden Magic against anything that it isn't composed of leaves it powerless. Then again, saying it's regulated only to Gift, Plant, and People isn't really much of a regulation. The possibilities within these three categories is limitless."
She looked at him incredulously. "I get that there's plenty of possibilities...but...I really just don't understand how that works."
"What the magic is composed of, it affects."
"Well, yes okay. I'll take your word for it." Her expression still showed a hint of doubt. "But that just doesn't logically make sense..."
Old White's eyes focused on her intently. "What?"
She chewed over her next words before speaking again. "This Golden Magic is composed of Gift, Plant, and People...and therefore can only affect Gift, Plant, and People. But why? What makes it ineffective to anything else than what it's made of?"
"It's the nature of the power," replied Old White carefully. "You are not the only person with Golden Magic in this existence, you know. You aren't the only one with a 'balance'. For instance, another's Golden Magic can consist of Water and Beauty or perhaps Humanity and Weather. So, I suppose it's safe to say that this balance that you hold within yourself is your duty and responsibility. The Golden Magic that comes with it enables you to watch after and control the balance you hold. Don't bother worrying about the rest of the world, you have three major parts of it already." Old White ended his speech with a shake of his head, his tail wagging humorously. There was a hint of amusement in his eyes that wasn't there before.
"Hmmm."
"Does that answer your question?"
"Yeah." She said the word with a sigh. "This is just all new to me. It's like you're telling me that two plus two isn't four anymore, it's five."
"This will need some getting used to I suppose. The Mortal Realm really isn't suitable for this sort of thing..."
Romeli failed to hear his words as thoughts took over again, her mind reeling. She spoke her thoughts aloud, slowly. "You say that the Golden Magic can only influence what it is made of. But how is it that when I use the three powers separately, I can use them on anything? When they're together...it seems like they're handicapped, but when separated they're stronger. And how is it that the Golden Magic can influence something such as a tree, when it contains the Gift and wild magic also?"
Old White blinked. "Because since the Golden Magic is composed of plant magic in the first place, it enables the magic's influence."
A bubble of frustration began to grow in the pit of her stomach, slowly boiling. "That doesn't even make sense!"
Old White's calm expression only fed her temper. She suppressed it with a clenched fist.
"Does it have to make sense?"
"Everything happens for a reason. Everything exists for a reason. This...this power...has no reason." She ran a hand through her hair, and then stared at the palm of her hand, visualizing the shield that had flashed through her during her training session.
"Of course it has reason. And it would certainly make more sense if you looked at the big picture instead of the tiny details. Draw back to the beginning of our conversation with the Chaos Thoughts. Containing that balance is your duty, and the power of Golden Magic is the reflection of that duty. That's the reason behind it. It works like this because that's how it's made, and that's how it's always been. When you bring science into something like this...you're just going to get tangled.
"Besides, since when have you questioned the reason behind anything else? Questioning the force of Golden Magic is like questioning why a ladybug has spots or why a tree's leaves change color come Fall. Sure, you could explain the reasons if you really want to, but why does it matter? It is what it is, and the world has accepted it. Why introduce logical reason when the force behind it is enough of an explanation in the first place?"
"I..." her voice faded off hopelessly, but her gaze turned hard a second later. "But Golden Magic isn't one of those life forces. "It's not normal. And it certainly isn't as simplistic as the spots on a ladybug."
Old White shook his head. "The only reason Golden Magic doesn't appear to you as the average life force in existence is because the realm you live in does not naturally contain it. Hopefully you've realized by now that yes, indeed, you are different."
"But I—you—it's not—there's...GAH!" Romeli threw her hands in the air, resting them on her forehead defeatedly. "Fine. I'll take your word for it." She looked at him with a glare. "But it doesn't mean I'm happy about it."
"Noted."
She fumed.
"Perhaps if you see the Golden Magic for yourself you'll begin to believe me more comfortably," thought Old White aloud as repositioned his seating. "In the mood to train?"
"Do I have much of a choice?" her words were ice, but inside there was a seedbed of excitement that began to grow. A new power beyond her comprehension? Of course she wanted to see it for herself.
"No." Old White said the word playfully, like he knew the enthusiasm racing through her head.
The two of them got to their feet, and Old White backed up onto a nearby rock, his eyes piercing into hers challengingly.
"So, let the games begin," he announced, a grin sparkling in her eyes. "As a forewarning, this will seem a little weird at first. What you experienced before with Golden Magic is nothing compared to what will be in your hands in a few minutes."
Her heart began to race.
"I want you to close your eyes and sink into a meditative state," he instructed. "Relax and become aware. Not necessarily of your surroundings, but your inner existence."
Romeli nodded and let her eyes shut. Her heightened pulse began to slow as she focused on her breathing, counting the beats of each pulse per breath until her heart rate began to lull. With her eyes closed the tingling in her fingers, the brush on her feet, the slight breeze on her face seemed magnified. She could practically feel her lungs expand and deplete, her rib cage stretch, and her blood flow to her limbs.
When Old White sensed her calm he spoke again. "Now fold into your powers. It's exactly like bringing your Gift out into your hands, digging through the soul and pulling out the light. Only this time, you're bringing out all three of your powers at the same time."
With more focus now, she sank into the dark. Now the outside world was barely registered. She could barely feel the breeze anymore, and it would be no surprise for her to soon forget where exactly she was. Instead, a show of threads came into view, weak at first, but growing in color and detail.
Romeli's soul was a colorful one. Those with no powers just displayed a soul of deep maroon, while mages like her father had a white glowing glaze around it. Her mother's soul was intertwined with copper threads, and the plants she had grown accustomed to had green threads all their own. Romeli uniquely contained all of them.
There was something else conjoined with her being however. Bright gold wrapped around the colors flawlessly, as illuminating as the glow of her Gift. At first, the gold was hard to spot among the plethora of thread that represented her, but with keen searching it became more aware to her. The golden tresses were thin but sturdy, permanent and otherworldly.
She stared at its reverberating glow in thought. Common sense took over and she came to a single conclusion. For some reason or another Golden Magic, which most likely was the color gold, was an accumulation of her three powers. Therefore, the gold threads she analyzed now were also composed of the same thing.
Then how come when she extracted these golden threads nothing happened?
...look at the bigger picture...
Frustration bubbled up again and she lost her focus, Old White's words still echoing through her head. She opened her eyes, blinking rapidly as the scenery came into focus.
"What happened?"
"Sorry," she said rubbing her temple. "Lost focus."
"Try again. Look at the bigger picture." He repeated the words with more emphasis.
Closing her eyes for a second time, she gave in to her breathing and then withdrew back to the mob of threads again. The glowing of the Gift was brighter than ever, and the green threads seemed to resemble roots more than rope. The shining copper surrounding it spread out wildly, but with a sense of harmonious peace.
The bigger picture...?
The big picture looked like nothing more than a giant blob of color. It was chaotic, uncontrollable, powerful.
Externally, her brow twitched when realization dawned.
Golden Magic was who she was: Gift, Plant, and People. Who she was was represented in this "blob" minus the maroon human threads. This was her, and therefore this was her Golden Magic. If she were to take her soul out into the open, that would be her Golden Magic.
That's crazy.
Without much thought after this, Romeli mentally grabbed the bulk of her soul, rejecting the maroon proof of a human existence. With effort she pushed herself to consciousness, eyes closed as the sounds of nature began to enter her ears. There was a tickle on the bottom of her foot from the leaves. Something new was sensed, however. In her right hand was a light weight. It was bright, glowing through the darkness of her eyelids. More apparent was the light feeling and power that coursed throughout her.
Opening her eyes, she let them fall on her hand. It held only an inch above is a bright golden flame. It felt eternal in her arms, capable of anything, unstoppable. The flame licked away at the air smoothly, seeming to pull at the energies of the plants and animals around it.
"Wow."
There was a sparkle in Old White's eyes as he stared at the flame in her hand and then at Romeli herself. "This, Romeli, is just the beginning."
OOO
Waking up did not leave her with a revived stock of energy, and the feeling of opening her eyes more exhausted than when she had closed them was unadaptable.
A new feeling coursed through her however, creating a lighter sensation as she woke than the previous days. Perhaps it was the raw power that still coursed through her veins, or perhaps it was the warmth that was not her own lying next to her...
Undoubtedly it was the second.
When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was James, making her heart flutter. She never wanted to wake up any other way again. He was turned to her, an appropriate distance from her own body. It was obvious that he had been conscious of keeping a modest space between them. His face was calm, his lips set in a small smile and his hair matted messily. His arm and shoulder rested over the blanket firmly. The muscles on his arm slightly protruded from the fabric of his shirt...
"Stop staring," he murmured tiredly, his small smile growing into a lopsided grin.
Romeli's breath caught in her throat when he spoke, not expecting him to notice her eyes. When he opened his own eyes they immediately caught hers, and any reply she was soon going to say froze and disappeared.
Holy cow. "Umm..."
"Um what?" He blinked, sitting up.
She closed her eyes and opened them again. The image of his sturdy and comfortable chest would not leave her mind. Still blank.
James' brows furrowed deeply. "Romeli. Why do you look more tired now than you did last night?"
Of all the times to be dazzled... her stare showed no responsiveness.
While she stared, James' brain was working, He looked from his lap, to Romeli, and then down to his hands, thinking of any possible reason why her exhaustion would make any sense. When he caught himself thinking of last night, he was given the answer on a silver platter.
...I'm training with my Guardians right now...in the Divine Realm...
His mouth set in a firm line, remembering carrying her up to the room and then staying there. So she was training with her Guardians. But...that wouldn't make her more tired unless...
He gave her a look of disapproval, speaking slowly. "Romeli...in what way were you training with your Guardians last night?"
His fractioned time of thought pushed her out of her reverie, and when he asked the question a tinge of guilt burned in her sides. "You're a smart cookie."
James was unamused. He looked down and ran a hand through his dark bronze hair.
"It's not like I have much of a choice," she pointed out carefully.
"Not much of a choice?" he blurted out with repeated emphasis. "Of course you have a choice. You always have a choice."
"Well then my decision is this," she said firmly.
"To not sleep? Do you have any idea how...absolutely ridiculous that is?" His voice was low and quiet, but inside she could tell he was smoldering.
Looking up at him, her eyes caught his and held. She was fuming. Not enough to yell, but enough to result in a shaking voice. "I sleep James. In the afternoons. Before dinner."
He scoffed. "Yeah. Looks like." He motioned to her weakening body and the bags under her eyes.
Romeli glared. "Well I do. And it may not be enough...it definitely isn't enough. But when it comes between choosing a world with us alive, and a good nights sleep, I think I'll take the former." She sat up when she spoke, his height now matching her own. "I'll sleep when I'm dead."
He threw his hands up in the air. "Which will be when? Two days? You're killing yourself!" His emerald eyes narrowed, piercing her own.
She swallowed, looking down. "If it means saving your life, I don't really care."
James' expression fell. "Why are you making this about me."
"Because it's always been about you, James!" she snapped back irritated. "Ever since I found out what my scars meant it's been about you. I don't care about my third Guardian anymore, or finding out my true identity. All I care about is that you...we...get through this."
He sunk into silence, the emerald of his eyes hidden behind his gaze. "I think I can take care of myself."
Her eyes practically bulged. "Great Mithros please tell me you're kidding."
There was no smile etched in the firm lines of his mouth. "It's not like I am completely defenseless you know," he argued defiantly. "I am a squire. A damn good one. I can hold a sword, and fight with it. I have a Gift too."
I am such an idiot, she thought bitterly. "James, I'm sorry if I offended you. I have full faith in your capabilities. It's just...I have a feeling that what's coming is more than a jousting tournament."
He rose his brows, unamused. "Jousting tournament. Because all that knights do is put on shows. Nice."
Her fingers itched to hit him. "Look, I'm trying all right! I'm positive you are completely capable of taking care of yourself. But Gods! Do you think I like the idea of dying? I would do anything to keep you alive."
"Even if it meant killing yourself in the process." It was more of a question than a statement.
Romeli blinked and rose her brows looking away. She didn't deny it either.
The expression on James' face unexpectedly brightened and a wicked grin grew on his lips. "What would you do if I said my feelings were likewise?"
James spoke nothing but truth. The brightness of everything dimmed when he looked into the eyes of his sun.
She shivered. "I am going to hell," she whispered miserably. Forbidden love. Not once, but twice. And she still carried on. She loved him too much. It was wrong, but it felt so right.
He chuckled deeply. "Then you might as well go to hell thoroughly."
Romeli would have been able to win the argument if it weren't for him dazzling her. It was completely unfair.
"How about a compromise," he said quietly, his grin still sustaining through his words.
"What?" The word squeaked out.
"If you let me take care of you, I'll let you take care of me."
Her heart thudded and slipped. After a moment's deliberation her eyes began to narrow. "What are the conditions?"
He laughed, his eyes regaining their usual green humor. "I want you to sleep for at least five hours a day. And you have to eat..." he eyes lowered to her thin body with disapproval. "three meals a day."
Romeli blinked. Punishment. Well...sort of. "Fine." She said the word with kidding defiance. "But you have to be there with me...when I sleep."
A pit of warmth grew in his stomach. When he met her eyes they were glowing with wit. "Ouch. That's harsh Romeli." Inside he was aching with excitement.
"Well when am I going to have time to train?" she asked him difficultly, eyes scorched with rebellion.
"Let's see here," thought James aloud. "Well. There will be five hours of sleeping, three hours of eating, and then twenty hours," he said the number with disbelieving difficulty "of Guardian training. That leaves you around...sixteen hours to train. Wow. That should be just enough." He rolled his eyes.
She glared at him blackly. "Good. And you have to be with me at least ten of those hours daily. And every meal. And those five hours of sleep. Plus you have to train me to fight with a sword." She gave him a smirk. "That should keep you under well enough protection."
"Such a commitment," he said quietly, a crooked smile forming on his lips.
Romeli stared at the smile, her heart melting slowly. As each minute passed through the arguments and the jokes, she began to believe James' words to her at the gazebo more and more. Alone, they could not stand a chance, but together they were untouchable.
Before measuring up her actions, she rose her head slowly towards his, closing the distance between them. James brought his hand up behind her neck, and they kissed sweetly. It was brief, the electricity sparking between strongly.
"Do you want to see something really cool?" she whispered, her lips nearly touching his own. She laughed softly.
"Sure," he answered leaning back against the backboard of the bed.
Romeli flung her legs over the side of the mattress and walked to the foot of it. James eyed her expectantly.
"Okay," she said excitedly. "It's called Golden Magic, and this is the new power I was talking about." She repositioned her footing and closed her eyes.
Centering in on the same state of meditation was a bit harder than it had been last night. The cool forest air was not there to empty her mind. James' eyes on her did not help much either. The one advantage was that pulling out her Golden Magic now came much more easily after hours of practice. She was more in tune to the feeling of the power, and the sensation of pulling it out of her and into her hand.
She felt the fire in her palm now, and opening her eyes only proved the feeling correct. It sat in her palm, elevated and glowing brightly. It was a deep gold, shining eternally from the heart of the flame and growing increasingly brighter as it reached the outside.
James squinted as he stared at the fire and then at her. "Romeli," he spoke her name slowly, his eyes widening as he shook his head. "Why are you even bothering with training? That's probably... really powerful"
Romeli bit her lip and the flame extinguished. "Thanks, Captain Obvious," she replied with a lopsided grin, "but the extent of what I know with this right now is a shield. It's one of those things that's going to take years to fully develop."
"Well." He was stretching for an answer. "Then you can...um...shield the city. Or something."
She laughed. "Yes, great idea. Brilliant."
He pursed his lips as she climbed back on he bed, sitting in front of him. "Do you have the time?" she asked.
"Eleven," he replied automatically.
Romeli blinked and stared at him as the curiosity of how he could automatically announce the time washed through her thoughts. She shrugged it off. "I have to train with my father in an hour," she informed him. "And a bath would be nice..."
James nodded, slipping out of her bed and stretching his arms. "Say no more. I have sparring with Alanna soon as well. Lunch after?"
Her eyes brightened. "Sure."
He flashed her a crooked grin before walking out of the room and clicking the door closed behind him.
OOO
The second Romeli opened the doors to the palace to go to her and Numair's designated training field, she was assaulted with an array of loud noises all around her. She immediately clasped her hands over her ears, an expression of confusion on her face.
"Gods, what is that sound?!" she exclaimed loudly, looking around for the culprit. No one was in sight. After further searching she realized that the sound wasn't even coming from the outside. The hands covering her ears did nothing to decrease the sound level, and she let them fall to her sides.
The noise was coming from her head.
"...What?" She walked down the stairs to the ground level, her brows furrowed deeply. The sound did not decrease as she moved. If anything, it got louder.
Irritation began to broil. Great. Hearing noises in my own head. "Very distracting noises!" she yelled aloud as she came closer to the forest edge and the training field. At the moment she was on a cobble stone path. Muttering to herself, she cut off the path and onto the grass towards the forest.
"Ouch!" A shiver crept up and down her spine the second she placed her foot on the green. She glared at the ground angrily.
Despite the pinches of pain she felt every time she put down her foot, Romeli continued her walk to the forest. She had never realized until now how far away the training field was.
"Ouch, ouch, ow—ouch! ow, ow, ow." She groaned as she continued her trek.
Ten more complaints and an annoyed kick later (which resulted in another ouch), Romeli arrived at the open field just inside the forest boundaries. Numair was staring at her and she twitched unamused.
"You look like you're in pain," he observed, eyes twinkling.
"Yeah well, you would be too if the grass was deciding to kill you," she murmured angrily. There was an uprise of sound in her head and she rubbed her temple with her hand. "Shut up!"
"I didn't say anything..."
"No, not you," she said with closed eyes. "It's this noise in my head. It's an incessant...annoying...buzzing. I don't even know what it is!"
He looked at her carefully. "Try tuning into the noise," he instructed thoughtfully. "It may not be what you think it is."
What Romeli thought it was was something annoying that she wanted to kill. Though she wasn't exactly in the mood to prove herself wrong, Romeli gave in to his recommendation and focused in on the sounds assaulting her ears. They grew louder and more defined the more she narrowed towards her target.
The buzzing separated into waves, the waves into branches, and the branches into delicate twigs. The buzzing was no noise, but voices. The voices did not speak any language definable by man, and yet she understood it just as well as if she spoke it herself. It was the organic language of the plants around her, full of melodious hums, the creaking of bark, and the light breeze.
Well this is new. She blinked and opened her eyes, staring at her father with a confused expression.
"What is it?"
"The plants," she replied slowly, staring down at the grass she stood on top of as she spoke. "But that doesn't make any sense...I've never been able to hear the plants like this before—Just when I focussed in on them through meditation."
He nodded with excitedly. "Your powers are growing."
A hint of doubt burned through her. That didn't make sense. Unless...
"Gods. Old White was right!" she exclaimed with a hint of shock in her features. Of course Old White was right. He was rarely wrong, and yet when he told her everything last night, there had always been that hint of doubt, mostly because his words lacked comprehension. But this practically proved it...
"Was right about what?"
Her thoughts were reeling fast. In becoming more used to her Golden Magic, she had also become more in tune with who she was. She could actually hear the plants around her. Every one. If she wanted, she could tune into what that tree over there was saying right now. She was absolutely connected. Which meant the same probably applied to both Gift and People as well. She shook her head slowly, shock sinking in and fading simultaneously. And to think that this was just the beginning. Old White said that they were only going to dabble with a fraction of her abilities.
This must mean that her Golden Magic's true potential was monumental.
Perhaps I can control it, she thought to herself, completely ignoring her father's question. If I can just push away from my plant magic and make the voices fade away...
With moderate effort the voices in her head decreased but never fully disappeared. Romeli had a feeling this was not an aspect of her Golden Magic and state of powers that she could just throw away. Now that she was opened up further to the state of life around her, there wasn't much she could do but embrace it. It was only a soft buzzing in her ear, and now that she knew what it was it hardly seemed annoying anymore.
"Romeli," Numair said with more emphasis. "What is going on?"
Romeli wove her fingers together excitedly. Her hands were practically shaking as she walked closer to her father and stopped only feet in front of him. "I know what that shield is now," she voiced with enthusiasm. "And it's awesome."
"Well would you mind filling me in?" he said, eyes burning. He put no effort into hiding that he was dying to know. Numair was undoubtedly an intellect through and through.
They spent the next half an hour discussing her Golden Magic. She informed him of everything: what it was, what it was composed of, the balance, her existence, its potential, its catches, and what she had just experienced with the plants around her. Numair stared at her in between deep thought and fascination. Only occasionally did he ask questions. The rest of the time he quietly listened, his chin perched on the top of his fist thoughtfully.
When she had finished the in depth explanation she felt out of breath. The recap left her more enthused than she had been before she had started talking.
"Well this is certainly something," he muttered mostly to himself. "This is something new entirely!"
"I know," she agreed with a nod. She sighed breathless. "It's crazy."
"So you and Old White worked on a shield last night. The same shield you first saw when you blocked the dark magic I'm guessing?"
She nodded.
"Right. Well how do you feel about testing it out some more now? I use dark magic and you shield it?"
A flutter of nervousness crept up her throat but she swallowed it back. "Sure," she replied. She had never used pure Golden Magic successfully in a duel before. But then again there was a first time for everything.
The two of them walked to their designated positions on opposite sides of the field. Numair stretched and shook out his hands before lifting up a palm engulfed in black. "Are you ready?"
She formed her hand into a fist at her side and it sparked and lit into a ball of golden fire. "Let's do it."
OOO
"And then he pulled out the dark magic with both of his hands. Two clouds were coming at me now and as I watched them drift towards me I mustered up all the energy I could."
James was twirling his noodles playfully. "And you blocked them?"
Romeli was about to speak but then closed her mouth sheepishly. "Well...one of them." She looked downtrodden for a moment, staring at her plate. When she met his eyes again however, they were glowing. "It. Was. Awesome."
He snorted and took a bite of his food. "Eat up. Remember our deal."
"I'm full." She stared down at her plate.
"You ate a cookie."
"It was filling. And good."
"And lacking all sources of nutrition," he countered with disapproval. "You haven't even touched your chicken."
Romeli blinked as she stared at the lemon chicken (the most sexually arousing of poultry). "Me eating chicken is like you eating a human being."
He rolled his eyes. "Romeli, you eat chicken all the time."
"Do not."
"Do too."
"Do not!"
"Do too!"
"Not!"
"Too!"
"Not!"
"Too!"
"Not!"
"Too!"
"Well... what if I do?!" Romeli exclaimed throwing up her hands.
James gave her the You-Are-So-Defeated-So-Eat-Your-Damn-Lemon-Chicken-Woman look.
Romeli clenched her jaw and picked up her fork. She made a scene in stabbing a piece of the meat, throwing it in her mouth, chewing it, and swallowing it. With a glare she picked up another piece and then another until the plate was cleared of any sort of sexy poultry.
"Now the vegetables..."
Romeli's piercing eyes could have stabbed him.
"Come on, Romeli. I don't want to baby you through something as humanly instinctive as eating food. You love food."
"Yeah...when I'm hungry," she retorted as she murdered a carrot. She stared at the orange colored food curiously, wondering if vegetables were alive. Could she talk to green beans? With a shrug she ate it anyways.
When she finished the plate she put her fork down victoriously and looked at him expectantly.
He gave her a crooked grin. "What? Would you like a round of applause?"
She rolled her eyes. "A kiss will suffice."
He rose his brows surprised, looking at the half-full mess hall. "Right now? Out in the open like this?"
A smile grew on her lips that morphed to a wary grin. "You said yourself. If I'm going to hell I might as well do it thoroughly."
He shook his head and chuckled. "You are so absurd." Inside he was burning with happiness. Each day seemed easier and easier for her to conquer. She was still weak, but she was growing stronger. The stronger she grew, the more comfortable she was with the idea that being together was possible, and impenetrable.
Slowly, he snuck his hand behind her neck and lowered his head towards hers. He gave her a short kiss, leaving them both yearning for more. James closed his eyes as the urge to grab her passionately threatened to take over. With immense self control he opened his eyes again and let his hand linger by her cheek before letting it drop to his side.
"That was a yummy dessert."
James burst out laughing as he shook his head and grabbed his tray. "Which means no more cookies for you."
Romeli's eyes narrowed, but she grabbed her tray as well. The two exited the Mess Hall laughing.
OOO
"So how much have you trained with a sword?" asked James curiously. The two were on the sparring grounds a few feet away from each other. Both were holding training swords.
"Um. No formal training until a couple of weeks ago. Alanna has been training me."
"Poor thing."
"Hey, she's nice."
James' eyes narrowed.
"...most of the time," she added with a grin.
He chuckled and repositioned the sword in his arms. "Right." His expression began to hold a hint of doubt. "Are you sure you want to do this? What if you get hurt?"
"You're kidding right?" she said with a laugh. To make a point she pricked her finger on the tip of the sword making James flinch. It was so dull it didn't even leave a scratch. "These have got to be the worst swords I've ever seen. Besides, me and Alanna duel with the real thing."
His eyes bulged. "I will kill her."
"James." She said his name reassuringly. "Let it go. I had to let you go. Now it's your turn."
James considered her words, and she was right. For what felt like weeks Romeli had been so convinced that if she was even feet by him it would give Scanra another reason to kill them both. While the consequences still stood stronger than ever, Romeli had disregarded her fears, putting them both in danger. All for him and their love. Certainly he could do the same thing with a little training session.
"Fine," he admitted sternly as he held up his sword. "How about some simple blocking."
They started off slowly. James would rhythmically attack and she would defend with the alternate block. She stayed on the defense, knowing that defense was a bad position to be in for winning a fight but a life saver as well. Over time, his tempo grew faster and faster, adding in new attacks from different angles now and again to keep her on her feet.
Romeli honed in on his blade, keeping her mind open to each attack and blocking it as quickly as possible, never letting in an open area or weakness. As they worked faster and faster, Romeli became more and more comfortable with the rhythm. Under no circumstances did the blade feel natural to her hand. Out of all the weapons, the sword was one of her least favorite, and some of her blocks were shaky. One or two times she caught herself losing focus as her eyes drifted towards his working muscles. His arms were so strong, they pressed against his sleeves firmly...
"Ow." Romeli let go of the blade and it flew out of her hand as she failed to block a cut to her side.
James bent over and picked up her blade, handing it to her. "You okay?"
"Yeah yeah," she said rubbing her side with a wince. With her Gift she could sense it was already bruising. A few seconds later, thanks to her healing, she couldn't feel a thing.
James sneezed.
"Sorry," Romeli muttered, the word slightly concealed within a laugh. James was so sensitive to the powers of her Gift...
"How about I do the defense now?" James recommended, itching it nose. He flashed a smile.
With a face like that, she wasn't up for denying him. They both brought their swords up again, taking the opposite roles they had previously.
Using some new moves that James had showed, she began to take the offensive, not bothering with starting slow and working faster. Her moves were sporadic—definitely not as smooth as James', but they were strong.
They one-sided dueled for what felt like a long time, but was probably no more than ten minutes. Both of them were starting to work up a sweat, and Romeli's breathing was slightly heavier. James looked steady—years of page training had taught him precision and endurance in mastering the sword.
Unexpectedly, both of them changed their footing in the same direction. Romeli's foot stepped on his own unsteadily, and she yelped as she crashed into him. There was a clatter as her sword slipped out of her hand. Feeling that they were going down, James threw his sword aside as he lost balance and fell gruffly.
The two were panting heavily, their faces inches away.
James relaxed his head on the ground and closed his eyes. "Usually that doesn't happen," he said quietly, a small laugh escaping.
Romeli laughed as well. "I'll take your word for it." She stared into his eyes form a time, savoring the deep forest green. With a sigh she rolled off of him until they were lying next to each other.
"Well this is a pretty good start I'd say," voiced James positively, resting his head back with his hands behind it.
Romeli pursed her lips and looked down. "Yeah, if I'm battling a house plant." Her tone was bitter. "A disarmed house plant," she added after consideration.
James propped himself up on his elbows. "You do realize that you just started with sword training, correct? Besides, some house plants can be quite perilous."
She snorted. That was one of the many reasons she loved him: his undying humor in some of the most stressful situations. "Right okay, well..."
"Plus," he said, interrupting her. "Do you really think this little challenge-thing is going to be some designated play by the rules setup? I hardly doubt there's going to be an archery battle, and a sword duel, and a wrestling match...in that order. That's absurd. If anything it'll be a few mage duels or an all out war."
Her brows creased. "Something along those lines." Nonetheless Romeli felt cooled by his words. Funny and smart to boot.
James grabbed her hand and gave it a small kiss. "We'll be ready for them."
She smiled up at him weakly. Her confidence had grown substantially since her theories had begun and she found out what her scars meant. Still, a hint of doubt remained in her thoughts. In reality, she still didn't know what was coming for her, or how bad it was going to be. A memory flashed through her mind—Fredrin's grinning face looking from her, down to the scars around her neck, and back to her again. With a shiver she removed the memory from her mind and instead focused on the feeling of James' hand woven with her own.
Romeli yawned
"Bed. Now." James practically ordered the words.
"What? No!" she complained looking at him earnestly.
He blinked and then glared at her.
"I'm not tired."
"You should be."
"I'm not."
"Woman, I will knock you out myself."
Her eyes widened as she sat up as well. "You would nev—." Her words were engulfed in another yawn.
"Oh yes I would."
She stared at him defiantly.
His only reply was his right hand sparking into a flaming dark green fire.
She blinked and stared at his fire, an interest beginning to spark in herself. "That's...interesting..."
He frowned. "What's interesting?"
He would never get a reply. Romeli's eyelids had drooped down and she fell asleep then and there, breathing softly.
James chuckled. "Wow. Nice, Romeli."
Without much thought after that, James got on his knees and picked her up in his arms before rolling to his feet.
It took only a few minutes to reach her room. For the second time in two days, he opened her bedroom door with his Gift and walked inside, kicking the door behind him. The time was about five in the afternoon, giving her plenty of time to sleep. He set her down on the bed and tucked her into the sheets carefully.
Curiously, he walked over to her bookshelf for something to do and couldn't help but laugh. Wow. Nice bookshelf, he thought to himself. It was completely vacant save for about ten books. Most of them involved magic and spells, something that interested him, but not as much as what inhabited the top shelf...
James took down one of the romance novels and chuckled as he read the cover: How Jeffrey Caught the Goddess. His brows rose. This would keep him entertained for a while. He propped himself up against the backboard of the bed and flipped to the first page:
Amelia was the most beautifully erotic goddess in the land. She had won the hearts of all the men in the realm twice over. To say she was on top of the world was an understatement, and she knew it. That was, until she met Jeffrey. Then everything changed...
He snorted and shook his head, looking down at Romeli's sleeping frame before returning to the book again.
Hahaha. I forgot how much I love this chapter.
So um. Next chapter = hahaha. I'm in the mood for some comedic relief. I'm tired of the bitter depression and moody mood people. I wanna laugh.
Replies:
LittleMissGiggles'94: I'm really glad you like it so far. It's amazing how it's dwindling to an end. Sorry about the slow update, though there wasn't much I could do about it. :/
iwantaponygal993: First of all...you read this in THREE DAYS!? It takes me three days to read 10 chapters (trust me I had to reread a lot of this to get everything right). I am impressed. In honor of your speedy-reading, I will award you with twelve cookies. here ya go. Thanks! I'm glad you like the original work!
ChipFest: Gosh...I can't read this whole thing in a week. I think it would take me a few weeks to be honest, and I wrote it! haha. I am impressed. Yay drawn out romances...they're full of so much torture, but they're so worth it. . haha. So you caught the age glitch. Yes I started Romeli out as almost fourteen. She had one birthday (i think?) in winter making her fifteen. During her servitude she would be fifteen years old, but I bumped everything up a year because I began to think about how young she was to be going through all this. If I get the chance to rework this, I'll probably bump it up another year so she starts at the age 16. I think she started so young because I was thirteen when I started with this story... but now that I'm going on 18... I just don't see someone that young going through the stuff she's going through. Thanks for readin!
Empress of Theives: I get an A+??? YES. Thanks so much!! you rock. :)
inktounge: haha. I think Romeli being melodramatic is an understatement. For some reason I have this mindset...well...set...in my mind...(wow redundant)...that in order to make a novel be emotional it has to be exaggerated. It's true to an extent, but only in moderation...gotta work on that. :) !!! I love drumline people. I'm not in marching band anymore, but I hung out with the drumline a lot when I was. But I know what you mean about mind in the gutter. I'm in the low-brass section, so it's practically implied.
Mirukarumi: Me? Kill James? Never. I couldn't handle it. :)
dares to dream: I'm glad you liked the ending of the last chapter. It was kind of sporadic, but I suppose it fit in fine. I actually realized that I made a humongo mistake last chapter...but...no one seemed to notice so... :) I'll fix it when I have to. Haha. Yup...I wanted to write that scene so badly. There's one more scene left that I've been wanting to write for just as long (even longer now). But it's so been worth it. Sorry about the slow update. Hope you keep reading!
IloveCockatiels: yes! no more emo! That era is over. wait you're serious? Gosh, I haven't even been tracking my wordcount. 360,000. I'm glad you love it so much! I really truly sorry about the slow update, but I hope you keep reading!
xxTunstall Chickxx: haha. Me? Human? Only on paper. lol. There's a joke at my new school about how I have no emotions. It's a really stressful place, and sometimes I'll catch my friends crying over all the pressure and expectations. I haven't broken down yet...but of course I help them out! :) I hope this chapter has been fluffy enough for ya! Sometimes I kind of feel that it's moving a little too fast, but at the same time if I just keep them dwindling on the same 'forbidden love' problem it's just going to get emo and annoying again.
KEEP ON MOOSIN'!!!!
-MOOSE
feather to fire
fire to blood, blood to bone, bone to marrow, marrow to ashes
ashes to snow