Chapter Eight
Driving her away
Mr Rusty could tell that something was up with Zebedee. He'd just gotten out of hospital but he had to use the Epi Pen whenever he had sugar. He'd been listening to Sam tell him about Elora being with Zeebad. He was furious and his body glowed with fiery lightning. Why was Elora with the village's enemy? He just couldn't figure it out. Meanwhile Elora was with Zeebad. He was watching Zebedee talking with Sam on his mirror. He was worried about this. "I knew it was too good to last. Now Zebedee will never let me see her again." He thought. Sadness and anger flowed through his icy body. Elora then squeezed his hand gently. She had changed her appearance to one like his. "Don't worry I'll be with you even if my uncle disapproves. He doesn't get what I see in you." She told him as her body glowed with icy lightning. He smiled at this. "I know. You're the only one who treats me like a normal guy around here. The others see me as their enemy. But we'll show them!" he told her as he gazed into her eyes. She agreed with him. She was nervous about going back to her uncle's house because of this. "Just tell him how you feel about me." He said as he kissed her. She smiled at this. How could her uncle not understand this? Besides Zeebad was lonely and they'd became friends but now they'd taken it to the next level.
Zebedee was very disturbed by what was going on. He hoped that all hope for Elora wasn't lost entirely. Sam understood how he felt. "Remember when Zeebad used me and tried to get me to do all evil things to you and the others but I wasn't good at being evil? That was because I couldn't bear to see you or anyone else hurt and also goodness flowed through me even though I was with someone as twisted as Zeebad. It must be the same with Elora! Or maybe she found a sliver of goodness in him and is bringing it out. Besides she won't turn evil like him, won't she?" he told him. He saw a look of anguish in Zebedee's eyes. He sighed deeply before talking. "He has no goodness in any bone in his evil body. He must be acting like that to get to Elora because of her powers. I fear that he's changing her into an evil being like him. If he trained her as his apprentice… then I would have to face her and lock her there in the Roundabout and that's something I don't want to do, not to family. Besides he's done some unforgivable things in the past that still hurt to this very day." He said softly. "I know but he helped us save you after that food binge incident. If he hadn't alerted us about it, you would've ended in a very bad state." He said to him. Elora then came back. She then snuck into her room but Sam entered. He saw worry in her eyes. "My uncle hasn't gone mad or blown a magical fuse yet, has he?" she asked him. Sam chuckled at that. "No, not yet but he was pretty upset earlier about it. I think there's a big sliver of goodness in Zeebad's heart that was hidden but you seem to bring it out. Zeb just fell asleep but he seems worried." He said to her. "Can I tell you something?" she asked him. "Sure. What is it?" he told her. She sighed deeply before going on. "I was with Zeebad and he asked me to be his apprentice." She said silently to him. "What did you decide?" he said to her. Curiosity was in his eyes at this. "I don't know yet. I know my uncle wants me to be like him and help the others whenever they need it and be their guide but I don't really… want to do that. I want to use my powers to do amazing things in this land but if I told him that, he wouldn't understand. I need you to promise me that you won't tell my uncle, okay? I want to be able to make my own mind about it without my uncle interfering." She told him. He understood. "I promise." He said as he went off. She sighed at this. But later on in the afternoon Zebedee was teaching her about magic and it's good and bad uses. He was very nervous as he looked into her eyes and saw coldness in them. This terrified him. "Elora I know about your friendship with Zeebad. Do you know the evil and terror he brought to everybody in this land and the Land of Magical Springers?" he said to her calmly. "Yeah Zeebad already told me about it and I forgave him." She told him. This shocked Zebedee. He was also freaked because she'd become like Zeebad in her appearance. "Elora I can't let you be with him, okay? He just wants to be with you because of your powers when you should be using them to help our friends instead of hurting them." He said to her. Suddenly her body glowed with icy lightning. Icicles then shot from her hands like darts and held Zebedee pinned to the wall. "You can't tell me what to do! Besides they're your friends, not mine! They're the ones who mocked me because of my powers. Zeebad's the only one who cares for me as a person and I'm not going to stop seeing him." She growled as she breathed ice over him. She then vanished out of sight. Sam had watched as Zebedee unfroze himself using his fire powers. "What's up with Elora?" he asked Sam. He wanted to tell him about Elora being offered apprenticeship by Zeebad but couldn't because he didn't want to break his promise to her. "I don't know!" he replied to him.
Elora then went to the Roundabout and to Zeebad's prison. Anger flowed through her body. She had decided to stray from her uncle's teaching and wanted Zeebad but hated not being allowed to be with him because of her uncle. But Zeebad wasn't there. This worried her. "Where could he've gone to? Please don't tell me he ran off!" she thought. But he was hiding. He knew that Zebedee was angry at him for being with Elora. He hoped she'd consider his offer. She then went back to her uncle's house. He was very skittish for some reason. She then saw someone appear. Zebedee tensed up at the stranger. It was Zeebad. He smiled evilly. "Elora get out of here! I don't want you hurt!" Zebedee told her. She then felt angry. "What are you waiting for?" he yelled as Zeebad started throwing blasts of ice at him. Elora smiled at this. But then she saw Zeebad fall onto the floor. Sam had kicked him in the stomach and it still hadn't healed yet. "No I'm not going! I'm never going to be like you! I'm not hurting Sam because we're friends but you need to chill!" she told Zebedee angrily. Ice then surrounded him and covered him entirely. This scared Sam. She was kneeling by Zeebad's side. He was groaning in pain. "Are you okay? I'm sorry you got hurt!" she told him. But his eyes were still closed and his breathing was shallow. Sam saw sadness in her eyes. "I'm sorry Sam but I've got to go. He needs me more than my uncle does. We're still friends right?" she said to him. She had Zeebad in her arms. He understood. "Yes but I hope Zeebad's alright." He told her as he put his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry he will be." She said as she vanished from sight. Zebedee was very worried by this. He wondered where she'd gone off to with Zeebad. Sam knew where she was. She'd brought Zeebad back to his prison. She was reviving him. He was moaning in agony. She saw blood on the bandages. "Are you okay?" she asked worriedly. He smiled at her. "Not really. Sam made my stomach wound much worse. It hurts to move." He said to him. She saw a drop of blood drop from his bandages on the floor and froze. "Let me heal you." She said sadly. He grimaced in pain as magic surrounded him. "I need to tell you something. I want to be your apprentice. Let's just say tonight made things clear for me." She said to him. He smiled at this. "That's good. But how come you didn't listen to Zebedee and get out of it before one of our magic blasts hurt you?" he asked her as he fell asleep. "I did it… because I just couldn't let you get hurt by my uncle because of his craziness. Sam and him are friends but I think he didn't want to hurt you." She said as she laid in his arms and fell asleep.
It was midnight and Zebedee was still up. He was staring at the moon. Thoughts were running through his mind. He wished that Elora wouldn't freeze the entire world like Zeebad. Sam could tell he was upset as he joined him. There was sadness in his eyes. "Is there something on your mind?" he said to him. Zebedee smiled sadly at him. He then remembered the day he'd fought Zeebad on his old lair. That thought made him nervous for Elora. The last time Zeebad had enslaved Sam to do his bidding but Zebedee had saved him before he did something he'd regret but there was no way to save Elora from the darkness that fuelled Zeebad's heart. "Thinking about the past. I wish… I could save Elora and Zeebad. You see Zeebad wasn't evil. He was actually good but then darkness overcame him and it was too powerful for him to resist. I couldn't save him. I watched as he destroyed the Land of Magical Springers and my parents. But I was also the one who fought him but I wish I hadn't. That way everybody would be safe and he wouldn't be imprisoned but the world would be frozen forever." He explained to him sadly. Sam understood. "Maybe he's changed. He mightn't want to freeze the world anymore since your niece came." He said to him.
"I know but I don't want to have to tell her parents that their daughter wants to freeze the world. They'd be unhappy." He told him. Sam then saw Zebedee struggle to sleep in his bedroom. He felt sorry for him. Zeebad and him were friends growing up but they turned enemies because of the darkness. He didn't know Zeebad had heard that. Elora was surprised to hear that her best friend and uncle used to be friends. Zebedee shivered in fear at what could happen if Zeebad let Elora be evil. That was his other worst nightmare besides seeing Zeebad hurts his friends. Sam then climbed into bed beside him. He saw tears roll down his friend's cheek. "Don't worry Zeb. It'll be alright. At least the power of friendship is strong in our hearts and can never go out. I'm not going to leave your side." He said softly in his Cockney accent. His words seemed to have a calming effect on Zebedee. He smiled as he fell asleep.