Chapter 7: Second Meeting

The following week was uncomfortable for everyone. When Father was upset with any member of his family-and shaming and violence did not work-he would simply stop speaking to them, as if he could no longer see or hear them. That was exactly what he had been doing with Blumiere.

There wasn't much the latter could do, other than wait for Father to get over it. Still, he would be lying if he said that it wasn't aggravating when he behaved this way. Over the past seven days, Blumiere had stayed in the castle the whole time. He did exactly what his mother and grandfather told him to do. He didn't talk back or get visibly upset in front of them. What else was there to do? Tell him about Timpani? No, that would only make things worse for them all.

Meanwhile, the seed of resentment that had been buried deep inside of Blumiere grew stronger with every passing day. He put all of his energy into concealing his true feelings in front of the adults, but he could not keep the mask on in front of the others. Sometimes, Blumiere would bark out orders at Tock. Other times, he would snap at his siblings after a long day of them not listening to him. Even when walking around the castle, his movements were stiff and sharp.

Before he knew it, Sunday had come around once more. Blumiere was looking forward to that night, of course, but that meant spending the day with his family first. What would have been an ordinary day not too long ago now felt like an inconvenience.

Breakfast was particularly hard. The others were telling their parents and grandfather what they had been up to lately, and all of it had to deal with the outdoors. Erik was telling Mother about his latest research on how to deal with pests in the garden. Ben was bouncing in his seat, letting Father know just how many birds he shot down during his latest hunt with the cousins. Blumiere tried to remind himself that gardening was hard work, and Ben was only allowed to go in a small sanctioned area of the woods that Father had inspected and approved of beforehand. That knowledge didn't do anything about his envy.

Nevertheless, Blumiere tried to stop listening in on their conversations and focus on the one he was supposed to be a part of at that moment. Roselyn had been telling Blumiere and Grandfather all about how her magic lessons were going. Her tutors were starting to suspect that her natural predisposition was towards water, which would explain why she struggled with its opposite, and they wanted to test her abilities first thing tomorrow morning. "The worst part is that they're having me do my little test outside. It's so stupid," The nine-year-old complained. "Don't they know that it's getting cold? I mean, for Jaydes' sake, I saw flurries this morning. It's practically snowing already. Maybe they just want me to freeze out there."

Without thinking, Blumiere muttered, "You should be happy you get to go outside at all. Some of us don't have that privilege…"

The room grew quiet. Roselyn blinked, caught off guard. "Well, um…I didn't mean-"

Before she could finish her sentence, Father cut in. "Some of you would have that privilege if you hadn't broken the rules."

Blumiere huffed. Of course Father would choose to acknowledge his presence now. He jerked his head towards him. "Those rules are for children!"

"Then stop acting like one. I'm still waiting for a proper explanation about where you were running off to that night. Besides, the last time I let you go out on your own, your sister nearly drowned. What do you plan to do the next time you wander off? Get yourself killed too?" Father scoffed before muttering under his breath, "Grambi, you can be such an idiot sometimes."

The young lord glared. Whenever he didn't want his children to leave, Father mentioned that terrifying summer afternoon as justification. But that was nearly seven years ago. Did Father really still see Blumiere as that careless 11-year-old who cared more about his ego than the well-being of his only sister? Not only that, but Father was perfectly fine with his other children leaving the castle. Not his oldest child. Not the one that had been working hard studying, socializing, learning how to look after his people, getting ready to marry someone he barely knew, all for the sake of pleasing the tribe.

All for the sake of pleasing him.

Blumiere was about to argue even more when he remembered the one secret that he had kept from his father: Timpani. He thought of her sea-blue eyes and sweet voice, and that made him take a deep breath. He shoved those feelings of resentment down and tried to appear apologetic. "You're right. I'm sorry." Father huffed, but went back to eating.

Blumiere didn't even have to turn his head to know that his brothers were looking at him. He glanced at them. Erik averted his eyes and went back to his conversation with Mother. Ben, on the other hand, did not look away. He leaned over and whispered, "Can we talk?" Knowing that he couldn't keep up the mask any more, Blumiere gave a quiet nod.

After breakfast, Derrick sighed. He felt another headache coming on and began rubbing his temples to clear his head. Since when did Blumiere talk back like that? Where did he get that from?

Derrick glanced at his wife, the only one who remained at the table with him. Laurette looked at him with a pleading look in her eyes. That meant that she was on her son's side in this matter. Great. Just what Derrick needed.

Laurette asked if she could speak with him in private and he agreed, just to get the conversation over and done with. The two went to their bedroom. Shutting the door behind them, his wife asked, "Darling…don't you think that Blue has learned his lesson by now? Do you really have to keep shutting him out?"

Derrick frowned, crossing his arms. "He has tried to run off twice within the same week, Laurette, and he hasn't even given a proper explanation as to why. If he won't talk to me, then why should I talk to him? Besides, I have the right to discipline my son."

"I'm not saying that you don't," She said gently. "But punishing him further will only make him want to act out even more. We were young once. I'm sure you had moments where you misbehaved as a child."

He scoffed. "That time in my life has come and gone. I am ashamed of any unruliness from my past."

"Darling, our baby Blue is under a lot of pressure. I'm sure once he warms up to Lady Arianna, he will be his old self again."

The chief sighed, taking a seat in his favorite chair. "Why are you defending him, Laurie? He isn't just breaking my rules. He is keeping secrets from me. As I mentioned earlier, he hasn't even attempted to tell me where he was going that night."

"But maybe in time, he will. Have you tried talking to Blumiere about any of this?"

Derrick froze. He had not. Aside from their remarks at breakfast this morning, neither one of them had spoken to the other in days. Still, he did not want to admit that his wife had a point, so he stayed silent.

Laurette frowned. "Well? Have you?"

Quietly, the blue-skinned man whispered, "If I weren't around to raise the children, you and your father would spoil them rotten."

She let out a quiet gasp and Derrick knew that he struck a nerve. He felt a rush of guilt, but he made sure that his face stayed neutral. She whispered, "Derrick…"

"Laurette, we're done talking about this."

The countess sighed. She was quiet for a moment before getting closer so that she could stand behind Derrick. After that, she started giving him a tender massage. The latter frowned. "What are you doing?"

"You're tense. You could use a massage."

"Do you really think you could get me to change my mind about this with a massage?"

Laurette paused her task briefly, giving him a look. "Derrick, must you assume that everyone has ulterior motives?"

He rolled his eyes but let her continue. His relationship with Laurette was complicated and not always easy to understand. Sometimes, they got along well, as perfect a fit as a hand in glove. Other times, they were at each other's throats. It was like canoeing down a tumultuous waterfall, terrifying in the moment but with a rush of adrenaline that made you want to come back for more. He thought back to his son. "How am I supposed to get through to him if he doesn't respect me?"

"Honey, please just talk to him. Maybe this will allow you to share your perspective as well."

"I've been working closely with him for years. He should already know my perspective."

Laurette hummed. "Then perhaps he needs a reminder."

The chief thought about what to do. As much as he believed in giving his children a good beating when necessary, Blumiere was getting too old for that. Besides, he was still mostly obedient. It was only this one thing that needed straightening out.

He thought of the Dark Prognosticus, resting on the writing desk in his study. Even from this room, he felt its strong aura, beckoning him to take a look in its pages. How could he trust Blumiere with it when he couldn't even trust him to stay in the castle? That was when Derrick had an idea.

If there was one thing that always brought comfort to the Nightshade children, it was touch. Blumiere gave his younger siblings quick embraces all the time and they were more likely than not to return the favor. Their mother gave them lots of kisses and hugs. Even their father-when in a good mood-would allow Ben or Roselyn to cuddle up against him while he was reading, provided it was a normal title and not the sacred texts. It was just one way of showing how much they all cared for one another.

This is what led Blumiere to sit on the floor in his bedroom, legs crisscrossed, while Erik sat behind him on the bed. He had his hands draped on his shoulders, gently drawing his muscles up and down, squeezing them in brief, quick motions. Mother gave Father tender massages like these all the time, and she did the same for her children when they were stressed. Seeing as how she was unavailable at the moment, Erik did his best to imitate her gentle strokes.

After applying some peer pressure, Ben got Blumiere to talk about some of what had been bothering him. When he was finished, the former asked, "So, Father is just getting on your nerves again?"

Blumiere nodded. "You can say that, yes."

Ben was quiet for a moment before letting out a deep sigh. He rubbed the back of his neck, looking off to the side. "You're not going to like what I have to say, but I might as well just tell you anyway. I'd be lying if I said that I didn't know what he was talking about."

His eyes widened. "Ben!"

"It's true! Ever since you came back with your eye all messed up, you have been all irritable and jumpy. Are you hiding something?"

Another lie he would have to tell. "What is there to hide?"

Ben crossed his arms. "So, what were you up to? You always change the subject when I try to ask."

"I just couldn't stand being here. I wanted to get away from the castle for a short while."

"Very specific," The younger brother said sarcastically.

Blumiere rolled his eyes. There he went again, bothering him for no reason. "I couldn't stand being here and marrying someone I don't love."

That was when the second eldest spoke up. "Blumiere, you've said before that you probably wouldn't fall in love with anyone anyway. And I met Arianna. She was really pretty and nice. You should be happy you get to marry her. You two seem like you would make good friends."

"Just because I could see her as a friend doesn't mean I want to be with her…romantically."

Ben hummed. "Alright. What else is going on?"

"Why does there need to be anything else?" The oldest asked, aggravation seeping into his tone.

"Look, Erik and I aren't like Rose. We won't go tell Mother and Father your secrets. We just want to know what's bothering you so we can make you feel better. I know you're not thrilled about the marriage stuff, but something tells me there's more to it than that."

The heir sighed. "Again, calling it marriage stuff. This is serious." His brothers were quiet, waiting for him to explain himself.

Blumiere sighed. This was getting too hard. He had already voiced all of his frustrations about their father and the arranged marriage. He was so used to telling his siblings everything that it felt wrong to keep a secret from them, even if it was for their own good. It may as well have been another form of lying.

He wanted them to know it was a girl who saved him, a human girl, but she was a special kind of human. She wasn't the evil kind that they knew of, but the kind to take care of Blumiere when he was injured. The kind to patiently wait for him after their initial plans were canceled at the last minute. The kind who was beautiful, inside and out.

At that last thought, Blumiere's cheeks turned violet. Where did that thought come from? He cleared his throat and thought about Father again, hoping his brothers wouldn't notice. "I just feel like no matter how hard I try, it will never be enough for Father. I wanted a break from that pressure. But I got lost and that resulted in me getting hurt. Is that enough?"

Ben rolled his eyes. "You know what your problem is? You're too sensitive. If you didn't react so much to him, then you wouldn't be so wound up like you are now."

Blumiere frowned. "You're probably right, but I can't just switch my emotions off."

"Then be more discreet about them. Because if I know anything about Father, it's that arguing with him won't get you anywhere."

"No kidding," Erik added. "It doesn't matter what the rest of us want. If he's happy, everyone is happy."

Blumiere nodded before thanking them both. Erik got off of the bed and went to join Ben's side. "Anything else you wanted to say before we part ways?" The former asked.

The heir had to think carefully before making this next request. "Just one more thing. Ben, do you still have that family photo in your bedroom?"

"I do. Why?"

"May I borrow it?"

Ben furrowed his brows. "Why do you need it?"

This time, Blumiere thought of his next lie quickly. "I'm just going through a lot right now, and I know that things will change for us when I get married. I won't be able to spend as much time with you all. I thought that having a picture of everyone together would remind me of what I'm doing all this for: my family."

The youngest brother smiled and messed with Blumiere's hair. "That is so corny. But sure. I'll let you borrow it for now."

Just then, the door opened. The brothers expected to see a servant, or maybe even Tock coming to remind them of an important obligation they had forgotten that day. They were surprised to see Father's face appear in the doorway instead. "Blumiere…May I speak with you in private?"

Blumiere took a deep breath. Even with that polite delivery, he knew his father was not asking. So, he gave a quick nod before following him.

Blumiere could never figure out what it was exactly, but something about his father's study always made him feel uncomfortable. On the surface, it appeared to be a room like any other in the castle. There was a couch, a small coffee table, and a writing desk that came with a bookstand. There were also a couple of windows that were usually kept closed, but opened when the weather was nice. The room was cleaned regularly, not a speck of dust to be found anywhere.

Even so, Father didn't like his children going in without permission, and they respected that. This was where the chief preferred to read the Dark Prognosticus, after all. Still, there were certain boundaries around other rooms in the castle, and they didn't make the oldest child feel a sense of impending doom whenever he came near them. So, why did this room have such a dark energy in particular, one that only seemed to grow stronger throughout the years? He couldn't say.

The first thing Blumiere noticed when they entered the room was the Dark Prognosticus, sitting on the writing desk. Even from a few feet away, Blumiere felt the power of the book, overwhelming and exhilarating at the same time.

Father grabbed the book, then turned to his son and took a deep breath. "I cannot hand it down to you just yet, but…" He offered the book to him. "I want you to look into its contents. Pick whatever page feels right to you and read its prophecy, even if you only come across a short one."

"Are you sure?" Blumiere asked. Ever since he could remember, only Father was allowed to look into the mysterious book's contents. This was the first time he had ever made an exception.

Father nodded. "Yes, but I must warn you…it is possible that you will see something you don't like."

Blumiere took the artifact but hesitated for a moment. The book was massive, its number of pages seeming infinite. How was he supposed to pick just one prophecy?

Blumiere decided to pick a page at random. He flipped through the book before stopping somewhere in the middle. Next, he skimmed through the prophecy and found himself drawn to the story that it told. It was like something that he would make up for his siblings to put them to bed.

There was to be a lovely princess and a monster king. The two would come together to bring forth something called the Chaos Heart. And there would be a void in the sky. A void in the sky…What was that supposed to mean?

Suddenly, Blumiere was struck with a series of rapid visions. A burst of blue flame. A woman's screams. People shouting his name, the voices familiar but distorted. A world-shattering crash. And a group of creatures that he had never seen before. They weren't of the tribe, but they weren't human either.

Blumiere shut the book and the visions came to a screeching halt. He gave the book back to his father, hands still shaking. The latter put the book back on the writing desk before turning back to his son. "What is it?" Father asked quietly, the usual cold judgment in his eyes absent. "What did you see?"

"Visions…" Blumiere whispered, rubbing his head. "I heard screams, then this big crash…then silence. Then I thought I saw these creatures, but I didn't see them long enough to describe them to you. I don't know why, but it made me feel like something terrible is coming…"

Father nodded. "I experienced something similar when my father passed this book down to me, but he gave no warning. I thought I should let you know what will happen."

Blumiere's eyes widened. "What did the Dark Prognosticus show you?"

"It's been so long. I couldn't tell you. I just know that I saw something terrible. That's how it is a lot of the time."

"What do you mean? Are you saying that the book only shows you bad things?"

"Not just bad things," Father corrected. "Sometimes, I will have a nice vision here and there. However, it is more likely to show me something…well…dark."

Blumiere took a deep breath. As much as Father studied the book, it was rare for him to share what he found with anyone did not occur to him to think of what a burden it must have been on his shoulders. "I don't understand how you could watch over it every day."

"I have to. This is my legacy. It will be yours, too. We have a duty to lead our people, but also to see what the future brings. We enjoy the book's blessings, but we also must prevent curses from coming our way."

Blumiere hesitated. "What if I can't prevent something bad from happening?"

Father sighed. "Then all we can do is prepare." When he spoke his next words, Father looked into Blumiere's eyes. "I'm hard on you because I know this isn't easy. This is a big responsibility, and it's even more pressure when you have to watch over it alone." For a moment, Father frowned and there was a sad look in his eyes. A sign that he was thinking of Darren again. Since they were twins, his father and uncle were supposed to lead the tribe together. That arrangement only lasted one year before he left. The chief looked back up at Blumiere. "I just want what's best for you, for our tribe. Do you understand that, my son?"

The young lord hesitated. Even now, it caught him off guard when his father was kind to him like this. It was almost as if he had two completely different fathers living with him. Or perhaps he was just pretending to be understanding so Blumiere would sympathize with him for the time being. Either way, it drove the heir mad…because it worked on him every time. "Yes, Father."

"Good. Now, is there anything you would like to tell me in return?"

There it was. This was the reason Father brought him in here. Luckily, Blumiere had been turning that weak lie over in his head, beating himself up for not thinking of something better, and he knew just what to tell him.

He sighed. "I'm sorry, Father. I was lying to you, in a way. When I snuck out of the castle to go to Moonstone Woods that night, I wasn't leaving because I had trouble sleeping. I went because I wanted a reminder of the last time that I let my family down. I don't want anything like that to happen again. I got lost on my way back. Honest. I love you all too much to leave you behind."

Father nodded and placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's alright, my son. I know you're a good man. Anyhow, I talked to Layla recently. She told me that she would like to see you this afternoon."

Blumiere smiled a little. Finally, he could get rid of these bandages. They were starting to itch. "Has she found a way to restore my vision?"

"No, but don't worry. We've found a temporary solution until then."

When Blumiere returned to that small hill, Timpani was sitting under their tree. She smiled when she saw him and the two exchanged pleasantries. However, it didn't take long for her to notice that something had changed since the last time they spoke. "You look different."

Blumiere gave a nervous laugh. "Different? How so?"

Timpani examined him for a few seconds before her eyes lit up. "Oh! I know what it is. You have a monocle now."

"Yes, my eye physically healed, but I still can't see well. Our shaman couldn't figure out a way to restore my vision, so this is what she thought was the next best thing."

"It's a new look for you. I'm glad you don't have to wear those bandages anymore, but it's still gonna take me a while to get used to. Can you see better now?"

He sighed. "Yes…"

"You don't sound too happy about that."

"I'm glad to be able to see again and I know that glasses wouldn't work quite as well because I still have good vision in my right eye-but this monocle makes me look like one of those stern counts in my family's portrait room."

Timpani chuckled. "Keep that attitude up and you will be one of those stern counts. I think you look nice."

"Thank you. Speaking of, did you bring that family picture with you?"

"Yes, but I may have brought more than just one." Timpani grabbed her bag and started rummaging through it until she found what she was looking for. She pulled the object out and showed it off proudly. "Ta-da!"

The man titled his head. "You brought a…book with you?"

"Not just any book. This is my scrapbook! It contains photos of my friends and family." Timpani went back to looking through her bag, but this time, she couldn't find what she wanted. "Oh no. I think I left my flashlight back at the house."

"Your flash-light?" Blumiere asked, placing emphasis on each word instead of saying them as one. Timpani didn't answer. She started to put her book away when Blumiere thought of a solution. "Wait. Let me see. I have an idea."

She looked up. "Do you have a light with you?"

Blumiere chuckled. "You can say that." With that, he summoned a ball of soft white light that floated just above his hand.

Timpani gasped. "Whoa. How are you doing that?"

"The basic four elements are air, water, earth, and fire, but when you learn more about magic, you'll uncover other abilities too. Do you mind if I show you my picture first?"

"Go ahead," She said, inching closer. Holding the light in his left hand and the photo in his right, Blumiere showed it to Timpani as she looked over his shoulder. She asked, "Is this an old picture?"

"Not really. It was only taken a year ago," The lord replied, smiling at the memory. "We're all a bit smaller here…"

"Which one is Erik and which one is Ben?"

Blumiere pointed to the middle brother. "Erik is the one with glasses." He slid his finger over to the youngest brother. "That's Ben. They're 15 and 13, respectively. That's my mother, my father, and my sister Roselyn. That's me, sitting in the chair beside her. And there, next to my mother, is my grandfather. He's the only grandparent that I have ever known well but he is the best there is, so I'm fortunate in that regard."

"Aww, you all look so cute together. You must be close."

"Very close. We only have each other." He put his picture down. "Can I see the photos in your book?"

Timpani nodded and opened the scrapbook. The first photo was of a man and woman with a baby in the latter's arms. The baby had a big smile on her face, and the parents were beaming at the camera. The girl grinned. "This was my first family photo. I was only a couple of months old then."

The human began describing details about her parents, but Blumiere wasn't listening. He stared at the picture, squinting, as if trying to find a secret hidden within the image. At some point, Timpani noticed he had gone quiet and grew concerned. "What's wrong?"

Without warning, Blumiere grabbed the book and brought it closer to his lap, squinting at it. Ignoring Timpani's objections, he flipped through the pages, eyes growing wider as he did so. "What in Grambi's name…" He whispered before looking at Timpani with wide eyes. "Yours have color?"

Timpani furrowed her brows. "Yes. I'm surprised that yours is in black-and-white."

"What do you mean? How did you get yours to appear in color? Did you have to go back and paint them by hand?"

"No. That's just the film I have."

"How did you make a film that does that? Is this a special kind?"

"It's just an ordinary film," Timpani said with a shrug. "It's hard to explain, but my camera has dye in it that reacts to the light and makes a colored picture for us."

He stared in stunned silence. Judging by Timpani's reaction, colored photos were common in her world, yet Blumiere still couldn't wrap his head around the concept. "I had no idea cameras like these existed. That's amazing." He handed the scrapbook back to Timpani and looked at the photo again. This time, he took in what the image was trying to convey. "Your parents look so happy to have you."

Timpani nodded. "My mom had trouble getting pregnant for a while. She was ready to give up before finding out about me. According to her, the whole thing was worth it just to be able to look into my eyes for the first time."

Blumiere moved closer, trying to get a better view. "What other photos do you have?"

For the next few minutes, Timpani flipped through the book, explaining some of the photos and the stories behind them. Through the pages, he watched the baby in the first picture become a little girl, then an adolescent, and finally a young woman. She also made a lot of friends and traveled to interesting places with her family. It was a lot to take in all at once, so Blumiere kept quiet and let Timpani do most of the talking.

When she decided that she had shown him all of the interesting ones and was about to close the book, Blumiere objected. "There are so many pictures you went past! I want to see them too."

She chuckled. "Do you really have to see all of them? I skipped some of the more mundane ones."

"Yes! I mean…no. Not if you don't want to. This is all just so fascinating. I still can't believe it."

Timpani laughed. "Believe what? That I can take a photo and the colors will show up on it?"

Blumiere's smile faltered. "It's not just that." He sighed. "All my life, I've been told that humans are dangerous and that they want to hurt us. But you're not dangerous at all. You're just like us."

Timpani furrowed her brows. "Dangerous? Why would they think that? We've never done anything to hurt them."

"My people don't like mingling with any species differing from our own. Father says that doing so would result in the diluting of our magic. However, humans are descended from the Tribe of Ancients. Have you heard of them?"

She thought for a moment, then shrugged. "I know that my village descended from the Tribe of Ancients, but my knowledge of them ends there."

"Well, they were our original tribe. My people left and started their own tribe because the Ancients couldn't be trusted. They claimed to have not needed much, yet they tried to steal my tribe's most prized possession. And they were foolish too. They actually believed that love has the power to heal the world." He finished that last statement with an eyeroll.

To his surprise, Timpani didn't agree with him. She was shocked instead. "...And you don't?"

Blumiere froze. He stuttered, trying to backtrack and defend his point of view at the same time. He quickly gave up and changed the subject. "Don't you think the same about us?"

Timpani shook her head. "I didn't know anything about your people until I came here. The villagers talk, but.."

"What kind of things do they say about us?"

"Well…they're scared of you. They seem to think of the Tribe of Darkness as something like a haunted mansion, or a neighbor that they avoid due to petty gossip."

Blumiere frowned. "So, we're akin to an old recluse to them." He felt offended that the humans thought so little of his tribe, but there was another strange feeling accompanying it. He was told that the humans hated his people, but in reality, they hardly thought of them at all. How did that make him feel? Sadness? Disappointment? No, something else entirely. Something that he couldn't quite name…

"It doesn't matter anyway," Timpani continued. "They're all too scared to come near you all. They can't, anyway. You have a barrier to keep others out."

"Or perhaps to keep us in…" Blumiere muttered.

She shook her head. "I still can't believe it. I just assumed your tribe preferred to keep to themselves. I didn't know you weren't allowed to ever leave."

The lord froze. Aside from that one night, he had been perfectly content to stay in the same place for his whole life. The Tribe of Darkness was full of people that he had loved with every breath he took. Besides, he had been told time and time again that the outsiders had nothing of value to offer them. But now, outside of the tribe's borders with Timpani sitting next to him, it occurred to him how vast the world was and just how little of it he had been allowed to see.

He shook his head, trying to push these thoughts to the back of his mind. "Can we talk about something else? Please?"

Timpani hesitated. For a moment, it looked like she was going to prompt him further. She must have changed her mind then, because she agreed to his request. "Sure. Whatever you want, Blue."

He couldn't help but grin at that. "Blue…My family calls me that."

"Can I call you that too?"

"Go ahead."

The girl thought for a moment before asking her next question, "So, if you spend most of your time in a castle, what do you like to do? It must get boring, being in the same place all of the time."

"Sometimes it does, but it's not all bad. I have a lot there to entertain myself."

Timpani scooted closer. "Like what?"

Blumiere began talking about his interests and soon found that he and Timpani had a lot in common. They both loved the outdoors and music and getting lost in daydreams. They both wanted to do good in the world, even if they had different means of achieving that goal. When Timpani mentioned that she was struggling with magic, Blumiere agreed to help her the next time they met.

When it was time to part ways once more, Timpani seemed uncertain. "I want to stay in touch somehow. So, even if we're apart physically, we can still check on how the other is doing. You know?"

He furrowed his brows. "How? Humans aren't allowed past the barrier. It's not like you could visit whenever you want."

Tock must have flown by when they were still deep in conversation, because the next thing Blumiere knew, the Pixl was right beside him. "Lord Blumiere, we really should be going now…"

To his surprise, Timpani smiled and waved. "Hi, Tock!"

Tock turned. "Oh! Hello, Miss Abatti."

"It's nice to see you again." Timpani's eyes widened. An idea struck her. "Could you maybe do a favor for us?"

"What kind of favor?"

Timpani walked closer to the Pixl with a bright grin on her face. "Remember how you sent me that letter the other day when Blue couldn't make it? What if we sent each other more letters like that one?"

Tock's minute hand spun a little. "More letters? Well…I could, if that's what the young lord wants. But we would have to be very, very careful. Our chief is quite the reader and he goes through every message the castle gets, especially if it's meant for any member of his family."

"Then we would just have to make sure that he doesn't see any of my letters."

"Wait, Timpani," Blumiere interrupted. "I'm not sure if this is a good idea."

Timpani turned to him. "Why not? He sent that first letter to me."

"Yes, but…" He got closer to her and spoke quietly, so Tock wouldn't hear. "I neglected to take into consideration that he serves my whole family, not just me, and he's very loyal to my father."

"So what?"

Blumiere's eyes widened. "So what? My father doesn't know that I'm out here! I could be punished!"

The young woman grinned. "Don't worry. He doesn't have to know."

Blumiere wanted to object, but then remembered that Father was already holding a grudge against him. Besides, he was breaking his rules at that very moment by seeing Timpani. What more harm could a few letters do?

With that, the three of them worked out an arrangement. Tock would only leave the Tribe of Darkness at night, and it would be late enough that everyone at the castle would be asleep already. (That included Blumiere; that way, if his father caught him again, he would have an alibi.) The Pixl would wait by Timpani's house and she would open the window in the morning to give him her letter. Blumiere said he would figure out a code for Tock when Timpani's letters arrived, and the latter promised to keep them out of the chief's watchful eye.

When it was time to go home, Blumiere returned to the castle swiftly and quietly. And when he went to sleep that night, the last thing he saw in his mind's eye before losing consciousness was a pair of sea blue eyes.

A/N: I love writing these two dorks together, so this was fun to write. Blumiere really seems to like Timpani, huh? I bet it's the excitement of making a new friend and all that. ;)

On a personal note, I have my Bachelor's Degree! So, I'm done with school for now, but I am still busy because I've been working more hours at my latest position. In the past, I've had a habit of job-hopping between customer service roles, disliking the work and hoping the next place would be better somehow. It turns out that along with anxiety, I have mild autism, so talking to hundreds of different people every day is not only draining, but can be really uncomfortable and painful. The good news is that I'm finally in a back-end role, stocking for a nearby grocery store, and I've been really liking it. It makes me want to put my all into this job. Maybe I could make a living stocking during the day and writing at night, but we'll see.

Finally, for those of you who like Thunder Storm, I still think of it often and want to continue writing it. I've just been stuck on it for awhile, mostly due to my own self-doubt, but also because I'm not as interested in making Lmentio content as I used to be. This one has just been easier to work on lately. I'm not giving up on TS, but it might be awhile until you see more of that fic.

-Free