Reality Check

Freedom Fighters

A/N- ;)

Miss Movin' On (by Fifth Harmony)

"My innocence is wearing thin, but my heart is growing strong. So call me, call me, call me miss movin' on . . ."

___

She was going to fall. There was no other way this would end.

She could already feel the rest of her fingers slipping, slowly, no matter how hard she clung to the ledge, trying desperately to keep hold of it. Maybe more than ever, Bethany wished she still had her shapeshifting powers— she could just turn into wind or a paper airplane or anything that could fly, anything that could save her from falling to her doom. It didn't help that being on a cliffside brought a cold draft, as the morning wind battered her face, making her shiver and almost lose the rest of her grip. She didn't know how much longer she could hold on. Five seconds? Ten? Even five seemed like a stretch, because her hands were slipping faster now, and—

"Bethany!" Kiel's face appeared above her in the window frame, and she barely caught sight of the fear in his eyes as he instantly reached for her. "I'm here! Grab my hands! I've got you!"

"Kiel," Bethany gasped, but that was all she could get out, too horrified to say anything else. He should be grabbing the crystal ball right now. He should be asking it a question by now, or running downstairs to inform Owen and Moira he had it. But instead, he'd seen her hanging and he'd run to help, throwing away his opportunity. She swallowed back emotions that were rising in her throat, overwhelmed by the sudden wave of gratitude that'd filled her at the sight of him.

After a few tries, he was able to grab her hands, their palms clasping together so tightly that Bethany was sure they'd both lose circulation. And then he was pulling her up, and she was kicking her feet against the side of the tower, doing anything she could to get herself inside faster. Her feet touched back down on a hard surface, and she almost cried in relief. That had been close! Way too close.

Breathing shakily, they stumbled away from the windowsill, navigating around the broken glass from the window and falling into each other in the process. Bethany noticed neither of them made a move to let go of each other, which she was grateful for, because her knees were so wobbly she could barely stand. Overwhelmed with relief, they grinned breathlessly at each other.

It was then that she realized they were inches apart, though Bethany was too stunned to care. Still holding her other hand tightly, he lifted a hand to her cheek, brushing a strand of hair away from her sticky face. Bethany stared. A chill went through her body, one that resonated down to the soles of her feet. Her cheeks were hot— something she'd mistaken for her anger towards the Magister, but now, she wasn't so sure.

"Are you okay?" Kiel asked.

Bethany barely nodded. "Yeah—" Then, something bright and orange caught her eye, alerting her back to the danger around them. "Whoa, watch out!"

Time began to move at very real speed again for Bethany. She shoved both of them to the ground, just in time for a fireball to go zipping by, passing straight through the spot they'd been standing. From her spot on the floor, she stared at it, her eyes wide. When she followed the source, she realized it'd come from Alphonse, Kiel's cat, who she only noticed just then. Wait, since when had he been able to shoot fire? Had that been something from the books? She wouldn't know, of course. Even now, she'd never cared to read them.

"He can shoot fire?" Bethany muttered to Kiel, who was sitting beside her, a deep frown on his face.

"Yep," he grunted. "But trying to set me on fire is a first! You'd think he knows I'm too amazing to be set on fire!"