The Symptoms

A Wanted and an Unwanted Friend

We had gotten back maybe about two hours later with multiple bags in tow. I had dresses upon dresses, along with more shoes than I could probably count. Lucas looked a bit worn out as well, but he was obviously too proud to admit it.

¨Did we really have to get all of this? How long am I supposed to stay here?" I pry. He heaves the multitude of bags up onto my bed with an exasperated grunt.

"Better safe than sorry. You might be staying here a month or longer, and there are...a lot of parties. Typical for the higher-ups, I supposed. They would rather drink than do their damn job." He lets out a sigh. Ignoring the rest of his sentence, I question him.

"A month?"

"Yep, safety precautions. Apparently, they think you're dangerous enough to hurt the upper city. Also, what's this I heard about you killing a savage the other day? I saw it on the store security camera." he asked antagonistically.

A long pause.

"Well, I won't say that it was an accident. But to be fair, he was trying to kill me, so..." I trail off slowly.

He tilts his head to the side, "You know that's a Sentinel's job, right?" he asks rhetorically. I choose my next words carefully.

"Well, you can't save everyone."

He throws his hands up in surrender, "Alright, alright."

I look up at the grandfather clock in the corner of my room to check the time. The pendulum inside swung back and forth methodically, almost putting me into a trance.

"Wow, it's only noon. I expected it to be much later than that-" I began.

I was interrupted by a series of rapid knocks coming from the door. On the other side, the voice of an eager girl echoed.

"Hey! Hey! Are you in there, new girl?" she yelled. I look back to Lucas, who gestures for me to open the door. I sigh and got up from my place on the bed to open it. Before I could even open the door, the girl bursts through and latches onto me, squeezing me to the point where I couldn't breathe.

"Too tight!" I gasp.

"Oh! Sorry, I got a bit carried away," she said, pulling back from me and tucking a piece of her bright ginger hair behind her ear, "Wow! You're beautiful!" She took a step back to look me over and paused.

"Of course, you could use a spa day. You're a bit rough around the edges," she continues, gesturing towards my chipped nails, various scars, and scabs.

"Wait, wait, wait, who are you?" I asked, kind of freaked out by her over-the-top enthusiasm. I looked at her to fully examine her features. Bright ginger curls, dark brown eyes, and a massive splash of freckles covering her cheeks and nose. She was a lot taller than me, too, though that wasn't saying much , considering I was only 5'2. But she was even taller than Lucas, who seemed to be enjoying my reaction to her eccentric personality.

"I'm Emma! A pleasure to meet you!" she says, sticking out a hand to me. I return her handshake and laxen a bit.

"Blair, likewise," I responded.

She gives me a bright smile and looks at me over again, "You're pretty skinny, do you eat much?" she asked.

I stood, taken aback. She immediately took back her question.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to sound so inconsiderate!" she pleads. I shook my head vigorously to signal that I wasn't bothered.

"No, no! It's alright. I have enough food back at home to keep me alive, so don't worry about it."