Time To Fight

Chapter 2

"Do it again! Again!" Ariel's squeak of glee was too hard to resist. Then again, it’s not as if I wanted to stop showing off anytime soon.

"Alright, alright. I will. You sound so much more excited than me."

"Well, you got Mother Nature's acceptance. I still have to wait until later this year!" She slumped into her chair, taking a nibble of the wonderful dessert mother made.

"What about me?" Jaden rested his feet on top of the table. I want those boots.

"You don't count anymore Jaden, you got her acceptance two years ago," said Ariel as she stared at the big stack of desserts at the center of the table. She hadn't even finished her first piece and already she's contemplating seconds and thirds. Thank goodness mother made a bunch offood. Maybe if we're lucky, they'll be leftovers.

"So?"

Shoving his feet back down to the floor brought on a small cloud of dust. The desserts were so close to being tainted, the cloud of dust looming inches away. "She means you are no longer important. Get used to it because now you won't have an advantage over me anymore," I replied, taking one more piece to munch on, savoring the opportunity. These fruits cost a fortune, something we didn’t have a lot of once my father passed before my birth.

"Don't worry. Advantage or not, you still won't beat me."

"Care to test that out right now?"

"Oh please quit it already! This is a party! Come on Kyra, do it again!"

Jaden and I glanced at each other, exchanging a quick smile. Silly Ariel. She should know by now that bickering is just what we do. Even if we all grew up as friends, Jaden would always be my competition.

I clenched my right hand and then opened it, revealing a small flame. Then I took a deep breath. My eyes focused on my left hand which was still in a fist. Slowly, I opened my hand to reveal a small orb of water. Smiling, the fun part started. Using a gust of wind, I pushed the flame and orb of water towards each other. The small collision created a mini-firework of water. Wiping a bit of sweat from my forehead, I slumped into my chair, reaching for a bit more food for my plate.

"Ta-da." My voice came out flat. The effort sapped out a bit too much strength than I anticipated.

Jaden stifled a laugh. "You still really want to test out your new strength?"

"Shut it Jaden. Just enjoy the food before I kick you out." Taking a big chug of water, I pulled Ariel close to me and then whispered into her ear. "Hey, you want to go to the Hall tomorrow? The priestess might still be there in the morning."

"You want to see the priestess?" she replied, forgetting the fact I whispered for a reason.

"You want to go on a field trip? Of all people?"

I nudged Ariel's leg, giving her a glare as I spoke. "It's not a field trip."

"Well, you weren't really planning on going without me, were you? Didn't you ever think that I wanted to see the priestess too?"

"You should come too then. It'll be fun to all go together." Did Ariel really not just notice my nudge?

"Sure. It'll be fun," I muttered.

Mother peaked into the kitchen flashing a huge grin. "How is the little celebration going?"

Jaden stood up from his chair and headed for my mother. He twirled her around, her giggles overpowering his words. "Great! We just decided on taking a field trip tomorrow!"

"Ugh. It's not a field trip!" Once more glance at Ariel was enough to make her realize my unspoken plea. She mouthed a "sorry" that was way too late.