Chapter 11
Brightly colored trees met my eyes when I woke up. Confused, I sat up and glanced around at the landscape trying to get a feel for where I was. My brother wasn't anywhere to be seen and I glanced around worriedly. He was always getting himself into trouble. Standing, I reached down to grab my bag when it disappeared before my eyes. Bewildered, I put my hand to where it had been and felt the rough material of my backpack, my brother was near.
"Cai! Where are you?" I shouted picking up my knapsack. He appeared next to me along with the bag.
"You don't have to get so worried! I just went to get food," he grinned handing me an apple with a loaf of bread. I made sure he never stole what he didn't have too. After an incident with a baker and her sweets, he never had.
"You're always all over the place! If I don't get worried you won't control yourself," I admonished him. His grin widened at the thought of his sister not being a worrywart and he shrugged.
"I'd have to worry for the both of us and we know how that turns out. We're better off with you complaining and nagging and making sure I don't go anywhere than with me staring off into space," he snorted. It was true. When I was still little, he had been the type to make sure I never got into trouble, which I never did considering that he was the one who did. He space out and stare at something for a long moment and since I was the kid I was I never considered interrupting him. Luckily for the both of us, I grew up and now I'm the one who has to worry. He's always going off and doing something stupid which is fine with me. He doesn't usually drag me into it.
"Earth to Julia! Are you alive in there?" he waved his hand in my face and I slapped it away.
"Shut up! I was thinking!" I retorted and he laughed. Making himself comfortable, he grinned over at me and winked.
"I've met someone nice in town," he started his smile getting bigger.
"Is she one of us?" I replied bursting his bubble. Someone had to be the bad guy. He would kill her if he ever consummated a marriage with someone who wasn't like us. He pouted for a moment before he grinned at me again.
"She didn't start screaming when I touched her," he offered. I rolled my eyes.
"A lot of humans can do that. It's called pain endurance," I retorted but he shook his head.
"She didn't feel like she was in pain. More like she was...absorbing it or something," he frowned trying to put what he felt into words. My face copied his as a contemplating silence fell over us.
"Cai? Do you think we should test her?" I questioned glancing up at him. His stare was one I hadn't seen since we were escaping from one of the outer land's kings. It was a dangerous one with the mysteries of our past filled in. He nodded.
"Yeah, let's see what she's got," he agreed and the world seemed to go black for a moment.
When it reappeared, Cai's wife was sitting next to him on the beach as I walked towards them. The woman we had tested ended up being one of us and she married Cai because she couldn't go back to being a normal barmaid. That and she loved him.
"Shelia, I told you, I can't just leave my sister here. We've looked out for each other our entire lives. I need to find her someone to make her happy," he shook his head at her stubborn scowl. I hid my appearance from them as they continued to argue back and forth over if I should stay or go.
"It's as if you love her more than you love me!" She shouted finally standing over him with a glare. He didn't blink.
"I do love her more than you. If I had to choose, I'd stay with my sister and be single than go with you," he replied nonchalantly but I started at the dark look in his face as he examined her. It was almost as if he regretted bringing her with him. Shelia didn't know his face like I did so she assumed that it was an apology. He wasn't very good at making bad expressions to begin with.
