Supernova---A KOTLC fanfiction

Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

Sophie

Days went by with Sophie anxiously waiting for the Neverseen's response. And yet they never seemed to reply back. Every morning she woke up, and checked all around Havenfield, making excuses to search all the animal pens. But there was no eye symbol, no letter, no cloaked person. Absolutely no trace of the secret group that had sent her information on how to get her friend back. So she waited. And watched. And waited some more. As she waited, she realized that maybe the Neverseen were just lying to her, trying to throw her off their trail. Until, one morning, she woke up to find that it was, actually, in fact, very real after all.

*********

Sophie awoke to the familiar ding! of her Imparter. She groggily reached over to her nightstand, where the rectangle of pearly-white lay. Lifting it to her face, she peered at her messages. There was one new, dominating the entire screen. CHECK THE PANAKES TREE, it said in all caps, with an eye symbol next to the words. Sophie jolted awake, and her heart skipped a beat. She checked the number. Unknown, said the screen. Unknown Number.

The Neverseen. They had finally contacted her. Sophie threw open her door and rushed downstairs, almost crashing into a stunned Edaline. "That excited for breakfast, huh?" Edaline joked.

"Um, yeah, right. Breakfast! Yum," Sophie stuttered. "About that—I was just about to, um, go outside to... uh... check on the alicorns." She mentally slapped herself for the pathetic excuse.

Edaline's eyebrows rose skeptically. "Really?" Edaline said sarcastically, "Check on the alicorns? You need a better excuse than that."

"It's not an excuse!" Sophie argued. Well, yes, it is, but she can't know that, Sophie told herself.

"Sure it isn't," Edaline replied, a bit sarcastically. Then her tone softened. "Look, whatever it is, I won't tell. You don't have to make up excuses to go outside. You can trust me. And if you don't want to tell me the truth, that's okay. Just remember, if you need somebody, I'm here."

Sophie's heart warmed. "Thank you," she said, her words blanketed with meaning. It was a "thank you" for everything that Edaline had ever done for Sophie—for taking care of her, for taking her in, for helping her, and for healing her.

"So," Edaline said, taking a more serious tone, "so, what is the real reason you're going outside? And no lying."

Sophie started mildly panicking again. "Um...," she stuttered, her throat suddenly dry. "Well...."

"Well what?" Edaline asked, raising an eyebrow.

Well, I saw the Neverseen a couple weeks ago, when I was on a date with Keefe, and then they said to look out for them, and now they sent a message that I have to find another message at the Panakes tree, and then I will find a way to get Fitz back, Sophie told Edaline in her head. But she didn't say all of this out loud. Instead, she said, "Well, I actually want to check on the alicorns. I had an, um, nightmare, and Silveny, Greyfell, Wynn, and Luna got captured by the Neverseen, and they were using the alicorns of bait and were going to kill them, so I'm still a bit...," Sophie paused, searching for the word to build on her lie while also congratulating herself on the successful selling of the fib, "scared and worried about them. Which is why I'm acting strange right now. I just really want to check on the alicorns outside."

Edaline squinted her eyes at Sophie, and, all of a sudden, the room seemed way too hot, like the surface of the sun. Then, Edaline nodded, "Okay then, you can go outside. I won't tell Sandor that you went. Hope your dreams become better."

Sophie exhaled a breath that she didn't realize she was holding. "Thanks." She moved as if to go outside, but Edaline stopped her.

"You need to eat first," she said kindly. "It's not good to go outside on an empty stomach."

"But—" Sophie started to protest, but at a quick glare from Edaline, she silenced. "Right. Food," Sophie muttered, sullenly taking a seat at the table.

"Listen to Edaline," Grady said, entering the room and sitting down across from Sophie. "She knows what's good for you. Besides, whatever it is that's rushing you so much can't be so important that you have to skip breakfast! It can wait.

"By the way, Edaline, what's for breakfast?" Grady asked Edaline.

"I made some blitzenberry muffins," Edaline replied, putting on a pair of rose-pink oven mitts. She opened the oven, a huge block-like thing with golden flames contained inside the silver-blue gem-like walls. The sweet, fruity scent of fresh-baked blitzenberry muffins flooded the room.

Sophie sniffed the air and sighed happily. I guess I can stay for a bit, she thought, after all, it would be a waste for me not to eat Edaline's muffins.

Edaline set a golden purple-speckled muffin down on Sophie's plate. "Eat, then you can go outside," she directed.

Sophie nodded and dug in.

********

It took about 10 minutes for Sophie to scarf down her breakfast, and 5 for her to rush outside to Calla's tree.

Check the Panakes tree, check the Panakes tree, she chanted in her mind as she searched for a note, a symbol, a trinket—anything from the Neverseen. Where is it? Where did they hide it?

She circled the Panakes tree, then stepped back, assessing its branches. Nothing. There were just pink-purple-blue flowers. Where is it?

Suddenly, one of the flowers caught her eye. It was a little brighter than the rest, a little more vibrant and shiny. It also was... too perfect. Sophie rushed over to the flower, reaching up to pick it from its branch. If it's actually a flower, she reasoned, it won't give easily. If it's not... then it should come out quick. The flower gave swiftly, with no need of pulling. Its petals weren't soft like they should be; instead they were stiff and crinkly, like paper. Probably because it was paper.

Sophie examined the flower, before quickly unfolding it out of its flower shape. The paper was a shiny blue-pink-purple, and covered with swirly black font accompanied with a black eye symbol. She gasped as she read, then brought out her Imparter. We need to talk, she texted her friends, fingers flying on the pearly screen. Meet me at Havenfield near the alicorn stables in 10. It's urgent. Come. NOW.

*******

Moonlark—

Meet us with your friends and your bodyguards on Mt. Everest tomorrow at 5. We will be waiting for you. We have Fitz. Tell no one.

—The Neverseen

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Hey there reader! How are you enjoying "Supernova"? Like I said, I'm planning on ending it soon. If you have any requests for me to write, please comment or PM me, and I can try to incorporate those, or write a couple bonus scenes for you if you like. Thank you for the 211 reads, and for the new comments! I love reading your comments, and hope you enjoyed this chapter and the whole of "Supernova" so far. Happy reading, and enjoy your summer!

---MockingjayMoonlark