Element Guardians *To-Be-Edited*

19 ~ Clues, Clues and An Offer

"That's so stupid!" he snorted. "Not that you should try it!"

I shook my head. "I can do much worse, dude."

Mum got back within the next two hours and we were flat out of ideas.

What had we come up with?

- A geyser

- Lightning

- Fireplace

- Oven

- Campfire

- Bush fire

Obviously the boys weren't as creative as I was when it came to this stuff - but really; lightning? How on earth was a piece of jagged crystal supposed to travel on a rod of lightning? Honestly!

"You three have been very quiet," Mum commented, poking at her pasta and chewed on it slowly. "It's because of Ashleigh isn't it?"

I shrugged. "Maybe." Possibly also because Felix and Cale can't come up with any smart leads for the next crystal! We were wasting precious time here! Precious!

"Rose," Cale warned, shooting me a disapproving look from across the table then turned to our concerned mother. "Yeah; Ashleigh just completes our group."

"And whenever we do something as a group, we just can't seem to do it without her," I spoke up, giving my brother and Felix obvious glances. "She just . . . well she makes our group a group."

She sighed, leaning back and dabbed at her mouth with a tissue. "I swear you kids are becoming harder to read as you grow older. I don't know what's going on between the four of you but just know; I know Ashleigh is innocent. I've known that girl for most of her life and I'm sure she wouldn't start a fire. Right Rose? You would know best."

I nodded, pushing my plate of pasta away from myself. "Yes. I know."

"And well . . . I can't believe this," she muttered, standing up and planted her hands on her hips. She gave us all a stern yet wry smiling gaze. "Guess what?"

Cale snorted. "You look like Rose when you do that."

Our mum merely chuckled. "I gave birth to her; of course I do."

I rolled my eyes, leaning back in my chair and stared at her expectantly. "Guess what, what?"

"Seeing as you all miss Ashleigh so much even though it hasn't been a day," she continued, grabbing her plate and cutlery. "I'll arrange a visit for you to her down at the Detention Centre."

All three of us froze in mid-chew, unable to believe our ears. Did she just say -

"You all seem very surprised so I'll let it soak in," she called over her shoulder, sliding the plates into the sink. "I'm going to bed; be up ten in the morning, sharp!"

And with that, she disappeared up the stairs, her audible yawn floating down into the dining room.

"We're seeing Ashleigh tomorrow," I whispered, unable to believe my own words.

"Yep," Felix said, standing up and sighed. "I'm gonna go watch TV. You coming Cale?"

"I'm gonna finish dinner," he said with a shake of his head. "Have fun."

"Yeah, yeah."

Felix disappeared from the kitchen and soon the steady hum of the TV roared from the living room.

"You okay Rose?" Cale gave me a concerned look.

I merely shook my head and smiled. "We can figure this out with Ashleigh - not without her and you know that!"