Queen of Hearts

Chapter 11: waterboy and firegirl | Kameron

Josie slowed to wait for me. Her face remained impassive, although I suspected that she was feeling impatient. "Come with me," the Shifter stretched out a hand, and I stared at it. It was only now that I realised how pale her olive skin really was. I could see the complicated network of her green and purple veins in her wrist. She noticed, and the corners of her mouth hardened, if only slightly. She maintained her calm smile. "You've had a long day, Kameron. I'll show you to your room."

'Long day' was an understatement, although I did not voice this aloud. Since we were pretty much underground within a cave, I had no idea what time of the day it really was anymore, or how long I had been gone. My heart gave a lurch as it dawned on me how worried my parents would be when they learnt of my disappearance. They would be searching the backyard furtively for me.

I wished there was a way to tell them I was alright, but according to Josie, there was no way to communicate with the outside world from here. I was stranded. I followed the Shifter down a long narrow hallway that appeared to lead further underground. Eerie blue lights flickered above us, making me shiver.

"So," my voice echoed down the hallway as I attempted to make conversation, "can I return home in approximately...a day or two?"

Josie abruptly stopped in her tracks and stared at me as if I were mad. "There is a civil war raging outside. It would be foolish of you to leave hastily. There is no guarantee that I - or any of the others here - can take you back safely. You must understand, you have to stay with us until all of this -" She gestured all around them. "- is over."

Feeling as if my insides were being buried in lead, I nodded numbly. I really did understand the dangers, having seen the chaos firsthand with my very own eyes. For not the last time, I wished that I had never followed that bunny. The bunny that had turned out to be Josie.

We turned a corner, and were nearly smacked into oblivion by a watery hand.

Seriously - it was a massive hand bobbing in the air, formed completely out of water. I stared at it in awe, wondering who would have the power to create such a thing, but Josie didn't look fazed. In fact, she seemed amused.

"Kit," she quipped to thin air, "you're blocking the corridor."

I frowned; was she talking to the water, or something else? I took a step back, wondering if the water was going to attack us. After all that I had been through today, I thought that I had every right to be suspicious, but Josie acted completely calm.

"Sorry, we're having a bit of a training exercise here," a guy's voice called back. Reassured by the sound of another human being, I craned my neck around the corner to see who exactly was manipulating the water, but Josie grabbed my arm - none too lightly - and shoved me behind her.

I opened my mouth, but I barely got out anymore than a small stammer, for a split second later, balls of burning fire collided with the body of water and shredded it into pieces. As the water droplets sprayed, they evaporated under the sheer heat of the fire, which crackled loudly and burned bright colours of gold and amber.

My eyes widened and I backed up, fast. "What the hell -"

Josie had already stepped out and was facing people I could not see, with her arms akimbo. "Kit! What sort of training exercise was that?" As she spoke, I shuffled my feet to stand behind her timidly, hoping that I wouldn't be blown apart. My eyes landed on two figures at the opposite end of the corridor.

There was a tall boy whose hair seemed to lack full colour, so it appeared to be like corrosion on metal. Despite this, his eyes were a delicate shade of aquamarine. It was nowhere near as radiant as Brendan's blue irises, but this boy's eyes held some sort of wisdom that I couldn't begin to decipher.