Sophie
< A/N- (lemme know if there are any plot holes plsss thank youuu) >
"You good?"
Sophie shook her head, pulling herself out of her head. Mr. Forkle had thought it'd be good for Sophie to "hang out" with her friends a little more before school started up again. However, only four of the nine Mr. Forkle had invited had actually shown up, those four being Tam, Stina, Keefe, and Marella.
They all sat at the same pink tree where they'd met the evening before, As Sophie found herself back in reality, she saw that it was Marella who had spoken. Inhaling a steadying breath, Sophie answered, "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just tired."
"Tired?" Stina jumped in, leaning against the tree. "How much sleep did you get last night?"
"Not much by the looks of it," Tam said, sitting wedged between the roots.
"Why?" Marella asked, and Sophie shrugged. Words were too much. Everything was too much. The nightmares still lingered nearby. Sounds were too loud, the sun was too bright, and people were to people-y. Her head still ached, and her legs were noodles beneath her.
"Sophie?" It was Keefe this time, and Sophie faked a smile. She needed to be fine.
"You keep spacing out, that's the fifth time I've said your name."
"Really?" She took a step back, hand to her head. "Sorry. Tired."
"Yeah, why's that?" Stina asked, repeating the question. The words echoed in Sophie's head, so distant she was almost convinced they hadn't been spoken. But they had. And Sophie needed to answer, lest the others think she was losing her mind.
"I talked with Edaline a bit before bed. Vertina, too... ish."
The world spun, the tree blurring into swirls of colors and the voices turned into distant echoes. Yet, they weren't distant at the same time. Close, but not. Sophie watched as the shadows in her mind morphed, taking the shapes of monsters. The same monsters from her nightmares, sending a chill running down her spine. Breathing grew difficult and she found herself unable to speak. She blinked, but no matter, the blurs didn't come into focus and the voices turned warped.
Too much. Everything was too much. She couldn't breathe, couldn't see, couldn't move. She was stuck, just as she'd been the night before. Trapped in her own mind, and her heart raced as she urged to be free. To escape. To--
"Sophie!"
Freedom. The headache had returned, and Sophie clutched her head as everything steadied once more. The blue-blond blur cleared and became Keefe, who held her by the shoulders with a firm grip. His ice blue eyes full of concern, glittered in the sun. They seemed to be the only thing that made sense. Ice blue eyes shining in the sun; a green field of flowers with a bright blue sky above, birds singing and the breeze nice. They reflected the sun perfectly. Perfectly.
"Hello?"
Sophie nodded, "I'm fine."
"You said you're 'tired'?" Tam asked, but before Sophie could nod, he finished with, "or losing your mind?"
Stina elbowed Tam, her scowl turning soft as she looked at Sophie. "Maybe we should take you back to bed. You can sleep as long as you need, and we'll talk to the Forkman about Foxfire."
"No, I'm fine. Just groggy. Seriously, drop it," she added when Keefe raised an eyebrow. Sophie didn't need their concern. Not their pity, nor their worries. She. Was. Fine. She didn't have a choice. She needed to be fine, for everyone. Enough people were worried about her amnesia, they shouldn't have to lose sleep over Sophie's nightmares, too.
"Okay," Marella said. "You're 'fine'. We'll talk about that later." She gave a warning look to Sophie. "Now what about Foxfire? Are you ready to go back to school?"
Sophie groaned, followed by a half-hearted, "Yep. Definitely."
Keefe laughed. "Since when is anyone ready for school?"
"I'm sure Linh would take this moment to say something like 'I find school enlightening'," Marella smiled. Keefe and Stina nodded their agreement, but the words were followed by an uneasy silence. Everyone turned to look at Tam, who's eyes had dimmed and a dark shadow hung over his face. His arms crossed tightly across his chest as he pressed up against the tree's trunk.
Marella paled. "Sorry, Tam. I wasn't thinking--"
"You're fine. Just forget it."
Marella opened her mouth to apologize a final time, but Tam silenced her with a cold glare. "I said 'forget it'. She made the decision to leave all on her own, and she's her own person so why should I care?"
Sophie wished she could tell him it was okay to talk about it if he wanted, but considering she'd just told everyone a similarly obvious lie not ten minutes ago, she held her tongue.
"Okay, can we talk about it now?" Stina blurted. "I don't want to be rude, or pushy, but this is seriously getting old."
"What are you talking about?" Keefe asked.
"Sophie, I'm sorry. I get you just got back from the Neverseen and all, but I--we all know you're not telling us everything. It's obvious you remember something and it's seriously bugging you. So please, please just tell us already."
"Tell you what? I told you I don't remember anything--"
Stina snatched Sophie's hand, eyes determined. "Say that again."
Empath. Stina was an empath. Sophie cursed internally, though she held Stina's gaze. She'd have to be careful about this, word it perfectly.
"Fine. When I first woke up, I did remember something: the Black Swan's symbol. But Mr. Forkle already reviewed that with me, briefly. So I didn't forget everything back then."
Stina sighed, turning to Keefe. "She's still hiding something, isn't she?"
Keefe was an empath too, Sophie remembered. But why would Keefe know any better than Stina? He wasn't making contact either so-- "Yep. F-Sophie when will you learn you can't hide anything from me? I'm too amazing!" He smiled, but Sophie hadn't missed it. He'd slipped up again. Keefe tried to pretend he hadn't of course, still smiling as he stepped closer. "I can always ask Fitz to read your mind and tell me himself."
"Fitz hates all of us right now. How would you get him to read my mind?"
Keefe shrugged, frowning. "He doesn't exactly trust you, remember? I'm sure he'd jump at the chance to see all your secrets."
Sophie stared at him, and his expression softened. "Please? I can tell it's bugging you. A lot. We're your friends, and we just want to help." He reached for her hand, but Sophie flinched backward, pulling away from Stina's grip, as well.
She wished she could tell them. Though, it wasn't possible. She'd seen that day. "The Destruction of Atlantis". It was even worse from her perspective, the emotions she'd felt, the thrill. How could she ever admit to feeling such excitement while torturing her friends? She couldn't. Which is exactly why no one could know what she'd seen. No. One.
"Sorry," Sophie mumbled, and everyone around her sighed. "I promise, I am. But it doesn't change anything. It's for me to handle, and me alone."
"Does Mr. Forkle know?" Keefe asked, a hint of jealousy in his voice. Sophie was glad she could ease that jealousy with a truthful "He doesn't know anything. No one does. I do wish I could tell you guys but..."
"'It's for you to handle, and you alone'," Stina quoted, a disappointed but understanding smile. Keefe nodded, and retreated back to the tree beside Tam, who noticeably moved to stand beside Marella. Keefe grinned.
"So if we're not talking about it, then why not do something else? Fitz was supposed to be your Foxfire guide, right?"
Sophie nodded.
"Perfect! Because if you are okay with not going with him--"
"I'm more than okay with it," Sophie said almost instantly, now grinning.
Keefe pulled out his pathfinder and took Sophie's hand. Stina took Sophie's other hand, while Tam passed Keefe and found Stina's hand.
A/N- I know there has to be plot holes in here. I haven't written in forever (sorry about that btw) so I know I've had to have missed something. Or forgotten something, forgot to tell you guys smth. Idk. But if you see anything wrong with this, pleaseee let me know!! Seriously, thank you guys!!
p.s- sorry its so short :,)