"You know if we are just going to sit here awkwardly, I could go take a shower." I said after the silence had persisted for a while. Prince Regent was staring at me as if he couldn't believe I existed and Mich had his eyes closed, the cold bottle of beer was pressed against his forehead.
"No." Both of them spoke up. I grumpily fell back into the armchair and played with a loose thread.
"So, Fiera..." I hated hearing my name from him.
I replied with a tired "What?"
"I was watching you at training today a-"
"Not creepy at all." I mumbled.
"Fiera." Mich interjected.
"And you seem to be having some problem with self-defense." He continued unperturbed. "If you want, I could teach you a little."
"No." I replied curtly. "I appreciate the offer, Prince Regent, but Mich can teach me himself or I can ask for help from one of my friends."
Mich grimaced at my rejection and the Prince let out another sigh. "Don't call me Prince Regent."
"Don't call me your sister." I retorted.
"My name is Wafi, Fiera. Please call me that. I hate the title."
"Would Regent make you happier?" I yawned boredly.
"Fiera, please." I looked away from the loose thread to see that he had a desperate expression on his face. "You're the only family I have left."
My heart melted a little at that. Was that his plan? I'll make him writhe a little more. "Didn't you call the Regent your uncle?"
He moved his hands in a helpless gesture. "He took me in after mom and dad disappeared. I'm indebted to him. He's a nice man, no wife or kids so he considers me his own son."
I nodded slowly. It was time to end this charade. Sitting up straight, I steepled my fingers before speaking. "Listen, I still don't think you're my brother and making polite conversation here while Mich has an aneurysm isn't going to make me think you are one." Mich grunted tiredly. Too tired to say my name again. "And you clearly seem convinced I'm your sister. Forget about me. Go back to your palace or penthouse or wherever you live and sleep on it, you're delusional."
Wafi groaned and hid his face behind his hands. "I am not delusional. You are my sister!"
"Here we go again..." Mich mumbled.
I stood up, letting my anger show. "Okay, you know what? I am tired and I am sweaty. I want to relax, watch some TV and sleep in for the weekend. So, I'm going up and I hope you are getting out because I am not taking another second of this goddamn bullshit."
Mich looked up blearily but he didn't seem like he could gather up the energy for controlling me. Wafi stood up and angrily grabbed my arm as I passed him. I hissed impatiently as I twisted. My fist flew up to meet his face. But he easily caught it,he staring me in the eye.
"Fiera," he hissed. I could hear the desperation and urgency in his voice. "I am your brother. I can prove it. Just tell me what I have to do."
"Get out of my house." I hissed back, tugging my arms out of his grasp. "I don't want anything else to do with royalty or you."
Grabbing my bag from the dining room, I ran upstairs, all the while aware of Wafi's eyes on me. I slammed my door close and threw my bag to the side, falling onto the bed. This has been a horrible day. All I want to do is go to sleep and pretend this never happened.
There was a knock on the door after a while. "Fiera, it's me." Mich's voice was muffled by the door. "Can you open the door?"
"It's unlocked." I called out with a sigh, sitting up.
The door opened up and Mich loomed in my doorway. He frowned at the darkness in my room. I hadn't bothered to switch on the lights. One hand searched blindly on the right for the switches and threw them. Light blazed bright and Mich blinked for a while before stepping in... followed by Wafi.
My lips twisted downwards. "You haven't left."
"I won't leave until you admit I'm your brother."
I looked towards Mich. "I am not comfortable with this stranger staying in our house."
Mich sighed. "He's not staying in our house. He's got his own. He is your brother whether you believe it or not. Both of you come up with an agreement in the next five minutes or I'm leaving."
Surprise passed through both our faces and then determination grew in Wafi's. "Deal."
Mich turned and walked out, closing the door behind him. I jumped up from the bed to stop him but the door had already slammed shut. I heard the lock click and a feeling of dread settled in me.
I kicked the door, taking a step back. "Goddammit Mich."
"Now listen, Fiera." Wafi placed a hand on my shoulder.
I wasted no time in shrugging it off and backing away from him. "Get away from me."
"Fiera, plea-"
"Shut up, Wafi." I snapped. "You alienated me in front of my teachers, showed up at my house. What else do you want? I don't think you're my brother and I never will. Go home already!"
Something snapped in him. His eyes narrowed and he pressed his lips together. Before I knew it, his hand shot forward and wrapped around my upper arm. His voice was low, dead. It was clear he was out of patience. "Fiera, for god's sake." He hissed. I was scared. "I admit I didn't make the smartest of moves back at your school but I'm trying to make up for it. I am older than you by four years. You were born on 11th March, at 12 AM. You have a mole on your back, left palm and a patchy birthmark on your right thigh. Is that enough for you?!"
How did he know this? The only identification mark in my school file was the one mole on my left palm. The other two usually hidden beyond view. My mouth had gone dry. I couldn't believe him. I didn't believe him. It was a lie. It was all a lie.
I slowly shook my head. My mouth didn't seem to be working. Wafi's eyes narrowed some more and turned, pulling me with him. I bobbed behind him dumbly as he stopped in front of the mirror, pulling me to his side.
"Look."
I did. The mirror showed two almost identical figures. Pale blonde hair, similar face structure, same nose, lips, light eyes. Wafi was better dressed and taller, I looked horrible in front of him but the pale-faced me was pretty similar to Wafi. We shared features. Our noses, our cheekbones, the colour of our hair. Our eyes were light and pale and were different shades, mine slightly lighter compared to his, but they were the same slight twist. It was those few features that really stood out and I could feel a numbness begin to spread over me.
"N-no." I whispered, no other words formed in my mouth. My brain had gone blank and I couldn't even feel my heartbeat anymore. It had stilled. "You're not my brother. I don't have a brother." My gut churned, I tried to weakly pull away once more. "Please leave. You're not my brother." I repeated. I was looking the other way. I didn't want to look. If I looked, I wouldn't stop looking.
Wafi seemed to realize he was scaring me. His face relaxed and he turned to me, loosening the grip on my arm but not letting go. His head lowered as he tried one last time to get me to listen.
"Fiera, please." His eyes were wet, his voice sounded hoarse. "You're my sister. You're my only family. Please... please... don't do this to me."
I shook my head once more. His hand slid off as he let me pull away this time. "Not my brother." I whispered, I could feel a lump in my throat too. "You're not my brother. I don't want to think about this. Please leave."
Wafi's hand was outstretched towards me, hanging in the air as I pulled away. It fell and so did his head. His eyes were dead. He sat down on the bed, his shoulders were hunched forward and his hair had lost all composure as well. I backed away from him, crossing my arms across my chest as I hit the wall.
Mich opened the door a minute later. Sadness passed through his eyes as he saw the state we were in. "Wafi." He said softly. The Prince Regent didn't give any sign of having heard him. "Wafi, I'll drop you home, son."
A few more moments passed before he stood up. He just turned and walked out past Mich, not even looking at me. Mich watching him go before giving me a pleading look. "Fiera. I know you don't believe he is your brother but the poor chap is close to tears."
I nodded and pushed off the wall. "I'll say goodbye." I mumbled as I walked past him and down the stairs. Wafi was shrugging on his jacket in the foyer, he paused for a moment as he heard me come down. Still not meeting my eyes, he turned to the door.
"Wait." I said softly. He turned his head slightly to the right, pulling the door halfway open. There was an awkward moment where I didn't know what to say or even why I'd asked him to wait. "Do you want some of the stuff I baked to take home?" I blurted out after a while.
An awkward moment or two passed before his shoulders shook a little with a short, humorless chuckle. "Sure." He said.
I walked down the rest of the stairs and picked up the half-filled box. Wafi watched me pass from in front of him to the living room to pick up the treats there too. Coming back to stand in front of him, I handed it to him and crossed my arms in front of my chest again.
Wafi smiled softly, staring at the box. "You know, for some reason I always thought my sister should be a horrible cook." That brought a smile to my face and his smile broadened at it. He looked up from the box, a small glint back in his eyes. "You were an ugly baby, you know. I'm so glad we met after so long." I frowned, glaring up at him. He just smirked, irking me further, his eyes rolling up to the ceiling as if in a thankful prayer. "Imagine having to deal with your ugly mug for 16 years."
"Hey!" I finally protested, stomping my foot as emphasis. "Weren't you leaving? Or should I make you leave?"
"Try me, sis." He chuckled. I rolled my eyes at him but he just winked and walked away, closing the door behind him.
"Even if you don't think you're related, you both sure bicker like you are." Mich's voice floated down from the top of the stairs. I shifted my glare to him. He wisely changed the topic. "Did you give him everything?"
"Yes."
"Man." Mich whined. What a grown up baby. "I wanted some."
"There are cup noodles in the cupboard."
"Do you know how unhealthy those are?"
"Never stopped you before."
"I'm getting on in age. I have to watch what I eat."
"The faster you're gone, the faster I'm free, old man."
Mich grumbled, starting his usual 'should have left you in the forest' rant. As he passed me to head to the kitchen, I spoke. My words stopping him in his tracks.
"I have a few questions for you, Mich. But I'm exhausted right now so you're off the hook till I can get the Prince Regent off my tail."
Mich sighed. "I know you've got questions for me. I'll only answer them once you admit he's your brother. You're not getting a peep out of me otherwise."
"Then, I'll never get the answers."
"Suit yourself, Fiera." Mich started walking once more. "He is your brother, one and only."
I didn't reply to that and quietly headed upstairs. My mind had gone blank ever since Wafi had pulled the both of us in front of the mirror. The similarities kept running through my head no matter how much I tried to shake them.
He can't be my brother. It's not possible. I refuse to accept it. Maybe there's a way to get him away from me. Apart from a restraining order, that is.
Sleep didn't come knocking at my door that night. I was exhausted, my body screamed for rest, my mind screamed for the break that could only be provided by the blankness of sleep. I lay for what seemed like hours with my eyes closed but only fifteen minutes had passed.
Mich had long since gone to sleep. Right now, the only way to get respite from my thoughts was to tire myself out. Yet again.
The glass doors to the pool opened noiseless. I kept a little gap between the frame and door to keep them from locking me out. Fire Elementalists didn't feel the cold, right? Let's test it out.
I took a seat on the lounge chairs and leaned back easily before raising my hand. A short burst of tingling followed by a fire sputtering into life. I smiled at it like my own pet. Feeding it with energy, it grew bigger. It was bigger than a plum now, not yet an apple but close.
Holding up my other hand, another flame gained life. It burned huge for a second before I dimmed it to the same size and intensity of it's twin. Warmth did suffuse my body as well a wave of exhaustion after dimming the second one. I need to work on it's initial flare. It takes up a lot of energy. They both glowed hypnotically in the dark, casting a golden glow in my surrounds and being reflected by the water.
I knew beforehand that I didn't need a wall sconce or a lighter to keep a flame. That would keep me suspended in the position I currently held for at least a few more weeks but combat would eventually catch up and drag me down. I was tempted to take Wafi's offer but I felt like giving into anything at that moment would have been a loss for me.
Sure, Mich could somewhat teach but he only came back on the weekends. Eric would be busy with his own practice and studies and I didn't have any of the equipment required to be able to perform any of the moves they taught us.
My flames grew bigger as I felt a burst of energy from somewhere and I smiled. They are like little pets, adorable littles balls of flame. My eyes went to the reflection in the water and I stared at it in curiosity. They said that the two attributes of fire and water couldn't exist as their frequencies were absolutely opposite and so were the body's requirements for it. But there was a small aptitude for every element in us.
An idea grew in my mind and I extinguished the flames. They died with a sad hiss and smoke emanated from my hand, dissipating in the night air. Pointing my hand towards the pool, I closed my eyes and concentrated. I started by imagining something roughly the size of the pool in front of me.
It took on a rough vision in my mind. The lapping of the water against the sides urged it to grow and I took a deep breath. My hand tingled wildly and started shaking the with strain of the power in it. Sweat broke out onto my forehead and my breathing became erratic. Something was happening, I coul-
I blacked out.
I was shaken back to a conscious state by Mich. He was softly calling out my name.
I blinked blearily as sleep left me and the beginnings of daylight stung my eyes. "Mich?" I said softly, my throat hurt.
He was frowning down at me. "Why are you out here?"
"I couldn't sleep." Ouch. My voice. My throat.
He pressed his lips together, concern filling his eyes as placed a hand on my forehead, immediately retracting it with a hiss. "I don't know if this is your element, Fiera but you are really burning up. I could cook an egg on you."
"Please do so. Breakfast by the pool would be good." I shivered as a chill passed through me. "But could I get a blanket?"
Mich sighed. Placing a hand on my back, he helped me sit up and let me rest on him as the world swirled. "Even holding you. Fiera, you aren't just burning up, you're heating."
I shrugged listlessly as my eyes drooped shut for a minute. "Sorry."
"Is this because of Wafi's visit? Is something at school stressing you? Or am I reading too much into this and it's just your little nap by the pool?"
"Well, I couldn't sleep last night so I came down here to enjoy the night. You could say it was Wafi. Can he not come here again?"
"Too late, Princess." Mich sighed. "He called me up and told me he wanted to have lunch with us."
I smiled. "Crafty little shit. He knows I won't make a scene in a public restaurant so there is better chance of me listening to him."
"Well, you did kind of force him to be crafty." Mich stood slowly and waited for me to get on my feet. I yawned as I stood and he walked behind me as I shakily headed towards the open door. "I'll cancel the lunch with him."
"You should go, Mich." I encouraged. "You both seem to go back quite a while so you can reminisce, ask about his life, he'll ask about yours. Exchange stories. Have a grand old time."
"Calm down, Fi. I promised I'd tell you once you accept him as your brother."
"If he's my brother." I mumbled. I was really starting to sound like a broken record.