“No. No. No. No.” I folded my arms, staring at the bunch of pictures Elisha held out to me.
“You don’t like any?” Elisha cried incredulously.
“No.” I repeated myself. Truth was, many of the boys in the photos were nice, some a little weird, but I was still so obsessed with Andor I couldn’t pay attention. I didn’t want any of them, I wanted him. I doubted Elisha would approve of my choice.
Elisha sighed, “Well maybe Cameron can change your mind.” I rolled my eyes, I doubted it highly.
A boy with fire red hair entered the room, looking around as if he was lost. He saw me and waved, jogging over to us.
“Hey! I’m Cam!” He smiled at us, then he realized who we were and quickly bowed his head.
Elisha rolled her eyes, heading for the back door. She would leave and hide in the backroom, spying on us, while we had a very awkward chat that usually ended with me offending him and him storming out of the room in anger. Cam waved hesitantly at me and I frowned at him.
“Are you feeling okay?” I asked.
He nodded, running a hand through his hair and leaning back against the wall. I frowned, not believing him. He was paler than Andor and looked as though he might puke at any moment. I slowly backed away, hoping he didn’t notice.
Most of these sessions were awkward, except Cameron wasn’t even trying. Most of the boys flirted with me or tried to bargain with me, but he just stood there silently staring at the floor. Something was definitely wrong. Maybe it had finally gotten around that I was a stubborn brat who didn’t want any of the boys Elisha picked for me.
I sighed, “You know you can speak, I’m not going to try to kill you or anything.”
He shook his head, lowering his voice, “It’s not that…” I waited for him to continue but he didn’t. He just continued to stare at the floor. He was one strange boy.
“You look like you’re going to be sick,” I stated, folding my arms.
He finally looked up at me and smiled hesitantly, “Just between you and me…” he looked around and continued in a whisper, “um, can you not pick me? No offense or anything it’s just…. Well… yeah, you know.”
I frowned, “I know what?”
“I play for the other team?” he whispered.
“You’re a Thariel?” I cried.
“No, no, no!” he quickly slapped his hand across my mouth to shut me up, “I’m gay…”
“Ooooh!” I removed his hand from my mouth, “That’s what you mean. Don’t worry, run along, you’re secret’s safe with me.”
Cameron smiled appreciatively and quickly ran out the room. Elisha entered again, glaring at me.
“What was that?” she asked, folding her arms.
“Um… me… trying?” I replied quietly.
“You just turned down a Venton! They’re one of the most respected families in Ezalfar! What am I meant to say to Cameron’s parents?” Elisha cried.
That he’s gay? I replied in my head.
She rolled her eyes, not waiting for an answer, “You better try harder with Marco.” She walked towards me and turned me so I was facing the door.
A young boy entered the room, staring straight ahead. His pale blue eyes looked a million miles away and his sandy brown hair flicked over his face, masking his expression. He wore a plain blue top with black shorts and in his hand I caught a glimpse of a blue stone. He smiled slightly when he saw me but I kept my expression stone cold.
He bowed in front of us, “Lady Hunter, Lady Khadi.” My eyes narrowed on him while Elisha murmured in my ear something that sounded like, isn’t he charming! I begged to differ. He looked arrogant and full of himself, and he wasn’t Andor.
Elisha winked at him, “I’ll leave you two alone.” I rolled my eyes; here we go again.
Marco smirked at me, stepping forward. I stepped back, circling around him, trying to calm myself down. Stupid idea. I didn’t want a ‘fake’ husband. I didn’t want boys coming in and trying to win me over. I actually would rather punch them.
“So, you killed Cerdic, huh?” Marco chuckled, following me.
“Aren’t you smart…” I muttered. He overtook me, stopping in front of me, making me walk around him. He grabbed my arm, pulling me to a stop. I glared at him, “What do I have to pay you to make you go away?”
“Just your hand in marriage,” he winked at me.
I pulled my arm from his grip, giving him a disgusted look, “Get lost.”
He laughed, “You’re as cold as stone, Khadi, but I like having to chase a girl.”
“Too bad I don’t like running,” I retorted.
“Cool down, I just want to talk.”
“I just want to leave.”
We lapsed into silence, me glaring at him while he smirked at me. Annoying, selfish brat. Why couldn’t he just leave me alone? Why couldn’t he be gay like Cameron? Every time I walked somewhere, he followed. Every time I glared at him, he chuckled. Every time I folded my arms, he copied me. I had never been so annoyed in my life.
“Loosen up,” he winked at me again.
“Get lost.” I repeated myself. He shrugged, sticking his tongue out at me.
“Did you kill Thorn as well?” his change in subject surprised me, as much did it anger me.
“That is none of your business,” I replied through gritted teeth.
“Bet you did, bet you killed Andor as well, we just don’t know about it,” he chuckled. I said nothing, staring at the wall in front of me. He wouldn’t anger me. I could keep my emotions under control. He wouldn’t get the better of me. “You’re like an Valithor hunter. Get it? Hunter, Valithor hunter…” He burst into laughter. I clenched my hands into fists, why couldn’t he shut up?
“So come on, tell me, where’s Andor’s body? Huh? Huh?” Marco teased me. My anger was boiling up inside me, getting the better of me. “Come on, Hunter, let me know! I want to see his expression, being killed by a Hunter!” Oh, he was going to know what expression people had when they got killed by a Hunter, he was going to personally experience it. “Andor must have been-“
That’s was as much as I could take and soon enough, I exploded in his face. My stone lit up bright purple and a gust of wind threw Marco back against the wall. His stone slipped from his grip, tumbling along the floor, out of his reach. His eyes widened in fear and surprise as I advance on him.
“You just don’t know when to shut up, do you?” I spat at him, flames burning around my feet. He shook his head, his bottom lip trembling. The coward. I continued to walk towards him and he scurried back away from me.
“I-I’m s-sorry… please! I’m meant n-no d-disrespect,” he bowed his head to me as I towered over him.
“Well, maybe you would do well to learn to shut up for once,” I hissed at him.
“Khadi!” The door behind us flew open and Elisha rushed out, “Khadi! Darling, calm down!”
I rolled my eyes; I did not want her pep talk. I slotted my stone in my pocket and headed towards the door, ignoring Elisha’s protests. The door slammed shut behind me as I stormed down the corridor.
To my surprise, Sayer and Dwynwen were leaning against the wall outside and both looked up as I rushed past. Sayer called for me to come back but I didn’t listen. They both ran to catch up with me then continued to walk by my side at my fast pace.
“What happened? What did she want?” Sayer questioned.
“She wanted me to marry someone,” I said simply.
Dwynwen sighed, “I knew this was going to happen.”
“Thanks for warning me,” I muttered darkly.
“Well… I did sort of the other day…” Dwynwen added.
We continued down the hallway, towards the element chamber. Sayer, despite the doctors orders, wanted to play with his stone. Dwynwen tried to argue with him, but he just ignored her.
When we arrived, Ianthe and Melissa were already their training. Each Dusarlas group got one hour of training a day in the element chamber and this was our turn.
Training past slowly. I spent the majority of the time watching, not being bothered to join in. They didn’t press me further, knowing I still hadn’t gotten over killing Cerdic. Ianthe and Melissa kept throwing swords and shooting elements at each other. Sayer sat down the whole time, playing with his water. Sometimes Dwynwen sat next to him and they would test which of their elements was the strongest. Dwynwen won every time, which annoyed Sayer a lot.
Eventually, the next Dusarla group came in to kick us out. Ianthe began to argue with them, only to be pulled away by Sayer. The five of us continued out the back of the castle, into Ezalfar. Ianthe and Melissa spoke rapidly to one another, but this time, there was nobody behind them listening, no body actually cared what they were talking about. I doubted even they cared.
Ianthe had taken Zane’s death very seriously, even going back inside the castle to reclaim his body. He seemed to use air a lot now, even though he specialized in earth. At first he locked himself in his room, quite like Jayden, but now he trained harder than ever, telling himself Zane wouldn’t have wanted him to waste his life.
Melissa hadn’t really changed, except she got angry at small things, such as Sayer flicking a droplet of water at her, or Dwynwen burning her by accident. Otherwise she was pretty much annoying Melissa who wound everyone up the wrong way.
We stopped outside in the courtyard. Melissa climbed up one of the trees and sat contentedly looking out over the square. Dwynwen and Sayer were arguing about Universe Five. Sayer said it was the ‘filling in’ universe and didn’t serve much point in existence. Dwynwen disagreed; saying that was harsh and that everything served a purpose. The two of them continued arguing, ignoring everyone else around them. I tried to speak but found myself being lost in their loud voices.
“Sayer!” A small voice cried, jumping out from the shadows. Charia launched herself on top of Sayer, who cringed slightly in pain but hugged her back anyway.
“Charia…” Dwynwen trailed to an end, staring worriedly at Sayer. He shook his head, mouthing to her that he was fine. Dwynwen sighed but said nothing. I frowned, usually where Charia was, Lauri was, but this time my sister was nowhere in sight.
“Ah! You stupid little brat!” Melissa screeched, jumping out of the tree. I looked up in surprise to see Lauri laughing her head off. Melissa shoved me backwards, her face bright red, “Why can’t you keep control of your fricken sister!"
I stared blankly at her. She looked as though she was a bomb about to explode. Bright red cheeks, wide eyes, frizzy brown hair, teeth grinding together. I couldn’t hold it in much longer and soon I was laughing along with Lauri, unable to contain my emotions.
This seemed to anger Melissa more and she shot a gust of wind at me, sending me flying back into the tree. Sayer let go of Charia, taking out his stone and took a step towards Melissa. Dwynwen grabbed his arm, shaking her head. Melissa sent one last glare my way before turning on her heel and strutting away.
“She really has problems,” I muttered. To my surprise, Ianthe offered me his hand to get up. I reached out and took it, letting him pull me to my feet.
“She hides her emotions behind anger,” he said, looking after Melissa.
“Like you hide yours behind your words?” I inquired, folding my arms.
Ianthe shrugged and muttered, “We all hide behind something…”
He was right and for once, I agreed with him. We did all hide behind something. Ianthe hid behind his words, Melissa hid behind her anger, Sayer his behind his secrets, Dwynwen hid behind her stubbornness and Andor hid behind his past. Then there was me. Did I hide at all or was I just an open book?
Lauri hopped down from the tree, her eyes wide as she stared at me, “I didn’t upset Melissa, did I?”
I smiled weakly at her, “Everyone seems to anger her now days.”
Charia frowned, “She needs anger management classes.”
Sayer chuckled, patting Charia on the head, “I doubt that would help Melissa.” Charia stared up at him questioningly but he didn’t continue.
A bell began to sound and I cringed at the loud, echoing ringing. Charia covered her ears and shook her head while Lauri looked around, trying to find the source of the noise. Ianthe let out a sigh and Dwynwen shared a look with Sayer.
“What is it?” I shouted over the sound.
“Assembly,” Sayer replied, taking Charia’s hand and pulling her along with him. I pushed Lauri in front of me and followed Sayer. Ianthe seemed to disappear in the rushing of people around us but I made sure not to lose Sayer and Dwynwen.
We stopped at a big door that was labeled ‘Hunter’. I frowned and Sayer beckoned me with his head to go through. I narrowed my gaze on him, I wasn’t going to walk through a door without knowing what was on the other side.
He sighed, “It’s assembly, you and Lauri sit in there above the rest of us.”
“Why can’t you come in with me?” I questioned.
“Because,” Sayer hissed at me, clearly getting annoyed, “Just go through, otherwise the guards will come and ask what is wrong.”
“And I’ll just tell them you two are sitting with me today,” I replied.
Sayer looked at me as if I had lost my mind and Dwynwen shook her head, “We can’t come in there with you,” she said, “We sit with the other Dusarla warriors, on the left side of the hall, the Dusarla citizens sit on the right and the supernatural citizens of Ezalfar are at the back.”
The three of us looked back at the sound of footsteps coming our way. Sayer beckoned me to go through the door but I shook my head, pointing at him and then at the door. He mouthed ‘get in there’ at me but I just folded my arms and stared blankly at him.
The footsteps were getting closer and I doubted it was a good idea for us to be found out here arguing. I pushed Dwynwen towards the door and she gave in, opening it and disappearing inside. Sayer glared at me, obviously determined not to do as I asked.
“Get in there or I’ll tell your doctor you were training and he’ll trap you in your room for another two weeks,” I hissed at him.
A shocked expression etched itself onto Sayer’s face, “You wouldn’t.”
“Get in there, Sayer, now.”
He contemplated it for a moment before giving in and walking through the door. I gestured for Charia to go in next, and after a hesitant glance at me, she followed her brother. Lauri skipped inside, humming to herself and I entered the room last, closing the door quietly behind me.
The room was dark and, in my opinion, resembled something of a cinema. There were three levels of chairs, ten chairs on each level, and at the front of the room the wall was completely made of glass. Dwynwen sat on one of the chairs on the bottom level, Sayer beside her. Charia sat on the level above behind Sayer with Lauri next to her. I walked down the stairs and sat down next to Dwynwen, staring out of the glass.
Far below us, Elisha stood on a stage overlooking hundreds and hundreds of people. Behind her were two chairs, but only one could be filled today, since Stephen was dead. On the left side of the large hall, as Dwynwen had said, was the Dusarla warriors, and on the right was the Dusarla citizens. At the back, separated from the Dusarlas by a fence, was the supernatural citizens of Ezalfar.
“Welcome, warriors and citizens of Ezalfar,” Elisha said and immediately the hall went dead silent. Her voice echoed through speakers in the room we were in and beside me I felt Dwynwen tense. I could hear whispering behind me and I turned around to glare at Lauri, hissing for her to be silent. She shut her lips quickly, nodding in reply.
“As you all know,” Elisha continued, “Stephen recently was killed by Cerdic Valithor and my daughter, Khadi, avenged his death by killing Cerdic. Afterwards, Thorn’s body was found with an arrow sticking out from her chest, the killer is unknown, but whoever it was, we owe them.”
We owe them. Did she know what she was saying? She was saying we owed Andor. But then she had no idea. She had no idea who I was. She had no idea what I had been through here in Valcriea. She thought I was Khadi. She thought I was normal like everyone else here.
“The Valithors have fallen, though Cerdic’s son, Andor, still remains out there. I warn you, if you see him, kill him. He is a danger to us, all of us. He is like his father,” Elisha instructed. I closed my eyes, trying to block out her words. “If you see him, report to myself or Khadi immediately, we will take action.” No, no, no. I won’t take action. I won’t take action against Andor. Shut up. Shut up. Shut up. “I promise you, Andor will fall, just like his sister and father did, and Valcriea will return to normal.”
There was a cheer from the crowd, but I couldn’t listen. I felt sick, my head was spinning, I stood up and stormed out the room, ignoring Dwynwen’s and Sayer’s protests. Running down the hallway I blocked out Elisha’s words, I blocked out what had just happened. The guards gave me peculiar looks, but didn’t try to stop me, instead, they just bowed their heads.
I ran out of the castle, out towards the woods. Finally I was alone. Finally I could think. Finally I could try to sort out my complicated, messed up life.