Sunday afternoon mimicked Saturday. The trio waited anxiously in their separate rooms, waiting for the moment those glowing stairs would appear before them. As you do.
Cleo managed not to get a bloody nose this time, so that was an improvement. After three encounters with scenarios like impossibly high cliffs, the earth swallowing her whole, and cramped spaces, she was slowly getting the hand of the realizing-it's-a-dream part. The controlling-things-around-you part still needed work. In response to total darkness Cleo managed to temporarily blind herself by conjuring the sun right in front of her eyes.
Yup. Everything was going great.
After the third trial of that day, Cleo scrambled out the glass box gasping for air after being trapped in a shrinking cube; the worst one so far. She collapsed to her hands and knees, filling her lungs desperately. She heard shuffling and footsteps as Remie squatted down beside her.
"That one really got you, huh?"
Cleo didn't want to answer. The answer was obvious enough, but she didn't want to admit she knew from the beginning that cramped spaces would be her kryptonite. Not to mention that pesky natural disasters one. Oh, and she had a totally normal thing about bugs too. Yeah, this was definitely a profession she was loving.
"It's okay to have fears, Cleo," Remie said gently. "I'll tell you mine, might make you feel better."
Cleo sat back on her haunches, still panting. "You and fears? I don't buy it."
Remie chuckled. "Heights. Terrified of 'em. I can't understand how anyone would like them, and let's not even mention roller coasters."
"I'm a total roller coaster junkie," Cleo laughed, filing away 'roller coasters' as another thing the Helopera apparently have.
Remie rolled her eyes, still grinning. Cleo found it hard to believe that Remie would be afraid of anything. She thought about her own experience with heights, not an hour before. It hadn't bothered her too much, just made her head reel. Of course, everything was a bit more terrifying after her discussion with Nolan the previous day.
After the moment and their grins faded, Remie said, "You don't have to get over your fears."
Surprised, Cleo looked into her eyes, seeing the strength in them, the determination, the endurance. Again, she couldn't see how Remie would be scared of anything.
"Most people will tell you that," she continued, "but it's not true. You just have to accept them, and learn to live with them. Fears like these don't really go away. They're part of who you are."
Cleo wished they weren't. At this moment her urge to aid the rebellion's mission was stronger than ever, a raging fire deep in her chest that longed to burn away the weak parts of her. The parts that held her back, that haunted her.
She was sure that Remie could see her thoughts all over her face. Accepting that her wisdom hadn't been received, Remie rose from the floor and held out her hand to Cleo as she had done twice that day.
"C'mon, let's get lunch."
Cleo followed as they exited the building, trailing behind as Remie led her down the main stone road. Then Remie paused to let Cleo catch up to her, following Cleo's gaze out at the rest of the city.
"Who are all these people?" Cleo asked. "They can't all be Champions, right?"
"Some of them are," Remie said, stuffing her hands in her pockets. "Some are just... people. Cooks, teachers, clothes makers, that kinda thing. They may not help directly, but they believe in the cause so they came to live here."
"So how did you end up here?" Cleo asked, watching two younger children chase a ball around a corner. It all seemed so normal, so ordinary.
"Well, you may have guessed this, but Nolan's parents were the beginning. They started recruiting people quietly. Powerful people, as well as Champions- here, this way," Remie led her around a corner to a side path. "Nolan explained what they were doing, and I joined as soon as I graduated."
Cleo's mind conjured the image of Remie in a cap and gown like she'd graduated high school. She thought it was ridiculous, but their world was so remarkably similar in small ways that she wasn't sure anymore.
"In here." Remie pointed to Cleo's left, a quaint cream brick building that looked like it belonged to a countryside bed and breakfast. "The place belongs to one of our friend's parents, we use it to hang out when it's closed."
Remie pulled open the heavy door and let Cleo in first. Inside was the coziest, most welcoming little diner Cleo had ever seen. The decorations were old-fashioned, the red brown walls lined with old photographs of people and landscapes. Scattered wood tables and classic red and white diner chairs inhabited the majority of the room, the bar taking up the rest. It was like someone had smashed together a family owned eatery with a fifties diner- and somehow it worked.
It looked like Remie and Cleo were the last people to arrive. Scattered chairs made room for three tables pushed together in the center. Andy and Charlie sat next to each other on one side of it, slightly huddled and looking a bit overwhelmed. On the other side was Cassian and a boy Cleo didn't recognize with an empty seat between them. The two boys were twisted in their spots, watching a girl with extremely tight curls and a muscular frame as she tried to balance a plate on her forehead. Her head was tilted back, her legs bent underneath her, her arms outstretched, and her tongue poking out one side of her mouth.
"Cleo!" Andy called, looking relieved to see her. "Finally."
Before Cleo could take another step, the plate girl exclaimed, "Remie!" which was promptly followed by a crash as the plate slid off her face and shattered on the floor. The girl jumped back, pulling her arms in and wincing at the sound.
"Sorry," she said with a sheepish smile, eyeing the unfamiliar boy with tight lips and a shaved head. He just responded by smacking her across the shoulder, wearing a smirk that hinted he was amused and annoyed at the same time.
Remie cracked up next to Cleo, lowering her face as she erupted in laughter.
"Thank you very much," plate girl said, waving her hand and bowing as if finishing a performance.
Remie managed to compose herself and help a lost Cleo by saying, "This is Sona. Sona, this is Cleo."
The girl bounded over to them, pulling Remie into a quick hug. Then she pulled away and hugged Cleo next, much to her surprise. "It's so good to meet you," she said.
"Oh, yeah. You too," Cleo responded, letting go of Sona and glancing at Remie for more help.
"And this is Vik. Vik, Cleo." She gestured to the boy, about as tall as Cleo's shoulders, who nodded and held out his hand. Cleo took it, slightly relieved it wasn't a hug.
"Now that you're finally here, you should sit down, Nolan'll be out soon," Sona told them. She turned and frowned at the shattered plate. "I'm gonna clean this up."
"You better," Vik said under his breath, moving back to his seat at the makeshift table.
Remie and Cleo took their seats, Cleo next to Andy and Charlie and Remie taking one head of the table. Of course, Cleo ended up across the table from Cassian. He gave her a quick smile as a greeting, one she returned swiftly before turning to her friends.
"So how'd it go today?" Cleo asked them.
"Hm. Slightly better?" Charlie said as a question. "I actually got in a hit today." They raised their eyebrows towards Vik, who tilted his head in an I'll give you that one look.
"Oh that reminds me," Andy said to Vik. "Are we gonna start using some weapons? Cause some of those guards we saw had some pretty nasty stuff on them."
"When you can figure out how to use your fists, we can add sharp objects to the mix," Vik responded with a completely straight face and matter-of-fact tone.
"So never?" Charlie asked sarcastically.
Vik just let his shoulders slowly creep up to his ears, suggesting that that was entirely up to them.
"Well that reminds me," Remie said. "Cleo, I was thinking we should probably start some combat stuff, too. You know, in case you run into some more pesky doors." She smiled and winked, making Cleo blush.
"Hey, that's not fair! That door came out of nowhere!"
She heard snickers from her friends. And she definitely saw Cassian trying to keep a straight face, and failing miserably.
Saving Cleo from further embarrassment, Nolan appeared behind the bar with his arms lined impressively with dishes filled with food. "Lunch is served!"
Remie, Cassian, and Vik rose from their chairs and headed for the bar, motioning for Cleo and her friends to follow them.
The six teens (seven once Sona had rejoined them), lined up at the bar like hungry puppies, taking in the array of bowls and plates and smelling the strong aroma. The surprisingly wide range of foods looked exquisite, and smelled even better. As Cleo's mouth began to water, she looked up at Nolan in astonishment.
"You didn't... make all this, did you?"
"Nah, of course not," he said over the sound of water as he washed his hands behind the counter. "Well, some of it. Some of this tuff is leftovers from the restaurant that I fixed up, they serve all kinds of stuff here. Vik, your parents are saints," he declared, pointing his finger at Vik through a towel.
Vik was too distracted trying to rearrange some of the dishes in front of him.
"Hey!" Nolan snapped his fingers at the boy. "You know the rules, man."
'Rules?" Charlie asked.
"I count to three, and it's a first-come, first-serve basis to get what you want. So go quick!" Nolan grinned widely, clearly amused by the little game that Cleo was sure had been his idea.
"What about you?" Cleo asked him.
"I like to watch the chaos," Nolan answered, looking around at his impatient customers. "Plus, I'll eat whatever so I just take what's left."
"Wow," Cleo mumbled.
"So," Nolan clapped his hand together, "without further ado...
"1!" He grabbed his towel in both hands.
"2!" He took a step away from the bar.
"3!" He brought the towel down like a flag that starts a race, a look of pure excitement and content on his face.
Cleo didn't bother trying to get first pick. She got a feeling that would never happen, not in this lunch-to-the-death tradition of theirs.
Vik was the first back at the table, having plucked a bowl of what looked like gumbo at lightning speed. Sona placed one foot on a stool, reaching over Charlie to grab the curry, and practically skipping back towards the table. Cassian ducked under her at the same time, snatching a spread of dumplings from in front of Andy. Remie deftly slid the steaming bibimbap from in front of Cleo off the table, catching it from behind Cleo.
After a blink of an eye, Cleo, Andy, and Charlie were the only ones left at the bar. They staring at the half-empty counter, giggling coming from the table behind them.
"Hope you didn't get your hopes up," Nolan said, his smile bursting with giddy amusement. "I'll let you three have first pick."
Cleo had no problem with that. She selected the exquisite-smelling rice pilaf sitting in front of her nose, taunting her this whole time. Charlie picked a bowl of creamy linguine, not looking disappointed in the slightest. Andy, after some contemplation, chose the enchiladas, leaving a baked ziti for Nolan.
"Good choices, girls. Although, they're all good if I do say so myself."
Cleo and Andy both looked not-so-subtly at Charlie, trying to edge them onto correcting Nolan before it got too late.
"Actually," Charlie cleared their throat, "I go by they and them, so... you know, not technically girls."
Nolan blinked, processing the information. "Okay," he said simply. Then he added, with a look to all three of them, "I do say "you guys" a lot, that's okay, right?"
Relieved, Charlie cracked an amused smile. "Yeah. That's fine."
Returning to the table, the trio experienced the most bizarre lunch they'd ever been to, and it made them want to eat here everyday. This wild, rag-tag group of friends with such a deep bond, they had stories and jokes for everything. There was the story where Sona got stuck in the academy's version of detention when she snuck out of her dorm to sing happy birthday to Vik at midnight. There was the next door roommate they had convinced that Nolan and Cassian's names were switched for three months before someone blew it. And the one day a year they would all ditch school to hang out at Chicago spots Cleo recognized; the downtown mall, the museums, the famous restaurants and retro arcades.
It made Cleo feel oddly homesick for a home she didn't have. Then that made her feel guilty. She had plenty of memories, her own stories and inside jokes with her two best friends. The ones who were here beside her in this crazy place.
"So how exactly did you all meet?" Charlie asked the group. There was a lull in the conversation as they all waited for Sona to compose herself; she had laughed herself to tears over the time Cassian's cake was rigged to blow up in his face. Cleo liked that story. She also noticed how relaxed he was here. He always seemed so nervous and anxious with her and her friends.
"Well, you know Nolan and I are in the same class," Remie answered. "Cassian and Sona are in the same year, and Vik's a year below them."
"We met Vik because he was in the wrong classroom on his first day," Cassian said, smiling across the table at the young boy. "Took class with us for two hours before he realized he had no idea who anyone was or what was going on."
Vik scowled mockingly back at him.
"Remie and I were roommates," Sona told them while wiping tears from her face. "Some mistake though, since we're not the same age. But we never said anything, of course."
"That was the only reason we could never complain about our other roommate." Remie gestured to the rest of the group with her spoon. "Remember Rowana? She was constantly harping on us and then showed up out of nowhere at like midnight everyday."
Cleo almost did a spit take. No way she could be their roommate. It was too much of a coincidence... Maybe Rowana is a common name among Helopera.
"Wait, Rowana Rose?" Nolan asked, frowning and trying to recall a memory of this person. "Dark hair, always wore her symbol on that necklace?"
No way. No way. No way.
"Ugh, yes," Sona said. "Just had to use every opportunity to be superior."
Rowana had been roommates with Remie and Sona. What kind of twisted coincidence is that? Cleo thought, staring down at the table. By the sound of it, she wasn't well liked by her roommates. As angry and confused as Cleo was with Rowana, she didn't know if she could listen to the things her former roommates had to say.
But Sona continued.
"Worse, she was always Spiros Silver's little pet. But of course she's too much of a goody two-shoes to follow him here. Basically a demon herself," she grumbled.
Cleo couldn't take it. She knew she was making a scene but she didn't care. She had to get out of here, away from this conversation.
Her spoon clattered against the side of the ceramic bowl as she dropped it and jumped up from her chair. Avoiding eye contact with anyone and everyone, she went straight for the door. She heaved it open with her bodyweight, fleeing the diner just as tears pooled in her eyes and threatened to pour down her face.