Neverseen's Puppet

Chapter 2: A Situation

Hi! This chapter will let you see Camilla from a different perspective. Also, the photo is basically a doodle of Camilla's hand (and her bracelets) because I didn't know what else to put for the photo. Umm.. and that's about all I have to say.

Camilla's POV
"Ummm... okay" Camilla bit her lip hoping she had chosen right. She hardly ever went to the Lost Cities, she mostly trained at a hideout unless she was on a mission, like she had been today.

Camilla noticed that Sophie and Fitz were holding hands and staring into each other's eyes. Keefe glared at their intertwined fingers then looked away. Ooo a love triangle, she thought.

Then Grizel grabbed her wrist and pulled her away from the house. The others took one last look at her and turned their attention away, focusing on finding a spare key to get into the house.

Once they were far enough that the others couldn't hear them Grizel told Camilla, "Don't think that I didn't notice the Neverseen charm on your bracelet."

Wait, what?!? Camilla fumbled for an explanation. "Wh- I mea- I don't kn- how?"

Grizel smirked, "It's my job to notice stuff like that, but here's the deal," she leaned down so she and Camilla were eye to eye. "If you can honestly tell me that you are no longer part of that group and don't support what they do, then this little detail will stay between us."

Camilla gulped. She nodded. Channeling confidence she didn't feel, Camilla squared her shoulders. "I am no longer part of the Neverseen, and I don't support what they do," she lied.

Something didn't add up though. Aren't the Black Swan working for the same thing as the Neverseen? Their only difference is what methods they use, Camilla thought. She was with the Neverseen, because in the end, they were the ones who would bring the change the world needed. Also, this was what she was created to do.

Grizel's expression gave nothing away as she said, "We'll see."

Alden's POV
Alden paced nervously out on the sidewalk, keeping a lookout for any suspicious activity. He tried not to think about how long Fitz and the others had been gone. There's no reason to worry, Sandor and Grizel are with them, he told himself. Not that it helped much.

He'd taken a big risk by taking them all here. If anything happened to them... No! He shoved the guilt that was creeping into his mind away. He couldn't afford to fall apart.

Relief flowed over him when he saw Grizel walking back towards him. It was followed immediately by a wave of anxiety when he realized that the rest of the crew wasn't with her. Grizel grasped the wrist of a slight girl with an unruly black mane of hair.

He ran over to them, near to bursting with questions. "Where-" he started to ask.

Grizel cut him off, "The others are with Sandor, searching the house."

What had he specifically told them not to do? Oh well.

"Also, we have a bit of a situation," Grizel said. Alden exhaled. A situation he could deal with, after all, that was his job.

"Meet Camilla, another elf that had been living among humans." The girl- Camilla and Grizel shared a challenging look that Alden couldn't interpret. But he had something else to focus on.

"Living among humans?" Alden asked in disbelief. Did the Black Swan have something to do with this? Or the Neverseen...

Camilla finally spoke, "Yeah, I don't know why you're saying that like I'm not human, but I can do things other people can't."

Intrigued, Alden studied the girl's face. She had grayish-blue eyes like a brewing storm and her skin was light bronze. Wavy black hair framed her face. Something about her appearance was vaguely familiar. He couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"What kind of things can you do, Camilla?" he asked, already imagining all of the possibilities in his head.

"I can become invisible whenever I want to, and when I touch someone, they can do stuff that they can't usually do," she said solemnly.

Vanishing and enhancing, Alden guessed. Interesting.

"Well, Miss..." he realized that she hadn't told him her last name.

"Romani," she supplied after a second of hesitation.

"Well Miss Romani, the reason I make it sound like you aren't human is that you aren't, you're an elf." Her eyes widened in obvious shock. "It also seems that you are a vanisher and an enhancer."

"If I'm a vanisher and enhancer, what are your abilities?" she asked with a furrow between her brows.

"I'm a telepath," Alden said, "Speaking of which, would you be willing to give me permission to read your mind?"

Camilla froze. Alden immediately realized that he needed to slow down. After all, she had just learned she was an elf, he didn't need to drop the "I'm going to sort through all your memories to make sure you're who you say you are" bombshell.

"It's no reason to worry," he assured her, "I just want to see if it's possible since the last elf found living with humans had an impenetrable mind."

Camilla slowly nodded.

"Is it okay if I put my hands on your temples? It will help me focus more," he asked.

"Okay," Camilla reluctantly agreed. Her shoulders tightened, and he realized she was bracing herself.

He put his pointer and middle fingers on her temples and pushed his conscience into her mind.

This chapter was so fun to write. Honestly seeing Camilla from a different perspective really helped me get a grasp on what her personality was forming to be. I'll write the next chapter as fast as I can. Please comment! I'd love to hear what you think of the story so far.