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Chapter 10 - Sophie

Voices erupted around her—a lot more than she was expecting.

Light burned into her eyes and Sophie tried to sit up, but instantly regretted it. A headache hit her that felt like a thousand mastodons were stomping on her skull. So many faces huddled around her, she couldn't make out who was who. But a single familiar person pushed the rest aside and forced elixirs down Sophie's throat.

"Elwin?" Sophie croaked.

The physician nodded. "Yes, take these." He gave her about a dozen more vials to swallow before backing away to join the small crowd that had formed around her.

Whatever Elwin gave her instantly made her headache and stomachache vanish, and she was feeling better already. Sophie realized she was at Havenfield, in the living room, lying on the couch. Mr. Forke, Tiergan, Biana, Dex, Tam, Fitz, Linh, Elwin, Edaline, Grady, Ro, everyone's bodyguards, and even Marella were all there, staring at her with worried expressions on their faces.

"What happened..." Sophie mumbled, as the head rush faded and her vision cleared. "Why are there so many people here? What's happening? I don't understand. I—"

Mr. Forkle stepped up. "Feeling better, Miss Foster?" he asked.

"Fine," Sophie replied shortly. "Can someone please explain what's going on?"

Mr. Forkle fidgeted nervously—which Sophie didn't take to be a good sign—but he still didn't answer.

"You were out, Blondie," Ro stated from a chair across the room, not looking up from examining her vivid blue nails. "For a long time. Everyone tried their fancy telepath tricks on you but you didn't respond. So Forkle hailed a bunch of people and we were all crowding around you and yelling your name but you weren't waking up. And Councillor Sparkly Pink Pants—" Ro motioned to Oralie huddled in the corner, who Sophie hadn't even noticed until now— "started mumbling something about stellalumber? I dunno, I wasn't really paying attention. But she was saying how it was her fault that your mind was as good as broken, and—"

"Alright that's enough," Mr. Forkle interrupted.

Everyone except Sophie turned and glared at the ogre.

Ro shrugged. "What? You weren't going to tell her?"

"We were going to make it sound less dramatic," Mr. Forkle sighed, turning to Sophie. "But yes, what the ogre princess told you is, more or less, true."

Sophie was having a hard time processing that. "My mind was broken?"

Tiergan spoke up. "No, it wasn't. Ro is making it sound a lot worse than it is. But your mind was in a state of chaos. None of us could get to you. Me, Fitz, Mr. Forkle. You had blocked yourself out from us."

"I'm still confused," Sophie admitted, scanning her friend's faces for a hint of anything. "Why is like, everyone, here?"

Marella snorted from somewhere off to the side. "In case you haven't noticed, you're kinda important." Sophie turned and saw the Pyrokinetic casually leaning against the wall, twisting a finger around her braids. "Pretty much everything that happens somehow revolves around you."

"That's not true," Sophie mumbled, hiding behind her hair.

"So when everyone thinks your mind is broken," Marella continued, "and you're the only one who can fix broken minds... there's going to be a bit of a panic."

Ro grunted. "I gotta say, I'm liking this fire girl more and more."

Marella gave a satisfied smirk and raised her eyebrows as if to say, See?