Our Forbidden Love 2

4: Starley

"Come in," I say wearily, answering the knocks on the door to my Government office. I rub my eyes and look at who has entered the office. They have dark midnight coloured hair, reminding me of a contaminated waterfall. Their eyes are blue just like mine and her bright pink and orange tail contradicts the soft pastel colour palette in my office.
"Hey Bubbles," I say, smiling at her. She still hasn't explained why she was so mad the day of my interrogation, and to be honest she's kind of been avoiding me since. I haven't seen her since then. It surprises me that she even bothered to visit me today. She didn't even go to my initiation.
"Sorry," she mumbles. I stretch my Telepathic abilities over her mind and it's an absolute train wreck. I can't make sense of any complete thoughts.
"Sorry?" I ask and she nods in response.
"Yeah, for being so pissed off at you. You were right, you've done nothing to me. It just took me about three months to work that out."
"Thanks, Bubbles," I say, smiling and my sister smiles in return before exiting the room. As the door opens, I see a glimpse of aqua coloured hair belonging to Whitney. I shrug that was a very odd meeting, and coincidental that Whitney was there too but at least things were good between us now.

Suddenly, I feel a burning and tingling sensation on the back of my left hand. It feels like I've been burnt by something. I look at it and the ink is glowing purple. The purple really contrasts my pale skin, but I still love the mark as much as when I first got it. This is the first time it's started burning though. Was this normal?
It just means Binah wants us for a meeting, Piper answers for me. I get up from my chair and make my way to the traditional 'meeting room' inside Government House.

The meeting room isn't far from my office, but when I get there everyone else is already in their seats and I sit in my chair in-between Whitney and Binah.
"Sorry I'm late," I say, quietly.
"That's okay, Starley. This is our first called meeting using the symbols since your initiation. I know you were confused on what it meant," says Piper. Then Binah takes charge.
"Something's been stolen," she states.
"Do we know what has been stolen?" asks Whitney and Binah shakes her head in response. Fascinatingly, I watch Piper who is furiously writing down everything that's said between us on paper that's in-front of her on the table.
"The only thing we know is that it's something from the new Scout School. Hailey, have you finished the key distribution for that building?"
"I thought I had," she says, nervously. "But perhaps I didn't."
"Starley, do you know anything?" Binah calls on me. Binah, the Government-Keeper of Oceanum Villa is asking for my opinion in a government matter. I exhale a deep breath trying to contain my excitement.
"No, I do not. Alex and I were in there the night of my initiation but I have not been since. It's supposed to officially open first thing next week." Quickly, I stash the memory of Alex and I in the Scout School away before any of the members gain access to it. Sitting in such close proximity, the Telepathic and Flicker abilities work so much more freely than usual and we all had to be cautious of what we were sharing. The meeting had continued and no one had noticed my quick stashing away of a memory.
"We should just go look. Surely someone will recognise what's missing," says Liliana. I nod in approval with her idea and many other members do the same.
"Alright then," agrees Binah. "Search the building and see what you can find."

Nine out of ten of the Government members were crowded outside the Scout School. I swim forward and place my hand on the door. The purple magic woven into the building's walls glows and the door clicks open. The nine of us swim through.
"Anything look different from when you were here last?" asks Rhylee.
"No," I say, shaking my head. "It looks the same to me."
The blackboard is on the far right wall, with chairs set up in a semicircle around it. Towards the back of the room are a series of hooks and shelves holding Defence Bows, quivers and knives. On the left wall there are a few targets for practising and in the centre of the room there is a circular shaped reception-style desk. Nothing looked different or out-of-place from when I was here with Alex. Unless...
I swim over to the wall where Alex had pushed me up against, trying my best to not let the memory resurface in front of the Telepaths. I go about two metres from that spot and press my hand against the wall. I'm the only one that knows about this secret room, and I find it satisfying to display it in front of majority of the Government. The part of the wall that I've touched my hand to caves in slightly and opens a doorway into a small seperate room that couldn't have been bigger than three metres either side. I glance inside. The only thing that I knew I'd put in here is now gone.
"Hailey," I say, "I don't think you've finished the key distribution for this building. The Stonal shell is gone." Everyone gasps in surprise and starts talking over one another, out loud and in their heads.
"Whitney," I say, "has anyone escaped from a jail cell recently?"
She shakes her head. "No, not that I know of, and I should know everything there is to know about the jails."
"What about if they have a talent of manipulation of environment?" asks Cameron. He's on the same wavelength as me. I look at him and he nods.
"Then that would make it more difficult for me to track. They'd be able to manipulate the jails' environment and convince me that everything is fine, even if it isn't," confirms Whitney.
"Well, then it's a possibility that I know who stole the shell," I announce at the same time we hear a knock at the door. We all turn to the door and waiting outside is a very stressed and confused looking Alex. I swim to the door and press my hand against it to unlock it for him. He enters and ignores the looks of the other eight government members to look straight at me.
"Starley," he begins, out of breath like he's done the swimming equivalent of sprinting here. "Weedy... Sea Witch... twin... she's here... in the city... and she has the shell." I look at Cameron, our prediction is confirmed. I hold out my right hand and somehow I use my relatively new Teleportation magic to teleport one of the Defence bows, knife and quiver off the back wall and straight to me. I look at Whitney, whose talent it was originally, "that's sick!"