The Time Hopper

Stern Talking To

I looked around the room, my heart in my boots, a feeling of dread occupying where it should be. My siblings were all sat around in a loose circle, eyes closed, some brows furrowed in concentration and others seeming entirely relaxed. I had talked them through what I had done to pull my power into me, but that I wasn't entirely sure that that was the failsafe method. Then again, this would have only been the third time it had ever been done in the history of the world, so probably not enough to develop a proper method-

Riley squeezed my hand, as he kept doing to stop my thoughts spiralling. It worked, making me glance at him and smile, worried though I was. I wanted to talk, the silence in the room deafening me and making me shift about and fidget something awful, but I couldn't. What if it didn't work at all? Worse, what if it did work? And why was it taking them so long, when I had managed to do it in a matter of minutes. Sure, they had only started ten minutes ago, but apparently I wasn't allowed to go wandering off and it felt like an absolute age had passed. Finally, I leaned in close to Riley to whisper in his ear. 

"I was in a lot of danger when I did it. Maybe if they were about to lose their lives it would speed this up a bit?" I suggested, surprised at the incredulous look he gave me. I thought it was a good idea. After a moment, he whispered back. 

"Sadie, there's no reason to even try and speed this up other than your own impatience. Besides, I don't think any of them would actually buy that we would kill them. How would we hold a knife to so many throats at once anyway?" He asked me in return, being sure to keep his voice low. I knew that he was only entertaining me to help pass the time, but I was grateful for it none the less. He had brought a deck of cards, but I was too anxious to properly focus on them. 

"I was thinking a bomb, or some other sort of explosive. Set it, tell them as we leave and lock the door, wait and profit." I said, not able to stop myself from grinning or speaking as softly as I should have. Immediately, Alice opened one eye and fixed me with a stern glare, one eyebrow arched. I didn't know if she was mad at me suggesting or just me making noise, as five minutes ago she had thoroughly scolded me for sneezing. I gave her a sheepish smile and shrugged, trying to word an explanation, when it happened. All of a sudden, she went stiff, a hiss of air coming from between her clenched teeth as darkness suddenly swelled around her, covering her in a thin veil of shadow as her eyes flushed an obsidian black. I stood up, arm out to keep Riley back as I watched her twitch, shadows drawing a curling pattern along her skin. 

After a moment, she convulsed again, and the shadows were absorbed back into her skin and her veins turned black before returning to normal. Her eyes returned to their usual sharp green and the shadows remained, but more under control and simply pulsing around her legs. She let out a shuddering breath and fell forward onto her hands, shivering for a moment as she gasped for air. I knelt down next to her, reaching out and gently touching her shoulder, only to get almost a static shock from it. I half yelped, pulling my hand back before overpowering the reflex and comforting her anyway. 

"Alice, are you alright?" I asked her as whispering and talking and questions began to come up from the others, who had all decided to forgot their own attempts to stare at Alice. It seemed to be distressing her, her hands clamped over her ears as though to block out the noise. 

"Everyone pipe down, I think she needs quiet." Riley announced as soon as I thought it, staring them all down until it was silent. She was breathing heavily, but unevenly, like it was all too intense for her and she kept forgetting. I kept rubbing her shoulder, staying quiet and waiting for this to settle. Finally, the shadows stopped writhing, and her breathing levelled out. Slowly, she took her hands away from her ears and sat up, looking around a little blearily. 

"You're all meant to be trying for this too, not stopping to gawk at me." She scolded them, even though her voice was still a little faint. I couldn't help but smirk- good to know that her personality was still intact. One by one, a couple of the others sat back and closed their eyes, but the rest of them stayed staring at Alice. She kept glancing around, her head twitching like she was hearing people talking to her.