The Thorn

1- CeCe's Whirlwind Tour of the Whole

"You know, like, in adverts, when they do a close up shot in slow motion, and then it snaps and it has a huge explosion in the background, like BOOM!" Marti explains , using avid hand motions to exaggerate her point. I smile and slip into the seat opposite her. Around us, the school lunch hall swirls in a twisting mania of colour and sound. Marti (Martha) is munching on the carrot that she snapped in her demonstration with a hard look of concentration on her face.

"Not the carrots!" I whimper falsely, a hugely fake look of upset and distress on my face. Marti sighs over exaggeratedly and spits the mushed carrot out into her plastic sandwich wrapper.

"Ew! Marti, no!" I shuffle backwards in my chair as hurriedly as I can, but Marti just laughs at me. Her nuttie brown curls fall over her face, but she pushes them away irritatedly.

"Do you have a hairband?" asks Marti," I just wish mum would let me cut it short."

"But then it would go all crazy afro on you," I smile at her, and she smiles back, taking the band I pass her and loosely pulling her hair up into a high pony tail. She then scrapes at the mushed carrot with her fingers and drops it into her open mouth.

"You, my friend, are totally and utterly gross," I moan, and she smirks at me evilly, with usual Marti role play. She makes a great actress. She can slip in and out of character as easily as you or me might clap our hands. If they weren't tied behind our backs, that is. Whoa, CeCe, hold up, that was dark, man. Anyway, as I was saying. I think Marti may have skill because of her Element. Blood.

"Helloooooo," Marti waves her hand infront of my face to get my attention. I jump out of my reverie. "Ok. You're here now, I see. Ok, Sylvia, say hi so that Little Miss Daydream can notice you."

"Hi," says a quiet voice from next to Marti. A quiet voice, but one of the most beautiful I've ever heard. It sounds like a soft, silver bell ringing lightly in the breeze. I turn to see a girl who lives up to her voice perfectly. Her face is one of a porcelain dolls and is framed by curtains of swirling, champagne coloured locks. Her eyes are a soft violet, and they almost seem to glow like dimmed beacons.

"Urm.... Hi?" I say questioningly.

"Oh, I forgot, CeCe, this is Sylvia! She was in my Elemental Control class this morning. She's new."

"Oh," is all I can say. What? I'm sorry, but this seems extremely random, and it completely throws me. Sylvia, however, just smiles and slides elegantly into the tacky plastic chair next to Marti with cat-like grace.

"I'm a Star," she explains, seeing my bewildered expression. Oh. That clears it up. And that wasn't meant to sound sarcastic.

"So, you bleed glitter?" I ask her. A huge grin spreads across her face, and she nods.

Ok. I shall explain. You are very probably very confused. A Star? you are probably thinking, boast much?

In our world, most people are like you, my dear reader. By that, I mean Unwhole. I know that that seems cruel and mean, but it isn't really. No, by Unwhole, I mean not Whole, like me or Marti or Sylvia are Whole. (Capital W). Or like anyone at my school, infact.

In my world, (the world of Idan Magía), some people have 'powers'. It is rare, granted, but it does happen. Those people are called Whole and can control a certain 'Element'. And I don't just mean Earth, Air, Fire and Water, although they are the most common. I also mean Rock and Electricity and Flora and Fauna. I mean Metal and Blood and Stars and Thorns.

The school I go to is called The United Academy for the Whole, or TUAW. Pronounced Tore/taw. You choose. Anyway, so TUAW only accepts the Whole (duh, Cherry, I think we got that) and teaches them to control their power.

List of common powers for the convenience of you:
Water
Air
Earth
Fire
Lava
Flora
Fauna
Flora & Fauna ;)
Rock

If you are Whole, you have a certain aspect of beauty about you. It can be natural or unnatural, physical, eg. hair, eyes, body shape; it can be in the way a person holds themselves or thinks of themselves. It can also be something internal, for example, a Star has a glittery soul. I, CeCe, have beautiful hair. Urgh. My hair is a deep, rich, cherry red (hence the name, Cherry. I hate my name. But only because it just separates my own self from my hair) and it falls in a glossy sheen down my back to my waist, when I wear it down. I usually don't. Today I have it in a messy bun held up with a dried rose stem. I know. Not at all strange.

And there you have it. CeCe's whirlwind tour of the Whole (with a few pit stops in my run away thoughts).

"So, I hear you are unique," Sylvia says, leaning forward in her chair so much that the back legs defy gravity.

"Urm, yeah, I guess," I reply, knowing what's coming. Yes, I am now singing the song from Wicked in my head too. Defying Gravity!

"I mean Elementally," she pushes me. She obviously wants me to confirm the rumours. I really don't want to, but I also don't have a choice. Marti looks at me pityingly, as if she can read my thoughts, and she probably can. I'm not good at hiding my emotions. But that doesn't stop Sylvia from pushing me.

"Uh huh, I guess," I mutter.

"Well?" I'm surprised her chair hasn't fallen out from underneath her yet.

I give in. It's not like I can hide it from her anyway.

"Yes, I am the most dangerous person in Idan," I sigh reluctantly. Mercilessly, Sylvia nods for me to continue.

Reluctantly, I finish," Yes, I am the Thorn." Sylvia smiles triumphantly. I, however, prepare myself for a bombardment of questions that will inevitably follow.