In the Heart of the Fire (a KOTLC fanfic)

VIII

So...the first half of the day could have gone worse. Got stupid stares. And seating charts! What a ridiculous concept! If the classes weren't so big, that wouldn't be an issue. Art 101 is my smallest class, so far. About 15 people. The rest are closer to thirty kids. I mean, we all had P.E. together at Foxfire, but our other classes were small.

Anyway, Sprout invites me to their table at lunch and their twin, Sage, is there. They're so cute. Sprout with their single floof of hair and Sage with their curly, shoulder-length locks. Meluna also somehow got an invite, I notice as i walk over. I plop my belongings down in a seat on the other side of the table as Meluna, in front of Sprout. Sprout then drags me over to the lunch line that is not unlike Foxfire's except the food here has...meat. I'm the only one to spend time at the salad bar. People pass me, scoffing, as I ask Sprout to explain what all of the "vegetables" are. They're nothing like what I'm used to. The only thing that looks good are these crunchy morsels called croutons. I take plenty of those. I'm not even going to mention the milk, though.

The lady at the pay station is less than kind, especially when she has to use my name because I don't know my lunch number. She angrily scribbles my lunch number down on a sticky note and hands it to me "for future reference." I marvel at the little piece of paper. We don't have these in the elven world. We should, though. They're pretty cool.

"That's just the normal lunch line procedure." Sprout informs me.

"Seriously?" I can't help but ask.

Sprout nods. "Mm-hm. Shovy people. Grouchy lunch lady. Pretty standard."

I think on this for a second. I'm going to have to get used to humans. They're so strange.

When we arrive at the table, Meluna and Sage are deep in conversation about something called "MARVEL."

"So...my favorite character is called Iron Man becuase he has an iron suit that does such cool stuff. Without the suit, though, he's still a genius, billionaire, playboy and philanthropist." They pause as if waiting for the laughter. Meluna stares blankly.

I can't resist the urge to chime in. "If you're waiting for a reaction, you aren't going to get one. The only people we obsess over are the Councilors."

"Speak for yourself." Meluna seems triggered. "Those prim and proper jerks took so much from me. They stole everything."

I blink stupidly, setting my tray down so she won't see my shaking hands. That's new. "So that's why you stole from them? Or at least tried to?" This time, I'm not being sarcastic.

Meluna stabs at her salad with a plastic fork and nods solemnly. "I just want them back."

Them. The Council didn't steal something. They stole someone. Oh boy. That's fun. She's not finished, though.

"And you have no reason to like them either. Look what they did to your family. Look what they've done to you."

I'm glad we're in the human world. If she said that in the elven world, she would be punished for treason.

Sprout and Sage are looking at us funny. I guess it's time to explain some things. I tell them all about Project Flareadon, leaving out where I was when the Council came for me because I don't feel like sharing that. I'm surprised they don't know this already seems how Zeke's their father. I guess this was a secret. Well, not anymore.

"I can't believe dad said he was going on a vacation." Sage stares st the table.

"You left something out." Sprout comments."What happened to your family?"

My turn to be interested in my wilty lettuce. I hold out my hand with a croutons on it. I let a sickly green flame burn it to ashes. I watch it burn. It feels good. I haven't used my power since...since fighting with Fitz. That feels like an eternity ago. I look into Sprout and Sage's eyes. There is only mesmerization. "My family has a long history of being Pyrokinetics. It's kind of our family heirloom. Unfortunately, Pyros are looked down upon because we can call down fire from the sun, Everblaze. It's basically impossible to put out. So we have to be watched closely by the Council. It is a curse. That's why I've hidden it my whole life. Only certain elves know." Elves like Keefe. I finish in my head.