I was sat in headmistress Dowlings office, hearing a very long lecture about the things I wasn't allowed to do. My thoughts were somewhere else though, I really just wanted to get out of the room, out of the building, out of the other world.
"Gabrielle, did you hear me?" I shook my head, snapping back in reality before nodding again.
"Yeah, I umm I heard you Mrs. Dowling." I said, kind of in a hazy confused tone. She looked at me worried and not really trusting me, but she let it slide.
"Okay, so what element are you going to choose?" I looked up at her confused. What did she mean what element? Could I only have one element? I knew most people only have one, but I was a little different. I could control all of them.
"Umm, air?" I said questionably. She looked at me and nodded, trusting me to stick with just one of my abilities. She stood up and pointed at the door.
"Well then Gabrielle, have a good day." I got up and walked to the door, opening it. But before I could close it, I heard the headmistress say something else.
"And Gabrielle, you will also train with the specialist!" I stuck my head back in her office in disbelieve. I loved fighting and was quite good at it, if I had to believe my teacher. But I always believed my teacher was a little bias.
"Really?! You're letting me train with the specialists?" Dowling nodded and I squeeled as I closed her door. I had already looked around the school, although it was quite familiar. When I got back to my suite, I saw that everyone had settled in and getting ready a little.
"Hey Terra, have you seen my headphones?" I asked while looking around on my desk, where I was sure I had left them. Terra shook her head and went back to her plants, I kept looking for a bit feeling a migraine coming.
Just then Musa walked in. Musa walked in just as I was about to tear apart my room in frustration. The pounding in my head had intensified, the familiar throb that meant someone nearby was feeling something intense—too intense. It was like trying to focus while a hundred voices screamed in my ears.
"Musa, have you seen my headphones?" I snapped, the sharpness in my voice betraying the pain building behind my eyes. I instantly regretted it—Musa wasn't to blame—but the headache was making it hard to think straight.
She paused, her expression shifting from surprise to concern. "No, I haven't. Are you okay?"I forced a smile, hoping it would be convincing.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a headache." A gross understatement, but I didn't want to draw attention to myself. Not when I had so many secrets to keep. Musa's brows furrowed slightly, and I could tell she wasn't buying it. Being a mind fairy herself, she was sensitive to others' emotions, though her powers were more focused on emotions and less on the chaotic mix of thoughts, feelings, and memories that bombarded me.
"Headache or something else?" she asked gently, her tone probing but not pushy. I shook my head, trying to brush it off.
"Just a headache, I swear." The last thing I needed was for her to start digging, to sense the truth about why I was really in pain. The migraines weren't just from stress—they were the result of my mind being overwhelmed by the emotions, thoughts, and sometimes even the memories of those around me. And when I was in a place like Alfea, surrounded by powerful beings with intense emotions, it could be too much to handle.
Musa didn't push further, but I could tell she wasn't entirely convinced. "Well, if you need anything, just let me know," she said, her tone sincere. She gave me a small smile before heading toward her own desk, leaving me to my search.
I resumed rummaging through my things, but the throbbing in my temples made it hard to concentrate. The only thing that helped was blocking out the noise, which was why I needed my headphones so badly. Music was my shield, drowning out the chaos in my head. Without it, I felt exposed, vulnerable.
