Collaterals

An Odd Sort of Deja Vu

It had eyes. Leila could swear it had eyes. And right now, they were looking straight at her.

Heat throbbed out the ball of fire like a pulse out a vein. Leila drew long breaths, reminding herself to not panic, do not panic as she stared into the fire, feat grounded below her at shoulder length apart.

"Zarqa, return."

Leila could just about make out her father's outline from the periphery of her vision, eyes fixated on the ball of fire. Leila took a breath, then another, and soon her fear morphed into interest as she eyed the flame. If they were eyes she was looking at...then perhaps it was consciousness Leila glimpsed within the fire. She leaned her head to the side, as though in question. The ball of flame mimicked her, leaning sideways. Leila leaned the other way, and once more the flame mimicked her. A small smile crept through her lips as she straightened, tension quick to dissipate from her body. Leila began to move, eyes not leaving the flame as it followed her. "Is she controlling it?"

Ali's gaze had not left her the entire time. He watched, now, with a frown, placing his hands behind him before he stepped in place. "In a sense."

It was Haitham— still leaned by the wall— who responded as Leila circled the flame, "It is her soul. Zarqa can call to it, bend it as you bend fire."

"Her...Soul?"

"Of course it leaves her body more vulnerable to attack, which is why it is important she is not seen in this state by company that is..." Haitham's eyes flittered to where Ali stood before he looked down,  "...not trusted." 

Leila nodded, slowly. The flame was so...alive, grinding and whirling into itself, oranges and yellows mixing together. Leila stepped closer, wanting so badly to touch it and yet feeling that would somehow be offensive. She always wanted to touch fire, never seaming to learn that it burned. Her thumb ran through the scars on the middle three fingers of her right hand in memory.

Ali stepped closer. This time, however, Leila sensed the movement, looked past the fire, and locked eyes with him. The action proved to be a mistake, the fire exploiting her inattention as it circled her, forcing Leila to go still once more. She watched as the flame danced around her, as though sniffing her.

Leila yelped, jumping onto a foot as the flame roared past her, swooshing through the air and striking straight towards Zarqa. She took a sharp breath, stepping forward, hand moving once more— out of habit— to where her sword's hilt was meant to be. But the flame did not hurt the girl, still stuck in her daze, instead moving past Zarqa's open lips. Leila's sister swallowed the flame whole, lips closed around it as she took a breath and straightened, eyes closed. When she opened her eyes, the gold had melted away, making way to the vibrant blue of her wide eyes.

Zarqa's hands were held out ahead of her as she moved to Leila, "Leila!"

Leila smiled to her timidly as her sister put her arms around her, giving her a hard squeeze before placing two quick kisses on either of Leila's cheeks. She spoke quickly, a radiance to her as she said, "Welcome! Welcome!"

"Tha— thank you," Leila stepped back, out of their embrace.

Only Zarqa did not let her, stretching up as she threw a hand around Leila's shoulder, steering them trough a hallway Leila had not previously noticed. "It's good your here! Oh, I do so hope I did not offend you by remaining here. It is only the flame does not always return so fast and with my tendency to see so far, of course, well—"

Leila threw a glance behind her shoulder, frowning at how her father and brother had already begun to move away. Only Haitham nodded to her in goodbye, a stupid smirk on his face. Leila gave him a look of desperation before looking back to her sister, still yapping away.