Orison | Celeste Academy Series BK #3

Chapter Forty-Two ۞ The Great Fire

A childish hum reverberated softly in a small room, toy blocks tumbling softly against one another as short fingers flicked and carried them off to make up different images with only the available shapes. The pitter-patter of footsteps from afar followed shortly and a boy around the same age came sliding past the door before landing with a huge thump, banging his head against the floor. The girl continued with her activity, oblivious of the other child's accident.

"Ow ow!" He yelped.

"Oh in the name of Arland!" Yelled a motherly voice from another room. "Zevlin Hollan Sabian! Is that you I hear running upstairs again?"

"It wasn't me!" He cried out.

"Do not get me started again, young man!"

"Urg." He grunted, sitting up sulking as his younger twin twisted around curiously. He could almost hear their mother sighing.

"Are you okay, Zev?" She asked.

"I'm fine!" As if reminded of another fact, big, widened eyes blinked in excitement and a bigger body hunched over the smaller one to whisper. "Hey, Gen, I have a surprise."

A pair of identical eyes looked up at the prompt, curiosity obvious within the given gaze. Small hands reached up to pull the ear of the other, making the boy wince at the suddenness of the action.

Genevieve replied to her brother in a hush. "What is it?"

"Let go first!" He replied, wrenching off the tight grip she had on his ear. "I can't tell you here! It has to be a secret." Zevlin's eyes were narrowed with determination as though the whole thing had to be done without the knowledge of anyone else in exception for themselves.

"What? Tell me now." His younger sister insisted. "Zevlin . . ." She whined.

"Alright!" He exclaimed. "Just don't tell mom or dad yet, okay? I want to surprise them too!"

"Okay!" She enthusiastically replied.

Zevlin pulled Genevieve with him to drag her out of the house, passing by the kitchen to see their mother preparing dinner in the kitchen. Their father was waiting for meal to be served, his lips moving to form the words as he talked with his wife.

"I didn't want to go back to duty."

"Wouldn't it be a big loss?" Asked the woman. "Do you not want that promotion, after all?"

"It's a little sacrifice. I want to stay home and protect you and the kids. I've been gone for far too long I feel like my presence in this house has become too strange."

"The kids don't think that way."

"Even so . . ."

"You are a little bit strange, did something happen?" She asked.

"No. I was just thinking." He paused. "How about moving out for a while?"

"What? But you chose this home." She argued calmly.

As they both went past the door, their father quickly caught sight of their shadows and called out to them.

"You there lot!" He exclaimed. "Where are you two going?"

He was ignored as they continued, leaving him with a shake of his head.

"Those kids hadn't turned six and they're already a handful." His wife muttered a bit too loudly it could not be classified as such.

"They're an energetic bunch, I see. They take a lot after you, Genea." He stood and went over to her, giving her a small peck on the lips as he hugged her from behind.