Water {Elements of Power 2}

Chapter 26: Jasmine

"So she told you this, and then left?"

I nodded. "It was like she couldn't wait to get away. It was partly my fault though—I was so overwhelmed, I couldn't say anything to her. She must think that I hate her!" My eyes were welling up with tears.

"Hey!" He shuffled closer and wrapped his arm around me, bringing me in tight. "She will understand. It was a very emotional experience for both of you and you need time to think about what she said and how it affects you—how much you want to let it affect you."

"I don't think she wants it to change anything. It will ruin her position in the Realm if it was to come out."

"Well, that was the case when you were born, but it might not be the same now; she doesn't have another heir. You are both going to have to consider your positions very carefully."

"I hadn't even thought about it that way."

"She might not have either. This goes far beyond you wanting to know where you come from, Jazz—you are going to have to decide what you do with that knowledge." He hugged me to him more tightly and I tucked my head under his chin, leaning on his chest.

"I don't know what to do," I said quietly.

"Well, right this minute, you don't need to decide anything. We will be here for a few more weeks and there will be plenty of opportunities for you to speak to the Queen. For now, you should give yourself time to think things over and decide how you want to approach her."

I sniffed, fighting back tears. "Thank you, Brae."

"Hey!" he said, tilting my chin up towards him and brushing my lips with a light kiss. "It's what I'm here for."

We stayed like that for a while, Brae's arms wrapped round me tightly, making me feel safe and secure. It didn't matter what I learnt about my past, or what I decided to do in the future. He would be there for me and help me through it.

Eventually though—as much as I wanted to stay in bed all day—I had to get up. Rowan had scheduled another practice session for this morning and I knew that I shouldn't miss it. I had been making headway with one of my aims for the trip; I ought to try working on the other one too.

"I should get to practice," I told Brae and he unwrapped his arms from round me.

"Would you mind if I came and watched?"

"Not at all... As long as you don't mind getting wet!"

***

In the end, all four of them came down to watch me. Devon was sporting a new umbrella and wellington boots and grinned at me good-naturedly as she took her seat next to Cameron. I was surprised to see her—she and Imogen still weren't speaking and I wasn't sure she would want to be in the same place as Kit either. The boys sat between the girls; Im remaining aloof in a pair of large black sunglasses. She nodded at the two boys, but acted as though she couldn't see Devon. The only people she spoke to were Lorelie and Kit.

I sighed as I watched her. I wasn't sure what was going on between Imogen and Kit. Inter-Realm relationships were very, very rare and always met with fierce resistance. Now that I knew a little bit about my parents' past, I was beginning to get some idea of how destructive they could be. I wanted my friend to be happy, but whatever way she chose she was going to experience pain.

I focused my frustration into the practice session with mixed results. My water manipulation was steadily improving—I could now make spirals, sprays and jets. Nothing very menacing or violent, but perhaps that was a reflection of my personality. Producing water in the first place was causing me problems; I would maybe manage it one time in ten and at least four of the attempts would produce fire instead.

This was where Kit came into his own though—he became accomplished at dousing my flames with his own jets of water.

Rowan was getting us to send spirals of water up into the air above us, manipulating their speed, force and direction every so often. The task was calming and therapeutic, but I couldn't see when it would be useful. The Arcans' powers allowed them to sail quickly, clear debris and create menacing whirlwinds. The Helians' powers had obvious destructive uses. I always thought that a Brizan Protector would spend their time out on the sea, manipulating the currents and waves, or, if on land, watering plants, or something like that. Sure, the spirals were pretty and hard to produce, but when would I actually want to use them?

We muddled through well enough and Rowan seemed almost pleased with our progress by the end of the session. Perhaps that was because he had—for once—been able to stay dry.

When we finished for the afternoon, Kit went back over to Imogen and the two of them left together. Devon pulled a face, but didn't say anything, avoiding eye contact with Im as she stalked past.

"You did great!" Brae said as I walked over, either oblivious of the tension between our friends or pretending not to notice.

"Thanks. I feel like I'm getting there."

He took my hands in his and was about to lean in to kiss me when Devon squealed.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! What in the air is going on here? Is there something you've been keeping from me, Jazzy?" Her eyes were wide with shock, but she was smiling broadly.

She jumped up and grabbed my arm, pulling me away from Brae. "You can have her back later, Your Highness—right now she needs to spill." All I could do was laugh at the surprised look on Brae's face as she dragged me away.

{Well I really like this cute Jasmine chapter. I hope some of you can find it in your hearts to like it too... If you are loving this story and have a minute to spare, please consider voting for it for the People's Choice Watty. You just have to tweet the book's full title along with #MyWattysChoice. It would mean so much to me!

I'm sorry this update is so late. I'm trying my best to get updates posted on time, but a lot is going on at the moment (including a lot of exciting new writing!) Hopefully I will have the next Roxy chapter for you on Friday - it's a good one!}