ASTRA

III

The sound of shouting emerged from the outside and I peered from my room's window to see Luke running around, screaming once in a while. I knew it was already noon and I must have overslept and I quickly got up, ready to begin the day, with a new energy; now that I knew there was a chance I could find my mother. I glanced around the small room I'd customised to feel more homely when we came back last night. Band posters was now all around the walls, a makeshift wardrobe had been placed by Mr Bailey and my clothes were scattered around it. With Selene's help, I'd manage to make a little vanity space and late into the night we managed to create a desk for studying.

I was pleasantly surprised to know that my room adjoined with the bathroom and after double checking to see that no one was inside, I made my way in quickly washing up. I went back into my room, scrutinizing my clothes which mainly consisted of flannel shirts and black skinny jeans. I finally settled on a baggy top that reached my knee, and old trainers. I headed outside to find Luke doing push ups, noticing just how ripped he was.

"Hey, having fun?" I said, after getting over just how godly he looked. He stopped and flopped down on the grass, looking up at me.

"I always have a burst of energy around this time, it's when the sun's shining the most; I need to take advantage of it. Ready to train?"

"Aren't Selene and Theia meant to train me?"

"Selene and dad are still trying to work out your powers and mum and Eos headed out an hour ago, your training's been left to me for today." He explained.

"Why didn't you come and wake me up?"

"Mum said to let you sleep, I agreed. I'm kinda the worst trainer you could ever have, I'm incredibly strict, so I thought why not let you rest up you know? We're gonna warm up first. How flexible are you?" he asked, getting up and taking off his top.

"Holy- damn, now I see why Lindy Hanlon only ever goes to your basketball games to see your body." He raised his eyebrow, lips tugged into a small smile.

"Hey no flirting with your trainer, and no objectifying your trainer too, answer my question instead."

"How about I just show you how flexible I am? Test me."

"Alright, we're gonna start with a few basic stretches before moving to more complicated stuff. Tell me if you can't handle some things please." He started stretching and I followed suit, finding it incredibly hard to concentrate.

"I'm begging you to put your shirt on, this isn't good for my health." He laughed, purposely turning around to face me.

"Better?" I groaned, closing my eyes and breathing in. Immediately, it felt like I was floating in air, and I could hear voices and after breathing in again, they became clearer.

"I haven't been this puzzled in a long time Selene." Mr Bailey said, loud and clear and I opened my eyes to see Luke staring at me strangely. I felt dizzy and out of breath and it felt like the whole world was spinning.

"You okay?" He asked.

"How close are we to Selene and your dad? Are we close enough to hear them?" I asked, even though I already knew the answer.

"There's no way we'd be able to hear them from here; why do you ask?"

"Oh gods, can we pause for a while, I need to go and confirm something with them. I think it might possibly help them." he nodded, running inside the cabin and I followed him into a room which I immediately knew was Selene's. She'd painted the wood a light blue and a huge sticker of the moon was placed on the left side, and on the right side were stickers of the stars. A huge white rug was placed which basically covered her entire room and her bed was right in the middle. On the left side was a bookcase with rows upon rows of books and next to it was a huge desk area with more books on it. She and Mr Bailey were frowning over a book and both looked up at us.