Witches in Training (#2 in the Witches Trilogy) [rewrites ongoing]

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Angel

VINNI

"The fairy kingdom never ceases to amaze, does it?"

"Not in the least."

Sher's taken us on a mini field trip to a skateboarding place, and while everyone else is skateboarding (or failing to), I've found the side of one ramp completely covered with a large-scale artwork with miniscule details. "It's one of the best contemporary style pieces we have, came out only recently. Everyone was really impressed."

"Who did this?"

"Friends of mine." Sher says shortly, suddenly unwilling to elaborate.

"Did you just not acknowledge me, Sher?" A guy's voice says in mock anger. We both turn. He looks vaguely familiar. He tilts his head and looks at me in dim recognition. "Hey... I've seen you before." 

"You've met?" Sher asks, surprised. "When?"

"Keane's party." The boy replies. It rings a bell. I vaguely recall seeing his face after sinking onto the patio. "I'm Ethan, by the way, if you didn't catch that."

"Vinni." I say.

"Nice to finally meet." Ethan appraises the artwork. "Like it? Took more than half a year of nonstop work to finish this, between Ange and I."

Sher stiffens. "Ethan."

"What? She should know. The artwork actually represents the Massacre and everyone who lost their lives in it. If you count the faces, there are two thousand, eight hundred and thirty-six. The same number as the bells in the Bell Tower." He reminds me, walking up and down the length of the ramp studying his own work.

"Look... there it is." Ethan points out the visual representation of the Tower in the piece. "And over here... Queen Kyren's parents. They were killed, too." He points to two faces side by side. "That's how she became Queen so young. She was only a teenager. That one over there-Ange's grandmother." He indicates a woman wearing a flowing white dress. 

"Ethan." Sher says again, warningly.

He looks at her. "I don't know why you always try to hide secrets." He says. "Sometimes it's good to get it off your chest."

"But not this one." Sher says tightly.

Ignoring her, Ethan says to me, "Ange disappeared a month or so ago, a week after a few of our other friends did. Now it's just Sher, Jen, Noelle, Cal and I left."

"Ethan, that's enough."

He feigns deaf. "We think they were taken, but we can't be completely sure."

"And no one's gone looking for them?"

"Not since the first couple of people who tried were sent back immortalised in stone." Ethan bites his lip. "Commander Rayne declared a ban on going after them."

"I'll talk to Rayne-"

"No." Sher says firmly, striding up to me now. "No. You are not going to Rayne. You can't."

"Why not?"

Sher exchanges a look with Ethan, who this time doesn't volunteer the information. "Let's just say... he's not our biggest fan." She says tersely.

"He likes you."

"As an individual." Sher agrees. "But he doesn't approve of us as a group. He thinks we get too narrow-minded and selfish and exclusive."

I frown. It doesn't sound like the Commander I've met. "But you're just good friends. Nothing wrong with that."

Sher folds her arms and looks annoyed. "He thinks it'll compromise the teamwork and unity within the military, within the teams, et cetera, et cetera. It was understandable at first, he was afraid that we might interrupt a mission by prioritising certain things over others, but it's just gotten way too out of control. He's been trying his best to keep us from coming together as a group for months, and seeing how influential he is, it's pretty successful."