Glistening Embers

Chapter 15: Realization

Author's Note:
Me trying to  do an Australian accent- "Hi, I'm... Oxiclean!"

Glisteen sat in her room alone, for a while, after Sabecary left. Okay. she thought. What do I know?

Sabecary actually cares about me or at least, he's pretending to. I burnt half of Sinlivbie's face off. Yilasia had green eyes instead of blue when she almost killed Reath. Mictochra is gone. Talyah was acting suspicious in the hospital wing. The people here are fine with Thigil being killed and my parents committed murder-suicide. Completely normal. Glisteen thought, sarcastically.

Maybe I should take one thing and focus on it. she thought to herself. Sabecary cares about me. Why would he do that? She paced around the room. Is he trying to take advantage of me, so when I battle him, I'll be distracted? Is he mocking me and I just don't realize it? Or... Glisteen stopped at the nearly unthinkable. Does he actually, truly care?

There was a knocking at the door. "Glisteen! Are you in here?" It was Yilasia.

"Yes, I'm in here." Glisteen went to the door and opened it.

Yilasia and Raya stood there, Yilasia holding red flowers, poppies, in a small terracotta pot. "I brought you these." she said, holding the pot out to Glisteen. The poppies leaned backwards and wrapped themselves around Yilasia's fingers. "Hey!" she protested. "You're for Glisteen!"

Glisteen had to laugh at that. She took the pot out of her sister's hands and slowly, the flowers went back to their normal position. "Thank you, Sia. They're beautiful." She kissed the young girl gently on the forehead. Yilasia stuck her tongue out at the flowers. One of the flowers, it must have been sassier than the others, raised a leaf back at her.

Everyone laughed at that. "Come in, you guys." Glisteen said. They entered the large bedroom. Raya and Yilasia sat on the two grey chairs while Glisteen sat on her bed.

"So, are you okay?" Raya asked, cautiously.

"I'm feeling better." Glisteen replied.

"Good, we..." Raya exchanged a glance with Yilasia. "we were just worried. We looked everywhere for you and, of course, we can't get in here without your handprint. And Sabecary said-" Raya eyed Glisteen. "He didn't come in here, did he?"

Glisteen hesitated. For some reason, she felt she shouldn't tell anyone about his visit. But this was her sister and her only other friend here. What to do? "No," she lied, "how could he? Like you said, no one can get in here without my handprint."

Raya nodded. "I'm just worried, Glisteen. Sabecary... he may seem nice, but underneath, he's just as cold as his power."

Glisteen thought about it for a moment. Raya was right. There was no way Sabecary would care about a plain orphan like her. He had seemed so genuine, though. "How do you know so much about Sabecary?" she questioned.

"I've gotten to know him a lot more than I'd like to the past few weeks." Raya said, rolling her eyes.

Yilasia giggled. "Haven't we all?"

The trio shared in another laugh, then. Glisteen was happy, but felt as if something, or someone, was missing.

It was time for dinner by then, so the girls headed downstairs; their friend group shrunken by three in just a few short days. Glisteen and her friends sat at a table in the corner and ate their dinner, tortillas filled with cheese and a kind of pastry stuffed with beef. It was good to get relief, even for just a little while, from the sorrow that had plagued her. 

They soon returned to their rooms, and the dreaded intercom came on. "Excuse me, Gifteds, for interrupting. Showda and Talyah would just like me to tell you congratulations on making it to the final eight, Telma Muitnait, Sabecary Rosen, Yilasia Evocabeth, Rebeez Agel, Raya Nesis, Smeko Muitnait, Glisteen Evocabeth and Artew Ewav.

"By way of rewarding you, we believe that you should get some time off. So, we have decided, you eight, will have six days off. No fighting will take place, and you will be allowed to do whatever you want, as long as you stay in the building. Thank you."

Glisteen let out a cry of celebration and raised her fists into the air. Across the hallway, she heard a loud whoop from Yilasia. Glisteen smiled, then grinned, then beamed. They had made it. They had made it! They had made it to the final eight!

She opened her door and ran across the hall to Yilasia's room. She knocked on he door.  "Sia! Isn't this great!"

There was a silence. Confused, Glisteen knocked again. "Sia?"

The door's wood began warping and twisting. A voice, Yilasia's, but yet, not quite Yilasia's, came from her room. "Who dares disturb me?"

Glisteen swallowed. "Sia, it's me, Glisteen. Your sister.

Yilasia, but not Yilasia, laughed. "I have no sister. Be gone!"

A branch, sharpened like a sword, grew out of the door, slowly making its way toward Glisteen. "Sia, don't do this! Remember what happened to Reath!"

Glisteen heard a gasp and the branch withdrew back into the door. The door returned to its normal form. Yilasia rushed outside.

"Glisteen, oh, I can't believe it! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Sia. It's you I'm worried about." She pressed Yilasia close to her, in a hug. Yilasia clutched onto her like a lifeline, like Glisteen was the only branch in a flood, and Yilasia was in danger of getting swept away."Describe to me what you felt."

Yilasia stepped away from her. "I told you, I can't. I just know I wasn't in control. It's like..."

"Like what?" Glisteen prompted.

"Like every time it happens, I'm losing a part of my soul."

Glisteen flashbacked to when Showda had told her that her parents were dead.

"No, it's-it's not possible." she had sputtered out.

"I'm afraid it is." Showda had replied. "Felt like I was... losing my soul when I heard."

What if Showda wasn't just expressing her feelings through a metaphor? What if Showda had been giving her a hint? What if the more you used your powers, the more you lost your soul?