Everything Has Changed

Hold Back The River

"So, Linh Song."

Councillor Emery leaned back in his throne, neither his facial expression nor his body language giving away his emotions. Well, Linh could tell that he disapproved of her, but that was evident in all the Councillors.

Everything about him was cold, Linh observed. She half-wondered about his life. Did he spend all his life cooped up in the Tribunal Hall, attending Council meetings and always feeling that the world was in his hands? Did he like the life he was leading now?

Or did he want to escape, like Linh?

She was feeling strangely calm about this whole Tribunal, and she could tell it was unnerving everyone- the Councillors and the audience. Only Tam and her parents were as unreadable as herself- though she knew that deep inside, they were masking their emotions and casting it into the shadows like what a Shade would do.

The Song family always had its secrets. But... it wasn't Linh's place to gouge them out. It never had been.

She should've realised that from the start.

Councillor Emery's voice brought her back to reality. "Linh Song, you are the top-scoring prodigy in your cohort. First in standard, passing every examination with flying colours. After all, you're the one who topped the charts for the Entrance Examinations... and not to mention the youngest elf to ever manifest."

Linh tensed at that, but made no move to reply. Memories of her first day in Foxfire resurfaced in her mind, and she closed her eyes, trying to blink those images away.

Oh, right. Another of the Council's dirty little tricks. Smoke and mirrors. But who can blame them, really?

On the other hand, Tam jumped out of his seat like he'd been shot by a melder, his silver eyes flashing with unbridled fury. "You knew that all along, but you didn't give her the title she deserved!"

A few of the Councillors looked uncomfortable at Tam's words, and regret was written all over their faces.

Linh wondered why they hadn't sealed the memory into their caches if they were so affected by it. Every elf knew the grave consequence of guilt, even the Council. Especially the Council.

Emery's expression didn't change. He'd clearly been trained not to show anything on his face. "The Vackers have always been first in everything, Mr. Song. It wouldn't do good for them to be second all of a sudden. It just doesn't work that way. And nobody wanted a juvenile delinquent to hold the honourable title of youngest elf to ever manifest."

"Juvenile... delinquent?" whispered Tam, a note of disbelief riddled in his voice. "How can you say that, when the odds were always against her? She didn't mean to do anything. She didn't mean to do anything!"

Linh couldn't help but cringe at Tam's shrill voice.

She knew that Tam was only scared that she would be banished, but she wished he would stop defending her unconditionally. She knew she had made mistakes, mistakes too big to comprehend, and it was her fault. Even if she got banished (which she was very sure of), Linh knew she deserved it.

She wanted to escape from this life, escape from the unfairness of the Lost Cities. It wasn't the perfect and glittering utopia Linh had thought it out to be. It was just like Choralmere. A glittering prison.

And banishment provided her with the perfect escape.

Her thoughts echoed. Prison, prison, prison. Escape, escape, escape. But she couldn't really think through the mess that was her head. What? Escape? Why would she want to escape? Seconds slipped by and Linh grew more and more muddled.