Elemental War

Chapter Ten - Why Do I Want To Laugh? (ADDISON and SAMANTHA)

[What to type,what to type? Eh, can't be asked to think of something. Oh well. *Feigns enthusiasm* Here's the next chapter. Yay. For future reference, Addisonator is pronounced 'Add-iss-i-nate-or']

{ADDISON}

No way has Tom beaten my highscore.

Nuh-uh, negatory. I am boss at Just Dance. No-one can beat the Addisonator. She is boss. End of discussion. But that's put out of my mind when I get a strong whiff of stew. God that smells nice; it smells of home. Because that's where I am. Home. I sigh and walk forward to accept a bowl but before I can walk two steps, I'm intercepted by Louis and Henry.

"So... you're back," Henry says.

"It definitely appears that way," I reply, rolling my eyes at them.

Louis looks me up and down. "Same old Addison, sassy and completely in love with us."

I groan aloud. "Could you guys leave me alone for one day? Unlike you, I've been busy saving the world, and in the meantime, I've had a lot of time to practice my combat, and when two guys are harrassing me, I know exactly where to kick them. Right in the-" Henry cuts me off, backing up slightly, a frown creasing his forehead.

"Woah, hey now, there's no need to get violent."

"He says in a training base for  people to learn how to fight against other human beings with elemental powers." They both open their mouths to reply, but I stop them. "We always have Friday afternoon training sessions for me to kick your asses. So please, go flirt with some other hopeless Elementalist."

"But-" Louis starts to say, but Henry, obviously giving up,m pulls at his arm. "Let's see if Anita needs help sharpening her dagger."

On them, I think to myself. Lois and Henry are our newest recruits and hadn't quite grasped the fact that we're not just here for fun and games. Even the kids half their age were more dedicated.

I see Lucas marching towards the kitchen very dramatically, with Jason following after, amusement flashing in his eyes. I weave through the crowd and grab a bowl of stew. I tear a chunk of bread off the end of a home-made baguette and dip it into the bowl.

I catch a glance of Samantha in the corner of the room so I pick up another bowl and walk over.

***

"Samantha."

"Hi, Addison," she replies with a start. She looks different from when I last saw her. She's wearing normal clothes. Just some denim jeans and a navy long sleeved shirt. What. The actual. Hell? She isn't sassing me, she isn't embarrassing me (or attempting to). What on Earth has happened while I was away? Her eyes look red and puffy with huge bags under them. I hand over the bowl. I sit down cross-legged in front of her.

"What's happened?" I ask, getting straight to the point.

"Nothing!" she replies way too quickly. I raise my eyebrows at her. "Nothing. Honest?"

"I'd believe you if you weren't so obviously trying to hide something."

"I got booted from the, er, the girls group. But I s'pose that was kinda, y'know, duh."

"Kind of," I say with a smile.

"You do know why they would kick someone outta my- er, their gang, right?"

"Nope," I reply, popping the 'p' and slurping some stew.

"Well, there are two reasons. Number 1: dissing what we're doing, by, like, telling or whatever. And uh, second reason: if you, um, if you, uh," she pauses and takes a deep breath before quickly mumbling, "falinluvwisomwon." I blink, trying to process what she said.

"What? Just tell me, I won't bite."

"Well, you might. The second one... is if you, uh, fall in love with someone. Because we're supposed to be a just girls-kicking-ass group."

"And?"

"Well, I did both." She stops and thinks for a few seconds. "At once."

Wow. At once. Wait... "Who?" I ask. Who would she break two 'major rules' for? And then it hits me.

"Lucas," she says, confirming my suspicions. "I told him we were - well, Anita was - planning on practicing our Elements on normal people, using our elements in the rel world where we could get caught and reveal Elementalists. I couldn't do it. So I told Lucas and they came in while I was ranting. And Anita got mad. She practically yelled about how I felt about him - I just don't know why I told her, I guess. I've been avoiding him all week. I ran out before he could say anything; I just don't want to know his reaction, so..."

I smile inwardly. No, I can't tell her, I think. But, if I do- no, that's a bad idea. Betraying a friends crush? Big, fat no-no. Just wait a little while. I can't help but want to grin. Just act natural, normal, I think harder, knowing I'm not the most subtle of people. Breathe. Do not laugh. Why do I want to laugh? Despite - or perhaps due to - my thought's insistence on calming down and not laughing, I start to crack up. "What's wrong, Addison?" Samantha asks, looking a little confused and no doubt upset. Just stop being so obvious.

{SAMANTHA}

What is up with Addison?

She's, like, laughing.

"What's wrong, Addison?" I ask. I thought she'd be understanding or something. Is it really so hard to imagine me falling for someone? She steadies her breathing slightly and asks, "How long have you, uh, liked him?"

"Maybe, uh, six months?" I reply, utterly bewildered.

She grins to herself and starts having what seems to be a mental argument. "No way..." she mutters. "That's too perfect..." She glances up, as if just remembering that I'm here.

"Yeah, still here. But, uh, not to be rude or anything, but what's too perfect?"

She clears her throat. Are her cheeks going red? She swallows and starts to say, "Well, Lucas actually-" but before she can finish, a bone rattling crash fills the room. We turn towards the sound...

{ADDISON}

And see Jason held against the wall, a knife against his throat.

{EOC}

Oh, snap! Cliffhanger! Again. *evil smile* *crazy eyes* I feel empowered. To lengthen the chapters, I've added different PoV's. Did it work out okay? If you liked, tell me in the comments. Also, remember to vote, share, add to your library and reading lists. Let's get to 300 reads before next chapter. Yeah!