The Radiant Rangers

Chapter 10

Cynthia eyed the sky nervously, the clouds that had been wispy and white that morning were now darker and more dense in the afternoon. It had been overcast since the sun rose that morning. The sky was washed with various shades of grey, but in certain places small slips of light managed to break through. It was rather cloudy for a day in March.

Cynthia had gotten no sleep. Being tired never seemed to bother her as much as it did with Juliet. Whenever Cynthia was tired, she would eat strawberries. Strawberries were like a mysterious strength for her. Eating strawberries kept her awake and gave her energy. Something about eating strawberries was able to turn any bad day into a good one, but today it wasn't working.

She sat on the doorstep, it was still broken from the jewel reaction. Her hands were clasped tightly in front of her stomach and she fiddled with her knuckles. She weaved her fingers in and out of each other. Small ice crystals began to grow around her feet where she was sitting. She felt her insides grow warm in an unpleasant way and her stomach, filled with strawberries, was in pain.

She looked down at the vivid red jewel that rested in her. She still had no idea what its purpose was, or why her powers had reacted to it. The ice crystal shards grew larger. Cynthia let out a slow, controlled breath and attempted to loosen her body movements. She gave her shoulders a wiggle and rolled her head in a circle to let her muscles slacken to a more casual position.

She wasn't sure why ice crystals were growing around her. She had complete control of her ice powers, why couldn't she control them now? Her thoughts scrambled in her mind and her head dropped into her hands. She needed to find Haisley.

She heard distant noises of someone running and her head shot up. Her eyes moved with the alertness that came from the heavy stress and her hands remained clenched by subconscious demand. Juliet came running down the small dirt path from the forest that lead to Cynthia's house. The ice crystal's suddenly disappeared.

"Hey Cynthia," called Juliet out of breath. "Danielle is at school right now but she said she'd be over as soon as she's done."

"Okay." said Cynthia. She stood up from the doorway. "What's her number?"

"Oh, I forgot to bring my phone sorry." said Juliet. "Danielle can give it to you sometime later if she remembers."

"Oh." said Cynthia. "Alright.." She was more quiet than usual. She would normally have something to say, or at least something interesting to talk about. Juliet couldn't help but notice the slight fidgeting and restless look that Cynthia had. There was no expression on her face, and her eyes looked like they had been frozen over.

"Hey." said Juliet. "It's going to be okay." She put a hand on Cynthia's shoulder.

"Haisley's the only family I have." said Cynthia. "Listen Juliet, I don't have six brothers like you. I only have one sister that I know about." she chuckled uneasily. "I don't even have parents. I only have Haisley and a twin who my parents never even told me about. They said she got taken away at birth but who knows. They never told me anything. They never told me why they kept me from the outside world. They never told me why I couldn't hang out with certain people. They never told me why they abandoned me and left forever. They never said why. They never said why they left. They never told me anything."

Juliet took her hand away. A single tear rolled down Cynthia's cheek. Cynthia's eyes filled with tears glistening in the light. Juliet wasn't used to this sight. Cynthia had never been a crier. Juliet had never seen Cynthia cry more than once in her entire life. Cynthia wasn't a very open person, and seeing her cry wasn't normal. This made Juliet feel uneasy.

Juliet had cried multiple times in front of Cynthia, but now it was the complete opposite. It was like seeing a teacher cry in front of her students. The role model and the most mature, crying. It just wasn't right. "Hey man," started Juliet. "We're going to find Haisley," she hugged Cynthia. "I promise."