I continued to run to the slope feeling weighed down by fear of my once best friend killing me with his Apa. I grab at the mud wall, hoping for support. I pick up my bag and throw it over gently, I kick my leg into the mud as a step and start to climb. Grabbing and throwing the mud as I climb gives me an idea. I stop my climb, grab a handful of mud, and look at Quintin, hiding my hands behind my back.
"You don't have to do this, Quintin. I'm your best friend, remember?" I ask through my tears that run down my face.
"You don't understand! And you never will!" Quintin shouts, sounding like an exact copy of his father.
Quintin steps back and takes a deep breath before chanting, "Incendio!"
Fire forms in his hands as he concentrates on making it into a ball. His Apa stands beside him, coaching him with mumbles. Horror strikes me in my chest as I turn, dropping the mud ball and starting to climb. Jutting my feet into the mud wall and repeating until I reached the top. Grabbing my spell bag and looking down at Quintin, he got ready to throw the fireball as he and his Apa walked down the creek bed toward me. I turn and run, looking for a place to hide.
WHOOSH, CRACK, FSHH
A sharp pain shoots up my back as I see fire consuming the sides of me. I let out a high-pitched scream as I fell to the ground, feeling the fire eat away my clothes and skin. I try to roll, but the pain is unbearable, so I just roll over to my back, taking in all the pain as I scream, choking on tears that flood my vision. I close my eyes and hear Jadestorm mewling scarcely toward me. I feel a gust of wind brush through my dampened hair along with a pair of hands gently grabbing my arms. I flinch at the coldness of the hands before regretting as pain shoots through my body. The hands roll me over on my stomach as I hear someone murmuring scarcely like Jadestorm had. I hear more footsteps approaching as another gust of wind flies around, picking me up off the ground. Then I hear the clink of my bag and the creaming of Mr. Persephone.
"What are you doing! That is my son's kill! You will put her down in an instant!" Mr. Persephone hollers with anger raging through him.
I open my eyes and see Quintin standing almost in a trance as Mr. Persephone screams at the stranger near me. I turn my head slowly to get a glimpse of the stranger before a white flash floods my vision. I close my eyes from the brightness and feel my body erupting with pain. I squeeze my eyes shut until I feel no more pain passing out, feeling as light as a feather. "Do you think she shall be alright?" calls out a faint voice I've never heard before.
"I don't know your highness, but they think she might recover," assured another voice. "I tried my best to protect her. I promise! I really did. She's just hard-headed like, well you,"
"Very well then, may we check her again, please?" asks the voice from before.
I wiggle my fingers as I gain the conscience of my body. I opened my eyes hazily, blinking several times, but not being able to make a picture of my surroundings in my head. Giving up, I close them and keep them shut. I feel for my hands letting them connect before I slide my hand down from my chest and out for some sort of stability on whatever I'm lying. I settle my grasp on the side of a bed. I try for another go of opening my eyes as I start to hear distant mumbles that lead to eager footsteps rushing toward my general direction. I flicker my eyes open, trying to make out my surroundings from the blurry spots in my vision.
The blurriness washes away with a few blinks. I make out the scene of small people surrounding me. Concerned, I lay a hesitant hand behind me to push myself up, expecting pain to erupt through my body, but instead, there was just a low humming feeling of pain in my back. I continue to be in a sitting position. The small people all turn and whisper awkwardly.
I turn my head and look around, "Where is Jadestorm and my spell bag? Is Jadestorm alright? Is he hurt?" I ask.
A man pushes through the crowd of small people with unusually pointy ears. He seems to be a bit taller than most, but not by much. He had to be at least around Muder's age, maybe a bit older. I gave a puzzled look, noting he had the same small green eyes as me, and the same brown hair as me. He rushes beside my cot, he clasps my hand from off the side of the cot, and beams with joy.
I flinched from the hand's warmth that was grabbing mine. "My dear Evelyn, what happened to you?" he asks, still clasping my hand tight as ever.
I start to speak but am stopped when the man eases his hands to my shoulders and urges me back to laying down. "Now my dear, you must rest!"
"Where is Jadestorm and, and my spell bag? Is Jadestorm alright? Is he hurt?" I repeat from previously being ignored from before.
"Jadestorm?" he questions, "Ah, yes," he looks around, never taking his hands off me.
I joined him, looking for Jadestorm. I hear footsteps approaching behind the small people with pointy ears and see a tall man with fluffy black hair in a black old mud stained and scratched up tux with long tails that curl the end. I turn my head to the man who kneels down beside me. The man looks back at me with a peculiar smile. I start to feel that I should know of the tall man walking towards me, but instead, I am left with nothing but confusion.
The tall man looks down at me with his big orange eyes before kneeling and saying, "Hello Evelyn, it's me. Jadestorm, I am alright, and I will add that. That bag of yours is quite spacious, but it is alright to," with a small chuckle, he smiles, showing small pointy canines.
"What? How? But you are - You're a-" I question before being cut off by feeling lightheaded.
He turns his head and reveals long, pointy ears on the side of his face like the other small people while adding, "I'm an elf, we can shape shift!"
The man beside me looks at me with a puzzled expression and his smile fading. "You did get my letter, didn't you? Your Muder should have said something. It would have explained everything,"
"No, what letter? I think I got one. Did I get it? I never read it. Who are you? Where, where am I exactly?" I question once again with fear and frustration rising inside of me.
Are Quintin and his playing a trick on me, trying to make me think I had never actually gotten away. Trying to make me feel small and weak. Trying to make me...
My thoughts are stopped from racing as the man grasping my hands looks up at the man, claiming to be Jadestorm, then back to me. His sorrowful eyes and a hidden smile fill my vision as he presses a warm hand against my freckled cheek. His face turns red, eyes blinking heavily as though holding back tears. His mouth opens, then closes as though processing his response. He looks back up at the man and, to me, bringing back up a smile.
I look around, startled by the quietness of the room now, noticing the small people have left. I am starting to panic and breathe heavily till I feel his hands clasp mine.
With tears flooding his tear ducts, he speaks with a raspy voice, "Home my dear, you are home with Apa,"
"Apa?"
ns 15.158.61.23da2
