The sun had risen high, dominating the sky with its fierce roar and menace. The entire world bowed before it, using the glorious roar to be rejuvenated and refreshed. And for once in her life, Alex decided to join in this warmth. She sat outside in a spot by the crops, the smell of wheat grass tickling her nose and the mane of the sun burning the back of her neck. She had found a straw hat in one of the chests, and decided to wear it. Alex briefly speculated on why or how such a hat could be in there, but then she simply shrugged and dismissed the idea, placing the hat atop her fiery head. She was very glad she did this, for the raging sun was extraordinarily hot today, and perhaps this would make sure that the only part of her that wouldn't burn would be her face.
Not a breeze blew by in the humidity of the day, and not a second did anyone go without breaking a sweat. While Alex mildly enjoyed the sun, ironically remaining inside was Cadence, who was followed by Ace. They tried to keep cool in any way they could, but found the entire ordeal exhausting to begin with, so they eventually gave up trying and sat sprawled out on the ground.
Lucas was sitting on his bed, scrawling something almost illegible in his journal. He paused a moment, pressing the pencil to his pursed lips, and with a smile returned to writing. After finishing his sentence, he closed the book, stretched, and sought to find Alex, stepping over the sweaty remains of Cadence as he went. Lucas came to the farm-ground, spotting Alex at the far end, and waded through the water to get to her. She didn't seem to mind, amazingly enough, and Lucas felt slightly more refreshed by passing through the cool, silky stream.
"Hey," he said, shaking the water off his feet. Alex gazed up at him with calm eyes. It seemed that that was going to be the closest thing to a response. Lucas continued, "I was looking through my plans and remembered something important. I need all my supplies from the caves."
"Mm?" Alex mused, shielding her eyes from the sunlight. "and how do you propose you'll get those?"
"I'll walk there myself," Lucas stated flatly. "But before I went I wanted to say thanks."
"For what?" She raised an eyebrow.
"For saving my life!"
"Oh, yeah." Alex seemed preoccupied with something else, passing off the remark nonchalantly.
"Well - it was...nice." Lucas felt his confidence draining. "So...thanks, I guess?" He slowly started to back away, unwilling to let the conversation fester into something horrid.
"Wait," Alex called. Lucas bit his lip, silently cursing to himself. "Take Ace with you. He needs to get out of the house and away from Cadence for a bit."621Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRg0FMPaN7T
Lucas blinked. "Why?" he couldn't stop himself from asking.
Alex made a face. "Their lovey-dovey thing really bothers me. The kid probably needs some time with another guy. And seeing as you're here..."
"You know I'm probably the worst choice for something like this."
"Yeah, you are. Now go, I want to see how much I can burn." She wiggled her fingers, which were already turning red. Lucas briefly worried about her health, but went off to fetch Ace without further question.
Cadence seemed horrified by the prospect of distancing herself from Ace when Lucas brought it up.
"But why does he have to go with you?" she complained.
"Safety," Lucas lied, hoping it would suffice. "Don't know what could happen down there, right?" he tried a grin. Cadence shot him a death glare. The grin faded.
"I'll be fine," Ace agreed with him, sending a wave of relief through Lucas. "You can have girl time with Alex." Cadence made a disgusted face.
"I don't think Alex knows how to be a girl," she said glumly.
"Well, try finding common ground. That's how things usually start, right?" Ace smiled reassuringly. Cadence sighed, nodding and bidding him farewell. As the two split from home, an awkward silence befell them both. Lucas wasn't willing to initiate conversation, and Ace was finding it difficult to think of common ground. Luckily, they didn't have far to go before they slipped down the ladder and into the caves. An idea popped itself into Ace's head.
"So you built all the tracks?" he asked.
"Yep." Lucas stretched his arms behind his back. He said nothing more.
Ace decided to try something else. "What's it like living down here?"
"Peaceful,"
Ace was beginning to get slightly aggravated. "How so?" Lucas seemed to be getting slightly irritated as well.
"Not much in the caves, is there?" He shot Ace a look.
"I wouldn't know." Ace kept his gaze on Lucas.
"That's too bad." Lucas fell silent again, and Ace gave up trying. They came to Lucas' bunker, and Lucas began to dig through his chest, grabbing his necessities. Ace left him to it, exploring around the cave. He briefly glanced at the rail tracks that were laid out in such an elaborate pattern that it was no wonder riding in it would feel like a rollercoaster. Since he wasn't overly fond of heights or being disoriented, he left it be. Wandering slightly further, he came to a door. Curious, he pushed it open and was instantly even more confused upon walking in. All throughout the room were blocks stacked high on each other, collecting dust. They seemed to be ordinary, serving no clear purpose. It didn't seem right that they would be there for no reason.
He decided to tap one. It made a faint noise. He tapped it harder. The noise was louder. Ace went to another block and tapped it. Another noise - but in a different pitch. The lights in his brain snapped on when he realized what it all was. Grinning to himself, he excitedly began tapping all the blocks he could lay his hands on, and began to create music. High pitches of happiness and joy, low pitches of sadness and deprivation, and everything in between flowed from his stubs. His music rang out into the corridor, though he didn't notice it much. He also didn't notice the stunned figure behind him until it spoke up.
"How did you do that?" Ace stopped playing, spinning around. It was Lucas. He scratched the back of his head nervously.
"I just...hit them?" he shrugged.
"No, not that. How did you make that into something nice?" Lucas allowed himself into the room, inspecting Ace closely.
"What do you mean?" Ace felt a little uncomfortable with his snooping. Lucas sighed irritably.
"I mean how did you make actual music? What kind of mechanic or strategy did you use to determine the note block's secrets?" He averted his attention from Ace and began inspecting the blocks.
"Note blocks?"
"They're exactly as they sound. Blocks that will make a certain note when you hit them. Note blocks. I think the sound is usually random, though. How the blazes did you get it to sound that good?"
"Intuition, I guess." Ace shrugged. "I've always kind of been drawn to music." Lucas stopped poking the blocks and turned to face Ace again. He studied him with his brilliantly hazel eyes that seemed to constantly be changing colour.
"Intuition," he repeated. Ace flashed him a cocky grin.
"Intuition," Ace assured. Lucas sighed, walking to the nearest wall and smacking his head on it repeatedly. Ace opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, Lucas had already sprung from it and began to tinker with the boxes.
"Aha!" he exclaimed as he scattered about. "It must be a certain order of blocks, in a certain pattern...oh, you had me fooled! Or it could have been pure luck. Er, I'll think the latter. You must show me the order you prodded these blocks in!" Lucas had a wild flare in his eye.
"Um," Ace started. Lucas grabbed him, pointing to the blocks.
"Which one was first?" he asked eagerly.
"...I don't know," Ace said flatly.
"What."
Alex was slightly regretting her life choices. Her skin was tender to the touch, and radiated a fine scarlet. Maybe it wasn't always a good idea to try and become an extrovert in her spare time.. She waddled inside, deciding she was in idiot after all. Cadence watched her walk by in pain.
"Did you get a sunburn?" she raised an eyebrow with a cocky smile.
"No, this is cloudburn," Alex answered sarcastically, collapsing on the smooth lapis lazuli tiles and relishing in the cold.
"Shouldn't you have worn sunscreen?" Cadence peered over her burned body.
"I would if there was some," Alex glanced up at her in annoyance. "You won't believe how many things I've had to go without."
Cadence giggled. "Oh? Does that mean you just can't cope?"
"You're one to talk. Don't you miss all the luxuries you used to have? Phones, TV, everything good with the world..." Cadence tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"It was alright. I'm kind of used to functioning without it now. There's a lot more things here to do."
"Like what?"
"Survive." Alex lifted her head, looking at the blonde-haired girl in surprise. She hadn't expected a response like that. She sat up and spoke, "Define survive," she instructed.
"Like, farming and defending against monsters and stuff. Finding food, treasure. I guess building a home. I never really got to know what that one was like."
"Huh," Alex blinked, staring at Cadence for a good second too long. She seemed to become a little uncomfortable, because she inched away and tried to change the conversation.
"What about you? Don't you miss it?" Alex supposed she would let it slide.
"The bits I remember are still in this world, for the most part." Cadence was silent, as if urging her to go on. Alex sighed and took a breath. "I like astronomy."
"The star science?"
Alex twitched. "Not just stars! Planets, galaxies, and everything in between! It's just interesting, that's all." She attempted to keep her cool. Star science. Hah. She barely knew a thing.
"So you want to be an astronomer or something?" She leaned against her stub, and Alex realized that she had been sitting there for a while now. Was she...making small talk? The thought was strange. But the action was much stranger.
"Preferably," she admitted. "But my folks want me to be a doctor, since I'm good with medicine."
"That's no fun," Cadence pouted.
"They're a little right. I'd make a great doctor or nurse. But my passion definitely lies with astronomy." Alex stopped then, taking a deep breath and glancing at Cadence. Her sapphire eyes were wide and intrigued. She inched a little closer. Alex inched slightly away. She directed the conversation to Cadence, "What do you want to do as a career?" She blinked, as if thinking hard.
"I don't know," she finally said, seeming troubled. Alex motioned for her to continue. Cadence sighed. "There's just nothing in the world that interests me all that much. I'm kind of a jack of all trades."
"Well, what's something you like to do?" Alex suggested. Cadence shrugged helplessly.
"Being with people, I guess? It's not exactly a profession to just talk to people."
"Actually, it is." Alex pulled herself into a more comfortable position, staring Cadence in the eyes. "Counselling, teaching, psychologists, the list goes on. You could be good at any one of those."
"I don't think that's going to happen here, though."
"Why not? You don't need a slip of paper to tell you that you know something when you already know it in your head. Just try it out."
"I mean, there aren't many people other than us. Ace already knows a lot about me, Lucas is kind of weird, and you're...Alex. Just Alex." Cadence shifted her eyes away from Alex's at that moment, leading her to question her actions.
"What's that supposed to mean? 'Just Alex'?"
"U-Um...you're kind of hard to describe?" Alex stared at her, unsure of what to do or think. Just Alex. That was kind of...bland. Uninteresting. Secretive. On a whim, she decided to let it go.
"Alright, then."
"So this 'intuition' you speak of..."
"It's not exactly easy to explain. Have you really never improvised something before?" Ace and Lucas chatted on their way back home, and Ace was finding it difficult to describe the term 'improv.'
"Does writing any idea I get in my journal for future reference count?"
"No,"
"Then there's your answer." Lucas shrugged, seeming defeated about the entire thing himself. "I guess I just can't understand." Ace bit his lip, his eyebrows kneading together.
He glanced at Lucas. "You can probably learn how. Making stuff up on the spot isn't easy, but everyone can do it."
"That's just it. I like to have a plan. I get ideas and whatnot, but I need to flesh them out as much as possible before I even think of attempting anything."
"I could teach you," Ace suggested. Lucas scoffed and shook his head in a scornful matter. Ace shrugged, turning his attention back on the path ahead of them. "My offer still stands. Take it whenever you feel like it." He doubted that Lucas would give it a second thought, but something told him to leave it open anyway. They came to the wooden doors of their home, the now warm, forest smell greeting them with open arms. But the sight that welcomed them was far from ordinary. As Ace and Lucas entered, Alex and Cadence were caught lying on the floor, Cadence holding a bucket of water and Alex lying on her stomach, her usual plaid shirt gone and replaced with a cloth that covered her chest.
"Ready? One, two...ack!" The bucket of water slipped from Cadence's hands as she spotted the duo at the door. Alex had no time to react until her fate was sealed. The water splashed graciously on her back, which was quite lovely to her peeling skin, but the bucket fell with it, which sent a sickening crack through the air. A shock of pain shot up Alex's spine, and she was immobile for a second. Taking a deep breath, she turned to Cadence with watery eyes. Cadence couldn't tell if it was from the water or the bucket.
"Why did you drop it?!" she exclaimed.
"I didn't try to! He distracted me!" Cadence pointed at Ace, who went a little red. Alex looked to Ace, pain clearly coursing through her veins.
"Sorry?" Ace said sheepishly, scratching his nose.
"I think I'll ask the better question here, then. What are you two doing?" Lucas stepped in, baffled by the scene.
"I have a sunburn," Alex started.
"So I thought I'd pour some water on her," Cadence continued.
"To cool it off a little." Alex finished.
"But it didn't exactly work as planned." Cadence sighed after her final comment, her eyes flicking from Lucas to Ace. Ace was stifling a laugh, and Lucas was trying to hide a smile. Lucas cleared his throat, composing himself.
"On that note, I'll be going." His smile shone clearly as he quickly walked away to the bedroom. The other three watched him go.
"Do you feel any better?" Ace asked Alex with a grin. She rolled her eyes, coming up into a sitting position and yawning, "As good as I could feel after that bucket broke my spine," she answered sarcastically. After a moment, she got up, stretching and looking outside. "Still this early?" she said mostly to herself, rubbing her back and heading to the chairs at the table, sitting in one. Cadence and Ace joined her, the silence beginning to become stifling.
"You have a lot of scars," Cadence commented, staring at Alex's back.
Alex blinked. "Oh, yeah." She coughed for a moment, averting her eyes from the two of them. But Cadence's curiosity could not be contained.
"Where did you get them?" She prodded. Alex sighed. There was probably no way out of this conversation.
"I was in a fight," she said. Cadence leaned her chin in her stubs, eagerly listening for more details. Ace looked like he was trying not to listen, but both Cadence and Alex knew he was intrigued as well. Alex continued, "A long time ago I battled against a creature called the Ender Dragon. It wasn't exactly easy, going up against a dragon with nothing but a bow and a sword. I wasn't great at using the bow, either. I ended up winning though, a-" she stopped herself, surprised that she had gotten this far without tying them all into this. The only reason she had won that fight was because everyone else died. And what did she have to show for it? A couple scorches and no way out of her own hellhole. Alex was so wrapped up in her thoughts, she had hardly noticed how much time had been spent in silence.
"It sounds like it was tough," Cadence sympathized. "But at least you made it out in one piece, right?"
"R-Right." Alex came back to reality, stammering out a response. Ace shot a look at Cadence, and they both understood that it would be wise to leave this topic alone for a while yet.
"Want to come pick flowers with me, Candy?" Ace shifted the topic. Cadence seemed to be relieved, nodding and heading out with him, giving a small wave to Alex, who forced a smile. Once they had left, Alex sighed. She reached around as best she could and felt the scars that lined her back. She's never really noticed them at all before. In fact, she may have never noticed if Cadence hadn't pointed them out. It did explain why her back had been hurting for so long after the battle, though.
Alex stood, grabbing her plaid shirt from the floor by the kitchen and putting it on. She pushed the thoughts of the battle out of her head again, sighing again and sitting at the table once more. She pulled out some paper and began to write.
Lucas sat on his bed, his pen frozen in its place. It had been like a stone for a few minutes now. He couldn't help but eavesdrop on their conversation, and now his thoughts were scattering everywhere, theorizing and speculating. He tapped the pen against the page of his notebook, unable to concentrate on the task at hand. Just what had that girl gone through?
And here it is. After...three weeks. Hey, not as bad as its been before, amirite? I'm not entirely sure when the next chapter will be, I'm having a bit of an episode of writers block, so I'll need to organize my thoughts into something legible. Welp. Until next time.
ns 15.158.61.17da2
