Tag: artists

Volume 1

24. The Great Tatia

imeryli

In the depths of Daredevil City, Sana, Aiden, Heer, Runa, and Fida were quickly making their way towards Madame Naga’s tower with Fida leading them.

   “How much longer till we get there?” Sana asked Fida.

   “We’ll be there shortly! Just pick up the pace!”

   “How do we know you won’t just turn your back on us the moment we face Madame Naga?”

   “I already told you…she visited me in the prison just to cut ties with me. Why would I subject myself to such mockery again? All I want is to see her suffer the way I did back in that cell.”

   “Why are you so hell-bent on revenge? All because she cut you off?”

   “It’s nothing I can explain to you. You have no idea what I’ve given up for joining her.”

   Well then, Sana thought. It’s best to leave her alone then. I need to be focused on saving Rey at this point. I just hope the others will be okay back there.

***

   Back at the academy, the students and staff were occupied with battling Lady Chameleon’s army of dark beasts. Despite how tough the beasts were, the students didn’t hold back in fighting. Zayn and Akira were holding off a beast just fine. Akira flapped her wings, launching gusts of sand towards the beast while Zayn amplified her sand power with his clarinet. While they were occupied with this beast, Akira looked over to the side for a moment to see another beast was going towards Zayn.

   “Zayn! Look out to your right!” Akira exclaimed.

   Zayn turned to the right, seeing the dark beast leap towards him. Before he could defend himself, a sound wave attack came from the beast’s left side, hitting it into the ground. Zayn looked over to see the attack had come from Krystal’s sonic bell.

   “You okay?” Krystal asked Zayn.

   “Yeah, thanks for that,” Zayn said.

   “Wow. Never thought I’d hear you thank someone,” Akira said.

   “We still have these two beasts to take down,” Prince said.

   “Oh, right! Prince, use your Sonic Roar on them!” Krystal said.

   Prince transformed into his beast form and let out his Sonic Roar attack at the two beasts. Akira assisted him with more sand power from her wings. Krystal further amplified Prince’s roar by plunging her sonic bell to the ground, releasing a strong sound wave that combined with Prince’s roar. Zayn helped Akira by launching a gust of sand from his clarinet and with all attacks combined, the two dark beasts were down. And soon after, Ryan and Headmaster Devil stepped in. Ryan fired away his fiery pistols at one beast and Headmaster Devil spun his staff in circular motion, generating a wind wheel that hit the other one. Both beasts disintegrated to bits.

   “Good work, kids,” Headmaster Devil said as he and Ryan rushed over to take on some other beasts further across the field.

   “We make quite a good team,” Krystal said to Zayn.

   “I’ll admit…you’re not bad for a rookie,” Zayn said.

   “Not bad! I beg to differ! That wasn’t even my full power on display!” Krystal exclaimed.

   “Krystal, why aren’t you using the Chain of Leo?” Prince asked after transforming back into human form. “We didn’t scour an entire town just for you not to use it.”

   “Well, I can’t just use it just like that. I need to train with it,” Krystal said.

   “Krystal! Look out!” Akira shouted.

   Krystal turned to see a dark beast was leaping straight at her. She was just about to counter with her sonic bell until Zayn intervened with his clarinet, launching a sound energy beam at the beast. Krystal let out a deep breath, relieved.

   “You shouldn’t let your guard down,” Zayn said.

   “Oh, shut up!” Krystal exclaimed.

   “He’s right! These things are everywhere!” Aster said, fending off against two dark beasts along with his sabre.

   “And where’s your partner, Aster?” Prince asked.

   “Just wait for it,” Aster smirked. “Go for it, Tina!”

   Krystal, Prince, Zayn, and Akira looked up. An eagle was soaring high, making its way down towards the dark beasts with its wings glowing brighter than ever. This was Tina in her beast form. She dove right in between the two dark beasts, her wings hitting them. The iron armor on her wings was enough to cut through both the beasts, disintegrating them.

   “Show off,” Krystal said, rolling her eyes.

   “With so many of these around, we’re gonna need more power to beat all of them,” Zayn said. “You thinking what I’m thinking, Akira?”

   Before Akira could reply, she found herself surrounded by more dark beasts. They circled her, Zayn, Krystal, and Prince. There wasn’t enough time to count them or attack one by one.

   “I’m thinking we kick things into high gear,” Akira replied to Zayn.

   Zayn nodded in agreement. Akira flapped her wings, flying high up in the sky. Her wings flapped more and more, gaining more energy as she went further up. Zayn prepared his clarinet, calling out “F major!” He played away his clarinet, releasing a sound energy beam that went bursting its way towards the group of dark beasts. They all emitted dark energy beams to counterattack, but the combination of their power ended up boosting the strength of the sound energy beam as the beams collided. The dark beasts were hit by the blasts of soundwaves that rung through their ears, weakening them enough to distract them.

   “Now, Akira!” Zayn ordered.

   Krystal and Prince looked up at Akira. She was unable to be seen as a bright glow enveloped her body. Her siren form had now shifted into that of an animal. She transformed into a creature that had huge golden wings with armor-like edges around them. Her body itself had the resemblance of a lioness, except she had snow white fur and green leaf markings around her neck and right down her face up to her nose. And her legs had golden bands wrapped around them.

   “Whoah!” one of the students outside of the academy gates exclaimed upon seeing Akira’s transformation. Several students had paused in their battles to look at Akira. But among them, it was Krystal who was in the most disbelief. While she was aware of how powerful Zayn and Akira were, she could’ve never imagined a transformation like this.

   “Um, Zayn…what is she?” Krystal asked, still trying to comprehend what she was seeing.

   “This is her feroness form.”

   “Feroness?”

   “You’re already aware that Akira is a mystical human-beast. All sirens possess an alternate beast form. This creature that she transforms into is referred to as the feroness species. They’re basically cat-like creatures with wings.”

   “So, how come she waits till now to take on this form?”

   “Well, she tends to use it only when most necessary. But to be frank, her beast form is so powerful that she tries to build up the energy for it in siren form prior to taking on this.”

   Akira looked down at Zayn and nodded to him. This was his signal to get moving.

   “You might want to stand back,” Zayn said as he stood before Krystal, pushing her back a little bit with his hand on her shoulder. Krystal nodded as she stood with Prince and the others. Zayn closed his eyes and got his clarinet ready. “A major!” Zayn called out as he then commenced into playing his clarinet. As soon as he played, Akira let out a mighty roar that combined with the power of Zayn’s A major attack to form a powerful sound wave that made its way towards the swarm of dark beasts, shattering the ground they stood upon. In the middle of the chaotic sound waves, Krystal, Prince, and the others were overwhelmed by the massive power that was being emitted from the attack, baring Headmaster Devil and Tatia.

   Tatia turned towards a shocked Lady Chameleon. Zayn and Akira’s attack had disintegrated all the remaining dark beasts at once. With the dark beast army gone, Lady Chameleon was the last one standing. She could see all the academy members glaring at her. But despite the fact her army was vanquished, she remained calm.

   “What’s with you?!” Krystal questioned.

   “I have to hand it to you all. Your performance was a lot better than I expected,” Lady Chameleon replied. “But even then, I’m still standing here.”

   “You won’t be for much longer if you don’t surrender already,” Zayn said.

   “Please. Where’s the fun in that?” Lady Chameleon said. “Now that you all are worn out, I can finish you all with one blow.”

   “I beg to differ. I’m far from worn out,” Tatia responded.

   “Is that so? Well then, I’ll start off with you,” Lady Chameleon said.

   “Very well,” Tatia said.

   “Tatia, how can you battle her by yourself?” Headmaster Devil asked. “I can assist you at least.”

   “Devil, you know her as well as I do. Once she’s made up her mind, that’s that,” Ryan said.

   “That’s right,” Tatia said. “But just know, I will welcome backup should I need it.”

   And so, Tatia and Lady Chameleon walked towards each other while everyone else stood aback to keep their distance. Zayn, Akira, Krystal, and Prince stood by Headmaster Devil and Ryan, only a few feet away from Tatia while Aster, Tina, and the other students and staff were right behind them.

   “Your mother has this under control,” Headmaster Devil said to Zayn.

   “I sure hope she does,” Zayn replied.

   Lady Chameleon cracked her knuckles as she watched Tatia draw out her wand. All the human-beasts had transformed back into their human forms as the fight was getting underway. There was an eerie silence that hovered over the two while the students and staff of the academy looked on.

   “Tell me, do you plan to transform now?” Tatia asked.

   “I’ll transform when and if I feel like it,” Lady Chameleon said. “I’m more than capable of taking you out in human form.”

   “Wouldn’t she have a better chance of winning if she just changed into her beast form?” Krystal asked.

   “For some human-beasts fighting in human form can allow one to build up magical energy for their beast form. You’ve seen Akira do that already,” Headmaster Devil said.

   “Even then, she’s able to change her form into whatever person she pleases. If that’s something she can do alone in her human form, I can’t imagine what her beast form is like,” Akira said.

   “But I have to say…if anyone can handle Lady Chameleon, it has to be Zayn’s mom,” Aster said.

   “And what makes you such an expert, Aster?” Krystal questioned.

   “Tatia Hawkwing happens to be a member of the Ringmasters Society. She’s also one of the masters of the society’s council. Only the most powerful ringmaster could obtain such a position,” Aster explained.

   “That’s right,” Akira said. “And even though I’ve never seen her battle, Zayn has always told me that her sword magic is unlike any other.”

   “Well, she did pull out a diamond sword earlier,” Krystal said.

   “I think she’s got more than just diamonds working in her favor for this match,” Prince said.

   Lady Chameleon stood her ground, brushing her hair out of the way as she looked directly at Tatia. She began the battle by launching a dark energy beam that formed from the palm of her hand. Tatia braced herself, transforming her wand into a diamond sword and hitting the energy beam with the sword’s blade to deflect it back at Lady Chameleon. But Lady Chameleon kept on going, launching the energy beams at an even faster speed. Tatia kept deflecting them with the sword, running around the field area to keep up with the speed of Lady Chameleon’s attacks.

   “She’s keeping up with her pretty well,” Krystal said.

   “Yeah, but she’s gonna need to go on offense at some point, ” Prince said.

   Lady Chameleon leaped from the ground, vanishing in seconds. Tatia stopped, unable to see her. She was struck from behind by another one of Lady Chameleon’s dark energy beams. Tatia fell to the ground, managing to get up. Damn it. She got fast rather quickly, Tatia thought.

   “What was that? She was attacking from a distance up until now,” Krystal said.

   “The energy beams from afar must’ve been a trick to get Tatia worn out. She was so busy deflecting them that it gave Lady Chameleon time to build up the energy for a speed-based move,” Headmaster Devil said.

   “With such speed, Tatia has to nail a blow on her quickly or this could turn for the worst,” Ryan said.

   Krystal was even more intrigued to see how things would go. She turned to Zayn, who seemed to be anxious as she noticed him clenching his fists.

   Come on, Mom, Zayn thought.

   Tatia slowly got up from the ground. She was panting more than ever. Lady Chameleon looked at her and said, “What’s the matter? I thought the great Tatia was more capable of putting up a fight.”

   “Don’t get too cocky. I’m a lot more cautious now of your moves.”

   “Really? Can you predict this?”

   Lady Chameleon leaped from the ground again, swiftly vanishing like thin air. Where is she now? Tatia wondered as she frantically looked around. As she turned around to see if Lady Chameleon would attack from behind again, she was taken by surprise as she was hit by a blade-like scale that pierced right at her shoulder. Tatia saw the scale was coming from Lady Chameleon’s arm, that was now covered in a pointy, reptile-like armor. She fell back to the ground, her right shoulder now covered in blood.

   “From the look on your face, it seems you didn’t see that coming,” Lady Chameleon smirked.

   “Damn it,” Tatia said.

   “This isn’t looking good for her,” Prince said.

   “She is just too fast,” Akira said. “At this rate, I don’t even know if Tatia can get her.”

   Krystal could see Zayn getting more and more anxious. Part of her wanted to comfort him, but she also knew that the situation was too drastic right now.

   This is getting intense. If she doesn’t land a hit soon, it’ll be over for her, Headmaster Devil thought.

   Come on, Tatia. I know you can win this one, Ryan thought.

   Tatia slowly got up, using her diamond sword for assistance. With her level of speed, it’s nearly impossible to strike her. There has to be a way to predict her movements. And with her scale arm at play, I have to be twice as careful now, Tatia thought. Come on. Focus. There has to be a way I can get her.

   Tatia looked down at her sword, seeing her fragmented reflection in the blade. It was that very sight that caught her attention. That’s it. She has only been able to strike me up close. The long-range attacks from earlier were merely used to build up her energy for the close-range attacks, Tatia thought. I could try to get out of her range, but with her leap movements at bay, she’ll just keep getting closer to me. That means, I have to be able to see her before she notices that I see her coming.

   “I’m getting a little bored here,” Lady Chameleon said. “I’ll just finish this up quickly.”

   Lady Chameleon leaped again out of Tatia’s sight. Tatia held her diamond sword up, getting in a position to attack. But mainly, she was looking carefully into the blade to see the reflection of her surroundings. After a few seconds, she saw Lady Chameleon right behind her through the blade’s reflection. Swiftly, Tatia turned her stance, piercing her diamond sword into Lady Chameleon’s arm, shattering a few of the scales on it.

   Tatia could see the shocked expression on Lady Chameleon’s face. She pulled the blade out quickly, jumping back as she saw blood drip quickly from Lady Chameleon’s arm. Lady Chameleon fell, screaming in agony as she held onto her bloody arm.

   “How…how could you read my movements?”

   “It helps when you can see things before your enemy realizes you’ve seen them.”

   “Yes! She finally got her!” Krystal exclaimed.

   “That was a pretty clever move, too,” Aster said.

   “I really didn’t want things to get this far, but you’re a rather interesting opponent,” Lady Chameleon said as she rose from the ground. “No matter. It can’t be helped.”

   Tatia kept her guard up as she watched Lady Chameleon begin to transform. Shiny, dark-armored scales began to form all over Lady Chameleon’s body, enveloping her into a cocoon. It only took seconds for her to burst out of it in her beast form. She didn’t have the appearance of a typical wild animal. Her form was of a large, mystical reptile-like creature with dark scales and sharp claws. Her body and face were that of a serpent and she had long pointy horns on the top of her head that curved inward. But the most striking part of her appearance was the devilish look in her eyes that were of a blood red color.

   “And I thought Madame Naga alone was scary,” Prince said.

   “Hey, Akira, doesn’t she look like a mystical dark beast to you?” Krystal asked.

   “She’s a horned serpent. They’re plenty of them in Euphoceus. Most of them tend to be dark beasts from what I’ve heard,” Akira said.

   “So, she’s from the same world as you?” Prince asked.

   “Looks like it,” Akira said. “Now the real fun begins. Horned serpents, dark beasts or not, tend to not hold back in battle.”

   Lady Chameleon launched a dark energy beam from her mouth. As the energy beam came towards Tatia, she immediately used her diamond sword to deflect the beam back to Lady Chameleon, who simply moved her head slightly to the right, so the beam could pass by her.

   Lady Chameleon whipped her tail forward with Tatia dodging each hit and instead jumped onto her tail and transformed her diamond sword into an obsidian sword, stabbing it into Lady Chameleon’s tail. Lady Chameleon roared in pain as she shook Tatia, who swiftly grabbed her sword back off her tail. Tatia landed safely on the ground before looking up to see Lady Chameleon shoot a dark laser attack directly from her eyes. Tatia was hit in the chest before she could do anything.

   “Mom!” Zayn shouted.

   “It’s okay, son! I’m fine!” Tatia replied as she got up.

   Tatia noticed Lady Chameleon’s angry red eyes as blood was slowly dripping from her wounded tail. Tatia transformed the obsidian sword back into her wand. She raised her wand up in the air and suddenly the ground around her began to rumble, startling Lady Chameleon. Suddenly, five granite swords emerged from the ground, rushing their way towards Lady Chameleon. Confused on what to do, Lady Chameleon launched countless dark energy beams towards the swords, yet the swords dodged them as if they had minds of their own.

   “Her swords are literally dancing around serpent lady’s attacks!” Krystal exclaimed.

   “I’ve never seen anything like this,” Prince said.

   “Sword magic. It’s one of a kind,” Headmaster Devil said. “Normally ringmasters transform their wands into their perspective weapons. But Tatia can do that and more. She can create swords from the wand itself and command them without even lifting a finger. Some ringmasters possess this ability to utilize their wands in wand form alone, which is known as caster magic.”

   “Oh! Kinda like what Aiden did with our little detention session,” Krystal said.

   “Exactly,” Headmaster Devil said.

   “And as you’ve seen, her swords aren’t just your average blades. She’s able to make them from minerals, gems, rocks, you name it,” Zayn said. “This is what Earth style sword magic is like.”

   As the swords came towards Lady Chameleon, they suddenly separated and surrounded her in circular motion, cementing their positions into the ground. Lady Chameleon was puzzled. She noticed that the blood dripping from her tail had started to drip around in circular motion just like the swords. Tatia held up her wand as it began to give off a bright glow. The glow became so radiant that it blinded Lady Chameleon’s eyes.

   “I call upon the power of my swords!” Tatia shouted. “Dance of Swords: Shattering Earth Attack!”

   The swords all glowed along with Tatia’s wand and had suddenly risen from the ground. The swords plunged themselves back into their places within the ground, releasing an intense tremor from underground that shook Lady Chameleon right from beneath her. The tremor’s intensity was increasing by the second, rattling her even more as she didn’t know what to expect next. But as the ground continued to shake under her, she could feel that something was moving beneath her. She looked down as a fist made of pure rock emerged from the ground, punching her body upward towards the sky with great force.

   The students and staff looked on, with some unable to comprehend what they just saw. Lady Chameleon transformed back into her human form, coughing up blood as she crashed to the ground. Tatia walked towards her, glaring down at her. Lady Chameleon slowly turned towards Tatia, unable to even speak as she coughed up more blood.

   Tatia’s swords disappeared. And the tremors had stopped. “Well, that’s that then,” she said.

   Krystal couldn’t believe what she had seen. She couldn’t even imagine what everyone else around her was thinking. Amazing. That must be the power of a ringmaster from the Ringmasters Society. And I thought Zayn and Akira were powerful on their own, Krystal thought.

   She turned to Zayn, who seemed relieved. She noticed his hands were much more relaxed now than before.

   “You look better now,” Krystal said to Zayn.

   “Huh?”

   “You seemed anxious earlier. At least your mom won.”

   “I never doubted her. And who said I was anxious?”

   “Please! Your hands were telling a different story!”

   As the two were bickering, Prince and Akira stood by, watching them.

   “Amazing. She manages to pick up a fight with Zayn,” Prince said.

   “I’m surprised he’s even giving any energy for that,” Akira chuckled.

   With Lady Chameleon and her dark beast army defeated, students and staff were helping each other out, taking to each other’s injuries. Headmaster Devil was concerned with Tatia, seeing she was wounded pretty badly.         

   “Tatia, shouldn’t we get you treated for your wounds?” Headmaster Devil asked.

   “Yeah, but we should first take care of Lady Chameleon. I’ll call the council to have her arrested,” Tatia said.

   “There’s still the matter of Madame Naga. Shouldn’t we go to the tower to help Sana and the others?” Ryan asked Headmaster Devil.

   “At this rate, I don’t even know if we can catch up to them in time,” Headmaster Devil said.

   “So?! We can’t just stand here,” Ryan said. “Sana endured so much when she last went up against Madame Naga!”

   “You just have to trust her this time,” Tatia said. “It’s the hardest thing for a parent to do. But you just have to do it.”

   “And where’s this coming from?” Headmaster Devil asked.

   Tatia turned around, seeing Zayn talking to Krystal while Prince and Akira were hanging around with them. Seeing Zayn this way warmed her heart. It even made her forget about the pain coming from her bleeding shoulder.

   “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve worried about Zayn. He’s been through so much. But

now, I see that he’s in the right place now. The place where he should be,” Tatia said. “Sana’s not alone. She has people she can count on. As parents, we can’t always be there for every battle our kids face. All we can do is have faith they can face them.”

   Ryan was surprised to see Tatia like this. But her words did resonate with him. He nodded in agreement with her, knowing that Sana was strong enough to fight on her own.

   “You make a great point. But even then, shouldn’t we take some safety measures?” Headmaster Devil asked.

   “I need to call the council anyway. I’ll ask them to send someone over to the tower in case they need backup,” Tatia said.

   “All right. That sounds good to me,” Headmaster Devil said.

    Headmaster Devil noticed Ryan looking towards the direction where Madame Naga’s tower would lie. He put his hand on Ryan’s shoulder, startling him.

    “Sana can do this,” Headmaster Devil assured Ryan. Ryan was grateful to see his friend be so comforting to him. And he had Tatia’s words to go by as well.

   Faith. That’s what we need, Headmaster Devil thought. We’re counting on you, Sana.

Copyright © 2021 Meryl T

All rights reserved. All illustrations created by Meryl T.

Volume 1

7. Class in Session – Aiden Style

imeryli

“Okay! What the hell is going on here?!” Rey shouted at Aiden. Sana, Rey, Krystal, Prince, Neil, and Heer were all strapped tightly to seats as they found themselves in a dark classroom where Aiden stood before them. Aside from the blackboard, the walls were plain black and there were eerie looking cobwebs that could be seen on the ceiling.

   “This is detention,” Aiden replied.

   “No! This is a horror movie where the monster is about to eat the innocent kids!” Krystal cried.

   “You think you’re all so innocent, don’t you?” Aiden asked. “Well, you’re in my world now. As long as you cooperate, you’ll be fine.”

   “Man. Your brother is nuts,” Rey whispered to Neil.

   “Why would you do this to us?” Sana asked. “Or at least me, Heer, and Prince, considering we did nothing to get into detention in the first place.”

   “Hey!” Krystal exclaimed.

   “Way to be a team player!” Neil told Sana.

   “Please just let us go and they’ll never bother you again,” Heer pleaded.

   “I don’t do the easy way. Headmaster Devil appointed me in charge of detention. So, I’m doing things my way. There’s only one way for you to get out of here. But you’ll have to figure that out on your own…if you can use your heads,” Aiden replied. “So, until then, class is in session.”

   With a slam of his pointer on the blackboard, Aiden sent each and every member of the gang down an opening of the floor, separating them from each other. Once they were all gone, he stood back.

   “This will be amusing,” Aiden said.

***

   As Sana fell downward, strapped to her chair, she screamed as she landed into another classroom. Once she landed, she drew out her wand, tapping it to transform it into her trishula and used its sharp blade to cut the straps off. After doing so, Sana got up from the chair and was startled as Rey landed in the same room.

   “Oh, you’re here too!” Rey exclaimed. “How’d you get out?!”

   “I used my trishula. Can’t you transform and get out?”

   “I tried! But it’s not working! Get me out of this!”

   Sana rolled her eyes as she went ahead and slashed the straps of Rey’s chair off, releasing Rey. “Man! It feels good to be able to get up!” Rey exclaimed. “Now where the hell are we?”

   Rey and Sana looked around to find themselves in a classroom filled with desks that had chemicals and a variety of tubes on display. “Figured as much. We’re in a chemistry room,” Sana said.

   “What the hell is that guy’s problem?!”

   “If it wasn’t for you and Neil, we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

   “Hey! It’s not my fault that Neil’s crazy twin brother decided to put us in some horror movie of a school! I don’t even know why he separated all of us. Besides, it’s just a normal classroom.”

   Suddenly, out of nowhere, a catlike dark beast came and broke into the classroom, heading towards Sana and Rey. “You were saying?” Sana eyed Rey.

   “Oh, shut up,” Rey said as he then transformed into his tiger form.

   “Hit it into the wall!” Sana ordered Rey. Rey moved forward, leaping onto the dark beast as he pushed it into the wall. As he tried to hold it down, the dark beast bit Rey on his neck, pushing him to the ground. As Rey tried to get up, the dark beast launched a dark energy beam attack directly towards Rey.

   “Quick! Counter it with a fireball attack!” Sana ordered Rey. Rey nodded and let out a roar, emitting a fireball which hit into the energy beam. As both Rey and the dark beast put in as much force into their attacks, the dark beast was able to push the energy beam harder, which hit Rey along with the fireball attack. Rey was slammed into the wall, falling to the floor.

   “Are you all right?!” Sana asked Rey, concerned. Rey slowly got up, nodding.

   I need to think of something! This one is too strong! Sana thought.

   “Try to hold it off with an energy beam! I’ll come in then!” Sana told Rey.

   Rey nodded as he then emitted a fire energy beam from his mouth, which hit the dark beast directly. Sana drew out her trishula, spinning it in the air as she then plunged it into the ground, which released a fiery path that combined with the energy beam attack. The attack was enough to hold off the dark beast, but it couldn’t destroy it.

   Sana turned to the table with chemical tubes and looked around. She then picked one up. “Liquid carbon dioxide! This’ll work!” Sana exclaimed. She immediately released the chemical into the fire, which slowly released its acidic effect on the dark beast, melting it into nothing but ashes. And at that moment, sprinklers in the classroom came on, spraying water to put out the fire, which got both Sana and Rey wet. Sana turned to Rey, who transformed back. Once the sprinklers stopped, Sana ran towards Rey, who slowly managed to get up.

   “Are you okay?” Sana asked Rey.

   “I’m fine, Sana. It’s nothing to worry about,” Rey said. But then, Rey slowly fell to which Sana immediately caught him. She looked at his neck, shocked to see the cut from when the dark beast had bit him. Sana sat Rey down on the floor against the wall to help him rest.  

   “Sana, I’m fine,” Rey assured Sana.

“There’s no need to be worried.”

   “How can you say that? That cut hurt you real bad.”

   “It’s nothing, Sana.”

   “You call that nothing?! You can hardly even sit up straight!”

   “Sana, quit worrying. There’s no need to-“

   “Shut up! You’re always telling me not to worry! For once in your damn life, just let me worry!”

   Rey was left stunned and speechless. He looked at an angry Sana, confused why she’s getting so worked up over this. Sana then relaxed, realizing what she had said. She removed her white scarf, which had been wrapped around the red collars of her black trench-coat. Sana came closer to Rey, using the scarf to wipe the cut on his neck clean. Both of them felt odd as the proximity between them was very close, while Sana continued to clean the cut.

   “What was that you used to kill that thing?” Rey asked, trying to avoid the awkward silence.

   “Liquid carbon dioxide. It was more effective to kill it off.”

   “You’ve always known so much about chemicals?”

   “Yeah. I like chemistry. I always found it fascinating to test out all the chemicals and stuff.”

   “That’s where your nerd side comes from?”

   “Very funny.”

   Sana had finished bandaging the cut. “How do you feel?” Sana asked Rey as he slowly got up.

   “Much better. I gotta hand it to you. You’ve got a magic touch with those hands of yours,” Rey smirked. Sana smiled, seeing he was better.  

   “So, now what?” Rey asked. “We still need to get out of here.”

   “You’re right,” Sana sighed. “I just wonder how the others are doing.”

***

   On the other hand, Krystal had fallen out of her seat into what appeared to be a gymnasium. “Ever heard of gentle falling?!” Krystal shouted as she got off, brushing off the dust that was on her dress. She looked around, surprised to see where she was.

   “Out of all the places of a school they could put me in, they put me in a gym?!” Krystal asked. “This is not my thing!” Krystal was taken by surprise as a ball came towards her way. She ducked in time as the ball hit at the wall, leaving an imprint due to the impact of the hit.

   “What the hell?! Do I look like a bullseye?!” Krystal shouted as she turned around. She was shocked to see a series of humanoid robots looking directly at her, each holding a ball in their hand.

   “Dodgeball!” the humanoids said in unison.

   “What?!” Krystal cried. The humanoids began throwing balls at Krystal, who tried her best to avoid being attacked. She struggled to run in her heels, while the humanoids continued to attack her.

   “And I thought physical education was already horrible! This is my worst nightmare!” Krystal whined as she continued running. “And how dare you make me run in these shoes!”

   As Krystal continued to run, she tripped in her heels and fell. But as she fell, she was caught by someone. She looked up to see Prince had caught her.

   “You?! Oh now you decide to come?!” Krystal shouted.

   “Fine then. I guess I didn’t have to catch you,” Prince said as he dropped Krystal to the floor, making her mouth drop wide open.   

   “Does anyone here understand the meaning of the word GENTLE?!” Krystal cried. Krystal got up, but as she stood, she was appalled to see the heel of one of her pumps had broken off.

   “Those useless pieces of metal made me break a heel!” Krystal shrieked. “I was annoyed to begin with, but now I’m just angry! Hurry up and transform, Prince!”

   “On it,” Prince nodded as he then transformed into his lion form. Krystal drew out her wand, tapping it to transform it into her sonic bell. She held her sonic bell with a tight grip as she looked at the humanoids that surrounded her.

   “When you mess with me and my shoes, you go down!” Krystal exclaimed. “Now it’s personal! Prince, use your Sonic Roar!”

   Prince nodded as he gave a mighty roar, emitting sound waves across the gymnasium. The sound waves forced the humanoids down to the ground as they were unable to counter the vibrations being sent by the waves. Krystal then rung her sonic bell, which further intensified Prince’s Sonic Roar, making the sound waves even stronger. And by then, the humanoids’ metal bodies slowly began to crack until they all finally broke apart in unison.

   Prince transformed back into his human form. “That’s what you tin cans get for making me break a heel!” Krystal exclaimed.

   “Really? You’re whining over a stupid shoe.”

   “These aren’t ordinary shoes! They’re by Reshawna. Reshawna! Now it’ll cost a fortune to get new ones!”

   “To hell with the drama.”

   “And of course. That’s all you can say. I can’t even walk now that this shoe is unwearable.”

   “Then walk…barefoot.”

   Krystal was appalled. “Barefoot?!” Krystal cried. “You expect me to walk barefoot around here? I don’t even know where this floor has been.”

   “Honestly, can you just shut up for once in your life?”

   Krystal’s mouth dropped wide open as Prince walked ahead of her. She could only handle so much of Prince’s attitude.

   “You can be so rude!” Krystal exclaimed as she followed Prince.

   “I know.”

   “So, where are we going?”

   “We need to find a way out of here. We’ll have to see if we can find the others first.”

***

   Elsewhere, Neil and Heer had both landed themselves in what appeared to be a history classroom. As they both fell, they were then seated at desks before a clone of what looked like Headmaster Devil.

   “Devil?!” Neil said, confused.

   “It’s not him. Everything here is just an illusion,” Heer replied.

   “Welcome to history!” the clone said.

   “Man, I hate history,” Neil whined.

   “State the exact dates of when the Great Ringmaster War occurred!” the clone ordered Neil and Heer.

   “Um…,” Heer mumbled.

   “How should I know?!” Neil shouted.

   “You don’t?! Time for punishment!” the clone exclaimed.

   The clone snapped his fingers and two bombs had appeared on the desks that Neil and Heer were sitting at. The two gasped while the clone cackled, “See if you can get out of this! Good day!”

   And with that, the clone vanished. “What the hell?! He placed actual bombs on our desks!” Neil exclaimed. “If my brother wanted to kill us, he didn’t have to send us to some other dimension to do it!”

   “It’ll explode in a minute if we don’t do something!”

   “Quick! Transform and use an ice energy beam on them! Then I’ll fire my arrows to destroy them!”

   “Right!”

   Heer transformed into her snow leopard form, letting out an ice energy beam at both of the bombs. Neil got up and drew out his wand, transforming it into his bow and arrow. He then pulled an arrow back on the bow and fired it at the bomb, destroying it, and then doing the same to the other bomb just in time. Heer transformed back into her human form, sighing with relief.

   “That was a close one,” Heer said.

   “My brother is so dead when I find him.”

   “How do we find him? The others must be trying to get out as well.”

   “Damn it! How are we going to find that scumbag in this place?!”

   Suddenly, the floor under Neil and Heer opened, making the two fall downward into a tunnel. Neil gave his hand to Heer to which she held onto as the two then landed into a chamber room where Sana, Rey, Krystal, and Prince were at as well. The two got up and Neil said, “Well, that was easy.”

   “I am really getting tired of the special effects!” Rey exclaimed.

   “Where are we now?” Heer asked.

   “Very good. I hope you all enjoyed class time,” a voice said.

   The gang turned around to see Aiden standing before them. “You called that class?! I was attacked by dodgeball-throwing robots!” Krystal shouted.

   “Humanoids,” Prince corrected.

   “Whatever!” Krystal exclaimed.

   “Enough with this! Just let us go already! I think we had enough torture for one day,” Rey said.

   “Oh believe me…things are just getting started,” Aiden said.

   Rey could see the others were just as puzzled as he was. At that moment, Aiden closed his eyes as he had suddenly transformed into the form of a human-beast. His beast form was that of a gray wolf.

   “Of course he has to show off,” Neil said.

   “So, we finally see his beast form,” Sana said.

   “On second thought…I say I’m ready for a fight,” Rey smirked. “Right, Neil?”

   “Hell yes,” Neil replied.

   “Looks like we have no choice,” Sana said. “Time to see what this guy is really made of.”

Uncategorized

…a friend in need

imeryli

“Hey, that wasn’t a fair shot!” Neil exclaimed.

It was noon on a Saturday in Daredevil City. Sana, Rey, Neil, and Heer were at their local park where they were playing a game of basketball. Well, Heer was just watching from the comfort of the bench, working on a knitting project.

“This is what happens when you play two against one, Neil,” Rey said.

“He’s right,” Sana said.

“Heer, are you sure you don’t want to play?” Neil asked.

“I honestly wouldn’t be of much help,” Heer said as she continued knitting. “Besides, I’m almost finished with this scarf.”

Neil sighed and said, “Fine. It’s fine. Things will be even better once I actually kick your asses.”

“Keep dreaming, buddy,” Rey said.

“Come on. One more round,” Neil said.

“I’m fine with that. You’re getting ice cream for us after this,” Sana said.

Sana, Rey, and Neil commenced in another round of basketball. As they were playing, Heer went back to her knitting. As she was finishing up the ends of the scarf, she heard a buzzing sound. She looked down and saw Neil’s phone was ringing.

“Hey, Neil, I think someone is calling you,” Heer said.

“Who is it?” Neil asked as he got ready to block the shot Rey was about to make.

Heer picked up the phone, looking at the caller ID. She said, “It’s your mom.”

Neil became stunned. He turned to Heer and said, “Huh?”

And at that moment, the ball hit Neil in the head, and he fell down. Sana turned to Rey, who had a look of shock on his face. He rushed to Neil and said, “Are you okay, man?!”

“Huh?” Neil said. “I’m good. I’m good.”

“Are you sure? That was quite a hit,” Sana said.

“Um, yeah,” Neil said as he got up. “Can we go now?”

“Go?” Heer asked as she got up from the bench. “I thought you wanted to finish the game.”

“I’m good with heading out,” Neil said as he got his phone from Heer.

“Do you at least want to get ice cream?” Rey asked. “I’ll buy for you…since I hit your head.”

“No, I’d rather just go home,” Neil said as he began to head off.

“What’s with him?” Rey asked. He started to follow Neil, saying, “Hey, man! How can you say no to ice cream?!”

“Heer, who did you say was calling him again?” Sana asked.

“It was his mom. What are you thinking, Sana?”

“I’m thinking that was the reason for his sudden change in behavior.”

***

Later in the day, Neil was in his room at the boys’ dorm house. He was trying to find something to do. Something other than look at his phone. After the call from earlier, he got two more missed calls and five text messages from his mom. He didn’t open or check any of them. And staring at the assignments on his laptop didn’t help with distracting him from thinking about his mom. He got out of his seat and landed flat on his bed, sighing. Before he could figure out something to do, he heard a knock on the door.

Neil got up and hurried to the door. Once he opened it, he saw Rey was standing outside.

“Hey, man. What’s up?” Neil asked.

“Hey! We were planning on hitting up that new bowling alley at the mall. Are you coming?”

“Oh, sure thing. Let me freshen up quick.”

Neil quickly headed to the bathroom while Rey came inside. Rey looked around and said, “So, are you okay? You kinda just took off during our game.”

“Oh, I’m fine. I just had a headache,” Neil said as he washed his face.

“Must have been a hell of a headache,” Rey said as he looked over, seeing Neil’s phone ding. It was a message from his mom. Rey noticed several missed calls and messages from Neil’s mom on his phone. He’s still ignoring his mom, Rey thought. I wonder what’s up with that.

“Okay, I’m ready,” Neil said as he got out of the bathroom.

“Dude, is everything good with you and your mom? She’s texted and called you a dozen times.”

“Oh…it’s no biggie. I’ve been so busy today. I’ll call her back later.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah, let’s go!”

Neil immediately walked out of the room, leaving Rey puzzled. He had a feeling something was up, and Neil wasn’t telling him everything.

***

Later on, Rey and Neil joined Sana, Krystal, Prince, Heer, Zayn, and Akira at the bowling alley. As they were playing and munching on mozzarella sticks and churros, Rey could see Neil was still troubled. It wasn’t long till Sana and Heer both came up to him while Zayn was up to strike.

“So, did he say anything to you?” Sana asked Rey.

“No. He says it’s nothing,” Rey said.

“Do you believe him?” Heer asked.

“No,” Rey said. “He’s clearly got stuff going on in his mind. I don’t know why he’s acting like this.”

“Well, family has always been a touchy subject for him,” Heer said. “You can’t blame him for not wanting to talk about it.”

“But there’s a difference between not wanting to talk about it and acting like you’re completely fine,” Sana said.

“Hey, Neil, you ready for your turn?” Krystal asked.

Neil turned around to Krystal. He was pretty distracted, so he didn’t even hear what Krystal said. He asked, “Sorry, what did you say?”

“She asked if you want to bowl now,” Prince said.

Before Neil could say anything, his cellphone rang. He could feel the irritation boil up inside of him as he looked to see it was his mom again. He walked away and answered the phone, saying, “Can’t you understand that I don’t feel like talking, Mom?!”

“How dare you talk to me like that?! Your behavior is getting worse!”

“My behavior?!”

“Yes. You were so much better when you were younger.”

“What do you want?”

“If you read my texts, you would know. Have you figured it out yet?”

Neil sighed. He didn’t read the texts, but he knew exactly what his mom was talking about. What he couldn’t stand was his mother bringing up this conversation over a phone call.

“Hello? Can’t you say something?” Neil’s mom said.

“Isn’t this the kind of thing you talk about in person?!”

“No matter what time it’s brought up, you don’t say anything. You know people keep asking me what your future plans are. What am I supposed to say?”

“I have to go, Mom.”

“We’re not done talking, Neil!”

“Well, I am.”

Neil ended the call. He felt like throwing his phone. Then he remembered how expensive it was to get a new one. He turned around, seeing the others were looking at him, seemingly concerned. Neil grunted, feeling like he was being a damper on everyone’s fun. He went up to Rey, handing him his cellphone and said, “Take it and throw it somewhere. I’m heading back.”

As Neil took off, Krystal said, “Hold on! Neil!”

“Too late,” Prince said as Neil left.

“Whoah. That was intense,” Akira said. “I knew something was off with him, but I never guessed it was this bad.”

“You think he’s heading back to his room?” Zayn asked.

“Looks like it,” Heer said.

“No, he’s not just going back to his room,” Rey said. “I think he’s leaving the school.”

Sana was surprised to hear what Rey said. She could tell everyone else was equally surprised. She asked Rey, “What makes you say that?”

“I have a feeling. Look, I’m gonna go follow and catch up to him before it’s too late,” Rey said.

“Shouldn’t we come with you?” Heer asked.

“No, it’s better if I go alone,” Rey said as he started heading out. “I’ll keep you guys updated!”

***

Back at his room, Neil was starting to pack his backpack. Rey was right. He was leaving school. He didn’t know where he would go. He just knew he had to leave. As he packed a pair of socks in his backpack, he heard multiple knocks on his door. He sighed, knowing Rey probably followed him.

Neil opened the door to see he was right. Rey was there, sweating and panting like crazy.

“You seriously ran a marathon, didn’t you?” Neil said as he let Rey in.

“Well, duh! I had to stop you from leaving! Why won’t you just talk about what’s going on?”

“You know I hate talking about my issues!”

“Dude, that’s exactly what the problem is.”

“Oh, like you’re one to talk!”

“Dude, not cool.”

Neil sighed. He realized he was letting his emotions out on the wrong people. He turned to Rey and said, “I’m sorry. I…I just feel stressed out.”

“So, let me help with that.”

“How? Unless you can have your parents adopt me, I don’t think anything can help me right now.”

“Well, I can’t do that, but I may have something in mind.”

“What?”

“Just trust me on this. We’ll go out tomorrow early in the morning.”

“You know I hate early mornings on Sundays!”

“Well, make an exception this time around.”

“Where are we going?”

“You’ll see. Just know that we’re going to go somewhere to help you clear your head.”

Rey began to head out while Neil stood by and watched him go. He was confused as to where Rey would want to take him. Rey stopped as he opened the door and said, “Don’t even try to leave before morning, or I will find you and beat your ass.”

Neil grunted at the thought of Rey challenging him. Rey left, leaving Neil alone. The anticipation of waiting till morning was annoying. But Rey was his best friend. He figured he should go ahead and trust him.

***

Early morning, Neil got ready to meet up with Rey at the front of the academy. Rey told him to only bring a few essentials with him and nothing else. He still had no idea where Rey was taking him. As he got to the front doors of the academy, Rey was already there, talking to Zayn and Akira. Sana and Heer were there as well.

“Thanks for letting me borrow your hoverbike, Zayn,” Rey said.

“Just don’t break it,” Zayn said.

“What?! You don’t trust me?!” Rey questioned.

“His hoverbike is pretty precious. I’m surprised he’s even letting you borrow it,” Akira said.

“Yeah. Why are you letting him borrow it, Zayn?” Sana asked as she held onto a hoverboard.

“Look, I’m not heartless. You said it was important, so I’m letting you borrow it,” Zayn said.

“Well, thank you,” Rey said. “Neil, are you ready?”

“Uh, yeah,” Neil said. “You still haven’t mentioned where we’re going.”

“It’s a surprise. Just know that it’ll be a safe space,” Rey said as he got on the hoverbike. “Now, hop on.”

“Are the rest of you guys coming?” Neil asked.

“Sana and I will be tagging along on hoverboards,” Heer said.

“We would come, but we got homework to catch up on,” Akira said.

“All right, we’ll see you later then,” Sana said.

With that, Sana, Rey, Neil, and Heer took off, riding into the sky. Zayn and Akira waved bye to them. As they were waving, Akira looked at Zayn and said, “So, what was the real reason you lent it to him?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t act clueless with me. Prince told me that Krystal practically twisted your arm to lend it to them.”

“Nonsense. So, she said something. It doesn’t mean anything.”

“Sure, sure.”

“Are you mocking me?”

“You should know by now. Come on. Let’s get some breakfast.”

***

Later in the morning, Sana, Rey, Neil, and Heer arrived in Salaar, a prominent town in the state of Aroma. It wasn’t too far from New Iris, so it didn’t take that long for the group to reach there. Neil was new to this area of the country, so seeing it for the first time was a sight to behold.

“So, can you tell me where we’re going now?” Neil asked

“You’ll know soon enough,” Rey said.

“How much longer till we land?” Sana asked.

“Coming up in a few minutes,” Rey said.

And in a few minutes, Rey led the group to land right in front of a brick red house that was amongst other alike houses in a small community. They landed right in the front yard and Rey was happy to see his parents and his sister, Alicia, standing right outside.

“Hey, Rey!” Alicia exclaimed.

“Hey, sis!” Rey waved as he parked the hoverbike.

“Wait, is this your family?” Neil asked.

“You bet,” Rey said.

“Nice to see you all again,” Sana said.

“Same to you, Sana,” Araceli said. “When Rey said he was visiting with friends, I was more than happy to accommodate.”

“Son, introduce us to your other friends,” Royce said.

Rey got off the hoverbike, immediately being hugged by Alicia. As he hugged her back, he said, “All right. I want you guys to meet Neil and Heer.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all,” Heer said.

“Very nice to meet you,” Araceli said.

Neil was surprised. Of all the places to go to, Neil was surprised that Rey brought him to his parents’ house. Then again, it was better than visiting his own parents right now.

“Neil, are you good?” Rey said, seeing Neil space out.

“Oh, yeah, I’m fine,” Neil said. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Murgatroyd.”

“Same to you, Neil,” Royce said. “Rey, bring your friends in, and we can start brunch.”

With that, the group went inside to eat brunch with Rey’s family. Araceli had made eggs with chorizo along with tamales. As they were eating and conversing with each other, Neil couldn’t help but pay attention to how nice the atmosphere was. He couldn’t even remember the last time he had a nice family meal.

“Neil, is the food okay for you?” Araceli asked.

“Oh, yeah! It’s been a while since I had tamales this good,” Neil said. “Thank you, Mrs. Murgatroyd.”

“You’re very welcome,” Araceli said.

“I’d argue she makes the best tamales in our family,” Royce said. “Then again, some might say I’m biased.”

“Is it true that this whole community here is just your extended family?” Heer asked.

“Wait, seriously?” Neil asked.

“That’s right. We also have some other fellow Tiger Clan members here. We’ve always been a tightknit pack,” Royce said. “Though Araceli’s side of the family lives in their own community back in Mexico.”

“Wow. It’s amazing how close everyone is,” Sana said.

Hearing all of this made Neil realize how different his family was from Rey’s. It made him understand Rey’s excited nature better.

“Rey, let’s go play outside,” Alicia said as she tugged on Rey’s arm.

“Alicia, don’t you want to wait for your cousins?” Royce asked.

“Oh, who’s coming over?” Rey asked.

“Thiago, Carmen, and Triana are visiting,” Araceli said.

“All right then!” Rey exclaimed. “Ready for a piggyback ride, Alicia?”

“Yeah!” Alicia exclaimed.

Alicia immediately got on Rey’s back and he held onto her, rushing outside to the backyard as she laughed with glee.

“Be careful, you two!” Araceli exclaimed.

“We should go outside, too,” Sana said.

“You coming, Neil?” Heer asked.

“Oh, yeah, sure,” Neil said.

***

Later in the day, after Rey and Alicia’s cousins arrived, it was a complete madhouse at the Murgatroyd residence. Rey and Royce were keeping Alicia and the other kids occupied. They were playing all sorts of games while Araceli was cooking dinner. Sana, Neil, and Heer were watching them have fun.

It was taking Neil back. He remembered the times that he would play such games with Aiden and Shuto after a long day of training. He took himself back to one day in a quiet winter. After completing their training, Neil and Aiden were having a snowball fight to themselves. Neil was in the middle of creating the biggest snowball he could ever make. When he got it ready, Aiden struck with three snowballs to his face, making him fall.

Neil got up and said, “No fair!”

“Ha! It’s not my fault you’re slow!”

“I’m not!”

“Yes, you are!”

As the two bickered, Shuto came in and struck them both with snowballs. Neil got up and said, “No fair, Uncle Shuto. You never said you were playing.”

“How else would I get you two to shut up?” Shuto asked.

“Neil, let’s team up and take him down!” Aiden exclaimed.

“Yeah, good idea!” Neil said.

“All right. Bring it on,” Shuto said.

Neil couldn’t believe how long ago that memory was. Sometimes he thought about how it was hard to believe there was a time where he and Aiden got along.

“Neil, are you thinking about something?” Heer asked.

“Oh, yeah. I was just remembering something from my childhood,” Neil said.

“Something good?” Sana asked.

“Actually, yes,” Neil said. “I guess seeing Rey and his dad having fun reminded me of a time in my life where things didn’t feel so bad. I’m sorry. I’m being a downer, aren’t I?”

“No. After all, there’s a reason Rey made us come here today,” Sana said.

“What is that?” Neil asked.

“He knew that you were having issues with your mom. So, he wanted to bring you to a family environment that was warm and welcoming,” Heer said.

Neil watched Rey joyfully play with his cousins. After understanding his gesture, it made him see just how great of a friend Rey was.

“Rey really takes after his dad, doesn’t he?” Sana said.

“Yeah, the resemblance is uncanny,” Heer said. “Do you think Mrs. Murgatroyd needs help in the kitchen?”

“You could go ask her,” Sana said. “I’m going to join Rey and the others.”

“Uh, Heer, I’ll come with you,” Neil said.

Heer nodded. Neil and Heer went inside the house while Sana played with the others. Once they got to the kitchen, Heer helped Araceli with cutting vegetables while Neil stood by. He wanted to talk to Araceli, but he wasn’t sure what to say. Araceli herself noticed Neil was aloof. She said, “Rey told me about your mother.”

“Oh, yeah. I figured as much.”

“He didn’t go into detail. He figured that it was up to you on how much you wanted to share.”

“It’s fine. I’ll be honest. Part of me thought that seeing you all so happy would make me jealous. But I know Rey. He wouldn’t want to make me feel that.”

“You’re right. My son has a good heart.”

“He sure does.”

“Mrs. Murgatroyd, I finished cutting. Is there anything else I can do?” Heer asked.

“No, that’s it. Thank you, Heer,” Araceli said.

Heer nodded and headed out of the kitchen to go back outside. As Neil watched Araceli get hold of the cut vegetables, he said, “Seeing them outside, I remembered this time I was playing with my brother in the snow.”

“Aah. Rey mentioned you had issues with your brother.”

“I do. Though I’ll admit…a lot of it might just be projecting…from me. I don’t know.”

“Is it related to your mother?”

“Look, I don’t know what moms are supposed to be like, but with mine, she’s always on my back. It wasn’t like that when I was a kid. It was so much easier. Now that I’m in the academy, she’s always harping about my future and how I have to have a plan. She always talks about how my brother and all my cousins know what they’re doing. And I don’t. I just…I can’t take it…”

“Do you think she’s worried and trying to help you, but ultimately it’s not helping you?”

Neil was surprised to hear Araceli ask him such a question. In his life, it felt like most of the adults he encountered never asked such thoughtful questions.

“Yeah,” Neil said. “That’s exactly how I feel.”

“Look at that. You were able to share how you felt.”

“Yeah, I did do that. So, do you have anything else to say?”

“Well, I’m a mother myself. Rey is growing up, and I think after what he’s been through, he’s trying to focus on the present.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“While the future is important, you can’t spend too much time on it. There are so many unknowns. You’re a good kid, Neil. You may not know the answers to your mother’s questions now, but you’ll figure them out in your own way. On your own pace.”

Neil could feel a lightness in himself that he hadn’t felt in a while. It was almost overwhelming. He looked at Araceli and said, “Mrs. Murgatroyd, this might be an odd request, but…would you be okay with giving me a hug?”

Araceli smiled and did just that. She hugged Neil, and the warmth of this gesture gave him peace. This was something he desperately needed.

As Araceli let Neil go, she said, “If you ever need somewhere to go, you’re always welcome here.”

Neil wiped a few small tears that came from his eyes and said, “Thank you.”

“Now, I should finish preparing dinner,” Araceli said. “How about you go outside and play with the others?”

Neil nodded, leaving the kitchen. As he went outside, he saw everyone was continuing to have so much fun. Rey stopped, looking at him. It didn’t take long for Rey to go up to him, put his arm around him and say, “You coming to play?”

Neil smiled and said, “Yeah.”

Copyright © 2022 Meryl T

All rights reserved. All illustrations created by Meryl T.

Books, fantasy, Uncategorized, writing

A Not So Quiet Beach Day

imeryli

“Come on, Prince!” Rey exclaimed as he tugged at Prince’s arm along with Neil.

No matter how much Rey and Neil pulled, Prince was as solid as a rock. He didn’t want to budge. With a day off from school, Rey and Neil wanted to go out for a beach day. It was something they needed with all the stress in their lives as of late.

“I don’t understand why you need me to come with you guys,” Prince said.

“Come on! It’ll be fun!” Neil exclaimed. “Besides, we want as much of the gang there as possible.”

“Heer, Zayn, and Akira are busy with homework. You definitely don’t have an excuse better than that,” Rey said.

“I do. I’m just not interested,” Prince said.

“You say that all the time!” Rey exclaimed. “It’ll be fun. We’ll hang at the beach while you just chill. You can relax as much as you want. Maybe even take a book.”

“Or a candy cane,” Neil said.

Prince sighed. He would rather stay in his room, but he also felt some relaxation elsewhere wouldn’t be a bad idea.

“Fine. I’ll go, but I’m just going to chill there,” Prince said. “Got it?”

“All right! We’re heading out in an hour, so be ready!” Rey exclaimed as he and Neil left the room.

***

 In the late afternoon, Prince met up with Rey, Neil, Sana, and Krystal at the front of the academy. They headed downtown and boarded the bus. It didn’t take long for them to reach Swiftside Beach. As soon as the group arrived, no one was more excited than Krystal. She made her way towards the sand, saying, “Isn’t this so nice?! Zayn and the others are missing out!”

“Hell, I’m surprised Ms. Bookworm here wasn’t busy with homework,” Neil said, looking at Sana.

“Are you trying to say I don’t know how to have fun?” Sana asked.

“He isn’t trying. He’s just saying it,” Rey said.

“Well, let me prove you wrong then!” Sana exclaimed. “Who’s up for volleyball?”

“Sounds fun!” Krystal said. “Prince, join us!

Krystal and the others turned to see Prince was already settled. He laid on the towel he had set on the sand. Krystal said, “Prince, really?”

“I came here to relax,” Prince said as he got out a book from his backpack.

“Come on. Just one game,” Neil said.

“I’m good,” Prince said as he opened his book and began reading.

Rey, Neil, Sana, and Krystal walked off to set up for volleyball. Sana whispered to Rey, “Why did you invite Prince?”

“I thought he’d possibly lighten up and hang with us,” Rey said.

“You thought that by enticing him with relaxation only?” Neil asked. “And you guys make fun of my intelligence.”

“Who said that makes you any more intelligent, Neil?” Krystal said.

“You know what?! I’m gonna beat the crap out of you guys at volleyball!” Neil exclaimed.

“Dream on,” Krystal said.

As Rey, Krystal, and Neil got ready to start playing, Sana turned and looked at Prince. He didn’t seem bothered. If anything, he looked very much at peace, reading his book. She decided it was probably best to just leave him be.

Prince was deep into his book. He was reading a new novel called Lightning Strikes Silent Street by Rana Sandesh, and it was an engrossing read so far. He could feel the tension as he was getting through an intense chapter. The main character, Roohi, was wandering around in her apartment at night, unaware that someone was inside. As he got to the next page, he was startled as Sana, Krystal, Rey, and Neil were loudly commencing in their volleyball game.

“HA! We’re in the lead!” Krystal exclaimed after delivering a winning serve. She high-fived Sana while Rey and Neil looked ready to continue.

“It’s not over yet!” Neil exclaimed.

Prince shook his head as he looked back at his book. He tried to focus on the chapter. It was a lengthy read, but he was doing his best to pay attention while the others continued their game. After some time, his focus became disrupted again upon hearing Krystal shout, “Prince, watch out!”

“What?!” Prince said as he turned around. Before he could do anything, the ball smacked him in the head and he fell back, his book falling out of his hands.

Sana, Krystal, Rey, and Neil all ran up to Prince. Sana and Krystal helped him up with Sana asking, “Prince, are you okay?”

“If you want to get mad at someone, be mad at Neil! He served the ball!” Rey exclaimed.

“Really, dude?! You gotta blame me?!” Neil said.

“Well, you’re the one who threw it,” Rey said.

Prince hadn’t said a word. He was feeling a variety of things, but he was mostly agitated and angry. His head hurt, and he lost his place in his book, which was now dunked in sand. The others looked at him, and Rey and Neil looked particularly fearful of him. Maybe his agitation and anger were showing on his face.

“You know what?” Prince said. “I’m just gonna go get something to drink.”

Prince left while the others watched him leave. As he headed off, Neil said, “Damn. Is it me, or did he look mad?”

“It’s either that, or he’s annoyed. Probably both,” Krystal said.

“What should we do?” Sana asked.

“We should just leave him alone for a while,” Rey said. “Let’s get back to our game.”

“You guys go ahead. I’m gonna get a drink,” Sana said.

Krystal, Rey, and Neil got the ball and got back to their game. Sana picked up Prince’s book. She headed out towards the snack shack where Prince was at. He was drinking a large strawberry lemonade, and Sana could tell he was very irritated. She went up to him, handing him his book. Prince looked at her and took the book, saying, “Thanks.”

“How’s the book so far?” Sana asked.

“It was good until certain idiots smacked me in the head and made me lose my place.”

“Sorry. I know they can be a handful, but they didn’t mean to hit you.”

“So? They literally made me come here just to annoy the hell out of me. All I care about is relaxing. Is that so much to ask?”

“Is there something going on? You’re crabbier than usual.”

“Oh, wow, that’s so helpful.”

“Come on. Seriously, is something bothering you?”

Prince finished his strawberry lemonade. He got out of his seat and headed out while Sana watched him leave. He had a hard time explaining how he was feeling. He certainly felt that whatever he was feeling was nothing compared to the stuff that Sana and Rey had dealt with recently.

As Prince got back to where his towel and things were, he saw Krystal, Rey, and Neil were out in the water, swimming. They were having a lot of fun, splashing each other and everything. Krystal looked at Prince and said, “Hey, Prince! Do you want to join us?”

“I’m fine,” Prince said as he tried to figure out where he was in his book.

“You came to the beach, and you won’t even get in the water?” Krystal asked.

“Some people come to the beach to just chill. It’s clear you guys don’t get that,” Prince said.

“Hey, man! I know you’re upset, but you don’t have to be a jerk,” Rey said.

“Oh, right. I should be an absolute ray of sunshine after getting smacked in the head during your stupid game of volleyball,” Prince said.

“It was an accident,” Neil said. “I didn’t mean to hit you.”

“Oh, like that’s supposed to make me feel better,” Prince said.

“Okay, enough of the arguing!” Krystal exclaimed. “You can just sulk while we have some fun here!”

“To hell with the drama,” Prince said as he rolled his eyes and went back to focusing on his book.

While Prince tried to find the page he was on in his book, a gust of wind wavered over the waters. Prince was splashed by the water, himself and his book drenched. Prince could see the others look at him, clearly horrified. Though they were probably more horrified at how mad he would be. He got up, grabbing his book and towel. Sana was there and asked, “You need help?”

Prince sighed. He didn’t want to admit it, but he could use some time with a friend.

“Yeah,” Prince said.

***

Sana got her things and walked further down the beach with Prince to get a private spot for himself. She helped him dry off, using his towel to dry his hair. As she helped, she said, “I’m sorry this beach day hasn’t been going well for you.”

“It’s not your fault. Karma must hate me or something.”

“Don’t say that. Now, you did take my help. Is there anything you want to talk about?”

“I don’t even know how to explain it.”

“That’s fine. You just take your time with it.”

Prince took a deep breath. He wasn’t really used to opening up about his feelings to anyone. Sana was cool though, and he did think she was a relatively easy person to talk to. He said, “I’ve been feeling pretty tired lately.”

“You mean like tired as in annoyed? Or tired as in exhausted?”

“I don’t know. Maybe both. I don’t even know how I can talk about this with you specifically.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Well, you and Rey have gone through a lot with the whole Madame Naga fiasco. My struggles are nothing compared to yours. I’m not like doing horribly, but I also feel like so much has been happening, and I just want a break.”

“Prince, whatever you feel is just as valid as what me and Rey are feeling. I’ll admit, things have been pretty hard with all the new revelations, but that doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to feel tired. In fact, I think the entire group has been affected one way or the other. We just have to stick by each other through all of it.”

Prince agreed with everything Sana was saying. He realized he should’ve known Sana would care. She was a very caring person after all.

“So, I guess that’s why you wanted the perfect beach day all to yourself,” Sana said.

“I just wanted to relax and not think about anything. You guys love hanging out and spending time together, but sometimes I just enjoy being alone.”

“I understand.”

“Anyway, thanks for hearing me out.”

“Of course. That’s what friends do.”

Prince looked up, seeing Krystal, Rey, and Neil walking over to him. Neil said, “Hey, man. I’m sorry about earlier.”

“We should’ve been more direct with our apology,” Rey said.

“Thanks. I appreciate it,” Prince said.

Rey nudged Krystal. She said, “And I’m sorry for mocking you for wanting to be alone.”

“Look at that. Krystal can shake away her ego,” Sana said.

“Oh, shut up, Sana!” Krystal exclaimed.

Prince was pleased with his friends’ apologies. He did think that he should apologize as well.

“I’m sorry, too,” Prince said. “I shouldn’t have been so crabby with you guys.”

“Hey, it’s all good, dude,” Rey said. “We’re all cool here!”

“Anyway, we were gonna go to Devil’s Diner for dinner. Zayn, Akira, and Heer said they can join us there,” Neil said. “You guys want to go?”

“I’m cool with that,” Sana said. “Prince, since you wanted to have some alone time here, you don’t have to come if you don’t want to.”

Prince was surprised at Sana’s gesture.

“Really?” Prince asked.

“Yeah, man. If you want some alone time here, it’s totally cool with us,” Rey said.

“Well, thank you then,” Prince said.

“All right. See you later then,” Krystal said as she headed off with Rey and Neil.

Sana went up to Prince, taking out a book from her bag and handing it to him. Prince looked at it, seeing it was a Rana Sandesh novel titled Silence Sounds Swell.

“I like Rana Sandesh books myself. It may not be the same one as what you were reading, but I figured you could read it until you get a new copy of the other one,” Sana said.

“Thank you, Sana. This is nice of you.”

“No problem. See you tomorrow then.”

“Actually, maybe I’ll join you guys later. After some time that is.”

“Okay. See you.”

After Sana left, Prince was by himself. It was a good kind of solitude. He finally had some peace all to himself.

Copyright © 2022 Meryl T

All rights reserved. All illustrations created by Meryl T.

blog, Books, Uncategorized, writing

Prince’s Valentine’s Day

imeryli

“Pink or red, guys?” Krystal asked Rey and Prince. It was a Sunday afternoon in Daredevil City. Krystal, Rey, and Prince were at the Reshawna store inside Daredevil Mall. Krystal had dragged the two along for a shopping trip. She was hoping to buy a new outfit for Valentine’s Day.

   “Hello?!” Krystal exclaimed. “Did you guys hear me?”

   “We did. I just don’t understand what the big deal is,” Prince said. “Buy whatever you want.”

   “I’m asking for your opinion!” Krystal said.

   “I like the red, but I think the pink one brings out your eyes,” Rey said.

   “See, Prince! Rey is giving a solid opinion here,” Krystal said.

   “Fine. You want my opinion?” Prince said. “The red one makes you look like a firetruck and the pink one makes you look like a flamingo. Happy?”

   Krystal could feel the anger in her boil up. She couldn’t stand the attitude Prince was giving her and she certainly didn’t like being called a firetruck or a flamingo. She calmed down and said, “Prince, you don’t need to have an attitude.”

   “You’re the one who dragged us both here,” Prince said. “Don’t be surprised that I’m not exactly ecstatic right now.”

   “That’s because everyone else was busy,” Krystal said. “I have to have the perfect dress for Valentine’s Day.”

   “It’s not like you have a date or anything,” Prince said as he started chewing on a lemon-flavored candy cane.

   Krystal could feel her irritation get to the brim. Even Rey took note of how annoyed she was by Prince’s words.

   “So?! Are you trying to say I need to have a date to look good on Valentine’s Day?!” Krystal exclaimed.

   “No,” Prince said. “I just don’t understand the effort. That too for such a lame holiday.”

   “Oh, someone has beef with Valentine’s,” Rey chuckled.

   Prince didn’t say anything. He rolled his eyes, turning away. The only way to deal with the situation was to not look at anyone.

   Krystal, in her frustration, said, “Whatever. I’m just gonna go with the pink one.”

   Krystal headed back to the fitting room to change. Rey looked over at Prince and said, “So, are you coming for lunch?”

   “Nah, I’m gonna slip out now,” Prince said as he got up. “I need to do some things before tomorrow. See ya.”

   Prince left and Rey watched him leave. He shook his head, knowing Krystal was going to have a tantrum once she stepped out. And the moment she came out of the dressing room, she said, “Did he seriously leave before lunch?!”

   “He said he was busy.”

   “Busy?! Ha! All he does is sleep and eat candy canes. What could possibly keep him busy?”

   “So, now what?”

    “I’m gonna pay for this and we’ll go to lunch.”

    “Just us?”

    “Well, I’m not going to lunch alone! Or are you busy as well?”

    Rey thought he could make something up, but he did feel bad about Prince ditching. Plus, there was the possibility of Krystal paying.

   “No, I’ll tag along,” Rey said.

***

   The next day, it was Valentine’s Day. It seemed like a normal day at Ringmasters Training Academy, but there were some students engaging in the exchanging of cards, candy, and flowers. Prince was certainly not one of them. He went to his locker and opened it, looking at all the candy he had stocked up. He had boxes of chocolates and a box of Valentine’s Day themed candy canes that were hard to find. Prince took one of the candy canes from the box. As he started chewing it, Neil walked by along with Rey and said, “Whoah, Prince. Look at all the candy. You have a valentine?”

   “Yeah,” Prince said. “Myself.”

   “Did you really think Prince was into Valentine’s Day?” Rey asked Neil, chuckling.

   “Well, he seems to be…for the candy at least,” Neil said. “Can I have some?”

   “Do you think I hoarded all the leftover candy at the grocery store just to share it with people?” Prince asked.

   “Well, damn,” Rey said.

   Neil whimpered and said, “Sheesh, Prince. You don’t have to be so mean.”

   “What else can you expect from him?” a voice said.

   Krystal showed up with Sana and Heer at her side. She was proudly wearing the new outfit she bought the other day, but she was indeed upset.

   “What do you mean by that?” Prince asked.

   “You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

   “Is this about yesterday? You’re really upset about that?”

   “Yes, I’m upset. And since I’m upset, you should wait two to three business days before fighting me on it.”

   “Damn,” Rey said.

   “Okay, what’s going on here?” Neil asked.

   “I don’t have time for this,” Prince said as he shook his head. He grabbed his books and some candy from his locker and then slammed it shut, leaving.

   “Well, that certainly didn’t go well,” Sana said.

   “Who cares?!” Krystal exclaimed.

   “Krystal, I know you’re upset with Prince, but maybe you guys could talk it out?” Heer asked.

   “Heer, I don’t have the energy to talk to him,” Krystal said. “I’d rather enjoy my Valentine’s Day in peace.”

   “Do you even have a valentine?” Neil asked Krystal.

   “Who says I need to have one to enjoy the festivities?! Sheesh!” Krystal exclaimed. She left the group, feeling even more annoyed.

   “Wow. I’ve never seen her this mad,” Sana said. “She doesn’t even get this mad when directing a circus show.”

   “Sana, she doesn’t even get this mad when Prince won’t wear the matching outfits she buys him,” Rey said.

   “You know, I wish she would gift me new outfits. I would at least wear them,” Neil said. “I don’t have any money for shopping.”

   “Guys, shouldn’t we do something?” Heer asked. “It’s not good for them to have tension like this.”

   “Yeah. Like talking to them is gonna be something easy to do,” Rey said.

   “No, Heer is right. We should do something,” Sana said. “I think I have an idea.”

***

   Later, at the end of the school day, Prince went to his locker to retrieve the remaining boxes of candy he had. As he was getting everything together in his backpack, he could feel someone was coming up to him. He turned around to see Heer standing before him. He was surprised to see her. Prince said, “Heer…what brings you to my locker?”

   “I hope I’m not bothering you.”

   “No, you’re not. What’s up?”

   “Are you doing anything right now? I could use some help if you’re free.”

   “Help with what exactly?”

   “I’m volunteering for a class at an elementary school today. The kids there are having a Valentine’s Day party and I need to take some baked goods I made. Do you mind helping me?”

   Prince sighed. He was planning to go back to his dorm to work on some homework and finish his candy. And he very well could do that, but at the same time, he didn’t think it was right to say no to helping Heer out.

   “I guess I can help you out,” Prince said.

   “Great,” Heer said. “We can go to my room and get them.”

   Prince nodded and followed Heer down the hallway.

***

   On the other hand, Sana, Rey, Krystal, and Neil had gone to Lola’s. Sana thought a hangout with Krystal could help her cool down from her anger with Prince. It was also a good way to talk things out with her while Heer handled things with Prince. As they passed by the candy aisle, Rey said, “Wow. Prince wasn’t kidding when he said he hoarded all what was left of the Valentine’s Day candy.”

   Sana shoved Rey in the arm with her elbow. She directed his attention to Krystal, who shifted from being perfectly calm to frustrated again.

   “Nice work,” Sana said.

   “Hey, I was just saying,” Rey said.

   “Rey’s right. It’s not like Prince is one to share,” Krystal said as she looked at a pink teddy bear on the middle shelf. “In fact, he’s the least caring person I know.”

   “Come on, Krystal,” Neil said. “You don’t mean that.”

   “Yes, I do!” Krystal exclaimed. “He’s a big jerk! I can’t believe we’re even partners!”

   “Krystal, remember, you two do make a good team,” Sana said. “A unique team certainly…but a good team nonetheless.”

   “It doesn’t matter!” Krystal exclaimed as she grabbed hold of the pink teddy bear. “It doesn’t change the fact that he’s a jerk!”

   “Oh, sheesh,” Neil said. “Is it really that big of a deal? I mean you did drag him to the mall.”

   Rey looked at Neil, knowing he shouldn’t have said what he said. Sana shook her head, seeing Krystal get even more angry than before. Neil could tell he messed up, seeing her face get red.

   “Not a big deal?! You really have the nerve to say its not a big deal?!” Krystal yelled. As she yelled, Krystal ripped the head of the pink teddy bear. She only realized it upon seeing the faces of her friends.

   “Damn, Krystal. You don’t have to take it out on the bear,” Rey said.

   “And now you’re gonna have to pay for it,” Sana said.

   “Ugh!” Krystal exclaimed. “Neil, why did you have to set me off?!”

   “I didn’t know you’d act so ballistic,” Neil said.

   “Um, its Krystal,” Rey said. “How could you not know that?”

   “What did you just say, Rey?!” Krystal said.

   “Nothing, nothing at all!” Rey exclaimed.

   Sana shook her head. I swear, these two aren’t the brightest bulbs sometimes, she thought. I hope Heer has an easier time handling Prince.

***

   Heer and Prince took a bus from the academy to reach Lillian Crossing Elementary School. The two got off the bus, each holding three boxes of pastries and baked goods that Heer made. Heer led them inside the school building and walked all the way to room 3B. As soon as they entered the classroom, they were welcomed by several children. Heer was happy to see all the kids. She had gotten to know them through the many times she had visited. She could tell it was something new for Prince, who seemed overwhelmed by all the attention.

   Heer saw the classroom teacher, Ms. Williams, walk up to her. She had dark eyes and curly brown hair. She was wearing a beautiful flowy red dress with a pink heart pattern in spirit of the holiday.

   “Hi, Ms. Williams,” Heer said.

   “Hello, Heer,” Ms. Williams said. “Thank you so much for bringing your amazing treats. Is this a friend of yours?”

   “Yes, this is Prince,” Heer said. “He goes to RTA with me.”

   “Hi,” Prince said.

   “Nice to meet you, Prince. I’m glad you could join us,” Ms. Williams said. “You guys can set up everything on the table right over there.”

   “Sounds good. Thank you,” Heer said as she moved towards the table in the corner with Prince following.

   Ms. Williams got all the kids together and had them settle down while Heer and Prince started setting up. There were plenty of items to unpack. Heer took out the cookies and cherry tarts while Prince got out the cupcakes and brownies. Prince couldn’t believe that Heer had made so much. He knew she was an avid baker, but this felt like a whole catering job. Once everything was set, Ms. Williams had the kids get their treats. Heer and Prince helped with serving. Even though Prince could’ve been chilling back at his dorm, he didn’t completely mind helping Heer.

   “So, are you having a good time?” Prince asked Heer.

   “Yeah, this is nice. I’m glad the kids are having fun.”

   “I gotta ask you something. What made you decide to volunteer for this?”

   “Do you see the boy over there in the purple cat shirt?”

   Prince looked at the kids to see who Heer was referring to. He did see the boy in the purple cat shirt. He had the biggest smile on his face as he dove right into the pink frosted cupcake. The boy had scraggly black hair and big chocolate brown eyes.

   “That’s Karthi,” Heer said. “One day, I went for a walk at the park nearby and he was there with some kids. He was getting picked on, so I stepped in and helped him out. He wanted me to come to the school and meet Ms. Williams and the other kids. So, I just like to come by and help out every now and then when I can.”

   Prince wasn’t surprised that Heer had so much kindness in her. What did surprise him was how much she could do for those who weren’t even close to her.

   “Something on your mind, Prince?” Heer asked.

   “I hate admitting it. But the whole thing with Krystal does bother me. I don’t know why she has to be so dramatic sometimes.”

   “She’s Krystal. It’s just how she is.”

   “I know, but she doesn’t have to get mad at me. She’s the one that dragged me to the mall to begin with. Hell, she drags me everywhere.”

   “I understand where you’re coming from. Have you ever thought about why she’s like that?”

   “Why? Do you know?”

   “I think she just wants to feel like she’s friends with you. You’re not the most outgoing person, so she probably feels like she has to drag you around to wherever she wants to go. She’s your partner, so it makes sense that she wants to feel like she matters to you.”

   “Matters to me?”

   “Yeah. Neil may do some crazy antics, but I always want to be there to look out for him. And I know he’d do the same for me. For Krystal, being your partner also means being your friend. Now, she could definitely approach this in better ways, but I think she does what she does because that’s what she knows.”

   Prince was surprised. He could understand Heer’s perspective. He hadn’t even thought about seeing things from that angle. As he thought over what Heer said, Karthi walked up to Heer. She looked at him and said, “Are you having fun, Karthi?”

   “Yes,” Karthi said. “Thank you for the treats.”

   “It was my pleasure,” Heer said.

   “Hey,” Prince said. “Your name is Karthi?”

   “Yes,” Karthi said. “What’s your name?”

   “I’m Prince,” Prince said. “You want to see something?”

   Karthi nodded his head. Prince got his backpack, unzipped it, and took out one of the Valentine’s Day candy canes he had. He could already tell Karthi was in awe of it.

   “These are special candy canes. They’re pretty hard to find,” Prince said. “You want it?”

   Karthi nodded happily. Prince handed the candy cane to him. He got out the box from his backpack and handed it to Karthi saying, “Can you give these to everyone else?”

   Karthi took the box from Prince and went off, handing the candy canes to his classmates. Heer was surprised by Prince’s gesture. She looked at him and said, “Wow. This is a first.”

   “Oh, come on,” Prince said. “I can be nice. Now tell me, where did you find the time to make all of this?”

   “I like to bake after school. It helps me relax after a long day of school,” Heer said.

   “Interesting way to relax,” Prince said as he took a bite out of one of the cupcakes.

***

   Back at the dorms of Ringmasters Training Academy, Krystal was painting her nails, trying to relax. She was finishing up the last of her fingernails when the sound of a knock on her door made her mess up. “Great, now my nails are ruined,” Krystal said as she got up from her vanity chair. “Ugh!”

   Krystal walked up to the door and opened it. She was surprised to see Prince was there. She folded her arms and said, “Yes?”

   Prince cleared his throat. He took a few seconds of silence before saying anything.

   “I’m sorry,” Prince said. “I shouldn’t have been so rude to you the other day.”

   Krystal was surprised to hear Prince apologize. She could tell he was being sincere, and it meant a lot to her. She smiled and said, “It’s okay.”

   Prince smiled back. It was a rare sighting for Krystal. She said, “Wait here for a sec.”

   Prince nodded and waited while Krystal headed back to her room. She quickly came back, handing him a pink teddy bear and saying, “I’m sorry, too.”

   Prince chuckled as he took the teddy bear. He looked at it closer and said, “Why does this bear look like it’s been to the hospital?”

   “Now that’s a story,” Krystal said. “Do you wanna grab breakfast tomorrow?”

   “Sure.”

   “Sounds good. Good night.”

   “Good night, Krystal.”

   Krystal closed the door and Prince went on his way.

Copyright © 2022 Meryl T

All rights reserved. All illustrations created by Meryl T.