"Aanya, get that for me," Tharia says, pointing at nothing in particular.
Aanya goes over in the direction she had pointed at. "No, that one," Tharia says. Aanya again moves but Tharia points somewhere else and says, "No, that way. Are you deaf or something?"
"No your highness," Aanya answers.
"Then do what I tell you," Tharia commands.
Aanya tries to move but her feet are stuck to the ground. She pulls with all of her strength, but no matter what she tries they won't budge. "Servant girl! Did you not hear me? Get it for me!" Tharia commands yet again.
"Get what? What do you want me to do?" Aanya asks in desperation. Tears well up in her eyes, threatening to spill, while she is still trying to free herself.
"You stupid girl. Why are you even here? You should go back to that miserable hovel." The scene shifts and she is back at her childhood home. Aanya stands in her old room. It still has all of her drawings pinned to the wall and her small bed stuck in the corner with her tattered doll sitting on the cover.
"Aanya! Come down for dinner," calls a voice from down below. Mom. Aanya runs down the rickety staircase to find her mother in the small kitchen.
"Mother!" Aanya cries. She runs to jump into her mother's arms but before she can the older disappears.
The scene shifts again. Aanya is in the backyard, watching Bayne spar with their father. "Can I join?" she asks. Her voice sounds just like it had when she was a toddler.
Bayne turns to her and says, "No, you must never fight. You are not fit to be a soldier."
"But I am, just let me show you. I've been practicing," Aanya pleads.
"No, and that's final."
Aanya turns to her father. "What do you think, Father?" The man doesn't say anything. Instead, he just stands there with a blank expression on his face. He slowly shakes his head.
The scene shifts yet again. This time, Aanya is surrounded by darkness. She can see a light from a distance and is compelled towards it. In one step, she is standing, or floating (she can't tell), just in front of the light.
She has to squint, but she manages to see a silhouette coming out of the brightness. It's Koa. "I'm here," he says in a deep voice.
"But I don't even know you," Aanya points out.
"Does that matter?" he questions. Aanya is just about to respond when the scene changes but it isn't anywhere she can recognize. It is still very dark, but there is no light this time. Aanya can make out rocky mountains in the distance and a few rugged buildings.
She hears a low grumbling and quickly realizes someone was speaking. She creeps towards the sound. Once she gets closer she can tell, with some difficulty, what the voices are saying.
"Gigantes will be on our side. We just have to show our strength in some way," one is saying.
"That's easy!" says another voice that is more deep and scraggly than the first. "We are the strongest of all the creatures," they boast.
"It won't be that simple. We have to do something big to get them to cooperate," the first one rebutles.
"How big are we talkin'?" asks a third voice, this one sounding the ruffest and scruffiest.
"I don't know. But it has to be enough to impress the giants," the first one answers.
It was then that Aanya slips on the rock she was steadily climbing in order to see these mysterious voices. Unfortunately, she wasn't looking at where she was stepping. Now, she sits on the hot ground. The three voices have stopped talking. She can hear heavy footsteps coming around the rock.
As they come around the corner, Aanya gasps. It is the worst sight she has ever laid her eyes upon. Each thing is very tall and very hairy. They each have pointed teeth and spiked hair. Their claws are on full display, and their tails whip behind them with spiky ends.
The worst part is their eyes. Each beast has fierce, glowing, red eyes that bear into her. Just the sight of them sends shivers up and down her spine. She wants to run as far away as she can just because of those eyes. She can't imagine what it might be like to look at them directly and not through a dream.
The scene reminds her of a story they have on Earth. It is about this lady that was so ugly she could turn people to stone. These beasts had the same effect but they paralyze their victims with fear.
"An elemental!" the first voice says which she can now see belongs to the beast in the middle.
"Kill it!" says the second on the first's right.
The third one raises his claws and bares his teeth. He crouches down, ready to pounce. He leaps into the air, and just before he is about to tear Aanya to shreds, black.
-------------------------------
Aanya bolts upright in her bed. She is back in her apartment and is covered in a cold sweat. She groans. Aanya doesn't even try to go back to sleep. Instead, she gets up and takes a very hot shower to calm her nerves.
She lets the warm water wash over her, trying to clear her dizzying thoughts, but it is no good. Flashes of the red eyes keep coming to her and each time they do she is compelled to shiver, no matter how hot she turns the water.
When she gets out, she has to turn on the small, battery-powered fan Bayne had put in there to get rid of all of the steam.
Aanya doesn't know what to do after that but she does know she can't stay here. So, she puts on some clothes and steps into the small hallway. It's very dark, but there is a small light still on at the end where the kitchens are.
Aanya goes towards it, thinking a snack and some milk might clear her mind. Technically it can be seen as stealing, but she is always extra careful and makes sure to only take the food from the servants' cabinet. Plus, she is best friends with the head chef, so she can get away with it.
Before she even reaches the entrance she runs into a figure she hadn't noticed earlier. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't see you," she says quickly. The figure turns around, giving Aanya a good view of their face.
Aanya gasps. It is the boy that Bayne was training during lunch: Koa. Aanya immediately blushes by embarrassing herself for the third time in front of him.
"It's Aanya, right? Bayne's little sister?" he asks.
"Yeah… and you're Koa," Aanya replies.
"You remember me." Aanya can feel her face heating up by the second.
"Yes, and you remember me," she said, her sassy side starting to emerge. That tends to happen when she is around boys.
Koa chuckles. Despite the dim light, his eyes sparkle a brilliant green. "Yeah. Well, you're kind of hard to forget," he says.
"Why is that?" Aanya asks.
"Well...what should I say that won't make you mad?"
"That depends. What were you going to say?" she asks, her voice losing the humor. Aanya is still smiling on the inside though. She doesn't know what it is but she loves to see boys lose their confidence around her. Koa seems very uncomfortable with the change of tone.
"I don't know… you just looked really embarrassed and… it was kind of cute," he says while scratching the back of his head. Aanya smiles and looks away. "Thank you," she says. "Um… I have to go," she says after a moment of silence. She really doesn't do well when nobody is doing anything but standing in uncomfortable silence.
She turns to leave but Koa quickly says, "Would you like to hang out with me on Thursday? It's my day off so…"
Aanya smiles. "I would like that." Koa's smile is so wide that it actually makes Aanya chuckle just at the sight. "I'll see you later," Aanya says with a wave as she moves around him to get to the door.
With that, she goes into the kitchen where she is greeted with a barreling head chef coming straight toward her. "Aanya!" she hears out of the layers of cloth and flesh that she was now squished into.
Once she has detached herself from the chef in question she says, "Addison! It's so good to see you."
"You haven't visited in so long," she says. Addison has on her apron over her regular white shirt tucked into her blue pants. Her short, curly, blond hair is pulled into a messy bun. Her cheeks were as rosy as ever.
"I know. I did come yesterday but I guess you were on a break when I was here," Aanya explains.
"You have to catch me up," she says while grabbing Aanya's hands and guiding her to sit down at the center counter.
"I don't know... there's not much to tell," Aanya says shyly.
"Really? So that thing in the hallway is 'not much to tell'?" Addison says knowingly with her eyebrows raised.
"You saw that? You didn't hear anything did you?" Aanya questions.
"No, I didn't hear anything. But that boy looked pretty happy when you left," Addison says, her eyebrows going even higher. If they keep going any higher they are going to leave her forehead.
Aanya blushes at the thought of Koa.
"Is that a blush I spot?"
This makes Aanya blush even more and try to hide her face. "I only just met him yesterday. And he only asked to hang out. It doesn't mean anything," she says.
"No, that definitely means something. Did he call you pretty, funny, cute?" she questions. By now she is pouring some water into a pot to boil.
"Well, he did call me cute," Aanya says.
"Yeah, he definitely likes you," Addison confirms.
"Are you sure? I don't think so," says Aanya.
"Oh Aanya. If you can't see that he likes you, then you are hopeless. Have you never had a boyfriend before?"
"You know I haven't. I haven't even had my first kiss yet."
Addison freezes in the act of dropping a lobster into the now boiling water. "You've never told me that before. Why haven't you told me that?" she demands, dropping in the lobster when her moment of shock had passed.
"I guess it never came up in conversation," Aanya says with a shrug.
"Whatever. Okay, other than your date with Soldier Boy, what else has been going on?" Addison says while adding some salt and oil to the lobster.
Aanya bites her lip. She isn't going to tell her about what Bayne had said about their parents. Should she tell her about Bestia or the council?
"Did you hear about Bestia?" Aanya asks hesitantly.
"No. What about it?"
"I don't know. There's just some activity. But it's weird, right? Nothing ever happens over there and now something is; and after so long too. Haven't you heard the stories?" Aanya explains.
"Of course I've heard the stories. I just don't think there being activity is something I should fret over. Besides, I'm sure the king has gotten everything under control," Addison reasons.
"You're probably right," Aanya says, deciding not to tell her about the tension between the council and the King. She then looks at her wristband. "That's the time?!" she cries, jumping out of her seat.
"Sorry, Addison. I've gotta go. I'll see you later!" she says as she runs out the door.
Aanya sprints through the halls, climbing up five staircases, and rounding too many corners to count. When she finally comes to the ornate double doors, she breathes a sigh of relief.
I really need to stop doing this, Aanya thinks before stepping inside.
While she cleans Tharia's suite her mind keeps drifting back to Bestia, the council, and her parents. Could it really be connected? Mom and Dad never had anything to do with the council and their endeavors. Maybe I'm making a big deal out of nothing…. I just can't shake the feeling that something is off about this whole thing.
"Aanya," Tharia says, pulling Aanya back to reality. "What is going on with you. That's the fifth time you've dusted that lamp. Is something wrong?"
Aanya doesn't know what to say. Why would the Princess care about her anyway?
"If you're not going to do your job properly then you should just leave," Tharia says. Then again maybe not.
For the next couple of days, Aanya does her best to focus on anything but the nagging thoughts in the back of her mind. She has been managing pretty well during the day, but it's when she is asleep that she has no control over her thoughts.
Her nights are restless with nightmares of the Beast people and their red eyes. Aanya finds herself waking in a cold sweat in the middle of the night more often than not.
The only thing that efficiently keeps her mind off of her nightmares was the thought of hanging out with Koa on Thursday. She doesn't want to think of it as a date, but she can't help herself daydreaming about it sometimes.
Before she knows it, it's a week until the ball and Tharia is getting fitted for her dress. The pedestal is back as well as the wall of mirrors. However, Aanya doesn't have to carry an armful of silky fabrics for an hour like the last time. She watches Benita run around frantically, trying to improve the dress up to Tharia's standards.
"It just doesn't look right," Tharia is saying.
"You look lovely, your highness," Benita assures but Tharia isn't having it.
"I don't like it. Design me another one," she demands. Benita looks like she is about to faint.
"Your highness, it is much too late to make you another dress."
"Well do it anyway, I am your princess" she says, her tone starting to get a little cold. Aanya can see what is coming, but Benita obviously can't because she says, "Your Highness, it's just not possible with everything my girls have to do, this would be too much."
Tharia's eyes start to glow an icy blue as well as her now showing markings on her cheek, chest, and hand. Aanya ducks as a blast of frostbitten air explodes around Tharia, hitting Benita straight in the face.
When Aanya looks up again, Tharia's markings are gone and Benita has frost covering her entire body. Benita stands there stunned at what had just happened. It isn't because what Tharia had just done was unusual for an elemental, but because Tharia is a lady and should never have a magical outburst like a child would.
Aanya had once been on the receiving end of Tharia's ice magic and she did not want to be in that position ever again. Even though she is a fireie and was always warm, no one ever wants a blast of frost in their face. Once she has gotten over the shock, Benita tells Tharia to get out of the dress and that she will start working right away, then hurries out of the room.
Aanya does her chores very quickly, wanting to get out of there before Tharia has another outburst. As she works, she thinks about having her own bursts when she was a kid.
She would be in the village, shopping with her mother and whenever Mother didn't let her have something, her eyes would glow a fiery red and the markings on her face would do the same. There would be a great flash and the next thing she knew, her mother's hair was singing and she was being dragged home.
Aanya smiles at the memory. Every time she goes to the village, there is always a kid who either had one or became very close to having one. Her mother was the one who would teach her how to control her emotions, so that wouldn't happen anymore because she was also a firie as well as Bayne. Their father on the other hand was a blue (water clan).
Aanya remembers how when she accidentally set things in the house on fire, her father would just wave his hand and the fire was out with a splash of water. Then, he would tell her to never tell anyone what he could do.
Aanya didn't understand at first, but then she figured that no other parents could harness their nature powers to do anything. So, she assumed he didn't want to tell them because he would be an outcast.
Back in Tharia's room, Aanya slips out before Tharia loses her temper again. The rest of the day, Aanya keeps an eye on Tharia while she is tending to her. Luckily, there are no more situations like it for the rest of that morning.
The next several days were as normal as ever. Now it is Thursday night and Aanya is waiting in the courtyard for Koa. She had found him in the database her wrist band had stored and had been texting him all week.
This is the first time a guy has asked her to hang out with him and she was nervous. Aanya is checking her assignments for the next day when Koa strolls up to her.
"Hey," he says.
"Hi."
"Are you ready?"
"Yeah," she says, jumping to her feet. Koa grabs her hand and leads her to the front gates. They both scan their wrist watches and give their retinal scan before heading out.
He doesn't lead Aanya to the village as she had thought, instead, he pulls her toward the forest surrounding the town. Aanya is liking this more and more.
When they enter the wood, the plants all brighten and lean in towards Koa. Anaya sees that the markings on his cheeks were showing themselves and glowing a faint green.
"You're an earthen?" Aanya asks. Up until this point, neither had said anything.
"Yeah. So is my mom, but my brother is a windie," he says. "What about you?"
"I'm a fireie," Aanya says.
"Just like your brother," Koa mentions.
"How did you know what clan he is?"
Koa hesitates for a moment. "He just always has this energy about him, like everything could turn to ash the moment he snaps his finger. That, and when we were training, I felt a few hot waves coming off of him," he explains.
Aanya nods in agreement. "Yeah, he does that when he gets excited." The pair continue walking, leaving a lush trail behind them. It is a few more minutes before Aanya speaks again. "So… where'd you grow up?" she asks.
"On the south island," he says.
"That's a long way. Why'd you come here?"
"I wasn't exactly fulfilled with my life over there," he says. Aanya waits a moment for an elaboration, but it never comes.
She looks at her surroundings instead and realizes they have come upon a clearing with a small waterfall and a pool at the bottom. Koa smiles at the sight. "Come on," he says, "There's something I want to show you."
He then walks around the pool and straight behind the waterfall. Aanya quickly follows and finds herself in a dark cave. Koa starts climbing one of the side walls and Aanya follows suit, very glad she decided to wear pants for this. She soon finds herself climbing through a small hole in the roof of the cave that leads out onto a rock jutting out from the mountain.
Koa is at the edge, staring out into the distance. Aanya steps up beside him and gasps at the sight.
The whole village lays before them, glowing in the light of the sun, high in the sky. She can see the castle in the distance, filtering the light through its many windows, making various colors glow around it. The forest surrounds the capitol, completing the gorgeous scene in front of them.
People roam the streets, going from shop to shop, some trying to control their young. There was one kid throwing a temper tantrum and doused his mother in a wave of water.
"This is beautiful. How did you find it?" Aanya asks.
"When they give us breaks I like to stroll through the woods. It makes me feel at home. When I was walking one day I came upon the waterfall and I wanted to explore and I just found this," he explains.
"I'm glad you did," Aanya says. She watches how the rays of the sun fall upon his face and how his dark hair blows in the wind when suddenly, her stomach starts to rumble. She smiles sheepishly at Koa who just chuckles.
"Sorry, I didn't have any lunch," she says.
"Don't worry, I brought snacks," he says while slinging his backpack around, that Aanya hadn't noticed earlier.
For the rest of the day, the two stay up there talking about nothing and everything while eating their food. Eventually, the sun starts to set and they have to go back. Koa drops Aanya off at her apartment and she goes to sleep with no nightmares and a smile gracing her face.