Shifting Truth

Shifting Truth
To be written by Leiana M. Kaelis (Pen Name) AKA GoldenBrownWaffles (Account name)
Hey guys! As some of you know, I removed Shifting Truth from this page awhile ago. I'm currently in the peocess of rewriting it, so I decided to re-post the old version. Looking back, Ember is a tad bit of a mary sue, so im fixing that in the newer version. Also, this isn't going to be added to, so it is what it is.
~Waffles
Written by GoldenBrownWaffles
Edited by My Friends from School <3
===== Preface =====
Ember was screaming.
And falling.
And confused.
And hurt.
And betrayed.
And hated.
And loved.
And indecisive.
And she knew what she had to do, she just didn’t know if she could or not.
She stopped screaming, steading her breath.
This couldn’t be too hard, right?
After all, didn’t everybody believe in her, whether or not they were acting?
Ember shook off the thought.
She had to focus.
She had to.
Her life depended on it.
Her friend’s life depended on it.
Her real friend.
Not the one that was confusing, not the one that betrayed her.
Ember’s first true friend.
Her loyal friend.
The one that didn’t hurt her, emotionally or physically.
She closed her eyes.
She couldn’t do this.
She heard a hawk screech, and she opened her eyes.
It was the bird.
The black one with green eyes.
He was encouraging Ember.
Telling her she could do it.
And maybe she could.
What she couldn’t do was trust him.
Not again.
Not after last time.
But maybe...
No.
She had to do this.
Alone. 
=====Chapter 1=====
New Beginnings
Thursday
Ember woke hazily to the sound of her blaring alarm clock. Still laying in bed, she rolled over and turned it off. She laid there for a moment before sitting up and throwing off the blankets. She checked the time, 6:32 AM. Ember had around 30 minutes before she had to report to the cafeteria for breakfast.
With a sigh, she stood up and got ready for the day. Luckily, she didn’t share her room with another student, like other people had to, so she was almost free to do what she wanted.
6:58 AM
Ember quickly hurried down the hallway toward the cafeteria. The Headmistress and the other adults weren’t strict about uniforms or anything, but they always wanted the students to be punctual. Ember shuddered at the idea of uniforms. She didn’t know how she would be able to tell anybody apart if they wore uniforms since most of the other students looked sort-of similar if Ember wasn’t paying attention.
She arrived at the giant doors of the cafeteria, just in time, too. The bell rang, signifying the start of breakfast. Ember preferred to not use the giant doors, but it was the closest entrance to her room. She opened the door as slow and quiet as she could, but it still squealed loudly. For the school being pretty wealthy, they still hadn’t oiled the door. Ember cringed as all heads whipped around to face her. She timidly smiled as she went over to the breakfast line.
Ember grabbed her tray of food and scanned the room, looking for a seat. The whole cafeteria was crowded, and the only spot open was a table in the corner, where she always sat. She walked over there, moving along the wall, so nobody would notice her. Most of the people in the lunchroom rolled their eyes as soon as she had entered as if saying, “Oh, it’s just her.” Ember was used to the negative attention by now, but she still didn’t know why everybody hated her so much. Her train of thought was interrupted as the Headmistress entered the room. Everybody’s excited chatter abruptly stopped.
Two other children followed her, and there was a collective gasp. Headmistress Autumn smiled, “Hello, students! For the first time ever, we have two new students joining us.” Ember was confused, all of the students had been here their whole lives, and suddenly there were two new kids, that seemed to be 13, around Ember’s age.
The Kairos Boarding School was peculiar in the aspect that every 20 years, they would get new students of all the same age, and not get any more until the others were adults and had moved on, so new students showing up out of nowhere was unusual.
The Headmistress continued, “I’ll need somebody to show them around, any volunteers?” This was probably the part where either the students would accept the new kids, or shun them as they did with Ember. Lucky for them, almost all 100 other students raised their hands, volunteering.
Ember, knowing she had no chance, didn’t raise her hand. She just tuned everybody out as she ate her cereal. She hardly had an appetite anymore, so she was just picking at her food. She heard the Headmistress say something, but she wasn’t paying attention.
Somebody tapped her on the shoulder, and Ember felt as if she had jumped out of her skin. Her head shot up to face the tapper. With a look of horror, Ember realized who it was.
She sheepishly smiled, “H-Hi?”
Cue the snickers of her classmates.
Ms. Autumn turned around, swiftly quieting the giggles, then, facing Ember she smiled, “Hello, Ember. Would you mind showing Alyx and Cato around?” She gestured to the two students next to her. Cato was a girl, and she was shorter than some of the smallest people Ember knew. She had very light blonde hair and blue eyes. Alyx was a boy, who was taller than Cato, but shorter than Ember. He had very light brown hair, and he also had blue eyes. They both looked similar to each other, but they obviously weren’t siblings. Unfortunately for them, Headmistress Autumn had just condemned them to a life of being an outcast.
Ember opened her mouth to say something, but she couldn’t find the words, so she just nodded. She was met by a smile from Alyx and Cato, as Headmistress Autumn walked away, the chatter resuming, but this time it was whispers of wonder, jealousy, and bitterness.
Cato and Alyx already had gotten their food trays and sat down next to Ember. Ember put down her spoon and introduced herself, “Hi, I’m Ember..”
They both nodded, and Cato spoke up, “Hi, Ember. I’m Cato Esgaroth, but you already know that.”
Ember narrowed her eyes, “You have a last name?”
Cato and Alyx seemed surprised, “You don’t?” they asked in unison.
Ember shook her head, “No, I guess none of us have any use for one.”
Cato shrugged, “I guess.”
Alyx then introduced himself, “I’m Alyx Ecco.”
Ember nodded, and for the rest of breakfast, they ate in awkward silence. Well, that was until Ember had some questions, “Where did you guys come from? And where are your rooms?”
Cato and Alyx shared a look that Ember couldn’t decipher. Then Cato wearily answered, “We’re from the orphanage in the town a few miles from here. It’s shutting down, so the kids have to go somewhere, and Alyx and I are the only children that are around the age of the people here. Most of the other children were pretty young.”
Alyx nodded along, “Yep.”
Ember suspiciously nodded, “Okay..”
Cato then piped up, “Oh, I’m staying in room 111, and Alyx is staying in 112.”
Ember smiled, and told Cato, “We’re roommates.”
8:00 AM
Breakfast had lasted an hour, and the three of them had gotten to know each other better. Well, Alyx and Cato both already knew each other, so they were mostly asking Ember various things. She was fine with answering their many questions since she didn’t have very many for them.
Before they knew it, the bell rang, signifying the end of breakfast. They hurriedly cleaned off their trays and left them on the counter, before hurrying to their assigned lockers to collect their school supplies. The 100 students -no, 102 now- were divided into 5 different ‘classes.’ The three of them were all in the same one, luckily.
The five different groups of students all had a name. It was Sunrise, Dawn, Noon, Twilight, and Sunset. The three of them were in Sunset, which was supposed to represent something about an ending or transformation, but hardly anybody actually paid attention to the various meanings. Ember showed Cato and Alyx to the first class on the schedule, which was history. This was one of Ember’s favorites since she had never been outside the school. That was part of what intrigued her about Alyx and Cato because they had been in other places.
They greeted Mr. Elrod, who was constantly cracking jokes, “That’s Mr. Elrod.” Ember announced.
He turned around at the mention of his name and smiled, “Hey, Fire. I see you have some new friends.” Ember suppressed a smile. Mr. Elrod had nicknames for everybody, and most of them were some sort of play on the person’s name.
He then turned to Alyx and Cato, “Hmm, you must be the newbies.” He then stroked his chin, pretending to be deep in thought, “I’ll call you... Batman and Kitten.” He clapped his hands and rubbed them together, “Yes, that’ll do. Now go find your seats, the bell is going to ring soon.”
Alyx and Cato both went to find their seats with broad smiles, along with Ember. At 8:05, the bell rang, signifying the start of class.
9:30 AM
After sitting through 90 minutes of videos, pictures, and talking about archaeology, the bell rang again. The three of them picked up their belongings, along with the other students, and rushed out the door to their lockers.
Ember put away her books and rummaged through her locker before finding her things for English. She closed her locker and sighed as an all-too-familiar voice rang out behind her, with a mocking tone, “Awww, is that your little story you spent all night writing?”
Ember turned around with a clenched jaw to face them. It was Moray, who was responsible for most of the ridicule around the school. Ember rolled her eyes, “Did it take you all night to come up with that one?”
Moray’s mocking expression turned into a twisted version of a scowl, and he was practically grasping at the air as he replied, “No, but at least I’m not the weird one.”
Ember sighed, “Can’t you just go back to not talking to me?”
His mouth was opening and closing like a fish, and so Ember decided to go check up with Alyx and Cato. Their lockers were at the end of the hallway, right next to the spare lockers, and it also led to the back entrance of the cafeteria, which Ember preferred. She was halfway there when she remembered something Ms. Autumn had said once. She had explained how they could switch lockers if they wanted, whether it was swapping with another student or just using one of the extra lockers.
Ember doubled back to grab all of her books and schoolwork, which was quite a handful, took her nameplate off the front of the locker, and closed her locker with a slam! Just as she turned around, she was greeted with an unfamiliar face.
He had jet black hair and green eyes. Sure, she had probably seen him before but she didn’t know him.“I overheard what you said to Moray. Nice job,” he said to Ember.
She skeptically replied, “Uh, thanks.”
He cracked a smile, and held out his hand for her to shake it, “I’m Dorian.”
“Is this some kind of joke?” she asked suspiciously. Nobody was ever nice to her.
He seemed taken aback, “No?” Recognition then sparked in his eyes, “Ohhh, you’re that one girl, aren’t you?”
Ember cringed, “I’m Ember, and I need to get to class.”
She hurried past him, towards Alyx and Cato. They were both confusedly looking for their things, and Ember laughed, “Do you guys need some help?”
Alyx let out a sigh of relief, “Yes, please.”
Cato then pointed to Ember’s full arms, “Do you need help first, though?”
Ember embarrassingly nodded, as Alyx and Cato helped grab some of her things. Ember opened a spare locker right of Cato’s and put her books in. She stepped back so Alyx and Cato could set down her other things. Ember grabbed her things for English and shut her locker.
Cato put Ember’s nameplate on the locker, “Okay, there we go. Now you help us.”
11:00 AM
English with Mr. Amos had gone smoothly, although it was mostly due to the fact that he was pretty laid back. The bell rang and the students rushed out, relieved for a break. Sure, the teachers were pretty amazing, but everybody needs a break every once in a while.
Ember, Cato, and Alyx walked over to their lockers, and opened them, putting away their things. Ember closed her locker and realized that somebody else had taken up the locker on the right of hers. Ember’s breath hitched at the familiar name.
Dorian
With a sigh, she realized that he was coming down the hallway towards his locker. Ember briskly said goodbye to Cato and Alyx, telling them she would meet them later at the cafeteria. Ember turned around, towards the end of the hallway. She rounded the corner, quickening her pace. She went through the familiar twists and turns that led to the back entrance of the cafeteria.
She let out a sigh of relief as she opened the door and went over to the lunch line. She thanked the cooks for the food before heading to the corner, where she saw Alyx and Cato chattering quietly about something. Ember tried brushing off the fact that they weren’t including her, but that was hard to do, especially when as soon as they noticed her they stopped talking.
She put down her tray, and sat down, “What were you guys talking about?”
“Oh, we were just talking about the orphanage,” Cato said hurriedly.
Ember willed herself to believe them, after all, weren’t they her friends? She did her best, okay smile, and busied herself with eating. The bell rang, marking the official start of lunch.
Alyx broke the silence, “So, which class do we have next?”
Ember mumbled, “We have study hall. Well, you guys do at least, I have extended learning.”
“Can I sit here? Everywhere else is full.” Ember didn’t have to turn around to know who it was. Ember shrugged and was about to reply, when instead Cato snapped, “No, go find your own table! Can’t you see we’re busy?”
Ember raised her head to look at Alyx and Cato, who were glaring... hard. Ember then turned around to face Dorian, who was also glaring.
“Uh, you guys okay?” Ember prodded.
Cato’s face softened as she turned to Ember, “Yeah, we’re fine. He’s not.” She pointed to Dorian, who was still glaring.
Ember raised an eyebrow, “Well.. okay.”
Dorian rolled his eyes and walked away, finding somewhere else to sit.
12:15 AM
Ember could barely pay attention to her algebra, her mind ablaze with thoughts and questions. Who were these new kids? Why was Dorian everywhere Ember was, suddenly?
“Ember, what’s the answer to the next question?” Ms. Autumn asked. Sure, she was the Headmistress, but she also worked with the gifted kids, which she was brilliant with. Headmistress Autumn had a kind, smart, and curious personality. Much like Ember, in many ways. Something clicked in Ember’s mind. That was probably why she had been chosen to show Alyx and Cato around because Ms. Autumn trusted her.
“Did you hear what I just said, Ember?” She inquired.
Ember hastily boxed together her thoughts, trying to pay attention, “Oh, sorry. It’s -8.”
Her answer was greeted with a warm smile and a nod from her teacher. Headmistress Autumn checked her watch and told Ember, “It’s 12:19, Why don’t you go early?” Ember returned the previous smile, gathered her things, and left. She was lucky enough to arrive at her locker before the bell rang because when it did, the sound of stampeding and yelling kids rang throughout the halls. Ember quickly put away her homework for algebra and grabbed her sketchbook for art. She closed her locker and leaned back on it, waiting for Alyx and Cato to come.
Instead, Dorian got there first, with a group of around 50 students, and it’s not just like Ember could leave, since she still had to help Alyx and Cato get to the art room. She just tried to ignore him as he approached, opened his locker, and dug through it, looking for something. Ember observed this from the corner of her eye, but eventually, she looked away as she caught sight of Cato and Alyx walking down the hallway, along with the 50 other kids.
Ember pushed off her locker, fully standing up. She smiled, “We have art next, so get your sketchbooks.” She gestured to hers, that she currently clutched with her right hand.
They both nodded and went over to their lockers, looking for their empty sketchbooks. Alyx got his and shut his locker, along with Cato who found hers... but hovered for a moment before closing her locker. Ember thought nothing of it until Cato tried discreetly muttering something to Alyx out of the corner of her mouth. Ember’s smile fell, and Dorian, who was still rummaging through his locker, but must’ve been watching through his peripheral vision like Ember had been earlier, asked, “You okay?”
He stopped going through his locker and turned his full attention towards Ember. Cato scowled as Ember nodded, “Yeah, I’m fine.”
Ember turned away, facing Alyx and Cato, she muttered, “Why do you hate Dorian so much?”
Alyx seemed surprised, “We don’t hate him. Well, at least I don’t.”
Dorian scoffed from behind Ember, “Yeah right.”
“Shut it, insurgent.” Cato spat.
Ember was confused, “What is your guys’ problem?” She shook her head and continued, “Nevermind. I’ll be in art.”
She turned on her heels, storming down the hallway, towards the art room. Alyx and Cato could find their own way there. Ember opened the door to the art room and sat down at her desk with the other Sunsets. She felt a pang of sorrow and regret as 5 minutes passed, the bell rang, and still no sign of Alyx and Cato.
“Miss Ember, where are the new students?” The teacher, Mrs. Klad asked. She was right next to Ember’s desk. All eyes turned towards her, as Ember bit her lip, trying to come up with a good excuse, “Oh… They told me that they would catch up with me later, during art. I don’t know where they are.” She topped off the lie with an innocent smile.
Mrs. Klad muttered something under her breath, and it sounded something like those misfits, but then she smiled, “Okay, looks like we’ll have to start without them.” Then, walking to the front of the classroom, she announced, “Today, you’ll be researching an animal of your choice. Line up at the door, we’re paying a visit to Mrs. Thome.”
Ember smiled, Mrs. Thome was the librarian, and she was the most caring person ever, well, at least that Ember knew. She took great interest in books, spending more of her time reading or putting books back on the shelves. Ember jumped up, hurrying to the door. The other students didn’t share her enthusiasm, however, and one of them said, “Oh, look, she’s excited to read boring books about stupid boring animals.” Moray, no doubt.
Ember rolled her eyes as her classmates snickered and reluctantly lined up behind her. Just then an annoyed Alyx and Cato walked into the classroom. “Oh, how nice of you to join us! Next time, Alyx and Cato I suggest staying with Ember. Got it?” Mrs. Klad said.
They both nodded, and Alyx muttered, “Yes, Mrs. Klad.”
Cato shot him a quiet glare, as Ember narrowed her eyes. How did they know her name already? Her thoughts were interrupted by Mrs. Klad who exclaimed, “Come along children.” She led them out the door, to the library.
12:40 AM
It had taken them 10 minutes to get to the library, even though it should have been half of that. Mrs. Klad took at least 2 minutes to poke her head in, per classroom, saying hi to everybody. All of the children were getting anxious, just walking around. It certainly wasn’t normal, well, with Mrs. Klad it was.
When they finally arrived at the library, most of the class was bored, including Ember. That was until she realized the Twilight students were in the library for free time. She knew at least one person, named Cassadee. Every once in a while, they would talk, but they still weren’t really ‘friends.’
Mrs. Klad saw her student’s unusual excitement, and sighed, “Go ahead and say hello to the Twilight students.” She checked the clock, “You have until 12:50, so 10 minutes, spend your time wisely. Oh, and of course, if you don’t want to you could just get an early start on your project.”
All of the students ran forward, and poor Mrs. Thome was trying to get them to slow down, “Stop running! Walk! Slow down!” The library had turned to utter chaos. Throughout this, Ember just stayed in one spot, watching everything. Mrs. Klad gave her a questioning look and waved her to go.
Ember looked around for Alyx and Cato. She saw them talking to another Sunset and Twilight student. If she recalled correctly, the Sunset student was named Molina, and the other was Diana. Those two were the best of friends, despite being in different classes.
Molina and Diana were talkative at the least, and adding two more mysterious students into the mix... Ember shuddered. As much as it hurt her to admit, Alyx and Cato looked perfectly happy, if not more so. With a sigh, Ember decided to go start her research early. Of course, Moray had great fun with that, and this time, he had his friends from Twilight; Sam and Paul. “Hey! Look, nerd girl doesn’t have any friends so she’s going to her true friends, the books.”
Everybody snickered, including Alyx and Cato, who were slightly giggling. Ember couldn’t believe it. They seemed nice, so why were they doing this? “Hey! Look, Moray doesn’t know how to read, so he’s talking instead with his other besties that don’t know how to read either!” Ember’s head shot towards the speaker. It was Dorian, in the corner reading a book. He had stopped to say that and had immediately gone back to reading.
Everybody was snickering again, giving Ember a chance to slip away to the Non-Fiction corner, where Dorian was at the moment. She had no idea which animal to choose, since it’s not like she had seen any in real life, whereas normal kids might’ve gone to the zoo as a child, being able to see the various animals.
Occasionally Ember might see a bird out the window. Once, she remembered a time she couldn’t sleep, and she had looked outside only to see a huge black bird, with the most striking emerald eyes, resembling a hawk or eagle. It had brought her such joy, and so she decided to look for the bird to research.
“Whatcha lookin’ for?” Dorian asked, his face still angled down, towards his book.
Ember shrugged, “We’re supposed to research an animal for art. I’m thinking of doing a bird.”
“A bird? Why not something else?” He asked, looking up.
Ember bit her lip, “Well, there was this one time I saw a bird outside my window, it sorta looked like a hawk, and I’ve kinda just wondered what it was.”
Dorian nodded, “Oh, okay. Uhm, good luck.” He looked down again at his book.
Ember smiled, “Thanks.” She went back to busing herself at the shelves looking for a book about birds.
Dorian looked up again to see Ember looking through the mammal section, “Uh, Ember, you're looking in the mammal section. The aviary area is over there.” He pointed to a shelf 5 feet away.
“Oh, oops.” Ember lightly laughed, embarrassed. She walked over there, scanning the shelf for a good book. She found a book that seemed to have 1000 pages, with pictures of many different species of bird, telling things about each. She browsed for a while, not finding anything similar to what she saw that night.
“Have you found which animal you're going to draw yet, Ember?” Mrs. Klad asked from behind her.
Ember spun around to face her, “No. Not yet.”
Mrs. Klad gave her a questioning look, “Is there something specific you’re looking for?”
“Yeah. A black bird with green eyes. It looks like a hawk.” Ember replied.
Mrs. Klad’s smile faltered, only for a second, “You saw this bird?”
She nodded, “Yep. I think it was around a month ago.”
“I think your eyes are playing tricks on you. There’s no such bird. I suggest looking for something else.” Mrs. Klad hastily remarked with a glance at Dorian.
Ember narrowed her eyes but obeyed, looking for a bird that caught her eye. When Mrs. Klad walked out of earshot, Dorian mumbled, “I’m pretty sure a bird like that does exist.”
Ember shook her head, “Mrs. Klad told me not to look for it.”
He shrugged, “‘Kay. Your loss.”
Ember’s curiosity got the better of her, “Where do you think I should look for it?”
A smirk crept up Dorian’s lips, “Over in the legend and folklore area.”
She furrowed her eyebrows, “What? Why in the world would it be over there?”
“‘Cause I remember hearing a legend about a bird that looked like that. It’s probably why Mrs. Klad didn’t want you to continue looking for it.” He explained.
“I guess that makes sense, but shouldn’t I do a living animal, not a myth or whatever?” Ember questioned.
He shrugged, “You said it yourself, Well, there was this one time I saw a peculiar bird, it sorta looked like a hawk, and ever since I’ve wondered what it was.”
Ember’s jaw dropped, he had just said exactly what she had, 5 minutes ago. Not to mention the fact that it was a perfect imitation of her voice. Besides that, he did prove a good point.
Dorian squinted, “Is it just me or does it seem like your jaw just unattached?”
Ember briskly closed her mouth with a shy smile, and then mumbled, “How in the world did you just do that?”
He smirked again, “I’ll never tell.”
She let out a gargled sigh, “Fine. I’ll go look.” She started walking away, turned around, and added, “You’re in Twilight?”
Dorian nodded. “Yep, and you’re in Sunset,” he said matter-of-factly.
Ember smiled and waved, “Okay. Cya.”
He returned the wave and busied himself with his book again, which Ember just noticed the title of, which was Mimicking. She inwardly grinned and walked happily over to the folklore section.
=====Chapter 2=====
Wandering
Saturday
The rest of Thursday afternoon had gone by in a blur, along with Friday. Ember had spent most of the time thinking in solitude about how much her life had changed in a span of a few hours. She had gone from being shunned alone, to having friends whilst being shunned. Well, Alyx and Cato seemed more distant, but they were still being shown around by Ember, plus, Cato was Ember’s roommate. At least the few times she saw Dorian he was nice, unlike everybody else.
Weekends were always Ember’s favorite since the children were able to sleep in and have free time the whole day. Well, occasionally the students would have to do laundry, but Ember hardly noticed that. As soon as Ember had woken up, at 7:30 AM, she immediately ditched Cato to do her own thing elsewhere. Ember headed straight to the library, and that’s where she was now.
She had already spent at least 30 minutes in the library, reading. On the weekends, breakfast was always at 8:30 AM, lunch was at noon, and dinner was at 6:00 PM like normal. As soon as she had opened the first book about various legends, she was immediately interested. One of the things that caught her eye was the multitude of things about Shapeshifters.
The idea seemed fascinating, being able to transform into an animal at will. Although, most of the stories depicted it as a curse. That was amongst one of the only entertaining things, the others being about superstitions.
Even though Ember had spent most of Friday looking for something about the bird, she found nothing. That's what she had also been looking for this morning, to no avail. With a sigh, Ember arose from the chair she had been sitting in. She had just wasted basically an entire day of art, looking for something that probably didn’t exist.
She put the books she had been reading back on the shelf and headed to the animal area of the Non-Fiction section. Ember grabbed a book just called, Birds, and sat down in the chair nearby that Dorian had been using on Thursday. She skimmed through, looking at the pictures, and stopping to study some closely. Eventually, she came across one that she thought was perfect.
It was called a Baza, but there were different species. Among these types, there was a one called a Pacific Baza. Ember smiled and pulled a piece of paper from her pocket. She scribbled down the name of it, which book she found it in, and which page.
She looked up at the clock Mrs. Thome had in the library. It was almost breakfast time, so Ember stood up and hurried down the hallway to the cafeteria, taking the long way. Right, Left, Left, Right, and then Ember finally arrived at the back entrance. She slipped through the door, hurrying to the lunch line. She quickly got her food and went to her table in the corner.
Meal seating shouldn’t be complicated, but it was. Ember wasn’t exactly on good terms with Cato and Alyx, but they still sat at the table, glaring at Dorian if he approached. Ember just ignored them, wishing everything would go back to normal. If Ember wanted to go back to be ignored and scorned, there was definitely something wrong. Well, there wasn’t necessarily anything wrong, but it was exhausting.
Ember quickly ate her cereal, threw away the paper bowl, and left the cafeteria, using the front entrance this time. On weekends, it was sort of a come-and-go type thing. The students could go get breakfast, and leave whenever they wanted. They could hypothetically stay there till lunch, but nobody ever did, since they had ‘better’ things to do. She didn’t know what the other students did, but it must be fun since all of the other students rushed out the door as well.
Ember decided to just follow the crowd this one time since she didn’t have anything else to do. She lingered towards the back of the group as they all walked towards a part of the school Ember never really went to. It was around the janitor’s closet and nothing else. With a gasp, Ember realized what it was. There was a door, leading outside to a fenced area. How had she not known about this sooner?! She actually couldn’t remember the last time she had been outside.
With a newfound excitement, Ember went through the door. She took a deep breath, savoring the smell of fresh air. There was another smell she couldn’t place, but it didn’t matter. The yard was huge, being able to fit everybody, still with extra room. There was nothing there, just grass and a wood fence, but it was still an amazing discovery. Ember went to one of the corners, between the fence and the building. She sat down and just observed everybody.
The other students sort-of only hung out with people in their class, which made it so that Ember could make an estimated guess on which group was which. She shook her head, mad at herself. Seriously, how had she not come out here sooner? Was she just afraid to follow everybody else?
Her thoughts were interrupted by some stupid boys from Dawn proclaiming that they were going to climb the fence. Some other students surrounded them, eagerly waiting for it to happen, whilst some others looked upon them with a look of disgust. Ember was among the latter, but she was still slightly curious about what was on the other side.
Climbing the fence would be no easy task, seeing that it seemed to be almost 10 feet tall. Regardless of that, the two boys started climbing the fence. Ember squinted, trying to see who it was. It was Josh and Chase, probably the two most-known students. Some people admired them, others despised them. Suddenly, one of the girls from Dawn, named Alexis, yelled out, “Get down! You’ll get in trouble!”
The two boys ignored her and continued to climb, already halfway there. Ember shook her head in pity. She knew their punishment would be bad, just like Alexis probably did. Although, that was if they were caught, which they probably wouldn’t be unless somebody told an adult.
Ember realized that they had probably climbed the fence numerous times, seeing that for as long as she could remember they rushed out of the cafeteria, heading this direction. That also meant that the adults had no idea. Ember didn’t want to be the person to tell them, but... wasn’t it the right thing to do? She decided if they didn’t come back in 5 minutes, she would go tell somebody.
They were on the top of the fence now, sitting there. A few students yelled out, “What’s out there?” or “What do you see?” Josh and Chase both didn’t answer, pretending not to hear as they jumped the fence. Ember started counting in her head, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5...
Everybody seemed unusually relaxed, which ironically made Ember even tenser than before. Suddenly, Headmistress Autumn came out, with a look of panic on her face. She looked around at all of the students playing like normal and then turned around to face the student that was following her. The child was inside the building, so Ember couldn’t see who it was.
“Katherin, everything is entirely fine!” Ms. Autumn exclaimed. “Are you sure you saw somebody climbing the fence?”
Oh, so that’s who it was. Katherin was the known tattle-tale (she somehow had no stitches), and most of the time the adults believed her, but this time, the evidence was against her. She was also in Sunrise.
“Yes, I’m sure! I swear I saw Josh and Chase from Dawn start climbing the fence.”
The Headmistress scanned the crowd, looking for the accused. Eventually, her eyes landed on Ember. Ember sharply inhaled at Ms. Autumn started coming towards her.
“Ember, is this true?” She asked.
“Is what true?” Ember replied sheepishly.
“Were two boys climbing the fence?” She asked again more sternly.
Ember opened her mouth to answer, yes, but she closed it again as she saw most of the students glaring at her. “Um… N-no.”
Katherin was outside now, and she had an expression of hurt and betrayal on her face. Ember instantly regretted it, but there was no going back now, as Ms. Autumn turned to Katherin, “You said that same thing last week, and last week they weren’t climbing it, and this week they aren’t. I’m deeply disappointed in you, Katherin. Lying is not a good virtue. Especially two weeks in a row!”
“But-”
“No buts, Katherin. Good day.” And with that, Headmistress Autumn left.
That entire time, Ember had still been counting in her head, 219, 220, 221, 222...
Katherin sent another betrayed look at Ember and walked away. Ember sat there, still counting. Eventually, it reached 5 minutes or 300 seconds. She shakily stood up and started heading towards the door when she heard enthusiastic cheering. John and Chase were back, and of course, they were being treated like royalty. She sighed and dragged her feet back to her spot.
Ember sat down, just thinking. She didn’t know how long she stayed there, but the talking outside was less enthusiastic, so it must have been awhile. The regret and guilt was eating at her very soul, and eventually, she stood up and went to Headmistress Autumn’s office. She would tell her the truth.
The door was already opened, and Ember just walked in, “Ms. Autumn?”
Ms. Autumn smiled, “I almost thought you weren’t coming, Ember.”
Ember gave her a puzzled look, “What? Am I in trouble or something?”
“The only people in trouble are John and Chase.” She answered, her voice even and calm.
Ember let out a sigh of relief, “So you know? You knew I….I was lying?”
Headmistress Autumn smiled and nodded, “You’re not a very good liar. Just like I knew you had been listening to mine and Katherin’s conversation a minute before that.”
“How?” She blurted.
“I’m intelligent enough to know that Katherin wouldn’t lie, or that climbing the fence was something John and Chase would definitely do. In fact, could you get them to come to my office?” Ms. Autumn asked.
It wasn’t exactly a straight answer, but it was enough for now. Ember cringed and nodded. There was probably no way she could get the boys to even listen to her, much less go with her. Plus, they weren’t entirely dumb like Moray, so they would probably think Ember had told on them. It’s not like they could physically harm Ember, but they would probably make fun of her, much like Moray.
Ember headed down the hallway towards the yard again. Once out there, she scanned around for them, but there was no sign of them. Everybody was unusually calm again. Her heartbeat quickened as she realized they must’ve gone back out. Was she supposed to wait? Was she supposed to go get them? Ms. Autumn trusted her, but did she trust her enough to let her go out? Who knew, it would probably just take a minute, no harm done. Right?
“I know that expression, Ember. Whatever you’re planning to do, just be careful.” Ember turned her head to see Cassadee standing next to her. Ember smiled, she hadn’t talked to Cassadee since last week, since Cato and Alyx.
“Um, can you help me?” Ember nervously asked.
Cassadee shrugged, “Sure, what do you have in mind?”
9:35 AM
Outside the fence was okay at best. Outside Ember’s window in her room had seemed like a gateway to another place, but now that she was out there, it was sorta dull. The school was in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by forest on all sides, except one, where there was a road. It wasn’t even green, and there was a slight chill in the air. It was probably fall or something. Cassadee seemed to share the same thoughts as she mumbled, “I thought it’d be cooler out here.”
Ember nodded agreement, “Same. Now c’mon we gotta find John and Chase.”
Ember led the way, finding a trail of footsteps leading into the forest. She knew absolutely nothing about tracking, but all at once, she realized there were footsteps, broken branches, and a tiny piece of cloth on a branch that had probably snagged John’s shirt. Chase was wearing a blue shirt, John yellow, and the piece was yellow. Ember was surprised at herself. All of that had happened in a mere second, being instinctive.
She shrugged it off and continued walking through the forest, Cassadee in tow. Eventually, they found a small creek, with John and Chase sitting on the bank talking. Ember held up a hand to her mouth, the universal shhhhhh! sign. Cassadee understood and stood there with Ember, them both straining their ears to hear.
“....... so annoying!”
“I know right!”
“Oh shoot! I think we’ve been gone too long. Miss tattle-tale might’ve told Fall again!”
“Yeah, either that or that one girl. Amber?”
There was a pause, then the other person answered, “Nah, I think it's Emma.”
“Whatever. We need to get back.”
“It’s Ember actually, and Headmistress Autumn does want you in her office.” It took Ember a second to realize that had come from her mouth. Both boy’s eyes widened in shock and horror, and their jaws dropped, but it then twisted into a scowl.
“You’ll get in trouble too,” John replied.
Cassadee smirked, “Our word against yours.”
“No need for that, Cassadee, though I appreciate the enthusiasm. Ember, good job, although next time maybe tell me when you’re breaking the rules on my account.” It was Ms. Autumn! Ember turned around to face her- What?
“Dorian, I’ve already told you multiple times, mimicking is rude. Though, I appreciate how much you enjoy it.” This time it was the real Headmistress Autumn, with Dorian standing in front of her with a triumphant look, after all, he had mimicked her perfectly.
“Dorian?” Ember blurted.
“Don’t think nobody noticed you climbing the fence.” He answered.
Ember’s eyes narrowed, “You told on me?”
“No, well, not entirely. I just saw...” He trailed off when he saw Ember looked sort of betrayed.
“He did nothing of the sort. Dorian came to my office telling me that John and Chase had indeed climbed the fence, I informed him about the situation, and he insisted on coming.” Ms. Autumn said, exasperated. “Nuh-uh!” She yelled as John and Chase started trying to slip away. “You two, are coming with me.” She went behind them and put her hands on their shoulders, steering them towards the school.
“Oh, and Ember, feel free to stay out here for ten more minutes, no more than that. Same with the rest of you.” Headmistress Autumn called back.
Ember’s eyes widened, and she turned her attention back to the creek as she tried figuring out what to do. She sat down on the edge of the creek, in the same spot Chase had been in 3 minutes ago. Cassadee and Dorian sat on both sides of her.
To her left, Cassadee said, “So... are we gonna talk about anything or just sit here?”
Ember shrugged, in sync with Dorian.
“Oooooookay. I guess we’ll just sit here then.” Cassadee said.
Ember looked straight ahead and saw a little furry animal climbing a tree. It had a long, fluffy tail. “It’s a squirrel!” She called out, excitedly. The poor squirrel, startled, fell from the tree. Ember quickly stood up and hopped across the small stream. It had landed on all four feet, but it just stayed in the same spot, frozen in place. Ember knew nothing about squirrels. Was this normal behavior?
“Hey buddy,” she cooed in a chirpy voice.
The squirrel recoiled in shock. Ember’s eyebrows scrunched together, “Are you okay?”
The squirrel’s eyes narrowed, but then it ran away, hurriedly.
“Uhm... Ember you okay there?” Cassadee asked from the other side of the stream. Ember turned around to see a surprised Dorian and an utterly confused Cassadee. “It just sounded like you were making squirrel noises.”
“Uh, what?” Ember asked.
Dorian was scrambling, but then he collected himself. “What do you mean? She just said, “Hey buddy,” and, “Are you okay?” He said that in a perfect imitation of Ember’s voice.
Cassadee shook her head, “I swear she was- well, anyway, now what?”
Ember sat down again on the bank of the stream, this time across from Cassadee and Dorian.
“We could like, play a game or something,” Cassadee suggested.
Ember narrowed her eyes, “Like what...?” She had been roped into playing a “game” enough times to know that Cassadee was planning something.
There was a giddy look in Cassadee’s eyes as she rubbed her hands together, “We could try guessing a song just based on lyrics.”
Ember opened her mouth to protest but was shushed by Cassadee, “OOOOH, OOOOH! We could just try communicating in song!”
“Why does it have to have something to do with music?” Dorian asked with a cringe.
“I agree.” Ember nodded.
Cassadee rolled her eyes, “Okay party poopers.” She sighed. ”Do you have any better ideas?”
“Uhm…” Ember cringed, “Nope.”
Cassadee turned to Dorian. “What about you?” He didn’t respond. “Uh, Dorian?” He continued staring off into space. Cassadee waved a hand in front of his face and he jumped backward.
“What was that about?” Cassadee smirked.
“The forest reminds me of home.” He paused, but then quickly continued. “-work I had once.” He guiltily smiled and turned away, looking back at the forest.
Cassadee frowned but shrugged. Cassaddee turned to face Ember and grinned wildly, “I have an idea.”
Ember cringed. “What is it?” She braced for impact, tensing up.
Cassadee laughed. “It’s not that bad.” She bit her lip, “Or is it?”
Ember nervously chuckled.
Cassadee sighed. “Nevermind. It wasn’t a good idea anyway.”
“I-I’m sure it was good.” Ember didn’t pry more than that, however, and so they sat there in silence.
9:53 AM
Cassadee suggested they explore, and so that’s what they were doing. Well, that was until they lost their way and couldn’t find the school. Ember had a feeling that they had gone over the time they were allowed. They were all tense and wandering around.
"UGH! There’s that same tree! We’ve gone in a circle.” Cassadee exclaimed.
Ember sighed and looked around. “Let’s take a break. We’ll find it eventually.”
Dorian had been silent most of the time, just following Ember and Cassadee. Everybody sat down, backs against different trees. Ember sighed and took a breath of the crisp air. She heard a ruffling of branches and looked up toward the canopy of leaves. She narrowed her eyes as the thing revealed itself. It was… a bird?
It looked similar to that one black one she had seen, except it was a blonde color with blue eyes. Suddenly another one, almost identical to the previous one came into view as well. They locked eyes with Ember and she couldn’t help but shiver. Their eyes seemed weirdly familiar. They held her gaze for a second longer before flying away.
“We should get going,” Dorian claimed with an urgency in his voice.
Ember shrugged. “Okay.” She stood up. “Which direction?”
Cassadee was already heading right. “This way,” she called back.
“Ember?”
“Cassadee?”
It was some of the other students! They must’ve been sent to find them.
“Here!” Ember yelled. She then turned to Cassadee and Dorian, “C’mon guys.” They ran the opposite direction they had been earlier, which was towards the voices.
Ember smiled as she saw who it was. It was Alyx and Cato! She blew out a sigh of relief, “Thanks. We got lost.”
Alyx shrugged. “No big deal.” He turned around and frowned. “Which way did we just come from?”
Cato sighed, “That way..” She pointed somewhere but faltered. Cato turned the opposite direction. “Or was it that way?”
“Great, now we’re all lost.” Dorian snapped.
Cassadee sighed. “Yep.”
Dorian mumbled something under his breath. He then turned to address everybody. “I’ll go ahead and look. You guys stay here.”
Ember frowned. “What if you get lost?”
“I’ll do just fine.” Dorian just started walking in a random direction, and eventually, he was out of sight.
Cato smiled. “We’ll go with him.”
Ember shrugged. “Okay.”
“Wait, how about Ember goes instead?” Cassadee suggested with a slight smirk.
Cato scowled and opened her mouth to protest but instead, Alyx spoke up. “Sure.”
“Um, alright. Bye, I guess?” Ember walked through the trees, heading the same direction Dorian had.
She froze in her tracks. There was a bird. Specifically, a black bird, except it had purple eyes- wait, what? Its eyes had changed to emerald green. Ember gasped. It was the ‘myth’ bird!
It froze as soon as it saw Ember, shock present in its eyes. Ember frowned. Similar to the other two birds she had saw earlier, the bird’s eyes seemed familiar somehow. She shook off the feeling just as it took off and flew away. She had to find Dorian. This time, Ember froze instead. Dorian had the same green eyes, and jet black hair, exactly like the bird…
Ember pressed on, looking for Dorian.
“Dorian?” She shouted. There was no way she could find the others now. She walked into a clearing, which had a tree stump. She sighed and sat down. She put her elbows on her knees, and her face in the palms of her hands. Ember was exhausted.
Suddenly she was waking up. She had fallen asleep? Ember felt soft grass on her cheek. She hazily sat up. She was in the same clearing. How long had she been lying there? Seconds? Minutes? Even worse, hours? Her body felt stiff, suggesting the latter.
Ember sat up in alarm. They were probably looking for her, right? A chill rang through her body as she realized something.
She was lost.
But it wasn’t only her that was lost. It was everybody else, too. Did all of this really happen because Ember went outside? Because she told Ms. Autumn the truth? Because Ember hopped the fence and brought Cassadee along with her?
Ember heard a bush rustle nearby. Whatever was making the sound, it was big. Ember slowly and silently backed up into the tree line. She ducked behind a bush and wearily watched as the thing stumbled into the clearing. It was… Dorian?
Ember blew out a sigh of relief. She’d found him! Well, more like he found her.
Dorian sat down on the stump just as Ember walked into the clearing, smiling. His head turned towards her and he meekly smiled. “Ember!” he exclaimed in the tired-est way possible.
He pulled something from his pocket. A water bottle. Ember suddenly realized how dehydrated she was. “Here, have some water.”
Ember gladly took it and drank some. She gave the bottle back to Dorian. She sat down on the grass next to the stump. She suddenly couldn’t think. Her thoughts were... murky and chaotic. Ember started feeling lightheaded.
A single tear rolled down her cheek as Dorian mumbled, “Sorry,” and her eyes closed, the darkness consuming her.
=====Chapter 3=====
Complications
Ember didn’t know what to do. She felt awake but yet asleep. She sifted through her memories and felt a pang of hatred. How could Dorian sedate her, and why? There had to be some logical reason, right? Maybe he was just taking Ember to the school… but why would he need to sedate her? Even better, where was she? She forced her eyes open and was immediately blinded by a blaring light. She groaned, her muscles sore. As Ember’s eyes adjusted to the light, she took in her surroundings.
She was in some sort of soft-yellow and rectangular room. There was a cot, which she was lying on. Three walls were solid, whilst the other one had a door with a window. It seemed she was in some sort of dorm? It slightly resembled her room at the school... Of course, she couldn’t forget the blinding lights either. Ember sat up, her back against the wall.
She then realized there was another cot next to her, where somebody else was sitting. They were facing away from her, towards one of the walls. It was a girl, with wild and curly orange hair.
“Hello?” Ember said, her voice hoarse from the sedative.
The girl’s head whipped around, revealing brown eyes that rivaled Ember’s. She was also around the same age as Ember. “Looks like you’re awake.”
Ember nodded and bit her lip. “Any idea where we are? Or why we’re here?”
The girl snorted. “I’m guessing you’re the person that…” She trailed off and shook her head. “We’re in one of… their underground base. I’m here because I’m the ‘enemy.’ Dunno ‘bout you though. I guess I can assume they’re either trying to recruit you or “save” you. Good luck with that.” She then added, “Also, don’t bother trying to open the door. It’s locked.”
The girl turned back around, leaving Ember in stunned silence. Ember couldn’t even begin to wrap her head around what the girl had said. Who’s underground base? Enemy of who? Recruiting? Saving? What was this, some weird dream? Maybe a hallucination? A side effect of the sedative?
Ember pinched herself and yelped. Okay, this was real.
She found herself lightly banging her head against the wall, trying to think. All she had pieced together was that the girl was the enemy of whoever owned this “base.” Ember could only guess that the owner was trying to “recruit” her. Recruit her for what? And why her? Or they thought they were saving Ember—as the girl had said—but from what? The forest? No, how would the girl know about the forest? “Can you cut it out?” A voice interrupted her thoughts.
Ember turned around to see the girl, obviously annoyed. Ember sheepishly smiled and turned back around, no longer hitting the wall. Instead, she was twirling her brown hair around her finger.
Ember could just never sit still, and that’s probably why it was so hard for her to sleep. Some days she had actually stayed up all night working on homework like Moray always teased her about. Regardless if it was tapping a table, biting her lip, twirling her hair around her finger, or even banging her head against the wall, she couldn’t sit still.
Suddenly the door opened. Great. It was Dorian. Of course he had to show up. “Ember.”
Ember faced away.
“Just follow me.” He mumbled.
The girl shot her a sympathetic look as Ember wearily stood up, still not looking directly at Dorian. Dorian held the door open for Ember as she walked into a hallway. It was just as boring and white as the room she was in before. Dorian shut the door and headed left down the hall, Ember in tow.
In a way, the hallways resembled the school’s; the various twists and turns and seemingly never-ending hallways. Overall it was a maze. Ember couldn’t find her way back to the room even if she purposely tried remembering the route. Which she totally didn’t try.
They stopped in front of a door. Dorian took a deep breath, preparing himself for something as he opened the door. It was dark in the room. Really dark. Ember started panicking. Was this some sort of prison cell? Was it for her?
Dorian shut the door as Ember came in. The darkness was shapeless and escapeless. Closing her eyes made no difference. The room also had a chill due to a slight breeze. Ember tried feeling for walls; anything. Yes! She felt something solid.
The wall seemed to jump as soon as she touched it, causing her to pull back her hand. She then realized that was probably Dorian, and so she turned the opposite direction. Well, she would if she even had a sense of which way was which.
“Ember.” Dorian’s voice said from in front of her. Or maybe behind her.
Ember shook her head, even though he couldn’t see her. “Where are we? What is this place?
Dorian sighed. “I can’t tell you, but you’ll see soon enough.”
Ember silently and slowly nodded, but then realized her couldn’t see her. “Okay.” She drew out the end of the word, obviously suspicious of everything.
“Just follow me,” Dorian replied.
Ember weakly laughed. “I can’t see.”
Dorian grumbled something ineligible that sounded like, “Bif onli lis wah ere,” but Ember guessed that probably wasn’t it. He then presumably faced Ember again and murmured, “Try following my voice.”
“That’s kinda… hard. What if I run into something?” Ember had to admit, even though she wasn’t afraid of the dark, it was making her start to slightly panic. Not to mention she was just kidnapped and had no idea where she was.
“I mean…” Dorian paused, planning his next words carefully. “You could hold my hand instead.”
Ember’s voice was strained. “No thanks.” Why did this have to be so complicated?
Dorian seemed nice.
But he kidnapped her.
This was all an act.
It had to be.
No kidnappers are nice, right?
That last thought was a question—a question as to whether or not Dorian had good intentions.
Ember stopped that train of thought. It was too confusing; too… time-consuming. She currently had better things to think about. Like how she was supposed to follow her supposeded “kidnapper” in pitch black. So far, she hadn’t seen anybody else, except that one girl. What did she have to do with anything? Maybe she could explain. Too late now though.
Hopefully if Ember could somehow see somebody else, they could explain more… Oh! Maybe Dorian was taking her to his “leader” or something. Afterall, this weird underground place seemed too big and roomy for Dorian to be here alone. Especially since that one girl referred to a group of people.
That seemed to help Ember a bit, but she was definitely still weary.
“Okay…?” Dorian asked.
Ember sighed. “I’ll just follow your voice—or try, at least.” Ember moved her brown and straight curtain of hair off her ears. She would have to really listen.
“Alright uh… I’ll explain everything then. Everything I can, that is.” Ember lit up. Her mind was screaming, finally! “Let me start at the beginning…”
== Summary ==
Category:Books
Category:Fantasy
Category:Fiction