Emily

I stand outside Ian’s room, debating whether or not to go in. For some time now Ian has been behaving strangely. At first, I had thought nothing of it, but recently the feeling that he has been hiding something important is getting stronger.

Everything started when Drew started coming to our house. I didn’t think anything was weird at first, even though I noticed some anomalies in his behavior. The crazy sleeping habits which have thankfully ended, then the time he started eating a bit too much, and then he started being reclusive. Ian normally is a bit introverted but even then he at least used to make an effort to talk to mom and me every day. Now he just spends all his time in his room. There is also the day I entered his room without knocking and he blew a fuse, even though he wasn’t doing anything too important. And then his sudden job… I could go on and on.

At first, I thought maybe he was gay, which seemed like it could explain why he spends so much time with Drew, then I thought that maybe he was doing drugs or something, but none of those options seem correct. But what is troubling me right now is that I heard Drew’s voice coming from Ian’s room not too long ago No one has come to the house today, so how on earth did Drew get into Ian’s room?

They haven’t said anything for some time now and I am beginning to doubt that I actually heard Drew’s voice, which is why I am standing in front of Ian’s room, wondering whether or not to go in. The door is slightly open but I don’t want to just walk in, or else he might blow up again. Nevertheless, I make up my mind and knock on the door. I wait. I knock once more. Still no answer. I frown a bit as I get the feeling that something is wrong. I decide to go into the room.

“Hey, Ian….” I open the door and trail off. The room is empty. Something is very wrong here. I am a hundred percent sure no one left the house today. I would have heard the door opening or closing. For Ian not to be here… has Drew kidnapped him? Just as I am beginning to panic I notice that one of the wardrobes is partially open and for some reason the sight of it is strange. I walk to the wardrobe and pull it open.

I stare at the insides dumbfounded. Where did all of Ian’s clothes go?

* * * * * *

Ian

Drew leads me to a forest not too far from where we arrived. The trees here are very tall and widely spaced apart. He chooses a spot and begins to set up the tents where we will be sleeping. I help him and soon there are three sets of tents standing. We spend the next few hours just sitting around and talking. As the morning turns to afternoon, I begin to get a little concerned and ask Drew when the rest were coming. He just shrugs.

“I have no idea. The time difference between here and the real world just messes everything up. To them, they might just be a few minutes late, but to us…” I immediately get what he means. They could just be a minute late in the real world, but that would translate to an hour here. But if that is the case, doesn’t it mean there is a possibility they might not even arrive today? I glance at Drew who doesn’t seem too worried about the possibility.

If he wants to kill me right now, no one will even know. The thought comes unbidden to my head. Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I decided to just relax like Drew.

“By the way,” I say, “when is the training going to start?”

“Tomorrow,” Drew says unhurriedly. The day slowly passes by and I begin to let my thoughts wander. My eyes drift close as I enjoy the feeling of the filtered sunlight against my skin, the cool breeze slowly caressing me, and the somehow sweet smell of nature. When was the last time I was able to be so lazy? I can’t remember. Suddenly I hear footsteps. I open my eyes and turn to see Lathia. She is dressed in a t-shirt, shorts, and what looks like hiking boots. Quite casual. On her back is a black backpack which doesn’t look like it can contain all she needs.

“Good morning.” she greets cheerfully, as she comes to where we are seated. She drops her backpack as she finds somewhere to sit.

“Hey,” Drew says.

“Good morning.” I greet back before realizing something. “Wait, morning?”

“Did you say morning?” Drew asks at the same.

She looks up at the sky and realization dawns on her. “Sorry, my bad. What time is it?”

I look questioningly at Drew who just shrugs. She glances around, her eyes briefly flashing blue as she uses second sight. “Emma isn’t here yet?”

“She said she might be a bit late.”

And just like that, she joins us in lazing around. We start to talk and continue to do so even as the sun goes down. At sunset, Lathia’s stomach begins to growl. “Drew?” she says.

“What?”

“I’m hungry.”

“So?”

“Cook something, you idiot.” As she speaks a small branch breaks off from a tree and flies towards him. He flicks his hand and the branch changes direction, flying off into the forest.

“Cook yourself,” he says.

“Pretty please.”

He doesn’t say anything for a moment. Finally, he sighs and gets up. After a bit of stretching, he goes into a tent.

“Why don’t you want to cook?” I ask her while Drew rummages the tent.

“His food tastes best. You’ll soon see.”

Drew comes out of the tent with some supplies and food items. He drops them some distance away from our tent before making a fire. Then he starts to cook. Night falls and slowly an appetizing aroma begins to spread. My stomach growls as the smell causes me to begin to get hungry. Lathia hears and flashes me a knowing smile.

“This is just the beginning.”

I close my eye, immersing myself in the smell of Drew’s cooking when I hear footsteps behind me. I turn around and see three people, the twins: David and Daniel, and Emma. David smiles apologetically. “Sorry, we’re late. Something came up.”

“It must have really been something,” Lathia says as she gives the twins and Emma suggestive looks.

Emma sniffs. “Drew’s cooking?” This is like the first time I am hearing her speak and honestly, I am a bit surprised. I had always thought that she would have a high-pitched, shy kind of voice, not the slightly deep, confident one I am hearing now.

“Awesome,” Daniel says as he and David head to one of the tents. Like Lathia they are carrying small-looking backpacks that I doubt could hold all they need. They come out of the tents empty-handed and take seats near us. With the party complete, everyone begins to talk animatedly, except me. I would have loved to take part in their conversation but I had no idea what they were talking about since most of it seems related to the Laen and magic. Still, it isn’t too bad. I am seeing a side of the group I expected but haven’t seen before. Especially with the twins. In the real world, they behaved like they wanted absolutely nothing to do with me, but now, they seem so different.

Drew finishes cooking and dishes out the food. After the first bite, I totally understand why Cassandra wanted him to cook. It is delicious.

“Told ya,” Lathia says smugly as she watches me eat.

“You’re wasting your talent,” I say to Drew suddenly.

“What?”

“You’re wasting your talent being a Laen. You should be in some prestigious cooking school in France or Italy or something.”

“Sorry, but being a chef is not on the list of things I want to do with my life.”

I shake my head, a disappointed expression on my face. What a waste.