"I can heal this no problem," Sifsh declares, wings fluttering a bit. Julias and Adriel both sigh in relief.

"I can finally get into fights," Julias says, grinning at Adriel. Sifsh lays his hands gently on Julias's wrist, making him shudder. "You're kinda cold, dude."

"Most Waves are." Sifsh closes his eyes. When he opens them they're glowing purple, the halo pupils lit too.

A gasp escapes Julias's mouth as Sifsh's hands glow a dark blue.

"If you hurt him I swear to god," Adriel hisses. Sifsh ignores him. Julias smiles a few seconds later when Sifsh pulls his hands away, the glow on him dying down.

Sifsh presses a hand to his cheek. When he moves it away Adriel's and Julias's eyes widen.

"Did the spot just get bigger?" Julias whispers, leaning towards Adriel who nods.

"Illusionist curse," Sifsh explains. "Every time you do magic, some part of your skin turns white."

"That shouldn't affect hybrids." Adriel cocks his head. "I mean, there wasn't anything on Briu."

"Briu has more Petal blood, which means he doesn't do Illusionist magic." Sifsh scratches the back of his neck. "Earth magic doesn't have any physical effects like Dark does."

"What about water and light and fire?"

"Only Dark."

"Only one race gets physical evidence of magic use." Adriel looks over at Julias. "Sounds great."

"It's a fantasy world, Adriel, there's rules here." Julias rolls his eyes at him. Adriel rolls his right back in response, grinning when Julias sighs.

"What's the matter boo?"

"You're irritating, you know that?"

"Monkey see, monkey do."

"Stop, that's an insult to monkeys."

"What're monkeys?" Sifsh tilts his head in confusion. Julias and Adriel both look at each other, sighing.

"They're an animal from back home," Julias explains. "You probably don't have them here."

"Don't think we do, no."

"Monkeys like climbing trees and throwing poo and eating bananas," Adriel says. Sifsh snaps and looks at Vauer, smiling.

"Chippers!" he exclaims. "Monkeys are just chippers!"

"They totally are!" Vauer snaps and smiles back at Sifsh. "Chippers are super adorable. I want one so badly."

"Me too, Vauer, me too."

"Is Julias's wrist healed?" Viret stands from her chair, resting a hand on the table next to her. Julias lifts his arm and wiggles his hand around, grinning when it doesn't give him pain.

"All good!" He flashes Viret a thumbs up.

"Good." She strides over to Julias and pulls him up, then shoves him toward Adriel, who wraps his arms around Julias's waist to keep him from falling to the floor. "There's a trapdoor under the table. Go through it and wait for me to come get you."

"What-"

"Now, you two!"

Adriel crawls under the table and pulls open the trapdoor. He lowers himself into the ground. Julias follows seconds after. He pulls the trapdoor shut just three mere seconds before the door to the room above them slams open.

"Get away from the door." Adriel grabs Julias and pulls him back, out of the light seeping through the cracks between the trapdoor and the floor.

"They're looking for us," Julias whispers. Adriel presses his hand to Julias's mouth, listening attentively to the conversation happening above them.

"Where are they?"

"I don't know who you're talking about."

"They're gonna hurt them, Adriel." Julias bats Adriel's hand away, whirling around to face him. "We need to give ourselves up."

"They know what they're doing. Let them take care of it."

A few drops of water hit the top of Adriel's head. He looks up and raises a hand, pressing his fingers to the ceiling.

"Pretty sure Sifsh is getting nervous. He's prepping for a fight." He pulls his hand back down, staring at his damp fingertips.

"If you attack us, you'll be kicked out of Yevue. Don't risk it."

"And you're gonna tell us what to do?"

"Do you think you have authority over us?"

"Yes."

"What are you doing?" Adriel grabs the back of Julias's cloak, pulling him away from the trapdoor as the boy's fingertips brush it.

"I'm going to give myself up!" Julias hisses, glaring at Adriel. "They're gonna get hurt if I don't!"

"They can handle themselves! They have magic powers, we don't!"

"And no one will have to use those magic powers if I just give myself up!"

"Dammit, Julias, you're not sacrificing yourself! You're out of your mind if you think I'm gonna let you do that!"

"You're not in charge of me." Julias jabs a finger into Adriel's chest. "So I'm gonna do whatever I want."

"Except the choices you make affect me too. You let yourself get captured, I get captured. We're in this together whether we like it or not."

"Then we both get captured, oh well."

"Julias!"

"We can't just let them get hurt because they decided to help us." Julias pulls his cloak out of Adriel's grasp, looking at him with a frown. "Do you want them to get hurt?"

"Of course I don't, but we need to get back home."

"Well, we have to get to Eeribuvi somehow, right?" Julias strides over to the trapdoor and rests his hands against it, still looking at Adriel. "They'll take us there."

"You hope they will, you mean."

"That's all I can rely on now."

"Alright." Adriel nods, lowering his head. "Open the trapdoor."

Julias looks at the wood above him and pushes, opening the trapdoor and drawing everyone's attention as he pokes his head out.

"Hello." He waves at the unfamiliar people- two Embers, a Wave, and an Illusionist- and climbs out of the room, nearly hitting his head on the table above the trapdoor.

"I'm here too." Adriel hoists himself out of the room, closing the trapdoor behind him and crawling out from under the table.

"You're just giving yourselves up like that?" The Wave steps forward, releasing the water covering Sifsh's, Viret's, and Vauer's mouths. Julias and Adriel exchange a look, shrug, and nod.

"You're coming with us." One Ember lunges forward and grabs the duo's wrists. His heated palm sends a gasp flying out of Adriel's mouth.

"Fuck, ow, hot!" He claws at the hand holding him as he's pulled out of the door. Julias winces as the hold on his wrist tightens, claws digging into his skin.

"Let them go!" Viret slides in front of the Ember holding them, eyes narrowed and eyebrows furrowed. "They're here to help us."

"They're outsiders and need to be taken care of." The other Ember walks in front of them and pushes Viret to the side. "Get in our way and you'll be dealt with accordingly."

"Who're your orders from?" Vauer stands where Viret was moments ago, glaring at the Embers. "I know they're not from our people."

"Our orders come straight from the capital."

"Move," the Illusionist snarls, moving to stand beside Adriel and lifting her hand. "Now. Before I make you."

"Fine," Vauer spits, raising his hands in surrender and moving aside. "But I will tell everyone about this. The council thinks they can do whatever it wants without repercussions and they need to learn that they can't."

"And you think people will care about what you have to say?" The Wave scoffs. The Ember holding Julias and Adriel pulls them away before they can hear the rest of the conversation.

"Pardon-"

"Shut up."

"I just wanted to know what your name was." Julias frowns, looking to his side as he's dragged through the street.

"Doesn't matter," the Ember says. "I won't be around long enough to matter."

"Neither will we," Adriel mutters.

"What do you mean?"

"You're gonna kill us," Julias jumps in. The Ember snorts, pulling them up the staircase and into the lake.

"Hey, Duske!"

A Wave pops up out of nowhere, startling Adriel and Julias. The Ember shoves them forward towards him.

"Capital delivery," the Ember says. Duske nods, grabs Adriel and Julias, and yanks them under the water.

Question of the chapter: what's gonna happen to our boys? Who knows? (Not me, I'm making this up as I go. I don't have an outline or a plan:])