*13*

"She specializes in water and nature magic, eh?" Mystic sat back in the chair as I picked at my fingers. "Isn't it extremely rare for an Orelie to specialize in more than one element magic?"

"More rare than actually finding an Orelie." Crae nodded. "I figured that since you're well versed in water magic, you could try and teach her a little bit so she doesn't flood our home again." I felt my cheeks heat up in embarrassment.

Mystic chuckled. "Of course. I'd be honored to teach an Orelie. One doesn't get this chance very often. Come on." We stood and she led me to a small stream that ran through the forest.

"Now," We knelt down before it. "The first thing you need to do is feel the water. It may be gentle here, but in other places, it is wild and can harm you. They say you are touching every body of water through one. All water is connected in some way."

She dipped her hand into the crystal clear water. It rippled gently around her. I watched in amazement as she made small bubbles and whirlpools around her hand.

"The water is slow and gentle; very easy to work with." She pulled her hand back. "For right now, just stick your hand in the water and feel it run over your skin."

I nodded slowly and dipped my fingertips in. Instantly, a wave of water rushed up and dowsed us. I blinked, stunned. "I'm sorry!"

"Pft..." I glanced up to see Mystic clutch at her sides and begin laughing. "Th-that was amazing! You truly are a powerful being! Okay, okay. Let's try this again, but this time, I'll hold your hand so I can help you channel your magic. One more time."

She twined her fingers around mine as I stuck my fingers in the water again. Nothing happened this time. The water freely caressed my hand as it moved around me. I smiled and chuckled softly.

"It's very cool to the touch," I said as I let my fingers play in the gentle currents.

Mystic smiled beside me. "It is. When I was a little girl, I always felt at home when I played in a river or a lake. I felt safe and comforted. I was very happy when I was told I specialized in water magic as I grew older. I just knew it was meant to be."

"Since then, the water and I have formed a bond." She sat us back and I pulled my hand out of the water. "Believe it or not, the water asks for things from time to time, be it a small trinket, or a coin it can take to another who may need it. In return, it protects me from harm."

"That's amazing." I breathed out in excitement. "I never knew water could speak! How did you discover this?"

"The Fairies." She grinned up at the sky. "I had accidentally dropped a coin in the water. As I reached for it, a Fairy darted in front of me and said the water thanked me for the offer. The one Fairy, Droplet, helped me understand the water."

"Wow," I turned back to the stream. "Is it saying anything right now?"

"No," Mystic shook her head. "It's calm, though it is happy an Orelie can practice with it. It's forgotten how gentle an Orelie's touch is."

"Gentle?" I stared at my hand. "What do you mean?"

"Orelie are very in tune with Fucrya," She explained. "The world lives and breathes with the Orelie. Of course, it can survive on it own, but when the Orelie were in abundance, they helped maintain the elemental order. They could tell when a plant was sick, or if the water had been contaminated. They could warn the rest of us from a sudden storm and direct it, or change it to be less severe."

"Orelie sound amazing." I sighed as I stared at the water. "I just wish I could meet others and understand everything from their perspective. It would be easier on Crae and I. The Orelie could help me with my visions while you and Crae help me with the elemental aspects."

"Oh, that's right!" I jumped at her sudden outburst. "I forgot that Orelie could do that! Look into my eyes and tell me what you see."

"I think that should wait for another time," I'd forgotten Crae had followed us. "Kyrene has already done enough. I don't want to push her too much until she has her own staff."

Mystic pouted. "You're no fun, Crae."

He shrugged. "I have to look out for Kyrene. She may be a lot stronger than when you last saw her, but she just discovered she can use two elements. She's not quite ready to do much more in her state. Her magic is still unstable and it could start to effect her negatively."

Mystic sighed and stood. "Yeah, you're right. We'll try it some other time. Let's go." She stood me up and the three of us headed to the cottage to dry off.

Crae lit a fire and had me sit by it so I could warm up faster. He brought me down a change of clothes to put on once I was dry. I smiled up at him. He returned it before heading to the kitchen.

Mystic hummed from across the room. "My, that's a smile I've never seen on him before."

I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Didn't you see the way he smiled at you?" She asked as she sat up.

I slowly shook my head. "It was just a smile."

She grinned. "If you say so." She grew silent after that as she picked up a candle from the coffee table. I let it go and stared at the flames as it warmed my skin. I sighed to myself and held my hands up to take the chill off.

Big mistake. I cried out and fell back as the flames leaped at me.

"Oh, shi- Crae!" He was in the front room in an instant. He pulled me back away from the raging inferno. With a flick of his wrist, the fire was out with a puff of smoke. I was breathing heavily as I stared at the fireplace, frightened. What happened?

Crae slowly turned around and swore to himself. "Mystic, can you head upstairs and get a rag wet?" She left without a word as Crae wiped at my upper lip.

He sighed to himself. "You never cease to amaze me."

I looked away as the blood continued to slowly flow from my nose. "I'm sorry..."

"Hey, it's alright," He gently held my shoulder. "Accidents happen. Tell me what happened."

I took in a breath before I spoke. "All I did was lift my hands up so I could warm them by the fire. Next thing I knew, the flames were leaping up at me."

"I've got the rag," Mystic returned at that moment. "That had to have been the most scary thing I ever saw. One moment the flames were gentle and controlled, the next it was like Hell itself was crawling out of the fireplace."

I lowered my head once more. "I'm sorry..."

"It's alright, Kyrene," Crae lifted my head once more and cleaned the blood from my face. "As long as you weren't hurt, you have nothing to worry about." He glanced up at Mystic behind me, his eyes hard. After a few seconds, he nodded then focused back on me.

"Does this mean I also specialize in fire magic?"

He hesitated for a split second. "I honestly don't know, Kyrene. I don't know if it's the land making your body strong, or if you really can specialize in any elemental magic. The only way we can get a straight answer is if we head to Fucrya Academy. It's a long trip and I can't risk something happening to you. We don't know if that Demon is still around."

"Wait, what do you mean?" Mystic suddenly asked. "I thought that whole ordeal was taken care of and the Demon returned to the Summit?"

Crae slowly shook his head. "Kyrene has been branded by the Blood Demon."

She gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. "No..."

"Unfortunately, it's true," He gestured to my arm where the scars were. "We haven't had any instances in about three weeks, but that doesn't mean the Demon is gone. It could be lying in wait until we brush away the salt and silver mixture."

Mystic nodded slowly. "I understand. You want to make sure the Demon is gone for good before you make the journey."

"But she has to get to Crystal View and the Academy as soon as possible." I looked up to Crae's hard eyes as he stared at nothing. "We need answers, and the only ones who can provide them are at the Academy."

"What if we brought one of them here?" Our gazes snapped up to Mystic. "As far as I know, no one from the academy has made a trip down here, but you could always tell them that it's a special case and you need someone immediately. I'm sure they'd listen."

Crae thought for a moment as we locked gazes. "It's a thought. I can write to them first thing in the morning. I can tell them I have a special case that can't leave safety. I'll also warn them about the Demon lurking around here..." My vision blurred as his voice faded away.

What I saw made my blood run cold. A figure was hunched over something. I could hear guttural sounds as it slurped and munched on something. I couldn't stop my vision from narrowing in on the grotesque figure.

I screamed when I caught the sight of a body, torn in half by the monster's claws.

"Kyrene!"

"No!" I flailed my arms. "No, stop! Please! Don't hurt me! Don't eat me! Let me go! I want to live!"

"Kyrene, please!" Instantly, I felt myself slump over as a calming aura encompassed me. "It's alright... Nothing's going to get you. I promise nothing will hurt you. What did you see? Let me help you."

I gulped and looked up into the sad, concerned gaze of Crae. I carefully turned to my left to see Mystic pulling her hands back. Tears glistened in her eyes.

I wiped at my nose. "I... I don't know what it was. All I know is that I saw a Demon draining the blood of a body and eating it."

Crae's eyes darted between Mystic and I for a brief second. "Do you know who it was?"

I thought for a second. "No, I've never seen them before."

"And you saw that by looking into my eyes?"

I nodded slowly. "Crae, what does that mean?"

He sighed and pulled me close to him in a comforting gesture. "I don't know, and I wish I had the answers. I wish I knew more about Orelie so I can properly train you."

I leaned heavily against Crae, loving the warmth he gave off. "You're doing a much better job than my past caretakers. None of them even knew when my birthday was."

He gave a light laugh. "I guess that's true." He pulled back and picked me up to set me on the couch. "Just sit here for a few moments. Mystic and I need to speak for a little while."

"Okay," I watched them head into the kitchen.

Not even a few seconds later, a tap sounded at the window. I glanced over to see Fern wave. I grinned and stood to let her in.

"Well, look at you!"She giggled as she zipped around my head. "You're looking so much better than when I first saw you. Your cheeks have color now!"

I grinned back at her and sat back down on the couch. She perched herself on my shoulder. "It's good to see you again, Fern."

"Are you alright?" She asked.

I slowly shook my shoulder. "I don't know, Fern. I don't know what to do. It's possible that I can control three different elements."

"I saw earlier." She flew around to sit on my knee. "I saw what you did by making that small meadow. The creatures love it, by the way. I also watched you soak yourself and Mystic by the stream. What's the third element?"

"Fire," I looked away. "I had tried drying my hand by the fireplace when the flames suddenly reacted to just my hands being near it. We don't know what that means, but the only way to find out is if we go to the academy in Crystal View, or someone comes to us. I'm also going to need a staff to help channel my magic so I don't over exert and damage my body."

"You need to make a bond with the sycamore!" She puffed her cheeks out and narrowed her eyes. "Old Crae just doesn't know what he's talking about! It's very easy to form a bond with something! Plus! If you bond with the sycamore, you can use one of its branches to make your staff!"

"Can I really?" I couldn't stop the wide grin from spreading.

"Yep!" She grinned big. "C'mon! I'll show you!" She got up and started tugging at my finger.

"I don't know, Fern..." I hesitated and she stopped tugging. "I've been branded by a Blood Demon. I don't want to take the chance of something happening."

"You do realize they attack at night, right?" She huffed and placed a hand on her hip. "Besides, you have me and all the other Fairies and Elementals to watch over you. If something were to happen, we could zip back and warn Crae and Mystic. You'll be perfectly safe!"

I thought for a second and glanced over to where Crae and Mystic had gone. I could barely make out their voices. "Alright, let's go. You said it'll be quick?"

She nodded. "Yep! Faster than you can say Fucrya Academy!"

"Okay," I stood and she pulled me over to the window. She flew out and I climbed out after her. She picked up a strand of my hair to lead me to the ancient sycamore. I glanced around nervously. Even though it's broad daylight, something could still attack us.

After a rather long while of walking the uneven terrain, Fern let my hair go and flew around my head. "We're almost there! It's just through these vines! It grew in a natural grove. The only safe way to get to it is through this short cave and down a small slope." I pushed the vines out of the way and stepped in after Fern.

I glanced around the dimly lit space. It was soon short lived. We stepped through another curtain of vines and I gasped.

Hundreds of Elementals flew around a giant tree that seemed to touch the sky. My eyes caught the sight of Fairies chasing after the Elementals as forest creatures either sat on one of the many branches or grazed on the grass near the base of the ancient tree.

"It's... beautiful." I wiped a stray tear from the corner of my eye.

"The sycamore thanks you for the compliment." Fern smiled softly as she helped guide my feet down the rocky slope. Once we found stable ground, Fern flew up.

"Attention, everyone!" All activity stopped. "We have an Orelie here! She will be trying to form a bond with our ancient sycamore!" Excited chatter sounded around me.

I stepped up to the base of the tree and craned my neck as far as it would go. "What do I have to do?" I asked as a small Sylph rubbed against my arm.

"Climb it."

"Excuse me?" I turned to Fern.

"Climb it," She repeated. "You don't have to climb the whole thing. That would be silly! But the higher you go, the better. It's been ages since an Orelie climbed this tree looking for the perfect branch to use for a staff, or anything else they would need."

"What do I have to do in return?" I glanced around for a way to start climbing.

"Either come sit at the base of the tree once in a while, or climb it." She explained. "Trees are simple beings and don't ask for much in return. They provide the goods while we provide the company."

I took a deep breath. "How will I know I've gone high enough?"

"The tree will tell you." That's a vague answer. Nevertheless, I reached up and grasped a thick branch above my head. I grunted as I dug my shoes into the rough bark. Somehow, I managed to sit on the branch. I'm already out of breath.

But the tree hasn't said anything yet. I shook my head and carefully stood. All I need to do is go up. Thankfully, the higher I went, the closer together the branches became. That made it easier to get a foot hold and keep from falling.

"What in Fucrya is going on here?!" I gasped and glanced down between the leaves. I could barely make out Crae and Mystic near the bottom of the tree. That's a long way down...

Fern whizzed up to him, most likely explaining everything. He snapped at her and gestured up to me, probably saying how dangerous this is. Mystic simply looked up to me with a worried gaze.

As much as I wanted to go back down, I had to continue. The tree hasn't spoken with me yet and I want to bond with this amazing, historical landmark. I would love to know its stories from over the years. What has it seen? Who planted it? Just how long has it been growing?

I reached up and grabbed another sturdy branch and pulled myself up. My limbs ached, but I had to go on. I would love to carry around a staff made from this beautiful tree.

"Kyrene!" Crae called up to me. I carefully grabbed a couple branches so I could look at him. "Come down here this instant! We're going back to the cottage! We don't need to be out here right now! It's too dangerous!"

I stared at him for a few seconds before I turned to see more branches above me, just waiting to be climbed and feel my touch. Mystic said Orelie have a gentle touch. Whatever that means, this sycamore must love me right now.

"I can't," I called down to him. "This sycamore needs me to climb it. It hasn't had an Orelie climb it for a very long time. I want it to remember what it was like to have someone like me hold its branches."

"It can wait!" He pleaded with me. "Please, just come back down!"

I shook my head. "I will, but not right now. I promise. I have to bond with this sycamore and find the perfect branch for my staff."

"There are plenty of branches for staves at Crystal View!"

I shook my head and whispered to myself. "But none of them are as perfect and powerful like the sycamore." The tree seemed to hum as I rested on a thick branch. I brushed some of my hair out of my face and took a deep breath.

"If you won't come down, I'll come up after you." I glanced down and saw Crae easily scale the tree after me, not even watching where he was putting his hands. My eyes widened and I pushed my aching limbs to pull me up higher.

Right as I touched a branch, a small surge traveled through my fingertips. This is it. This is my branch. I have to have it.

I took a deep breath and balanced on two branches just below the one I was holding. "Great Sycamore, I wish to use this branch for my staff. I promise it will be put to good use as I use it to help with my magic."

~If this is what you ask, so it will be.~ I gasped, not expecting the sudden voice to fill my head. I lost my footing an started to fall. My hands reached out in front of me as I tried to grab something.

"KYRENE!" "NO!!" "Someone grab her!"

I didn't fall very far. I coughed as the wind was knocked from my lungs for a few seconds. I watched in wonder as the sycamore bent itself to catch me and guide me safely back to the ground. I slid out of its hold and sat on the grass. I held my arms and face, making sure I was actually alive.

"Kyrene!" Crae landed right beside me and pulled me into a tight embrace. "Damn it, don't you ever scare me like that again! If you ever do something like this again, I will never allow you to leave the cottage again!"

I slowly looked up into his eyes as he pulled away. "But I have to come back. I've bonded with the sycamore and I found the perfect branch to use for my staff."

"But-" He was suddenly cut off by something falling on his head. He picked it up and rubbed the spot that got hit.

I smiled and took the branch from him, loving the small amount of energy it gave off. "Yes, this is the one I want to use. The second I touched it, it called to me, practically begging that I use it. I don't want to disappoint the sycamore by refusing to use it for my staff."

Crae pressed his lips into a thin line before slowly letting out a sigh. "Alright, we'll use this branch the sycamore has graciously given to you. Have you thanked it yet?"

I shook my head and stood, using the branch to steady myself. "Thank you, great sycamore. I will cherish this branch and think of you as I'm making my staff."

~Thank you for climbing me. It's been so long since I've had the pleasure of having an Orelie climb me once more. I expect to be seeing you again soon.~

I grinned up at the sycamore as a soft breeze blew through its leaves. "I promise."