Dad had told me everything. And now I was running out the door.

"Don't worry, Dad - I'll go with him so that he's safe. That's if I can't talk sense into him."

Shutting the door behind me, I ran along the pavement, passing by an alleyway-

The first thing I saw was ice.

I stopped in my tracks, but I fell down on my back.

"Agh..." I groaned. Some black ice from the actual ice must have traveled onto the pavement, making me slip.

I carefully got up and gingerly walked in there, seeing the Ice Element chatting with Lukas earlier on the bus home. I hid behind a dumpster.

"N-nate? W-what are you d-doing?" I heard Lukas say, his teeth chattering from the cold.

"You were crying." He said.

My eyes widened. Lukas was... crying...?

He'd never cried since fifth grade. He'd always bottled up his emotions then. Even when we just wanted him to talk to us he never did.

I remembered something he said years ago...

"Lukas, what's wrong? Why are you crying? You're worrying me." Mom said, crouching down to his level with a frown.

"If crying makes you worried about me, then this will be the last time you see or hear me cry." Lukas said, wiping his tears.

Young Rachel was peeking from the corner, watching the whole conversation unfold.

Back then, Lukas had been bullied for being a Dark Element. Looking at the fight with James earlier today, I could see nothing had really changed.

But Lukas had.

"...You saw?" I heard Lukas say.

"Yeah." Nate said. I could sense the uneasiness in his voice. "You okay?"

"You don't need to worry about me. It was just a slip-up - you can go back to whatever you were-"

"Lukas. Please." Nate said with a frown, stepping closer. "We're friends. I know we only just met an hour ago, but still. Friends help each other."

I could practically hear Lukas' conflicted thoughts now.

After a while of somber silence, Lukas spoke up.

"My... my Mom went missing the day before yesterday. And I want to learn how to use my magic so I can get her back."

"Oh... I'm sorry to hear that." Nate said sadly. "Here, I'll help get you out of the ice."

I heard the crunches of ice under his shoes as he walked over to help.

I got out from behind the dumpster, trying to get out without being seen, but Nate immediately spotted me.

"Woah, is that a genderbend version of you or something?" He said, pointing at me.

Lukas looked at me. "Rachel, what are you doing here?"

"I was heading to the cafe when I saw ice, so I wanted to check it out." I said. "Oh, by the way, I'm his twin." I said to Nate.

+.*.+

After a while, Lukas was freed and Nate went to his home.

"So... you're making friends! That's great!" I said with a sad smile. "But you're also... hurting."

Lukas didn't look at me.

"Lukas, I'm your twin. You can tell me anything. You don't have to hide your feelings." I said.

"I... don't want to be a burden-"

Before he could say anything else, I hugged him tightly.

"You're never a burden, Lukas." I said, tears welling up in my eyes.

I felt Lukas' arms slowly embrace me too.

"You aren't either."

For a solid five minutes, we stood there, in the alleyway, embracing each other bittersweetly.

When the embrace ended, I smiled at him, wiping my tears.

"We should get to the cafe, we don't want to be late." I said.

"Right."

He grabbed my hand and we ran out of the alleyway, racing across the pavement.

+.*.+

Panting, Rachel and I found the cafe.

Finally...

We saw Candice sitting at a table, her arms on the table, lost in thought.

We came inside, and sat down beside her.

"Sorry we're late," Rachel breathed. "We got caught up in some drama."

"Oh, it's fine!" She reassured us with a smile.

"Anyway, we should order our milkshakes. What flavors do you guys want?" I asked.

"I'll just have a strawberry milkshake." Rachel said.

"I'll have a vanilla milkshake with extra marshmallows." Candice said.

"And I'll have a chocolate one. I'm gonna go to the counter now and get them." I said, getting up and heading to the counter.

I had only ten dollars as pocket money each week, so I spent them wisely.

After buying the milkshakes, I looked back at the table Candice and Rachel were sitting at. They seemed to be talking a lot, getting along. I almost even felt a bond between them...

A naive part of me started to speak up: Maybe that bond could thwart whatever malicious plans that girl has.

But I shook my head, returning to the table with the milkshakes. That's such a ridiculous thought. If Candice made a friendship with Rachel with the sole intention of breaking her, then she'd never feel that bond to make her change her ways.

I sat down, cutting off their conversation.

"So I got the milkshakes!" I said.

"Oh, cool! Thanks, Lukas." Candice said. I wanted to give her a withering glare right there and then, but Rachel was there and I didn't want her to know about this. So I just stared at her blankly.

"Anyway, what will we be doing for training? Combat spells or defense spells or metamorphosis spells or manifestation spells-" Rachel began asking on and on.

"Um, Rachel, I think you're starting to ramble-" Candice started.

"Oh! Sorry, I kinda got excited. I tend to do that when talking about magic..." Rachel said sheepishly.

"It's fine." Candice said with a small smile.

The table went silent for a bit, but I didn't want things to get awkward.

"Maybe for the training we could do combat and defense spells?" Candice and I said in unison.

I stared her down, not sure of her intentions. She just laughed it off nervously.

"Okay! Let's finish our milkshakes before we head out, though." Rachel said, ignoring my staring.

I eventually lost my confidence (and didn't want people around us to get the wrong idea) so I looked away and focused on my drink.

"So what kind of moves can you do with your fire? The bow thing was cool, but I was wondering if you had anything related to your Element." Rachel asked.

"Well, I haven't exactly learned any moves; nothing special, at least. All I can really do without my fire going haywire is make a tiny fire orb, and even that takes quite some concentration." Candice explained.

While Candice and Rachel were talking together about the training, I looked out the window at the sunset and wondered where I'd even look to find her. Was there even a spell that could help track her down...?

Then I remembered a spell - a compass spell to cast on an item to find the owner of the item. I just had to find something that belonged to Mom...

But I need to focus on what's going on now. I can worry about finding Mom later.

I heard a loud slurping sound and I realized I'd drank the whole milkshake.

The girls were almost done with their milkshakes too, so I got up from the table.

"I'll find a good field for us to train. I'll text Rachel my location and then the two of you can meet me there." I said, throwing away the milkshake bottle(in the recycling bin of course).

I headed out of the cafe and went through, walking towards the outskirts. The houses weren't in as good shape as the ones further in the settlement, and I noticed the people outside were scarce. I moved a little faster, determined to get out out of the sketchy area.

But then I felt a tug at the back of my shirt and I was sent reeling back.

"Oi Simon! Looks like one of the magic users walked into our domain!" A man said in a scraggly voice. I tensed.

Four different men came in from different corners of the place, other citizens immediately going in their homes with their children and locking the doors.

"Oh really, Daniel?" Another man said, most probably Simon. "Do you know why we hate magic users, Larry?"

Another man nodded, Larry, I assumed.

"'Cause our parents dumped us when we didn't have magic!"

"Exactly." Simon said. The other two men remained silent, holding spiked bats threateningly. One of them spoke up though.

"But this one's a kid. Didn't we agree no attacking kids?" He said. The rest of them turned on him.

"This one goes to a prestigious school. Saw 'em go there earlier today when passing by. You were with us, Cameron." Larry said.

Cameron went silent.

I racked my brain for something to do to get out of this situation... anything...

And then I had a plan. While they were deciding how to deal with me, I'd discovered how to deal with them.

When they weren't looking, I pulled out my phone and texted Rachel my location, along with a message saying 'attacked-'

That's all I could type and send before Simon pulled my phone out of my hands.

"This one's smart - calling for backup in case things go wrong." Simon walked closer. "Which means this guy has a plan-"

I high-kicked him, hitting his face and back-flipping onto Daniel's back. I was thankful for being in the gymnastics club in elementary school.

I kept Daniel pinned down while the other men lunged forward.

I jumped to the side, but Larry grabbed my arm. I acted on instinct and shot my other hand towards him,  sending a zap of dark energy in his face. He fell to the ground and writhed in pain as blisters appeared all over his skin.

I was horrified at what I'd done. Even if it was just self-defense, that was terrifying.

The others realized that I was a Dark Element, and they growled.

"Alright, we might actually be doing something good here by attacking this kid." Simon said, cracking his knuckles. "He's a Dark Element, which means he's up to no good, even if he's a kid."

"Oh great, another group of people who hate me because of my Element. Why am I not surprised?" I growled, slowly recovering from what I'd done.

"I take back what I said - we're going to pummel you to the ground." Cameron said.

"Get him!" Simon yelled, and the three of his mates charged towards me.

Suddenly, there was a flash of purple, and Rachel was in front of me with a barrier.

"Don't worry, Lukas. I'm here to help. I came as soon as I got your message." Rachel said. "Candice left the cafe just after I got it, so she doesn't know we're being attacked."

"Okay. Wanna beat them together?" I asked with a grin. Rachel mirrored that grin.

"Why of course, dear brother." She said. She removed the barrier and jumped to the side - not as graceful as I had done, but she still managed to do it.

Cameron threw a knife at Rachel but she reformed the barrier and the knife fell to the floor.

Then, Rachel turned the knife into... a coconut?

"I was trying to make it a bowling ball, but it'll do." Rachel said, picking up the coconut and hurling it at Cameron's head. It hit him and he fell unconscious. Rachel jumped up and down in glee.

"Yay! I did something!" Rachel said happily. But then Simon grabbed her by the arm, lifting her in the air. "Ugh! Let go of me!"

I had been dealing with Daniel, and I managed to knock him unconscious by squeezing him with a dark tentacle, but I saw everything happen.

Rage filled inside me as I sprinted towards Simon, my hands glowing. "Get away from her!" I yelled. But I was pulled back by the silent one. His grip was hard like stone, and his face was covered by a guard's helmet. Why would a criminal be wearing a guard's helmet? Did he steal it from a guard and decide it would be cool to wear it?

But I didn't linger on that thought. I tried to use magic to save Rachel, but the guard guy grabbed my forearms and pulled me back, his grip so tight I had to bite my lip to keep from crying out in pain.

"You put up a good fight, but in the end, you're just kids. You don't stand a chance against us." Simon said. I gritted my teeth and I tried to use my magic, but I was stopped. Not from the guard guy, but from something else.

My body began shaking, and I didn't know what was happening. I coughed, my hands glowing purple. The guard instantly let go of me, almost scared. I fell on my knees. Simon immediately dropped Rachel, who managed to land on her feet.

Simon almost seemed... sorry. He stepped closer, cautiously. "So... you got the disease."

"What disease?" I asked, looking at him as I coughed again.

"The disease you get after learning about... you know what." Simon said. Rachel ran up to me.

"What disease? Is he gonna be okay?!" Rachel asked, tears forming in her eyes.

I was really confused, until it hit me. The thing that Mom explained in her book... about the past... it's linked to this disease. But why would learning that information give me a disease?

"Is it contagious?" I asked immediately, fearing for Rachel.

"No, not unless you give someone the information that causes the disease." Simon said. He held out his hand to help me up. I wasn't trusting of him at first, so I hesitated, but I coughed and decided that I should probably trust him.

He helped me up. "What are you guys talking about? Can you explain this to me?" Rachel asked.

"Not unless you want to get the disease too." Simon said. "Come on, let's go, Knighty Boy."

Apparently the person with the guard head was called... Knighty Boy? I coughed, my hands still flashing purple like crazy. Rachel supported me so I could stand without much trouble.

'Knighty Boy' didn't move a muscle. Simon grunted. "Come on! Help me get these guys to our base."

The guard shook his head.

"You keep this up and you might get removed from the group." Simon said. "Now come."

The guard shot a flame of fire right at Simon. Surprised, he managed to dodge it but the hairs on his arms were singed.

I was surprised. Weren't all of these guys supposed to be non-magic users?

The guard removed his coat and revealed a full suit of armor, with the Fire Kingdom's crest on it.

"You're a Fire Element?! And a spy from the Fire Kingdom?!" Simon asked. "Okay, that does it."

Simon threw three knives at the guard, but the guard sidestepped the attack with ease. He formed a spear from fire and threw it to Simon's side. Simon tried sidestepping, since he thought it was aiming for him, but pinned him to a wall, embedded deep into the brick.

Rachel pulled me away from the knight as he slowly walked towards us. He took out a walkie talkie. Kind of weird to be carrying that around while wearing knight's armor...

"This is Knight #407 here, I was on my patrol in the NK, and it seems I've found the target's children on coincidence." The knight said.

Wait... what...?

I clenched my fists. Was this knight talking about... Mom...?

Suddenly I connected all the dots.

The portal I found near our house. It led to the Fire and Water Kingdom Castle. This knight was a Fire Element. And is reporting back to someone.

I gritted my teeth, my eyes blinded by rage. Rachel was frozen in shock, coming to the same realization.

I wanted to destroy this knight and pummel him to the ground.

"So you were the one who took my mom," I snapped, my voice dangerously low.

Rachel put a hand on my shoulder, strangely calm.

"Lukas, don't let your anger get the best of you." Rachel said, walking past me towards the knight. "I'll take care of this."

Stunned by her rare words, I watched as she shakily walked up towards the knight, who was still talking into the walkie talkie.

"Hey, y-you!" She yelled, stammering. "Y-you know something about our mother, d-don't you?!"

The knight paused, finished up his message on the walkie talkie, and then put it away. He slowly walked towards her.

"You two are coming with me." The knight said. I ran up in front of Rachel, blocking her from the knight's reach.

"We're not going anywhere with you!" I yelled.

"Yeah! Tell 'em, kid!" Simon yelled, still pinned to the wall.

The knight shot a stream of fire right next to Simon and he went quiet.

"You don't have a choice in the matter." The knight said.

+.*.+

Oh gosh, oh gosh, OH GOSH!!

What do I do?!

Lukas stood in front of me, even though I'd told him that I would take care of this.

I guess he didn't trust me with that responsibility? To be honest... I agree with him. I wouldn't trust myself with this either. I just finally wanted to do something for him for once.

He does so much for me. I just want to show my appreciation...

Ugh! This isn't the time for this! This knight is about to kidnap us!

Just when the knight was in reach of us, I pulled Lukas out of the way and created a barrier. It was a dark purple color. But the knight was a fire element, so I knew I'd only bought a little bit of time before the barrier would be brought down by the knight.

Sure enough, the knight lit his fist on fire, and began punching the barrier with the inflamed fist. I cried out in pain, the hits to the barrier hurting me.

Lukas gritted his teeth, grabbing my hand to add his power to the barrier. And its thickness was doubled.

The pain wasn't as bad, considering it was harder to break the barrier and the pain was shared between the both of us, but it was still enough to bite my lip to keep from bursting into tears.

(i'll edit this later dont worry, it wont stay like this)