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Anyway, I hope you enjoy this little teaser!

»»——>Chapter One: Home<——««

Sometimes, silence is the better option...

...was what she would say, but breaking said silence would betray her words.

She rested on her bed, her eyelids fighting back the urge to close.

"Sol? Are you in there?" she heard a deep, familiar voice calling out to her from the other side of the door. "Come on, I have to tell you something."

"Just a sec!" she raised her voice just enough for the disembodied voice to let out a sigh.

She finally got up from her bed, gathering enough energy to walk. She scanned the old room to see if anything needed cleaning up; she wouldn't let her go without cleaning, anyway.

She held her breath for a bit, releasing it moments after when she found everything to be squeaky clean; just how she liked it.

She was ready to head out, just when a peculiar thing caught her eye. Approaching it in the corner of her room, she picked it up carefully from the floor, cautious not to tear it. It was a blank paper, or so she thought.

It was a picture; one she was all too familiar with.

A younger version of herself was riding on an equally young boy's back in a colourful room, one that contrasted with the boy's white, fluffy wings that tried to lift them both up towards the light bulb hanging from the ceiling. Striking a cute pose for the old camera, the photo was a tad blurred from their movement as they pulled on each other's sleepwear.

She covered her mouth, yet couldn't help but give it a loving smile. That didn't last long, however, when she threw the picture on her fluffy pillow, walking out of the room.

She dragged her body towards the bathroom, closing the door behind her in a hurry.

She looked at the mirror, her face slit in half from the broken shards that barely latched on to the rest of the blurry glass.

She stared at her messy appearance with an annoyed frown. Her eyes were still red from tiredness, contrasting with her blue orbs. Her bleach blond hair was messy and untied, leaving her to sloppily fix them into the two, low pigtails she was so used to wearing.

She brushed her teeth and washed her pale face, drying it with the old, dirty towel next to the wooden sink. Grabbing the clothes that were left on the floor the night before, she dusted them off before draping them over her body. They were nothing too special; just a plain, white shirt and blue leggings.

She put her shoes on and ran out.

Walking towards the small living room at the end of the corridor where she was waiting for her as per usual. She walked in and, to her surprise, she looked happier than usual.

Her brown hair was—as always—styled into a pixie cut, her messy bangs covering her forehead as she leaned down into her book. She pushed her two, long streaks—ones that almost resembled ribbons flowing down, as she always described them—behind her ear, leading them to fall over her rusty, silver armour; not like she ever took it off, anyway.

Sol chuckled at the cover of her friend's book, whose cover showed a man with armour the same as hers.

Once she finally noticed her peeking through the hallway, she grinned, giving her a playful glare.

"Please be quicker next time..." said Ari, narrowing her eyes and pushing her bangs aside yet again. As she patted the seat next to her, a smile appeared on Sol's face, plopping down casually next to her.

"So? What is it?" she leaned her head to the side, resting her arm on the back of the couch.

She slammed her book shut, a cloud of dust coming out of it as she gestured at the map behind them. "Well, I finally found a way for us to move out. I've found a great deal for a place we can stay in." She sounded a little happier in each sentence, the biggest smile appearing on her face.

She returned the grin, her mind being flooded with thoughts almost instantly.

Sure, a small cabin on top of the mountains that separated Terrence and Amaranth might have sounded convenient at the time, but considering its size, it was not the most comfortable place to live in. It could barely fit one person, let alone two. So, moving out was their best—and only—choice.

"I see you're way too excited to move into the city," said Sol with a smirk painted across her face, giving her a playful punch on her bicep.

"Not being hunted down by wild animals every day sounds like fun," she smiled shyly, rubbing her arm. "Unless you prefer staying here, that is."

"I think I'm good," she tried to suppress a chuckle. "It was about time we moved out, anyway."

"We'll start heading there tomorrow. Just get your stuff ready..." she said. "I'll be preparing lunch if you need me."

Before she could catch another glimpse of her, she had already disappeared to the next room.

She nodded to herself, following after her. Sitting on top of the counter, she rested her head on the back of the chair, watching her with caution as she cooked.

Upon tilting her head, Ari raised an eyebrow. "I need that," she gestured at the counter.

An intense staring contest ensued. She waited until just the right time to wiggle her fingers behind her back, a small cloud of sparkles and dust dripping from them. She swiftly moved her wrist, spraying the cloud onto Ari's eyes, causing them to slam shut.

"I win," she stuck her tongue out, climbing down from the counter. Sitting down on one of the chairs, leaning her head on the round, wooden table.

Ari only rolled her eyes, hiding her smile behind a cough. She left them both speechless as she turned around, leaving her to stare as she continued to cook.

Carefully cutting a bunch of vegetables and pouring them into a bowl, she was mixing them with some spices and other ingredients Sol didn't recognise.

After it became boring, she started a small chat, one that turned into a full conversation soon after. A strange scent flooded her nostrils as Ari took the fresh food, putting it on the table despite the smoke coming out of it.

Sol took a bite, fighting the urge to scrunch up her nose. She raised her thumb, putting a fake smile on. "I mean, it's better than last time..."

"I'm still learning, give me a break..." she narrowed her eyes, picking up the old recipe book from the counter behind her. "You can blame this thing for not teaching me well enough."

"Whatever you say..."

A short silence followed before Sol spoke up. "So... who is selling our future house?" she asked, resting her chin on her hand. "We've got to know who we're dealing with if we're going to be buying their property."

"They're not much. Just some old men," she said. "They used to use the place as an office, but after some 'business problems', as they described it, they had to close it. It's not the best place to live in, but it's a lot better than living here."

"Strange how you find it like heaven then," she said, taking a sip from her glass behind a smile. "So, are we going to do the usual this evening?"

She nodded.

She groaned internally as she placed the empty plate in the sink.

"Not so excited, huh?"

"The army is asking for fighters, not super soldiers," she leaned her back against the counter, putting one leg over the other. "You can stop with the exercising, you know."

"I prefer to call it training," she said, raising her finger. "And you need it too. We need to keep you in good shape."

"Says the living toothpick."

"Toothpick with muscles, thank you very much."

Their chatter ended as soon as Ari finished her plate. She returned to reading her book on the sofa, leaving Sol with nothing else to do other than wander around the house and think.

She did everything she could think of; she sat at her desk, making a list of the things she'd bring with her, she pulled that old map off the living room wall and studied it on the floor, she even tried doodling a thing or two on her hand.

Taking a look at Ari, she was too focused on her book to notice her. She smiled once she leaned further into it, absorbing herself between the pages. She made a run for her room, locking herself inside.

She looked at her bed again. The picture was still there. Well, it's not like it could run away. She stared at it, letting out a defeated sigh as she picked it up and shoved it in her backpack.

Having nothing else interesting to do or say, the least she could do was lie on her bed and take a nap.

"I really need to find a hobby..." she told herself, smiling. After countless attempts of trying to fall asleep, her eyes finally felt heavy enough to close. That was until a voice called her, interrupting her slumber.

Tossing and turning around the bed, she found the energy to get up, waving goodbye to the warm blanket that was now a wrinkly mess the floor. Even though the cold climate of the mountains was tolerable, tucking herself under her clean, white sheets and lazing around for the rest of the evening was a much-preferred choice.

Her steps still heavy, she took a moment to enjoy the cold breeze of the outside. As her shoes sank into the light, white ground, she stepped into their backyard with a yawn.

Well, it wasn't exactly a backyard, more like the snowy back area of their house she had to clean every week. Nevertheless, it was not one of her favourite places.

She looked down at Ari, who had been carving a target into a short log, all the while being unaware of her presence.

Sol gave the log a glare for the time the rest of it had almost crushed their lonely cabin, but of course, it didn't glare back.

"I'm here..." she said, a yawn escaping her mouth yet again. "So, what are we doing today?" she grabbed the wooden sword that was left on the ground, one that was quite heavy for her size.

After a moment of her looking at her up and down, Ari smiled. "You'll use them today..." she said, much to her excitement. "But don't get too excited, I'm not going to go so easy on you."

"How come, Ms Boring?"

"Well, we wouldn't want anything to happen again."

"You know very well that it was just an accident back then."

She turned on her heel when she caught something with the corner of her eye. As the small rock flew towards her, her hand shot up, the light erupting from them dissolving it into pieces.

"What was that for?"

"I guess you're right, your aim has improved over the years."

Pushing Ari aside, she fixed her stance as her eyes darted on the carved log. "Okay, just try and focus," she told herself, holding her hand slightly upwards as the bright ball of light levitated above it. She closed her right eye, while her left tried to focus on the target.

Her eyes barely stayed open as she threw it across the field. She was ready to cheer, only for the ball to fly above the wood, landing somewhere between the tall trees instead.

"Don't burn the forest," Ari told her, peeking over the log, her fingers wrapped tightly around the wooden sword.

She leaned in to try and spot the lost orb of light between the white trees, finding it rolling towards a dead bush. As it finally came to a stop, she turned away before something caught her eye.

It was staring back at her.

Not the orb, no. The pairs of eyes shining from behind the shrub, accompanied by a pair of silver fangs underneath.

She took a few steps back as she watched its mouth dissolve the orb into mere particles of dust.

"Sol, go inside," she deadpanned. She extended her hand as to protect her, only for it to be pulled back.

"What did you see?" said Sol, only to have her hand shaken off from hers.

She didn't get to catch a glimpse of its snow-like fur before it lashed onto Ari with a growl. Panicked, she threw an orb of light on its red eyes, causing it to flinch as Ari kicked it away.

She hastily picked up the fallen sword, dragging Sol around the house, throwing her in through the front door.

She tried to close it, only for its snout to break in through the thin crack, its nostrils flaring from its large, black nose.

Sol disappeared into the other room as she debated her next move. When warm smoke started erupting from its mouth, her eyes popped open. With one swift wing, she threw the door open, throwing the sword between its gums.

In came Sol, slamming the door shut with her hip as she placed a chair under the handle.

When the growling finally stopped, she slowly peeked through the open window to see the wolf-like creature cough up the remainder of smoke from its mouth.

"Weird," she said, "they usually travel in packs, don't they?"

Ari nodded, rubbing her arm. "At least we're safe now."

"Yeah..." she smiled, a frown appearing upon facing her friend. "You okay?" she gestured at her arm.

Slowly pulling her hand away, their eyes widened upon seeing the surprisingly deep cut underneath. "At least it didn't bite," she tried to joke, biting her lip in agony.

"I'll go get some ice."

"No, no, it's fine," she said. "Just go to sleep."

She looked out the window to see that it was indeed late—or so she thought, as the sun was just starting to set. She would always go to bed early, primarily because she didn't have much to do other than sleeping and training. She was so used to dozing off during the day that even the evening seemed like midnight to her.

"Are you sure? It looks pretty bad..."

Despite her pain, she put on a funny voice and smiled. "'Tis but a scratch," she quoted her book, causing Sol to burst into a fit of laughter.

Eventually she calmed down, but after some convincing, she finally went to sleep.

Not a window in her room, she kept the door just slightly open. She stayed on her bed, growing more impatient with every toss and turn. She tucked herself under the covers, forcing her eyes to close.

She never really got a lot of sleep, as much as she tried.