"Quinn?" I asked, standing behind the door of one of the shelters she had made. Everyone else had gone out to look for supplies, and she wanted to stay at the camp. No one liked the idea of her staying home, now that Darklox had shown he wasn't scared to kidnap for leverage. 

I shuddered. His very name disgusted me. It was the name behind the group that killed Jeremy. 

He killed my best friend. He killed my brother. 

I shook my head. I had volunteered to stay behind so that neither Quinn or I were alone, and currently, a door between us left both of us alone. I couldn't lose myself in my thoughts again. That had happened ten too many times since Jeremy died. 

"Quinn?" I asked again, knocking on the door. 

"Leave me alone, Jenna."

Okay, so she was still alive. That was a plus. 

"Quinn, what's wrong?" 

"Nothing."

"So, nothing made you lock yourself in this room? And made you seem upset when we all agreed to go after Darklox?" I asked. 

Silence.

"So I thought." I said. "Let me in, please? We're supposed to be looking after each other, after all." 

For a little bit, there was nothing. I almost started talking again, but then the door cracked open, and a flash of blue appeared in the door way before disappearing. 

I pushed the door open, walking inside, to see Quinn sitting in the corner, her knees pulled into her chest. 

I sat down next to her, my legs criss-crossed. "What's going on?"

She took a breath. "I don't want to go fight him."

"What?" I asked, a little taken aback. "Why not?"

She looked away, and when she spoke, her voice was quiet. "I'm scared."

"We've already dealt with some scary stuff, Quinn-"

"That's just it." She interrupted. "Look how well that's gone for us. Every time, someone gets hurt. And I just...stand there."

"You don't just stand there." I said. 

"But I do!" She exclaimed. "I just stood there when we fought the Shadows in the town. All I did was get knocked out. I didn't do anything in the maze, Shane took out my clone. I lost my mind in the Fear Room. I just sat there and let my mom die..."

"That wasn't your fault." I said. "She was possessed, she made the mistake of jumping Shane first, who just happens to be a little trigger happy. It wasn't your fault."

"That doesn't mean it didn't happen!" She said, and turned to me. I could see tears running down her face. "I don't have a mom anymore because all I did was stand there! I haven't even told Dad yet, he thinks she's still with the survivors! People have gotten hurt because I didn't move!" 

She stopped, taking a breath. "We're going up against someone who just wants us dead. If I freeze at all...someone will die. And it'll be on me."

"It won't be on you." I said. "And even if it would be, that won't happen. I promise."

"How can you make a promise you can't keep?" She asked.

"Because I know for a fact that no matter what happens, I'll stand by you." I said, giving her a smile. 

"Then I'll just be putting you in danger." She said. "I can't fight. I'm terrible with any sort of weapon, and my power's too dangerous!" 

I sat there, a little shocked. I'd never seen Quinn like this. "What do you mean? You saved all of our butts after the Maze. Without that power, we'd all be dead."

She didn't meet my eyes. "You know why you didn't know me that well in the Kingdom?" 

I didn't say anything. 

"Because I asked Mom and Dad to keep me inside as much as possible, where I couldn't hurt anyone else. It's rare that people like me get water powers, all I was going to do was hurt someone."

"Quinn, I know you, you would never hurt anyone."

She took a deep breath. Looked me dead in the eyes. 

"When I was six years old...I drowned someone."

I froze, speechless for a second. "Wha...what?"

She looked away. "I was playing with another kid in this little place next to the ocean. We called it our "secret mermaid grotto". She was fully human, and she thought my power was the coolest thing she'd ever seen. I used to use my power to make little fountains in the water, and sometimes, I could use it to lift the both of us high into the air. Then one day, she asked me if there was a way I could go to the bottom of the ocean."

She wiped a tear from her eye. "I said that I'd never really tried, and she asked me if I could. So I moved the water to make a pathway to the bottom, and we walked down, down, down. She was fascinated by all the seashells and coral, and I was too busy focusing on the water. I'd never controlled that much before, and it wasn't long before I started getting tired."

Quinn sucked in a breath. "I tried to warn her, but she wouldn't listen. And then...the dam just broke. I couldn't stop it. I tried pulling her to the surface, but I wasn't strong enough, and even though I could breathe just fine, she...couldn't."

She buried her face in her arms, and her voice was hard to understand, but I made out what she said. "I watched her die, Jenna. Right there in front of me. And it was my fault." 

I was silent for a little bit, unsure how to respond. Quinn had held that over her head for six years. 

She took a shaky breath. "And so I told my mom and dad not to let me outside. I didn't want any more friends. They didn't want to, but I insisted. They eventually gave in. So now you know. That's why you didn't know me." 

"Quinn...I'm sorry."

"Yeah. I know." She said. 

"But it's different now. You were just a little kid, you didn't know how to control your power. Now you do, so it has to be better, right?" 

"You think I know how to control it?" She asked. "Jenna, until Darklox's first time attacking the Kingdom when I kept Cameron from dying, I hadn't used my power since I killed her." 

"But that's what I mean." I said. "Look. Every time you've used your power since I've properly met you, it's only been to help someone."

She was quiet. 

"Quinn, you were a kid. Kids make mistakes, and yeah, while you definitely can't just ignore that happened, I know you. You'd never intentionally hurt anyone you cared about." I said. "You've saved our butts twice now with your power, and where we're going, we definitely need you."

"But what if I just end up being a burden?" She asked. "I'm telling you, it's better if I don't go."

"And I'm telling you, we need you." I said. "Please, Quinn. We all care about you, and I promise, I won't leave your side once. We can even ask your dad to help you practice and get better." 

"I don't know..." She said. 

"It's not a burden, you know. That power's a gift. And I think Christmas morning's coming up fast, so it might be time for you to pull the wrapping paper off that gift and use it to the best of your ability."

She gave me a look. "That has got to be your weirdest metaphor yet."

"Hey, I'm on the spot here, give me a break." I shrugged, smiling. "So, you in?"

She hesitated. "Just promise me you'll run away from me if something goes horribly wrong with my power."

"If it'll make you feel better." I said, extending my hand. 

She slowly took it. 

"Okay." 

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I FINALLY GOT AROUND TO WRITING QUINN'S CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT THE WAY I WANTED TO THANK THE LORD

(also, sorry this chapter's a little late. school's beginning to kick my butt. :/)