Two weeks.

We've been meeting up at sunrise every other day, the girls who train me differing from day to day. By now I have met all six members of Lilac Royalty - including the missing Flamma Lorem - and I am finally starting to understand the dynamics between them.

Diamond is the leader, although she takes into consideration both Hemlock's and Eagle's thoughts. Based on what I've seen both girls do, my guess is that Eagle is extremely powerful and therefore Diamond wants to stay in her good books, and Hemlock is smart, really smart. The other three members are Gold, who has Metallum Flexuram, and Vulcan and Ember, both of which have Flamma Flexuram. Gold seems to be quite a generous person, staying late when she trains me and making sure I am okay when I can't figure out how to manipulate my powers as she asks me to. Vulcan, on the other hand, is wild, and instead of the calming ambience that surrounds Ember, she is as chaotic as the strong winds out at sea, bashing into anything and everything in her way.

"Ouch!" I yell, grabbing some water and placing it over my scalding skin as I glare at Vulcan who is sitting down on a wooden chair, smirking at me. Most of the girls - all except for Diamond and Hemlock - now wear half-covering masks, revealing the lower part of their face to me. I'm taking that as progress.

"I told you to be aware of your surroundings. The best way to learn is the hard way," I knew what she was doing, the same way I had seen her movements as she aimed a small spark towards my uncovered arm. But in their eyes I'm not good enough yet, I haven't gained enough knowledge to see her power flow out of her, so I have to endure the pain she inflicts, calling it teaching to make sure nobody gets suspicious.

I flick my wrist, a small ball around the size of a marble jumping out of the water, frozen by the time it hits Can's arm, making her yelp. "Same goes for you," I smirk, getting back into a fighting stance.

When we started training I thought more people would stop and watch, would recognize the vigilante group, but as the days go on I've realised that this is the perfect place to train. People down here are always in a hurry, meaning the small number of people who actually take notice of us don't stay for too long. Children are usually the ones who stare the most, but with our clothes and masks I don't think a child could ever recognize any of us.

"I told you not to mess with her..." Gold mutters, "Are you alright?" she asks in concern, walking towards me.

I nod, "Vulcan here is going soft. She acts all tough but the sparks she throws my way are like light flicks!". I can tell by the way Can's mouth turns into a grin that she is about to send another spark, probably hotter and bigger, towards me, so I quickly move my arms in a fluid motion. Water appears before me, freezing into a shield as the fireballs bang against it, sizzling and disappearing in an instant.

Gold gasps, "Vulcan! She is still in training!".

I laugh as Gold tells her off, her hand slapping Vulcan's arm lightly as she continues to pester her, "All right, all right! Geez, you train her then!".

Vulcan storms off, but both of us know that she isn't really angry at us.

The light that usually shines on the large cement wall is disappearing, the shadow of Venice starting to take over as the afternoon begins. We've been training since sunrise, my body now exhausted after the intense training with Vulcan. Usually there are two girls with me at all times, but today, for the first time, I've spent the whole morning alone with the chaotic Flamma Lorem, only interrupted by Gold's irregular visits.

"You've gotten better,".

I nod, a smile on my lips as I let my body relax in the wooden chair Vulcan was sitting in moments before and reply, "You are all great teachers,". All the members of Lilac Royalty - except Hemlock - have personally taught me, showing me their unique ways of manipulating their powers and controlling their ability. I have to admit, I am learning things from them.

"And you're a great student,".

My smile widens, not because her compliment makes me happy, but because I know that is definitely not true. When I was younger, just after my powers showed themselves for the first time, I started training at the Imperium Gym, and I was definitely not a good student. Between my lack of ability to control myself, my constant outbursts and my great gift at losing concentration, learning to manage my powers took me quite a while.

"You don't believe me!" She exclaims, nudging me so that she can sit down next to me, "I'm serious, you are advancing really quickly!"

I tilt my head, looking at her beside me. Under the green hood covering her hair I can just about make out some curly strands of brown hair, her skin pale in comparison. Although I can now see half of their face, it's still hard for me to see what's there, even the colour of their skin is difficult to distinguish.

"I've just never really been good at anything... So it's hard to believe," Not a lie. It's always been hard for me to get better at things, although I seemed to have a knack with regard to history even from a young age, which has made me realise that the best way for me to learn things is to make myself interested, usually by learning the history of the subjects I am trying to learn.

Gold seems to take in my answer, before replying sweetly, "Then get used to it, Fish. Because you are good, and you are learning,".

I nudge her with my shoulder, my voice soft as I thank her.

I know I'm supposed to be infiltrating the group while keeping a professional distance, but they all seem so nice, so easy to talk to and spend time with. I've never had this problem before and it's probably because this is the first time I've had to spend more than a week with vigilantes my age, especially since we seem to share most of our morals.

"Well, I have to get going. Need to go and work at the bar," I say after a few minutes of silence, getting up and turning around, "I'll see you in a few days?".

"Absolutely! I hope you have a nice day!" She says, waving as I walk away through the winding paths that lead to the lift that will take me home.

Ever since we started having civil conversations I started slowly building my life up, and my cover for my economic standing is that I work at a bar, and with the small amount of money that I make I pay for half the rent on an apartment I share with my brother, who has a girlfriend who stays almost every night because of problems she has with her family back home.

My story isn't entirely a lie; I do spend most of my free time in bars and cafes trying to gain knowledge on Lilac Royalty or any other vigilante group to send the information to my superiors. I don't share an apartment with my brother - I don't even have a brother - but I do have a friend who lives in an apartment a couple of doors from mine who has a girlfriend with family issues. So technically, just as I was taught, everything is born from a truth, making it seem more believable and real.

"Ticket?" The guard outside the lift asks, not even looking up from his phone.

I give him the ticket I bought this morning, before coming down.

"Next!"

I walk in, my steps resonating as I move myself to a corner near the large windows to the right, the Dock in the middle of my view.

This mission is taking a lot more effort than the amount I would usually have to put in, but for some reason, it's making me happy, my mind slowly climbing out of the hole I had thrown myself into months back after the death of my loved ones.

But the important thing is, I am finally starting to be happy again.

I am happy.

CHAPTER FIVE WORD COUNT: 1429

Do you guys want to know more about Aithne's past? I'm thinking of doing a flashback chapter about what happened to her parents *DUM DUM DUUUUM*

Also, this chapter is dedicated to SurferJulz for her kind words. Thank you so much! I really appreciate the love you have for this story ❤