The Realm Protectors - Chapter 5: Chapter 5

My heart races in my chest as we all stare at Professor Grantwood. Us? I ask myself. The first full team of Realm Protectors in over five hundred years? I look at the eight of us in a crescent in front of the desk and think about the things I've learned about them from hiding around the shadows of campus. An Otherborn with a slapstick sense of comedy, a boy who spends too much time in the past, a moon witch, a moody athlete, a giddy and over-optimistic ball of sunshine, a girl with a temper hotter than the sun, a surfer boy who spends more time on the water than he does reading, and me. A girl who's a little too good at blending into the shadows. And we're supposed to be the strongest elementals of our generation?
"Us?" I ask. My voice comes out as a squeak. The athlete girl – Avani, I remind myself – stares at me with a strange look in her eye. Almost pity. I want a shadow to sink into.
"I know it seems preposterous, but think about it!" Professor Grantwood leans across the desk and motions to our necklaces. "Just look at your first elements. Yours are the biggest Asavanra's ever seen!" I pull out the silver chain and the ball of shadows inside the marble. It's true that our elements are quite large. I look around at everyone else's necklaces, all of them in lockets of varying sizes, but there's no denying the fact that Grantwood is right: our elements are all bigger than the ones I saw on other people this afternoon.
"And if that isn't enough to convince you, then just think about the way you all came into the Realm!" Grantwood's face is flushed under the lights, stressing her point. "Avani, Ciana, both of you did the same thing this morning that Carter and Faris did when they were first sects! You were so powerful that you all passed out upon entry to the Realm. And you four Elenatives nearly died as infants coming out of the womb because of it!"
The eight of us look around at each other in astonishment. Avani looks at Professor Grantwood like she's grown a second head. Ciana's somehow paler than me, and the rest of them look somewhere in between.
"I know it sounds crazy." She pauses. "And there's no real way to prove it to you all until you take over as High Arches someday and your tattoos begin to reveal themselves. But–"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Surfer boy cuts in. "High Arches? Who says we even want to be High Arches?"
"Nile," The red-head scolds softly, her eyes never leaving Grantwood.
"The fact that you dislike the position means that you're probably a good fit for it!" Grantwood assures him. "There's no rush to take over. All eight of us High Arches have to agree to step down, and we aren't planning on doing that for a while yet. You'll figure out what position you're meant to take, and you'll all be trained under your respective Arch. You will be prepared to step in by the time you'll have to."
"What if we're not supposed to be ?" I ask under my breath. Grantwood's face softens and she sighs, leaning back in the chair.
"I know that you're all fit to lead. I've seen how each one of you acts. Some of you need some work in certain areas, whether it be confidence or humility, seriousness or letting loose, but you'll all get there together." Grantwood looks through the windows to the city beyond the campus. "But if you eight had the power to protect this beautiful place, wouldn't you want to team up and use it?"
The eight of us glance at each other, starting to understand where Grantwood is coming from. We clearly have the power, maybe we should use it.
"I'm in." The red-head says firmly. Grantwood spins around and smiles at her with pride. "If our home is in danger, then I'll help protect it."
"Me too," Surfer boy – Nile – says. "En and I stick together."
"I'm in too," Ciana pipes in.
"Me three,"
"I shall partake as well."
"Sure,"
"No harm in at least learning to protect the Realm."
The others pipe in with their replies and Grantwood beams. They all turn to me and my heart pounds. I swallow and clear my throat before saying,
"I'll try,"
Grantwood sighs in relief. "Thank you. You won't regret this decision, I promise. I'll organize some meetings between you eight and the other High Arches for sometime this weekend or next, after you've had time to settle in and get started with classes. For now, you're dismissed. And remember that this stays between us for now."
We all get up and head for the elevator. Ciana pushes the button and we all get on when the doors open.
"Try to spend some time together and get to know each other!" Grantwood calls as the doors shut. Nile presses the button for the lobby and begins our descent.
"Um, well, I'm Ciana." Ciana says in that optimistic, ice-breaker way of hers. "And this is Avani. We're first sects." Avani tilts her head in greeting. Standing in the elevator, I finally realize how tall she is. She's nearly taller than Nile, who almost looks uncomfortable at that fact as he looks at her.
"I'm Enya. Fourth sect." The red-head replies. "And this is my boyfriend Nile, also a fourth sect."
"Sup," Nile lifts his hand in a wave.
"I am Lyra, second sect" Moon-witch girl says, the fluorescent lights shining harshly on her opalescent hair. It makes her skin look even darker than it really is.
"I'm Carter," The boy next to Lyra waves. "I'm a third sect."
"Faris," The pale blonde boy says. "Third sect." They all turn to me and I gulp.
"I-I'm Nikolina. First sect." I look at Avani, who's face looks a little less stern now that I've had the time to watch her a little more. "My friends call me Nik." At least, that's what they'd call me if I had any friends.
"Great," Enya nods. "Now we all know a little about each other." The elevator dings and we all step out into the lobby. Faris groans as we step outside, staring longingly at the stream of students coming out of a building to the far left.
"And we missed dinner," He whines.
"We could go grab something on the Avenue." Nile shrugs.
"We could go to the diner," Carter offers. "They have great milkshakes and chicken strips."
"I would die for chicken strips." Ciana smiles, holding her stomach. "But uh... Avani and I don't have any money."
"That's alright. Until you get a job set up here in the Realm, you get a school card that goes on a tab that you pay off later." Enya explains. "But for tonight, we'll buy for you. Your cards will get delivered later, along with your schedules."
"Free food?" Avani laughs. "Fine by me."
"Follow me," Carter motions us forward as he starts walking. As we walk along the stone path to the campus gates, Avani slides up next to me.
"Hey,"
"Oh, uh... hi?" I reply.
"You seem chill." She says. "I can't handle Ciana's positivity that long."
I look at where Ciana walks ahead of us, listening closely to whatever the moon witch – Lyra – is saying.
"She seems nice," I comment. Avani sighs.
"Sunshine children always are. I'm just... not used to people being that welcoming."
"Yeah, me neither." I breathe.
Avani gives me a funny look. "But, you look like them?"
I nod. "Yeah, but I'm a darkness elemental. Spooky. Scary. Unlucky. Whatever you want to call it. People get that vibe from us. People don't like that vibe."
Avani nods and looks back at Ciana. "In the human world – or... the Otherworld, as you call it – people who look like me are kinda treated the same way."
I look at her, watching the way the streetlamps glint off her green eyes. Bright bottle green, like the highest leaves of a tree.
"It's nice to have someone who understands." I sigh.
"Yeah," She smiles. "Yeah it is."
The stars are bright overhead as we come up on a bright blue building with a neon 'open' sign in the window. The sign swinging above the door labels it as Rockin' Rosie's. Music can be heard from outside, some kind of jazzy beat that almost makes me want to dance. Carter smiles as he holds the door open for us, revealing the brightest place I've ever seen. There's not a shadow in sight, despite the fact that it's nearing eight o'clock.
"Hiya dollies and hipsters!" A sweet lady in a pink dress swings over, heels clicking on the black and white checkered floor. "How can I help you?" A brightly colored box in the corner plays music while waitresses and patrons young and old dance around the floor. The smell of fries and chicken carries from the kitchen, making my mouth water.
"A booth for eight, please," Enya smiles.
"Of course, follow me!" The waitress smiles, grabbing a handful of menus and spinning away. We follow her to a large rounded booth in the corner of the diner, complete with a view of the whole place. "Here you are, what can I getcha started with?
"A round of shakes, if you please," Carter replies.
"Righto," The waitress winks. "I'll be back in a jiffy. Jukebox's open if you wanna pick a nifty new song." She swings back into the kitchen, leaving us to settle into the bright blue cushions.
"This place is awesome!" Ciana laughs. "I've always wanted to go to a fifties diner!"
"Oh, this isn't even as good as a real fifties diner." Carter chuckles. "But it's the closest thing we've got in the present."
"You've been to the fifties?" Avani asks, surprised.
"'Course I have. I'm a time elemental after all." Carter straightens his collar underneath his little sweater vest. Ciana stares in awe. "I'll take you guys to a real diner sometime, just for fun." Ciana squeals and laughs as she stares at the dancers starting to move off the floor.
"Can I go pick a new song?" She asks. Enya shrugs.
"Here," She hands Ciana an orange card. "Pick a good one." Ciana skips off to the music box on the wall – a jukebox, I remind myself – and slides the card in. She bites her lip while she scans the different buttons on the machine before making a noise and pressing one. Tweedle-lee-dee-dees fill the diner as a new song comes on and she slides back into the booth next to Faris. Enya and Nile snuggle up in the corner, Carter on their left with Lyra next to him, then Avani and me.
"Here you are!" The waitress dances back in with a tray full of tall glasses. She sets them down in front of us, condensation dripping on the table. "Anything else for ya?"
"Chicken strips and fries all around," Enya says.
"You got it, doll!" The waitress smirks as she swings back into the kitchen. Ciana slides the glass towards her and takes a long sip through the straw. She rolls her eyes and shudders.
"So good!" She laughs. We all grab the glasses and take a sip of the white concoction. The taste of sweet vanilla fills my mouth and I smile.
"My grandmother used to make a treat like this." I tell Avani. "She called it a malt."
"Malts and shakes are practically the same thing." Carter pipes in. "Depends on the time period." He takes a big sip straight from the glass, giving himself a whipped cream mustache. I laugh and snort milkshake up my nose, making everyone laugh at me. I blush at first, shrinking into the cushions before I see Avani smiling at me – not laughing at me, but inviting me to laugh with them. I smile and start laughing, not being able to remember the last time I spent a night having this much fun.