The Aldean Chronicles: Spotlight (Part 2)

I wake up on a hard sofa. I'm not sure where I am.

I groan and a guard in the official royal uniform nods. He leaves through the doors.

A second later, Grey walks in.

He sighs in relief when he sees me. "I'm so glad you're alright. I didn't know when you'd wake up."

"Where am I?" I squint my eyes.

"You're in my mum's office." He helps me sit up and sits beside me.

"Why am I in Lilian's office?"

"Because," aunt Freya walks in through the door. "It's time for your trial."

"My what?"

My aunt sits behind Lilian's desk. "Your trial. For attempted murder." She clarifies.

Grey glares at her. "She's joking."

Aunt Freya laughs. "Oh, am I?"

Seb walks in with Lilian. They don't look happy.

"She is." Seb glares at his sister. "Of course you're not on trial for attempted murder."

It all comes rushing back to me. At first, all I can remember is fire. Then an image of Collette's frightened face.

"Collette." I whimper. "Is she alright?"

Aunt Freya rolls her eyes. "It's all fine and good if you want to burn someone, Cassandra. But never cry about it."

"Did I hurt her?"

"No, you didn't." Seb stands beside the sofa I'm sitting on.

"Just emotionally. Luckily, Katya learned defence magic from Dillon this summer and was able to pull her out. It wasn't easy though. Your flames were..." She laughs. "Really powerful."

"I almost killed someone," I whisper.

"Yes. And you're lucky Katya and Greyson were there. There weren't many witnesses and the situation has been handled." She sighs in relief.

"Handled?" I look up in anger. "I almost killed someone."

Aunt Freya abandons the desk and walks up to me. "Yes, but..." She sighs dramatically. "Are you even a Harrington if you haven't tried to burn someone?" She places her warm hands on my cheek and rubs a bruise. "Our physician sent a salve. This should clear in a few days. Till then, put on extra concealer in the morning."

I shake my head and she loses her grip on my face.

She's not offended by that. She just hums and walks to the door.

Aunt Freya clears her throat. "I have only a minute before the students begin waking and realize we're here. Come, Sebastian. We have a big day ahead."

Seb gives me a solemn nod and follows after his sister.

"Oh, and Cassandra." Aunt Freya pauses at the door. "Congratulations on getting into the Blue Rose. You've done the family well."

I feel like vomiting.

A minute after they leave, I run out of Lilian's office.

I race down the stairs, out of the building and bump into Tristan at the door.

"Are you alright?" He hugs me.

I start crying again and push him off. "Can you leave me alone?" I stalk off.

"What's the problem?" He asks.

I turn back. "What's the problem?" Tears are streaming down my face. "I don't even know where to start."

"What do you want me to do?"

I scoff. "I want you to stay away from me."

I don't run this time, and he doesn't chase me this time.

I go back to my room and sneak into the shower before Sara wakes up.

I don't put my shoes or clothes in the laundry basket. I throw them in a white bag and into the trash.

I snuggle under my blanket and try to fall asleep. I take deep, calming breaths and soon drift into a small sleep.

***

I wake up at 10.

The Blue Rose initiation party starts at noon. I don't go.

"Are you sure?" Sara asks when she's done getting ready. "It'll be fun."

"I'm okay." I drag the blanket closer to my chin and pay attention to the soft music on my headphones.

Later that evening, Kat lets herself into my room.

"I couldn't reach your phone." She says.

"I'm not taking anyone's calls or texts right now."

She observes me on my bed. "The weekend's almost over. How will you survive school on Monday?" She sits in my desk chair.

"I can't go back. Not after what I did."

"I get it." She sighs. "After the incident in my second year, I thought I could never face anyone again."

I sit up slightly. "Why did you do it? You told your dad she said something you don't like. What did she say?"

Kat shakes her head. "Does it matter? At a point, you stop listening and all you can hear is the fire."

"I get that." I sigh. "Seb and your mom said Collete's fine. Is she really?"

Kat nods. "A slight burn on her palms when she was..." She stops herself.

"Cowering from me?" I guess somberly.

"The physician sent her a salve as well. She'll be well in a few days."

"She'll never forgive me for what I did."

"No, she will not." Kat's smile is sad. "She'll be even more of a raging abolitionist now." She sees my confused frown and laughs. "You didn't think her dislike for you was personal, did you? No, she hates all of us."

"Why shouldn't she? I broke the law, burned her, then got the Queen to silence her. I hate me as well."

Kat straightens up in her seat. "No use hating yourself, is there? She and Miss Dormir's silence has been bought. You're free of the consequences of your actions."

"That's not a good thing."

She gives me a serious look. "There's no use punishing yourself. Trust me." She gets up. "How about this? Grey has leftover alcohol and is throwing another party tonight. You should come."

I wince. "I don't know?"

She smiles. "It'll be a bigger rager than Friday night."

"I'll think about it."

She smiles then walks out of my room, leaving me with my guilt and thoughts.

***

Monday morning starts terribly. My first class is Fire 201 and I look for ways to get out of participating.

My teacher catches on to this and stands beside my desk. "Problems?" Her fairy-like voice asks.

I shake my head. "No, I'm just...looking at it."

She urges me on. "Well, try it?"

It's not a hard lesson, I just have to create a perfect ball of fire in my hand. I open my palms and the flames come. But so does the noise.

As the flame gets stronger, the whooshing becomes deafening.

I close my palms and give her a false smile. "Perfect."

She returns my smile and moves on to the next student. "Harst," Derek calls from my right. "I didn't see you at the Blue Rose party yesterday."

I shudder. "I didn't feel like going."

"You didn't feel like going?" He asks. "You really don't care that you got in, do you?"

My heart starts beating. "It doesn't matter."

He scoffs and laughs. "Not to a Harrington."

I squeeze my palms and the whooshing and crackling sound comes back.

We still have fifteen minutes of class, I don't care. I pack up my things and head for the door.

"I have an emergency," I say to my teacher and walk out.

I rush to the bathroom, place my bag on the counter and try to catch my breath. I splash some water on my face and the sounds cease.

When I look up, I see liquid makeup on my face. I wipe my cheeks with a tissue and my scar is revealed.

I close my eyes, breathe in and relax.

No point in punishing yourself.

I wash my face, reapply my makeup then head to my next class.

"Hey." Michelle is smiling. "I haven't had a chance to congratulate you yet."

"Oh, thanks."

She tackles me in a hug. "I'm so proud of you."

I fight the tight feeling in my chest. "Thanks."

Luckily, our teacher comes in and I can cut the conversation short.

At lunch, I pick as much food as I can and spend the entire hour stuffing my face.

My friends carry on with their conversation. "So what's it like?" Ryan asks Sara. "I just can't imagine being a member."

"And will you be having a Fundraiser this year?" Paisley asks.

"Collete said probably not. It's best not to with all the Rypper stuff going on." Sara replies.

They all nod. "Do you talk to Collete a lot? And the other members?" Paisley asks.

"Yeah. They're actually not that bad. They just value strength and all that."

Axel turns to me. "What about you, Cass? Are you excited?"

I put my fries aside and shrug. "I guess."

"It's the greatest thing ever. How are you not excited?" He laughs.

"Because it doesn't matter," I snap. "It doesn't matter if you're in or not, and it's stupid to obsess over it."

They're all silent.

Unsurprisingly, Sara speaks up first. "It does to people who aren't princesses. And people who don't spend their summer conversing with senior politicians."

I roll my eyes. "Really?"

"Not everyone has a sure future, Cassandra. Your best case scenario is being Monarch, worst case scenario..." She pretends to think. "Actually you don't have one, you'll still be running the government."

I groan. "You sound so much like Collete right now."

"Thanks." Sara smiles. "Also, she has mentioned you before..."

Michelle shakes her head. "Sara..."

The former cuts her off. "She wanted to know how we're friends. She said we're very different people."

I massage my neck. "Really?"

"Yes. And you know what, I agree with her." Sara laughs. "I swear, you don't listen to yourself when you talk. It's like you're not even aware of how privileged you are."

"You don't know my life, Sara."

"I do. Because everywhere I look, someone is forcing it down my throat." She massages her forehead. "It is so exhausting being your friend. And I don't feel obligated to do it anymore."

The whole table is silent.

"You think my life is a happy fairytale?" I scoff. "It's not."

Her smile is forced. "And you're going to bring up earth again, aren't you? Maybe back home, you were a nobody. But don't think that's what's happening here."

I gather my things, stand up and look down at her. "Go fuck yourself, Sara," I say in a soft voice.

She says nothing and goes back to her lunch.

I walk quietly and calmly out of the cafeteria door and to my next class. Which is, unfortunately, Potions with Sara.

She walks in a few minutes early but doesn't sit beside me.

I do my best to ignore her for the rest of the class.

As soon as school is over, I march to Lilian's office.

Cyan smiles when she sees me. "Hey, Cassandra. How are you?"

"Good, is she in?"

Cyan nods. "She's with someone right now. What do you need help with? Maybe I can sort it out for you."

"I want a new roommate."

Cyan nods slowly. "Okay. If you and the girl are willing, you can switch."

I sigh in relief. "Trust me. She's willing."

"I'll print the forms for you." She types away at her keyboard and the mechanical sound of a printer fills the room.

When it's done, she hands it to me and smiles. "Two documents. You just need to find someone in your year to switch with. If you can't, we'll check our forms for outstanding applications."

"Thanks, Cyan," I say as Lilian's door opens. "I'll leave you now."

I turn to leave but am stopped by a familiar voice. "Princess Cassandra." I look back and see Erica Hames' smiling face. "I didn't think I'd see you."

"Governor Hames." I'm surprised. "What are you doing here?"

She moves from the doorframe and I see him. It's only been a few months, but he looks different.

His brown hair isn't gelled like it was at the dinner party, it's fluffy and wild now. His eyes look a darker shade of brown and his cheekbones are sharper than ever.

"Arin," I breathe out his name.

"Hey, princess." He smiles weakly. "Guess who the new Brimstone student is."