I gently reached out to touch his shoulder.
“No,” I whispered. “You look anything but that. Eli, you’re the strongest person we’ve ever met. You’re hurting, and this is the most natural response.”
I didn’t know how we were going to coax him out of his shell, but we were going to do it.
“I don’t have the right to hurt…” he murmured, eyes remaining firmly shut. But suddenly, he sat up, peeking the covers off his legs. “This is ridiculous. I shouldn’t be lazing around like this.”
I was immediately spurred into action, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder and pushing him back down.
“No, you have the right,” I said to him as Andreas pushed him back down while I pulled the covers back on him. “Never think you’re being ridiculous for showing a reaction. Elliot, we know you’re going through a rough patch, and not once have we thought of you as weak, or selfish. We just want to be here for you.”
“It’s a stupid rough patch,” I heard Elliot mutter. In his lap, Scylla stood up on her hind legs and pushed a paw into the centre of his chest. “Doesn’t make any sense.”
I shared a look with Andreas.
“You know, if you want to talk about it, we’re here to listen,” I said softly. “But for now, let’s sneak into the kitchen.”
Elliot narrowed his eyes slightly, staring at us both. “Am I missing something?” Finally, a hint of humour. This was promising!
“Nah.” I gave a loose shrug and rose to my feet. “C’mon, Let’s go.”
Finally… a witty remark…
“C’mon, Scylla,” I have his bondmate a smile, though we knew she’d join us anyway. “There’s a lot of really good desserts. If we ask the kitchen staff, they’ll be sure to feed us~”
Scylla and I worked to practically pull Elliot to the door. “Almost there,” I teased, trying to lighten the mood. “You can do it.”
He swatted at my arm.
“You’re doing great, sweetie~” I chimed in with a laugh. “A few more steps to take!”
“A few more words from you and I’m going back to bed,” he retorted, and although his tone was mostly flat, I was immensely relieved to hear the familiar, playful note in his voice.
“Sorry, Eli~” I laughed, shutting the door behind us. “What do you suppose we eat? I’m definitely going for their cream buns and red velvet cake and those chocolate balls. Yum…”
“Anything with tons of sugar,” Elliot and I said at the same time. I burst out laughing, whine a faint smile tugged at his lips.
“We’re off to get fat tonight!” I cheered just as Copper and Hope joined us, nuzzling with Scylla. “Who’s ready for some sugar party?”
“You’re ridiculous,” Elliot told him with a tiny shake of his head. In response, I wagged a finger at him. “You say that now, but will you still be saying it when we’re in the kitchens pigging out on cream puffs?”
“You love us anyway~” I threw an arm around him. “Ah, my mouth is watering just by thinking of it.”
Soon enough, we’d arrived at the back entrance to the kitchens like small, orphaned beggar children, begging for sweets and entrance.
“I feel like I’m in Oliver Twist,” I laughed, running a hand through my hair.
“Ooh, I loved that story,” I laughed right as a chef popped his head out. “Hi! We want some desserts.”
He blinked at us before shrugging.
“Well, can’t say no,” he said. “You’re lucky we make extras.”
“Kaden!” I swatted him lightly, patronizingly, turning to the chef. “I’m sorry for my friend’s incredible rudeness.”
“Hey!” I complained. “You’re being rude now!”
The chef laughed, shaking his head and ushering us in.
“Now, you kids are expected to leave in an hour,” he told us before he left us to finish his work.
Bright-eyed, we practically attacked the sweets, feeling like little children who’d just been offered a surprise.
“Damn it, I could eat these melon buns for eternity and never eat tired!” I sighed dreamily, offering Hope a bite.
The tiniest chuckle escaped from Elliot, an action that made my heart soar.
“Have you guys seen any caramels?”
[TIME SKIP - Elle’s POV, three days later]
Ever since my…. disagreement with Colton, one of the Water Defence teachers had been helping me outside of class, training me to a minor degree. The problem, he said, and also a benefit of my powers was that they were directly linked to my emotions, unlike those of most students. It was an issue because it meant that they had an unpredictable nature, much less easily controlled than he’d first expected. It was a benefit because it meant that they were stronger than average. Apparently, I had a hell of a lot of power, but little to no way to safely manipulate it.
Now, I was standing in his classroom, which was empty save for him. In the air beyond my outstretched hands was a swirling ball of water, wobbly but relatively stable.
The teacher crossed his arms, observing Elliot quietly as he tried to stabilize the ball of water he created.
"I think what you need to do is focus on one thing," he finally said, furrowing his eyebrows. "It looks like aside from your powers being controlled by your emotions, your ability to concentrate greatly influences control. When you manipulate water, try blocking out everything else and focus on what you're trying to do."
I nodded and shut my eyes for a moment, blocking everything out until all I could focus on was water. Not just in front of me, but all around me, in the pipes, the plumbing, the glass of water on the teacher’s desk. And when I opened my eyes, I didn’t concentrate on what I could see in front of me. I focused on the feeling—I could sense the water, even when I couldn’t see it. Like a sixth sense. So I manipulated that sixth sense, and slowly, the blob formed a perfect sphere.
The teacher nodded, pleased with the outcome.
"Now I want you to maintain that sphere for at least five minutes," he instructed. "While I… distract you. I'll be tossing items at you, you'll dodge all the while keeping up that shape."
Shit.
But I nodded, purging my head of any thoughts of Colton things that could distract and hurt me. Luckily, Scylla had smuggled me painkilling balm for the wounds on my back, which were healing fairly quickly.
Again, I closed my eyes, memorizing the aura of the water.
The teacher raised his hands, droplets of water rising around him. He looked at Elliot before nodding.
“All right, start,” he raised a finger and bent it, which caused one droplet of water to fly towards Elliot, hardening until it was a block of ice.
Before I knew what was happening, the water had shot out of a glass on the desk and formed a mini shield, catching the ice pellet and slinging it back. The sphere wobbled, but kept its shape.
The teacher brought the ice in his control, folding his hand tightly as other droplets of water turned to ice, falling over Elliot at medium speed.
