Eternal: Chapter Five, Part 6

 “All of you are elementals?”

“Not all of us,” he corrected, sitting back in his chair. “Just most of us. It’s why Valetta chose the school. We’re not supposed to use our gifts unless it’s necessary.”

“How can they even tell if you do?” It didn’t seem likely such a rule could be enforced.

“It’s why Margie and the teachers like me.” He smiled proudly, tenting his fingers as his dark eyes glowed. “I’m not strongly gifted myself…I can do enough small stuff to avoid teasing, but my real talent is in what the earth tells me about other people.”

“You can tell when people use their gift?”

Nodding, he elaborated, “Just water and earth, though I don’t know about fire. I never could tell when you did. It also tells me who is an earth elemental.”

“Really? That’s incredible, Mikael.”

“I know, right?” Leaning forward, he said, “Now about why you’re here, A—”

“Leirba,” I said. “It’s a long story, but Drei wants everyone to call me Leirba for the time being.”

“Okay. I’m not one to argue with Drei.”

“Mikael…are you sure you wouldn’t rather talk about your family?”

He sighed heavily and sat forward on his elbows. “There isn’t anything to say. They left. That was their choice. But family isn’t just the people who bring you into the world. Besides, here we have Margie. And Valetta and Mitchell come every now and then to check on me. I have brothers among the other students. I have siblings among those from the camp, even if we’re far apart now. I have family, Abri—Leirba; you included. Mine is unconventional but loyal.”

I didn’t know what to say. There was a rawness of emotion to his words, as though this was a mantra he reminded himself of daily. I wanted to prod, but I stopped myself. That desire was fueled by my own guilt in abandoning my family and never looking back. In not demanding Drei ignore my mom’s wishes and rescue her as well; in causing my father unknown pain by disappearing because I was terrified and mortified. I hadn’t been Mikael; I had been his parents. To some extent, I wanted him to validate the way I felt about my own actions through anger and resentment. Instead, he coped through redirection.

“I know that’s not why you’re here,” he said, bringing me out of my thoughts.

“I’m starting my movement,” I said, reorienting myself from my distraction. I studied the young man before me. “I won’t say what it’s for just now because I’ll share when I have everyone together. What I will tell you now is that this shouldn’t interfere with school, because school will come first. However, I want you on my team for opinions, help, organizational things. The downside, we have two years.” I had a feeling Mikael would agree to help even if I only had 18 months.

“Sounds easy enough,” he joked, looking away as he thought it over. “School won’t be an issue. It sounds like there’s plenty to be done, and I’m guessing there’s going to be a lot of us from camp working together.” I nodded and he smiled joyfully. “Then count me in.”

“You don’t have any concerns or worries?”

“You make it sound like you want it to be hard,” he teased, smiling in much the same fashion as Mitchell did.

“Well, I’ve had a lot of concern over the two-year time span so far,” I said seriously.

“Ab—Leirba, I’m actually beginning to find I enjoy entertaining the possibility of making the impossible possible.” The happiness dripping from his words filled the air to the point of contagiousness.

“I’m glad you’re seizing the challenge.”

“Anything to see some old faces again,” he said, hugging me once more.

I couldn’t have asked for a better reception of my request. I still had two more to recruit, but I hoped both Xenia and Jake were as welcoming of the challenge as Mikael had been.

Mikael and I chatted a short while longer before we parted ways and I was en route back to the city and Drei. Hopefully, Valetta had returned in my absence with Jake’s and Xenia’s locations so I could finally bring everyone together and share the plan. If I was lucky, Caroline and Ian would already have finished the timeline of events and I could start them on commercial story boards. Perhaps even Drei would be done with whatever business to which he was attending; if he was, I’d postpone my recruitments a night to spend some time with him. I was starting to miss him again and we hadn’t been apart that long. Someone—Caroline, more than likely—might suggest something was wrong with me.

And maybe there was. Whatever it was, it had bought all of us time in different ways. That was worth something.