[OLD] Shimmer (Counterpart to Tides)

Chapter One

I hurried down the stairs, just in time to see my one and only parent coming into the room. The door slammed shut from the slight breeze blowing outside. My father started mumbling something about "crazy residents" and "needing more and more food every day", before grabbing some coffee and going into the cupboards for food.

Then, he realized I there, standing awkwardly at the bottom of the stairs.

"Alaina, can you get some bread from the market please? I need to rest, and we don't have any more," he asked, the annoyed demeanor suddenly gone.

I nodded my head and grabbed some spare change on the counter. "Sure, anything else you want me to get?"

Dad paused for a moment, thinking. "No, that's all, but if you find something you like..."

I finished the sentence for him. "I can go and buy it. I know, Dad, I know," I said, blowing him a kiss as I turned towards the door.

"Stay safe!" he called after me.

"I will!" I shouted back and stepped outside, shutting the door behind me. I blinked quickly a few times to get the bright sun out of my eyes. The sky was a clear blue, the sun was shining, in other words, it was a perfect day. I heard music in my head, and started humming. It had always been a habit of mine: I'd hear music and I'd start humming or singing along with words I created on the spot. Everyone seemed to think that it was amazing, but hey, I just sang what I heard.

I was so lost in my music that I didn't see the person walking towards me, until it was too late. I bumped into someone and fell down. Just as I was about to mutter a "sorry", I looked up to see Veronica, our very own Little Miss Popular. (Note the sarcasm.) Veronica looked down at me, faking surprise. "Well, if it isn't the innkeeper's precious daughter. What a nice surprise!" she said, with a smile. Everything about the girl was fake—her smile, for starters. It didn't stop there, though, she was completely and utterly fake from her dyed blonde hair, to the smug little expression she always wore on her "perfect" face.

I glared at the girl, not even bothering to mask my disdain of her. I opened my mouth so say some very unkind things when I heard shouting. I stood up quickly and turned around. Two teenaged elementals were dashing through the busy market, using their elements on each other, and a man was yelling at them, trying to catch up. Fire shot out from the raven haired boy's hands, almost scorching his friend. At the last second possible, however, his blonde friend turned around and a flood of water shot back at the ignus. The fire went out in a rush of steam, and when the water cleared, the ignus boy was drenched—and so was the market. The ignus's face was the epitome of shock. His friend burst out laughing, his pale face turning red, and the ignus joined in. Neither of them seemed to care about the commotion they were causing. The third elemental finally caught up, and the two boys leaped out of the way, right in front of Veronica and me. Everything seemed to go in slow motion as, for a brief second, all three stared at Veronica, who was looking at them flirtatiously. The young man with the water coming out of his hands rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath. Taking advantage of the distraction, I got out of there as fast as my legs would carry me. I didn't want to be involved in that kind of craziness.

When I finally reached the center of the market, I made a beeline to the backer's place. I opened the door and closed my eyes for a moment, letting myself calm down and enjoying the smell of fresh bread. The baker's was one of my favorite places in the entire market. The baker, who was Mr. Johnson, was a kind man, and since I was one of his best customers, he always gave me a good deal.

Mr. Johnson smiled at me as I walked in. "Nice to see you here, Alaina!" he said cheerfully as he finished a transaction with a young woman, who smiled at me as she walked out the door.

"It's nice to see you too, Mr. Johnson," I replied with just as much enthusiasm.

"So, what will you be having today?" he asked as the lady walked out the door.

"Just bread," I replied. "We ran out."

"The usual?" Mr. Johnson asked, smiling knowingly. I had come here so many times that Mr. Johnson knew exactly what I was looking for.

"Yes please."

After the bread was prepared, I said goodbye to Mr. Johnson and headed back outside.

Three tall horses rode up: one a deep brown with a black mane, another a pure white horse the color of fresh snow, and the third a bluish-blackish color that looked almost like the sky at midnight. I looked at their riders for a moment, then looked back at the road. Wait. They seemed kind of familiar...

I whipped my head back up, and had to fight back the urge to bang my head on the nearest wall. Of course, with my luck, they were the same three elementals from earlier. The man was riding the brown horse, the ignis was riding the white one, and the aqua was riding the blue-black one. With the sun behind them, they looked almost as if they had come out of a storybook. I saw the aqua smirk out of the corner of my eye, and a split second later, a short blast of water shot at the ignus and hit his horse's nose. The horse neighed in outrage, reared, and knocked its rider to the ground.

A/N: hi everyone!!! hope you all liked this chapter... sorry it's a little short... but... the winner of the cover contest will be announced with the next update!!! YAY!!! While y'all are waiting, you can go and read Tides by @forever_writing_26... she's pretty amazing... and it's also the counterpart to this book... :D

-Sophie :D