Golden Prophecy

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ENGLISH CLASS was panning out to be her favorite class. And not just because she enjoyed reading. The more they read the class book Burning Brightly, the more she learned about Rabium Bellua. And the closer she got to understanding the real fear Obe had that night.

They were at the chapter where Maia tried to tame the Flayre in order to become powerful enough to destroy all those who were mean to her. This, Andorra already knew about, thanks to Coralia. When it was time for the class discussion about the chapter, Andorra felt well equipped enough to answer the questions.

"So, what can we learn from this chapter?" The Professor paced back and forth by the board. "What do we think is going on?"

"Well, it's obvious that she's power hungry." A student near the front said. "I think she's a fool, to be honest. What kind of fool tries to capture the Flayre?"

"I don't know, she was bullied pretty heavily. It's obvious she wanted to get back at her bullies."

The girl turned to look at Andorra, her mouth twisted. "What do you know about girls being bullied? Or wait, this is too good! Were you bullied in the human realm?" She began to laugh, and a girl beside her started to laugh as well.

"All I'm saying is that, it's not surprising she wanted the power. She didn't have any friends, she was constantly picked on, and I'm sure she was feeling a little depressed. Depression will make you do all sorts of things."

The girls began to laugh harder. "Wow. So it's true, you were bullied. Awe, does the Princess need some friends?" They turned to look at each other, then giggled into their palms. "If I find anyone looking for a friend, I'll let you know!"

"Alright, enough. Enough. Let's get back to the conversation," the professor grumbled. "If the Princess is right, and the need to defeat her bullies was strong enough to have her begging to tame the Flayre, then what do you think that says about greed? Or addiction?"

"Addiction?" Another student shot out. "What addiction?"

"The addiction to power. Greed can make a monster out of a man."

The classroom fell into a hush. Andorra could think of a man that went to this very school that was becoming a monster. She wondered if any of her classmates saw that about Anders, or if they too were becoming monsters.

And it wasn't just greed and power. If Andorra thought about it, she knew another reason why someone in Anlithamy would want the Flayre. "She's also addicted to putting her bullies below her. She wants the status of being in the higher caste. She knew that with the Flayre, she would be put on the same level as Cornomus. And as someone born into the lower caste, well, it makes sense she wanted out."

The Professor watched Andorra for a moment. "Go on," he prodded. "What else was she chasing?"

Andorra thought for a moment. If she was Maia, a girl bullied beyond repair, trying to survive in Anlithamy, what would she want?

"She wants friends. She wants people to like her, to take care of her. And she thinks that if she wins the favor of the Flayre, like Cornomus had, then people would want to be her friend. People would think of her in a favorable way, if she had that power. I mean, why else do people want to be popular, if not for the friends?"

"You're telling me, the creature that destroyed Anlithamy, wanted friends? No, that can't be it. She was evil!" A student in the back said. "She's a horror story. No way she just wanted friends."

"Okay, so she didn't just want friends. She was angry at those who had wronged her. She was angry at the world for the life she was given. But deep down, she was a girl who just wanted to be left alone, who just wanted a best friend, who just wanted to be accepted."