Testing For Hope

Chapter 26 - Stop The Noise

I shot up into the humid air.

The person calling for me was Vanessa. She was trying to shake me awake and now she is holding as if I'll slip away again.

Behind her is Daphne. She looks concerned, but I can also tell that she is trying to conceal it, so I wont say I saw a thing.

I hug back Vanessa, breathing deep, still reeling from the terrible nightmare. When I finally calmed down enough to let go, I took a look around and saw I was in the hallway not to far away from the door of Vanessa's place.

I guess I didn't get that far.

I then start hearing footsteps go up the staircase and one of the only people who know who I truly am emerge from behind the bannister. "Sofia! I knew I would find you here! The knighting ceremony is today isn't it. Are you good to do it without the rest of us there?"

Upon hearing the news, it dawned on me that I had never told Daphne who I was and Vanessa didn't know that I had other plans for this evening.

"Your who?"

"What is he talking about?"

With one last deep breath, I got up, my legs unsteady from the fall to the ground when I collapsed. "I need to go to the knighting ceremony. As their ruler, they need to see me every so often in public, with or without the king. It just so happens that this was the only event that I could not turn over to one of the other members of court."

"Oh My Hubain! You're the Queen?! I know the Queen?!" Daphne looked like she was about to burst out of excitement.

"Yes she is the Queen, you dimwit! Where did you think she was going all the time? The chess club down the street?" Vanessa snapped. She then turned to me. "And you! Why didn't you tell me? Now I have to get all ready to go!"

"No!"

The words slipped past my lips before I could rephrase them into a nicer tone.

The look on her face reminded me too much of my face when I was told the same thing. I couldn't knowingly let her up there. It's much too much for her. It was too much for me. It still kind of is. She belongs here, where she is safe. She can't know what up there is like.

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13 years ago~

"No! No! No! That's final, you aren't going!"

"But mom!" I urged, "The world is so big and Siren City is so small."

"But I can't have you going up there. We don't know what they are like yet."

"But I'll be with you! The whole time, I'll be attached to your hip! I promise!"

"...Fine... Get your stuff together then. We leave tomorrow."

I ran up to my room and started packing. I was almost done when there was a noise coming from my window and the latch opened it wide. A figure came in and walked over to the bed where my suitcase was.

"Where are you going in such a hurry? Are you moving again? You know I'll move too if that's it. It's just these little clothes for you to be moving..."

I turned around and saw Vanessa digging through the clothes waiting to be put in the bag. "Hey, quit it! I need to fold those, but I don't want them ruined."

She let out a puff of disappointment at the missed opportunity. "So where are you going?" I turned back to my closet to grab more clothes.

"You wouldn't believe me."

"Try me!"

I looked back at her and let it out. "I'm going to the surface."

Her reaction was immediate. She looked shocked, but in a good way. Like she was impressed with me.

"Running away from your mom then? There's no way she would let you out of Siren City and both you and I know that."

"Actually, she's the one taking me. Along with Father, of course. They have some business to deal with in a growing kingdom upstairs."

"Good luck then!"

"Why?"

"They're looking for someone."

"Who?"

"Well aren't you inquisitive this morning?" She always loves using big words, "But I honestly don't know. Just some whispers from sailors."