The Gifted Ones

**Chapter 1

WARNING: Abuse is mentioned in the flashback. 

Emilia and her sister, Lexi, were walking in a forest. Surrounding them were tall, leafless trees whose branches were blanketed in snow. The cold wind howled through the seemingly desolate forest and bit at the siblings' skin. The weather was cold and Emilia definitely thought of the possibility of both her and Lexi getting frostbite. However, the cruel weather didn't bother Emilia as much as it should have. Of course, there was always the option to just go home, sit near the fireplace and stay warm, wasn't there? She would avoid that option, though. In fact, she'd much rather freeze to death as the people living in what she used to call her "home", were much crueller. A chill went down her spine as she recalled what they had done not too long ago...

~Flashback~

"You useless piece of shit... Can you do anything right?" Emilia heard her father shout at Lexi, throwing a book at her.

Lexi flinched as the book struck her shoulder. There were pieces of glass scattered on the ground, shining under the light. She had broken her mother's vase after accidentally pushing it, causing it to break into smithereens. Emilia stood nearby, watching the scene unfold.

"I- I'm sorry! I-I'll clean u-up! I can h-help!" Lexi whimpered fearfully.

"No, don't. You'll just make a bigger mess. Useless brat..." He bellowed, his shadow looming over her trembling form.

"What the hell is this?" A voice shouted, followed by the sound of a door slamming shut.

Emilia looked over her shoulder to see her mother, a bottle of beer in hand, stumble into the room barely sober. As the hiccuping woman approached Lexi, fear instantly flashed across her face and she wrung the hem of her shirt in her hands.

"Did you do this...?" The drunk woman slurred, referring to the pieces of shattered glass.

Lexi's grip on her shirt increased, but she was too scared to move. She jerked her head to look at her toes. She didn't even look at either of the two adults - She only kept her gaze to the ground. The woman noticed her reluctance to answer. Anger entering her expression, she slapped Lexi across the face and shoved her to the floor.

"Answer me when I ask you a question... Arrogant brat... You're lucky we even bothered to take you in." She hissed.

At this point, tears began to well up at the corners of Lexi's eyes, threatening to fall at any moment. Emilia felt a pang of guilt and pain, seeing her younger sister abused like that. Everything about this was so wrong, and yet Emilia couldn't do anything to stop it.

"Y-Yes... I d-did.." She croaked.

The woman kicked her causing Lexi to cry out in pain as tears spill down her cheeks. The more Emilia watched, the more the sick feeling grew in her stomach. She hated herself. She hated herself for being so cowardly to step in. Why couldn't she do anything to help? She clenched her fists, tempted to run over there and give them exactly what they deserve. Of course, she couldn't. How was she going to hit two grown adults who could easily block her attacks? Her hands dropped limply to her sides hopelessly. Maybe... She could use her magic... She raised her hand, prepared to cast something, anything, as long as it could stop them. But then...she remembered. If she were to use her magic, it could bring even more harm to her and Lexi. It could start another war. ...There was nothing she could do. She was no different from an onlooker.

"Hmm... I think that's enough. You've learnt your lesson, haven't you? Or do you need a few more kicks?" The man chuckled darkly, leaning in close.

Lexi nodded her head profusely.

"Y-Yes I have!"

He let out a sigh, giving her a final kick to her legs before waving dismissively.

"Now, get out of my sight."

Immediately, Lexi scrambled to her feet as she took unsteady steps to the door of her room. From the way she was walking, Emilia was certain she would fall. Instinctively, Emilia rushed to her side, doing her best to hold her up.

"C'mon, I'll take you to your room."

Locking the door behind her, Emilia sat down on a chair beside the bed her sister had plopped herself on. Taking a deep breath, Emilia cupped her hands. Slowly, a small glow of purple magic began to form, floating above her cupped hands. She softly chuckled as Lexi stared in awe. Careful not to touch the bruises on Lexi's legs, Emilia put her hands above the bruises, palms facing down.

"Curare," Emilia softly muttered.

Just like that, the bruises slowly disappeared. Lexi's legs were no longer covered in bruises. It was as if the whole incident never took place. Soon, the purple glow began to fade away, leaving behind sparks. Although it seemed easy, magic is fairly difficult to use. It takes a lot of concentration, focus and of course - lots of practice. If she left her powers unpracticed, she might forget how to summon it and possibly lose her magical abilities. After thinking to herself for awhile, Emilia decided to suggest something.

"Lexi, what do you think about-"

Lexi was already sound asleep. Smiling, Emilia pulled the sheets over her sister's body. I'll ask her tomorrow, she thought. Every day, the two of them had to live in constant fear. She didn't want to live like that any longer. She couldn't. She was sure her sister thought so too. And so, she decided. Tomorrow morning, they'll leave this wretched place.

~ End of flashback ~

And that, was how they ended up like this - stuck in the middle of a forest, probably going to freeze to death, and with no home to return to. If only their biological parents hadn't died in a car crash, they might have been living a better life. They might still have a home where they could feel safe. They wouldn't have suffered for two years being abused by their adoptive parents. If only Emilia had persuaded their parents not to go to the orphanage... Their parents might still be here, alive and doing well.

"Emmy, where are we going?" Lexi interrupted Emilia's train of thoughts.

Emilia found herself struggling to come up with an answer. The realisation struck her. She hadn't really thought this through, had she? She had no idea where they were going. Questions began to pile up in her head.

Where exactly were they?

Where were they going?

Where would they find a place to live?

What were they going to do now?

"I...I don't know either..." Emilia muttered.

Suddenly, there was a ray of blueish light that seemed to burst through the trees. It emitted a loud sound, similar to a gunshot but softer. 

"What on earth was that all about...?" Emilia murmured to herself.

"...Hello? Is anyone there...?" Lexi called out.

The both of them took a slow step forward. Emilia looked around, trying to search for the one responsible for that sudden ray of light. She knew it wasn't just any ray of light. She sensed magic. Was there possibly...another sorcerer nearby?  Whoever it was, she had a bad feeling about this.

"Lexi, stand behind me." Emilia instructed sternly.

"I know you are there. Come out." Emilia shouted, taking another step cautiously.

"Uh... Hello..." 

A/N: ANNDDD THAT IS DA END OF THIS CHAPTER!  huehuehueh I was originally planning to reveal the person but i figured hey, why not leave a cliffhanger? The flashback...turned out to be way longer than expected...  Anyways, I hope you liked this first chapter! I really tried my best to write this. Please leave a comment and vote if you liked it! c: Feel free to leave critiques too! omg this is posted. at 12 21 AM. Dang it. I wanted to post it on Christmas... ;-; This is... a late... "christmas gift"... Im sorry...  I hope you guys had fun celebrating Christmas though! I hope you got a lot of presents! (presents are da best)

psst... who do you think the person is?!