Feared

Thirty-Five: Training

The sun hung above the lake, a gold medallion, the only mark against the perfect azure sky. The warm breeze sent ripples across the water, carrying with it the first taste of summer. If James closed his eyes and relaxed he could almost remember what summer was supposed to feel like, before the memory slipped away, like sand through his fingers. Imaginings and memories were getting confused. He thought he knew the smell of the sea or the touch of warm sand, but then he knew that was only his imagination, the stories he had been told of Kingston coming to life. All he really knew now was this house, the porch where he sat overlooking the lawn and the nightmares of the prison that returned to him when he let his guard down.

"You seem lost in thought".

Alison sat beside him on the porch step, squinting against the light that glistened on the lake.

"Just enjoying the sun," he smiled.

She brushed her hair back from her face, turning towards Annakiya and Daiki as they emerged from the house laughing.

"Oh good I'm not late," Freya said, half-running through the door onto the porch behind them, her blonde ponytail swinging with each step.

"No, not yet," Alison said. She paused chewing her lip for a moment. "I'm really nervous... but excited... you know?"

James nodded, gazing back at the lake.

"Do you think we'll be able for this?" Freya asked after a moment, her voice uneven.

They were all silent for a long moment. James had been trying to ignore the prospect of their training session since Ethan had told him that morning. It had suddenly became apparent to him that maybe he wouldn't be able to do it, to defend himself, to fight. He hadn't been able to protect himself at the prison. And if he couldn't do it now, how could he make them pay for what they had done to him? How could he make them pay for what they had taken from him?

"They said we would be more than able," Daiki muttered, his voice uncertain in the strained silence. "It's in our genes or something..."

"I don't know how that works," Annakiya sighed. "If we can't remember all that stuff from before. The years of training, of fighting... how can they expect us to know what to do?"

Silence descended on them again. James knew they were all feeling as unsure of this as he was. He could see it in how Freya was twisting and untwisting her hair, in how Daiki kept ripping the grass from the lawn and in how Alison kept wringing her hands.

"James was pretty good when we came here first," she offered suddenly in a bright voice. "He knew how to use his alteration without even considering it".

James didn't respond. That had been as easy as breathing. It still was, but fighting was different. Striking another person, trying to hurt, even to kill... He glanced down at his hands. He really didn't think he'd be able to do that.

"I've been practicing too - watch," Alison said, excited and childlike. She squeezed her eyes shut, screwing her face up in concentration and holding her breath. James glanced up just as she faded into nothingness, vanishing into thin air.

He frowned, meeting the puzzled gaze of the others before they all started to applaud. Alison reappeared standing in front of them, before curtsying with a bashful smile.

Alison sat back down beside James, her cheeks tinged pink with a blush. Daiki picked a flower from the hanging basket and sent it floating in her direction. She grinned, snatching it from the air and inhaling its scent.

"Cool," she beamed.

"Well you seem enthusiastic anyway," Ian called from the doorway.

James had hardly glanced over his shoulder at him, when he moved, disappearing and reappearing before them on the lawn. He folded his arms and grinned a smug grin, looking triumphant.