In Her Dark Eyes

Chapter 3

As soon as the lesson ended, I grabbed my books and rushed out the class, cheeks still aflame from earlier, stomach a nervous wreck. It wasn't even being screamed at by Professor Blazeheart that was prompting my anxiety, although it did create a mortifying pit within me, but rather the threats afterwards. . The threats about death and being incapable. All my fears coming to life in Professor Blazeheart's assertive words.

"Sienna, I am so sorry." Dianna started, trying to grab me by the shoulder. "You were just replying to me, I was the one talking."

"It's fine." I lied, shaking her hand off of me and increasing my pace.

"Sienna please, I said I was sorry. Don't be mad." Dianna begged desperately, running after me.

"I'm not mad." I told her turning to face her. "I'm just in a rush. I need to be somewhere."

"Okay..." she said softly. "I'll see you later?"

"Yeah..." I told her, turning away from her and running down the hall.

I had dreamt of being a healer since my first interaction with one. Healers were heroes, risking their lives to save others, regardless of power status. It seemed like the most noble job one could have. A job lacking any prejudice l, where life was more important than differences.

I had first met a healer when I was still learning the ways of the world. How people of lower Industria were treated as worthless and how my sister was viewed as lesser by all of society including my parents. Then one day Azura and I were playing outside, children being children, too absorbed in our imagination to notice any external differences between us. She was chasing me, playing some form of tag where she was an evil monster out to get me. Squealing, I had shimmied up the large oak tree in our garden in an attempt to escape her. Azura has told me to come down, but looking down, the tree had seemed a lot taller to me than it had been when I was climbing up. I had started to cry, the ground appearing miles and miles away. Azura, being the protective sister she always had been, started to climb up the tree to fetch me. She had nearly reached me. Had nearly touched my hand, ready to lead me down. My older sister, my hero coming to save me. At that moment in time I couldn't imagine anyone deprecating Azura. She was my older sister, she was the most amazing person in the world.

Unfortunately, she was larger than I was and when she had finally reached the branch just below mine, with a sickening groan, it snapped and she fell to the ground. Her scream seemed to have echo for hours, although it had only been seconds before she had hit the ground.

My heart had stopped, the image of Azura lying so lifelessly on the floor, had filled me with a fear so consuming that for a moment I had forgotten how to breathe. Her lanky legs, rested on the floor at an unnatural angle, velvety blood coating the grass by her head. Suddenly the tree's height was not a problem. Nothing was more terrifying to me than losing my sister. I had raced down the tree with agility, only the greatest fear could provide and had run to Azura, sobbing and screaming for her to wake up. She just lay there, skin pale, eyes shut.

When she still wouldn't wake up I had run inside to my parents. My father's face drained of all colour and my mother had run outside with more desperation than I had ever seen drawn onto her face. That is how I knew they loved her. Despite their reserved way of showing it, despite their disappointment at Azura's lack of power, my parents loved her more than she would ever know. If only they would show her every once in a while.

Soon after a healer had arrived. She had been young, probably just out of school, but she held a wisdom that I had only seen in the elderly. I had been rushed away and told to wait inside. Once inside, I had just sat there on my bed, unable to move, speak, breathe. It had been my fault. I had climbed up the tree and I had forced Azura to fetch me. If Azura wasn't okay... I wasn't sure what I would have done After an hour or two, my parents had come into my room and told me that Azura was going to be okay. The healer had saved her. Although I never saw the healer again, it was in that moment that I knew that I wanted to be a healer. But now that seemed impossible.