Orange Shadow Magic: Heir to The Throne. Book 2

Chapter 4: A Blow of Old Memories

A few days earlier..........

Fifteen-year-old Amber Elizabeth Rosen tossed and turned underneath her lacy blankets as a memory came over her absent memory, a memory she hadn't wanted to reveal to herself for a very, very long time..........

Amber Elizabeth Rosen and her younger twin brother, Aaron Rosen Williams crept down the stairs of their family's grand estate and peered over the railing of the polished handlebars towards their father. Although their appearances were alike, the twins were more different than at first thought possible. Both of the twins had slightly curled strawberry-blonde hair and bright green eyes. They even had the same lightly tanned skin, which was probably from the sunlight they basked in. However, that was where their similarities stopped. They were similar, but they couldn't be more different. 

Amber was a practical girl. She always seemed to go above and beyond in not just her studies, but in her extracurricular activities as well. Amber always loved to please her teachers, and her favorite art of all was fashion. She loved to critique her brother on just how to style his hair, or which tie he should wear with his outfits. Amber was always loved by her parents, no matter how hard she tried at something, or even if she failed an assignment, (Amber failing a test? How absurd!). After school, Amber worked at the local hospital for an hour, then she worked on her homework, ate dinner, and worked on her newest fashion idea. On the weekends, she usually entered public competitions, and Amber constantly tried to overwork herself, especially in her later years. Although Amber constantly tried to help her brother succeed, however, despite her efforts, he often failed. Aaron loved to sleep through his alarm clock and had difficulty finishing his homework on time for class. Aaron had an awesome personality, and Amber knew it, but he was usually the quietest in his class and had zero friends, which Amber knew he did on purpose. Overall, Aaron was actually a pretty good secret-keeper, but he had a huge secret, which was the reason why he couldn't do normal kid things as she could. Aaron's touch meant death to a lot of people, and he had a lot of magical powers, which meant he was a Sphinx. Sphinxes were outlawed on the planet of Coranne, which was where they lived. To keep his powers hidden, Aaron had to distance himself from everyone he loved, including Amber, to keep them safe. After school, Aaron did his homework, then practiced his powers in their lengthy backyard, so as to keep them under control. He usually came in so tired that he fell asleep at the dinner table. After dinner, the twins typically liked to do stuff together in Amber's room, where Aaron could help Amber with her new runway ideas, and Amber could help Aaron with his homework. But, usually, he was asleep.

Anyway, as they stared down together at their parents, the twins heard quietly ushered words spoken between the bickering adults.

"Aaron must be sent away! You know he's not just a danger to himself, but he's also a danger to Amber, and to us, and to everyone we know! One mistake, and someone could die! You've seen what he can do! Nobody should get hurt because of him!" The unmistakable voice of the twin's dad, Henrick Brandor Rosen echoed throughout the sitting room as Brooklyn Ophelia Rosen, Amber's good-natured mother sat across from him in her usual navy blue chair. Brooklyn had long reddish-blonde hair and green eyes like Amber and Aaron. Their father also had green eyes, but mannerly short brown hair. His face was full of fear for his family, friends, and Aaron, but most of the fear Amber sensed was radiating off of her mother.

"Aaron hasn't done anything wrong! It isn't his fault he has those powers. If you had them, you'd be in the same exact position he is in! If Amber had these powers, would you even be considering this notion?" Brooklyn cried, her green eyes welling up in fear for her son. Henrick thought about her statement for a second but then shook his head.

"Amber is different! She'd take responsibility for it! And, Aaron isn't like her! Besides, how do we know for sure Amber doesn't have powers?" Henrick asked Brooklyn, and Aaron turned his head to face her, his questioning emerald green eyes boring into hers. Amber tossed her reddish-blonde hair out of her eyes and shook her head. Amber couldn't possibly have powers! If she did, she would know, right?