The morning sun came so soon, but it was something Aless welcomed. Sleep didn't bring her the comfort that she wanted, or needed. The events of the night that her parents were killed played over and over into her head. Every time the outcome was different, sometimes Edalf finds her and tries to kill her with the strange thing, but then for one of her parents to save her in the nick of time. They always died, however, and she lost count how many times it happened. She opened her eyes, the autumn sun softly light up her room. It basket in the warm golden sunlight, the promise of a bright day was calling out to her. But she didn't know if she was able to get out of bed. She turned towards her side, and there he was. Initor, he was sitting on the ground next to her bed. His eyes were closed, and his breathing was slow. Signs that he was fast a sleep, but she wasn't able to understand why he was in her room. Did he follow her, most likely, because they had a rule that they wouldn't enter each other's rooms without permission. But then again, he has shown time and time again that he was worried about her. She didn't remember much that happened after Ixis and Raldor left the cabin, she doesn't remember him following her. She didn't even remember coming into her room in the first place. The only thing she knew was the fact that she felt drained, maybe the same thing could be said about him. Maybe he was drained as well, and fell asleep after he checked up on her.

"You are betraying our parents, you have become the thing that put them down."  

That was what Edalf has said to his own little brother after he bounded with his first familiar. Before he came to her house, and killed her parents. That were his last words before he ripped the world that Initor knew apart. 

"My childhood ended after the cop shared this piece of information." 

That where, Initor's words, their childhood ended upon the same day. He was punished, no, his whole family was punished for a crime they didn't commit. Edalf murdered her parents, not his father, mother or Initor. Edalf was on his own, he was the one that destroyed her world. But at the same time he destroyed his families world too. His father was fired from his job, and not able to keep one. His mother was not even able to find work to help her husband.

"Why, the wounds that my brother left me, might be not as deep as the wounds he left Aless. But they are still deep."

The fact that he was comparing their wounds, their trauma's was worrying her. Yes, she lost her parents, she needed to live with her grandmother. A woman who loves her, but doesn't like her. But his wounds were as relevant as hers, before his brother murdered her parents his father had a steady income. His mother only needed to focus on one job, to worry about the fact that there was a roof above their heads and food on the table was not on their minds. But after Edalf took her parents lives, his parents lost that security. She knew from a very young age that this world was not fair, that was something her parents thought to her before they got killed. She blinked and saw that his cheeks were wet. Tears, he had cried. He freaking cried, and she was not there to support him, no she blanked out and went to sleep. He had comforted her when she broke down, and she didn't do the same for him. Guilt was not a pleasant feeling, and right now she felt guilty. A soft knock landed upon the door, not loud enough to wake anybody up. But for the ones that were awake to let them know that someone was entering the room. The door opened and Ixis peaked through. She smiled softly when she saw that Aless was awake. But her gaze landed upon Initor, and she didn't look confused, clearly she knew that he was there. She stepped back, at the same time Silver flew in. The white owl landed upon the nightstand, Aless already noticed the small piece off paper tight to her paw. She quickly took it of Silver and discovered that it was a letter from Ixis.

'Hey, it is good to see you awake. But are you alright, the two of you were already fast asleep when Raldor and I got back. Which didn't take that long, but I understand that yesterday was taxing. However, headmaster Gritt has given Initor and you the week off. So that the two of you have time to process.'

Aless looked up, and Ixis was again in side the doorway. Aless pointed towards herself and then wiggles with her hand. To indicate that she was not okay, but was getting there. Then she placed her hand under her chin, which said that she was grateful to Ixis. Ixis nodded and waved, before she closed the door. Aless was able to hear muffled sounds and voices from the other side of the door. She was lucky, that they were so understanding. The sounds moved away and the front door of the cabin opened up and closed again. Which woke Initor up.

"Wait, what? What is the time. Ohh, by the elements, we are going to be so late." he said, panicked. She lay a hand upon his shoulder, hoping that this was going to calm him down. He quickly turned towards her, the panic in his eyes grew even more.

"Headmaster Gritt has given us the week off, and according to Ixis we were already fast asleep when they got back." she said, again this didn't calm him down. "Initor relax." This seemed to snapped him out of the panicked state, he was still not fully out of it. But he wasn't controlling his every thought. "You have slept on the floor for the entire night, and you might feel stiff. So you might want to take a warm shower." He shook his head, but after he stretched. He took a deep sighed.

"You might be on the right track." he said, with a pained expression. He stood up and left her room, she pushed off her sheets. She jumped under the shower and put on some pants and a tanker top. And then stepped out of her room, after putting up her glasses. Who were laying in her bed, so she didn't take them off when she went to bed. And she was grateful that they didn't break. At the coffee table, stood a large wicked basket, filled to the brim with stuff for breakfast. One of her books that she needed to read for homework was laying next to it. She decided to wait on Initor, so she cracked open the book and started to read the first few pages.

********

Initor stepped out of his room, his hair was still damp. His gaze went towards her, and the still filled basket that was standing on the coffee table.

"Why did you wait for me?" he asked her. She closed her book, started to unpack the basket. Inside was the usual stuff, bread, eggs, various toppings. And a can with coffee. He started to grab plates, and some cups out of the cabinets.

"I thought it would be nice to eat together," she replied. He sat down, and they eat in silence, there was no other sound then the sound of the cutlery. The silence drove Aless slightly mad, it brought her back to the time she had meals with her grandmother. Those were always uncomfortable, which was harshly enforced on her when she just lost her parents. Now she was used to the bustling sound of the cafeteria. "Uhm, Initor." He looked up. "I had some time to think about some things."

"About what?" he asked. 

"About your life after the murder, how the world blamed you and your parents, for your brother's actions. And I do not blame you. I do not blame your parents for his actions. And I am so sorry I was not there for you, yesterday. Not in the same way, you were there for me." She said, he jumped up.

"I do not need your support!" he said loudly.

"You are stupid if you really believe that." she snapped, at him, and he looked at her shocked. She also stood up, and went to him. "You are human! You have feelings, and this revolution that the person that destroyed both our lives is leaving prison is pretty damaging!" He took a step back, but bumped against the counter. Was he afraid of her, or was he trying to pull himself away from a hurtful situation? But she wouldn't let him. "Initor, please listen to me. We are in the same boat again, and let me be there for you." He lowered his head, she placed her hand on his shoulder. "Let me be there for you." He started to lean against her and broke down. She wrapped her arms around his waist and let him cry it out. Tears also appeared in her own eyes, but she didn't let it go. Not this time, this time was for him to cry. This time she needed to be there for him. Time seemed to be crawling by, but he stared to calm down after a while.

"Thank you," he whispered. She didn't let him go, not knowing why. "You can let me go." She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and took a step back.

"Sorry, I didn't know why I did that." she said, letting him know that she was just as confused as he was. He smiled at her, which she was not what she was expecting.

"I didn't mind, you clearly need a huge yourself." he said. She didn't reply, she just looked at him. He looked so much more at peace, which was the purpose of this all. 

***********

Aless looked up from her book, and started to make some notes for air class. Initor looked at her notes and frowned. 

"Do you really think that we need that for class?" he asked, she wiggled with her head. They do not need it, but it was important to remember stuff like this. It was about the fact that the type of familiar can tell a lot about an elemental. An owl stands for wisdom, but also for a stubborn mind. Eagles are symbolizing strength, but also pride. Something she was able to see in them both. She might be smart, but she was very stubborn. According to her grandmother, she had much in common with a donkey. In Initor she could see the strength, he has shown that he would be there for his friends if they need him. But he was also very pride full. But with that said, she wanted to dive into the other familiars, a bit more. And if the color of the familiar meant something too. Because Initior was right, it was indeed strange that she got three familiars that were all white.

"No, we do not need it. But I am curious and want to make it my passion project." she said, he chuckled slightly. This was the first time she heard him making that sound. It was surprisingly soft and warm, so different from his normal voice. "Is there something wrong with that?" she wanted to make him laugh again. He shook his head, but he didn't laugh. Which was a shame. She wanted to try it again, but the front door opened and Ixis stepped in with Raldor. She was holding another basket, this one was even bigger then the one they found on the coffee table this morning. But Aless had an incline, that this time it held food for four, not two.

"Ahh, the two of you are doing your homework." Raldor said. Initor and Aless cleaned up their books to make space on the coffee table. "But how are the two of you feeling?" Aless shrugged her shoulders, not sure what to say. She was not fine, but she was no longer wallowing in self-pity. She didn't hear Initor reply either, but Raldor nodded slowly. "That is probably the reason why headmaster Gritt gave the two of you the week off. And the two of you really do not want to be in the main building right now. To say that everybody is uncomfortable, is a huge understatement."

"That is because Izyni opened up a can of worms, there were some students who felt the same way about Edalf. Some of them hate the council, and want to see change. But after Initor dropped the bombshell of information, they are not sure how they feel about Edalf. Izyni however makes her stance publicly known, the stance that she believes that Aless parents deserved to die for a greater course." Aless heart dropped into her stomach, a greater course? Her parents didn't die for that, they were killed because they didn't agree with the changes Edalf was proposing.

"My parents, were also fighting for change. They were openly fighting, and even the leader of the rebellion said as much. Yes, I have seen his interview after what happened. And I have seen him a lot at my house before my parents got killed. But they never joined them, and I think that is because they didn't fully believe that this rebellion is much better than the council." Aless said.

"My father said the same thing against my brother once," Initor said. "I didn't fully understand it at the time, but I believe you are right." Everyone started to stare at the floorboards. "But let's put that aside for now, we need to start eating." There was no silence during lunch, thank the elements. Probably to put everybody's minds of what was happening inside the building a stone throw away. But after lunch, Raldor and Ixis needed to head back, and Aless pitied them. They needed to hear every piece of the mess that was unleashed on the school, unhappiness over the council was nothing new. But now there was a clear divide between students. Aless was somewhere, glad that she was not there.

"I am going to do the dishes," Aless said, she grabbed the plates and cups and placed them inside the sink. Initor nodded and grabbed his other homework. The warm water and the smell of the dish soap was calming, and she did her best not to think about everything else. She could hear him stand up and walk away, but she didn't want to ask where he was going. The sound of a door closing inside one of the bedrooms was audible. She grabbed the tea towel and dried the dishes off, again the fact she was almost done, calmed her mind. She closed the cabinet, after she placed the last plate on the stack. A smile tugged on her face as she dried her hands, and was still able to smell the soap on them. She needed to ask Ixis what kind of sent it was, because she absolutely loved it. Initor was not back yet, from what ever he was doing, but she turned around, and her foot got stuck behind something. She started to tumble forward, Initor came out of nowhere and catches her, before she hit the ground. "Thank you," the words came out of her mouth not much louder than a whisper.

"That was a close one," he said, not much louder. She closed his eyes, a whiff of embers and pine needles hit her noise. It was so him, and wanted to take in as much as she needed. But she knew that she might come off as clingy, she opened her eyes and froze. Their faces were so close to each other, she wondered how she hadn't noticed that at first. But right now she was looking into his golden ember eyes, seeing herself in their reflection. Her curly brown hair, the violet eyes framed behind her glasses. His gaze was warm, comforting, and a bit unsure about what to do next. Was this the moment where she will be kissed for the first time. The time crawled by once again, or were they just not paying notice to it passing by. A knock landed on the front door, and they almost jumped away from each other.

"Just a minute!" she said loudly. Initor rushed towards the couch and grabbed a book. Burying his slow turning red face, in one of his books. She took a deep breath, and went to open the door. Only to find the headmaster on the other side of the door. 

"Good after, may I come inside?" he asked. She nodded and stepped to the side so that he could come in. He looked around and greeted Initor. He frowned a little when he saw the redness upon Initor's face. "Uhm, Initor, I hate to break it to you. But you are holding that book upside down." Initor looked at his book, and then let out a small curse. Headmaster Gritt threw up his two hands. "Don't kill the massager." Aless couldn't help it, but she started to chuckle. "There you go, that is so much better than that doom and gloom. Although that is not what I saw when I just entered the cabin. I do not want to know what the two of you were doing, and to be honest with the two of you. I do not care, either, as long the two of you are doing your homework at the end of the day." Aless glanced towards Initor, who had closed the book. "But now let's get to the business at hand, I am so sorry that I wasn't the one who told you guys about Edalf's early release. To be fair, I was waiting for more information so that I could prepare the two of you completely." Initor sighed.

"It is not your fault that Izyni was holding a grudge." Initor said. "She has being waiting for the moment to get to me, and the others." Headmaster Gritt shook his head.

"That might have being the case, it doesn't absolve me from my lack of action. I know that the murder didn't only effect Aless, but also you. Your father's slimy worm of a boss that fired him just like that. And then all those other scumbags that came after him. Your mother that isn't even allowed a change, because their oldest son turned out to be a bad apple. Everyone was completely willing to forget that they had another son to raise and feed." He shook his head. "No, I should have been the one to tell you. And again, I am sorry that I wasn't. The two of you need to prepare yourselves, Edalf will be released next month. But he is not allowed to come near the school, which means that he isn't allowed to come near you, Aless. So, with that said, the two of you have the entire week to yourselves. The teachers aren't allowed to give you more homework, not during or after this week, 'to catch up'. The two of you are my best students, and that is not a secret. But that doesn't mean that the two of you can sit here and do nothing. You need to finish the homework that has already being given, and that was all. I see you both next week." Headmaster Gritt turned around and walked out of the cabin. Initor looked at Aless, who lowered her head.

"He is not allowed to get near me, who says that would stop him?" Aless said, out loud. Not carrying if Initor heard her. "He wasn't allowed to kill my parents, and yet he did it anyway." Initor stood up and wrapped his arms around her.

"This time he has to go to me," Initor said. This should have comforted her, but for some reason it didn't. Edalf was willing to kill her when she was still a child. He didn't even know back then that she had seen what he had done. All that he knew was that she was somewhere inside the house. But now he knew that she had seen everything, and he knew where she was. But would he stop, and leave her alone for his little brother's sake? She shook her head. No, he wouldn't, because he saw his little brother as a traitor.

"You are betraying our parents, you have become the thing that put them down."

That was what Edalf had said to Initor, that is how he sees his little brother. As something he hates with his whole being. Softly, she pushed herself off him and grabbed her books from the coffee table. And without another word, she left him alone. Closing her bedroom door behind her.