༄｡°༄｡°Gifted Rivials

Instructions

I quietly snuck into the ballroom of the Fairlaen Academy, making sure the door didn’t make any noise behind me. Skipping class was always exhilarating. The thrill of knowing you could be caught at any time but still continuing on. Not a problem though. All I was skipping was etiquette and seriously, who needs to know how to curtsy? I marveled at the marble floors of the ballroom, and how the floor echoed whenever my sandaled feet took a step. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. The familiar smell of old books and cold fall air greeted me. But the crown jewel of the ballroom was what caught my attention the most: The King and Queens Throne. Of course, not their actual thrones, for those were at the castle. These were the thrones they used whenever they came to monitor the Academy’s cotillions. I loved dancing, but not with other people. I’d much prefer to dance by myself in an empty ballroom than with a random boy in a crowded one. That’s exactly what I’m going to do. I thought to myself, stepping toward where the marble pattern came to a circle. The very center of the ballroom. I closed my eyes again, and started moving. I used my gift to play out a melody only I could hear. A soft, sweet song. The words were lovely. Radiantly lovely. My feet left the ground as I danced to the delicate song playing inside my head. I forgot the whole world. I threw my arm out to the left and spun slowly, making sure every move was made with purpose. I was telling my story through dance. I didn’t even realize where I was until something caught my foot, causing me to stumble backwards. Luckily, I didn’t fall. I regained my composure and opened my eyes to find the magnificent ballroom had turned into a jungle. Vines ran down the walls and ivy clung to the stone. Some unexpected trees grew out of the ground too, each tree a different variety. Birch, maple and oak. The ground beneath my feet was coated in grass and ferns, so much so that you couldn’t even see the marble floors anymore. And the throne. It’d been turned into a throne made of bark and moss. Mushrooms grew all around it. The scene would’ve been breathtakingly beautiful, if I’d not known who was behind it. “Finch!” I called. “Ugh Finch, when I find you–” “What?” A sarcastic voice interrupted from the branches of a nearby tree. “What are you going to do Lyric? Throw a melody at me?” Finch Starling. He stared down at me from his perch on a thick branch in an oak tree. His blonde hair fell in front of his striking sage green eyes, a bow and quiver of arrows slung over his shoulder. His eyes glinted with that trademark Finch look that you could never quite describe. His cream undershirt, green vest, and tan pants gave him that earthy look he always was going for. Some girls would say he was handsome, but I knew better than to flatter him more than he already flattered himself. He never paid much attention to other girls, unless they complimented him, or asked him out. The only girl he seemed interested in was me and making my life miserable. “Knock it off with that stupid nickname Finch. And yes, I could throw one if I wanted too.” I smiled my own mischievous smile. “Want me to demonstrate?” “Oh can you?” He snarkily replied, using his gift to grow a vine out of his hand and curl it around the branch like a snake. I channeled the outside energy around me and spun out a creepy song. So loud. So wicked. And I filled it through Finch’s mind. Through every inch of his being. He started to shake uncontrollably and would’ve fallen off the branches if I hadn’t chosen that moment to pull back my song. “Alright Aria.” He shot me a dirty look. “Point proven.” I tossed my blonde curls over my shoulder. “So Finch, what class are you skipping to come and torture me today?” “Ugh,” He sighed. “History. I’d do anything to escape an hour of Mister Frendal going on and on about some battle no one even remembers.” He pointed at me. “So what class are you skipping Lyric?”