Changes

I awoke to the smell of something potent. It was strong and burnt my nose in a good and weird kind of way. I sniffed a little more, keeping my eyes closed in case I was in the cells again. I didn’t need more reminders of that painful time.

Suddenly all the memories rushed back to me, and my eyes popped open. I sat up so quickly that my head spun, and with a small sound my mouth was stifled.

The scream that built in my chest was now choked off by the large hand smothering my lips.

My breathing was rapid through my nose, but I calmed down quickly when I looked around and saw that it was the man I had kicked. Even without the shadows covering his face, I could tell it was him. He had the same air around him and even as I thought this, I trembled with confusion. It was the best way I could explain how I knew it was him, but even to my own mind, it sounded crazy.

I had no idea where I was, but it was definitely not the cells. The room was large and open, wide windows letting sunlight come streaming in. The bed I occupied was covered in clean, crisp white sheets. It took me a moment before I finally recognized the smell of cleaning products, leaving me utterly confused. Prisoners were generally not kept in such tidy and clean places. They were left to rot in the muck-ridden cells. I knew this from experience.

Once he could see that I was calm, he let go of my mouth so I could talk. But I was too stunned to do even that.

“I don’t trust you one bit,” he said, his face a deadpan. There was that same tone - the annoyed, yet bored sound to his voice. “I won’t underestimate you again.”

His smooth face looked no older than twenty,  only three years older than me. He had bright red eyes that seemed to sparkle, the colour of a brightly burning fire. A red flame suddenly flashed through them without any kind of warning, a trail of fire shooting across the centre. It was almost worth the scowl he gave me to watch the beauty of it all day. I just sat there stunned as suddenly my brain clicked into place. I knew that face. He was a Master Magician– the Fire Magician to be exact.

Shit! I had really messed up this time.

Shock registered in my mind before the strong desire to throw myself at his feet and grovel flooded through me. How could I have not noticed that before I kicked him? Or before I stole from him?

Even with the desire to grovel and apologise so pitifully, I remained still, waiting rigidly. My whole body was on edge, tightly wound and ready to run at any moment. It was a vital skill I had learnt over my many years living on the streets.

He watched me carefully, his lips turned up in an amused smile as if he knew the thoughts that ticked around inside my mind.

“Um… I’m sorry for kicking you, Master Magician," I managed to say, finally found my voice, which cracked and seemed stilted over the words. I bowed my head in shame and covered it with my hands, which were extremely dirty. How unattractive! I licked my lips nervously. “And for stealing from you.”

“Nice to know someone finally respects me for what I am." There was a cold edge to his voice, as though it were tainted with annoyance and anger. I peeked up to see the red flare in his bold, startling eyes again.

All I could do was stare at him. Magic seemed to pour out of his very being. How could I not have realised who he was? His face turned hard and he no longer looked as young as before, creases appearing where they shouldn’t.

“Will you quit gawking at me like that?” he scowled, his voice no longer smooth, but harsh and cold. “And I will have back what you stole from me.”

His hand was outstretched in front of him, so I carefully took out his money and dropped it regretfully in his hand. Shrinking back into the pillow, all I could think of was those flames he had called upon and how they had threatened to engulf and destroy me. Just the thought of the burning heat and the feel of the oxygen being literally sucked out of my lungs made me gasp for the precious air that meant life instead of death.

Once he had the money back, he visibly relaxed. His shoulders dropped and his face lost some of the hardness.

A strange tingling sensation ran up along my arms, before disappearing. I glanced down at my hands expecting to see burns and scorched skin but they were the same as before; dirty and grimy and completely burn free.

Horrifyingly, most of the skin on the palms of my hands had been scraped off when I fell over. The fresh wounds stung now that I had noticed them. The dirt and blood stained my palms. I would need to clean them soon or they would get infected.

The tingling returned as I examined them, the feeling starting to race up my arms. Well, it seemed that way as the feeling engulfed me. My entire body seeming to tingle. A light humming sound began to ring in my ears, and I shook my head gently to try and rid myself of it.

 Confusion tugged at my thoughts, and I cringed away from it.

If the Fire Magician noticed my strange behaviour, he made no comment on it. Maybe it was something he couldn’t feel or see, but only I could.

“What is it about you that has me struggling to keep my cool?” he asked slowly and gently, his burning gaze lifting to meet mine. The humming died in volume and seemed to idle just loud enough for me to hear over the sound of his voice.

“Um… I don’t know… is that a joke?” I asked with a small laugh, speaking slowly as my voice tested out this constant use. It had been many months since I had spoken to anyone, preferring to be silent when with others, but most of the time, alone anyway. Living with others complicated things in my world. “Trying to keep your cool, when you are the Fire Magician?”

I gave a small smile, hoping he wasn’t going to burn me alive. His gaze became slightly more intense and then he laughed, the pressure easing off again.

The humming sound peaked again, and this time felt a thrill of amusement fill my chest. What the hell was happening to me? 

I tried to ignore it. To block it out but it only got louder and louder. The Fire magician was now looking at me with his brows creased, finally seeing that something was wrong. He took a step forward to touch my forehead but the humming changed into one loud scream.

It pierced through my mind and blurred my world. All the agony and fear that the scream held, pulsed through my body, and I clenched my teeth together to hold in my own scream.

My closed eyes were filled with red light as the scream grew louder still until my world faded out; the blood red colour and the scream fading away as I did.