Let's pick up where we left off with Cloe and Eldor (who had just texted Ryder)... :)

P.S. The gif posted with this scene just happens to exist - I was looking for gifs of Shenae Grimes, the actress for Cloe, and found one with this subtitle on it! Isn't that super serendipitous?? The line isn't a direct quote from this story, but it may as well be, hehe ;)

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Scene 2: The Natural Order

A.D. 2015

The moment, just as any other, had to end. And when it did, for better or for worse, of course her silly heart would start to beat again. Whether just to resume its routine rhythm, or to race in total rapture at the thought of seeing him. Either way, she would finally be released from this suspense, this fleeting yet infinite matter of seconds.

Her heart's efforts to arrange an encounter with Ryder had gone surprisingly smoothly, up to this point - she was glad that she had managed to casually mention Eldor's military friends, with a segue that had sort of made sense. And Eldor had then taken it upon himself to suggest that they try meeting up with the honeymooners, who just might be on Mykonos. Cloe had not expected the possibility of seeing Mr. Campion to be so convenient.

Then again, she reminded herself, there was no use in getting hopeful or excited when the man was taken - by a wife who, judging from the death glares that she'd given in the hotel lobby in Athens, would probably sooner murder Cloe than agree to a reunion.

And there was no use in speculating over anything at this point when she was about to hear the answer.

"Ah," Eldor uttered as he read the reply text from Ryder. "They just recently left Mykonos and are on Santorini now. Too bad the timing didn't work out."

It took every ounce of Cloe's dissembling abilities to hide the impact that this answer had on her. "Oh - yeah, Santorini is for lovers, so, uh..." she shrugged, forcing a facial expression intended to evince indifference, which probably came off more like constipation in appearance, "...given that they're on their honeymoon, that... that makes sense, I guess."

Eldor nodded as he tucked away his phone. "Yeah. And they'll only be there for a few more days before heading back to the States, so it looks like we won't be crossing paths with them - you said Santorini is the last of the islands on your itinerary?"

"Right," Cloe sighed, wishing for the first time on this trip that Naxos, Ios, and all the other isles could just be skipped. "But no worries, I... I was just curious, really, about your friendships from the military. Seems like it probably forges bonds of brotherhood and all."

He affirmed, and they fell back into their dynamic of easygoing chatting as if nothing had happened. From where Eldor sat, nothing significant had; so for the rest of the night, Cloe just had to don a smile and carry on as if her dumb heart weren't a hundred shades of sad.

She hoped the following morning would be better. But it hardly was, because by sunrise she had only slept a total of five minutes what with all the ruckus that'd resounded through the hostel grounds all night, and woke up with what seemed like several million mosquito bites. She scribbled down a note to include advice about bug spray in next year's travel guide. Apparently mosquitoes were a frequent pest on the Greek islands in the summer, especially in hotbeds of humidity and body heat such as crowded hostels, Eldor told her later, blaming himself for not having warned her. Cloe insisted in vain that he wasn't to blame. And she tried to look on the bright side, grateful that the bloodsucking bitches at least hadn't attacked her face.

Maybe it was for the best after all that she wasn't seeing Ryder today, she told herself; there was nothing attractive or charming about bite-covered limbs. And her constant efforts to resist the urge to scratch her itchy skin - which required a great deal of discipline - helped to distract her from the fact that she wouldn't be seeing him.

As Cloe faced the brutal morning, suffering from the letdown of a heart inflamed with hopeless passion and the sting of skin inflamed with insect venom, she found herself dwelling on a certain notion more so than she ever had before, since the discovery of her possible powers: the notion that with a flick of her wrist, she could have easily averted all of this, and more. Aside from the question of what limits there were on her abilities, if any, Cloe had effortless access to anything she wanted. Literally. And although that was downright terrifying, it was - especially at times like this - ridiculously tempting.

Sure, writing an encounter with Ryder into her future might be just a little bit pathetic, such that she shouldn't be tempted to attempt it. But this freaking mosquito thing? Was there any principled reason against decreeing that she would never be bitten by a goddamn bug again? Or, for that matter, that no one ever would be... or that these vile creatures would cease to exist altogether... Cloe stopped the dangerous train of thought from spiraling further, reminding herself about the valuable role of every organism in the ecosystem, or whatever. In less abstract and more serious terms, singlehandedly decreeing the extinction of all insects might precipitate an immediate apocalypse.

In fact, come to think of it, anything she wrote, no matter how small it might seem or how honestly well-intentioned it might be, could end up completely screwing over the universe, creating unthinkable ripple effects in the wake of her disruption of the natural order...

But what was the natural order? What was its source, its basis - what were its limits, and what if there were none? What if the true order encompassed everything, such that her power, any uses that she might make of it, were all just part of how nature was meant to operate anyway...?

"Hey - you okay?"

Cloe blinked, shifting her gaze from the hypnotizing navy waves up to Eldor's flawless face. Of course the one beside her, here to break her crazy daze, was the real-life incarnation of her fictional creation.

She cleared her throat and smiled, bringing herself back to earth - or back to sea, as it were. They were currently aboard a boat to the small isle of Delos, just a short ride from Mykonos, a site rich with historical significance, to which travelers often made daytrips. "Yeah - yeah, I'm fine, thanks. Sorry for spacing out. Just got... a lot on my mind."

"Not a problem; just wanted to check in," Eldor replied in typical Prince Charming fashion. "If you want, I'm here to talk, or to listen. Or also happy to just stand here in silence and let you think about things."

"Have I told you before that you're literally perfect?"

He let out a bashful laugh, ebon gaze lowered to the deck for a second. "Yeah, a few times. But it's nothing. Just being a friend."

"Well, thank you again," Cloe expressed, biting her lip as she briefly pondered whether she should take Eldor up on his offer. Whether now was a good time to see if talking to him might provide some insights on this superpower thing. Ultimately, she figured that it was as good a time as any. "Hey, can... can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

She bit her lip again before speaking. "Do you believe in..."

Eldor tried filling in the blanks in the pause that ensued, using the somewhat mystical tenor of her voice as a clue. "...magic? Miracles?"

Cloe smiled and shook her head. "Destiny."

He mirrored the smile and nodded. "Definitely."

She looked out on the vast, vivid blue ocean as she asked her next question. "Do you think we make our own, or that our fates are set in stone?"

He too looked out onto the sea, gaze as brooding and deep as his tone. "I think it's probably, somehow, some of both... but honestly, who knows?"

Nobody knew. And that, Cloe mused, was a big part of why she was so freaking screwed. Without understanding the workings of free will and fate, whatever paradoxical balance might exist between the two... she would never have any clue what to do.

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... So I know all of my dear #Cloder fans are probably as disappointed as Cloe is about not seeing Ryder anytime soon... but who knows what might happen unexpectedly! I promise they'll cross paths before the end of Book II, hehe ;)

Next scene, we'll check up on Atria and Akhel in B.C....

** And if you liked this one, please don't forget to vote! :) **