Matthew's feet stepped over the snowy ground. The morning clouds covered the sky, and the forest was casted in grey shadows, the trees bending in the wind. He tightened his coat around his neck and followed the others. He didn't know where they were heading to exactly, only that they were traveling to a so-called Academy.

He had asked the old elf what it was, and he had informed him that it was where the older kids went when they were at the last stage of their training. There they spent a year or two, in order to expand their powers before they eventually completed their course of training. So, basically, they would be visiting a camp full of wild teenagers.

Matthew was a bit nervous about what they would face in a while; he had a feeling that something was off. He looked at the others, but they seemed relaxed and walked on steadily. His eyes fell on Peter beside him who was staring ahead, her long legs treading with confidence.

She had been quite distant lately. Every night, after returning to the city she would speak little and go early to bed, claiming that she was too tired to stay up. He constantly felt her gaze on him when she thought he wasn't paying attention, and once he caught her staring, she would always turn around as if she was embarrassed.

He knew something was going on, like something was keeping her closed up in a shell he couldn't break, but he didn't want to press her, so he chose to give her some space for the time being. He wouldn't wait for long, though, because her coolness was driving him mad and each passing day, he was a step closer to losing his calm.

His train of thought was brought to a halt when the elves slowed down, signaling at them that they had reached their destination. Matthew scanned his surroundings. The dense forest was preventing him from seeing clearly, and he had to squint in order to see a huge building with two storeys and a big yard in the front.

What he expected to be a beehive of loud kids was then an empty building. Its walls were black, burned from fire, the windows broken, and the earth trampled by feet. He immediately understood that the Academy had been raided and carried the marks of a recent attack.

'Woah,' Matthew whispered, shock written on his face. 'What happened here?'

'Dark magic,' the old elf answered grimly.

'I will check if there are any survivors,' Landos rushed forward.

'I hope they had time to flee,' Inerma murmured and followed after him.

Both elves vanished in the building. Matthew feared for the people who had been there, if they had managed to run away or they had gone down along with the facilities. For him it didn't matter if they were elves and they humans; death came for everyone without making any exceptions. 

He turned to Peter and said, his eyes blazing with anger. 'I'll help them search the area.'

He was about to leave and rush to the others, when a small hand swiftly grabbed his wrist and pulled him back. He opened his mouth to protest, but as his gaze flickered to her face his voice caught on his throat. She was looking up at him with such pleading eyes, her normally pink cheeks now pale from fear.

'Please, don't go,' she said in a small voice. 'It might be dangerous.'

Matthew swallowed hard and stared at her, his heart yielding to her. He knew there was no opposing her, nothing was more powerful for him than his need to abide with her. He held her hand in his and gave it a light squeeze. Their fingers linked, fitting perfectly together, and Matthew sighed in content. Her touch had a soothing effect on his nerves.

They stayed like that for a while, waiting for the young elves to come back, sharing heat through their bonded hands. Their hearts thumped rapidly in their chests. The old elf stood a few metres away from them and was investigating the remnants of the magic that had been casted. He produced several spells that helped him detect any source of magic around the area and observed the walls of the large structure to determine the damage that had been caused.

After a few minutes Landos and Inerma appeared through the inside of the Academy. They dusted the ashes off their boots and feebly walked towards them with a tight smile on their faces. Matthew hoped they were bringing good news.

'We didn't find anyone. They must have fled,' Inerma informed them, and he released a breath he was unconsciously holding.

'We must get back,' Landos added quickly.

'We've come all this way just to go back?' Matthew heard Peter complain.

The elves looked at them and their eyes fell on their entwined hands. Matthew immediately let go, scratching his neck awkwardly, and fortunately they didn't say anything. The lack of touch, though, left his hand unprotected from the cold, so he put his hands in his pockets to hide his displeasure.

'It is not safe here,' the old elf reminded them.

'Not cool, people,' Matthew said.

'You will cope,' Landos interjected with a stern look. 'Let's put this creepy place behind us.'

Inerma's voice, though, stopped him on his tracks. 'But Landos. You said—'

'I know, I know,' he cut her off. 'If you turn your back on ruins, you might bring about bad luck. I hope it won't come true.'

Everyone chuckled at his remark, desperate to fill the void of unspoken sadness and take their mind off the evil doing that had confronted them. Otherwise, they wouldn't be able to bare the weight of the problem. Matthew glanced at Peter who was frowning in concern, deep lines appearing between her brows.

'I thought black magic was forbidden,' she suddenly spoke.

'It is,' the old elf agreed.

'We don't teach it to children,' said Inerma. 'It is too dangerous.'

'Rarely do elves risk it. If they do, we hunt them down and our laws take care of them.'

'We will have to find the divergent,' Landos pointed out tartly.

They walked silently after that. The sun had progressed in the sky and the animals of the forest hid away in their dens. The clouds had cleared, blue peeking out amidst the grey, and the crispy wind had died down.

'Are you alright?' Matthew whispered to Peter.

'Yeah, just...a bit shaken,' she rubbed her temples.

'We must make haste,' the old elf urged them. 'Stay alert!'

Matthew's eyes never left Peter. She walked on wearily, leaning towards either left or right, dragging her feet over the thick snow. He knew she wasn't well and watched over her in case she tripped. As if to confirm his fears, Peter's legs awkwardly buckled, and she reached for him to steady herself.

Matthew was already there to catch her as she fell down on the ground. His arms snaked around her back, his body taking the fall, and he winced in pain once his head hit the hard snow. He shook Peter, but she wasn't responding at all. Her face was expressionless, her limbs motionless.

'Landos!' he shouted in a panicky voice without taking his eyes off her. 'Landos! She is back,' he told him once he heard her moan his name. 'Do what you have to do.'

Landos checked her pulse, her breathing, her face. Matthew could hardly keep it together when she looked so frail. The only thing he wanted to do was hug her weakness away.

'A bit tired, but nothing out of the ordinary,' he concluded after a few minutes of inspection. 'She will be fine.'

'Are you sure?' Matthew asked him. 'Because she—'

'Relax, buddy. I know what I'm doing.'

Matthew sighed and watched her slowly raise herself. Despite her protests, he picked her up and put her arm over his shoulders to support her.

'I'm okay,' she said with a grimace.

'No, you're not.'

'What happened?' the old elf approached her.

'I felt the same tingling sensation in my head, like every time you cast your magic on me.'

That was all the elves needed to hear. With a silent nod, Inerma and Landos took off as fast as lightning. Matthew assumed they would hunt down the elf who mentally drained Peter and he would have volunteered to help them out, but he had more important things to care about.

'The winters here are rough,' Matthew's voice echoed in the woods while they walked back to the city. 'Wait, the solstice is approaching!'

'And?' the old man replied.

'Aren't you looking forward to it?' Matthew raised his brows in surprise.

'We, the older ones, do not have your stamina. We have had our share of those festivities,' the elf waved at him dismissively and kept on walking. 

They made slow progress, the old man leading the way and Matthew shouldering Peter's weight who was too worn out to tread on her own. Evening came and the sunlight was growing weak. They had to make it before sunset if they wished to return safely.

Eventually the city emerged far ahead, and the sound of the great waterfall became audible. Matthew looked at Peter expectedly, waiting for a reaction, relief or happiness, but her face showed only disappointment. If I can lift her spirits, he thought.

'Hey,' he hesitantly said. 'Your powers are pretty awesome.'

'I don't know,' she shrugged gloomily staring at her feet.

'You, my friend, are a total killjoy. I would kill to be in your place.'

'I just wanted to...stand out a little less, I guess.'

'Where's the fun in being normal?' he poked her with his fingers, making her crack a smile.

'Is that so?' she lifted an eyebrow at him.

'Don't worry. You will get used to all these changes. You just need time,' he reassured her, but he was afraid of what they would face next, and the bill always came due.

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A/N:  Please don't be a silent reader! Comment and vote! Feel free to point out any spelling or grammas issues in my book! :)  -Alexandra Ling

Phrase of chapter:  carpe diem / seize the day  - Lucretius