Salamandite

We woke up earlier than usual today.

Why? Well, you know...

Fily's awake today.

"Gem!!! Come!! Quickly!" The two of them were already waiting in the library for us, first thing in the morning.

They even ordered the maids to serve us breakfast here.

When I sat in the chair beside Venedette, still stretching and rubbing the dirt out of my eyes, a loud Von came inside the library and pushed me away from Venedette, forcing his way to get the seat in between us.

"Hey!"

"Bleeh!"

"Von.." Venedette just shook her head and smiled at me.

'I was going to ask her things about Salamanders.' I ranted in my head.

Then I saw Fily beside her. She's awake!

I used to dislike her but I need answers to my questions, so I stood up from my seat and went to sit beside her.

All before Lei was able to take the same seat. 'Ha, I got here first.' I gave him a proud smile that he dismissed and went to sit beside Von instead.

"Hello!" Fily greeted me with a friendly smile that I couldn't help but be thankful for, because... I really thought she'll hate me for bothering her sleep while we were in the vehicle that day.

"Fily, this is Gem, and Gem as you might have known, this is Fily Dela Cruz, our new recruit," Venedette said with a smile that shined brighter than the sunlight from the windows.

"Recruit? For what? Are we forming a squad or something like that?" Von asked purely out of curiosity that led to his permanent scowl the whole day.

"That's a very great idea Von! You're really my son!"

Poor Von. Now I think Venedette will collect more girls on the way.

"Food!" I smelled food from far away and realized that they couldn't smell it yet.

"I guess the food's coming... well, let's fix the table. Lei, can you move the books over there?"

We did as Venedette told us (except for Fily because she's weak) and the food did come sooner than we thought.

"Wow!" All of us exclaimed as we smell that sweet slightly burned smell of apple pie that the maids have brought for breakfast.

"What a delight!" I couldn't help but fathom about the changes in Fily's attitude when she's asleep and when she's awake.

It's like, she doesn't care about the world when she's asleep, but then she sleepwalks, and sleep talks-- a lot, when you ask her questions, but whenever she's awake she becomes the sweetest person ever.

"Say aaaah, little Gem."

It's like, she was having pleasure in taking care of others.

"Aaaah?"

*click* A camera flashed from Venedette.

"You two look so sweet." Venedette teased that made my cheeks hot.

"Here." Fily handed me a handkerchief, and when I didn't take it from her, she wiped it to my lips and flashed me a very big smile afterward.

Just how sweet can she get!?

This is unfair! She looks so healthy and sexy while I look just like a stick! Well, a little bit healthier than stick because of the gemstone... But still!

"Okay! Shall we start with the discussion? Fily?"

I felt someone was watching me so I looked around to find it and saw Von gossiping to Lei about something... that I could totally hear!

"They should get a room," he said, to which I didn't understand what he was referring to so I just shrugged it off.

"Salamandite." Fily started by translating the title of the book which was written in another script, triggering my memories of those amphibians coming inside my room last night.

'Was it a dream?' I looked down at my necklace, I can't confirm if it was a dream or not by its light because the sunlight was overshining it.

"A guide to Salamandite..." she read to us all the contents of it just until page 15.

"What's wrong?" Venedette asked after a long silence from Fily.

"It's locked," she said, and before anyone could answer, she recalled something almost immediately.

"I remember now! I was doing some code-cracking when I was sleeping, three pages per day and that's all I could remember. The book has a unique lock that's connected with another source. This source makes the key and the keys open the pages of the book--"

"Keys?"

Fily was interrupted when I suddenly talked.

"Yup, keys," she said, confirming my speculations.

"I think I have seven of those," I said and the room became silent because of that.

"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Fily raised a brow at me.

"Because I thought it wasn't real. I thought it was a dream but what you said just made me understand more about what I saw last night." I said and hid my face from Fily's prying looks.

She almost scared the hell out of me because of that cold look, but as it turns out, it was only just a joke all along.

"That just saved me from seven more weeks of hibernation to unlock a chapter!" she said and hugged me, rubbing her chubby chocolate cheeks with mine.

"So, where did you get it? And what do you mean by dream?" Venedette finally spoke. Her expression was the least pleased upon hearing that from me. Did I say something wrong?

"Y-yesterday... I can't tell if it was a dream or not because the slimes were supposed to be there if it wasn't a dream but there were no slimes on the wall! So I thought I was hallucinating or something."

"Please elaborate."

I couldn't talk straight because of Venedette's nervous stare but I still tried to explain as much as I can.

"So you were saying, you saw Salamanders. And not just one but a lot of them? Enough to fill your whole room with their glows." I just nodded at whatever Venedette's saying, or recapping what I said at least.

"But Salamanders are extinct, you know?" Fily said with a very mellow voice while hugging me that comforted me a little, only when I don't look at Venedette who was still fidgeting back and forth in front of us.

"Where are the keys?" she said and halted in front of me with her right hand in front of my face, asking for the keys that I got from last night.

"T-that's the problem. I think the gemstone ate it yesterday."

"What?" Fily's mellow voice suddenly echoed in the whole room. Somehow her voice still feels calm even when shouting.

"It was a dream. Salamanders are dead and there's no way they could've been here inside the castle without our knowledge." Von concluded which made me lose hope that we can open and see the other contents of the book other than Salamandite's origin and its structure.

There's even no information yet about how Salamandite gemstones work and how we can use them and their powers! If only the first fifteen pages of the book contain instructions on how to activate and draw its powers then we could've been saved from more trouble!

But instead, we found trash like who first discovered Salamandites and how Salamanders had gone to evolve and make it, basically just any basic information we can find about Salamanders in any encyclopedia!

"But at least we found out that the key to this book is within the gemstones... right?" Suddenly, the air of despair enveloping this room was over-shined by Fily's magical mind.

"I love you." I hugged her even tighter than before.

"You're right! Except, that'll be a contradiction of the advantage that we should have acquired by getting this book." Venedette lamented, still overthinking about the fact that the book really didn't provide any explanation whatsoever about our gemstones.

"In conclusion, this book is pointless. Come on, Lei. I'm getting nauseous just by looking at those two." Von said, still with a scowl on his face as he grabbed Lei's hand and walked out on us.

"I'm sorry Venedette, Fily." I said while looking at them shyly.

"No it's okay," my heavy heart felt lighter just by hearing that from Venedette, "It's already suspicious for us to have that book and even someone who can read it. I totally knew it wouldn't be that easy."

"I'll try to take the keys out of the gemstone," I assured her and she just nodded at me.

"It's okay, you can take your time in doing that. I don't want you to force yourself too hard. You too Fily."

"Hai!" She said with a smile that had infected me too.

"So what do you want to do today girls?" Venedette grabbed our hands and took us outside of the library.

I think we could use a tour around this castle? Or even the whole village... I want to see fresh lands and--

"Let's go on a date!"

Or we could do what Fily just said... whatever that is.