Forty-eight

Pov Eloise

I was so excited to surprise Naoka with my idea. I had been thinking about it for a long time, and I finally decided to do it. 

"Where are we going, Eloise?" Naoka asked me, as I dragged her by the hand through the busy streets of the city.

I turned around and put a finger on her lips. "Shh, you can't know until we get there," I said, smiling mysteriously. I loved seeing her curious and impatient. 

I knew exactly where I was going: the orphanage where we had adopted Mia. I wanted to ask the lady in charge of the children if we could take some of them to work with us in our restaurant. I thought it would be a great way to help them and to make our restaurant more lively and fun. I also thought it would make Mia happy to have some friends from her old home.

We arrived at the old building and stopped in front of it. Naoka looked around, confused and intrigued. "What are we doing here, Eloise?" she asked me.

I grinned and said, "Don't be impatient, I told you. You'll see soon enough." I hoped she would like my surprise.

We entered the orphanage and walked past the rows of beds where children slept or played. Some of them looked at us with curiosity, some with envy, some with fear. I felt sorry for them. They had no family, no home, no future. They deserved better.

I spotted the lady in charge of the children, a stern woman with glasses and a bun. She always looked angry and bored. She didn't care about the children. She only cared about the money.

I approached her and said, "Hello, ma'am. Do you remember me?"

She looked at me and said, "Oh, hello. Yes, of course I remember you. You're the one who adopted Mia. So tell me, how are things going with her? Do you want us to take her back?"

She said it with such disdain, as if Mia was a burden, a mistake, a problem. I felt a surge of anger.

I shook my head vigorously and said, "No, no, of course not. Mia is doing great. She's happy and healthy and we love her very much. Actually, I came here to ask you for a favor."

She raised her eyebrows and said, "A favor? What kind of favor?"

I explained, "Well, you see, we have this restaurant. It's me, Mia, and this girl right here." I glanced at Naoka, who nodded. She looked a bit nervous, but also curious. She trusted me. She supported me. "We make delicious food and we serve it to our customers. But we need more help. We need some children to work with us."

She frowned and said, "Your restaurant? You mean the one that Mia told me about? The one that you built with magic and that you run without any adults?"

She said it with such disbelief, as if it was impossible, as if it was wrong. She didn't understand.

I nodded and said, "Yes, that's the one. It's amazing, you should come and see it. And the children would love it too. They would have fun and learn new skills and earn some money. Please, ma'am, can you help us?"

I said it with such hope, such sincerity, such enthusiasm. I thought she would see how good our idea was. How it would benefit everyone. How it would change their lives.

She shook her head and said, "No, I can't help you. I can't let you take any of the children here. Especially not if it was Mia who helped you with the restaurant. She's a troublemaker and a liar. She caused us a lot of problems before you adopted her."

She said it with such contempt, such hatred, such cruelty. 

I protested, "What? But that's not fair. Mia is not a troublemaker or a liar. She's a wonderful girl and she's very talented. She helped us build the restaurant. She's happy to help you and the other children and that's how you treat her? You're so ungrateful and mean."

I said it with such anger, such indignation, such hurt.

She snapped, "Enough. I don't want to hear any more of your nonsense. Security, please. Get these kids out of here."

Naoka took my arm and said, "Come on, Eloise. Don't worry, it's not serious. Let's just go and leave her there, otherwise we'll only get into trouble." She said it with such calmness, such wisdom, such kindness. 

I agreed and said, "Yes, you're right. Let's go."

We left the orphanage, feeling sad and angry. We had failed and we had wasted our time. 

I sighed "Mia will be really disappointed when she finds out. She was so excited about getting some friends to join us."

Naoka nodded and said, "Yes, but we'll go on with our restaurant anyway. We don't need them. We have each other."

I smiled and said, "Yes, you're right. Now let's go and find Mia. We have to tell her the news. And maybe we can cheer her up with some ice cream."

 Pov Maria

I followed Alice to her house after school. She lived in a big castle with a garden and a pool. It was a stark contrast to my humble home in the slums. But I didn't care about that. 

"So, are you ready for us to start training?" I asked her.

"Yes, just let me go and change and then we can start," she said.

"No worries, go and get changed. Unless you want me to come with you," I said, winking at her.

"No, it's okay. I don't need help with that," she said, looking flustered.

"What a shame. I would have been happy to help you. You know, I think you're very cute," I teased her.

"Stop it, you're making me nervous," she said, blushing.

I laughed, "I'm just kidding. Or maybe not. Go on, I'll wait for you here."

She ran up to her room to change and I waited for her in the living room. I looked around and saw the pictures of her family on the walls. They looked happy and proud. 

Her father came in. He had a serious expression on his face.

"So, you came up with a plan," he said.

I nodded, "Yes, I did. I told you I would. During the inter-magical tournament final, both royal families will be present. They will all be gathered in the same place, watching the matches. So our attack will have to be done at the same time. We will use our magic to create chaos and confusion, and then we will strike them down. One by one, until none of them are left alive."

He looked at me with a mix of admiration and fear. He knew I was ruthless and determined.

"Yes, I see what you want us to do. It's a bold and risky move, but it could work," he said.

He was on my side. He had his own reasons to hate the royals. He had his own secrets to hide and he was willing to help me with my plan.

Alice came back at the same time. She had changed into a sporty outfit and she looked ready to train. She also looked adorable.

"Dad, what are you doing here?" she asked.

 "I saw Maria and I just thought I'd say hello to her. She's a very nice girl. Well, now I think it's time for me to go back to my kingly activities. You two have fun." He lied.

And then he left us alone.

I felt a pang of guilt. I was lying to Alice too. I was using her to get close to the royals. I was pretending to be her friend.

But I couldn't help it. I was drawn to her. She was the only person who made me feel something other than anger and hatred. It like I was another person with her.

"Well, we can start training now. Let's go to the yard. We have a lot of work to do," I said.

We both went to the yard, where we had enough space to practice our magic.

I challenged her and said, "Show me what you can do."

She didn't hesitate. She snapped her fingers and the whole courtyard turned into a frozen wonderland. Snowflakes fell from the sky and ice crystals covered the ground. She ran towards me and attacked me with her ice magic. She threw sharp icicles and freezing blasts at me.

But I was ready. I used my gravitational magic to deflect and dodge her attacks. I made myself lighter or heavier, depending on the situation. I also used my force magic to push and pull her around. I grabbed her arm and twisted it, making her drop her guard.

But she was quick. She used her other hand to touch my arm and freeze it. I felt a cold sensation spreading through my limb. I let go of her and backed away.

"Ha, got you," she said.

"Ow, that hurts," I said.

I smiled and said, "Wow, impressive. I didn't think you were that powerful. My arm is still shaking after your attack."

She smiled back and said, "Thanks, but don't compliment me too much. You're very good too. You're fast and agile and strong. You almost had me there."

She was right. We were both good. We were both powerful. We were both dangerous.

"That was really good. Let's take it from there. We can learn from each other and improve our skills. We have to be ready for the tournament. And for the attack," I said.

"Yes, let's do that. We can do this. We can win the tournament. " she said.

She sounded so sincere. So loyal. So naive.

I felt another pang of guilt. I wished I could tell her the truth. I wished I could spare her from the pain.

But I couldn't. I had a mission. I had a goal. 

"Yes, you're right. We can do this. Together," I said.

I lied again.