The Girl with the Fire Heart
Chapter 20

Much too quickly, the departure day for the tanzanite kingdom arrives. Valentina feels a tightness in her chest the morning for their first day of travel. She ignores it, thinking it must be nerves when she runs into Brielle in the market.

They stand in front of two different shops, Valentina standing in front of the bakery, Brielle standing in front of the florist. Valentina feels the tightness getting stronger as they stare wordlessly at one another.

Valentina's eyes trace of the slight freckles on Brielle's pale cheeks. Her eyes trace over her slim nose, her full lips, her expressive brown eyes. She sees Brielle's red hair is pulled back into a low bun, loosely done so as not to cause a headache.

Valentina looks over her friend and feels another pang in her chest, something like sadness at their distance. Valentina and Brielle have always been close, and yesterday's events has caused a dent in their relationship neither has ever experienced before.

Brielle looks remorseful and takes a step towards Valentina but stops. Valentina sighs, knowing she doesn't have the time to talk but decides to make the time anyway. She's not sure if its nostalgia and cordialness that makes her move but she does it anyway. She walks to Brielle until she stands a few feet away, close enough to speak but far enough to step away should she need to.

Neither girl says anything for a long moment. Then Brielle speaks first.

“I’m sorry,” she says.

Valentina nods her head in acknowledgment.

“You have to know we meant no harm. We knew the boy with the marble heart would be there, yes, but we did not know he would send a man after you to hunt you down. You have to believe that,” Brielle says.

Valentina nods her head in acknowledgment of this as well.

“You’re our dearest friend. We just wanted to see you, spend time with you, give you an experience you've never had before. It was foolish of us, we know that now. Had we known you were traveling with the nobleman’s son, we would have taken you shopping, or traveled to one of the nearby villages for a small getaway. Please know we only wanted you to have fun,” Brielle reassures.

Valentina sighs, exhaustion flooding her veins.

Brielle takes another tentative step forward, eyes pleading and searching for some sign of forgiveness from Valentina. Valentina, sensing Brielle may try some irrational and unnecessary gesture, takes a big step back.

For the briefest of moments, Valentina sees hurt flash through Brielle's eyes but Valentina does and says nothing to take it away.

“I have spent my life wanting to be accepted by the kids in this village but could never actually be because of my element. I learned a long time ago to never put myself in a position where I would be feared more than I already was. You two are my closest friends, having seen the torment of my childhood and the devastation of my youth. You loved me through it all, stood by my side when no one else would and then went and put me in the worst possible position and you expect me to be understanding of your actions? Your intentions may have been good in nature, but the consequences of your choices were anything but,” Valentina says.

Brielle bows her head, letting a single tear fall. Valentina sighs once more before speaking.

“I want to believe that you won’t do that to me again. I want to believe that there will be another opportunity for the three of us to have a wonderful time without such dire consequences. But I cannot, not now. I need time to… I just need time,” Valentina hesitates.

She isn’t quite sure what she needs time for. Time to be away, time to make peace with her friends’ decision, time to trust again. She wants to fill this painful silence with something other than the sounds of the market and the morning chatter that fills the air from the people milling about around them. Suddenly, she gets a thought.

"I just have one question," Valentina speaks up, wanting to ask before she loses her nerve.

Brielle nods emphatically.

"Did you plan this? Did you work with the boy with the marble heart to.." she lets the question trail off, unsure how to word what she suspects.

When Brielle doesn't answer, Valentina takes her silence as answer enough. Without saying another word, she turns and heads back to the bakery, heading inside to make her purchases and leave. The walk back to her father's house is quiet and contemplative. No one in the village that sees Valentina walking dares to approach her, having heard of the events that took place yesterday.

The memory plays itself in her head as she walks. Her thoughts linger on her friends, confusion and betrayal consuming her before she shifts her thoughts on to something she can comprehend. She remembers so clearly the ease with which her power came to her. All this time training with Damon was starting to seem like a wasted effort. She remembers the sensation of pure adrenaline rushing through her as she caught sight of the shock of those standing nearby. It wasn’t long before news spread like the wildfire of what she had done.

She makes it to the house and stops before changing course and heading towards the barn. She sees the barn door is open and she hesitates going inside until she feels that familiar breeze wash over. She smiles gently before turning the corner and going into the barn.

What she sees makes her stop once more. There, standing in the middle of the barn, is Damon moving gracefully and as one with his element. She watches in awe as he pushes and pulls his water from his hands like a whip, dragging it around his solid frame as he spins. He performs one move after another with such agility, that it's a long time before Valentina clears her throat to make her presence known.

Damon slowly comes to a stop, fully aware of his audience of one and forces his element to settle inside of him and inside of his necklace. He closes his eyes, wiping the slight sweat off of his face and neck before making his way towards Valentina and taking her basket from her hands.

He peers into the basket seeing that she bought all of all his favorite things to eat and some of her own as well. He smiles softly before settling the basket on the workstation and moving towards her again. He sees the tension in the way she stands and he gently pull her into an embrace. He locks his arms around her shoulders, her arms sliding around his waist, and he settles his chin on the top of her head closing his eyes to breathe in her scent.

They stand holding one another for a few minutes until they hear the sounds of carriages and loud voices clambering its way down the road to Jonah's house. Reluctantly, Damon lets Valentina go, stepping back to grab the basket and then exit the barn.

After what feels like one hundred goodbyes, Damon and Valentina climb into their respective carriages with their chaperones, settling in for the long journey ahead.