We Found Each Other

'Glass Fragments'

Holding our mugs of rich, sweet-smelling coffee, we strolled into the enormous living room.

The soft night breeze whisked in through the huge glass window that was left open, whirling the white linen curtains and tingling the intricate wind chime hanging on the window.

We slumped on the creamy white leather couch right beside each other. My tastebuds tingled pleasantly at the perfect combination of the bitter and sweet taste of the coffee I was savouring.

"I'm obsessed with these. You'll prolly find it on every window here," Wiola said, as she noticed me gaping at the wind chime.

"Except for Tyler's room. He gets mad when anyone enters his room, including me."

"No offence, but I always thought he's super weird. he's got his table in the library that no one can use, his desks in different classes that he doesn't allow anyone to sit on. And yeah, a bench under a cherry blossom tree that's always vacant, unless Tyler is sitting on it." I scoffed.

'Stupid mouth, what are you blabbering about? this girl is her blood-related sister and a witch at that. You really want me to die that much?' The thought almost made me cry while laughing.

She cackled amusingly and that honestly made me hang on to the sliver of hope; my life. "You can say it's a sibling thing. Tyler is obsessed with the things and spots, that belongs to him, or so he assumes. Just like I'm obsessed with these wind chimes and instant coffee."

As expected, there was nothing to be wary of with Wiola. If anything, Tyler was more of a pain in neck for her.

"Your obsessions are delightful, I mean, this coffee, it tastes perfect, and this wind chime is so outstanding too. I'm looking forward to discover more of them." I smiled.

"Linnet, you're such a candy. Don't you worry, You'll see a lot of them hanging on literally every window. I personally like the sound they make, it's euphonious, isn't it?" She beamed. "We didn't have anything like this back in our Realm. We do have musical instruments but we mostly enjoy nature's sound, that's our music."

"Sounds peaceful, " I mumbled, intrigued by her passion.

"You know what, it still feels incredible to me. That I am actually sitting beside the incarnation of Enchanted Tanzanite. How to put it... I never thought that it would incarnate itself into a human. I was so amazed when I saw you," She said, taking a few sips of her coffee.

"And why is that?"

"That's because... we just thought it would incarnate in its original form or as far as we could think, it could've been a flower or another gemstone." She took another sip. "You know what, up until now, I've practically memorised the Book of Shadows. But there is so limited information about Enchanted Tanzanite that we don't know anything about it. Except that it retains a life and that it can take any form when incarnating," She answered.

I reckoned if Wiola could tell me the purpose of my existence in Tyler's life, that why does he need me. What could I possibly offer to Tyler in return for him helping me.

"Oh, I see. Can I-, can I ask you something?"

"Yeah sure, go ahead."

"Why were you searching for me, I mean Enchanted Tanzanite?" I fiddled with the handle of the mug.

"Didn't Tyler tell you yet?" She looked puzzled.

"No... I guess."

"This guy, how could he not tell you about it. You know what? He might act tough but he's actually very sentimental. Maybe, he didn't get the chance to tell you or he doesn't want to show you his weak side. Either could be the case. I'd rather you ask him directly."

What she suggested wasn't erroneous. He could tell me whenever he felt comfortable. As of right now, I was of no use to him. Maybe he had planned to tell me right when I master my magical abilities.

"Yeah, you are right. I'll ask him myself." I managed to put a smile on my face.

"And What's going on here?" Tyler showed up through the door and asked casually, sprawling across us.

"Just some girly gossips. You both can continue, I'll be upstairs." Wiola fled along with her mug of coffee and Tyler locked his eyes on mine.

His walnut brown eyes could tell me a thousand stories but in words so unfamiliar to me that I didn't know how to decode. And his stare? Don't even get me started. It explored every single particle my soul is made up of. I could never get used to it, and I didn't think I'd ever be.

"Um, so, you two live here alone? I mean, this house is way big for only two people." I didn't know why I asked this, maybe because I was running out of things to say and ask.

"No, usually Nathan is often with us, but he's off to the Maldives to enjoy summer." He said, while sitting in his effortless and perfect 90-degree posture. "Nathaniel Stephenson is Ryle and Kyle's Uncle. Also, someone that owes our parents a big-time, so, he is repaying by being our guardian here," he added.

"Oh, I see," I muttered, feeling a bit intimidated because the person indebted to them is Nathaniel Stephenson. One of the most renowned business tycoons. No wonder they had such a lavish house.

"Follow me!" Tyler retreated from the couch towards a door I didn't notice existed in this vast living room. Placing my half-filled mug of coffee on the table, I ambled behind him clumsily.

We set foot in a high-ceilinged and panelled library after stepping down a flight of spiral honey brown staircase. This library was well-equipped and impressive like I had seen in movies.

I took a look around while he relaxed on a desk. Tall and pale lamps radiating warm golden light had set a unique atmosphere. In the middle, there were dark brown leather couches and sofas arranged in an oddly satisfying way.

A giant rectangular shelf caught my attention. This shelf had only one book. That book wasn't actually sitting on that shelf, it was floating horizontally on a bed of glow.

"That one is the Book of Shadows," Tyler asserted.

"If this book is such a huge deal, why doesn't it have much information on Enchanted Tanzanite? Isn't there another book that is useful?" I strolled towards the shelf.

His laugh resonated in the vast library. "You're calling it useless? " He suppressed his laugh and cleared his throat. "It would be a bit rude to call it useless. This is not just any book you can find in any library even in the Realm of Magic. This is only accessible to and passed down in High Lord families. The information it has, is not available in any book."

"High Lord families?" I inquired.

"You know, like the history books have Emperors and Kings. High Lords are rulers of continents in our Realm." He answered, walking towards me.

"So, did you..." My eyes widened, presuming the probabilities. "Did you steal it?"

He chuckled looking at the pecan brown floor and when he moved his gaze up at me, he looked dead serious, "Looks like I need to introduce myself again." He grinned, looming over me. "I'm Tyler-Ezahl Starkaneus, the sole heir of the Iopias continent in the Realm of Magic."

I swallowed, remembering the time he mentioned something about being the most powerful among the other magic users. So he wasn't bluffing.

"Wow. So what is such a significant being doing in this lousy human realm in the first place?"

"Let's save that topic for some other time," He walked away, towards his desk.

'What? It was sarcasm. Does he really think it's a lousy realm and he's some sig— Lord no.' I thought in disbelief.

"Oh, Cool. Nice decor by the way," I blurted out awkwardly.

"Did you try to block off the voices you didn't want to hear today?" He asked, swivelling in my direction.

"I didn't, But you did," I stated.

"What? I did?" He appeared to be kinda shocked.

"Yeah, like you always do. It might sound strange but I can't hear thoughts when you are around or when my eyes are on you."

"That's amazing. The reason this power of yours is out of your control is the abundance of mana in your body. So when Enchanted Tanzanite is near you, it soaks up the leaking mana from you, making it easier for you to control your powers," He said, "The little control you get on your ability through this, can only help to an extent. Like repelling of the undesirable thoughts. You may still hear thoughts when you let your guard down. It's not a solution."

"So the permanent solution is..." I got consumed in thoughts.

"Right. You need to be able to do it on your own, absorbing or repelling thoughts should be your choice. That's how you'll meet the desired results," Tyler spoke my conclusions.

"Okay, I get it. I get it all but I don't want you to keep high expectations from me, because, I-, I'm afraid I'll disappoint you and myself." I fiddled with my bracelet to avoid looking at him.

He coaxed me to meet his gaze by cupping my face gently in his palms. My stomach commenced to crumble inside.

"Now don't say that, Linnet, you are incredible. And Nothing can stop you if you have faith in yourself." His words replenished me with confidence that I had somehow lost.

"Should we start then? I'm going to bother you a lot," I said and his face lit up with a smile.

"For the beginning, let's just try to make small progress." He sauntered to the table, picked a glass from the tray and placed it near the edge of the table. "Like move this glass a few centimetres, without touching it."

"How am I supposed to move it without even touching it? I mean, give me a wand or something," I asserted in confusion.

He let out a soft suppressed laugh. "You won't need a wand for this. The magic you possess can surpass any magic. You just have to concentrate and try to move it with your mind."

"Like telekinesis? Okay, now let me try!" I stared furiously at the glass. My eyebrows drew closer and both of my index and middle fingers were pressed on my temples.

Tyler's chuckle distracted me, his fist covered his laughing mouth. "Can you stop laughing at everything I say and do? Do I look like a comedian to you?" I flared up.

"I'm, I'm sorry. I just couldn't hold my laugh. I find–" he pressed his fingers on his temples, imitating me from earlier–"this funny and illogical."

"You do have a knack for insulting people." I folded my arms in annoyance. "I was doing it to focus."

"I apologise. I didn't mean to uh, insult your technique. But you won't need any kind of techniques to do what you're capable of." His smile didn't feel insulting rather it was assuring.

Without replying, I just scowled and then fixed my eyes on the glass. At the start, it felt like I could do this but almost five long minutes had been passed and the glass didn't even shudder.

My eyes were watery now; an outcome of constantly staring at the glass and barely even blinking. I jerked my head and turned to Tyler while rubbing my eyes.

"Don't give up right now. Activating your mana will require patience and concentration. Focus as much as you can!" He patted my shoulder. "Once you start putting the mana to use, it won't leak and cause unnecessary trouble for you."

I settled my eyes on the glass again. This time with all five of my senses and every bit of my attention, I concentrated on the glass. A mild pain began numbing my head and my fingers started to tickle.

Prior to even get a hang of the pain, A buzzing sound reverberated. The glass quivered and instantly burst with a shattering noise. Its fragments pierced the air, darting in all directions.

The Next thing I knew; I was enclosed in Tyler's arms. Before the glass could even touch the surface of my skin, he had swiftly pulled me and wrapped me in a hug. My eyes were shut and my fists placed on his chest.

My heart was thudding rapidly. Shock. It was because of the shock. Or so I wanted to assume.

He pulled back to check on me. "You alright?" His breathy voice inquired as his palms gingerly caressed my shoulders.

"Uhm yeah, but are you okay? You're not hurt, are you?" I got worried because by pulling off this impressive stunt, his back must've been the target of those glass fragments.

"No, I'm not hurt," he responded. I set myself free from his grasp naturally to peek behind him.

Behind him, were the fragments still, hanging in the air. They collapsed on the wooden floor as he turned around.

I faced an inner argument with myself. If he was able to just freeze those sharp chunks of glass in the air like that, wasn't it totally unnecessary for him to hold me like that? I wouldn't disagree with the fact that I felt pleased and safe when he did that, and that was the whole reason I needed to get a grip on myself.

To him, I was the incarnation of Enchanted Tanzanite that he needed and had searched for and that's why he had to keep me safe at all costs.

Why couldn't he keep being the annoying and cocky person I could b***h about to his sweet sister?

It should've been simple. He would help me control my powers, and in return, I'd just do whatever he asked. Even if it meant giving him all of my powers, that'd be even better. If by any chance, I still had my powers, I'd be able to not hear people's thought unwillingly. I'd just never use my powers and live a normal life. But would life ever go my way?