Serendipity

Who Could It Be?

Sitting on the sofa, between Mia and Grandolf, Sandra rubbed her shoulders in frustration. Head down, she secretly bit her lip, hard enough to make it bleed. As Grandolf watched her wife, he squeezed his hands into balls. The former 13-knight member punched the sofa armrest, strong enough to cause a vibration. 

"Grandolf! I told you, didn't I? Anger is not a solution." Sandra remarked as she held up a hand towards her husband, her face still buried away. When the brunette finally lifted her head, her deep brown swollen orbs met her husband's stern gaze. "I can't imagine our Lily in hell. She didn't have to suffer for another person's mistake in the past."

The air felt chilly, cold as if they were in the North Pole. Mia shivered, hugging her knees toward herself. She looked from her mom to her father, then at Lilah. She could not tell where the iciness had been coming from. Was it really from the rainstorm outside or was it from something else? 

"Ms. Lilah," Mia jumped from the sofa. "Can you please tell us what happened to your younger brother?" The young short-haired brunette brazened herself and bowed her head, almost forcibly. 

Lilah smiled at Mia. She had been waiting for someone to ask, after all. Lilah motioned Mia to sit down on the sofa once more before she started her story. On the other hand, Sandra felt silly for bending her frustration towards no one in particular. Her daughter had to ask instead of her overly emotional parents. 

"I'm sorry, Mia, Grandolf. Forgive your pathetic wife and mother. I shouldn't be acting this way." Her mind full of turbulent waves, but she needed to set aside her emotions if she wanted to save Lily. Sandra behaved herself and gave her full attention to Lilah. Likewise, Grandolf angled himself facing Lilah. The family was all ready to listen. 

After Lilah nodded her head, the smile across her face faded. Deep sorrow now evident in her cerulean, as she looked down, she squeezed her hands over her lap. The wind pushed the pastel pink curtains behind Lilah as if hinting her it knew what she had lost that day. 

"Ren is a good kid. He is my only family." Lilah softly whispered; she could not make her voice any louder. "Our parents had fallen victim to an incurable disease. Ren and I were young back then. Ren was 3-years-old while I was 10. It didn't affect us, apparently because we were still kids." Lilah touched the tip of her ear. Sandra observed, knowing Lilah's habitual mannerisms due to nervousness or when hesitant to say something. "However, it greatly affected the elderly." 

Sandra noticed the uncertainty in Lilah's voice. "You don't have to force yourself, Lilah." 

Lilah shook her head in disagreement.

"I wanted to tell you. If it's in any way helpful to bring back Lily, Ren, and the other young villagers. I won't hesitate anymore." Sandra smiled at Lilah. She envied her friend's braveness, and she realized that she should probably do the same thing. 

"Lilah," Sandra stood up and moved towards Lilah. The brunette bit her lips while clutching her dress. "I shouldn't hesitate either so please..." Dropping on her knees, she grabbed her friend's hands and clutched it strongly. "Let's help each other."

Lilah was surprised by Sandra's dramatic gesture. Lilah knew Sandra since their time at the castle. She had always been an extremist, passionate about things that were very important to her. Giggle escaped from Lilah's lips. "You know what, you didn't change at all. You have always been, you know, pretty extreme." 

Sandra, still kneeling with hands over her lap, pouted and shook her head on one-side. "Well, I hope that entertains you. Nervous freak!" 

"N-nevous freak!?" Lilah wondered if she had heard it right or her exhaustion was playing tricks on her. Still, it ticked her off. Her eyebrows arched in agitation. 

"See? Your voice is cracking!" Sandra accused in a matter-of-fact tone. The brunette stood up, dusting her dress from imaginary dirt. "You have always been that way when you are hesitant to say something." 

"S-so what? Is there something wrong with that?" Lilah could not believe her extremist friend. Sandra had this kind of talent, getting into arguments with anyone in a matter of second. One minute, everything seemed to be going smoothly, the next, you would probably find yourself arguing with her. Her mood change could be very scary, and Lilah knew she should not take her seriously, but she was tremendously irritating today. 

Sandra stuck her nose in the air and flipped her hair in an egotistical manner. "It is wrong. Why? Because I say so!" She made no sense. Sandra's personality had always been a roller coaster. Lilah hoped Sandra would snap out if it but she could not see it happening right at this second. 

More importantly, Lilah should also keep her own emotions in check. She placed her hand over her heart. Not good, 60% triggered, 40% I love my dear friend Sandra. Lilah took a deep breath and gave her friend the look. "Bring it on, old lady."

"Old lady!? Now, you're up for a fight!" Sandra kept telling her husband that anger was never a solution. The brunette was not angry, she was irritated. 

Sandra jumped at Lilah. They tossed and turned on the floor, pulling each other's hair, trying to grab each other's throat. Grandolf and Mia watched the two respected women in the castle with blank looks on their faces. 

Women should be respected. Women should be respected. Grandolf chanted as his mind wondered. How should he argue to his father figure that people in their right minds should be respected instead of just women? Absorbed in his thoughts, Grandolf had not noticed Mia giving him the looks. 

Mia could not believe his father. He would not even budge. Grandolf had his hands crossed over his chest, looking at the nothingness. Irritation started to get over Mia. Scratching her hair, she jumped from the sofa. 

"THIS IS NO TIME TO FIGHT!" Mia shouted at the top of her lungs. "Grow up! You're not little kids anymore!" Mia continuously reprimanded her mom and Lilah. 

But, before Mia could completely stop her mom and her friend fighting, they heard an ear-splitting scream. 

"AHHHHHHHHHHH" 

Sandra and Lilah got up and dusted their dresses. "What could that be?" Grandolf, now in full alert, hurried to the door and pushed it out of his way. The rampaging thunderstorm greeted the former 13-knight member. Even so, it did not faze the curious soldier. He gave into his gut feeling. There was something inhumane out there, and he needed to find out what it was. 

Shielding his face against the rain, Grandolf stepped outside, ignoring the heavy downpour. Water splashed between his feet as he frantically marched from left to right. He had not bothered bringing an umbrella with him. Despite his sodden clothes, hair dripping wet, and his wife calling his name, he continued his search. He scanned the area hysterically. The muscles around his eyes arched together, like a hawk looking for its prey. Rain continuously hammered his defenseless body as thunder danced on the road. The vicious wind trampled many trees surrounding the area and started to rip off metal roofs from its respective houses. 

Kling. Klank. Klang. A small part of Lilah's house roof lurched upward, threatening to pull away completely, leaving Sandra, Lilah, and Mia unguarded. Lilah looked up. It was no ordinary storm. The wind whooshed and bellowed, adding to Lilah's fear. Her house would fall apart. She knew and they needed to look for more secure shelter. Whoosh. 

On the other hand, Sandra was still standing by the doorway. While looking at his husband's almost dwindling figure in the dark night, Sandra caressed her shoulders to lessen her worry. On one corner, Mia shivered. She could not keep up with the weather. It was cold again. 

A lightning suddenly struck a nearby electric post causing Sandra, Mia, and Lilah to jump from shock. Grandolf rushed to the electric post and expected a short circuit, but it did not happen. Instead, a bluish flame burned the transformer, or at least that was what it looked like. Grandolf clutched his heart over his chest. His heart was pounding heavily. Someone nearby must have been controlling the bluish flames. He encountered it before, the exact same scenario. Unless the controller commanded the fire to inflict damage, it would not harm the transformer.