Chapter 9: Wings of Flame

Wings of Flame 

Fi took a deep breath. Her back burned whenever she inhaled, but she didn't care. This was what she’d practiced for. This was why she’d devoted hours to levitating a few feet off the ground and dropping herself back down. This would be the moment that changed everything. That was the thought in Fi’s head as she stepped off the side of the North Tower, hundreds of feet above the ground.

Fi almost screamed as the rushing wind tore into her face and skin. She flailed her arms, panicking. Fi made herself breathe and extend her burning wings. In retrospect, she realized, this was a terrible idea. But, she was a teenager.

Fi had felt nothing, nothing, like the moment her wings caught the updraft and rocketed her into the starry indigo sky. It was a kind of freedom unknown to anyone but her; as far as she knew. The burning in her back faded and Fi flapped her huge wings, which spanned a ridiculous amount of space. She flew amongst the stars. In that moment of freedom, only one negative thought clouded Fi’s joy. She missed Neve- really missed Neve. Fi had been too busy being furious and wounded, but now she realized that Neve was a huge puzzle piece in her life; without her, the picture wasn’t complete.  

-=+=-

Glory. Freedom. Escape. That was what flying was. Fi snuck away every night to practice her flight. It was a monotonous and tedious task, consisting of spending about twenty minutes constructing the wings in the air (with attention and detail paid to every feather of flame), and then about five minutes of agony as the wings melded to Fi’s back. Yet, the flying made up entirely for the pain Fi had to endure. There was nothing like bolting into a cobalt sky, untethered, and soaring about the stars. Flight was freedom, freedom was joy, and joy was all one could ever ask for.

-=+=-

“Stop doubting me,” Elian told Fi.

“I’m just saying… I don’t think you’re going to find the gem on broomstick- they won’t let you.”

The first task for the Triwizard Tournament had been announced. It was to take place in a week. Any type of magic was allowed. The task was to find an assigned jewel (large and uncut) in the trench of Daemion. The trench was a massive hole leading into the depths of the earth. Tunnels branched off from the main hole, but were virtually inaccessible since the trench was a sheer vertical drop. It had originally been used as a mine, with broomsticks being used to access the tunnels. Now the task was for each team to retrieve a certain gem (they would assign colors at the commencement of the task) from any one of the tunnels. The first group to do so would win. 

-

Luckily for Fi, she had wings she could summon. The only issue was how long they took to form- by the time Fi had affixed her wings, the other groups might have already found a way into the tunnels. She’d tried time and time again to will the wings to appear instead of having to create them all over again and then burn them onto herself (a process which Fi had become surprisingly numb to). 

Elian’s voice broke Fi’s reverie, “So what are you gonna do?”

“Huh?”

“To get the gem- how are you gonna do it?”

“Oh… Uh, I dunno.” Fi wasn’t sure she wanted anyone to know about her wings yet. 

She glanced up and noticed the time, “Sorry, Elian! I gotta go.”

“Bye.”

“See ya.”

-=+=-

Fi arrived late- and panting- to the third corridor. 

Tanya glared at Fi, “Took you long enough.”

Levi smiled from a few feet away, “Hi!” 

Neve, who was leaning against the stone entrance to the tower, gave no acknowledgement of Fi’s presence. 

Fi simply said, “Are we going up? To practice?”

“No,” Tanya said sarcastically, “we’re just going to stand here all day.” She pushed the monumental door open and lead the way up the spiraling stone staircase.

Once at the top, the four of them stood awkwardly looking at each other. They had no idea what to do. Fi wished that she was with Kael, Dimitri, and the old Neve. They were her best friends and things were always comfortable around them. Fi felt like she could be herself around those three, but around Tanya, Levi, and this Neve the open-air tower top was charged with discomfort. Neve refused to acknowledge her, Tanya glared at her, and Levi wore a jovial smirk. 

Neve’s cold, robotic voice broke the silence at last, “What do we do?”
Fi asked, “What can we do?”

“We’ll have to find a way to fly without using broomsticks,” Levi chimed. 

Fi swallowed. She needed to use her wings, but they felt like her own secret- something that was hers alone.

Neve looked at Fi and said in the same clinical emptiness, “She’s hiding something.” 

Tanya and Levi looked at Fi at the same moment. Fi stood frozen like a deer in the headlights. 

Neve cocked her head like a dog might.  She said, “I don’t know how, but you can fly. Somehow. Some way.” 

Fi made no move.

“Show us,” Tanya ordered. 

Fi was in the spotlight now. For some reason, she froze entirely. She didn’t move at all- and neither did Tanya or Levi-when Neve crawled onto the enormous stone ledge of the tower. She crouched there for a moment, then stood up. Fi watched in horror as Neve turned to face them all. 

She looked directly at Fi and said, “Now you’ll fly.” Then Neve fell backwards off the tower. Fi felt a scream tear from her throat.

“Neve!” Fi jumped onto the stone ledge. Right as her feet left it, she felt a massive spread of heat across her back- wings. 

-

Plummeting down, down. Faster, faster. Fia pulled her wings in all the way, condensing the massive things as much as she could. At last, after what seemed at the same moment like both an eternity and yet a second, Fi opened her wings. She grabbed under Neve’s arms, catching her. Without a word, Fi flapped back up to the tower. She dropped Neve gently there, and flew away. 

-=+=-

Somehow, Fi found herself at the edge of the forest- no longer forbidden- leaning against the trunk of a massive tree and, of all things, crying. She must have been there a very long time, because the sun had moved overhead and the light had grown dimmer. Wiping her eyes, Fi was startled by the sound of footsteps behind her. She made no move to see who was behind her- Fi didn’t care. Something- someone- plopped down on the leaves next to her. At last she turned to face the person and found that it was Levi. Fi shook her head.

“Where are the others?”

“They both left, as soon as you dropped Neve off.”

“Just left?”

Levi nodded. 

Fi asked, “Was Neve okay?”

“Yeah, she was fine. Thanks to you.” 

Fi shrugged. Levi took her hand, but she was too caught up in her thoughts to notice this gesture.

“Fi, look at me.” Fi looked at Levi and found herself caught up in his icy blue eyes, which were somehow always brimming with emotion. They reminded her one her favorite TV show characters; Neil Caffrey from White Collar. A breeze rustled the trees around them, and one small black curl of hair fell between Levi’s eyes. Hair… Like on of Fi’s favorite fictional boys, Rhysand, from A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. Levi smiled, bright as Fi’s fire. He inclined his head forward a bit and- kissed her. His lips were soft against Fi’s. She pulled back immediately. 

“Levi! What the heck was that?” 

Levi looked entirely flustered. “Um- uh, I don’t know. I thought… I mean. It was a kiss.”

“Do you just go around kissing people?” Fi knew she was being a bit hard on him, but we were barely friends. 

“No- I just- I really like you.”

“Levi we just met. And I’m fourteen. I don’t need a boyfriend. I like you a lot, but as a friend. I’m sorry if I have you the wrong idea.” Fi stood up and summoned her wings. After having to save Neve today, Fi was surprised that they just appeared again. No more building and fusing them, she supposed. 

“Fi, wait!” 

It was too late. Fi was gone. She flew to one of the school’s many towers. Fi prayed no one saw her- the girl with wings of flame. She sped down the staircase and into the school hallway. Fi sighed and pushed her hair away from her face. Her lips still burned with the imprint of Levi’s lips. She was not expecting that. At all. 

-=+=-

“And then he kissed me!” Fi recounted the day’s events to Kael. He seemed to be listening with half interest. Not really caring if Kael wanted to hear about her day, Fi continued on.

“I mean, who does that?”

Kael at last participated in the conversation, “This is the most passionate I’ve seen you about something in a long time. You used to always be this way. Lately you’ve been so-”

Fi mimicked his British accent, something she usually didn’t bother to do around him,“apathetic?”

“I guess so. Whatever that means.”

“Yeah, I guess I’ve made myself numb lately, so I wouldn’t have to deal with losing Neve and Dimitri. It’s been hard for you too, hasn’t it?”

“Yeah. But we’ll get them back.”
“You know it.”