12 Years Later
Chapter 2 - A Birthday
Mabel turned over and groaned as she woke and sat up, rubbing her temples with her right hand. She swung her legs over the side of the bed and looked around her room with a smile, remembering every morning that had been like this the past twelve years. Today was special however.
Mabel stood and took off her nightgown and put on a light purple shirt with a dark purple skirt. She then sat at her mirror and brushed out her hair, which had finally grown to the bottom of her back last month. After braiding her long hair, she let the braid rest on her back as she stood once more, looked in the mirror, and smiled at herself as she opened her door.
Savas looked down the hallway from the kitchen and smiled as he saw his "niece" and apprentice coming towards him. With a glint of mischief in his lightly glowing eyes, he turned back to making breakfast for the children that lived in the shelter.
"You're not hiding your powers anymore Uncle Savas," said Mabel as she sat down at the table and watched the tall mans back, "I can tell because I've got that headache that I always got when you lessened your control over your powers. However, this is the strongest I've ever felt it, and because of this, I'm sure something even more important than my birthday is going to happen today."
Savas laughed lightly and smiled as he turned around and presented the young woman in front of him with an enormous breakfast plate, filled with all sorts of amazing foods.
"Shauol wanted to sleep in a little today, even though I think he just wanted to lay in bed. I volunteered to make my favorite pupil a birthday breakfast to congratulate her on coming of age," said the old priest as he winked at Mabel then sat across from her and helped himself to a piece of bacon.
Mabel smiled and began munching on a piece of toast as she carefully watched her "uncle", wondering why he would fully release his powers now, especially on her birthday.
"My dear Mabel, I can see in your eyes that you'd like to know what my powers are doing unchecked," smiled Savas as he drank some milk and then took a bite out of a piece of toast, "You see my dear, I've taught you everything I can now, the only thing left is for you to block my abilities completely. Once you do that, and show me that you've been working on your abilities, you will no longer be my student. Whatever you choose to do from this point on is entirely up to you, and I'm positive you will do it amazingly well."
"Uncle Savas!" exclaimed the young woman as she dropped her piece of toast, "You can't be serious! There's so much that I feel I can learn...why aren't you able to teach me anymore?"
"Well Mabel, I have a feeling that the questions you have can only be answered by experience. The training I've given you so far is much more advanced than any that I've given before. Pupils are usually sent out on their own to learn and sharpen their skills on their own after four years of training. You've been given triple that, and you have triple the power...I'm quite confident that you'll find the answers to the questions that you have when you take your journey."
"Journey? What journey?" Mabel asked, giving her most innocent look.
"Oops...shouldn't have said that..." was the reply.
Shauol laughed as he came into the kitchen and stretched then placed a kiss on both of Mabel's cheeks as she giggled.
"Happy Birthday Little One," said Shauol as he ruffled her hair and grabbed an apple from the center of the table, "I see Savas has already gotten you into a good mood for me, and I think he's probably blown the cover off of my secret."
Savas smiled and laughed as Mabel looked at her two caretakers in confusion.
"Sorry to do this to you hun, but you'll have to wait until this afternoon when everyone is awake and waiting to eat that wonderful birthday meal that we'll have prepared. I'm pretty sure you'll love what it will be," said Shauol as he took the seeds out of the apple core and put them in a bag, and then rolled up his sleeves and took the empty plate from in front of Mabel.
"Now little missy, you just stay right there and we'll whip something up for ya...actually it'd probably be a better idea to go wake up all the others so we don't make a breakfast that sits there and gets cold," said Savas as he began moving about the kitchen, rustling through bags of grain and clanging about in cupboards full of pots.
Mabel smiled and walked into the main room then turned left and moved down a hallway towards Savas' room. She knocked on every door that was shut, hoping to wake everyone up without entering his or her personal space. When she came to the last door on the hallway she smiled and slowly opened the door, praising Shauol and Savas for keeping every door well oiled so it wouldn't creak.
"Phillos," she whispered as she crept to the bedside, and then quickly pulled back the covers. Instead of finding the darkly tinged skin of her friend, she found four pillows, carefully arranged to simulate the young mans body under the covers. Mabel looked around the dim room wildly then squeaked in surprise as a hand covered her mouth, and its companion began to tickle her side. She struggled in his grasp, laughing loudly as he continued to tickle her, slowly lowering her to the floor where he commenced his torture with both hands.
"Stop! Stop! I'm sorry I was going to wake you that way!" cried Mabel as she laughed so hard that tears began to flow from her eyes, "I'm sorry Phillos!"
"Aw, C'mon Mabel, you're no fun," said Phillos as his hands were taken off her sides. He laughed softly as he looked down at the young woman laying in a disheveled heap on the floor, then scooped her up and carried her out of his room, depositing her in a chair in the main room.
"I'll go wake the younger ones," Phillos said as he turned down the hallway on the right of the main hall, opening each door and softly calling every child's name. "I'll let you wake Shema, Mabel. She really doesn't like the sound of my voice, poor child."
