This story takes place many years before the main KOTLC series when Juline Ruewen has just received her first matchmaking list.
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"S-so," Juline stammered, frantically searching for a subject they could both have an easy conversation over — wasn't that the point of the matchmaking system? "Do you like—"
"Human movies?" Rex Dizznee grinned, clearly meaning it as a joke. It was clever, too — if she didn't like them enough to talk about it, he could easily pull it off as a prank and ease the awkwardness between them. If she did, however, he would know that the matchmakers had done something right by deciding to match them together.
Juline's jaw dropped and he stopped walking, anticipating her response. She turned excitedly so she could face him and squeezed her own cheeks, cupping them in her hands, her elbows flipped toward him. "I LOVE THEM! Which one's your favorite?"
Rex was clearly taken aback, stumbling backward and nearly falling to the ground — luckily, Juline caught him at the last possible second. He smiled at her thankfully, trying to brew up a witty response.
"I like The Time Machine. It's so crazy..." When she tried to raise an eyebrow and frown at the same time, he quickly added, "How the humans can think of such things. It's honestly, well, just insane. And... it seems like such a waste of time, just for people's entertainment."
He did seem pretty smart and comical, but Juline wasn't sure if that was what she wanted. They both leaned back and tried to observe the other, making no attempt to hide the question going through both of their minds: Were they the right match for each other?
And, well, it did seem like a lot to pay for entertainment, but...
"AHHH!" A scream came from far away and kept echoing. Rex and Juline both froze, trying to find where the noise came from.
"HELP!" The next call that followed was a different voice that seemed to set Rex into a state of panic. He paled as he reached for Juline's hand and kept it at arm's length, not even noticing her hesitation. "Where are they?"
"I... I'm not sure," Juline hated to admit. But her hands were really starting to sweat, and she was grateful for the next shout that gave her an excuse to break away from Rex.
"Follow me!" Rex had already broken into a run and looked back expectantly at her, like he was waiting to see how fast she could run. Suddenly angry, she clenched her hands into fists as she sprinted down a steep hill covered with yards of endless grass. A beautiful meadow that led to the Dizznees' back lawn.
"REX!" A girl with strawberry red hair pulled Rex into an embrace, panting and looking extremely worried as she patted him on the back. Juline was instantly able to spot the similarities between the two: though Rex's hair was a springlike strawberry-blonde color, they both had the same pale complexion that made them look like family.
When the girl noticed her, she released her brother abruptly and stepped back, apparently not realizing that Rex had tripped on a small stone and fallen backward — this time, Juline wasn't there to catch him.
Juline tried to distract herself as the girl tried to lock eyes with her and gaped shamelessly. "It's Kes, my brother," she whispered, bending down, "he's hurt. Could you help him?"
Juline saw the girl's pleading gaze and winced from the purity of it. "I'm no Elwin, but I'll try my best. What happened to your brother? Where is he?"
The girl tugged at Juline's sleeve and dragged her in the direction of a lake. She could tell by the fresh and recognizable scent of the water and the moisture in the air. She was also leaving Rex, for good measure. Before the redhead could open her mouth and say "Here," Juline saw the boy. He looked no older than her, but the blood oozing out of his arm seemed to be making him younger by the second.
When she whirled back to the red-haired girl and tried to ask her what had happened to him, she pointed at the tall tree that cast a shadow onto the ground, covering all three of them.
He had fallen off a tree.
Juline blinked, momentarily paralyzed before the girl grabbed her shoulder, hard. She pushed her way out of her grasp and nudged the boy in the arm. "Are you okay?" She asked as gently as she could.
He stirred and blinked like he couldn't make sense of his surroundings. Then his face melted to something entirely different — fear? Surprise? "That's an overused phrase," he accused teasingly.
Juline spun to the girl, trying to convey the message Hail someone immediately! Get help! She nodded and skipped away, feeling free to take her time.
"Okay, what else do you want me to say instead of that? Just in case I find you hurt again?" Desperately trying to think of something to say to reassure him, the words spewed from her mouth.
"Well, I'd prefer 'Am I worth your time saving?' over any of that nonsense," he snorted, sounding like he was trying to hurt himself more than her.
"Of course you are," she told him, trying to sound positive, "All of us are. We're all about preserving life, don't you know?"
"We're all about saving the lives that're worth it," he corrected her. Then he squirmed, looking fidgety in his uncomfortable position — his arms and legs were bent at weird angles. "And I'm not one of them."
She frowned, her brows furrowing. "Why wouldn't you be?"
He seemed to be trying to find ways to sugarcoat what he was about to say next, making Juline feel even more suspense until he finally told her, "I'm Talentless."
She blinked. The revelation wasn't as big as she'd imagined, though he wouldn't tell her anything big — they'd barely just met, anyways. "There's nothing wrong with that."
He seemed to need to take time to process what she'd just said as he gulped for air, shivering. "Everyone else seems to say the opposite."
"So what?" She asked, feeling surprisingly free and being able to interact with this boy she'd just met so easily, "I'm not saying that they're necessarily right. Or wrong. But... that gives you a new perspective."
She added slowly when he raised his eyebrow, unconvinced — so much like his brother's, if he even considered Rex his brother. "I mean, you can rely on other things — not just special abilities. What if our abilities suddenly fail us one day? Where would you be?"
He avoided the question carefully, looking into her eyes as he opened his mouth to say something... at the last second, though, he took it back and swallowed his words sourly. Scowling, he sniggered, "Says the girl who has a special ability."
"How are you so sure?" Her mind moved faster than her mouth, and she flushed red when she realized that, well, she did have an ability — an extremely rare one, Frosting. She'd manifested it at the young age of thirteen, wielding it with immense power and capability.
"I see the pride," he noted, "And... you just seem kind of... confident. Well," he said, raising his hands up so she wouldn't retort back, "You just look like you have one, a special ability. Does that make sense?"
Not to me, but maybe to you. "That's... I can sort of get it," she lied. Her head snapped back up when she remembered the reason why she'd been here all along, "Where's your brother? And your sister?"
"How nice of you to assume that they would care about me," he shot back flatly. When he realized what he'd done, his eyes swelled and burst with tears as snot came down his shirt. "I'm sorry. I really don't... You don't have to do this..."
"Put up with you? Of course I do," she said, laughing, "Even if I've just met you."
"Same goes for me, even if I just met you." The words were barely louder than an electric hum, but it still zapped through her — and she realized how close she was standing to him the exact same time he did, too. Jumping back with a tiny yelp, she noticed his unembarrassed face and was surprised at his bravery.
"Thanks for helping me," he said, barely louder than a whisper — but she could hear everything he was saying, and she felt like she would even if she stood a hundred miles away, "I don't think anyone else could. Not for someone like me," he chuckled darkly, his tone reverting back to the cool one he'd used earlier. But that wasn't his fault.
She felt a strong urge to stay there, to continue protecting him and fend off all the people who wanted to hurt him as she spotted the redhaired girl and she ran toward her, bringing someone familiar along — Elwin, who worked in Foxfire's Healing Center.
"Good." She repeated under her breath.
"Good?" Juline and Elwin both questioned at the same time.
She shrugged, not looking their way. "Okay, help him. Now!" She demanded furiously. Elwin exchanged a glance with her as she stepped back.
"You'll be okay, Juline?"
"More than okay," she tried assuring him.
She threw a pointed glance at the redhead girl who was indeed the boy's sister, "You'll tell your brother that I'm leaving?" Her eyes widened as she realized what she meant and who she was referring to. Rex.
"I will," she said firmly, like she was scared Juline would doubt her.
"Good," she jokingly mimicked the tone she'd used no more than ten seconds ago— which made the flaming girl laugh unexpectedly.
Before pulling out her home crystal and returning to her parents and sister, her eyes met the boy's. "You should remind me of your name."
"I should?" He asked innocently, which made the red-haired girl bat her eyes. "It's Kesler. Kesler Dizznee," he added, throwing an odd glance at the tree he was lying down below.
"Take care," she tried to tell him while resisting the urge to roll her eyes. Surprised at her own motives, she jerked back suddenly.Â
"You too."
When Juline pulled out her home crystal, she noticed that the blazing redhaired girl seemed hurt that she hadn't asked for her name. But that was because she intended to come back and do it all over again, and this time she'd make sure to learn more about their family.
After she returned home, she hadn't noticed that tears were streaking down her face — silent ones that would go unnoticed by everyone except her sister Edaline, who hugged her as she blew her nose into the sleeve of her shirt. "Everything okay?"