by Freya Hart (age 13)

“What have you done!” she said as she continuously failed to produce a spark. “Why have you–” but she did not finish as she looked at Lora passed out on the grass.

Years earlier

Lyra felt the heat rush over her again as she tested her power against Lazra who felt the exact opposite, as the icy chills ran down her spine all the while. Lora had her nose planted in a book; then she shouted, “Can you do that outside!”. Gracon, who was standing in the doorframe watching Lazra, laughed then replied, “you know better than to ask that!” Lora glared at him, then closed her book with a snap and left the room. Lazra felt a twinge of guilt about not sticking up for her but continued to train, blasting ice from the palms of her hands against Lyras’s fire.

Later that night, the four finished dinner and played a game of Ice Packed.

“So how do we play?” Gracon asked Lazra, thinking of a lot of bad possibilities after seeing Lora’s worried face.

“Simple. You either do a dare or get blasted by ice. I’ll go first. I dare the four of us to dye our hair!” Gracon agreed so Lyra copied but Lora had concerns.

“What if we don’t like the results or worse, what if mother finds out!”

“If we dye our hair she will find out no matter what; so, I’m in,” Lyra replied.

In the end, Lyra dyed the ends of her black hair and the tips of her bangs red. Lazra had short blond hair and got teal highlights. Lora went more natural, dyeing the front and ends of her brown hair orange, and Gracon dyed the front of his short messy black hair a darker blue to match Lazra.

The next day, Lora received an official looking letter in the mail. Bringing it inside, she opened it without drawing the attention of her sisters:

“Dear Lora Raid,                                                   

We are pleased to notify you that you have been accepted into the Stardust Academy of Star Studies. Requirements and details are listed below.”

Gracon noticed her smile and walked over.

“What’s got you so happy?”

“Nothing,” she said too quickly, making him catch her lie. “It’s just mail.” Gracon looked at her for a minute. Convinced she would not read him the letter, he grabbed it.

“Give that back!” she grunted, looking even more worriedly round at where her sisters were talking in the corner. “Please don’t tell them Gracon, they will never let me leave if they know.”

“This is amazing! You’ve dreamed of going to the academy forever, but you have to tell them, you can’t exactly leave without letting anyone know.”

“No,” she replied stubbornly. “If I tell them, they will say things like I haven’t got my power yet or it’s too far away. I just don’t want to risk not going or feeling responsible if Lyra loses control again.” Lora had the most concerned look on her face Gracon had ever seen.

“I’m sure if you show them how much you need to go, and how much this means to you, they will let you go. As for Lyra, just make sure she’s in a good mood and that I’m around; but I’m positive it won’t come to that. Worst case is she gets mad.”

So, later that day, with Gracon’s encouragement, Lora showed her sisters the letter. Lazra was completely happy for her.

“When will you start?”

“I fly out Sunday and start Monday”.

But Lyra reacted exactly as Lora had predicted:

“You can’t go! You haven’t even got a power yet. If your ability comes out in public, we won’t be able to cover for you. You will be exposed and you know how that can end.”

“But Lyra–” Lora paused having seen the mad look on her sister’s face. Gracon noticed too and stepped in.

“Calm down Lyra,” he said peacefully. “Remember, you don’t want to lose your control. Right now, Lora has a chance to do something she has dreamed about her whole life, and do you know what is stopping her right now? You! We all get that you’re just trying to protect her, but using threats won’t help her; it will just scare her. She is Lora. She has already thought of every problem possible and most likely has solutions. Just let her go.”

Lyra left without saying another word and Lora mouthed the words thank you to him.

On Sunday before her flight, Lora made three matching black and red chokers with a star in the middle: one for Lazra, one for Lyra, and one for herself. She then said her goodbyes and boarded her plane.

Over the next few days during practice, Lyra was finding it harder to control her flame and eventually had to let Lazra cool her down. But she was scared at how uncontrollable it was becoming, and, for her sister and Gracon’s protection, she decided to leave.

“Lazra, I’m going.” Lyra said it lightly, but her tone changed when she saw the surprise on her sister’s face.

“I’m leaving home!” She said it again, frustration seeping into her voice. Lazra was too stunned to speak, so Gracon stepped in.

“Why?”

“That’s none of your concern,” Lyra replied coldly, hugging her sister, and leaving without saying goodbye to Gracon. He noticed Lazra’s shocked face and kissed her cheek.

“Don’t worry she– ” he faded off because, truth be told, he had no idea whether or not she would come back.

“A week ago, we were all together but now, now I’m alone.” Lazra spoke with a shaky voice.

“That’s not true,” he comforted, “you’re not alone – you have me, and I promise I will never leave you.”

3 years later

Lyra was still struggling with her ability, but when Lazra successfully tracked her down, she refused help.

“Lyra, please come home. We can heal all your burns and all your cuts. Then you can finish training and we can be together again, please,” Lazra begged. “I’ve missed you. Please come with me.”

“NO,” she responded. “You shouldn’t be here. I could hurt you. That’s why I’m here in the dusty place, so I don’t hurt anyone with it.”

Gracon had kept his promise to stay with Lazra and said, “I’ve contacted Lora. She’ll be here soon.”

“No, Gracon, no. Tell her not to come, please,” Lyra begged now, sweat pooling down her face, her skin hot to the touch.

“Lyra, you’re burning again. Let me cool you down. It will help,” Lazra said, but Lyra wasn’t listening.

“Lyra, think about what you’re doing. You need to calm down,” Gracon could see her hands sparking as if she was about to start a flame.

“LYRA!” Lora shouted as she arrived, making them all jump.

“Lyra, I’ve missed you. You’re so burnt here,” she said, getting an ice pack out of her starry lunch bag to hand to her.

“I don’t want your help. Good to see you. Now leave,” Lyra interrupted.

She was not making eye contact with anyone, tears welling up inside her, but also the need to start a flame taking over. Her hands flickered, then she created a ring of fire around herself.

Just as quickly as it had started, Lazra put it out with her ice. “Calm, please, Lyra,” she said – but blood was dripping from her face as she spoke. Lyra froze at the sight of it: a deep scar cut across Lazra’s right eye.

“No, Lazra. You need a hospital,” Gracon said, rushing forward.

Lyra, still in shock, tried to get closer to ask if Lazra was okay, but realised something was restraining her: a gold rope. Looking around, she noticed Lora’s hands glowing.

“Lora, you got your power? Let go of me. I need to check on Lazra.” But Lora was not letting her go.

“Gracon,” she said, “take Lazra to a hospital. When you’re gone, I will deal with Lyra,” she added, pain in her voice, the last part almost a whisper. Gracon nodded and led Lazra back to the old car.

Lyra was still fighting the rope and tried burning it but stopped when she noticed how pointless it was.

“Lora, what is your power?”

“Starlight.”

“Lora, let me go, please. Even though I can’t burn the rope, that doesn’t mean I can’t burn the ground.”

Lora released the rope and quickly stepped back, as if expecting her sister to burn her too; she was rubbing her palms together, hiding the pain caused by her power.

“I don’t want to hurt you, Lora, but you need to leave,” Lyra said, her voice cold again.

“You wouldn’t,” Lora replied, trying to sound braver than she felt under the pressure of Lyra’s temper.

“Go home, Lora.”

“Not without you.”

Suddenly Lyra burst, smoke rising from her hands. She screamed, “Lora, now!” Fire rose from her hands and circled around Lora, making a ring.

“Lyra, stop!” Lora yelled, but it was too late. Lyra had lost control again and couldn’t calm down.

Lora screamed as the fire heated up around her. Luckily, Lazra had returned with Gracon and cooled Lyra down so that she could drop the flame. Gracon helped Lora to the car and sat her down. She was completely red, her breathing shallow as she exhaled smoke. Unable to sit around and watch any longer, he grabbed Lazra and drove off.

“We will find her again,” he said. “Right now, you both need a doctor.”

A week later

“Lora,” Gracon said tiredly, “you’re supposed to be resting.”

“I’m just getting some fresh air,” she replied sweetly from the front lawn.

“You can get some air while sitting on the bench instead of running.”

“Let her run,” Lazra added from the doorframe, making Gracon jump. “She’s fine now.”

“She’s pale. Even if her burns have healed, doesn’t mean she’s 100% fine. At least just walk, please.”

“Fine,” she replied.

“She’s supposed to be the sensible one, not me,” Gracon said lightly to Lazra.

“When do you think we should go back for Lyra, Gracon?” Lazra asked, sadness leaking through her voice.

“Do you really want to? I mean, I get she’s your sister, but she cut you and trapped Lora in fire,” he said, already knowing the answer.

Lazra stared at him for a beat, then went to talk to Lora.

“So, you found your power,” she said, sounding impressed as she caught up to her down the path.

“Yeah,” Lora replied nervously.

“What’s wrong?” Lazra asked, noticing her caution toward the subject.

“Nothing.” She could tell Lazra wasn’t convinced. “It just hurts.”

“How?” she demanded; then more softly, “I can help if you want.”

“No thanks,” Lora said forcefully. “I don’t really want to train.”

2 weeks later

“Girls! Come down! You need to see this!” Gracon ran into the girls’ oversized house.

Lazra and Lora ran into the room and said at the exact same time, “What?”

They were not expecting to see the news on Gracon’s phone showing Lyra unconscious in the middle of a burnt field, surrounded by police and ambulances.

“We need to get there,” Lazra said, panic rising in her voice. “If they find out Lyra caused the fire, they will lock her up – even worse if they think she used powers.”

They all got in the car and sped down the country road. Soon, they arrived at the scene.

“Hello,” Gracon walked up to one of the police officers, trying to be friendly. “I know that girl. She is an old family friend, and these are her sisters, Lazra and Lora. Can you tell me what happened?”

Seeing the desperation on the girls’ faces, the officer said, “Come with me.”

He showed them to where Lyra lay in a bed, covered head to toe in burns.

“We were called here by a complaint that a strange girl was walking around someone’s property, but when we arrived there were no people or property around, just a few fires and her. Can you tell me her name?”

“Her name is Lyra,” Lazra said in a shaky voice. “She ran away from home three years ago. She often has an elevated temperature, and she is fifteen.”

“Listen,” the officer said. “The fire was not started by natural causes, and the fact that she’s here makes it seem that she is the one responsible. I’m just asking if you saw her before this morning.”

“We have not seen her for a long time,” Lora said.

“Well, if that’s the case, we have no opposing evidence. We are going to have to take her into the station when she wakes up. Sorry.”

Lazra tried to speak, but Gracon stopped her.

“Of course, officer. We understand, right?” he asked Lora.

“Yes,” Lora mumbled in reply. She turned to the doctor, unable to hide the worry in her voice. “How is she?”

“She’s fine and should wake up tomorrow. She will need to stay in the hospital for observation for a few days after, though. You can come and visit her then.”

Lora pulled Lazra and Gracon out of earshot.

“We can’t let them take her. She could lose control.”

“What do we do then?” Gracon said, looking scared for the first time.

“I have an idea,” Lazra replied. “But you won’t like it, Lora. It goes against so many rules.”

“What are you thinking?” Gracon asked.

“I’m thinking we charge. We use our powers and storm the police.”

“WHAT? No!” Lora said. “That will not end well, whether we succeed or not.”

“I’m in,” Gracon replied, seeing Lazra’s disappointed face.

“Lora, you can’t stop her when she’s like this,” Gracon said. “You may as well join her.”

“I don’t want a criminal record.”

“I’m saving Lyra. Join me or not – I’m doing this.”

Lora ran towards Lyra, Gracon alongside her, shooting ice at police when they interfered. Gracon picked up Lyra and ran toward the car. Lazra had started the engine already, but the police were closing in.

“STOP IN THE NAME OF THE LAW!”

Lora had no choice. She shot stardust from her palms toward the officers, slowing them down enough to get in the car and escape.

The next day, Lyra woke up alarmed at being in her own bedroom and knocked over her dusty lamp. Then, hearing the noise, Gracon came into the room.

“It’s ok,” he said. “Just breathe.”

“I need to leave,” she said, ignoring Gracon’s attempts to calm her. She tried to leave, but he blocked the doorway.

“Let me out!” she yelled at him, but he didn’t flinch. Instead, he took her hands and led her back to the bed.

“You’re making a mistake,” she said. He didn’t reply.

“What are you doing?” He was staring into her eyes, making her feel fluttery.

“I need to leave.”

Seeing the open door, she ran out and down the stairs into the small living room. When she made it to the front door, it was locked, and she had forgotten the code after having been gone for three years.

“Open the door,” she demanded, but he was yet again looking straight into her eyes, making that funny feeling return. She felt the heat rising again, but not in the same way it did when she used her ability. In fact, she couldn’t feel her ability at all.

Finally, Gracon spoke. “Sit down with me?”

She followed him slowly into the candle-infused living room and made sure she sat on the armchair and not the couch. Gracon sat opposite her but didn’t speak.

“What do you want?” said Lyra.

“Nothing.”

“Then why can’t I leave?”

“Your sisters need you.”

Suddenly, her attitude changed. She was more panicked.

“Where are they?”

But again, Gracon had stopped talking and was staring straight at her, and she felt her panic melt away. Once she was calm, he spoke.

“They are out.”

“I need to leave.”

“You say that a lot.”

“Your sisters now have a bad record and are on police watch lists because of you.”

“More the reason I should leave.”

“They did it to save you. Without them, you would be in a hospital right now. Then you would be sent to the police station for interrogation about the fire.”

She gulped. She hadn’t thought of that.

But at that moment, Lyra remembered the code to the door and ran for it. Gracon, realising what she was doing, tried to stop her, but she set alight the door frame, and he was trapped. The fire was spreading fast, consuming the house.

He hid in the bathroom, as it would not catch fire so easily, and called Lazra. Thankfully, she answered quickly and arrived soon after.

Gracon could tell when she arrived by the cool breeze now blowing through the house.

“Gracon, Gracon, where are you?” she said, her voice high.

“In here. I’m fine,” he said, when Lazra started checking him for burns.

“That’s it,” Lazra said. “We are finding her and putting an end to this.”

Gracon was about to ask how, but at that moment Lora entered, sad but not surprised that Lyra had lost control.

“Didn’t I say this would happen?”

“Lora, is there a way to remove powers?” Lazra said, ignoring Lora’s glare.

“Yes,” she said carefully after looking around at the damage, “but it’s not good.”

“How?” This time it was Gracon who spoke. “How is it not good?”

“Well, it involves…” She stopped. “You’re not using this on Lyra, are you?”

Understanding took over her face. “No, it’s too dangerous. Just leave her alone.”

“Lora, tell me,” Lazra said, sounding scarily like Lyra.

“F-fine. Y-you have to cover h-her in s-s-starlight,” she said quickly, then ran into her room, tears in her eyes.

A week later

Lora finally agreed to help take away Lyra’s power, with a lot of persuasion by both Gracon and Lazra.

“So, what’s the plan?” Gracon asked, mainly of Lora.

“It’s not easy,” she replied. “We first need to track her down, then get there without being seen, since we will be police targets.”

She paused, thinking about what she would have to do.

“Then I have to use my ability against hers long enough that hers gives in.”

“But she’s way too powerful, and you said it hurts when you use yours.”

“I can hold it long enough,” Lora said, mustering as much bravery as she could.

“Well then,” Gracon spoke, “we have got to get started finding her.”

It was not hard to find her location; you just had to follow the fires.

“Says here that a strange girl with lots of burns was sighted at the Pine Hollow Farm yesterday, just before all the saplings went up in flames,” Gracon said, gesturing to his phone, where he had the news app open. “She could still be there.”

“But we can’t fight her there, otherwise she could set the entire farmland on fire,” Lora reminded them.

“Let’s just look and see if she’s there. If not, that won’t matter,” Lazra said, adding to the conversation.

“And if she is?” Lora said, putting the problem into words.

“We can’t engage. Her powers are too risky,” said Gracon. So, they all got in the car, and Lazra drove them out into the farmland. The air was filled with smoke the further they went.

“Well, I’m thinking she’s here,” said Lazra.

“If the fields are already burnt, though, we can fight her without worry.” Lora was rubbing her hands together. Then Gracon noticed.

“Hey, it’s all right. Stop worrying so much. You’ll be fine.”

But he noticed another reason why she was rubbing her hands.

“You’re flickering,” he said, pointing at the gold sparks shooting around her hands.

“It’s nothing,” she said, looking down at her hands, then pulling a pair of black silk gloves out of her bag and putting them on.

“So that’s why you’ve been wearing gloves lately. You can’t control it either.”

“I can control it. I’m not like Lyra. It’s just a nervous thing.”

Lazra had her headphones on, so she was not paying attention to their conversation.

“Please don’t tell her,” Lora begged Gracon.

Staring at Lazra, he whispered, “Tell me the truth. How long have you had your power?

How long have you been flickering, and can you truly control it?”

Lora paused, looking even more nervous than before.

“I’ve had the power since the start of my second year in the academy. I’ve been flickering every time I’m scared since I finished school, but the gloves hide it, and I can control it – just not the flickering.”

They did not speak the rest of the trip, but Lora noticed, out of the side of her eye, Gracon’s glances at her, as if she had become some power freak. When they arrived at the farm, smoke filled the air, and the fields were nothing more than black ash. They got out of the car, only to get right back in.

“It’s the smoke,” Lora said. “There’s too much of it in the air to breathe properly. We will have to wait till it dies down tomorrow.”

“But she could get away,” replied Lazra desperately.

“No, Lora’s right, and she also has something she needs to tell you,” Gracon added, looking directly at Lora. He could tell by the way she stared back that he had lost her friendship.

“What?” said Lazra, now looking at Lora too.

“Stay here in the car,” Lora replied, addressing both of them. “I’m going to find Lyra.”

“You just said that there’s too much smoke, making it hard to breathe,” said Lazra, looking confused.

“I know that, and that’s also why I’m saying you need to stay in the car.”

“You’re not doing what I think you’re doing, are you?” said Gracon, thinking she was about to risk her own health to find and battle Lyra alone.

“No. You are not leaving this car. We will come back tomorrow.”

But it was too late. Lora had started walking down the ash-covered path, covering her face with a cloth from her bag.

“Lazra, no!” said Gracon, as she too left the car.

Gracon, not sure what to do, waited five minutes to see if they would come back, but they did not. So he started down the path the girls took, wondering how far ahead they were.

“Lora, Lora, where are you?” shouted Lazra, looking around, but it was no use. The air was so thick you could hardly see your hand in front of your face.

“Gracon, Lora, is anyone there?” Then she saw a golden light up ahead. She ran towards the glowing light and ended up crashing into Lora.

“Lazra,” Lora said as she turned around. “Why did you follow me? And why aren’t you using the glow of your power to light up the path?”

“I can’t let you run into a burnt field looking for Lyra alone after what happened last time. I know what…” she coughed, “… what to do now. The smoke is making it nearly impossible to breathe. If we come back tomorrow, we’ll have more of a chance of finding her.”

Lazra stared at her soot-covered sister, willing her to find the reason in what she was saying.

“Lazra! Lora!” they heard from the distant field.

“GRACON!”

They both looked out, hoping to see his silhouette in the distance, then turned to look at each other.

“Too late to turn back now,” said Lora, starting to walk towards the sound of Gracon’s shouts.

Half an hour later

“Girls,” Gracon said as he saw the glow of their powers coming closer.

“Gracon,” they said in reply.

Then Lora coughed again.

“Have you girls checked the time?”

“No,” said Lazra.

“I figured. It’s 6:47 pm.”

“We should head home and get some sleep, come back tomorrow and–” Lazra said, fading off as she saw a girl peek out from behind a glowing red tree.

Lora noticed her too and, the next second, ran towards her.

“Lora, no!” both Lazra and Gracon said, but that was their mistake.

Shouting Lora’s name alerted Lyra that they were there.

“We should go and help. Since when did she care about the plan so much to dive in without help? Wow, I sound like Lora,” said Lazra.

“Scary thought, that! Now, let’s go save her,” Gracon replied with an almost excited smile.

Lyra, as predicted, created a field of fire between herself and the others, but didn’t notice Lora approaching from behind. Lazra put out the fire in a blink, trying to keep Lyra distracted long enough for Lora to do her part.

Lora took the opportunity and started showering Lyra in stardust.

“Lora! What are you doing?” Lyra said, looking up at the golden sparkles floating around her. Then she felt her powers start to fade in and out.

“No, Lora, no! Stop!” she yelled, understanding taking over as she then blasted fire towards her sister.

Luckily, Gracon had snuck round too and pulled her out of the way in time, so that the blast just missed their faces as they fell over.

“Lyra!” yelled Lazra. “Leave her alone!”

When Gracon tackled Lora out of the way, she lost control of her ability, and the stardust evaporated back into space. Her hands were burning in pain, but she didn’t show it. Instead, she stood up and forced her power over Lyra.

Lora felt as though the world was turning black around her as the needle-like pain in her hands spread up her arms. She was concentrating so hard she didn’t realise that she had fallen to the ground, and it wasn’t until she saw the look of concern on Gracon’s face as he ran towards her that she realised how much she was struggling to keep her eyes open.

“Lazra!” he yelled anxiously. He was staring at Lora as she lay on the grass. “She won’t stop using her power.”

Then Lyra interfered, shooting fire directly at Lazra.

With Lazra busy, she quickly started running towards Lora, but, when she tried to start up the heat, she felt nothing.

“What have you done!” Lyra exclaimed, as she continuously failed to produce a spark. “Why have you–”

But she did not finish as she looked at Lora, passed out on the grass.

Lazra approached then, and she too couldn’t speak.

“We should go,” said Gracon distantly. “The police will be here soon. It’s almost morning.”

2 days later

Lazra, Lyra, and Gracon were sitting in the living room as Lora was sleeping upstairs.

“Glad they released her early from the hospital,” said Gracon, trying to fill the silence.

“Yeah,” the girls replied quietly.

“Lora!” said Lyra as she saw her walk down the stairs. Then she got up off the armchair she was sitting in and ran to hug her, but stopped when she noticed how Lora was still hugging her arms close to her chest.

“You’re up,” Gracon said, following Lyra with a smile spread across his face.

“I’m up,” she replied.

Lazra signalled her to the couch and asked, “You ok?”

Lora looked across the faces of the girls, then at Gracon, before she replied, “Never better.” She pulled them all close.

The next afternoon

“Lyra, Lazra, I’ve organised the party guests. You ready?” Gracon said in a hushed voice.

“I’ve got the decorations, but I need Lora out of the house while I set up,” said Lyra.

“I can do that,” said Lazra. “I will take her out for a walk, and you can text me when everyone’s here.”

“Great,” said Gracon. “She’s going to love it.”

“She’d better,” spoke Lyra.

Later that night

“SURPRISE!” all the guests shouted when Lazra walked in with Lora.

“Since we were not around when you got your ability, we want to celebrate. Plus, you deserve it, since you stopped the world from going up in smoke,” said Lazra.

“Wow… thanks,” Lora replied, looking round at all the faces. There were friends from the academy and old friends from the neighbourhood.

“I don’t know what to say.”

“I do,” said Lyra. “Let’s party!”

They danced and talked for the rest of the night. Gracon, Lazra, Lora, and Lyra were finally united, and Lora started to train her ability with Lazra.

THE CHARACTERS