Guardian: Protectors of Light by Melanie Houtman

  *

  “Ugh- Never thought- it was going to be this hard...”

  “Antonio, quit complaining! You ain’t seen nothing yet,” James shouted at Antonio, who was climbing underneath him, on Thomas’s advice.

  If James passed out, and Thomas failed to grab him, he wanted to make sure Antonio would succeed into doing so.

  “James, you know that “ain’t” isn’t-” Bella said, but James interrupted her.

  “Bella, do you really believe this is the right moment for a grammar and vocabulary lesson?” he snapped at her.

  “No, you’re right. Sorry, it’s just my brain which works that way... I didn’t mean to upset you,” Bella replied.

  James sighed, while pulling himself up another few centimetres. “I’m sorry, it came out angrier than I meant,” he said. “But this is really not the right moment to correct people’s grammar.”

  Then, out of nowhere, while they were climbing, something really funny came to the redhead teenager’s mind. 

  Something that might have suited the situation they were in at that very moment, but also could’ve offended everyone in his company, since he was the one who kept telling everyone not to joke around about the entire situation they were stuck in.

  That was the main reason why he hesitated and waited until they had climbed a few metres at first, but James couldn’t refrain from making the joke that just had to be made.

  “You know... Now we’re talking about Bella and her pet peeves... Why don’t we just let Bella make an impossible math test for the Master? I’m pretty sure he’ll just run away crying after five minutes,” he said.

  Luckily for James, everyone laughed, as he had hoped, and - more or less, though he wasn’t completely sure what their reaction would be - expected. 

  James sighed in relief. “What a relief to hear that they’re still able to have a laugh at a terrible joke,” he said.

  Thomas smiled, although James couldn’t see. “Your terrible jokes? Of course we can still laugh at those,” he said. “Some of them are so disappointingly sad, that they are actually funny. Like this one.”

  James snorted. A typical Thomas-comment, just the way he liked them.

  They climbed further in silence for a while, which seemed to suit them quite well, and helped them to hurry up quite a bit.

  But, of course, as always, there had to be a part where someone would make that one, stupid comment or would get that one stupid idea that would totally screw everything up.

  “The air’s getting thinner and colder by the minute,” Antonio said. “Thomas, do you think we’re nearly there? I can’t see through Jiminy Cricket’s butt.”

  “Yes, I think we are nearly there,” Thomas said, while trying to look up. It was getting foggier, and his arms and legs were getting a little tired of the climbing.

  “Wait-” James said, receiving a sudden revelation. “You’ve been staring at my butt the whole time?” he shouted at Antonio.

  “Well, not that I wanted or chose to look at your butt, but yes! Since that’s the only thing that’s above me, I’ve been looking at your butt when I wasn’t looking where I was putting my hands and feet on!” Antonio shouted back.

  Antonio’s comment caused Samira to laugh so hard, that she didn’t watch where she put her feet, which unfortunately enough turned out to be a weak spot in the mountain wall. The rock caved in beneath her feet, just before she could place her right hand on a safe part.

  “HELP!” Samira yelped, clamping on to the rock with her left hand.”I- I’m afraid I can’t hold this for too long!”

  “SAMIRA!” Bella shouted. 

  James looked up, and saw that they were nearly at a flat platform where they could rest on, and ordered the others to climb on the flat edge.

  “I’ll fetch Samira! You guys go ahead!” he shouted, while climbing in the opposite direction of the other three boys.

  “Are you crazy? What if the rest of the mountain over there is just as instable as that particular spot and you two both fall?” Thomas said.

  “We won’t, Thomas, trust me,” James replied and continued climbing down.

  “I hope you know what you’re doing, kid...” Antonio replied.

  “By the way, Antonio... were you serious about the butt-thing?” Bella whispered after James had passed them.

  “Nah, I was just kidding,” Antonio replied with a grin. “I just wanted to see his reaction.”

  James kept climbing down until he was hanging right beside Samira, on her right side. It was going to be tricky, but it had to be possible.

  “Samira, put your arms around my neck,” he said. “I’m going to bring you to safety.”

  Samira stared at him for a second. “Are you sure?” she asked.

  “Yeah, I can do this,” James replied. “I can do it.” He had to repeat it to himself to be completely sure.

  “All right,” Samira mumbled. “Well, then... here I go, I guess.”

  She slowly moved her right arm over to James, and clamped herself around his neck. Then, she quickly added her left arm.

  “Hold on tight,” James said, and Samira nodded.

  It was harder for James to get up with about 69 extra kilos – his sister was somewhat heavy for her height, and she was very insecure regarding her weight, despite the fact that she was absolutely gorgeous – hanging around his neck, but eventually, he managed to climb up.

  It went slowly, because other parts of the mountain threatened to break apart when James placed his feet and hands on them, forcing him to climb aside, but it were only fifteen metres or so which he had to climb up to get him and Samira back to their friends.

  James pulled himself up on the flat platform, and Thomas and Antonio ran in to help him immediately. They dragged him onto the platform until he had his full upper body laying on it, and James himself pulled his legs up.

  Samira let go of James’s neck, rolling over the platform. She sighed in relief, and smiled broadly at James.

  “Well, we made it up,” she said, and James smiled back at her.

  “Yes, yes we did, luckily,” he replied.

  “So... What’s up next, guys?” James said, while he got up from the ground. “The climb up here took us quite a while. It took less time than expected, but still... I’d guess that it’s somewhere near sunset.”

  Thomas looked up at the sky and nodded. “You could say so,” he said. “The sky’s turning pink.”

  “How about taking a quick nap?” Samira suggested. “This climbing adventure has exhausted me a little. I mean – the climbing wasn’t easy, and then the near death-experience... No, thank you, I wouldn’t like to repeat any of that.”

  James rubbed his neck. “The walk up to the top of the mountain is now left... It takes perhaps about a two-hour walk to get to the top... Plus the snow... Possible blizzards... Three hours.”

  Bella made a step forward, but didn’t notice a piece of rock sticking out, and fell.

  “Ouch!” she moaned. When she pulled her trousers out of her boots to check on her leg, she noticed that the rock had scraped a new, fresh wound at the place her bone had been broken.

  “I’d suggest we find a cave and just go with that nap while we still can,” Bella sighed. ”I don’t really feel like walking around here at night.”

  James looked at Bella’s leg and swallowed. “Good point,” he said. “We’ll go look for a place to set up our camp.”

  “Speaking of possible blizzards, is it just me, or is the wind getting stronger as we speak?” Samira said.

  “I’d suggest we put our snow coats on while we search for a sanctuary. 

  James, you had kept them in your leather bag, right?”

  “Well, since Thomas took my bag, he’s got them, and not me,” James replied.

  Thomas nodded and dug in the leather shoulder bag hanging over his shoulder. He pulled out Violina’s last gift, and handed it over to the others, who thankfully put on the coats and stuffed their capes into the bag.
>
  The snow began to fall faster and the wind got stronger as the teens travelled up the mountain. But they didn’t have to walk through the beginning snowstorm for too long.

  After the teens had walked for a while, they walked past a cave hidden in the mountain wall, out of the wind’s path and safe for the night. The five teens decided to enter the cave and sleep inside of it for the night.

  Antonio helped Bella to sit down, and examined the status of her leg.

  “Samira, do you think you can heal it?” Bella asked the teenage girl. While Samira’s eyes were adjusting themselves to the darkness of the cave, she scanned her friend’s leg and nodded after a while.

  “I- I think so,” she said. “I’ll have to.”

  Samira knelt down next to Bella’s wounded leg, while the others watched and waited. Samira hummed a quick song, while holding both her hands over the wound on Bella’s leg. At first, it seemed like nothing happened, but after a couple more seconds, the wound started to heal itself.

  “Amazing,” Bella gasped in awe as she looked at the now perfectly fine, save a small scar, leg.

  Samira shrugged. “I guess it’s what I’m here for,” she said. “Helping others, like I used to do back home.”

  James tried to hide a broad yawn underneath his hand, but Samira already noticed it.

  “James, if you’re really that tired, I’d just say that we all go to bed tonight. No shifts.”

  “What?” Antonio said. “But-”

  “It’s most likely that they’re busy looking for us in the Forest for the rest of the night,” Samira replied, while she lay down on the rock floor. “Plus, I wouldn’t want to go out in this weather.” A cold shiver went across her spine. It really was cold.

  “I don’t have enough energy left to make a fire out of nowhere,” James mumbled. “I’d at least need some burnable objects...”

  He lay down next to Samira, and Thomas joined him shortly. “e should you took off as blankets,” he said, while showing his own, dark green cape. “It might help.”

  Not just James and Samira, but Bella and even Antonio followed his advice, and went to sleep. 

  This was certainly going to be one of their most uncomfortable nights ever since they had arrived in Lunaria.

  “James?”

  “Mmh?”

  James turned around, and saw that Samira was staring at him. Perhaps she had been doing that all night.

  “What if we don’t make it back?”

  “What do you mean, Samira?”

  “What if- if one of us dies? Or if we get separated? What if we never go home?” Samira asked again. There was a certain level of worry in her voice which James had never been able to see or hear at daylight. Guess she cleverly kept it covered.

  Samira was one of those girls who would keep themselves together, pretend to be strong throughout the day, but break down in fear and worry at night. That’s what made her a sensitive girl.

  James smiled at her. “Samira. Of course we make it back. I’ll do anything to make sure to get you all home.”

  “What about yourself?”

  “You guys – Thomas, you, Bella, Tony... You guys are on my first place. Together with my family. I come as a second matter.”

  “Promise me you’ll look after yourself.”

  “I promise I’ll look after myself.”

  “Pinkie promise it.”

  Samira stuck out her pinkie at James. That’s how he used to make promises to Samira and Anna if they wanted to prevent him from breaking it.

  He hooked his own pinkie in hers.

  “I pinkie promise that I’ll look after myself,” James said.

  “I pinkie promise that I’ll make sure you keep your word,” Samira replied.

  “Do you think you’ll be able to sleep now, Samira?” James asked.

  Samira smiled. “I think I can now,” she said.