Zyn woke up eagerly the next day. They didn’t bother to scream their usual wakeup call—not with Sarala sleeping in the same room, only a kick’s distance away. They rolled off the moss that accounted for a bed, careful not to land on any of the bags lying around the shared bedroom. Zyn then tiptoed quickly around the clutter in the small space, pushed through the curtain of sticky vines as quietly as they could, and walked down the hall to the kitchen.

It wasn’t dark in the room, as sunlight streamed through the windows and ceiling holes. Zyn hurried into the kitchen and stared at the small patches of sky beyond the foliage above the house, but couldn’t see the sun. 

I wonder how close the sun and moon are? I can’t wait to see the eclipse!

Though Ak-tu had warned the twins, Zyn couldn’t help but feel excited for the eclipse. They’d never seen one before, despite the event happening often enough in the early morning. Of course, they’d seen pictures of eclipses on the air-net, but it wasn’t the same as it would be in-person.

Zyn didn’t have to wait long for Ren or Jabali to wake up. The three had breakfast together, which consisted of toast with smooth peanut spread. Zyn was beginning to wonder if Sarala would fake sleeping in to avoid going to the city when she exited the bedroom to join them for breakfast.

“You’re already done?” she grumbled at Zyn, not bothering to greet any of them.

Zyn raised an eyebrow at her. “Well, duh. You take forever to get up!”

Sarala shot them a glare and didn’t reply as she sat down, grabbing a piece of bread and plastering it with spread.

Since they were done eating, the twins went back to their room to get changed for the day. Zyn got out of their striped pajamas and tugged on a short-sleeved plaid shirt and plain shorts. Ren was soon dressed in a yellow shirt and purple sports shorts that went past her knees.

“Great news!” Jabali called to the twins as they entered the kitchen again. “Sarala’s decided to come with us.”

Ren gasped in delight. “You are? That’s awesome!”

Sarala scowled in her direction. “Only because you said Chaocat might be around.”

“Aw, don’t wanna be all alone in the house with a mad spirit on the loose? I never took you for a coward,” Zyn teased. 

“If looks could kill, you’d be dead,” Sarala growled, forgetting all about her toast as she glared at them. After a long moment, she returned to her bread and said, “I’m going to protect you.”

If Zyn hadn’t seen Sarala fighting the spirits at the school, they would have made another joke about Sarala being too young to act as their bodyguard. But they knew how powerful Sarala could be, and did not take this statement lightly.

Even Jabali didn’t poke fun at her. He instead brushed some crumbs off his hands and got to his feet, smiling. “We’ll leave in five! Any luck and we’ll miss that ‘mad spirit’!” 

He hurried to his bedroom, presumably to get dressed as well. Ren sat down in his empty seat, resting her elbow on the table and her chin on her open palm. Zyn hung back, staring out the window at a bush rolling around.

“That’s really kind of you to come with us,” Ren said to Sarala. 

Sarala huffed. “I don’t see why we can’t have a city day when there’s not an eclipse going on.”

“Well, Jabali has today off work,” Zyn pointed out, watching as the bush attempted to hop over a stone.

“He has a day off each week,” Sarala retorted, finishing her toast. “I don’t see why this city day can’t wait until after the eclipse.”

Ren shrugged. “We do need more food. Maybe we’ll go shopping?”

“Ugh, I hate shopping!” Sarala crossed her arms. “I’d much rather stay here and practice plenty of mar—”

“Jabali’s ready! We can go now!” Zyn interrupted; their loud voice scared the bush, causing it to fly over the stone and out of sight. “Ha!” 

Sarala glanced over her shoulder to see Jabali exiting his room, dressed in a light-colored shirt and shorts. She hopped to her feet and dashed into the teens’ bedroom, returning a minute later, now dressed in a crop top and shorts that clung tightly to her muscular body.

“Who’s ready t’go?” Jabali exclaimed.

They trailed him out of the house, Zyn and Ren eager while Sarala grumbled along in their shadows. Zyn glanced for the bush, but didn’t see it anywhere. Their attention soon shifted to several squelching podded plants near Jabali’s boat, which had not been there the day before.

The boat was big enough for six people, as most standard rowboats were. Two benches sat in the otherwise empty space. Both benches held compartments for storage. A steering wheel sat at the front of the oblong vessel, though Jabali never used it. Since he had earth magic to propel it along, he merely shifted the stone beneath the boat to get it moving in the right direction. Boats powered by fire or water (when not in a body of water) also contained a metal mechanism at the front; the wielder would hover their hand over the slot in the metal to shoot water or fire within to power the boat. 

Once the teens were seated on the benches and Jabali took his place at the front, they were off. Jabali used uppercuts and heel stomps to move the boat, commanding the stony ground to carry the vessel away. Driving a boat took a lot of concentration, so nobody said a word the entire trip. Even if they wanted to speak, it’d be hard with all of the bumps, the boat rolling over boulders and logs in the forest. Zyn definitely preferred air-powered boats to earth-powered ones! 

I wish this boat had wheels like all the non-air ones in town! It’d be much smoother that way! Ugh, why does Jabali like to live in such discomfort?

At one point, Sarala leaned forward to grab a leafy umbrella lying on the floor of the boat. She opened it and raised it above their heads, shielding the three from the bright sunshine that already pressed its heat upon them.