Chapter Seven

                                    

                                          
We lunge forward, somehow ending up on the ground. It sounds like a million shards of glass have launched into the side of our house. I guess I spoke too soon.
                          
	"What was that?"
                          
	"Stay here," I say. "I'll check it out. Just say here for now."
                          
	I move towards the back of the house, where the sound came from. My heart pounds like a drum. Thump, thump, thump. There's a crackling sound somewhere in the background. I turn a corner and exit the kitchen. The air smells strange. It's almost suffocating to inhale...smoke. I freeze.
                          
	"Vivvy! Get a bucket of water!"
                          
	I blitz to the back door, throwing it open. A corner of the back of our house is engulfed in flames. Red and orange lick the wood. In seconds, it's turned to black. I can feel the heat nipping at my skin. Horror. Pure horror is all I can feel. This couldn't be a simple accident. There's no possible way. I haven't heard a lightning strike, there's no Edrian Tech by the house. Someone has lit our house on fire.
                          
	Someone has lit our house on fire.
                          
	"Here!"
                          
	Vivvy jumps in, arms barely grasping the handles. The bucket tilts at random. Water spills across the grass, falling like teardrops. I immediately take it from her and throw it. I hit it straight in the middle. Hiss. The fire screams, emitting a wispy white smoke as it begins to die. I huff relief when it begins to fade, but the edges are still strong. Still creeping around. Still intent on spreading to the rest of our house.
                          
	"I'll get another bucket!"
                          
	I hand it over to her without question, taking off my jacket. The air bites at my now exposed skin. It's a shame; I really like this jacket. But I'll do what has to be done in order to save the house. I take a deep breath, begging to strike and swat at the blaze. There's more smoke. I sweat, the fabric turning brown. Damn! Whoever started this fire I'll--
                          
	"Huh?"
                          
	I drop my jacket, forgetting the intense swell of flames. There's a knife sticking out of the side of a tree. I take careful steps, noting the paper stuck between the blade and the bark. It flaps to the rhythm of the breeze. On it are two words;
                          
	Die, Zydite
                          
	I'd be lying if I said the words didn't sting. They're empty, shallow. And yet there's a fearful meaning behind them. The person who left them obviously wanted Vivvy and I hurt; At worst, burnt to a crisp and lying six feet under. I shudder, my ears red. Before thinking further I tear off the paper. The knife juts out like a taunt. I remove that too, chucking both deep into the woods.
                          
	Vivvy can't know about this. She's sensitive normally, but over religious matters? This would drive her to tears. No, I can't do that to her. Not with the most important day of our lives so close. I stomp back to the jacket, picking it up and trying to finish my work. Soon after Vivvy crashes back out, water in the bucket and too much worry on her hands. I take it from her, extinguishing the rest of the flames.
                          
	We're left outside, wet and exhausted, with the Rujan festival only three days away.  

                          


                          
A/N:
                          
Hi! I've written so much of this book so far, and I have a lot of unpublished chapters already written. And let me tell ya; It's getting more intense than I first imagined lol. 
                          
This book is almost to one hundred reads! You guys are great, that means so much to me! *Virtual hug*
                          
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