• T W E N T Y • S E V EN •

"Smiles are free. Well, from most people. Mine are ten dollars each."

• • •

Rage's POV

• • •

I slip out of the house into the darkness. The alley I am taking is dark and poorly lit, but I can see everything clearly, thanks to the shadow element.

Clenching my fists, I do my best to reign in my powers as I quickly make my way to the forest. My senses, my powers, everything is heightened and feels almost surreal.

I soon morph into shadow without even meaning to, my powers growing with their need to be used, to escape. I dart through the forest, following the feel of the large body of water. Shadow to shadow, I travel, moving even faster than normal due to the darkness. Soon, I have covered miles of rugged, dense forest in only a few short minutes.

I return back into human. Mostly. I flicker out of sight every few seconds or so. Using my air powers, I shoot myself up into the sky and come crashing down into the lake. Underwater, I turn my stone to skin and soon sink down to the bottom. I can see everything down here. I don't know if it is the air powers or the water powers, but I can breathe underwater. Sometimes, though, I find myself struggling to breathe underwater, just because I am so used to not being able to. Tonight, however, I don't even have to think about it. I just... I just am.

I shoot upward, my skin returning to normal and I burst out of the water. Fire explodes upward from me and lights up the dark sky, nearly catching the surrounding trees on fire, but I manipulate the humidity in the air so that it protects the plants from burning up.

I twist the water and it sprays up like an elegant geyser and I stand on the spray of the water. Crows fill the sky as I close my eyes and the trees reach out to me, their dark branches outstretched. The sound of water rushing and crashing and the wings and cries of the crows fill the dark air so much that the mere thought of silence is foreign, distant.

The air grows colder and colder and the water is now completely frozen beneath me. The lake is now solid ice. I bring my hands together and form a ball of blazing white fire that grows and grows and grows until I am completely encased in a ball of fire and the lake is fully thawed out and beginning to steam even.

I close my eyes and pull the rocks from the bottom of the lake up to me and the cool, damp rocks encase me in a suit of stone. I drop like a rock (no pun intended...) to the bottom of the lake where I draw the all the fish towards me. Their chattering voices fill my head until all I hear are the indistinct thoughts of the fish.

I direct them around, leading them in swirling, chaotic dance that is almost hypnotic. The expansive lake is teeming with fish and they are all together, a huge swarm of fins, tales, and scales.

Soon, I tire of the routine and hearing  the fish's voices and release the fish from my control. I filter through my mind and clear their thoughts from mine, sorting them out and uncluttering my already messed up and hectic mind.

I release the rocks that surround me and float up to the surface. The air and temperature has returned to normal and the crows have dispersed. I manipulate the trees back to their original position and stand afloat on the water. A wave of water deposits me on the side of the lake where I melt into pure shadows once more.

Darting from shadow to shadow, my speed is incredible. Traveling by shadow is the fastest and safest way to travel. Period. I quickly arrive back at the edge of the forest. My powers are drained, but not too drained. They are at a level where I could use them again in a pinch, but it will be a few days before I need to use them again.

Normally, using them in small amounts will make it so that I do not have to release them like this. However, I haven't used my powers much in the last few days. According to what I've heard, people with a normal amount of powers only need to release them once in a couple weeks, maybe even once a month.

Having so much power... It's an immense gift, but it comes at a price. It comes with a shackle. But I wouldn't be where I am today without them. I would still be that scared, abused little girl living at home where she is tortured and hurt on a daily basis.

My powers are a shackle, they are a key, they are my everything.

Maybe I rely on them too much, am too dependant on them. My powers, that is. But I'm dependent on my powers and abilities in the same way a regular person is dependent on their leg. It's a part of them. It would change their life, possibly even kill them if they lost their leg.

It would change me and my life if I lost my powers. Possibly even kill me.

I shake the thought from my head and step out of the forest. I dart through the alleys and streets, quickly making my way back to my apartment. I slip silently back in. Seraphina is snoring comically loud on the couch and the door to my bedroom is still shut. Coming closer, I laugh silently as I see why Seraphina is snoring so loudly. Her head is hanging off the couch at an awkward angle and I know that her neck will hurt when she wakes up. Smiling softly, I gently fix her head and her snoring quickly subsides.

Seraphina, the brat that she is, is like the sister I never had. Nor wanted. But I can't help but feel as if I share a sort of sisterly bond with her. When she broke down sobbing in the bathroom, I could've easily left her there to rot. I mean, I even briefly considered whipping my phone out and recording footage to use as blackmail... But I didn't. I didn't really understand it at the time, but I think I do now.

I lost my entire family. Seraphina in my mind is replacing them, I can tell. Don't worry, I also find it creepy and strange. But what isn't creepy and strange about this whole situation? Honestly, my life has never been normal, and it never will be.

But that's fine.

It's my life and I'm used to it being like this.

• • •

"Kolton Skye, I don't know why you ever thought this kind of work would be acceptable, but it isn't! Of all the students I have ever encountered, you are by far the most stupid, ignor—"

"Mrs. Valdez," Kolton says sharply, cutting her off just a second before I was going to. "I didn't realize that you condoned discrimination."

"Excuse me?" Mrs. Valdez replies, her jaw slack with shock.

"You heard me," Kolton fired back with a defiant look in his bright blue eyes. "Your own ignorance and self-righteousness are shown in your prior statement. You merely assumed that I was stupid because of hair color, correct? No, don't answer that; I know it's true. I will not stand for such discrimination and racism. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm taking Rage and leaving this toxic classroom before you poison the minds of the youth, the future generation."

Numb with shock, I allow Kolton to yank me out of my chair and pull me out of the class as our classmates all stare at him with matching dropped jaws.

"What the hell?!" I explode in the hallway, the closing of the door snapping me out of it. "What just happened?!"

Kolton shrugs and answers, "Oh, I just felt like leaving the class. Gage told me to say that if any of my teachers ever called me out for being dumb."

"Wait," I order, still trying to process. "That speech was just Gage?"

"Duh," Kolton replies with a roll of his eyes. "Did you really think I would talk like a nerd?"

I roll my own eyes and decide, "Well, let's ditch anyway. Oh, I think Victoria has a free period now. Wanna meet up with her?"

"Sure," Kolton agrees easily, flashing me a crooked grin.

His grin is making me a bit nervous, but I ignore it. After all, we did just get to leave class. I'm somewhat happy as well. Pulling out my phone, I quickly text Victoria and wait for a reply.

It's the next day and I am school. Well, to clarify, I am dying at school. Of boredom, mostly, but also annoyance.

"Why do you have a flip phone?" Kolton questions curiously as I close the phone.

Shrugging, I answer, "It's cheaper and I don't really need a smartphone."

Although, with the winnings from my fights, I could afford a phone. Then again, I don't want to blow it all and be broke again.

"Whatever suits ya, I guess," Kolton replies, oddly cheerful.

"Why are you so happy?" I ask him sharply.

"What? I'm not allowed to be happy?" Kolton teases before answering, "I'm happy because we get to skip class again and I get to spend more time with you, even if I am sharing you with your friend."

I squint at him, unsure if he is lying or not but decide to just feel complimented.

"Thanks, I think," I respond hesitantly.

"You're welcome," Kolton replies, still cheerful.

My phone buzzes in my hand and I see that Victoria is going to meet us at a skate park.

My lips curl up in a devious grin as I tuck my phone away.

"So do you skate?" I ask Kolton.

Kolton grins proudly, "Actually, I do. Well, I did. We used to all skate. Darkon went through a faze, the science intrigued Gage, and Nekoda was all too thrilled to learn to skate. Said it'd make him more like the superheroes in his comics. William and Asher, of course, went with the group's decision. Boaz liked the idea of getting places without really moving."

I have to laugh that. It sounds just like them.

"Well, why don't we all meet with her, then?" I suggest.

Kolton's grin spreads wider and he whips out the phone and quickly starts texting.

"The park she chose isn't too far from here," I inform Kolton. "Let's head over now and meet the others there."

"Sounds good to me," Kolton agrees simply, tucking away his phone. "Just let them all know. Darkon will grab Asher since he doesn't have a phone."

I'll have to get Asher a phone. I can see why he wouldn't want to ask the others for one. It would reveal that he can't go to his parents for one, but I already know about his situation. Maybe he would let me help him out more. A simple phone would make it so he didn't have to rely on the others.

Filing that thought away for the future, I slip my backpack on and head out the school building with Kolton beside me.

"We can stop by my place real quick," Kolton says. "I have a couple old boards in the garage we can use."

"Cool," I reply.

My eyes are sweeping the surrounding area like always as I like for dangers. It's a habit, but not a bad one.

"You ever skated before?" Kolton inquires, glancing at me.

• • •

"Hey, who do you think you are?!" A man with long, ash blond dreads demands.

I wipe the blood on my hands on the unconcious man at my feet.

"I know I am Rage," I hiss at the man.

"R-Rage?" He echoes, his face turning white. "I'm so, so sorry. P-Please, let me help you clean up the b-body."

"He isn't dead, you idiot," I snarl, kicking the man at my feet in frustration.

"Why are you here?" A girl with twin braids and a hard glare demands. "What'd that man do to you?"

I look at her and smile, a cold, hard smile like that of the killer I am.

"I'm here to skate, darling," I reply smoothly before roaring with fierce anger, "You got a problem with that?! Any of you?!"

They all shake their heads. A few run off. A few are frozen in fear. But the others, those brave ones, they could be recruits. Potentially.

"Now, I'll be honest," I call. "I've never really skated before. Who's the best here?"

"Me," The same girl calls back, crossing her bony arms in an attempt to look fierce. "Why?"

"I'll be needing someone to teach me," I reply with a smirk.

• • •

"Yeah," I tell Kolton with a snort. "I've skated before. Learned from the best in my old town."

Kolton smiles at me again and I stiffly keep walking, hating the secrets that I keep from all of them.

Well, at least it'll be fun to surprise them all with the fact that I can skate...

• • •

Victoria's POV• • •

Shit! Wings are so damn hard to do! I grumble inwardly as I struggle with my makeup.

Wiping the messy eyeliner off, I decide to just go with a more simpler look. I'm wearing a pair of tight, black pants that hug my curves perfectly and a red shirt that contrasts my green hair. I'll have to get my hair redone soon, though. Peering into the mirror, I notice that my roots are showing through too much.

I shrug it off, done with caring about the way I look for the day. When I was younger, in middle school especially, I used to be super self conscious about my body. I mean, I'm certainly not skinny or athletic. I've got curves, but I've grown into them and grown out of my self esteem issues. Now I have plenty of self love.

The makeup, clothes, and whatnot is just a fun thing to do. I wear it because I like the way it looks. Well, it's also illegal to not wear clothes so...

I scroll through my various social media apps on my new phone while I wait until it's time to drive to school. After a while of looking at pictures and videos of other people, it's time to go. I grab my keys and blast music from the speakers of my car as I drive to school. It takes me forever to find a parking spot since I'm a few minutes behind everyone today. Not late, just didn't get here before the masses.

Slinking into my French class, I flop down in my chair. Mrs. Babineaux enters the room with a cheerfulness that can only mean one thing.

"Mrs. Babineaux, can I use the bathroom?" I say in clumsy French, bolting upright and looking towards the door.

I mean towards the exit, desperate to escape when Mrs. Babineaux narrows her blue eyes at me.

"Yeah, I gotta use the bathroom too," A voice from the other side of the class calls in French.

A few more students chime in nervously while the others look at us in disdain. Hey, I know I should be studied, but she seriously loves her pop quizzes and trick questions. Now is not the time for a test. Now is the time to finish waking up. Why don't teachers just understand that we students need a minimum of two school periods to wake up and be alert and coherent enough for a test?!

"Fine, then," Mrs. Babineaux concedes, throwing her hands in the air.

Before she can change her mind, I dash out the door. I don't stop until I'm out of the building. What? I'm just not in the mood for school. Well, even more so than usual.

Sliding my phone out of my pocket, I quickly text Trey and see if he's up for meeting me. Dating someone who goes to a different school definitely has its benefits, but it also has its cons, one of which is we have to meet somewhere in the middle of our two schools for us to see each other during school hours and we rarely have time to.

As soon as I tuck my phone back into my pocket, it pings to notify me of a new text. I frown slightly with confusion, knowing that Trey rarely responds that quickly, but it makes sense when I see it is from Rage.

Quickly, we decide to meet at the park that's not too far from school and then I text Trey again to invite him to come. I feel kinda bad not telling Rage that I'm inviting him, but I don't know if he'll be able to come or not. She'll probably be cool with it either way, though.

She seems like a chill person.

I burst out laughing. People shoot me curious glances and I wink at them, not caring how much they stare. Their thoughts are their own.

I finally reach my car and toss my bag in, swearing under my breath when I realize it was open and everything is now covering the floor. Whatever. I don't want to clean it up yet. I start up my car and head home to grab my short board and helmet before heading to the skate park.

Trey rolls in on his own skateboard right as I arrive. Spotting me, he makes his way over to where I am and I grab my gear before walking to him to greet him.

"Perfect timing," I announce, leaning in to give him a quick kiss.

"It's a gift," Trey replies with a wink that makes me grin widely.

"Now, let's all just calm down and keep our hands to ourselves," Rage croons as she walks over to us, her eyes flashing with mischief. "Wouldn't want a fight, now would we?"

The way she says it, though, makes it seems as if all she wants is a fight.

"Rage, good to see you again," Trey says, squinting at her slightly.

Probably because he's only seen her in the club we went to. There it was dark except for the blinding lights that flashed and pulsed to the beat. It makes sense that he would be a bit curious.

"Likewise," Rage replies smoothly before announcing, "I invited a few people, if you don't mind."

"Kinda late to be saying that now," I tease her. "But no, I don't mind."

In fact, I'm kinda glad since, this way, I know she won't mind that I invited Trey without telling her.

"So who'd you invite?" I ask curiously. "And do you have a board?"

"The board is taken care of," Rage answers. "And about your other question..."

• • •

Rage's POV

• • •

"I kinda invited seven people," I hedge, smiling sheepishly at Victoria.

Victoria laughs lightly before asking, "Who'd you invite?"

"Hey," Kolton said walking over and interrupting without meaning to. "They're just a few seconds away now."

"You invited Kolton?!" Victoria exclaims, giving me a look of disbelief.

It's then that I remember that Kolton is considered popular. I mean, people have seen is talking before, but talking is different than knowing someone well enough to invite them somewhere.

"Yeah, and he's not the only surprise guest," I tell her with a chuckle.

"Why am I suddenly nervous?" Victoria says flatly.

Trey is still giving me a strange look, as if I am a puzzle he is trying to figure out. I've seen him twice before this: when Victoria and I went dancing, and when I was fighting under the guise of Raven. I realize that he is going to put the pieces together if I am not careful.

"Rage!" William calls as the six of them walk over.

William is confidently walking in the lead, and Darkon and Asher are silently in the middle of the pack. Gage is slightly behind and to the side of William, his hazel eyes studying his surroundings with a cool, calculating glare. Nekoda is behind Darkon and Asher and on his phone. Boaz is shuffling in the back several steps behind them all. He looks completely miserable, but that could just be because they had to walk to the cabin to grab their boards and then over here to the park.

Victoria just stared in disbelief at the pack of them. Trey is wearing a look of careful weariness. I certainly don't blame him. A group of strange, muscular men walking towards you... Well, most people would be at least a bit on edge, right?

"Well," I announce, pulling on a helmet. "Are we gonna stand here and gawk or are we gonna board?"

Victoria rolls her dark brown eyes at my choice of words before snapping her own helmet into place and concealing her bright green hair.

I drop my borrowed board down and skate easily toward the half-pipe, winking and grinning teasingly at the boys.

The ten of us are the only people at the skate park, surprisingly. I guess it kinda makes sense, though, since most people would be in school right now. Still, it's a bit surprising that we are the only ones to skip and come here. But whatever.

We spend the next hour or so just fooling around and skating, not a care in the world. It is refreshing, really. Being able to just have fun and do nothing of real consequence. Being able to just be a normal teenager, if only for a little bit.

Kolton speeds past me, using his air powers to go faster than everyone. Boaz is sitting off to the side, lounging out and watching everyone with his board discarded to the side. Asher is surprisingly skilled at the aerial tricks and I am so proud of the way he has been talking with Trey. It's such progress compared to his normal silence.

I am surprised to see that Darkon is so quick and nimble for being so huge. Gage and Nekoda are riding together, shocking Victoria. Victoria is still acting kinda strange around the guys, especially Gage and Nekoda.

I can't blame her, though. At school, Gage and Nekoda hate each other, and apparently, they've always acted like that. To see them acting like "besties" must be pretty jarring for Victoria. William is riding mostly on his own, but interacts with everyone, being the people pleaser that he is.

Smiling softly, I can't help but feel a bittersweet feeling. They are so amazing, all of them, even Trey and Victoria, although my feelings towards those two are definitely different. But I know that my time is becoming more and more limited.

You see, I received a note this morning. A note that almost got noticed by Asher. A note that almost crushed me again.

"Three days until you are mine," It read.

Pretty obvious what it's talking about. It was signed by Kitrina Meade once again. She's coming for me. While I don't think she will ever be able to actually capture me, it does scare me. I'm scared because there is a slim chance that she could take me, hurt the boys, or worse.

A gust of wind blows over me, drawing my attention to Kolton who is grinning impishly, as if inviting me to return the blow.

Grinning back, I shake my head. Trey was suspicious earlier and I don't want to connect the dots for him.

Kolton pouts slightly, sticking his bottom lip out, a movement that definitely draws my attention. Kolton tries again, blowing air towards me and I cave inwardly, giving in to the peer pressure.

Doesn't take much for Rage to fall, does it? I think to myself with a wry grin.

But it's not that big of a deal. It's just a little wind and it's kinda windy today anyway so we could easily claim that it's just the natural wind. Not to mention, Trey and Victoria seem pretty... distracted, they are so wrapped up in each other. Honestly, the two are definitely relationship goals.

I blow Kolton a kiss that nearly knocks him off his board. Literally. His golden hair flies back with the force of the wind and he gives me a look that says, "Oh, it's on."

Sticking my tongue, I reply in the same manner, giving him a challenging look as if saying, "Bring it on."

Kolton steps off his board and plants his feet before blasting me back with a constant stream of air that doesn't let up yet.

"Hey, Asher? Would you mind accidentally crashing into Kolton?" I ask Asher sweetly via our mental connection.

"And by accidentally you mean purposely," Asher replies with a snort.

"You know me so well," I coo, winking at him when I notice he is looking my way.

Asher skates over, picking up speed and just slams into Kolton. I throw a cushion of air their way so they gently hit the ground without getting any kind of injury.

"Are you guys okay?!" Victoria asks, skating over on her board, still holding Trey's hand.

I don't pay too much attention to Victoria, though.

I'm too busy glaring at Trey.

"Are you okay, Rage?" Trey asks me pointedly. "It seems like that kind of power would take the energy out of someone, Rage. Or should I say Raven?"

• • •

Q: Do you have any songs that you think would fit this book?

A: A handful of you have sent me titles and I was just wondering how many of you have songs you think would be perfect for The Elements of Rage.