CHAPTER TWO: FIRE AND ICE

[Katarina.]

 “…the family thanks you for your service.”

No.

“No… where is Minjeong?” I ask, clearly displeased that I had not seen her for a while now, since I had heard from the people here that something had happened at her ceremony which I had not attended, due to the circumstances that people who are not the Kims are prohibited from attending, even as they are special people.

“That information shall be undisclosed, Miss Katarina Yoo.” Lady Taeyeon Kim says, the ever so elusive and strict leader that I had come to serve ever since I had awakened with the ice powers worthy of even being considered to live in this little mansion that they have and training with that girl who is now missing from this mansion that I now have to move out of.

“But Lady Taeyeon—”

“JIMIN BAE.”

The mansion shook with her voice that even resonated through me, and I could feel my ice bowing down in submission to hers—the more powerful ice, the one that flows within her and I know that it would be dangerous to cross her, but I just want my questions to be answered—

“Do you forget your place, Jimin?” she asks, and it takes all of my willpower and strength not to fold over because of the intense presence that gives pressure upon me from where I stand, taking all of me to keep staring upon her intense blue orbs that seem to pry upon me from within, as if trying to destroy my ice if it is even possible, but then it suddenly stops.

“With our family’s help, nakatakas ka mula sa pamilya mo at nabago mo ang apelyido mo. Do you really think that you can cross me with how much you are indebted to us?” Lady Taeyeon says, her blue eyes turning slowly into white—the color feared by many and almost none had survived according to the stories that I had heard, and I know that I would only be put in danger when i pry further than what she intended.

“I am… I am just curious about her wellbeing since she is your sister—”

“The family’s values and tradition shall be upheld first before anything else. Winter is no longer a part of the Kim Family as of yesterday, because of the results of her Powerborne Ceremony.” She said, spitting it out like it was nothing, like she did not cast away her younger sister of her own blood. How can you do that? How can you stomach throwing away your own sister because she had come out as fire?

How can you cast away Minjeong like it’s only nothing? Like you’re only throwing away a thing that you would no longer use?

“Take your leave. I expect that you would be out of the manor this afternoon, understood?” she says, and I could only nod and turned back, moving away from the woman who could certainly kill me where I stand, that even her very presence could overwhelm my power and possibly subdue me even with a distance.

“If you ever find her,” I turn back once again, hearing her say those words, and I could see her face looking a little scared and even afraid but it had gone as fast as it had appeared.

“…tell her that I had no choice.”

No choice. Right. Of course, you have no choice.

I finally made my move outside of the mansion, away from the place that I had called home for a very long time, ever since childhood—away from the routine that I had managed to get used to, as well as the ever so cheerful Minjeong Kim that had always awaited me in the training rooms as well as a friend that I had been accustomed to for a very long time; now gone away to a place that I don’t know.

“Jaemin!” I called out, realizing that the guard who had also accompanied us to our whereabouts at the time that we were training is also packing his clothes in one of the rooms in this big mansion, and slowly I wonder why he had been packing when as I remember, he had also lived here and had the priority to take care of the heiresses of the Kim Family—

“You… so I guess they fired you too?” Jaemin says, a dejected sigh upon his tone while he loosened the tie that he had worn, part of the suit that he had been given to wear as a formality in the job that he had been given as a bodyguard for the heiresses who had not yet earned their powers—and then I realize that with no heir or heiress left in the main family, his job is done.

“We are only workers in this grand family that they have, of course.” He says, sighing as he finished packing his bags and closed the luggage that he had brought with him, and then I realize—maybe he could help me.

“Jaemin… what if we try to find Minjeong?” I ask while he's seated at the edge of his bed beside the bags that he had packed, and he looks at me like I had finally gone mad, like I had finally gone out of my wits and had lost my mind because of the suggestion that I made.

“Have you gone mad? She was exiled for a reason, and even if you find her, she can't go back to the mainland due to Lady Taeyeon's orders.” He says, and based on how he avoids my gaze while listening to his answers, there's something that he knows and probably… just probably, he knows where she is.

“You know where she is, don’t you?” I ask, trying to pry even further and I only laugh while he avoids my steady gaze and even coughs once or twice trying to be casual about it, and there I knew that he knows something, that he knows where she is.

Well, this makes things a lot easier.

“Tell me. You have to tell me, Jaemin. Where is she?” he only sighed as he stared at me after I asked the question, raising his middle finger while I only scoffed at that, the man laughing as he noticed that i already made a pipe out of ice that i quickly dissolved after he had lowered his hand.

“Fine. I’ll tell you. But in return, you must let me come with you.” he said while I only sighed at what he has as a condition for the information that I am seeking, knowing that he would be pushy and I needed the information that he had and besides, we had been really close friends beside me and Minjeong.

“What if I don't want to?” I said but he did not even answer or did not even look my way after hearing those words, probably knowing that I would never resist the temptation of information.

“Fine, you can come with me. But you can't bring those luggages around, can you? Bringing those would take you a lot of time, and what if we're going to go far away from this place?” I say, and i could only widen my eyes in shock as he removed a bracelet hidden under the cuff of his suit and the ground suddenly opened with just a flick of his wrist, and I had to use my powers to prevent anyone from the mansion from picking up his power, hopefully covered by my presence.

“What the hell? Akala ko wala kang powers, Jaemin!” mahinang sigaw ko dahil ang alam ko ay walang nakakaalam na may powers siya, at ngumiti na lamang siya habang pinagpag niya ang ilang mga fragments ng soil galing sa pagkakabuka ng lupa at ng sahig ng mansion, his things kept under the earth, probably for safekeeping.

“That’s a secret I would like to be kept from the Kim Family dahil after all, I never had the need to use my powers since Miss Winter had never stayed out for a long time. Plus, a friend of mine had given me bracelets that could cancel out my powers.” He explained, wearing the aforementioned bracelet upon his wrist and another in his ankle probably just to be sure that his powers wouldn’t be able to get out.

“Ah, but anyways. Shall we go? It’s a long trip from here to where she is.” Jaemin says, and I sigh as I nod at that, following him towards the exit of the mansion, hoping that I would be able to go to where Minjeong is because I am really worried; especially with the things that are happening, and what had happened to her after her ceremony.

I can’t help but think about her, especially since I know her like the back of her hand, having spent a lot of time with her—sixteen years to be exact, knowing her since we were both five since I was only a few months older than her, becoming one of the people that I had spent time with for almost all my life and had practically lived here in this mansion—and knowing that she’s gone, driven away by the family that she had.

The trance of thought that I had been letting run so freely in my mind is interrupted by the constant ringing upon my pocket and I hurriedly fish my phone from the pocket where it had been, at naitaas ko na lang ang kilay ko nang makita kong unknown number ang tumatawag sa akin. Who could this be? Wala naman akong natatandaan na pinagbigyan ko ng number since I only had this phone recently, commissioned by the Kim Family.

Leaving a lot of questions in my mind momentarily unanswered, sinagot ko na ang tawag and I widen my eyes as I realize who it is.

“Hello?”

[“My God, it took me so long to get this number and I even have to pull some strings. Why do you even change numbers so much?”]

The voice resonates deep within my system, deep in my mind, stirring up memories that I did not know is still inside my mind, that voice opening doors tha tlet out a lot of memories that I had already buried with the name that I had left behind—her.

“Ate, how did you get my number?” Bae Joohyun laughs at the other line habang inis kong hinintay ang sagot niya habang naglalakad kami ni Jaemin papunta sa train station na pinakamalapit dito since sinabi din ni Jaemin sa akin habang naglalakad kami na train daw ang pinakamabilis na way para pumunta sa kung nasaan man si Minjeong.

[“I have my ways, I can be pretty persuasive. Anyways, I only have one thing to ask you.”] she says, at nagtaka naman ako dahil it’s been a long time since we had been last in touch, and we had never really been that close after she had ran away from home and I had followed suit as well, so what could she be asking me?

[“Jimin, have you been training closely with a girl named Minjeong Kim?”]

Nanlaki ang mga mata ko nang marinig ko ang tanong na iyon—how did she even know Minjeong? What the hell?

“I was commissioned by the Kim Family to do so, in exchange of my name being changed and running away from our family, and yes… I trained her. Why?” tanong ko habang pinigil ko muna si Jaemin na bayaran yung tickets and yung fare namin for the trip since my sister clearly has something in mind.

[“I’m coming to pick you up. Where are you?”] biglang tanong niya, and I could hear the desperation and rush in her voice, and I wonder what it is that is happening at kung bakit parang nagmamadali siyang sunduin ako into who knows where, at kasama ko pa si Jaemin.

“Vainefield Station, nandito kami sa may ticket stalls. I have a friend with me; is it okay if he comes with us, kung saan mo man kami dadalhin?” I ask, Jaemin raising his brow upon the conversation that he have not heard the other side of the talking, and I only signed for him to wait since hindi ko pa alam kung ano ba talaga ang nangyayari.

[“What—a boy? Eh, it’s alright, just as long as he could be trusted. I’ll meet you there, medyo malapit na din naman pala ako diyan. Stay put, okay? I have a lot of questions.”] sagot niya at ibinaba na agad ang tawag bago pa man ako makapagtanong pa ng kahit ano with the things that she had told me with this call, and I frustratedly pocketed my phone while I dragged the still very confused Jaemin to a bench para maupo muna.

“Who was that?” tanong ni Jaemin habang sumandal muna ako sa kinauupuan ko, hoping that dear sister of mine wouldn’t take long since I might have to find another line of work since I was just fired from my job of sixteen years, at alam kong medyo mahihirapan ako maghanap since jobs for Powerbornes really is rare these days.

“That’s my so called older sister; we don’t really talk much, but she knew her.” Sagot ko habang nanlaki ang mga mata ni Jaemin, probably knowing about what I was pertaining, since I know that he heard part of the conversation that we just had.

“And she’s coming here… because of Miss Minjeong?” tanong niya habang tumango na lamang ako, repeatedly checking my phone in case that my sister would text or call or even send me anything to help me know where she is at the moment, since baka maligaw pa iyon dito at maghanapan pa kami—

“Jimin.” She says, a faint smile upon her face as I nod at that, practically giving her permission to rush towards me and hug me tight, the first hug that I had received from her in years since we had practically lived away from each other—hindi ko na nga alam kung ano bang mayroon sa buhay niya ngayon at kung saan siya nakatira.

“Ate, this is Jaemin, a colleague of mine from the Kim Family. Jaemin, this is my sister, Bae Joohyun—”

“I prefer the name Irene Joohyun Kang.” She says, at nanlaki ang mga mata ko nang marinig ko ang sinabi niya, finding the surname familiar pero bago pa man ako makapagtanong ay hinila na niya ako papunta sa kung saan man at tahimik lang na sumunod sa amin si Jaemin na hinahayaan lang kaming magcatch up or something.

“I’m going to answer your questions when we get back home; I heard the Kim Family fired you, so I’d take you in muna along with that boy you brought along.” Ate Joohyun says, at nanlaki naman ang mga mata ko dahil hindi ko pa naman nasasabi ang bagay na iyon sa kanya, so how does she even know about those things?

“Ate, what do you know?” tanong ko habang sumunod ako sa kanya papunta sa parking lot kung saan daw nakapark daw yung kotseng dala niya papunta dito, and she did not answer my question until I had gone inside her car beside her upon the shotgun seat while Jaemin sat at the back.

“My wife is Seulgi Kang, the heiress of the Kang Family and considered to be the most powerful fire user as of date.” Ate Joohyun says, at nanlaki ang mga mata ko nang marinig ko ang mga salitang iyon, realizing that a lot of things that had happened with her life that I wasn’t aware of because we had already grown apart.

“And… and what does it have to do with Minjeong, Ate—”

“The jurisdiction with Miss Minjeong’s case was given to Miss Seulgi Kang by Lady Taeyeon.” Jaemin says, and I widen my eyes as I hear that information, then staring at Irene who nods at that, confirming what Jaemin had said while we’re already on the expressway out of the mainland and to the provinces, although I haven’t seen the places past the mainland before.

“So… so you’re with…” I utter, the words barely leaving out of my mouth while my Ate nods at that, continuing her driving towards wherever it is that she lives in with this wife of hers and… and where Minjeong is.

“I have a lot of questions for you, Jimin. And you too, young man, because you clearly work there.” Ate says, and I widen my eyes in curiousness since I don’t really know what she’s leading with this since I don’t really have a clue—

“Bakit hindi mo pa ako tanungin ngayon, Ate? What do you even mean—”

“Katarina Yoo, why did you train Winter using fire principles and not ice?”