Taken Away (2)

Thankfully, Joanna let me escape afterwards, and I quickly walked out the dining room, about to sneak into one of the living rooms to check up on Sparky. But with someone following me, I stopped to face the person behind me. It was strange, having Luke carefully watch me here. Once we were inside the villas or mansions, he usually left me alone after finishing our schedules.

"What do you want?" I was annoyed.

"Our parents want us to stay on this floor," Luke stiffly responded.

"Sure, why not? Stop following me," I turned to continue walking.

The topmost floor was private, meaning only family members could enter this floor. It was obvious Luke's parents were trying to negotiate the new arrangements where I wasn't present. However, if I stayed with them to help my parents, I would have continued to suffer under the hostile atmosphere. There wasn't much I could do at this point, except for making things worse. If my parents failed to get favorable terms on their end, which was likely, I was a goner. My forehead irked with irritation when Luke continued to follow me, matching my footsteps.

"Why are you following me?" I stopped again.

"Aren't you busy? That's what you said during lunch," I recalled.

"I said I didn't have time to help you raise a pet," Luke countered.

"I never planned to ask for your help in the first place. I can raise it alone. I already got your parent's approval," I gestured to leave.

"You can't raise a familiar alone. We have to help you," he resembled his parents.

"You don't have to help me. Leave me alone," I was losing my patience.

As Luke ignored my pleas, I decided to pretend he wasn't there. I opened the door and approached Sparky, and checked up on her. The fire inside the hearth was dim, barely existing, leading Sparky to complain and pull itself towards me. I immediately stepped backwards, nearly bumping into Luke. Without any explanation, Luke knew what Sparky needed, "fire is your pet's food source. You're not feeding it enough."

"I know, I'm visiting a volcano soon," I sighed.

"I'll feed it for now," Luke waved his hand.

My eyes went large as several large fire tornadoes were targeted into the fireplace. Spinning and massive with tremendous power, much more refined than mine. I could feel the heat like the fire almost touched my skin. Only unfreezing from my spot when Luke's face twisted into confusion, wondering why Sparky wasn't satisfied. To help him, I threw more blazing fire balls towards Sparky. Almost burning this entire room if not for Sparky's speed in catching everything.

"This is your pet?" Joanna suddenly interrupted us.

"Father allowed me to raise it inside this room yesterday," I blurted.

"I can't have this thing inside my house Rika, and you definitely can't raise this on your own. This is not a pet, it's a familiar," she instantly decided.

"Sparky is a pet. I took care of one in school before. You promised you would give me a week," I pointed out.

"I'm adding more classes to your schedule. You have a week to prove to me you can handle it. Any misbehavior or signs of trouble means your pet will be given away," she studied Sparky.

"Are you bringing the tutors to the third district?" I slightly shuddered.

"We're going to the first district tonight. You will be spending the rest of your summer vacation with us. This will continue for the rest of the holidays until you graduate from high school," she ordered.

"Including the weekends?" I was devastated.

"Excluding the weekends. You'll be busy visiting your grandfather for mana and control lessons," she reminded me.

When Joanna left the room, I flopped onto the sofa, discovering my parents had utterly lost against them. Nothing would change in my life, and I was fated to be miserably stuck with this family forever. Meanwhile, the opportunities to visit my family would remain rare and limited. I made the right choice by not acting out. Turning to feed Sparky, I found her oddly full, her head drooping like she was sleeping. I briefly scanned her, wondering what caused the sudden change.

"Mother fed Sparky before leaving," Luke explained.

"When?" I didn't notice.

"Mother can do spells without chanting. With the deal in place, mother never stopped feeding Sparky," he revealed.

Why couldn't anyone let me raise Sparky alone? It was frustrating how nobody trusted me in this family. I needed some cake to comfort me. Naturally, my hand grabbed the tablet to order the usual amount. Eventually deciding to rest while I could, knowing I would encounter hell tomorrow. It was a fact doing nothing was better than studying as I laid down on the couch, facing the ceiling. And as the sky blurred into pretty violets, I began to get drowsy, tired from studying the scenery.

"Your parents are leaving right now. Do you not want to say your farewells?" Luke received a message.

"I don't. I want to sleep," I was disappointed in my parents.

"You should sleep in your bedroom," he was oddly supportive.

It was better than the couch. I nodded as I heavily walked towards my bedroom. In the midst of collapsing onto my bed, I noticed my parents, grandma and Evan walking towards the gate. I soon found myself in front of my window, watching them get into their car. Suddenly feeling like my heart was panging with emptiness as my family sadly smiled. They lifted their heads in my direction, weirdly staring at me like we would never see each other again.