Elysian Kotlc

Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion.

Sophie was used to the in between- where nothing happened and everyone was anxiously waiting for all the pieces to fit into place. There was no sign of Gisela and Keefe, Flori was still healing, and so far, they'd made no progress on Sophie's new idea.

The adults had given it support, but Sophie had seem the skeptical feelings they'd hidden. Though honestly, she didn't blame them. Even she was a little timid, but no other idea on how to win this war had come up.

"Sophie?" Are you there?"

Sophie snapped to the present as her best friend, Dex, waved a hand in front of Sophie's face. They were sitting on a bench in Foxfire, waiting for their next class.

"Sorry, you were saying?" Said Sophie blankly.

Dex scowled. "Oh, never mind." He bit his lip. "What we're you thinking?"

"A lot of things, all at once." Sophie shrugged, ignoring Dex's look of unsatisfactory.

"Have you talked to Mr. Forkle recently?" Dex asked.

"I wish," Sophie growled. "He's being unhelpful as usual."

They both fell silent as Sophie remembered the last night she'd seen Mr. Forkle. She'd explained everything she knew about Stellarlune and her experimenting ideas. He'd stroked his chin and said he'd think about it, and do some research. Typical answer for him- and even more typical to take an unnecessarily lathe amount of time doing so.

"You should talk to him," Dex said. "After school."

Sophie bit her lip. "Maybe, but if he hadn't talked to me, that probably means he hasn't learned anything."

Dex chuckled softly. "No, that probably means he has learned something."

Sophie smiled faintly. He was right. Mr. Forkle often kept the most dangerous, yet most important information to himself, hoping Sophie and her friends wouldn't get any ideas.

"Yeah, you're right. I'll stop by his office during lunch." Sophie said dismissively. At that moment, the bell rang, and Dex muttered a goodbye and they headed their separate ways. Sophie's classes could not have dragged by more slowly. When finally lunch came around, she stood and started down the hallways, not sure why she was feeling so nervous.

She knocked on Magente Lego's door and it took a few moments for the door to swing open. He looked grave when he saw her.

"Miss Foster. I should've known you'd drop by soon enough."

Sophie shrugged, and said nothing, not able to think of a reply. Magente Leto lead her into his office and she sank into a seat across from him.

"I assume you are here because you'd like to know if I've learned anything new?"

Sophie nodded.

He grimaced. "I did a small amount of research on Stellarlune." He said slowly. "I wanted to know how Lady Gisela Managed to put her ideas together, but I found no proof on what she has done."

Sophie shrank down for a second, but then he added, "However, i used my common knowledge to break down what I did know."

Sophie waited for him to continue with bated breath.

"One of the biggest hints, I realized, was in the name itself. 'Stellar' means stars, which is understandable. But what intrigued me most was the end, Steallarlune. The root 'Luna' means moon."

Sophie's eyes widened.

"It is not completely unheard of to combine starlight with a different substance, but moonlight is a whole different matter altogether."

"Why?" Sophie asked.

"Have you ever heard of the term moon strike, Sophie?" Magente Leto asked quietly.

"I..." Sophie racked her photographic memory. "It's an ancient human myth, where the moon could drive anyone crazy."

"Yes, very good." Magente Leto smiled sadly. "That is indeed the definition, but whether it is 'human' or 'myth' is debatable."

"What do you mean?" Sophie demanded.

"In the ancient days, elves would drink moonlight, which would give them incredible power. But it would also drive them mad. It is now forbidden, and ancient secret I wonder whether a cache contains."

"How did you know about it, then?" Sophie asked.

Mr. Forkle merely smiled as a response. "If Gisela truly did use moonlight.. it would've needed an incredible balance. Not just any ordinary starlight."

"The unmapped stars." Sophie said. "But how....?" She had too many questions.

"I am not sure." Magente Leto said. Silence filled the room until he finally broke it. "Isn't it your lunch break, Miss Foster? You should be eating and building your strength, rather than discussing this here with me."

"This is so much more important." Sophie said.

"As of now, we've made little progress. I've told you all I know. So go eat your lunch." He waved his hand to dismiss her, the final ending to their conversation.

Thanks for reading, sorry it took me so long to update! I'll try to write extra to make up for it <3