Hollyn hesitated for a moment before lifting her hands, palms up. Yumia hovered her own hands over top of Hollyn’s.
“Now, your job is to slap the tops of my hands before I can move them away.”
“What?”
“Don’t hold back. Give me all you got.”
“You want me to…slap your hands?”
“We can switch if you want. But I’ll warn you. I hit hard.”
Hollyn made a pitiful attempt by sliding her hands to the sides, but Yumia jerked her hands away and laughed.
“Come on! You can do better than that.”
They reset, and this time, Hollyn tried to move faster, but Yumia pulled her hands away in time once more.
“Better! Let’s try again.”
For the next thirty minutes, Hollyn continued to try to move fast enough to make contact, but no matter how quickly she moved, Yumia always moved faster. At one point, Hollyn was sure Yumia’s hands were merely a blur.
In frustration, Hollyn finally took a step back and lowered her hands. “What are we doing? I thought you were going to teach me to control my magic, not play games.”
“Do you think we’re just playing games, little siren?”
“Obviously.”
A wicked smile slid onto Yumia’s mouth as she gleefully whispered, “Let’s switch.”
Hollyn slowly turned her hands over, palm facing the ground, and Yumia hovered her hands below. Instantly, Hollyn felt a magnetic force begin to take hold. Her hands felt like lead weights hanging from the ends of her arms. Energy built at their wrists and spiraled through the air around them. Moisture began to gather between their hands. Every sensation made Hollyn’s hair stand on end, up and down her skin, skimming over her like an electric current coursing along a wire.
Out of nowhere, water rushed up Hollyn’s arms and down her legs as she was blasted backward into a solid rock wall. She slid down to the ground until she was slumped over like a rag doll. Instantly, the water receded like a wave, leaving Hollyn soaked and limbless.
After a stunned moment, Hollyn looked up at a pensive Yumia. Her head was cocked, arms still extended, and all her focus waiting for a reaction from Hollyn.
“Teach me!” Hollyn began to peel herself off the floor. “I want to be able to do that!”
Yumia’s mouth broke into a knowing smile. “Don’t underestimate yourself. You can do much more than that.” She waved Hollyn toward herself. “Let’s go again.”
Hollyn tentatively walked forward and put her hands out. “I felt your power, but how did you pull it so quickly, increase it to that degree, and use it in such a targeted way?”
Yumia laughed loudly. “Do you always want everything all at once?”
“When my life is on the line, yes! I need you to teach me everything you know.”
“So, we’re going to be here for twenty years? Do you have that kind of time?”
“Well, I’ll take the quickest version of it you can give me. I’ve got days at the most.”
Yumia looked thoughtful, tapping her long, curved, coral fingernail against her full lips. “Well, I’ve never had such a challenge, but teaching is what I do. Some are better students than others. I’ve had some students who…well, let’s not go there. What kind of student are you?”
Hollyn perked up. “The best kind, of course. Bend me, shape me, any way you want me, Teach!”
“I do see potential in you.” She put her hands out, palm down once again. “Give me your hands.”
Hollyn tentatively put her hands underneath Yumia’s. Her nerves were wreaking havoc in her stomach. She really didn’t want to hit the wall again…literally. She stared at her hands, willing something to happen, but instead, a whole lot of nothing was the result.
As they stood there awkwardly, Hollyn began to grow frustrated. She squeezed her eyes shut and willed something…anything to happen. Yet again, no energy crackled. The lack was obvious.
