Typhoon & Tempest

Epilogue

The guide dog rested his head on Niall Guthrie's shaking leg, his wet nose pressed against him. Niall quickly ran his hand over Zephyr's soft ears flickering in the growing wind, ruffling the hair of everyone below.

His feet swung on the ledge overseeing the bonfire he was so familiar with. He knew every log around the large flame, the stories behind the scorch marks, and the origin of the still-standing vine dome above the house now belonging to his Uncle Rodger and partner Nerry.

Tyrill was his home, the people were his people, and he'd been here all his life - besides the odd adventures his girlfriend took him on - but tonight he always felt alienated.

It was New Year's Eve. Like usual, he stayed away from the commotion surrounding the holiday, and listened to the noise instead of watching the fireworks; he couldn't see their splendour being legally blind. All fireworks to him were giant blurry flares of colour like fuzzy dice hanging in a car.

The Labrador whined against him, curling into Niall. He sighed, ruffling Zephyr's ears more, but the nerves his guide dog could sense had nothing to do with his impaired vision tonight.

The alienation, this time, was deliberate. Only a few people knew why he was nervous; his parents and brother, his best friend, Jack Garcia-Slater, and Lily's aunt. His brother Nick kept grinning at him when no one was looking, and Haidan always had his nods of encouragement before teasing him. It was what best friends were for in the end.

He was familiar with nerves. Niall was born with albinism, and as a result, had been almost completely blind since birth. He was nervous on his first day in public that he could remember. He was nervous when he bit the bullet and began talking to other kids in Tyrill. The first time he flew. The first time he secretly learned to snowboard, not to mention the beginnings of his gift as a nymph and all his self-taught teachings.

This New Year's Eve though, he wanted to rip out his stomach and give it to Jack to create a new voodoo doll of him, if only to get him to stop the fidgeting of his leg and the feeling of ants under his skin.

Niall jumped when the sharp whistle twisted up from the bonfire and exploded in the sky as a shower of bright blue. He smiled hearing his best friend scold someone for standing too close to the strapped fireworks.

Haidan was adamant that this night wouldn't go wrong. It was his first time hosting by himself a New Year's Eve fireworks show as a pyrotechnics expert. Even if Niall hadn't chosen this night to put pressure on him for it to be perfect, it had to be for his own professional reputation. His stress accidentally sparked another bound firework in place, everyone blinking at the sudden flare of purple in their eyes.

"Everything's fine!" Haidan yelled loudly. Niall shook his head at how wired he was. "It's all going to plan!"

Haidan and Niall had quickly become best friends after the Marlin's Bay tsunami seven years ago. They'd learned the full extent of their abilities together, and the full temper of Jack Garcia-Slater when they'd accidentally set fire to the forest...for the fourth time.

She'd punished them harshly - she'd forced the two of them to come into Nova High School and lead a five hour lecture on 'Control: Reckless to More Reckless'.

Jack had listened to every fumbled word even though she was the only audience member either awake or not on their phone. Niall often wondered how she'd managed to organise it within twenty-four hours, but eventually had to accept Jack was cunning beyond what he'd originally thought.

She was the new Principal of Nova High, after all.

Niall knew Jack had studied to become a teacher when the aftermath of the tsunami had washed away. Haidan had told him she'd discovered she 'had a passion for telling people what to do' when the four of them decided to travel.