The four of them slept in very late, which was quite rare, especially for Zander. Sophie and Claire had both setup messages to send at 9 am that they were fine and going to spend the day off together. Their parents told them to have fun, be safe and let them know they loved them.
Sophie and Zander were the first two to awake, and laid in bed talking about how amazing their date was and both agreed they had a memorable first date, to say the least. When Zander kissed Sophie, she was relieved he hadn't changed and still cared for her.
"Sophie, I'm going to ask you a question someone asked my mother a long time ago. Do you believe in love at first sight? I'm not saying this because my parents died, it's because if I'm going to tell you the truth, even if you don't love me, as I don't expect you too, I need to know if you believe in love at first sight and that couples can live long, healthy, happy lives despite falling in love quickly." Zander asked.
Sophie sat in silence, which didn't bother Zander at all, which surprised her. He just lost his parents. He wasn't getting an answer. But he just sat there, with a genuinely kind, relaxed smile until she answered.
"If you asked me this last week, I would have definitely said no. I promised myself I wouldn't kiss a boy until I was certain he was worth it and we were dating. Then I met your family, who was nothing but kind to me. I've always believed in Solace and the blessed Four, so I don't find it a coincidence I met you, with Claire, while you were lost in a news drone about your parents mission. So to answer your question, yes, I believe in love at first sight. I already care for you deeply and I turn 17 next Saturday, on March 4th. When I'm with you, I just feel happy. When I thought I lost you, I couldn't imagine what it would be like never seeing you again and what could have been. I'm not sure I'm in love with you yet, but I'm more than willing to stick it out to find out." Sophie said with a big smile.
"That's good, because what I am going to show you, you simply cannot tell anyone. Even if we break up or something, that is if you'll consider me your boyfriend. We have to remain friends and close, no matter what. Not even Cyrus knows and he's my oldest and closest friend. My parents stressed I could only tell someone when I was absolutely certain I could trust them, so do you trust me?" Zander asked.
"Yes, why else would I take a bath at your house, wear a shirt your mom clearly left out, hoping I would see, plan a picnic and text Claire to ask Cyrus if she could come along because I wanted to be with you? I saw you burst into flames, Zander, and my heart sank like I'd lost someone very, very dear to me. If you need me to fake being sick this week to be with you, I'd do it in a heartbeat but I get to cook for you and return the favor," Sophie blushed.
"I'll let you make that decision after you know everything, we will wait until Cyrus and Claire leave and I'll show you." Zander said.
Cyrus woke up and noticed Claire was still sleeping, saw that it was almost one PM and kissed her forehead gently and said, "good morning beautiful."
Claire woke up with a big smile and said "good morning to you Mr Handsome. Oh gosh, is it really 1 PM? I don't think I've ever slept that well or that long.
Claire and Cyrus walked downstairs, only to see Sophie and Zander cuddled up in the family room, watching a movie.
"Morning everyone, how'd everyone sleep?" Cyrus asked with a big stretch and smile.
"Cyrus and Claire, my parents and everyone on their mission were killed. Mrs Lydia spoke her last words to me on the phone." Zander dropped the bombshell.
Immediately Cyrus ran up and gave him a big hug, tearing up, "I'm so sorry bro. You kept worrying and kept asking them not to go. Remember, we have to realize we have to trust the Father and Solaces plan for all of us, and that includes death. I know it's hard to hear, but your parents died doing what they loved and they died knowing you'd have plenty of people to love and support you." Cyrus said as he did his best to cheer Zander up.
"Quest received: Tell someone the truth. Reward unknown. Failure. Unknown."
"Zintan, that was odd, do you see the system too?" Zander asked internally.
"I do but have no clue what it means or does, we'll talk later. Spend time with your guests. We both lost two of our parents but remember they were great people, they're probably receiving a standing ovation in Eden right now." Zintan said.
Claire stated how sorry she was for his loss, and asked Cyrus if he wanted to go out for a while with him.
"Are you ok or do you want the company bro, you know I love you like a brother and your parents were practically family too " Cyrus asked Zander.
"I should be ok, Sophie's here and you two should go have fun. I have some things to attend to anyway, Mrs Lydia told me I have to call some lawyer or something," Zander said.
With that, Claire gave Sophie a hug and whispered, "that's so sad about his parents they were so nice, if you need me call me ok?"
Sophie nodded and reassured her best friend she would call her later.
Cyrus gave Zander another hug and said, "I'll be back tonight and you can't tell me no," Cyrus said with a smile.
"Thanks Cyrus, I really appreciate it. I'm going to call off school this week so if you could avoid telling me about what people are saying this week, I'd really appreciate it," Zander stated.
With a reassuring nod, Claire had changed and she and Cyrus were off.
"And now it's just us," Sophie said while giving Zander a kiss and he kissed back, not wanting to let go.
"After we pray and eat lunch, I will show you my childhood room and explain more, I promise," Zander said and they ate quietly.
Zander took a deep breath and confidently went to Sophie and grabbed her hand. "Shall we?"
"I wonder if this will count for this quest and what is this system thing all about," Zander wondered.
As they reached his childhood bedroom door, he took a deep breath and asked, "are you ready?"
"Of course babe," Sophie said, which reminded him of his dad, who always called his mom babe, which she couldn't have known, and that made him smile.
"I have to pray quickly," Zander stated as he prayed, "Uncle Tej, I am ready to show someone the truth. I can't explain it, we just met but for some reason I trust and may love her. She promised to stay with me no matter what she sees and swore she won't tell a soul, even if we break up. She promised we would remain close and friends. Please open my childhood bedroom. In the name of the Father and Solace we pray."
Just then, they both witnessed light magic illuminate the door, unlocking in patterns that could not be kept up with, and to Zander's surprise, Tej and Soraya were there, in their McCaw size form, waiting for them on the room.
"Are those actual phoenixes and is that Tej and Soraya, the first son of the great Father of Solace and his mate, whom he met on the day of Enlightenment 260 or so years ago?" Sophie exclaimed.
"You indeed found a good soul Zander, we are both so sorry for your loss," as they flew to him and perched on his shoulders.
He asked Soraya to go to Sophie and tell him what she thought privately.
Soraya flew over and gently landed on Sophie's shoulder, giving her a playful nestle, basically begging for scratches. Sophie took Zander's lead and began petting Soraya as Zander was petting Tej.
Soraya whispered to Sophie, "So you're the one the beautiful young lady who the chosen one of humankind has fallen for. He's a lucky man, I can see your soul is pure and kind,"
Baffled, Sophie could only mutter, "chosen one chose me, but why? I'm not special like he is."
"Then why does he look at you that way despite it being the day he lost his parents and trainers?" Soraya asked.
Sophie was left speechless. She just met this boy and Claire just met Cyrus on a complete coincidence. Or was it?
"I deeply apologize if this sounds rude, but how do you know Zander and why are you here on Earth of all places?" Sophie nervously asked.
"That's a story for him to tell, but walk over by his dresser and look at the pictures," Soraya said as Sophie walked over and saw the pictures of an older looking Tej with Soraya proudly nesting an egg, another picture of other phoenixes she didn't recognize, a picture of a baby Golden Phoenix being held by Soraya, Tej and Soraya with their twins and finally a picture of Zander, with his human parents holding him, with Tej and Soraya in the picture, at their full, majestic size behind the three.
"This is incredible, you have such a beautiful family. Where is the golden phoenix though?" Sophie asked.
To her surprise, Zander had walked over and said, pointing to his heart, right here.
"Do you want to meet him?" Zander asked.
Sophie stood in shock. How was she supposed to meet a phoenix who was clearly not there? Also, Tej looked much younger in one photo and now, despite looking much older in the older pictures.
Seeing her nervousness, Zander said, "It's ok watch, pay close attention to my eyes,"
Sophie gulped and nodded and Zander's eyes changed colors from silver to gold.
"Hello Sophie, you are quite beautiful and I see Zander adores you. It's very complicated, but you can say, in a way, I'm his twin brother. Tej and Soraya are my parents, and Sebastian and Savannah were my human parents who gave birth to Zander. I was placed in his heart at 20 days old and have been here since. He learned how to communicate with me on his first birthday. We're linked, you see," Zintan explained.
Sophie stood in shock and plucked up the courage to ask, "what's your name then? You looked very pretty as a baby and I don't think the scriptures anywhere talk about a Golden Phoenix."
"Has Zander told you his full name?" Zintan asked.
"No he did not, not his middle name at least," Sophie said, deep in thought.
"His middle name was given to him by our human parents, which is the name my Phoenix parents gave me at birth. Zintan. We each have an individual soul, but we also share a conscious and subconscious soul. He can even meditate to see me in his soul, kind of cool, huh?" Zintan said excitedly.
"Yes it is really cool and it was very nice to meet you," Sophie gave Zander a hug.
"It was nice to meet you too," Zintan said and his eyes went back to silver.
"So, do you still think I'm not a monster?" Zander asked, looking embarrassed and sad.
Sophie kissed him and said, "of course not, you're just unique. So wait, when you burst into flames, why were you reborn as a more defined version of yourself?"
Zander stood clueless and Tej spoke, "none of us are sure. Most phoenixes, when they are reborn for the first time, are babies in their ashes. Not even my Father knows. It's something unique to Zander, I'm just glad he's alive and well. It's unfortunate he went through so much pain, usually a natural rebirth is pain free. Even when we're ready to be reborn at an old age, it's still painless."
"Wait, you mean like, the Father of all creation and Solace, so is Zander like some immortal grandchild or something?" Sophie asked.
"Although the Fathers blood, soul and blessing are on Zander because of Zintan, he is human and will age normally. We're unsure what will happen after he fulfills the prophecy to save humankind, whenever that time comes. But he was born of human parents, both of which were blessed by my Father and my sister Luna to carry a child, despite both being unable to produce a child. You see, Theo betrayed us all and is our youngest brother. He runs Phantoms Keep and Zander here apparently is the key to stop it all," Tej boasted with a puffy chest, proud to be the Father of a chosen one.
Zander had sat down on the old guest bed, chatting with Soraya and asking about her feelings about Sophie, to which she only had good things to say.
"Ping, Quest complete. Rewards: 200 experience, congratulations you are now level two, 100/300 experience. All stat points have increased by one. Skill unlocked: invisibility. This skill can be used on yourself and up to one person. When cast, the spell will turn you and the person you touch completely invisible. You will be able to remain invisible based on your mana stats. 30 minutes per point of mana," the system chimed in.
"What the, I still have no idea what this thing is. Turning invisible seems useful, especially if I want to protect someone as well, I'll have to try it sometime, just not now," Zander thought.
With Zander zoned out, Tej and Soraya gave Sophie a hug and said, "I hope it works out between you two, he has Zintan and a great friend in Cyrus but he's going to need someone in this time of sorrow. We can teleport you home if you don't wish to remain his girlfriend and we will inform him."
"His girlfriend? We just met, but, I suppose that's ok, I do like him," Sophie said.
"I fell in love with Tej the moment I saw him, and we've been happy together ever since," Soraya encouraged Sophie to go over to Zander.
As Sophie walked over, Tej and Soraya hugged Zander, Soraya gave him a kiss on the cheek and both encouraged him to stay strong and his parents would always be with him, even if they have passed away.
With that, they were gone and Sophie sat next to Zander, placing her hand on his.
"So my life is still pretty much the same as two days ago, just now I have a boyfriend." Sophie said with a blushed face and big smile.
"You are serious about it? Even after all of that and knowing you could be in danger?" Zander asked.
"Relax, you'll never hurt me, I know it. You're too kind and let's be honest, it's great you have Zintan but it's good to have others in your life. Cyrus cares about you deeply, Claire texted me saying how Cyrus has been worried sick about you all day," Sophie said.
This made Zander smile and he gave Sophie a kiss and located the cell phone he was supposed to find.
"I have to make a call, do you mind if I teleport you home and pick you up tonight," Zander asked.
"Yes, that's fine, I'll tell my parents I'm not feeling well and get out of school this week. It'll be easy enough to sneak out with a boyfriend who my parents don't know can teleport. Worst case I'll just lock my door and they'll figure I'm asleep. I have my own bathroom so it won't cause suspicion. I should probably pack a bag with clothes for this week too," Sophie said with a smile.
With that, Zander grabbed her hand, teleported her near her house, about three houses down and Sophie said, "pick me up at 10 PM in my room, pointing to which window, on the second floor, was hers."
"I'll text you first and then I'll be there," Zander kissed her and he was back outside his house.
With that he made the phone call to Attorney Frankfurt.
It felt like the phone didn't even ring as he received an immediate answer.
"My dear Zander, I am so sorry for your loss. Your parents left everything very neatly and in order for you in the event this happened. Seeing as how you turn 17 next month, this will be much easier. When you turn 17, all of their accounts will be yours, including properties, charities, your home, their vehicles, they left everything to you," the attorney explained.
"Thank you, if my parents trusted you, how come I never knew of you sir?" Zander politely asked.
"They wanted to simply use me as a safety net in the event of a tragedy, but yes, we were very close, and go back about 30 years," the attorney told him.
"I can't run all of this stuff, I'm just a high schooler sir. What do I do?" Zander asked.
"Do not fret my young friend, your parents always had a plan for this, knowing their job could be dangerous. You will just be the name behind the operations, they have people in place to take over their roles and have been using them since you were a child. They did state, if any of them changed and started doing things off the books, you have the right to contact me and I'll resolve the matter. Also, you will need to come by my office to sign everything. Does Friday work, say 2 PM?" the attorney asked.
"Yes that's fine please text me your address," Zander politely asked.
"I will do that, is there anything else I can immediately assist you with?" the attorney asked.
"Actually yes, do you think you could have two girls transferred from Harmonia North to the school I attend? Sophie Grace and Claire Harmony. They're both top students and want to get into a good university and work really hard, I can even tutor them if need be," Zander asked, not expecting much.
"I'll contact your school and have the principal have personal invitations delivered to their houses. Whether their parents choose to accept, well, that's another thing, but yes that should be easy," the attorney stated.
"How do I access money and such if I'm not 17 yet," Zander asked.
"Your parents left you with your own bank account, they started it when you were young. I'll text you the bank details, bring your ID and they'll give you a debit card and access to the account. Last I checked, the account had around $50,000 in it, but don't go splurging, the attorney chuckled.
"Are you serious? Wow, thank you for letting me know I'll see you Friday."
After the call, Zander texted Cyrus and let him know he'd be ok for the night and that he wanted to rest.
He anxiously awaited and around 9:55 PM, when he texted Sophie, "almost ready?"
It took a few minutes but she finally responded, "my parents are asleep, make it quick," with a kissy face.
Just like that he was in her room, took a quick peek at how amazing it looked. It was very neat, a light pink with a desk and a PC with headphones sitting out. She had a very nice bed and what appeared to be a walk in closet.
She joked and said, "I'll give you the tour when you meet my parents let's go."
With that Zander and Sophie walked into Zander's house.
"How did everything with your phone call go?" Sophie asked.
"Better than I could have imagined, but if you don't mind, can we go to bed early, I'm beat?" Zander asked.
The two brushed their teeth together, prayed together and laid in bed and Sophie smiled with how quickly Zander fell asleep.
"This boy. He's special. No wonder he always acts so kind, he takes after his parents and has the blood of the Blessed Four. Is this what fate is," Sophie thought as she too, quickly drifted off to sleep.