by Suzy Turner
'As you have all recently completed your GCSE exams, we would like to invite you to attend a very special academy run by the Praxos Foundation... here in London,' she added with a smile.
Lana was practically hyperventilating as Emma put her hand upwards.
'Yes, Emma?'
'You mean, we can come to London to do our A Levels? Actually live here in London while we do them?'
Eleanor nodded, 'Yes, we have special facilities for you to continue your education here, but not just A Levels, this is also your opportunity to learn more about your true skills, to develop them, to learn about the history of the angels, about your parents, how to fight, how to investigate and also...' she stopped momentarily for effect, '... to learn about the Paranormals, the Supernaturals and the Elementals.'
As Lana continued to hyperventilate with absolute delight, Emma asked, 'Elementals?'
'Yes, just another kind of paranormal beings.'
Suddenly the room was full of noise as the twelve students began chattering loudly, all asking questions at once.
'Quiet please,' said Declan loudly, and the room became immediately silent.
'It should be no surprise to you that supernatural beings exist, because you already know of your own existence,' Eleanor chuckled before continuing, '... and you are half human, half angels which makes you a paranormal being. Here at Praxos, we tend to call those that are not human or are part human, Paranormals and there are... rather a lot of them in our world. You've already met one other kind,' she said pointing towards Wilbur who took a bow.
'What kind is he? Sorry, what are you Wilbur?' asked Penny.
'Go ahead Wilbur,' Eleanor encouraged.
Taking a few steps toward the front of the room, Wilbur turned to face the teenagers. 'I am a Mothman,' he said gravely. 'Well, I am part Mothman. I have the ability to change from human form into that which you all saw last night.'
'I've seen that movie,' said Rupert, 'Aren't you supposed to foretell death or something?'
Wilbur's mouth twitched to one side and he chuckled, along with Eleanor and the other Mentors who stood listening, from around the room.
He nodded, 'Old wives tales,' he said, tutting and shaking his head, as he turned to walk back to the edge of the room.
'Over the millennia, humans have associated so much death and destruction with the Paranormals that people now believe it, for the most part anyway. But we're digressing. I was talking about the Academy. It is, of course, entirely up to you whether you choose to continue your education at the Academy but, considering who and what you are, I would highly recommend it. You will reach your potential here. But, as I said, we are not forcing you to study here. We would just be delighted should you choose to,' she said with a smile.
'Where is the Academy, Eleanor?' asked Nisha.
'We have a building over on Gower Street, next to the UCL. However our more unusual classes are carried out underground.'
'The UCL?' Imran asked.
'The University College London,' piped up Lana who had recalled what Declan had told them earlier that morning.
'That's right, Lana.'
'I don't remember seeing any entrance to another Academy just there,' Emma said as she tried to remember the street.
'That's because our entrance is a little more discreet, that's all. But it is there,' smiled Declan.
'We all give classes at the Academy but there are other professors too.'
'Our group is a little small to warrant a whole Academy isn't it though?' asked Elliott curiously.
The Mentors all smiled as Eleanor answered, holding her hand over her mouth for a moment as she tried not to laugh, 'The Academy teaches students from all over the country, Elliott. We also have some that travel from abroad.'
'Oh, cool,' he said.
'But what about our parents? What do we tell them?' asked Emma as she suddenly realised her Mum and Dad didn't know about anything that was happening.
'Don't worry about that. We've got it covered,' Declan answered with a grin.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Later that day after the group had eaten lunch and talked more about their skills and their future, Eleanor and the Mentors were having a private meeting while the teenagers chilled out and talked among themselves, lounging on many of the oversized beanbags in the room.
Lana leaned across Liam as they chatted quietly, while Emma, Diarmuid, Ava and Rupert discussed what they had learned so far.
They were all in such deep conversation that they barely even noticed when the door was flung open and Wilbur appeared.
'Lana and Emma, Eleanor would like to see you both in her chambers,' he said, making them jump.
The girls immediately climbed off their beanbags and followed him through the main hall and down an unknown corridor, until they reached Eleanor's office, a room they hadn't yet been into.
As Wilbur tapped on the door and pushed it open, they were surprised to find a very contemporary looking office suite, with one wall almost covered entirely by a projector screen showing what appeared to be Westminster in real time. Inviting and spacious, the room's walls were painted in a light aquamarine blue with a white horizontal stripe. In the centre stood a solid oak desk with a thick glass top, covered in a bundle of black and white files and a neat stainless steel covered laptop. Several large white filing cabinets stood along the opposite wall to the screen, the top drawer of one was wide open, where Eleanor leaned reading a piece of paper.
'Come in, girls,' she said just as the screen changed to show Times Square.
'What is that, Eleanor?' asked Lana as they all looked across at the big screen.
'That's my view of London. Seeing as we're so far underground, I do miss having windows, and Praxos has numerous cameras around the city where I can see what's going on. Here, I'll show you,' she said as she picked up a sleek remote control and pressed one of the buttons, changing the image so that it showed Notting Hill (Emma and Lana both recognised it from the movie), Gower Street, 'There's the entrance to the Academy,' Eleanor said before continuing to flick, showing the entrance to the British Museum, Tower Bridge, the Thames Barrier, Buckingham Palace and more.
'That's pretty cool,' Lana said as the screen was then flicked to feature London Zoo, where she left it for the time being.
'Not only is it beautiful, but it's a very useful tool for our work. But that's not why I called you in. I wanted to have a chance to talk to all of you to answer any questions you might have about us, the foundation, the academy and of course, your parents. Your birth parents, that is,' she said, walking around to her chair behind the desk.
'Please, sit down,' she suggested as the girls wandered forward and sat in the two swivel chairs that were placed opposite Eleanor.
'I know it must have been a very peculiar and perhaps challenging few weeks for you both. Ever since your 16th birthdays, everything has changed. How are you feeling?' she asked with genuine concern, leaning forward so that her chin rested on her hand.
Lana glanced across at her sister before speaking first, 'Honestly, I've never felt better. This is all like a dream come true for me. And now to have the opportunity to come and study in London. I feel like I'm on cloud nine. I'm so happy. I'm just so grateful.'
With a smile, Eleanor put down her hand, 'And we're grateful to have you with us, Lana. This is your destiny. However, it's not all fun and games as I'm sure you will understand. You must work hard to achieve your best. It will be a struggle, but I do believe in you.'
'Thank you,' Lana grinned.
'And, Emma. How about you?'
Looking down at the floor, Emma felt her cheeks turn a little pink before she opened her mouth to speak, 'I'm good, I guess. I mean, it's been totally life changing and... erm, I don't know. I think I'm confused, if you know what I mean? So much has happened so quickly that I feel like my head hasn't really caught up yet...'
Eleanor leaned right across the desk and put her hand on top of Emma's for a moment, 'I know exactly wha
t you mean, Emma. Nobody expects you to be able to accept all of this in a matter of days. It takes time to come to terms with it. But you've already proven yourself, you've shown yourself how strong you really are. You too, Lana. I've never seen Watchers with the strength you both have, both physical and mental, at this stage in your development. It usually takes a few years to get to where you both are now. When you were attacked last night, you both mentioned a feeling you got in the pits of your stomachs, a euphoric kick? Many Watchers never get that... at all. And yet here you are... both experiencing the same thing after just a few short weeks. It's really quite remarkable. This takes me to the next thing I wanted to talk to you about. Because you share the same quality of internal strength, it is proof that you share a parent. Watchers usually stem from a human mother and an angel father. However, your mother was the angel, not the other way around.'
Emma and Lana both sat with their mouths open, listening intently, not knowing what to think.
'What about our fathers?' Lana asked, finally closing her mouth.
'Clearly, you have different fathers,' Eleanor smiled. 'Sadly, both died shortly after your births.'
'But how? And how is it possible for an angel to give birth?' Emma whispered while a few tears drifted down her cheek.
Leaning back, Eleanor opened the top drawer of her desk and pulled out a packet of tissues, handing them to Emma.
'Well, like I told you before, I was an angel who came to earth and fell in love. I too, had a child,' she said as the girls gasped, but let her continue, 'My child was taken from me the same time they banished me to live in this form, neither young nor old. So, it can happen, it's just usually the other way round, that's all.'
'But what happened to our fathers? How did they die? And what happened to your child?' Lana blurted.
'Lana, your father was a man called Baraka. Originally from Africa, he came to London to join Praxos thirty years ago. He died just over sixteen years ago.'
'Baraka...' Lana whispered, as she tried to discreetly take a tissue before wiping at her eyes, careful not to smudge her mascara.
'Yes, he was a very gentle man, Lana. Fiercely loyal and protective.'
'How did he die?'
Eleanor pushed her chair backwards and slowly stood up, walking towards the screen where she watched the lions sleeping in their enclosure. With a deep sigh, she turned, 'There is something we haven't spoken about yet. I wanted to wait until you were all more prepared but I guess you have a right to know. A right to know who killed your father. Not all Watchers are good like we are. There are some who fight for another cause. They fight for evil, not against it. Baraka was killed by one of those, who we call, The Skulls. I'm sorry, Lana.'
Lana's shoulders shuddered slightly as she blew into the tissue and wiped at her eyes as Emma leaned over and hugged her lightly.
'And what about Emma's father?' she sniffed.
Turning to look at the pale dark haired girl, Eleanor nodded, 'I'm afraid he too was killed by the same group.'
'What was his name?' Emma asked sadly.
'Abraham. He was American, from somewhere near Boston I believe. I'm truly sorry, girls.'
As they sobbed the loss of fathers they had never known, Eleanor sat back down behind the desk and gave them a few moments before she spoke again.
'I know it's not easy to talk about all of this, girls, and I'm so sorry but there is something truly remarkable here that you have failed to pick up on,' she said before adding, 'You are sisters. Twin sisters, in fact. Well, kind of twin sisters. As an angel, your mother was able to carry you both at the same time, although you Lana were born a few days earlier than Emma. I know it sounds unbelievable, but angels have many special powers and she wanted to carry you together. She wanted you to develop a special bond, which you have, of course.'
As the truth dawned on them both, they turned to look at each other, the tears soon turning to smiles and they stood up and held on to each other for a minute before returning to their seats and looking toward Eleanor.
'I have always known the truth, of course, but I couldn't divulge it until you were of age. I was there when your fathers were killed, they saved a lot of people that night. Your mother, however, was so distraught that she couldn't continue to live with the humans and so she took the steps to find the right family for you to grow up with. She chose the Morgans.'
'That's just so... so incredible. It's unbelievable. But how did we get there? Mum and Dad always told us that we were just found on the island as babies?' asked Emma, as she continued to wipe the tears from her cheeks.
'Before Baraka and Abraham died, Della was...'
'Della?'
'That was your mother's name,' smiled Eleanor kindly before carrying on, 'She was fun loving, a little eccentric and she loved to do the unexpected. So she first sent you, Lana, in a little hot air balloon across the water so that you landed almost on your parents doorstep.'
Lana's eyes widened in disbelief, 'She put me in a hot air balloon? I could have died!' she blurted out.
'Shaking her head, Eleanor continued, 'That was impossible. You see, like I said before, the angels have many special abilities, some might call it magic. You were safer on that balloon than anywhere else on earth, Lana, she made sure of that....'
'Hang on a minute,' Lana suddenly blurted out, standing up and pacing up and down the room, 'I dreamed it, I did, I dreamed about it fairly recently. I remember it so clearly now, the balloon drifting through the night sky and eventually landing in the back garden. Oh My God... that was me, that was real,' she shrieked.
'Yes, Lana, that was you. It was real. And as I was saying, a few days later, she sent you, Emma, in a miniature boat down the Thames and out into the North Sea. You were bound for Andilyse Island, for the Morgans. You too were incredibly safe. Della was determined about that.'
'What happened to her?' Emma asked as Lana finally sat back down.
'You must remember that she was absolutely heartbroken. She'd lost the two men that meant the world to her. She needed to mourn her own way and she couldn't do that with two babies. She knew that your lives would be so much better with the Morgans and so she had to let you go. Once she knew you'd arrived safely, she returned home,' Eleanor said pointing upwards.
'But how is that possible?' Lana asked.
'What do you mean?' Eleanor replied.
'When you chose love over your work as an angel, they - whoever they are - cast you aside and cursed you. Why didn't they do that to our mother?'
Eleanor looked sadly at both the girls before sighing loudly, 'When the angels come down to earth, they are given a limited amount of time to spend here among the humans. To learn, to love and some to reproduce, but they must eventually return home. They are usually given between five and ten years. Della was here for two years before she returned.'
'You mean... she was going to leave us anyway?' Emma said, distraught.
'I'm afraid so.'
'But that sucks,' Lana muttered.
'Yes, well. That's the way it's always been. And if you try and do something about it, you end up like me,' sighed Eleanor as she re-arranged some papers on her desk before Lana spoke again.
'Is she still alive?' breathed Lana.
'I believe so. But once the angels have come and gone, I don't think they are able to return. I'm sorry. But you've had wonderful upbringings, haven't you? I know that Audrey and Patrick Morgan were chosen for a reason.'
'If Della really is our mother, how come we have different birthdays?' asked Emma, pouting.
'Like I said before, Della was capable of very strong magic. Lana came first, and you Emma, weren't ready to come into the world for another few days. She had a long labour,' Eleanor smiled. 'I know this all sounds like fiction but their world,' she said pointing upwards, 'is very different to the world we live down here.'
'But what about you? Did you lose all of your abilities when you chose to stay here?'
Eleanor nodded, leaning back in her chair, 'M
ost of them. They left me with a few but I can only use them in my younger state. But enough about me, it's almost five o'clock, I should prepare myself for the change. Do you have any more questions?'
The girls stood, shaking their heads.
'I know you will have more once you've had time to take it all in. Just know that my door is always open for you, for both of you, okay?' she said as the girls reached the door.
Just as they were about to close it behind them, Lana turned back and asked, 'What about your child, Eleanor? What happened?'
Eleanor shook her head, 'My daughter was taken from me. I never knew what happened to her,' she said sadly, turning away from them, indicating they should go.
Lana quietly closed the door behind her, just as the clock struck five o'clock. A deep long groan could be heard as they walked away.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
The following day, the group were given a 'pass' day, where they could do whatever they wanted, so the girls decided to go shopping. Before they left the boat, Declan handed them an envelope, 'Your Mum and Dad asked me to give this to you for when you had some free time. Have fun today, but remember, don't use your abilities in front of anyone. See you later,' he said before disappearing back indoors.
As they stepped off the boat, which was moored at Westminster Pier again, they avidly opened the envelope to find a card from their parents and a rather large stash of 50 pound notes.
Lana gasped, jumping up and down, while Emma giggled along with her before reading the card:
'We hope you're both enjoying your work experience in the city, girls. We know that shopping on the island isn't much fun for you both (especially you Lana!). So here's some spending money to buy whatever you want in London. Don't spend it all at once! We love you lots, see you soon. Love Mum & Dad xxx'
