At first, Zane was still very cautious and afraid of his new parents, and his first night in their home did not help to quel that fear. 

It started with him taking a bath. He looked at the tub full of warm water steaming away and even dipped a finger to feel how pleasant it was. He was excited to feel clean once again after years on the street, but as soon as he stepped inside the tub, he begged to stay filthy. Bert had to hold him down while Iggi scrubbed away at his sensitive skin. Decayed flesh was removed, severely sunburnt skin was peeled away, and dirt was washed off all to reveal fresh pink skin that turned red at the touch of the water. When the bath was complete, the water was a murky brown that stank of puss.

Next came Iggi assessing his injuries and then applying her homemade salves. Still reeling in pain from the bath, Bert was called in again to hold him down while Iggi worked. Every Time she touched his skin with the green goo, it felt as if hundreds of wasps were plunging their stingers into his open wounds repeatedly. After the salve, came the bandages which only pained him more, and then his entire body began to smell of herbs. 

Then it finally came to an end, and next for the night was dinner. It was not all that great either. The salve caused his body to go numb, and he was barely able to lift his arms to eat, but the scarcity of food on his plate, on all of their plates for that matter, worried him more. He knew how hunger felt in its extremity, and the thought of continuing to live in hunger was not a delightful one. He watched as Bert split the remainder of the loaf that was given to him earlier. There were only three mouthfuls left to be shared. Just as he was about to eat, he looked to his left to see the woman hold out her piece of bread on her palm with an ever innocent smile, as if she had no idea what she was doing. He turned to his right and watched as the man argued with himself internally. Eventually, he too held out his palm with his piece of bread. He did not understand why they were giving him their share, after all he already ate a loaf by himself earlier today. 

Suddenly, Iggi spoke, “Go on. You’re probably still very hungry, right?” Her smile grew brighter.

Still baffled by it all, he hesitantly accepted their gracious offer. He struggled to lift his arms so she moved her chair closer to him and fed him the bread. She took the bread out of her husband’s hand and did the same with it. She watched him chew for a while before turning to her husband to talk about money. He did not quite understand the conversation.

After dinner, Zane was guided to the bedroom which was one feather stuffed mattress on a wooden frame. The blanket was made of red leopard fur, and the pillows were also stuffed with feathers. The overall size of the bed was big enough to only fit two people, but they still cramped together under the sheets with Zane in the middle. He found himself unable to sleep even though he was in a comfortable bed with a roof over his head. The sounds of empty stomachs growling on either side of him kept him awake. Here he was with a satisfied hunger, a soft warm bed, clean and dry clothes, and medicine flowing through his veins, but all he could feel was immense guilt. The guilt of being a burden. Tears ran down his cheeks as he cried. He felt a pair of arms embrace him and then a hand stroke his hair. A soft feminine humming drifted into his ears helping his guilt to calm down. She stroked his hair and hummed her tune until the boy finally fell asleep, a small pained smile spread across his cheeks.

Eight long and beautiful years have passed since that day. The small, weak, and fearful boy found on the streets of the capital grew into a proud, energetic, and fearless young man. His injuries all faded away into scars and distant memories. Colour quickly returned to his pale skin making him appear just as warm as his heart. However, his guilt never left. The constant feeling of being a burden often guided his actions. He would always seek to help his mother and father on the farm to which they would happily obliged.

He saw it as slowly paying back a hefty debt, and yet with every payment he was no further than the very first payment. There was no way to return the kindness shown to him when he was a child. No matter how hard he tried, he could never relieve himself of the guilt.

A light smack on the back of the head, along with some stern words, brought him back from the past, “Hey! Did you hear what I asked?” His father asked.

“Um… n-no. Sorry.” He squeakily replied.

He sighed and spoke again, “Can you please pass me the hammer?”

Zane looked over to his left and spotted the hammer lying amongst the other tools. He grabbed it and handed it over to his father. They were working on building their own wagon so that they did not have to pay for one every time they went to market. All that was needed were some final touches to the strength of the whole structure.

“That should do it. Get on and see how strong it is.” He said wiping his brow and sighing out of exhaustion.

He followed his instructions and climbed onto the wagon. He stomped on various places testing the strength of the wood. He even jumped around causing his father to stutter with worry. After a laugh, he spoke, “Well, it seems pretty strong to me!”

Bert sighed again and then smiled at his son, “Yeah. It sure is. Now come on down from there.”

Zane hopped down from the wagon and stood by his father’s side. They both smelled of sweat and sand.

They both turned in the direction of a voice calling out to them. They both saw Iggi waving to them as she was walking towards them. Once she was standing beside them, she smiled and thanked them both for their hard work. This earned her a big hug from Bert which caused her to shriek from his sweaty form.

Once she was freed from his grip, she spoke to them, “Alright, now let’s load the wagon up and head to the city.”

All three walked over to the rocky hills just behind their house. The rocks glowed red in the sun, and from the cracks sprouted various bushes and from their branches grew red and black fruits. Zane bent down to closely inspect the coal fruits. Steam that smelled sweet and fruity rose from the red streaks, a sign of their readiness. He stepped back as his parents put on a pair of thick leather gloves on, and picked the fruits off of their stems. He held the sack which his parents used to dump the fruits into.

He was always curious as to how these fruits were able to grow, and today he finally asked, “How do you grow these fruits?”

Bert and Iggi looked at each other, and then Bert replied, “Well I suppose you ought to know now rather than later. Well basically coal fruits require two things in order to grow: sunlight and constant heat, unlike other plants that require water. It’s the constant heat that makes people not want to grow them.”

Iggi interrupted and continued from where he left off, “So we learned of a way that is easier for us. The hills around us, for whatever reason, get red hot during the day when the sun shines on them. They go so hot that it lasts through the night, until morning which is when we must decide if some coals are needed until the hills heat up again. We planted some bushes in the sand at the base, and in some large cracks. The roots also love the heat.”

This time she was interrupted by Bert, “Why do you ask?”

“Oh, no reason other than just being curious.” He smiled during his answer. A plan started to brew within his mind, one that could be most beneficial to his parents.

They all walked back to the wagon and placed the sacks in the back. Zane went over to the salamander that the family was saving up for and finally acquired weeks ago, and guided it by the reins to the front of the wagon. His father was waiting to tie the salamander’s saddle to the wagon. The beast poked its forked tongue at their feet, snatching up some tiny insects that were scurrying around.

Once the saddle was attached, Bert jumped into the driver’s position while the other two sat in the back. With a loud groan from the salamander, the wagon started moving. This was the first trip to the city on their transport. The excitement coming from Iggi radiated over into Zane making him giggle slightly.

The journey to the city was just as exciting. He had joined his parents on several occasions when they went to the city, and every time it was a pleasure one way or another. This time he was going to help manage the stall for the first time ever. His nerves were fully charged up and unable to calm down, but this only made him smile wider.

The sight of the city walls as they crossed over the bridge always fascinated him. He would wonder for hours how men were able to build magnificent structures out of stone just to protect more magnificent structures made of stone. He would picture himself standing on top of the city walls just looking out into the horizon as a soldier protecting his people. When he was inside the city, he would look up the volcano towering over everyone and see the Academy of Fire built into it. Then he would imagine himself practicing magic and shooting red fire from his fingertips. 

Today was no exception, he let himself run free in his imagination as they all entered the city and made their way to the market. It seemed more lively than usual though, with travelling merchants selling all kinds of exotic animals, children laughing silly at street plays, and mages walking about with their fire elementals sitting on their shoulders or walking alongside them. It was all in preparation for the entrance exam to the academy. It was treated as a special event that the whole city could enjoy witnessing, so long as you paid a fee. The event would take place in the arena which was also situated at the base of Mount Phy, and all applicants to the academy need to have registered their name before it starts which is in three days.

All of the extra commotion made Iggi jump and smile in glee. She hurried her boys along to an empty stall which was close to the gate. She stepped onto a crate and shouted out into the crowd asking them to come and buy their fresh coal fruits, while Bert and Zane handled the money and haggling.

A wide short man came to the stall and inspected a coal fruit in his hands. He questioned about the price to which Bert replied, “Five silvers.”

The man gasped and exclaimed his shock, “Five silvers?! You must be mad! They don’t look more than two silvers!”

Bert smugly smiled and nudged Zane’s elbow, “Watch this, son. Your father is going to show you how to haggle.” He chuckled and then turned back to the other man, “These are the finest quality coal fruits you’ll ever see in the Firelands! Seeing as a special day is coming, I’ll give you a discount. Three silvers.”

He hardheartedly laughed and then replied, “Not a chance! Seeing as a special day is coming, I’ll offer you a discount. One silver!”

They broke into a fierce argument over the price and quality of the coal fruit. Zane quickly turned his attention away from the argument. He noticed some children running through the legs of the crowds, and walked away from the stall to join them. Just as he was about to ask if he could join their fun, a tall red haired girl his age appeared and tried to get the children to stop running amok. She locked eyes with Zane and asked him, “Do you mind helping me get these little things to stop?”

For a short moment, he was lost in her hazelnut eyes and approachable pretty face, but quickly returned to answer her in a flustered tone, “O-oh! Sure!”

The two ended up having to force the little children to stop running either by grabbing them by the ear or giving them some harsh words. As soon as they herded them all back together in a group, the girl turned to Zane to speak, “Thank you. We just wanted to cool off in the river right outside the city, but I can’t go anywhere without these kids going wild. I really appreciate the help.” She then turned to the group of little children to speak at them, “Now no more misbehaving, you hear? If you’re good, I’ll ask Sister Istra to give you an extra treat.” This caused the group to cheer, and then wait patiently beside her.

“Always a pleasure to help. My name’s Zane.” He happily replied.

“Mine’s Maria. Sorry, but I have promised these kids a swim. Bye and thanks again!” She spoke as she led the group out of the city gates.

A goofy smile stretched across his face as he watched her guide the kids to the river. When he turned to go back to the stall, the fat man and his father were shaking hands grinning at each other. The man walked away with several coal fruits in his arms, while Bert jingled a small purse in his hands. He smiled proudly at Zane, while Iggi slyly winked at the boy.

The rest of the day went by as normal as ever with the stall selling all the coal fruit that was harvested this morning. The trio performed a final tally of their money, and then collected their things and packed up the stall. Overall, it was one of their better normal days. They were able to sell their fruits and have enough money to buy some food for dinner, some supplies for building, and general supplies for daily life.

Zane was still a bit giddy from his run in with Maria. He could not quite explain it, but he felt a familiarity from the get go. He was smiling on the wagon ride back, so much so that Iggi teased him about it, “What has you smiling like that, huh? Was it that nice girl you met?”

The question came out of nowhere for him. He was caught so off guard that his cheeks blushed a deep crimson, and his answer was half stuttered, “W-what are t-talking about?”

She giggled and spoke again, “I saw you help her get some kids to calm down. That was kind of you.”

He turned away from her too embarrassed to reply. She giggled some more and left the conversation right there to end. The rest of the way home was silent.

Once they were back home, Iggi went straight to preparing dinner while Bert took a walk to the hills to check upon the other coal fruit bushes. This left Zane free to do what he wanted. Normally he would search for something to do that helps his parents, but today he needed to prepare to put his plan into action. If all goes well, he would have expanded the coal fruit farm by several more bushes. He went behind the house to rummage through some old crates, and found a small case that contained coal fruit seeds. He received them from a wrinkly old man some time ago, and had kept it hidden from his parents so that he could surprise them one day and attempt to relieve himself of the guilt he felt.

He turned from the house and walked over to the hills where the fruits were growing. With the sun setting, the red glow of the hills matched the sleepy orange sky above it. The stones breathed smoke from their crevices choking the bushes growing from within, but also breathing sustenance into the black fruits hanging on their stems. He reached into the sack and dispersed the seeds hoping that some would fall into the cracks where they could grow. He walked over the entire set of hills tossing seeds all over them. When he was finished, he ran back home proud and hopeful of his deed. He could not wait for the bushes to grow their fruits, and then surprise his parents with the increase of commerce.

The aroma of dinner drifted through the entire house. Iggi had cooked a quick stew with desert hair meat and cactus juice. The addition of spices were what made the stew pleasant to the eyes and nose. It changed the colour from white to a creamy brown. Other people would have been put off by its odd taste, but the Amber family believed it to be their specialty.

“Do you think we have enough to enter the arena?” Bert asked his wife opposite him on the table.

She swallowed a mouthful and then replied, “Not sure, we’ll have to check. But why? We have no reason to watch the entrance exam.”

He pointed his spoon right at her and announced with a boastful voice, “Not yet anyway! I took a look over the bushes. Some of them should be good for harvesting soon. Maybe, with a bit of luck, we can provide the spectators with a treat?”

She raised her eyebrows in surprise and nodded along to his idea, “That’s brilliant! Although, we don’t have much luck…”

“I can feel it in my bones this time! I remember you saying something like that right before you found our boy, and now look at us! We’re doing much better since then.” He patted Zane on his right shoulder.

She chuckled and went back to eating her stew. Zane then looked up from his bowl and spoke with his mouth half full, “So I’m a lucky charm then?”

Both of his parents paused their eating to look at him, smile, and voice their agreement. He continued speaking, “Wouldn’t it be easier if I just signed my name for the exam? Or do you still have to pay to enter?”

His father finished the last remnants of food in his bowl, turned to face him, and then replied, “No, you still need to pay if you want to watch, but it wouldn’t really matter for us. I mean, you haven’t shown any signs of magic. No fire burping, no boiling water with your hands, or something like that, I don’t know how it works.”

“The academy has room for kids without magic, don’t they? Like potion makers and such.” 

“Alchemists.” He corrected Zane and then continued, “But you still need some degree of magic. That’s why the academy was founded.”

Iggi added her input, “I’m sorry Zane, but your father has a point. Some things are just not for everyone. I too wanted to be a mage, but I met your father instead.”

The two laughed at Bert’s expense who also could not help but join in the laughter. When they all calmed down, Zane spoke again, “Let’s say I do have some magic inside me, but I just don’t know it yet. Wouldn’t hurt if I tried to check, right?”

Bert took all the bowls and spoons away from the table leaving Iggi to answer his question, “I suppose you’re right, but the thing is even though you’re just checking, you are still going to end up disappointed if it does not go well. Better to look realistically at such things.” She smiled warmly at him while she left the table.

The conversation left Zane feeling like he knew they were mistaken. Even though they were right about him not showing any signs of magic, he felt deep down in his heart that he had potential. A gut feeling, an instinct, a belief that he was more than what people plainly saw him as, but he saw the truth behind his mother’s words. The world he lived in had no room for high hopes, only well thought out decisions and hard effort. This conflict tore his heart in two. On the one hand, he knew that he has limits as a human and as a child, but on the other was his guilt demanding him to pursue every avenue on the road to redemption. He fell asleep unable to decide which half he wanted to side with.

The next morning was bright due the rising sun peeking through the windows, but it was also heavy and black in the air. The family ran out of the house fearing that something set it ablaze. Only when they saw the direction the smoke wafted from did they realise what was happening. Zane watched in shock as the hill behind the house became a wild bonfire using the coal fruit bushes as fuel. Confusion racked his mind as he cycled through every option as to what the cause for this devastation could be, but he knew deep down that it was his fault. He was no longer the lucky charm he thought he was.