The Black Swan Behind (Beauty of Fire)

208 BLACK SWAN

Everyone was waiting for Emma’s reaction with pounding chests. Rachel still kept her stern expression, Kathy tried to relax, and Poppy gave a scared expression. As for Emma, ??it could be seen from her face that now her feelings were mixed.

The clock ticked and the sound of the CPU roaring filled Kathy’s quiet room. Until Emma took a deep breath to make her friends’ hearts seem to stop beating for a split second.

“So, I’ve let you down, Rachel? But I’ve never asked to be your role model, have I?” She smiled faintly at Rachel who was looking at her with sharp eyes.

Then Emma sighed loudly, “Even so, I can’t deny what you’re saying. You’re right. I’ve been fighting with my mind all this time. The courage and fear within me are like two troops at war. I’m like a rope being pulled by two contestants. Then what should I choose? Or.. what can I choose?”

“The answer is in your throat, Emma,” Rachel said flatly.

Emma nodded and smiled faintly, “And very hard to get out of,”

“Emma.. Doing something your dad has done would not turn you into him. Yes, you are your father’s flesh and blood. Maybe you got your eyes and nose from him. But that doesn’t mean you are your father. You are only his child. And you are still Emma Hilland yourself.” Poppy said.

“Blood is thicker than water. It seems to be true.” Emma looked at her own hands, “Apparently, his violent soul runs inside me. I even use the name of caring for others as an excuse to satisfy my thirst for violating.”

Okay, Emma’s statement this time was quite surprising for her friends. Of course, it was Emma’s dark side that they had never seen before. It was indeed terrible. However, they would still trust Emma and believe that she would not hurt them. They believed that Emma was still sane.

.....

“Well, that could be called a hobby,” Kathy said with an awkward face. Things that went through her head were sometimes quite strange. But what was even weirder was that she never hesitate taking it out in an inappropriate situation.

Emma nodded, “You know what? When I was little, people always said that I was excessively similar to my dad. Our faces and attitudes. They said that I was a clone of my dad in the female version.” Then she smiled faintly, “I will prove that what they said is true.”

The three girls looked at each other and then turned back to Emma, ??”Does that mean you’re going to do it?” Kathy asked.

“Giving up before trying is a loser thing. Thank you for reminding me that I am not a loser.” Emma answered.

“Gosh..” Poppy and Kathy sighed in relief. It was a very tense situation. They were so afraid that Emma and Rachel would get into a fight. That would make things highly uncomfortable.

“Does this mean I’m already a member of the Black group?” Kathy asked with a smile on her face.

Emma smiled and nodded once, “Sorry I made a silly drama. But, you should know that I’m not a perfect person. I still have a lot to learn.”

Rachel nodded, “There are no perfect humans in this world, Emma. And no one is the strongest. Being a leader doesn’t mean you have to be perfect. It’s just being the bravest and most loved by your group members.”

Emma looked at Rachel with teary eyes. Then she nodded once, “Thanks for slapping my face, Rachel. I will never forget your words that set me on fire.”

“I hope it’s in a positive context,” Rachel replied, eliciting another laugh.

But amid the laughter that filled the room, Emma realized someone was not as happy as she was. Emma could see Poppy’s gloomy face, though she seemed to be forcing a small laugh on her lips. But the girl’s eyes couldn’t lie. No laughter there.

“Poppy, is something wrong?” Emma asked her carefully.

“Huh?” Poppy snapped out of her thought. Then she shook her head, “N-nothing,”

“But your face says otherwise, Poppy. Did something make you sad?” Emma asked again.

Kathy also looked at Poppy in confusion, “What’s wrong with you, Pops?”

“Eum.. actually I.. just...” She took a deep breath and forced a small chuckle, “Sorry, maybe this is too much. I’m just feeling down because it seems.. I’m the only useless person here. But I’ve only gotten used to my uselessness. Haha,”

“What are you saying, Pops? There’s nobody useless here.” Kathy said confusedly.

“Everyone will be useful in their right positions. You shouldn’t look down on yourself.” Rachel added.

“Poppy, you are a ballet instructor who’s able to open your own studio. It’s something the three of us couldn’t do. From a young age, you knew what your dream was and could keep sticking with it to this day. That’s a huge thing.” Emma said.

“But, it’s only useful for me. Whereas you could help each other, even helped me, but I never helped you guys anything.” She looked down.

“Perhaps you don’t realize what you’ve done. But it’s your presence here and your words of encouragement that have made me stand tall here. You’re here to fill us, Poppy. Without you, our group is like a table missing one of its legs.” Emma answered.

“Group?” Poppy repeated and she chuckled awkwardly, “Maybe you mean our friendship.”

Emma immediately shook her head, “What do you mean? When I said group, it meant Black’s group. Kathy is already here and you..” She stopped talking and started thinking with a frown, “Could it be that you don’t want to join us?”

Emma’s question instantly took Poppy by surprise. She immediately shook her head, “That’s not what I meant, Emma. I thought it was just the three of you because I wouldn’t be of any use there.”

“That doesn’t mean you don’t want to join, does it, Poppy?” Rachel asked.

Poppy shook her head slowly, “Of course, I want to. But I’m afraid that I’d be a burden later. I don’t want you to accept me into Black because you feel bad for me. I’m really okay, girls. Just because I’m not joining, it doesn’t mean our friendship would be ended, does it?” She smiled sadly.

“No, Poppy. You’re wrong. We really need you here.” Emma said.

Kathy nodded, “Just cut it, Pops. Don’t add to the unnecessary drama again here. I’m forcing you to come in. You accept it or not, it’s up to you.” She rolled her eyes.

Rachel couldn’t help but chuckle as she glared at Poppy. Although she felt a little sorry for Poppy, there was some truth in it. They didn’t have time for drama anymore. After all, Poppy was an easy person to persuade. Rachel already knew Poppy’s character. She was a person who was afraid of being a burden to others. In fact, Poppy was best at organizing things. Of course, that girl would be so useful to Black in the future.

Poppy eventually gave up. She shrugged with a weak smile, “If you guys don’t mind having me in the group, I won’t dodge anymore. I’ll also try not to bother you. But I’ll maybe just be a display in Black’s group.” She chuckled.

“Hm.. That’s fine too. You could just be our mascot, Pops. You’re the prettiest here and the number one girl in ballet.” Kathy continued Poppy’s joke.

“Wouldn’t Poppy be the ambassador for our ballet class?” Emma suddenly remembered.

“Ms Tania used my porn video case as an excuse to replace me with someone else.” Poppy replied with a careless face. She also didn’t want to work with that annoying woman anyway.

“That damn witch!” Kathy growled.

Emma laughed, “Come to think of it, isn’t this kinda funny? We are all ballet girls who are made into a group that fights crime.”

“Pretty much,” Kathy nodded, rubbing her chin with her fingers. “Oh! Don’t you guys have a mascot or logo yet?” Kathy continued excitedly.

“Mascot and logo?” Emma muttered and shook her head, “I never thought of that.”

“There’s neither mascot nor logo yet,” Rachel added.

Emma shrugged, “I didn’t think Black would eventually be a group. That’s why I didn’t think about those things. But now that you guys have mentioned it, it seems little things like that matter too, aren’t they?”

Kathy nodded confidently, “They are!”

“Since we are ballerinas in disguise, can we put the ballet-related thing in our logo?” Rachel asked.

“Ballet? Nice idea,” Kathy nodded.

“Well.. But it seems that it will make us too obvious as ballet dancers. Maybe it will reveal our identity.” Emma said.

Poppy nodded as she rubbed her arm, “Actually, I think the ballet logo should only be used for that dance.”

Then Kathy started to open her computer and look for references on the internet, “Most people use objects or animals for their logo material.”

“They have cool logs,” Emma said after getting up from her seat to look at the computer screen.

From behind, Poppy noticed a key ring hanging out of Emma’s pants pocket. It was her swan-shaped glass keychain for her car key. “I think I know what matches the logo,”

Emma turned to Poppy, “What’s it?”

“Your keychain, Emma.”

“My keychain?” Emma took out her car key and lifted it. The glass swan swayed, reflecting the light of the lamp that looked gorgeous. “A swan..”

Poppy nodded enthusiastically, “Like Odette.” she remembered the cartoon princess swan that she loved since childhood.

“Gorgeous and graceful. Just like ballet.” Rachel said.

“I agree with the swan as the Black group’s mascot and logo. That’s a great idea, Pops!” Kathy’s eyes lit up.

“Black.. Swan,” Emma muttered to herself.