The evening sun dipped behind the city walls, casting long shadows over Berbeign Academy. Inside the classrooms, Mila known to everyone else as a diligent, if slightly mysterious, PE instructor finished her final lesson of the day. Students packed up their gear and whispered among themselves, leaving her alone with the echo of their chatter.
"Another day done…" she murmured, stretching her arms above her head. "Time to practice… properly this time."
She quietly slipped out of the main building, careful to avoid the watchful eyes of any remaining staff. The training grounds lay empty under the moonlight, the quiet only disturbed by the occasional rustle of leaves.
Mila knelt, letting the fire flicker again in her palms. This time, she wasn't just practicing control she was testing her instincts, letting the tiny vortex of Flamedro Tonado react to her emotions, her unspoken commands.
"Focus… small, precise, contained," she whispered. The fire obeyed, spinning into a perfect miniature tornado no bigger than a meter. Her hands guided it, making it twist and curl like a living thing. The soft glow illuminated her white hair, blue eyes glinting with concentration… though now and then, she caught herself thinking Milly… who are you?
She let the tornado hover above a pile of sand, spinning faster and faster until it picked up the grains into a tiny swirling cyclone, contained perfectly, harmlessly. This is it… control without exposure.
A distant noise startled her a rustling among the nearby trees. She froze, holding her breath. Whoever it was would see nothing, just a glimmer of light against the shadows. Moments passed. Then the sound moved away.
Satisfied, Mila let the fire vanish with a clap of her hands. Her heart still raced from the exhilaration. Training in the open like this, under the cover of night, had a thrill that she had long forgotten.
But her instincts urged her further. Tonight wasn't just practice it was testing limits. She summoned a second, slightly larger Flamedro Tonado, concentrating all her energy. The vortex formed, pulsing with an inner heat, spinning faster than before. Her palms burned, her arms ached, but she refused to let it collapse.
Suddenly, a faint glimmer from the academy's windows caught her eye. A late-night guard or a wandering student? Her stomach tightened. She shrank the tornado instantly, containing it within the folds of her palms.
"Close… close call," she muttered, heart thumping.
She looked at her hands, black and red shadows flickering faintly under the moonlight, and whispered almost to herself, "Flamedro Tonado…" A spark burst outward. This time, the tornado expanded slightly more than intended, but she forced it back, guiding it down gently. It was alive, responsive, loyal… her power, her secret, fully hers.
Exhausted but satisfied, she sat back on the grass. The wind shifted, brushing her face, and for a fleeting moment she imagined the flames reflecting her past, her powers, the fragment of herself she had lost. But the memory was still out of reach, a faint hum behind her thoughts.
Even in the darkness, Flamedro Tonado remained alive in her hands silent, obedient, and entirely her own.
Mila sighed, finally standing, brushing dirt off her clothes. "Alright… back to the students before someone notices," she muttered, returning to her post under the quiet stars.