FORTY-SIX | NEW ALLIES
"How did it go with Doctor Blythe?" Mom asks when I get up in the morning. After a long shower, I'd immediately gone to bed so I missed her coming in after her shift last night.
"It went." I mutter over my cup of sin-a-cube spiked coffee. The grogginess of my nightmare-riddled brain begins to clear after a few sips of the hot deliciousness. I try not to think about what's in it as keep sipping.
"Doc gave her some medicine." Mikyle tells her chipperly. *Why is he such a morning person?* You'd think vampires would hate mornings.
"Really? So the symptoms are treatable?" Mom leans over the counter excitedly, her crystalline blue eyes full of hope. Hope I don't have the heart to extinguish.
"Yeah. She gave me some tips, too." I hedge, trying to keep my voice light. *Ugh, I used to be a better liar than this*. But she seems to buy it anyway.
"Oh, Wisty, that's wonderful!" She cups my face and plants a kiss on my forehead. When she's this close, I smell something different. *Pine and cinnamon*. No salt. Not even the smallest hint.
"So, hey, I've just realized something." I narrow my eyes at her, trying to project my emotions towards her. Nothing. "You officially denounced the Reiniers haven't you?"
"I-I," Mom blinks in surprise and jerks back, frowning. Then she lets out a sigh and nods, her face relaxing more than I've seen since I returned. "A few days before you got back, Alpha Azure and your father gave their official seals of approval and I severed the bond." That's why the territory is different. Mom's almost officially part of the Azure Pack, they have to have claim over the land she lives on.
"That's good, Mom. Great, even. Why didn't you tell me?" I ask her, holding my warm mug to my chest. I'm a little hurt that she hasn't shared this new, very important development, with me.
"There really hasn't been a good time, Wisty," Mom sighs and casts a glance at Mikyle. He's making a mess of the scrambled eggs she made by mixing in blood from a donor bag. I'm both annoyed that he's being so casual and peeved at myself for enjoying the aroma from the concoction he's created. My mouth's watering- "-Wisty?"
"Hm?" I jerk my eyes back to Mom's face. She's pale, studying my expression with concern.
"I said the ceremony is tonight." She repeats and I blink, feeling like a freight train's just slammed into my chest. I can't breathe. *Ceremony*. The word sends icicles down my spine.
"O-oh." I stutter out, having to force the calm in my voice. The very first and last induction ceremony I witnessed was my own and those very unpleasant memories surge to the forefront of my mind the second that word registers in my brain. My hands are now trembling for a whole other reason and I set the coffee mug down so I can hide my spazzing fists under the island surface. "That's great. Can I come?" The eagerness rings falsely in my ears but Mom doesn't seem to notice.
"Of course, honey. Are you sure you want to- You don't have to," She tells me, though there's hope in her voice. Genuine happiness fills me and I feel my shoulders relax a bit.
"I wouldn't miss it for the world." It's the most honest sentence I've spoken in days. It's an important day for Mom. A new start, with a new Pack. A new family. I can be there for her, be happy for them all.
"Okay." Her smile melts my heart, making me want to cry tears of joy for her. "Okay, I'll let the Azures know to let you into the main house before hand. I might ask for your opinion on the dress Luna Azure's having me wear. Your father can show you to the site after that."
"I don't know how much help I'll be," I tell her with a laugh but find myself nodding. "But if you want me there, that's where I'll be." Mom's grin widens and she looks like she may burst with happiness as she pulls me into her warm embrace.
"Thank you, Wisty." She sighs, nuzzling her cheek with mine. I feel a pang of hollowness where the bond between us used to be, but imagine the emotions that would normally be flowing between us at a moment like this. Elation. Tenderness. Excitement. Maybe even a little nervousness. I squeeze her back, hoping she can't sense any of the fear within me.
"You'd better get going or you'll be late." I remind her after a few more moments.
"You're right." She agrees and pulls back, gently cupping my cheeks and searching my eyes. "But are you sure-"
"Positive." I tell her resolutely, trying to mirror the warmth of her smile. She buys it, grinning back before placing a quick kiss on my forehead.
"Okay then. Make sure you two are on time." She's still smiling as she gathers her apron and purse.
"Don't worry, Lady M. We'll be there," Mikyle says chipperly, reminding me he's still here. He's been so quiet this whole time that I didn't even notice him until now. Like a real shadow, I forgot he was there.
"Alright," Mom's bright expression is still firmly in place as she dashes out the front door. Only once I hear the car start in the driveway do I allow my false smile to fall and the full extent of my swarming emotions to boil up inside me.
Fear overwhelms me. Anxiety tightens my chest, making my breaths come out in gasping breaths, too quick, too fast. My shaking hands are still firmly clasped in my lap, the only things I feel that I can look at without falling to pieces while my mind's being consumed by the past.
You'd think after ten years the memory of my tenth birthday would have faded, but they're hauntingly clear - as if I'm laying there in the clearing again - *the moon so bright overhead - the jeering, angry voices of the Pack*-
"Princess?" Mikyle's voice is that oddly-serious calm from last night pulling me from the past. "What can I do?" He doesn't try to stop my hands or assist me in trying to quiet them, he just keeps using that relaxed tone and waits patiently for my response.
"Po-potion." I sputter, still clutching my hands in my lap, but now I can see already healing bruises forming where I gripped too tightly. In a literal blink of an eye, Mikyle is back with the potion, dropper filled with just enough liquid for two drops.
"Sure you wanna go down this road, princess?" Mikyle asks me as I look into the bottle of nearly-black purple, trying not to draw any comparisons between that shade and the color of wolfsbane.
"Yes." I hiss, feeling the swell of memory rearing it head, ready to strike at any second.
"Open," Mikyle commands, bringing the dose to my lips. I obey. The second the drop touches my tongue I recoil. It's cold, not room temperature but literally freezing cold. I cough, covering my mouth with my hand as the icy stuff travels down my throat like quicksilver and settles at the base of my throat. "Princess?" Mikyle's voice has become more alarmed, his touch firmer on my shoulder.
And then everything fades out of focus. The frigid feeling has begun to creep into my bones, spreading up and down my spine to my limbs until my entire body is engulfed. Like before I left, in those calmer times where I was perpetually cold, only this time it's different. Numbbing.
"I'm fine." I hear myself say to my shadow, blinking the haze from my eyes and looking at him serenely.
"You don't seem...yourself." He says carefully, removing his hand from my shoulder, face emotionless.
"I'm not in pain." I shrug and turn back to my still waiting coffee cup. The beverage is bound to be cold now, but I raise the dark mug to my mouth and finish what's left of the drink in one large gulp. "I should eat something." I tell him, hopping down from my perch to go around the man and get to the contents of the pan Mom left on the stove.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Mikyle asks as I begin eating straight from the pan, using the ladle as a utensil. There's no point in getting a clean plate or even spoon dirty.
"Of course." I reply after I've finished the substantial breakfast and place the now empty dishes in the sink for washing. "I'm going to get started on my homework now. Let me know when it's time to go." I tell Mikyle as I pass him on the way to my room. Mikyle doesn't reply or make a move to follow me, but I know he heard me. I take his silence as acceptance and get to work on my assignments.
