Chapter 36

*~Two days later~*

**Nerissa POV**

The days passed by fast and I barely even saw Randall or Hilda, making me wonder what they were doing.
I couldn’t forget the day of the carnival and those words that Azria told me. 
Was that story even true? 
I couldn’t help but wonder, but then yet again, I was a living example, the only shifter I knew that had two mates.
Oh, how I wish I could speak with Bellania, but no matter how hard I tried and tried, I just couldn’t reach out to her.
It was so strange to feel her still connected with me but not hear her in my head.
Taking in a deep breath, I slowly walked towards the window in my bedroom, moving the curtains aside as I took a look outside towards the garden, seeing many Fae members, rushing in and out of the mansion, carrying things with them while Hilda instructed them what to do.
I could feel the burning sensation making me turn my eyes towards the main gates, to see Randall, leaning onto the wall with his shoulder pressed on it, and silently looking at me.
He gave me a lazy smirk that irked me, and as I was about to turn my back to his view, I froze in my place when I saw Reynard standing silently, watching me.
He smiled at me as he took a step forward, making me take a step back, feeling the cold surface of the glass of the window, touching the skin of my arm.
Feeling like I was trapped, my heart started to beat up faster, making me swallow thickly as he said, “Today is a special day, kitten.”
Taking another step forward making me none intentionally cast a glance towards the main gates, to see Randall stop smirking as his eyes narrowed, pushing away from the wall, he stood firm in his place, watching straight towards me.
I turned my head, looking straight at Reynard, saying, “Stay back! Do not take a step closer!”
He ignored my warning as I looked around, trying to find anything that I could use in case of a need.
Feeling weaker due to my phoenix hibernation was no fun, especially when a dragon is looking at me like I am his next meal.
As I was about to slide away to the side and try to avoid him, the door to my room opened with force, making us both look at the person that appeared at the door frame.
“What the hell do you want?” Reynard asked with irritation, clearly showing in his voice.
He took a step forward, keeping his eyes fixated on Reynard as a dark, dangerous aura surrounded all around him. He said, “Hilda needs you.”
“What does she want?” Reynard asked as irritation started to seep out of his pores.
“Go and see for yourself, I am not your secretary to deliver to you messages. O, and you better hurry up.” He spoke in a cold tone, making me blink my eyes as I couldn’t understand why he was there.
“Fine, give us a moment then.” Reynard said as he was about to turn his back to him but got stopped halfway when Randall grabbed him by his bicep, and said, “You have no minutes left unless you wish her to change her mind and then your plan will fail?”
Reynard was silent for a second until he exhaled and said, “Fine, I am going.”
Randall let go of his arm, silently watching him walk towards the open door where he turned around and said, “Soon you will look at me under a different light.”
I watched him silently, not allowing myself to take a breath, seeing him wink my way before he turned around and my eyes followed after him until I couldn’t see him anymore.
“Are you ok?”
I heard his voice that startled me as I completely forgot that I was not alone in my room.
Looking at him, I saw his eyes looking so intently down at me as he took a step closer.
I locked my eyes with his and tried to form a normal response, but it was like words flew out of my mouth.
“I…” I started to say but seeing all kinds of emotions shining in his eyes, seeing how conflicted he was, I couldn’t continue.
Clearing his throat he snapped me out of my jumbled thoughts, making me look up at him.
“Did he scare you?” he asked me, making me surprised by the worried look he gave me and the question itself.
“I am fine.” Raising my chin up, not wishing to show how startled I was, I answered him.
He watched me for a second silently and I could see a lazy smile a moment later appear on his lips as he said, “Good.”
Without another word, he turned around and started to walk towards the door where he stopped and turned his head slightly towards me just to say, “Happy birthday, Nerissa.”
Not waiting for my reply, he walked outside, closing the door behind his back, leaving me standing there awkwardly looking at the closed door.
‘That was awkward.’ I thought to myself as I forced myself to move and head to my joined bathroom to wash my face and calm down my still rapidly beating heart.

*****

Later in the afternoon, I went to the library to get myself some books to read to keep me occupied as everyone was busy, the whole day. working around the mansion when on my way back to my room from the library I saw Hilda standing right in front of my room.
She turned around and looked me over, saying, “I was waiting for you.”
“Did you need something?” I asked her, placing my hand on the door handle, ready to enter my room.
“We need to get you ready.” She said, moving my hand off the handle as she opened the door and pushed past me, entering my room.
Following her, I asked, “Ready for what?”
That is when I noticed that she was carrying some dress in her hands as she placed it on my bed.
Looking at the red dress that was sprawled on my bed, I asked her, “What is this dress for?”
She walked towards me, grabbing the book in my hand, reading the cover of it as she answered, “Stop asking stupid questions, and put this dress on so we can be done with it already.”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I looked at her with narrowed eyes, saying, “I will not do such a thing until you tell me what is going on?”
Rolling her eyes, she answered, “O, you want to know?” she placed the book on a side table and walked closer to me, looking me with those dark stormy eyes as a nasty evil smirk played on her lips, she continued, “Today is your birthday, but not only that, today is a truly special day as it is a Red Moon, a rare moon solstice that happens only when certain stars a line together making the certain magic grow more powerful than any other.”
“You mean the dark magic.” I didn’t say it as a question but more stated as she nodded her head.
“Good, you do have little brain cells in that little head of yours after all.” She said smirking at me as I didn’t want to react to her provocations, remaining silent, so she continued talking.
“Today with the use of the dark magic we will perform a powerful, forbidden dark ritual, and you, my dear, will be the star of the show that you will play a major part in.” Laughing, she concluded.
Feeling my heart race as the sound of what she was saying felt so wrong, I asked her, “What ritual?”
She grinned at me as she answered, “The mate bond ritual. The one that creates the same bond that the Moon Goddess herself uses.”
My eyes widened hearing this information, feeling my throat go dry as I barely managed to ask in a low, whispering voice, “W-what do you mean?”
“You are such a curious one. Ok since it is happening I might as well share with you how it will go.” She said as I silently listened to her.
“The dark magic requires a sacrifice, and since you are a Phoenix shifter and a blessed one at that, you, my dear, are very much likely to survive it.” She pushed me towards the vanity, making me sit down as she started to comb my hair.
“What? Y-you mean I might die?” turning my head around towards her as I asked her in shock, she grabbed my head and set me back to look forwards, saying, “Stop moving or I will not continue to reveal more to you.”
Forcing myself to do as she said, I obediently sat down as she wanted me to, waiting to hear more details about this ritual and their plans.
Soon as she saw I was quietly waiting for her to continue, she did my hair as she continued to speak, “Dark magic usually requires a sacrifice and this ritual requires two to be made.”
She was silent for a second, testing me out, seeing I didn’t attempt to move or add anything she continued on, “The sacrifice for this ritual is life. In many attempts of performing this ritual, the one that was performed on would die without returning to life. Only a little few survived it and completed the ritual, and since you are the one, a blessed one, given multiple mates, and a phoenix at it, I think you have a chance to survive it.”
I watched her through the mirror as a gasp escaped my lips, making her chuckle.
“In this ritual, I will break fully your bond to your mates and recreate a fully new one to someone else, but there is one little thing so listen carefully, to break your bond with your mates you will need to die, so you better be strong enough and a fighter to be a true blessed phoenix and resurrect back into life, do you hear me?” she said, placing her hands firmly on my shoulders as she looked at me in the mirror.
Swallowing hard the thick lump that formed in my throat, I whispered asking, “Y-you will break my bond with Alexander and Allister? Why?”
Her eyes narrowed as she looked at me through the mirror, saying, “Anyone who is mated to the blessed one by the prophecy, they are given powers and strength beyond anyone’s imagination. That is why through the history the blessed ones, if not claimed and mated, would be killed or kidnapped and claimed by a chosen mate.”
My mind was dizzy as I felt my heart squeeze, thinking about my mates, Alex and Allister, how unfair it is towards us, this destiny, and now the new path that Hilda wishes to create.
Closing my eyes for a second, taking in a deep breath, the moment I opened them again I asked her, “You said this ritual asks two sacrifices. Which one is the second?”
She grinned, even more, looking at me as she grabbed my hand and pulled me up, leading me towards the bed, nudging me to take the dress she gave me and wear it.
Slowly, as I undressed, I took the red satin dress, putting it on, noticing how perfectly it fitted me.
As Hilda gave me shoes next, she looked me up and down soon as I was done, and said, “Perfect. To answer your question on that part…no, let’s rather leave that to be a surprise.” Laughing darkly, she said, making me go pale in the face, not knowing what more was to come.
She grabbed me by my elbow, dragging me out of my room as we headed outside, making a panic rise inside of me.
“How funny is destiny? Yours is so tragic, but when you think about it this way, Nerissa, I am saving you from making a choice and killing one of them or well all of you. You will live, you better survive this, and they will live, only without you or being mated to you.” She said happily as we walked through the back garden maze, making me see the torches lighting the path, guiding us until we reached the center.
“Wonderful, we can begin.” She exclaimed, dragging me through the crow of Fae that were standing there, forming a path for us so we could smoothly reach the makeshift podium where my eyes landed on none other but Reynard.