26. Psychic Folklore

**MAEVE**

If I had a dollar every time my life gets weirder, I would have been a millionaire.
This enchanting woman, standing in the middle of Xander's home, was a hundred and sixty years of age and looked like trapped inside the body of a fifty-year-old.
How was that even possible? Although I have stopped questioning anything from Xander's world of supernaturals because everything seemed likely for them.
There were obvious wrinkles marring her but the kind of grace and candour she emanated made her the centre of attention in a way. Esmerelda was breath-taking. But, right now, more than her grace and age-defying beauty, I was stupefied by her words.
And so was Xander.
"What do you mean by once in a hundred years?" he quizzed.
"What do you know about history of psychics and witches?" she counter-questioned.
"The witches descended from the psychics," he said insufficiently with a shrug.
"True," Esmeralda agreed. "But long before there were shifter wolves, vampires, witches, there was just two twin sisters - Arietta and Ametrine."
"I don't understand," I mumbled, finally finding my voice amidst the ring of supernaturals. "How is any of this related to me? I mean, I feel nothing extraordinary. I don't have anything but these crazy visions!"
Esmeralda smiled and gently took one of my hand in hers. "My dear, you are extraordinary. Just like the twin sisters - Arietta and Ametrine."
Xander interrupted concernedly. "Esmeralda, I have known you since my birth, which is I know the depth and weightage of your words. But you need to tell the whole thing."
Letting go of my hands, she breathed deep and looked at each one of us. "Let us then sit down because this story is as ancient as it goes."
Shifting towards the couch, we took our seats. Xander sat beside me, draping a large arm over my shoulders to have me by the side in the truest sense. Blaize took a seat across from Esmeralda who assembled herself in a cross-legged fashion.
"These stories are so ancient that only a few wolves are aware of it," she began her narration. "Some of them don't even believe the facts without a proof. But in the witches' community, these fables are taught to every child, especially the offspring of a witch and warlock."
"The story of these sisters?" Blaize asked.
"Yes. The story of the twin sisters - Arietta and Ametrine. They were not witches, but only psychics. They had the ability to see and feel the pain of others through their visions and according help people."
My heart took a sudden leap as I felt my stomach drop. See and feel the pain through visions? This was what my life exactly have been. The ceaseless torment that plagued me for years and finally I had somewhat an answer.
I did not know if I should be worried or just pass it off as folklore.
But Esmeralda continued.
"Back in those times, some nine hundred years ago, there were obviously no healers to treat people. So, Arietta and Ametrine started to heal others through herbs. When a plague started to spread in their village, five children died. Unfortunately, all five of them consumed a particular herb given by the twin sisters."
"The entire village rose against them. To teach the sisters a lesson, they decided to burn them alive and along with them family. In the middle of a full moon night, according to the legends, the men set their huts ablaze. The father, mother, two brothers and a sister of Arietta and Ametrine died screaming in their beds while the villagers rejoiced their death."
Goosebumps prickled my skin. Perhaps, the human was the worst of the mammals.
"What about the twin sisters?" Xander asked softly.
Esmeralda looked down at her wrinkled hands and slowly shook her head. "Arietta and Ametrine were not home. The slipped out long before in search of woods but was unfortunate enough to witness the brutal massacre of their family. Before the sun came up, they managed to leave the village forever."
"They fled far away, running east and came across a group of shamans. Back in nine hundred years, shamans could talk to the spirits of the deceased and exist in the limbo between the dead and living. When Arietta explained how their family was slaughtered, the shamans agreed to help them reconnect with the spirits of their family. The twin sisters entered into the same limbo, reuniting their family and something magical happened. Through their pain, suffering and injustice, magic was born."
"Did they come back?" I mumbled.
"They did come back to the land of the living, but they were no more psychics. They had the ability to do magic through the elements of the nature."
I was a little lost at this point. "What do you mean. By elements of the nature?"
"Earth, air, water, fire and space," Xander answered on her behalf.
"Yes," Esmeralda acquiesced. "With the passage of time, the power of Arietta and Ametrine increased. They took the help of the shamans to summon a few powerful spirits and created spells. Somehow, magic was not limited to the two sisters anymore. Arietta and Ametrine converted a few more men and women, who were shunned by the society or left alone to die. It went on for several years and established the covens for witches."
"For years?" I questioned. "How old were they?"
"They were in their early thirties," she said. "But Arietta and Ametrine did not need to worry because through magic, they have already gained immortality." Her voice lowered melancholily. "They were trying to be Gods."
"What happened then?" Blaize asked.
"For three hundred years, it went on. The number of witches and warlocks increased, developing their spells and improving their magic. Among the sisters, Arietta thought that they had saved some people from tyranny, that witchcraft would be good for people. But little she did knew that her twin, Ametrine, was vindictive and vengeful. One day Arietta came to know that with the help of magic spells, Ametrine has set ablaze every hut and every house in that same village where they were born."
My mind gasped. "Why three hundred years later? I mean, all those people must have been dead already."
"Exactly. They were not the same people, but Ametrine was high on revenge. She just wanted to kill the humans and savour their pain. Not only that one village, she has done that to several other villages."
"But her cruelty was not limited to the usage of magic spells. Ametrine infused the souls of humans and wolves on a full moon night and created the shifters. That is how you all came into being," she addressed the brothers.
"With the same cruel intention, her magic spells created the vampires. Ametrine wanted nothing but raw power over every living thing. But Arietta was nothing but a good soul. Sadly, when she found out…it was too late."
Xander's arm tightened around me, like even through gestures, he was protecting me…shielding me. It made me wonder at this point whether everything was sheer destiny.
"There was violence all around her. People were dying under mysterious circumstances. There are howling the forests and shadowy figures moved about. Chaos and violence spread around like a forest fire."
Esmeralda sighed. "Arietta knew that she has to stop her sister somehow and she tried talking her out of it. But Ametrine did not care. She had already ventured into the dark path to ever come back."
"The only thing that could stop the sisters were the reverse magic and the group of shamans. Arietta decided to sacrifice her life, her immortality for the sake of mankind and tricked her sister into one final magic spell. This time, when they entered the limbo, the shamans snapped the contact and the sisters could never come back to the land of the living. Their magic wouldn't work in the limbo as well. That was the end of the twin psychic sisters."
"What happened to the wolves and vampires?" Blaize asked.
"The wolves formed packs and fell into the disciplined living in order to protect their existence. However, the pups who were born became shifters. As for the vampires, they brought about their own death."
"And the witches?" I asked. At this point, I was completely engrossed.
"The witches suffered most of the loss and their ability to create more witches and warlocks ended. The community was divided into two parts. One of them wanted to reverse and bring back the psychic to create more witches, while the other never wanted the same destruction. This is why the Zohars were established. Zohars are a group of extremist witches whose only objective is to bring back the psychic and restore it back. While the other faction wants to kill that psychic so that the magic can't be reversed."
Once in a hundred years. It rang in my ears.
"This is the sole reason that you can never reveal that Maeve is a psychic."

**XANDER **

My head was clogged. Whatever little relief I had when I saw Esmeralda, it disappeared into the air like a puff of smoke. Instead, I have to deal with the life risk of my mate. Restlessness ate at me. Never did I think that the world of supernatural—my world—would be so complicated.
"Then we have a problem now," Blaize said slowly. His fingers raked through the brown curls as he drawled, "A very big problem."
"I know," Maeve whispered. She had gone from sullen to pale, and none of her rosy cheeks glowered.
"If she is not a psychic, then she is a human," I said. "And the Council will never accept a human mate. They will treat it as a hostile act." Council was old-schooled, but no matter I like or not, I would have to abide by the rules to some extent.
"And then so is Janelle," Blaize added. "That Fire Hound pack is notorious for creating political disputes. I don't think that they would ever let this chance go."
Esmeralda agreed with us as well. "The Council is highly unlikely to against the wish of the Moon Goddess. We just have to prove that indeed the Goddess has chosen this lovely woman for you."
The connection!
Why did not I think of it?
"I believe we can do that," my voice lit up with enthusiasm. "Maeve can talk to my wolf. She can hear me as clearly as it can understand her."
Esmeralda was equally surprised. "Is it true?" she asked Maeve as if she could not still believe it. The connection between a human and a wolf was highly unlikely.
"I wish I could disagree," Maeve said. "It's like someone is talking inside my head and yet it isn't my voice."
"So, what do you suggest?" I asked Esmeralda, hopefully. She was an Elder of the Council herself, among other members, and married to a wolf.
"In that case, you can reveal this to the Council. You have to make them understand that Goddess chose Maeve as your mate and she has the power of communication with your wolf. But before that, you have to do something else."
"What would that be?" I asked.
"You have to win the loyalty of your pack, Xander. The Council will only support your claim when you have the backing of your pack. When you have announced this to your alpha and to your pack, they should never have an objection. This is the most crucial thing you have to overcome right now. "
Easier said than done.
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***This is perhaps the biggest and most elaborate chapter for the book. Though I will try and list down all the terms and glossary list, if you stumble across something, please free to comment and ask me. I will definitely try and answer to the best of my ability.
Thank you for reading the chapter, guys. Your support means a lot.***