From the Ashes

Chapter 19.

Hey guys, I'm so sorry for my absence but I really needed it for my mental health!!

I took a deep breath, rubbing my eyes till they were raw, and forced myself to walk into the kitchen. There, Nora was leaning against the counter, arms crossed in irritation. Danica and Aron were side-by-side, on the other side of the island. Meanwhile, Damon was leaning against the table, eyes dark. I waited for him to acknowledge my presence in the room, but much to my dismay his eyes were focused on Nora.

"Who are you exactly? And what do you want with this pack?" Damon asked, sauntering next to Danica. All of them had hard glares pointed at Nora. It made sense, she was basically an intruder after all.

"My name is Nora, and I don't want anything to do with this pack," She said, her Australian accent coating her words. I raised a brow.

"That's it? That's all you have to say for yourself?" Aron pressed with a light growl. I bit my lip, waiting for Nora to reply. Her dark, hazel eyes found mine.

"I'm here for Serena."

I frowned, already knowing I was her focus. I peered underneath my lashes to see Damon tense up. He was bristling I'm sure; having to keep me safe from my brother and now this stranger. She simply just made herself another threat to Damon.

"What do you want with her?" Damon asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

She took a deep breath, closing her eyes. "I can show you better than I can tell you. Alpha Damon," She glanced at him. "I was hoping to use my magic in your pack-house-"

"Absolutely not. Where you go, my pack mates suffer. You leave behind Marks that cause a lot of problems for us," He growled. She played with her fingers, staring at her feet. "I know, and I'm sorry for that. I wish I was better at diminishing the effects we Witches leave behind. But I will be using magic that does not involve others, so the Mark left behind will be just a scent." 

The four of us shared looks, but I know mine didn't seem to count. I hid this from them, and my vote meant nothing apparently.

"Let her," Danica said, placing a hand on her mate's bicep. He looked at her, then to Nora as if stuck on what to say. 

"Please," I urged from behind. Danica and Aron looked back at me, and I walked up to them, joining them at the island. "Please let her," I said, this time looking at Damon. He clenched his jaw.

"Are you certain that your Mark won't harm anyone?" He asked her. She nodded with a smirk directed at me.

"Very well."

With that, she placed her palms together, fingers pointing up as if praying. She kept her eyes focused beyond her palms; on a space in front of her that no one occupied. 

"Ref'meorio," She whispered. Her words, although gibberish to us, were beautiful -- otherworldly. Like I had just entered a world beyond ours, and I craved to hear more.

As she began to spread her hands from one another, a pale, transparent blue glow formed between them. As her hands spread to show us her wingspan, images began to take place. They looked like black dust, or dusty charcoal that took the form of wolves.

"When Sunscorch was raided the night your parents died, it was just you and Larson left of your bloodline," She said, and as she spoke the dusty figures fought one another, about the size of a small coffee mug. Mesmerized, no one spoke. We just watched, and listened. 

"What you and your brother didn't know, was that the raid was planned months in advance. This is because there was an anomaly amongst Sunscorch," As she spoke, a white dusty wolf, the same size as the two younger ones appeared. A bigger figure of a wolf contained specks of white and black dust."