An Elemental Difference - FIRE - Book 2 (Stefan Salvatore)

Chapter 5 - Car trip with Damon... yay!

DONOVAN HOUSEHOLD

Aella stiffly sat opposite Matt as she pulled on the loose thread of her sweater.

"So..." Matt cleared his throat, rubbing his neck. "What, um... What are you?"

Aella shuffled forward, "... I'm a witch, Matt."

Matt's eyes widened a fraction at her admittance; he cleared his throat again, "Like, Hocus Pocus, or some shit like that?"

With a small snort, Aella shook her head, "I'm not really into sucking out a child's soul to retain my youthfulness. But, magic wise? A little." She twisted her ring on her finger, "Officially I am part traditional witch and part elemental witch."

Matt's brow's creased, "There's different kinds of witches?"

"You'd be surprised," Aella chuckled, a short huff of air out her nose that was barely perceptible. "Traditional Magic is one of the oldest and purest forms of sorcery; however, it is also the most exhausting. And my Elemental Magic is quite a rare one," Aella shrugged a single shoulder, "I believe my coven is the only one that practices it. Our souls are entwined with the sacred elements of nature, and we are tasked with maintaining the balance of it."

There was a small quirk to Matt's lip, "So, Mystic Lia is a legit thing."

Aella let out a real laugh for the first time since she entered Matt's home. "Oh, I wish I could bring on visions as easily as Mystic Lia does, but my visions can be quite... temperamental."

Matt stilled, "Wait. You can actually see the future?"

"Mhmm," Aella nodded. "The past too. It can be a gift, but it can also be quite the opposite."

"God, A," Matt roughly rubbed his face. "This is crazy."

While it was a comfort for Aella to hear Matt call her by one of her nicknames, she could see the panic beginning to grow again, "I know, Matt. I'm sorry you had to find out this way. I-"

"Would you have ever told me?"

Aella's throat went dry as Matt cut her off, eyes fiercely aimed at her. She could have lied and told him eventually; yes, she would have revealed her secret, but instead, she told him the truth; he deserved the truth. "No. I wouldn't have told you." She looked up as she heard Matt's scoff, tongue press hard to the roof of her mouth to prevent tears from falling. "I feel like every time I bring someone into my world, they're faced with the horror's of it." Her glistening eyes returned to Matt, "If I could prevent at least one of my closest friends from facing that, then I would make that same shitty decision every day."

"And, Vic?"

Aella winced at the break in Matt's voice, "Vicky made some really bad decisions... but I swear, Matt. If I could have done anything to prevent what happened to her and you, I would have done it without thought."

The tears were now flowing on both teen's faces, as Matt seemed to accept her answer but still pushed her on it, "And what exactly happened."

Aella fidgeted with her hands; she looked away from Matt as she answered, "Damon."

"That son-of-a-" Matt closed his mouth firmly, his lips pale as he held back his emotions. "Why the hell isn't he in prison or... dead?!"

Aella held her hands up to her friend, "Because he's not the same as when he came." Matt rolled his eyes, but Aella continued, "He and Stefan, they've had awful lives, and because of what they are, those feelings are only intensified. Stefan has battled his demons and is winning. However, Damon is still struggling with facing his actions and the consequences of those actions."