Christian Cortez (Book II)

Chapter 2

By the time I got back, the sun was setting. I walked hiding behind trees as my clothes were now shredded. I guess I had forgotten about that part of wolfing out. I peeked at the back door of the cottage to see a pair of clothes sitting neatly on a chair. I looked around cautiously before running forward grabbing them. Swiftly, I put them on. I needed to control my anger better. At home, it was better. I would get mad but I was able to prevent myself from wolfing out. Now being here, I feel extra anxious and angry. I walked up the steps to the back door before walking inside slowly. I made my way into the kitchen stopping short before seeing Valeria. She turned to me and smiled. 

"Would you like some tea before we begin?" Valeria asked. Tea? I furrowed my eyebrows. Why tea? Is that a normal thing for people outside of the reservation? I thought only people in London drank tea. What about whiskey? Or was that just my dad's way of starting a difficult conversation? 

  "Sure?" I questioned. 

"Here you go." She said nervously placing the teacup in front of me. I almost expected a small plate to come with it. I looked down into the tiny teacup in wonder. I don't think I ever had warm tea before. Just cold iced tea from the old diner on the reservation. She sat across from me, but my eyes remained set on the cup in front of me. I looked up at her as she took a drink from hers. 

"Why tea?" I questioned. 

"Well we're witches. Herbs, potions, and all." She smiled. I narrowed my eyebrows slowly pushing the cup away. "I'm kidding." She reassured. I looked at her once before back down to the cup. I was dehydrated. Phasing really took a lot of my energy. I picked it up slowly taking a drink with my pinky up. I heard light laughter.

"What are you doing?" She questioned. I shrugged suddenly feeling embarrassed. 

"I'm drinking tea?" I asked. She shook her head. 

"We're not with the Queen, you don't have to hold your pinky up." She laughed. 

"Oh." I stated. "I've never had tea before." I shared. 

"I can tell. You'll be drinking a lot more tea, believe me. The natural herbs help us reconstruct our energy." I nodded my head setting the cup down on the table and crossing my arms. 

 "So when are you gonna explain all this witchy business to me?"

"Have you ever heard any old witch stories?" She asked. Of course. Up until a few months ago I thought those were just stories. 

"Well, there's lots of stories. Witches are usually evil, put curses on people and eat children." I shared. "Or you can think about Glinda from the Wizards of Oz." I shrugged. 

"Well, some witches can be evil. Some can be Glinda. It's really up to you to decide which you want to be." 

"Which are you?" I questioned. She laughed slightly.

"Well, our family, is considered well was considered, the Royal Witch Family once. Whether that means our ancestors were good or bad, we can make our own choice." I narrowed my eyes. 

"You didn't answer my question." 

"I'm a Glinda" She laughed. "I want to share some of our ancestors history with you. Has your grandmother ever shared a story of Rafaella Cortez?" I shook my head. "Well Rafaella was the very first witch. There is a reason that witches have always ruled, we were the first to exist. Rafaella had gotten herself into lots of trouble she believed in another world. And she found it, with the help of a magical stone. She had taken the magic out of it and learned not long afterwards that she would have to feed off of young souls in order to survive." I nodded. This was definitely more interesting than a Tom and Jerry episode.

"She was our ancestor?" I questioned. 

"Yes. Once she became one with that stone, our families magic was born. For years our family was born with the gift but we couldn't overcome the feeding on souls part. Well then, there was someone that finally helped, we had to put some of the magic we had gotten into the stones making our power very limited, that is why I gave you the necklace. It limits your power so you won't destroy others and your heart won't rot with all the evil that consumes you. Everything comes with a price, our family has learned this and ultimately paid that price."

"What prices?"

"The one who helped Rafaella was a man named Roberto, he was from the other side of the world traveling. He stole her heart and her magic. He manipulated her into using the stone as a sort of talisman, it worked for her for a long time. But he wanted her power for himself, so he stayed in Spain with her. Then one day, they got married and she wanted to share her gift with him. So she gave him her stone. Her price, for sharing that power, was she lost the man she loved. You see he loved another and planned on leaving her to go home with his love, when she discovered the truth, she murdered his true love. So he raised monsters. The first was his love. But she came back with a curse. the undying thirst for blood. When word got out about these monsters. Werewolves, she created to fight and destroy the vampires, a potion gave men the power to fight back without becoming evil but she learned not long after that when it came to full moons they couldn't control themselves. So shapeshifters were next, more than just wolves, any shapeshifter could transform into any creature given the right history. But still, they had an easy weakness, their imprints. There is so much that you don't understand, and that we must discuss but not all at once. But know everything comes with a price and those prices have always been paid." She spoke slowly as if she was telling a tale, and she was.

"You're saying that I, am not a werewolf and not only is there werewolves out there but my ancestor created them?" I questioned. 

"Yes. You are what is called a shapeshifter. They are described very differently across different cultures. But ultimately, you are able to shift into whatever your people need. For example, there were no werewolves in La Push, so you're tribe picked what could destroy vampires. A wolf." I took a deep breath. 

"Okay so, technically, I could phase into a bunny?" I asked in all seriousness. Valeria laughed. 

"Not quite. It's a little more complicated than that. I'll explain more of that later. I think we've covered enough for today. Let me take you to your room and you can rest." I nodded my head and stood to my feet. I was exhausted. I didn't think the long ride from La Push to San Francisco was going to tire me out as much as it did, but I was definitely beat. Valeria walked me down the hall to a small bedroom dressed in a light green shade. "Here you are." She smiled. I walked inside slowly looking around. There were things I liked in here. How would she have known? "Get some rest, Goodnight." She spoke. I turned to her quickly. 

"Wait." I called. "What kind of creature is that butler?" I asked. She looked taken back. 

"He is a sort of Elf."

It was a long wait and I apologize for that but hey I'm not gonna say I'm updating more because every time I say it, it never happens so I won't be updating more? But hey after this book, there's going to be something coming afterwards! So stay tuned. Vote and comment what you think. And don't forget to give me a follow!

~AlexRhee