We got what we needed from the Grocery store and started to head back to the Lake House. The thoughts of Derek were running through my mind and my heart began to feel the breaking pain again. I don't want to ever be in love again. Love isn’t real. There is no such thing as true love and after Derek I never looked again. My mother always tried to tell me that I was young and heart breaks are going to come and go. She wanted me to give it time before I wrote off being in love forever. I know I am young but if this is how love it, why would anyone want to do it? I don’t understand.
We pull back into the driveway and then I remember that Travis is there. Not wanting to feel anything for him. I rush into the house and into my room and lock the door. I don’t want to think about Derek anymore. It just makes me angry and hurt. I have given enough thought to what happened and I don’t it doesn’t deserve anymore. I lay down on my stomach and burry my face into my pillow. I can feel wetness on the pillow and I realize I am crying. Anger fills me from top to bottom. Why am I still letting what Derek did affect me? It’s not like he cares what happened. I hear footsteps coming down the hall and they are getting closer to my room. I am hoping that they stop and turn around. I don’t want to talk to anyone right now. I just want to be alone.
I hear a soft knock on the door. "Who is it?" I respond annoyed "Its Mom. Can I come in please?" I really don't want to talk with her right now. "Mom I am really not feeling well. I am trying to go to sleep."
"Ok Honey, well dinner is in an hour I’ll come and get you when it's done." I can hear the disappointment in her voice. I wait to hear her footsteps get further from my door. I roll over to my back and let out a long sigh. I don’t like to hurt her feelings but every time she wants to talk to me she always brings up my mental break down in the hospital. She can tell when I am thinking about it. It seems like every time I do she is at my side begging me to open up to her. I have tried to tell her things before and it always ends badly. I looked over to my window and see the trees swaying in the breeze. Leaves are dancing down from the trees and landing gently on the ground. Birds are flying from branch to branch singing their sweat songs to one another. Everything looks so beautiful and calm. I need to get out of here. Throwing the window open I grab my jacket and jump out the window. I love to hear the crunching of the leaves under my feet. I need to calm my mind and recharge my soul. The memories are haunting me and making me relive the pain of that night. I don’t know why Derek’s actions are still affecting me. I have tried so many times to remind my heart that it’s not broken anymore but even my heart knows better. Not only was that the night that Derek broke my heart and my ridiculous obsession with love, but it’s the night I was attacked. That night is the most confusing memory I have. I don’t know whether I should continue to believe what I saw or believe that I made it up. Maybe the doctor was right. Maybe it was just a dream. Could it really have been something that I made up to deal with what happened with Derek? It felt so real though. I can still remember the crushing weight of her paw on my chest and the emerald mist filling my soul. I try to focus on the cool breeze that is running through my hair. The smell of sweet flowers and fresh grass fill my nose. I take a deep breath and let it fill my senses. I love the outdoors. It’s so calming to me. I start to walk out of the forest and towards the shoreline. I need to feel some sand between my toes. I make it to the shore and slip my tennis shoes off. I toss them to the side and feel the cold sand my feet and it feels divine. I lay flat on my back, close my eyes and let the sun warm my face. Breathing in deeply trying to calm my mind and find some peace from these haunting memories. I run my hands through the sand feeling the small pieces of leaves that have fallen from the trees. Travis enters my mind and finally I feel the sweep of relief through my body. For some reason I miss him. I haven’t seen him in a few hours and I have been avoiding him at all cost. Maybe I need to stop fighting these feelings for him. I don’t want to be in love with him but I can at least accept him as a friend. I could use one right now. He has been nothing but nice to me, even though his cockiness is annoying. The sun is suddenly blocked from my face and I get the sweet smell of Travis.
“Speak of the devil” I say under my breath low enough so he can’t hear me. I hear him sit by me on the soft sand. “Were you thinking about me?” he says sarcastically. “No, why would I be thinking of you?” I snap back.
“Well I heard you say ‘speak of the devil’, so I was assuming you were thinking about me. I have been thinking of you all day.” My stomach starts doing flips after hearing this. He was thinking about me? I can’t stop my face from turning tomato red. “How could you have possibly heard me say that? I whispered it.” I place my hand over my eyes to block the sun and see his face. He gives me his classic wink and says “Babe I have great hearing.” I take my hand down and close my eyes “Don’t call me Babe, I’m not your Babe.” He giggles “Not yet but you will be.” I sit up instantly “What is that supposed to mean? You think that you can just make me your just cause you want to? I am not that kind of girl Travis.” He puts his hand over mine and I feel the familiar pulse of desire. “Relax Niki you need to loosen up.” I rip my hand out from under his the last think I want is to have any desire for him. I don’t know why I thought I wanted to be around this man he is so obnoxious. I give him an annoyed huff and lay back down on the sand. I can feel him lay right next to me and the electricity between us is pulsing through my body.
“Niki, can you feel that?” I look over at him “Feel what Travis?” He lies on his side facing me, lifts his hand and touches some bare skin on my hip where my shirt has rolled up. “That. Can you feel that…pulse of… I don’t know how to explain it other than electricity.” The air is taken from my lungs as I absorb and pulsing desire I am getting from his gentle touch. I close my eyes and let it take over me. I feel his hand lift off my hip and he places it on my cheek. “You can feel it can’t you. I can’t believe this is happening. Bonding at 18 is so rare.” My eyes snap open “Bonding what the hell does that mean?” he takes his hand off my face and sits up quickly. “Nothing Niki forget what I said.”
“No Travis, tell me what that means. Please” He runs his hands through his golden hair. “Niki I can’t tell you. Not yet anyway. You wouldn’t believe me.” Titling my head to the side I say, “Try me.” There is a long silence and he lets out a sign “No Niki. I don’t want to talk about this. It’s not the time.” I am not going to argue with him. This is just annoying. All those feelings of desire have by snubbed out by annoyance, at least for the time being.
***
I hear my mom calling us for dinner from the front porch. Travis and I are still sitting by the lake in silence. He refuses to tell me what “bonding means” so I am refusing to talk to him. I know it is childish but I can’t help it. I want to know.
“Niki, come on its time for dinner.” He nudges my shoulder trying to get me off the shore. I am really not that hungry but I know my mom would have a cow if I didn’t have dinner with everyone on the first night that we are here. I stand up and brush the sand off of my pants. I start to walk past Travis and he grabs my arm. Passion is pulsing through his touch and my knees get weak. He pulls me gently to him and puts his hand on my back. God I want to lose control on him but there is no way that I can allow it. I don’t love him and I am not going to fall for his tricks. Every man is the same. They say that they love you and then they leave you with a broken heart. He starts to brush my back. “You have sand on your back.” I try to wiggle out of his grip and he tightens “Just stand still Niki your being a pain in the ass.” My mouth drops open “What the hell makes you think that you can talk to me like that? Let go of me!” He looks at me with annoyance grabs the side of my face with both his hands and tries to kiss me. I pull out of his grip and slap him as hard as I can in the face. As soon as my hand touches his face I get a quick vision. I see the island from my dream, glowing and alluring. I am floating towards it and I see Travis on the shore waiting for me. I don’t why but he is there for me. The vision ends.
“What was that?” I shout at him. “Why are you trying to kiss me? Do you know how rude and creepy that is? I have known you for one day and you think that you can try and kiss me.” He is not phased by anything that I say or the slap that I laid across his face. He is just looking into my eyes. “What are you staring at!” He runs his hand through his golden hair and lets out a gentle sigh. “Niki, did you see something?” How does he know that? I am not going to play this game. There is no way that I am going to tell him anything about myself. I turn on my heels and walk towards the house. My curiosity gets the better of me and turn back around to Travis “Why would you think I saw something Travis? How would you possibly know something like that without me telling you? Will you please tell me what is going on?!” He takes a step towards me and puts his hand on my mouth. “Shh, please stop yelling I don’t want them to hear us!” I stop screaming at him and let him explain. “Niki…you are special. My mom says that you have a…gift. It’s a gift that is important to our culture. You were destined to become the most powerful Mystic of our realm and race.” All I can think is he is crazy but there is something in his eyes that is making me believe him. His hands are still on my shoulders and I am in shock at what I am hearing. I am a Mystic? What the hell is that? “Niki, if you want to know everything then we need to go somewhere else where I can tell you. But for now we need to go inside and eat. If my mom knows that I am telling you this she is going to freak out. Will you please come inside and just wait a while? I promise I will tell you everything that you need to know.” I look at him in his beautiful emerald eyes and for some reason I find myself trusting him. I nod my head and he puts his arm around my shoulder and starts to walk me to the house. I push his arm off; he is making staying away from him very hard when he touches me.
We get up to the house and Denise is standing on the porch staring at Travis an evil glare. Her arms are crossed and her fingers are tapping on her arm. “Well what were you two up to?” Travis looks at her then the ground. “Nothing mom, just hanging out and talking.” He shoves his hands in his pockets and pushes past Denise walking into the house. Her evil gaze turns to me her emerald eyes stare right into mine. No words are spoken but I get the message that she doesn’t want Travis to be alone with me. That just makes me want to more. She turns on her heels and walks into the house with her nose turned up. I walk up the stairs with an uneasy feeling building in my stomach.
Travis is sitting at the dinner table and his leg is bouncing under the table. There is something that is making him uneasy. I walk to the table and pull out the log style chair. I sit right next to him and place my hand on his leg under the table. Immediately it stops bouncing. He looks at me and his eyes seem to sparkle. I lean into his to whisper into his ear and I catch that alluring cologne of his. God it drives me nuts. “Travis, Relax.” I move away from him and we again catch eyes. He gives me a playful wink and places his hand on top of mine under the table. What am I doing? Why am I being so nice to him? Remembering myself, I rip my hand out from under his and place it on the table. He does the same. I can see his face out of the corner of my eye and sadness is written all over it. I look at my mom “Mom, what’s for dinner?” she pulls out her chair and sits down. “Well we have steaks, baked potatoes and salad.” I am so hungry I can hear my stomach growling. “That sounds good.”
My dad brings the food out setting everything in the middle of the table. “Dig in!” He says with excitement. We all begin to grab food and place it on out plates. Travis grabs a steak and so does Denise. Denise doesn’t look like a woman who can finish a whole steak. She is so thin and dainty. I grab some steak, a potato and salad and begin to eat. “So Niki how is school?” Denise is starting a conversation with me for the first time since she has been here. “Umm it was ok. I graduated so I’m done for now.” She takes a bite of her steak and chews. Then looking at me again she asks “So are you seeing anyone?” I feel the stab of heart break in my chest. I see Travis in the corner of my glaring at his mother with anger. “No Denise I am not seeing anyone.” I throw a glare to my mother hoping that she would get the hint to change the subject. She gets it and jumps in “So Niki, are you going to show Travis around the forest tomorrow, maybe go for a swim?” I look over at Travis who is staring at his plate eating with a smirk on his face. “Well Mom I haven’t really thought about it” I throw a smile at Denise “but yes I am going to show him everything.” I hear Travis contain his laughter. He knows that his mother doesn’t want me around him and watching her squirm is something he enjoys…clearly. Denise gives me a fake smile “That’s nice dear.” How can she not like me she doesn’t even know me? Her son is the one that is following me around and throwing moves on me. She is acting like I am going to steal him from her. I don’t understand mothers sometimes. The rest of dinner was silent. The only sound was forks and knives on plates.
Dinner was over and there was a sigh of relief from everyone. I stand up from the table and stretch my arms up to the ceiling. My shirt lifts and I can hear Travis let out a quiet grown. I like having this effect on him. It gives me a feeling of…power. I turn around and begin to head down the hall when I hear Denise “Niki what is on the back of your neck?” I instantly begin rubbing the back of my neck feeling for a bug. “What is it! Is it a bug!? Get it off!” Travis gets up from his chair and moves my ponytail away from my neck. He whispers under his breath “Oh my god.” I turn and make eye contact with him and he shakes his head and whispers “Don’t ask here, not now.” I look past him to Denise and she is beginning to stand from her chair and walk over to me. “Let me see it.” She pulls me so hard I almost fall over. “Oh my god. How long have you had this?” she turns me around holding my shoulders so tightly it hurts. “ I have no idea what you’re talking about. What is on the back of my neck? Will someone please fill me in?”
My mother stands and walks over to me looking at my neck. I feel her fingers running over my skin and a chill runs through my body. “Mom please tell me what it is.” She turns me around and brushes a loose piece of hair behind my ear. “Well Honey I don’t really know how to explain it. It looks like a crest of some kind.” I have never been more confused in my life. “Well do you know what it means?” Denise cuts me off and stands between us “I need to talk to you Michelle, now!” I push her shoulder and rage begins to fill me “I am talking to MY mother right now, so if you wouldn’t mind backing off that would be great.” Her eyes become wide and she takes a step back. “Mom please tell me what it looks like.” She clasps her hands together and looks to the floor and then back at me “Well Niki, it’s two large wolves rearing up, facing each other with a throne in the middle and a crown sitting in the seat of it. There are decorative carvings in the thrown and long branches with leaves that curl from the bottom of the throw, around the wolves and all the way to the top of the throne making it a perfect circle.” I don’t even know what I am supposed to think. Where would this of come from. I have no memory of going to a tattoo shop and this isn’t something that I would get on my neck anyways. I don’t think that I just appeared. I run to the kitchen and try to wash it off with hot water. Scrubbing the back on my neck with all my might, I feel Travis grab my hand and his touch instantly calms me. “Niki lets go to your room. You need to lie down.” I push his hand off me “No Travis I want to know what is going on! It’s like everyone but me knows!” He gets a towel and starts to dry the water on my neck. He whispers in my ear “I am trying to get you away from everyone. I will tell you whatever you want to know please just say you’re going to your room.”
I rip the towel from his hands and walk out of the kitchen to my mother and Denise. “Mom this is too much for me right now. I am going to lay down for a bit.” She puts both her hands on my face “Are you sure honey? We can stay up and talk as long as you want.” I feel bad lying to her but this isn’t really a conversation I want to have with her. She tends to get emotional and leave parts of the story out when she doesn’t want me to know. Since there seems to be so much that I don’t know about myself I would rather have someone tell me everything I need to know. “Ya mom I am sure. Don’t worry I am fine. I just want to lay down for a bit.” I turn and walk down the hall.
Trying to avoid my mother’s glare as I walk down the hall is a hard task. I can feel her frustration with me heating the back of my neck. She wants me to stay with her and listen to everything that she has lied to me about for so many years. I don’t think that I can handle that right now. I am still trying to process the fast that I am some sort of Mystic. What the fuck is a Mystic? Why would I have not been told a long time ago? Like when everyone was trying to convince me that I was crazy in that Hospital.
***
When I was 6 I started to have visions…or at least that is what the therapist told they were. I would see…things happen before they were supposed to. It started small like seeing the light turn red before we got to the light. Or you see yourself step off the side walk and get hit by a bike. I was never afraid of them. I thought that everyone had them. It got stronger as I got older. At its strongest ever, I could touch a part of your skin and tell you anything that you wanted to know about your future. I told my mother one day that she was going to break her favorite Vase today. She turned away and laughed at me. I just thought that she understood what I meant. When I got home from school she was sitting in the kitchen staring at the floor. Her face was white and her hangs rested on her lap. “Mom are you ok?” a singles breath escapes her and she turns her head to the side looking at me “How did you know that I was going to break this?” She extends her index finger towards the shattered Vase on the floor. I take a step back becoming afraid of what she might do. “I told you this morning that you would break for favorite vase.” She lets her arm fall in-between her legs. “That isn’t what I asked you. How did you know that was going to happen?” I clasp my hands together and rub them nervously. “Well I was walking down the stairs and had a picture in my mind.” She stands from her chair and walks over to me. At this point I have figured that my mom has lost her mind. Being 6 years old I stayed right where I was. She comes to me and places both hands on my shoulder. She looks into my eyes and says “I’m sorry honey I never wanted this for you.” She kneeled down and hugged me. I didn’t know what to do so I just wrapped my arms around her as tight as I could. I thought to myself maybe if I squeeze tight enough she won’t fall apart.
I next day I was in a doctor’s office. Dr. Lauren, She was a smug bitch who was unhappy with her life. She told my mother that I was basically psychotic, that I needed to be placed in a facility and on medication. My mother wouldn’t have it. She said that there was no way that she was going to ruin my life by admitting me in a Mental Facility. She looked Dr. Lauren right in the eye and said “There are people that really need the help in a Mental Facility but then there are the people who doctors don’t want to try other alternatives. Now I brought my daughter in to get her help but you are not going to admit a 6 year old to a Mental Facility.” Dr. Lauren sat shocked. She didn’t say a word for 2 minutes or so. She looked turned back to her computer that swiveled from the wall and said “Well there is always Therapy.” My mom leaned back into her chair and said “Thank you that’s much better.” I have never seen my mom talk to anyone like that and never have again.
Needless to say the Therapy was not much help. The more they had me try to meditate and be a calm state, the more I had visions. The first therapy session that I had alone was when I was 13. The therapist asked my mom to leave the room and right after I heard the click of the lock he turned to me and said “So. You’re a psychic right?” My mouth dropped open. I was so shocked. I didn’t know what to say. I have never been called a psychic. The only terms for what I was told that I had her medical. “Well I guess so.” He waved his hand at me “Ok so you can see the future right” and shrugged my shoulders and said “I guess so.” He rubbed huis hand on his chin. “Alright can you tell me when I am going to die?” I snapped back “What are you serious!? I don’t that!” He puts his hands up “Shhhh please stop. I have a reason for wanting to know. Please hear me out. I know that you have done it for other people.” I stand up from my chair “Ya I have done it for my friends and help them cheat on tests but I have never told someone that!” I look at him in the eyes and I can see that there is something going on that he needs help with. “Ok why do you want to know?” He looks to his palms and says “I have been given 1 year to live. I have terminal pancreas cancer. I cannot live a year not knowing if today is going to be the day I die. I need to know. I have things I need to plan for and make up lost time I have with my kids. Now normally I don’t believe in thins like this but I am willing to try anything right now. Please tell me.” I looked down to my palms and took a deep breath “Ok ill do it. But you cannot tell my mother that I am doing this. She told me that the more I use the power the stronger it gets.” He looks at me relieved “Of course I won’t. I promise. Plus there is always doctor patient confidentiality.” He lets out small chuckle and I do the same. I was over to the red velvet chair where he is sitting and reach my hand out. He takes a deep breath and holds its. “Does it hurt?” I looked down to him and say “I don’t know I have never done it to myself. But I have not had anyone complain.” He looks down and lets out his breath. “I bring my arm back to my side. “Are you sure that you want me to do this?” He looks up quickly “Yes I am sure.” I reach my hand out again and touch the side of his cheek. I flash of images are flying by my eyes like birthdays, Christmas everything that is going to happen in this man’s life. All I have to do to find is think of what I need to know. I’ll think to myself ‘Death’ and imedentally the flashing images stop. I see the therapist sitting on his porch swing with an older woman. He leans in and gives her a tender kiss on her cheek. She gives him the biggest smile and all you can see is the love that they have for each other. They are watching the sun go down and the therapists’ head falls on her shoulder. His wife begins to cry and then the vision goes away.
I take my hand off of his cheek and he looks up at me. “Well what did you see? Please tell me.” I gave him a slight smile and tell him “You are going to die on August 15th next year. You will be on your porch sitting with your wife enjoying the sunset. You will feel no pain and just drift off sitting with your wife.” His eyes begin to well up with tears and he grabs my hand. “Thank you very much.”
He was by far my best Therapist of all. But when my mom found out that he was encouraging my “disorder” I never say him again. I was then given medication and made to believe that there is something wrong with me. Eventually after months of shock therapy and crazy amounts of different pill…I stopped seeing. There were no more visions. I don’t know if the horrible things I went through really stopped the visions or if my body couldn’t withstand the treatments. Making me numb to everything and everyone around me.
One night while laying in my bed I could hear my mother and father talking down the hall. “James she isn’t having the visions anymore.”
“Well that is what you wanted right? You didn’t want her to turn into…well you know”
“Yes I know this is what I wanted…but why do I feel so horrible about doing it. I mean I feel like we just changed who she is.”
“Oh Michelle only time will tell if we made the right choice.”
That was the last time that my visions were ever discussed. I stopped trying to have them and forgot all about them. My mother acted like it never happened. It started to feel that way to me.
***
I lay in my room looking up at the ceiling. Trying to understand what is going on. I grab a blanket from my love set and wrap it around myself. The chill in my room is awful. I sit myself down in the love set and pull my knees to my chest wrapping my arms around them. I stare out the window into the dark. The moon is so bright here. It makes the forest look like a fairytale. Lightening bugs fly all around the tall redwoods, it’s really quite beautiful. I see a head peering through my window. I sit up and walk closer. Then Travis pops into view and scares me half to death. I fall back and land on my ass. Thankfully my mother didn’t hear it because she would have burst through the door trying to find out if I was ok or not. Travis open the window and I can hear him laughing “I am so sorry are you ok? I told you that I was going to come get you.” I look up at him from the ground extending my hand for help “Ya well that was like an hour ago I thought that you forgot or something.”
“How the hell could I forget something so beautiful?” Our eyes are locked on each other and electrify is running through my body. There is something that is drawing me into him. It’s a power in my chest that I have never felt before. Uncontrollable passion surges through me. Our fingers tips touch and I feel a BUZZ that wakes me up out of the trace. I rip my hand back and he picks me up at my shoulders as if I am a feather. “Do you feel it Niki, please tell me that you felt it!” I shook myself out of his grip and said “Felt what?” His face is covered in sadness and disappointment. Why do I insist on hurting this man? I don’t know why I cannot accept him. It is wrong. I am not going to become dependent on this man. I am strong and no one will ever take that away from me. He looks to the ground “Well what do you want to know Niki. I said that I would tell you everything. We cannot talk here though let’s go for a walk.” I nod my head and climb out the window and over a bush.
“Ok tell me what a Mystic is.” I charge out with the first question. “A Mystic is someone who can see the future. They are valuable to us. Female Mystics are among the most valuable. There have only ever been 3 female Mystics that have been accepted to the Royal Court and only one that can morph but she is the Queen. If you are accepted to the court you will make the fourth. Mystic are always rulers of our world but only if you are chosen by the previous King or Queen. They can see the future so they protect our race from being discovered and attacked. Of course there are Mystic’s that are not ruling over the race and they make up the important members of the Royal Court. When our race is ruled by a Male Mystic, the years are dark and the race become vicious. They kill for no reason and can only morph when the moon is full. When men rule over the race it’s dangerous and we risk being discovered. ” I cut him off “Wait, what the fuck are you are talking about. Morphing? Race? How are you guys so different from regular people?” He runs his hand through his hair and says “Well because we are not regular people we are Werewolves. There are other types of races that we coincide with like Shifters, Pyros and many others. The werewolves are larger in number so we rule over all. ” My mouth drops open. “I was told that I was fucking insane because of what happened that night.” I start to scream and my eyes well up with tears. I fall to my knees and start to rock back and forth. Travis kneels down and wraps him arms around me. I fell so comforted in his arms. I accept him and rest my head on his chest. “Niki, what happened? What are you talking about?” I shake my head back and forth. “Niki if you let me, I can find out without you having to tell me anything.” I look up at him, “How?”
“Well, you can see the future, I can see the past, memories and hear thoughts.” I nod my head up and down and he puts his hand on my cheek and closes his eyes. It seems like they are only closed for a second when he pushed himself off me and takes gasps for air. “You’re…you’re… chosen! It’s already been done there is no stopping this!” I get up to my knees recovering from my break down. “What are you talking about? Chosen for what?” He sits up and grabs my hands. He looks me dead in the eye and calmly says “Niki, the large white wolf that attacked you, you know the one with the black spot on its eye.” I nod my head yes. “Ok babe that was an Royal. Her name is Renee and she is the most powerful female Mystic of our history. She also is a born werewolf. She was over 500 years old. The green mist from her eyes was her life essence. It means that you absorb her Mystic power into what you already possessed and it makes you that much stronger. Not only did she give you her powers she gave you the ability of morphing. She is Queen over our race. Since you were not bite by a werewolf and you were given the gift from Queen Renee, you will become a pure blood. ” My eyes grow wide. I can’t process all this information. I am learning about a totally new world that I thought only existed in a fairytale. He continues, “Your awakening is on your 18th birthday and yours just so happens to land on the Blood Moon. You are going to get all the power of the Blood Moon on top if Renee’s power and your own that you were born with. You are going to be the most powerful Queen that our world has ever seen.” Travis begins to look concerned and puts his hand on the side of my face and says “Hey Niki are you ok? Are you sticking with me?” I nod my head again unable to speak. There are no words to explain how I am feeling right now. I motion for him to continue, “OK so when she gave it to you, she died. Mystics and Werewolves are immortal but when you are Queen or King you have the choice to leave this world and travel to the after world when you are 500 years old. Not counting the time that you were a human.”
I begin to loss what mind I have left and my head begins spinning like a top. I don’t know what I am supposed to think. I mean how could I believe all this. For my whole life I have been told that I crazy and nothing that I was seeing was real. Now I have Travis telling me that I was not only right, but now I there is a whole world out there that no one knows about and I am about to take over. Why am I so important why couldn’t they pick someone else? I am sure that there are other Mystics in the world that welcome this sort of gift. I on the other hand, do not. I don’t want this. I don’t want to be chosen to rule over a world I know nothing about. This world has nothing to do with me and I want to keep it that way. Sweat begins to bead up on my forehead. Panic sets in and I need to get away from this. I stand up slowly without saying a word and start to run down the shore. My feet beat against the wet sand and my hair whips behind me. I hear Travis shooting after me “Niki wait! Where are you going? Please come back it’s not safe!” I ignore him and keep running down the shore. The sand is flicking up my back and the wind is throwing my hair around in knots. I run until my legs cannot carry my any longer and I collapse on the sand. The cold sand makes my pants damp and squishes between my fingers. I breathe deeply in and out trying to calm my racing heart and stop my spinning head. “NIki?” I look up and Travis is in front of me. “What Travis! Can’t you tell that I am trying to get away from you! I need space!” He falls to his knees, grabs me by my shoulders and pulls me into his chest. I hear his heart beating in my ear and it calms me. I feel safe and warm in his arms. This is something that I haven’t felt for anyone in a very long time. “NIki, if you want me to leave tell me and I will.” I feel passion rush through my body and I desperately want to tell him to get off me and stay away but the words won’t come. I can’t open my mouth to say the words I need to. But I don’t want him to go. I want to stay in his arms. I want to feel his embrace and stay with him forever. Where are these thoughts coming from? What hold does he have over me that I cannot escape? He puts his index finger under my chin and pulls my face up to his. I look deep into his eyes and I see sadness and worry. He is waiting for my answer and I can’t give it to him. I don’t want to surrender myself to him. He brushes my tangled hair behind my ears “Niki tell me you want me. Tell me you need me. I need to hear it and I know that you feel it.” I can’t fight it anymore. I have to let go. I feel like I will perish right now if I don’t tell him. “Yes Travis. I need you. Stay with me.” He grabs my face with both of my hands and brings his face inches from his. I can feel the heat grow between us and the desire is burning through my body and I don’t think that I can contain myself any longer. He looks into my eyes and whispers “Kiss me Niki.” I drawn back a moment and his hands tighten around my face. “Niki don’t fight it. It will only make your body burn more.” How does he know that I feel this way? There is something that he is not telling me but right now I don’t care. Right now all that matters is this Greek god that kneels before me begging for a kiss. I lean forward and my lips brush against his. Passion is pulsing through every part of my skin like sparks of electricity and I feel his love for me. He deepens the kiss and wraps his arm around my neck and dips me to his side. I feel my world open and everything becomes clear. He runs his hand down the front of my shirt and to the top of my shorts. Lifting my shirt he places his hand on my bare skin. My stomach retracts at the electricity he sends through my body. I don’t know what I can do. I don’t want him to stop, I want him to take me. I throw my hands around his neck and pull him on top of me. We fall onto the shore and the cold sand sticks to my back cooling me slightly. “Niki, I love you.” He whispers the words that I dread into my ear. But instead of feeling fear and pulling away I respond “Travis I love you.” What is wrong with me? What am I doing? How can I give into this him? He releases out kiss and looks into my eyes. “Niki I need to tell you something.” I sit up on my elbows yearning for more. I don’t want to talk anymore. I don’t want to know anymore about what I am supposed to me or what my future is. “Please Travis I don’t want to know not now. Can’t this wait?” He pulls away from me and sits on the back of his heels looking to the ground. He runs his hand through his golden hair making it stand on end. I can tell there is a serious in his voice. I sit up from my back and sit Indian style in front of him.
“Niki you need to know this. We are bonded.” He had said something about that earlier today on the shore before my I realized that my life has been hidden from me for so many years. I totally forgot about it. “What does that mean Travis?” He sits back further onto the sand and runs his fingers through his hair. I can tell that this is a conversation that he really doesn’t want to have. “Well it means that we are bonded together for life. In the human species they call them soul mates. We are meant to be together and we will love each other forever. There is no getting away from it. Death is the only way to stop it.” Now realizing that this feeling I have had for him is a “bond” I don’t know if I want it anymore. I thought that this was something real and special but instead it’s not. “So why did you ask me if I loved you if we are already bonded.” I can feel tears begin to well up in my eyes and I blink them away.
“Because Niki I wanted to hear you say that you loved me without knowing that we were bonded.” I can see his point but I still don’t want this. I want to be on my own like I originally planned. My whole world has been changed in a matter of hours. “You know the mark that you have on the back of your neck.” I look up at him wondering what else there could be to tell about it. “The thrown means that you are going to rule over the race. Renee gave you that mark. It’s the only proof that you need to take over. But the two werewolves that are rearing up facing each other on either side of the thrown are you and I. You only get them when you have bonded. I have them also now but I don’t have the thrown because I was not chosen to rule. Unless we were married then I would get the same one.” I clap my hands together and throw them in the air. “Well that isn’t going to happen. We are not going to be married and we are not going to be bonded.” He grabs my shoulders and pulls me to his face. “Why are you fighting this Niki there is no getting away from your destiny. This is what you were born for. My mother told your parents while your mother was pregnant with that someone would be coming for you and she didn’t want to listen to her. She decided that she could protect you from this. She cannot protect you from this anymore, only I can. I love you Niki please don’t shut me out.” Anger pulses through every part of my soul and I rip my shoulders out of his grip. “How dare you tell me what I am going to be and who I am going to love.” I slap him hard across the face. “You’re not going to tell me how my life is going to go. No one is. If I don’t want to be bonded with you I don’t have to! What do you mean that your mother knew about this, is she a Mystic also?” He stands up anger is pulsing through his body and I can feel his emotions run through me like a train speeding down the tracks. Heat is pulsing from his body as the red hand print begins to fade away from his face. “Niki my mother is a Mystic by birth and a werewolf, but not by choice. She was bite during her awakening on her 18th birthday. My father is just a werewolf. He bonded with her and then they had me.”
“Why wasn’t she chosen to rule if she is half and half? Why does it have to be me?” he looks into my eyes with utter disappointment. I doesn’t understand why someone would want to throw away the gift I have been given. “Renee chose you. My mother was not accepted into the Royal Court when she was awakened. Something happened and she was not a loud to join the court. I don’t know what it was, she won’t talk about it. You have to accept what the Queen has chosen you for because there is no going back and her word is final.” All he wants is to help me. He turns his back to me and looks out over the glass like lake. The moon is casting its creamy light down onto us and I realize that there is no fighting this. I love this man and he is the only one that I want in my life. I stand from the cold sand brushing it off my shirt and pants. Slowly I take one step at a time until my chest is against his back and his scent envelopes me. I can feel his breathing sharpen as he feels my touch him. Slowly I take both hands and place them on his waist and run them under his shirt. He lets out a seductive grown. I wrap both my arms around him and put my head on his back. “Im sorry Travis.” He turns his body and looks down into my eyes and presses a gentle kiss on my lips. “Please don’t push me away Niki. I love you and I am here to protect you. I didn’t know that this was going to happen I swear. I didn’t expect it to. But I am glad it is. You’re the most beautiful woman that I have ever seen and I want to spend of the rest of my life with you” How can I say no to this man? I finally let go. I let my feelings take over. Passion surges through me and I can no longer hide or contain my desire for him. I grab the back of his hair and pull is forcefully down to my face. Kissing him hard I let out a grown of pleasure. “NIki don’t make that noise, you’re making it hard to keep my composure.” I pull his head back to me again “Then don’t Travis, don’t hold back.” I he lets out a small giggle “Are you sure about that?” I can’t help but smile “Yes, Travis.” I feel my body quivering as he picks me up by my waist and throws me over his shoulder. He starts to run. Not just run, but whip through the trees everything is moving so fast I can’t tell what is what. The colors blur together into grays, greens and black. I feel the wind blowing through my hair and then we stop suddenly. He put me down and I hear the sound of crunching leaves. I look into his eyes and he turns me around to. We are standing in front of my window. “What are we doing back here?” He opens the window and motions me to go inside. “It’s cold out here and it’s getting late. You should get some rest.” I am so confused. Is he blowing me off? After everything he just said and now he is going to take me home? “I don’t understand.” He puts his hand in the small of my back and leads me to the window. “Goodnight Niki, I’ll see you in the morning we have a lot more to talk about.” I jump into the window and pull myself onto my bed. I can’t help but feel rejected and hurt. I shut the window before he can say another word. I don’t know what to think after everything that just happened. So I am chosen to lead over a race that I know nothing about. If you ask me, Renee made a bad choice. Why couldn’t Denise be the one that she chooses? She wants to rule anyways. I throw my legs off the bed stepping down onto the cold hardwood and walk over to my dresser. I pull out my black Pj’s and throw them on the bed. God my clothes stink like dirt. I pull them off and pull on my Pj’s. I really don’t feel like getting in the shower right now, even though I clearly need one. I get back into to bed and pull the covers all the way up to my shoulders. What am I going to do? I have never felt important a day in my life and now I am supposed to rule over an entire race. Even though I am alone in my room I get the feel like someone is watching me. I look out my window to see if Travis is still there but he is nowhere to be found. There is only darkness and trees as far as I can see. The only light is from the moon pouring through the leaves. How am I supposed to fall asleep after hearing all of this? I still want to be with Travis. I want him to at least be in my bed. I don’t feel right without him anymore. I don’t want to have all these feelings but there is nothing that I can do to stop them. The worst part is that he is right down the hall and I can’t be with him. My mother would skin me alive if she knew that I was sleeping with him. Why do I even care what she thinks anymore after everything Travis just told me? She kept all these secrets from me my whole life and I had to find out in the worst way. After everything that she put me through, the treatments and the medication all because she didn’t want this life for me. How much does she actually know about it anyways? I still am getting the feeling that someone is watching me in my room. I can’t shake it. There is something that is in this room that is making me feel unsafe. I don’t know what it is but I need to get out. A sudden rush of adrenaline powers my courage and I throw my covers off and swing my legs over the bed. I try to tip toe to my door because the hard wood floor creeks with every step. I don’t know if anyone is still awake but they have to be sleeping by now. I open my door just a crack to see if any lights are still on. It’s totally dark so I open it more and see that there is no one up. I come out of my room and shut the door and softly as I can. The hallway is pitch black and I can’t see a thing. I extend my arms out trying to feel for anything in front of me. I know this house like the back of my hand so I begin to walk down the hall to where Travis is sleeping. Each step is like waiting for a bomb to explode, each step may wake someone in the house and I don’t want to be seen sneaking around in the dark. I don’t know how I would explain that. I finally make it to Travis door and place my hand on the knob. Turning it slowly I begin to open the door. Travis is already passed out on his air mattress. I walk over to his bed and kneel down. God he is gorgeous. I run his hair through my fingers and the passion burn that I am used to doesn’t come. It’s a different feeling. It’s…love. I do love him. I don’t want to admit it but I do. I love this man. He begins to stir and rolls over on my hand. I am stuck sitting up staring at him. Oh god please don’t wake up right now. This is going to look really creepy. I try to pull my hand out and he grabs my wrist. Not even opening his eyes “What are you doing in here Niki?” I tug my arm back from him rubbing my wrist. “I don’t want to be alone Travis…I want to be…with you.” He eyes open and he looks at me with a small grin. He lifts the covers inviting me and I get in bed with him. This is the first time that I have touched him that I haven’t wanted to rip his clothes off. I want to lay with him and feel his heart beat in my ear. He wraps his arms around me and pulls me into his chest. God he smells good. He kisses my forehead and says “Goodnight Niki, tomorrow is going to be a long day get some sleep.” I get comfortable in his arm, which isn’t hard, and drift off into a calming sleep.
***
I am back in my never ending dream. This time I know a little more and I am going to get some answers if I see the lady in white. Standing on the shore I can still see the island glowing in the distance. I look for bright light that shown off the crown of the lady in white but its nowhere to be found. I am not going to stand here and wait anymore. I walk to the edge of the shore and down our dock. There is a small row boat at the end and I decide to row to the island to get some answers. I untie the damp rope and jump into the boat. I have rowed this boat all around this lake every summer. I begin to row towards the island pulling the ores as hard as I can, splashing the cool water into the air. The boat is gliding across the still water sending ripples in every direction. My arms begin to burn as I get closer to the island but I pay no mind to it and keep pulling. Finally the boat stops on the sand of the island. I jump out in calf deep water and pull the boat onto shore. “Hello! Is there anyone here?” I call out into the darkness hoping that someone is here. “Renee, are you here! I need to speak with you! I need to know why you gave me all your power! Why me damit?!” The wind begins to blow fiercely, throwing my hair straight back. A bright light begins to shine and it blinds me for a moment. I throw my arm in front of my eyes to block the light. It begins to die down and I lower my arm to see what it is. The lady is white is standing in front of me with a look of poise and honor on her face. She is so beautiful I can’t believe that she is real. She extends her hand to me and with no hesitation I take it in mine. We stand face to face for a moment in silence. “Niki, do you know who I am.” She finally speaks and her voice is so soft and comforting. I nod my head yes “You’re Renee right?” She releases my hand and begins to walk into the redwoods. “Yes, I am. Do you know why you’re here?” I start to walk after her. “All I know is that I am a Mystic and you chose me to rule over the whole Realm.” She keeps walking deeper into the redwoods and then we come to a clearing. There is a large flat stone in the middle. She stands motionless and silently staring at the stone. “Niki, that much is true but there is much more that you don’t know. I gave you my life essence and power because I need you to eliminate the current King. He is power hungry and has become mad. A human murdered our daughter and now he is out for revenge on the entire human race. He will succeed if you do not stop him.” This hits me like a runaway train. How I am going to defeat a King. I had no idea that this world even existed and now I have to defeat the King. I am beginning to panic. I can feel nausea building in my throat. “I don’t know what I am supposed to do! I don’t know how to defeat a King. Why didn’t you do it? You’re supposed to be a Queen aren’t you? Why did you give me all your power when the King is about the wipe out the entire human race? I have no idea how to use it!” She walks to me and places her hands on my shoulders. “NIki there are many things that you still need to learn about our world.” She takes my hand and leads me to the large flat rock. She motions for me to sit and I oblige. “Niki, when you bond to someone it is for life. You cannot be with only else for the rest of your life and you would die if you tried. The King is who I bonded with.” Great I guess I am really stuck with Travis forever. “You also are unable to cause physical harm to them. Since I am bonded to the King and he is stronger than I, I cannot stop him from what he is about to do. He knows what I have done. The grief he has for the loss of our daughter is a great pain that will never be at ease and now that he knows I ended my life and gave it to you, he has gone mad. The fate of the Human race is in your hands. You may choose to give up the gift I have given you and the role of Queen, but the human race will fall and the King Khan will still come for you.” Anger is taking over every part of my body and my hands become fists. I snap “So basically what you’re telling me is that I don’t have a choice. Because I might die if I do accept, but I don’t accept I am guaranteed to die and so will the rest of the human race.” Renee sits down next to me and takes my hands. “Niki, I know that this doesn’t seem fair but I wouldn’t have given you this gift if I didn’t think you could succeed. King Khan is a wise man but he also lets his emotions get the best of him. He will come for you on your 18th birthday. He thrives for the thrill of war and he will want to kill you at your most powerful. He will want to set an example of you so his subjects will never rebel. It is a sick addiction. Travis will protect you but you need to beware of Denise. She doesn’t want you to succeed and she wants all humans to perish just as Khan. She also despises you because you were chosen for this role and she was not. She hates humans because of the way she was treated before she was awakened. She was not accepted into the Royal Court and she is looking to find a way back in. Khan has given her this chance. He is willing to accept her into the court if she murders you. If I were still alive he would not be able to overrule my decision to keep her out, but now he has all power, and he needs a spy. You must not let Denise know that you are aware of what she is doing. You will need to make Travis aware of this. If she finds out that you know her plan, she will contact Khan and he will come sooner than he has planned. If that happens then all hope is going to be lost.” I try to obsorb all this information and it makes my head throb. I have never felt so much fear in my life. I look at her and ask “Well if she can see the future how am I going to hide that I know what she is planning to do?” Renee replies with a short simple answer “Because you’re royalty now. She cannot read your future. It’s blocked from her view. That’s why Khan needs her to be around you, so she can report what is going on. Once you become Royal no Mystic can read your future, not even another Royal.” I feel the darkness creeping in around me and the feeling of being alone starts to grip me heart. Is this even a war I can win?
“So what happens on my 18th birthday?” She stands from the stone before me. “The Blood Moon is on your birthday. This only comes once every 1,000 years. It’s very rare to have a newborn Mystic Queen awaken on this day especially now that you have the ability to morph into a wolf. You have already been given my powers and the Blood Moon with triple them. You are going to become the most powerful Mystic, Morpher and Queen our race has ever had.” I don’t know how to absorb all this. I am becoming more and more afraid with every word. I don’t know what to think anymore. What if I cannot defeat Khan? This is too much pressure for me. I was just a normal girl and now my life is changed forever. Renee reaches her hand up and touches my face. I lean into her hand trying to feel some sort of comfort. “Niki, on your birthday you will come here to the island. When the Blood Moon is highest in the sky it will shine down its crimson light onto this stone. You need to lie on the stone and let the light cover your whole body. If any part of your body is not in the light the awakening will not be completed and it will fail. The blood moon will turn on you and instead of awakening you it will make you sleep for all eternity. Travis knows what needs to be done and he will guide you through it.” I stand from the stone and begin to pace back and forth carving the ground with each step. How am I going to be able to do this? I don’t think that I have the strength. I look into her eyes “If I am a Mystic then why did I not see this coming?” She looks at me annoyed and turns her back on me. “Your mother tried to stop your Mystic abilities because she was afraid. Denise told her that I would come to you when she was pregnant. Denise tried to share her gift and was made an outcast. Michelle was afraid that you would suffer the same fate. Humans fear what they don’t understand and they cannot just accept things for what they are. She numbed your ability with medications and you began to believe that it wasn’t real. If you don’t believe in yourself your ability will slowly die. Fortunately for you, I found you before it left you completely. You need to stop taking the pills that she forces on you. You need to learn to control your gift again. Once the medication is stopped it will take a few days to leave your system and then the visions with return to you. At first you will not be able to control them and then slowly you can make then appear when you want them to.” She turns back to me giving me a reassuring smile.
My head is beginning to throb. For so many years I have been told that I was crazy and now the realization that I was right is making my head spin. I start to feel dizzy and sit back down on the flat rock. Renee grabs both my hands and kneels in front of me. “Niki this is the last time that I will be able to talk with you. You will not longer have this vision. Travis knows what to do and he will help you but you need to trust him and let him into your heart.” She is leaving me now? There is no much that I want to know. “You can’t just leave me Renee I need you!” She stands and the white light that blinded me when she arrived begins to illuminate. “Niki, Trust in your ability and trust in Travis he is your protector now.” The light becomes bright and I block my eyes. “Please Renee don’t leave!” I scream into the darkness that she has abandoned me in. Uncontrollable tears fall from my eyes and I collapse to the ground. There is nothing that I can do but scream over and over. I sink my fingers into the ground grabbing grass, ripping it from the ground and throwing it with all my might. I feel like a child throwing a tantrum but it’s all I can do to release all the anger and fear I have inside. My voice is becoming hoarse and I feel my body beginning to shake fiercely. I snap awake. I am back in the guest room with Travis and he is shaking my shoulders trying to wake me. I had been screaming so loud that my mother and Denise woke up and are standing in his room. Travis looks into my eyes with tear streaming down my face and my heart is racing. I look around the room trying to catch my breath and my mother is kneeling by the side of the mattress paralyzed in fear. Denise is standing in the doorway leaning again the frame trying not to look at me. I can tell that she doesn’t care what is happening. I look back at Travis and wrap my arms around his neck desperately trying to feel the comfort his touch provides me. I hold him as tightly as I can and he wraps his arms around me and trying to comfort me “It’s ok Niki your safe with me. Just relax. Take some deep breaths.” I start to breathe in and out trying to slow my heart. The beats begin to come down to a normal pace and my arms loosen around his neck. I lean back onto the pillow and look at Travis. “Are you ok now, babe?” I run my fingers through my hair which is now covered in sweat. “Yes, I’m fine.” My mother frowns and scrunches her eyebrow and looks at Travis “Babe? What the hell does that mean? Speaking of which why the hell are you in his bed Niki?” I turn over to my side and look at her. “Mom, there is too much to explain. Basically Travis and I are bonded. It’s not a voluntary thing and you can’t control when it happens or who it happens with. He is pretty much my soul mate.” Denise is still in the door frame and she lets out an annoyed sign. “I tried to tell you that last night Michelle but Niki pushed me out of the way before I could. They are bonded for life. That is why there are two wolves in the crest on the back of her neck and not just the thrown. They are going to be together FOREVER.” My mother’s eyes grow wide and she looks back to me and Travis. “I don’t know what to say.” She keeps staring at me not breaking her gaze. “Mom there is nothing to say. This is how it is now. It’s something that you are going to have to deal with.” He face becomes filled with anger. She stands up and stomps out of the room. Denise moves out of the way so she can pass. Denise turns back to me and throws me an evil glare and walks down the hall towards the living room.
I lay my head back down on the pillow and let out a sigh. Travis lies down next to me and looks at me worriedly. “Niki, did you have another nightmare?” I roll over to face him. “I wouldn’t say that it was a nightmare. I talked to Renee. She explained to me more about King Khan and the Blood Moon.” He puts one arm around me and pulls me closer to his body. I need this right now. I need to feel the comfort he provides me. He knows when I need and I love him for that. I can’t believe it, I love him. I love someone again. “She also told me some disturbing information about your mother.” He looks shocked. “What?” Distress covers his face. This is going to be difficult to tell. I don’t want him to turn against me now when I need him the most. I wonder how deep this bond will go with it comes to his mother.
“Well basically she is going to trying to help Khan kill me and if she finds out that I know then she will alert Khan.” He lays flat on his back and stares blankly at the ceiling. There is a long silence so I decide to snap him out of his trance. “Travis, Please talk to me.” He keeps staring at the ceiling for a moment and rolls on his side and looks at me. “What am I supposed to say Niki. She is my mother. I didn’t know that she was going to try and help Khan. She told me that we were coming to help Michelle with her daughter. I didn’t ask a lot of questions.”
“I’m sorry Travis.” We lay silently for a few hours just enjoying each other’s company.
***
“Are you guys going to come out of that room? It’s almost lunch time!” My mother screams down the hall. She is not taking this new relationship very well. I don’t blame her. I have known Travis for almost a month and we are already bond for life on the first day we met. This new world is so strange to me and I don’t know how I am going to overcome my fear of it. I have a powerful King that is trying to kill me before I become Queen and Denise is aiding him in doing it. I don’t know why Renee thought that I was the best choice for this. Travis rolls over and pushes me out of the bed and onto the floor. “Time to get up!” I giggle lying on the floor. “You need to get up too!” I grab his foot that is hanging over the bed and pull him down onto the floor. He lands with a loud thud on his butt. “Ouch! Feisty today?” I grab his shirt and pull him inches from lips “Your breath smells bad, Travis.” He bursts out laughing “Well you don’t smell like a basket of roses either. You smell like dirt from last night and bad breath.” I pull my shirt to my nose and smell it. “Touché Travis. I am going to take a shower.” He gives me a playful wink and pulls me by the collar of my shirt. “Can I come?” I let out a playful gasp of surprise. “I don’t think know so Travis. We may be bound for life but you are not going to see me naked that easily. Plus I don’t want to give my mom a heart attack. She needs to get used to the idea of us before we start taking showers together.” He begins to pout his bottom lip and look to the ground. “Don’t be such a baby Travis. We can go swimming later.” He lets out a sigh “Oh alright fine. Swimming it is.” I get up from the floor and open the door. Denise is standing right in my face as I open the door. “Good morning you’re Highness.” I push past her and walk down the hall “Don’t call me that, Denise.”
“Why not Niki, you are going to be Queen you know.” I turn around and give her a sarcastic smile. “Yes Denise I know, and your son is going to with me for the rest of his life in the lap of luxury. Lucky him huh?” I hear Travis in his room burst out laughing. She turns around angry and walks down the hall.
***
The hot shower feels so good on my skin. I can feel it melting the stress in my shoulders away. Since the day we got to the lake house it has been nothing but stress. I just want to stay in the shower and never come out. I don’t want to face what is coming. There is a knock at the door and I can tell by the urgency it’s my mother “Yes mom.”
“You are going to have lunch with us?” I turn off the shower and step out grabbing my town from the hanger. “Ya I’ll be right out.” I wrap the towel around myself and walk out of the bathroom. Chills run up and down my spine, this house is so cold sometimes. Once in my room I drop my towel and thrown on my bathing suit, shorts and a white t-shirt. I come out of my room and walk down the hall and into the dining room. Denise, my mother, father and Travis are already sitting at the table waiting for me. I pull out my chair next to Travis and sit down. The tension in the room is so thick I could cut it with a knife. Denise is sending Travis and I evil glares and my mother staring at me worriedly. “Niki did you take your medication this morning?” I look up at my mom and know what I am about to say is going to upset her. “No mom. I am not going to take that medication anymore. Renee says that it numbs my ability and I need to stop taking it.” Denise’s eyes lock onto me. “You spoke with Renee? She is dead how could you have talked to her?” I cross my arms and stare right back at Denise. “Well Renee came to me last night in my dream and explained what I need to do and who I really am.” She arches her eyebrows “Did she now and what is it that you need to do?” I lean forward “Denise it doesn’t concern you.” My mother snaps at me “Niki why are you being so rude?” If mom only knew that she is helping Khan trying to kill me. I don’t want to upset her more than she already is so I reply “Sorry mom, I’m just tired I guess.” She gets up from her chair and walks over to the kitchen. Here we go again, she is shutting me out when things get uncomfortable. Thank god I have Travis to support me. My father has no idea what is going on and he stares at me with his mouth open. “Niki do you want to explain to me what is going on. I go to sleep early one night and it seems I have missed something rather important.” He folds his arms and continues to stare at me. Travis grabs my leg under the table and shakes his head slightly no. I look back at my dad and he is still waiting for an answer. I have no idea what to tell him. I have never lied to my father before and frankly I don’t want to. “Dad do you remember what Denise told you when mom was pregnant?” His face starts to lose a little color. “Yes, How do you know what she told us?” I let out a small sigh “Because it’s true dad. I am a Mystic.” His mouth drops open and he looks to my mother. “I told you, we should have never of put her through all those tests.” She face turns bright red with anger and she screams at him. “You told me!? How the hell did YOU tell me? You were all for what we did. You agreed with everything. You thought that that it was the best thing for her.” He hits the table with the side of his fist. “Michelle just relax. What is so bad about it anyway? It’s pretty cool to be able to see the future.” My dad looks back at me and winks. Denise decides to respond to the question from my father “James, Your daughter has been chosen to lead the Realm Werewolves. On her 18th birthday she we be awakened as a Mystic and Morpher. Then she will rule over us forever. Oh ya, Travis is her soul mate and they will be together for the rest of their lives.” She says each word ‘matter of fact’. I can feel the anger building in Travis. “Mom, why don’t you shut the fuck up!? This is not your business to tell.” He yells and her face turns white. The whole room goes quiet and my dad is staring off into thin air. Finally there is some life in his eyes “Wait so Travis is your boyfriend? You have known him for like a day! How is that possible?” I giggle and look at my dad “Out of all the crap Denise just told you, the part about Travis is all that concerns you?”He shrugs his shoulders “Well Denise has always been full of shit so I don’t know what to believe. But if you are with Travis already I am going to have to kill him” He looks as Travis and punches him on the shoulder. Travis tries not to laugh and looks at my dad “Sir, I wasn’t expecting this to happen. I mean, hell, I honestly didn’t want to come on this trip. I am sorry that you had to find out this way but yes I am with Niki now and there is no separating us. I would die for her.” My father’s eyes widen and he looks back at me. “Well I guess there is nothing that I can say to change this?” I shake my head no. He turns to my mother “Alright then everyone, let’s eat. I don’t want to talk about this subject anymore until we are done eating. It’s giving me heartburn.” My mother looks at him with disgust “How can you be so calm about this James? This is a very big deal or do you not care?” He turns to her and I can tell that she has pushed him over the edge. “Michelle what would you like me to do? Please tell me because I don’t know.” She turns on her heels stomps around the table, down the hall and slams her door shut. My father shakes his head and continues to eat.
After lunch Travis asked me to show him around the Lake. I am only assuming he asks me this because he wants to get away from his mother. We get up from the table and start to walk out the door when I hear my father “Where are you guys going?” I keep walking out the door and down the steps “We are going swimming.” I can feel my dad’s eyes locked on me as I walk down the steps from the porch and make my way to the lake. “Travis, do you know how to swim?” He looks at me confused “Ya why?”
“Can you swim far, you like are you a strong swimmer?” he maintains the look on confusion on his face. I can tell that he has no idea where I am going with this. He shrugs his shoulders and says “Ya I can swim well why did you want to swim somewhere.” I extend my arm and point out towards the island. “Oh no we are not going there Niki. Not yet at least.” I drop my hand to my side “And why the hell not?” He runs his hand through his golden hair and says “Well it’s not safe right now. We don’t know if Khan is waiting there. They will be expecting you to go to the island before the awakening. The island will call for you when we get closer to your birthday.” I turn my back to him and start to walk towards the shore. I stop at the sands edge and look back at Travis “Niki, don’t you do it.” I turn to face him and grab the bottom of my t-shirt. I give him a devilish smile and start to pull my shirt up my stomach and over my head. I drop it to the ground and look back at Travis. He shakes his finger at me and starts to walk towards the shore. I can tell that he is going to try and stop me so I pull my shorts and slip my shoes off. I run towards the water and jump in. I can hear Travis behind me “Damit Niki you don’t listen.” I swim out till my feet can’t touch the bottom and I turn to the shore and begin to tread water. Travis is standing on the shore staring at me and I wave for him to follow. He removes his shirt and shoes and throws them on the ground. He wades into the water and then begins to swim toward me. I turn back towards the shore and start to swim for it. I miss the feeling of water rushing over me as I swim. It’s so calming and relaxing. There is nothing that can stop me once I start swimming. The cool water rolls over the back of my head as I speed towards the island. I turn my head to take a breath and I hear Travis splashing behind me. I stop swimming and begin to tread water waiting for him to catch up to me. He reaches me and stops. “Why do you do this, Niki? I told you that it’s not safe to come to the island right now.” I swim towards him and wrap my arms around his neck and my legs around this waist. “Because I want to see the flat rock that I saw in my dream. I want to know what is going on and I need to see if for myself.” He wraps his arms around me and gives me a tight hug. “Fine Niki, but we are not staying long.” I give him a wink “Sure babe.”
We finally get to the edge of the shore and decide to lie on the hot sand for a moment. The lake is freezing and the hot sand is slowly breaking through the freezing shield that is on my skin. I look over at Travis and I can tell that he is enjoying this as much as I am. He looks over at me and says “Yes I am enjoying this.” I sit up quickly “Ok how do you do that?” He looks at me confused “Do what?” I slap his arm “You know what I am talking about. I think about something and then you respond. Can you read minds or something?” He looks back up into the sky putting his arms behind his head and closes his eyes “Yes I can actually” So he can just read my thoughts whenever he wants. That is not only rude but an invasion of my privacy. I don’t think I like his so called gift. “I don’t think that I like you reading my mind whenever you want to. I can’t have any thought to myself.” He sits up and puts his arms on his knees. “Niki I didn’t get my gift until after I was awakened. I haven’t learned how to control it. I have known my whole life what I would become but I never knew what gift would be given. I can’t help but hear thoughts and see memories. See memories? What does that mean? “What do you mean see memories?” He brushes some of the dry sand off his legs. “Well, for instance when I first came here and you showed me the spare bedroom and I saw a small girl playing in the room. It seemed like she was pretending to be a princess or something. It was the most adorable thing that I have ever seen.” My face begins to turn tomato red. “That is really embarrassing. I never wanted anyone to know that I used to do that. He starts to laugh “Well, I know now and I thought it was a great memory.” I stand up and brush the sand from my legs and back. Travis gets up and does the same. I walk to the edge of the sand and then I freeze. A vision disrupts my steps and can’t move. My senses are tingling all over my body and I begin to see Travis standing over the large flat rock staring down at me lying on it. The Blood Moon shines down is crimson light over my entire body. I snap back into reality and I realize that Travis is standing next to me looking confused. “Are we going in there or are you just going to stare at the trees.” For a moment I don’t know what to say. I stand there motionless and finally I shake my head yes. We begin to walk into the redwoods and I don’t see the flat rock. “Travis where is the rock I am supposed to be on?” He points his finger into the darkest part of the trees. “It’s in there. But if you are not of our world, you can’t see it. It’s a way of protecting our secrets.” I look at him with a smirk on my face “I am sure that if a Human sees a rock they are not going to automatically know that your race exists. It’s just a rock Travis.” He shakes his head and walks ahead of me into the trees. For some reason I have the feeling of dread in my stomach. There is something wrong here, or something that is going to happen. I ignore my instincts and follow him. Its pitch black and I can’t see a thing. All I can hear is Travis steps in front of me. “Travis please come back here and walk with me I can’t see anything.” Before I can finish my sentence I feel his hand in mine guiding me thought the darkness. “How can you see its pitch black in here?” He lets out a chuckle “Werewolf…duh” Laugh and slap his arm. “Don’t be an ass.” He stops walking suddenly “What is it Travis?” and lets go of my hand. My eyes are slowly adjusting to the darkness and I can see the flat stone right in front of my feet. I bend down and run my hand over the top of the rock. It surface is as soft as a river beat stone. I move my hand down the side of the rock and I feel groves in the rock. It seems to be that there are carvings in the sides of the rock. I move around the rock to see of the carvings are consistent around it and they are. “What are the groves in the rock Travis?” I smell his sweet cologne and realize that he is kneeling next to me. “These are the markings of every King or Queen that has been awakened here. Soon your mark will be here.” I wish that I could actually see the stone. I want to see what the markings look like. “Can you see them yet Niki?” I let out a disappointed sigh “No, I can only feel them” He takes my hand and says “Soon Niki you will be able to see them. You have to be fully awakened before you can see through darkness.” We both stand and he leads me out of the pitch black trees and into the bright forest. My eyes sting for a moment as I try to adjust to the sun’s rays. Travis stops dead in his tracks and yanks on my arm “Travis!” His face has totally changed. He is no longer the lover Travis that I have come to love. His eyes are black and anger covers every inch of his face. “Travis what is wrong?” He gives he a glare “Shh!” Fear has taken me over and I freeze. There is something on this island and Travis knows it’s here. I should have listened to him. Now I have put us both in danger. He pulls me behind his back and starts to take slow steps back towards the pitch black area of trees. Once we enter the darkness he stops moving and everything is silent. I feels like hours have gone by and nothing has happened. No breeze, no birds singing, there is no noise other then the lake crawling up the sand and then pulling its self back in. Then a CRACK rings out and breaks the gentle silence. Travis crouches to the ground and pulls me down with him. He looks around and starts to move away from me and back into the light. “Khan!” he yells out. “Khan I know you’re here! Show yourself!” there is still no response. Khan is here? He is already trying to kill me. I have another week until my birthday and I doubt that we can hind from him that long. The silence is broken “Travis.” A gentle man’s voice responds that almost seems reassuring. Travis gasps “Oh my god! Dad!”