Sometimes, life can hit you with a blow you can never get used to or arise from. The sort of shock life gave me was beyond comprehension. After I froze the water at mom's place, I didn't see any changes again for months. November, December, and January… but it came back in the first week of February.
I was invited to a pool party at Jena McGee's. A crazy rich celebrity friend who throws the best parties. I wore a sunflower-printed bikini and yellow shorts, and a light fur coat over the bikini and shorts to cover my body. I can never stop marveling over her house, she and her sister, especially Raquelia. Raquelia was Jena's cousin-sister was a different person altogether. Her beauty and superiority were out of this world. She'd won all the big four pageants and had been the most beautiful American woman for years and one of the biggest Hollywood stars. Everything about her could be compared to a goddess and to make it even more enviable, she was married to one of the biggest stars in Hollywood and America.
Then there was Jena herself. Nothing compared to their beauty and power and yet, these powerful people liked me.
"Arabel!" She squealed when I walked into the pool yard. With a smile on my face, I walked toward her and embraced her. She was still beautiful and young even after four kids. She moved and talked with enthusiastic grace, authority, and power. Sometimes, I wondered if she was human.
"You made it! I was worried you wouldn't come."
"I will never miss a chance to party with a friend that has your name tagged to it."
"Oh?" She asked, placing her hands on her hips. "you missed my weddings anniversary, missed my birthday, the kids' birthdays, the Christmas party last year—"
"Okay, I get it," I said with a nervous chuckle. "I'm sorry I've gone under the radar for months, but I missed hanging with you and the girls."
"Aww! You've got me blushing like a crazy moony girl," she said fanning her cheeks. I chuckled. She's too easy to please. "Is it me or is your skin glowing?" I looked at myself and shrugged. I looked more pale than bright but okay. "Beautiful,"
"How're the kids? Gemma and her younger ones?"
"Fighting to turn my hair gray, that's for sure," she said frowningly.
"Heh heh, wanna tell me why you"re holding a pool party in the early week of February? It's cold for people," people that weren't me. I seemed to have developed a strong cold tolerance.
"What can I say, I'm abnormal," she said playfully. I smiled and stared at the massive pool, at the people dancing and having fun in it. So many celebrities I hate. So many I'd hooked up with.
"Hey, hot legs, you finally came!" One of the models I hate the most shouted. I rolled my eyes and Jena chuckled.
"How can you keep the water warm in this weather?" I asked, staring at the sky as it cloud up. Jena giggled diabolically, causing me to look at her instead. She gave me a bold, mischievous smirk and a wink.
"As I will always say, I'm an unquenchable fire," she said winkingly. I chuckled. "Won't you go in?" I shivered at the thought. Recently, touching hot water hurt hurts me.
"No, I'm good," I smiled.
"Jena, the water is getting too hot, do you want to cook everyone?" The sweetest voice in the universe huffed. The goddess of beauty and kindness herself. I turned and smiled at the extravagant and extraordinarily beautiful Queen of the US, Raquelia Catania McGrath, or rather McKnight now. Always so quiet, sophisticated, and elegant. A true work of art. She was the queen by beauty. Would still be Miss Universe if she didn't quit.
"Arabel, I was waiting for you," she smiled.
"Raquel, longest time," I said hugging her. Raquel released me abruptly and stared into my eyes with a funny intense expression on her face. She arched a brow suspiciously and moved back. "Is everything okay?" I asked with concern.
"Yes, just… Jena, the water!"
"I'll be back," Jena said calmly and ran out.
"Are you feeling okay, Ara?"
"A hundred percent," I chirped.
"I always knew there was a reason you fit in well with us but could never pinpoint why. Why didn't I feel it before?" She mused.
Feel what?
"How have you been?" I asked, intentionally changing the awkward topic. Raquel seemed to go into her own world sometimes, so her husband begged us to ignore her when she gets in one of her moments.
"Fine," she said, a smile crawling onto her lips. She leaned closer to me. "I'm pregnant," she whispered. I gasped and cupped my mouth.
"No way!"
"Yes way," she laughed, "I couldn't believe it either because something I don't want to talk about forbade me from having a baby but now I have one growing in my womb," she whispered with tears glistening in her eyes. Thunder cracked in the sky which was strange because the weather was far from stormy. Raquel quickly wiped off her tears as if it was an abomination. Since I met Raquel, she had only cried once and that day, there was a worldwide thunderstorm. She thought Arthur, her husband was involved in a plane crash and lost it. That day remains the scariest day of my life.
"Have you told him yet?"
"No,"
"Why?" I asked quizzically.
"Joyful fear I guess. I still think it's a prank and I don't want to get him excited for no reason because he believes we can never have a child of our own," she said lowly.
"Oh come on, Raquel! You have living evident growing inside of you, that should be enough," she smiled and sighed.
"You won't understand," she said smilingly, "anyways, it doesn't matter. I will tell him when he returns."
"I'm back!" Jena squealed, walking back to us. Her third triplet sister was with her. Jinora, wife of Lyle, younger twin of Kyle, Jena's husband. They just married each other.
"So what is the gist all about?" Jinora asked curiously.
"Was just sharing the news with her," Raquel shrugged. Jena was just smiling and tapping her feet with red cheeks. "What's with you?" Raquel snorted.
"Kyle is killing her with flirtatious looks," Jinora laughed, shaking her head. I trailed her gaze to Kyle and almost choked on my saliva. He was as gorgeous as ever and half-naked. These people should be condemned by the law for taunting us, single women. I wish I was Jena, Nora, or Raquel. Their husbands were so yummy I had wet dreams about them. I will never go after their husbands but that didn't mean I couldn't drool.
Arabel!
"Creamy," I gasped simultaneously with Raquel at the sound of Arthur's voice. Are these people trying to kill me? Yes. This was hot men's overload. Arthur was the right amount of perfection and every woman's dream. But unfortunately and fortunately, the man only had eyes for his wife. I mean, why would he cheat anyway? She's the most beautiful woman on the planet. Raquel turned sharply and screamed happily. I covered my ears along with others because her scream could send someone to a hospital. Literally, my ex-lover passed out because of it.
"Shut up," Jena groaned, holding her ears with a wince. Somehow, Arthur was the only unaffected one. She kept her mouth shut but still ran to hug him. "That's the last of her today," Jena said, rolling her eyes.
"You're back!" Raquel kept chanting. How she can become a teenage girl because of a man is something else. Hope I won't be like that if I end up falling in love. If being the keyword.
"Hey, Nora, Penny, and I need you in the kitchen!" Nia shouted, waving at us. She was the wife of Jayden, the older triplet brother of Jena and Jinora. Yup, Jayden, Jena, and Jinora, the Zachary triplets. You should see Jayden, so gorgeous. Unfortunately, all the sexy men are married.
"Gotta go now," Nora said chirpily, she patted Jena and ran off. Jena smirked.
"There are a lot of hot guys here, go get pregnant," she pushed me forward. I laughed as I staggered forward. "I'm going to give a special someone a BJ," she said winking at Kyle, "see ya." She walked away. The pretty sluts. I found a place to sit and rest my head. I closed my eyes and pondered hard on my upsidedown and miserable life. How did I end up like this? Why just me? I barely talked to my sisters because of their habit of ostracizing me. All they managed to talk about were their husbands and it was irritating. My friends like you just met were all married to the most good-looking and wealthy men, men that loved them senseless.
Where was I? Single with a heart that refused to love.
All this started shortly after Amabel gave birth. I became cold and withdrawn. No, not Amabel, after the accident that almost took my life… in fact, I died and woke up again and when I did, I became different. I wish I knew what was wrong with me, I wished I could talk to my sisters about it but anytime I tried, they would ruin my courage by bringing their husbands or something irrelevant up. Apparently, talking to my friends didn't look normal enough to me because my sisters had always been rocks.
I hate my life.
"Hey, everyone! Inside, it's going to snow and there's hot stuff in here!" I heard Jena shout. She's never scared to say anything… A go-getter. I didn't move. I loved the cold wind on my skin. It was soothing. A few minutes later, I felt a tap on my cheek… I mean slap.
"Jena, what's your damage?!" I yelled, opening my eyes and rubbing my cheek. She's the only one crazy enough to do that.
"I thought you were dead so I gave you the slap of life," she said nonchalantly.
"You are two feet away from me, couldn't you try calling my name or tapping me gently?" I said frostily, the slap felt like fire on my skin. She shrugged and smiled.
"This is much more fun," she winked. I rolled my eyes and smiled too. "Quelly, what were you blabbing about earlier?" She asked, turning to Raquel.
"Arabel, I want you to go touch that water," she said calmly, ignoring Jena.
"Why?"
"You do not question me, you do as I say," she commanded. Something about her present look didn't look so gentle and innocent. I stood up and walked to the water. I bent down and touched it, but nothing happened.
"The water is cold, it was hot be…"
"Touch it again and concentrate on making it colder," she said much calmer but still dominant. I shrugged and touched it, staring at it intensely. I felt a cold chill rush through my veins. That white fog from the other night rose from my hand and the water turned solid ice before my very eyes.
Oh geez!
"W…wh…wh…"
"I was right after all," Raquel said with a smile. Jena mouthed a "wow" and "cool".
"What is happening to me?" I cried.
"Relax, I will help," she said nonchalantly. I scoffed.
"I'm the one turning into a freak here so I cannot relax!!!" I yelled.
"You're not a freak, just a gifted someone I guess," Jena said with a shrug.
"Gifted! Jena, you won't understand how I feel right now, I just froze a damn pool," I sobbed. "Am I Jack Frost's younger sister or what?!" Jena chuckled and Raquel smiled.
"I say gifted because I understand how you feel,"
"No, you don't!" I yelled.
"Really?" She smirked. "As I've always said, Arabel, I'm an unquenchable fire," she said with a cocky smirk. I gasped as her eyes turned into a sharp lava color. Her hands burned up with flames and with one wave, the water was back to normal. Her eyes returned to normal, her lips still maintaining their smirk. It was unbelievable "Still think I don't understand?"
What the…!
_____
"And that's how it started," I finished my brief explanation of how everything started.
"She can't just suddenly develop powers, I thought we were the only ones?" Jena said to Raquel who had her eyes shut the entire time.
"We aren't. There are other supernatural beings on earth, the only difference is that I'm not from this reality and your powers come from me." Raquel replied with her eyes still closed.
"And you tell me now!"
"It wasn't relevant. As a being with too much power, I'm not allowed to interfere with the works of the beings in this reality," she said softly, "my duty as the vessel of this universe is to protect it from the others and maintain the balance. With that said, Arabel, who is Christabel to you?" Mom?
"My mom," I said confusedly, "why?"
"She's the reason you are like this,"
"Pardon?" I asked shockingly.
"Your mother is the last daughter of the winter witch,". Winter what? What is this? A fairytale book?
"The what of what now!" Jena exclaimed.
"The winter witch is the ruler of winter. She has limitless powers to it. With one wave of her hand, the whole earth will be nothing but frozen stone but I'm sure the flora witch won't let that happen. To humans, the flora witch is a roman goddess or what they will call mother nature but she is more than that."
"Sorry, how does my mom get involved in this?" I asked skeptically.
"In other to sit on the cold throne, you need five things. The crown and the scepter, a symbols of the throne. The mark of winter, to dominate over winter. The symbol of the great snow dragon, the divine beast of winter. The cold stone, for immortality and the most powerful of all, the crystal heart. With those five sacred symbols and items, the winter witch is born."
"Quelly, can you get to the point?" Jena hissed.
"Be quiet, Jena," Raquel's voice echoed as she opened her glowing white eyes. Jena looked away instantly but I couldn't. "The winter witch had three daughters for three creatures of ice. The first was Icy, the heiress to the throne but strangely, she only had the mark of winter on her, the rest weren't there."
"Let me guess, my mother had the rest?"
"Not entirely true but similar. They all shared the sacred symbols. The second daughter had the symbol of the snow dragon and your mother has the cold stone in the middle of her heart. The crystal heart, however, did not exist in either of them. They were to rule together, side by side but that didn't sit so well with Icy," she touched my hands and I gasped. I could see everything the way it happened. "After the winter witch died and the scepter and crown were given to her as the firstborn…"
"She went killer frost on them," Jena said chucklingly. Nice of her to find it funny.
"The second daughter risked her life to save your mother, her real name is Crystal. She changed it when she fled," I watched my mother as she wandered in the street. Tears ran down my cheeks. I saw how she met Iso's mother, how they became friends, how they met my dad… How I was born. I removed my hands and wiped the tears off.
"Icy's dark craving for power led her so deep into the darkness that the winter mark abandoned her and was replaced with the toxic dark mark. She became the dark empress of winter, the ice queen. She searched endlessly for your mother and got a hint after you were born. A daughter of winter should feel no pain but the pain she went through when giving birth to you alerted The Ice Queen. Your mother knew she would be found out and kill you so in other to protect you, she faked her death and ran away."
"So she's alive," I said scoffingly with tears.
"Hidden in the temple of the elder beings. The oldest of all mystical creatures." Her eyes stopped glowing.
"Why didn't my powers come out since?"
"Because you had none but when you died in that accident, you returned as a daughter of winter, plus, the time for the real winter witch is near, the one to be born with the crystal heart and all the symbols of winter… even greater," she replied standing up.
"I'm gonna die, huh? That bitch will come after me."
"Not yet, but before that, you must have the sacred one in your womb because her light is the only one that can save you."
"Do you see me getting married in the next thousand years?" I snapped but she smiled.
"You do not see what I see, Ara. I am the eyes of the universe, the vessel in which they spin. My knowledge is beyond normal understanding…"
"Then make this all go away!" I cried.
"As I said, I'm not authorized to interfere with fate and destiny. I can lead you to the right path but never use my powers to stop it. You have a rare and forgotten symbol, the power of the great snow eagle, the second creature born in winter. When your mother dies, the cold stone will be yours and then everything will be passed on to her," she shook her head pitifully. "I cry ahead, Ara, you do not see what I see." She said sadly.
"So I should just randomly get pregnant?"
"You will meet him at the right time but for now, you will stay indoors in a place I shall take you to. I will assign something to teach you how to use your powers before the final stage comes and then him." I shrugged. Her voice was firm and cold meaning there was no other choice for me but to dance to the tone of destiny. At least I know who I am now.