Declan
Declan cringed as he walked past the living area. Six teenage girls sprawled out across the room, flipping through magazines, rubbing strange lotions on their faces, and arguing over which male celebrity had the best body. He'd just faced demons, and he'd gladly do it again if he didn't have to go into that room. Perhaps he should take a page out of Phoebe's book and head to bed, but something about being back in this house made him uneasy.
Hanish and Travis caught his eye, the two of them looking cozy amongst the women, and they laughed at what they saw on his face. But for Travis, the smile slipped away as he turned his attention to Lux, who was trying her best to act like she was having fun with her Circle members. Even Brooke, who'd only come because of her interest in finding justice for her sister, appeared more at ease pretending to be a normal teenager.
Because that's what they were all doing: pretending.
He stepped outside, shoving his hands deep in his pockets, as he took in the Godelieve property. When he'd gone to sleep, he'd wondered if he'd ever see this place again. That it was still in the family was a testament to the connection between the land and the bloodline; he had his suspicions it would always find its way back into the hands of the High Priestess.
Today had left little time for exploration, but he'd spied the roof of the guest cottage when they'd driven up the driveway. Gravel crunched under his feet as he followed the path to the house, the light growing dimmer the further from the main building he walked, but he didn't need it. Even enveloped in the evening black, he could find his way. His steps were as sure today as they'd been almost a hundred years ago- the last time he'd made this journey.
Coming to an abrupt stop, he leaned forward, hands on his knees as he struggled to control his breathing. The memory of Leora clung to this place so strongly he half expected to see her pale specter sweeping by. She'd have her blond hair piled atop her head in the latest fashion, while the hem of her skirt would be damp and discolored from long walks in the fields. The right corner of her mouth was always turned up, as if an unseen hook tugged it, making her look as if she was always on the verge of smiling.
Overcome with emotion, he stumbled to the cottage's stoop and sat down. Head in his hands, he couldn't stop the shaking that took over his body. Everything had happened so fast after she died. He'd jumped right into the decision to go to sleep, never mourning her loss, and when he awoke, he filled his head and heart with the mission of the present day.
Coming here had stripped away armor he'd been unaware he was wearing, and every smell and sound sent ripples of pain through his body. He scrubbed his hands across his face. They were damp when he pulled them away. This place reminded him of the cost of his failures. And, as his thoughts drifted to a pair of sad gray eyes, he knew he couldn't live with himself if he lost Lux.
A rustle in the grass brought him to his feet. As if his warring emotions had called to her, Lux stepped forward. She hovered several feet away, uncertainty lining her features as she took in his disheveled state.
"Decs? You okay?"
Declan pondered his answer. They'd instantly clicked when he first arrived, much like he and Leora had. Funny how bits of history repeated itself- even the division they were experiencing now echoed the fight that had divided him and Leora in the beginning. But it differed in one very important way.
"Come with me," he said, extending his hand as he stood. Lux hesitated, but only for a moment.
"What is this place?" she asked as they went inside. His hand moved on the wall, searching for a switch that wouldn't have been there during his years in the house, but as he'd hoped, the family had updated the house. Light flooded the room.
"It's where I stayed when I acted as the High Sorcerer for the First Circle. Well, really, I guess I was the High Sorcerer in training. I never took over the position officially as my father was still living."
Lux moved around the room, letting her fingers dance across the surface of antique furniture and over vintage wallpaper. Many of the pieces were ones he'd had when living there, and while the wall coverings were new, the style reflected the period the home was built in. The family had put a lot of effort into keeping this place frozen in time.
"Were you and Leora close?" she questioned, stalling in front of a large portrait.
He followed her line of sight and stopped himself from gasping. The Godelieve family as he'd first met them stared soberly from the photograph, the stern lines of their faces in opposition of their true nature.
"Is this her channeling stone?" Lux asked, pointing to the necklace clasped around Leora's neck.
"Yes," he replied, remembering the way she always fiddled with the stone, her blue eyes darkening with the weight of what that stone meant. "She was the last known Opal witch."
"What happened to it? After she died?"
"We weren't able to recover her body, and she was wearing it. I think that's part of what drove your families to bind their daughters and retreat from the supernatural world."
She looked confused. "Why would losing a stone cause them to do that?"
"We don't know a lot about what happened that night, but the Circle had been closing in on a Bloodborn witch. They come out of the woodwork when an Opal witch is declared. If the Bloodborn got her hands on the stone, if she captured Leora's soul in it, it would take an entire Circle to put her down."
Lux didn't look bothered by his words; she merely nodded and continued her perusal of the room. "You don't talk about her much. Did you two... get along?"
"She was one of my very best friends. We fought, but there were few people in this world that I trusted and relied on like her. And I let her down." His voice broke.
"Hey." Her arms snaked around his waist and she rested her cheek on his chest. "I'm sorry."
Afraid to spook her, he kept his arms at his side, though every part of him wanted to return the embrace. "Why would you be sorry?"
"Because I've been so wrapped up in my own hurts and problems, that I never stopped to think you might hurt. For you, this all just happened."
Unable to resist any longer, he raised his hands and cupped her face. She blinked up at him, at once fearful and hopeful. The connection between them awoke, magic seeking magic, churning around them and making the space buzz with tension.
She closed the distance between them, her lips soft against his, but she pulled back when he tried to deepen the kiss. "Lux," he breathed, "I meant what I told you. I will not run again. We can figure this out."
Shadows crossed her face, and she withdrew. "Did you and Leora ever... were you ever... together?"
She couldn't know about that. "No, I didn't have those feelings for her."
"Did she have feelings for you?" His silence was all the answer she needed. "It's late. I'm going to head back to the main house. Try to get some sleep."
When she left, he entered his bedroom but didn't turn on the light. He didn't have the same powers of perception that Lux possessed, but he could recognize when a woman thought she'd caught someone in a lie. She knew something and wasn't willing to say it out loud.
"Shit," he muttered, falling back on the mattress, coughing at the cloud of dust that billowed up around him. He needed to figure out what she'd uncovered, and he needed to do it quickly. Some secrets were meant to be kept.
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Lux
When Lux returned from the guesthouse, she expected to find everyone sleeping, but Kitty and Travis were awake, their foreheads pressed together as they spoke in lowered voices. They froze when she stepped inside, their gazes locking on her.
With a resigned sigh, she stepped across the slumbering bodies and settled next to her best friends. More than anything, she wanted to be alone- to process what she'd just learned and to return to Leora's journal. Every so often she found her attention going to her purse, but she dragged it back to the light-hearted conversation. After a while, she became absorbed in the chat, the moment a brief, much needed reprieve from the chaos in her head.
She almost didn't outlast them, the events of the last few days taking a toll on her already worn body, but desperation fueled her. As soon as their breathing evened out, she jumped to her feet, snagged the diary, and headed back to the attic room. Once more, she felt as though she wasn't entirely alone as went up the narrow stairs and entered the room.
The bed creaked and groaned as she crawled to the center and sat. Flipping to the last page she read, she took a deep breath and started reading.
February 14, 1911
I don't know if I can even write this in these pages, but I can't tell anyone else. Oh, if anyone finds out what has happened, I will be ruined. It'll all be ruined... You see, Declan and I have done something awful.
It all started because of one of Daphne's-I'm not sure what to call them. They aren't visions, really. More like feelings. I wonder about my sister sometimes. How can she have such strength and be so young? But I digress.
The First Circle hosts an annual gathering of the nine Circles who have been charged with protecting the gateways. I've always loved the gathering- it's a chance to meet witches and sorcerers from all over the world- but this year I wanted to skip it. But I don't seem to get what I want much these days, and I am now writing as the Priestess Most High- the leader of all Circles.
You might think I've gotten off topic again, but I haven't. After the announcement, while all the people were still clapping and cheering, Daphne came to me. She said it felt like all the light in the room was being swallowed by the shadows. Someone was not happy that the Godelieve line had once again produced an Opal witch. I joked about not being thrilled with it myself, but Daphne did not smile.
When I asked her if she knew who it was, she went still, those stormy gray eyes of hers darkening with fear. 'The Night will steal the Light,' she said. I pressed her for more, but she couldn't even remember saying it.
I went straight to my mother, but every time I tried to broach the subject, she became distracted, hushing me like a child. I have never in my entire life been treated thus by my mother. Something was not right at all. It was then that I noticed everyone in the room was becoming agitated. Quarrels were breaking out in small groups, but the longer we watched, the more heated everyone grew.
So, Daphne and I told the only person we both trusted to listen: Declan. We dragged him outside and told him everything. He became grimmer the longer we talked. I knew what he was thinking without having to ask. To make such an accusation based on an underage witch's feelings would create division amongst the Circles. Division we couldn't afford right now.
But Daphne grew ever more frantic. She insisted that we must identify the upset party. My life depended on it. I could tell that was what pushed Declan over the edge- for whatever might have happened between us- he cared for me deeply. And it broke my heart.
Declan asked us to wait for him beneath the Magnolia tree. I trembled at the rage on his face when he returned, his hand clenched around what he revealed to be Twitch's Grass- a plant used to cause quarrels. It had been spread around the room. He didn't have time to investigate any further- he didn't want to draw attention to himself- but he warned us against drinking or eating anything we didn't prepare with our own hands. Whoever was attempting to sew discord was clever, and we needed to keep our wits about us.
That evening the first attempt on my life was made. In my dreams, a man strangled me, and when I woke, my throat was bruised and my voice nearly gone. Declan stood over my bed, his eyes wild with battle lust as he drove his staff into a Mara- a dream demon. Someone summoned that foul creature from beyond the gateways.
"Lux!"
She bolted upright in bed, the diary toppling to the floor. Her skin was sticky, covered in sweat and dust. Her head swam as she stood, making her stumble. Grabbing a post, she held herself upright until the trembling stopped and the room righted itself. In her chest, the ache which had softened was now back and worse than before. Bile burned in her throat, but she shoved it down.
Moving like a frail, old woman down the stairs, she cursed her stupidity. She'd gotten better when she stopped trying to use her power, though she could admit that Declan's presence had also helped heal the hurts. But banishing a demon, summoning the light to find Leora's room- both incidents took a lot of power. Her human soul was couldn't handle much more.
She reached the bottom of the stairs and pulled the wall shut, the entrance becoming hidden once more. But she only managed two steps before falling to her knees.
Get it together, Lux. Get it together.
"Lux, are you okay?" Travis dropped to her side, his freckled arms pulling her to his chest while she dry heaved.
"I'm fine. I promise. I must've eaten something that didn't agree with me. I've been up all night throwing up," she lied.
"Is that why you didn't sleep downstairs with the rest of us?" he asked, pushing her hair out of her face.
"Yeah, I didn't want to disturb y'all. Sara Elizabeth needs all the beauty rest she can get to make her bearable." His grin split his face, and his cool touch against her skin settled her stomach. "I think I'm fine now. I could probably get some toast down and be right as rain."
Nodding, he helped her to her feet, watching closely to make sure she didn't collapse. When she was sure the room wasn't spinning, she stepped out of his embrace. Perhaps a little breakfast would take the edge off, and it would help if Declan was present.
A sharp knock on the front door halted everyone in their tracks, but before anyone moved to answer it, the door swung open and her mother walked in, followed closely by Gideon. She couldn't refer to him as her father, not yet. Not until she got to know him, but considering everything she had on her plate that was rather far down on her list. Survival was number one.
"Well, isn't this a pleasant surprise," Memaw said, placing soft kisses on her daughter's cheek before turning a curious eye to the man behind her. "And who is this?"
"Shit," Travis muttered. "Did we forget to mention him?"
Lux snorted. Apparently, she wasn't the only one who'd resigned the discovery of a parent to the bottom of important things to tell Phoebe Godelieve.
"Memaw," Lux said, saving her mother, who looked as though she'd swallowed her tongue. "Meet my father."