The next day everyone acted like nothing happened; When asked how some of the football players got bruised ribs they said they were practicing too hard last night and Jessica and Tammie said they kicked each other during a private cheer practice. They wore more make up than usual and hoodies.
None of the teacher's bothered me either through the day other than the usual pop quizzes and occasional questions to answer. Chad acted normal as if we didn’t have the most unusual fight in the morning yesterday.
Luckily Mom didn’t come home last night.
I closed my locker just before the last bell of the day and Chad bumped his hip to mine in a dance-like fashion and hugged me from the side. “You’ve had this concerned look on your face all day.”
I give him a pout on my naked lips and tried to pretend to almost cry, “Yesterday we got into a random match and then I was almost jumped just the cheer twins and their posse of stone walls which I ended up knocking down.” I fling my arms in a dramatic gesture into the locker after putting my books in a safe place, “Teachers were involved and then my mother wasn’t notified because I talked to her this morning about how she’ll make pancakes for me tomorrow morning. And now everyone is acting like nothing happened!”
“Maybe you had a bad dream,” Chad gave me this bored look of disbelief. “The girls just hurt themselves and the -quote- stone walls -unquote (he did air quotes too)- hurt themselves during practice.”
I shot him a look then recalled something Jessica had accused him of, “Are you sleeping with the cheer twins?”
“What?” He looked at me with utter surprise, “Who said I was with the twins?” Chad ran a hand through his red hair. I had this urge to kiss his cheek to really throw him off his game… Too bad it’s one sided. “No, who ever said that probably tried to get to you. Not like anyone can get near enough to them right now before they flinch away.” He pointed with his thumb in their direction as a group of people unknowingly almost walk into them. Jessica and Tammie hissed at them and walked around them. Everyone who was around giggled at them.
“Anyways,” Chad looked at me and smiles with something that made my heart flip a little, “You need to go to the Center, you promised your mom would help today, remember?”
No, I didn’t remember. But it doesn’t surprise me that I didn’t with what happened yesterday.
“Hey…” I start before I grab my books, “Chad…”
“Hum?”
I was going to tell him about the strange man at the park but then I remember the dark look from yesterday… if it ever happened.
“Oh,” I sigh brushing my hair out of my eyes after I toss my bag over my shoulder, “Don’t forget to do your homework tonight, and 3 more days before my birthday. No presents remember?”
I get the sly smile I was trying to coax, “Yeah, sure Sane. No presents. Now hop to it before your mom calls you.”
We both chat until the end of the road where he had to turn to his house. For the longest time as I could remember I never met his parents. I made a mental note to ask him about it tomorrow.
Tonoro’s Center for All was really a place for extremely old witches who couldn’t even stir a spoon in a cauldron anymore. Since they still fall under “human” but still are “magical” the center is almost at the border. Sometimes we get a lot of magical visitors asking for favors. A lot of the other humans that don’t work or come here are ignorant of the fact that this place is filled with witches. Sometimes they even put up a Façade here to keep the appearance.
Once my mother spotted me, she smiled and walked quickly to give me a big hug. She smelled of cinnamon and cookies. She wore a sweater under a white apron and some simple jeans and white tennis shoes. I wrap my arms around her and breathe the smell in.
“What are you doing here?” She asked me, her dark brown was in a tired ponytail.
“I said I would help remember?” I squeaked questioningly, she gave me an odd look, “Yeah, I don’t remember either.”
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“Well, since you’re here go see Grandma Luna.” She pushed me towards the old witch’s room. “I know you don’t really like to, but she’s only got a few days left, her owl died last night.”
Lunar Priestess have an owl to raise and keep for their whole lives, no matter how long their lives are, but once they pass the witch passes a few days later. Grandma Luna is the oldest Priestess to have walked this earth. She said she started the deadliest war but would never tell me what. She’s supposed to be my grandmother, but I don’t see the resemblance, nor do I have a Priestess mark. It’s a crescent moon with a star somewhere on the body. The fuller the moon and the more prominent the star the more magic. Mom’s is a strong Priestess, but she doesn’t have the full moon. Grandma Luna does but she’s never been concerned about my mark.
I huff and then start walking slowly to the room, greeting all the magical women and some men along the way. I’m at least going to say good bye… I thought with a grim frown. I push open the door with a fake smile and see Grandma Luna on a chair looking out the window. She’s skinny with long white hair from age. She looks like one of those rich grandma’s with higher standards than her children. A warm smile was on her lips and the night sky was dancing outside of her window.
“Grand…ma?” I try to push out of my throat. This was the only time I’ve seen her like this; without her owl and the knowledge of something otherworldly. She turned to me and motioned to the chair next to her.
“Close the door dear,” She said, her blue eyes glittering, “I have something important to tell you.”
I close the door quietly and sat next to her. I look outside the window and watch as the stars disappear, and I see a woman in the distance. Her figure was in white.
“This world has started over before, long before magic and the moon were restored, but no one knows this.” She started. “I was one of the few Lunar High Priestesses to roam this world, and as required, accompanied with a guardian.” I saw a man that was also shown by white next to the woman.
“Normally,” She continued after placing a fragile hand over mine, “We would be in the heavens by our Goddess. I was so restless, I should’ve stayed there. We were dying up there, never mating with new blood. We could never mate with our guardians because they were just stars themselves. Just over a hundred years before the world started young again, I had a clash with my guardian.”
The angelic man turned red as a man in black appeared on the floor, the woman angry and had her hands raised. “He had killed someone outside of his purpose, with no intention of harming me or our goddess. The guardian was just… bored I assume. I had cursed him, forever to roam this world lost in his thrist, had brought our goddess into it. I had never…” I saw a dark woman with a star on her forehead take over the white woman’s body and twist the red man’s body and into a hole.
I stared at Grandma Luna, “You see, when I had cursed him, our Goddess heard my call and laid a more powerful one on him. Unlike her children, he could not see the sun without burning, could not live without thirst and never mate. Forever stuck in a well. I died, a life for a life I supposed. But I had trapped her here.” She squeezed my hand. Somewhere deep down I knew this was true.
“Grandma,” I whispered, “Why are you telling me this so suddenly?”
She turned to me as if I offended her, “Well, I promised when I trapped my Moon’s soul here that I was to protect it until she awakens again… When the world renewed, the line of Lunar Priestess’s and High Priestess was restarted, children of the Dark was reborn, magic came back. She did it to become stronger again.” She patted my cheek, “My child, my Goddess, when you turn 18, when I die, this will be the deadliest war because of one man’s greed. And he’s already out there and coming to kill you.”
Dominic Shepard huffed in the cold night air as he watched a star shoot up into the sky a few days later. He lifted his dark eyebrow and lowered his sunglasses. Red eyes glowed under the dark tint with laughter after he replaced them.
May the odds be in your favor Goddess. He thought to himself as he slid into his car.