Chasing Shadows

by Rebbeca Stoddard

  My mom had placed a plate with fried chicken, cheesy noodles, and a salad in front of me. Sebastian’s words about what was to come floated to the front of my mind, and I quickly started on the delicious spread in front of me. As I tasted the first bite, my stomach growled fiercely. I hadn’t realized how truly hungry I was until that moment. My plate was empty five minutes after I started. I sighed and placed my plate in the sink. With my belly full, I kissed my mom’s forehead and went upstairs to wait on pins and needles with Sebastian. Climbing the last few steps made my skin itch in anticipation while worry knotted my stomach. Helios walked next to me, purring and chirping the rest of the way to my room. Taking a deep breath, I opened my bedroom door, scooped my cat up, and entered my bedroom.

  The soft glow of the setting sun was peeking over the trees and casting dancing shadows along my floor. My Savannah jumped from my arms, landing with a loud thud on the ground before he started chasing dust motes around the room. Letting out a deep breath, I relaxed and turned to go to my bed. I stopped short when I saw Sebastian lying on his back with his arms thrown over his face. His chest rose and fell softly, with sweet little breaths escaping his mouth. At first I thought he was asleep, but he quickly realized I was staring and he shifted so I could sit on the bed with him. Suddenly I was feeling shy, which was strange. Whenever I was around Sebastian I never felt uncomfortable or awkward like I did now. There was only one reason I could think of that would make me feel like this, and it was because he had been lying on my bed, where I slept every night—my own personal, intimate spot, and he was on it. Since I didn’t want him to move, I quickly sat next to him and curled my knees to my chest as we waited in silence for Athena to come.

  It felt like hours had passed before she finally appeared. Electric static crackled in the air, causing chills to spread across my skin, which was the sign she was coming. A loud crack thundered through the skies and the beautiful goddess appeared before us. Her hair was black with a single streak of red, and her skin was pale with a hint of blush. Big almond-shaped eyes peered at us through thick lashes above pronounced cheekbones. Although Aphrodite was more beautiful, Athena had a regality that her sister goddess did not have. She was dressed in a white toga, her feet bare, with a bow and a quiver of arrows thrown over her shoulder. After she stared at me for a few minutes, she finally sat in a chair across from Sebastian and I. As much as I wanted to, I knew she was the one who had to speak first, so I waited. Again.

  “You are not what I expected. Although I have seen you, you are different up close when you are awake.” Her voice was startling: It was deep, yet still very feminine. “I suppose you want to know what happened to you,” she stated more than asked.

  “Yes, I would.” I raised my chin and answered her directly.

  “Well, as you know you are part witch, fairy, and vampire. All of your fairy genes and cells have fully matured. Your witch cells are almost fully matured. But your vampire DNA has started maturing early. You passed out because your body was lacking the sustenance it needs for your vampire cells to stay healthy. It will take a few more days for your senses to stabilize and for you to be completely up to speed and normal. You will need to work harder with training and honing in on both your witch and vampire skills and powers.” Athena paused, cocking her head to the right and looking at Sebastian with a curious glance. “Sebastian, I trust you will teach her how often to feed as well as how to do it. She is, after all, the world’s savior and healer. Now I must take my leave. I will return in one week to check on you and your progress.” She smiled as she rose from my chair and disappeared.

  Sebastian touched my shoulder softly. It was strange to think that my whole life had turned upside down the moment I went to the cabin in August. I wasn’t upset. If I was being completely honest, I was happy. I felt whole and like I actually fit somewhere in the big scary world. There was no describing the feeling. As I turned to face the vampire who had helped me through the change and was helping me now, I smiled. Even though there were bad things coming our way, I knew that he would stay by me. He would always be there after the world crashed around me. My heart soared with pride.

  “What are you thinking about, my dear?” he asked me softly.

  “I was just thinking about how grateful I am that you are still here and how I know you will be there even after the world falls to crap.” I smiled gently at him.

  “Of course I will. You are, after all, my other half.” Sebastian beamed at me and pulled me in for a deep kiss.

  Butterflies swirled and danced in my belly as his lips brushed against mine. Tingles spread out across my skin, and shivers broke out along my back. Sebastian didn’t ask for an invitation as his tongue swept into my mouth. He devoured me, and I wanted more. My skin was too tight, and my stomach grew warm. The moment he realized what was going to happen if we didn’t stop, he pulled away slowly, kissing my nose, cheeks, forehead, and the top of my head. His lips were red and plump, and his hair was spiking all over the place. All the evidence of kissing passionately had been planted on his face and his disheveled clothes. I struggled to breathe normally and slow my heart rate down.

  Wait, I still had a heartbeat? I know that some books said vampires had heartbeats, but I figured it was a way for the author to make them seem more human. Then again, I was still only one-third vampire. Other species’ DNA was coursing through my veins. Tilting my head to the side, I tried to think of a way to ask the question without sounding silly. The more I thought about how to phrase my question, the more questions popped into my head. Will I grow fangs? Will I want to drink blood from everyone around me? Will I have temper tantrums that will make me want to drain someone completely? Those questions and so many more flew to the forefront of my mind, taking over every thought until I could get them out.

  “Sebastian?” I knew my voice sounded small and scared.

  “Yes, my dearest AubrieAnna?”

  “Can I ask you a couple of questions without you thinking I’m totally lame and have lost it completely?” I was afraid to look into his eyes as I formed the words.

  “I would never think you are lame or that you have lost it. So, yes, you may.” Sebastian’s voice was so sure and clear of doubt.

  “Why is my heart still beating if I am one-third vampire?” The question flew out of my mouth before I could stop it or try to word it differently.

  “Well, our hearts do not beat, at least not really. If our bodies sense too many humans, they will create their own form of a heartbeat. Even if I went to a human doctor who did not know about me, he would think I am human because my body would trick him into thinking so. It is our own strange defense mechanism. However, for you it could be completely different. Your heart may never stop or slow down. We won’t know completely until the rest of your witch training is done. We may know sooner than that, though.” His voice went from factual to soft and delicate.

  “Oh. What about the long canines and uncontrollable hunger?”

  “Canine length depends on a lot of things. Some vampires have regular ones. Most have longer. But getting them depends on how you feed for the first month after your transition. If you feed from a vein most of that month, then they will elongate. If you feed from a blood bag or cup, they will not. They will also grow if you train and learn quickly. Sadly, again I cannot say how yours will be. Although, long would look very . . . appealing on you.” He licked his top lip swiftly before continuing. “The hunger will not have as great of an impact on you as it does on full-blooded vampires. I will be extremely surprised if it does.”

  “And what about getting super-angry or frustrated with someone and then feeling like drinking all of their blood, does that or could that happen?” I felt silly asking that question.

  “Ah, yes. That does indeed happen. More often than one would hope. I will help you learn to control and fight against that urge. It will happen to you, unfortunately. Even I have been victim to it, as well as the tamest vampire I have ever met.” His voice turned sad as he sp
oke.

  “One more: Can we drink blood from a u da yv la dv?”

  “Absolutely not, AubrieAnna. If one offers you their vein, turn away. Their blood is evil, filled with black magic and dark powers that will possess you or kill you.” Sebastian’s voice was so stern that I felt a little scared.

  “You have seen it, haven’t you?” It wasn’t a statement, merely a soft, understanding question.

  “Yes.” His voice was barely a whisper and his eyes were cast down.

  “I will be here when you are ready, if you ever are ready, to talk about it.” I took his large hand in mine and gave it a small, gentle squeeze.

  We sat in silence for an hour as he stared at nothing and remembered his past. There was a part of me that felt completely helpless that I couldn’t help him forget. All I could do was remember his words and his face when he spoke of it. As his sadness struck my soul, I vowed I would do whatever was necessary to send all of the u da yv la dv back where they belonged. The more I thought about sending them back, the more I realized that I was here for that reason. It made me think about my twin, and I wondered if she knew that I was supposed to do this. Or maybe fate just worked it out that way. My smile drew Sebastian out of his haunted thoughts.

  “I’m sorry, I just went out of order for a while.” Sebastian squeezed my hand.

  “It’s all right. I’m glad to have you back, though. If you want, we can watch some movies and hang out all night.” I smiled shyly, hoping he would say yes.

  “That sounds wonderful. But before you pick a movie, tell me, why did you smile?”

  “Um, so you would say yes to staying?” I was confused why he wanted to know.

  “No, I meant before,” he prompted.

  “Before?” I questioned.

  “Before I apologized for being out of order.”

  “Oh. I was smiling because I was thinking about whether my twin knew what I was here to do, or if fate just happened to work out that way. Either way, I am incredibly glad that it did. I love you, and I wouldn’t change anything. Well, maybe the fact that our entire planet is about to get screwed by the bad guys. But I have you, Fiora, and Willow by my side. I’m not alone anymore, Sebastian. I don’t feel alone anymore. Thanks to all of you. Especially you.” My smile was pure, and my words rang with a truth that I had never felt before.

  “Oh, my sweet darling, I am so incredibly lucky. You are the one person I could never live my life without. Although I had to for quite some time, it was not without peril or deep sadness. But I knew that I had to wait, because the gods promised your return.” Sebastian cupped my cheeks softly and pulled me to him. His lips grazed my forehead, eyelids, nose, and cheeks before finally landing on my lips.

  Our souls melded together as our lips danced a dance they had known for centuries. His hands still cupped my face as gently as he possibly could. Even though I was part vampire, we didn’t know how strong my body was or what it could handle. My hands rested on his chest, feeling his labored breathing. As our tongues teased, licked, and tasted each other, my heart pounded in my ears and my breath came out in pants and gasps. Slowly, he pulled away. We both knew why he did—so we wouldn’t go too far before we were completely ready to. Sebastian smiled sweetly and kissed my lips one last time before kicking me off the bed so I could put in a movie.

  We watched cheesy classics, B-list horror movies, and the forever famous I Love Lucy. My mom made us a giant bowl of popcorn and brought up endless supplies of junk food and juice pouches. As Sebastian played around on my laptop, I smiled and knew at that moment my life was perfect and as it was supposed to be. There was no denying it. With a sly smile on my lips, I got up from my chair and jumped on Sebastian. He smiled up at me, and I giggled.

  At one in the morning, he left. Once he drove away, I felt like a piece of me was missing. It was almost as if he took a piece of my soul with him. Feeling somewhat lost, I went upstairs and started a warm bubble bath. While I walked around the bathroom lighting candles and setting up my iHome so I could listen to music, I thought about how Sebastian decided that it would be best if I stayed out of school for two more weeks. I knew that he would be teaching me more about supernaturals for another week, and then Willow, Fiora, and Clamora would continue to teach me how to harness the witch side of my unique DNA.

  Chapter 8

  I was thankful when the week was over and I got to go back to school. Although I did enjoy spending a lot of time with Sebastian, I still went a little stir-crazy. Clamora and Sebastian would only allow me to go from my house to Clamora’s. At one point during the week of my supposed illness, I begged Sebastian to take me to a movie, out to dinner, or to the mall, but he refused. According to Luke, the u da yv la dv were getting stronger every day. He even said that some had managed to break the barrier that trapped them in their world. We tried to get counsel from a god or goddess to find out what was going on, but no one was answering the calls from our rituals. Sebastian worried about me more and was trying to come up with a plan to get me to become homeschooled, but I put my foot down. There was absolutely no way I was going to stay home and not have any high school memories. And, thankfully, Clamora, Willow, and Fiora all agreed with me. Even Luke did.

  As I walked toward my locker with my headphones in, I noticed the walls were decorated with certain themes. Fiora and Willow were waiting for me by our lockers, and before I had the chance to ask them what was going on, an announcement came on over the PA with news of homecoming on Saturday and an assembly to start spirit week, I threw my books on the top shelf and slammed the door of my locker. I could feel the nymphs’ stares as I stalked off toward the library. It was the one place I liked to hide out during the cold and rainy days of the year. There were bookshelves that covered the walls, comfortable chairs, and cozy window seats throughout the room. The school was poor, with heating and cooling systems that didn’t work quite right, but my parents always believed in good literature opportunities for students. Each year, they made a hefty donation to the library, which is why a pretty gold plaque hung above the door, engraved with my family’s name. This was the nicest room in the entire school. I quickly combed the shelves for a good book and hid away in a cozy alcove in the far left corner.

  The first bell startled me out of the fantasy world of my book. I hurried to the counter to check it out, and then started toward first period, until I remembered it was an assembly. Cursing under my breath, I was caught in a wave of students who were shuffling dutifully to the upper gymnasium. As I was pushed through the crowd toward the doors, I knew it was too late to turn around. There were too many teachers and associated student body members watching for flaky students. Then out of nowhere the tingling in my fingers appeared—and in full force, too. Fear had me twisting my head in all directions, searching for the cause of my warning signal. My eyes landed on Langdon, my ex-boyfriend, and his eyes gleamed with an evil knowing. Thoughts screamed at me to ask him who or what he was, but I knew that it was a possibility that it was one of the u da yv la dv shape-shifting. They also had the ability to change humans into one of them. All I wanted in that moment was Sebastian, but he was too upset that I was back in school to even talk to me. My pulse picked up, and sweat formed a sticky layer on my hands.

  The closer the crowd of students got to Langdon, the more my hands began to vibrate. I had the sudden realization that I could explode on him and everyone would see me as a murderer without actually knowing what he was. I would go to jail, and then I wouldn’t be able to do what I was meant to do. With no concern about being suspended or getting detention, I turned and ran through the shuffling bodies. Teachers’ yells for me to stop faded as I ran faster. I pushed through the front doors so hard that the glass shook, and I kept running for the safety of everyone around me, as well as the security of my destiny. When I got to 99E, I finally stopped to catch my breath. Then, something in me told me to turn around.

  My breath caught as I faced my own worst enemy. Langdon was in his car, smiling like the devil hims
elf. I prepared myself for the irritating tingles to attack my hands, but at first nothing happened. Then he spoke, and my fingertips lit up with electricity.

  “I see you have finally come into your powers.” His deep voice hissed a little and made me gag. “No matter. I will succeed where others will fail. And you will be begging me for mercy like you did when I left you after I took your virginity.” Langdon’s words slashed at my heart, and he cackled when he saw my face. “When my people come up for a new world order, I will destroy you, your sweet little nymph friends, and especially your pathetic vampire lover. And trust me when I say that all of you are just small inconveniences in my plan.”

  “Why?” My voice came out in nothing but a whisper.

  “Why? Because when I met you, you were the one I wanted for the rest of my life. Then one of the u da yv la dv came to me and told me everything, including how that dick of a vampire is your damn soul mate. Even did this neat little trick of showing me the future. So I joined them. You know that trip I went on with my parents? Well, that was a total lie. They changed me. Then we came up with a plan. I would mark you, and the marking would last as long as your desire for me lasted. Then that fucking vampire came along and ruined everything. Now get in the damn car.”

  “No.”

  “It was not a question, AubrieAnna.”

  “Yeah, well I don’t care if it was or not. I’m not getting in the car.” I stuck my chin up to prove my point.

  “We can do this the easy way or the hard way. And quite honestly, I don’t want to ruin your face. I still like that part of you.”