by M. W. Muse
“You met Venus, didn’t you?” Lissa asked with her head down.
Of course Lissa already knew about her. “Yes,” she sighed.
“Just remember that you have the free will to be with whomever you choose.”
Legacy nodded, but didn’t agree. If she did have the free will to be with Adin, then this prophecy with River wouldn’t exist and Venus wouldn’t be here. Lissa continued crushing the leaves. “Okay, what are you doing?”
“Oh, this?” She motioned toward the pulverized remnants. “Adin’s grandma gave me some Laurel leaves.”
That was it? No further explanation? Legacy took a deep breath. She didn’t even want to try and guess what Lissa had up her sleeve. She had more pressing things to talk about. “What do you know about Venus?”
“Legacy, I don’t want to talk about her. You must not lose focus on what’s really important here. You need to prepare yourself for your ascension. You have no idea how important it is that you reach your eighteenth birthday.”
“I know. I’m trying to stay focused.” She already felt like her conversation with Calli yesterday had helped. But that help was related to the idea that she would find out about Venus. If Lissa wouldn’t provide that information, she knew a Greek god informant who would.
River was going through his own changes, and in a matter of six weeks or so, he would ascend. Legacy knew he had a lot on his mind because of his impending birthday, but she also knew he couldn’t deny her anything. He was in love with her, and he believed that they would be together as long as Adin was alive. She hoped the prophecy wasn’t literal. She didn’t believe that she and River would be together, especially not with Adin alive. That thought seemed ridiculous to her. But because of the prophecy, River was eager to answer whatever questions she had. She guessed the prophecy did have its perks.
“I’m going to school. I’ll see you this afternoon.”
Legacy walked out of the house and got into her car. On the way to school, she noticed that it was unseasonably cool outside. She didn’t understand why, but she should probably pay close attention to the weather from here on out. It was part of who she was. She needed to embrace the beauty and the power that the weather provided.
When she pulled into the parking lot, she parked next to Calli’s car. Ellen and Kate were also parked by her car. Gods, they were trying to claim those parking spots on the first day since they hadn’t parked next to Calli last year.
She got out and walked over to the median where the three of them were standing.
“Hey, Legacy!” Calli yelled, and started walking in her direction.
“Hi,” she said to Calli as she approached, and then they both walked back over to Ellen and Kate. “Hi, girls,” she said with a feigned smile on her face.
“Hi, Legacy,” Kate said. “That’s a beautiful outfit.”
“Thanks, I like yours too.”
“We all look good, don’t we?” Ellen offered, and Legacy was a little surprised that Little Miss Stuck-Up included her in that compliment.
“Yep,” Calli said.
“Oh my! Who is that?” Ellen shrieked, and they all turned around.
River was walking up from the parking lot. He smiled and waved at her, and she waved back at him.
She turned back to Ellen, and yeah, Little Miss Stuck-Up’s mouth was opened. “That’s River Rysaor. He lives next door to Calli. I got a job at his mom’s store over the summer.”
Ellen’s eyes stayed locked on River, but as soon as Legacy responded, she glanced at her. “How lucky for you,” she mocked.
“Hi, Legacy,” River said, coming from behind her.
She turned to the side to look at him, and he put his arm out to hug her as he approached. Instead of a one-armed side hug, he stepped in front of her and put his other arm around her too, so that he could hug her completely.
“Hi, River,” she said as she stepped out of his embrace.
He walked to Calli and gave her the side hug that Legacy had been expecting. “Hey, Calli. How are you doing?”
“I’m fine. This is Ellen and Kate.” Calli gestured toward the girls, and River shook each of their hands.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you both. I’m River.”
They both smiled at him. She thought they were both too stunned to actually speak. It reminded her of the first time Calli had met River, and Legacy giggled.
“What?” River asked, stepping back over to her.
“It’s nothing. Do you want me to show you around?” she asked, still tickled.
“You can show me anything you want.”
“Hmph,” Ellen mumbled at River’s comment.
River looked at Ellen and smiled, and then he winked at her while he put his arm around Legacy’s back to lead her away from the crowd. “C’mon, Calli,” River ordered.
Legacy pressed her lips together to keep from smiling, but Calli didn’t. She was obviously just as tickled about this encounter as Legacy was. She giggled as she stepped over to River.
“See you girls later,” Calli said as they turned to walk away.
“Why did you wink at her?” Calli asked, laughing.
“Well, it was either snap at her for her rude behavior or toy with her. I figured the latter would be more entertaining.”
“You got that right,” Calli said with a chuckle.
They made their way to the cafeteria to get their schedules. Since Calli had grabbed hers earlier, she stayed away from the crowd. River and Legacy stood in line to get theirs.
“So are you nervous about going to a new school?” she asked River while they were waiting their turn.
“No,” he murmured. His eyes were bright. She knew why he wasn’t nervous. Now that school was in session, they’d get to see each other much more than they had during the summer. She didn’t work everyday, and after her accident, she had to quit. Plus, she spent all her free time with Adin. Now, River would get to spend more time with her.
Once they got their schedules, all three of them compared classes. They all had chemistry first period, which was the only class they all had together. But last period, River had athletics, Calli had cheerleading, and she had gym—she put off gym to the last possible year. Even though they didn’t have the same class, they would all be at the gym during the same period. She had business and history with River too. She had English and Spanish with Calli. River and Calli had calculus together, so that was the only class that Legacy didn’t share with either of them.
They walked over to the science building for their chemistry class, and she could see the excitement still in River’s eyes.
“It’s only school, River.”
“I know,” he said, but he was still glowing.
She rolled her eyes as they walked into the classroom. Ellen was already sitting in class, and Kate wasn’t in here. Ellen’s eyebrows rose as they took their seats, and she immediately started talking to Calli. Legacy turned to River.
“You’ll have to ignore Ellen. I do,” she whispered.
“That won’t be a problem,” he said, smiling.
“Oh, get over yourself. So we have four classes together. Big deal!” she joked.
“Four? I just thought there were three, but it makes me happy you’re counting last period too.” He chuckled.
They continued their banter until the teacher came in and started class. When class was over, River walked her to their next class. He walked her to all them. In fact, he even walked her to the classes she didn’t have with him. He used the excuse that he was just learning where everything was, but she knew better.
At lunch, she sat with her two best friends, but Ellen, Todd, Kate, and Seth joined too. Alex and Laos sat at the other end, nearby but not really a part of the group. Really, they all talked in their own groups, but Ellen made sure she talked to Calli as much as she could.
When Legacy got to calculus, she was horrified to find Ellen in there. She walked over to her and sat down.
“You and River seem pretty
tight,” she commented before Legacy even got out her books.
“Yeah, he’s one of my best friends.” She shrugged.
“Really? I figured Adin would be your only male best friend.”
“Adin is my boyfriend,” she said, cutting her eyes in Ellen’s direction.
“Well, maybe you should tell River that.”
“He knows,” she snapped.
“Then he doesn’t care.”
Legacy rolled her eyes and turned away from the leech. She didn’t want to talk to her about Adin or River. They each had a place in her life, but her life was none of Ellen’s business.
When Legacy got out of calculus, she headed to the gym, but she didn’t get far before River showed up to walk with her.
“Let me carry your books,” River said as he tried to take them from her.
“I got them.” She looked away from him as she kept walking.
“You’ve been sort of quiet all day. Is everything okay? I’m not crossing any boundaries, am I?” River whispered.
“Oh, no. It’s not that.”
River grabbed her arm to stop her from walking. “Then what’s wrong? I assumed I was doing something to put you in this mood. If I had known it wasn’t because I was being an ass or something, I would have asked you about this already.”
“You’re always an ass.” She smirked and he rolled his eyes. “Let’s talk about it later. I don’t want to be late.” She turned to walk away, and River kept pace right beside her. Once they got into the gym, they went their separate ways.
Since they didn’t have to dress out on the first day, last period was like a free period. After the introductions and locker assignments, everyone was free to roam around, but she just sat on the bleachers. Calli’s cheerleading class was practicing since they had a game this Friday, but since River wasn’t on the football team, he was free to come over.
She sighed as she watched him walk up the bleachers. He had a look in his eyes that told her she would have to spill everything, so she knew they had a lot to talk about.
“So, what’s going on?” he asked as he sat beside her.
“Well, I need to bring you up to speed on some other things first. Then I can tell you why I’m upset.”
His eyes softened. “Okay.”
“I talked to Adin about who he really is.”
“Good. He should have been honest with you from the beginning.”
“I thought so too. And we fought about that. But I see his point. He was only trying to protect me.”
“He told me that same crap when you were in the hospital.”
“Well, I believe him.”
“Legacy—”
“No,” she interrupted. “I’m not going to argue with you about him. That’s not why I’m upset.”
“If you’re not mad at Adin, then what’s wrong?”
“Besides talking to Adin, I also talked to Lissa this weekend. She told me your mom didn’t try to kill me. Well, not counting Yale anyway.”
“What are you talking about?” River’s eyes grew wider as he grabbed her arm.
She’d gotten struck by lightning when working one morning at Medusa’s store. River had performed CPR until the paramedics arrived, and he and Adin stayed with her at the hospital as much as they were allowed while she recovered. She had thought that Medusa, River’s mom, had been the one behind the hit. She wasn’t the only one who thought this either, and River had carried the blame for what had happened to her. She had already told Adin the truth, so now she needed to tell River.
“It was me.”
“What do you mean it was you?” River said through his teeth.
“When I was talking to Lissa, I got mad at her, and thunder struck. I realized at that moment I was the one causing the weather problems here, not your mother.”
“You’re causing the weather here? But my mom has those types of abilities. How can you be sure it was you?”
“Because we were fighting when I struck myself, so I was mad then too. I need to learn how to deal with my emotions because they’re linked to the weather.”
“So you did get hurt because of me,” River whispered.
“No! That’s not what I mean. Please don’t take the blame for me getting hurt. I already asked you not to do that when we thought it was your mother’s doing, but now I really, really mean it. I don’t want you upset about this.”
“How can I not be? I love you, and you got hurt because of me.” He took his arm off hers and put both of them on his legs. He leaned down and dropped his head into his hands.
She knew River loved her, and he knew that she did not feel the same way about him. But she still cared about him. He was one of her best friends, so she didn’t want him hurting.
She reached over and rubbed his back. “Please, River, I can’t take you being upset about this. You have helped me so much over the summer. But the reason I got hurt was because of me. Not you.”
“Legacy…” River shook his head.
“Please. Let’s just look at this for what it was—a learning experience.”
River exhaled. “What else did Lissa say?” he asked, still hiding his face.
“She thinks you might have caused the tropical storm when Adin was on vacation.”
River’s head shot up, and he looked at her. “What?” He was clearly shocked by this.
“She said that it might not have been you, but if it was, then you might not have realized you were doing that. You could have subconsciously wanted to sabotage his vacation because he’d asked me out. But that’s just a guess.”
“I…I don’t know what to think about that.”
“Well, if it was you, and you didn’t know you were doing it,” she paused, raising an eyebrow, “then you need to work on controlling your emotions too.”
“I guess that’s possible. Did she say anything else?”
Legacy looked down at her hands. “I asked her about the prophecy. I know I want to be with Adin.” She looked at River, and he’d shut his eyes at this acknowledgement. “But I didn’t want you hurt because of my choice.” River opened his eyes to look at her. “She said that I may already know what I want, but that there were other factors to be considered. Factors that haven’t presented themselves. Once those elements are considered, then my legacy will become clear.”
“So she thinks there’s a chance you won’t end up with Adin?”
Legacy sighed and looked down. He didn’t have to sound so freaking happy about it.
“I’m sorry,” River said as he stroked her arm. “I didn’t mean to say it like that. I meant to ask if she believed in the prophecy.”
“I didn’t specifically ask her that. She just thinks my destiny is unclear at this point because of those unknown factors. Well, they’re not all unknown.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means that a factor has surfaced, which is why I’ve been in a funk.” She shrugged in an attempt to make light of her mood, but she felt her eyes moisten.
River reached up to stroke her face, and she could feel his hand trembling. She wasn’t sure if it was because he was touching her face or if it was from some adrenaline rush at the thought of her future and what that meant for him.
“Stop,” she breathed, and reached up to pull his hand down.
He leaned his head over and rested his forehead against hers. “I’m sorry. You know I’m trying, and I usually do a pretty good job at respecting your boundaries, but it’s harder for me to do that when you’re in pain.”
She leaned way from him. “It’s okay.” She looked up at the ceiling, folding her arms across her chest.
Out of the corner of her eye, she watched River move his hand as if he were going to touch her again, but then check himself, putting it back in his lap and clamping it onto this his other hand. “What factor surfaced?” he asked, looking at her.
“Umm, Adin took me to his freshman banquet at school Saturday night,” she whispered.
“And?”
“I see.” And she knew he did. He understood all too well what this meant.
She pursed her lips and shook her head, looking away from him. “This isn’t fair.”
“I agree,” he snapped. His tone was not what she expected. Why did he sound angry? He should be jumping for joy.
She looked at River. “What’s wrong with you?”
He narrowed his eyes. “My mother,” he practically growled. “That’s what’s wrong with me.”
She stared at River as the words he just spoke sank in. “Your mother?” she shrieked.
“I don’t know for sure, but it sounds like something she’d do.”
“Why do you say that? If she wanted to hurt me, she could just kill me. Why bother with the theatrics?” It wasn’t as if she hadn’t tried already.
“Because death is too easy. She wants you to suffer first.”
“I could kill her for this!” she roared, and thunder crashed outside. It was one thing to hurt her, but now the monster was trying to hurt Adin.
River smiled wickedly. “Maybe you don’t need to control your emotions at all. Maybe you need to just embrace your abilities and let whatever consequences just happen.”
She smiled and felt herself calming back down. “Seriously, I know Lissa told you that your mom wouldn’t wait to destroy me, she’d take whatever chances she could. It doesn’t make sense for her to sidestep her main objective.”
“Who’s saying she’s sidestepping? I’m sure if she’s the one behind this, then she is fully aware of her motives.”
“Well, we need to find out for sure.”
The bell rang and Legacy grabbed her things and headed down the bleachers.
“I’ll see what I can come up with,” River said.
She nodded, thrilled River wanted to help. “And I need to learn everything about Venus too.” That, she definitely wanted to find out. She was sure researching about her would help her keep her sanity.
“Okay,” River said as he nodded in agreement.
Calli came toward them, so Legacy turned and headed her way. Then she looked over her shoulder at River. “Thank you,” she said as she turned around and kept walking.
