“How do you know about that?” I yanked my paper from under his butt. “And why do you care?” I tried to work out the wrinkles by rubbing it back and forth against the edge of the counter. “Plus, I wouldn’t hurt Troy. I like him.”
Gatsby made a sound like a sneeze. “You like him?”
“Yes. I do.”
“Until Laeddin decides to give you his attention. Then what? You’ll discard him like smelly shoes?” Gatsby moved over to my opened history book and lay on it.
“Gatsby. Get off,” I said, irritated. “And no. He’s my friend. I don’t just dump friends and then forget them.”
“Really? What about Sabrina? It’s been six weeks and you haven’t said a word to her. You didn’t even say good-bye and she was supposed to be your best friend.” He closed his eyes and started purring.
“You—” I didn’t have a comeback. Gatsby had a point. “You’re right. I should speak with her.”
“Yes, you should. And soon. But first we need to discuss the Mistress.”
I felt my eyes get wide. “What do you know?” I crossed my arms and rested my elbows on the counter.
Gatsby yawned. “Only everything.” He licked his paws and wiped his whiskers.
“Well, then spill it, cat,” I said, my homework forgotten.
CHAPTER EIGHT
After Gatsby left, I texted Troy: We need to talk. Are my mom and dad back?
No. What about Laeddin? Troy replied.
No. And I’m starting to worry. I can’t go back to his realm without him, either.
Peter and Zoe just showed up. They need to speak with you too. We’re coming over.
K.
Dress for Akuma hunting. We’re going again tonight.
Got it.
I ran upstairs. Since I was already wearing jeans and a tee shirt, I left those on, but changed out of my Converse and into a pair of black Dr. Marten boots. Then I grabbed a black Metal Melisha hoodie. The back had a teal skull sporting a pink bow. I thought it quite appropriate for what we would be doing. I swiped some gloss over my lips and fixed my ponytail, then went back downstairs to wait.
Not too many minutes later, someone knocked on the door. I opened it, expecting my mom, dad, and Troy, but it wasn’t them. It was a woman with long red hair, striking blue eyes—exactly like my mom’s—and the creamiest skin I’d ever seen. It was almost transparent. She wasn’t very tall and she was thin.
The woman smiled. “Hi Jasmine.”
“Uh, hi.” A nervous flutter jolted my insides even though I thought I knew who she was.
“I’m Ariel, dear. Your grandmother.” Her beautiful smile got bigger.
“It is you.” I’d never seen her, but my mom had talked about her a lot. “I thought you were still in Mizu.”
“I was.” She stepped forward. “Do you mind if I come in?”
“Oh my gosh. I’m sorry. Yes, please come in.” I held the door open and then directed her to the couch after I closed it.
After she sat she said, “I thought I might find your mother here. Do you know where she is?”
I sat next to her. “She’s on her way over. Is everything all right?”
Ariel leaned back, pulled her legs up and crossed them underneath her. “Not really. That’s why I need to speak with Snow.”
“What’s wrong?” I turned to face her more fully.
“It’s Mizu. Our city is dying and I need to find a safe place for the people to go.”
“That’s terrible. But how is such a thing possible?”
“The magic that created Mizu was designed to keep us from the second Vampire Queen. Sharra.”
“I remember the story,” I interjected.
Ariel nodded. “Mizu was supposed to disappear as soon as Sharra was no longer in power, but it’s held up the last fifteen years. Really well, in fact. And my people didn’t want to leave. But over the last six weeks Mizu has slowly begun to die. I figure it has another three months, four at the most, until it will no longer sustain life.”
“I think I know why.” My heart beat rapidly. The consequences for my actions were farther reaching than I ever would’ve guessed.
“You do?” Ariel questioned.
“Yes,” I said, and was about to tell her everything Gatsby had said when Troy came in followed by Peter and Zoe.
“Hey,” I said, standing.
Ariel stood too.
When Zoe saw her, she ran over. Ariel put up her hands in a position of defense. Zoe slid to a stop. Shocked.
I was too, until it dawned on me what was wrong. “Mom, you don’t look anything like yourself, remember?”
Relief washed over Zoe’s face. “You’re right!” She laughed. “Sorry about that. But, Mom, it’s me. Snow White.”
Ariel squinted her eyes. “Why do you look like that?”
While my parents explained what they’d done and why they were now Peter and Zoe, I went over to Troy. “Hi,” I whispered, feeling shy.
His arms were crossed. “That’s Snow’s real mom?”
“Yes, she’s been in Mizu for a long time. This is my first time meeting her too.”
“What do we know about her?”
I shrugged. “Not much. Just what my mom told me over the years when I was growing up.”
“Can we trust her?”
“Yes, Troy. Jeez, paranoid much?” Zoe shouted from across the room. Then she hugged her mom.
“Fine. Just checking. I want Jack safe. That’s all.”
“Who’s Jack?” Ariel asked.
“I am.” I shrugged. “The name I go by in the human realm.”
Ariel shook her head. “You’re all so complicated. Different names. Different faces. How the H-E-double crab sticks am I supposed to keep up? I’m old.”
I laughed. We all laughed. “Agreed.”
“Now, why don’t you explain why you think Mizu is dying?” She sat and patted the spot next to her on the couch.
Zoe took the seat beside her, and Peter beside her. I remained next to Troy, who was leaning against one of the bar chairs in the kitchen.
“I believe Mizu is dying for the same reason Earth is going dark. It has to do with the Mistress. I know what she’s doing and why. I also know who she is.” While I spoke everyone leaned forward.
“Well, go on, Jack. Don’t keep us in suspense.” Troy said the words, but it was obvious everyone was thinking the same thing.
“Okay,” I began and then stopped, nervous. Because we’d all sort of guessed that what was happening had to do with me giving my wings to Maleficent, but they really had no idea. Once my mom and dad found out, they’d probably be so upset. Disappointed.
But there was no getting around the truth. The sooner everyone knew, the better. “The Mistress is Maleficent,” I said, moving over to the chair near the glass shelves and sitting down. I needed some space.
“We kind of figured that,” Peter said.
“Right, but what you haven’t figured it that Maleficent isn’t Maleficent anymore.” I paused, dreading what I had to reveal, knowing I didn’t have a choice. “She’s Sharra.”
Everyone spoke at once. Peter and Zoe were saying something to each other. Troy said something, but I didn’t catch what it was. And Ariel swore.
“What makes you think such a thing?” Peter asked. He seemed to be the calmest of the group.
I didn’t want to explain about Gatsby talking. I didn’t feel like that was my place. So I told them about the dreams. About Maleficent flying into the Cave of Lost Souls, and waking a vampire named Arthur. When I spoke his name, Zoe’s face went pale as the driven snow.
“Who is he?”
Zoe shook her head. “Later. Keep going. Tell us everything.”
I explained that she told Arthur she was Sharra, even though she looked like Maleficent. I told them how she said she intended to be the “almighty ruler of the entire world” and then I told my mom about Ciana too. It felt like the appropriate time.
“No,” Zoe said and I thought
I saw tears in her eyes. “I wondered where she went. No one has seen her in weeks.” Her features got angry. “Jasmine is right. Maleficent is Sharra.”
“But then what happened to Maleficent?” Troy asked.
I shrugged. “It’s like she’s there too. That they somehow combined or became one.”
Peter nodded. “And the Akuma?”
“They are her minions. Sharra is taking those who have evil tendencies and changing them so that they’re loyal to her. I don’t know if those she changes still know who they are afterward or if they’re just empty underlings doing her bidding.”
“So that’s it?” Troy sat in the chair he’d been leaning on.
“How do we stop her?” Ariel asked.
Zoe shook her head. “I don’t know. I thought I’d destroyed Sharra when I took over as queen. Apparently not.” She turned away. Peter put his arms around her and said something only she could hear.
Zoe shook her head.
Peter rubbed Zoe’s back. “It’ll be okay. We’ll figure it out.”
She faced my direction. Worry flickered across Zoe’s face. “Did you see Christopher? Has he joined Sharra as well?”
I felt my face get hot. Now probably wasn’t the best time to tell her that I’d seen Christopher and drank from him. “No. He isn’t with her.” That wasn’t a lie and I took a little comfort in that.
“That’s a relief.” Zoe leaned into Peter. “I got the feeling he’d changed his ways over the years, but with him…” Her voice trailed off.
I’d heard the story of the way he betrayed my mom, but everything worked out in the end. She was with my dad and that had been their destiny. But the knowledge didn’t change the fact that Christopher hurt my mom.
“If you see him, you let us know,” Peter growled.
I swallowed, nodding. Yeah, now definitely wasn’t the time. They would freak when I told them Christopher believed he was my betrothed.
“First things first. How do we stop the darkness? How is she creating the gloom? And why?” Troy asked.
“She believes that if she turns the world dark and then becomes the only light, everyone will accept her rule more easily,” I said.
“If she succeeds, that’s exactly what’ll happen. Those in the land of Sharra are fidgety. They’re scared and angry.” She clutched Peter’s hand. “They had no idea the other realms existed. No idea they could go home, so to speak. That is until the darkness started to fall. It was the pixilettes who noticed first. Before the reporter shared that the darkness was falling over the entire world, I was inclined to think the darkness in Sharra was nothing to worry about.”
“I understand what you mean,” Ariel said.
Zoe smiled. “I held a council meeting last night and shared what I’d learned. About the darkness and about the realms. Sharra has kept us in the dark so to speak about a lot of things for a long time.” She shook her head sadly. “There are those on the council who don’t believe I didn’t know. They think I’ve been keeping secrets too.”
“Then they don’t know you at all,” I said savagely. Knowing my mom would never keep such an important secret.
“Now that they know their own realms exist,” Zoe continued, “they want to leave Sharra and be with their own kind. As the queen I’m inclined to let them go, but I’m worried for them too. Worried about what that evil vampire will do to them.” Zoe shrugged. “To all of us, really.”
“I guess we go Akuma hunting and hope one of them will talk,” Troy said, frustrated.
Laeddin appeared in the middle of the room.
“Laeddin,” I said, relieved.
Zoe let out a squeal.
Ariel jumped up, ready to fight.
Peter and Troy barely moved. They were used to the way Laeddin popped in and out on a regular basis.
“I think I’ve figured out how to stop her,” Laeddin blurted, just as surprised as the rest of us.
“Really,” Ariel said, sitting again.
“Who’s this?” Laeddin asked, giving her a peculiar look.
“She’s my mom,” Zoe said.
He raised an eyebrow. “Hello. I’m Laeddin. A genie and Jasmine’s servant.”
Ariel gave me a secret smile. It made me blush. “Well Laeddin, it’s lovely to meet you,” she said.
Laeddin turned to me, his aqua eyes sparkling with an emotion I hadn’t seen in him in weeks. Hope. “And I think I found a way to get Jasmine her wings back.”
“How?” Troy asked. I wasn’t sure if he was upset it was Laeddin who found a way to help or that the genie was back.
“It isn’t going to be easy, but if we all work together, we can do it.” He gave Ariel a pointed look. “Including you.”
“Whatever you need,” Ariel said.
“Then I think we might have a chance at beating her.”
For the next several hours we discussed a plan to defeat Maleficent.
CHAPTER NINE
The first step was to capture an Akuma.
That meant hunting without killing, which I doubted was possible.
We were back at the Harmony Grove Cemetery. Since there had been so many Akuma there the previous night, we decided to try again. This time we got there early, before the sun fully set. We wanted to find out where or how the Akuma were getting into the cemetery so we could try to catch them by surprise. Ariel took the northwest corner. Peter had the northeast. Zoe kept eyes on the southeast. Troy had the southwest. And Laeddin and I had the center.
“What’s going on with you and Troy?” Laeddin asked. We were standing near a fancy monument complete with concrete stairs leading up to it. To the right was a gothic style church built in nineteen hundred and five.
The church had a tall pointed spire that rose from the center, along with four smaller spires, one at each corner. The carvings were intricate. Some might call it gaudy but I thought it was amazing.
I turned away from Laeddin, not sure how to talk to him about Troy. “What do you mean?” I finally asked.
“Something’s different.” He ran a hand through his dark hair and I caught a flash of his tribal tattoo. That was part of the plan too. I would use my second wish, but at the right time. A time Laeddin specified. It once again had to do with consequences.
“He asked me to go with him to a dance at school.” I kicked at a tall chunk of grass.
“That’s nice,” Laeddin said quietly.
I glanced over. His face was impassive. I couldn’t read what was going on in his mind. “It should be fun. I’ve never been to a school dance.”
“Yeah, it definitely fits into your plan for a normal teenaged life, right?” His words were light, but tinged with sarcasm.
I lifted my chin defiantly. Wasn’t it okay to try to enjoy whatever I could? “Exactly,” I snapped. He was the one who said we couldn’t be any more than friends while I still had wishes. It made sense, I guess. But he knew I wanted more, yet we barely talked, except when he had to over the past six weeks.
Laeddin sighed. “Jasmine, I’m sorry.”
I gritted my teeth. Sorry meant nothing if he didn’t have the actions to back it up.
“Look at me.” He tilted my chin so I had no choice. “I—” He stopped. “You have your vampire abilities back?”
“How can you tell?” Was he mad? He seemed… I wasn’t sure.
“I can see it. On your skin. In your eyes. I can even smell the difference. You aren’t the same as before though. Something’s different.” He dropped his hand and stepped back. “You drank blood. Whose was it?”
I closed my eyes. “It isn’t a bad thing, is it?” I crossed my arms, sad and feeling sorry for myself. I couldn’t seem to do anything right.
“It depends. Your mom had you drink from the different magics to fortify the magic within that blood. Elf blood enhances your eternal sight. Troll blood improves your strength and so on. That’s why human blood, while satisfying, doesn’t enhance your magics.” Laeddin stopped talking and I opened my eyes. He was afraid.
“Whose blood did you drink, Jasmine?”
“I—”
The sun had gone down and we were in total darkness. I hadn’t noticed because of my vampire abilities. A person walked out of the old church. “Laeddin. Behind you.”
Warily, he turned around.
“Is it one of them?” I asked.
“Yep.” Laeddin move closer.
I took my phone from my back pocket and sent a group text. It was one word: Akuma.
Then I pocketed my phone and lowered my center. Facing the Akuma tonight would be different. This time I had my fangs.
Laeddin took some rope from his pocket. I had some too and pulled it from my hoodie. Peter, Zoe, and Troy had the same kind of rope as well.
Before heading to the cemetery, Zoe had placed a binding spell on each of the ropes. It was supposed to allow the rope to seize and hold any lower magical creature. Since we weren’t sure what magic had been used to create the Akuma we didn’t know if the vampire queen’s magic would work. But it was the place to start.
“I’ll go left. You take the right side,” Laeddin said.
“Got it.” I moved, keeping my focus on demon creature. He didn’t smell human. I realized that first thing. He smelled like a corpse covered in perfume or dried potpourri. That was it. He smelled like vanilla potpourri. It was so strong I wondered how I hadn’t smelled it on the elf even without my vampire senses.
“Hey man,” I said when I was close enough that I was sure he could hear.
“Hello,” he sneered. “You’re just the vampire I was looking for. The Mistress would like to speak with you.”
I took the rope from my hoodie pocket. “Really? What does she want?” The others were coming. I could hear them and knew they were getting closer. The idea was that we would all go after one Akuma at the same time. Six against one put the odds in our favor.
The Akuma tilted his head as though listening, and I wondered if he could hear the others moving as well. He smiled. “You’re predictable,” he sneered. “She said you would do this.” He closed his eyes, lifted his arms and tilted back his head. Then just stood there. As though he knew what we intended and was waiting, accepting his fate.
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