by Brea Alepoú
Zola’s soft lips pressed against Melony's neck, and she moaned, tilting her head to give more access. All while looking into Itsumi’s dark eyes. She could get lost in those dark pools of endless wonderment.
Melony stomach took that moment to let them all know that her hunger for actual food would not go ignored. Itsumi stifled a laugh, and Melony groaned.
"You need to eat," Zola said in her ear.
Melony closed her eyes. She was hungry, but she could ignore it for a little longer. Her stomach growled again. Maybe not.
She sighed, knowing very well her stomach would continue to make noises. Itsumi had burst into laughter, and Zola was chuckling behind Melony.
"Ugh, fine, let's go eat then." Melony walked away and headed toward the door. She looked back at Zola and Itsumi who were still laughing at her. "Would you two come on?"
"We should or your stomach might yell at us some more," Itsumi said.
Melony rolled her eyes at Itsumi. "Ha ha ha. You're a fucking comedian."
Itsumi grabbed her and kissed her once more before pulling back. "Nah, darling, far from it."
Melony melted in Itsumi’s arms. Zola came over and opened the door, signaling that it was time to go eat.
"Where is breakfast?" Melony asked.
They walked together into the hallway, and Itsumi pulled her hood over her head, shielding her face once more. Only her eyes showed as they walked. Melony missed looking at Itsumi’s face; it was truly beautiful.
"Why do you wear a cover?" Melony asked.
"It is required of me. It is the way I was raised. To be ready at all times to disappear and kill an opponent."
Melony stopped walking and looked to Itsumi. "You kill people?"
Zola and Itsumi both turned to look at her. She stood frozen in the hallway, the only thing going through her mind was her parent's death. She knew that Itsumi hadn't been there, but it still played in her head.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Don't think about it. Don't.
No matter how many times she shouted it in her head, the flashes of her mom were clear in her mind. It was like she was in the room all over again, and her mother was begging for her to turn and look at her, asking why Melony killed her. Melony felt as if she was going to be sick. She placed her hand on the wall, trying to steady herself. Everything started to waver, and she looked down at her hands. They shook with the fear she felt down to her core.
"Melony," she heard Zola call out to her.
Melony closed her eyes, squeezing her hand in a fist. She needed to get her shit together. She couldn't break down right now. It just wasn't the time.
When will it be?
She wanted to cry. She wasn't sure of the answer to that question. Would she ever be able to have a fucking minute to mourn the loss of her loved ones? She doubted.
Did she deserve it? After all, it was all her fault.
No no no no.
She opened her eyes and stood up straight. She looked to Zola, unable to face Itsumi in that moment. She focused on Zola’s cool green eyes and centered herself. She could deal with everything once there was time, and if there was never time… Well, then she would keep pushing everything to the back of her mind. She recollected everything that had happened to her. All the torture, her mother's death, leaving Denelle, not being able to find her father… She put it all in a small box and closed it.
"Melony," Itsumi said. She sounded worried.
Melony turned to look at Itsumi. She had no right to judge her for what she did, but it still didn't sit well with her. She smiled at them both. "Let's get breakfast." She pushed off the wall and began to walk. She glanced behind her and saw Zola and Itsumi looking at her strangely, still standing in the same spot. "Come on."
"Are you okay?" Zola asked.
Melony knew she’d nearly just broken down and had a full on panic attack, but she put all of it away. She would be fine now.
She had to be.
"Yeah, I'm hungry though, so can we go?"
Itsumi tilted her head to the side. "Are you sure?"
Melony smiled. It felt fake, but she would fake it as long as she could. She watched as Itsumi and Zola looked to each other. She waited for them, still smiling. Her cheeks began to ache. She needed them to move along with her, to pretend she didn't almost have a break down in the fucking hallway all because she’d found out Itsumi killed people. She was sure so did Zola. Melony had blood on her hands as well. She couldn't judge and she shouldn't.
Finally, they started to walk and Melony was thankful. There was no more talking, but Melony was okay with that. She didn't feel up to talking any longer. Itsumi led the way to where they could eat.
Walking into the dining hall once more, Melony was floored by how much food was on the table. There were platters of food spread out, and her stomach growled with happiness from the sight. Melony moved and filled her plate with sausage, bacon, slices of ham, potatoes, pancakes, and fruit. She eyed the other food. Her plate was full, but she considered just stacking more food on top.
"You can always grab more once you finish," Itsumi said.
Melony's face heated with embarrassment. Had she really been that obvious?
Melony couldn't see what kind of face Itsumi was making, but she felt as if Itsumi was smirking behind her hood. Zola came over, her plate only containing fruit and a small chocolate croissant. Melony started to feel self-conscious of her food choices. She waited for Itsumi to grab a plate, but she didn't. She turned and moved to one of the many tables available in the dining hall.
"Aren't you going to eat?" Melony asked.
Itsumi shook her head. "I'll eat later."
She pulled out a chair, and Melony waited for her to sit only to realized that Itsumi had pulled the chair out for her.
"Thank you."
Zola had done the same thing for her last night at dinner. She sat down and Zola sat next to her. Melony once again noticed the difference in their plates.
Zola looked up at her, seeming to notice that Melony hadn't touched her food. "Is something the matter?"
Melony shook her head. Just her own insecurities. When she dated guys, they always told her she ate too much or she ate like a man, and she didn't want Zola or Itsumi to think that of her.
"Why aren't you eating? The whole room can hear your stomach," Itsumi said.
Melony couldn't lie and say she wasn't hungry, because she obviously was.
"Here." Itsumi sat down, speared one of her sausages with a fork, and held it in front of Melony's face. Melony glared at her. She didn't need to be fed like a child. "Come on, open up."
"I'm not a child," Melony said. Melony hated not being able to see Itsumi’s facial expression, especially since she had so many.
"I know that." Itsumi’s eyes traveled down Melony’s body and back up. "I know that very well," she said in a seductive tone.
Melony opened her mouth, but only because Itsumi was making it fun. But if she started making plane noises, Melony would put a stop to it at once.
Melony ate the sausage that was offered to her, and fuck, she wanted to moan from how good it tasted. She held back, not wanting to seem even weirder. She went to grab the fork to feed herself, the taste of food too good to ignore. Itsumi pulled the fork back, just out of reach of Melony's hand.
"Itsumi," Melony said warningly.
Itsumi cut a piece of pancake and dipped it in syrup before offering it up to Melony. Melony looked at Itsumi, but once again opened her mouth.
"This is a lot more fun than I thought," Itsumi said.
Melony rolled her eyes. She felt it was more embarrassing than fun, but her stomach didn't give a damn. She was hungry, and Itsumi feeding her was helping ease the hunger. Itsumi continued to feed her until Melony was full and most of her plate cleared. She had thought she would go up for seconds, but there was no way in hell she could now.
Itsumi seemed to know that Melony was full, because she didn't offer another bite. Melony still couldn't believe sh
e had let Itsumi feed her.
"You aren't allowed in here."
Melony turned to see a tall man with long brown hair and a tux on. Melony saw movement behind him.
Was that a fucking cape on his back? Did it just move?
"What are you talking about?" Melony asked.
The man looked to her with so much disdain Melony was surprised she didn't catch on fire from the look. He turned back to look at Itsumi. "You don't belong to a specific witch in this coven, so you are to eat in the guards’ dining hall. This is for coven members and their bonded creatures only. By rule of Queen Lydia herself."
"And why does this concern you? Last time I checked, the queen was a woman with blonde hair. You don't fit the picture. So, if you aren't the queen herself telling me who I can and cannot eat with, I suggest you mind your business and take your cape and fly away." Melony glared at the man. How dare he come over to her table and demand that Itsumi leave. She was there with them, and Melony didn't want her to leave.
"You have no right here. You are nothing more than a prisoner the queen is playing with simply because you have a unicorn. Without that, you are worthless. Trash.”
That explained why Melony was no longer in the torture chambers.
"I'm not sure I can take anything you say seriously with your cape flapping behind you." Melony leaned farther back in her chair. She was probably breaking some rules, but she was no pushover.
"You low-level p—"
"Philis, what are you doing?" A woman with deep red hair placed her hand on Philis’s shoulder. She turned to Melony with kind blue eyes. "Sorry, we haven't officially met. I'm Nari Clove and the is Philis, my brother. I hope he wasn't interrupting your meal." She really sounded genuinely sorry.
Melony was still skeptical. "Melony Jefferson."
Nari pulled out a chair and sat down at the table. "I heard you declined the Queen's offer to join the coven." She looked eager for Melony's answer.
"Nari, you shouldn't sit here," Philis said.
Nari waved him off. "Fuck what all those over-privileged jackasses think." She looked at Melony, still waiting. "So, did you?"
Melony shrugged. She knew it had to be a big deal, but she was trying to act as if it wasn't.
"Wow, ballsy." She smiled. "I like you."
"Thank you, I think. Can’t say if I like you or not yet. Your brother on the other hand? I don’t like him at all," Melony said.
Nari laughed as if Melony had told the best joke. “Don’t worry. If he wasn’t my brother, I wouldn’t like him either.” She gave a genuine smile to Melony. "It's almost like you aren't from our world."
That's because I’m not.
"Nari, come on, people are beginning to stare." Philis reached for his sister's shoulder.
Nari sighed and stood up. "We should hang out." Her eyes moved to the cuffs on Melony's wrists. "Sorry for my brother."
Melony nodded, not sure what else to say.
"So, hang out?" Nari asked once more.
"Ummm…" She looked to Zola and Itsumi, but their focus never wavered from their guests. Melony internally sighed. Nari seemed nice enough, but could she really be trusted? Then again, her gut said Nari wasn't a bad person, and she trusted her gut. After all, she’d trusted it about Itsumi and look how that was going. She was out of the room of pink death.
"Sure, we can go do witch things," Melony said.
Nari laughed. "Yeah."
"Nari," Philis pleaded.
"Ugh… Well, see you around, Melony." Nari walked away with her brother.
"She seemed nice. So, there are nice witches too?"
Itsumi shrugged. "Depends on what qualifies as ‘nice’."
Melony turned to look at her, but Itsumi’s eyes were trained on Nari and Philis as they moved to the other side of the dining hall.
"What's with you two?
"Are you done eating?" Zola asked.
She was, though she could probably eat a little more. She wasn't hungry, it would just be her encouraging herself. "Yeah, I'm done."
“Then let's go," Itsumi said.
They both stood, and Melony followed behind them. They left the dining hall, neither one of them talking. They walked at a fast pace, Melony nearly having to jog to keep up.
"Is there any reason why we are practically running down the hall?"
Neither one of them answered her. They turned a few corners before they were down the hallway where the room they had slept in was. Melony stopped before they entered the room. Itsumi and Zola both stopped and turned to her.
"I need you guys to talk to me. Ignoring me isn't going to work." It came out a lot harsher than she had intended, but she couldn't handle them ignoring her. Especially when it was something that she needed to understand.
"Sorry," Zola said. She grabbed Melony’s shoulders. "All I could think of was to get you out of there and somewhat safe. I should have said something."
Melony sighed. Now she felt like shit for yelling at them when they were only trying to protect her. "We need to come up with some type of signal when you guys can't answer a question or need me to move without saying anything."
"Okay, but can we talk about the signal in the room?" Itsumi gestured to the door.
Melony nodded, and they all walked into the room. Itsumi closed the door, and Zola pushed Melony behind her. They stood in front of her for a few long seconds. Melony stayed quiet, waiting for something to happen. She wasn't sure what, but she knew they were waiting for something. Zola tapped her on the shoulder, and Melony looked to her, but Zola’s eyes were focused on the door. Melony opened her mouth to ask what was going on, but remembered the conversation they had just had.
Had that been the signal?
Melony wasn't sure, but it was best just to follow their lead until she knew otherwise.
A purple flame appeared in Itsumi’s hand. Melony watched as the flame flickered, and when Itsumi placed it onto the ground, the fire covered the whole room. Melony yelped, afraid the fire would burn, but when it got close to her, it simply passed her by. She turned to Zola to watch the flame skim over her and keep moving.
Melony bent down to feel the fire. There was no heat from the flame. She could clearly feel it, but it didn't feel like fire. It only looked it. Sticking her hand into the purple flame felt as if she was sticking her hand in water, except her hand wasn't wet when she pulled it back.
After a few minutes, the whole room was decorated in purple flames, then the fire disappeared, and Itsumi turned back around, Zola's shoulders relaxing.
"I'm guessing it's okay for me to talk now?" Since she was already talking, she didn't wait for an answer and continued to anyway. "What the hell is going on?" She looked at both of them.
"They both had shadow creatures. We had to make sure they didn’t have one following us. The girl had two, which makes her even more dangerous than her brother," Itsumi said.
“Was that the reason Philis’s cape moved on its own?” Melony asked.
They both looked at her strangely.
“You saw that?” Itsumi asked.
Melony shrugged. “It was kind of hard to miss. He was wearing a red cape.”
Itsumi grabbed Melony’s cuffed wrists and looked them over. ”All of the stones are intact. You shouldn’t have been able to see it or the movement at all. At least, not with the cuffs on.”
Melony looked at the annoying cuffs. They didn’t really bother her, but it kept her from using fire. And although she had gone her whole life without it, it felt strange not to be able to use it anymore now that she knew about it.
"Shadow creatures take many forms, but once bonded, they can stay within the shadow of their master," Zola said, answering Melony's next question.
"You think Nari would attack me?"
Itsumi let her wrists go and moved back. She shrugged, and Zola looked concerned but shrugged as well. "You never know. She could find you a threat," Zola said.
Melony must have made a face, because Zola put on a tentative
smile. "But I didn't feel any hostility from her or her creatures."
Melony nodded. She thought Nari would be a good friend in the hot mess her life had become. "What was with the purple fire? And how come it didn't burn?"
"It's purifying fire. It won't harm anyone that doesn't mean me harm. I let it out to purify the room."
"Can I do that too?" Melony asked.
Itsumi looked at her strangely, but Zola shook her head. "No, you can't. It's a trait of the foxes."
Melony nodded. "Oh, just like unicorns can teleport, foxes can use purifying fire and disappear."
"Not all of us can do it, but yes. Also, unicorns can do more than teleport," Itsumi said.
Melony turned back to Zola, wondering what else she could do.
Zola smiled at her. "That is true. I can al—"
A knock at the door stopped Zola short, and they all turned to look at it. Itsumi wasn’t too far from the door, so she walked over to answer it. The same server from before came into the room, and again, she gave Itsumi a strange look.
"Why do you look at her as if she has two heads?" Melony asked.
The servant seemed to be caught off guard by Melony's question. She opened her mouth like a fish, but no words came out. Melony didn't drop the question. She felt it was rude how the servant stared at Itsumi. She didn't look at Zola or Melony in that way.
"It is because she is the killer fox, and I have never seen her face before. Not even around the queen, but I come into this room, and she freely shows her face." The servant bowed her head. "I'm sorry."
Melony blinked a few times. "Why are you apologizing to me?”
The servant seemed to not know the answer to that question either, so she just stood there, fidgeting. Melony took pity on her.
"So why are you back this time?"
The servant squinted, as if confused, then the moment of epiphany clear on her face. "They have sent a messenger from the council, and you are needed in the throne room."
"Already? But it’s only been an hour," Zola said.
"The queen says you are allowed to bring your creature, although you aren't bonded."
"Can Itsumi come?"
Itsumi turned to look at Melony, but Melony focused on the servant. She seemed just as surprised by the question.
