Chapter 11 (The Invitation )

"Summer, Mira, and Phoebe open this door this instant. How long would you girls sleep?" Mrs. Ani, one of their neighbors, yelled from the other side of the door as she kept on banging on the door,

"Summer! If this is some kind of sick joke you girls are playing this morning, then stop it,"

Mrs. Ani is a vampire who appears to be in her early thirties but is much older; she is always on the lookout for the girls and never misses an opportunity to snoop around; she suspects the girls for some reason and is always trying to gather information on their daily lives. Apart from being a nosy neighbor, she is also Phoebe's boss at the flower shop. She likes Summer the least amongst all the girls in the street, and Summer also feels the same way towards her.

Summer, who was sleeping soundly and enjoying the peace and quiet, finally woke up to the sound of the heavy knocking on the door. She covered her ears with her pillow, but hearing Mrs. Ani mention her name specifically, she just knew that she had to answer her or else she would bring down the door.

Summer sat down on the bed, cursing Mrs. Ani for always trying to make her life miserable. Summer turned towards Phoebe and Mira's beds, but Mira was not on her bed, it was just Phoebe.

"Mira must have gone out early for some work," Summer thought to herself.

Summer yawned wildly while stretching her stiff body. She took her time, not minding Mrs. Ani, who was busy going crazy outside. When she was done enjoying Mrs. Ani's scream, she then decided to move her lazy ass to the door.

"Why am I so tired today?" Summer asked herself, releasing another yawn.

"Why didn't you open the door earlier?" Mrs.Ani piped inside the girls' room, scanning for anything suspicious, "Why are you girls still in bed at this time?" "Don't you girls know that today is school?"

That was the first thing Summer received as a good morning greeting from Mrs. Ani. It wasn't like she expected her to jump up and down serving her breakfast in bed. This was just a normal Summer and Mrs.A's occurrence.

"Good morning to you, Mrs. Ani. My night was fine, thanks for asking, and what is the problem with us being in bed by this time? I think we have the right to sleep and wake up any time we want to, right?

Mrs. Ani just rolled her eyes at Summer's sarcastic comment, "Why is Phoebe still asleep? If she's not going to school, then let her come to the shop; I need more hands, and where is Mira?" "She always goes out for a run; I hope the two of you haven't done anything to her," Mrs. Ani said raising an eyebrow.

Then it hit her. Summer immediately remembered what had happened yesterday. She thought of Phoebe, who was still asleep, and also at the empty bed that belonged to Mira. She realized that if Mira wasn't here, then where was she then? Was she okay? Or was she in the hands of those hunters? Summer was panicking as she thought of the different things that Mira must be facing.

She also remembered the condition she found Phoebe in and the jerk who had hurt her friend. Thinking about him made her blood boil. She clenched her jaw in anger as the memory of what happened came rushing back at her.

But her anger was soon replaced with confusion. She remembered that guy breaking all of her bones and passing those daggers through her. She could still remember the pain she felt and how she strived to stay alive. Did she die and be resuscitated, or did she just pass out? No, she definitely died, but how did she manage to come back, and why did God choose to bring such a dirty soul as hers back to this world?

Summer kept on thinking of different things, confusing poor Mrs. Ani, who was still standing in front of Summer, who was lost in her own world. Seeing the different emotions that flashed on Summer's face, she knew that something was wrong somewhere, and she would definitely get to the bottom of it.

"You haven't answered my question, Summer," Mrs. Ani snapped her fingers in front of her, jolting her out of her reverie.

"What? Oh, Phoebe and Mira are correct; they... aren't feeling well today," Summer said.

"All three of you?" including Phoebe?" Mrs. Ani asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, Mrs. Ani, and what is the problem? Mira is alright; we haven't eaten her or something like that."

"Yes, that's why I'm surprised; how can a human leave with two beasts and not get eaten?"

"Oh Mrs. Ali, you're such a joker, Phoebe is a vampire, and both Mira and I are humans, and you're well aware of the consequences of killing a human, and by the way, don't you have a cat to feed or anything else to do than disturb our morning nap?" Summer tried to stay calm at the elderly lady but with all her questions it was getting hard to do so.

"Do what you want to do." I don't care, but I don't want you and your friends to cause me any trouble today. Do you understand?

"Don't worry, we won't," Summer said, stepping closer to her. Mrs. Ani stepped back a little, away from Summer, before glaring at Summer, who had her sweet smile plastered on her face.

"Good, and don't forget that I'm watching you three," Mrs. Ani said before leaving.

"I know," Summer said, making Mrs. Ani stop on her track and turn toward her.

"For a weak human girl, you have a lot of courage to talk to a vampire that way." Ani glared at Summer before finally leaving.

Summer's sweet smile vanished as soon as Mrs. Ani was out of sight as if it had never existed in the first place. She stayed at the door for a while in thought; as her once-sweet and innocent face now looked murderous. After a while of thinking and conclusion, she finally closed the door.

Summer walked up to Phoebe, who was still sleeping. Summer was glad that her face was peaceful as she slept.

"I pray that you dream about your secret Prince Charming," Summer said, holding Phoebe's hand.

"Now I just need to find Mira to know if she's okay," Summer said, getting up and heading to the bathroom.

Moments later, when Summer was done with her bath, she saw Phoebe already up. Summer instantly ran towards her, embracing her in a hug.

Phoebe hugged Summer back, placing her forehead on Summer's shoulder as she cried. Summer wasn't exempted; she also cried her heart out.

After what seemed like an eternity, the girls finally broke off from the huge with their eyes all swollen.

"Summer, I'm so glad you're here. I thought I had lost you. "How did you survive, and how did I also survive those hunters?"Phoebe was confused, and so was everyone; none of them had answers to their questions.

"Honestly, I don't know and I don't care." "All that matters is that we are right here together, unharmed," Summer said, sounding unboarded.

"But wait, have you seen Mira?" Phoebe suddenly asked Summer, but Summer's facial expression was enough to tell her that she had no clue where Mira was.

"We need to find her."

"I know, I was about to go look for her before you woke up."

"Get dressed, let me go and freshen up, then we will go look for Mira together."

Summer nodded, and in no time, the two went out looking for Mira. They checked everywhere they knew Mira could possibly be—the library, the orphanage, the flower shop, Liberty, and many more places Mira normally visits—but found nothing. Now they were walking through the main garden that is stationed behind the orphanage Mira works for.

"What if we don't find her here?" "What would we do?" Summer asked, feeling anxious.

"We will find her," Phoebe simply said.

"But how sure are you?" "We checked everywhere; I can't even pick up her scent, and your spells were not working either. I just hope that nothing happens to Mira," Summer continued to worry about Mira, but failed to see the anger that passed through Phoebe's eyes.

Phoebe abruptly stopped on her track, causing Summer to do the same.

"Why did you stop Phoebe?" Summer asked, sounding confused.

"Look, Mira is here somewhere." Maybe she just went out for some fresh air. She's here somewhere, so you don't have to behave like Mother Teresa. Secondly, my spell did work. It said that Mira was in this vicinity, but I'm too weak to make out the exact location, so don't say that my spell didn't work; do you understand Summer?"

Phoebe was out of breath after she was done lecturing Summer. While Summer looked stunned, she was speechless for a while. She just looked at the raging Phoebe, who didn't break eye contact with Summer. She could not understand what she said that made Phoebe flip the way she did, but soon she was able to regain her tongue back and this time she was going to use it properly.

"I'm sorry if I said something wrong, but now is not the time to let your pride get the better of you, and yes, your spell didn't work, so you better just accept it and stop blaming your body, cause we all know that it's not true," Summer said, walking away from Phoebe.

Phoebe watched Summer leave after what she just said, and it got her so angry. She wanted to chase Summer and give her a taste of her own medicine, but she stopped, closed her eyes, and took a few deep breaths just to calm herself down. After a while, she was finally calmed, and she realized that she had just overreacted and that she was wrong. She owed Summer an apology, but she wouldn't give her one because Summer wasn't worth it, and her pride wouldn't let her.

She knew that she was being unnecessary and childish and that Summer was right, but she would never admit that to her, especially not after what she just said to her.

So she just walked towards Summer, who was avoiding her; Summer didn't give a flying fuck because she knows Phoebe and how to deal with her; she just kept her head on what was important and that was to find Mira.

"Summer, I think we should check..."

"Here she is," Summer interrupted Phoebe when she noticed Mira on a swing near a pond. Summer ran towards Mira, overjoyed. She was just like a child running towards an ice cream truck, Phoebe just rolls her eyes at Summer as she walked towards the bench.

Mira was sitting on a swing lost in thought. She had been sitting here wondering about different things for so long that she failed to realize how time had flown. She was so lost that she didn't notice Summer approaching her.

"Mira!" Summer called out again, startling Mira.

"I'm sorry. "I didn't mean to scare you," Summer apologized.

Mira just smiled, happy to see her friends once again.

"Summer, no, you didn't do anything." "I was so lost that I didn't notice you, and also... " Summer suddenly embraced Mira, cutting her words off,

"I miss you," Summer said.

Mira hugged her back with a huge smile on her face and said, "I miss you too, Summer."

Mira's eyes landed on Phoebe, who was standing behind Summer. Mira gave her a wide smile. After both Mira and Summer pulled out of the huge, Mira went to Phoebe and gave her a warm hug as well. Phoebe hugged Mira back, fighting the tears that threatened to fall. They pulled out of the hug and all went to a bench close by to sit.

"Why do you guys look as if you had seen a ghost? I'm not dead, haha," Mira said, trying to lighten the mood. She could feel the friction between Summer and Phoebe.

Those two always get into small fights, but they are the closest thing the three have. Maybe the reason why they are always on each other's tail is that Summer is a half-Lycan while Phoebe is a half-vampire, and Summer always bumps heads with every vampire even though they don't know what she really is.

"Maybe we did, you never know, haha. We didn't see you yesterday, and with everything that happened yesterday, of course, we would get worried. Tell me, Mira, when has it become a crime for friends to get worried for a friend?" Phoebe asked.

"What do you mean that maybe we did?" Mira asked, narrowing her eyes,

"I don't know, I just feel that way, and by the way, does anyone know how we got back here?"

"Honestly, I don't know, and Phoebe is right—it did feel like I died and was brought back," Summer said.

"I saw the boy with silver hair before I passed out."

"Same," Phoebe added.

"Well, I didn't see the guy, but I did see someone."

"Who did you see?" Mira and Phoebe's chorus, focusing all their attention on Summer,

"I don't know, but I saw a lady." She looked like a model for sure, and she told me some information that I couldn't understand. It was... difficult."

"What did she say?" Phoebe asked, not able to contain her curiosity.

Summer took some deep breaths before narrating the discussion she and the woman had. When she was done, both Mira and Phoebe had confused looks on their faces.

"What does these mean?" Mira asked 

"I don't know, but I don't think it's good," Phoebe replied, massaging her temples.

Mira and Phoebe also discussed their encounter with the hunters and the unusual events that occurred during it, after sharing their experience they just remained silent for a while after sharing their experiences, trying to process the new information; it all felt like a dream, and the funny thing was that they don't know when they'd wake up from it.

"Are we going to be taken to the palace and get executed?" Mira asked, not able to hide her worry,

"Why?" Summer raised her eyebrows.

"Because we..." Mira paused for a while as she looked left and right frightened that someone would be eavesdropping on their discussion, "..... I mean I...killed someone," Mira's voice was like a whisper.

"Yeah, we will if we get caught." Summer simply relaxed, as if nothing had happened.

Mira and Phoebe looked at each other, surprised by Summer's statement and how composed she was.

"This wasn't the first time you killed someone, right?" Phoebe asked,

"Mmhm," was Summer's only response.

Mira opened her mouth, wanting to ask Summer something, but she decided not to, they were silent for a while. Everyone was busy with their thoughts, lost in their own world of never-ending problems.

"Do you guys remember how you got here? I mean, how did you all end up in the orphanage where we met?" Mira asked, looking at her friend's face, not wanting to miss out on any information.

"I've never really thought about it,"

Summer said Immediately, Mira looked at Summer a little suspiciously but quickly turned to Phoebe who had almost the same expression as Summer, Mira immediately got the answer to her question.

"Why do you ask Mira?" Phoebe asked,

Last night, I had a dream. No, it wasn't a dream. It felt so real. It was about my parents and how they died, and do you know the strange thing about all this? The strange thing is that everything I have ever believed was all lies, from my parents' deaths to my coma. They were all lies.

Mira harshly wiped away the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes. She was tired of not knowing what was really happening; she didn't know what the future held, but how would she understand the future when she didn't understand herself?

"What do you mean?" Summer asked with concern in her eyes. She gently placed her hand on Mira's shoulder, reassuring her that everything would be okay. Mira placed her hand on Summer's, flashing her an appreciative smile.

Last night, I couldn't sleep. I kept on trying to find out something or anything about what had happened when I was in a coma. When I had finally given up, that was when I saw it; it was a piece of my lost memory during those 12 months. It wasn't clear enough, but I could make something from it.

In my vision, I saw my little self standing in a white room full of mirrors. One could barely differentiate between a reflection and the real thing. The room was very bright, and the only reflections I could see were mine, a girl with white long, hair who was standing in front of me, and a woman with long brown hair who was behind me.

Then the environment changed, and I was in another room. I couldn't make out much from the room, but there was one thing I remember, and that was that in the other room there were mirrors, were four mirrors and in front of those mirrors was... I think it was the same girl that was in the other room full of mirrors. I couldn't tell because the room was dark and had strange and unfamiliar symbols on the wall, floor, and ceiling, unlike the previous one. Okay, so she was also standing beside a tall figure that was covered from head to toe with a black hooded cloak. There was no exposed skin. The figure was chained with a silver chain from his neck around his chest and waist down to its feet; it was also holding an hour-glass that was also chained to its hands, and there were also more people in the room that I couldn't make out, as they were also in a hooded cloak; that was all I saw in the vision.

"So what does this mean, Mira?" Phoebe asked,

"Phoebe, this means that I wasn't in the hospital or even in a coma during those 12 months and that none of us even know how we ended up in the same orphanage, and strangely, we hadn't even talked about it until now. Someone out there knows about us and wants to use us for something, and from what I'm seeing, it doesn't look good," Mira explained.

Summer sighed, ruffling her red hair. "I hate thinking, and with the way things are going, I'm going to be doing more of it from now on."

"I'm glad you realized that, Summer," Phoebe said, rolling her eyes. Where did you go last night? "Were you here throughout last night?"

"Umm, yes, I was." "The room felt all cupped up, so I decided to get some fresh air."

Were you just sitting on this swing all night, oblivious to those creatures or the darkness? Mira, this is a miracle; I am proud of you for finally becoming more daring. Summer wiped away an invisible tear from her eyes dramatically, earning her a smack on the back of the head from Phoebe.

"Hahaha, I was actually surprised by myself, and I was also doing something, but I won't tell you, girls, now." It's a surprise. "When I'm done with it, I'll show you."

"Can't wait. "You know how much I love surprises," Phoebe said, almost squealing as she said those words.

"Mira, Summer, and Phoebe, finally, I've found you girls; there is a letter for you all, and it's from the royal house." Mrs. Ani exclaimed excitedly as she made her way to the girls, still in her pajamas,

Hearing this, the girls froze at their spots. They looked at each other in panic. Mira and Phoebe had the most distressed expressions, while Summer was the only one who kept her cool; in fact, she appeared overly relaxed; wasn't she afraid of being arrested and executed by the royal court?

Mira and Phoebe were still frozen to the ground like trees, so so Summer collected the letter from Mrs. Ani, she gave her a small smile.

"What's it about?" Summer asked.