chapter 16

Aug 11th

"Flosculus, suus 'okay infans." "little flower, it's okay baby." He said to me, I looked back at the two boys bickering and they were now focused and watching me.

I wanted to run, hide. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think. I knew I hurt him by the way he looked at me. I wanted to cry and tell him that I didn't mean it but the pain in my hand increased at that moment and I fell to the floor with a scream, it was bad. But just as soon as it came, I began to feel a warmth cover me, shielding the pain just enough. And it smelled oh so sweet. I couldn't who it was for I couldn't see anything, only pitch black, then a fog suddenly came and covered the whole floor. "What do you want from me?" I heard Daimen's voice, I followed the sound until I appeared in a room.

"I want you to find the woman. Do you understand?" Said a strange male voice, "And then what?! If I have to go there, that means she's a human right? So wouldn't it be better to just leave her there?" Daimen said I was shocked by this since that is not the Daimen I know, "You will venture to the mortal lands to find this woman and you will bring her back. Human or not." He said, I don't know who Daimen is speaking to but I already don't like him. "Or what? You'll threaten my position? Take my place? You may be my father but you are old and I nearly killed you the last we fought. Do not test me over some fairy tail claim." Daimen exclaimed as he stormed off, Just as he passed me I appeared in another room "Where are you going son?" A woman asked, "I'm heading out." Mason said as he packed a bag, "You know there is to be a mating ball this Autumn, You need to prepare and have everything in place for the maidens you bring home." She said, "Mother, that's something I want no part of, and never will. It's too barbaric for every year a girl gets taken by that monster since it's also when the barrier wanes. Now if you please." He stood before his mother who blocked the door, "Son, I don't think it's safe for you to travel to the mortal realm this time of year. This is the Lycan's business, not yours." She said, Mason, sighed as he pushed past her, "I leave with this warning for all, come for me in the mortal realm and you shall perish there, and I'm not sending your body back here for burial." And with that he left, I tried to follow or see more but the visions were slowly fading.

I awoke to my bedroom ceiling as the morning sun entered my room. I went to sit up but Suzie came and laid on my chest. "Hey, pretty girl." I cooed to her, brushing her fur I looked around my room and saw Milo and Ceb sleeping in the cat tree. I urged Suzie to let me sit up but she wasn't having it, just then Bo came into my room with Daimen behind him, "How do you feel?" He asked as he leaned against the door frame, "Well, I can't sit up for one." I said with a bit of laughter, "Other than that I think I feel fine. But I am gonna need to find a new job since I quit the Dinner last night." I said to him as I stared up at the ceiling. I heard him walk over to the bed and sit down beside me, "Do you know the man from last night?" He asked me, it took me a moment to process all that happened last night, "Yes in a way." "And what way is that." I pushed myself up, forcing Suzie to move much to her protest. "He's my mate Daimen. And he saved me from Shadow Stealers." He got off the bed and paced around my room for a bit. "Anna, he's a fucking bear! He can't get rid of Shadow Stealers. And also there are no such as Shadow Stealers baby. it's a fairy tale." He said angrily "Well then I guess I must be dead because this," I pulled down my shoulder sleeve showing him the mark left behind from the attack, "This is nothing but a fucking fairy tail Daimen, just like me right?" He looked taken aback as the sight of my injury and words finally hit him.

I got out of my bed and walked past him to the living room. There I found everyone sitting around, Rayne and Ben were on the couch, and Amber and Drew were standing by the kitchen island. The Doctor and Mason were each standing on either side of Clayton, who seemed to be interrogated by everyone "What's going on in here?" I asked walking in, they all turned to me as the girls got up to hug me. "Oh my god are you okay sis?" Rayne asked me "I'm fine sunshine, but I don't like what I'm seeing in here, what are yall doing?" I looked around at my friends and it was pure dead silence, "Everything is fine Anna, you have no need to worry about all this." Clayton said, I wanted to believe him but I just couldn't "Mason." I said, "What is the meaning of this?" I really hoped he would tell me the truth. "It's all good Anna." He started to back away from Clayton and went into the kitchen for water, "I was only asking him what all happened last night." He said I looked to Drew but he just avoided my gaze, I knew if they all thought he was a threat they wouldn't tell me. I sighed and was about to go outside when Marcel came busting through the doors.

"What the fuck?!" Drew exclaimed, "The Elders are sending troops." He said, "How do you know that?" Mason said coming around from the kitchen. "How do you know that Marcel!" I had to jump in front of him, I don't know what's going on with him but until we get a handle on what's happening I'll have to hold my tongue. "Marcel, please tell me everything." I said calmly Marcel took a second to catch his breath, I guess he ran here. "I was chilling at my club when a couple of scouts came back saying they saw a horde of men come out from the gate, and they were marchin right for us. Anna, you need to run, hide, whatever. You can not under any circumstance let them find you." He said before running back out, "Wait where are you going?" I asked him, "I'm going to hide babydoll, can't have the council find my ass here." Was all he said before he left. Leaving us all in shocked silence

I turned to the others and they were all stuned, Mason's face was slowly contorting in his anger. "You. You brought them here!" He turned to Clayton who was now standing, "We were safe, hidden from the Elders-" "If you think you were hidden then you were surely delusional." Clayton interjected "And then you came and now there here!" He shouted, Drew and I had to jump infront of Mason to keep him from doing something he would soon regret. He turned to look at us and I could see the pain and anger in his eyes and I knew he didn't want to do any of this. I inched closer to him and hugged him, "We need to leave Mason, now is not the time to stand around and argue." I pulled to look up at him, resting my chin on his pectorals. "Will you help me pack up the pets?" I asked him softly, I could feel the heavy sigh as he closed his eyes and nodded to my request. I took his hand in mine and looked at my other two mates, "We all need to pack, only the essentials. Do it quick and do it now, Marcel is right." I pulled Mason into my room and pulled out two bags from the closet. "Anna I - " "It's okay Mason, I knew you didn't mean any of that." He stood by the dresser as I packed a couple of items for me, "Anna, I did mean it, They found us because of him." He spoke seriously and I had to stop myself from going off at him, "Why don't you like him? Like he just got here and you are trying to pick a fight with him." He scoffed, "Picking a fight is when both of you bicker and eventually trade fists, he's not going to do any of that." I turned to see him leaning on the dresser with his arms crossed.

"Mason." I said sternly, he looked up at me and huffed as he went to grab some pet stuff, placing it in the empty bag. "My kind and his have always been indisagreement when we cross paths." "So that gives you just cause to go from this nice sweet guy to a bully? Because he's a bear?" I asked, "More like the biggest wood shifter that is the softest beast in all the twelve realms. They are bears Anna, Bears! And they do nothing but get honey and just let people walk all over them." I huffed out a sigh when I could see that getting Mason to like Clayton was going to be a project that I couldn't solve. We continued in silence and when we were done I stopped Mason from leaving first, "All I ask Mason, is for whatever happens, all three of you are my mates. And I only wish for you all to get along, even if you have to fake it." Then I walked out first. I had the the cats and Suzie where he had my bags, Rayne had Maymay and Ben and Drew carried bags were Daimen just had Bo with him. "You're not going to get your things baby?" I asked him, "All my things are back where I came from, the house here was an AirBNB." He said

I nodded and we all went downstairs to pack the van and the three puppies jumped in the back with smiles and wagging tails. Just then the sun began to hide behind the trees and the summer breeze turn into an autumn chill. "This can't be good." Amber said under her breathe, Drew was looking of into the distance. "Baby, imma need you to put up a very strong barrier around the van and everyone get inside. Now!" He shouted the last part with much urgenciy, I felt Clayton urge me into the van as everyone piled in. Drew got into the driver seat and drove off like a mad man, "Drew what is going on?" Amber asked him, "They are close and there was something Marcel forgot to mention." He sharped a corner, "And what was that?" The Doctor questioned "A fucking Berserker." Mason said as he looked out the back window, we all could see it as it was the biggest thing compaired to the others around it. My heart dropped at the sight and my skin became cold. "Drew!" I yelled, "I hope you have a backup plan becaused that thing is gaining up on us." I didn't even try to hide my panic as I watched that thing gain up to our van. "It's going to be okay." The Doctor tried to calm me down but I knew better. "Where the fuck are we gonna go where that thing can't get to us, it's gonna break the witches spell and this van." Daimen whispered next to Drew up front. "The Wisteria garden." I said suddenly, Mason and Daimen looked at me like I had just lost my mind. "Anna have you lost your ever loving mind. That's the opposite of where we need to go. You do know thats a straight portal to our world right? With the Elders." Amber said, "But don't the Wisteria plants prevent them from entering, it's in the direction were heading anyway."

The Doctor shook his head "Child, even if it will, we need not go there. It is not safe." I turned to him, "And it's not safe anywhere here." Just then van was ran into. The Berserker caught up to us, "Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!" Drew exclaimed, Amber looked like she was in pain. I crawled up to her and she was sweating bullets, the van creeked as the creature tried to tear it apart. The dogs were barking and everyyone was shouting one thing over the other. "Let me take over." Rose suddenly said, "What?" "Let me take over. You want them safe right? Then let me take over." I didn't even think it over I let her forward and everything was sharper, even colors. We took Amber's hand and made her fall asleep. The moment she closed her eyes we put a barrier and pictured it having spikes. The creature shreeked and dropped the van allowing Drew to give us some distance. "Go to the Wistera Gardens. Now!" I ordered him, Daimen looked back at me strangely and I didn't have the time to overthink it. We pictured a portal that could quickly take us there. "What the?" Drew said, "Don't think just drive." I kept focus on the portal when Clayton shouted that the thing was gaining on us again. The moment Drew went through I cancelled all magick immediently, allowing Amber to wake up as we came to a stop in the garden.

I sat back down in my seat and turned to check if anything followed. "What was that?" Mason as he stared at me, "Hmm?" I turned to him but Suzie then began to bark a d growl like something was there. "Ah what niw?" Drew said in annoyance, we all followed Suzie's gaze to the edge of the trees. It was pitch black like looking into a void, I thought it was strange since you can see the purple Wisteria petals from anywhere in the garden. Just then two ominous red eyes opened in the darkness and panic began to flood my chest. "What is that?" I asked in a panicked whisper "Drew." Daimen said "We need to move." "Where do you want us to go?! Because I'm not driving us through there." The arch from the other night was glowing a pretty silver blue and appeared like water. "It may be the only way," Mason said beside me, the ground began to shake like somebody massive was walking. "Drew baby, we need to move. I know I said I never wanted to go there, but it's safer over there then it is here. Please." Amber pleaded with her mate. He gripped the steering wheel as he contemplated his options, he knew by bringing us through we would all be put in danger from the Elders and their Kingdoms, but if we stayed here we would surely die trying to escape. Drew turned to look at everyone in the van and stopped when he got to me. He let out a sigh and cranked the car back up.

After a moment of failed cranking "What's happening." Daimen asked him, "I-I don't know. It's having trouble starting." The shakes became harder and louder the longer we sat here, "Anna-" was all Mason said before we all heard a crack. Ben stuck his head out the window to see a very large crack appear above our heads. "Guys, they're trying to break in!" Drew began frantically cranking the engine when we heard another crash. "Anna start the car." Mason said in a quick whisper, "What?" I said confused "Anna one of your elements is electricity. Start the van." He said, I looked around the van puzzled, "I don't have electrical powers Mason." I whispered, then I began to hear a buzzing sound. I saw outside, a ghostly aura of a person holding the van, without thinking I felt warmth in my hand and we all heard a scream. It came from the same side of the forest as the red eyes. "What the -" The Doctor said under his breath. The van jumped into gear and raced towards the portal. The banging sound shook the ground as the creatures finally broke through. "Drew hurry!" Rayne shouted, "We're almost there!" He said back. They poured in in swarms and they looked to be burning wherever the Wisteria petals touch them. Just as a bear sized hand came from the darkness we entered the portal and we were back in the garden. But no beasts.

"Did we-?" I began to ask, "yes princess. We are in Ashira, home of the immortals." Said Mason.