The Dormant One

Family and Covens

Dre spent hours laying there with Novus and Dwight in silence, simply enjoying the peace and innocence of the moment. Had someone told her just yesterday that she would find this peace, she would have laughed at them and yet here she was, unable to imagine anything else. The hurricane in her mind had gone dormant, her fever having lessened severely. She was close to falling asleep again, but she didn't want to. Dre didn't want to miss a single second of this bliss. There were birds singing outside, but the only other sounds were the calm and relaxed breaths of the three in this room. Never had Novus or Dre felt so at ease being this close with anyone. Hydrangea softly stroked Dwight's hair as he continued to sleep. She felt like a mother in a way, but she didn't need to act like one, he had an amazing mother already! A slight washing of guilt swept over her as she thought of the others, vaguely remembering Leighla's attempt to talk to her. She had put her best friend through so much in less than twenty four hours.

Her ear metaphorically pricked as she noticed voices downstairs, Novus seemed to tense up a little before carefully getting off the bed to see what the commotion was all about. "Stay here and rest, little flower." He gently ordered. He didn't fail to notice that her fever hadn't gone. Leaving the room, the accidental slamming of the door made him wince. Dwight's eyes shot open as he almost jumped out of his skin. "It's ok, your uncle had to go see what all the noise is about downstairs. He'll be back." Dre told him, trying to soothe him. They both stayed there, listening carefully to hear what was happening. Anxiety was bouncing between the two as they sat waiting, it was pretty difficult to hear what was going on. What they could hear was that Illy was arguing with people before Novus chimed in. Their words were muffled and it made it difficult to gain a cohesive idea of the topic of their argument. "The Rose is not yours to claim!" That voice rang out clearly, making them both tense up. What were they talking about? What rose? Dre actually thought she recognised that voice too, it gave her a sickly feeling in the pit of her stomach. It was a female voice, raspy and coarse. Oh no, it was Rinda, her aunt who she hadn't seen since she was eight years old. Wait, why would she be here, yelling about a rose? "You weren't invited here, witch, leave or die!" Novus? Dre was about to get up when Dwight clung to her tighter to stop her. He was right, she wasn't well enough to deal with her aunt, let alone whatever was going on. She had to trust that Novus and Illy knew what they were doing. Wait, did he say witch? Did that make Dre a witch too or was it simply an insult to her aunt's character? It would explain the gold vines, right?

The front door slammed shut and Novus could be heard talking to Illy in more of a hushed voice. They were talking for about ten minutes before footsteps could be heard wandering up the stairs. Hydrangea settled back again, Dwight sitting up next to her as his uncle came back in. He was trying so hard not to seem angry, but he was exuding an aura of pale shadows. Closing the door, he rested a hand on it, taking in a deep breath to compose himself. When he faced her, Dre saw conflict in his eyes. "Why didn't you tell me that you're from a family of witches?" He questioned only to receive a perplexed and concerned look from her. He knelt beside the bed and firmly placed his hands on her upper arms. "Fae can't claim witches Dre, this could start a war, one the witches would lose. A lot of lives could be lost. I don't want that." The pain in his voice struck her like an icicle in the heart. She didn't understand this, she couldn't be a witch, she didn't even believe in them! Of course, that was irrelevant considering she hadn't believed in the Fae either and here they were. "Are you sending me away? What about the Baen Sidhe? The ancient laws? Why would a witch be called?"

The internal howling of the hurricane had returned, her head reeling as she posed those questions. Her fever had come raging back all at once, breathing ragged, shallow and swift. "Even if I had to, I could never send you away, little flower." He whispered his response. He might not want a war, but if anyone tried to take her from him, he would engulf the world in darkness just to keep her. He was surprised by this feeling. She was right anyway. A witch would never have been called to be The White Stag. Why then did the witches want her? How could the child of two witches have been born without being a witch? Novus felt a small hand on his, practically prying it from Dre's arm. He came out of his own mind to see Dre's flushed and exhausted face, guilt ripping through him like lightning. He eased her back to lay down and released his firm grip on her arms, slowly. "Rest, we will find the answers, but it won't mean a thing if we lose you." The wolf placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, got up and left the room. He was certain now, if she wasn't a witch, she had to be a new Fae. How else would she have that kind of power? Unless they could find the full truth and soon, a war was going to break out.