Cyré: A World Beyond Maya

Chapter Thirty-one to Thirty-four

Chapter Thirty-one

She knew she should grab her suitcase residing in her closet, but as Filinia looked briefly around her room at the usual eyesore of hippogriff wallpaper, as Filinia continued to make her way to her bed, seeing some of the curled edges of her posters and the white bedroom she had since she was three seemed like a gift from heaven; a gift of heaven she wanted to revel in a bit longer. Perhaps that statement was an exaggeration due to how exhausted she was, but the moment her head fell on the sweet cotton fibers of her pillow, Filinia fell asleep instantly. The aching pain in her chest from being too far away from Tuluc pulsated into the background. Her shoes and the clothes she had been wearing that day were still on. The suitcase in her closet laid empty on the top shelf.
In the morning, the pain in her chest shocked her awake as her iPhone rang with its Monty Python's Flying Circus Theme Song ringtone by her head. A bit dazed, she knew, though she wasn't exactly sure why, it was Tuluc calling her. Filinia cursed under her breath for having forgotten to let her mate know she had gotten home okay last night. Fumbling slightly trying to grab her phone, she turned herself over in her bed so that her back laid flat over her comforter, and pressed the green answer button before grabbing and pressing the flat device to her ear.
"Morning," Filinia said groggily.
"Morning," Tuluc answered back. "I would ask if you're packed yet, but you most likely fell asleep the moment you entered your room."
He knew her too well and though the chuckle in his voice would normally annoy her, the reminder of her  soon-to-be living under the same roof as him was just what she needed to pull herself out of bed. Well, sort of. The billowing softness of her comforter and pillow beckoned her to remain where she was. With the use of her telekinetic ability, which she was still trying to get a hang of, she attempted to levitate her suitcase from her closet to where she now sat up in her bed. However, when the black suitcase shakily moved off of the top shelf in her closet, the damn thing knocked off the sleeping bag and a pair of roller skates in the process. Roller skates she hadn't worn since her one last time to fit in with the girls who had once been her friends and a year before Tuluc had transferred to her school.
Tuluc stayed on the phone with her as she decided to continue packing the old non-magical way for the sake of the more breakable things in her bedroom. Filinia was thankful, during the whole of their conversation, their relationship hadn't changed too much after confessing their feelings towards one another. A weight she didn't realize was there had been lifted because of it, and she felt the freedom to tell him everything just as much as she ever did. And with her extreme lack of experience with the opposite sex, this non-change in their totally changed status of their relationship was just fine with her.
Though she wasn't sure if it was okay to wonder when would be the next time she would see Tuluc without his shirt again, at least this early into the romantic part of their relationship. It had only been last week that she had accidentally impaled him with a fire poker and had needed to have him take off his shirt so she could attend to his wound. Granted she hadn't been aware of his fast werewolf healing and she wasn't in control of her telekinetic abilities. Regardless, and much to her dismay, Filinia tried to block the image from mind— for now, and ended the conversation, having now been fully packed, so that she could get ready and make her way downstairs to the kitchen.
As Filinia rounded the stairwell, awarm, spicy aroma filled her nostrils. Guneeta was cooking. Before arriving in the doorframe, Filinia was extra cautious not to accidentally rub her shoulder against Guneeta's latest painting hanging by it.
"Good morning, Bachchee," Guneeta said as Filinia took her seat by her mother at the table.
"Good morning, honeybun," Katryn said, pulling her daughter's head towards her so she could plant a kiss on the top.
"Mornin'," Filinia answered to both of her mothers.
During the whole of breakfast, there was not a single mention of what happened the night prior nor the fact of Filinia moving into the Drago house for an undetermined amount of time. Filinia was doing her best not to show her excitement for that would bring back the image of Tuluc that she was trying to not to think about for the time being. In truth, she was almost as sad as her mothers about being away from them—almost. But unlike the original plan of going to Cyré, staying at Drago house, or apparently her father's house that the Drago's happened to live in, felt more like a vacation than the feeling of being shipped off to some sort of boarding school. The distance between her childhood home and Sphere Mansion could be measured in a ten to fifteen minute walk. Nonetheless, Filinia felt the need to savor the meal and time spent with her mothers.
Four years of having them both there for almost every day and every meal, except for her mother's business trips and Guneeta readying for upcoming exhibitions of course, was something she hadn't thought about when she and her mate were going to Cyré, but something she wasn't going to forget about this time. It might have seemed a bit silly to build the moment this much on a pedestal, but she didn't care.
Yet at the same time, Filinia's ears yearned for the sound of the engine from Tuluc's motorcycle to come puttering to a stop outside her house. Yearned for the small but predominant click of the key her mother had given him not four years prior in the door knob, signaling he was entering. The heavy and precise sound of his walk across the hardwood floors towards the kitchen. And lastly, but not limited to, seeing the way his black straight hair tousled across his forehead above his perfectly sculpted face. Damn! She had it bad.
Yet Filinia didn't feel guilty about her anticipation of his arrival to her house amidst the enjoyment of her last meal with her mothers in who knows how long. But then something completely opposite and out of the blue crossed Filinia's mind. Something that her mothers had said last night, and the thought of it filled her with dread—school. It had been the plan, prior to the attempt through the portal, for Filinia and Tuluc not to finish the remaining eight weeks of school. Guneeta, aside from being a shapeshifter, was also a bit of a witch and cast a spell that would somehow take care of any suspicious arousals of the two lovers' absence. Her mothers hadn't gone into detail on how, and Filinia didn't question it because like most teens, any excuse not to go to school was just fine with her. However, now that Tuluc and her were still in Maya, Filinia was curious as to how serious her mothers had been in her finishing the school year while all six of them deciphered who was behind the imprisonment of her estranged father and their next course of action.
"What about school?" Filinia suddenly asked aloud, breaking the silence.
She knew she must have taken the two women by surprise because her mother stopped mid-chew and some of the scrambled eggs on the fork in Guneeta's hand slipped off. The continued conversation, while Filinia was having one of her usual inner monologues, must have stopped at some point. Or perhaps it hadn't and it was simply a matter of her having stopped listening. Either way, it was oddly silent now.
She decided to continue probing for more information. "You guys had mentioned that Tuluc and my absence from school would be 'taken care of' before we were stopped from entering the portal, and then said we would continue going," Filinia said, self-consciously. She nibbled the side of her lower lip, not enjoying the awkward silence that brought weight and uncomfortable heat in the kitchen.
"We discussed it last night, after we all got home," Guneeta started to say, looking briefly at Katryn, who had resumed consuming the bite eggs in her mouth, and then to Filinia before continuing. "While we would ideally like you both to finish the school year, your training is more important."
"What!?" Filinia blurted out loud.
Katryn nodded. "Whoever has your father, though it is definitely a trap to lure you in, must be extremely powerful."
Filinia's brow furrowed and her mouth formed into a tight circle as though she wanted to say something but couldn't find the words to do so. In truth, she couldn't say a thing because none of this made sense. Relieved as she was at not having to go to school anytime soon, this mutual agreement of this was so unlike them. She was a bit suspicious of the sudden change to say the least. Then there was, once again, this weight being put on her shoulders. She was still getting used to being a Bellator and now she was somewhat cryptically being reminded she had a very big role in stopping this new malevolent force. Her near escape from the red-headed pubescent looking vampire, Romington Masters, had only been a few days ago. Why her mothers seemed to be so blasé about it was beyond her. In waiting for them to say they were just kidding and to distract herself, Filinia lifted her favorite mug filled with coffee and oat milk to her lips and took a sip. When the expected answer didn't come, she spoke again.
"Are you serious?" Filinia asked.
"Very," her mother said, scooping up another bite of eggs.
"Why?" Filinia asked.
"Why what, Bachchee?" Guneeta answered.
"Why have you guys changed your minds about school? And why are you making it out to seem that it is all up to me to stop this unknown—thing?" Filinia yelled, unable to control her frustration any longer. "I was under the impression that, with the exception of the Clockwork Orange psycho Romington, everyone still alive and a part of Hirclan's inner circle had given up finishing his plans! I'm calling bull because something smells fishy in this whole 'situation' and I'm tired of it! I was totally fine with going to Cyré. One because I was—am curious how close Cyré is to my dreams and paintings, and two, because Tuluc was coming with me."
"Watch your tone javaan aurat," Guneeta hissed.
Filinia's breathing became erratic, releasing heavy exhales through her nostrils, as she tried to control her anger and frustration, but this was just too much. Even the urge to ball her fingers into fists proved to be difficult. Especially with the mug mostly full of coffee in her hands. If what her parents were eluding to was true, were they blatantly forgetting that she was only sixteen? Though she never felt normal, and learning she is a supernatural being did kind of make sense as to why that was, it was all nothing she couldn't handle. But this—this seemed beyond her control. Something appearing to be a task she would have to do alone. Something she could quite possibly fail at and the consequences wouldn't affect her directly, but everyone from both worlds couldn't say the same.