The Chase

39 Luca

”-Just you.” After holding Evie until she finally whimpered into a fitful sleep last night, I had a dream, Selene had come to me. Only speaking two words before the vision os the realm of the gods dissipated and I returned with a slight jolt to my vigil of watching Evie, watching for any sign of her distress so I could soothe it away.

Choose Evie Was the message my goddess spoke into my dreams. While only those words were clear there was a feeling. That everything around us was a distraction, something was coming, my duty was to Evie. A divine call to do what my heart, my beast and my soul already demanded I do was not a sign I was going to ignore. 

Evie nibbled on her lower lip, she preferred her left side I had noticed. I would have to kiss the right harder, for balance. She was thinking, while I wouldn’t mind a Vegas wedding or a few days on tropical sands, alone with Evie, I already knew what she would choose. “I want to see the school.” I heard my mate say, exactly as I expected. Evie needed to know everything, and she wanted everything now. She also liked to run from her feelings, and while she had cleared a lot from her heart, I knew there was still a lot of healing we both needed. Evie would choose to try and learn more, even if it was mostly to distract herself right now.

Ash smiled, practically ear to ear. “Excellent, Can I dress you? Or get you anything?” Ash offered, I felt the flash of curiosity burn through Evie so hard I was drawn into feeling her desire to know what Ash meant.

“Dress me?” Evie asked. A weak smile on her face. Ash beamed back at her.

“Conjuring is a speciality, and I’ve gotten very good at dressing people. May I try?” Ash asked like a kid asking a mall santa for the hottest already sold out toy of the season. Evie nodded. A burst of magic scented the air, and moved a draft around the room. Ash had snapped her fingers, and instead of the clothes Evie had slept in, she was now in high waisted wide legged violet pants, and a very demure sweater top. Evie looked down, her eyebrow raising slightly.

“Ok I know,”She huffed ”Only Laurel lets me dress her like a real lady.” Ash snapped her fingers. The pants stayed, but instead evie was wearing a forest green bustier with a white suit jacket over top. I watched Evie glance into the mirror in the bathroom, a smile growing on her face.

“Much better,” Evie fluffed her hair, scrutinizing her distant reflection. “You did hair and makeup too? Can all witches do this?” Evie asked, before looking back at me, “Wait, is it rude to ask that?” She looked between me and Ash, worriedly.

Ash laughed, a soft musical sound. “Not rude, and no, there are no other witches like me. I am not a witch. I am the last dragon princess and a sorceress and as far as I know the only one with that arrangement of titles.” Ash said with a shrug of her shoulders. 

“You weren’t kidding about the misfit club then. You, me, Melody, Laurel, Damon, Sky, and Raven are all one of a kind.” Evie said.

“Every single being is unique and one of a kind, some just get more strength in their time to change things. All can choose good, just not all do.” Suddenly the fact that Ash was not only born and raised in fae but also dragon and royalty was obvious. Also had more power in her than I could have ever imagined being real. Evie might be struggling to adjust to a world of shifters and magic being real. In reality I wasn’t much behind her. I might be a shifter, have known that some Fae and magic was real. I had never been so close to anything like there was here. Blue Willow might as well be in Fae it was so full of magic.

“Clothes for you? Or stay in yesterdays clothes slash last nights jammies?” Ash asked me, already leading Evie out the door. Before I had even said yes Ash had snapped her fingers and I was dressed in my own sharp outfit, straight leg jeans, black t and a very nice leather jacket. She had also fixed my hair and given me a new pair of sneakers. 

I jogged after checking out my reflecting for a moment after the pair of them. I caught up, Evie immediately took my hand in hers with a smile. As Ash talked about the gateway we would use. “I could teleport us there, but inter-realm transfers are uhh a bit rougher than ones on the same world. Laurel has a gateway nearby she lets those who need access to use.” Instead of answering questions that statement only invited more.

Before I could ask for more information, the path in front of us opened up, and what had to be the blue willow this pack was now named for came into view. It was enormous, dark, verdant so darky green leaves that they almost looked like midnight in the sun trailed from the top of the tall tree all the way down to the ground. The trailing branches so thick and heavy that even while they moved in the wind, the center of the tree couldn’t be seen through the curtain of branches. 

We walked closer and the wall of magic around the tree was evident, even to me. Evie stopped, looking up at the tree, holding her hands up towards a wall only she could see. Ash turned around as she had one hand holding back some branches to walk through. “Not for you Vi’Ja,” Evie looked towards her shoulder, where her familiar must be hiding right now, before she took a deep breath and followed. With me right behind her.

Underneath the canopy of the tree was calm and peaceful, the air earthy and mossy as I stepped over the spongy ground. Auris Basalt waiting by the tree, and gateway, a tiny wooden mailbox next to the obviously magical gateway. No matter how my eyes tried to follow the lines of the archway that was part of yet separate to the tree, the lines and angles didn’t line up with the laws of physics as I knew them. 

Ash took a small golden swan pin from her pocket, and the gateway came to life. The air electrictrified to the point I could sense it. “The school is on the other side. Walk through when you are ready.” Then Ash was gone. Stepped into the glimmering silver blue portal of the gateway that would literally take us to another world.

“To infinity and beyond?” Evie said with a smile. Squeezing my hand extra hard.

“To beyond infinity and even farther as long as it's with you.” She batted at my arm, groaning at my bad joke that she had started. I still saw her smile, I felt her happiness. She liked my humor. Hand in hand we stepped through the gateway into the unknown. Together.

We stepped out, and Evie immediately doubled over and vomited on the floor. I might finally be getting used to traveling. I still felt like my insides had been put through a blender, but the blades were dull this time. I managed to not throw up alongside Evie and was able to comfort her.