The Witch's Express

1

"APHRODITE, WAKE UP!"
She sat up in a cold sweat, her clothes sticking to her skin. A storm of heavy panic created chaos in her mind, making her breathing heavy and frantic. The cold air of the room scorched her throat as her lungs greedily took in the air.
Widened eyes darted to the alarm clock on her nightstand, the time 3:06am glowing red in the dark room. She took deep breaths, in and out, the feeling of fatigue and lightheadedness teasing her body. A wet, hard feeling grazed her hand, and she squinted to see what it was. The fur of white and black came to her vision when her eyes adjusted to the darkness. The wet feeling belonged to the nose Flash, her service dog.
"Breathe, Aphrodite. You do this every night, and it's getting quite annoying."
The border collie jumped onto her bed, laying his head on her lap to help calm a racing heart. Her hand stroked her fur, using breathing exercises to calm herself with the help of the dog. The girl registered the voice speaking to her. She turned her gaze to a black cat, his arm swinging off her vanity as his tail wagged in the darkness, his yellow colored eyes were the only thing that made him stand out in the room.
"Do you know where you are?" The cool voice floated from the cat to the teenage female while she continued to stare at it. She hesitated, letting her surroundings become familiar to herself before she spoke.
"I am in my room."
"Correct."
The jingle of a bell echoed in the room following a light thud. The cat's tail grazed the wall when his paws hit the floor with silent grace. It jumped onto the bed, and th girl reached her hand to her lamp. She flicked the switch, squinting her eyes as light quickly engulfed the darkness. She stared at the cat, they both looked completely unamused.
The cat's frame was skinny, long and lean, the black fur resembling midnight. And those eyes. Those yellow eyes pierced anything that crossed its way, giving people a shudder of bad luck. He opened his mouth, speaking. "How embarrassing, Aphrodite. Seventeen years old, and still having nightmares? I begin to wonder why I've stuck around for so long."
"You're forced to, Fang, remember? Something about a 'soul bond' mom keeps talking about." She glared at the cat, her nose scrunching up at the snarky and rude attitude the cat always has. "And I told you to call me Rue. Not Aphrodite."
Fang rolled his eyes, once again anmused. "Why would I call you the name not written on our birth certificate?"
Rue didn't have a comeback. It was too early in the morning for this. "...To let you know, they aren't nightmares. They're night terrors."
"Mhm."
Fang hopped off the bed. "Go back to sleep, Aphrodite."
The girl groans, rubbing her face with her hands. She didn't want to go back to sleep, she never does. Those night terrors ruled her life, making her relive all the horrible things she experienced from the ages of six to eight.
Needles, shock waves, pain, white rooms. It sent a shiver down her back.
The dog jumped off the bed next, then Rue followed in suit. Her bare feet grazed the plush, black carpet, she threw the large blankets off of her and stood, walking to her bathroom. She splashed cold water onto her face, waking herself off. She did her skincare routine like she was trying to wipe her mind of her past before she stared into the mirror.
When she looked into the mirror, she didn't see a young, beautiful girl. No. She saw a monster as that's what she was. Orange eyes. Two stripes on her cheeks each. Thinner pupils. Lion-like ears sprouted from her brown hair, making the ones of a human have no use–which didn't matter as they had a hearing impairment. Her tail whacked against her ankles at her stare of self-hatred, she hated who she was. She was a monster. A lion monster.
She continued to stare, only snapping out of it at the sound of a meow. The bell on Fang's collar jingled and he jumped onto the sink. His cool voice grounded her back to reality. "There is no reason to throw a pity party, so stop it."
Even though he was cruel and rude at times, he had a point. Yet Rue, being stubborn as she was, didn't take his advice as much as she should've.
She moved from the sink, orange staring into yellow. "I got it, thank you."
"You are very much welcome." The cat's mouth turned into a cheshire grin sitting on the edge of the sink and staring into the eyes of a lion. He didn't back down as he looked at the bigger predator in front of her. He's known her for too long. "Also, you are scheduled to meet with Jupiter today for skating practice."
Another groan ripped from her throat. Skating practice ws amazing, but being reminded at three in the morning made her want to cancel, slipped into bed, and stay on her phone. "Thank you, Fang. How kind."
Sarcasm dripped from her voice while her legs carried her out the bathroom, changing out of her pajamas and into a better outfit for the day.
"Baggy clothes. You can never go wrong with that." She thought to herself.
"You look stupid." Fang yellowed.
"Thanks." Scratch that. According to your cat, you will look stupid.
"And take a shower. You were sweating in your sleep."
Another groan. Sometimes, she hated that damn cat.