A New Chance

The Golden Guardians

Hope POV:

Thankfully Céleste did a wonderful job acting as Sabine, it was easy for her to step back into her own shoes. She continued doing tours for the humans, I joined in on some. Dual action can bring in more tips for the shop.

9 months later

I knew I couldn't trust Katie, she would feed any information she had to Thierry. If I walked in the room trying to talk to Sabine I let out a witchy energy that she should leave for her safety. We all follow basic instincts, I can manipulate them when necessary.

I've been funding the witch owned shops privately. Marcel keeps sending his night walkers out to fuck with the witches. Whenever they are out messing with them while I'm in a shop, I wear my disguise and fight them back outside the shop. Marcel has come and broken up fights between me and his men before.

Tonight was one of those nights. Marcels little foot soldiers were relentless. I was currently curb stomping a vampires head into smush when Marcel pushed me back. "You have to stop killing my guys. These are MY orders! This is MY city!" He started getting angry.

"I'll stop killing them when they stop interfering with the shops I pay for. I've given great amounts of money to you and your city. You could do me the courtesy of leaving my things alone, at the very least." I responded walking closer. "Listen, Ms. Marshall I don't know who you think you are" he couldn't continue speaking as I held him by his throat in the air.

"Now you listen to me, you may be older. But I will always be stronger than you, richer than you, and most definitely smarter than you. You would do well to make me a friend and not an enemy, a sister even if you would." I finished placing him back down, letting him go. "Sister? You just held me by my throat for a whole minute." He responded.

"Siblings fight. Go away Marcellus Gerard, I'll find you when I need you." I compelled him, he wouldn't remember tonight. He wouldn't be going after me, or sending men to my witchy shops. His vampires will question him, but he will put them in their place.

I had invited Abigail, Monique, Cassie, Davina,
and Sabine over. It's time for my girls to know the truth. Theo had been listening as well, he's been living with us. We all see each other as family. The explanation took a long time but nobody wanted to leave. "We've been with the French Quarter Coven since birth, it's never felt...right." Each of the girls finished it the same, looking at each other.

"I have a feeling that many people will want to join our Coven, ultimately I will decide who is in and who is out." I told them. "There are simple rules, we work together, we protect each other. If you get sick from black magic, I will siphon it and purge it." Henrik explained. I originally made a septagram but Theo sat down with us as well. Ehh what the hell. I vanished the septagram and made a octogram.

Henrik put a goblet in the center of the circle, we all bled into it. "We are making a Coven of old, it combined different species, results vary but have faith." He told the group. We took each other's hands. A light shot out of the goblet and eight beams pointed out to each of us. It burned slightly, the others groaned in pain, then it all faded.

When we all released each other, and stood up everyone's eyes glowed yellow. The witches groaned in pain at their faces, canine teeth protruded, then their nails and fingers got long and sharp. Theo began phasing, apparently having a wolf already in the Coven forced his transformation without a kill. "Henrik mind the witches." I picked Theo up and sped us out to the Bayou, away from the other wolves.

I created a barrier to keep in a specific amount of space. He laid on the ground screaming in pain. "Don't fight it, give in to the pain and it cannot break you. Focus on your breathing and the ground beneath you. This will take hours if you fight the pain." I told him.

"It hurts!" He screamed as the transformation sped up. He took on a large grey and white wolf. He just sat and looked at me, "Turn around." I told him, and he did. I took off my clothes and turned so that we could run together.

1 day later

I gave him my jacket and ran us back to the mansion. I stopped in his room giving him a towel, I started a hot bath for him. "Take a bath, it'll help with the soreness and you smell like wet dog." I told him smiling. "You aren't much better yourself." He said laughing.

After a long hot shower and three blood bags I returned to the witches. Everyone was in the kitchen, "How is everyone doing?" I asked. Sabine took charge, "Well, it seems we have some lycanthropic characteristics. Teeth, claws, golden eyes, enhanced strength, agility and speed. We don't seem to fully phase though. But no vampire or siphoning characteristics were shared." She answered.

"One thing will be a must, meditation. Witches are already tempormental, wolves are even more so. You can't show everyone your party tricks when you get mad. I'll make rings, it'll be like a second skin. So that if you do get mad nobody besides us will be able to see." I told them, pulling rings out of my bag for the girls.

"We need a name for our Coven." Henrik said from behind the counter. "You know when you asked us to listen to the ancestors about joining you? They would whisper Golden Guardians." Monique said, Davina nodded. "Well it looks like we have a name." Abigail said.

Sabine took charge of teaching Theo magic. He would be the first of his bloodline to be a Were-witch. Dad will be so pissed that he's not the first hybrid, he'll have to settle for Original Hybrid. Sabine told us that Agnes was planning the selection ceremony for the Harvest.

We have about six months before the girls are in danger. "I think it's time to talk about your parents." I told the girls. "What's wrong with our parents?" Davina asked worriedly. "Nothing yet, but if you are selected for the Harvest, they may do anything to ensure that it goes as planned." I explained. "Take my hands." I told them.

I showed them the memories of when they were viciously murdered. How they didn't immediately come back, and that long dead witches took their place to wreak havoc. Lastly, how Marcel interrupting it almost caused the destruction of the world.

"I won't let this happen. Ask your parents how loyal they are to the French Quarter Coven. I'll try to convince them otherwise, but if they are too firm in their beliefs it won't work. You need to come to terms with the fact that you will outlive your parents. Most likely you will be losing them soon." I said trying to be as honest as possible.

Many of the girls looked sad at the prospect of their families dying. "Please try as hard as you can to convince them." Monique said. "Like I said I will do my level best." I tried to reassure her. "Now I'm off to work. See you guys later." I told them as they left for school.

Having the O'Connell witch treasury was a great reassurance, knowing the French Quarter Coven wouldn't have it. Rousseau's was packed, Sophie could barely keep up with the demand. Jane-Anne was even working in the kitchen it was so busy.

The vampires roamed the streets at night, antsy, ready for a fight. Some newly turned members of Marcel's crew were harassing local girls and well known street vendors. I put on my disguise and got to work handling the supernatural bullies. "Hey pick on someone who can fight back!" I yelled aloud.

Each of them turned to me, dropping the people that they were bothering. "What are you going to do you little bitch? Yell at us?" One mocked and the others laughed. I looked at them all, not saying anything. I quickly roundhouse kick the tallest, using all my strength, the others watched him fly into a brick wall.

I took the opportunity to attack the distracted men, slashing at them with my claws. While they were waiting to heal and get up,I pooled venom in my mouth. Spitting on my nails so that the claws would be lethal. They hadn't seen me spit on my claws so when I scratched them and it didn't heal they ran as quickly as they could. I pulled hand sanitizer out of my bag, cleaning my hands enough until I got home.

Marcel is going to be so confused when he hears that a vampire scratch poisoned his men. It will be a fun game watching them squirm to find a solution. Oh how his tables are turning. Dad always said there was a hint of the devil in my eyes.