Demons, Magic and a Tragic Love

Chapter 1: Golden Fire

“oh my god Luke I told you to leave me alone!” Jessica Tilan shouted at her brother sauntering through the halls of their large house in New York. Their home for the past 7 years Jessica and her brother had lived in New York since they kids. Jessica was 11 when she and her 9 year old brother had moved from London, after discovering that the person who had claimed to be Amelia Tilan was not but in fact was Imogene Myer one of the darkest people known to mankind. She was vial and cruel and a would beat Jessica to an inch of her life ‘to teach Luke how to heal’ or so she said. Imogene had killed Jessica’s real parents when Jessica was only a toddler; she then took up her mother’s place claiming to be Amelia Tilan the children’s mother.  Imogene wanted to find a way to make all demon hunting families stronger than they already were. Luke had been one of her experiments, up until the age of five years old she had mixed powdered fairy blood into Luke’s food. Imogene Myer believed the change would only occur in males this is why she did not experiment on Jessica. Jessica was only there for show.  Michael Tilan had once been partnered in battle with Christopher Hawthorne, who had two children roughly the same age as Jessica and Luke. Christopher Hawthorne and his wife Tia soon became the god-parents of the children so that is why they moved to New York when Imogene’s identity was discovered. Chris’s daughter Savannah was 16 like Luke and his son Alec was the same age as Jessica 19.

“I won’t leave you alone until you tell me what the hell you have been so upset about lately,” Luke demanded grabbing her arm. Spinning Jessica towards him. Luke’s ocean blue eyes pierced into her emerald ones, she was half a head shorter than he was so he had to look down to meet her eyes which she immediately flicked to the ground.

“I’m fine Luke,” she lied not meeting his eyes, but she was defiantly not fine. “just tired that’s all,” this wasn’t exactly a lie, she was tired, tired of having to worry about Luke, tired of fighting with her brother, tired of getting harassed by savannah about the fact that she still didn’t have a boyfriend, tired of being ignored by alec, tired of practically running the household by herself, tired of being lied to, tired of being the one every one turns to when they have problems, she was tired of having to act as if everything was okay, she was tired of being upset, angry, confused, worried, and ignored.

“You aren’t fine, that talk may work on savannah and Alec but it doesn’t work on me I have known you for 16 years, Jess, I can tell when your upset,”

“of cause I am upset, Luke, for the past 7 years I have been doing everything can do to figure what I can about this whole fairy blood situation, you want to know what I have found Luke,” she had finally reached her room and she stood in the door way yelling at her younger brother, “I found nothing of importance, I now know that fairies are the offspring of both demons and angels, I also know that if a vampire drinks a fairies blood there powers don’t enhance like they do if they drink a warlocks blood because the angels blood counteracts it. I also know that you are the first ever demon hunter who has ever consumed fairy blood,”

“Jess…” Luke began not knowing what to stay, “I… I didn’t know.”

It was the first time Jessica could recall Luke not being able to get a proper sentence out, even in the middle of battle Luke was able to find some kind of cocky remark, “I’m not blaming you Luke I’m just upset that I have no new information I want to help you, you turn sixteen in two weeks, that is the age that the change will most likely happen or in two years when you are 18.”

“Jess I am not a little kid anymore, you don’t have to protect me, either way it is my choice I can either fight it or I can embrace it.”

Images flashed behind Jessica’s eyes images of the years spent with Luke in their small home in London, holding his hand whenever they crossed a street, walking him to school, helping him hide his demon hunting family. It was their secret and nobody could ever find out. But now standing before her, Luke was no longer the little nervous kid he was in London he was a fighter and each day he seemed to get stronger, faster and more unpredictable. Soon he wouldn’t need to be protected but right now he did.

“I don’t care if you aren’t a little kid I am not about to sit here and watch you turn into one of those demonic creatures ,” Jessica snapped trying to close the door.

“Jess you don’t seriously think I am going to embrace becoming a fairy ,” Luke held the door open.

“You have no idea what I think!” she snapped at him giving up all attempts to lock him out of her room. “I have talked to werewolves, vampires, warlocks and even fairies. They all said that if you fight you will only end up losing yourself when you finally do give up. There is no hope,”

Luke stared at her too shocked to say anything, “jess…” he started trying to think of anything that would have calmed her down.

“No, Luke don’t start that I am finally letting you know why I am so upset. My baby brother is about to turn away from the only world we have ever known. The hardest part is that after you change you will no longer have any more memories. Not of me, or Savannah or Alec. They will all be gone and you will never be able to find them again,”

“I could never forget you jess,”

“and what makes you so sure about that Luke! You haven’t even spoken to anyone about what might happen once the fairy blood becomes dominant!”She yelled “and don’t say you don’t have enough within you because Imogene fed it too you for 5 years!” Jessica used Luke’s sudden surprise to slam the door shut.

She turned around and saw flickering gold and orange flames. They ran along the walls they encircled the room, heat radiated off the flames making it hard to breath the smoke was sickeningly thick.  She almost screamed in surprise. She was certain she hadn’t had any candles burning her hair-straightener wasn’t even plugged in. The fire had just randomly started without any source of ignition. Jessica started to hyperventilate the smoke had turned the gold feature wall white with ash.

‘Remember Jessie if you are ever scared or angry, just take a deep breath and count to ten,’ they were the only words of wisdom Imogene had ever said to her, Imogene had never been a real good mother, more like a master and Jessica was her slave, while Luke was learning how to use weapons Jessica was cleaning and cooking all day and most way into the night, when ever Imogene went out Luke would pass his new found knowledge onto Jessica and that is how she became the fighter she is today.

Imogene’s words circled through her head like a fly trapped in a jar and this was a time to listen to them. She took a deep breath and counted to ten. As she calmed herself down, the fire dwindled getting smaller and smaller as she relieved her anger. The fire was only in small patches now patches she could stamp out with her boots. As she snuffed out the last of the little fires one word sprang into Jessica’s mind. MAGIC.