House of Magic ↠ Twilight Saga

6. Water Day Ceremony

― ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝔽𝕠𝕦𝕣 ―

The forest of Astoria was possibly the greenest thing I had ever seen. Tall ancient evergreens stood brash amongst the other plant life, the trunks coated with lush moss. Birds chirped as I sat high in the tree laughing to myself.

I wasn't exactly sure how deep in the forest I was, but I trusted my senses enough to lead me back to Billie's when I was ready. Or rather until it was time to start getting ready for the Water Day ceremony. Thankfully, there would be food there. Kora, Lauren and I would get to eat after two days.

The last of the food ran out Thursday night, and Billie had not made it a high priority to give Kora money to go to the grocery store, and there was no way she would go grocery shopping herself.

My stomach growled at just the thought of food. Leaning back against the tree on the branch I was sitting on, my legs swing back and forth shivering slightly at the cool breeze brushing past my hair. Considering I had been climbing trees and running around the forest alike to a woodland child, I knew I would be in need of some serious scrubbing when I got back to Billie's.

My nose scrunched in disgust at the twig I pulled free of my hair; yep, a shower was most definitely needed. Swinging my right leg over the side of the branch, I looked down toward eight-foot drop it was to the ground. I huffed a heavy breath before leaping from the branch falling in a rather graceless way to the ground.

Landing harshly on my feet, I rolled across the ground before coming to a standstill a few feet away from the tree. Standing up abruptly, a wide grin split across my dirt covered face. Rubbing my hands on my jeans, I slowly began walking the direction I knew the house to be in.

My thoughts teetered toward whoever that strange disappearing man was earlier. How was he able to just vanish like that? Was he like me perhaps? Did he have voodoo abilities as well? This was a more than inexplicable occurrence. Not to mention his purple eyes! How was that at all possible?

Sure, my life had always been bizarre, but since I moved to Astoria it seemed things were taking a turn for even weirder, and I wasn't sure that I liked it. It was hard to believe that just eight days ago I was walking the New Orleans French Quarter with foster parents who were bible crazy.

Now look at me, a foster mom who was a drug addict, a foster sister who was a porn star, and another foster sister who was leaving in a matter of days. Oh yeah, don't forget the part where I was obsessed with the Cullen family.

My brain dipped into the improbable equation that was the Cullen's. They all had the same pale skin, beautiful features, and gold eyes as each other, everyone except Nessie, of course. The pull I felt toward Dr. Cullen was scary, I had never even spoken to the man and yet here I was daydreaming about him and his wife adopting me.

I tried not to grow attachments, so the fact that I was so fixated with them was eerie. There was a reason placing roots anywhere wasn't a good idea for me. I would either end up getting hurt by them giving me away like always, or they would get hurt like the Shay couple did all those years ago.

For a moment, I considered purposely stirring the usual bout of trouble that got me kicked from other foster homes just so Karen would pick me up and the Cullen's could simply be a happy memory. However, whenever I even considered the plot, a gut-wrenching feeling started in my lower abdomen warning me not to go through with it.

This was ridiculous!

Why was I so attached to the Cullen family! I have never had a conversation with any of them and I probably never would, the most I would get was a look or two.