Night blood

Chapter 4

I wake up with a pounding headache, and I'm slick with sweat. Slowly I open my eyes, and I find myself in a dark room, probably on my bed. I think back to what happened and my heart stutters, as I remember the strange dream I had, the fear felt so strong it was almost like it was real.
I sink back into the pillows, closing my eyes and releasing a deep sigh. Another five minutes later Kiyra patters in, on near-silent feet and takes a seat beside me on the bed. As a witch she has immortality and with that, she has the stealth of an immortal. She is beautiful like all immortals are, too. She has long strawberry blonde hair that hangs down in one thick heavy curtain to her waist. She has tanned skin and crystal clear blue eyes, that can stare straight into you and make you pull up your deepest secrets. She's tall and sharp, with a strong jawline that tells everyone not to mess with her, but around me, she's as soft as a baby, always fussing. She still keeps to her discipline if I'm rude or stupid. She's like a mother to me, and I love her like one, but I have never told her that. She believes love is for those who want to be hurt.

"What happened?" I ask groggily.
"I'm not quite sure, but I have a feeling it had something to do with that half breed boy"
"What makes you say that?"
"He passed out when you did."
I sit there, surprised.
"Kiyra, when I was out, I saw something. Could it have been him?"
"No my dear, that is only possible for witch or fae who are Malgermn."
"What's that?"

"It's a very very rare relationship between two fae or two witches, and only very rarely is it between a fae and witch. The relationship is believed to be sent down from Trianna who is the goddess of-"

"Protection."

I get an approving nod for remembering one of the ancient rulers.

"When the Great War ended, all the gods and goddess's gave us each their own gift, and Trianna's gift was granting each of us a partner, when one of us was in distress we would see where they are and could also communicate through our thoughts whenever we needed once the bond locked into place. So for the first hundred years all species had this gift, and everyone had Protection, but as each millennium has gone by, our connection to the ancients have grown weaker, and with that their gifts have gotten weaker, to the point were it's so rare for someone to have even one, let alone all eight of them like we were first given."

"What were the other gifts?"

She smiles down at me in a quiet know-it-all way that only she could achieve.

"You can learn about that another day."

I open my mouth to argue with her but get sidetracked, remembering about the boy.

"If the boy passed out where is he?"
Kiyra looks uncomfortable, looking down to fiddle with the hem of her frock.
"Well he kind of fell out of the sky, and Flynn picked him up and flew off with him."
"Is he ok?"

She's quiet and doesn't answer me.
I should go after him. I want to know his name.
I think back to him, his black hair making him look even darker and miserable than he should. Then I remember his wings. Oh my god, his wings.
"Kiyra, why did his wings look that way. I don't know much about fae but I know enough that that shouldn't be normal"
She sits there in silence for a few minutes, trying to think what the cause might be. Suddenly her back straightens and she looks over to me, finally meeting my eyes.
"You know how when birds are stressed they pull out their own feathers? Well, I think that's what is happening with that boy. He is probably under a lot of stress and as the result of that, is pulling out his own feathers."
That sounds horrible and makes my face go pale. How can someone see that happening and not do anything about it? How could someone do that to themselves?
"Will his feathers every grow back?"
"If he stops pulling them out, then yes. There is a high chance they will."
Fae wings aren't like normal bird wings. They are like bats wings. Except they have either a thin or thick covering of feathers over them. They change depending on what your heritage is like, the lesser fae have brown or grey, thin, patchy feathers. Their wings have a pale yellow leather skin covering them, and it's as tough as steel, only a witch crafted weapon can pierce them.
As for the higher fae, typically the fae belonging in court or are commanders, have lush, thick feathers coating their wings, ranging from vibrant blues and golds to the darkest, richest blacks.
The rarest of all are the wings of a half breed fae witch, also called rawndes. They have dominant fae features, except for their wings. Their wings change colour, the base being that strong beautiful black, and shifting into a white or pale blue, with hints of purple shining through. They are the strongest species out of all of them, except their power only starts to manifest after maturity, and before that, they just look like an ordinary fae. Apparently the most rare thing, and most beautiful is to watch when a rawndes matures, as they let out a massive explosion of power, and not only transform their body, but also their magic.
I sigh in jealousy. If only I could be like that. If only I could be anything but human.
I sit up, pushing away the dizziness, and Kiyra puts a steady hand at my back. Hoisting my feet out of bed and placing them on the cool stone floor sends shivers up my spine, the cold immediately filling up every pore in my body. I close my eyes and take a few deep breaths, and at the same time warmth floods me, thanks to Kiyra's magic. I get up and make my way over to the kitchen, only to halt about three steps in.

Pain.

It's everywhere.

It's lacing itself down my spine, seeping into my bones, filling my head. Blocking out the world.

Muting my senses.

I feel myself falling, yet I don't move.

I scream but don't make a noise. What's happening to me?
Then before I know it, it's gone. It felt like hours, but it was only a few seconds. I turn to ask Kiyra if she knows what happened, but she's standing there with her jaw slack.
"Kiyra? What was that?"
Her surprise scares me, she's barely ever truly surprised.
"I-I think you just let out light magic. Your body just released a small wave of light magic. I don't know what to say. H-how did you do that?"
"I don't know. I was walking and then everything hurt and the world stopped."
"Ok, I want you to tell me everything, but first we need to go sit down and have a cup of tea by the fire."