Acceptance

Chapter 9

Alice's POV:

I smiled softly as we left the air port. This would be an interesting full moon celebration. Serge and many of the other half breeds that gather have a weird relationship. We all have been abused and neglected that we dont really open up to one another. We care what happens to each other, like how Serge got mad over what happened to me and the council, but we dont care about each other the way my mates care about me. My mates would give me the shirts off their backs, but these people wont and its understandable. Maybe to my mates its not but to me, someone who was in their shoes, it is. We need everything we can get our hands on to survive. So I meant it when I said my mates were the first to ever truly care about me. For that, I will do whatever it takes to keep them safe and protected.

I drove them down familiar roads, taking us to Serge's cabin. Serge, Karen, Aiden, Cecile with four women with him, Ingrid with her mate Andrew both feeding two of their three triplets while Karen held the third. They were an unusual group to see together. Serge was a half demon half fallen angel who had the crimson red skin and gold eyes of his mother and the black feathered wings of his father. His mate Karen wasn't a half breed, she was a full blooded demon and they've been together for centuries. Cecile was half merman half sea nymph. His legs and arms had green and blue scales down the sides, and if he went into the water his legs would turn into a tail while his skin turned blue. Ingrid was half werecat, half vampire. Her dark skin was the color of chocolate while her hair was the color of the night sky and stick straight. It was long and flowed easily. Her blue eyes were that of her cat with her pupil always in a slit shape. When she smiled there was no hiding her fangs, and she enjoyed the way it put fear into her victims. Her mate was a werewolf from the warrior pack Black Hills, one of the most feared in the world. Usually they were hard set in their ways, by accepting only wolf mates and no other species, but he went against them because he had fallen in love. From the way he looked at his pups, it was clear he loved them too and would fight till his last breath to keep them safe.

Aiden was a mix of leprechaun and titan. Leprechauns arent usually short, they're actually surprisingly tall. The only reason leprechauns got seen as short to the humans was because some drunks in Ireland saw a leprechaun at the docks and his leg had fallen through a rotted board so to the drunk men, he looked short. And titans arent that tall either. Taller than most humans, but not like the size of giants. Most times you see a titan was on TV playing basketball. All those amazing throws from half way across the court was them discreetly using their wind magic to ensure it landed in the basket. Other than the magic tattoo on his left arm, he looked human.

Serge smiled when he saw me, "Dont you look like a sight for sore eyes kid." I smiled then made introductions. Karen then lead us inside and showed us where we would be staying. She then left while we got settled. I watched as Cindy pulled out the night gown I loved seeing on her and put it in the drawer she claimed for herself. She had an innocent looking smile, but I knew her and the others were up to something.

Cindy's POV:

After we were unpacked we went outside. The guys hung around the barbeque while us women were on the patio. Alice was holding Ingrid's daughter Orelia. Seeing Alice hold her made my heart skip a beat. I could never be a mother because it was extremely hard for genies to have kids, but wolves and witches are known for large families. I only worried about any complications she may have due to her being so mixed and then you add in the mix of our other mates, it could cause some major issues.

"Vampire looks good on you Alice," Ingrid complimented genuinely. Alice smiled, "Thanks." "So tell us how did it happen. Serge only told me the council was involved," Karen asked her. Alice shrugged a shoulder, "They tried to kill me, and Nathaniel turned me to save me. Simple as that." "Was it blood poisoned vampires," Ingrud asked her. "They've become such a major problem everywhere. It was why Andrew moved us here with Serge when I had the triplets." Alice sighed, "I dont know. Before I left there had been rumors that some group was trying to out us to the humans while also making sure vampires couldn't stop them." Karen scoffed, "Please the demons would step in before the humans found out." She had a point, especially if the demonic God of Time stepped in and went back in time to kill those responsible before it happens.

Alice shrugged, "Even if the blood poisoned are outed the rest of the species are safe. We'll just go into hiding like we did centuries ago." Charlotte, one of Cecil's mates shook her head, "That's no way to live though." "Maybe to those who are full bloods, but the half breeds have been in hiding since hate began to be shown towards them," I pointed out. A pain that Alice and Ingrid shared, showed in their eyes but it was gone a second later. I hated seeing that pain in her, she deserves to be just as free as I and our other mates. I hate that she has to hide behind a pair of sunglasses or a pair of contacts. She is who she is and no matter how much hate is thrown it wont change what her blood is.

"What do you mean they've been hiding," Garnet asked. "Serge lives here, miles and miles away from a city or town because he is hiding from the hatred everyone gives him. What you dont realize is a good amount of the supernatural population is made up of those with mixed blood. It just doesnt seem like it because they're all in hiding. They just want to live a peaceful life and hiding is the only way they can," Alice explained to her. "We half breeds arent like you full bloods, we arent sworn to protect a pack or a coven. When trouble shows its ugly head, the only ones we care about besides ourselves is our mate and children. Our group here, had made that clear when we all met for the first time. It's in our nature thanks to the hate the world has shown us."

"But Cecile cared about what happened with you and the council," Daisy threw in. "And just as I would care if the council did something to him. The reason being is that if they did it to one half breed, they'll do it to another. We care about how others treat us, but none of us would step in to help another. It sounds cruel and fucked up to think that way but you would have to see it from our perspective in order to get it," Alice told her, the beautiful sparkle gone from her eyes. I hated the words coming out of her mouth, but everything she said was true.

"Not all half breeds see it like we do, and there are some who hope that it all changes with time, but unfortunately life gave me a rotten lemon and instead of trying to make sweet lemonade with sugar, I sucked that bitch dry then threw away the peel," Alice said then stood up. She passed the child to me then in a blink of an eye she was gone.

I heard Cecile sigh, "Sorry for my mates' loose tongues. They have yet to grasp the reality in which we live in." "Its understandable," Shelton told him. "We're gonna go find her," Pyrus said before he and Nathaniel left.

Karen looked at Cecile's mates, "What you should think about before mating with Cecile, is you need to think about everything brought with being mated to someone who is a half breed. Take Serge and I for example, my parents despise the fact I chose him and I haven't seen or talked to them in four centuries. We had a daughter once, like many she didn't live to hit puberty, but there was so much hatred shown towards her from my family and those in our community. We couldn't handle seeing that so we moved here so if she did live past puberty she would have to chance to grow up away from it, even though she would be isolated from many in this world." I wasnt able to imagine the kind of pain they went through, losing their daughter at such a young age. My thoughts drifted back to Alice. Could we put her through that? Convincing her to grow our family and then having our children not live? Could we even go through that ourselves?

I hate seeing Alice hurt and sad, and it would kill me if we were the cause of it. She has known so much pain, that I dont want her to learn that kind of pain. I will do what I can to make sure she always smiles.