An eternity of lightning

Chapter 8

Chocolate sits on Miles’s bed across from him cross-legged with a notebook on her lap. Her brown eyes are gleaming, and her hair is tied back tight into a ponytail. 

“What would I do without you?” Miles says, shaking his head and running his fingers through his hair. 

“Not much.” Chocolate says, her face twisted in distaste, “You know so little, Mile. I thought I could teach you, but you almost seem impossible.” 

“I’m sorry, Choc.” Miles says, shrugging, knowing that he can’t do anything about it. 

Chocolate sighs, and reaches for Miles’s hand. “Let me see.” She says, tracing the lines in his palm. 

“What tribe are your ancestors from again?” Miles asks, as he surrenders his hand to her for a palm reading. 

“One I’m sure your history classes have never studied.” She responds, and he nods, almost positive of that. 

“I originate from the witch doctors. And although they weren’t the most civil characters in the past, we’re very humane now. We only live to raise our vibrations, and our levels of consciousness, an odd practice, but-” she shrugs, “It’s the way we were all raised.” 

Miles nods, thinking that maybe Chocolate is into the same kind of magic as this Astrild character. 

“So you think you can protect her?” Miles asks, hoping for the life of his sister that there is some way that the spell can be undone. 

“I can not promise anything. I am unexperienced, especially in this level, but I am going to do everything I can for your sister, Mile.” 

Astrild sits by Harvey, knotting his fur in her fingers until he whines in pain, and she releases, only to grab another handful. 

Harvey’s tongue glides over Astrild’s revealed tattoo, as she’s dressed in her hunting corset and tight jeans. Her hair is tied tightly into a high ponytail, and her eyes burn as she looks at Harvey with hatred driving into her core. 

“Oh Harvey.” She says, standing as she shoves her dagger into her boot, smiling as she does so. “I could use a hunt.” she tells him, and his large tail wags, and his teeth are bared into a smile. 

“Blood must be spilt if we are to move on from the past.” she says, quotes her father, but not realizing that she is doing so. She never realized how horribly she did miss her father, but only the hatred of having to miss him for so long. 

“Come Harvey.” she says, as he trots to her side, licking the side of her face, heading off into the distance to cause another disappearance. 

Many days before the wedding, Astrild sat at her dressing table, her Nana combing through her thick tangled hair with a gold-embroidered brush. 

“What if he cannot even stand me?” She worries, glancing at herself in the looking glass and tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. 

“Now, milady, I wouldn’t be worrying much about that.” the old hag winked, sending her wrinkles to flutter about her face. “Just keep that stubborn mouth of yours closed, and all will go well.” she smiles, a toothy grin as Astrild hears her father enter her chamber. 

“Hello, my blossom.” he says to Astrild, as the old woman clambers off into the shadows of the corner. 

“Father.” she says, bowing her head in a gesture of respect. 

“The seamstresses are ready for you, Astrild.” he says, standing behind her in the mirror, fluffing her hair softly his hands barely touching the back of her neck, but enough to send a small shiver down the edges of her spine. 

“Why didn’t you send Emily?” she asked curiously, but more wanting to know what business her father had come to her on.

“I wanted to see you. Wish you luck; tell you how proud I am of you. I know I never told you this before, but I truly am honored to call you my daughter.” he says, as she turns to face him. “And your mother would be proud of you as well.” he finishes, smiling at her before finally saying, “Now, come.” gently, and she rises, curtsying to the only parent she had left and following him to the seamstresses quarters.