Shadow

26

-Denice's pov-

Spring was finally here and I was happy yet upset that winter was over. Winter was my favourite season, because I loved the snow falls, Christmas which was my favourite holiday, and the cold weather didn't affect me since I was a vampire. Everything heighten when winter came for me, and I loved it. Sadly it ended and the grass was finally poking through the light covered ground. I had just walked out of Mr. Fitz class with Reid beside me who was holding my stacks of books because he says he didn't want me holding anything. We were discussing an assignment that was due by the end of the week when I heard Aria's signal which was to summon me towards her. I stopped walking looking around the busy halls trying to find her presence, her scent but I couldn't see her at all. "Denice what's wrong?" Reid had asked. I wondered if he could hear the signal that Aria was making unless it was too loud in the hallway for him to hear it. "I have to be somewhere actually, could you let Mr. Kahn know I won't be in class and just grab my assignment from him please and thanks," I rushed away from him making sure to take my stack of books with me and rushed out of the school towards the corridor that Aria was staying in. I used my vamp speed and banged on her door with my foot since my hands were occupied and when she opened the door she had one of the grimoires in her hands and turned away not looking at me leaving me to struggle. "Aria, Please," I mumbled when one of the books fell onto the floor causing the rest to fall. "I'm so sorry Denice, let me help you." She quickly put the grimoire on her study desk and knelt down to help me. "I see you got you're signal, hopefully nobody else heard it but I guess we got to figure something else out since I am at a vampire school which means anybody could've heard it," she laughs nervously. We both stand up throwing the books onto her bed and that's when I notice all the herbs, and ingredients scattered all over her room with candles, and opened books. "Maybe a mocking jay sound is not what we need, how about we pick a random word?" Aria mentions sitting on the floor near the shattered papers. I sit across from her not hearing a thing she was saying as she continued talking away when I picked up a paper that had me, Carter's, Kayleigh's, Cade and Wren. Even the ritual we did. She had a list of objects we had that night with a chant beneath it. It took me back to that night when it all changed.

"Kayleigh as fast as you can, get you're brother and Wren away from here as far as you can, take the keys from the kitchen and get the fuck out of here okay?"

"My magic? What happened to my magic? Denice?"

"I don't know but get out of here now Kayleigh, I won't be able to stop?"

"Stop you from what—?"

"Denice, hey?" I heard Aria yell out loud bringing me back from that terrible night. I snap back to reality and see her with fear in her eyes with her arms in my shoulders from shaking me. I look down and see my fingernails rip through the palm of my hands gushing out blood which quickly healed once I released the pressure but the carpet and papers had blood on them. I had tears in my eyes, my cheeks were wet from crying, I was thrown back to that very day. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize-" before I was able to continue on Aria pulled me into a tight hug. "You're okay. Everything is going to be okay." She comforts me while patting my shoulder. I hug her back thanking her and giving her my apologies for ruining her papers. "Don't worry I made copies. You thought about that night didn't you?" She questions. I help her clean up the mess on the floor and think back to that night again. "Yes. If only I could go back." I replied handing her the papers that I was able to get. "That's why I'm here Denice. I'm going to figure this out and with all the information you told me, I can't do anything else without you're friend Kayleigh here. We got to find her & by the way, with the curse she used on Carter, she can't undo what she did. Carter is a hybrid and he can't go back. But Kayleigh could get her magic back and she needs me to do it."