The Enchanted

Chapter-20

So I was like her. A banshee. I was a paranormal creature. It hade felt unbelievable but I didn't know how else to describe those psychic dreams. I had felt shocked and had then cried and then had finally accepted it, feeling numb. I didn't know what to do with this information. Death and sorrow would surround me wherever I went and people would kill me thinking I was a bad omen. This situation felt too much for me to handle alone. The woman from my dream- Azari had been murdered for what she was. That was why she had warned me against telling anybody. I could certainly not go to the police. Or anybody else, for that matter. I wanted to see the woman, Azari, again but that would mean another horrifying dream. I paced in my bedroom, trying to think of what to do.

I suddenly began to feel very sleepy again. This time I recognized the symptoms- I was having another dream soon. I hauled myself off to bed and waited. A middle-aged man with hair plastered to his forehead with sweat was standing in the middle of a dark alley. His face had a look of pure fear. I tried to shield myself, to look away from what I knew was about to happen but I couldn't. I seem to be frozen in place- I couldn't move. The hooded figure stabbed him and he sank to the ground twitching. I squinted at the hooded figure but the dream was still blurry which probably meant that I still hadn't learned to use my powers properly.

Despite all my concentration, I could spot no new clues and the dream ended soon with my wailing and a feeling of overwhelming sadness. I could smell roses again- that was my only clue so far. I got up shaking in my bed and felt the details of the dream slipping away from me. Hurrying to my nightstand, I pulled out a notebook and a pen and began to write whatever I could remember. It was hard, as I felt the dream trickling from my grasp as water from my fingers.

After a few hours, I got ready for dinner when I felt another dream overwhelming me. It had to be Azari. I lay in my bed and waited eagerly. The white background soon appeared and so did she. She was still in the same dark dress with the stain on it. This time, I tried to pay closer attention to her face. She was the woman from the newspaper and she oddly reminded me of someone else. Her long dark hair was dripping with water and she smiled at me slowly like she always did.

"I know who you are," I said excitedly before she could speak. My voice was normal now which meant I had a little more grasp of my power now. She didn't react like I'd thought she would- her face remained impassive.

"You're Azari and you're a banshee," I said.

"Anything else?" she asked.

"The report said, um,..." I faltered, unsure of how to say it.

"Go on."

"That you're dead." I blurted out.

This time there was a ghost of a smile on her face.

"Yes," she said simply.

"Then how..?"

"You have a lot to learn yet Adriana," she said gently. "And I wish I was there to teach you. But now is not the time."

"I never did ask you- how did you know my name?"

She merely looked at me.

I bit my lip, thinking hard.

"Okay, so can you at least tell me why am I a banshee?" I asked.

"It's in your bloodline."

"Then why couldn't I do all this weird stuff before?"

"Something has to trigger it when you are ready."

"But, I'm not-" I tried to protest.

"No one ever is- so it just happens when something triggers it, something calls out to your blood."

"And what triggered me?" I pressed.

She opened her mouth to answer when the dream flickered. I felt like screaming. Just when I was close to getting answers, this happened.

"When will I see you again?" I managed to say.

She opened her mouth to answer but before she could, the dream ended abruptly. I got up from the couch shakily and opened my window to let in some fresh air. I needed to think. I had details of a whole crime scene tucked away in my nightstand and yet I could do nothing about it except hope the police found out on their own and make sure those people got justice.

I could have left an anonymous tip but it might have given me away. It wasn't like I had anything useful to say. I decided to wait until I had some solid clue aside from the smell of roses.

The moon was full tonight and the night was extraordinary cold. The trees looked haunting this late at night and the whole area looked beautiful. I was about to head back inside when I spotted something silver flashing around in my yard. Feeling curious, I went downstairs and opened the front gate. And saw nothing. I was about to head back to the house when I spotted something silver at the end of the lane.

Walking as fast as I could, I made my way towards the end of the street, shivering in the cold night air. I had forgotten to grab a coat in my haste to hurry downstairs. I turned to my right as the street ended. And was held spellbound by what I saw.

Two large wolves, one bright silver and the other a dull one were padding softly along the road gleaming in the dark. They were huge with soft-looking fur and large expressive brown eyes. Something about those eyes felt familiar.

One of them looked up at the moon and howled. I clapped my hands to my ears. I had heard these sounds before on my second day back. Those loud howls which felt agonizing to my ears. I felt my heart beating fast even though my brain had yet not fully registered the fact that two huge wolves were roaming about on the street. It was quite possible that my tired brain was making me hallucinate for real this time but they looked so real. So real and so beautiful.

The silver one turned his head towards me and sniffed. I knew I should scream or walk away but I felt frozen, unmoving. My heart was thudding loudly in my chest. I gazed at it as it softly took a step towards me. Suddenly, I was shaken out of my trance when a hand grabbed my shoulder.