Chapter One
I'm haunted by shattered memories, scenes of a person I once was, a child I once was.
My story is like no other. The purpose of my life was not to go to college, fall in love, have a family, or grow old. I'm not sure if I even ever wanted that, to be honest. My life was never easy, and I don't think it will get easier as time goes on.... Through the years, I learned that you have to fight and be a survivor, but also not to let that stop me from living and finding the true meaning of life and its beauty along the way.
I knew that one day I had to return. It was my home, after all, where I grew up, where I had created my best and worst memories all at once
I've also been reminded that returning would mean going back to the academy. But not just any academy; it was meant for people like me. Werewolves, Vampires, Witches, and I'm not sure how to handle that. I mean, I'm literally going to be the most unwanted being to set foot in that academy, but still. After I moved in with Selena, I was homeschooled, and I don't think my social anxiety will be able to push through it, but I guess I'm going to have to suck it up and be confident since I'm great at it. I was raised as a human here, not really, as a witch, but I have been trained by my aunt to at least try to control my abilities. This will be a difficult year.
I'm ready now; I'm ready to return home and face my past after 8 years
I'm anxious, and all possible thoughts are going through my head right now. Seeing my mom's grave is the one thing I don't want to face; I'm scared.
The last thing I remember was that... the grave that shaped me as a person, well, a witch, and made me who I am to this day.
I do think that people change after certain events that take place during their lifetime; no matter if they are good or bad, they still shape your personality and how you view the world through your eyes. Well, there are exceptions, of course, just like in any case scenario you can think of.
After all this deep thinking, the night before going back home, it made me realize how much of an overthinker I am when it comes to how my life will change in less than 24 hours, and not just mine, but many other beings.
They say, "Overthinking kills your happiness." I don't believe that for a second. I'm convinced that overthinking makes you smarter and prepared for anything this lifetime will throw in your way.
All this time I've been living with my aunt Selena in her penthouse in New York; we've been living here for almost 8 years. I have adapted so well here, but sadly, I must leave now. Nothing lasts forever...
My thoughts were interrupted by my not-so-patient Aunt Selena.
"Nox, get your ass down here; we are going to miss the plane," she said. It was noon, and the reason we were taking a plane was that there's no portal in New York. The closest portal is in Edinburgh, Scotland. When we get there, there will be another house that we own in the countryside, and from there, we will get to the portal and travel to 'Onyxia', the world that I'm from, my world. The world I was banished from.
"I'm coming," I replied with a sigh.
I grabbed my small bag since my suitcases were already in the car. Selena had the stuff put our things in the car from the night before so we wouldn't be late.
My aunt made sure I grew up right and trained me for any possibility. I was the only one who left home; my two brothers, Enzo, who has short black hair, and his hazel eyes always filled with some mischievousness. He's quite tall, and he's a troublemaker. Ryker, on the other hand, has platinum hair like my white strands, green eyes like mine, and an average height. He's an artist who likes to draw a lot, and he's very creative. He also really loves to help others. Other than that, he's awfully quiet. They both stayed back in 'Onyxia', where we all used to live together. I talked to them almost every day using magical transmission, but I needed training since I was the last witch of the 'Forestia' bloodline.
I made my way downstairs, where I saw my aunt Selena hugging Jeremy.
"We are late, aren't we?" I interrupted their hug, pretending I didn't see anything. "Yes, and we need to catch that flight, or we will lose it, " she said, still running around, making sure she didn't forget anything.
"Oh! Well, if we forget anything, I'll have someone fetch it, " Selena said. Jeremy is Selena's very human NY boyfriend. He's quite nice, but for his own good, he doesn't know anything about what we are. I think he should keep it this way. Selena also believes it's safer for him to be in the dark. He literally thinks we are normal humans and believes my brothers live in Scotland and are there for college.
During the car ride, Selena turned towards me. She looked rather worried, as if she hesitated to speak up. "What's wrong?" I asked, questioning her worried expression.
" I was wondering if this is the right thing for you. I want you to be safe."
"Selena, you trained me well. I think I'll be just fine." I confidently said
"I know, it's just that I want you to fit in and..." She stopped there, but I could read her mind. She was wondering if I had passed the trauma, and if someone were to bring it up even by accident, I would be able to control myself and not lose control. She probably realized I read her mind, and that's why she didn't say anything afterwards.
"I promise I'll be okay." After I said this, Selena nodded her head in appreciation, but I do believe she wasn't convinced. I said, almost believing it myself; I knew I didn't have much self-control, and I knew that if someone were to bring up my trauma, they would regret it.
The rest of the ride to the airport was quiet. Both Selena and I were staring at the outside view of our windows and taking in the city before leaving for probably forever.
I was excited and ready to finally live close to a forest. Onyxia is full of nature, but sometimes the beauty of it can be deceiving. I need to remember Selena's teachings as to which places I can trust being by myself. Selena, on the other hand, wanted to be in both places at once. Even if Onyxia is her true home, she grew very fond of New York, and she wanted to be with Jeremy. I knew that. She was saying goodbye to him, for good.
Finally, we made it to the airport.
I hadn't been in an airplane since I first left from Onyxia to come here. Selena was going back and forth visiting my brothers from time to time, to check up on them.
Anyway, I put on my headphones and headed inside the plane. Pretty much the whole time, I was listening to music and slowly fell asleep.
I woke up in a garden, and I saw a woman brushing her hands in a lake while she seemed to be talking to something or someone. There was something next to her, a book, a very strange-looking book that had painted black roses on it. I walked closer to take a better look, and the woman must have felt my presence as she turned around...
"Mom?"
Selena shook me awake; the same dream again. I looked at her with a smile, pretending to be completely fine. The plane landed in Edinburgh. To our surprise, my brothers came to pick us up from the airport. Hi there, little one, and aunt Selena I missed you" Enzo said while opening his arms and giving me the warmest hug I've felt in a while and Ryker did the same since he's not particularly talkative, my aunt Selena then said "I hope you two behaved yourselves while I was gone and that you'll continue to do so" and then hugged them both tightly."I'm not little anymore, though I think you're forgetting you're only a few years older than me." After saying that, he laughed, and we made our way inside the car. Enzo was already in the academy in Onyxia. I'll be joining him as a first-year student. He's a 2nd year now, and Ryker decided to take a gap year for now.
During the car ride, we talked about random things, and we teased Selena since she was going to be a history professor in the academy, but also about Ryker's improvement in expressing himself more through drawing.
I miss my brothers- how we used to spend every single day together as kids- and now we are all grown up; I feel like I barely know them. They feel familiar but also strangers to me. Being the only witch left feels lonely and heavy to carry on my own, but I know that I can count on them from now on.
I wasn't the only one traumatized by my mom's death; it was Ryker, mostly, since he was the youngest and my twin brother. I think Enzo copes with it by not coping with it. Ryker kind of lost his ability to speak. It's something called Aphasia, which is a disorder that occurred after Ryker woke up from his coma. The healers said that the brain damage will probably last throughout his life. That's why he mostly draws. I'm the only one who can communicate with him through my mind-reading powers. He's been in language therapy with our healers for a few years now. He has made some progress. The car ride back home lasted about 30 minutes, and when we arrived at the house and made our way through the forest from our backyard, there were very few portals of Onyxia around the world. I think there were five of them in total, and three of them belonged to the oldest families of Onyxia. Our own portal was here in this forest. Witches are very grounded beings; it was only fair for our portal to be located here. Also, our last name is literally "Forestia". After we reached the portal, Ryker held my hand as we both went through it together. The other portals are located in Paris, I believe, and New Zealand. The other ancient bloodlines portal remains a secret kept within their families, just like ours.
We arrived in Onxia in seconds and outside our home. Well, it's more like a castle. The castle is old, but the beautiful kind of old, with trees around, and it is located next to the Crescent Moon Forest. The forest was named by the werewolves since it was like their hiding spot. Other creatures couldn't tell if there was a full moon due to how tall the trees were, unless they knew about the full moon somehow. It was to the werewolves' advantage to attack any unwanted enemies. I've read all about the forest while I was living with Selena. I wanted to just go to my room and lie in bed until the next morning. I would have to go to the academy. The good part is that I will see my best friend, Scarlet, tomorrow, but right now I'm way too tired. I made my way to my room.
Nobody questioned me; they figured I would probably be tired.
Oddly enough, I decided to open my balcony and step outside for a while, looking around the area to take in the fresh air surrounding Onyxia and the beautiful landscapes around the castle, along with the forest that seemed to be just behind our backyard. My eyes landed on the property across from ours, another land, which also looked like a castle.
I regretted it instantly. As soon as I realized my eyes landed on the Lycanthropes' land. They were our neighbors sitting in their backyard, shirtless, while it looked like they were having some sort of werewolf gathering. I don't recall them living so close to our land. I immediately closed the window. Hopefully, they didn't see me. I quickly showered, changed into my green silk pajama dress, and went to sleep.
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