ZENOVIA

(Excuse any typos and grammatical mistakes)

It was a rainy day in the small town of Sanville. Dark clouds gathered together covering the sun, darkening the daylight. The sounds of thunder rumbled in the sky as the rain was pouring hard making patter sounds against the windows. Two friends were racing down the street trying to take shelter from the sudden change of weather. Using their hands to cover their faces and eyes so they could see clear through the rain but so far, they were failing miserably as the rain was blinding them, one that was running faster than the other happened to spot a store along the road and signed her friend to follow her into the building. She pushed the door open rushing in and seconds later her friend followed her shutting the door.

Both were drawing deep breaths while brushing the rain off themselves one stated “Well this was an exciting turn of advance”
“I told you to bring an umbrella!” Brenda split; her voice laced through with annoyance.

“Why didn’t you bring one yourself?” Zoya raised a brow at her friend that appeared annoyed, “Because... I... I forgot and I thought maybe-” Zoya cut Brenda’s sentence short by stating “What?” She held her waist “I would remember to bring one?”

Brenda nodded “Hmm, you were like a backup plan...” She sighed “That failed”

Zoya frowned rolling her eyes at her friend’s statement “Wow”

“Now I’m all wet!” Brenda pouted, looking down at her wet clothes, Zoya chuckled replying “That’s what she said”
Making Brenda scowl at her.

“What is this place?” Zoya questioned starting to pay more attention to their surroundings, Brenda lifted her head looking around “A book shop obviously” She replied with a duh tone, “No shit Sherlock” Zoya rolled her eyes as she started to wander around the bookshelves.

“These books look....” Zoya trailed, “Old?” Brenda finished her sentence, “Yes...” She said sounding off-minded, “They look like ancient books...”

“Right?”

“Crystal would have loved this place since she’s into dark academe things”
“Too bad she didn’t tag along”

Brenda was about to reach out for one of the old books on the shelf when a voice announced, “Can I help you?” stopping her hand mid-way, They both peeked between the shelves to see where the voice came from.
“Oh...”

“There’s someone here” Brenda mumbled, Zoya grimaced looking at the woman who was standing beside what looked like a cashier register.

A middle-aged woman stood beside a cashier register, who was brown in completion and stood at a height of 5,3 to 5,4. She had short black hair with tints of grey. She wore a summer dress that reached her knees. They both turned to each other awkwardly then turned back to her smiling and she smiled back clearly still waiting for their reply.

“Well, Umm?” Brenda murmured, looking around, “well...” she trailed trying to think of something to say,
“Well?” The woman raised a brow.

“We are here for...”

“A read!” Zoya chipped in saving Brenda who was stuttering struggling to think of a lie “We are?” Brenda turned to her friend blinking in confusion.

“Yes!” Zoya declared low-key sending her a signal to look behind where the woman stood, to a sign that said ‘WANT TO KNOW YOUR FUTURE? GET A READING TODAY!’ On a purple board with golden stars.

Brenda opened her mouth in an ’O ’sharp realization. And turned her gaze back to the woman smiling while nodding at what Zoya had said.

“Yes, we are here for a reading”

The woman stared at them confused with her eyebrow arched but then nodded “Oh okay” she mumbled turning around, “Follow me” She opened the curtains and went through the door and they followed her into a room that was printed in a dark purple lit up with purple lights. The walls were decorated with fake leaves with posters of a woman with three faces and six hands. Four were holding four elements of the earth and one was holding a sword while the other was holding a snake. Pink and purple curtains were hung on the ceiling over a table with a crystal ball on it. And three chairs around the table.

“Woah” Brenda whispered.

“Take a seat ladies” The woman offered them to sit down, and they did she followed by sitting across them. She folded her arms in front of her on top of the table.

“Okay, so who is going first?” She asked them, they looked among themselves.

Brenda laid her hand on the table first and the woman took it, then started tracing the lines on her hands while mumbling something under her breath and focusing hard on it for a couple of seconds then she looked up smiling at Brenda.

“You, young lady have a bright future” She mentioned making Brenda smile in amusement, “I do?” She asked grinning, “Mhmm” She agreed, “You are to meet a young wealth man that is going to take care of you and all your worries and make sure you live comfortably,” She told her making Brenda smile wilder, “Oh my God finally!” Zoya chipped in sarcastically, “That means you will get over that jackass” she continued making Brenda playfully push her with her shoulder.

Brenda’s turn passed Zoya handed her hand to the woman and the woman did the same thing she did to Brenda but instead of a cheerful expression, she had on, her expression turned sour as her face fell. Making Brenda and Zoya look among themselves confused.

“Is there something wrong?” Brenda asked, the reply she got was the woman starting to whisper in a foreign language.

“What is it?” Zoya asked anxiously, however, the woman doesn’t answer their questions she continued whispering in an unknown language. Slowly they started feeling uneasy and wanting to leave.

“Maybe this was a mistake” Brenda whispered into Zoya’s ear anxiously eyeing the woman, Zoya merely stared at her with troubled yet anxious eyes.

“Ehm... we are going to... go now,” Brenda said getting up to grab Zoya’s arm, however, she stopped midway when the woman lifted her head with her eyes wild open and hardened with her pupils glowing purple making Brenda fall back on her chair startled.

“You are going to give birth to a child,” She informed, glancing at Zoya with sharp gazes. “But the child bears a dreadful fate!”

“What???”
“Bears a what??”

“Her soul is curs- no.....she- no....her past self” the woman was stuttering, appearing to be struggling with the loss of words.
“I... I don’t understand” Zoya whispered, her voice coming out soft, small filled with confusion staring at the troubled woman.

“Don’t have this baby!” She begged, Zoya grabbing both her hands, her purple eyes glaring at Zoya’s in desperation “I-I-I-” Zoya stuttered not knowing what to say.

Brenda forcefully grabbed Zoya’s hand away from the woman’s hold and got up “You are an insane woman!” she spitted, “You!” The woman groaned her voice laced with anger “You will abandon her in her time of need!” She pointed at her, “You are no friend to her at all!”

“I will advise you to submit yourself to an asylum” Brenda pulled Zoya away rushing out of the room.

“Your unborn child is bonded with a mystical beast... She will be born to be his bride.....”

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One year later

As Maria was opening her shop preparing for another day. She found a basket on her doorstep. She stared at it for a short while confused with the object in front of her. Bewildered and puzzled she stepped out of her shop looking left and right checking to see if she could find who had left the basket on her doorstep. However, there weren’t any signs of a human in her street.

*Cooing* The woman whirled around at the sound. She frowned moving closer to the basket with her eyebrows arched confused at what made that sound.

*Cooing*

She looked closely into the basket and a grasp escaped her lips when she saw a newborn inside the basket.

“What in the Hecate!” She gasped picking the newborn up and a paper dropped from it.

‘A letter,’ she thought.

She opened it and started reading it.

*How do you even start a letter like this? I have been racking my brain trying to think of something to say or how to start this letter but I have been hitting a dead end. I’m not sure if you would remember me but I’m the girl that once came by with her friend and rudely left after you told her that she was going to have to kill her newborn.

I don’t want to make this letter a whole bible verse but I feel like it will end up this way.

I will start by introducing myself, since last time I didn’t have the chance. I’m Zoya Mathel, currently while writing this I’m 24 I don’t know how old will I be when you receive this but I highly doubt that I will even be in this world. Because ever since I got pregnant, I have been feeling as if I won’t make it to even 25. It’s a funny feeling to have but I have it.

This pregnancy has been the best yet most frightening thing that has ever happened to me. Best because of the love I felt for this little bean that is growing inside of me and the warm feeling I feel every time I feel her moving inside of me. Scary because of the dreams I have been having and the feeling that I might be watched and something is coming after me. Something terrifying, I have been having strange dreams where something... A creature is coming after me.
I did consider killing her but I couldn’t. My heart and soul wouldn’t let me no matter how much I tried. Ohh, and I did try but I just couldn’t find it in me to do so. Even with the dreams and feeling of being hunted like prey. However, being with her every day felt like a dream. The love I grew to have for her is unexplainable and pure and my heart bleeds every time I get the feeling that I would never be able to even carry her in my arms.

As you had said, my friend would abandon me, and that she did. I have nothing to say much about her.

Nonetheless, before I end this pitiful letter, I just want to introduce this wonderful miracle of mine and the last piece of me and the only remaining part of me... Mbali... Mbalelihle, which means ‘beautiful flower’ in Isizulu.

Please I beg you from the bottom of my heart take care of her and protect her from all the world’s evil and another world’s evils.

Sincerely,
Zoya...

Maria signed as she looked up from the pitiful letter, back to the newborn in the basket, and closed her eyes exhaling briefly then took the basket inside.

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Okay..... Sooo what do you think?? Did you get the message or are you puzzled??

Either way... Answers will be delivered along the way!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter and like if you did

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