Page 80 of Tainted Rose
“You could, but it will take cycles of practice young one. Are you willing to invest time and effort into such task?” Her voice flowed with power and authority, but I could sense kindness and affection in her words.
I grinned; my mind brought up my mission list. Acquire silver eyes with vigorous training – Mission in progress.
She laughed; her hand went through her two-toned hair.
“In all my cycles, I’ve never seen someone as uniquely different and refreshing as you. Is that your coping mechanism for having multiple spirits?” she questioned.
I pulled back, stepping backward to face her. “Yup. It gets crowded in here sometimes, but they get along, I think. They have their moments. At least I found someone who actually gets my uniqueness. I keep reminding the boys that I’m one of kind, but nope. Hmph, never listen to me.” I poked at my head with a shy smile before I explained my numerous efforts, proving how different I was. She gave me a soft smile.
“My name is Winterlya Frost, future heir of Wintalyn. A pleasure to finally meet you, Princess Rosalina Mackenzie Heart,” she introduced, curtseying before me.
“Ah! No, don’t um bow and please, call me Mako.” I waved my hands frantically, before bowing my head. I could feel her vast power, the strong, yellow aura surrounded her powerful enough for me to pick up with no effort. Such effortless demonstration of strength deserved respect, regardless of status.
“No bowing? Hmph, wait till—”
“I reach Heila, where I’ll make it common law that no one will bow before me.” I finished.
She grinned. “If only all kingdoms could get a minute of you. It would be like a breath of fresh air.” She turned around, gesturing to me to follow her into the backyard. Her statement made me wonder what the other realms were like.
Eli stood close by, her arms crossed over her chest as she relaxed against the table near the grill. Matthew had returned inside, leaving us girls. He probably went back to Knightwood to finish his teaching duties.
“Matthew’s informed me that you have a split personality?” she began, turning to face me.
I nodded.
“Yes. Her name is Midnight. She was created when I was in my teens. I assumed its due to the stress of the experiments my Own – I mean, King Aspen had conducted on us. She just appeared one day, when I reached my limit during a group arena match and from then onward, she’s been the other half of me. We can’t talk to one another like my spirits, so we write each other notes and exchange places to read them. However, recently she’s been in and out of my head. We can talk for about ten seconds before she fades out and then my memory of it fades away. It’s been like this ever since the exam incident, not to mention my faint spells, which I haven’t had for two days so I guess that’s progress.” I wanted to give her enough information of what I had experienced so far, regarding the issue.
Her arms crossed as her right hand rested against her chin in thought; her supporting hand held her wand in place as she stared; her eyes assessed me from head to toe.
“Have you been feeling different?” she questioned, eyeing my reaction as my body tensed up.
I took a nervous glance at Eli; her emerald eyes opened to meet my gaze. They glowed before she nodded, urging me to explain what I’d been dealing with. I assumed Daniel and Ryder had explained to the others what had happened, just in case I broke down again. I looked back at Winterlya before replying.
“When...I was in the coma, I was engulfed by darkness. No sound could be heard as my essence simply floated for hours. I couldn’t track the time or where I was. I didn’t even know if I was in a body. It felt as though my soul wandered in an empty, black sky, where no one knew me and at some point, I didn’t know who I was either. All I knew was I was lonely, emotion that gripped at me over and over until I accepted the fact I had no one...no friends, no family...my spirits were gone, too. I was nothing.”
I bit my lip, as I tried to control my trembling hands. I hid them behind my back as I gazed to the floor.
Although Daniel had taken the darkness from me, I could still vividly remember the way it felt. It was something I couldn’t forget, no matter how many spells were casted over me.
Footsteps approached me; Winterlya’s dress came into my line of vision. Her hand brushed against my cheek before she lifted my head; the tear lingered in my eye spilled down and crashed against her fingers.
“It’s okay. Can you finish?” Her voice was soft and filled with empathy; her expression of acceptance gave me enough courage to continue as I nodded.
“Eventually, I began to hear voices, the boys and Eli singing to me. Finally, I felt the darkness start to leave me, pieces of it breaking off and I was free. Yet, it didn’t completely leave me. It continued to haunt me whenever I closed my eyes, or if I was left alone for a long period of time. In some ways, I was afraid of it, yet, other times I knew it was a part of me. It was a battle against the darkness inside me and I simply wanted a way out. I asked Daniel to rid me of it or at least dim it down, so I could actually live my life, even if it is temporary. Am I sick? Or is this the result of me having multiple spirits and pushing over my magic limit. Can it be fixed...or am I broken?” I explained before the number of questions poured out of me as they swarmed my mind, craving answers.
I wondered if she could see my desperation; the need to confirm if my mental status had declined or if by chance, this was a phase.
She gave me a sad look; my heart sank as I assumed the worse.
I am broken.
“You’re not broken, Princess. Far from it. I think I know what the problem is, but you need to trust me. We can’t try it here for chance of breaking anything, so we’ll head to the forest. Your knights should be here any minute, so we’ll go together. But I will warn you, I don’t know how you’re going to react to it.” she acknowledged, her eyes closed momentarily in concentration. Those silver orbs resurfaced as she opened them, nodding to herself before giving me a gentle hug.
I didn’t hesitate, my arms wrapped around her as I enjoyed her warmth.
Was this how shifters were supposed to comfort one another? Was this what I’d missed all these cycles, wishing for anyone to listen to my worries and fears? If so, I was happy that I’d been able to be surrounded by such loving individuals during this situation than back at the facility.
She pulled back before her face became serious. “Regardless of what happens, nothing is necessarily wrong with you mentally. However, I need to do this in order to prevent it from going that route. Do you understand, Princess? This may hurt, but it will potentially solve the loneliness and darkness problem. I just need your hundred percent trust on this.”
