Hidden Hallows

Binx"s large, black form slithers across the floor and s.h.i.+fts back to his cat form. He limps over with blood dripping from his sides and sits beside me, head down. I slowly lift my head up and look at the large gaping hole in the ceiling...

Rain mixes in with my tears as I realize that the house even tried to protect her... Anger boils within me as I scream. Lightning flashes and thunder cracks like an angry whip as it nearly drowns out my screams of sorrow.

I hold her close and rock back and forth as I cry. I had so much I needed to talk with her about... so much I wanted to show her... so much I wanted to share with her. This is too soon! She can"t leave me like this... she can"t... please...

I suddenly hear a howl, followed by several more that sounded much like my cries but I ignore them as I slowly look down at my mom. My beautiful Mommy... I use a shaky hand to push her wet hair back from her face and sob again.

"Eris?" I hear Xander call me from behind with a shaky voice but when he tries to step closer, I growl at him and he stops. I continue looking over her sleeping face, memorizing every detail, and burning it into my broken heart.

I don"t know how long I stayed there like that, but when it started to grow dark again, I finally looked at Binx. He remains in the same spot as before and says "Large figure in black, couldn"t make out what it was... I"m sorry. It took your father and brother..."

I slowly close my eyes as it starts to rain again, soaking my already soaked clothes and hair. "It"s raining again, mom. Don"t you love when it rains? Just like me..." I say stroking her hair as I look back down at her sleeping face.

I summon my magic and close my eyes, feeling the rain as it starts to slow around me. When it comes to a complete stop, I open my eyes and say "Now you can always be with the rain... and visit me every time it rains..." My voice breaks at the end as her body starts to disappear.

"You have to visit me a lot, okay?" I whisper as she completely disappears from my lap. The rain begins to flow up towards the dark sky as lightning crawls across the heavy dark clouds. As thunder cracks, the rain begins to fall again, just like my tears.

I struggle to stand on numb legs but when I finally do, my world tilts and goes dark. When I start to wake up, I feel myself wrapped in warm soft blankets. For a second, I think everything that has happened was just a bad dream but when I feel the emptiness in my heart, I know it"s real.

I push the covers off and sit up to find myself in an unfamiliar room. "How are you feeling?" Xander asks from a chair in the corner of the room. I slowly look over to him then back around the room before asking "Where am I?"

Xander places a file down and stands up saying "I brought you onto pack grounds after we found you at... your place. Can you... tell me what happened?" I look back to him with dead eyes as I say "I want to go home."

His dark eyebrows draw together with concern as he says "Normally, I would allow you to go home but... your house has been destroyed and it"s not safe." I continue to stare at him as I say "I"m not asking."

He curses and runs his hands through his hair as he says "At least let me fix the huge hole in the ceiling before you go back." I push the covers off and look down to see a large white s.h.i.+rt on me. I look up to him with an arched eyebrow but he quickly says "I had a female elder help change you... you were covered in gla.s.s, blood, and other stuff..."

When I see my black boots sitting by the bed, I grab them and slip them on. I don"t bother tying them as I walk to the door and open it. Several s.h.i.+fters jump back and look like they all got caught with their hands in a cookie jar.

I look at each one of them before heading down the hall. When I find the stairs, I slowly make my way down as Xander quickly catches up to me and says "Eris, Please. Just calm down and stay here for a few days, okay?"

I continue walking down the stairs as I say "I am calm." As I reach the bottom floor, I walk straight to the door and use my magic to open it. Xander growls and says "I understand a lot has happened to you but you aren"t thinking straight! Stay here where it"s safe! Where I can keep you safe!"

I stop midstep and turn to look at him as I say "You understand nothing!" I glare at him before walking away with shaking hands. "Dammit!" I hear Xander yell as I keep walking but after a few minutes, he pulls up next to me in his black Range Rover and says "Get in"

I think about it for a second before opening the door and climbing in. He drives me back to the house in complete silence and I appreciate it because my mind is going a mile a minute. When we pull up to the house, I still see everything is still the same.

The door lays on the ground in pieces and everything inside is trashed. I walk into the house and feel it slightly shake, its way of greeting me. I lift a hand and place it on the wall as I say "Thank you for trying to protect her..."