Chapter One - Alexis
The rain splashed against Alexis's face as she jogged through the thick pine forest. The hypnotic pit pat pit pat of rain splashing against the ground echoed in the air, and was the only sound that could be heard. It was entrancing to listen to, like a lullaby that a mother sang to her baby. Hot, sticky sweat clung to her shirt. Heart hammering against her shirt, she came to a stone statue and took a deep breath.
The statue was of a man on a pedestal. The statue was cracked down the middle, a reminder of the many years it had been forgotten.
Scrolling through her texts, a message popped up. It was Alexis's best friend, Stacey.
Do you want to meet for coffee? Now?
Alexis typed back her response.
Sure. I'm at the park. See you in twenty.
It was agreed that they would meet at Pete's Coffee, the best coffee shop in town. Pushing her burning legs even harder, Alexis was back at the parking lot in record time. Getting into her car, she turned it on and the engine roared to life.
While driving to the coffee shop, she listened to the swish swash, swish swash sound of the wiper blades rubbing against the windshield. Sighing, Alexis wondered what Stacey wanted to talk about. Perhaps it was about them. They were in a relationship after all. Maybe she was ready for the next step. It had been a year since they had been together.
Pulling into the coffee shop parking lot, Alexis saw that it was more crowded than normal.
Inside, it was a French styled theme. There were tables with blue tiling, and sleek, curved chairs. A hand drawn menu was visible behind the counter, and a display of freshly baked pastries was in a prominent position at the front of the counter. The delicious aroma of coffee, mingled with the sweet scent of cinnamon, created such a smell that would tempt anyone to purchase one of the exotic sweets. Alexis's stomach growled, reminding her that she had not eaten since early that morning and it was already 3pm.
"Alexis!"
Alexis turned when she heard a familiar voice call her name. It was Stacey, waving at her from a window seat. Approaching her friend who had a big, Cheshire Cat like grin, she brushed her lips against Stacey's, earning more than a few stares from the other patrons. But she didn't mind. If she could be with her best friend for life, she was at peace and didn't care what other people thought of her.
"Hey girlfriend, so what's the news?" asked Alexis, glancing at the coffee cup in front of her that was marked tea.
Smiling, Stacey knew her well, she thought.
Stacey looked at her with wide, eager eyes and gripped the table with excitement.
"My mom is taking me to Europe during the summer."
Alexis's eyes widened. Then she looked away, unsure of what this meant for them. She would be alone for the summer then. She stared at her tea, disappointed by this revelation. She looked up when Stacey grabbed her hand.
"There's a catch however," she said, her green eyes twinkling with a mysterious knowing in them.
"What do you mean?" asked Alexis.
"My mom told me that our family are descendants of a powerful bloodline of witches. My aunt is going to teach me magic," she said with a nervous chuckle.
Alexis's mouth dropped open in shock. While she didn't believe in actual magic, she wished it were real.
"But magic isn't real. Maybe she meant your aunt was going to teach you the history of your family?" asked Alexis.
Stacey ran a hand through her hair and shook her head.
"I don't think so. My mom showed me that she was a telepath the other day. She guessed every single thing that I was thinking about. Add to that, I came home to discover the dishes washing themselves today. I almost fainted."
Alexis was speechless. Her throat was parched, like the desert. Her friend sounded crazy, yet she knew that Stacey was sane. She also had no reason to lie to her.
"I'm wow, I'm happy for you Stacey, I really am. Do you think there's a chance your mom can -"
Stacey shook her head, silencing her.
"No. mom says we shouldn't involve non bloods, even those we are in relationships with. But because of our promise pact, I felt like I needed to tell you," she said, getting up.
Stacey brushed her lips against Alexis's lips, and left her alone, leaving her stunned and confused as she watched her friend head outside.
------
Alexis opened the front door, eager to dry off. Sniffing the air, she caught a whiff of the delicious aroma of lasagna lingering in the air. She walked into the kitchen, and saw dinner on the counter. Her mouth watered at the smell which lingered in the kitchen. Grabbing a fork out of a drawer, she cut a piece of meat and cheese from the batch and put it in her mouth. A satisfied moan escaped her lips when the spicy flavor crashed into her mouth and she closed her eyes, relishing every bite.
"Alexis Ann Edwards!" screamed her mother, causing her to drop her fork. It hit the floor, and a metallic ringing sound reverberated through the room.
"Good gosh mom! You nearly gave me a heart attack!" exclaimed Alexis, glaring at the woman in front of her.
Like Alexis, she has flowing blond hair and ocean blue eyes. Her mother wore a snowy white apron with purple roses sewn into the fabric. She had her arms crossed and did not look happy.
Alexis grimaced. "Sorry mom. I haven't eaten anything today."
Her mother nodded. "It's fine. But please make a sandwich or have some crackers to tide you over until dinner time. Alexis grabbed a few peanut butter crackers before heading up to her room.
Only to be greeted by something sticky which clung to her hair. Ripping out the material out of her hair, and pulling a few strands out in the process, she recognized the material to be cellophane wrap.
"DWEEBS!" she exclaimed, knowing it was the twins who were behind this. Turning around, she was just in time to catch sight of a head full of dirty blond hair disappear around the corner.
Stomping down the hall in a raging fit, she took the stairs two at a time. The little demons from hell were going to get it this time. First it had been the planted legs pieces in the middle of the night, then the fake dog poop last month. This was the last straw. She was tired of their pranks.
Snorting like an angry bull, she found the twins grinning ear to ear when she found them in the lounge. Throwing the wrap on the ground in front of them, she stared at them with wild, rabid animal like eyes.
"Who the hell is responsible for this?" she asked, pointing at the wrapping which was now on the floor.
Matt held up a phone in his hands.
"Three, two, one......"
Her eyes narrowed when she wondered what they were doing.
"Boom! You're on YouTube!" exclaimed Mark, clapping his hands.
"Demons from hell!" hissed Alexis, lunging forward to grab their phone.
Mark and Matt easily dodged her attack. Instead of grabbing the phone out of their hands like she had expected, she instead tripped on her own feet and face planted on the couch. Groaning, she saw the twins looking down her with devilish smiled.
She blinked. Now was her chance. Leaping up, she grabbed their phone, and yanked it out of Mark's hand, catching them by surprise. Doing a victory dance to their dismay, she had the perfect plan now that she had their phone.
"Awwwww man!" cried Mark.
"Give me that!" said Matt, jumping up.
Alexis held it just out of his reach.
"Oh no. You two snowflakes aren't getting this back until I'm done or mom makes me give it back," she said, heading up to her room.
"Mom!"
"Alexis took our phone!"
Grinning ear to ear, she pressed the restore button. This way, all their texts, data and videos would be erased. It was the perfect payback solution. By the time her mom had found out was wrong, the phone had completed its system restore.
"Alexis? The twins said you took their phone," said her mother, walking into her room.
"What?" she said, knowing full what her mother was here for.
"Alexis, you know why I'm here," said her mother, crossing her arms.
"Whatever. Mom, you know how irritating the twins are. Every single day it's something else. They are out to make my life a living hell!"
The expression on her mother's face softened. She sat on the edge of the bed and rubbed Alexis's leg.
"Honey, the twins are working on their behavior. Everything will be alright soon."
Alexis narrowed her eyes, wondering what her meant by that.
"There's a woman I want you to meet. She's an old family acquaintance and will be able to help you with your problem."
Sitting upright, Alexis protested.
"But mom, I'm not crazy! It's the twins. If anyone needs help, it's them!" she said, clenching her fists so hard that her knuckles had begun to turn white.
"Sweetie, give them a chance. Dinner will be ready in thirty minutes. Try not to get in trouble before then, okay? Also, I'll need their phone."
Sighing, she handed her mother the twin's phone. At least they would have to download everything again. It was bittersweet revenge, even if they would be getting their phone back.
Alexis watched her mom leave, the headed for the bathroom. Turning on the shower, she stepped inside, only to let loose a string of muffled curse words. The water was scalding hot and burned her skin.
Once she had finished with her shower, she began to dry off, but stopped when she reached her waist. For imprinted into her flesh, was a gold dragon tattoo with the dragon's wings spread out in flight. Fingering it, she softened wondered why she had it. But her parents had told her nothing, making her think that perhaps for some reason, it was just a unique birthmark.
Drying her face and hair off, she looked at the mirror, and screamed.
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