by C Zinnia
They almost look like wolves, Mel thought. They can’t be wolves. It would be illegal to own a wolf. Maybe there’s a species of dog that looks exactly like one. Mel noticed the energy of the dogs were off too. They didn’t feel like the energy of any dogs she was accustomed to.
Daren grabbed Mel’s hand and pulled her along. He casually walked toward the crowd.
No one seemed to notice them as Daren and Mel got closer. Daren led her to the tree and helped her up onto the branches. Luckily, the branches were close enough that Mel could climb without making a sound. She found a perfect branch to sit on that provided a great view of the circle of people beneath her.
Daren effortlessly moved across the branches. He sat on a branch beside her and leaned close so he could talk low. “You’re downwind from Mom and Dad over here, so they won’t notice you. Everyone else will be too distracted to care,” Daren said.
“What do you mean downwind?” Mel asked softly. “Are you talking about smell again? Like smelling me? Seriously, do I stink or something? You can tell me.”
“No questions, remember?” Daren said.
Mel opened her mouth to protest but decided against it. She lost interest in asking anything else when she became aware of Viola’s energy once more. Mel’s heart sped up as nervous giddiness overwhelmed Mel. The sensations Mel felt when she was around Viola were addictive. Mel found Viola on the other side of the circle. Luckily, it was just close enough that Mel could see Viola’s features.
Viola was visiting with Dana. Viola laughed, causing her eyes to sparkle with joy.
All Mel could do was stare. What is wrong with me? Mel wondered. Why do I feel this way about someone I don’t even know? Why does it feel like our energies blend together so well when we’re so different?
Mel’s trance broke when she realized Daren was staring at her. He seemed a little surprised. “Do you know V?” he asked.
“No,” Mel said quickly. She bit her lip when she realized her mess up. She shouldn’t have known who he was talking about.
Daren caught her goof up. “Hmm, you sure? It looks to me like you do . . . or that you would very much like to,” he said casually.
“What?” Mel sputtered. “No!” She stopped talking. Her cheeks were burning. Way to give it away, Mel, she thought.
Daren grinned. “Whatever you say. I got to get back down there. You stay here and I’ll get you when it’s all over. Got it?” he said.
“Yes,” Mel muttered.
“Good,” Daren said. He jumped down the tree and joined his parents. He glanced over at the tree with a roguish smile as he said hello to Viola.
Mel glared at Daren. Jerk, she thought.
Daren laughed, causing Viola to look at him as though he lost his mind.
The crowd settled down as two men entered the center of the circle. One of them was older and close to the end of his life. Mel felt sorry for him. She could almost see dark globs of energy embedded in his aura. He’s sick, Mel realized. Even with his illness, his energy was fairly strong and that of a good leader. The other male was strong both physically and energetically.
“Another performance in honor of the full moon,” the older man said. The two men exited the circle.
Men and women sat on the outer rim of the circle with drums. The leader of the musical group was an older woman. She tapped a beat while a group entered the circle. Some were dressed in autumn colors while others were almost nude.
There were even large dogs in the group. The dogs leaped and jumped as they yipped and howled in rhythm. Mel could not believe how well trained they were.
Rhythms from the drums erupted as the group began to dance. The dance seemed to burst from the Earth. The energy from the group was stunning.
Some projected a vibrant energy to mimic the high winds of fall. Others muted their energy to match the leaves as they drifted to the earth. All of these varying energies mixed together to replicate autumn and its ebbs and flows. Mel thought it couldn’t get any better.
An interracial couple took the lead. At first, they danced apart from each other and their styles seemed drastically different. Over time, each mimicked the other’s style until the two had created a beautiful new style of dance.
When they came together, Mel felt tears enter her eyes. That’s how it’s supposed to be. Each person is whole on their own and then they come together to create something even more beautiful, a voice whispered in her head.
You’ll never end up in a relationship then because you will never be whole on your own, another voice said.
The thoughts escaped as Mel watched the couple move together intimately. The beat of the drums echoed their passion.
By the time it was over, Mel forgot where she was and clapped when everyone else did. She caught herself and stopped. Thank God I didn’t whistle, she thought. No one below had noticed her clapping.
Daren caught her eye and raised an eyebrow at her. She embarrassingly smiled and shrugged. He looked away as he spoke with Lee.
The men entered the ring again, but Mel became too distracted to notice. Viola was still sitting with Dana and clapping with the others. Viola had loved the performance.
While Viola appeared calm, Mel could feel anxiety pouring off of her. The fact that Viola wasn’t panicking about her anxiety showed she was used to it.
Viola really is going to fight, Mel thought.
Another energy seemed to try to lay over Viola’s energy in a sort of possessive fashion. Mel realized it was coming from a woman who was sitting a few rows behind Viola. The woman was watching Viola’s every move.
The two men left the center of the ring and two shirtless men took their place. Although they appeared physically stronger, their energies were not as powerful as the two previous men.
A fully clothed man stood between the two shirtless men. Mel assumed the fully clothed man was the referee. He spoke to each in turn.
For a moment, the referee kept his head facing one of the fighters, but his eyes flickered up to look right at her. She froze. Her skin prickled under his gaze. He gave her a wink before he refocused on the fighter.
What just happened? she wondered.
Satisfied with the fighters’ responses, the referee dropped his hand and yelled; “Fight.”
Despite their size, both were ridiculously fast. They threw kicks and punches at speeds Mel only thought existed in the movies. One man tackled the other and they rolled across the ground.
The crowd cheered and shouted words of encouragement to their favorite opponents.
One of the men locked the other man’s arm in an armbar. It looked like any slight movement would break it. The man immediately tapped out. His opponent dropped his arm and stood up with arms held high. He howled in joy.
Dana, Lee, and Daren didn’t appear happy, so Mel assumed their favorite fighter didn’t win.
Viola stood and walked away. Daren left with her.
Mel was worried. Is Viola still fighting? she thought. Mel could feel Viola close by, but she couldn’t see her.
The woman who had been watching Viola stayed seated, but it was obvious she had lost interest in anything happening in front of her.
A handsome man sat down beside the woman. He tried to lure her into a conversation, but she wasn’t having it. He gave up and walked away. Mel knew for some reason the woman wasn’t interested in the man because of his status.
Another handsome man approached the woman. The woman recognized him and was immediately interested. The woman flipped her hair and smiled widely as she talked to him.
Maybe the woman will lose interest in Viola, Mel hoped. Mel realized she was being ridiculous. Not that it matters one way to me or the other. It’s not like the woman not liking Viola will somehow increase my chances of dating Viola. The thought of dating Viola startled Mel. I need to stop that sort of thinking.
Looking at the man talking to the woman, Mel felt the world around her melt away. Geez, not now, she thought as she was lost in a vision . . .
The man was standing with a group of misfits he called followers. They were whispering and plotting a conspiracy against their leader. The man would do anything to gain power, but the man had to be careful not to alert the leader to his plans. It was time for a new ruler to take over. It was time for the pack to cleanse and rid itself of any inferior versions of their kind. The first one to go will be that bitch, Alura, he thought.
Mel blinked and the vision vanished. The man was still chatting with the woman. Mel was grateful she hadn’t fallen out of the tree during her vision. She didn’t get them often, but they always seemed to occur at the most inopportune times. Mel normally wasn’t able to do anything with the vision because if she spoke to anyone about it, she was deemed psychotic. Nothing hurt worse than knowing something no one else knew and not being able to tell anyone about it for fear of prejudice.
What did he mean by ‘their kind’? Mel wondered. She shrugged the term off. A person believing in a superior race was hardly a new concept. It just showed how little the man had progressed regarding intelligence. Mel knew well enough there was no such thing as a superior race or superior group of people. I hope he’s not able to kill this Alura person. Who could I warn about it? Mel didn’t know who she could talk to about any of it. Maybe Daren?
Two more fights occurred. One was a male match and the other was a female match. Dana and Lee were happy with the male victor, but not the female. All of the victors howled at the end of their matches. Mel found the howling weird, but then again, this was her first time watching an underground fight. Also, all of the athletes had skills at levels Mel didn’t understand.
Mel wasn’t an avid sports fan, but she had watched enough to have a fair gauge of what speeds were normal. Their skills coupled with their feral energies weirded Mel out. Her subconscious mind felt like it was brimming with theories, but Mel didn’t want to know what they were.
Are all of these athletes on steroids or something? Mel wondered. She didn’t know much about what athletes took to get an edge, but it seemed like everyone fighting was on something. How many rules would they actually have anyway? Maybe illegal matches are a dream for those who take performance enhancers.
Mel noticed Trixie for the first time. Trixie was sitting next to a woman who looked like her. It must be her mother. Her mother’s face was tight with stress. Mel knew Trixie was the cause of her mother’s woe. Trixie’s face showed she was uncomfortable sitting beside her mother. Maybe they are both contributing to their strained relationship, she thought. Mel also noticed that Bill was nowhere to be seen. Mel could sense that Bill wasn’t anywhere near the area.
Daren must have been serious when he said Bill wasn’t allowed to come to the fights. But why? Were they afraid of family drama occurring? Mel thought. Then again, Mel was grateful Bill wasn’t present. The last thing Mel wanted to do was deal with Bill’s parasitic nature.
Mel’s bottom was going numb from sitting in the tree. She had been still for so long that she was getting chilled, but she knew better than to move. Imagine how cold I’d be if I hadn’t worn layers.
She felt Viola move back towards the circle. Mel reflexively smiled when she saw Viola.
Everyone stood and cheered as Viola took her place in the center of the circle. A man entered the circle. The man was a foot taller than Viola. It was the same man who had gotten the interest of the woman watching Viola earlier. He winked and blew a kiss at the woman. The woman was pleased with the gesture. The fact that it didn’t faze Viola made the woman mad. The woman wanted desperately for Viola to be jealous.
What does he get by fighting Viola? Mel wondered. None of the other fights mixed sexes. How good is Viola?
The man continued his antics of jeering and waving at random people he knew in the crowd. While the man feigned being nonchalant about the match, his energy was hyper focused on Viola.
Viola didn’t wave at anyone nor did she pretend like she was focused on anyone but her opponent. She had taken off her shirt before entering the ring, so she wore a sports bra and long shorts. Her lean muscles were visible even under the moon. She stood calmly by the referee as the man waved to a group standing towards the back.
“Go Chris!” one of the yelled. “Show them who should be the next leader!”
The others around him whooped in agreement. Next leader of what? Running the fights? she thought.
Mel noticed there were people in the circle who did not welcome the man’s comments.
Chris merely grinned at his comrades as he took off his shirt. He tossed his shirt into the crowd. Chris’ body was all muscle. Mel could hear multiple women (and a few men) sigh in appreciation of his body.
It is a beautiful sight, Mel reluctantly admitted. While she didn’t find him sexually attractive, she could see why others found him attractive. But it doesn’t negate his traitorous personality.
The referee spoke to each of them. He brought his hand down and yelled; “Fight.”
Chris charged Viola with surprising speed. He is even faster than the previous fighters! Mel thought. Mel fought the urge to yell out at Viola to watch out.
Viola waited until Chris was about to collide with her.
Chris threw a hard punch. His muscles rippled with the motion.
Viola effortlessly countered by stepping slightly out of his way. She unleashed a back kick that struck him in the face.
Chris crumpled to the ground. He didn’t move.
Mel was stunned. It was the fastest fight of the night.
The referee checked on Chris before going over to Viola and raising her arm in victory. Mel noticed that Viola didn’t howl like the other victors.
Everyone jumped to their feet as they cheered. Some swarmed the center of the circle to shake hands with Viola and wish her congrats. She politely smiled to each person and thanked them.
The woman joined them. The woman stepped over an unconscious Chris, no longer interested in him. The woman’s energy was on Viola once more. The way her energy tried to roll over Viola angered Mel. How dare she wax and wane so effortlessly in her affections! She wouldn’t be true to Viola any more than she was to Chris. She would just leave Viola the moment Viola wasn’t of use to her, Mel thought. She didn’t like Viola being used by someone like that. Her anger grew with every step the woman took towards Viola. She should leave Viola alone! It felt like energy surged from Mel to the woman.
The woman stumbled as though she was pushed. The woman was angry until she realized no one had pushed her. She glanced around, trying to figure out what had just occurred. She gave up and continued towards Viola.
Mel’s heart was pounding. That did not just happen, she told herself. It’s not possible. She tripped. That was all that happened. Mel looked around for Daren. She needed to get out of here. She was obviously tired and imagining silly things.
Daren was beside Viola, wishing her congrats.
Mel couldn’t help but look at Viola again. Mel was happy to see Viola so happy.
Even the breeze seemed to celebrate Viola’s win. It danced around Mel causing Mel to shiver. Mel needed to get back to the B&B and warm up.
Chapter 15
Viola paused.
Mel felt Viola’s energy shift as she turned toward Mel’s direction. Viola was searching for someone without trying to be obvious. It was someone Viola needed to see. Mel wondered who the person could possibly be.
The woman who had been watching Viola saw the shift as well. The sight infuriated the woman. That woman must really want to be with Viola, Mel thought. Possess her would be a better term.
The woman’s energy tried to overwhelm Viola as the woman went towards her. She wanted Viola to forget whatever it was she was feeling. Viola walked past the woman without a second glance. Viola was too busy trying to find someone. This enraged the woman further.
Suddenly, Daren jumped up into the tree, startling Mel. He was beaming with pride for Viola and her win. “Let’s get going while everyone’s distracted,” Daren said to Mel.
“Or do you want to keep on staring at V?”
Mel blushed. “I wasn’t staring,” she muttered.
“Sure, Mel,” he said.
Daren helped her down and guided her out of the field. No one even noticed them leave.
Once they were out of sight, Daren nudged Mel. “What did you think? Was it inspiring?” Daren asked.
“Yes, it was,” Mel replied. She noticed the full moon was bright enough now that she could see the ground better as they walked back. “Thank you for bringing me to the fights.”
“Remember what I said. Don’t tell anyone. Trixie would be furious if she found out you were able to go,” Daren said. He swore as soon as he finished his sentence.
“Why would Trixie be mad?” Mel asked. “And where was Bill?”
“Don’t worry about it,” Daren said. “The less you know, the better.” He grinned. “And if you ever happen to see V again, make sure to act like it’s your first time meeting her. I don’t need you fawning over her fighting skills to her. I’d get in a heap of trouble if anyone found out about this.”
Mel rolled her eyes. “I wouldn’t fawn over her! And I doubt I’ll ever meet her,” she said.
Daren shrugged. “Whatever you say. Although, she comes by the B&B sometimes for meals. Aren’t you staying for two weeks?” he asked innocently. “Looking is okay, you know.”
“Don’t tease me, Daren,” Mel said. “You know nothing would ever happen. We’re from different worlds.”
Daren was quiet for a moment. “True,” he said. “It’s for the best anyway.” Daren’s comment made Mel’s heart sink. Mel secretly didn’t want him to agree with her. He winked at her. “But there’s not harm in looking.”
Mel chuckled. “That’s true,” she said.
“And I see you’re doing better walking this go ‘round,” he said. “See, your eyes just needed to adjust.”
“I guess so,” she said. “Though, I think I can go through the rest of my life without walking through the woods in the dead of night.”
“I love it,” he said. “There’s something peaceful about it. Within the darkness, there’s all of this potential. You know?” He ducked his head. “I guess it sounds weird.”