The White Aura

by Felicia Tatum

  “Well, something strange happened with her today. She’s been sick, and she came back to school with a white aura. I’ve never seen anything like it.” He paused, struggling to catch his breath and thoughts.

  “What do you think she is?” I quietly asked.

  “I have no idea, but I think it’s why Aiden is interested in her. I mean, she’s obviously something special, right? A white aura? I don’t know of any beings who possess those. And she’s apparently got some abilities, because she hugged her best friend and passed out. Dude, it was crazy. I don’t know what happened, but she was really shaken up.”

  “Is she ok?” I asked.

  He nodded. “Seems to be, but something is off.”

  Livvie fainted today. That meant she was gifted with some sort of energy-draining power. “I have something I should probably tell you,” I confessed.

  “What’s that?” he asked. “I dunno if this day can get any weirder.”

  “You know how we have heart mates and stuff? Have you met yours?”

  He shook his head. “What does this have to do with Olivia and the CC?” he asked genuinely confused.

  Sighing, I twisted my keys in my hand. “Olivia is sort of my heart mate.”

  His face wrinkled in confusion. I could almost see the thoughts going through his head. “You didn’t tell me you knew Olivia. Wait…Olivia doesn’t even have a boyfriend. She’s never mentioned you. How could she be your heart mate?” he asked.

  “I saw her walking down the sidewalk. I was sitting in that booth right over there,” I said as I pointed to the other end of the shop, “and I knew she was it. I’m my family’s current fifth generation sorcerer, and I have the ability to dream walk. It’s how I see her.”

  He nodded while processing what I just told him. I knew what questions were coming next. “Why don’t you just meet her? And be with her…is this some sort of weird romance thing? Or is something else going on?”

  I laughed and said, “No, no weird romance thing. My family has a curse on it. We can’t meet our heart mates before seventeen and six months or they’ll die. Why not just eighteen, I don’t know, but the sorcerer who placed the curse was very specific. I can’t risk Livvie dying. Although with the CC after her, she’s still in danger, whether or not I meet her.”

  “Seventeen and six months?” he asked, perplexed.

  Much like I’d been when my family had sprung the curse on me. What a random number the sorcerer chose when placing the curse. “No one knows for sure, but Devlin Hart was pretty angry in general and my great something or another’s heart mate was seventeen and a half when he placed it. He wanted him to suffer, and he did, because she died instantly on her eighteenth birthday. They lived that six months knowing what was coming.”

  Shaking his head, he cast his eyes down. “That’s messed up.”

  “I agree. But what do we do about this Aiden character?”

  “Yeah, I think he wants her because she’s an unknown. I mean…what being has a white aura?” he asked again, looking at me for answers.

  “I don’t know, but I have to protect her. I just don’t know how. I’ve been reading up on how to defeat him, but I need another fifth generation sorcerer. All of the past fifth gens in my family are too far away or too occupied to come help me.”

  “I wish I was. My uncle is our family’s current fifth gen,” Mark admitted as he hit the table with his fist, “But I’ll still help you. I care about Olivia, too. I’ve kind of got a thing for her best friend Juniper.”

  “Oh, I see. Well, we need an action plan. I’ve been researching, but I’m not really getting anywhere. I think this dance is going to be where he makes his big move,” I told him.

  He nodded and sat lost in thought. Neither of us really had any idea how to solve this big problem we had. “I’ll talk to my mom. I’ve told her he’s here, but we haven’t really discussed any solutions. Maybe she can get ahold of my uncle tonight. Aiden hasn’t made any moves yet, but I’ll definitely be telling her about Olivia and our suspicions,” he said as he got up to leave.

  “Ok, man, can you let me know when you find out something?” I asked, and we shook hands.

  “Will do. Talk to you later.”

  After he left, I sat for a long time. I still wasn’t sure how I was going to save Livvie and protect her from the curse at the same time. But I had to. Somehow. Now I at least had Mark on my side. He was with Livvie every day. He would be able to keep an eye on her.

  OLIVIA

  I was seriously freaking out. Seeing my best friend die had been terrifying. My hands hadn’t stopped shaking since I’d woken up in the nurse’s office. Riding home with Juniper was awkward. She knew something was wrong with me, but there was no way I could tell her. I had to think of some way to keep her safe. She couldn’t go to the dance. However, I didn’t have a legitimate reason to tell her that. She liked Mark too much. Maybe he could help me. But I would have to tell him all of the strange things that were happening to me. I wasn’t ready to share that with anyone yet.

  I tried to avoid touching anyone since I’d hugged Juniper. That was difficult in the halls of our school building. I ended up sliding my way through breaks with my back against the wall. I was late for two classes because I hid in the bathroom, but I really didn’t want to see anything that horrifying again.

  I was sitting on the couch staring into space when my father walked in the room. He was six feet, three inches tall with bulging muscles and dark brown hair. His eyes were the same shade of green as mine. I always felt physically safe when my dad was around, though he didn’t seem to worry about my emotional well-being. Though we fought, all I wanted was him to comfort me in this moment. Was it horrible a daughter just wanted her daddy when she felt everything spiraling out of control? Maybe this love/hate relationship was a normal teenager thing.

  I hoped he wouldn’t be able to notice I had been crying. “Hey, Daddy.” I tried to keep my voice steady.

  “Hey, baby girl. You ok?”

  Uh oh, he knew. I’d known he would sense something was wrong. Even though my parents weren’t the greatest at being supportive, they were always observant.

  “Just had a bad day at school. Worried about a test. I think I’m still tired from where I was sick, too.”

  I really hoped he believed me. All of those things were true, so I wasn’t technically lying to him. I didn’t want to tell him about what happened. He said we couldn’t talk about it, right?

  I stood up and folded the blanket I was wrapped in. I wanted to hug him so badly, but knew I couldn’t risk it. Before I could get away, he scooped me into a bear hug. I waited, my body tense, for an image. Nothing happened. I pulled back slowly, looking up into my father’s eyes. Nothing happened to him either. I smiled and let go, hoping he didn’t ask about my strange behavior.

  “Yeah, the school called saying you fainted. Are you still feeling ill?”

  “Yeah, I did. I’m ok now. I think I just got too hot.”

  He studied me, like he knew I was lying. “Olivia, I know things are…happening, and you’re scared. I understand, but you have to trust me when I say talking about anything going on is dangerous and could be a life or death situation.”

  My heartbeat sped up. “What do you mean, Daddy?” I asked, my voice shaky.

  “I really can’t talk about it, Olivia. Your mother and I do love you. We’re only trying to protect you, and as parents, sometimes we don’t know what to do. I hope we’re making the right decisions.” My huge, strong daddy stood there looking torn as he spoke, his eyes misty as he observed me. “You have to promise to be careful and not tell anyone about these…occurrences.”

  I nodded. “Ok. I promise.”

  He wrapped me in another hug before walking up the stairs. What just happened?

  I thought maybe I imagined the whole thing. I was running a fever for two days. There was a good possibility I was having hallucinations. Though…the memory of my mother’s mysterious notebook briefly ran throu
gh my mind, and the actions and words from my father just now confirmed something was happening. I went to the bathroom. A good splash of water would calm me. I turned on the faucet and ran my cold, wet hands all over my face and neck. I glanced into the mirror, and the reflection staring back didn’t look like my own. For one thing, my green eyes were brighter than usual. Leaning closer, I saw that wasn’t an accurate description either. No, they were actually glowing.

  I stumbled back and ran into the towel rack. I silenced my “ow” before I alerted my father to any additional weirdness coming from me. Why would my eyes be glowing? I managed to get to my room, holding on to the wall for support as I stumbled to my bedroom door. I knew I needed to talk to someone, but I didn’t know who. Then it hit me. I could talk to Sadie. She was a sorcerer, and she would surely know what was happening to me. I hurried to my dresser, remembering the gift she had sent me on Sunday. I rummaged for the key, still thinking it was a very odd present. Finding it, I read the note still attached. It simply said to tell it where I needed to go. “Take me to Sadie?”

  Nothing happened. Maybe I should hold it. I grasped the cold metal in my hands, wrapping both around it completely. “Take me to Sadie.”

  In an instant, I was in a dimly lit bedroom. The bed was covered in black and purple bedding, and matching curtains covered the window. There was a small dresser serving as a desk for a purple laptop sitting on it. Apparently, Sadie liked purple. Some shelves held small containers of stuff. I couldn’t tell what exactly was inside. I heard a shuffle from behind me and turned quickly, falling over some shoes lying on the floor. “Ow!” I cried, though that was seriously cool.

  “Olivia…?”

  “Sadie! Oh, thank God. I need help,” I exclaimed.

  “What is it? Is someone after you?” she asked, horror in her eyes. She glanced around me, as if expecting to see someone with or following me.

  “No. Something is happening to me, Sadie. I don’t know what it is.” I was almost crying at this point. The stress of the week was catching up and I was scared.

  “Oh. Yeah…uh…Sc…I mean, my brother doesn’t want me to talk to you about that.” She looked down at her feet. She couldn’t even look me in my eyes. I couldn’t blame her, I would be embarrassed too.

  “Sadie,” I cried out, “please?”

  She took my hands, making me flinch as I waited for the vision, but nothing came, and she led me to the bed. She stared into my eyes, and her own grew wider when she noticed the glow that had sent me here. “Olivia, I can see you’re scared and worried. It will be ok. Please calm down.” She put a reassuring hand on my arm, causing me to flinch again. Why wasn’t it happening anymore? She gazed at me with warm eyes and a heat radiated throughout my body as she consoled me. I was relaxing.

  “I am scared, Sadie. You were the only one I could come to.”

  She nodded.

  “My eyes are glowing. And today…well, today, I hugged my best friend and saw her die. At the dance! But now, here you are touching my hands, and nothing happens. I hugged my father and no vision. Am I losing my mind?”

  She started to laugh, but catching my expression stopped her. “No, Olivia, you are not going crazy. Something is occurring to you. I don’t know exactly what. We’re working on that. My brother found another sorcerer to help him, and they’re determined to find out the cause of all of this. That’s all I can tell you. As for this…vision…you had, I don’t know anything about that.” Her voice was strained.

  I knew she was telling me the truth. No one knew what was happening to me. I was turning into a freak. “Ok. Thank you for relaxing me, Sadie. You know, you remind me of someone. She always calms me and makes me feel peaceful, too.”

  Smiling, she said, “Thanks. I get it from my grandmother.”

  Shuffling my foot across the floor, I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. I had to know. “Are the visions I’m having really going to happen?”

  She bit her lip, eyes filling with sadness and nodded. “I think so.”

  I stood and fumbled with the key. I felt at ease with Sadie. I could talk to her about what was taking place, and she was my only connection to Mr. Sexy. I nodded. “Well, I guess I’d better get going. I have school tomorrow, and I’ve been having a hard time sleeping. I miss seeing your brother.”

  “Don’t worry. He should be back in your dreams this weekend.”

  We hugged, and I simply said “home” and was on my way. I crashed into my bed, exhausted from the day, the week, everything that happened really. I hoped to have a dreamless night, since all of them after Mr. Sexy left were nightmares.

  SCOTT

  I stood outside Sadie’s room and listened while Livvie was here. She had no clue I was so close. It took all of my will to not run in and hold her. It seemed my little Livvie possessed more power than just stealing my heart.

  No one I talked to knew what a white aura meant, but I knew it meant a rare ability. The CC would not want her if she wasn’t destined to be extremely powerful. I didn’t think he would be watching her and so gentle with her if he intended to kill her for his little ritual.

  The dance was going to be an issue. She said she saw bad visions of Juniper there. I couldn’t tell Mark…he would freak out. I needed him to be able to help me, so now I must figure out how to rescue Juniper and Olivia.

  In search of fresh air, I headed out to the back yard. Running down the steps, I stopped when I reached the grass, sighed, and walked around under the moon. I resorted to pacing because I didn’t know what else to do. My grandma hadn’t been saying much, and Sadie was as rattled as me. The rest of my family…well they were still processing that the most infamous and dangerous sorcerer in history was in our neck of the woods.

  It was certain Livvie was destined to be great, but…why had it only just shown up? Magical beings were usually born into it, so the aura was with them from birth. Few humans turned magical, and that only happened when something very big and horrible transformed them. As closely as I’d been watching her, there was no way something that big came about without me knowing.

  I sat on the rocks beside my mother’s rose garden. Our backyard had been landscaped until it was perfect for her. My father wanted her to walk out and feel like they were in the place he took her for their honeymoon, some little villa in Italy. She loved it out here. Once, when I was little, I had accidently hit a ball into one of the bushes. The reaction was not pretty. Sitting in the garden reminded me a lot of the simpler times in my life, before I knew love and before there was an evil sorcerer to conquer.

  I plucked a flower from the middle bush, praying no one would notice. I twirled it around in my hand, concentrating on it for some reason. The dance was the day after tomorrow. Mark and I had sort of thought of a plan, though we weren’t sure about a lot of the details. He would place a sleeping spell on Aiden and keep him under, while I went into his dream and figured out a way to make him destroy himself. But thinking about it now…I had my doubts. We definitely needed a more solid idea and an even better execution. I couldn’t leave Mark with all the responsibility when I knew Juniper might die. If anything happened to her, he could lose concentration on keeping Aiden asleep, and we’d all be doomed. Frustration overtook me, and I crushed the flower beneath my boot. I needed to detail our fight plan before Friday.

  OLIVIA

  I was getting dressed when Aiden showed up. As usual, he wouldn’t come and knock, only text and honk for my attention. I glanced in the mirror for a last minute check of my outfit: a pencil skirt with tights and a dark green sweater. My hair fell loose with just my bangs pulled up on the sides. I felt like being dressy this morning, though I didn’t know why. I picked up my bag and headed to the door while mentally preparing myself to deal with Aiden and his odd behavior. It had been almost a week since I had denied him coming to see me. After his strange actions outside of school yesterday, I wasn’t sure how he would act today.

  He couldn’t keep his eyes off me as I walked up to his car. I climbe
d in, and he was still gazing, his mouth slightly open. “Aiden?” More stares. This was uncomfortable. “Aiden!”

  “Olivia. I’m sorry for gawking, but you…well, you look radiant.”

  Radiant? What was wrong with him? And he was studying the area above my head like Mark had. Did I have some sort of sign or something that only they could see up there? “Well, thank you. I’ve worn this before…” I said and looked down at my legs.

  “I know, but something has changed about you. You look more beautiful than ever.” He smiled and grabbed for my hand. I let him hold it because it was too awkward to pull away. He knew I didn’t want to date him. “Thanks,” I whispered. “Maybe we should go…?”

  Why couldn’t he stop gaping? Everyone was acting weird lately.

  “Good idea. Let’s get this day over with. Tomorrow is the dance. Although you don’t want to call it a date, I know it my heart it is indeed a date.”

  He was way too excited about Friday. My mind drifted to Juniper on the way to school. About how I could keep her from going. Suddenly, a thought occurred to me, and I gasped loudly.

  “What is it? Are you ok?” Aiden asked me, sounding concerned.

  “I’m fine. I just accidently scratched myself,” I lied. Aiden had touched me, and I hadn’t gotten a vision from him either. Why did it only happen with Juniper and the nurse? Or had I only imagined it? Sadie seemed to believe me, and she witnessed my glowing eyes.

  “Oh, well, be more careful, beautiful lady.”

  Wow, he was laying it on thick. “Why weren’t you in school yesterday?” I asked, pulling my hand away. As much as I didn’t want to hurt him, I didn’t want to lead him on more.

  “I just didn’t feel like going,” he said with a shrug.

  “I saw you near that tree,” I said and I stared at him.

  His face didn’t change. He simply looked straight ahead, watching the road.

  “And what was up with the movie last week? Why did you think it was funny when I felt sick?” I asked, my voice growing louder.