The Magus shook her head and rested her elbows on the table, cupping her chin in her hands. She looked over at the library and remembered the bird Tishka left behind. "Is there any possible way to play back messages from Lulu birds?"
Feera stared at her nervously. "I hope you're not thinking about going in there to do that. It's...it's invasion of property!"
Jenevi sat up straight and smiled. She looked at Feera and said, "So there is a way to do it."
Feera blinked and raised her eyebrows in surprise. She didn't realize that she gave away the answer. "Yes, there is a way. But I'm not going to tell you how to do it. And I would prefer you not to go in there and listen in on someone's private conversation!"
The raven haired women sighed. Half of her wanted to go against Feera's wishes and bust the library door down, and the other wanted to respect what she said. Finally, she glanced over at Feera and said, "Alright, fine. And tomorrow, I'm going to take Wilson away from you. It's been long enough and I need to have that long needed discussion."
Feera nodded her head and blushed. "Thanks for letting us keep to ourselves for a while. I knew I should have given him to you sooner, but I didn't want to let him go. I didn't know how the talk would affect him."
"It shouldn't affect him at all," reassured Jenevi. "I just need to ask him some questions, and I need to find this person I've been seeking for a long time. You know I can't stay here forever, and this is crucial to me."
The brown-haired woman stayed silent and frowned. "I know. It's just that I've never had a friend like you before and it will be sad when you leave."
Jenevi felt her heart skip a beat after hearing Feera considered her a friend. At that moment, all Jenevi wanted to do was confide to Feera, laugh with her, and do girly stuff together. Jenevi was working up the courage to initiate a hug with her friend when Simon and Mace entered the house.
"What are you guys up to?" asked Simon in a cheery voice.
Feera shrugged. "Just talking. How did practice go?"
Jenevi and Feera looked over at Mace who walked in behind Simon. He held a worried expression and appeared as though his head was somewhere else.
"Mace?" questioned Feera.
Mace shook his head, trying to get whatever was in his head out. "Yeah, it was okay. Simon beat me up a little."
Of course, the two women noticed something happened while they were training because Mace seemed okay before they left. Instead of investigating further, they decided just to leave it alone.
Once Tishka and Yever showed up, the four left. Feera went to see Wilson, and the rest traveled to the tavern where they would stay until later since they all agreed it was too awkward to be alone in the house with the older couple. Once night fell, Simon was completely drunk, and Mace was worried that he would confess to Jenevi in his state.
Jenevi and Mace helped Simon walk back to the house, but the trip took even longer once people saw her eyes glowing. They ran up and asked for a demonstration of her powers, but Jenevi politely declined each time. Mace, though, noticed that she was getting to her breaking point.
"We need to move faster," commented the blacksmith as he adjusted Simon's arm and rushed.
"I could just pick him up myself now that the sun is down," stated Jenevi, worried that Mace was going to hurt himself.
"What?" exclaimed the blacksmith. "How do you think that would make me look? No. I'm not looking weak in front of all these people."
Jenevi smirked. "Well...they did say that they wanted a demonstration of my powers."
Mace rolled his eyes. He wanted to accept her offer once he started to feel tired, but he didn't want to lose his pride. "Do you think you could teleport us back to the house?"
Jenevi looked at him, bewildered. "Are you serious? I just barely learned how to carry myself! Do you think I can take other people?"
The young man shrugged. "I think it would be pretty cool if you could do it."
Once they reached the house, Feera let them inside. Yever and Tishka shook their heads as they watched the three try to carry drunken Simon up to his room. Mace ended up tripping on a step and fell, almost dropping the drunk man with him if it wasn't for Jenevi. She picked up the grown man with a sigh and continued to the bedroom.
Feera opened the wooden door at the end of the hall. Jenevi threw the former knight onto the bed like he was nothing but a rag doll. The Magus lifted up Simon's legs and tossed them on the bed with the rest of his body. The three watched as the drunken man quickly fell asleep with a goofy smile on his face.
"Wilson said he'd meet up with you tomorrow to discuss some things," said Feera, turning to Jenevi. "Then...I guess you'll be heading out as soon as possible."
Jenevi gave her a small smile and nodded her head. "That would be correct."
Mace left to his room while the two women went into their separate bedrooms. Jenevi lay awake on her bed, staring up at the stone ceiling, thinking about how she was going to miss the place she temporarily called home.
The next morning, Jenevi woke to the smell of breakfast. She climbed down the stairs and was greeted by smiling faces. Everyone was sitting at the large table except for Yever who was cooking the meal.
"Sit, sit!" called Tishka as gestured to the chair by Feera.
Jenevi sat with a smile on her face. She was still unsure how she felt about the elderly couple, but she did feel warm inside as she sat with her traveling companions and who she considered her best friend.
Yever started plating eggs, toast made from Alte wheat, and pieces of ham. He set the plates in front of everyone at the table and said, "Let me get the tea really fast."
"We may have to head out soon," started Jenevi after swallowing a piece of ham. "I'm going to be talking to Wilson today."
Tishka smiled and nodded her head. "Sure thing, dear. We loved having you here."
There was a strange expression on the old woman's face that Jenevi found almost fake. Shrugging it off, she went back to her food.
Yever came around and started to hand everyone a mug of tea. "Be careful," he began with a smile on his face that seemed fake as well. "It's hot." He sat down next to his wife and they both took a sip of the piping hot liquid.
Feera took a sip of hers and made a face. "He's right. I just burned my tongue."
Simon and Jenevi picked up their cups and looked down into it. The liquid was light brown, and the aroma that it was letting off smelled light and sweet. "What kind of tea it this?" asked the young woman as she examined the liquid.
"Moonglade," responded the elderly man. "It's native to Alte, but it's quite expensive since they are a pain to find. They grow higher up in the mountains, and sometimes people die trying to pick them. It's good stuff, though. Tons of benefits. Why don't you try some?"
Jenevi quickly glanced over at Yever before putting the edge of the cup to her lips. The second she tilted the liquid towards her, she stopped. There was another smell. One that she didn't sense before because the Moonglade's strong, sweet scent masked it. She slowly took the mug away from her lips and concentrated hard on the inside of the cup. There was a strange dark residue stuck on the bottom of the mug. If she wasn't looking, she wouldn't have noticed because it was so small. She tilted the cup more so she could get a better view of it.
"Is something wrong?" questioned Feera.
The Magus picked up the residue with her little finger and then set the cup down. Her and Simon glanced at each other with wide eyes.
Mace, who sat next to Simon, was oblivious to what was going on. He picked up his cup and brought it to his mouth without hesitation.
"Stop!" cried Jenevi.
Simon snatched the cup out of Mace's hand and threw it across the room. It shattered on impact when it hit the wall behind the two young women.
Feera cried out in surprise, but her parents sat still and continued eating their meal.
"What?" exclaimed Mace. "What did I do?"
"It's not what yo
u did, boy," hissed Jenevi, her eyes blazing with rage as she stared at Tishka and Yever.
"I still don't understand," continued Mace. He looked back and forth between Jenevi and the elderly couple.
"They used a venenum flower in our tea," explained Simon. "The deadliest of the five flowers. I only know because Zeena warned me out them."
"I told you we should have killed them in their sleep," said Tishka, her lips turned down into a scowl.
"Like I said," started Yever, "we couldn't fight them at night."
Feera's brows knitted in confusion. "Wh-what's going on?" she stammered.
Jenevi slowly sat up. "Who did you send that bird to?" Her voice was low and menacing as she narrowed her eyes at the couple.
Tishka and Yever stood up as well, followed by Mace and Simon.
"Now we don't want anyone to get hurt," started the former knight. "We can pack our bags, and you'll never see us again."
Yever laughed. "You think we're just going to let you leave? Just like that?"
"Daddy, what's going on?" inquired Feera, growing more and more scared. She moved away from the table and pressed her back against the wall, next to the shattered cup.
"Stay out of this!" scolded Yever. He stepped back into the kitchen and opened a small closet. He took out a sword and unsheathed it.
His daughter stared at him with horror written on her face.
Simon looked around for a weapon. There was a knife sitting on the kitchen counter, but he wouldn't be able to reach it without getting cut by the sword. He picked up his chair and hurled it towards the old man.
Tishka took her plate of food and threw it at Jenevi. The Magus swiped the plate out her way, getting food particles all over her clothes, and watched as the older woman grabbed the knife.
Jenevi swiftly grabbed a dirty pan and tried to hit the knife out of Tishka's hands, but the old woman was quick as she sidestepped out of the way and grabbed Jenevi by the hair. She swung the blade towards the young woman's neck, but Jenevi twisted herself around, dropping the pan in the process, and then grabbed Tishka's wrist before the blade could penetrate her skin.
Feera screamed and lowered herself to the floor as tears streamed down her eyes.
Mace jumped over the table and ran to help Jenevi. He put the crook of his arm around the older woman's neck and pulled her back.
Tishka released Jenevi and started to move backward. Mace kept holding on, even after his back roughly met the wall. The old woman struggled for a moment, but then used a move that Mace recognized because Simon used it on him all the time, though never managed to counter. Tishka grabbed his elbow, turned her head out of the choke-hold as she stepped around Mace, and held him by the wrist that was now locked behind him. She kicked his leg, sent him to the ground, and drove her knife into his arm.
Mace let out a cry of pain as he watched his blood pour out of him.
"Mace!" cried Jenevi, rushing over.
Simon jumped away when Yever swung his sword, but looked over when he heard Mace's cry. The old man lunged his weapon the second he saw Simon distracted. The former knight turned back and moved at the last second.
"You thought we were just old people who didn't know how to fight?" questioned Yever, swinging his sword again. "We were both guards of the king's army years ago when they actually trained their soldiers well!"
Simon grabbed the chair that Tishka was sitting on earlier and threw it at Yever. It hit, and Simon lunged forward to grab the sword by the hilt out of the old man's hand. They both fought over it.
Feera continued to scream as she covered her ears and shielded herself away from all the madness. She had no idea what had become of her parents.
Jenevi tackled Tishka to the ground and tried to hold her down, but was surprised with how strong the old woman was. Tishka brought herself out of Jenevi's hold and stood up.
Mace got up as well and held the hilt of the knife that was still in him. He breathed heavily for a few moments, mentally preparing himself for what he was about to do. He pulled the knife out as fast as he could, crying out in pain in the process, and tossed the bloody weapon on the floor near Simon and Yever.
Tishka stared down at Jenevi and took out her small knife from a pocket of her dress. She smiled as she clutched it in her hand.
Mace thought back to what Simon taught him. He walked up behind the old woman, grabbed her by the chin and the top of her head, and twisted upwards. Tishka fell limply to the ground.
Once Simon noticed the knife that Mace tossed, he made a run for it. He picked it up, turned around, but was stopped in his tracks. He looked down to see Yever's sword through his body with dark red liquid forming around it. He tilted his head up to peer into Yever's brown eyes and scowled. He walked forward, wincing in pain.
Yever watched, fascinated, as Simon continued towards him. He knew that the young man wasn't going to be able to kill him, and watched as the life started to drain out of the former knight's eyes.
The sound of an object flying towards him caught his attention. It was his wife's knife thrown by Jenevi, and it hit its mark in between his eyebrows. He fell to the ground with Simon.
Jenevi's arm was still extended as she watched one of her closest friends fall to the floor. Her face contorted into worry and her and Mace rushed over.
Simon was laying in a pool of his blood, sword still pierced through his gut.
"Jenevi," started Mace hastily, holding onto his bleeding arm. "Could you do something? Use one of those flowers that sting a lot?"
Tears started to stream down her face as she looked down at Simon. She kneeled and then shook her head. "The sword pierced right through him, Mace. He's lost so much blood...he doesn't have much time left."
Mace felt the tears coming down his face as well. He turned around, placed his palms on the kitchen table, and sobbed.
Simon let out a shaky breath. He lifted one arm up and reached for Jenevi's face. The Magus took it and placed it on her cheek.
"Please don't leave me like this, Simon," she whispered. "I don't want to lose you..."
Simon smiled. "You just said I don't have much time left."
Jenevi shut her eyes tight and prayed that everything that just occurred was just a dream.
"There has been something..." started Simon. He turned his head and coughed up some blood before looking back up at Jenevi's green eyes. "There has been something I've wanted to tell you...all this time..."
Mace turned around upon hearing those words.
"What?" questioned Jenevi. "Please tell me."
Simon smiled again. "You're going to think I'm an idiot for not telling you sooner...but Jen...I'm your brother."
Jenevi frowned deeply and her eyes knitted in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"I knew it was you the second I laid eyes on you. You look just like mother..."
"M-Mother?"
"Jen...I love you. You were my only family, and I'm so grateful that I finally found you and had an adventure." He rolled his head to look over at Mace who continued to sob. "Take care of her, and remember our training."
Mace nodded his head vigorously and turned around, not wanting to see the light leave Simon's eyes.
"S-Simon?" stammered Jenevi. "You're my...my brother? I have a brother?"
The former knight nodded his head. "Please...remember..."
Jenevi felt Simon's hand grow limp in her hand. He closed his eyes as he let out one final shaky breath before laying still.
Jenevi tilted her head up to the ceiling and let out a wail louder than Feera's before falling to the floor next to her brother and blacking out.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
All of Jenevi's memories came flooding back to her.
She was a little seven-year-old girl riding on a dark brown horse while holding onto a woman with long dark hair. Her aunt, Sharlette. She looked behind her and watched as her brother, the one who has been taking care of her all this time, become small a
s they raced away. A pang of guilt rushed through her as she clutched the handmade doll that Simon made.
Simon was the one who took care of her more than her parents did, and was always there whenever she needed saving, like when she nearly drowned to death in a lake because she was reckless. The young Magus found herself looking back often, making sure that Simon would still be following them.
"Don't worry about him," said Sharlette, not taking her eyes off the road. "There are big things in store for you, my dear. Big things."
"I don't know if I want to go," Jenevi said nervously. Her aunt didn't respond.
Eventually, Simon was no longer in sight.
After days of riding, Sharlette stopped in front of a forest. Jenevi stared at it in fear. "What is it?" she questioned.
"This is what people call the Forest of Despair. It's full of strange creatures, and no one goes in it because they know they won't leave." She ushered her horse forward.
"Th-Then why are we going in?" asked Jenevi, panicked.
Sharlette glanced back at her and smiled. The sky became dark, and both of their eyes started to glow. "Because you will live with me here where I will teach you to become the strongest Tenebrae Magus without the worry of other people. Don't worry about the creatures. They don't do anything to us Tenebraes."
Jenevi was ten and sitting under a big coal colored tree. On her lap was a luro pup that yawned and stretched his legs. The father came around the tree and licked young Jenevi's face before taking his pup home.
"Bye-bye!" Jenevi exclaimed with a wave.
As she walked home, an old woman with her mouth on her throat stepped out of through the trees, startling the child.
"Don't worry," assured the woman with the voice of an angel. "I will not hurt you. I just wanted to take a look at the beautiful girl that lives in this forest with all these horrific creatures. What is your name?"
Jenevi took an uneasy step back. "Jenevi," she stated as bravely as she could. The second the woman smiled, the young girl turned and ran as fast as she could into her aunt's arms.
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