Blood and Silver: First Bite

Serena

Serena sat back in the recliner behind the desk in the guidance counsellor’s office. She put her hands together in thought as she fixed her gaze on Abigail and Laura sitting in front of her.

She had expected there to be more resistance when imparting information about the veiled world in which they lived. They had accepted the information almost without question, and this made her suspicious.

Part of the power that was handed over when she became pack guardian, would make her hyper vigilant and prone to paranoia. She always knew this about the position of Guardian, but the power had been granted just over an hour previously, and she did not quite have a handle on it yet.

‘You’re taking this well,’ she finally stated, interrupting the conversation between Laura and Abigail. ‘Why is that?’

Laura looked up, sensing Serena’s distrust.

‘To be honest, Serena, I think deep down, somewhere in my subconscious, I knew. My aunt used to tell me stories about witches and werewolves all the time, and I thought they were fairytales. But what she told me and what you’ve said are aligned. I think she was preparing me. I wonder if maybe she didn’t want me to know until the time was right, but still have the information I would need? It just… it just feels right.’ Laura responded.

‘I feel the same,’ said Abigail. ‘After I was bitten in the woods and I healed so quickly, something felt off. I hadn’t been wearing my necklace and when I picked it up, it changed colour. I wanted to know why, so I started to read Mrs Smirnova’s old journals to try and find the answers. I didn’t find answers about the necklace, but I found a lot written about werewolves. It got me reading and researching more. And she wrote that I have wolf blood. I think I knew, deep down, too.’

Serena nodded, satisfied with the answer and feeling less suspicious. The power also helped helped her to detect deception.

Her husband had never got a handle on his powers, and since he had neglected to use them, they had dwindled and faded. He’d become complacent in thinking that there would never be any threats, and so had failed to fulfil his duties. Serena had protected and covered for him as much as she could, but as much as she was heartbroken for her mate, she was relieved when Jackson removed the power from him. If he’d continued down the same path, he may have faced banishment or death.

‘May I see your necklace?’ Serena asked. Abigail nodded, and Serena held the pendant in her hand and looked it over.

‘I’m pretty sure this is Hexicorium. Did you say you got it from Smirnova?’ She asked.

‘I did, yeah.’ Said Abigail. ‘She gave it to me the day we left to move here. She told me I must wear it always and it will protect me. Why, what is Hexicorium?’ She asked.

‘It’s used for deflecting magic. I wonder why she would give this to you? It would stop spells from affecting you. She obviously knew you were coming here, but there’s no witches here. Well, except you.’ She said, looking towards Laura and smiling.

‘But what about the bond between her and Hannah?’ Asked Laura. ‘I thought that was from my magic?’

‘Hexicorium would only stop spells with ill intent. A hex. Your spell had good intentions and so it passed through.’ Serena replied.

‘I don’t know that much about it, I’m not a witch, but I remember Hazel telling me about it.’ She chuckled.

‘Any idea why it would turn red?’ Abigail asked.

‘Wasn’t it always red?’ Asked Serena, taken aback.

‘No, it used to be white. It changed colour when I put it back on.’ She replied.

Serena thought for a second, but couldn’t come up with any answers. Before she could say anything more, Jackson burst back into the room.

‘Alpha Jackson!’ Serena said, standing up in respect.

Jackson nodded. He was dishevelled and dirty, and he had a look of tension on his face. He was breathing heavily, as if he was trying to hold something back from rising to the surface.

Abigail wanted to rush into his arms and comfort him, but she wasn’t sure if it would be appropriate in the state he was in.

She could hear his heart thudding in his chest, hard and fast.

Jackson caught sight of her, and she heart his heartbeat change, it sped up more, but the thud was softer, and she could sense that the emotion he was feeling was changing to something more positive.

He rushed towards her, lifting her into his arms and pushing her back up against the wall. He kissed her passionately. Everything else in the room disappeared for Abigail, and she felt herself melting into him, barely able to tell where she ended and he began.

They were interrupted by a loud throat clearing sound. Both Abigail and Jackson noticed Laura at the same time, her arms folded and an awkward look on her face.

‘That’s still my daughter.’ She said, her face twisting. ‘Is really prefer not to see so much passion in front of me.’

Abigail and Jackson blushed, and Serena laughed. When a wolf saw their mate, it was the wolf and not the person that took over. It wasn’t something they could control, but it could make for some awkward situations.

‘I’m sorry, I just needed to be with her. She is the one thing keeping me from going over the edge.’ Jackson said, notably distressed.

‘What is it, Alpha?’ Asked Serena.

‘Members of Blood Crescent have been spotted in the town. They are moving into our territory. As soon as Laura said who Abigail’s father is, I knew that Caleb would be able to sense his daughter clearly and send some of his pack to look for her. When he finds out that she is my mate, this is going to start a war!’ He revealed.

Laura stood up and her body froze in place. Her eyes rolled back and she started to speak in a voice that wasn’t her own:

‘Once at odds, two allied as one

Two warring armies, their battles be done

A love through fate, a love through blood

The bond must be forged to stop the flood’

She collapsed to the ground, and Abigail rushed over to her.

‘Mom? Mom?’ She shouted, worried.

Serena kneeled down next to her and checked her over.

‘She’s okay, I’ve seen witches do this before, it takes a lot out of them.’

Jackson picked Laura up and laid her gently on the couch.

‘What was that?’ He asked. He was too young to remember the old witches and their ways.

Serena took a deep breath before announcing: ‘a prophecy’