His Fated Queen

Chapter 9

Sometimes it feels like my powers are at their strongest when I am close to water. I can move it and bend it to my will, and I love being in the water. But when I am completely under the water, I can forget about everything. I can’t hear or see anything or anyone else. It is just me: no emotions, no thoughts, no visions. My empath power is the worst of all my powers. It is so overwhelming. I am grateful for the river that runs through the forest behind my house and that my father taught me to swim once he learned of my love of the water. When everything gets too much, I head out to the river and swim, then sink to the bottom and lie on the rocks. At first, I could only stay under as long as I had breath. Then I started to manipulate the water and air enough to create air bubbles in the water and I can stay underwater for much longer periods of time now. It’s bliss. For as long as I want, the world is silent. I am truly alone in my own body and my feelings. I never feel as free as when I am underwater. Ethan usually follows me when I go to the river. He is the only one who can completely shut his thoughts and feelings to me, the only one that is able to hide from me while standing next to me. So, he just sits by the river to keep watch and reads or draws.

I like to go to the river by myself and escape even from Ethan sometimes. On one of these trips on my own, I climbed out of the river after a particularly long time under the water and felt someone watching me. I turned around to see a figure dart back through the forest. I couldn’t see him, though at the speed he moved I knew it was a vampire. I could sense his interest in me. It seemed he had been there the whole time I was under the water. Strange that he then ran from me. Vampires hunted, they chased humans. Why would he run from me? I walked back to the house ready for the scolding my mother would give me for being outside in my wet clothes for too long. I was ten years old, and I had never got sick. I was strong and healthy. Perhaps another gift.

I walked inside, ‘Where have you been, Katherine? Why are you so wet? What am I going to do with you?’ My mother screeched at me as I entered the house and threw her arms up in the air. ‘Upstairs now, I will run a hot bath for you.’

‘Yes mother.’ Most of the time it was just easier to agree and do as she asked, often safer too. I walked upstairs thinking about the vampire in the forest. He seemed familiar, perhaps I had seen him out there before. I had never been watched like that before, that I knew of, and it frightened me a little. But I was also intrigued. If only I could talk to him. Most of the beings I saw in the forest did not stay to talk to me. Almost like they realised who I was and ran off once I saw them. I think some of them were also shocked when I saw them and perhaps a little afraid of me. I often practiced my magic in the forest, and they have all seen what I can do.

All I want is to talk to one of them, and the only being so far who has talked to me was Lily. But her family felt it was too dangerous for them in this forest and had moved away, taking Lily with them. I was sad for some time after they left. I missed my fey friend. I missed talking to her and practising our magic together. I missed her stories. Her family had so many stories from centuries of travelling the world. I learnt more about different beings from Lily in our short time together than I had from my own family and any of the books in our current library. Most of the information I learnt I put into books on each being, adding to them as I discovered something new.

Lily’s family had a version of our prophecy, and I wanted to know if other beings had the same or different versions, or different parts. I didn’t believe the prophecy in our grimoire was the full one. I didn’t believe Lucifer allowed anyone to know the full prophecy but him. I am ten years old and told I will rule all the realms alongside Lucifer. What do I do with that? Why me, why was I the one to do this? I wished that Lucifer would come to earth to talk to me to tell me why.

I needed to know about this prophecy. I went to the locus sacer. There are so many grimoires, I had read more than half of them, but there were still so many to go. I wasn’t sure if I would finish them all. But my mother and grandmother couldn’t tell me anything more than just what the prophecy said.

The first thing to do was to finish reading the grimoires and journals. I had been blessed with an ability to remember most things I read. So, I wanted to read all the magical tomes we had. The second was to find another being to talk to, maybe a demon. I had tried to find out more than what I had learned from Lily’s family, but they knew nothing more beyond what their version of the prophecy said, and only Lily would talk to me; The rest of her family stayed away. No one seemed to know anything more about the prophecy other than just what it said. I needed more of my powers. Perhaps I can change my future, my fate and change the prophecy. Our family’s grimoire talks of Ruth’s powers. But according to my grandmother, there is no complete list.

I was also still yet to choose my goddess. All witches choose a goddess during their training that they hold an affinity with. Someone they call to when they need guidance, sometimes calling on them in their spells. We had books on the gods and goddess from all over the world; Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Celtic and Norse. I found myself mostly drawn to the Egyptian and Norse. Freya and Isis, the goddesses of love, battle and witchcraft. We believed that the goddesses and gods were angels, demons or witches worshipped by ancient humans. I hoped to find my goddess and draw on her strength and guidance when my family could no longer help me.

I had stopped experimenting with my powers after I scared myself with the portal, though I still practiced small things, so I wouldn’t lose what I had achieved. Now I was deep in to reading. I spent most of my days now in the locus sacer doing just that. Waiting to find my goddess and trying to find any information on portals, more information on the prophecy and the powers I was still yet to receive and any way to communicate with a specific person who was dead. I knew enough that Ruth was of my blood, so that would make it easier to communicate, I was sure. All I managed to find, was the consequences of talking to the dead. Consequences such as possession, hauntings or even binding a spirit to me. None of which I wanted to do. I also didn’t want to talk to my mother or grandmother about it. I didn’t want to tell anyone about it. But there was nothing on how to communicate with the dead in a safe way that had no dark consequences. After weeks of reading, I was left feeling very frustrated.

I wandered the house and was trying to listen in on everyone in the house. It was a full house for the spring celebration. Even my grandpa Pedro was here for a few days. I loved when he would visit. He spoiled me all the time, and we would speak Spanish to each other. He treated me as a granddaughter, not an all-powerful witch, and I appreciated it more than he would ever know. Though I sensed that was exactly why he treated me as he did. As just a human girl. He was sweet and doting. Even when I accidentally pulled a book from my father’s library for him to read to me. I heard in his mind the shock, but he shook his head and smiled at me before opening the book and reading to me as he had when I was a baby.

The servants were easier to read than my family. But I did feel guilty about going into their minds and I never lingered. I didn’t want to scare them from our house. My father was the easiest to read. He was always thinking of ways to protect the family. My grandmother was the hardest. She always knew when I was trying and would give me a look as if to say, ‘walk away, practise on someone else.’

Soon I would get bored and just head to the kitchen to talk to the cook and see if she had any treats for me. I would usually find that my brother had arrived in the kitchen just before me. The cook would always smile when I entered and gave me a look as though she knew as soon as Ethan came to the kitchen, I wouldn’t be far behind.