Witchery

Chapter 12

For once, I sleep without nightmares, only weird dreams of me running on four legs instead of two, strange mixed noises between the wheels on a car and birds twittering. Lena is all of a sudden standing in front of me, petting me, telling me I am such a good dog. 

I wake up, feeling strange, however fully rested. Adriel has already left for his duties. I check my phone, seeing he has texted me he will be back to pick me up at half past four in the afternoon and drive me to Ariana’s. after replying, I decide to take a shower before I eat breakfast today. I grab a white t-shirt, blue cowboy jeans, and a black belt, and run to the shower. 

Sera has already eaten breakfast, but she has left me some bread rolls, and I decide to take the food with me to the living room, where she is sitting reading, a classical vinyl record playing in the background. Outside, heavy May rain is falling, and everything looks dull and dark. I pick up Harry Potter, and continue with the story. Harry, Ron, and Hermione have just defeated the troll in the bathroom and have officially become friends. I soon loose myself in the story, and the rest of the day goes by like this. I check my phone regularly to be sure I won’t miss the time when Adriel comes around to pick me up. 

About four in the afternoon, I go to my room to pack up my sports gear. Ariana has, of course, bought me running tights, a sports bra, a loose tank top, and indoor shoes. I put all of it in a sports bag, putting up my long hair in a ponytail, before heading back downstairs. 

Adriel soon pulls up and leaves the car to drop off a bag filled with extra clothes. 

“I think I’ll be staying over for at least the next week anyways, so I might as well make sure I have everything I need.” He explains, before brushing his lips against mine. 

“Have you remembered to take a bottle of water with you, baby?” 

I nod and pull on my black leather boots and leather jacket, feeling pretty cool. I even matched my outfit with red lips. 

“You look great, babe.” He smiles. 

“Thank you, you do too.” I shyly answer. 

He does, though. He is wearing black, skinny jeans, a black pull over, and his leather jacket. His hair is perfectly smoothed back in a bun, and he is holding a pair of sunglasses in his free hand. 

“See you later, mum.” He calls through the kitchen. 

“Yeah, see you, Sera.” I call too, before we leave, getting back in the car.  

I am very excited about the drive. This will be the first time I actually see the centre of the city. As we are moving through the city, I can see changes outside the window. Soon enough, the houses are replaced by apartment buildings. And parks. And in the distance, I glimpse skyscrapers rising towards the sky. More cars are driving the streets, and more people are wandering about on the pavements. I see cyclists too, and scooters and motorbikes. Intrigued by all the different people and buildings, I lean forward in my seat to get a better view. Some of the areas have street art, colourful people and facades. Others are more streamlined, with business-looking people and others again have more elderly people slowly walking about, chatting with each other in the parks. Adriel gladly explains me the different areas, everything from the wealthy area, over the cotton-parents area, to the art’s district. 

One of the side streets in the art district houses Elise and Ariana. Adriel parks on the side of the road in front of a large, tall building. All around it, small cafes, shops, and galleries are lying, all in colourful paintings. However, Ari and Elise’s building is a bit grey with large open windows in the bottom. In front of it is a scaffolding standing against the wall, and inside the windows you can see construction machines scattered about. I remember Elise and Ari’s discussion about the gym located in their build, which is about to be turned into another gallery. I quickly agree with Elise on this decision, thinking that an art gallery might at a bit of colour to the plain building, and I like all the coloured buildings surrounding me.

Adriel picks up my bag, and takes my hand, leading me towards the door, hiding beneath the scaffold. Just as we are about to enter, construction workers head out. They all nod respectfully towards Adriel, before heading down the street, clearly in a good mood after today’s work. 

After them, a guy in a suit is following. He greets Adriel with a ‘Mr. White.’ Before walking across the street to a fancy looking car. I guess he is the manager of the construction. 

Inside the building, pass the first door to our right obviously leading to the new gallery, a staircase and an escalator are placed next to each other. Adriel walks to the escalator, picking the fourth, and last, floor. 

“Ariana and Elise have been living here for two years now. They really enjoy the street and general area. This is a newer apartment construction as well, which is nice. It can be hard to find new apartments in this part of the city.” Adriel explains me as we head up the escalator. 

“Where in the city do you live?” I ask him. 

“I live in the very middle of it. It’s an old, yellow building. not too far from here. You’ll see soon enough.” 

He kisses my mouth, just as the escalator comes to a halt. 

The long, white hallway has a window in each end, plants framing both. There are doors on both sides of the walls, and Adriel walks to the very last one on the left and knocks. I hear fussing noises coming from behind the door, before it is yanked open. Ariana is standing inside in a blue silk dress, a white cardigan over her shoulders. She is wearing slippers, and her hair is put in a messy bun. No make-up, but she smiles brightly when she sees us. 

“Come in, Luna, brother.” She says, stepping to one side to let us in, and closing the door after us. 

Her entrance is very small and dark, and she leaves through the open doorframe, into a brightly lid kitchen. An amazing smell is spreading from the kitchen all around me. I take a hold of the freezer standing against the wall to my right, to gain balance to take of my shoes. After hanging my jacket, I follow Adriel inside the studio. We enter the kitchen immediately. It is spacious with white surfaces and a window turns towards a lovely inner garden. To my right there is another open-door frame, which leads to a small living room with both a dining table, set for two, and a tv station with a big, red sofa. I curiously walk through to see another door leading to the bedroom. It has a massive bed standing in the middle, bed sheets and a beige bedspread on top of it. Two closets are standing to each of the bed’s sides, and a small window, facing the same way as the kitchen’s, is housing a lot of green plants in the sill. Clothes are scattered about, especially in the what I guess to be Ariana’s side of the room. There is also a full body mirror hanging opposite of the bed, and I notice the ceiling has painted, blush pink roses on it. Right above the bed they have another, big, oval mirror hanging. I gasp when realizing that they can see every movement of each other when they make love. Probably Elise’s romantic idea. Or Ari’s kinky fantasy. I blush, and quickly retreat back to the living room. 

Thinking about Elise has me frowning though. I haven’t seen her yet. 

I notice a bookshelf behind the big, oak tree dining table when I come back inside the living room. All around the walls, posters, paintings and artistic photographs are hanging. I take my time studying each of them, finding myself spell bound by most of them. I love the entire colour scheme, soft pink to dark red broken by green plants and blue tablecloths. It gives an artsy, cozy feeling to the room offers. 

Another door, right next to the door frame leading back to the kitchen, is leading to a tiny bathroom. A bathtub is built into the wall, and the big sink has makeup scattered everywhere. There is a sweet smell of perfume, a mix between Ariana and Elise, no doubt. I close the door, walking back to the kitchen, where Adriel is about to say goodbye to Ari. 

“Goodbye my love, be a good girl, and I’ll pick you up later.” He says in a teasing way, poking my side, grabbing my ponytail, to yank me closer to him. 

I try to protest against his bad manners, but he won’t let me go, and kisses me passionately. I hear Ari snorting behind me, and I can’t help but crack a smile into his mouth. He lets go and pats my cheek, then hair, and then he leaves us.

“Eww, I did not need to see that!” Ariana exclaim, laughing. 

I blush, embarrassed. 

“Well I guess it is a good thing after all. He is definitely in love with you. And you are blushing like a crazy girl, so I guess I can only say the same about you.” 

“I… I mean, he is really sweet.” I finally admit. 

I never said it out loud, but the way Adriel treats me, it really melts my heart, and I feel all the butterflies flying around my chest. I must be the luckiest girl in the world.

“Speaking off, where is Elise?” I ask her to get the attention away from me and Adriel. 

A dark cloud roll into Ari’s eyes. 

“She is… out.” She answers hesitantly. 

For a moment, I debate in my head whether it is my place to say anything or not but end up not being able to hold my tongue. 

“What’s wrong, Ari?” 

She has turned her back to me, tending to the two pots on the stove, spraying the contend in one of them with salt and pepper. 

“It is nothing really. She has just… I don’t know. Acted weird lately.” 

“How?” I ask, worried. 

“It’s…. it’s her mother. She is very ill with cancer, and Elise has not handled it well. I honestly don’t know what she is up to. But she has started to come home later and later these evenings. At first, I thought she might go straight from work to the hospital to see her mum. But recently, one of her coworkers called me in the morning, asking if I knew where she was. I don’t know. When she comes home, she smells weird too. I… I am afraid she might be cheating on me.” Ari finally turns back to me, her voice cracking, tears in her eyes. 

I take my hands to my mouth in shock. 

“No, Ari, why do you think that? There could be a million other reasons for her to be out late.” 

Ari nods.

“I know, I just... I just can’t help myself. I don’t know what I would do if I found out she had been with someone else.” 

In a few moments I have, without thinking, crossed the floor to her, giving her a big hug. 

“You have to talk to her.” I whisper. 

“It is even worse to go around not knowing anything.” Ari nods, silently crying against my shoulder. It takes her few seconds, until she pulls herself together. 

“I am sorry, Esme, I didn’t want to worry you. And we were supposed to have fun this evening and talk about your visit at Lena’s.” 

“Don’t worry about me! You’ve spent so much time listening to my problems, I would return that any day.” 

“Oh Luna!” She exclaims, and gives me a new hug, before turning back to the stove, taking of the pots, turning off the boil. 

I help her carry the pots to the living room, and we sit down. 

“I’ve made dahl with rice; I hope you like spicy Indian food.” She laughs at me. 

I shrug, taking some rice and dahl, topping it with crème fraiche and fresh spring onions. It tastes very delicious, and it isn’t as spicy as Ari had threatened it to be. 

“Don’t worry, we still have to mind your stomach. Adriel was very firm with me about that.” She laughs, and I have to smile too. 

While eating, Ari has me explaining what happened when I went to Lena’s. I try my best to answer all her inquisitive questions, and don’t hold anything back. 

“Did it work then? The dream training, or whatever you call it?” She asks. 

“I don’t really know yet, I didn’t dream anything about my past this night. She also told me to take at least one dance class, but the more the merrier, before seeing her next week.” I hurry on the subject, hoping she'll tell me more about other dance classes than ballet. 

“Uh, then you have to do Dancehall beginners this Thursday. It is my favorite dance genre, for sure.” Ari smiles, not letting me down on the matter. 

I easily agree to her suggestion, before ask her about her training. 

“It is fine. I guess my spirit hasn’t really been up lately because of, well, Elise and everything. I actually even passed on some of my duties this week to my beta, Kim.” She admits. 

“Who’s Kim?” I ask, having never heard about Ari’s beta before. I didn’t even know she had one. 

“Well, he is actually Lucas’ younger brother. Our families have always had a lot to do with each other, so it made a lot of sense that they became Adriel’s and my betas.” She explains. 

“He is a real sweetheart, very goofy, a bit nerdy, and looooves systemizing everything. Which is great, because I am a mess.” She laughs. 

“I can’t wait to meet him.” I say. 

“He feels the same about you.” 

Smiling, she gets up, picking up my now empty plate and her own. I help her carry the now eaten food from the table, boxing up what we didn’t eat, and cleaning. 

We change into sportswear, Ari actually wearing a leotard, with tight, long shorts on top, and light-pink tights, putting her hair into a tight bun. When she catches me starring, she just shrugs, explaining this is how you look when you do ballet, before rummaging for a pair of pink ballet slippers. 

I look at myself in the mirror. I just look like someone who’s about to go for a five kilometers run. Ari laughs at me, before helping me tying up my hair in the same bun as hers, once again complaining over my split ends. Laughing, she tells me,

“Remind me to make a hairdresser appointment for you soon, girl.” 

Sticking in my rigid ends, tasing my hair into a perfectly round bun.

We walk across the street to the dance studio, which looks very old, but hosts multiple smaller or bigger rooms, all flanked with mirrors.

Ari, after speaking to the receptionist in the entrance hall, leads me to the second floor, to a smaller studio. It has mirrors on the long side of the room, across from the door. Both young women and men, about our age, are waiting inside, doing stretches and small talking. One of them recognizes Ari, coming over, greeting her with a hug. 

“Hey Tinka, this is Esme, my brother’s girl.” Ari introduces me. 

“Oh, the Alpha’s mate? I heard he had found you.” The girl says, giving me her hand to shake. 

“I am Katinka Thompson, I am part of the Emerald Moon Pack, too.” She smiles. 

She has very dark hair, big, brown eyes, and a wide smile. I notice, while taking her hand, that her little finger and ring finger are missing. I take a peek on her other hand, noticing it is intact. I also notice, that she is crookedly build. 

I smile back, introducing myself. 

“Is this your first time her?” Tinka asks curiously. 

“Yes, I have never dance before. As far as I know, anyways.” 

My eyes go to the ceiling for a second, while admitting my memory loss. 

“Ah, so you are missing something too, then?” Tinka says, pointing to where her two missing fingers should’ve been situated. 

“Go on, ask.” She shrugs. 

“Oh okay, what happened?” I ask, curiosity getting the best of me. 

“I was born this way.” She answers brightly. 

“How about you, how did you lose all your memories?” 

Before I get to answer, I am saved by the entrance of the ballet master. He takes up the entire space, like he is already on stage, and demands everyone’s attention immediately. He is very tall, and you can see all his muscles in his legs and arms whenever he walks. He is wearing a white leotard, with blue tights on top. 

“Welcome to today’s beginner’s ballet class. I am ballet master Henderson.” He introduces himself. 

”Now everyone, please find a free space at the barre.”  

I look around, noticing the barres lining all the rest of the walls. I follow Ari and Tinka to the nearest barre and take up a space in between them holding on to the barre with my right hand, facing Ari’s back. 

“This way, you can look at both of us.” Tinka says behind me. 

“Thank you.” I nod, gratefully. 

The class starts with Henderson noticing, that I and a few other people haven’t been here before. He takes us back to the centre of the room, walking over the six basic positions for your arms, legs and feet, you need to know to do ballet. Then he lets us slip back to our barre, I feel the heat in my cheeks, already feeling very much out of place. 

But I don’t get too much time to think about embarrassment. Henderson is a tough teacher, who leaves you no rest. You have to repeat everything you do on your left side on the right side too. Everything is very repetitive, but you have to have such a control over your body, that you don’t mind the similar footwork. And footwork, I soon discover, is the most important part of ballet. 

After a good half hour at the barres, we move to the centre of the studio. Here, we repeat some of the exercises from the barre, and I immediately regret feeling good about leaving the barre. Keeping your composition and balance is everything, and so much harder, than I ever thought. In the end of the class, he lets us do a few turns, and a few ‘jumping over the stage’, as he calls it. 

Spinning and jumping across the room is definitely the funniest part of the practice, and I give it everything, trying my best to follow Ari and Tinka, who both do it with ease, even though Ari is complaining it is way too long since she last did ballet and Tinka is gently mocking her movements. 

I am sweating like never before when class is over. But I actually get Henderson’s praise once, when I managed to do a split jump across the studio to his satisfaction. 

“How did you like it?” Asks Tinka after class, before Ari even gets to open her mouth. 

“It was really tough! But it feels great.” I gasp, still out of breath. 

“Yes exactly. I love ballet, it gives you such a nice control over your body, and the work out gain is insane. Why did you ever stop, Ari?” 

“I became busy.” Ari brushes her off. 

“Yeah, you became busy with your girlfriend.” Mocks Tinka laughingly. 

“Shout up, will you? You’re just jealous you don’t have such an adorable girlfriend as I do.” Ari teases back. 

“Forever single.” Tinka just laughs. 

We have made it back downstairs, and I recognize Adriel’s car, holding right outside the door on the pavement. 

“Uh, is he picking you up in his fancy Tesla?” 

Tinka puts and elbow in my side, and I blush. 

“Moon Goddess, it is not my fault he has a fancy car.” I point out. 

Tinka just laughs, then asks for my social media contacts. I diligently give her my new snapchat and messenger and leave her after giving her a shy hug. 

The fresh air outside hits me, and I put my bare arms around me, shivering a bit. The night is drawing closer, I can see the outline of the moon, only managing to make it over the horizon, the sun on the other side, painting the city golden. 

“Now get in the car, before Adriel becomes too worried.” Ari says, before hugging me, and whispers, 

“Thank you for listening to me earlier. I promise I’ll talk to her.” 

“I don’t want you to be sad.” I whisper back, patting her back. 

“You can always talk to me, just as I can always talk to you, right?”  

“Right.” She nods, before letting me go, and opening the car door for me. 

“He bro, bye bro.” She calls to Adriel, closing the door after me. I watch her walk over the street, disappearing inside her building. 

“How was it?” Adriel asks, leaning in to give me a kiss, even though I am very conscious that I smell like crap after sweating for an hour. 

“It was really hard. But I feel good. I am going to try out Dancehall this Thursday with Ari as well. And I made a new friend.” 

“Who?” Asks Adriel, sounding a bit suspicious.

“Katinka Thompson. She’s in your pack.” I say defensively. 

I can see his shoulders relax. 

“Oh, she is an adorable sweetheart. She always teases me with my long hair. She says I look like a surfer dude from California.” 

I just frown, hearing this, having no reference to a ‘surfer dude from California”, but Adriel laughs. 

“I can accept it if you start spending time with her.” 

“Is it just because you don’t think she can harm me or something?” I skeptically ask, an eyebrow raised.  

“Oh no, she can definitely kick your ass, have you seen your small upper arms, babe?” 

He jokes and poke my left arm. I demonstrately cross my arms, not talking for the rest of the drive. Adriel doesn’t mind though, he just turns up the music, singing along to some of his favorite rock numbers.