Kissing Danger ✔️

TWENTY ONE

Word Count: 1665

¬Aven

Nightmares haunt me from the moment I close my eyes.

It starts off as a blanket of darkness that shrouds me vision, my legs burning with pain as I battle through what feels like thick mud that I can't see. And then a light explodes around me, and suddenly I'm standing on the beach with Eryk...and Stace. I stare at them, opening my mouth to speak, but no words come out. They are staring blankly ahead of themselves, and when I follow their gazes, I see a crowd of people staring back at us.

And suddenly, they all alight in a burst of fire. I scream, and then I'm awake, sitting up in my bed, rubbing my eyes frantically, trying to wish away the image of all those people burning...

Now I sit at breakfast opposite Stace, Eryk at the other end of the table.

"Have you ever killed before?" I ask absently, staring down at my plate piled with fruit and granola that I haven't yet touched. Everywhere I look I see those burning people, and at this point, it feels like I experienced less of a nightmare and more of a premonition.

Stace pauses his eating, looking up at me with a hooded gaze. "Plenty of times."

"What about a lot...at once?" I ask warily.

"At once? No," he comments, raising a skeptualtive brow. I can feel the heat of Eryk's questioning gaze as well. It's a strange topic to bring up over breakfast, especially when it's so early that even mother and Lei, who have been brought to Stace's estate as well. "Why do you ask."

"I had a strange dream that you and I were standing next to each other, right in front of a pile of dead bodies on fire," I explain, shuddering having to recall it.

Stace frowns, exchanging a look with Eryk before he looks back at me, summoning a smile, although it's icy cold. "I imagine your mind is having a hard time processing this new realm and everything that is in it."

"It felt real, like a memory, or maybe a future event," I say distractedly. Each person had their own individual look, like I've seen them before, even though I know I haven't. I've never had the most expansive imagination, so it can't be possible for me to conjure up so many unfamiliar faces just like that, can it? "I sound crazy, maybe you're right."

"Do you have any questions about this realm? I would be happy to answer any." I try to ignore Stace's blatant change of subject. Maybe he just doesn't want me to worry, or maybe he thinks I'm losing my mind and doesn't want to break it to me.

"Will you ever take me to the other territories?"

"With time. I think you should become more familiar with this one first," he claims, taking a sip of his coffee. "It's a confusing mess of different politics, beliefs and general ways of doing things. In some places half-Angels like me lead, whereas in others, humans dominate."

"Strange..."

"Like I said, it's confusing," he notes. "Anything else?"

"Are people going to know I'm different?" I ask warily. I feel out of place here, and I haven't even met anyone in public. What if they are all tall, tattooed and intimidating like Stace, or quiet and judging like Eryk? And the mention of Angels and Demons, something I have no experience with...I mean, Stace looks more like a demon then an Angel, which means my perception is completely off.

"No, you belong here, remember, and you bleed purple," Stace smiles, as if it should make me happy. What if I'm half-Angel or something? I could very well be nothing more than human, but if my father was powerful, then he can't have been anything normal.