The Empaths (Book one in The Empaths series)

Chapter Twenty-Five

As the sun rose, on the morning of her eighteenth birthday, Lucy sat alone on her front porch. She watched as the rays of light broke free of the mountain top and spread out over the property, touching trees and earth as they went. When they hit the lake, the surface of the water shone as though it were covered with thousands of tiny crystals, glittering and sparkling in the light.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of the morning air. Fresh and clean. She felt drained, but strangely, more awake than she had ever been in her whole life.

Everything looked and felt different. Textures and colours seemed to stand out in ways that they had not yesterday. The wind tickled her skin, calling to her, beckoning her to follow as it pressed against her body.

She stood up and allowed the breeze to nudge her toward the garden. When she bent down to push her fingers into the long, green grass, she could feel the earth responding to her touch. She closed her eyes and listened, feeling the grass curl around her fingers. She could hear it now, the scuttling sounds of millions of creatures, burrowing beneath the soil, busily creating homes and life under the surface. She could feel the earth shifting and growing. Billions of tiny grains of soil below her, acknowledging her presence and accepting her.

With another deep breath, she knelt on the grass among the flowers and allowed the energy of the elements to flow into her, giving her life and rejuvenating her strength. Their warmth was a comfort, an embrace. It was home now, where she was safe.

After the ceremony last night, she felt her connection to the elements change, like they had become a part of her. When she closed her eyes and focused on their energy flowing through her body, she no longer felt anxious or tired or afraid. She felt at peace.

"Thank you," she whispered, exhaling as she released them back into the wild.

She sat on the grass for a while, gazing at the world around her, enjoying the way it looked now. Brighter, more alive. Everything had suddenly become so much clearer.

Tomorrow, when they made the journey back up the mountains to the gates, she would be ready. She knew that now. She no longer felt inadequate or incapable. She felt strong and confident.

It was time.

With a smile, she waved a hand over the grass and more flowers sprang up to join the others, their little buds bursting open in brilliant shades of purple and yellow and pink. They danced under her hands as they tried to reach out toward her. It was so simple now. If she wanted to, she could grow a garden of trees and flowers and hedges without breaking a sweat.

A little brown and white wren hopped across the grass and fluttered up to land on her knee, chirping a sweet song. She could practically see the notes drifting out on the breeze as the tiny bird sang with all of its heart. Several other birds appeared from the sky, landing all around her to join in with the little wren's song.

"Amazing," she wondered aloud, laughing as even more birds swooped down to land among the flowers.

She could feel him approaching before he stepped into her line of sight. Tristan. Without warning, her heart skipped a beat, causing her to lose her breath for a moment. She steadied herself and smiled up at him as he stood on the path beside the garden. She patted the grass in front of her and he carefully made his way through the flowers, his bare feet avoiding the tiny birds skipping around them.

Slowly, he sat down in front of her and smiled. His face looked different to her now. She couldn't quite put her finger on what it was, but the warmth he radiated seemed to wrap around her in a way that filled her with courage. His kindness shone through like a beacon in the night. It was then that she suddenly realised what her mother had meant. Lucy could see it now, shining through on a golden light, glistening off his skin. When she reached out to touch the side of his face, that life force washed over her, warming her right to her core.