A knock sounded in her room. Dropping her pen onto her notebook, engrossed in the writing, her head snapped to the door where Dorian stood on the balcony with his back to her. With narrowed eyes, she pushed away from the chair and walked to the door. Opening the door, Dorian spoke up, "How are you doing?"
"I should be asking you that," she told him, a small smile on her face. "The link is no longer there; how does it feel to no longer have the connection, no longer the overbearing nightmares and fear, I bet," she joked. "It's quiet," he told her, turning to face her.
"May I?" she motioned to his chest. His eyes snapped towards her blues. With one look, she stepped forward, moving his shirt slightly to look at the skin where the markings had completely disappeared. "It's gone," she smiled at him; dropping his shirt, she stepped backward, giving him a bit of space. "So what are you doing here?" she questioned him. "I wanted to make sure that you were alright after yesterday," he told her as he took a step closer to her. Standing her ground, Raven gave a small nod. "I am fine, but I think the spell took quite a bit of my energy."
"And what about the dark magic?" she asked, flicking her gaze away from his, knowing he would worry if he knew that it had become stronger. Her magic had begun acting strangely. Her eyes had been flickering with the darkness taking over. "I have been doing okay with it," she told him, picking at the flowers.
Grabbing her chin in his hand, he lifted it to bring her gaze to his, her black eyes now on display. "Your eyes are telling a different story, love." Slipping out of his grasp, she took a step back. "I can handle it. It is containable this time. You and Grace have taught me how to handle it."
"I know you can handle it. "
Brushing her hair behind her shoulder, Dorian tugged on the necklace around her neck.
RING RING
Staring at his phone, he sighed, "I have to go," dropping the pendant from his hand.
"Bye," she said to him, giving him a reassuring smile. Dorian jumped from the balcony, landing perfectly on the ground, his figure disappearing into the woods.
***
Raven dropped back in her chair, staring at the ceiling, feeling overwhelmed. The red moon was any day now, and she was running out of time. Something about her dream last night made her feel as if she needed to go there. Raven's gaze dropped down to the photo of her and her grandma. She had not visited the town since her grandma had passed away; her mother did not want to expose her to it. Raven stood next to her grandma, who had an almost missable smile on her face while Raven had a huge smile on her face along with one of the roses she had grown with her grandma.
"Maybe the answer will be there," she whispered, grabbing her bag and the spellbook along with the photo and journal. Raven quickly headed out of the house, locking up behind her before getting in her car. Heading out of town.
Raven drove for less than an hour into the small town. She had not been there since she was little. It was strange; nostalgia hit her. There was a time when she was carefree, having her small, incomplete family, but at least she had them still, and now they were all gone. Nevertheless, she was so grateful for what she still had and what she had been given. The two-story house looked over the for-sale sign in front of the house.
"It seems no one has bought the house yet," Raven thought. They would go there to visit her grandma. Staring at the house where she had spent many of her days, the roses that she and her grandma had grown were no longer in the front yard.
"Nobody lives there anymore," a voice said from behind her. Turning to face the person, Raven spotted the familiar woman but did not remember her name.
"You are her granddaughter, aren't you? I used to see you here when you were little. Your grandma loved you so much. She was here one day and then gone the next. All her stuff was given away. That's the roses you used to take care of together," the woman said. "Your grandma talked about you a lot when she came over for tea. You were named after the bird; your name used to be Dahlia, but your mother did not find it fitting for you, so for weeks she struggled to find a name, and she had noticed a raven following her, and she thought it was hers until she saw the raven following you, and she found it somehow fitting for you."
"You might not know where this is," Raven questioned, holding out the photo toward the woman.
"Oh yes, it looks like the Stray Woods."
"Why is it called that?" Raven's eyebrows were raised in confusion.
"People tend to get lost there easily," and, giving a nod, she smiled at the woman.
"Thank you so much."
"You're welcome, Raven," Raven waved at the woman before getting back into her car and driving into town. Stopping at the florist to buy some flowers, Raven drove to the entry, parking her car among the other cars as the woods were only a couple of feet away from her.
Holding the flowers in her hand as she walked, footsteps came from behind her, stopping as she stopped. The power radiated from him.
"Michael, I know you're there,"
Turning around, she spots no one. Facing the front, she stared at a chest. "Oh my goodness! Michael, why are you following me?" she questioned him as his brown eyes stared down at her. "I thought that you might enjoy the company,"
She gave him a blank look.
"You followed me for an hour to another town because you thought I might need company."
He gave her a nod. "Indeed."
"He sent you to babysit me?" she deadpanned.
"He asked me to look after you," shaking his head, "no."
"I am not even that far from home," she exclaimed.
Narrowing her eyes at him, she looked to see if he was lying, but found not a single inkling.
"Let's go."
"Is everything well with you?" Raven stopped in her tracks.
"I am fine, but I think I know where the missing piece of the spell is."
"He told you not to worry about it right now."
"I know, but,"
"Maybe once the spell is done, everybody will be moving on, especially him."
"And you believe he will be able to."
"I don't know," she whispered; her gaze fell past her phone.
Raven stared, confused, at the strange plant growing between the bricks.
"That is strange," she muttered to herself.
"What are you talking about?"
"Do you see that plant?" she questioned as she studied the flowers.
"Yes,"
"It is an anemone."
"I am not familiar with plants," he told her, his phone ringing. He took a step away from her as she leaned down, spotting a trail. Raven began following it into the woods, Michael still behind her.
'You are out of season and out of your element,' Raven thought.
Stopping at the entrance, Raven stared at the sign: Stray Acre Woods.
'Well, that sounds so welcoming,' she thought. "Could everybody sit together and remember to use the equipment given only when you have gotten lost from the group?" the guide called out to the group of people. Raven cast a glance at the people before they all entered.
Turning to face the woods, the anemone flowers trailed deeper into the woods.
***
Michael placed his phone back in his pocket as a bunch of people surrounded him; he caught a glimpse of the raven-haired girl. The loud chatter of the people filled his ears.
"Raven," he called, but he lost sight of the girl.
"Move," he snapped as he pushed the people out of his way, searching for the girl. Heading into the woods.
***
The deeper she went, the darker it had become; she had long ago stepped away from the other hikers. Raven did not know for how long she had walked; it felt like hours when she stumbled upon a structure covered in hyssop flowers.
The small graveyard was covered in hyssop flowers. Raven pressed her hands against the gate and just like that, all the flowers disappeared; the gate opened in front of her, leading her inside. Raven walked among the graves.
"Where could it be?"
Her eyes landed on the rose bush growing from a nameless grave, with an engraving of a dahlia flower across the headstone. She had not even noticed it amongst the hyssop flowers. nameless grave. "Betrayal and sadness," she whispered. Digging her hands into the ground.
CROAK
CROAK
"You are following me again, huh?" Her eyes were on the bird.
CROAK
CROAK
She pulled the plant from the empty grave with greater struggle. Placing the plant next to her, she stared down at the hole in the ground, spotting a rolled-up piece of paper matching those from the book in good condition. Pulling it from the hole,
Reaching for her phone in her pocket, she quickly dialed his number.
[BEEP] [BEEP]
[No service]
Opening her texts. She opened the chat with Dorian.
"I found it. I found the missing piece," She quickly pressed send, knowing it would reach him when she got service. Placing the plant back into the ground, she grabbed the scroll, opening it as she started to feel her heart drop to the ground while she stared down at the missing piece.
CROAK
"Okay, I am going," Raven said, placing the flowers on the graves. Then, closing the gate behind her, the hyssop flowers grew back as quickly as they had disappeared.
'Where are you, Michael?' He must have gotten lost.
Raven stepped back on the trail, feeling as though someone was behind her.
The raven sat on the branch, its eyes not on him.
Spinning around as she felt the energy coming from behind her.
"Thank you for finding the missing piece of the spell for us," the witch thanked her with an evil smirk.
"It will be of no use to you."
"Stop her!" Raven ran; the witch lay unconscious on the ground. She could not remember where she was, lost in the woods. The sun had set, and the stars came out to find her. Scratching at the woman's hands, her body felt heavy.
Raven was pulled into darkness from the impact of the hit.
***
Michael scoured the woods, tracking the girl who had gone missing. Following the trail of flowers, he stopped in his tracks, watching the flowers disappear all of a sudden.
"Raven," he whispered, she must have found the graveyard. Which only meant he needed to find her quickly. After a few minutes, Michael stumbled upon a preserved graveyard. The gates were wide open, and no Raven was in sight. A breeze drifted through the air along with the familiar scent of blood. Raven's blood. Following the blood coming from the trees, his eyes landed on Dorian's chain, which belonged to Raven, along with blood coating the ground.
Grabbing his phone, he dialed the number. The phone rang for a few seconds until Dorian's voice followed. "Michael," Dorian said on the phone. "She is gone, Dorian. They took her."
With that, the line went dead on the other side.