Winter

"Winter," the childlike voice sings into the air. The cold air chills my skin as I open my eyes. I'm in the middle of a forest. The dream is the same one I've seen many times before they started changing. Elissa is sitting in the midst of a clearing, in front of a small fire. Mumbling words I can’t hear as her black hair sways in the wind. My head turns up when another woman walks over. She has a red cloak hood over her face, so I can't see her, but I'm sure it's a woman from the way she moves and the shape of her body under the cloak. She stops next to Elissa and rests her hand on her shoulder.

"The boys want to see you, sister," she says. This must be Demtra, the goddess that made all the supernaturals. It’s strange to be so close to her, I’ve gotten used to Elissa by now. I look at her differently, now that I know she is a goddess, the one that made the prophecy about me.

"I love them, and I love him," Elissa replies, her voice sounding cracked like she has been crying.

"I understand," Demtra says, her voice sounding like velvet and like I’ve heard it before.

"I am pregnant," Elissa says quickly as she stands.

"Who is the father?" Demtra replies, the forest seems colder all of a sudden. Elissa doesn’t say a word as she looks at the fire. Demtra follows her gaze. I can only see them both staring at the fire for a long time; the tree’s creaking in the wind. I look down to see I’m wearing a white dress, a dress I’ve never seen before, and it matches the blue one Elissa is wearing. She must not feel the cold like me.

"That child will be half goddess and half demon," Demtra says, her voice echoing in the woods.

"And still mine. I will love her regardless," Elissa says quickly, she turns to look at her sister for the first time.

"And so shall I, sister," Demtra says and slightly nods her head.

Elissa embraces her sister tightly. 

"Have you seen any of the future of this child?" Demtra says as Elissa pulls away, I can only see bright blue eyes under the red cloak.

"Yes," she says.

"And?" Demtra asks when no one says anything for a while.

"He will kill the child and me for the power. He will kill all my mates when they choose to protect the child and me," Elissa says, her sentence ending on a sob.

"No," Demtra whispers into the fire. 

"We will change it, I promise you this," Demtra says. The words echo in my mind just as Elissa turns to look at me with wide eyes. 

"Winter Sweetheart, wake up." A hand shakes me awake from the dream, and I open my eyes to see Wyatt leaning over me in bed. His hair looks freshly showered and still slightly damp. A warm smile is on his face as his dark eyes search mine.

"Bad dream?" he asks as I relax into his bed. I remember coming back last night, and Wyatt wasn't in bed. I assume he was keeping his father busy because he knew I was gone for the evening. Atti told me that when he brought me back.

"Yes, more of Elissa and Demtra," I say feeling tired, the dream is fading from my mind even as I speak about it. So, Elissa was pregnant and with a half-demon baby. So, did she have a demon mate? She must have, but why would she say that he would kill her and the child. What happened? I remember the dream when she died, I wonder if that was the demon king? I never did get to see his face. She said the child survived then, so is there a half demon and half goddess running around somewhere?

"Demtra, did you see what she looked like? There were ten books that referenced her, but we don’t know if they are true," Wyatt asks.

"No, but I was certain who she was," I reply.

"I believe you, did you learn anything interesting?" he asks me.

"Elissa was pregnant. Demtra said the child would be half goddess and half demon," I tell him.

His eyes widen. We are just getting used to the possibility that the goddesses existed and now demons must exist too. "That's impossible," he says.

"Clearly not," I say gently. 

"You are mated to Jaxson now," Wyatt says, not a question but a simple truth. My back still tingles a little from the mark, and I haven’t even seen what it looks like yet.

"Yes, I love him as much as I love you," I tell him and realise what I said a second too late.

"You love me?" Wyatt echoes in shock. I’m not taking it back because I mean it. I know it, despite my mind telling me it’s wrong to be in love with two different people, it doesn’t feel wrong. It feels right.

"Yes, I have for a while now," I tell him quietly, and he still doesn't respond.

"Who is Freddy?" he asks, and I'm sure my face goes pale of all colour.

"How did you find out about him?" I ask, wondering how much he knows. His face is clouded in anger.

"Find out what? I heard you tell Alex that you love Freddy. Do you tell all your guy friends that you love them? I can accept my brothers as your other mates but not anyone else. Why didn’t you tell me about him?" Wyatt asks sitting back and away from me on the bed.

"I have to explain this to you.”

“Explain what?” he asks me.

“Freddy is your son," I whisper, and he looks at me in shock before he laughs.

"I don't have children. I've only ever slept with Demi, and she was a wolf. I may have fed off humans, but I never slept with them. It’s the best-kept secret of the vampire prince and not even my friends know. I’m too fucked-up to risk letting anyone close because my father would use them against me. He killed the first girl I slept with," he snarls and gets off the bed. He stands near the door like he wants to run out of it.

"Demi was pregnant when you took her to Jaxson. She made Jaxson swear not tell you or she would leave," I say, and Wyatt goes still. He doesn’t move an inch as his eyes go entirely black, a pressure in my mind as he talks. 

"He kept my child from me?"

“Don’t use your power on me. It only hurts me, Wyatt,” I say, holding my head. The pressure disappears quickly.

“Just answer, I didn’t realise I was doing it, Winter,” he says. That’s the entire apology I’m getting from him when he is so angry. He is shaking.

"Yes, but for the right reasons, Wyatt. Think about it, if he told you, you would want to see him, and someone would have guessed. Jaxson has made sure no one thinks he is anything but a wolf."

Wyatt listens to me as his eyes glow blacker than I’ve ever seen them. I flinch when he punches a hole through the wall by the door.

"My mate kept this from me as well until I found out. You didn't think I needed to know!" Wyatt shouts at me. Blood drops off his knuckles, the wound closing as I watch.

"I was trying to find the right time," I say, but Wyatt slams the door open.

"I just can’t deal with you right now," he says and shuts the door behind him, the whole wall shaking with how hard he slammed it. I don't know how long I sit in bed, with silent tears falling from my eyes before I get out of it. Times like this, I need chocolate. I can only find a few packets of unopened Oreo’s in the drawers, and they just remind me of Wyatt. 

I go into the bathroom and take all my clothes off before looking in the mirror at the markings on my back. The wolf is just below the phoenix and the two are connected with little swirls. If only the actual two men would get along like the mark is or without trying to kill each other. The wolf reaches to the middle of my back. I can almost feel Jaxson as I touch it. I shower quickly and dress in jeans and a white shirt before leaving my room and bumping into Atti.

"I wish to speak with you and the prince," Atti says, and I nod, opening my door and letting him in.

"Wyatt isn't here," I say, but Atti cuts me off.

"When I saw how mad he was, I took him to Dabriel and Jaxson. I also told Leigha you won’t be training today. She is telling people you hurt your arm or something,” he says, and I hit his arm.

“Ouch, what was that for?”

“He will kill Jaxson in the mood he’s in, and you need to take me to them. I love them both, and I can’t let them kill each other, they won’t talk,” I blurt out, and Atti stops me by placing a finger on my lips.

“Dab won’t let that happen. They will calm him down, this isn't your fault, Love," Atti says as I pace in front of him. I need to be there and stop anything bad happening. Can Dabriel stop them if they decide to kill each other? Can I survive the loss of either of them? No, I can’t. They are everything now.

"It feels like it," I reply.

"No, this happened way before you even met them. It’s their past to deal with, and they will not blame you, or I'll drop their asses in the middle of the Antarctic until they cool down.” He says casually. I wonder if he can take them there, it’s a scary thought.

 “Now, I want you to meet my familiars. I think you’ll like them," he says making me smile and slightly agree with him.

"Where can we go that someone won't see and hear us? Only this room is warded." I say.

“I’m a witch, we can go wherever I want to, remember?" he teases.

"Oh, I forgot," I say, feeling silly.

"You forgot about my witchiness?” he grins.

"’Witchiness’ isn't a word," I tell him as he moves closer.

"It's my new word I invented today," he chuckles and pulls me to his chest.

I close my eyes and hold my breath as Atti moves us to where ever he wants. When I open my eyes, we are in a stone room. The room has archways surrounding an altar in the middle with three steps leading up it, and it's very familiar.

"I've seen this place in a dream," I mumble and Atti looks down at me. He seems to know this and nods. I wonder if he brought me here to see if I recognised it. It’s the room Elissa died in, I kneel down and place my hand on the cold, stone ground. The place where she died.

"We used to come here as kids to meet. The place is well-guarded, and my mother showed it to me. Everyone is scared to come here," Atti tells me as I stand up.

"Why?" I ask. The place is full of cobwebs and dust. The archways are falling apart, and the white floors I remember are now grey and covered in vines. I walk over to the entrance where the wind is blowing through the room from. There is a small corridor, as derelict as the rest of the place, and two door frames that go onto a balcony. The air is warm outside, and the sun is shining over three mountains that I can see. I walk to the edge of the balcony where there was once a small, stone wall, but it’s falling off the edge. Once I’m close enough, I can see we are on the top of a big castle. The castle has holes everywhere, vines covering the bits of stone that have fallen. The place is destroyed. I can see stone buildings in the fields surrounding the castle, the areas are covered with weeds and trees. The place is a mess but still beautiful, untouched by the world.

"It's the old home of the goddess and her sister," Atti tells me, and I step back from the edge. I rest my head on Atti’s chest, and he just lets me. I don’t know why I feel such sadness being here, but I do. The place I remember in my dreams is a ruin now, and I have a feeling the demon king did this. Why would he do that to her? Elissa said she loved him. I could never hurt someone I love as he did.

I hear a slight growl behind Atti, and I look around him to see his familiars walking outside. They both stop by the door, sitting down as their big eyes meet mine. They look like tigers, just not any that I’ve ever seen in a zoo, and they are bigger.

"Mags and Jewels," Atti waves a hand towards them, and they both turn to look at him.

"Was the story about Jewels and Mags, true?" I ask. I remember him telling me he found Mags as a kitten in magazines, and she still likes sleeping in them. I know that much is true because I still have photos on my phone that he sent me of a cat on top of a pile of magazines sleeping. The cat was white and sort of looks a little like the white tiger, much smaller and more cat-like though.

"Yes, until we touch our familiars, they live in their glamors. They both are the cats I once sent pictures of to you, but they don’t like to wear their glamors," Atti says.

"Wow," I say. He sent me a photo of Jewels once, a healthy-looking black cat with grey eyes and wearing a gold necklace. Atti said she borrowed it from his mother.

"The white one is Mags, and Jewels is styling all black," Atti waves a hand towards them.

"Is Jewels still stealing?" I ask as I take a seat on the ground, leaning back to look up at Atti.

"I'm pretty sure she has robbed half the vampire court. I had to tell her off when I caught her staring at the king’s crown." He chuckles and sits next to me. Atti wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me to his side. I rest my head against his large, firm chest. Atti smells like flowers in a meadow. So very sweet.

"Where is she putting it?" I ask distracting myself.

"Under my bed, I’m just giving it to the humans to put back. Unless you want some priceless heirlooms, she managed to find a ring with a rock the size of an apple on it." Atti grins at Jewels when she turns her head our way. Jewels walk over to where we are sitting and places her head on my lap. I stroke her lovely fur with little fear. I never thought I would say that, having no fear of a giant tiger with massive teeth who purrs on my lap.

"I hate how the humans are like slaves to the vampires. They won’t even look at me, and the vampires just feed on them whenever they want. I’m thankful they haven’t killed any more humans in front of me, it's so wrong, and I want to kill them for it." I tell Atti who nods.

"I know. My city isn't like that. We don’t have humans in our walls. Everyone is paid for work, and we believe in community. That if you help someone, they assist you back," Atti tells me. 

"Tell me about your people," I ask him. I look over at the snow-topped mountains, this place is really beautiful and is so quiet. I bet it’s very private, too. 

"We are split. Dark witches rule one-half of the city, and light witches, like my mother, rule the other. Our people don't mix or breed with each other anymore. All witches monitor the elements but depending on what side you’re born on you are more likely to control individual ones. Light witches have control over water, air, and a little earth. Dark witches control fire and spirit. They also have some weather magic," he says.

“What about you?” I ask.

“I’m special. I have high control over all of them,” he tells me.

"Why are you split?" I ask.

"Their queen is persuasive, she managed to convince enough of the dark witches that my mother isn't strong enough to keep us all safe. My mother is powerful but crippled with the loss of her mate, my father," Atti says, his voice echoing with the light wind.

"How did he die?" I ask.

"My father died in the war between the angels and my kind. My mother killed Dabriel’s father for killing her mate," he tells me.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Atti," I say and lean up to kiss his cheek at the same time he turns his head. We both pause, a breath away from each other. I move slightly and brush my lips against his. A low groan escapes Atti before he responds with a gentle amount of pressure. Atti’s kisses are sweet, his lips move softly on my own. It's almost like he is treasuring me, taking his own time. 

A low growl escapes Jewels, reminding me that her head is still on my lap. I look down with a chuckle as I break away from Atti.

"Sorry, girl, I didn't forget you," I say and stroke her head.

"Worst wingman or wing cat ever," Atti grumbles, but it sounds playful. 

"Wing cat?" I ask, and he laughs. Mags chooses this point to walk over. It's hard not to be a little scared as her long teeth shine in the dim light of the room. Mags is scary, she looks like she could rip someone to pieces in seconds. 

Mags moves in between Atti and me. She nudges my spare hand with her cold, wet nose. I try to control the slight shake in my hand as I stroke the top of her head, and a loud purr fills the balcony.

Atti stands up and stares down at his familiars and me; Jewels is now snoring lightly on my lap, "They haven't let anyone but J, D, and Wyatt touch them before. Even my mother they hiss at.”

"I like them, do all witches have familiars?" I ask.

"Most do, my mother has a large, white bear. The dark witch queen is rumoured to have a falcon she can fly on. The animals vary depending on if you are light or dark," he says, and I nod.

"Do you think Wyatt will be okay?" I ask looking up at him. His cloak floats in the wind, his short, blond hair lighting up his worried expression.

"I don't know, Winter. It's not every day you find out you’re a dad and your best friend has brought up your child for you," he says.

"It sounds like something off that TV show, you know the dude who shouts a lot," I reply trying to remember the name.

"Jeremy Kyle?" he asks.

"Yeah that! Alex loves that show," I say, and he laughs.

"We should send Wyatt and Jaxson to the show. Could you imagine it?" Atti laughs.

"I can imagine the title now: ‘Prince of the vampires wants a DNA test on the king of the werewolves’ nephew’," I say and start laughing. Atti laughs with me until we are both wiping tears away.

"In all seriousness, he doesn't need a DNA. Freddy looks so much like Demi and a little like Wyatt," Atti tells me and moves to lean against the wall. His eyes never leaving mine.

"How is it possible?" I ask.

"I believe there are a lot more hybrids out there than we know. So many people have gone missing over the years. Other people could have hidden their children, just claiming they are normal. Their powers could be easily hidden," Atti says.

"Freddy is immune to silver, heals super-fast, and Jaxson says, he fights well already," I say.

"I wonder if mixing our races can cause these extra abilities. Freddy could be stronger than us all when he is older," Atti says.

"Do you think that's why the prophecy exists? It wants us all together. Any children I would have with anyone in our group would be a mix," I say, and Atti nods.

"I believe so. I don't think keeping our races apart and at war was ever the goddess’s idea," he says, and I agree.

"No, I don't think she would have wanted this," I say.

"If you think about it, when she created the races, they must have bred with humans. So, isn't everyone a half-breed in a way?" he says, and I’ve never really thought about it like that.

"I guess you’re right," I smile up at him. 

"I'm getting jealous of my cats," Atti says, nodding at them both. Jewels’ large head is taking over my lap and Mags is pressed against my side as I gently stroke her soft fur, avoiding the spiky tail.

“I need a favour,” I ask him, remembering the mini-demons.

“Will I get a kiss from the princess if I say yes?”

“Yep.” I grin, and he laughs.

“What would the princess want?” he asks.

“I need a distraction, big enough that most the guards will go to it for around ten minutes. Oh, Wyatt has to be with you too, Drake as well, if possible.”

“What will you be doing?”

“Something not dangerous, I promise.”

“So you’re not going to tell me?”

“You probably don’t want to know,” I say, knowing he’ll want to come with me, and he can’t be the distraction if he does that.

“Time scale?” he asks, and I grin.

“Soon,” I respond, and he nods, clearly thinking about it.

"We should be going back soon. Leave Winter, guys," Atti says, and they both move slowly. Jewels lick my cheek, making me laugh before walking back to stand next to Atti. One on each side.

"Why did you cut your hair?" I ask him as I get closer.

"I felt like a change," Atti shrugs.

"You’re hot either way," I reply with a slight blush, and he grins at me 

"Thank you, Love," he says and pulls me closer to him. I look up as he leans down and kisses me gently. I don't notice him use his powers this time until we’re in Wyatt’s bedroom. 

"I should go," Atti pulls away, one look suggests he doesn't want to. 

"You’re right, only a week or so until I can leave," I say smiling.

"I can't wait for that," Atti says and vanishes into thin air. 

I wander around my room, and I jump when the door opens. Two humans come in the chamber, both dressed in rags with dark-coloured skin and dark-brown hair. They both instantly lower their heads and bow at me.

"No, don't do that. I'm not…I was human like you," I mumble out as I move over to them. They both lift their heads but don't say anything. I notice the trolley full of sheets outside the room, and I assume they are here to clean something.

"Are you here to clean?" I ask and they both nod.

"Can you talk to me?" I ask, as they both glance at each other.

"We are not allowed, Princess. We will change your bed sheets and clean," the taller one says.

"How about I do it?” I ask, and they look at me like I’ve grown two heads.

“I don’t think–” the one starts, so I suggest something else.

“Could one of you get me some lunch instead? I have no idea where the kitchens are," I say. I have an idea, but this place is a maze.

"I can do that," the smaller girl says and moves quickly out of the room. 

"I will clean," the other girl says, a look full of worry at me before she gets sheets off the trolley.

"And I will help you," I say.

"You are a princess, they would kill me and my family for letting you do such things," she says, looking at the floor. This is so wrong.

"Then it will be our secret, how long have you lived here?" I ask her.

"I was born here," she tells me.

"Oh," I reply, and she looks at me. Her pale-blue eyes like mine, the same dark-brown hair and we could have swapped places in a second. I could have been born here and her in my place in the world. I can’t imagine the life she has here, but I don’t know how to help her without getting myself killed.

"Why don't you escape?" I ask after a while of silence, both of us just staring at each other.

"The same reason you don't, I have people I love here. My whole family is here, and we don’t have your powers. If we are lucky, one of them might choose us as a mate," she tells me.

"Even if you don't love them?" I ask.

"Love is just fairy tales," she says.

"It's not," I reply quickly.

"Maybe not for you, Princess, but for me, it is," she says, and we clean the room in silence until the door swings open. Talen is standing there, holding the door open.

“Out, the Princess and I need to chat.”

“Don’t,” I say, but the girl runs out of the room. Talen shuts the door and walks over to me as I drop the bed sheets on the floor.

“No protectors around? Silly mistake, little girl,” he says.

“I don’t need them,” I respond, trying to hide my shaking hands behind my back. Talen is creepy and evil. He watches me as I keep eye contact with him. His eyes are slightly red, meaning he fed recently. Talen is wearing a black suit, a black tie and his white shirt has a drop of blood on it.

“You think you are safe?” he says and laughs. His laugh crackles around the room. He moves quickly right in front of me, and I panic. The power I’ve only felt once before fills my body, and I watch as a blue glow moves out of me and slams into his chest. He flies across the room and hits the wall, breaking the mirror that he hits.

“What are you?” he asks, I lift my hands as I see they are glowing blue. The door opens again, and Leigha comes in, she quickly moves next to me.

“Get out, you will be lucky if the prince doesn’t kill you for this, Talen. The king cannot protect you all the time,” she says calmly.

“Don’t threaten me. You will soon be underneath me screaming my name. Someone needs to teach you some respect, and that you’re just a woman,” he spits out.

“She is my defender and protector. She will not marry anyone. Run along and tell the king that. You don’t deserve any respect, Talen, from any person–woman or not.” I tell him. I straighten my back and smile at him, feeling a confidence, I didn’t know I had.

“You can’t do that!” he shouts at me, his face slowly turning red.

“She can,” Drake says walking into the room. He walks over to Talen and punches him. The force slams him into the wall again, and he slides down, unconscious with blood all over his face. Drake picks up his foot and walks out, dragging Talen behind him.

“Thanks!” I nervously shout after Drake and shut my door. I lean against it and look at Leigha.

“Thank you,” I tell her.

“A servant came running to me, she told me he was in your room. I sent her to find Drake.”

“I will have to thank her,” I say, and Leigha nods.

“You shouldn’t be alone, but well done on using your power,” she says.

“I didn’t mean to,” I reply.

“You did. We will work on your powers tomorrow. I didn’t want people seeing you use them and turning all blue. It doesn’t matter now that Talen has seen you,” she says, but she doesn’t look that worried.

“Okay.” I nod, and she walks to the door.

“I will stand guard until Wyatt returns,” she says. I want to tell her that might be a long time if he hasn’t got himself killed by my other mate. Worry and the urge to throw up fills my body.

“You don’t have to–” I start saying and she stops me.

“Winter, you just saved me from a life not worth living. I will protect you until you release me, but I will be your friend endlessly.” She says.

“Thanks,” I say feeling a blush. Leigha shows me a rare smile before she shuts the door.