Eyes of Light

I didn’t know why, but I stayed up past ten, sitting on the edge of my bed. My eyes focused on the window as if I were waiting for that wolf, waiting for it’s mesmerizing howl to sound; but it never came. Everything was completely silent. I bit my lip and checked the clock again: 10:33. I shut my eyes for a moment and thought of Nick’s words, about the wolves. Something in me clicked, allowing me to remember that my mother had given me something else besides the painting that was hanging up of the great wolf.

My eyes snapped open and I stood, rushing over to my closet with excitement. I flung the doors open, letting my eyes scan the messiness of all the shoes scattered on the floor and clothes hanging off the hangers. I spotted a small blue box in the corner, dust covering the side, and I reached for it. Blue was my mother’s favorite color, everything that she always wanted was blue. I pulled the box out and stared at it for a long moment, taking a shaky breath.

I hadn’t opened this box in… years. I hadn’t shifted through the various contents since the day I had put them in there, the day I learned that my mother had died. I remembered the door bell ringing, but instead of a policeman on the porch, like it was in the movies, there were two regular people. The woman had short blond curls and piercing blue eyes, her skin had an olive tone to it. The man was tall with short, red hair, his eyes a muddy brown, a tint of what I remembered as red showing through, but his skin was so pale. I could hear them speaking so softly, their voices low and sad.

I shook my head and peered back down at the box. My fingers traced over the designed lid before I pulled it off and set it gently on the floor. My eyes settling on the item that laid on the top. It was a light blue blanket, little stars sewed in everywhere. She had never opened it fully for me to see, my father being the one to give it to me after she died. I ran my hand along the soft fabric, gripping it gently to pull it out. It was slightly heavy, long and thick. I opened it up without hesitation, my eagerness running through me. At first there was nothing but little yellow stars lining the whole blanket and I almost folded it back up, until I caught sight of the bottom. There was a large dark wolf at the bottom, the color gray. I furrowed my eyebrows, wondering why my mother had such an obsession with wolves. Next to that wolf was a regular girl, one around my age, with these dark curls. She was facing the animal, almost curled up with it, and the wolf’s eyes were closed.

I trailed my eyes to the opposite end, gasping when I saw who was on it: my mother. It was a stitched blanket, but the detail in it was like no other, her eyes as bright as ever. I spotted the blue sphere tied around her neck, her hands holding a light blue tint. I quickly folded the blanket back up, my eyes tearing across the other items quickly. There was another painting of a wolf, but it was a baby. The fur was golden brown, dark brown covering it’s head and ears. It’s eyes were shut too. I gasped softly, my fingers running over the canvas before I picked it up slowly. This… this resembled the wolf from my dreams and the wolf in my yard. If only it had shown up tonight, I could compare the two.

I quickly set the painting aside, my heart lurching when I spotted the box that contained my old tea set. My mother and I would play with it countless times after she had painted those soft glowing orbs on them. I was mesmerized each time, and eager, hoping she’d tell me another story. I didn’t even have the heart to take the tea set out of it’s box. Instead, I picked it up and placed it by the blanket and the painting, leaning in to see the rest of the contents. I felt my eyes began to sting, shock filling me. There sat my mother’s blue sphere necklace… but it wasn’t blue anymore. It was clear and I could see the bottom of the box through the orb. I took a shaky breath and reached my hand back, recoiling it in fear; could I touch it? She never took it off, not once, and I thought she had died with it. There was no funeral for her, but dad took me to her grave when I was younger. That stopped two years later though.

I let out a sigh and sniffled, pushing my tears back. I didn’t want to touch it, not now, at least. I looked next to it and found what I was looking for. It was a small gray book, the pages new, unlike Nick’s books. I lifted it slowly and swiped the dust off with my fingers, flipping to the first page. There was also a table of contents, chapters. I scanned the page, looking for ‘wolves,’ but another word caught my eye and I was suddenly even more interested.

I flipped through the pages quickly, my eyes landing on the title: Witches. The outline was similar to the book Nick had, but this looked more easy to understand. I smiled to myself and scooted back, resting my head on my nightstand before peering down at the page.

I felt myself growing tired, my fingers flipping through the pages slowly. This wasn’t any better; I couldn’t take any of theses words in. When Nick explained the wolves, it was easy. I needed a verbal explanation. I let out a deep yawn, my eyes setting on the bed longingly. I felt my eyelids droop and my head set against the nightstand, sleep taking me under slowly instead of the quickness it had been for the past two days.

I didn’t recognize my surroundings, everything being blurry for once. I could hear faint voices around. I could see a tall, skinny figure. Her hair flowed down her back in thick, light brown waves. . I tried to step forward, but it was as if I weren’t there, my eyes permanently focused on the surroundings.

The woman was standing in a large field, the wind whipping her hair around. There was a low whisper, like the wind was whispering, and the leaves began to rustle and float around quickly. There was a gray cloud of smoke forming, blackness glowing as the seconds passed.

“You cannot do this Rosalind,” a deep voice spoke softly, muffled. “Flee, now, please,” it begged.

“I have to,” the woman whispered sadly, looking around the field. The glowing smoke came forward, hovering almost, a low hissing sound beginning. A large black wolf came into view and he backed up cautiously, letting out a deep growl.

“Rosalind…” it trailed off, a gasp escaping her lips as the smoke shot forward, pushing her back. She yelped and landed next to a set of my bushes. Her face was so clear now… her eyes a bright green: my mother. The smoke began to form into a person and, without touching her, brought my mother up by the throat. It spoke in a low, hushed voice, one I couldn’t understand, and then something horrible happened. My mother turned a milky color, her legs thrashing, yelps escaping her lips. The black glow brightened and flew upwards, dropping her to the ground with dissatisfaction, a high hiss seeping through the field, like a scream, and my mother lied there… motionless; dead.

I bolted up, clutching the blanket in my hand tightly, a high scream pushing itself out of my lungs. I couldn’t stand it, I couldn’t understand. This nightmare was far worse than anything and far more confusing.

I heard pounding footsteps, my voice suddenly catching, my eyes scanning the room. I was on the bed… how did I get on the bed? I looked down at my hands in the dark, seeing nothing, and I was slightly confused for some reason, dazed.

“Lonnie! Lonnie, honey what is it?” Dad asked frantically, tripping when he entered the room. He picked himself up quickly and ran forward, pulling my shaking body into a hug.

“I…” I started, my breathing uneven and sharp. “M-mom. Mom!” I cried out, sobbing on his shoulder suddenly. He seemed to tense up, but wrapped his arms around me quickly, kissing my head.

“It wasn’t real. It was just a nightmare, Lonnie. Just a nightmare,” he whispered over and over, as if he were just convincing himself. I pushed the thought away and hugged him close, my ears settling on a low howl in the distance. I felt myself grow comfortably calm, my heart rate slowing down and my body feeling a little light. I suddenly felt warm, the howl sounding again.

“Close…” that familiar voice muttered, almost inaudible. I didn’t understand what I was hearing or what the words even meant, but it gave me a sense of relief. I pulled away from my dad, feeling myself grow tired again.

“Try to sleep, alright? If you need me, I’m right down the hall,” he whispered softly, rubbing my shoulder. “You’re okay, kiddo. Just a nightmare.”

“Y-yeah,” I choked, my mind buzzing with pure confusion. “Right.”

[&&light]

It wasn’t long before my dad came in my room, waking me up gently. He asked me if I was alright, which I was, but I wasn’t exactly looking forward to school. I was more focused on the nightmare… and everything else that had been going on. Nothing made sense.

I trudged up the steps to find Josh and Anna waiting, both eying me curiously.

“Are… you okay?” she asked softly, getting a small nod from me. They could sense that I wasn’t exactly in the mood to talk.

I made my way into the building, both of them following, and turned towards my locker. I grabbed my binder, the notebook Nick had written in yesterday, and the book that I had found. I was hoping Nick could make sense of it, since he knew so much about wolves; wasn’t he bound to know about witches, too?

I turned the corner without a word, heading the opposite direction of my homeroom.

“Where are you going?” Josh asked.

“The library,” I sighed, meeting their confused faces. “For my paper.” Anna smiled and Josh nodded, turning around slowly. They made their way down the hall, my own path leading me straight into someone. It was hard with a scent that seemed familiar, and a wave of heat rushed over me.

Glancing up, my eyes settled on an annoyed Nick as he stepped back, pulling down his shirt. His eyes settled on me and a look of curiosity ran through his deep eyes for a moment.

“Still haven’t learned to watch where you’re walking?” he muttered. I couldn’t tell if he was kidding or not, something that was common with him. I gulped and let out a deep breath, looking away.

“Sorry.”

He didn’t say anything for what seemed like a long moment, both of just standing in the hall. My eyes flickered from him to the library door before he spoke again.

“Come on.” It seemed like more of a grunt. He turned away from me and strolled through the open doors, leaving me to rush after him. I entered the large room quickly, my eyes scanning the shelves of books and all the empty tables in the corner. I saw him wandering over to them, setting his bag on the table. I followed him yet again, choosing the seat next to him.

“Umm, here,” I mumbled, picking up the notebook. He took it gently and flipped through the pages, finding his spot. He sat down and began to scribble something else just before I interrupted.

“So, you know a lot about wolves?” I whispered, getting him to look at me with a blank face. He raised an eyebrow, but didn’t speak. “Do you know about witches, too?” He actually seemed a little shocked by my question, his eyes narrowing just a bit. He still didn’t speak. I sighed and gently grabbed the book, staring down at it for a moment. I turned to face him, bumping my knee against his. He looked down at my leg for a minute before settling his eyes back on me, staying completely still.

“I don’t understand this either, really. And you explained the wolves so clearly… I was hoping you could tell me something about witches,” I said softly, letting out a short breath. His eyes flickered to the book in my hand, his lips parting slightly.

“Where’d you get that?” he questioned suddenly, his voice hard. I looked down at the book in my hands and then back up to Nick, furrowing my eyebrows.

“My mom gave it to me a long time ago.”

He had this look in his eyes, his focus completely on the book. He nodded slowly and turned back to the paper, staring down at his own writing. He was silent for a long moment, and I wondered if he was even going to answer me.

“Witches aren’t bad like most portray,” he sighed, still not looking at me. “And if they are, they’ll always have a black glow.

“The… bad witches are black magic, and they can transform out of their human figure and into a cloud of smoke; they’re soulless. Black magic is the most powerful magic and it’s the only magic that can kill more than one creature.” I heard my sharp breath intake, but he ignored me and continued. “A real witches magic, a good witch’s magic, can only kill one thing…” he trailed off, turning his head, his eyes focusing on me. “Black magic.”

I opened my mouth, but no words came out, and I felt somewhat overwhelmed; as if it were true. I was glad when he continued.

“Witches have simple powers. They can… move things, take themselves to different rooms, they can even hear noises that others aren’t meant to hear. And they’re-” he paused, biting his lip. I watched him with eager eyes, taking everything in so easily. I didn’t know why, but I held onto Nick’s every word, storing it away. “The tales say they are quite annoying,” he finished, his lips twitching upward, but only slightly.

“Annoying?” I chuckled, raising my eyebrow. “How could anyone possibly know that?”

“Witches,” he continued, sighing deeply, but not out of irritation this time, more as if he were choosing his words carefully. “aren’t ugly creatures, unless they’re born with unattractiveness. People can’t tell a witch is a witch unless she glows, and, I don’t really know, but I think that only happens at certain times… the glowing.”

“Glows?” I whispered, biting my lip. He looked at me with deep, hard eyes for a moment, giving me a short nod.

“Glows.”

“Oh,” I cleared my throat, letting out a deep breath. My mother was right… but that had to be just an old tale. “Why… do they glow?”

“I don’t know,” he shrugged, his eyes zoning out for a moment, deep in thought. It was quiet again, the clock ticking slowly echoing through my mind. “They say that she glows when a certain creature is around.”

“A creature?”

“Yeah,” he muttered, shaking his head. “It could be a human, a vampire, a wolf…”

I blinked slowly, looking down at my hands. That didn’t make any sense, but I doubt I could ask him.

“What do witches do, anyway?” I was surprised when he didn’t roll his eyes; my question sounded kind of obvious.

“They don’t really cast spells. There are some… two of them are forbidden. But witches were made for battle, they were made to destroy the black magic every ten years or so; more or less.”

“Wait… every ten years? Doesn’t it just… go away?” Now I was definitely confused. What kind of thing didn’t just… die when you destroy something.

“The black magic is very deadly, so it says,” he said quickly, shifting in his seat. I smiled slightly, watching him with interest. He ran his fingers through his thick curls, a deep sigh escaping his full lips. He locked his eyes on my face, studying me for a moment. “It feeds off power.”

That still didn’t answer my full question, but it made sense. I looked down at the book in my hands and set it on the table gently, focusing my gaze on the paper he was writing.

“Do all witches glow gold?” I wondered, looking over at him quickly.

“Who told you that? There has never been a witch that glows gold,” he muttered, looking down at the paper as well.

“Never? My mom told me that one of the great wolf’s sons glows gold. I mean… she said they themselves don’t glow, but she never really told me what she meant.” Nick froze completely, his eyes slowly trailing over to me. I was a little worried; he looked pale.

“Your… mom told you that?” he whispered.

“Y-yeah,” I stuttered, scanning his face with worry. “But it’s weird because there’s a wolf that keeps showing up behind my house, in the forest, and it’s eyes are… beautiful. They’re gold, so does that mean that’s the great wolf’s son?” I didn’t know why I was asking this. It sounded foolish. Surely there was no great wolf. Humans didn’t phase into animals.

“You were probably just imagining it,” he said quickly, turning away from me.

“Maybe,” I sighed, biting my lip. “But it’s howl was so calming…”

“You heard a howl?” he shot, making me jump. His voice was suddenly full of rage and worry.

“Well, yeah. Why-” I started, his heavy breath interrupting me. He jumped up suddenly, taking the notebook and shoving it in his back before slinging that over his shoulder.

“We’re late,” he said coldly, strolling down the aisle way, turning towards the door.

“Nick, wait-” I started, but he didn’t. He kept going straight out the door and into the empty hallway. I bit my lip, craning my neck to catch a glimpse of him walking down the hallway. He disappeared into the senior science room.

I heaved a sigh and slowly stood, giving an apologetic look to the librarian that stared out the door in shock of Nick’s swift departure. I glanced up at the clock, zipping my bag back up and placing it over my shoulder. Nick was right, we were late… ten minutes late. I hadn’t even heard the bell ring, my mind too wrapped up in Nick’s stories. I exited the library and turned down the hall, moving straight for my home room class.

I opened the door slowly, loud chatter filling my ears. Anna looked up and smiled, Josh raising his eyebrows. I gave them a shy smile and slipped into my seat, Anna’s voice immediately filling my ears.

“Where were you? I thought you’d only spend like five minutes in there.”

“We got caught up, or… I did,” I said softly, turning my head to see Josh’s interested face.

“What’s your paper about?” he asked, crossing his arms.

“It’s about those old tales and legends, you know; wolfs, witches, vampires… creatures, their history.”

“Is he smart?” Anna giggled, referring to Nick. I didn’t know how high Nick’s intelligence level was, but he knew a lot about wolves and witches. He spoke intelligently, too, I guess.

“Yeah,” I shrugged, laughing nervously.

“Wow. He’s everything, isn’t he? Too bad he’s a senior,” she sighed, a small laugh escaping my lips, but it sounded nervous, even to me.

“Yeah,” Josh snorted,” too bad.”

[&&light]

Nick came into English the last five minutes, his face looking a little flustered. His cheeks were red and his hair was a mess, his chest rising up and down a little faster. Everyone seemed to be looking at him and even a few of the girls looked a little faint. Mrs. Holster didn’t really seem to care, she just asked how the paper was going. The truth was, she looked a little intimidated by him: who wasn’t?

The bell rang, signaling that fourth period math was now over and it was time for first lunch. I jumped up and headed for the door, Anna and Josh following.

“Why are you in such a hurry? You hungry?” Josh joked, nudging me. I smiled slightly, shrugging.

“Umm… yeah, I guess so.” I knew I wasn’t, but it seemed like the only good explanation.

I didn’t see Nick anywhere. Did he leave again? I was curious to where he had gone… but it wouldn’t be proper for me to ask. We turned down the hall, all of us shoving our binders into our lockers, and headed outside. The sun was shining brightly now, the wind still a little cool. Anna spoke as we crossed the empty street.

“So your helping her with math tonight?” she asked Josh, looking between the both of us.

“Yeah,” he mumbled, opening the door for us. I mumbled a thanks, looking towards Anna as she spoke again.

“Do you think I could come? I mean, it’s cool if I can’t, I was just-”

“Sure,” I smiled, cutting her off. “I’ll, umm, be right back…” I muttered my eyes catching sight of Nick at the empty table, clutching a bottle of coke in his hand. He looked zoned out, rubbing his lips over the rim absentmindedly.

“I thought you said you were hungry!” Josh called as I walked away, but I didn’t respond. Instead, I stepped forward, maneuvering around the people who were trying to get to their tables, slowing down once I was close enough.

I took a deep breath and told myself to be brave and just sit down. I was prepared for whatever harsh or unwelcoming comment he had to say… I hoped. I took another small step forward and slid across the bench until I was right in front of him. I opened my mouth to speak, freezing when his hard eyes flickered up, meeting mine. He let out a deep breath, but kept his face blank.

“What are you doing?” he muttered, placing the bottle. I bit my lip and cleared my throat.

“I… wanted to talk to you.”

“Look.” he sighed, irritated. He sat up straight and leaned a little closer, my heart skipped with nerves. “We’re working on a paper together, but that’s it. Who told you, you could sit here?”

“I can sit wherever I want,” I snapped back, biting the inside of my cheek when he narrowed his eyes.

“Then sit over there,” he snapped right back, motioning his hand to the other end. I stared at him for a moment, clenching my jaw.

“Fine,” I smiled, sliding over to the other end. He watched me, his eyebrows furrowed before looking away. “Nick!” I whispered harshly, his head snapping back over. “Why did you just leave like that?” He gave me a look as if I were crazy and rolled his eyes.

“What is the matter with you?” he muttered, glancing around at the few people who were now staring at us. Was I causing a scene?

“You told me to sit over here! Not that I couldn’t talk to you!” I whispered again, but my voice was a little louder. I couldn’t help but smile when he scooted closer, but I quickly dropped it from the cold glare he was sending me.

“You are such a child Lonnie,” he roared quietly. I didn’t know why, but I felt like smiling just because he said my name.

“I’m not a child.”

“You’re a freshman; you are a child.”

“Just because you’re a senior doesn’t mean that it makes you anymore mature than I am. At least I don’t run off just because someone’s asking me questions.”

“If I answer your damn questions will you leave me alone?” he growled. I stared at him in shock, his anger coming on so quickly. I actually felt… scared, but, at the same time, it was oddly intriguing.

“That depends…” I trailed off, getting a sigh from him. He closed his eyes and mentally composed himself before clearing his throat.

“What do you want to know?” he finally whispered, his voice calmer.

“Why do you sit by yourself?” I asked slowly, his face still blank.

“That has nothing to do with our assignment.”

“Yes it does,” I smiled, shifting on the bench. I felt a warm tingle shoot through me as he quirked his eyebrow, cocking his head absentmindedly. “Mrs. Holster said that this was also to get to know each other better.”

“I like being alone.”

“I do too, but it gets lonely after a while, doesn’t it?”

“Why are you so inquisitive? Has anyone ever told you the less you know, the better?” he questioned, his fingers toying with the bottle cap slowly, his eyes still locked on me.

“My mom… she always said that it was good to ask questions, to have the want of knowledge,” I whispered, smiling faintly; I could remember it as if it were yesterday.

“Your mother seems to tell you a lot of stuff,” he mumbled lowly, looking away.

“Are wolves real? I mean, werewolves… the ones that can phase from human to animal?” I asked suddenly. His face stayed blank and he gave me an unsure shrug, rubbing the back of his neck.

“I imagine anything could be real.”

“What about… vampires? And witches? My mother told me all these stories and, I know it sounds crazy, but I’d believe her. Hearing you talk about this stuff as if it were real… it kind of makes me wonder if it is,” I whispered, glancing up at Nick through my eyelashes. I wanted to keep my head down, to feel a little more comfortable knowing I didn’t have to look at his harsh gaze every time I asked a question that even I could classify as stupid.

“Like I said, anything could be real.”

“But they all have to be somewhat human, don’t they? I mean, if they were real,” I laughed nervously, watching him sit back a little, his hands gripping the edge of the table for support, or from annoyance; either one was possible.

“Werewolves are human, they are just able to change into an animal on call. A witch is a human with powers. A vampire once was a human. So yeah, they are all connected to mankind, if that’s what you’re asking,” he breathed, eyeing me carefully.

I bit my lip and nodded, cracking my knuckles nervously. I opened my mouth to speak again, another voice interrupting.

“Umm, I don’t mean to interrupt… but are you going to sit with us?” Anna whispered. I glanced over my shoulder to see Josh standing there with plate of pizza, Anna holding a salad. Glancing over at Nick, I wanted to ask if they could sit with us, but I knew he’d probably tell us all to leave. Still, I took the chance.

“You can sit,” I smiled, facing away from Nick’s sudden glare. Josh looked at me skeptically, his eyes then locking on Nick. Nick stared right back though, his face blank once again. “Nick; this is Anna and Josh,” I introduced lightly, taking a deep breath. Josh sat on the other side of me hesitantly while Anna quickly plopped herself down, smiling.

Anna and Josh started to make conversation, trying to include me, but Nick refused to talk. Josh wasn’t making any effort and Anna looked a little to embarrassed to try. I nodded at a story Anna had begun, my eyes focusing on Nick every so often. He just sat there… thinking. There was something off about him, I could feel it.

[&&light]

Josh, Anna, and I sat at my kitchen table, going over my math and talking slightly. I was trying to focus and Josh was honestly a good teacher, but I was taking hardly any information in. I was too focused on something else, something I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

“Are you getting it?” Josh asked, bringing my attention back. I looked into his hopeful eyes and smiled.

“Yeah,” I laughed shyly, hoping he couldn’t tell I was lying. He couldn’t. He gave me a smile and looked away for a minute, opening his mouth to speak. I suddenly heard a beep and Anna jumped, quickly taking her phone out.

“Josh, you’re having dinner at my house tonight; we have to go.” She gave me an apologetic smile and picked up her bag, motioning for Josh to follow. He seemed reluctant but stood, throwing his bag over his shoulder.

“We’ll see you tomorrow Lonnie,” Anna waved, hurrying to the door.

“Maybe we could pick this up Saturday?” Josh asked almost shyly, heading over towards the door.

“Uh, sure,” I mumbled, closing the confusing math book up. “See you tomorrow.”

I heard the door click shut and I was alone now, my dad still not home from the grocery store. He was probably bringing home some type of fast food, nervous about getting the job at the local newspaper shop. He always wanted to be first to hear the news.

I let out a deep sigh and scooted my chair out, the legs screeching across the linoleum. Picking my books up, I shoved them in my bag and headed for the stairs, quickly stepping up them. I had nothing to do, Nick holding the notebook for our assignment. It was only a little after five, leaving me with hours before I could even think about going to sleep. I was a little frightened after the last nightmare, and confused out of my mind. Could Nick possibly know about dreams? He seemed to know about everything else… I’d have to ask him sometime.

I plopped myself onto my bed and turned my stereo on, Muse instantly filling my ears. Why was I so interested in talking to Nick? I had always been shy, quiet, but now I seemed annoying around Nick. My mind wandered from thought to thought, finally settling on one: were werewolves and witches real?