This is after the Third Book (Chosen). The part where Zoey cheated with Loren has already happened, and he's already died. The Twins and Damien don't know anything yet. Aphrodite knows about the Red Fledlings and Stevie Rae, and the part where they hid Stevie Rae in her old house has already happened.
Hope you like it. This is my first story for this book.
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I walked down the little pathway that leads to the east wall, (which was where I saw all the undead dead vampyres, and where also, mysteriously, full vampyres were found dead on a cross to look like an act by the People of Faith), and I came to the small oak tree and had to gasp to keep my breath almost calm.
Lined up across the entire east wall were all the fledglings and professors and teachers of the House of Night, and as soon as I walked up, everyone went dead silent. It was that weird feeling that happens when you suddenly walk up to someone and they go completely silent, and you realize that they must have been talking about you.
So I stood there, beside the tree, looking like an idiot as I mentally gawked in surprise at everyone. Aphrodite and the Twins and Damien were standing beside each other, and Neferet was standing only a few feet away from me. And she was staring me down.
I froze, instantly mesmerized again by her unbelievable beauty, and I would have stood there in awestruck longer if it wasn't for the evil I saw behind her fake smile. I forced myself to break my gaze from her, and I, trying to be nonchalant and failing, walked up to where my friends were.
Neferet had called a huge ritual today, where I was to evoke all five of the elements with the Twins and Damien. Okay, they aren't actually twins. It isn't even possible for anyone to mistake them as being twins. Shaunee was of eastern Jamaican decent with caremal colored skin, while Erin had blonde hair and she was totally white. So, no, they were definitely not twins. They finish each others sentences and agree about everything, so everyone calls them the Twins. And yes, it does get annoying. But hey, they are my friends.
"Are you ready?" I jumped at the sound of Aphrodite's voice, which pulled me out of my internal babble.
"What?" For a second I didn't even realize what she was talking about.
She rolled her eyes, and I would've thought she was being her usual bitchy self if it wasn't for the smile that followed. "Are you ready for the ritual?"
"Oh, yeah. That. Yep," I lied.
The truth is I was as nervous as I always was, but only probably a zillion times more nervous tonight. Part of that being because Neferet, the beautiful High Priestess and my mentor, was here tonight. And she was secretly an evil witch, and only Aphrodite, and my undead dead best friend, Stevie Rae, and I knew about it.
The Twins and Damien didn't know anything. I hated keeping secrets from them all the time, but I knew I was doing the best thing I could for now. But hell if I even knew the right thing to do anymore. Usually something totally horrible would end up happening to me. Like when I had three kinda boyfriends. My official boyfriend, and recently Changed vampyre, Erik, and Loren, who I lost my virginity to from a trick by Neferet, and he later died. And then there's Heath- my human boyfriend since a long time ago.
"Hello! Earth to Zoey!" I heard Aphrodite yelling.
"Oh, sorry," I said. "I'm just really nervous. What's the problem?"
She sighed. "The problem is that we're supposed to start a ritual, and you're out of it, so it looks like we're about to fuck this ritual up." She paused for a second and her voice lowered. "Zoey, who's going to evoke Earth?"
Well, hell. I hadn't even thought about that. Stevie Rae had been given the element Earth right before she died, and then Aphrodite had it. So, I was kind of beginning to like Aphrodite, and we were actually friends now. Neferet would suspect something is she evoked Earth tonight, though. But reluctantly, I said, "Will you, Aphrodite?"
"What about Neferet?" She asked.
"What about Neferet?" Aphrodite and I both jumped when we looked over to see Neferet walking up to us, with a suspicious, smug look on her face. We both stood there in awkward silence, and we knew that all the lies and hidden truths were about to be revealed.
Ah, hell.