Part Two: Auriella-Keeper of Flames

Chapter Five: Magna Mater

Auriella smiled broadly at Torrence as she met her outside of their houses. Tor gave her a knowing glance, but didn't say a word. If Ella wanted to tell her something, she would. But the wait for the juicy info seemed almost too much to wait for from Ella's viewpoint. Finally, she openly acknowledged her friend's distress.

She grinned even more, twisting so that her body was more visible in her pink dress. "Okay, okay! Nothing too serious happened. We made out, on the beach, but, like I sa—"

"I get that! What happened, babe?" Torrence asked, annoyed.

"I couldn't control it. The fire… Luckily it was a small one, but…"

"Hm…" Blue-eyes nodded, her face set in serious mode now. "Robby saw our fire."

"What?! How did he see our frozen flames?"

"We forgot to put it out…" she looked at her friend. "But, it's cool. He's not ratting on us."

"Oh my God! You're totally crushing on him."

"Wrong, little girl. So very wrong."

"Excuse me."

The girls looked up. An older woman around Ella's mom's age stood in front of them. She was Spanish, and quite beautiful, with teardrop tattoos under her eye.

"How may we help you, ma'am?" Ella asked politely.

"Does a Vanessa Saratoga live here? My name is Jimena Killingsworth. We're old friends," Jimena explained.

Tor glanced at Ella, who shrugged. "I'm Auriella. Vanessa's my mom."

"You two look exactly alike," Jimena complimented. She looked up, then back at Auriella. "I haven't seen your mother in years. How has she and your father been?"

"They've been good. Were you one of my mom's friends during high school?" Ella inquired.

"I was. Is she home?"

"Jimena!" Vanessa ran from the doorway to the front sidewalk, throwing her arms around Jimena's neck.

Torrence and Auriella shared a look. This was strange. Ella had never really heard her mom talk about Jimena, but then she never really talked about her Aunt Catty much either.

Tor's hand tugged at Ella's arm. They were going to be late to school. Ella turned, and walked the rest of the way to her car, until…

"Auriella, Torrence, wait. I need to speak with you both," Vanessa called to them.

The girls stopped and turned, curious. What role did Jimena play in this? It was obvious that she had something to do with this. Auriella walked back to her mother, and Torrence followed.

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Jimena sat across from Torrence, and Auriella couldn't help but realize that the other woman's brown eyes never left her friend's bright blue ones. Her mom sat next to her, and she felt strangely calm. There was so much love in this room. Love for Tor, and her mom, and even for Jimena, whom she had never met.

Torrie's hand stroked her amulet, her fingers tracing over the moon etched into it. "Mrs. S, what's this about?" But somewhere in her gut, she kind of knew.

"I can't really tell you. It's not my place," Vanessa explained.

Auriella gasped and snapped her fingers, looking at Jimena with excitement. "You were in my dreams!"

Jimena smiled at her. "Yes."

"You dreamt of her?" Torrie asked. Ella had never told her about this. She nodded.

"You should have, too, Torrence. You want to tell me about your dreams?" Jimena pried softly, as if she wasn't really prying.

Torrie's face stayed still, calm. Her warrior face. "I'm in a bright place; it's so safe there." She closed her eyes, conjuring it up in her mind. "The light washes over me, washing away all the impurities. I open my eyes, and a woman in dark smiles at me in this light. I take a step towards her, but she always seems to be a step away. I can never reach her. Then the light dies, and I'm thrust into the darkness, the shadows now washing over me. Yet, I'm not frightened. It's like I belong there, until the light tries to fight the dark."

Jimena was puzzled by Torrie's dream. It seemed like the dark goddess was taking favor with Torrence, but it looked like the dark wanted her, too.

"I don't understand," Auriella finally said. "What's going on?"

Jimena grabbed one of Ella's hands, and one of Torrie's. "Tu es dea, filia lunae."

The words wrapped around Ella's mind, warming it, like her power. "What language is that?"

"It's Latin," Torrie informed. "She said, 'You are a goddess, a Daughter of the Moon.'"

Ella looked at her mother. "And you knew the entire time?"

Vanessa nodded. "When I was seventeen, I changed into some kind of guardian, but Selene brought me back. She—"

"Hold on, Vanessa. Let me tell the girls," Jimena said. Vanessa nodded. "You both are daughters of Selene, sent to Earth to give hope and defeat the ultimate darkness, the Atrox.

"The Atrox is so old, and so evil, that it even tempted Lucifer to his fall. It takes hope from people, and turns them into Followers. Followers steal hope, read minds, and some can shape shift into shadows.

"The Atrox and its Followers hate the moon. On a full moon, their eyes glow phosphorant, and even normal humans can sense their evil then. The only times they're more powerful than the Daughters is when there is a dark moon, or if one girl is gone."

Ella remained silent, playing with her perfect blonde hair. A goddess? That was awesome. Torrie, on the other hand, looked doubtful.

She bit her thumb, then looked up at Jimena. "How did you know we were Daughters?"

"Your amulets. They serve as a way to discover your identities. They also warn you of danger. If a Follower is close by, your amulets will begin to glow."

"Mom, you were talking about a guardian…"

"Ella, Torrie, when a Daughter turns seventeen, she has a choice of losing her memories and powers connected to her as a goddess, or they can disappear and become something else, a guardian. I chose to become this guardian. Selene sent me back, though, letting me keep my memories, so that I could help the growing Daughters so that the Followers wouldn't get them. But, Jimena is your Mater," Vanessa explained carefully. El watched her mother, curious as to why they would need to be watched.

"So, you were a Daughter, Mom?" Auriella was in awe now. "What about Dad?"

"He never knew."

Torrie's startling blue eyes connected with Jimena's dark ones, and she was transported to the past. "Jimena, are there more Daughters?"

Jimena folded her hands in her lap. "There are two more Daughters. We need to find them before the Atrox does. If they turn, we'll be weakened."

"This isn't going to damage our club plans, is it?" Auriella asked curiously.

Torrence grinned. "Only you, Ella. Only you."

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Evanescent Dawn: Mark is Torrie's foster father. I had to have jerks in the story. Lol.

elephantsrocmysox: Aw, thank you. Keep reviewing!