I just wanna say thank you to the couple people that reviewed, followed, and favorited. That gives me hope that people actually like my story and encourages me to write. This means that the more of those I get, the sooner I'll try to update. School/homework is a pain in the rear end, so I haven't had that much time to work on this but I tried. Sorry if you like fanfics that update once a week, but I just never have enough spare time to write, sadly. Oh well, here's the latest chapter and I hope you enjoy it!
My eyes widen as I recognize a familiar symbol scrawled over my heart. It's the same one that I had seen burned on the rock in my dream. This one is a dark red and looks extremely painful, yet all I feel is a warm throbbing. Gently, I lift my hand to touch it. Similar to the one I had seen on the rock, this symbol looks and feels as if it was branded on my chest. Just as I'm letting my arm fall back onto the bed, I catch sight of something else.
Another one? On the inside of my wrist is a different branded mark, though this one is all black and looks more like a tattoo than a scar. If it weren't for the fact that I was randomly marked with strange symbols twice while I was unconscious, they would actually look pretty cool.
A hand reaches over to hold the branded wrist. I forgot that my mother is still here. Her fingers follow the path that mine took as they trace the black lines over my pulse. I can't handle not knowing what happened, so I ask her for the second time what occurred.
"I want your father to be here before I tell you." She has at least stopped crying, but her cheeks are red and her eyes are puffy. We wait for a few minutes for my father to drive here-wherever here is-from work. The silence is awkward, and my mom continues to wipe her eyes and nose before my dad suddenly throws open the large wooden doors and barges into the room. His eyes immediately move to the red symbol over my heart and then to the one on my wrist which my mother currently holds in a death grip. When he speaks, I can tell that he's greatly upset by this too.
"Jayde, sweetheart," his eyes are so sad, but behind that I can see the anger that he's attempting to hide. Turning to my mom, he asks, "what did he do?" I stare at her eagerly, hoping that she'll be able to alleviate some of my confusion.
She takes a deep breath to suppress any emotions that might sneak into her words and cause her to break down again. "He made both of the runes. I don't know what the one on her chest means, but it's not good." Already, I can see her losing strength as she says this. And who is this "he" that they're talking about? "What are runes"? All of this is confusing me even more, but before I can interject, my mother continues explaining to my father. "I don't know what exactly happened to the bus, but he must have been responsible somehow. He apparently was seen carrying her out of the wreckage and then he marked her with whatever that is-" she gestures to the angry red symbol on my chest "-and then marked her with an iratze to heal her." All of this is hurting my head even more. Vague references to some guy who apparently branded my unconscious body, weird words, wreckage.
Suddenly, I catch brief flashbacks to those moments. The crash, where my head hit the window. The cold air of a winter snowstorm mixing with the hot air of the bus burning. Me being carried by someone and placed in the frozen grass. A burning sensation on my chest and lower arm. Sirens and screaming. So many screams. Did the person who saved me save the few students left on the bus? Somehow, I know that he didn't. My mother's voice soon brings me out of my thoughts.
"Do you remember anything about what happened after you left school, Jayde?" she asks softly. I recount the few things that I remember from the accident. When I get to the part where the stranger saved me but not the other kids, my mother gasps and my father looks furious. She continues asking other questions like "what did he look like?" and "did he say anything to you?" but all I can remember is what I've already told them. Then I realize something.
"Maybe it was the substitute bus driver." Now that I think about it, that would make the most sense. He would be the first adult on the scene of the accident. It's still strange though why he would save me when I sit all the way in the back of the bus. There would have been at least ten people sitting in the rows in front of me and on the right side. Unless the door in the front of the bus was blocked. Maybe the only exit was through the emergency exit in the back.
All of this thinking hurts my already injured head, so I give up on trying to piece together what happened and just let my mother clarify what she knows. I look over to her, indicating that she should continue explaining, but she's looking at me with panic-stricken eyes. She attempts to clear her throat in attempt to get the words out, but my father beats her to it. "What substitute bus driver? What about your normal one?" He now wears the same face of shock and anxiousness.
Calmly, I tell them that we apparently had a different driver today, but that he looked so much like my other one that I didn't realize it until the two girls in front of me pointed it out. My parents ask how I didn't realize that there was another human being in charge of driving me home, but I tell them that I had my head down and assumed it was the same person because of the white hair. This sends both of them into a deafening silence. I look at both of them as they stare at me and then each other with terror. My dad runs a hand through his already tousled black hair and takes a deep breath. Turning around, he calls over the creature who was apparently standing in the corner the whole time. Naturally, my body tenses up. The thing looks like something that crawled out from a catacomb in ancient
Egypt, and I'd prefer if it kept its distance.
As if it's the most normal thing in the world to talk to something like that, my father says quietly but sternly to it, "I thought you and the other Silent Brothers were able to track him. How could he have gotten so close to her?" They all look at me-even the thing with no eyes-before returning to the conversation. If one could call it that. How do you have a conversation with something that has its mouth stitched shut? As if in answer to my unspoken question, the creature speaks but not in the way normal people talk.
His presence was never detected by any of our runes, even the ones more powerful than an ordinary tracking rune. It's mouth doesn't move, yet I hear it speak. But there's no way it spoke in my head. That's impossible. There's no other way to explain it though, unless I imagined it which is highly unlikely since I have no idea what any of that meant. I didn't imagine it, because the creature is speaking again. He must be using powerful demon magic. None of our runes nor the most powerful warlocks' tracking spells were able to detect him until it was too late.
What the hell is this thing talking about? Runes and Silent Brothers and demons and warlocks. Not to mention I still don't know who this "he" is. Maybe I'm hallucinating. Maybe I'm dying. I doubt that immediately though because why would I be imagining something like this? Words I've never heard used in a normal conversation before, terrifying telepathic humanoids, and a mysterious man that saved my life but is also-from what I've inferred-a wanted criminal. My mind may have an imaginative and creative side, but it would never dream up something this unusual.
My mother looks ghastly pale as if she's about to faint. She had asked about how "he" was able to get so close to me, but unless he is a serial killer and wants to keep my head specifically to put in his freezer, I don't understand what the big deal is. Just then, a thought pops into my head.
"Are you thinking that the bus driver crashed the bus on purpose?" I avoid looking at the thing still hovering near the bottom of my bed and instead turn my attention to my stricken parents. They're overprotective in everyday situations, but this accident will bring out their crazed Mama and Papa bear instincts. I probably won't be able to leave the house without being wrapped in bubble wrap and attached to a leash. If my possibilities were limited before, it's going to get ten times worse because I'll be held prisoner in my own house. Before I can tell them that they don't need to worry, my father speaks:
"That's exactly what we're thinking." I can see the pain in his face. Apparently it was hard for him to admit that aloud.
I glance at my mother to get her input on this thought, but her focus is back on the tattoo (rune?) on my wrist.
My entire body is aching, but I've had just about enough of them acting like I'm not laying right here. "What the hell is everyone talking about?" That definitely got their attention. My parents are looking at me with wide eyes. They've never heard me curse before. The creature, as usual, is staring at me with its empty, stoic face. Before any of them can chastise my language, I blurt out more questions. "What are runes?" I face the mummy at the bottom of my bed. "What are you?" I take a gulp of air before asking the biggest question. "And who are you talking about and accusing of trying to kill me?"
No one's expressions change until the creature decides to speak first. I hear its quiet raspy response in my head.
I am Brother Evander, one of the Silent Brothers. You may consider me as an archivist of the Shadow World. He glances at my parents before returning his eyeless gaze to me. I will allow your parents the chance to explain to you what the Shadow World is. I may be nearly immortal, but I do not have enough time at the moment to tell you all that you would need to know.
"When do you think she'll be able to leave the infirmary?" My father is the one who speaks next. His eyes move to my head which is still throbbing from my loud outburst. I can feel gauze wrapped tightly around it with extra padding over the injury on my temple.
Brother Evander gives a slight nod. The iratze has served its purpose to the best of its ability. Her injuries are no longer life threatening although I suggest she spends the night in the infirmary to allow her body more time to heal itself. There will be time tomorrow to show her around the institute and introduce her to the Lightwoods. He looks at me before continuing. I suggest that you start training by the end of the week. The sooner you can defend yourself, the better.
Suddenly, my mom finds her voice in a panicked outburst. "Don't overwhelm her! She isn't ready for any sort of training yet. We vowed to protect her from the Shadow World, and now you want to train her to be a contributing part of it?" Her eyes widen at what she's just said. She looks to my father with a pleading expression that says "help me."
My father gives her an apologetic shrug. "She needed to find out eventually."
Mother looks to me and then to Brother Evander. She gives a sigh of defeat before explaining. "Alright, if no one is going to protest against the idea of Jayde training, then I suppose I have to concede." She takes a calming breath and continues. "I don't want her to start training for two weeks though. It'll allow her time to get accustomed to the institute and for her body to fully heal itself."
"I suppose you have a point. She has the same blood as all of us though. It won't take more than a day or two until she's healed..." My father trails off at the end when he notices my mother giving him a glare that means her decision is final. He, too, sighs in defeat.
I hear Brother Evander's raspy voice. It is settled then. Jayde Fairchild Morgenstern shall begin her training as a Shadowhunter in two weeks time.
Oh snap! What an interesting name Brother Evander addressed her with ;) Anyway, I decided to hurry along this chapter because someone recently favorited it, and I want to let everyone else know that I haven't already given up on this story. Please tell me what you think of this chapter or if you have any questions. If you have any suggestions, just PM me! I'm open to hearing what you guys think! Also, I cannot promise when the next chapter will be posted, but the more positive reviews I get, the more likely it is that I'll get inspiration to finish. Bye for now!
~.~Desiderium~.~