Rebirth
12. Arrival
The "much cleaning" Eliante referred to involved every available fledgling cleaning out the guest bedrooms, dining hall, and restrooms after classes and before dinner. Some of the teachers and adults (like me) took care of the grounds, stables, stray cats, and kitchen. By the time that Shekinah's flight landed at O'Hare, the school was spotless.
You'd think that with the High Priestess of all vampyres paying us a visit that the Archery team would stop practicing. That wasn't the case. Coach March wanted his team in top shape, and that meant extra practices, which in turn meant that I had to make sure that Stark's dog had clean water and fresh food while he shot at paper targets. Duchess, Diego, and I were at the stables when a black limousine bearing the school crest pulled into the driveway. I glanced up and Professor Rivera called out for me.
"Esarosa, come quickly! The Priestess is here!" As if I hadn't guessed that from the ultra-fancy car sitting in our driveway. I kept my comments to myself, though, and followed Ms Rivera down to where the free faculty and our school priestess were gathered. Facing them were two enormous male vampyres and a breathtakingly stunning female.
Her long silky black hair piled on her head in an elegant upswept do that left some pieces flowing down her back like a waterfall. Her skin was a rich flawless mahogany brown with glistening sapphire tattoos in the exact same pattern that was embroidered on all of the teachers' school outfits. She dressed in a black cloak with a hood that wasn't up, and a black and purple dress that seemed to float on the wind as it blew around us. The other adults were all in their dressy clothes: the ones reserved for rituals. Except for Ms. Rivera and I. We were in barn clothes, complete with overalls and mud boots. Needless to say, I felt completely underdressed.
Using my upgraded hearing, I heard Eliante say "Oh, here's one of them now!" as the two of us approached the huddle. The Sons of Erebus took one look at me and dropped into a battle-ready stance. Shekinah gazed in awe at my markings as I froze, not wanting to get into a tangle with two fully-grown, experienced male vampires.
"Ate, Zeno, stand down." Shekinah ordered in a calm voice. It sounded as cultured and exotic as she looked. "She is not our enemy here."
Thank the goddess she figured it out. I was worried there for a second.
"Shekinah, may I present our Equestrian Studies instructor, Professor Rivera, and Miss Esarosa MacKiernan, the new adult I informed you of." Eliante stated, pointing to me and Ms Rivera in turn. I suddenly felt very, very small. Like second-grader small.
"She is indeed unusual." Shekinah mused. She was thinking something over. I could tell from the expression on her face. Not an evil plot or anything. Just… something. "Well, why don't we move indoors. I'm sure Professor Rivera and Miss MacKiernan would like to make themselves a bit more presentable before our meeting." I nodded in complete agreement. I don't personally mind the smell of horse poo, but someone else might be a tad offended if I walked in to an important meeting reeking of the stuff.
Twenty minutes and a quick shower later, I stood inside an unused classroom with Eliante, Shekinah, Cornelius, and the two Sons of Erebus who almost attacked me earlier. To prove just how special I was, I wore an off-the-shoulder white, gray, and black patterned top, which showed off the emerald snowflakes falling down my neck and over my shoulders.
"Esarosa, would you please explain to me how you came to have these stunning tattoos?" Shekinah asked. There was no instinct to hide anything, so I just dove right in.
"it started back when these three were-creatures climbed over the walls and attacked myself, in addition to my friends Shannon and Amiko. We tried to fight. We screamed. But by the time help arrived, Shannon and Miko were fairly torn up, and I had a nasty bite mark and a bunch of tiny scratches. That night, as we all slept in the infirmary, we all had very similar dreams. The Goddess, Nyx, appeared to each of us. In all our visions, she had an animal by her side, but there was a specific animal for each of us. I'm a wolf, Shannon's a bear, and Miko's a lynx. Anyway, Nyx told the three of us that we were to be a new breed of vampire, part woman and part animal. She kissed us, and then we woke up. Oh, and she also said something about a battle which I'm guessing has to do with the crazy lady calling herself Hecate."
Shekinah took it all in stride. Not once did she interrupt my tale. Instead she sat quietly and listened. When I'd finished, she turned to Eliante. "Is this true?"
"It is." Eliante nodded. "Nyx appeared to me as well that night, informing me to take great care in dealing with those three Fledglings. I walked down to the infirmary to make sure that everything was well with them, and noticed their Marks."
"I see." Shekinah replied sagely. "Esarosa, is it true that you can commune with these beasts."
Oh boy. "Sort of. I can hear them and they can hear me, but there's not much going on in their heads besides, attack, destroy, and do as the mistress commands." I answered. "I can also communicate with the other two girls, but I haven't tested out if it works with wild animals or not."
"There will be no need for that at the present time." The High Priestess held a hand up. "It is easy to see that Nyx has seen fit to claim you as a special Vampyre. If you live through this, you will make a fine priestess one day. But right now, your help is needed in stopping Hecate from carrying out her plans."
"And to do that, we need to snatch the spell book." I said when she paused to breathe. "I know that. But how will we get close enough to do that?"
"Let us worry about that, child." Shekinah smiled. "You are dismissed. Blessed be."
"Blessed be." I replied, saluting my Priestess as I walked toward the door.