I sighed in relief when I pulled the last blue water dish from the box. I had been un-stocking them all morning, which was better than litter boxes I supposed, but it was also a task that allowed me to run on automatic. I didn't need to think about what I was doing which meant I was able to think about everything else. I didn't really want to keep thinking about everything else. All it was doing was frustrating me with all the unanswered questions.
On top of that was the guilty feeling Heath kept sending my way through our imprint. I knew he felt bad about what had happened, but he was also trying to make me feel guilty about not wanting to see him. It was almost working. Erik and Stark had been working together all night which made things easier on me. The one thing that wasn't easy was knowing I still had feelings for them both as Erik felt the need to keep pointing out. I was happy with Stark, but there were times when it was just me and Erik alone that I remembered what it was like to be with him. He was always thoughtful and caring and pretty much an all around good guy.
I looked down startled as something furry brushed against my skin breaking into my mixed thoughts. An all black kitten with bright green eyes was rubbing gently against my leg. I stopped what I was doing and scooped her up gently; giggling as she let out a soft high pitched mew (nope not a meow, definitely a mew) sound. She wasn't even bigger than my hand and her soft fur stuck up everywhere. I brought her too my chest and watched in fascination as her tiny claws clung to my shirt in desperation, as if she were afraid she might fall.
"It's ok," I whispered to her, "I gotcha." The kitten looked up at me but didn't let go of my shirt. Instead she continued to meow at me while pressing her tiny nose against my chest.
"Isn't she sweet?" Sister Mary Angela asked walking into the room. I noticed she was carrying a whole box of kittens and frowned. "The sisters and I got a call about a litter of abandoned kittens in a back alley downtown," she said shaking her head.
I walked over still holding the black kitten softly against my heart and looked down into the box. There had to be at least five kittens all huddled together sleeping in a cute small ball of fur. There were two more black ones, but the other three were a mixture of black, white and orange.
"It still astounds me that people can be as cruel as to just leave defenseless kittens out to die like that," Sister Mary Angela said setting the box down on the counter. She looked at me then and smiled, "that one seems to really like you."
"She's sweet, but she's not my cat," I sighed looking down at her and noticed that her eyes were closed and that she was purring softly. I smiled at her letting my hand massage her gently. "You know, these kittens might have a better chance of choosing someone at the House of Night," I suggested thoughtfully.
"Wouldn't that be true of all the cats, Zoey," Sister Mary Angela smiled at me with a knowing look and I grimaced. That was probably true, but it was hard for me to think of these poor kittens having to grow up with no one to call their own. I knew cats were resourceful, but they were just so small. "Still," Sister Mary Angela continued pulling me back into the conversation, "you may have a point. We are nearly full here and these kittens are going to need more attention then we may be able to give." She reached into the bag that had been hanging over her shoulder, which I now realized looked oddly like a diaper bag, and pulled out a small dripped and some cat formula. "They're still too young to eat solid food," she explained, "And, they're going to need to be held for at least a little bit every day," she said placing the formula back into the bag.
I smiled scratching the kitten lightly behind the ears, "you hear that little one?" I asked cuing at her. "You may have a home real soon," I whispered softly as Stark walked in carrying more broken down boxes to take out to the dumpster.
"You about ready, Zoey?" He asked eyeing the kitten in my hand. "Everyone else is getting kind of hungry," he said giving a little smile when my own stomach growled in response.
"Yeah," I chuckled, "we have some things to take home though," I said looking back at the kitten in my hand.
"Awww, she's so cute," Stevie Rae said as she walked into the room covered in cat fur. She and the twins had spent the last couple of hours taking each cat out to be pet and played with and making sure that it's living area was clean and filled with water and food.
"We have more over there," I said nodding at the box Sister was holding. "They're coming home with us so that hopefully they have a better chance at finding who they're supposed to be with."
"Ohmydearsweetlord," Stevie Rae said looking into the box. "They're so small!"
"And they'll need lots of time and attention," Sister Mary Angela said handing her the box.
"We're taking them home?" Stark asked again raising an eyebrow and looking into the box as well.
"Yup," I said handing him the kitten I had been holding. She opened one small eye and looked at him then simply latched onto his shirt as she had mine and fell back to sleep in his hands.
He looked at me and then back down at the kitten giving it a cocky little smile, "She's a lot smaller then Duch was when I first got her."
"She's probably a lot younger then Duchess was when you first got her," I smiled picking up the boxes Stark had been holding and adding them to my own pile.
"Darius just pulled the car around," Aphrodite said peeking her head into the room quickly.
I nodded at her as she left the room again and then took the boxes and set them outside the back door. I looked around the room making sure there wasn't anything we were forgetting and then took the bag of kitten supplies from Sister Mary Angela.
"We'll see you next week," I told her smiling.
"Tell Aphrodite if your late again I will make her do litter boxes," Sister winked at me and I laughed.
"I'll let her know," I said as Stark, Stevie Rae and I walked from the room and out the front door.
"I can't believe someone just abandoned them," Stevie Rae said as Stark placed the sleeping black kitten back into the fluffy fur pile with her brothers and sisters.
"People can be cruel," Stark shrugged taking the box from Stevie Rae and placing it in the Hummer. I looked to the car behind us where the two other Warriors Neferet had assigned us sat waiting in their car to follow us home. They had actually been fairly unobtrusive, and I had almost forgotten that they had come with us at all. I sighed and then climbed into the back seat next to the twins.
"Kittens!" Damien squealed looking into the box.
"Shhh, you'll wake them," Jack spoke in soft baby voices and I smiled shaking my head at them. They really were too cute sometimes.
"I think they're out cold," Stark said taking a seat next to Erik. (Um weird…) "They didn't even stir when Stevie Rae carried the box out here, so I think it's probably ok to talk above a whisper."
"Why are we bringing kittens home?" Shaunee asked looking at me.
"Someone abandoned them," Stevie Rae said, "and they're too young to even eat solid food yet!" She finished appalled.
"Now that's just mean!" Shaunee said looking heated.
"I completely agree twin," Erin said outraged.
The ride home seemed amazingly short with everyone taking turns holding and playing with the kittens. I barely noticed when Darius drove through the front gate and the Hummer stopped. I had been holding one of the multicolored kittens who was a little more feisty that the black one I had held earlier. I laughed as he tried to swing his paws at pieces of Erin's hair that moved back and forth in the breeze that had been flowing through the window. I placed the kitten back in the box and climbed from the car as my stomach growled again in protest of me doing anything other than eating.
"Why don't you girls head down to the dining hall?" Erik said as Darius let us out and then left to pull the Hummer into the parking garage. He shook his head laughing as my stomach gave another loud growl at his suggestion. "Stark and I can take the kittens and the supplies up to the dorms and meet you there."
"Are you sure?" I asked as he picked up the box.
"It'll only take us a second, Zoey," Stark said taking the bag from me.
"Sounds like a plan to me," Aphrodite said from behind me. "I need a salad, ASAP!"
"I think we're all pretty famished," Damien said as he and Jack walked past us holding hands.
"Well, I guess they're not waiting around," I said smiling at both Stark and Erik. "So I guess we'll see you there." They both nodded and headed off to the dorms while Aphrodite, Stevie Rae, the twins and I began following after Damien and Jack.
"Ok, can I just say that it's kind of weird that Stark and Erik are working together?" Stevie Rae said in her Okie twang.
"It's definitely weird," I said thinking about how awkward it had been just seconds ago. "It's weird, but I think it's a good thing. It makes things easier when I don't have to worry about them fighting anyway," I shrugged.
"Yeah, but how do you know who to kiss?" Shaunee asked. "You just had two fiiine men standing in front of you. I would have been confused as…"
"That's probably why she chose not to kiss either of them," Aphrodite said cutting Shaunee off and rolling her eyes. I smirked slightly. I had been about to kiss one of them, before I remembered where we were and whose company we were in.
"She could've just kissed…" Shaunee's words were cut off by an ear piercing scream followed by more heartbreaking cries. I looked around us frantically seeing nothing as fear began to fill the night air around us once more. Only this time it was more than just fear that I felt. It was fear, hatred, anger, wrath, loneliness, and heartbreak. I felt my skin crawl as more screams filled the sky around us and my throat began to constrict in fear. I felt terrified and anxious, like I couldn't breathe and what was even more frightening was that these feelings weren't my own!
"There," Aphrodite gasped pointing to the trap door in the wall. "They're outside the grounds," she breathed once again looking around her. I could tell they were all feeling the same thing as me, a terror that was not their own, but that was quickly becoming a part of them.
"Come on," I said as I heard another scream of pain. There was no mistaking it. They were definitely cries of pain. It sounded as if whoever it was, was in great agony. I ran through my group of friends trying to force back the feelings that were surrounding me. They're not your feelings! I thought desperately, they're not your own, move past them! I reached for the trap door which looked like just part of the brick wall surrounding the school and threw it open. I went through and instantly took a step back.
"Oh my Goddess!" Aphrodite said stopping just behind me.
"What happened to them?" Shaunee asked.
"Someone get, Neferet," I said shaking myself. I was only vaguely aware that the twins were running back into the school as I looked at the scene around me. I kneeled down gently rolling one of the four fledglings over.
"She's unconscious," Stevie Rae said her voice shaking a little. "They all are," She said dropping to her knees beside me.
I recognized each of them; there were two fourth former girls and two fifth former boys, all of whom had been coming to Dark Daughter meetings over the last month. I swallowed as I examined their bodies. Each of them were covered with bruises and gashes from head to toe. The cuts were deep and blood was still pouring from them filling the night air with its delicious smell. I forced myself past it and could tell that Stevie Rae was trying to do the same.
"It's gone," Aphrodite whispered.
"What?" I questioned looking up at her.
"Whatever it was, or whoever it was is gone now. Can't you feel the difference?" She asked looking around her. I paused for a second. There was a difference, the fear and negative emotions that had been plaguing us had suddenly disappeared. The night was calm now, with the only proof that anything had been out of place, the fledglings that were now lying in front of me badly injured and bleeding.
"What happened?" Neferet asked as she and six warriors burst through the trap door, including Darius, Erik and Stark.
"I don't know," I said looking her in the eye as she dropped to her knees by my side as well. She reached out touching the first girl gently and then pulled her hand away.
"We need to get them to the infirmary immediately," she said standing and looking out through the trees. "I want this area fully searched," she said looking at Darius and Stark, her eyes turning dangerous. I shuddered slightly, but realized that her expression was that of a protectress, a fierce High Priestess.
"Of course, Priestess," Darius said fisting over his heart.
She nodded and then looked back at me, "I'll need your assistance, Zoey." She turned then to the remaining warriors and began directing them to lift the unconscious fledglings onto stretchers.
"You guys should go on to the dining hall," I whispered to Aphrodite, Stevie Rae and the twins. "I'll be there as soon as I can."
"Are you sure?" Erin asked looking back at the fledglings who were now being carried back through the trap door.
"Yes," I said firmly. Then with even more authority I added, "And do me a favor, stick together tonight."
They nodded as we walked back onto the school grounds and parted ways with me following after Neferet and the Warriors.
Neferet was a ways ahead of me though I could still hear her giving orders as she entered the infirmary. I looked around and sighed. The night really was quiet and clear and it was hard to believe that anything so horrible had happened only minutes ago. I reached the door to the infirmary and turned taking one last look around me. There standing in the middle of the school grounds with shimmery silver wisps surrounding her was Marla. Her hands were down at her side and she looked completely calm as she stared towards the wall as if she were once again watching something no one else could see. I heard a howl from off in the distance and then Marla turned, her eyes meeting mine for a brief moment before she began walking back in the direction of the dorms.
