Chapter Thirty-One: Allies
Allies with our backs against the wall
I will answer when you call and take on the odds
For what we believe is true
Allies in a world of too much choice
I only need your voice to tell me you care
I'll be anywhere for you, allies
We search our hearts to justify the reason and draw the line
To meet somewhere halfway if faith is blind
Through darkness it will guide us 'cause the spirit still remains
With the keepers of the flame
~Heart
The next morning, Nilly knew what she had to do. She stared at the phone on her bed as she paced the room. She was biting her nails to nubs, trying to talk herself into picking up the phone. Nilly didn't want to call her father, she didn't want to find out about the adoption. But she knew she had too, it was the least she could do to get Elena off her back.
With a groan Nilly grabbed the phone off the bed and dialed the number quickly. As it rang, Nilly found herself praying for the voicemail. But, of course, that's exactly what she didn't get. There was a click on the other line and than a familiar voice answered.
"Hello?"
"Mildred, hey it's Nilly," she replied.
"Nilly, sweetheart. Is something wrong?" Mil asked.
"Oh no, no. I was just trying to get a hold of my dad." Nilly said, sinking down on her bed.
"Well, he already left for work peaches. I can tell him you called when he gets home." Mildred suggested.
"No, it's okay. Forget about it." There was a pause as Nilly took a deep breath. "Maybe, you can help me with something," she said reluctantly.
"What's a matter?" Mil asked. Nilly scrambled for the words, her mind going blank.
"Did- Do you know… Do you know about me and Elena?" she stammered out. The other end of the line was silent.
"As in what, peaches?" Mildred asked, clearly confused. Nilly took another deep breath and just said it.
"As in us being sisters, adopted," she said quietly. Mildred made a tisk-tisk noise.
"How'd this come about?" she asked.
"Elena was digging and found something that didn't match up. It was just a hunch until she confronted Jenna, whose face alone confirmed it." Nilly explained.
"Mhm," Mildred hummed slowly. "Don't be mad at Jenna, peaches. She never thought she'd have to tell you. Your mothers were going to at one point or another."
"Yeah, but neither of them are here so I'm asking you Mil." Nilly said. "I looked at my birth certificate and it has Rocklynn and Jack Gilbert as my birthparents. The same with Elena's, hers had Uncle Grayson and Aunt Miranda's names on it as her parents. It doesn't make sense."
"Your daddy's a lawyer Nilly, your uncle was a doctor." Mildred said. "They took care of it."
"But why? That's what I don't understand, why?" Nilly stressed, putting her head in her hand.
"It was kept very quiet, only a few people know the truth and I only know bits of it." Mildred answered, her voice sounding shaky.
"What do you know?"
"That one night, your Uncle Grayson was leaving his office when a girl showed up. She was 16, a runaway and about to give birth. That dear man took her in and delivered you and Elena. He called your father at one point and Jack gave her a place to stay." Mildred continued. "But a few days later she was gone, she disappeared leaving you two behind. They didn't want to lose you or your sister and, like I said, they took care of it. No one outside the family knew the real story, but if anyone ever wanted proof there was documentation."
Nilly listened to the phone, trying to grasp the words with the slight prickle of tears in her eyes.
"Why'd they even keep us though? Why'd they separate us and build this whole lie?" Nilly asked, clearing her throat. She heard Mildred sigh.
"They never meant to keep it from you girls for so long. You have to understand your parents were trying so hard for a little baby. But with the mixture of the cancer and chemo, it wasn't working for your mother. The same with your aunt and uncle. I-it just wasn't happening. And all your Aunt Miranda ever wanted was to be a mom. Then there you two were, bundled up and adorable. It all just fit into place, it'd be more believable to call you two cousins, but they didn't realize how similar you would be. Identical, but not quite. You with your curly locks and flecked eyes and Elena with her straight strands and clear blues, you two were perfect."
"How'd they choose who'd go with who?" Nilly asked. "Did they flip a coin or something?"
"No, no. That's not what happened at all." Mildred chuckled. "You chose your parents." There was a pause, a confused silence coming from Nilly.
"What?"
Mildred laughed again. "Your eyes never left Rocklynn. The moment you heard her voice your head turned in her direction. She saw those eyes blinking at her and from that moment on you never left her arms." Mildred said softly. Tears were inevitable as they dripped their way down Nilly's cheeks.
"What else do you know?" she asked quietly, wiping the wetness away with the back of her hand.
"Just a name, Isobel." Isobel, Nilly replayed it in her head.
"Anything else?" Nilly asked with a shaky breath.
"That's all I know, peaches." Mildred answered.
"Thank you for telling me, not that I know what to do with all this information, but thank you," she said, sliding off the bed and walking over to the window. The clouds had began to roll in.
"I had a feeling you weren't asking for you. How are you handling this?" Nilly was quiet for a moment, trying to figure out the right answer.
"I could honestly care less," she said slowly. "Like I told Elena, I don't want anything to do with any of this. I was just trying to piece together the story, so now I can sleep sound tonight… well sort of…"
Mildred's laughter came from the phone. "Well, I'm glad I can help. And Nilly, one more thing."
"Yeah?" Nilly said, staring outside.
"If you don't want to know anything about this, then don't. It may be safer if you just left this issue be for now." Mildred said in that old wise voice of hers.
Nilly sighed, she knew it was one of Mildred's witchy magical visions into the future. She also knew nothing she did would get Mildred to tell her. She wouldn't want to 'interfere with fate' as Mil would put it.
"Good day, Nilly," Mildred said softly. Nilin knew Mildred never said the word goodbye. 'Life's too short for goodbye's, that's why I don't say 'em.' Nilin could hear her rant if the word accidentally slipped passed Nilin's lips.
"Talk to you later, Mil," she reciprocated. Then Nilly hung up the phone, leaning her head against the window. The sky cracked open, thunder shaking the house slightly as the rain began to fall.
She loved thunder storms, ever since she was little. Nilly wished she could just enjoy this rainy summer day, but she still had things to do. Damon had informed her that Stefan said he would help with the tomb, which left Nilly suspicious. But she desperately needed to call the insurance company about her poor totaled Jeep, relay the information she had gotten from Mildred to Elena and then maybe after that she could visit the bookstore.
The lights flickered as the heavens above boomed. Rain pounded on the roof, drenching everything in its path. She looked over to Shellie who had her head down on the front counter, arms hiding her eyes. Magnolia let out a small chuckle.
"Don't laugh at me!" Shellie's muffled voice said, as she peeked a glaring eye at her. "You know how much I hate thunder!" Magnolia did her best to fight the smile on her face.
"All thunder is, is air and temperature, besides your making my hair stand stiff." she explained, walking over to the counter.
"Yeah, well sorry. You keep saying that scientific crud, but it doesn't help." Shellie complained resting her chin on her forearm. Magnolia just rolled her eyes, as she shook her head at her cousin.
"So how many customers are we getting today, Shells?" she asked, trying to shift the subject and lighten the mood. It worked because Shellie twitched her nose as her hazel eyes unfocused a bit, then she cocked her head up at Magnolia.
"Not many, the storm's going to wash out Route 3, but I have a feeling our favorite little mystery is going to drop by," she answered.
"Any particular reason?" Magnolia asked.
"Isn't there always?" Shellie shot back. Thank god she's in a better mood, any longer and Magnolia would have thrown her out in the rain. Not that it would have helped much, but it would have been funny. They both smiled at each other, then they herd the chime of the bell above the entrance.
Simultaneously they turned their heads to find a dripping Nilly smiling at them as she tousled her damp hair off her shoulder. She was wearing black yoga pants and her grey sweatshirt was darkened from the rain. Magnolia went to greet her when Shellie spoke up.
"Well look who finally showed up!" she chimed as she went and pecked Nilly on the cheek. Nilly's smile disappeared as confusion clouded her face. Magnolia shot a warning look at Shellie and let out a half-hearted laugh.
Nilly joined the laughter a little and said, "Hey guys." Shellie came over to Magnolia, elbowing her side lightly.
"Told you she'd show up," she said, trying her best at a whisper. It was clear Nilly had heard her though, she looked at the two girls questionably. Magnolia sent daggers Shellie's way, who finally caught on. "I mean, what weather we're having."
Magnolia put her head down, shaking it slightly. "Okay, what's going on with you too?" Nilly stepped closer, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Um…" Shellie stammered. "Nothing."
Magnolia sighed and gave Nilly a small smile. She motioned for them to go upstairs, giving Shellie a little push. In return Shellie just huffed at her. Nilly followed up the noisy staircase, cautiously.
Once upstairs, Magnolia placed herself on the couch. Squeezing in next to Lee-Roy, who happily adjusted to her as he wagged his tail. Shellie crossed her legs swiftly on the floor, smiling at Nilly. Nilly stood still for a second, eyeing the situation. Her glances shooting between Magnolia and Shellie.
Finally she relaxed and walked over to the other couch, plopping down comfortably. "Alright, I'm ready to tell you my story, if you're ready to tell me yours," she said with a sigh and pulled her legs up on the couch.
"Oh, we already know your story," Shellie cheerily blurted out. Magnolia snapped her head towards her.
"Michelle!" she hissed with clenched teeth. Shellie's eyes widened at the sound of her full name. Then she quickly turned back to Nilly whose eyes were just as wide, but with suspicion, not shock.
"And I mean that in the most non-stalkerish way."
Magnolia rubbed her eyes with her hands. She pulled her long hair into a bun, "Could you just hush for two seconds and let me explain?" she shot at Shellie, who put her head down. Magnolia felt a wave of sadness and hurt roll from Shellie's direction. "I didn't mean it like that, can you just tone it down a bit? All this is giving me a headache," she continued, the wave instantly receding.
Magnolia turned her attention back on Nilly, who looked more confused and suspicious than before. She wanted to be more subtle than this, but Shellie had been as blunt as a bat. She took a deep breath as she stroked Lee-Roy's fluffy head.
"You see Nilly, it's obvious that no one in this room is a normal small town girl." Magnolia started slowly. "And we have seen your story, some of it. Well Shellie has at least, I just get what she relays back."
Nilly cocked her head to the side, "Seen?" Magnolia turned to Shellie, motioning her to explain. Her head perked up.
"I have a gift, we both do actually. I can see things about people. Past, present and future. I saw us coming to this town five years ago and being handed down this store. So we moved here." Shellie explained.
"So anything you see you do?" Nilly asked, squinting her eyes slightly.
"Not exactly," Magnolia said, jumping in. "We're what you call Servitors. We're like witches, but instead of being branched from the Original witch and drawing our power from nature. We come from a time period known as 'Chaos Magic'. During this time period, normal humans and witches came together and found a way to bring special elements to the five senses."
"Five senses?" Nilly asked, leaning forward a little.
"Sight, smell, touch, sound and taste." Magnolia explained. "The witches used their magic to infuse them with powers, powers that carried down the line. Our great-something grandmother participated in this. She had the gift of sound, one look and she could hear someone's every thought. And that's how it started. It went all the way down the line to Shellie and me. Our practice is very rare, we're lucky if we can count on one hand the other Servitors we know. Many have been hunted down because of the gifts they have."
Nilly nodded her head, seeming like she understood. "So what did you guys get?" she asked.
"Mine's sort of different," Magnolia said. "I got the gift of touch, but it's more on the emotional level."
Nilly's eyebrows pulled together. "You lost me."
"I can feel everything someone is feeling, their emotions. Every shift of them, each quiver," she explained. "I'm an empath."
"Oh! Oh, oh." Nilly said, eyes widening. "Oh. I am so sorry."
"Yeah," Magnolia nodded. "You've made me want to vomit on several occasions." Nilly laughed a little, shaking her head. "My bad."
"No, it's a part of our powers. I've learned to handle it, so has Shellie." Magnolia pointed her chin to her cousin on the floor.
Shellie spoke up now, smiling. "Well, try to. Like I said, I can see things. Sometimes I can control it, like on the little things. Other times I get flashes, like a lightning strike in my mind of something. I saw you coming before you even set foot back in Mystic Falls."
"But me? Why me?" Nilly asked. Shellie shrugged.
"I don't know. Sine the first flash I got of you pulling up to the Mystic Grill I've been seeing a lot of you lately." Shellie explained, leaning back on her hands. Nilly had that confused eyebrow-bunched look on her face again, so Magnolia tired to explain further.
"During the 'Chaos Magic' era there was a purpose for the Servitors. We're a sort of guardian. Our job is to guide people down their path, protect them from what we can as fate plays out."
"My path?" Nilly asked, looking down.
"Yeah, apparently it's important because you've been clogging our senses." Shellie said. Magnolia rolled her eyes, which Nilly must have caught because she began to giggle. Then she began shaking her head.
"What?" Magnolia asked as she was hit with storm of emotions from Nilly.
"It's just, I found out my cousin is actually my sister, one of my closest friend is a witch, another friend is vampire, he has a vampire brother that I'm in l-," she stopped for a second. "in a deal with, we have a deal. And my other two friends are an empath and a seer." Nilly gasped out.
"Awe, you call us your friends?" Shellie blubbered on the floor.
Magnolia shot her another look. "Not the point."
"It's just comical." Nilly said. Magnolia and Shellie both looked at her, this time their faces confused.
"Comical?" Magnolia asked.
"Yeah, I mean, what are the odds? It's funny." Nilly explained.
"Well, if that's how you want to look at it, than okay." Magnolia smiled. She watched as Nilly leaned her head back on the sofa and closed her eyes. Magnolia got that nauseous feeling again from the sum of emotions coming from her.
Nilly let out a deep breath, opening her eyes. The emotions dwindled down to curiosity. Impressive, Magnolia thought. "So do you guys know where my path's leading?" she asked. They both shook their heads.
"I only see enough, just enough to give someone the push in the right direction. I never see the end product." Shellie explained.
"Yeah, it all works in a strange way. It's hard to grasp unless you were raised in it, like us." Magnolia said. "But, Nilly we'd be there for you even if we weren't Servitors or if we weren't meant to guide you."
A smile came to Nilly's tired face. "Thank you, you don't know how much that means to me."
"Oh, I do." Magnolia smiled.
"Right, empath." Nilly nodded. Nilly began to stand up, placing her feet on the floor. Lee-Roy jumped off the couch Magnolia was sitting on and went over to her, placing his big head on her lap.
"He's trying to tell you he's here for you too." Shellie said. Nilly laughed and smiled down at Lee-Roy. She stroked his head as he nuzzled her.
"Thanks, buddy." Nilly said softly, then she looked up at Magnolia. Her blue eyes were slightly blinding as they met Magnolia's yellowish ones. "So I guess you guys already know why I'm here?" she asked.
Shellie was already popping up, walking over to one of the back bookshelves. She came back with a big faded blue book and handed it to Nilly.
"This should help, it's all about spells and curses that procreate from Mystic Falls. I'm not sure what you're looking for is in here, but it might give you an idea as where to look," she explained.
Nilly flipped through the book, her long brown hair falling over her shoulder. She looked up, tucking her hair behind her ear. "This might work," she said smiling. "Thank you, guys."
"Oh you're welcome!" Shellie said, hugging Nilly. Nilly laughed as she patted Shellie's back.
"I have one question before I go." Nilly said quietly. She looked between Magnolia and Shellie. "Do you guys see anything coming? Anything I should be worried about?" Magnolia looked to Shellie, whose head was down. She looked up at Nilly, a smile tight on her face.
"Nope," she shook her head.
Nilly just smiled a little. "Well, thank you again, for everything. I'll see you around," she said walking down the stairs. Magnolia turned to Shellie whose head was down again.
"You saw something, didn't you?" she asked already knowing the answer by the sadness she was hit with.
Shellie nodded and Magnolia felt the overwhelming need to cry.
Author's Notes: Next Chapter! Here it is guys. A lot happened this chapter, the idea of Isobel is introduced but more importantly we find out why Magnolia and Shellie are not so normal small town girls. An empath and a seer, what do you guys think? ;D And what was is that Shellie saw? What dark cloud is looming on the horizon?
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Thanks for reading! See you Wendesday!
RLS
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