31. Red poppies

"The moon is nearing its peak; she has to wake up. We only have a short time to do the spell," a voice declared nearby as Raven gradually came to. "We don't know where Dorian is. We need him as well, or all will be for nothing."

"The other was supposed to hold him off until we had gotten everything ready, it has been a while," he continued.

"Don't be so dramatic; it's only been a few minutes. He will be here. They are linked. He will know by now that something is up. Just wait; everything will go according to plan," a woman said.

Raven's eyelids fluttered open, and a throbbing pain in her head. Her gaze settled on a woman standing a short distance away, next to a small table that seemed out of place.

"You're finally awake. Do you recognize this place?" the woman questioned, holding a book in her hand as she took a step closer to her.

Surveying her surroundings, the sky stared back at her; it had rained, and the ground was wet beneath her. Raven noted the scratches that marred the walls, and chains anchored to some large animals had damaged the walls. She was in the remnants of what used to be a house, yet its location was unknown to her.

"You are in the ruins of a secluded place, which comes in handy, I must say, but this place in particular is a place where Dorian came to transform," the woman said, walking closer to Raven. She knew Michael could not transform at all, and Dorian could. He could transform on demand, but you could see these scratches were fresh. But that did not matter; what mattered now was the woman in front of her and the man who was busy placing what looked like herbs next to a bowl.

"Who are you?" Raven inquired.

"You haven't heard of me?" the woman responded.

"No."

"I'm surprised he hasn't mentioned me. But then, why would he? I'm Noelle. Tell me, Raven, has he ever spoken to you about his mate?" she asked, thumbing through the spellbook. "Yes," Raven replied. He had.

"He comes here to shift because not too far from here, for the first and last time, he felt the bond between him and his mate before he was transformed; that night, he was bitten and transformed into a vampire; after that, he went to search for her. Did you know that?" she questioned her; she did not know that.

Shaking her head at the woman, she continued, "He scoured every village, unleashing chaos in his wake in search of her. It was a dangerous time to cross his path. Not only had he lost his mate, but he also slaughtered those he held accountable for the wrong that was done to him and his friend. Those were his darkest days. Yet he never found her, and as decades passed, his mate would have died of old age. That is why he could never leave this town, longing to be near her," she concluded. "What do you want from me?" Raven questioned the woman.

"Isn't it obvious that we want you to break the curse?" the woman said, her gaze intense. Beside her, the man with red eyes fixed his stare on her, his nose flaring he was a vampire.

"We have been trying to do that," Raven stated, but the woman shook her head.

"No, you have not," she retorted, snapping the book shut.

"Every being that has heard of him has wanted to break the curse, aiding him in the search for you witches, hoping that he would be ever so eager to help," she explained.

"Why do you want him to break the curse?" Raven questioned Noelle.

"When the curse is broken, he won't be much of a threat, still deadly, but he will not be the strongest being out there; he will be like any other being."

"So you want me to break the curse tonight?" Raven asked the witch.

"Well, of course, you see it's a red moon," she said, pointing up to the sky as a red moon poked out from between the clouds. "But you are needed here to break the curse," the witch replied.

"What?" Raven asked, confused.

"It seems he has withheld something from you," the witch observed.

"And what might that be?" Raven inquired, glaring at the woman in front of her.

"All will be revealed in due time, but first, you need to do the spell," the witch stated.

"I am not helping you with anything," Raven spat at the woman. As Noelle exhaled a sigh, she gestured with her hand, and Raven rose, levitating as her chains scraped the floor, until she stood before her family's spellbook. "As you can see, I cannot read the book, for it shows me nothing but what you, a Graverose witch, can," Noelle stated, waving the blank pages. "Find the spell titled 'Crescent'," she commanded. Raven, standing firm with her hands clenched around her cardigan, could feel Noelle's intense gaze on the back of her head. "Proceed, witch. We do not have time for this; we know everything about you, even those concerning your aunt," Noelle proclaimed. Raven grabbed the book, flipping through the pages till she found the spell Noelle was looking for.

"I found it," she whispered. Noelle's head snapped toward her eagerly.

"You found the spell?" she asked Raven, excitedly.

"Yes."

CROAK

CROAK

The raven sat on the barred window, staring down at her. Noelle stared at the bird as it hopped down onto the ground closer to them. "Stupid bird, get out of here, shoo," she tried scaring the bird. "It's a raven," Raven whispered as she held on to the book. Noelle stared at her expectantly.

"Well, are you waiting for an invitation? Do the spell, witch," Noelle spat beside her. Raven's eyes roamed over the words, flicking her gaze back to Noelle.

Raven began the incantation as the blood moon hung high in the sky, the clouds rolling in fast as thunder cracked. She peered through the crack, the redness of the moon becoming even more intense.

"The spell is not working; why is it not working?" Noelle said from beside her. Raven leaned against the table, her body weary from casting the spell. "We need the spell to work," Noelle agonized.

"Did you know a raven is a symbol of death?" Raven told Noelle her eyes were black, with darkness looming inside them. Slamming the book shut in her hands, she glared at Noelle. "There is a missing piece of the spell."

"What is it?" Staring at the missing piece in the book, Raven glared at Noelle. "I guess you will never know," was all Raven said as the spellbook burst into flames, turning to ash.

"YOU LITTLE BITCH!" Noelle screamed at her. Her chains yanked her back as her body was hoisted by the chains against the wall, her back exploding with pain, and her arm bent awkwardly as she tried to protect herself.

"You have no idea what you've done. You've betrayed your species. This was our last chance to continue on our line," she yelled from across the room.

"Let me enlighten you about something. Species are forbidden to mix. A witch cannot be with a vampire or a werewolf, and a vampire cannot be with a witch or a werewolf. It's a law established by the elders of each species hundreds of years ago, and it has been upheld ever since. I heard about how you two met; some would call it love at first sight," Noelle said as Raven stared at her, confused. The manner in which they met was more along the lines of hate at first sight.

"I have seen how he is around you, but I have also noticed how you look at him," she said pointedly. "Tell me, do the things he has done not bother you? All those he has killed, the way he has threatened you and your aunt?" she questioned, but Raven remained silent.

"ANSWER ME!" she screamed at her.

"No, it does not bother me. He may be the definition of darkness, but he is also the epitome of light."

"You believe there is goodness in him?" Noelle questioned.

"When we met, I was frightened by him; I saw darkness. I have heard of all he has done. His sins are not greater than mine, but I quickly learned of the light within him. He has protected me, my aunt, even against the witches who wanted to kill me; he was the one who rescued me."

"You love him, don't you?" Noelle asked in disbelief. Raven tore her gaze away from the woman to stare at the pile of ash.

The chains began tightening around her, digging into her skin.

"Answer me, Raven," she demanded.

"Yes," Raven cried out, pain spreading through her body.

"Then I will have great pleasure in informing you of the thing that Dorian withheld from you; in order to break the spell, you have to die, and not some ordinary death Dorian has to be the one to kill you," Noelle told her with a grin on her face. Lifting her head, she stared at Noelle.

"I know,"

"Well, that is a plot twist," Noelle said, clasping her hands together, something passing through her eyes.

"You see that raven over there; it has been following me since I was little, and I never could tell why. I found out my name would have been Dahlia, but my mother decided against it, and my grandma thought of the name Raven since it had been following me since I was a baby. When I went to visit the graveyard, there was an empty grave there with a Dahlia. It was reserved for me," Raven told her softly.

"Wow, you are smart, aren't you?" Noelle glared at Raven, turning around.

Raven softly mumbled the lullaby, trying to calm herself.

Silence filled the room, her humming the only sound. The energy quickly changed as someone entered. Raven's head shot up as her eyes landed on Dorian.

"You finally came. It took you long enough, but no matter, we girls just caught up on things," Noelle said to Dorian, but he ignored her, walking toward Raven. She stopped in front of her, studying the chains and the condition she was in, her body trembling.

"I did the spell," she said softly, her gaze flicking to the bowl with the rose petals and the elixir. "You need to drink it for it to work," Dorian said, brushing her hair out of her face. "You know that is not the only thing that needs to happen for it to work," he said, lifting her chin to look her in the eyes. "Let's get you out of here," he said softly.

"Please," she whispered to him tiredly, a relieved smile stretching across her face.

"I can't let you do that. We have waited for this for a long time," Noelle said as chains were suddenly across his wrists, the vampire having thrown chains around him from the corner of the room.

"These won't do anything," he said, removing the chain from the wall that lay across her stomach.

"We don't know the effects this will have; it's just a precaution," Noelle continued.

"Dorian?" she whispered, unsure of what Noelle was referring to.

'You are going to be okay, my love,' the words echoed in her mind.

"The effects of what?" Dorian questioned Noelle as he turned his gaze toward her.

"Max, if you would, please," Noelle instructed. "While you were unconscious, we needed something to ensure that we could proceed with this," she concluded.

"What?" Raven asked.

"It all began with the legend of a boy who was cursed to roam the earth in constant hunger, finding nothing to satisfy his hunger," Noelle explained.

Raven stared at the small dot of blood on her left arm, a scratch mark. "Dorian?" she questioned. Her body froze as realization hit her. Dorian stared at the mark, surprised, and was yanked back against the wall. The vampire pulled his head back, pouring the contents of the spell into his mouth. Dropping his head, Noelle quickly grabbed a vial, pouring the contents into her hand.

"I AM GOING TO KILL YOU, WITCH!" he bellowed, just as Noelle stopped in front of him.

Everything unfolded rapidly. Blood smeared across Dorian's face, dripping into his mouth. Dorian's body went still for a moment; everybody was quiet as they all watched, waiting for what would happen next. "Dorian?" Raven said softly. Dorian's head snapped up, his eyes burgundy, all signs of his humanity gone. The chains were torn from the walls. His burgundy eyes were fixed on her.

"Dorian!" she screamed, trying to penetrate his haze as she frantically tugged at the chains, seeking release. He stalked her. He advanced toward her, clearing his path. The vampire stood no chance. Noelle hid in the corner of the cellar, out of Dorian's way.

Licking the blood from his lips, he was in front of her in a flash, pressed against her.

"Dorian," she whispered, calling for him. His arms wrapped around her waist with the usual tenderness and care. He moved slowly, pressing her against the wall, reminiscent of their first encounter, as if she were his prey and he was the predator about to consume her. As he buried his face in her neck, she attempted to kick him to use her magic, but exhaustion had taken over her as his fangs sank into her flesh. The earthy fragrance of the forest and rain engulfed her senses. Raven's vision blurred; the raven that had been looming over her for the last couple of months flew through the bars, and she watched the raven disappear, having predicted what was going to happen. Closing her eyes, she succumbed to darkness.

Death had been waiting for her.