Cassandra Syndrome*

"You have the Cassandra Syndrome," Gabriel said stiffly. "You will have the power to see the past, the present, and future events. On the day you turn eighteen, you will officially be a High Priestess of Apollo."

"Oh, great," I said sarcastically. "I'm turning eighteen in a few weeks."

"I know. I'll help you control your powers when they manifest themselves on your birthday." Gabriel said earnestly as he grinned at me. "I heard the prophecies and premonitions are so horrible for a person with this syndrome you'd want to claw your eyeballs out of your eye sockets but I think there is a reason Aphrodite favored you out of all people who had the curse."

I propped myself up on an elbow so I could look directly into his face and scan him for well-intentioned lies. Even in the moonlight dribbling through the window, I could see the intense jewels of his blue eyes.

"Ugh, I think I'll become crazy." I flopped back into the bed in misery.

"Don't speak of it. Be careful of your words from now on." Gabriel spoke in a low cautioning voice. "Your words will become powerful in the future and you might speak bad stuff into existence."

I snuggled into my blankets and tried to relax but I was jittery with exhaustion and overwhelmed with the strangeness of the room with him in it. I was supposed to be sleeping right now, dreaming about things I won't remember when I wake up.

Why am I lying here in my bed with a person who keeps insisting that I should stay away from him when in fact, he was the one who couldn't stay away?

The only explanation was what Gabriel had said but that didn't make much sense either. The Greek gods and goddesses were myths, not historical figures with actual descendants or so I have been taught.

But now I wasn't so sure.

Somehow, I was Cassandra of Troy's descendant and I was just going to have to accept this?

No freaking way.

This is just crazy!

Insanity runs on my father's side of the family but I'm not going to follow anyone's footsteps.

"Anyway, if Apollo finds out you're still alive, he will descend from Mt. Olympus, roam the Earth, and hunt you down. He tricked Cassandra of Troy and gave her a so-called gift, refused the god's advances and it turned into a curse. Good thing Aphrodite gave you that necklace. Like us, he wouldn't be able to detect your soul so you can be safe from him for a while." He clenched his fists. " Honestly, the guy still thinks you belong to him."

"If I had this Syndrome you are talking about, even if I tell people it'll be the end of the world, nobody would believe me right? That's the whole point of having Cassandra Syndrome, isn't it? Even if I foam at the mouth foretelling all these silly predictions that will come true in the future, they would still think I'm fucking lying."

"You're so naïve, Cassandra." Gabriel said as he motioned a dismissive hand at me."People wouldn't but how about the gods, the goddesses, and the Titans would like to get their hands on you and use your clairvoyance and predictions as a weapon to pit one god against the other. They become bored sometimes. You know in Greek Mythology, they play with human lives now and then. When a god holds quarrels with other gods, they just have to ask and consult on what path to take to defeat their enemy when they're bored. They'll want to own you and think you are a pet for their amusement."

"I don't know who to believe!" I whispered as I gathered the covers over me. "Who is the real enemy here? I can't just--"

"You, Cassandra, are our enemy," Gabriel whispered before I even finished talking. "Fate still can change depending on your choices because of the existence of a free will. But you, everything you say will come true. Your story is the end-game here. Nothing's going to change once you speak about a prophecy. Your predictions become the absolute truth. You have the sole power to abolish the House of Tarot."

He shook his head before I could ask any questions.

"Our task is to kill you. The powers and magical abilities of an Heir of every House of Tarot as generations pass by continue to evolve and they kept it as a secret to the other House for their advantage. I'm sure a person with Cassandra Syndrome shall evolve in this way too. We don't know what abilities the current Cassandra has and if she falls into the wrong hands..." He trailed off. "The House of Tarot doesn't know what things you are capable of and we don't want to know. Your existence could destroy the natural balance of this world; maybe you could have the power to kill a god."

"The Knights are only given these two choices." He said softly. "It's either we kill you or we let Fate kill humanity."

Our faces were so close at the moment and I noticed our bodies touching on the bed. All I had to do was lean down and I would be kissing him. It seemed like the most natural thing to do and I was halfway to his mouth before I stopped myself and pulled back, stunned again by my lack of restraint.

I saw him swallow hard.

"Going to blame me for your attraction again?" Gabriel smirked and then he sighed, his smile fading. "Lie back, Cass, and think about something else." He told me, which I immediately did to hide my stupidity. "I do it all the time whenever you're near. You'll get past your attraction with that exercise."

For a few minutes, we were both breathing a lot faster than we should have been, but after a while, Gabriel relaxed enough to take my hand and hold it under the covers.