Celeste

"Zayne, why the hell are you calling me this late? I have work in the morning. This better be important."

Zayne exhaled sharply, staring down at his pitch-black hands, shadowy wisps curling off his fingertips. "Celeste, it is. I swear. I was… um…"

"Um, what?" she snapped, her voice edged with irritation. She was clearly not in the mood for late-night nonsense.

Zayne swallowed hard. "I know this is gonna sound insane, but… I got killed. And now I'm back."

Silence.

"The hell did you just say?"

"I don't know how, but it has something to do with this… thing in my chest. Some shadow creature or whatever. I remember things I couldn't before, and I'm pretty sure it just tried to take over my body. I need your help. Please."

Another long, agonizing silence stretched between them. Then, finally, Celeste spoke—her tone unreadable.

"Hold on. I'll be there in a second."

"Wait, Celeste—"

A resounding beep cut him off. She had already hung up.

Before Zayne could even process what just happened, a blinding pillar of light erupted in the middle of his room, forcing him to stumble backward. His heart pounded as the air crackled with energy. Then, just as suddenly as it appeared, the light vanished—leaving his sister standing there.

Zayne's breath caught in his throat. "What the hell?"

Celeste, who lived an hour away by car, stood before him as if she had simply stepped through a doorway. Her piercing gaze locked onto him, unreadable and sharp.

"It looks like the process was pretty far along. I'm glad you fought it off before it took over completely."

Zayne frowned in confusion as Celeste sat beside him, grabbing his arm and inspecting the dark lines streaking across his skin.

"Celeste, please. Tell me what the fuck is going on—and how the hell you're even here."

She pinched his arm without looking up. "Watch your language."

Zayne stared at her, incredulous. "Is now really the time for that? Can you just explain what's happening?"

Celeste finally let go of his arm, exhaling. "It looks like you managed to tame the shadow parasite… somehow. But it's still risky, so I'm staying nearby. Long-distance teleportation isn't easy, and I need to keep an eye on you."

Zayne yanked his arm away and grabbed his sister's shoulders, his voice urgent. "Celeste, be straight with me. Clearly, I've stumbled onto something I wasn't supposed to, but there's no point hiding it anymore. Just tell me the truth."

She sighed, her gaze dropping to the gaping black hole in his chest. "Well… you were almost taken over by something called a shadow parasite. Foul little beasts. It probably latched onto you days ago, but your 'death' made it easier for it to try body-snatching you."

She reached into thin air, pulling out a strange, glowing crystal and tying it around Zayne's neck. "This should prevent another attack, at least for now."

Zayne instinctively touched the crystal, then looked back at her. "Before I got… killed, I started noticing weird things. Things I hadn't seen before."

Celeste nodded, unsurprised. "That tracks. People affected by shadow parasites start to awaken to the supernatural just before they get snatched. What exactly did you notice?"

Zayne ran a hand through his hair, his expression darkening. "I couldn't remember at first, but I do now. There was this girl—I noticed she had all these werewolf-like traits, but no one else seemed to see them. When I confronted her about it, she did this." He let out a dry, humorless laugh, pointing at the hole in his chest.

Celeste poked at the black mass still lingering there, her lips pressing into a thin line. "Yeah, that makes sense. You come from a strong bloodline, so you resisted the parasite longer than most would. But your awakening was already starting before your death."

Zayne sighed in relief, leaning back slightly. "Well… at least it's over now. I guess that's one good thing. But man, I just realized I remember everything now—would've been nice to rewatch my favorite shows for the first time again."

Celeste huffed out a soft laugh before pulling him into a tight hug. A single tear slipped down her cheek. "I'm just glad you're okay. When I thought you might've been completely taken over, I panicked… but you fought back. I'm proud of you."

She released him, quickly wiping away the tear. Then, her expression hardened. "Unfortunately for you, though, now that you've been pulled into this world, there's no going back. You need to learn how to defend yourself."

Zayne groaned. "Of course there's a catch."

Celeste smirked. "Damn right there is. But for now, I'll stay here for the night. And tomorrow? You're taking me to this werewolf girl. I need to have a conversation with her… and her clan's head."

"Do I really have to do that she's kind of scary she literally killed me and didn't think twice about it."

His sister laughed and pat her hand on his head. "I'm a lot stronger than you think a young werewolf couldn't even put a scratch on my skin let alone actually hurt me."

Zayne gulped slightly. "If you say so but I really don't want to see her again." 

"You go to sleep for now and didn't I tell you the last time I was over here to get rid of these disgusting posters on your walls."

"Yeah yeah whatever I expect you to actually answer my questions tomorrow too I want to know what's really going on." 

She flicked his forehead, and before he could protest, exhaustion overtook him, pulling him into sleep.

Celeste sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Hah… I really didn't want him anywhere near this world, but it looks like I have no choice now. There are probably hunters already sniffing around his school… and he's not ready for them yet."

With a weary sigh, she sank into the chair beside him, arms crossed. Even as sleep claimed her, the weight of worry for her little brother never fully faded.