Onuh_Margret

> Rejected by her family and abandoned by the man who defiled her, Xoxo begins a painful journey alone and pregnant. With nothing but a mystical amulet gifted by her dying grandmother, she steps into a new life that will test her strength, love, and fate. Years later, she finds herself married to a wealthy man—only to realize he is the same one who destroyed her past. When she gives birth to twin daughters, one is stolen under supernatural circumstances. Now a powerful woman with only half her heart, Xoxo must rise, reclaim her stolen child, and face the truth buried deep in blood and magic. A story of pain, power, and destiny

my return to you

Chapter 16: Beneath the Quiet Sky

The days drifted by in a quiet rhythm.

Morning tea on the terrace. Afternoons spent learning to cook or wandering through old bookstores. Evenings with soft music playing in the background, as the autumn wind whispered through the windows.

For the first time in their lives, Zikora and Ziora weren't running from anything.

One chilly morning, Ziora woke before dawn.

She wandered the halls barefoot, her thoughts tangled in a way she couldn't quite untangle.

Her mother was finally smiling again.

But Ziora felt something strange within herself—a growing emptiness she couldn't name.

She found herself in front of the old mirror in the guest wing.

But the eyes looking at her seemed too old for her face.

And in that instant, a memory surfaced—one she hadn't realized she'd forgotten.

She was younger—barely five—clutching the amulet tightly as she hid under her grandmother's old table.

Her grandmother's voice echoed from the other room, fierce but afraid.

"They must not know both girls carry the mark. One must wear the mirror. One must bear the flame. If they ever reunite it… the world will shift again."

Ziora's tiny hands trembled as she listened.

Ziora gasped, yanked back to the present.

She stumbled away from the mirror, her heart racing.

Later that day, Ziora sat with Xoxo, her hands still shaking from the memory.

"Did Grandma ever… say anything about us?" she asked hesitantly.

Xoxo looked up from her sewing, thoughtful.

"She always said you and your sister were two sides of the same coin," Xoxo replied. "She believed you were destined to either heal or destroy."

"But she never feared you," Xoxo continued softly. "She said… love would always choose the right path."

Because suddenly, she wasn't sure if love alone had been enough.

That evening, as the sun set, Ziora finally told Zikora everything.

The secret prophecy hidden even from them.

Zikora listened quietly, her expression unreadable.

When Ziora finished, her voice cracked.

"I'm scared," she confessed. "What if we only survived because… we broke something we weren't supposed to?"

Zikora reached over, gently taking her sister's trembling hand.

"Then we'll live with the cracks," she said simply. "Together."

Later that night, a letter arrived.

No seal. No name. Just an address scrawled across the front.

Xoxo opened it with shaking hands.

I have been watching from afar.

The bloodline is not finished.

There are others still searching.

If you wish to understand everything—come home.

Before the next Gate finds you first.

Ziora and Zikora stood over their mother's shoulder, reading the letter together.

Finally, Zikora broke the silence.

"Do you want to go?" she asked, voice soft.

Xoxo's answer was quiet but certain.

She looked up at her daughters, her gaze fierce but calm.

"But I know we may not have a choice."

That night, the three of them sat by the fire, the letter resting between them.

The past seemed to press in from all sides.

Ziora sighed softly, leaning her head on Zikora's shoulder again.

"I'm tired of running," she admitted.

"Then we'll stop," Zikora said, her voice steady.

But the fire flickered, casting soft shadows across their faces.

And in their shared silence, they all knew:

chapter 16