Chapter 3...Staying

I didn't leave the couch. Kylen was the first to leave the room and then the twins. Shane lingered up until he got a phone call and left the house entirely. The door wasn't locked and I had the choice of freedom but I didn't take it. I decided to curl up against one of the cushions in the couch, leaning my head against it as I stared into the darkness of the flat screen TV.

I should feel relieved that my mother was fine but I couldn't get over the fact that my own father wanted to kill me. Didn't he know that I was his daughter? Was he bewitched? I struggled to find a good enough reason for his unfatherly actions. Who sends hounds after their child? Everyone knew that hounds were vicious and knew no mercy. I couldn't help but feel jealous, sad and confused, frustrated, tired and angry but at the same time unable to sleep.

The front door opened. I think it was Shane but I wasn't sure and I didn't even care. The person entered the living room and stood by the couch, staring over .

"Can't sleep," his voice was surprisingly husky.

I turned, glancing up at him but he was already turning away and walking around the couch. I sat up and watched him as he sat on the couch with a deep sigh. His dark eyes glowed a dull gold and then faded. He smelt of alcohol but he wasn't drunk.

"Are you okay," I asked him, instead of answering.

A deep chuckle came from his chest. "I'm fine, Taiti," he whispered, his smile fading. "Are you okay," he asked, the low light shining from the kitchen reflecting in his eyes.

"Could be better."

He nodded, muttering a small goodnight. He stood to his feet and went to his room. The front door was still unlocked. I could leave whenever I wanted to but I didn't. I decided to stay. If it was the last time I saw my mother, the least I could do was fulfill her wishes.

I slept in the bed that I had slept in for the past 5 months. When morning came, I forcefully opened the closet which held a few clothing. I found a bathroom down one the halls and showered, surprisingly struggling to get rid of the straightness of my hair. The curls finally returned but I found nothing in the bathroom to help my hair. I ended up plating it into several medium size braids.

I wore a navy blue polo T-shirt with black cargo pants with a pair of sneakers. When I walked out of the bathroom, the twins were standing outside. The screamer was staring at me wide eyed and her mouth gaping.

"She picked my outfit!" She yelled excitedly doing a little happy dance. Her sister rolled her eyes. She stretched her hands out towards me.

"I'm Cleo," the twin with the long hair introduced, her voice was loud and perky yet calm and collective. She reminded me of a blonde Hermione Granger. "This idiot is Chloe," she said pointing to the screamer with pigtails.

Chloe inhaled deeply. "I'm sorry for scaring you yesterday. Well you did scare me first, so we're even," she said with a bright smile.

I nodded to her. "Apology accepted," I said, reaching both my hands in front of me to shake theirs.

"So I heard you saved Shane's arse from a pack of hounds. He's gotten extremely weak since his pack left him and he got demoted to omega," Cleo informed me as we began descending the stairs.

"Cleo! Stop being mean. They were bad people," Chloe defended her older brother.

Cleo shrugged, walking into the kitchen and sitting on a stool. I sat beside her watching as Chloe grabbed 3 bowls from the cupboard and a cereal box from another.

"Besides your only saying that because you have a huge crush on Damon," Chloe revealed, pouring equal parts of cereal into each cup.

"I do not," Cleo denied, looking offended. "He is extremely rude and far too old for me," she said calmly, her eyes staring into oblivion.

"He's 17 and you said he was extremely brilliant and brave for joining a pack at such a young age," Chloe said, mocking her sisters British accent. She even began walking like her, daintily opening the fridge and taking out a box of milk.

Cleo chucked a few of her cereal at her. "I do not sound like that!"

"Is that how you two act with a guest present," Shane's groggy morning voice was a sound every girl wanted to hear when they woke up.

"Sorry," the girls said in unison. Chloe showing Cleo her tongue and Cleo flipping off Chloe, made me smile.

I had always wanted a sibling but things were always too complicated with my parents and my mother never dated because of our constant relocations. I think it also had something to do with my psychotic father being obsessed with her, he probably would have found a way to murder any children or love interests she could have had.

"Good morning," Shane greeted, his curls were unkept and there was a slight stubble on his chiseled jaw. He wore a T-shirt and baggy sweatpants that hung low on his waist.

"Good morning," I replied softly, accepting the bowl of cereal Chloe handed. I thanked her as she and Cleo went into the living room to watch TV while they ate breakfast. I found myself staring down at the bowl. I did eat cereal, I just didn't eat it this bland.

"Something wrong," Shane asked worriedly, his dark eyes watching me as he poured himself a glass of green liquid from a clear container.

"Could I have some sugar?" I asked, just throwing myself out there.

"Oh, yeah sure," he said putting aside his drink to grab a sealed container from one of the many white cupboards in the kitchen. I added two spoons to my bowl and mixed it in. I didn't mind that the cereal was becoming slightly soggy.

"Sweet tooth?"

"Yeah," I said with an embarrassed chuckle.

"Hey Taiti, do you want to go into town with us later," Chloe asked after she and Cleo had finished eating their cereal and she came to the kitchen to wash her and Cleo's dishes. I walked around the kitchen island to help her, since Cleo had disappeared.

"Uh sure," I said rinsing the dishes and drying them as she handed it to me.

"Eta is actually a very nice place. It has quite a few connecting cities all over the world but Dremount is the best and prettiest," Chloe told me, handing me the last bowl. "I think your going to love it here. Its safe but not boring and every once in a while there is a huge festival," she said, excitement sparkling in her eyes.

I smiled, nodding. I had agreed to stay a while but I wasn't planning to stay permanently. I needed to find my mother and help her, save her even from my father. My only problem was that I didn't know where to start and my magic wasn't as disciplined as other mages my age. I wasn't even sure if I was a magi anymore. Had I become a witch? Normal mages, could not send hounds back to the underground.

Who had I become with my magic unlocked? Was I even safe to be around? I glanced towards Chloe as she continued to talk about Dremount, all its attractions, hotspots and shopping malls. Apparently shopping was the only thing she shared in common with Cleo, well other than a face.

"What can you tell me about Elverton?" I asked her softly, when we had taken our conversation to the couch.

"Well everyone attends Elverton, we even have a foreign exchange program but there are other magical academies in the other cities. Elverton has elementary level education, primary, secondary and tertiary education. All on different areas of the school, of course. Secondary, primary and elementary are not allowed on each other's campus but some members of the tertiary campus can go where ever they like. Shane's on his third year of tertiary education, he was pursuing politics but he took a year off last year and I don't think he's passionate about it anymore. Anyways, Elverton allows you to find a place in the human world but still have an option in this world," Chloe explained, pausing to take rest.

"They have really great teachers there and you get to learn complex magic, the higher you go. Cleo and I started secondary level education and tier 10 magic. We are at the top of our classes. You're pretty powerful, too. You know," she said thoughtfully. "Maybe you should apply for Elverton. You can learn more about your magic and get a degree at the same time," she bargained with a sales representative's smile.

I giggled at her antics. She was right, it was a sweet deal and I was certain that I could handle the pressure of learning magic and getting a degree but I was still hesitant.

"It sounds really nice," I started.

"It does," Chloe said, nodding her head furiously causing her blonde pigtails to dance on her shoulders.

"But," I broke the bad news slowly. "I don't have any money to pay for tuition and its already a little too late to get in since the year has already started," I told her, sinking my teeth into my lips as a sad look overshadowed her face.

"Oh my gosh," Cleo broke the moment, when she suddenly rushed down the stairs and into the living room. "I can't find my credit card," she said with wide eyes.

Chloe stared at her blankly and then rolled her eyes, standing to her feet. She pushed pass her sister harshly, walking away into another room. "You maxed it out, dummy," she said disappearing down a hallway.

I felt slightly responsible for her mood and harshness towards her sister. She had gotten so excited trying to get me to attend her school. I stood to my feet.

"She's just mad because of something that I said. I'll just go apologize," I told Cleo, who looked confused. I quickly rushed towards the doorway that Chloe had disappeared down, I found a hallway and immediately began walking down it.

"Be careful and don't get lost," Cleo called after me.

The house was a maze. One hallway lead to another and then another and by some miracle I found myself upstairs and then downstairs again, where I finally came to a stop at a home gym. I admittedly gave up on my search for Chloe when I spotted a sweat glistening Shane lifting weights. His muscles flexing and bulging with his movement. Suddenly my body became warm and my mouth dry and then his eyes fell upon me.