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I turned my head to the side; my eyes settled on the sleeping shifter next to me. Ryder’s body felt warm and inviting; his breathing was slow as I watched his chest rise and fall.
I turned my body slightly to face his, pressing myself against him; his warmth soothed me. I craved for such warmth for so long, I didn’t know how I should feel, now that I finally acquired it. He stirred slightly; his hand landed softly on my waist, pulling me closer.
“Mako,”he mumbled, his breathing returned to normal as he fell back asleep.
I smiled against his body as I enjoyed his presence. I wasn’t lonely anymore; I finally had someone who loved me. I wasn’t alone anymore; the light had given me salvation.
I didn’t fight when the darkness attempted to claim me this time. I wasn’t afraid of not waking up. I had won that battle already. I just needed to rest; my body still exhausted.
“Makoto? Sweetheart, can you hear me?” Ryder called out.
I swear my eyes were only closed for a few seconds. I opened them; Ryder stared down at me, relief swarmed across his face as he blinked a few times; his eyes became glossy. I didn’t think I could handle seeing Ryder cry.
My mind still recovered from whatever I’d just experienced. I didn’t think I could comfort him as I should. I wanted to say something funny, anything to lighten the mood, but my mind was blank. I stretched my arms out as my eyes began to blur.
“Hug?” I whispered; my voice emitted only a glimpse of the amount of desperation I had experienced as I held back a sob. I wasn’t ready to return to my clumsy, dramatic self. I just needed to feel loved.
His body crashed into mine; his arms wrapped around me, squeezing me against his body. I needed to feel him; I craved his warmth and melted into his embrace. I allowed the tears that pooled in my eyes, to fall, exhausted from fighting my internal battle.
I had accepted the fact I was going to die, never able to see Ryder and the others again. Now that I was alive, being held in the arms of a man I cared dearly about, I wished I had fought even harder. I made him, and the others worry; and it pained my heart.
“Everything’s okay Mako. Don’t cry,” he consoled me, cradling me in his arms. We laid there for a long time; my cries dimmed down to small whimpers. Once I was ready to speak, I told him about my experience with the darkness.
“It was as if I didn’t exist. I was a part of some void where I had no body or voice. I tried so hard, but it kept consuming me, as if to swallow me over and over again. I – I felt so alone Ryder. It wasn’t like when I was at the facility and didn’t have any friends. I was truly alone, and I had no idea who I was. Not being able to identify myself, with no one to talk to, as I faded in and out. My spirits were gone; I couldn’t even sense Midnight. It was just me floating in the land of darkness, and it was cold. I could hear you guys. I heard Daniel, Marcus and Elias talking to me, but I didn’t know it was them at the time. Your voice and I think Stryker? I knew it was your voice, but I couldn’t remember who you were. I heard Eli’s singing…it was a song my mom would sing to me,” I confessed.
Ryder remained silent for a moment; the arm that cradled my head turned my body to face him as he continued to aimlessly play with my hair. He listened intently to my confession, allowing me to take my time as I paused to calm myself, while I relived the experience out loud. He comforted me, pressing himself against me and encouraging me softly. He had to remind me that I was alive and not dreaming.
“You remember Catherine. Do you remember everything?” he asked me, his left hand left its hold on my waist as he wiped the tear that rolled down my cheek. I smiled softly at his affection.
“Not everything. Just her singing when we were walking in the garden. She told me that the light would always guide me home; its guidance would lead me to salvation. When I heard Eli’s singing, I finally remembered. That’s when I started to peel the sludge away, finally able to free myself and run towards the light,” I explained.
He nodded.
We took another moment to relax in each other’s embrace. I never thought I’d miss him so much. Now that he was here, I was so happy to be with him. I began to worry about the others, especially Elias. Ryder must have noticed me biting my lip, a usual sign of uneasiness; his thumb gently brushed along my bottom lip, cueing me to lift my teeth.
“They’re all fine. Elias is getting treatment for the lingering poison from the arrow. Aspen apparently coated the edge; the poison probably his insurance if the arrow didn’t do enough damage. Lucky for Elias, fairies can survive any type of poison. He was still affected, but it didn’t kill him. Daniel is resting, and Marcus is out on a run to keep his own anxiety down,” Ryder explained.
I sighed in relief; my tense body relaxed into his arms.Everyone is okay…but how?
“Midnight saved us.” Ryder replied to my spoken thoughts.
“Midnight! What happened when I passed out?” I questioned. I searched within myself for her presence; my consciousness wavered slightly, before I noticed her flickering, burning essence deep within me. I sighed in relief at my discovery.
“Midnight had healed Elias by the time we reached you guys. She told us she had a plan and we had to trust her. We agreed before Aspen decided to blast us with waves of wind. Marcus and Elias ended up slipping, the wind carrying them to the edge. Daniel and I tried to pull them back up, but the wind was too strong. Then he conjured an orb of energy. It hit the ground in front of us, causing us to fall. I thought we were goners, but we fell into a net made up of white strings before a magic circle awakened, concealing our energies. Our markings suddenly began to glow, we had no idea what was going on, but in a flash, bursts of light expelled from us, heading straight into the sky and fading away. It was a diversion to make it seem as if we’d truly died. Then we saw your body dropping towards us before you started to shift. In a flash, you were in dragon form; I’m assuming Lexi took over. You glided right above the lava, hiding in a blind spot. We waited until we felt the air shift, it was then that Matthew and Karen came to the rescue. Lexi helped us, by flying us back up the cliff and then you shifted back. That was two and a half weeks ago,” he finished.
I stared at him, absorbing all the delivered information slowly.Midnight saved them. She defied the Owner, to save the boys. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Midnight.I could feel a light pulse of energy course through me, as if Midnight herself was acknowledging my gratitude.
“Two weeks huh? I guess we failed the exam,” I pondered to myself.
“We passed. Professor Sepherant was none other than the Jeffrey person you mentioned. By the time Matthew received the information from his resources, we’d already entered the exam. Now, he is nowhere to be found, sending an untraceable resignation letter. The headmaster is facing some major backlash; the details of the event were forwarded straight to Heila. They’re sending someone back to escort all of us home. We got that information three days ago, so it shouldn’t be long,” he admitted.
“So, we got to keep playing student…” I sighed, yawning lightly. I could feel the exhaustion slowly crept into my body.
“Well, we’ve been granted time off, seeing as we’re still technically students here and its summer break. Till Karen gives the approval for you to use magic, we have to stick with our alibi. You pushed your body beyond your magic threshold which puts you at risk,” he ordered.
I frowned at him.
“What about my spirits?” I questioned quietly, realizing how quiet it had been in my mind.
