Standing at the door were no strangers, Orivelle could feel the blood bond. Orivelle saw a woman who looked just exactly like her and had survived countless battles.
There were just two men and one woman. She called Orivelle by her maiden name,a name no one has ever used except for what was engraved on her necklace."She looks just like you,"One of the men spoke to the lady. Orivelle turned to Aunt Phoebe "is she my mu….."and she found herself locked in a tight warm hug from the lady whose hug felt like an anchor. For a moment the low grunt faded, it was replaced by the rhythmic heartbeat of a woman who had spent sixteen years mourning her living child. A heavy weight pressed on her chest, even as the warmth of the hug anchored her . The two men just watched as mother and child were bonding. As she broke the hug, she turned to Aunt Phoebe and hugged her equally while addressing her as guardian.
The two men remained at the door, silent and watchful, as if afraid to step too far into her life - eyes fixed at Orivelle. "Oh where are my manners, please come in", aunt Orivelle invited the men inside, immediately Orivelle knew who they were.Orivelle's mother, Elsa walked closer to her and hugged her again as if it was the first time she saw her, drawing her closer to herself,she admires her beauty and how elegant she carried herself, "you still have the necklace,"she said in surprise. "Did your aunty ever tell you I made these back in those days? I made so many of these for you, I always feel bad that you only had one of it". The two women laughed, Orivelle forced a smile that cracked almost immediately, then turned away before anyone could see it break. "Where are you headed, Orivelle?" Aunt Phoebe asked, to get some air, Aunt Phoebe tried asking her to stay but her mom beckoned to let her.
Orivelle not knowing how to feel or what to do, she walked down to the lake, sat on the bank of the river and allowed the water to gush over her feet as the night got colder.
She could sense someone approaching, she turned to see one of the men, he calmly and slowly stood over her. He picked a few stones on the ground and gently threw them in the river, as he stood behind her she could feel a familiar ghost from her childhood.
"Do you still have that scratch on your left arm?", "I don't have any scar",she nonchalantly said. Are you sure you don't….. or haven't you noticed? that scar never fades,". "What do you want?All of a sudden you guys showed up just to remind you of a scar?"
"You got that scar at 5 years old when you tried climbing this tree at the lake, your aunt warned you several times to stop but you refused,when you finally got injured, you stopped by yourself without anyone forcing you to," He paused.
"I'm not here to convince you, I'm here to see you, and yes you have every right to be angry at us, but we felt the greater pain, but we've always been with you, in your heart, always and forever is not just a word Orivelle, and I've always loved you. We never left you, not even for once we only became the world around you that made you survive." As he slowly turned away, Orivelle swiftly hugged him from behind,he turned and hugged her, to her it wasn't just a hug m, it was an apology for all the years they lived with pain as ghost for her to survive, wrapping his arm around her in so much love, while the others watched them from inside.
When they were all gathered in the room, their voices became a blur of planning and logistics, the other man that had been quiet all along, Orivelle's uncle, finally spoke directly to her. "They all know you're alive, the moment you took form, the protection spell wore off".
Orivelle turned to Aunt Phoebe who was already panicking but trying to contain it, she held her hands, the type that calms the anxiety. Everyone came in with their suggestions, while she sat there with so many questions she wasn't ready to ask.
They all concluded that she should be relocated to somewhere more hidden and safe,at this point she felt more like a valuable item not a person.The only life she has ever known was not beyond these walls of Everwood. The creak in the stairs, the rattling noise in the basement, they were not just part of the house, it was more the DNA of her identity. Leaving it. A heavy weight pressed on her chest, she felt like she was leaving a part of her life behind. Her mind tumbled like a fierce storm, her powers shifting with her emotions. A low guttural grunt slowly escaped her lips as the winds battered the windows, and for a moment she felt the danger of who she was becoming.
A hand gently touches her shoulders and everything suddenly begins to feel normal again.
Deep within her Orivelle knew for a fact that she could no longer choose to have a normal life even if she wanted.
Far from Everwood something felt her going silent and smiled.
What will it be?