Flames and Starlight

A knock at the door had Hannah looking up from where she sat on her bed. Beside her, Katie, who still hadn’t spoken one word to her, kept reading her book.

Miss Jacy opened the door and stood in the doorway. “Hi, Hannah, there’s someone here to see you. Do you have time to meet with them?”

Hannah nodded and followed Miss Jacy down the hallway. Her mind raced as they walked through the maze that was the many hallways to the lobby. She wondered who would want to visit her right now. Laura and Ruben? Maybe. All three of them were so incredibly busy ever since they found out about her visions that they didn’t have time to sit down and talk. Perhaps they came by and wanted to talk to her. Peter? She felt her heart start to beat faster at the thought. Miss Jacy told her that Peter had come in once to ask about her but he hadn’t been back ever since. She wondered why she came in the first place and why he didn’t come back. She’d thought about him and wondered when they would see each other again.

They reached the lobby and Miss Jacy pointed to one person - or supernatural as Laura told her to call everyone - that was in there. “There she is.”

Hannah came up short as her breath lodged in her throat. She couldn’t believe her eyes at who she saw sitting there.

The woman smiled and stood up. “Hi, Hannah,” her aunt Mary said.

Hannah almost thought she was dreaming or having a vision. There was no way her aunt could be standing right there in front of her. Not after all this time.

Miss Jacy gently touched her arm. “Are you okay?”

Hannah could only nod, too stunned to speak. Words couldn’t find their way out of her mouth no matter how much she tried to force them.

“Do you need this sup to leave or do you want to speak with her?”

Hannah barely got the words out of her throat. She choked slightly as she forced the words out. “N-no. I want to speak with her. Give us some privacy, please.”

Miss Jacy nodded and left.

Mary walked over and hugged her. Hannah stood frozen, not returning the gesture. A lot of emotions were coursing through her and she couldn’t decide how she felt. Shock was the number one emotion she felt, disbelief, anger, confusion, happiness. . .

Mary stepped back and beamed at her, cupping Hannah’s face in her hands. “I can’t believe it’s you. After all this time. How are you?”

Hannah shoved her aunt’s hands off of her and yelled, “How am I? How am I? You disappear for five years and all you have to say is how am I?”

“Hannah -” Mary reached for her.

Hannah stepped back. “No, don’t touch me. How dare you show up here like this? How could you leave me? How could you abandon me when you were the only family I had that understood me?”

Mary was Hannah’s mother’s sister and was the mom Hannah never had. Mary never made Hannah feel bad for wanting to learn magic, was always there to answer questions, never tried to change Hannah, and was a lot more warm and welcoming than her mother ever was.

When Hannah was sixteen, Mary disappeared without a trace. All her parents would tell her was that Mary had left for the Eternal World and was never coming back. Hannah had been betrayed and heartbroken that her aunt had disappeared without saying goodbye or leaving a way to contact her. It felt like the only person who truly understood her was gone.

The smile immediately left Mary’s face. “Hannah, I’m so sorry about all that. I know you’re upset and angry and you have every right to be but I’m here to explain where I’ve been and why I’m here.”

Hannah turned to go. “No, I have nothing to say to you.”

Mary grasped her arm and forced her to turn around. “Please give me a few minutes of your time to explain everything. After I’m done, if you decide you still want nothing to do with me, then I’ll go.”

Hannah debated for a second. The angry part of her wanted to walk out of there and not have anything to do with her, but the other part told her that she should hear her aunt out and be relieved that her aunt was here in front of her and she was alive.

Hannah led the way to the corner of the lobby. “Tell me everything.”

Mary sat down next to her and said, “When you turned sixteen, I decided it was time for me to return to the Eternal World. You know that was where your mother and I were born, right?”

Hannah nodded.

“I decided that the human realm was the wrong place for me. I wasn’t happy there. I couldn’t be myself and you know how our family feels about magic. I felt like moving back to the Eternal World would be the best decision for me. Fiona, your mother, was totally against it. She fought against me moving here for weeks and would beg me to stay. She was adamant that I remain in the human realm but my mind was made up.

“You were only sixteen at the time so I couldn’t take you with me. My plan initially was to have you move here with me when you turned eighteen but when I moved, your family had cut off all communication with me. They blocked me on everything and you all had moved away. I tried finding you but I couldn’t. They covered their trail well and made sure I could never find you all.”

Hannah’s hands clenched into fists. Rage built inside her that her mother would keep her aunt from her. She knew her mother didn’t approve her of wanting to learn magic or being as close to her aunt as she was but she didn’t know her mother would stoop that low.

“So what happened when you couldn’t find us?” Hannah asked.

“I settled here, stayed a few months in one of the shelters, went to RCU, got a job, got a place, and have been happy here though I always worried about you. You and Carrie never left my mind.”

“How did you know I was living in one of the shelters?”

“When you and those other two shapeshifters came in to give your statements. I was looking through paperwork and -”

“Hold on. You’re a Guardian?” Hannah asked incredulously.

Mary smiled and nodded. “Yes.”

“Wow. That’s impressive.”

“Thanks.”

A moment of silence was passed between them.

“So, what now?” Hannah asked.

“I wanted to see if you wanted to come live with me. I think it would be better than living here at the shelter.”

“Yes. That would be great.”

Hannah found Miss Jacy and informed her she was leaving. She filled out paperwork for her to leave the shelter and register her aunt’s place as her new address. She thanked Miss Jacy for everything she’d done for her and then packed her stuff.

Hannah went with Mary to the outskirts of Raven City where her one-story house resided. It was a complete mess inside with books, candles, jars, and glass, and everything under the sun was on the floor, making walking through the living room almost impossible.

The couch was also filled with junk, leaving nowhere for them to sit, and Mary shoved it onto the floor, adding to the mess on the floor. “I know I have to clean the mess up.”

“To say the least.”

They sat down and Hannah hugged her backpack to her chest, still shocked she was actually sitting there with her aunt. In a way, it all felt like she was in a dream though she knew it was reality.

“How did your parents take you moving to the Eternal World?”

Hannah bit her lip and looked down. “I didn’t tell them. I left before they could figure it out. I left notes for them and said my goodbyes in there. I knew if I told them that I was coming here then they would do everything in their power to stop it. They called my phone and were furious and upset with me and I turned it off. I can’t talk to them right now and don’t think I ever can.”

Mary was quiet for a moment. “Whenever you’re ready, I have ways for you to try to communicate with them through one of my magic mirrors. I couldn’t find them because they blocked me but you should be able to talk to them.”

Hannah thought about it. She knew at some point she did want to get back in touch with Carrie and her parents but not right now. Not when the pain of losing her family was still raw and painful. She shook her head. “No, I’m not ready yet.”

“When you are, I’ll help you. Until then, don’t pressure yourself.”

“Thank you, Mary.”

“How did you find a portal to the Eternal World and how did you know they were closing?”

“Do you remember that sorceress you introduced me to, Heather?”

“Yes, the one I told you to stay away from since she was dabbling in Dark Magic?”

“Yeah. And before you start in on me, we only talked when she got the news about the portal closing and she told me where to go. If it weren’t for her, then I don’t think I would’ve ever gotten here.”

Mary sighed. “Well, nothing can be done about it now. You’re here now and we need to get you settled into your new life. I’ll make something to eat - if I can get into the kitchen - and we can go from there.”

Hannah followed Mary into the kitchen and felt like things were starting to look up. At least she hoped so. She still had a life to plan and figure out.