Ch.5 What's your name?

Chapter 5

The shift in the air was immediate. Maya felt the wet ground disappear from beneath her within seconds as she transported from the dark marsh to a brightly lit room. The sounds of ocean waves crashing against the rocks reached her ears instead of the crickets and summer bugs.

Maya's whole body trembled as she pushed herself and sat up. She was rocking with sobs as her blue eyes scanned her surroundings. She sat on the floor of a magnificent room. Large columns lined the sides as it led out to an open balcony overlooking the ocean at night. Inside, there were handcrafted wooden furnitures and pottery. The large canopy bed was adorned with golden and cream pillows as the white canopy blew in the ocean breeze.

Maya had appeared in the middle of the room. She sat on the floor looking around, wondering where she had appeared now. She was too shocked and stunned from seeing Willow to do anything. Even the thought of moving frightened her. She just wanted to go home.

Suddenly, the large double doors to the room opened with a bang. Maya jumped as a very familiar figure walked in. She scurried to her feet as he walked towards her. For a minute, Maya's heart leaped up.

Can he see me? She wondered.

But as the man walked right past her, she knew he didn't know she was in the room. Maya wasn't sure who he was. Or more like which version. The man before her was like a great combination of Nick, Emir and Roy. whatever his name was not, it didn't matter. What mattered was that Maya could spot him anywhere and know who he was. She would never forget those eyes.

Maya's eyes followed her mate as he tossed aside the roll of paper he was holding. It hit the side of the table and bounced off. Both Maya and her mate stared at it for a few seconds. She wondered if he would pick it up, but when he sighed and collapsed on his bed, she knew he wasn't in the mood. Maya observed him from where she stood. Through the sheer white curtains of the canopy, her eyes trailed his movements as he took off the shirt he had been wearing as he tossed it aside too.

Within a few seconds, the young witch found herself standing in the darkness as her mate turned out the lights and buried his face in the pillows for the night. The silver moonlight poured into the room from the balcony along with a cool breeze which made Maya's bones shiver. With soft steps, she walked out into the open air and darted her eyes to the skies.

A lonely tear ran down Maya's eyes when she realized there was just one moon in the sky. She didn't know why, but the thought of seeing the three moons again terrified her.

For a long time, Maya stood in the night air. She didn't know what to do with herself as her mate, who was completely unaware of her, slept in the room as she hung in limbo between time. With a heavy sigh, she walked over to the edge of the balcony. The dark ocean stretching out to infinity was like a vast desert. And ironically, in the dark, Maya spotted ginormous sand dunes by the shore. The steep clips of the sand led directly into the unforgiving water below.

Slowly, as Maya stood by the railing, the temperature began to drop. Goosebumps began to rise on her skin as she rubbed her hands up and down her arms to heat herself up. A fear, darker than night itself, began to make itself at home in her heart. What if she never returned home?

Maya shook her head. That wasn't possible. Her mother would never allow that. She would figure out a way to pull her out.

Suddenly, as Maya stood chewing on her bottom lip worrying about her return, a large hand gripped her ankle through the railings of the balcony. A chilling scream came out of her mouth as she was pulled forward over the railing.

Maya felt her body be pulled off the solid ground and hurled forward. Some unknown force in front of her pulled her at with frightening aggression. Once her whole body was over the railing, it disappeared leaving her to the mercy of gravity. Maya screamed once more as she felt her body start to drop in the air. She knew there was no saving her as her arms flared and the dark waters from below opened it's embrace for her.

Abruptly, a warm hand wrapped around Maya's wrist.

"I got you," a deep voice said from the balcony as they held Maya's dangling body over the waters.

Maya's eyes snapped up as they connected with her mate. She gasped as he began to pull her up. She didn't know what left her more shocked. The fact that she almost fell to her death or that her mate was not only looking at her, but also touching her.

"Give me your other hand," he said as Maya stared at him with wide eyes.

"Wh-what's your name?" Maya asked.

"Really not important right now, birdie,"

Maya felt as if she was floating outside of her body. She could not explain what was happening to her at all. Like an automatic robot, she raised her other hand as her mate grabbed it. He began to pull her over the balcony when out of the blue the same force that had pulled her over appeared again.

Maya screamed as the weight wrapped itself around her ankles and pulled her down. She was dragged down a few inches as her mate's upper body hung over the railing gripping onto her hands.

"Stay still," he told her as he tried to pull her up again. "Don't look down. Look at me."

Maya lifted her tear filled eyes up at him. In the cold dark night, she saw a small golden light appear on the inside of her mate's forearm. She squinted her eyes to get a better look as she hung in the air in a strange tug of war. Maya's fingers held onto her mate's hands for dear life as he began to pull her from the evil below. However, she found herself more fascinated by the glowing design on his arm then anything else. Her heart began to hammer in her chest as she stared at the eerie glow.

"What's your name?" Maya asked again. She surprised both her mate and herself by how calm her voice was. She felt him look down at her and pause for just a second to make sure she hadn't lost her mind.

"How the hell did you get here?"

"I -" Maya opened her mouth just as the need to blink overtook her. She felt her eyes begin to burn and itch as her lids dropped slowly.

The next thing she knew, everything around her vanished. When she opened her eyes back up, she was laying a table in her mother's lab.

"Maya!" Gemma gasped as she threw her arms around her daughter.

"Oh thank god," Exton sighed with great relief as he rushed forward and pulled his daughter and wife into his arms.

"Mom...." Maya said in confusion as she blinked.

"You're okay baby," Gemma said as she sobbed and kissed the girl's head. "You're fine. You're home now."

Maya felt her insides disappear as a painful punch of reality knocked her breath out. She had almost just drowned in an ocean. Her mate, from the past, had seen her. And now all that was gone. She was back in her mother's embrace. Safe and sound.

But why didn't that make her happy?

Maya curled up into a ball as her parents showered her with their love and affection. Adeline joined them soon as she hung from her twin's neck and sobbed.

"You are so stupid!" Adeline said as she pushed Maya's shoulder. "What were you thinking? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I...." Maya looked around at everyone. She couldn't get over the restless feeling in her chest. Everyone's worried eyes made her feel grounded. But at the same time, the brown eyes looking down at her from the balcony still danced over her mind.

"Maya..." Adeline said gently when the girl didn't speak.

"I...." Maya turned to her twin. "I didn't get his name."

___________________________

To say Maya was in trouble would have been the biggest understatement of the century.

Gemma and Exton were furious. After the joy of her safe return, their anger appeared. They sat Maya down and had her explain everything she had done and seen. Even through her father's poker face, Maya could see his worries and heartbreak. She knew she had messed up big times. And she was ready to accept all the consequences.

Because of how worried her parents were, Maya decided to leave out the part about seeing her dead bodies. She also left out the part about her mate seeing her twice. Gemma asked her over and over if she had explained everything and Maya quietly nodded her head. She was terrified of what her parents would say if they knew the whole truth.

"Maya," Exton said after a while as he leaned forward and took his daughter's hands. "You know you can tell us anything, right sweetheart?"

"Yes," Maya nodded avoiding his eyes.

"Is there anything else that you are not telling us?" He asked in a calm voice.

Maya dropped her gaze and looked at her shoes, "No."

And with that, Gemma and Exton dropped the subject. Maya sat around as Adam and her mother fed her potions and made her charms. They explained it was all necessary to ward off the Fey sprites she had begun to awaken.

"It would have slowly taken over your body," Adam explained as he pushed a little sack of wolf's bane into a heart shaped locket and put it onto a necklace. "Your mind was already doing the spells without your permission. A few days more and the Fey would have locked you out of your own mind."

"And trust me," Gemma said with a deep frown. "It's not fun watching yourself be controlled by someone else."

"I'm sorry," Maya murmured as she lowered her gaze.

"That is not going to do anything now," Gemma said sternly. She locked the necklace around Maya's neck and handed her another potion. "Drink."

"How did you get me out?" Maya asked as she gulped down the potion.

"Old spells and lots and lots of praying."

"Mom...." Maya frowned as her tears dropped from her eyes. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for any of this to happen."

"I know," Gemma said as she tried to stay strong and scold her daughter. "There is a reason witches train. Magic is not like cooking. It is deadly. I am so very disappointed in you, Maya. You have no idea. Do you have any idea what could have happened to you?"

"I....I was just..."

"You will take my place one day," Gemma's voice rose just a fraction. "People are going to look up to you for guidance. How did you even think it would be okay for you to touch those books after I told you not to?"

Maya silently sobbed as her mother yelled. Adam kept his mouth shut as he worked on the charms, letting the supreme witch discipline her daughter.

"Your father was ready to lose his mind," Gemma continued. "He was the one who found you laying on the floor in your room. Maya, do you really understand what you have done? Do you understand how worried everyone was? I thought my magic wouldn't work. Xavier was ready to pull the pixie king out of prison to help save you."

"I'm so sorry," Maya wept as she cowered in front of her mother.

Gemma suddenly rushed forward and pulled her daughter into her arms. She buried the girl's face in her chest and shut her eyes as her tears fell.

"I would never be able to live with myself if anything happened to you," she whispered to Maya. "You, Adeline, and your dad are my world. I would be a mess if I lost you."

"I'm so sorry mom," Maya wrapped her arms around her mother. "I will never do it again."

________________________

10 years later ( Maya is now 23, Maksim and Ella are 19, Clare 15)

"Just pick on!" Maya said impatiently as she waited for Adeline to pick a tie.

"It has to be right," Adeline said as she rolled her eyes.

"As your mate, Ben should like whatever you get him. If he doesn't then sis, he ain't the one,"

"He already had an ash gray tie," Adeline frowned. "What do you think of Mink Gray?"

"They both look identical to me,"

"They're not," Adeline held up the two ties. "Look this one is a bit more white and this one is a bit more blue."

Maya narrowed her eyes as she looked between the two ties and then to her sister, "Unless he's tying you up in bed, why does it matter what shade of gray he's wearing?"

"Maya," Adeline stomped her feet. "You are no help. I would have asked Ella."

"Maksim has her tied up," Maya snickered.

"Ew," Adeline smacked her sister's arm. Maya laughed as she saw her sister blush and then look at her through her dark lashes, "You think that's what they're doing right now?"

"He rented a whole private beach," Maya laughed. "What else would they be doing?"

"I don't want to think about that," Adeline shook her head. "I'm getting really disturbing images in my mind."

"How do you and Ben get freaky?"

"Maya!" Adeline gasped.

"You two probably have really boring sex,"

"We do not!"

"So it's good?" Maya raised a brow.

"I'm not telling you. I don't kiss and tell."

"Ah honey," Maya patted Adeline's arm. "It's okay if there is no excitement."

"Stop it," Adeline pushed her sister playfully. "You have plenty of fun."

"Plenty, huh?"

"Anything else I can help you with ma'am?" The sales lady at the store came up to where Maya and Adeline stood holding the ties.

"No, we're all good," Adeline smiled at her. "Can you please pack these two for me?"

"You're getting both?" Maya asked in surprise. "Then what was the point of the last forty minutes?"

"I didn't ask you to come with me, you know." Adeline laughed as she handed the woman her card.

"My spell is the only thing keeping the cameras and crowd away right now," Maya laughed. "You need me here to shop in peace."

"Thank you for coming," Adeline leaned forward and kissed her sister's cheek.

"You said we would get food,"

"And we will. Right after this."

Maya huffed impatiently as Adeline waited for the ties to be packed. She began to walk around the store and run her hands through the racks of expensive clothes as she hummed to herself quietly. She would never admit it, but it was always fun to hang out with Adeline and be normal for a few hours. Ever since Maya learned the deception spell on her seventeen birthday she had been using it to get out of the public eye whenever needed. It wasn't always fun to have your picture taken. The spell made their face unrecognizable to anyone who looked at them. The sales woman talking to Adeline looked right at her face, but nothing about Adeline's appearance would be stored in her memory. She would think the two girls were just random shoppers.

"Maya," Adeline said from the counter as she looked over her shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"What do you think of that purse by the window?"

"The navy one or the pink one?"

"The navy one,"

"Let me see," Maya walked over to the window display of the sop and picked up the little purse her sister had pointed out. She held it up in front of her face to examine the item when something outside caught her attention.

The purse dropped from Maya's hand, knocking over other things in the display as her eyes grew wide in shock.

There, standing across the street, was a man she thought she would never see again. His curly black hair and playful eyes were focused on the oncoming traffic as he spoke on the phone waiting for the light to change.

As if sensing Maya's eyes, the man looked up and their gaze met.

Mirza.

What now? What will happen next? :D