***
Hush Mama's Baby Don't Say A Word
Mama's Gonna Buy You A
Mockingbird
And If That Mockingbird Won't Sing
Mama's Gonna Buy You A
Diamond Ring

I feel pretty today.

Mommy made me wear my beautiful blue dress for the first time ever!

It has blue bells and buttercup designs and a big bow at the back.

She sits me down and plaits my long brown hair, and softly hums "Hush Mama's Baby" like always.

Her hair is long and brown too, but she always wears it high on top of her head, like a crown.

Mommy is the most beautiful woman in the world. Daddy and Aunt Rosa said so, and I agree. She has big green eyes, like mine, but sometimes it looks more like blue-green.

Daddy says that mommy has the eyes of a Goddess. That makes me laugh.

The man who carries the little boy to our house while Dad is away says that too. But mommy tells me not to tell Dad.

So I don't.

"Daddy!" I scream excitedly as he comes into my room.

"Aeja Bear!" He gives me a big kiss on the cheek and crushes me into a bear hug.

I love Daddy so much. More than I love mommy. But I don't tell her that. I did once and she got really upset.

So I don't say it anymore.

"Daddy! You came back for me!"

"Always bear," He says and kisses mommy.

Daddy is always kissing mommy. He loves her. One day my Prince Charming will kiss me every chance he gets too.

But mommy seems to have two prince charmings. I don't like that.

I only want to have one.

"You look really pretty today Bear!" Daddy tells me and gives me another kiss.

"You won't leave me again will you daddy?" I ask.

"Never," he promises and links our pinkies," Promise. You won't leave me either now will you?"

"Nev-"

"Aeja!"

A voice calls. A guy steps into the room. I know him. He looks familiar.

"Aeja," he says again, "You have to come back to us..."

"Who are you?" I ask and look at Daddy. Daddy doesn't seem to notice the man at the door. He just strokes my face slowly and tenderly.

"It's me... Aiden."

"Aiden?" I ask and immediately remember.

I look down at my clothes. My beautiful blue dress has vanished. I am big Aeja now. I don't want to be big Aeja.

I want to remain little Aeja, with my mommy and daddy.

"You have to come back to us now," Aiden says.

"No," I grab onto Daddy's neck, "I want to stay here with daddy."

"Aeja," Aiden steps a bit closer, "This isn't real. Please, wake up."

"No!" I cry out, "I want to stay with Daddy. I promised I wouldn't leave him."

"But he left you."

"Don't say that!" I shout as tears stream down my face, "Don't say that."

"We need you Aeja. Lani is trying all she can to help you. She can't try any longer. You have to want to live too..."

"Lani?" I look up at him.

He nods. "She's getting weak trying to heal you. Please wake up. Cade needs you. I... I need you..."

I release daddy.

His face is now covered with dark tendrils and he grips my hand.

"Join me," daddy smiles.

"No!" I flash away.

"Come," Aiden says. He's fading. But he is still holding out his hand.

"Hurry Aeja."

I stand quickly and grab onto his hand.
Mommy's long brown is the last thing I remember seeing.

                            **
I gasped awake. My eyes squinted a million times as they adjusted to the bright rays of sunlight overhead. A figure stood above me, peering into my face and stroking my damp hair.

"Lani?" I moaned as my eyes adjusted. She didn't look so good.

Her eyes were bloodshot and her face was paler than normal.

With a bit of a struggle, I rose from the ground.

"What happened?" I asked as she stared at me.

"The uhm...Van went over a cliff and you were thrown out."

I looked down at my attire. It was covered in blood but there wasn't any wounds or scars on my body.

"Did you...heal me?" I asked.

She nodded.

"I was dead?"

"No," Cade's feet approached, crunching on the dried leaves, "You were dying."

Twice in 24 hours? Yaay me.

He sat next to me and gave me a leaf to drink water from.

"That's all the water you could find?" Lani questioned.

Cade nodded pitifully.

"Is... Is everyone ok? Are you guys hurt?" I inspected them both.

Cade shook his head.

"I'm fine."

"I need fluid," Lani admitted, "And rest."

"I know," I ran my tongue over my dried lips, "You don't look well."

Guilt rippled through me. I had caused her to look like that.

I suddenly remembered Aiden and Cassia.

"Where's Cassia?" I jumped to my feet and whipped my head madly around.

"Calm down," Cade sighed, " She's sleeping by the rock over there."

I sighed a breath of relief when I saw her tucked beneath her green cape, breathing evenly.

"And Aiden?"

"He's behind the rock."

"Is he ok?"

Cade shrugged. "I don't think so. Physically, yes. Emotionally, I'm not so sure."

"I'm going to check," I told Cade, "Watch Lani."

He frowned but didn't say anything.

I half walked, half wobbled over to the big rock.

We were in a woodland area it seemed. It wasn't exactly barren but it wasn't really fertile either.

"Hey," I greeted and sat beside him.

He was staring off into nowhere. Dark circles hung below his eyes and his dark brown hair was matted to his forehead.

"Thank you," I stated.

He glanced over at me wearily.

"For...rescuing me while I was unconscious."

He nodded.

"Are you..." I glanced down at the parched earth and toyed with a few dried leaves, "Are you okay?"

He glanced over at me again, this time with a distant look in his eyes.

He was silent for a couple minutes.

"I don't know if my family is dead or alive." He said, barely audible.

I didn't know what to say.

He continued.

"I just want to head back there, but I can't. I have to protect her."

We both glanced over at the Electi's sleeping form.

"She's part of my family now. What if I return home and they're all dead?"

"Don't... Think about that."

He ignored me.

"What if after realizing their deaths I came back for Cassia, but she was gone too?"

I tilted my head back against the stone.

"Then I'd feel guilty. I made an oath to her you know... That I would never neglect my duty. I broke my promise to Emily when my bike crashed and killed her. MY bike. I'm not going to break my oath to Cassia too."

I understood. I understood fully.

Here was a person who believed in keeping promises, who was loyal, who cared about people to the highest degree. Here, was a man.

"Hey guys!" I heard Cade call out, "I think I hear footsteps!"

Aiden and I jumped up simultaneously. He shook Cassia awake and briefly explained what was happening.

Soon after, we were all making our ways through the woods.

"Hey," I touched Lani on the hand. She had been lagging behind all throughout the journey, "How are you feeling?"

"Weak," she muttered as her eyelids drooped. Her lips were chapped and had this pale blue look. If she continued walking she'd probably faint.

"Cade!" I cried out. He was a few distances ahead of us.

At the sound of his name, he turned around and ran to Lani's side.

He placed her hand over his shoulders and heaved her onto his back.

"You're okay..." He whispered to her, "We'll find water soon."

I didn't know how long we'd been walking for, but I felt like I was going to tumble over due to exhaustion and dehydration.

"Can't Cassia produce water from just the thin air?" I asked Aiden at one point. He shook his head, no.

I groaned and checked on Lani again. She was still breathing, but looked like she was about to throw up.

We needed to find a source of water, and soon.

I was pretty much sure I was going to fall flat on my face until I heard the soft lapping of water nearby.

"Do you guys hear that?" I asked and glanced about, "I think I hear running water."

"You're probably hallucinating," Cade chuckled without mirth and grunted.

"No," Aiden observed the environment, "I hear it too."

We followed the sound of the rushing water until we finally discovered the small stream.

Except, there was a slight problem. It was on the other side of a possibly infinite barbed fence marked DO NOT CROSS.

"Dammit!" Cade groaned, "How are we going to get across?"

"Burn a hole through it?" I glanced at Aiden suggestively.

Aiden shook his head. "I don't think we should go across. The sign was placed there for a reason."

I rolled my eyes. "Really? Lani is dying for some water and so are the rest of us... Come on man. What do you think's over there? Big Foot?"

Cade began to laugh but fake coughed when Aiden glared at him.

"Come on Aiden," I begged, "I'm dying here. Plus Lani isn't feeling too good as I mentioned before."

He pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration then sighed.

"Very well Miss Cyzek."

He placed his hand on the barbed fence. A burning smell wafted through the air as the wire melted away to reveal a large enough hole for each of us to walk through.

"Water!" I cried histrionically and dropped myself down onto the bank of the stream.

After drinking and washing my face, I helped Cade get water to Lani.

I never knew how good water tasted until that point.

I'll never neglect the water Gods ever again!  I swore and chuckled to my self.

I bent to cup some more water in my hands again when I caught a sudden movement on the other side of the stream.

Huh.

"Guys I think Big Foot just–"

"Don't move," a male voice commanded from behind me. I turned around slowly to face a group of dirt covered men holding long machetes to my face.

The one in the foreground couldn't be more than twenty-one years, with sandy blonde hair and green eyes.

I found it strange that he was the one incharge with so many older men amongst the group.

His men grabbed Cade and the others.

I sighed. These cave looking commons didn't have any idea what they were dealing with.

"What are you going to do? Mince me to bits and eat me?" I rolled my eyes.

The boy cocked his head to the side.

"You have no idea what you are dealing with."

I grinned cockily. "Oh?"

Machete.

The machete flew from the boy's hand and into the stream. Without waiting to see his reaction, I eased up both feet quickly and kicked him in the chest.

He stumbled backwards.

This is way too eas–

I stilled. What was happening? I couldn't move any part of my body. I could only feel the blood rushing through my head, and my pulse beating as my neck stiffened.

The boy walked up to me with a satisfied grin plastered on his face.

It couldn't be. He was...a wielder?

"Oh... You're a wielder," he stated matter-of-factly, "What are you doing so far away from your society?"

My society? Wasn't it his society as well?

"Wh...what are you doing to me?" I gasped.

He sighed. "This is known as blood wileding, a type of water wielding but with a difference. I can control your blood flow and... Your blood pressure. Which means..."

He bent to whisper in my ears.

"I can kill you in seconds."

"Who are you?"

"You crossed into our territory. You should be answering that question."

"We just wanted some water!" I choked out, still not able to move.

"Did you not see the sign!" He shouted and pointed towards it.

"Who the hell are you? Tarzan?"

The vein in the side of his head popped out. (Not literally)

"Don't...talk to me like that kid."

"Screw you."

As the words left my mouth, I felt an immensely painful sensation shooting through my head. I squeezed my eyes shut and couldn't contain the scream that escaped my mouth.

"Aeja!" I heard Cade shout.

The pain went as quickly as came. I slowly opened my eyes.

The boy was facing Cade now.

"What did you call her?" He asked Cade. Cade stared at him impassively, with his mouth clamped shut.

His face contorted into one of pain as he let out a piercing cry.

"My name is Aeja ok!?" I screamed, "Leave him alone!"

The boy turned and walked up to me.

Cade stopped screaming.

The boy's eyes roamed to my chest.

Whoa...hold your horses lover boy.

He reached out and grabbed my necklace from my neck.

I'd long since forgotten about it. After Lily had placed it around my neck, I'd vowed never to remove it. I felt like I owed it to her.

The boy suddenly looked enraged. "Where did you get this?!"

"Sorry, I don't think they have any that would suit cave men like yourself."

"Aeja," Aiden castigated.

I rolled my eyes. What would a necklace mean to these idiots anyways?

"Bring them to the camp," the boy instructed his men, "Mother will know what to do with these perpetrators."

A Goliath-looking man grabbed my arm and pushed me ahead of him, urging me to walk. We walked for about ten minutes before we entered a village-looking settlement.

Some of the villagers stopped what they were doing and stared as the men continued to shove us. I noticed some practicing water wielding and earth.

These people were all wielders. What were they doing all the way out here? Was this like another Gifted Society?

We stopped in front of a large wooden cabin.

"Watch them," the boy instructed the men and entered the cabin.

"Watch it!" I growled and flashed off as Goliath pushed me again.

The people were now crowding around us, chattering excitedly among themselves.

Oh God were they going to eat us?

The boy came back out of the cabin.

"Bring them in."

Inside the cabin actually looked like a normal house, except for the array of weaponry hanging on the walls.

The men shoved us inside a room and closed the door.

We were alone in the room with the boy and a woman sitting in a chair with her back turned to us.

Her hair was chestnut brown and was piled on top of her head in a messy bun.

She was inspecting my necklace but didn't turn to face us.

"Mother," the boy said.

The woman rose from the chair and I finally saw what she looked like.

I crinkled my eyes. She looked oddly familiar but I couldn't quite place where I'd seen her before.

She was about in her early forties, but admittedly, still gorgeous. Her eyes were a bright green, like burning ember.

Those eyes..

I'd seen them somewhere before.

Her eyes widened when they landed on me.

"I can't believe it," she frowned and walked up to me. She reached up to touch my face but stopped. Plus I wouldn't let her touch me anyways. I didn't know the lady.

She wrapped a hand around her neck and stepped back.

"You're even more beautiful than I imagined."

Who was this woman?

"You don't remember me do you?"

I raised my eyebrow. "Should I?"

She smiled, almost sadly and looked down at the necklace.

"I gave this necklace to you when you were about knee high..."

"What do you mean you gave this to me?" I furrowed my brows in confusion," I got this from my Aunt."

"Yes I know," the lady nodded and smiled, " Your Aunt Rosalina. But who gave Rosalina to give to you?"

I studied her for a few seconds.

"Who...are you?"

She took one step towards me. I took one step back.

"It's me Aeja Bear," her green eyes glistened with tears.

"Your mommy."

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