Another day, another cloud above my head. The part of town near the University was always lively on Saturdays. After all, it was the best time for University students to take a break and relax from the week-worth of pressure from school.

Just like any other student, I too was out on a Saturday. Seated in a local boutique cafe which was styled like a garden out of a spring fairytale.

I was there, that day, to fill my soul with beauty. Despite my... situation, I enjoyed coming to beautiful places. I suppose I had the desire to romanticize my life so that I would always feel inspired and positive. A little out of character, but I also enjoyed taking photographs of pretty places I visit.

This secret hobby has not only helped me as a reference point when designing illustrative book covers but also helped me capture moments that I could look back to and reminisce about. Lately, I had been thinking if I should create an Instagram page and document my aesthetic visits there anonymously.

Actually, I wasn't visiting the pretty cafe just for fun. It so happened that the cafe was close to an apartment I had to see earlier that morning. However, the apartment turned out to have shared spaces with other tenants. I was hoping for a place where I would have complete access and privacy to my apartment.

In the end, although the home-viewing trip was useless, I decided to make up for it by visiting this boutique cafe I had seen on Instagram recently. So far, I was already feeling better. I was never one to panic, and although the new assistant professor was scheduled to arrive within a week, I was already constructing several plan B, C, and Ds in order to overcome homelessness.

In the worst-case scenario, I would call my guardian and request for him to allow me a space to stay temporarily. Knowing his identity and where he lived, he could surely spare me a room out of the dozens. Anyway, that was always the last option. Until then, I was going to continue looking for a place and hopefully by some miracle would be able to find a spot within my budget.

"Ma'am, the lady over there asked me to give you this."

My gaze shifted from my iPad to the delicately manicured finger that slid a lilac-coloured note on the white table before me.

"Which lady?" I asked, looking around, surprised.

"That—" The server looked back, "— ah... she seems to have left, ma'am."

"Oh," I mumbled, frowning while I looked down at the note curiously.

21 Red Street
+49, (30) ********
— open house today.

I was surprised. A note from someone who had given this note and disappeared was certainly a very curious experience. How did she know I was looking for a place to live? It didn't make sense. In fact, it rang a few warning bells in my head. Unlike what humans think, this world had many more curious occurrences and situations one could land in. Things that went beyond that of human criminal experiences.

Shaking the thoughts off, I refocused my attention on my iPad. I still had one more apartment to visit. It was 20 minutes away from the cafe but within travel distance from the University and other useful facilities. A glance at the time and I straightened in the seat, I had to meet the agent in 40 minutes, and traveling would take a while. I had to leave.

Back on track, my hand reached forward to the pretty pink cup and I brought it to my lips — gulping down the remainder of the coffee in it before quickly placing things back into my bag. As I stood up with my phone in my hand, ready to move toward the reception, I looked at the piece of paper that was quietly lying on the table. The lilac square note, which curved curls painted into short words, one line at a time.

Then I walked away. Leaving the lilac note behind ... like decoration.

Without knowing that as I walked away... the lilac paper slowly melted... into nothingness.

|||||||||

The weather that Saturday was just right. It was sunny but cool enough to walk around without breaking a sweat. I enjoyed cool days, whether it was sunny or raining. The heels of my boots crunched against the gravel at the cafe's gateway as I slowly made my way out, looking around the street for a running cab. Spotting one, I waved my hand slightly to get the driver's attention. Thankfully, the taxi was empty and soon came to stop before me.

"12 Pettesaleh street, please, near True Max supermarket."

The taxi began moving, and I slowly settled in — silently looking outside at the buildings passing by one after the other. One building after another turns into smaller streets with new views, a slow foreign song on the radio, and wind in my hair... I was happy.

I'm not sure how long it really was, but it felt like only a few minutes before the taxi came to a stop before a large black and gold gate.

Out of habit, I pulled out my wallet — looking at the meter — and took out the expected amount before quickly getting out.

The air outside the taxi was strangely quite cold for the day. A shudder passed through my body as I turned around and looked at the gate once again.

I froze.

21 Redanward Estate

Huh? Wait!

"Excuse m—" I whirled around towards the taxi and felt my blood curl in my veins.

The taxi was gone.

I didn't even hear it drive away.

All of a sudden it dawned on me... I had been mysteriously delivered to Redanwood Estate.

"Hello! Are you here for the open house?"

Was this fate touching me face to face? Shamelessly plotting to change the trajectory of my life?

With deep questions in my mind, I could only keep silent for the moment and turn to stupidly find a tall, striking woman standing beyond the now wide-open gate. She had a gentle knowing smile on her face, a smile that reminded me of someone else who often had a similar expression on his.

"I'm sorry, I seem to have mistakenly dropped here by a taxi driver. I was actually going somewhere else."

I shuffled on my feet awkwardly, attempting to stall whatever was going to happen next and take a moment to think clearly.

Just why was I in a location where I was supposed to write about for a major assignment? What open house was this? Was the estate being sold?

"Oh, I see." The woman looked contemplative, her eyebrows scrunched in the middle. Two slender fingers rose elegantly and touched the smooth skin of her face, thoughtfully, before her eyes twinkled suddenly and she looked back at me with a white grin.

"Well since you're here it's only natural to come have a look, don't you think?"

A part of me was curious, almost intrigued to see what was waiting for me beyond the two large metal gates. The other part of me was alert and yelling to run as far away as I could.

Deep inside, though, I'm sure I knew that it did not matter if I ran away today... I was going to find myself before this tall gate again. Fate was like that.

I suppose the tall lady saw the reluctance on my face and quickly stepped forward, adding in a soft tone, "It can't hurt, right?"

It was like a slow spell, a siren's assurance, but I found myself nodding under her persuasive voice and slowly following behind her.

The sound of the grand gate closing behind us sounded like a distant shling, my mind on the other hand was completely stolen by the grand greenery before me.

Never in my wildest dreams would I have expected the landscaping of the estate to be so ... rich in floral and lush trees. Tall trees with red, pink, white, and yellow flowers lined the pathway reading to various routes, the pavement draped in a blend of the flowers. Bushes of roses, peonies, and gardenia lay scattered in an organic way... as if it was completely nature's design. Beautiful colours of bougainvillea branched along archways and various structures.

The sound of trickling water was so sharp and clear, I was sure there was a stream or fountain of some sort nearby. It all just looked right out of a fairy tale. It almost made me feel like never want to leave.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" The lady looked back and smiled at me, "This way please."

It would be unjust if I didn't agree as the gardens truly looked magical in this estate. So I nodded firmly, "It is."

"I'm glad you think so," The tall, caramel-coloured woman smiled. Taking a turn, the grey-white mansion that had been hidden by the tall flowering trees, revealed itself before my eyes and I felt myself smile. Ah, of course, it looked just as beautiful as the grand entrance area of the estate.

The grand door quietly clicked close behind me as I marveled at the beautiful antique-looking interiors of the manor. It looked like I had just walked into another time. It was beautiful, yes, but there was something about these walls... something about the air inside this mansion that prickled the skin of my arms... like a warning.

"I know" A clear reply rung out into the air.

I stilled, my gaze lifting to the pleased-looking lady's midnight gaze.

"Isn't that why I gave you that note?"

"You're the one who gave me that note?" Eyes wide, I took a step back. Calculating the chance of the door behind me not opening if I tried to at that moment.

"Why don't you have a look around, Gardenia, and then I will explain everything to you?"

I wanted to refuse.

A sense of self-preservation began to crawl up my spine. While the tall, dazzling walls of the mansion looked just as inviting as they did mysteriously, I could not deny the dense feeling of a life-altering change just hanging around the air of this mansion. It made me scared to find out what it was.

It wasn't like I was oblivious to the fact that there was more to the world than what science could explain. My very existence was beyond what science could explain — having a Werewolf mother and a human father —, and my vision was beyond what science could explain.

Of course, I knew that the history surrounding this estate was most probably true, and that the man in the portrait was most definitely also true. I had tried hard to stay away from this very thing... having to arrive at an establishment with such a history... and yet fate had led me here. Why?

"Why am I here?"

The question was thrown to the wind. I asked the question over and over again in my head as my eyes ran through the tall whitish-grey walls and golden decor, to the large chandelier glistening above my head, to the dark-haired woman who had turned towards me.

I watched as her lips thinned and she straightened herself until she appeared confident and in control.

"I have a life-changing proposition for you, Gardenia."

Life...changing... for the better or worse?

"I don't think I quite get what you mean." I stayed right where I was standing, the edges of my eyebrows crinkling together in confusion.

"I will answer all your questions. However, forgive me for being traditional but I believe important conversations are best done seated comfortably, don't you think?" The woman's clear voice rippled across the room before she turned around and began walking ahead.

"Now I understand what a strange situation this may be for you, and so I want to assure you that you are free to use your cellphone and inform your guardian of your presence here, or send your location to whoever you please, at any given time. However, I will ask you to please first listen to what I have to say and offer before you decide whether you wish to leave."

Suddenly the formally dressed woman stopped and glanced back at me, her eyes twinkling, "My name is Moira, I am the deity of fate."

"D-Diety?"

The floor beneath my feet suddenly felt like cotton wool. Was the world really so vast? This vast?

"Well of course by now I am sure you are well aware that the world population is not limited to werewolves and humans. After all, with your vision you have seen many ghosts, spirits, and demons, have you not?"

There is really a classification in real life?

"If you can believe in demons and ghosts, why can't you believe that we deities, angels, and God can exist?"

I couldn't refute. Not a single word. So instead I looked up at the receding back of the moving lady and quickly unglued the soles of my shoes from the floor below before clumsily rushing behind her.

"This is the main hall, please feel free to call your guardian or friend and explore around while I ask the kitchen to send some snacks. I do believe that important conversations are best had over a cup of warm tea, don't you think so too?"

Moira motioned toward the large living room when we came to stop at the entrance.

With a single glance, it was evident just how grand the completely white room was. It was a curved sort of room, an extremely large chandelier hung in the middle of the ceiling, reflecting light shining through the ceiling-to floor windows which expanded across the entire curved wall.

Stepping into the bright room with wide eyes, I could see that the decor was quite minimal — save a misplaced large black sofa in the middle of the room and the flimsy white curtains that hung on each side of the tall windows, there was nothing else. A grand stairway spread across the white marble floors that seemed to reflect the majestic chandelier, it was like walking on a mirror.

My gaze traced the golden and white stairway, slowly moving upwards to see what lay beyond when—

"Gardenia?"

— my attention was pulled back to the lady I had seemed to have forgotten. I felt my face redden as I snapped my head towards Moira.

"Sorry, yes?"

"Make yourself comfortable and I'll be with you in a minute, yeah?"

I didn't see anything wrong with that so I nodded in agreement, "Yeah sure."

My attention returned to the magnificent room and began retracing the stairways. However, strangely this time the higher my gaze reached the chillier the room became. I knew what this meant, the tell-tale signs of the phenomenon. Ah, how could I forget under the lustre of this dazzling room... this estate was actually haunted.

Then I saw it, the object of all the tales, gossip, and excitement. The magnificent portrait of the so-called "nineteenth-century smuggling lord" Gilroy Ohalm.

And the sight of it froze me to my bone.

The portrait was absolutely striking. Hung at the center of the stairs, each stroke and each blend of colour against the canvas was precise, so sharp and yet fluid that everything around me dulled into white noise... and the only thing that remained was the man in front of me.

My eyes traced each curl, each curve on the canvas until they reached two electrifyingly blue orbs, and my breath caught in my throat.

It was then that I realised I had walked all the way up the stairs and was now standing in front of the tall painting.

How? How had I walked a whole flight of stairs without noticing it? It was like I was mesmerised... hypnotised by the electric blue ice.

The air was crisp and cold like we were suddenly out in the woods at dawn. A shudder ran across my skin but I didn't really register it in my brain.

Instead, I watched, muddled, as my hand lifted up and the pads of my fingers touched the edge of the gold frame gently.

It was ice cold, and yet... I couldn't withdraw my fingers. What was going on ?

The chill crawled along the tips of my fingers and up my arm. My head tilted back a little and my eyes locked on the icy blue stroke on the canvas.

Just then, I felt a sharp sting on the base of my neck.

My eyes widened in shock. It felt like a second, just a second before clarity poured all over me like a bucket full of ice water. My feet... My feet!

My eyes snapped downwards to witness my feet were nowhere near the floor!

I was hovering in the air!

I was hovering in the air right in front of the cursed haunted painting!

It was like a bolt of lightening struck me and I jolted back mid-air, unable to contain my psychological state as well as well my physical balance.

This was the first time a ghost had been able to play with my senses and render me so ... helpless. I was trapped in his web!

"Ahh!" A scream wretched out of my lips as my momentum shifted and I began tilting backwards. I was on the top of the stairs, if I were to fall from there I would take a stumble down the stairs and definitely break a few bones or get disfigured. But it was too late, I was falling!

With wide eyes I felt myself fall back, my arms lifted in the air and my feet tilted with the movement. I could only stare at the oil painted icy blue eyes with fear-filled eyes before my head also tilted back and I braced myself for impact.

It was like magic! Or maybe it really was.

As my body flung backwards towards the stairway and away from the portrait, the air suddenly turned freezing cold and an opaque being dove out of the portrait.

His striking bright blue eyes fixed on my face as he flew forward and wrapped an arm around my waist pulling me flush against his very solid chest.

We floated. Floated above the stairway, a good feet above the ground.

Icy blue eyes locked on dark brown ones again.

How was it possible?

A ghost was holding me in his arms.