[Amoonsinas]

© Crystal Siemens - April 2006

After breakfast was over and Dion and Father had left to hunt, Allissa made her way slowly out into the gardens in the back of the house, leaving her mother to do the dishes.

"Don't get dirty, Lissy" Angel said with a gentle warning tone to her voice, but the words were still spoken softly with a smile as she set the dishes by the sink. Allissa nodded back

"I won't, Mother. I just want to sit outside for a while. That's all," she mused before walking through the stained glass doors and standing on the smooth stones that sprawled out in front of her.

The smooth surface of the stones looked worn down with usage, spreading out the entire length of the back of the Demure Mansion and disappearing into the distant grass border. It threatened to chew up the ends and swallow them little by little until they were hidden away completely.

Inhaling deeply, she closed her eyes as she felt the morning breeze blowing over her body and caressing her long raven black hair. Extending her arms out to her side, she twirled in one spot, imagining the wind was a soft velvet ribbon, embroidered with the warmth of the sunshine and encircling her, cocooning her in its embrace. The sounds of the morning filled her ears and made the bad start to her morning seem to fade within it's siren song.

The sounds of the different birds sang all around her, warbling and chirping along, happy to be able to join in on the musical rhythm. The bees' buzzing in their hurried manner only fueled her with the urgency to follow them off the stones. All of them seemed to blend in with the ribbon that swirled and captured her in its grip and twirled her towards the grass. She spun faster and faster, her feet moving her off of the smooth cool surface and onto the grass. Each blade seemed to catch her feet, causing her to trip and fall into a nest of of soft, satiny ribbon.

The world was in tune with the way she felt inside; an intoxicating dizziness of the fresh air rushing in to fill her lungs. It made her happy to be alive! The clouds spun with her world as she opened her eyes, heart beating happily against her chest with each new breath. Allissa didn't think she could ever leave this garden. It completed her and made her feel as if this was the only place in this world that was truly hers alone, making her feel like she was home. To her, this was where she belonged.

Allissa laid on the cool, dew covered grass until the feeling of vertigo passed, sighing happily as she ran her fingers through the thick bushy grass. To her, it felt as if each blade was made of silk, brushing against her entire body with the gentle guidance of the wind to share a hundred tiny dew filled kisses with her. It felt so wonderfully cool against her body and balanced out the intense warmth that the sun seemed to be shining down on her this morning. She never did mind the warmth of the sun, especially laying in the cool touch of the grass. Today, it just seemed to be even hotter then Allissa had ever remembered it to be With all that, it was a great day to be outside. There were so many things that she had wanted to do today.

Finally rising to her feet, she tried to wipe off the dew that had soaked into the back of her sundress without success. Shrugging to herself, she wiggled her bare toes in the grass one last time before twirling and dancing over to a large oak tree that seemed to overlook the whole garden. Its large branches spread in a wide circumference, making it look as if it were hugging the garden with the thick foliage of the leaves it possessed, protecting the area underneath it from the intense heat.

She felt safe next to this tree, protected by its large, expansive reach. It seemed to enjoy every time she climbed the length of its trunk and cradled her in a small dip it made in the thick, outstretched branch near the trunk of the tree on its left side. From here she could see her garden from one side to another, able to see any possible threat or trespasser to the garden easily. She smiled as she stood, holding onto the trunk of the tree and balancing herself on the branch under her bare feet, listening to the rustling of gentle leaf-speak around her..

Again, the wind picked up around her, the gentle breeze blew the sides of her hair over her shoulders and across her cheeks. Closing her eyes as she enjoyed the cool breath of nature against the damp back of her sundress, her mind wandered away. She imagined that she was the Queen of this garden and the warmth of the sun was the cloak that she wore to prove that she was that rightful Queen, the flowers, trees and occasional bird and squirrel that she could hear around her were her faithful followers. Bowing to the imaginary person at her side, she rested her hand on a nearby branch that she imagined would be his hand, she used her free hand to wave at the rustling flowers and swaying followers, blowing grateful kisses in the wind as she balanced perfectly on the tree trunk.

With her back perfectly straight and head raised proudly, she glided down the length of the branch as if she were walking down a long dais as her subjects clapped and whispered well wishes as she moved through the crowd, trying to be as regal and proper as she was told she was to be by her father. She couldn't help but giggle as she pretended that the wind's whistle in her ears was from an adoring Prince that held her hand to walk with her down the dais, the rustling of the leaves was the clapping of many little hands.

She knew that real Queens and royalty didn't smile or even laugh. Most of them were all stuffy and boring and Allissa thought that each smile would probably end up cracking their perfectly painted faces. As she walked though, the warmth of the sun had started to getting even hotter then before against her skin. Even protected by the Oak tree's foliage, the cool dress that she had worn had suddenly started to feel extremely heavy and hot, and reminded her of a fur coat instead of a silken sundress.

Wiping her sweaty brow with the back of her hand, she continued on to the end of the tree branch, where she stood as regal as she could before clearing her throat. But instead of speaking to them, she had decided to sing them a song.

The song had no words, just beautiful notes that she saw within her mind and feel within her heart. Each note had seemed to be sung perfectly, even to Allissa, each note reaching out to her people,the garden seeming to slow to a silent wave and moving to the tune that she sang for them. She thought it odd that suddenly everything around her had become completely silent.

As she opened her eyes, she couldn't believe what she was seeing before her. It seemed that the world had stopped everything it was doing to listen to her. All Allissa could hear was the song that she couldn't seem to stop singing now, even though she tried very hard to pause to take an extra breath. The song seemed to make her head swim as she sang, her head light and spinning as if she were still twirling in the cool grass under the tree.
She could feel herself starting to sweat, her skin glistening and taking on a soft glow as her song continued. She could see it around her now, growing brighter and brighter with each note that she had sung until it seemed to her that the warmth of the sun was no longer as warm as the glow she felt intensifying itself around her. It was surrounding her and filling her up inside, burning within the notes of the song as it smoldered in her mind, reminding her of a raging fire that licked and chewing at everything it touched.

Suddenly she felt as if she was as bright as the sun, and the flowers seemed to stretch up to her as she warmed them with her body heat. It was feeding their urge to grow as she sang to them in her soft angelic tone.

She was lost in her own song now. She could feel the small wings that were hidden in between her shoulder blades start to grow and sprout out behind her. The glow that she felt inside surrounded her body even brighter and forced the wings from her back with a painful flourish, she felt as if she were the sun singing down to the earth itself and urging it to grow. Closing her eyes, she leaned her head back and sang it out as loud as she could, the urgency to do so pounding strong within her mind, her heartbeat louder and louder as she spread her arms out to the garden. The notes of the song echoed loudly in her own ears, feeling the intense need to stretch out her arms even wider, feeling as if she were hugging the whole world.

Allissa couldn't feel the rough bark of the tree under her feet any longer. All she felt was the soft wind tickling the bottoms of her sweaty feet. She felt like she was floating, rising as if she were the sun! She was only mildly aware of her mother's voice somewhere in the distance, but anything that she had said was so quiet in her ears that she couldn't understand a thing she was saying. The echo of the song she sang was so loud in her mind it tuned everything else out. The glow pulsed around her body now, feeling as if it were burning her skin. The sweat soaking her sundress stung as it rested against her skin, making it cling painfully to the heat scorched skin.

Her voice warbled as she felt as if the heat of the sun and the glistening aura around here were burning her skin, and the song ceased. Opening her eyes she found herself looking not over her garden now, but down at it from a distance. A pair of beautiful white feathered wings fluttered behind her, swooshing in the wind that burned around her as they carried her up very high. She now saw the white glow that had started inside of her mind, completely surrounding her entire body and burning as if it were a white hot flame around her entire body, wisps of the aura licking angrily around the outer edges. Every little whisper of wind felt extreme, intensified by the heat of the sun and felt like a raging windstorm against her delicate flesh. She felt everything too intensely; and every breath that she seemed to take now felt like a struggle. To the people below her, they could see Allissa encased in a fiery white aura, burning as brightly as the sun behind her. The glow around her enveloping her body matched the sun in intensity and only seeming to continue to burn hotter by the second.

Her heart beat wildly against her chest as the height scared her, the ground terribly far away from her bare feet. Though she knew she had them, she had never used her wings before. Allissa had always had a terrible fear of heights, and now that she was up so high she could feel the fear gripping her stomach even tighter. Looking around the area, she could see her mother directly below her. Though she was up so high, she could not only see the worry that had etched Angel's pretty face, she could feel the anxiety and panic in her mother's mind. She looked as if she were talking quite loudly by the way her body language spoke, but Allissa couldn't hear a word she was saying. All she heard was the song inside of her mind and the howling of the wind in her ears.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her father and Dion running towards the house, frantically jumping through the trees and pushing brush out of their way. Allissa didn't quite understand why they were in such a panic, but pieced together that her mother's panic had something to do with their quick decent towards the house. She had to find a way down to find out what was wrong, but she felt so weak and weary right now. The wings on her back were starting to tire as well, the muscles in her shoulders burning as intensely as her skin was. Every once in a while Allissa would feel the wings miss a swoop and stop flapping behind her, which would make her loose altitude until they were strong enough to work again. Groaning softly, she wiped her brow with the back of her arm and then dug her fists into her eyes as they burned so terribly bad. She was so tired, and she couldn't keep them from trying to droop closed.

The muscles that were working her wings burned so badly now that she couldn't keep using them, even though she had no idea how she would get down safely. Every part of her body felt so heavy...burned so fiercely. She was tired and so very hot. All she wanted to do now was lay down in the cool grass and feel the soft dew kisses cool her skin again.

She blinked slower and slower now, trying to keep her dry eyes moist. It felt so good to keep them closed now. The blinks got slower and slower and the light that she saw got dimmer and dimmer as she closed her eyes. Suddenly she felt as if she were floating in mid-air, slowly making her way down towards the cool embrace of the grass.

She thought she could hear her mother scream as suddenly the world exploded in sound, making her head ache terribly with the sudden increase in noise. She felt the wind against her back as it rippled the edges of her skirt. At this point she realized that she was falling from the spot she had been in the sky. Whimpering to herself as her world started to spin and turn so intensely dark so quickly, she prayed she would land on soft ground.

*********


Slowly, everything started to wake up within her body. Allissa could feel the headache pounding inside of her skull, and it seemed to intensify every sense she had. She could feel soft flannel pyjamas against her skin. In her heart, she knew that they were her favorite pair. She could feel the colors of them almost burning against her skin. She also knew that she was in her bedroom. The window was open, and she could smell the night air that was caressing her exposed face and warm cheeks. She also felt something in the air. It was small compared to the strength of the night air, but to her the smell of fear and worry stung her nostrils.

Opening her eyes quickly, she winced and pulled her hands up to her face to avert the bright light of the moon away from her eyes as it seemed to shine down on her bed. Turning her head to look to the side, she saw Angel sitting at the left side of the bed, sleeping as she sat back in the rocker in the corner. She wore a small white sweater over her night clothes, and her hair was pulled into the night braid that Allissa knew her mother wore. But what really bothered Allissa was the worry that etched her mother's beautiful face, even during sleep. Biting her bottom lip, Allissa frowned. What did she do to make her mother worry so this time?

Allissa sat up slowly to keep her head from yelling at her and pulled the soft blanket from her body. Her warm skin reacted to the night's kiss with tiny gooseflesh, but that wasn't what concerned Allissa at this point. Shivering, she slid off of her bed and tiptoed over to her mother as she rubbed her arms to try and warm herself. As she approached her sleeping mother, she realized that her mother had been crying recently, and it made Allissa's heart ache terribly. Dried lines of tears had streaked her mother's soft olive tinted cheeks. Allissa frowned even more and reached a pale soft hand up to Angel's face, tears welling up in the bottom of her own blue eyes as she used the gentle pad of her thumb to wipe the last of a tear that sat just under her eye.

"Oh Momma! What have I done to make you worry so this time?" She whispered softly as she brushed a rogue wisp of Angel's brown hair from the tear-stained cheek and pulled it behind her ear.

Angel woke with a start, feeling the soft touch against her cheek. A gasp stuck in her throat as she saw her heart's desire. Staring down, her daughter's lip quivered, and wide crystal blue eyes were on the verge of spilling the tears welling up in the bottom of her eyes. Relief washed over her so quickly she found herself holding Allissa tightly in her grasp, feeling her sit in her lap as fresh tears staining the flannel covered shoulder.

"Thank the elders!" She sobbed into the tiny shoulder, and the tears that had welled up in Allissa's eyes finally spilled over her fever burnt cheeks.

"I'm sorry Momma!" Allissa whimpered into Angel's ear as she hugged her mother back. "I'm so sorry! I'll never do it again! Just please, don't cry!" She said, rocking with her mother as she held her in a death grip.

"Praise the Goddess" Angel cried as she rocked with the girl in her lap "I was so afraid that the fever was going to take you from me, Lissy!" She wept, and Allissa wriggled to try and gain a breath against her mother's grasp, though she never moved farther then the edge of Angel's lap.

"I did everything that I could to keep your fever down, but you were slipping farther and farther from me!" she continued, and Allissa could feel the warmth of the tears as they moistened through her shirt to her skin.

"I'm right here, Momma. Please, don't cry." Allissa whimpered and struggled against the grip, her mother's body temperature and the warm tears against her skin burning uncomfortably.

"I'm ok now! Please Momma, let me go a little," Allissa said with a grunt. Angel found enough of her composure before sliding Allissa's legs to the side and allowing her to slide off her lap, guiding her back to her bed.

"Lissy, do you understand what just happened to you?" Angel asked her as she tucked her back into bed, covering her with a light blanket as Allissa shook her head no.

"No Momma" She replied simply "Why are you so worried?"

"It started simply. I could hear you singing, Lissy. I thought it was a little strange, since I couldn't see you anywhere. I could only assume that you had been sitting in the tree across the garden. But as I listened, I realized that it was a song that I had never heard before. It was so calm and serene, I couldn't help but be drawn to it. The song was sung with the higher Guardian register, which made it sound as if I were listening to an angel sing." Angel sighed as she sat on the edge of the bed and continued on.

"It called out to every living thing from not only around the garden, but echoing your song for miles. I found myself suddenly away from the kitchen and standing outside on the stones watching you. The music, Lissy it was unlike anything I have ever heard before! It brought a smile to my face and I felt my mind drifting away with the song. When I finally broke from the trance of the song, I found that not only had I been captivated by your song, but I had seen every animal from the forest around the mansion coming out of their hiding places in flocks just to watch you. Your father and Dion had been hunting, and the song you sang lured them here as well." Angel explained, standing up to get a drink from the water pitcher beside Allissa's bed. Allissa's eyes watched Angel intently as she spoke, taking the offered water glass and watching Angel sit back on her spot on the edge of the bed.

"When we looked up, we saw that you were shining an aura around your body so brightly that it was luring everything to you along with your song. The aura magnified your song so intensely, Lissy! You had spread your wings and floated so high we could hardly see you but we could hear the song just as if you were standing right next to us. Once your aura faded, we saw you falling from the sky. It was all your father could do to get there before you hit the ground. He brought you back, and you were laying in his arms so limp and lifeless! I thought you were about to pass over to the valley of the ancients right there. You looked such a sight! You had surrounded yourself in your wings, your cheeks and arms looked as if you had sunburned them, and you were drenched in sweat."

Pausing for a moment, she looked at Allissa with a thoughtful gaze "Do you understand what happens when children get the fevers?" Angel asked Allissa as she leaned over to feel her forehead with her lips.

"No, Momma, I do not," she replied, looking up at Angel as she watched her mother lean over to feel her forehead, her eyes crossing upwards comically. "What happens?" she asked as a wisp of Angel's brown hair fell down over her cheek and laid against Allissa's. Allissa gently pushed the hair from her face and tucked it behind Angel's ear with a warm finger. It smelled like fresh rose petals, but it had tickled her face and made her wiggle her nose under the palm of her free hand before resting her hand back against the glass of water, taking a sip before setting it down on her lap.

"Our kind, our race of people have special gifts that we are born with," Angel started to explain, sitting back and resuming her spot on the edge of the bed as she looked down at Allissa. "We all have individual gifts. Some show the beginning of our gifts from birth, but never have the full effect or emphasis until the fevers come. The younger you are when you gain your fever, the more powerful your gifts will be as you grow."

"So, now that I have had the fever, my powers will grow? Will I have more..." she paused to think for a moment before continuing "Empathy? Is that what you called it, Momma?" Allissa asked, sitting up a little against the pillows behind her.

"A Gift, Lissybear. It's a Gift," she corrected Allissa as she took the glass of water and leaned over, tucking the sheets about her daughter and kissing her forehead. "Yes, your gift will grow. But, I don't think you quite understand what your body just went through" Angel said, Allissa catching the little warble of fear in her voice. Angel took a deep breath and let it out slowly, her eyes fixing on Allissa a bit harder

"How long do you think you've been asleep?" Angel asked as she pulled the black wisp of Allissa's hair behind her ear.

"I don't know A few hours, perhaps?" Allissa guessed with a shrug, and Angel shook her head no.

"Lissy, you have been asleep for almost a week." Angel replied, and nodded as Allissa's raven tinted left eyebrow shot up in surprise as her eyes widened.

"Yes, Lissy. You have had me worried half to death. Your body was so hot. Your father had a hard time keeping you in his arms. He had to set you down in the grass, the heat was passing through the wings you cocooned yourself, radiating around you like you were the sun itself. I thought you had already passed onto the world of the ancients," Angel said with a soft sigh, and shook herself out of her own thought

"I kept you in the cold bathtub all night, trying to keep your body cool enough. Dion and Nicholas brought pail after pail of icy cold water from the well to douse you in it. Your body temperature was so hot that it warmed it before the pail was gone. The heat made this so difficult, your skin was so hot it was hard to keep a hold on you to keep you from slipping under the water. Every once in a while the aura would burst out around you and, because I was holding you, it was burning my hands. It was like the aura was feeding fire into your soul, willing you to live when we thought you had given up." Angel continued, and Allissa looked down at her mother's hands.

She could see her mother's hands were indeed red, and some of the blisters around her palm had opened to expose raw flesh. But, her mother never once winced or even looked as if she were worried about the pain that Allissa was sure that her mother was feeling. Gently, Allissa took her mother's left hand in her small grasp and looked at them. Tears welled up in her eyes as her tiny fingers ran over the raw spots as gently as possible. She felt Angel wince before she tried to pull her hands away from Allissa's touch.

"Oh, Momma!" she cried out, tears flowing over her little cheeks again and dropping onto Angel's hands. "I'm so sorry Momma!" She said, holding Angel's hand in hers as she brought it up to her lips, kissing the open palm as gently as she could. A soft white aura started to glow softly around Allissa's hands as she held Angel's hand, the aura surrounding the affected hand and spreading out over Angel's entire body. Slowly, Angel saw the raw spots on her palms start to seal over with fresh new skin, and then the pain of the blisters had slowly disappeared, leaving nothing but the soft tingle of the aura Allissa shared with her against her skin. Angel's eyes widened as her jaw dropped open, watching with a wide gaze as her daughter's sorrow started to heal her hands.

"Lissybear, my dear." Angel said with a smile, excitement etched in her voice "Don't cry, love. Look at what you've done!" Angel exclaimed as she tried to slide her hands from Allissa's grasp. Opening her eyes, she looked into Angel's eyes before the soft blue gaze glanced down at her mother's hands.

The damaged hands that she had held just a moment ago was now completely healed, the only trace of them being injured was the soft new skin was still a little redder in color then the undamaged skin.

"Lissy! Your gift is healing!" Angel said excitedly as she looked down to her own hands. "They don't hurt anymore! They burned and stung as you held them, but now, it's like they were never hurt. Your Empathy has enabled you to heal!" Angel cried out happily and threw her arms around her daughter happily, and Allissa's smile widened until it touched her twinkling eyes. "Just imagine what it can do once you learn to use it properly!" She said excitedly.

Allissa couldn't believe what had just happened to her. It was like a dream that was unfolding, but she was still awake. The last thing she remembered doing was singing to her flowers after the horrible morning's events, and now she was able to heal with just a thought and touch! Pride and love swelled in her heart, and she knew that the love that she felt for everything was going to help her keep everyone she loved happy and safe. Allissa had even thought that maybe this would make her father love her, maybe this was the one thing that was going to allow her to be happy for the rest of her life.

Allissa's bedroom door opened as if on cue, admitting Nicholas and Dion into her room. "What is all the racket in here?!" Nicholas demanded, which made Allissa jump and grip onto her Mother instinctively.

"Nicholas! She's going to be ok!" Angel explained as she curled her arms around Allissa, and Nicholas looked his daughter over once and then back at Angel with a frown, his blue eyes hardening even more then before.

"You interrupt my sleep for that?" The anger in Nicholas voice boomed through the room. "That's no reason to be so noisy! It's early in the morning and we have important work to do in no more then a few hours! What right do you think you have waking up the whole house?" He yelled at Angel, Dion's brows furrowing in disbelief. He would never be upset at his mother for waking him up for the good news that he was hearing now.

Dion couldn't believe that his father was angry at his mother for announcing to the house that his sister was going to live, and punishing his mother and his sister for being happy.

"Father!" Dion gasped as he looked over at Nicholas beside him. "Are you not happy that Lissy is going to be all right?" he asked with a hurt tone, Nicholas turning his cold gaze to look down at Dion.

"What was that, boy?" Nicholas snapped, and Dion actually had to suppress the urge to shrink back away from his father and the angry snap in his voice. Drumming up as much courage as he could, Dion straightened up his back and faced his father head to head. He thought it was high time that he started to defend them, not just watch by and avert disaster after disaster.

"Are you not happy about Lissy? She's got her gift, and she's not going to die!" Dion asked confidently, walking over towards Allissa's bed and sat on the side near Angel and Allissa, giving them both a hug. Dion felt Allissa return the hug and watched as she looked through her bangs at Nicholas. Dion scowled at his father as he watched Nicholas stride towards the bed, picking Dion up by the back of the hair and actually pulling him away from the women who sat together on the bed watching the events unfolding before them in silent horror.

"What I feel and think are none of your business boy!" Nicholas snapped as he tugged Dion back by his hair and with a flick of his wrist sent Dion sprawling across the polished marble floor until he hit the edge of the open door hard enough to make it vibrate in retort to the weight suddenly thrust against it and slide through the rest of it, hitting the hallway wall with a solid thump.

"Dion!" Angel screamed as she abandoned her spot next to Allissa on the bed and ran towards the bedroom door to Dion, only to be caught in mid-stride by the back of the braid by Nicholas

"Don't you dare, woman, or I will make sure that you are sorry for disobeying me!" He yelled as he held his wife up by her hair, spittle flying out of his mouth and landing on her cheek as he gripped the braid firmly, shaking it hard enough to make Angel's head move with each jerking motion.

"You know my rules. If you don't follow them while you are in my house, I will remove you from it." he screamed, blue eyes like liquid fire as they burned so deeply that Angel felt the gaze searing into her soul. "And your little princess will go too! Whether I decide if it will be with you or not is up to me!" He threatened and glared at Allissa while holding Angel's hair in his hands, which made Allissa want to throw her covers over her head and cower under its protection away from him.

"Now go back to bed!" Nicholas yelled after Dion, throwing Angel out of the door hard enough to make her bounce against the wall beside Dion "Both of you."

Grabbing the door handle, he stepped outside of the bedroom door and stood in the door frame, glaring at Allissa with a look that made her blood run cold and a shiver dance up her spine. As Nicholas spoke, his voice was rough and nearly evil in tone, the words ringing in Allissa's ears even after he had slammed the door shut and walked away.

"I'll deal with you later, girl. Don't get into anymore trouble, or you will regret the day you were born into this family!"

Allissa sat curled up in her ball for quite a while, having flung the covers over her head after Nicholas left and sitting under their protection chewing her lip in thought. She had angered her father once more, but this time she had no idea what she had done to make him so mad. She decided that maybe she would just sit and wait it out under her blankets for a while. Or maybe, she could try and talk with him after he had calmed down enough to see what she could do to make up for whatever wrong she had done.

The sun was just poking up through the horizon when she peeked out of the cover of her blankets. Biting her lip, she emerged from the protection of the blankets and leaned back into her pillows as she watched the sun rise. And as she sat and watched, she thought about all the things that she should or shouldn't do, weighing out the delicate balance of consequences that she knew would come from apologizing, and for not apologizing for whatever she had done.

As the sun shone down warmly against her cheek, the decision had been made within her mind. She would speak to her father when he rose in a few hours. She just hoped it wouldn't be the last thing she'd ever do.