Chapter 52: Reflection

Chapter 52: Reflection
Lilac

"Cooking and dancing? Is there a special occasion today Mikrös?" Roman asks as he walks into the kitchen.

"I am married. Is it not right that I learn how to cook?" I retort, trying as much as possible not to let the hot water give away from the pots in my hands. I really am hopeless in the kitchen, but I will still cook. As long as I put my heart to it, I can do anything. Isn't that what these motivational books say?

"What are you even trying to cook?"

I gulp, setting the pot down on the floor and already feeling frustrated. "Chicken nuggets"

"What?"

"I'm trying to make chicken nuggets. Kael likes them."

Roman fazed look is enough to tell me I am doing something wrong, and when he bursts into fits of laughter, my fear is confirmed. "What exactly would you use water to do in making nuggets?"

I blink. "I don't know... Boil the chicken?" I sound so unsure. I woke up this morning feeling so good and it certainly has nothing to do with the fact that I slept in Kael's arm. He was not thete when i woke up, but he left a text saying he had somethings to do. I was curious, still am but I do not protest regardless. We have little time to ourself because of the crisis. Maybe after all these, we would spend enough time together. I wish. Either ways, I had woken up euphoric, my happy feeling brought me into the kitchen, unfortunately I am not good at that.

"I do not think you are cut out for cooking Mikrös. I would offer to help, but I know little to nothing in that aspect as well and I do not think Professor Carla would like to wake up to her kitchen in shambles."

"Of course I would not like that, What are you both doing in my kitchen by the way?"

"Good morning Professor." I greet Carla, taking a step back from her as she advances towards us. Is she annoyed that I'm in her kitchen? "I didn't touch anything! Just water!" I say quickly while I can hear Roman trying not to laugh.

"And the gas?" I add, blinking rapidly. Something I do whenever I'm nervous.

Carla says nothing and it is really hard to read her face because it is blank and I cannot tell if she is angry or not and then she smirks and shakes her head. "You really think I will pick on you over something as fickle as this?"

The breath I did not know I was holding comes out in a short gasp. "Of course you would not." I grin tightly.

Carla's gaze wanders around the kitchen and she shakes her head again. "I thought humans were supposed to be good in the kitchen, I guess I was wrong. Leave the cooking for later, there is something I need to show you Lilac."

"Me? Why?"

"Come with me." She says, putting her arms over my shoulders and dragging me out of the kitchen leaving Roman. She leads me to her office and then closes the door behind us, she turns the lock and snaps her fingers. I do not expect what I see. I stumble back as the shelves give way, opening up to a dark room. Carla walks in and I follow suit, with every step she takes, lights turn on and when everywhere is finally well illuminated. We come to a stop at the center of the room. It is then I can now look around and observe. Mirrors, standing mirrors are the only things that exist in this room. Nothing else. There are probably like twenty of them, each facing opposite sides.

"What is this, Carla? Or rather, where is this?"

"I call it the reflection. As a Lycan therapist, it is quite hard to tell what is on my patient's mind because Lycans see therapy as weakness. So instead I use the mirror on them, it draws on their energy and shows me what they do not want to say."

"So, it is some kind of reflection of what is inside?"

"I think that is a more befitting explanation." She replies.

"Ah. So you can see what is in me if you want to?"

"It does not work that way. I can only see what you show me." I am looking around again, it is then I notice the drawing of a flower carved on each wooden sides of the mirrors.

That flower. It is familiar, I have seen it before. "What's the name of that flower?"

Carla follows my gaze. "Oh that? That's the queen of the night flower. It is from it that the energy of the reflection was first extracted. It is a very uncommon flower and not just anyone can possess it."

The night Roman was attacked, she had it with her. The plant also sits in her living room and then the flower drawings on the book! Why had I not noticed it before? Now I turn to Carla, seeing her in a more different light, she knows a lot more than we give her credit for and I am imagining how much of what is happening that she understands.

"The queen of the night flower. Such strange name." I say.

"It is a strange name indeed. The energy in it was discovered by the late queen Lily, bless her soul. It is also from it the pixie dust is collected."

"Queen Lily?" Lily, I had seen her in my dream, she was Kael's mother.

"Yes. Queen Lily. Your husband's Mother." There is a faraway look in Carla's eyes as she speaks, a look of pain, regret, of something that has been lost. "She was my bestfriend." She adds solemnly.

That explains the look. Carla is still mourning her bestfriend. "Was she the one who also found out that pixie dust can be collected from it?"

"No. Actually, it was found by a palace worker but it was when she was alive that it was found."

Pixie Dust. A deadly powdery substance that works like hard drugs on Lycans, it is more dangerous when mixed with wolfsbane. I read that in one of the books from the library.

"That's enough questions for now, let's get back to why I brought you here." Carla is back to her normal self, her blank face and focused look.

"Why did you bring me here?"

"You were there on that night of Kael's attack, were you not?" She questions.

I nod in affirmation. "I was."

"Which means you saw the attacker?"

"I did."

"Good. To know who the attacker is, we have to know what he looks like. Describing him will not be enough, I need you to go back to that day in your mind and picture the attacker like what you saw."

Realization dawns on me. "So you want to use the reflection to get his true form?"

"Exactly. Now stand in front of one of the mirrors, close your eyes and imagine."

I sigh and do as I am told. I go to stand in front of the mirror, closing my eyes, I transport myself to that day.

"Visualize him." I hear Carla tell me.

And so I do just that. I visualize the man. The man with dark billowy wings that seemed to emit smokes. He had Kael by the throat with his left hand and he had that dagger by his right hand and just as he stuck the dagger into my husband's abdomen, I see it before I let out a yelp of terror, my eyes fly open instantly.

The red eyes.

"Lilac!"

It felt so fucking real... And then the red eyes.

"Did you get the image?" I say to Carla when I have calmed a bit.

"I did, and I know what it might be." For the first time since I have met Carla, I hear a tremor in her voice, a tremor that sounds like she is scared. Carla of all people cannot be scared, or can she? And for what reason?

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