The End of Innocence: Book 3 of the Kinstone series
Chapter 7: Decompression

A few days before the summer gathering was supposed to start, I started to grow more and more frustrated with the lack of knowing where it was going to take place. No one in the Coven would tell me where it was going to happen and I hated it. I‘m starting to think that it’s not going to happen at all.

I want so badly to see everyone. It’s been months since my trip to Italy, which was the last real chance I had to be with some of the Coven. But with no word of its location, there really isn’t much that I can do.

I will always say this, I miss Marron. She and I call each other nearly every day after she learned what happened to me. When I wasn’t talking to the girls, I was talking to her.

I’d stay up for hours talking to her on the computer, even after Rachel had told me it was time to go to bed. I would pull my laptop and lay it onto my bed and stare at her image as we spoke. It was always unfair that she lived on the other side of the country.

Her dream of moving to Texas had been pushed back several times over the past year due to the ever expanding workload she was handed. Her company had grown huge, taking up a larger piece of the clothing industry in Seattle. She had always mentioned how her company was thinking of expanding to other cities, with her obviously pushing for Austin.

She didn’t tease me as much as I thought she would about me having someone I cared for. But she did however go into her “big sister” role and say that if she were to meet him, he’d have to earn her approval.

I giggled; everyone just loves to make sure that whoever I dated had to live up to their standards. Whoever I dated. Wow…this…this is now a thing.

I wandered about the Estate, just thinking about the Coven, the past couple of weeks, Kenji. Everything swirled in my mind, becoming jumbled. Somehow I meandered over to the greenhouse, nearly hitting my head against the door. I was thankfully stopped when a vine opened the door for me. I smiled, looking up, seeing Velhemina walking about, tending to the plants.

“Hey auntie,” I announce, walking towards her.

The alraune smiles, “Hello Little Blossom,” walking towards me and pulling me into a gentle hug. I smiled, burying my face into her chest, instantly having the smell of a dew-ladened flower fill my nose.

She tenderly stroked my hair as she held me. I really hadn’t spent much time with her as I did with everyone else. She knelt down and looked up to me, tilting her head, “You seem lost, my little flower.”

I sigh, nodding, “Yeah, so much has happened in the past couple of weeks that I sometimes wish they’d go back to before the start of the year. You know, when everything was normal around here.”

She smiles, cupping my face, “I know you wish that, my cherished little niece. But the world naturally moves forward whether we want it to or not. All the any of us can ever hope for is to try desperately to hang on.” I sigh, yielding to her.

She then taps my nose, “Now I know you don’t exactly mean to full start of the year. For that would erase the wonderful time you spent abroad,” winking to me.

I giggle, dropping my shoulders, “Yeah.”

She grins, standing up, “Now, if you still possess a troubled mind, why not allow for Father Sun and Mother Earth ease your thoughts?”

I grin, knowing I hadn’t been in an alraune in months.

My aunt leads me over to my flower, which upon “sensing” my presence, quickly opens up. I slip out my clothes, feeling the warm sun beating against my skin. The greenhouse has always been one of the few places on the Estate that I can be naked in and not feel embarrassed, another being Silvi’s cave.

I neatly fold my clothes, laying them onto the bench. She bends down and hoists me into my flower, my feet slipping into the warm, sticky nectar.

I grab my necklace and close my eyes, rolling the crystal between my fingers. It feels warm as my feet then begin to split apart and fuse into the bottom of the pool.

A surge of energy flows upwards through my legs as I bond to my flower, feeling it pulsing into me. The petals then begin to close around me. Leaves grow around my chest and lower body, covering me up, forming a semblance of human clothing. They appear like a short dress with petals running down my center. They soon sprout over my wrists and side of my head, forming little flower buds at the center. I smile as my ears also begin to grow longer, spreading outwards.

I could feel water and nutrients flowing into my veins, even the warmth of the sun on the petals of my flower. The flower then unfurls, revealing my transformed state.

My aunt smiles, caressing my now green and plantlike face. I lean into her hand, nuzzling it. “Feel better, Little Blossom?”

My eyes looked up into hers, giving a gentle smile, “Yeah.”

She beams, wrapping her arms around me, “I’m glad, my adorable little niece. Nothing brings me more joy than to see you smile.” I let out a soft giggle.

I had really forgotten how peaceful it was to be an alraune. The sun warming my petals and skin, nourishing and cleansing me, I could feel my roots as they bore deep into the ground, now a part of it. The voices of the plants rang in my ears, all welcoming me back. The ground was moist and the air humid, perfect for plants to thrive in.

Even in this state, I feel more kitsune. I think I really have become one, having fully embraced it. Like my other forms, this is a part of me, and I love it.

My eyes gaze up to my aunt, whose face still beams with joy at having her niece with her again. I feel her hand stroking my face, “Such a beautiful little flower.”

My cheeks turn a deep red, resting my chin onto her chest. She grins, placing a kiss on forehead.

“Now…let me see your neck my dear.”

I pull away from her, lifting my chin. She leans onto my flower and examines my throat. It’s been a while since I’ve had any pain since the attack. Was really grateful for both her and Tariel for treating the burns I sustained as a result.

For the first couple of days, it was a tad hard to talk normally as my throat became scratchy which also made my voice raspy. Rachel had me refrain from talking until she felt the injuries had healed sufficiently enough. It didn’t stop me from going about and returning life on the Estate however.

My aunt smiles, stroking my throat, which again makes my cheeks burn hotter. “It would appear that the treatments were a success. Not even a single visible scar.”

I lower my head and stare into her blood-red eyes, “That’s good to hear.”

She then stands up and summons a vine from her flower to sit down onto, giving me a bright smile.

Velhemina and I had always shared a slightly different relationship than either my sister or even mother, possessing a presence that was different from that of a mother or something else. I have always found it difficult to describe what exactly she was to me, aside from being my aunt.

While with Yukari, who filled both the loving mother-like role of an aunt, or Asha who was the spoiler, the alraune was different than either of them. So like I said, hard to describe.

She gazes up into my purplish yellow eyes, giving a tender smile, “So my dear, what troubles you?”

I leaned forward onto the bowl of my flower, “I’ve been anxious about the gathering. No one seems to know where it is or possibly even willing to tell me. That and this whole entire mess with me being an actual princess, dealing with more suitors than ever before. God…everything has been turned upside down on me and it’s left me more exposed than ever before. I was happy to live my life unknown to everyone, apart from the Coven and those in Japan.”

I grumble, “But no…I have to also deal with the freaking British queen, who somehow manages to have some family member who is single and wants to send them over to meet with me. I’m glad I set things straight with Savero, who is really taking his new role as my big brother seriously and deflecting the nobility of Nerazon away from me.”

I take a long deep breath, “Things were so much simpler right before this all landed square into my lap.”

My aunt leans forward, “I would have to agree my Little Blossom, and I won’t say life often likes to throw us a curve every so often. What I will say is that we must move forward one step at a time, before we are able to retake that lost sense of peace we cherish so deeply.”

I lowered myself into my flower, resting my chin into the palm of my hand, “Do you think that it’s possible that this’ll just blow over and everyone will get tired and stop trying to meet with me?”

She chuckles, reaching over and stroking my cheek, “I highly doubt it Little Blossom.”

I groan, slamming my head into my arm, “Just wish the rest of the world would forget who I am.”

A kiss then is placed onto the top of my hair, “All I can tell you is to be patient. It isn’t as though news of you has spread to the humans, apart from their royalty and nobility. So you are able to return to the rest of world if ever you wanted to.”

I…haven’t thought of that. Rachel and Marie have both been scanning through the news and internet for any signs that normal humans had been made aware of my newfound status. There were people who knew me from the old days, Chris Tillmans being one of them.

So she is right about still being able to venture out into it. Granted it would be under heavy guard, again like the old days. I grinned to myself, knowing that some solace had been found in all of this.

I look up to her, “Thanks auntie.”

She grins, gently pecking my cheek, “You are quite welcome my cute little niece.” I sigh happily, laying my head onto my arms, feeling the sun warming my back.

My aunt and I resumed our old routine of tending to the greenhouse. The dogwood saplings had grown into full young trees, ready to be transplanted out into the Estate. It was obvious she had been developing them even more since the last time I saw them.

I planted the one from my birthday out in near the garden park, but these were much further along. I still couldn’t move much from where my flower had been planted, but was able to stretch out the stem somewhat. I’d watch my aunt as she tends to each section of the greenhouse, making sure the irrigation channels were free and clear of debris, and that the new batch of crops grew normally.

Something about tending to plants always soothes me. I think maybe because I was a plant myself and connected to the ground. I’d watch Velhemina go about her work, gently stroking each plant as though it were a child, nurturing it to grow.

I of course rested against the walls of my flower, listening to the buzzing of insects as they flew into the flowers on my head and wrists. I’d blush and giggle as they fed from them, slowly becoming lost to subtle sounds of birds flapping just outside the glass. A soft haze floated over me the more I settled into my flower.

“Aria?”

I lazily turn my gaze to see Rachel walking towards me. A soft, relaxed smile rose on my lips as my mother leans forward and places a kiss onto my forehead, “I thought that I might replace you here.”

My cheeks turn a soft shade of red, still feeling extremely relaxed. She grins, caressing my cheek, “Sweetheart, I have someone here to see you.”

My eyes rolls around and let out a grumble, “Not another suitor…I thought they all stopped coming.”

“Well…I can’t blame you for your apprehension my dear.”

I look around my mother to see someone I knew all too well. “Miriam,” I say with a smile stretching across my face.

The elderly lady grins brightly the closer she walked to me, watching as Rachel steps back. My cheeks turns a deeper shade of red, “I’d run to you, but…I’m quite literally rooted to the ground as you can see.”

Her smile only grows even wider as she pulls me into a tight hug, stroking my back. I bury my face into her chest, clinging my thin green fingers to her dress, “Missed you.”

She presses her cheek against my temple, holding me even tighter, “You as well, my little granddaughter.” I giggle.

Miriam has been like a grandmother to me since the very moment we met. Since then, I continued to view her as such. My head turns upwards, meeting her deep twinkling pale blue eyes, “It’s funny that you’re the second person who thinks me as their granddaughter.”

Her hand resumed stroking my cheek, smiling tenderly down at me, “Oh yes, I have indeed heard of this Hashiba,” grinning, “The idea that I must share any of my grandchildren causes me such agony.”

I smirk, “No it doesn’t.”

The old woman cackled, “Rightly so my dear. I must endeavor to meet this woman, and personally thank her for taking such wonderful care of you.”

My fingers continue to cling to her, “You’d love her. In a lot of ways the both of you are the same, I think that’s why I fell in love with her so much.”

She leans in closer, “I have also recently learned of this ‘Kenji’ fellow, a certain young man who apparently has stolen your heart.”

My cheeks burn even hotter than before as images of him kissing me flood into my mind. I buried into her chest, hearing her cackle even louder, “I must meet this boy as well.” Hearing her say that makes me want to coil back into my flower and never come out again.

She grins brightly, running her fingers through my hair, “I do believe that this is the first time that I have witnessed you in any of your other forms my dear.”

My cheeks continue to burn, with the only other of my forms she had seen being my kitsune.

“It’s been a long time since I last assumed it,” I tell her, staring up at her.

Her fingers smooths over my cheek, still smiling tenderly into my eyes, “Well, no matter what form you are, it will never alter the fact that you are indeed one of my grandchildren.”

My smile thins into a frown, “Okay…apart from sounding rude, but what is the deal with everyone not telling me where the Gathering is going to be?”

Her head then drops, “Damn,” looking to me, “that is partially my fault. You see, while last year was a resounding success, it proved to be rather…expensive to say the least.”

I cock my head to the side, staring at her in disbelief, “Expensive, really?”

She grins, “Yes my dear. Even this coven has its limits. So the decision was made to locate somewhere simpler.”

I lean back slightly in the flower, “Okay…where is it?”

“Dallas.”

My eyes grow huge, “Seriously? That…that’s so close to here.”

Miriam nods, “Indeed it is. As to why no one has told you its location is due to all of the commotion surrounding you.”

I groan, dropping my head, “Ugh…this never would’ve happened if the entire freaking world didn’t know that I was a princess.”

She lifts my chin, “I understand the chaos that as entered into your life.” Her gaze then darkens, “I too share in your mother’s desire to locate whoever dared to send men to kill one of my grandchildren.”

I smile softly to her, “Guessing that’s why you’re here, to make sure that I get there.”

“You are correct my dear.”

I nod softly, leaning forward back into her arms. “That and I wanted to see you before anyone else did.”

A smirk slips past my lips, “Greedy grandma.”

She chuckled, stroking my back. I looked over to my aunt, who now was standing beside Rachel. She leans over and places kiss onto my cheek, “Why don’t we get you out of there? I do think that if you were to remain there as you are that you would begin to start sprouting seeds.”

I giggle, knowing she might be right.

Miriam stands back as I hold up my necklace and roll it between my fingers. The petals of my flower close once more around me. I steadily feel my body reverting back to a human, gradually losing my direct connection to the flower and the earth itself.

My knees quickly give way causing me to collapse into the pool of nectar, and the flower to rock as I splash around. I look up to see light pouring in from the top of the flower, then to my horror as it opens up.

My cheeks blush deeply, staring up at all three women. While being in the nude in front of Rachel or Velhemina was nothing new, being so in front of my grandmother was a completely different story. I rolled over and covered myself, pink cheeks flushing.

Miriam smiles, “Oh don’t feel so embarrassed little Aria. It’s not as though I haven’t seen children in the buff before.”

My cheeks were still steaming as the flower lowered one of its petals, allowing me to slip down onto the ground below. A bucket of water was then dumped over my head, easily washing away the still sticking nectar. My shoulders slump as it swirls and washes over the rest of my body. My gaze turns back up towards the trio of women before me.

Miriam grabbed a towel and begins to vigorously dry me off as if I were a child. I even let out a squeak when she presses the towel against my tail bone, almost imaging my tails being there. I summon my clothes and quickly throw them back on, finishing with lacing my shoes.

The matriarch smiles, “Better, much better.”

I smirk, looking up at her, and then at Velhemina, “Thanks again auntie.”

The alraune smiles, wrapping her arms around me and stroking my hair, “Anytime my Little Blossom. My doors are always open to you.”

I lean my head into her chest for moment, smiling, and leaned up to kiss her cheek. She grins, “Now off with you.”

I giggled and turn, following after Miriam and Rachel as they head out the door.

The sun isn’t nearly as hot now before I entered the greenhouse, somehow now feeling refreshingly cooler. I look up at both women, listening as they discussed future plans for me and for the coven once summer had ended.

We aren’t exactly moving in a hurried pace, didn’t need to. While it was business that was being discussed, it felt relaxed. I would catch the occasional glance from both ladies, causing me to smile each time. It’s really been a long time since Miriam’s visited the Estate, with the last being over a year ago shortly after Rachel adopted me.

I can’t help but giggle slightly with having my “grandmother” here again. Ever since I first met her, this elderly woman quickly became my grandmother. Always looking in on me, making sure I was doing all right.

I never can shake the notion that I was getting overly spoiled, not without just reasoning. But this was just who she is. Many of the other children in the Coven are given the same treatment. She simply loves being everyone’s grandma.

When the conversation inevitably turns back towards to recent events, I chose to tune it out. This is why I left the Manor earlier this morning, to forget about it, that and my growing frustration over the Gathering.

My eyes are focused squarely on my feet, watching every step I take along the path. I let out a sigh as I listen to my mother drone on about all of the suitors. It was getting so bad that I was starting to feel like Jasmine, with the only difference being that Rachel was the one turning them away.

I only met with a few of them, and they were nice. It all ended the same however, with them leaving, never to be heard from again.

“I heard you handled the prince of Nerazon on your own.”

I look up, finally snapping out of my trance. “Excuse me?”

Miriam smiles, “Your mother informed me that Prince Savero of Nerazon was the first to arrive after the announcement of your new status broke.”

I give a warm half-smile mixed in with some measure of humility, “Yeah…I did, managed to turn a rejection into a deeper relationship with him.” I giggle, “Now he’s like my big brother.”

After the first week, Savero and I kept in more semi-regular contact, with him slowly settling into his new role. There would be times that he mentioned something about his mother wanting to meet with me the next time I visited the city. I in turn lent him an open invitation to visit the Estate.

The matriarch smiled to me, “You truly cannot help yourself in growing your family can you dear?”

I shrug, “It’s a curse I tell you.”

She chuckles, pulling me into a hug, “Now what of that other man, the son of that vampire you dealt with.”

I looked at her, “I...haven’t heard from Drakon in months, not even a single peep out of him.”

Rachel leans into view, “He visited the Estate while you were in Japan.”

I turned to her, “Seriously?”

She stood back up, crossing her arms, “Indeed, although I’m not entirely certain his family knew of his visit.”

This is rather interesting. Of all the time that guy had at his disposal, from the very moment he and I saw each other at Court to now, he never once came to visit me. So what changed?

I giggle to myself. Of course he had to do it while I was on the other side of the world. I bet he felt like a complete idiot when the news dropped. While Savero and I were often together, Drakon and I never shared that same kind of relationship.

Oh who am I kidding, WHAT RELATIONSHIP?! He and I never communicated with each other, apart from his gifts, and he shows up wanting to start something between us? Get real.

I still didn’t trust him or his family, even with the revelation that his dad wasn’t the one who killed my family. His sister is a total bitch, who I learned still is pissed with me, and craving for vengeance. Dear God girl, replace a hobby and move on.

I fold my arms behind me, “So was this before or after my date?” glancing at my mother.

She taps her chin, “After.”

I smirk, “Well…hope it shattered his widdle heart when you broke the news to him about me being with someone.”

She cups her chin, “Can’t say how he felt. When he learned of your relationship, he said something along the lines of not wanting to give up on you. This prompted my asking of why he was so interested in you.”

My head tilted to the side, “What was his answer?”

Her finger stroked her chin, “He told me it was your passion and beauty which interested him. He also informed me that he fell in love with you the moment he saw you and probed your mind.”

I stopped dead in my tracks, “Say what now? That guy fell for me the moment he entered my head?”

She turned back, “I agree with your anger my love, of which I shared with him. The man then smirked, stating that he intends to court you when you come of age.”

I growl, clenching my fists, “LIKE HELL HE IS! NEXT TIME I SEE HIM, I’LL TELL HIM ‘FUCK OFF’ TO HIS FACE!!!”

Rachel then reaches over and pulls on my ear, “Mind your language young lady when in the presence of your grandmother.”

I yelp loudly in pain, “Okay, okay, I’m sorry.”

Miriam bursts into a loud cackle, “You both are more alike than either of you realize. The two of you are extremely opinionated, possessing sharp wits and even sharper tongues. If I wouldn’t have known any better, I would say the two of you were cut from the same cloth.”

My mother and I look at each other and grin, with her letting go of my ear and holding me close to her.

“Well she is my daughter.”

I giggle, “Yep.”

Miriam laughs even more, shaking her head.

We finally returned to the Manor, where both of my knights were also returning from a walk. I smiled to them, giving a small wave. They in turn gave a short bow.

Miriam, upon stepping onto the deck, looked to them, “So you must be my little Aria’s knights.”

The couple nods, standing back up, “That we are madam,” replies Orga, “and you must be Miriam. Her Highness has told us a great deal of you.”

She walks over to them and bows her head, “Words cannot express how much gratitude I have for you saving the life of my granddaughter.”

The pair smiles.

“We live to serve Her Highness and was glad to do so,” spoke Kateryna, who curls an eyebrow, “granddaughter?”

The elderly woman stands up and grins, “I treat all children in our Coven as my grandchildren. Little Aria here became one of them even before she was adopted by her mother.”

The couple stares at each other, becoming even more confused.

I let out a soft giggle as I throw up my hands, “I know, I know. My family relations keep getting more and more complex don’t they?”

Orga turns to me, “Indeed Your Highness.”

“Why don’t we all go inside for tea?” suggests Rachel.

The group nods in agreement and turned for the door. I gazed back in the direction of the greenhouse, whispering a “thank you” to my aunt. A small ring of flowers then floats down to me, landing in my hands.

I grin, recognizing them as clovers and goldenrods, which in the language of flowers means “Always thinking of you and encouragement”.

I hold the ring, rolling it between my fingers and smiles. “You’re the best auntie,” whispering softly, and then head inside.