• “You don’t believe us, do you?” A gentle whisper echoes through my room, wrestling me from my sleep.

    I sit up in what I guess is ‘my bed’ and look around. I look to the open window showing the moon in all its glory, resting above the world. I take a closer look to realize that the moon isn’t white anymore, it looks as if it’s a huge diamond in the sky, producing its own light instead of reflecting the sun’s. It makes it easier to see around the room. I spot the dark figure, sitting in the chair Dean was when I first woke up in this house.

    “I’m sleeping. Can we discuss this some other time?” I plead in an exhausted tone.

    “No. You don’t seem to understand how important this is. Your life, my life, Damien’s life, everyone you’ve ever known, their life depends on how you handle this. I’m not going to waste anytime. You need to understand this now.” I recognize the smooth voice now, it’s Michael.

    I sigh, close my eyes, and collapse into my bed. This whole wanting to have the apocalypse talk during my beauty sleep thing is not working for me. I turn on my side and pretend to sleep. When I open my eyes, I see Michael’s face level with mine. The surprise of it makes me gasp.

    “You weren’t thinking of falling asleep now were you?” He smiles. Gosh, that is a wonderful smile.

    “Of course not,” I sigh.

    He stands up and holds out his hand.
    “Here. I guess I can show you that this is all real, better than I can explain to you.” Michael looks around a little nervously as he says the last part. That’s suspicious. I bet he’s doing something he’s not supposed to be doing.

    I look at his hand, then up at his beautiful eyes.
    “Damien doesn’t know that you’re in here, does he?” I smile.

    He hesitates for a moment. Then says a reluctant, “No.”
    If Damien isn’t aware of this, then it must be something fun. I check to make sure I’m still wearing the shirt and jeans I was earlier then slap a smile on my face.

    “Well,” I take his surprisingly warm hand, “what kind of sister would I be if I didn’t do things behind my brother’s back that would purposefully get him mad?” I playfully respond.

    “That’s the spirit!” He yanks me up and throws me onto his back. I breathe in his scent of cinnamon and citrus. The warmth of his back makes me shiver with pleasure.

    His body shakes for a moment then I suddenly drop two feet but we’re not even out the window.
    I land on something furry and warm. Looking down, I realize I am now on the back of a large animal.

    “What the hell?!” I scream.

    The large animal takes off like a bullet at the sound of my voice. Out the window, down a tree, through a field at an amazing speed. My fingers dig into the fur of what I now think is an overgrown leopard or cheetah. I don’t care if I pull all the fur off of this damn thing, I just don’t want to fall off. We’re passing rivers and cracks in the earth so fast that I can’t tell when we’re on solid ground. The crystal moon remains the only constant on this wild journey.

    A warm wind whips across my face and we come to an abrupt stop. The stop is so sudden that I go flying a few feet forward. I shake it off then look up to see Michael standing in front of me, looking breath-taking even with his messy short hair and ragged clothing. All the pieces fall into place. Now it makes sense.

    “You’re a….a,” I stutter.
    “A shape shifter, yes. Now that we’ve got that established, let’s move on shall we?” He says in such a normal tone, like it isn’t amazing to be able to turn into a leopard-cheetah thing.

    Michael helps me to my feet. I look around, amazed at the rush of colors and shapes now in my view. Bright lights reflect creatures of every height, every color, and some that I can’t find the words to describe them are walking in a bustling crowd around booths of foods and various items. A loud screech brings my attention to the sky, where a group of giant, golden birds with long tails circle around.

    “What is this?” I ask as we walk closer to the mass of creatures.
    “A festival.”
    “For what?”
    “For everything and anything. Does there need to be a reason to gather with fellow beings for a joyous night?” He asks in a confused voice.
    “Um, I guess not. It’s just so…weird.” I laugh at myself using the word ‘weird’ when there are huge birds, fish-looking people, and talking animals surrounding me.
    Michael looks at me in a questioning way, then continues forward.
    He takes my hand and squeezes it gently.
    “You’ll be safe here,” he whispers in my ear, almost touching my ears with his lips. I shiver again.
    “Now,” he begins in a louder voice, “go have some fun!” He yells as he shoves me into the moving crowd.

    A rush of sweet, unfamiliar smells embraces me when I hit the crowd. Wild sounds of foreign languages flow through my ears. I brace myself for the impact of harsh bodies trying to push me out of the way, but instead, soft limbs gently slide me out of their paths. I smile in relief.

    Wait, what?! No way, I don’t want to go around here by myself! This is so unfair. Stupid Michael, I’m kicking his a** when we get back.

    “Hello there!” A small voice echoes in my ears.
    What? I jerk my head around to see who just spoke to me.
    “Don’t turn your head like that sweetie, you’ll put me lights out!” The slightly squeaky voice says.
    “What? Hello?” I ask the air.
    The crowd continues to flow gently around where I’ve stopped. It still amazes me. This wouldn’t happen in a place like Los Angeles or New York.

    “I’m sorry. My English is dreadful. Just dreadful,” then an extremely small person with jagged, yellow wings appears on my nose, “Perhaps you speak a pinch of Korean? That’s my best Human language.” The tiny thing asks.
    I stand there just looking at the small person with short blond hair and sparkly skin for a while. This is a little rude I guess, but I can’t tell whether it’s a he or a she. Not because it’s ugly, because it’s so beautiful but the short hair cut leaves me questioning.
    “Uh, I’m sorry. I don’t know any Korean.” I finally say while straining my eyes cross to look at the person on my nose. Gosh, I must look ridiculous.

    “Ah, that’s fine then. Oh dear! Where are my manners?! My name is Nica. It’s a pleasure to meet ya!” The tiny person holds out his/her hand, looks down at it, then laughs.
    “Well that’s not going to work now is it?” Small teeth glisten as she/he smiles at me.
    I can’t help but smile back at the pure adorableness of this creature.
    “I’m Desiree. Uh, I’m new around here. Do you mind helping me?”
    “New, eh? No problem! Let me take ya to Maricella she’s full of help!” The creature jumps up and flies in spurts above the crowd, waving to me to follow. I do my best to push through the mass of creatures as courteously as I can, but it’s difficult. A few of them give me dirty looks. I give them apologetic smiles and they move along their business.

    After a few minutes of following the glittering fairy-thing, we stop at a booth with black drapes and purple flowers dangling over the top. I watch until Nica disappears inside, then I reluctantly follow.

    The inside is filled with lit candles of all heights and colors. Fire hazard much? They do release some wonderful aromas throughout the air of the tent though. The flames of the candles dance with rapid movement, mesmerizing me with their intricate sways of light.

    “Beautiful, isn’t it?” A tall, lanky women says from the left of me.

    I turn to see her dressed in various shades of red, with long, vermillion hair moving as rapidly as the candle flames. There’s no wind in the tent, but her hair continues to dance about her face. Her face is old and tired but with kind, orange eyes.
    Oh crap, she asked me sometime, didn’t she?

    “It’s okay my child. I was merely asking about your opinion of the candle fire.” She says in a raspy voice.

    “I am Maricella. I sense a great many troubles in your path. You will need all that I bestow upon you if you are to survive,” I flinch at the last words.
    “No need to worry child,” she smiles a sincere smile, “I also sense your determination and great inner power. You just need to believe in you as others do.” Maricella tells me.
    I’ve only been in here for a few seconds and already I feel like I’ve known her for ever. She talks as though she’s known me for even longer. It’s strange, but her words make me feel safe.

    “Now!” She announces as she claps her hands together.
    “Let’s do this quickly. Michael can’t hold on for much longer.” Maricella whispers.
    What can’t he hold on to? I feel like I’m missing something very important about Michael.
    Before I can ask, Maricella becomes busy, speaking unfamiliar words into her hands with fierce determination. I take a few steps closer to see exactly what she’s doing. Then she blows the air from her hands at my face. The impact sends my flying out of the tent.