I took a long bath. My body was sore. I had deep marks and fingerprints imprinted on me and the places he had viciously grabbed me were still painful. After my bath I went to my sister and cried as I hugged her and told her the whole story, while she looked at me in bewilderment.
" You mean to say you had your first transformation?" She asked me excitedly. "What was it like?"
I felt saddened at the fact that she only cared that I had gotten my wolf sense on, despite what Dumuzi wanted to do to me.
"And the boy saw you?" She was afraid.
"He couldn't have, it was so fast and it was dark," I said. "He didn't say anything!"
She felt remorse for me. I didn't even know that he had seen my transformation until I went to school the next Monday. Rumours were circulating and I was popular and I did not even know why. First people who never ever knew I existed were speaking to me as if we were long time friends; the most popular guy in school wanted to have lunch with me. I agreed but he never showed up. Later I would find out he didn't even know what I looked like so he sent his friends to talk to me and take a photo of me. My friend told me my previous date had gone crazy and that he was telling everybody that I had turned wolf on him, literally and ran away during our date. Had he seen me? I was scared. What if this story got out of hand and I ended up in a lab with scientists conducting experiments on me, my imagination was running wild while I was still oblivious to the fact that maybe this premonition could have a chance at becoming a reality in future. It was in the afternoon while in maths class, I received a note from my previous date, from Friday imprinted in dark ink, cursive handwriting.
It said;
'Sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, I thought it was okay because we were an item. You should understand that I love you so much.'
My friend's face was pale as she gazed at me. She did not look too happy. I took a pen and replied to her note. I loved Dumuzi but I did not like his personality. I was afraid of starting something which I would regret later. He was not the type of person someone like me was bound to fall in love with.
'I'm sorry but I don't feel the same way. We are just not meant to be! I hope this will be the last time you and I converse. '
I later regreted ever writing those words.
'If you don't love me then I'll reveal your secret, witch. I have pictures and I recorded a whole video from the date!'
My heart skipped a beat. I did not want to believe it but if I really had not morphed that fateful Friday night, how would he know about it? In Atlantis, if anything supernatural occured, it was deemed to be witchcraft and that would lead to your house being raided by a crowd with torches and pitchforks, leading to your death. So I replied to his note and returned it.
' I'm no witch. What photos and videos? We never really did anything and you can't blackmail me because you'll just be exposing yourself for being a jerk on our date.'
I passed it to my friend Kairi who gave it to him while winking at me and faking a smile. He looked in my direction and gave me a smirk made me cringe in discomfort. He brushed his hair with his hand. His leather jacket's zippers dangled, making a jiggling sound as he went about his classwork. Our teacher lay sitting on his desk snoring away his hours of work. Gossip had started circulating in class, the popular girls were gazing at me with murderous eyes.
"What did he see in that thing?'' One uttered but I still heard her beneath her breath as my wolf senses were heightened.
"He could have as well just asked my old ungly grandma out. I mean look at her, she has no sense of style. No makeup, she a plain Jane who is living an oldie's life." They continued their gossip while choking their laughter.
The resentment within them sent chills down my spine as my wolf side sensed their ambiances, hate, so much hate and rage; envy. Their hate seeped into me leaving me wondering how a human being can feel so much resentment for someone they don't even know that well. He then passed me another note.
'Dont play dumb with me you filthy dog. I saw what you are, an animal, I recorded you change into something wild and think about what could happen if people saw it…, with one single button the video is gonna be viral online. Your whole life would be over. Don't test me because I can ruin you, baby'
Tears streamed down my face as I read it. I was deathly afraid. I thought about my whole family.
'Ok Dumuzi, what do you want from me and what will it take for you to delete those pictures and video'
I replied. He then sent another note.
'Well,... come with me, Anathi, after school so we can properly finish our date. Then maybe I can consider deleting them. If you try any tricks on me, you'll see for yourself what I am capable of. Meet me by my car'
I was scared. I did not want anything of that sort to happen to me but the thought of me being the one who exposed the secret of our kind to the world and putting all my kind in danger sent chills down my spine so I was going to let him do whatever he wanted with me.
Being wolf blooded, I had witnessed many executions of young wolfblooded ones like I, by the wolf council and I did not want to go down the same path. I was young with ambitious dreams.
I followed him after school. I went with him to his grandhome. His father was a billionaire with lots of gold. He worked for the Pentagon, a government company that dominated the scientific and matrix world in Atlantis. It is said the originator was an Atlantic Pharoah, king Mer-tum- Re the first, who descended from the first Egyptian dynasty of pharoahs of the first watchers(Menes) to descend upon the continent. Meanwhile, me and my family were just Atlantic common citizens of Atlantis going about our normal days to attain minimum wage. His home was fancy. It was a palace with many servants and slaves, most which were females bought at the foreign market where foreign goods, and people from conquered kingdoms were vainly sold away. It was grand with expensive wear. His father was not there except for his mother who sat in the green gardens picnicking like a pharaohess. The servants were moving about going about their daily tasks. He took me to his giant kitchen where he poured two glasses of red wine, one for him and one for me and he offered me fancy snacks which I declined at first but then he insisted.
"You seem to like this place?" He asked me. Smiling. "Marry me and you can live in this palace forever as my queen, my heart, my Anathi."
I nodded. "It's nice! Listen, I didn't come for chitchat, let's have our date so that I can leave.What do you want from me, I asked.
"Well , this is it!" He said, looking disappointed. " I just wanted to spend some time with you!"
I began to laugh, I don't know why but I was mostly perplexed.
"You want to spend some time with. ..me?"
He began to get his usual angry self. "You know, if I were you, I wouldn't be rude to me knowing that my life depended on it. But since you insist then come on."
He grabbed me by the hand and dragged me out of the kitchen and upstairs to his room, while I struggled and called out for him to leave me. Sadly the servants just watched in sadness and did not even dare to intervene. The look in their eyes told me they had witnessed their young master go through sad things over and over again. Dumuzi might have looked tough on the outside but inside he was just a broken hearted eighteen years old who pulled a facade of a mean personality.
His room was large with a bed made of pearlstone, diamond and sapphire. There was porcelain furniture furbished with a sacred stone; lapis lazuli. As soon as the giant doors flung open, , he pushed me in the middle of the floor where he just stood there with me staring at him. I stood there feeling embarrassed for my lack of sympathy. I regretted laughing at him when he tried to show how he cared about me. He perched his lips up and moved in to kiss me but I blocked him.
"I will always love you, Anathi!"
"I'm sorry, I told you I don't feel the same way, but we can be friends. Can I leave now?" I asked him nicely.
"But why? Everybody loves me!" He insisted.
"I'm not everybody!"
"I'm not deleting those pictures! Have a nice life my queen, because soon your time will come when you will be forced to give up your life for the evil you are!" He had a serious look in his eyes.
My heart was thumping loudly. I was filled with grief as this man was adamant about me falling in love with him.
"What can I do for you to just make the photos disappear for good. Well you could stay over for tonight, with me. "He held my hand and kissed me on the lips passionately.
"Okay, if you keep your promise, I will stay over!" I said. I did not mind that it would probably be the last time he would be seeing me alive because my father was probably going annihilate me for staying out the whole night.
He was ripping my clothes off in a frenzy. I was left naked, covering myself in front of him.
About two minutes later a maid of his popped in. "I have the dress, yloung master.
He smirked while he gazed at her.
"Alright, give it to her!" He motioned his eyes at me. In a few minutes I stood there in front of him wearing an expensive cotton dress, the kind worn by the queens and princesses. I was adorned from head to toe in jewellery. I was not happy about it and he could tell.
"Ungrateful!" He said to me, "But darn do you look like royalty, my queen. He smiled. Come to me!" .
I lay on his bed gazing at the ceiling and ruminating. Music could be heard being played on instruments. He was snoring next to me. The lights were dim and the windows were open blowing in a little breeze. I wished I could stay here and live like him. I was embarrassed for wishing it.
"Just one last question!" He asked me. He wasn't sleeping. We went and we sat on his balcony drinking warm tea. It was already evening and I would be late at home. My father would be mad. My sister would be worried. My brothers would sniff out the whole neighbourhood looking for me. My house was small, in the peasant areas of town, made of cabin wood and small. We had no luxuries like the rich.
"What are you?" He asked me, arousing me from my deep thoughts.
"I'm wolf blooded." I told him.
"And what's that?"
"It means we are human but also part wolf. We have a human ancestor but our origins are from the wolves. Our religion says we were created by the moon goddess, herself." I replied.
"The moon goddess?" He gazed at me with awe in his eyes. "I thought the pharaoh was the only living god!"
"So are there many like you my, Queen?" He asked. "And your family are also…..?
"You ask too much!" I said to him.
Sometimes he was kind and caring and then other times, he would be cruel and mean. It was like he had two personalities. Now he was the caring self.
I went home the next morning to find my father fuming with rage by the gate.