Morning ain't wake me up.
Something else did.
Something… off.
La'el Jaxson came outta sleep slow, like her body knew before her mind could catch up that something wasn't right.
Too still.
Too quiet.
And that alone? Yeah—that was a problem.
Because the Jaxson estate?
Never quiet.
Not with Ray'n and Ace living in it.
Not with them being exactly three years younger and exactly too comfortable choosing chaos every damn day of their lives.
La'el's brows pulled together as she cracked one eye open.
"…If y'all broke something, playing with magic " she mumbled, voice rough with sleep, "and think I'm finna clean it up again, I swear imma talk to madam Mary and turn yall to goats—"
Silence.
No laughter.
No footsteps.
No whispering like they plotting something stupid.
Just…
Silence.
And uncomfortable unsettling silence.
La'el opened both eyes now, staring up at the ceiling as that uneasy feeling started creeping up her spine.
"…Okay," she muttered, pushing herself up. "Weird."
Her feet hit the floor.Anklet swaying as her feet bare the floor .
Cold.
She froze.
That wasn't normal.
The estate was never felt cold. Ever. Too much magic bled through the city let alone the estate to feel this way.
Not even in winter.
"La'el… don't do this today," she whispered to herself, dragging her hands over her face. "You just got your powers, you not about to start hallucinating too."
Transitioned.
That's what the elders called it.
A cute, polished word for late as hell.
Most witches in Ni'ell found their element early.
Fire. Water. Earth. Air.
Simple.
Clean.
Expected.
La'el?
La'el didn't get one.
She got—
Everything.
And none of it at the same time.
Her magic didn't settle.
Didn't choose.
Didn't behave.
It just… reacted.
Wild.
Unpredictable.
Like it didn't belong to any one thing.
Or maybe—
Like it belonged to something else entirely.
"…Yeah," she muttered under her breath, standing up. "We still ignoring that."
She stepped into the hallway.
Empty.
Too empty.
Sunlight poured through the tall windows, but even that felt wrong—too still, like it had been placed there instead of naturally showing up.
"Ray'n?" she called, louder now. "Ace? Y'all better not be playing with me 'cause I am not in the mood—"
Nothing.
Her stomach tightened.
She moved faster, checking rooms.
Ray'n's—empty.
Bed untouched.
Ace's—empty.
Window cracked.
Curtains still.
No breeze.
"No, no, no…" she muttered, heart starting to pick up. "Y'all not funny. Cut this shit out."
Kitchen—empty.
Dining hall—empty.
Everywhere she looked—
Nothing.
La'el stopped in the middle of the foyer, her breathing shallow now.
"…What the hell…"
And then—
Her magic snapped.
Not a flicker.
Not a pulse.
A surge.
"Ah—!" she gasped, grabbing the wall as heat and cold tore through her veins at the same time, wind whipping around her legs, something darker curling low in her chest.
"Not right now—" she hissed. "We not doing this today—"
Her power didn't care.
It never did.
It pushed outward—
—and the front doors slammed open.
Hard.
La'el froze.
Slowly—
She looked up.
And saw it.
Ni'ell.
Her city.
Wide.
Golden.
Alive—
Usually.
Now?
Empty.
No people.
No guards.
No movement.
No sound.
Not even birds.
It was quiet that even the crickets where quiet like a predator was lurking in the shadows.
Her breath left her in a quiet, disbelieving laugh.
"…Nah."
She stepped forward slowly, bare feet brushing cold marble as she crossed the threshold.
"Ain't no way," she whispered. "This ain't real."
-(Malik)
"You done talking to yourself?"
The voice came from behind her.
Deep.
Smooth.
Close.
La'el spun, power snapping to life instantly—heat licking at her fingertips, air tightening around her.
"And who the hell—"
She stopped.
Because the man standing there?
He didn't belong here.
That was obvious.
Too tall.
Too still.
Too… intentional.
Like he wasn't just in the space—
The space adjusted to him.
La'el's eyes dragged up his frame. Nervously she glanced to him. To analyze or to admire…
She wasn't sure yet.
6'4 easy.
Built like he could break something and not think twice about it.
Skin deep brown, catching the light like it was attracted to him.
Not soft.
Not warm.
His gaze locked onto hers.
Dark.
Heavy.
And when his lip tilted just slightly
Gold flashed.
Canines.
Not loud.
Not trying.
Just there.
Like a warning.
"…You got about five seconds," La'el said, voice low but steady, "to explain why you in my house before I light you up."
He didn't move.
Didn't even blink.
Just watched her.
Slow.
Like he was taking her apart piece by piece.
Then—
He stepped closer.
La'el's breath caught in her chest before she could stop it.
And that pissed her off more than anything.
"Relax," he said, voice smooth, edged with something that felt like heat sliding under her skin. "If I was here to hurt you…"
Another step.
Too close now.
"You'd already be hurt and I wouldn't be wasting my breath to be here."
Her magic flared—wild, reactive, pressing against her skin like it was trying to reach him.
La'el swallowed, lifting her chin.
"Yeah?" she shot back. "Or maybe you just ain't met the right witch yet."
That—
That made something shift in malik's expression.
Not surprise.
Interest.
"…Nah," he said softly. "I met plenty."
His eyes darkened slightly.
"You ain't like them." He finished
Her heart stopped at the thought that he was right.
"Hate to break it to you," la'el said, folding her arms like she wasn't very aware of how close he was, "but I don't know you, don't trust you, and definitely don't like how you standing in my home like you belong here."
His gaze dropped—quick, intentional—then came back to her eyes.
"I'm still here though."
Malik said as if he was comforting a friend.
The words were quiet.
But they landed.
Heavy.
La'el's pulse jumped.
Her magic flickered—then steadied.
Not calmed.
Not controlled.
Just…
focused.
On him.
"…And What did you do?" La'el asked, voice lower now.
Malik tilted his head slightly.
"Ain't do nothing."
A beat.
Then—
"They did."
As he pointed at the weirdly dim sky. I would have never realized how different the world seemed until he pointed it out.
Her brows pulled together. "Who is they?"
He held her gaze.
And for the first time—
The air shifted colder.
"Same ones who cleared your city."
Malik replied .
La'el's stomach dropped.
"…What?"
His voice didn't change.
"Same ones who took your siblings."
Everything in her went still.
Sharp.
Dangerous.
"You lying," she said immediately.
He didn't react.
Didn't argue.
Didn't defend it.
Just watched her.
"…You not," she realized, voice tightening.
Silence stretched.
"…Who are you?" she asked.
He stepped just a little closer into the light.
He was slowly closing space between them in the front entry and was now close.
Close enough that her magic leaned toward him like it knew him.
"…Malik," he said.
A pause.
"Malik Vireaux."
Her breath caught.
Not because of the name.
Because of the way her power reacted to it.
Like it recognized something she didn't.
"And why," La'el asked carefully, "are you here, Malik?"
That small smirk came back.
Gold flashing again.
"'Cause," he said, voice dropping just enough to make her chest tighten and force her to lean in to hear "you ain't built like the rest of them witches."
Her jaw clenched. The way he said it I would swear he wanted to replace witches with Bitches but I'll let that slide for now.
She thought…
"I know that already."
And with another step closing the gap.
And this time—
She didn't move.
Didn't step back.
Didn't breathe right either.
"Yeah," he then replied . "But you don't know why."
Her pulse thudded in her ears slow and loud like last moments in slow motion.
"And you do?" she asked.
His eyes flickered gold abnormally.
Just for a second.
"Enough." La'el replied quickly
"I can help you find 'em."
Malik replied as wanting to kill the tension .
La'el pitched and eyebrow so high.
Then locking eyes with Malik searching for any clue of a lie.
Fear.
Suspicion.
All hitting at once.
Who the fuck is this man and why would he help.
"And what you get outta that?" she asked.
His gaze held hers.
Unwavering.
Dangerous.
Honest in a way she didn't trust.
"You," he said simply.
Silence.
La'el blinked.
"…Yeah, see," she said slowly, stepping back now, "that right there? That's exactly why I don't trust you."
His smile widened—just a little.
"Good," he said.
Then softer—
"Don't."
Her magic pulsed.
Hard.
Alive.
Watching him the same way he watched her.
And somewhere deep inside her—
Something ancient shifted.
Not afraid.
Not uncertain.
Just…
awake.