Young Guardian Trilogy by Lady Adellandra Dratianos (the lemonade war series .TXT) 📖

was the safety of her two daughters, Amanda Jo and Anastasia, Stacy. There was something familiar about the predicament. Perhaps the Dark Magic was haunting her, as it once haunted every other Mystic Sister, including me? Maybe the Magic was turning evil, as it had tried in the Crusaders?
I met up with Melody in the middle of the main Dream Realm. She looked like she’d been through hell. Melody’s reddish-blond hair, pulled in a lazy ponytail, was coming out, and she was scared. I felt it with Empathy as I flew down to meet her.
“Melody?” I asked as my feet touched the ground. As Dorianne had said, we looked identical, like twins.
Melody nodded, and then bowed down, not meeting my eyes.
Being the Young Guardian, whenever I visited a Dreamer who knew my title, they would bow. I was used to this, but didn’t like it very much. It made me uncomfortable.
“Yes, my Young Guardian.” Melody’s voice was soft, but shaking.
“Stand up, Melody.” I commanded lightly with a laugh. Melody stood but remained silent. “You called me tonight. Why?”
“The dreams have been driving me bonkers, Young Guardian.” Melody replied.
“Please, call me Ariana.” I said.
“But you are the Young Guardian, right?”
“Yes, but I’m still Earthbound.” I told her. “Since you are my cousin, or so you claim, you can call me by my name.”
The look on Melody’s face was disbelieving. Her silver-blue eyes stared, interested in me. After a moment, I sighed. “I give up.”
I changed into my Guardian’s gown, laden with different Jewels of the Province. Rubies, emeralds, sapphires, diamonds – whatever jewels were known to the Mystics were in my gown. I spread my arms, raising them to the clear Dream Realm sky as the Mystic rainbow of Magic surrounded me.
Melody was awestruck. “I wish I could do that.”
I met her eyes. “You’ve never done that before?”
For a Mystic her own age, it seemed strange for Melody not to be able to perform a simple changing task.
Melody, eyes on me, shook her head. “I can never get the Magic to work in my favor.” She looked at the ground sadly. “I always seem to mess things up.”
She then explained what was going on. Why she had the dreams – and how she saw her own daughter watching with Magic as she was killed.
I realized something then. Melody Applebee had her Mystic’s Destination Vision. She foretold her own death, and nothing past the hands of time and the Goddess Ocarina could stop it from happening. I didn’t want to be the one to tell her this, so I tried to console her as best I could. I changed the subject.
“You said ‘dreams’, meaning more than one was bothering you.” I said, taking her hand and making her meet my eyes. “Care to tell me about them?”
Melody gulped before she told me her second dream. Amazingly enough, it was the same dream I had in the beginning, starring Melody and Goddess Ocarina and the Portal of Time. When she finished, I told her I had the same dream, only I was on the sidelines.
When I finished, I took Melody’s hand and placed it on the slight bulge of my abdomen.
“Do you feel that, Melody?” I whispered. “I think I know how one soul can be split into two bodies.” She listened in amazement. “My twin sister gave me the idea.”
“Twin sister? I had a twin brother.” Melody told me. I smiled, telling her I already knew.
“I think part of the controlled Magic is going to be born in my baby.” I continued. “Until the time comes, you’ll have to be careful with it. Heed the Goddess’s warnings.”
She thought it over for a moment. “That would mean I have six years to live. If the dreams are real, I mean.”
“I’m sorry to say it, but they are.” I told her. “It’s called the Mystic’s Destination Vision. You foretell your own death years in advance.”
“What am I going to tell Michael?” Melody started to cry. “He’ll be devastated!”
“Listen to me. You can’t tell him anything.” I said, the emotion coming to my eyes. “I know he’s your Earthly Protector, just as my husband Derrick is mine. Unfortunately, there’s nothing you can do but live your life as you would.”
“What about the girls?” Melody asked. “Who will take care of them when I’m gone?”
I hugged my cousin, fearing for her yet determined not to let her down. “I promise to do anything in my power to take care of them. Your daughters are the same ages as my children. Amanda Jo is it?” She nodded. “She’ll be ten soon, right?” She nodded again. “My daughter will be turning ten then, too. And it sounds like my twin sons are the same age as your little girl, Anastasia.”
Melody hugged me. “It’ll be perfect. Thank you, Young Guardian.”
“You’re welcome, but until then, I can teach you the Magic, okay?” I asked. She nodded.
“Thank you again, Ariana.” Melody squeezed my hands after she pulled back from another hug. “You don’t know how much this means to me.”
I nodded, smiling. I thought of my own childhood, and how Luna helped me learn who I was. “Oh, I think I do.”

With that, I disappeared, waking up next to my husband. He had a sleepy grin when our eyes met. Once he saw I didn’t smile back, he noticed the saddened-but-determined look on my face.
“Uh-oh. I know that look.” Derrick whispered. “What’s going on?” I quickly explained what was going on with Melody. “Are you going to help her?” Derrick was afraid to ask.
I nodded. “Yes, of course. She’s a Mystic, too. Get this – she’s one of Dorianne’s own line.”
“That would explain the lack of control of the Magic.” Derrick replied with a nod. He thought of something. “What if you can’t help her? Remember what Goddess Ocarina told us?”
“I remember.” I sighed. “What’s in a Mystic’s vision of their own future is bound to happen by the powers of Time.”
“This means, Melody Applebee is going to die.” Derrick told her. “Whether you ease her mind or not.”
I sat up, frustrated at my husband. “Honey, I just can’t desert her. I’m the Young Guardian, sworn to protect the lives of Dreamers – All Dreamers, Mystic or not.” I pointed out. “I can at least help her troubled mind, if not teach her a little more Magic. She seems so helpless.”
“I understand.” Derrick kissed my lips, easing me back under the sheets in the cradle of his warm arms. “You may not believe it, but I do.”
We were face to face so I hugged him. “Thank you for listening, Derrick.”
“No problem.” Derrick held me close to him.
I was lucky to have him. I just hoped Melody was just as lucky with Michael Applebee.

II

That final dream stayed on my mind for another four months.
I was in the middle of dusting the living room when I felt the first pain in my side. I dropped the rag I was using, not caring if something else fell with it. I screamed in my mind to any member of the family who were listening. When my eyes closed to ease the pain with a thought, the image of the woman, not unlike Melody Applebee, came to me. I was frozen with the vision.

She had long reddish-blond hair and silver-blue eyes. She wore a pure-white gown that shimmered in the light. She was dressed as an angel, with an auric white glow of innocence around her.
I realized it was the same woman as the one from my previous vision. The woman who turned from a fetus to a little girl, growing into a beautiful woman in image alone before my eyes.
She waved her arms, crossing them in front of her. The Mystic rainbow wind followed her movements, a ribbon of Magic circling around her. She spotted me, smiling a warm, comforting smile. She outreached her arms, the Mystic wind’s ribbon coming toward me, engulfing me. I had to feel the awesome power of the woman’s Magic. I opened my eyes in the vision to see her floating in my direction. We were face to face when she stopped.
This was it. Another vision of the woman, who I realized was my baby daughter.
“It’s time, Mother.” The woman’s voice whispered, echoing my mind. “The birth of ages.”

She disappeared, allowing my mind to focus more on the pain of the oncoming contractions.
This can’t be happening. I tried to convince myself. It’s too early. She can’t be born now.
“Close your thoughts, sister.” I heard Anna’s voice from behind me. She brought in Derrick’s brother Jake with her. “All of us can hear you.”
“This must be one special baby if your thoughts are in the open like that.” Luna’s voice came from behind her.
“We were in the area.” Jake said, helping Anna lead me to the couch.
“Luna, call the hospital and an ambulance.” Anna instructed.
I tried not to scream as another contraction came on.
Jake was looking at his watch, announcing. “They’re ten minutes apart, Anna.”
Anna nodded. “We’ve not much time.”
Luna came back into the room. “Ambulance is on their way, and the doctor said he’d meet us there.”
I couldn’t talk during all this. Was I ever glad my elder sister was a nurse, specially trained with the Healer’s Magic and knowledge of medicine! I kept calm, letting her do her job.
By the time the ambulance took me to the emergency room, I was close to delivering. Five minutes apart, Anna later told me. In the birthing room, an array of doctors and specialists gathered to help me deliver my baby.
“Derrick!” I screamed with one contraction, grabbing on to the closest doctor’s sleeve. “Where’s my husband?”
“Calm down, Mrs. Reading.” He told me. “Everything will be fine.”
A nurse that stood nearby told him. “Mr. Reading’s in the waiting room. I’ll get him.”
That eased my mind, but not the constant pain. I never felt like this with the twins! There had to be something wrong. I could feel it.
“It hurts! Take the pain away!” I screamed, tears running down my cheeks, but I didn’t care.
With help, the doctors sat me up before inserting a needle in my back. It could only mean one thing. I was right. Something was going wrong with the delivery and I had to have a Cesarean Section.
Everything was so perfect, I thought. What could possibly be wrong?
“Ariana!” I heard my husband’s voice, turning to see him there. He wore the green gown, sanitary gloves and a paper mask over his mouth. He took my hand. “I wish I could kiss you. I wish I could ease the pain. I know how much it hurts.”
“Worse than the twins.” I managed to groggily whisper. The drugs they inserted me with made me numb all over. “Help me, Love. The pain is much too great for me to bear alone.”
He took the hand he was holding and pressed it to his heart. “I’ll do what I can. I promise.”
His gaze went to the bustling energy of the numerous doctors in the room. I tried to follow it, but found I couldn’t see past the sheet they had over my spread legs.
“What’s happening? I can’t see.” I whispered, scared.
“The umbilical cord is wrapped around the baby’s neck and they’re gently trying to remove it without hurting her.” Derrick said softly.
What? My mind wasn’t registering.
He spoke again, sighing in relief. “Good. They got it.”
One of the doctors apparently caught his eye because he said. “I’m sorry sir, but