“Do you have a problem with your sister being half-witch?” my—for lack of a better name—great-grandmother inquires.
I’m starting to wonder how Dad will take all of this…
Marcel shakes his head. “I just need to wrap my head around it and then tell her. She doesn’t know yet.”
“Do you need help with that?” I offer.
Again, he shakes his head. “No, Jazz and I are always really honest with each other. A while back, she came out as gay to me. So, now it’s my turn to be open with her.”
“Your sister is a lesbian hybrid witch?” Aryanna asks with a grin. “Fuck, I want to meet her. Where is the line? She sounds like a powerhouse, exactly my type.”
“Lucky for you, she turns eighteen this week,” I tease her.
Aryanna gives me the thumbs up while successfully ignoring Marcel’s glare.
“Say, Jade,” I say carefully, not sure what to call her, but she seems fine with Jade. “Are hybrids going to live as long as witches?”
Jade shrugs. “No. Actually, not even all witches can get as old as I am or as the members of my coven. Hybrids usually have a normal life span, depending on their other half.”
Thank Goddess, I really don’t want to roam the world alone for centuries without my loved ones. “So, Jazz has silver eyes too?” I ask Marcel.
He frowns. “I’m going to be honest with you. It’s been a year since she got her wolf, and yes, her eyes are silver when she shifts, but I didn’t pay much attention to it.”
“But her fur is not white?” I muse.
“No, she has brown fur, but her ears and paws are white.”
Aryanna smiles. “Cute.”
Jade chuckles a bit. “You can’t go by the textbook for every hybrid,” she tells us. “Celine fits the textbook of a hybrid like hardly anyone else. Normally, you get the hint that something is different about you through your powers. Admittedly, it’s more difficult for werewolf-witch hybrids, as wolves have gifts too.” She sighs. “I can’t believe Justus missed the fact that you were born with the gift of a witch.” She looks at Marcel. “Did your grandparents never wonder about Jazz?”
He smiles sadly. “They died when we were young.”
“And your sister… did you ever think she was maybe a tad more powerful than normal?”
Marcel needs a moment to answer. “I… she has a lot of knowledge about herbs,” he explains slowly. “Without ever studying them. I believed it might be another one of her werewolf gifts.”
“And the eyes?” Aryanna asks now. “Hybrids have silver eyes, always?”
“Yes, that’s the only steady constant,” Jade points out. “But it’s not because they are hybrids.”
Wait… what? I thought it was a hybrid trait… she must have sensed my confusion because she looks at me with a smile. “Witch eyes are silver for all of us. It doesn’t matter if you are a hybrid or a full witch. If you are born with the gift, you have silver eyes when you activate your powers. And because you are werewolves, you always activate your powers when shifting. It’s in your nature.” To prove her point, she shows us. The air around us gets warmer, humid even, making Marcel sweat slightly and Aryanna shift around uncomfortably. Jade’s eyes flash in a beautiful silver… just like my own when I shift.
Jade smiles, her eyes turning back to their usual blue color.
I need a while to allow this information to settle in.
There is another burning question though. “Jade,” I start quietly. “Why didn’t you reach out to me?”
“We don’t interfere,” she explains. “It went unnoticed by us that you are a hybrid. Your alpha blood makes you powerful, so I’m ashamed to admit that we thought all your gifts were coming from your wolf side. Admittedly, I didn’t know that your fur was white and your eyes silver.” She pauses. “Justus kept sending photos to us, though.”
“It makes so much sense now, Celine,” Aryanna mutters. “The fact that you are so powerful as a werewolf…” She tilts her head. “You have always shown so much inner strength, you’re a great leader, and no one in your pack questions your rank because you have these kickass gifts.”
She’s right. It makes much more sense now. I have been able to easily take out all male warriors thanks to my gifts. Part of it might have been because of my witch genes and—
“No,” Jade shakes her head. “Your witch blood has nothing to do with you being able to take over the pack. The Alpha blood in you is strong, and you are a very capable fighter. The gift that tells you what your opponents might be planning is a wolf gift.”
Her words make me happy because it means that even without being a hybrid, I would have been able to take over the pack. That means a lot to me. But—“Did you just read my mind?”