Awakened

“How can you be jet-lagged before they’ve even opened the door of the jet?” I pointed my chin in the direction of the vampyre flight attendant who was busy doing whatever it was they did to get a plane open after landing. There was a whooshing sound and the seat belt light made an a

“There, the door’s open. I can be jet lagged now,” Stark said as he unbuckled his seat belt.

Knowing he was completely full of bullpoopie, I grabbed his wrist and made him stay in his seat. “You know I can tell something’s wrong.”

Stark sighed. “I’m just having bad dreams again, that’s all. And when I wake up I can’t ever really remember them. Somehow that seems like the worst part. It’s probably a weird side effect from being in the Otherworld.”

“Great. You have PTSD. I knew it. Hey, I think I remember reading in one of the House of Night newsletters that Dragon is one of the school counselors. Maybe you could see him and—”

“No!” Stark interrupted, and then kissed my nose when I frowned at him. “Stop worrying. I’m fine. I don’t need to talk to Dragon about my bad dreams. Plus, I don’t know what the hell PTSD is, but it sounds enough like an STD to be dodgy.”

I couldn’t help it, I giggled. “Dodgy? You sound like Seoras.”

“Aye, wumman, then it’s mindin’ me you should be! Get yur arse outta yur chair.”

I scowled and shook my head. “Do. Not. Call. Me. Woman. Plus, it’s freakish how well you can do that accent.” He did have a point about getting out of the stupid plane, though, so I stood up and waited for him to grab my carry-on bag. While we were walking up the ramp from the plane I added, “And PTSD stands for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.”

“How do you know that?”

“I Googled your symptoms and it came up.”

“You did what?” he said so loud a woman wearing an appliquéd sweatshirt gave us the stank eye.

“Sssh.” I wrapped my arm through his so that we could talk without everyone gawking. “Look, you’ve been acting weird: tired, distracted, grumpy, and you’re forgetting things. I Googled. PTSD came up. You probably need counseling.”

He gave me his you-are-an-insane-woman look. “Z, I love you. I’ll guard you and stand beside you for the rest of my life. But you gotta quit Googling health-related stuff. Especially health-related stuff about me.”

“I just like to be well informed.”

“You like to scare the crap out of yourself Googling bizarre health stuff.”

“So?”

He gri

“Not necessarily,” I said, elbowing him. I didn’t get to say anything else because just then I was enveloped in what felt like a mini Oklahoma tornado.

“Zoey! Ohmygoodness, it’s so good to see you! I missed you like crazy! Are you okay? It’s awful ’bout Jack, ain’t it?” Stevie Rae was hugging me and crying and talking all at the same time.

“Oh, Stevie Rae, I’ve missed you, too!” And then I was bawling along with her and we just stood there holding tight to each other like touch could somehow make everything that was crazy and wrong in our world better.

Over Stevie Rae’s shoulder I saw Stark standing there, smiling at us. He was pulling out the little travel pack of Kleenex that he kept in his jeans’ pocket ever since he’d gotten back from the Otherworld, and I thought that maybe, just maybe, touch added to love might make almost everything better in our world.

“Come on,” I said to Stevie Rae as we took the tissues from Stark and the three of us walked arm-in-arm through the giant revolving door that spewed us out into a cold Tulsa night. “Let’s go home, and on the way there you can tell me all about the giant, stinking pile of bullpoopie that’s waiting for me.”

“Language, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya.”

“Grandma!” I unhooked myself from Stevie Rae and Stark and ran into her arms. I hugged her tightly, letting love and the soothing scent of lavender surround me. “Oh, Grandma, I’m so glad you’re here!”

“U-we-tsi-a-ge-ya, daughter, let me look at your face.” Grandma held me at arm’s length, her hands on my shoulders, while she studied my face. “It is true; you are whole and well again.” She closed her eyes and squeezed my shoulders, murmuring, “Thank the Great Mother for that.” Then we were hugging and laughing at the same time.

“How did you know I’d be here?” I asked when I was finally able to stop hugging her.

“Did your super cool Spidey Senses tell you?” Stevie Rae asked as she stepped up and hugged Grandma hello.

“No,” she said, turning her attention from Stevie Rae to Stark, who was gazing down at her. “Something much more mundane.” She smiled seraphically. “Or I suppose I should say someone much more mundane, although I am not at all sure mundane is a good word to use when referring to this valiant Warrior.”

“Stark? You called my grandma?”

He shot me his cocky grin and said, “Yeah, I like having an excuse to call another beautiful woman named Redbird.”

“Come here, you charmer,” Grandma said.

I shook my head as Stark hugged Grandma carefully, like he wasn’t sure if she’d break or not. He’d called my grandma and told her when our plane was landing. Stark’s eyes met mine over Grandma’s shoulder. Thank you, I mouthed silently to him. His grin got bigger.

Then Grandma was there at my side again, taking my hand.

“Hey, why don’t Stevie Rae and I go get the car while you and your grandma talk?”

I barely had time to nod yes, and the two of them were gone, leaving Grandma and me to find a bench positioned conveniently close by. We sat for a second without saying anything. We just held hands and looked at each other. I didn’t realize I was crying until Grandma delicately wiped the tears from my face.

“I knew you’d return to us,” she said.

“I’m sorry I worried you. I’m sorry that I didn’t—”

“Ssh,” Grandma shushed me. “There is no need for apologies. You did your best, and your best has always been good enough for me.”

“I was weak, Grandma. I’m still weak,” I said honestly.

“No, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya, you are young, that is all.” She touched my face gently. “I am sorry about your Heath. I will miss that young man.”

“I will, too,” I said, blinking hard so I wouldn’t start crying again.

“But I feel you two will know one another again. Perhaps in this lifetime, perhaps in the next.”

I nodded. “That’s what Heath said, too, before he moved on to the next realm of the Otherworld.”

Grandma’s smile was serene. “The Otherworld—I know that it was under heartbreaking circumstances, but you were given a great gift when you were allowed to travel there and back.”

Her words made me think—really think. Since I’d returned to the real world I’d been tired and sad and confused and then, finally, with Stark I’d been content and in love. “But I haven’t been thankful,” I said the words aloud as I realized them. “I haven’t understood the gift I’d been given.” I wanted to smack myself in the head. “I’m a crappy High Priestess, Grandma.”

Grandma laughed. “Oh, Zoeybird, if that were true you would not question yourself or call yourself to task for your mistakes.”

I snorted. “I don’t think High Priestesses are supposed to make mistakes.”

“Of course they are. How else would they learn and grow?”

I started to say that I’d made enough mistakes that I should have grown to be, like, a zillion feet tall, but I knew that wasn’t what Grandma meant. I sighed and said, “I have a bunch of faults.”

“It is a wise woman who recognizes that.” Sadness made her smile fade. “It is one of the key differences between you and your mother.”

“My mother.” I sighed again. “I’ve been thinking about her lately.”

“As have I. Linda has been close to my mind during the past several days.”

I raised my brows at Grandma. Usually when someone was “close to her mind” it meant something was going on with that person. “Have you heard from her?”