Soul-crushing revelations

I did my best to work until the day was over, losing myself in Elise's personality to not have to think about what happened with my mother, about all these revelations. I was hoping that everything had just been an awful nightmare, I was praying for that to be the case. I didn't want to accept that a monster gave birth to me and Claire...

But every time I glanced towards my mother's office, I was greeted by a smirk reminding me that everything was indeed real...

"Did you work well, Elise~?" She asked as she approached me, stretching her arms.

"I tried my best." I just said, looking away.

She chuckled. "Oh, I'll be lenient, don't worry. I can easily guess what's been going through your mind this afternoon." She came next to me and put a hand on my shoulder. "Let's end it here for today and go to a cafe. I am sure you have a multitude of questions, and we have a lot of catching up to do~"

"I have a lot of questions, yes." I simply replied.

I got up and went to the bathroom, staring at the mirror. Elise's cute face was making such an awkward expression. I shook my head, closed my eyes, and took a deep breath, doing everything I could to relax somehow.

Get yourself together, Ed... calm down... You can't stay so meek in front of her...

I opened my eyes and looked at my reflection again, Elise now appearing more calm. I felt pity for her after what I learnt, caressing my soft face with my hand.

How many times has she used you, Elise?

It sounded like it was a common occurrence, but Elise's memories most likely had been tempered with to cover any trace of what my mother did to her. I wanted to explore her memories more, but I didn't have the time right now.

I left the bathroom and joined my mother, who was locking her office, ready to leave. She smiled and gestured at me to follow her, which I did.

"Don't make that face, smile a little." She said as we went to the elevator. "It doesn't suit a cutie like you to look so gloomy."

I tried to ignore the satisfaction I felt from being referred to as a 'cutie' and glared at her. "That's easy for you to say. How could I smile after what I've been told? Why should I even trust you?"

She snickered. "Well, without me, your life would have been far worse, don't you think? In the end, I still allowed you and your sister to have fun. Or would you have preferred to grow up as an obedient boy licking your father's boots?"

She leaned closer, grinning. "To tell you the truth, some of my acquaintances wouldn't have minded taking your sister, or even you for that matter, for a ride, but I preferred to keep them away from my main skin and its direct entourage. They know their boundaries and not to mess with my stuff. So I saved you two in more ways than one, you should be grateful."

"W-what?" I stared at her, aghast.

Hearing that sent shivers down my spine, I didn't want to imagine being skinned and worn by a monster like this...

"Yep. Some of them quite like strong and nice-looking young men like you. Be thankful that you've stayed yourself long enough to become one of us."

Suddenly, a worrying thought popped in my head. "You... Did you ever skin Claire?"

She faked being hurt by my comment, but was smirking. "Come on, who do you take me for? I may be a monster, but I'm not that twisted. Besides, there were far better options than her anyway, like the cute one you're currently wearing. Now, act like Elise while we're in public."

The doors to the elevator opened as soon as she finished her sentence. I said goodbyes to some of Elise's colleagues while we were on our way out. Instead of going to the cafe right in front of the building, my mother led me to a smaller one a few blocks away, one that apparently opened a year ago.

The barista seemed very surprised as we entered, but quickly approached us, bowing. "Good afternoon, miss. I wasn't expecting to see you today."

She was a fairly charming girl who seemed to be in her mid-twenties, with long wavy dark hair, and was wearing a cute uniform, with a matching apron.

My mother looked around, checking that we were alone, and waved away. "You can speak freely, Kate. She's not Elise."

A look of realisation struck the barista, Kate, as she observed me. "Oh, please forgive me, mistress. Is she perhaps someone I should know?"

I noticed how she called my mother.

Mistress?

"No, but you'll know him soon enough. Contact everyone, I have an announcement to make. 2 PM tomorrow, at my usual place. And tell this to Yumi." She added, giving Kate a sheet of paper.

Kate bowed again, even lower than before. "Of course, mistress, I'll do it right away. Would you like some tea, coffee, or snacks in the meantime?"

"We'll have two of your delicious chocolate muffins." My mother said, tickling Kate's chin as if she were a pet. "If you're a good girl, I'll let you choose who we sleep with next time I wear you~"

Kate blushed profusely at that, and nodded meekly. "T-thank you, mistress."

She hurried behind the counter and brought back two muffins that looked pretty appetising before disappearing through the back door.

My mother led us to a table in the corner and sat, but I just glared at her.

"What was that?" I asked, pointing at the door Kate just went through.

"Kate? Isn't she cute?"

"That's not what I'm asking. Why did she keep calling you mistress?"

She chuckled. "Because she's a very loyal and obedient girl, of course. Come, sit down and try this, her muffins are to die for."

I reluctantly sat in front of her and took a bite. It was indeed very delicious.

"What did you ask her to do?"

"Well, you heard me. I asked her to contact the rest of my coven so we could meet them tomorrow."

"Your... coven?" I asked.

She grinned. "Would you believe me if I said that some humans worship us and form cults around us? For them, we are terrifying, alluring, or both. Some rich folks willingly cooperate with us, hoping to eventually become skinwalkers themselves in exchange for their services. A few twisted ones have a morbid fascination for us, craving to be worn and used by us. And others just serve us out of fear, hoping to be spared the worst treatments. In any case, it allows us easy access to ressources and skins."

It was another terrifying thought, but it made sense that some humans would willingly cooperate with skinwalkers, and that some skinwalkers would take advantage of that.

"This coven you mentioned..." I started, understanding what she said.

"You could say it's one of those. We're seven skinwalkers working together alongside twenty-six humans. Kate is one of them, she's my personal assistant. She's the main skin I use whenever I want to travel incognito, and also serves as my spokeperson whenever I need to contact the other members."

"S-seven skinwalkers...?"

"Well, maybe we'll reach eight tomorrow, who knows." She said before leaning closer, her face inches away from mine and giving me a terrifying and sadistic grin. "By the way, I'm sure you're still the same idealistic kid you were in the past, but let me give you this word of advice. If you ever, ever try anything to sabotage my coven, trust me when I say that we'll make your life and those of the people dear to you, Claire obviously included, a living hell. So I'm counting on you to be on your best behavior tomorrow, hmm? As long as you don't antagonise us, everything will be fine for you and your sister, and you'll even get some benefits, even if you don't come here often."

I just stared at her for a moment, still in shock. She managed to terrify me. I absolutely didn't want to imagine what seven skinwalkers could do to me, Claire, and the other people I used to be close to... My mother seemed satisfied with my reaction, smiling.

I finally managed to speak a moment later. "What... What do you mean by benefits...?"

"You'll see tomorrow." She simply replied with an amused smirk.

Kate returned right after and approached us. "It is done, mistress. I did as you instructed. Yumi said that it would be ready for tomorrow."

"Good girl~" My mother said, caressing Kate's chin again, making Kate blush. "Now, let me present you my son, Edward. I was agreeably surprised to learn that he recently became a skinwalker."

"Mistress' son?" Kate said, visibly surprised, but she then bowed while facing me. "It's a pleasure to meet you, master Edward."

I looked away awkwardly. "Y-you can drop the master... Just call me Edward."

Kate glanced at my mother, as if she was seeking her permission, and my mother just shrugged.

"As you wish, Edward. Would you like something to drink?"

"I'm... I'm not thirsty, thank you." I said.

"Would you be so kind as to make me an espresso, Kate?"

"Right away, mistress." Kate replied, bowing one more time and returning behind the counter.

"Now, do you have more questions, my child?" My mother said as she faced me again.

I wasn't sure where to start. My mind was such a mess since those revelations after lunch, and what she said in the elevator and earlier really didn't help me feel better...

I decided to start from the beginning. "Who... Who are you really?"

"Who I was when I was human, you mean? My real name is Agnieszka. Or Aga, as my acquaintances call me. I was born in 1879 in the Austrian-occupied Polish city of Krakow, during these 123 years Poland disappeared from the world maps."

"In... In 1879?"

Kate served her her espresso and she started to drink. "I'm older than I look, hmm? I was the daughter of a wealthy and influencial merchant, and had a very comfortable, yet fairly boring life. Until I crossed paths with the skinwalker who turned me, that is. Noticing my boredom and wants for more excitement, he shared with me this curse, allowing me to experience so many new things and breaking free from the monotonous life I had been living."

She made a saddened smile as she looked up. "A shame he died seventeen years ago, he was such a fun man to be with."

As she said that, I remembered something... One day, when I was much younger, I saw my mother wearing black clothes, something she almost never did as she preferred more colourful clothes. When my father asked why, she just said she was mourning a friend. She was most likely referring to this...

She then looked back at me. "But enough about me, how have you and your sister been faring?

"I... managed. And Claire recently became a police officer."

My mother chuckled. "Claire, a police officer? That shy nerdy girl? It's hard to imagine."

I glared at her. "And yet it's the truth. She's way happier now that she's far away from our father."

"Oh, I certainly believe you there. While I enjoyed toying with him all these years, I'm also glad to be able to get rid of him soon."

"What are you going to do after that?" I asked.

I had a hard time believing that she'd just stay as Patricia and go to jail with my father.

"Hmm, I'm still thinking about this. I've been a man for most of the last century, but grew to enjoy my womanhood again with this life, especially now that women are so much more free than they were a century ago. So maybe I'll find another woman to replace, possibly one from our group."

"I see..."

My phone buzzed in my purse and I went to check it. It was Claire, asking how I was.

"Is it your sister?" My mother asked, noticing that it wasn't Elise's phone. "Go ahead, answer her."

I wrote a quick text saying that I was okay and would be back in two days. I didn't want to stay tomorrow, but I feared what my mother would do should I oppose her... For the time being, she seemed to like me, and I didn't want to do anything rash without a plan, as it'd be a sure way to make her hate me and retaliate...

"I think we should conclude our conversation here for today. Stay as Elise one more night and meet me here tomorrow during lunch time."

"Okay." I simply said.

"Oh, and trust me, you need to try your boyfriend. I wasn't lying when I said how amazing he is in bed," she added, giggling. "Now that gender doesn't mean anything to you anymore, you should broaden your horizons and try new things. Experiment a little, you know?"

On that, she left, leaving me alone at the table. I held my head and let out a loud sigh, trying not to cry. I was already regretting having come here... I never wanted to learn all of that... to get involved in whatever machinations she had in store for me... My lust for **** blinded me and I felt like I was paying the price for it...

"A-are you alright, mas- Edward?" Kate asked as she came closer. "Would you like something else to eat?"

She seemed genuinely worried for me, something I appreciated. "I'm not alright, but thanks for your concerns. And I don't need anything."

A couple walked inside the cafe and I decided to leave. I opened my wallet and paid for the muffin.

"Y-you don't have to, miss. Miss Arston already paid for everything." Kate said, now calling me and my mother normally due to the other clients who arrived.

"Then consider it a thanks for having checked on me earlier." I replied with a smile and left before she could protest any further.

I went to the office's carpark, got into Elise's car, and drove towards her apartment, doing my best to regain my composure. I had to act like her another evening and **** myself to smile, I didn't want to make her boyfriend worry.

I closed my eyes after I parked. Maybe spending the evening with John would be comforting... Just thinking about him was making me feel Elise's love. It was warm, reassuring... But should I really yield and do it? Couldn't I just try to suck it up and get better on my own...? Deep down, a part of me was still uncomfortable with the idea of being a cute girlfriend and sleeping with a man...

I wasn't sure what to do for the time being, but I walked into the apartment, March welcoming me happily, and I went to prepare dinner, acting like Elise, as if nothing happened...