Adrift at sea, I find myself at peace. I wandered this world in search of understanding only to find myself back here once again. My head was a jumble of thoughts, all clouded by my rage and twisted by doubt. As I swam in the currents, the water felt warm to me, a comfort.

I decided to rest, letting my arms float out beside me, tickled by the tangled mass of my silver hair. As I lifted my hand above my face it felt dull and heavy. I could still see the marks he had left upon my body. I wished to erase all signs of him so I sank slowly down beneath the waves. I never really knew why I enjoyed the water so much, but perhaps it was because of the silence. The sky above could be so noisy, the stars so bright. Down here there was a bewitching darkness and I was the only thing that glowed in its embrace. Down here my tears flowed into the ocean and I could be alone.

------------------------------------------------------

I awoke crying, a fierce sadness overwhelming me as I sat up in my hospital bed.

"Oh, you're awake, excellent!"

I looked up to see the always perky nurse Monica walking over to my bedside. She was wearing her usual deep blue scrubs, her natural hair pulled back into a high bun on the top of her head. When she smiled her white teeth always stood out against her beautiful dark skin. She was one of the few nurses on the floor who always seemed to be in a good mood.

"You sure slept in today," Monica noted, glancing at my chart resting at the foot of my bed. "Happy to be discharged?"

"Beyond happy," I replied with a yawn. She was too busy with her checklist to notice me rubbing the tears out of my eyes.

Another sad dream had entered the rotation during the last few days of my hospital stay. I was a beautiful woman with long, wavy silver hair sinking slowly into the ocean. Her emotions in the dream were so raw that I found myself almost choking on tears each time I woke. I never knew the details about why she was so upset, but at least this dream wasn't speaking gibberish like all the others. I glanced over at Nurse Monica who had come over to my bedside to do a vitals check. Now that I was awake I was buzzing with excitement, happy to finally get out of the hospital and back to my usual routine.

The reason for my medical 'vacation' was that a little over a week ago I had passed out, apparently unable to be awakened. The doctors claimed, after listening to my woes of insomnia, that it had to be due to extreme exhaustion. Although the mystery as to why I would not respond to medication caused a lot of debate among the staff. After the first round of tests showed nothing unusual they wanted to keep me for more, but I refused and asked to be discharged.

I couldn't tell my doctors the truth as to why I had passed out. Mostly because it had to do with a battle I fought a week ago with a monster known as a darkwraith. During this battle, I expelled some sort of magical white light from deep inside myself. A single touch, well punch, turned the monster into a beautiful cloud of white dust. I'm sure if I had told them all of this I would have ended up in the psych ward, and who could blame them? Stories about magical lights and shadowy monsters don't go over well with most people, let alone doctors. This was the first time I had ever killed a wraith, or even used magic for that matter so it was all new to me. At the time I was trying to save my friend, Azar, from being beaten to death in a nightclub downtown.

Destroying that wraith saved more than my friend's life that night, but in return I had used all my energy, falling asleep just like I had pricked my finger on a cursed spinning wheel. Alas, there were no handsome princes available to wake me from my slumber in my story. Instead, I awoke thanks to a nightmare, which was a reoccurring dream from my childhood. One that involved me being stabbed and then consumed by darkness.

I touched gently at my stomach as I reminisced about that particular dream. It was just one part of a series of dreams, repeating almost every night. Just to get the images out of my head I would paint. Endless drawings of starry skies, deep forests, and a man I married who later dies.

"Everything is looking good," Monica said, interrupting my thoughts. "Do you need help changing?"

"No I'm fine," I replied, moving to dangle my feet off the bed. "When do I get this bandage off?"

"This should be the last round of dressings," she said, examining my left arm. "Just remember to keep it clean and dry."

In the fight with the wraith I had been cut with a switchblade and it required more than a few stitches. It would have been much worse if I hadn't been wearing my heavy winter coat.

Monica went over my discharge information before leaving me, so I could change into my clothes. As much as I loved wearing pajamas it felt amazing to slip on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. I also threw on my favorite oversized slouchy sweater, re-tying my black hair into a messy braid for ease of travel. I was pulling on my socks when my adopted grandfather, George Hartmann entered the room.

"Good afternoon my dear."

"Hey, Grandpa!"

I glanced up at my guardian, a smile blossoming on my face. He was not your typical image of a grandfather as he was visually very intimidating, with his broad chest, large arms, and stern expression. He had a matching beard with thick, silver hair that gave him a somewhat Santa-like appearance. Although he didn't always look like this since his true form was hidden, thanks to a magical bracelet he wore called a talisman. George Hartmann was not even his real name, just an alias for his life on Earth. My grandfather was in fact an earth elemental named Enki, hailing from a planet known as Terra.

For years he had been afraid to show me his true self, keeping everything about Terra a secret so I could live a somewhat normal life. Unfortunately for Grandpa, his secret was spilled when my homeroom teacher Mr. Burke attacked me at our school open house. My teacher had been possessed by a darkwraith, who I guess was done taking orders. So he got me alone, jumped me, and attempted to crack my head open so he could drink my blood. That's another fun fact about my life, my blood is supposedly very tasty to wraiths. I was told it was due to my 'gift' or blessing from the moon goddess. This is why I have to wear a talisman of my own to hide the scent of my blood.

This was my crash course into the world of magic and monsters. I admit I was a little angry when I found out Grandpa was living a double life, along with our new farmhand, Casimir Reynolds. But I couldn't stay mad for long. Fangs or not, Grandpa was still the same man who had helped raise me for all of these years, giving me the only stable home I had ever known.

I guess I should explain about this other world called Terra. The planet my grandpa comes from is apparently in another dimension linked to Earth via magical portals. I have never seen one of these portals myself, but the magic part was very much real. Over the past few months, my life had changed dramatically but at least I was finally getting out of this hospital.

Things can only get better from here on out, right?

I had just finished slipping on my shoes when I noticed my grandfather staring, his focus locked on the side of my head. My eyes narrowed at him as I made an unhappy face.

"Sorry!" he blurted out. His gaze flew skyward, I'm sure, in an attempt to make me feel better.

"I'll get rid of it as soon as we can stop at the drugstore," I grumbled, touching the top of my head. 'It' was a long silver-white streak now woven into my braid. I stood up, meandering into the bathroom to check out my appearance. The dull fluorescent light of the hospital bathroom didn't do much for my ego, only exaggerating my ghostly pale skin and the large dark circles under my eyes. My gaze settled on the single, thick silver lock, weaving its way through my natural raven hair. Somehow it felt like a constant reminder of the battle I had with the wraith. I pulled on it as I made a sour face. I could just imagine the comments the kids at school would make about this.

"Are you almost ready?" Grandpa's voice asked from the other room.

"Yeah."

I stepped out of the bathroom, walking straight over to my grandfather to give him a fierce side hug.

"You okay there, dear?" He asked in his deep baritone, pressing his hand on top of my head. "Did I upset you by staring at your hair?"

"No, just happy to see you. Happy to go home."

"You've seen me almost every day since you woke up," he chuckled.

"You're ruining it!" I grumbled, squeezing him tighter.

"My apologies."

I pulled away, shaking my head at him. Nurse Monica appeared once last time, handing us some papers to take to the register and payment offices. A young male nursing assistant showed up with a wheelchair, forcing me into it so he could take me downstairs. I guess he was used to the grumbling from patients insisting they could walk because he just ignored me. Instead, he chatted happily about the nice weather until he eventually deposited me outside, next to my Grandpa's truck.

"Do you want to go straight home or stop at the corner store for some hair dye?" Grandpa asked as I was buckling myself in. I hesitated, not sure what I wanted. Tomorrow I had to go back to school and I didn't want to be seen with this streak on my first day back. I knew it was silly to care so much about my hair when I knew my classmates would have plenty of other things to talk about. Mostly about Zachary getting arrested for assault. He was the boy who was possessed by the wraith that attacked me. No one knew that part of the story, except for the two unlucky detectives that followed me to the club that night. I knew they were too freaked out to say anything to their bosses, so the truth remained hidden for now. To everyone who wasn't familiar with the magical side of Earth, it just looked like my classmate Zachary stabbed a guy and then tried to stab me before being stopped by the cops.

Already life was too complicated.

"Are you hungry?" Grandpa pressed when I didn't answer his first question.

"So hungry!" I replied, sitting up straighter in my seat. We had left the hospital, snaking our way through the city and towards the mountain roads that would lead to our hometown.

"You wanna eat at Zoe's?"

"Oh, yes, please. But can I get a hat first?" I joked, glancing at my appearance in the side mirror of the truck.

My grandfather tsked, shaking his head. "It doesn't look bad Diana dear."

"Ah-huh."

"No, really. In Terra, many people have unique hairstyles and colors, just like yours," he said.

I eyed my grandfather, whose hair was also a strange color under the veil of his talisman. "I suppose."

We chatted while we drove, discussing what had been going on in town and my upcoming welcome home/belated birthday party this weekend. I only wanted my closest friends, Zola and Sunita to join me on the farm for a laid-back gathering of movies and video games. In addition, Casimir, Azar, and Maayan were coming, who were all my bodyguards. I needed guarding because I was secretly the reincarnation of an important and powerful princess from Terra, named Taya. It sounds strange, I know, but this princess was the one who passed on her lunar blessing to me, along with the claim to the throne of Eirene.

I had no interest in ruling a kingdom in a country I had never heard of, on a planet I had never seen, but the current regime was very interested in me. If it hadn't been for the efforts of my grandfather and his fellow rebel warriors, I would have been spirited away long ago. Locked in a dungeon while they drained my blood for all eternity, I'm sure.

We finally made it home and I was so eager to see it that I nearly pressed my nose against the window. Mandeville was a small town, nestled in between a mountain and a lake, surrounded by forests. The town itself was very historic and quite picturesque, which led to a booming tourist trade.

My grandfather parked his truck in a spot near the corner drugstore and I hopped out. As we entered the store I saw an old sign advertising the Harvest Festival still in the window. I sighed to myself, still upset that I had missed the annual event due to my stay in the hospital. Hartmann Farms usually joined in the festival activities, opening the farm to the public for apple picking during the event. This year Grandpa had soldiered on without me. Making this the first time, since I moved to the farm, that I had missed the festival.

It was now November and the last month of our apple harvest. Once December hit there wasn't much to do around the farm except prepare for the next season.

Grandpa caught my eye, giving me a sad smile. I just shrugged, heading down the aisle toward the hair care products. As I went I heard Grandpa stop to talk to the owner of the store, shooting the breeze while I browsed. After a few minutes of staring at our small selection of hair dyes, I was still utterly lost. I had never dyed my hair before and I wasn't sure what the difference was between the brands.

I could feel Irma's joy before I saw her.

"Oh my gosh, Diana!"

I turned to see Irma, the cashier at our local grocery store wandering down the aisle towards me. With her was April, her on-again, off-again, girlfriend. Irma was wearing a pair of skinny black jeans, full of holes, and an oversized sweatshirt with a collared shirt popping over the edge. The pin on her sweatshirt had a few choice swear words, but it made me smile. Her choppy haircut was thrown up into her usual messy bun, but the color had changed from her usual teal to a deep blue. Irma clomped over to me in her platform boots, reaching out to hug me fiercely.

"I heard what happened! Jesus, are you okay?" she asked, staring at me with her heavily made-up eyes.