Chapter 224: Illness

Chapter 224: Illness

If you want to support me check out my patron at /athassprkr

I tend to upload drafts of early chapters on there to get people's opinions of them.

I would like to thank my beta, Akisu, for his help in this chapter.

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

21st March 2012, Missouri

(Rose Potter POV)

Rose sighed in relief at her sister's explanation. Of course, Jasmine had a plan, she always had a plan. She would never risk the safety of the entire planet like that, "And what's your plan with this?"

"Well, that's easy. I'm going to absorb it."

Wait, what? All thoughts of her sister's sanity and forethought disappeared from Rose's head. It was funny in a way, to watch as her faith in her sister plummeted entirely. Was she out of her mind? She had just said that killing the seed would probably alert the cosmic entity, why the hell is she planning on taking over a fraction of the power of what she had already described as one of the most powerful beings in the universe.

And Jasmine isn't just killing the seed, she's planning on stealing its power, meaning that the celestial will be enraged with Jasmine. It's a frankly stupid idea to do and Rose had no qualms to say that to Jasmine, "No offense, Jasmine, but this has to be one of the stupidest, most reckless, and absolutely ridiculous, ideas I have ever heard of in my life."

Surprisingly, Jasmine didn't get angry at Rose for pointing this out. In fact, the immortal witch burst into hysterical laughter, "You're absolutely correct. This will be, by far, the craziest, and maddest thing I have ever done and will probably ever do. Not just for the consequences of the ritual, but also the ritual is, by itself, completely mad. Why do you think I'm nervous about it? And while the risk of Ego, the celestial, investigating the death of his seed exists, I am far more worried about the ritual itself."

"Absorbing the celestial's super plant thing?"

"You're risking your life, Jasmine."

"I'm always risking my life. At least, this time, it's my choice. I would rather die than live out the rest of my days in agony, seeing only death, while not being able to move or communicate with anyone. This is my choice, and you may disagree with it, but you will respect it. You're my sister you should at least support me in times like this."

She's right. Jasmine was obviously unsettled with the ritual and scared of the possible outcomes. She minimized the chances of the imprint overwhelming her. But it didn't make sense. The only risk there was death, and Rose knew for a fact that Jasmine wasn't even slightly scared of her death. There was something wrong, something more to it, "No, I will support you, but you're not telling me everything. That's not what's scaring you so much, not really. There's something else to it."

Jasmine looked shocked for a fraction of a second. If Rose wasn't actively looking for any sign of deception or fear, she would have missed it, "I suppose you're right. What I'm scared of, isn't the risk that comes if the ritual fails, it's what could happen if it succeeds."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Even if it works, I will be different on a very fundamental level. I'm not exaggerating when I say that cosmic energy is on another level. It's what's used in the creation of the universe. One way or another, I will evolve. I have already fought for thousands of years to not lose my humanity and become the lonely god that people think I am. It's hard, caring all the time for people, knowing that one day they will die in front of you, either thanks to the cruelty of the world, or just the sands of time. I kept trying again and again, taking an apprentice, adopting a child, making friends. It was so easy for me to lose myself, to forget that I am the Morrigan and just become the persona I chose. It always ended in heartbreak, but the time in between was enough for me to not lose my humanity. And in a way, the pain of losing people, even if they are mortals, is proof that I still retain even a fraction of my humanity."

The immortal witch sighed and continued, "It's so easy to give in to apathy, to stop caring altogether. Selene did that a long time ago, before we even met. She could see people being massacred in front of her and she wouldn't care. She wouldn't even look twice. It's different with me because we're each other's companions. We have lived together for thousands of years, so she knows that she can trust me, love me, without expecting her heart to break once more. Trust me, I know what kind of a monster lurks underneath my wife's skin, ready to be let out at a moment's notice, should I not be there to calm her down and assure her that she isn't alone anymore. After the ritual, I will be different, in mind and soul. I will not be a witch, not really. My legacy as Morgan Le Fey, as Hecate, and so many other mage identities I have taken through the annals of history, will be over. Atlantis' magic, my magic, my father's legacy, will die that day, no matter what. And taking its place will be a stronger woman, that can barely be considered human anymore."

By the end of it, Jasmine was gasping, having said her deepest fears, and voiced them out in the open. It was different thinking something and saying something. Rose had no idea that her sister was so scared. She was always so strong, so powerful, so stoic and unmoving. It was odd seeing her show her vulnerabilities like that. Rose was grateful that her sister trusted her enough to spill her heart out to her like that. And even then, the younger witch had some sick gratefulness to see her perfect sister break down like this. It showed that even today, there was still a human being deep down inside her.

Rose just walked to her sister and gave her a hug. Jasmine froze for a moment but returned the gesture. It was nice, warm. The two sisters had never expressed themselves like that before.

They stayed like this for minutes, maybe even an hour, until Rose released her sister from her embrace, "Are you better now?"

Jasmine nodded, "Thank you. I really needed to let that out in the open," she turned around and grabbed the celestial super plant thing, "let's go home."

Rose nodded and Erebus, the phoenix that Rose actually forgot was there, created another cloud of darkness and teleported them back to the mansion.