Joan - Chapter 14  © 2010 - Andrea Ribeiro Many thanks to Stanman63 for editing.! Previously:When the kiss ends I am still feeling that glow emanating from inside. I feel like I'm on cloud nine. “Hmm, Joanie?” “Yeah?” I ask her, dreamily. “I think you are glowing.” At that moment we hear the front door open and Mindy's Mom say. “Hey sweety, I thought that was..... OH MY GODDESS!!!”

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We both look around just in time to see Mindy's mom falling down on the floor, unconscious.

“What happened?” I ask

“I think she fainted.”

“I hope she is not hurt.” I say worriedly.

“I think she will be fine, help me bring her inside.”

Together we carried Mindy's mom inside and placed her on the sofa.

“I think I should go home, Mindy”

“My mom will probably want to talk to you, maybe you should stick around for a bit.” She says sitting down on the couch and patting the space next to her.

“OK.” I reply, blushing.

“At least the glow is gone now."

“I have no idea how that happened. What is happening to me?” I ask, burying my face on her shoulder.

“I don't know, but Mom might be able to help you.”

“You think so?”

“I sure hope so, or things might start to get a bit difficult for us.”

“Huh?”

“Kiss? Glowing?”

“Oh” I blush again. “Does it mean there'll be other kisses?”

“What do you think?” She says with a mischievous grin.

“I would really like to.” I shyly reply.

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A few minutes later, Mindy's mom started to wake up, “What happened?”

“You fainted, Mom.”

She looks at us and her jaw drops.

“Mom, I want you to meet Joan.”

“H.. hi, Mrs. Wright.”

She keeps looking at me with a strange look on her face, suddenly, she says, “Oh my goddess, It wasn't a dream.”

“Huh?”

“You were the one that was glowing outside.”

“I... I guess.” I reply.

“I sense great power within you and your aura is like nothing I ever seen, it’s almost like looking at a goddess.”

“What? I'm just a teenage girl. I can't be a goddess, can I?”

“No, you are not a goddess...., yet.” A new voice come from behind us.

We looked around to see a tall, slim woman, with long blond hair standing there.”

“Hello, child. It's nice to finally meet you.”

“Who are you? How did you get in here?” Mindy's mom spats.

“You should really use your other senses more, Megan,” she rebukes.

Mindy's mom looks at the woman again for a few moments and suddenly sits down with a shocked expression on her face. The woman turns to me, “I came to talk to you, Joan.”

“Me? Why? Who are you?”

“You can call me Diana, It's a nicer name to use around here, but you might know me as Artemis.”

Another Goddess? What the heck is going on?’ I think, holding Mindy's hand tightly. “Why me? What did I do? Why are gods popping up in my life now?”

“What do you want with her? Can't you see she is scared?” Mindy said.

“Oh, I'm sorry child, Gaea asked me to keep an eye on you while Rhea settles down in her new life.”

“New life?” I ask.

“Don't you remember what you did for her?” Diana asks.

“Wasn't it a dream?”

“No child, it wasn't. I appreciate what you did, actually.”

“What did Joan do?” both Mindy and her mom ask.

“She gave Rhea's life a new purpose, to live life as a human.”

“You changed a goddess into a human?” Mrs Wright asks me.

“Not exactly, Gaea helped, Joan just provided her with the necessary essence for it to happen. It was Rhea's choice to become human.”

“But why does Joan's aura look so much like yours?” Mrs Wright aska Diana.

“Rhea had given Joan most of her essence, only allowing her to live inside Joan’s spiritual home. She planned to guide and teach Joan and then part with the rest of her essence and die.”

“What did you mean with that I'm not a goddess yet? I never asked for this. And why did I suddenly change hair color and start glowing when Mindy kissed me?”

“What?” Mrs Wright asks in shock.

“About that. Mom, I'm in love with Joanie.” She says and looks at me. I grip her hand and smile back feeling the glow inside me come back.

“Joanie? You are glowing again.” Mindy tells me.

“Damn it! What is happening to me?”

“Your abilities are waking up, you are finally integrating the essence Rhea gave you into your own.”

“But why am I glowing?”

“Because you wanted to let Mindy see what you feel for her. The aura glow you are emanating is filled with love and happiness.”

“I guess so, but how do I stop it?”

“Just concentrate on keeping it inside you and Imagine the glow around you going away.”

I did so and slowly the glow faded away, “This is much better.”

“I wouldn't mind seeing it when we are alone, it makes me feel very good,” Mindy admits.

“That's because it's filled with Joan's emotions and together with Joan's empathic abilities that are also waking, I think it can become quite pleasant,” Diana observes.

“And how did I change my hair color?”

“You probably wanted to. If you try to imagine it with another color it will probably change again.”

“Why don't you try it, Joanie?” Mindy asks me.

“I guess I could try, which color though?”

“Let's try something a little unusual, what do you think of pink?”

“Pink? Why pink?”

“Because I think you would look cute with pink hair.”

I sigh, “OK just because you ask me.”

I close my eyes and try to imagine my hair becoming pink, “Yes!!! It worked Joanie. You look so cute like that.” Mindy exclaims. Mrs Write giggles while Diana looks slightly amused.

“Come with me Joanie, you need to take a look at yourself.” She says, guiding me to the mirror in the hallway.

I look at myself, hate to admit it, but I do look cute. I really like the golden color I had on earlier, so I concentrate and it changes color again. We go back to the living room, sit on the couch.

“I see you managed to change the hair color back again. That is a lovely hair color. I could never quite get it right though. What do you say we try something new?” Diana asks.

“Like what?”

“Change my hair color to the same color as yours.”

“You think I can do it?”

“I think you might be able too with my help. We gods can't change another gods appearance without their consent.”

“But don't you need to have a big trust on the other person to do something like that?”

“Yes, but after what you did to my grandmother I think I can trust you this much. And its not that I wouldn't be able to change it again.”

“Okay. So what do I do?”

“Hold my hands and do what you did to change your hair, but think about doing it to mine.”

I grab her hands, close my eyes, trying to picture it with the same color as mine. When I open my eyes again her hair had changed to the exact same color as mine.

“That is so cool” Mindy says.

“Scary is more like it. I don't know if I like to have such power.” I affirm.

“Don't worry about it, child. I'm here to help you come to terms with what is happening to you. I think Megan can help you too with your magical education.” She says, looking at Mrs Write.

“I would be honored to help Joan out.” She says.

“And you Mindy, you need to take good care of her. She is a very special girl and I don't want to see her heart broken.”

“Of course I'll take good care of her,” Mindy vows with a kiss. "I won't ever break her heart. I promise.”

“You know that promises to gods and goddesses are binding, don't you?” Diana says, sternly.

“Yes I know, My mom told me to be careful doing any promises. I really mean it.”

“What do you think about it, Joan?” Diana asks me.

“What will happen to her if she breaks her promise?” I ask.

“It will depend on you, her promise is to not break your hear, and if she does, her punishment is up to you.”

“Then I accept her promise. I feel that she really intends to keep it. And if it happen in the future, first I'll have to find out exactly why the promise was broken before deciding anything. Sometimes things beyond our control can affect our ability to keep a promise.”

“That was a very wise answer, child. You might end up becoming a great goddess one day.” Diana tells me.

“I'm still uncomfortable with all this goddess business, though.”

“We are all here to help you, Joan, and soon Rhea will help you out too, as soon she gets settled in her new life.”

“Is she OK?” I ask.

“She is very happy and excited right now. I haven't seen her like this for thousands of years.”

“I'm happy for her. I haven't met her for long but I feel a strong connection between us, and I owe her my life, too.”

“She told me that too. She thinks of you as a daughter, did you know that?”

“Yes, she told me that, and I do see her as a mother.”

“Before I go, I have a present for you and your brother,” she says, extending her hand and 2 balls of metal appeared on her hand, a gold and a silver ball.

“What is that?” I ask her.

“Just something that will help you both to control your abilities a little better during these initial days. Just take the gold ball in your hand.”

I did as she asked me and as soon the ball touched the palm of my hand it started to glow and twitch, moving along my hand and going in direction of my wrist, once there it stretches and circles my wrist taking the shape of a gold bracelet.

“Wow, that's a pretty bracelet.”

“It will help you keep control of your abilities so things like the accidental glow or hair color change doesn't happen again. Also it can become invisible if you wish it to. Take the silver ball and give it to Josh, it will also become a piece of jewelry for him, a fitting one to a guy, too.”

She looks at Mindy and at her mom and produces 2 necklaces with a golden teardrop, “This will help you with your magic training Mindy and will also help to protect the both of you against magical attacks.” She says, giving them one necklace each.

“Huh, Diana?” I call to her.

“Yes, child?”

“You think Jen could get one of those necklaces? She seemed so excited of all that is happening and I think she would like to help too.” I shyly admit.

“Here, child. Give this to her,” she says, producing a small gold ring. “It will help her develop any latent magical ability she might have and protect her too, like Mindy's necklace will do for her.”

“Thank you Diana,” I say, giving her a hug and a kiss on her cheek, she blushed. "I never though I would see a goddess blush".

“You are welcome, Joan. Now I have to go and help gram a little,” she says, winking at us and vanishes.

I look at Mindy and her mom, “Does anyone have an idea of what exactly happened here tonight?”

Mindy's mom came closer to us, “I think things are going to get interesting from now on.”

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To Be Continued...