Miracle of the Moon Goddess

1: A wolf is born

I glance out to both sides before leaving the caves that house mom’s apartment. With no elves in sight I slip out, wearing a neutral colored coat, just like most elves wear. It’s not gray like the slaves' clothing, nor is it bright colors like mom and royal elves wear. With the hood up no one can see that my ears aren’t pointy should they want to double check. I’m not going far, so the chance of discovery is low. Still, I need to be careful. If father finds me he will not react well, even if I’m out to look for my brother.

I find the little crack in the more or less solid stone and press myself inside. This was easier when I was a little kid. I doubt Damien has the same troubles as me as I’m larger than him, with my full breasts and fully formed behind. He’s rather scrawny built for a soldier, to father’s big disappointment. It shouldn't be surprising since Damien prefers the magical aspect of warfare more than fighting.

The sounds of someone muttering spells, retrying and shuffling through papers reaches me only moments after I’ve left the empty hallways. I’m afraid the echoes of my huffing and puffing will carry back to Damien and that he will hear me like I hear him, but he doesn’t react to me as I enter his secret cave. He calls it the portal room, despite never having opened a portal.

I shouldn’t spy on Damien, I know that, but since he can’t see or hear me, with his back to me, I can’t help it as I stop to study what he’s doing. He places stones in a circle, following a diagram from a book, but adjusting it slightly as if doesn’t trust the book. All over the room are different circles already made with wet marks in the middle, signs of failed spells.

Damien takes his time, setting the stone circle as he wants it, the ever perfectionist. There are only minute differences between all the stone circles from what I can tell, some even look like replicas of the one he’s making now. Finally happy with his creation he begins the ritual by meditating.

It’s impossible to know what goes on in his head, but eventually he begins to whisper words. I’ve overheard him try this spell before and recognize the words well enough to know he’s not saying them the same way as he has done before. It surprises me a little. Does he really think that the books he loves to refer to are wrong?

What surprises me even more is when he starts to pour liquid into the circle. Something I’ve never seen before happens. The cave fills with the sound of rushing water and within seconds he finally succeeds with the biggest dream he’s ever had. He makes his first portal. I’m too stunned to stay hidden. I need to look inside. There I meet the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen. He completely ignores Damien, his eyes finding mine.

“Angel?”

I don’t respond, instead I focus on what’s behind him. I’ve never seen something like that before, but I know it’s a moon. The large stone in the sky, shining down on us, through the portal and over my body. I want to cry, the light feels like a true blessing. I stand there with no sensation of the time passing. When I’m able to breathe I can’t stop myself as I get ready to jump into the portal only for Damien to throw dirt on it.

I fall to my knees as the portal to the other world collapses before me. The remnants of moonlight that were there only moments before still linger on my skin, making me grieve for more of the silvery blessing. I’ve felt nothing like this before, except for the mere seconds the portal was open. I touch the ground where the portal once was, longing for the moonlight.

“Open it again!” I demand, looking up at Damien.

“Are you crazy?” His voice is angry, but he’s more afraid than anything else. All the worlds just opened up for him and he isn’t bursting with pride. I should ask him why, but I can’t wrap my head around the vision of the moon, the sensation of its light. And the devastation left behind.

Besides, why can’t he sense it? How the lack of moonlight is like being dropped into a lake filled with ice-cold glacier water. The warmth I once had, is now taken away from every pore in my body. My skin screams in pain. My joints want to crack open to make room. It’s like I have this urge to expand into something larger and for a few seconds, I fear bursting at the seams, but my body stays whole.

I breathe hard to calm myself, only to stop completely as a voice I’ve never heard before makes its presence known. “Damien doesn’t have a wolf's soul as you do, Celeste,” the voice tells me. “And you just got yours. It only took a few seconds of moonlight to bless you.”

I clutch my heart. Did I hear that right? Wolf soul? What in the realms? Who is talking in my head? Am I going crazy? Mom never warned me about this. Is this real? All the questions pop up at a fast pace, not giving me time to think clearly about them.

I don’t know how to feel about everything. The need to explore the moonlight, combined with the voice inside me, speaking about wolf souls. This is wild! Remembering to breathe again, I gulp in air together with a mix of emotions.

The voice inside me sighs: “We can talk about it later. Now you need to answer your brother before he starts to think what you fear, that you are going crazy! And reveal nothing about me or the moon!”

“But what can I say, then?” I ask the voice in my head.

“Talk about your mother’s mate.”

Finding some wisdom in those words, I lift my head towards Damien one more time. He has straightened his back and folded his arms like he does when he thinks he’s important. He has always been precariously goody-two-shoes, and right now, he’s only seconds away from tapping his foot. I roll my eyes at him before answering. He might be my favorite brother, but he can be damn annoying at times.

“Didn’t you see? That was one of the men mom always talks about. Her mates, as she calls them,” I say, knowing full well that our father would hate the idea of her mates finding mom. I’ve never understood why he hates them so much. Why be jealous of them if he got mom in the end? Is it because she never loved him?

“That does not concern me. You shouldn’t have been here to witness it. This is male magic and not something that should get mixed in.”

I suppress a sigh. Damien has always been a stickler for rules, but after his last time off-world he’s been worse than ever. I’m sure something must have happened because his need to prove himself for father has become much worse than before. He’s always had a need to be approved by father, hoping to become a general, if not a prince of the elven worlds.

I don’t understand why he’s so desperate for it. Though, maybe it’s because he has to earn his title, unlike me who was born with mine. No matter what I do I will always be the Crown Princess. Still, why does he have to be so annoying about it? How many times do I need to remind him that mom, me and all our Mothers will always love him?

“Aren’t you curious?” I ask, not hiding my annoyance. It’s like he doesn’t care about mom’s mates and can’t see the possibilities about what he’s done.

“You opened a portal to mom’s homeworld, didn’t you? We could visit her homeworld! Please, can’t we check it out? I want to see for myself! I want to meet her mates and learn about her world! We were taught so little about her bloodline and so much about fath...” I stop to correct myself, “…Sire Prince Terra’s bloodline. I want to learn more, don’t you?”

Taking a big breath to continue, I smile with joy. “We could bring mom too! She would love an outing like that! A few small hours of rest in familiar surroundings. I would love to...”

“NO!” Damien’s voice is stern, and his face red. Is he angry? Or is he embarrassed about making a mistake?

I don’t care if opening a portal to mom’s homeworld is forbidden. It’s not like I would tell anyone if we go there. Why should I listen to their rules when they don’t bother telling me why we can’t go there? It’s not like anyone would know us, and if we keep hidden, no one will be able to tell we were there. One little peek cannot do that much damage, can it? Yes, we have to do it in secrecy, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy it, does it?

“No,” Damien repeats more calmly, then sighs. “It wasn’t her homeworld, Celeste; I know what I’m doing. It was a farm world.”

A farm world? Really? If he is right, then one of mom’s mates is in a world filled with acres upon acres of fields, but not much else. What is he doing there? Perhaps he was enslaved when mom came here with father, and her mate works as a mechanic or even a farmer? After all, the farm equipment needs maintenance. It’s a likely scenario.

Or maybe?! Maybe he is looking for a way to save her from this moonless world? Think about it! It would be so romantic if they shifted under the moon together, then roaming around as their wolves. Sighing inwardly at the romance novel playing out in my head, I try to accept the real world. It’s never like in the books I’ve sneaked into my rooms. The books mom never got to read before her mind slipped.

“Stop your daydreaming. I need to get you home before anyone finds you missing and then I need to report to Sire Prince Terra,” Damien commands as if he’s in charge.

“You can tell him on our way to court. I came to get you so we can prepare for tonight.”

“Sire Prince Terra has given me instructions to come to him as soon as I succeed in making a portal. I will not delay because you want to look fancy for some silly dinner.”

“What’s up with you Damien? You know better than that.” It’s almost a surprise when he blushes from my words, but most of all it’s a relife. My brother is still in there somewhere, despite whatever happened when he was off-world.

“I’m sorry. I know better than to think anything involving court is something you would enjoy. It’s one of the few things I don’t envy about you. I’ve only been twice and Empress Aubrey barely gave me the time of the day.”

Damien gives me the tiniest of smiles, and I can’t help myself from hugging him. “Will you talk with me after? If we get time before court or have to wait until tomorrow, I don’t care. I miss talking with my favorite brother.”

“I’ll do my best, but I might be sent off-world for a time. You know how Sire Prince Terra is. If you can do something you need to do it better.”

“If you can’t make it can you please send me a message?”

Damien nods, then helps me in the direction to the crack. We slide through, him first and me struggling behind. Back in the hallway I walk a step behind him all the way home because he is wearing high status clothes and if we walk as equals it will be noticed by anyone who will happen to go past. Damien doesn’t follow me inside, but turns around to go to father to deliver his report. I can’t help myself as I glance back at him as my gut coils inside me.