Lunar Shadows: Awaken

Selene

Hearing a gentle knock, I turn to find Kyran leaning in the open doorway and I give him a small smile.

“Hey, are you alright?” he asks quietly, standing upright and stepping onto the porch. “I just wanted to see if you needed anything.”

“I have a ton of questions, feel a little lost and my head hurts a bit, but I’m alright, I think,” I respond slowly as I rise from the bench.

"If you’re feeling up to it, we can talk afterwards and I can help to better explain the wolf side of things. I’ll answer any questions you have,” he offers, running his hand through his hair.

I find myself distracted by the messy way his hair sticks out when he drops his hand, making me want to comb my fingers through it and I quickly avert my gaze as my cheeks heat with a blush. I smile up at him awkwardly and nod my head. “Yeah, I think I’d like that, there’s definitely a lot I do not fully grasp yet,” I mumble as I head inside.

“Same here,” he murmurs and I glance over my shoulder at him, curious.

“What do you mean?”

“Let’s just finish hearing out your mother first,” he gestures down the hall, “I have a feeling the answers to my question will be found and I will explain what I mean in a little while, okay?” he gives me a half smile and my heart thumps at our proximity.

Silently nodding my head, I turn toward the living room and find that Ria has pulled out some snacks. I eagerly grab a couple chocolate chip muffins, taking a bite of one and handing the other to Kyran. He takes it from me and I see his nose scrunch slightly, but he smiles at me with his thanks.

“Do you not like muffins?” I ask, curious.

“Oh, I do. I, ah, I’m not a big fan of chocolate,” he admits, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Oh, no! Is it because you’re a wolf? Does it make you sick, like how dogs can’t digest it well? N-not that I’m calling you a dog. Ugh, I’m sorry, I wasn’t even thinking,” I ramble, feeling slightly embarrassed and I scrunch my face uncomfortably.

He huffs out a laugh as both my mother and Ria laugh too, causing my face to flush.

“Ah, no, it doesn’t bother me at all. I just don’t really care for the smell of it, so I’ve never really given it much thought. I’m not much of a sweets guy, I guess?” he smiles crookedly, making my stomach flutter.

Ria steps over, holding out a banana walnut muffin with a grin. “Here, try this, it’s more savory than sweet,” she offers Kyran.

He accepts it with a smile and takes a bite, his eyes rounding slightly. “Mmf,” he swallows, “this is delicious,” he announces and stuffs half of it in his mouth, chewing quickly. “Where did you get this?” he asks before devouring the rest of it.

Well, I guess I can see why it’s called ‘wolfing your food down’, I wonder with a grin as I watch him.

“Selene baked them,” Ria says simply, shooting me a wink.

Blushing, I turn to take my seat again in the corner of the couch and pull my feet up beside me. My mother sips her tea silently as she watches us with a ghost of a smile pulling up the corners of her mouth. I notice Kyran snag two more muffins before sitting down with a gleeful expression on his handsome face.

“Really? Well then, I just might be a sweets guy after all,” he jokes with a smirk, taking another bite and causing us all to laugh.

My mother places her cup on the table and leans forward toward me to ask, “Selene, do you feel ready to continue? Is there anything you are unsure about or need me to expand upon?”

“I think so. I have a lot of questions but I will wait until you’ve explained things further before asking any, in case you answer them along the way,” I respond with a small smile.

“Alright then, I will pick up where we left off.” She sits back and folds her hands in her lap before explaining, “After your creation, I introduced you to the werewolves and explained who you were. They immediately took you in and guided you through your childhood years as teachers, in a way, taking you during the daytime so you could learn their ways. Asteria helped me raise you as we would any child, though your wolf emerged much sooner than that of the normal werewolves. Generally, they don’t emerge until around the age a human child experiences puberty, but you were what would equal to be a five year old human at the time that you first shifted.”

“Hold on, what do you mean by ‘what would equal’?” I ask as I lean forward, interested.

“Kyran, would you help me explain this properly?” she asks, giving him a timid smile.

“Of course,” he responds over a mouthful, quickly swallowing and brushing muffin crumbs off his shirt as he sits forward. “While young wolves—or pups is what we call them—are developing, they appear like regular human children. However, werewolf growth is much different than that of humans. When a pup is born, their growth rate is twice as fast as a human child’s until they reach five or six years of living age, meaning their body is equivalent to that of a ten or twelve year old human. This is when their wolves generally emerge and they experience their first shift. Once this takes place, our growth slows tremendously, to ten times slower than that of humans to be exact,” he pauses, taking a breath as he narrows his eyes in thought.

“For example, a werewolf first shifted at the age of five during the year that the human was ten. That werewolf would appear to be only around the age of fifteen themselves when the ten year old human reaches the age of say, fifty. As we grow into adulthood, our appearance hardly changes until we reach over five to six hundred years and then our hair and skin begins to alter, the hair graying slowly and skin softening into wrinkles. But even then, many wolves at these ages are hard to determine exactly how old they are by just looking at them. Is this making any sense to you? I know it is an extreme concept and can be a little weird to envision,” he gazes at me, giving me a sympathetic smile.

Absorbing that information, I find I do understand it, though it seems entirely bizarre. Pursing my lips, I narrow my eyes at him, wondering, “How old are you?” as I observe him, noting the smooth, tanned skin of his face. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he was maybe late twenties or early thirties, judging off his general appearance.

“I’m around three hundred and fifty years old, but it gets tough to keep track of the exact years as time passes,” he smiles thinly, watching me.

“Wow,” I whisper and sit back against the couch, staring at him. I want to ask a bunch of questions but suppress the urge, looking to my mother once more and gesture for her to continue.

“Since your first shift, your wolf quickly became noticeably different and not just in appearance. She possesses abilities far greater than any wolf in existence and no one could force her will through commands. As time went on and you grew into adulthood, the werewolf race spread far and wide, creating their own factions with alpha leaders and forming loyalties known as packs. This helped to ensure easier control over the vampire race seeing how they don’t particularly like to follow any set of rules. They do adhere to their king’s rule, however. He is what I know to be the firstborn or created vampire. His name is Caedes, and once he discovered your existence, absolute turmoil erupted between races.

“Caedes began to hunt for you, learning that their venom could inflict severe damage on werewolves and cause them to entirely lose their control. This would be where the lore of werewolves originated from with humans, seeing a shape-shifting man slaughtering innocent people with no sanity. These werewolves are deemed as berserkers, their wolf half fully taking over and essentially becoming rabid beasts with their human side gone. Caedes intended to use these werewolves against you, to cause chaos amongst your race. When you had first encountered one, you and I had discovered that your wolf holds the ability to heal them, to rid them of the infection the vampire venom causes.

“We managed to keep this ability a secret, with only the alphas of the separated packs knowing the truth. During a gathering with them, Caedes had sent a few of his best servants to try and kill you, murdering many of these leaders. In a fit of rage, I released my magic into the remaining alphas, transforming them into Guardians. They are elite shifters with the ability to morph their human bodies with the attributes of their wolf, giving them the upper hand when combating the vampires. Your wolf had given each of them her blood, allowing them to share your immortality, powers, and granting them immunity to a vampire’s venom. The Guardians’ purpose was to protect you, to ensure the safety of the werewolf race. If you were to be slain, the entirety of the race would perish due to Selene’s soul binding each life to yours,” my mother clears her throat, taking a sip of her tea.

I blink slowly, trying hard to process everything I am hearing. Kyran slumps back into the chair with his hand rubbing over his mouth and his eyebrows are drawn low.

“I—we, my entire pack, every wolf I’ve ever known—thought that the white wolf and Guardians were just a tale of long lost history. The only thing I truly know about them was their disappearance, supposedly over a thousand years ago, along with the white wolf. The legend has been told to pups as bedtime stories and from elders around campfires. I’m now going to assume that the stories told are completely true and real, and from what you’ve told us, the disappearance was not a coincidence,” Kyran leans forward on one knee, pressing a hand to his mouth.

“Yes, that is correct. Most everything that has been spoken of throughout time about Selene’s wolf and her Guardians holds truth, though I’m sure some embellishments have been woven through here and there. I have good reason to believe that when her wolf fully awakens from stasis that her Guardians will as well,” my mother sips her tea, watching Kyran over the rim of her cup.

I glance between them and then at Ria, finding her violet eyes watching me carefully. She gives me a gentle smile as she rubs my knee and I return a smile of my own. Curious, I ask, “Could you explain what you mean by awakening and stasis? I don’t fully understand the concept of that,” turning my gaze to my mother once more.

“Ah, yes, I apologize,” she sets her cup down again, turning to me. “Some time after Caedes' attack and the rise of the Guardians, we—Asteria and I—noticed an alarming amount of berserk werewolves and lone wolves, called rogues, growing in numbers along with the vampires. It was clear Caedes was building the masses to work against us, to find you. There had even been some entire packs of wolves out searching for you, to hand you over to him in the hopes that it would end the chaos between races.

“The three of us had been constantly changing home locations throughout the years to keep our trails unclear. When we had realized it was going to amount to either an all-out war or you and Caedes fighting to the death, Asteria and I decided to propose we place you and your wolf into stasis. That means you are enspelled into a sleep-like state, ultimately freezing in time neither alive nor dead, indefinitely. Think of the tale of Sleeping Beauty, it is much the same. In your case, we had to hold you in stasis for over a thousand years until any wolf alive at the time you were in existence had been long dead. Asteria offered to enter stasis with you, to use her magic to fuel the spell. I had pulled her out first at around six or seven hundred years later, but you had remained for a few hundred years past that. Our intentions were to reintroduce you and your wolf to the werewolves once nobody knew who you were, when the issue of Caedes’ small army had passed.

“Unfortunately, he has been hunting any young, blonde female, both from werewolves and humans, for a thousand years. I know his intent is to uncover one of them to be you, I’ll give it to him that he’s intelligent, and I know that he has not abated in the slightest with his search. You nearly encountered him last night, at Kyran’s bar. And before you jump to any conclusions, no, Kyran was completely unaware of this potential catastrophe.” She breathes out a tired sigh and rubs at her forehead, sitting back in her chair.

Kyran’s sharp intake of breath drags my rapt attention to him and I can see the fury, confusion, and fear warring on his face. I notice the way he clenches his hands and how his brow pulls tightly, deep in thought. “He’s been aggressive with his abductions recently, and he even had taken women whose wolves were obviously undisguised. He took my mother,” he mumbles, looking down at the floor. “It all makes sense now, the abductions, the reasoning, all of it. There’s got to be a way to stop him. Wait, when did Selene—our Selene—emerge from stasis?” he asks suddenly, looking up at my mother with a tight expression.

I can’t help the warm fuzziness that blankets me when I hear his use of our. Chewing on my lip, I watch my mother for her answer. “Roughly one hundred and fifty years ago,” she says quietly, glancing at me.

My mouth hangs open, dumbfounded. “What? How?”

Kyran abruptly stands to his feet and runs his hands through his hair, pacing between the living room and kitchen. “He knows,” he mutters, flopping his hands to his sides.

“Pardon me?” my mother asks, her brow knitted with concern.

“Caedes, he knows. He has to. My mother, along with hundreds of other blonde women, had been abducted by groups of hostile vampires across the country a hundred and fifty years ago,” Kyran grits out between clenched teeth. “He knows Selene is here, somewhere, there’s no other explanation.”

“Shit,” both my mother and sister hiss at the same time.

Still reeling from discovering I’ve supposedly been awake for over a century without any recollection, I take a deep breath and drop my head in my hands as my headache begins to pound painfully. “I get the dire circumstances of being hunted by a psycho vampire and all, but could we rewind a moment, please?” I mumble, rubbing my temples.

“What do you need to know, Selene?” Ria’s voice asks nearby.

“How the fuck do I not remember being alive for over two lifetimes?” I ask seriously, lifting my head to see the guilty twist of her mouth as she glances away from me. “Ria?”

“Ugh, fine! When you woke from stasis, your wolf did not, and she stayed dormant long enough for us to realize we had a problem. So, I crafted a brew to give you that erased all memories involving magic and put a spell on you to alter your perception of time,” her voice lowers quickly as she speaks, ending with a mumble.

“Hold the fuck on,” I breathe, incredulous. “Everything I know is a lie. What I thought was fifteen years has been a hundred and fifty? Is the story of being adopted and moving here fake? My pretend amnesia was from a make-believe car crash, I presume? Why the lies, the deceit? Why not just tell me the truth when I woke up!” I yell shrilly, launching to my feet.

“I am sorry, Selene,” she breathes out as she wrings her hands. “Truly, I am. It was a choice I made hastily without regarding mother and to reverse that and then disclose everything else to you was just…too much. It was the wrong choice, I know that now, and I really am sorry for it, for all of it. I’ve tried tirelessly to bring your wolf out of stasis, for your memories to restore but I just can’t make it happen!” her voice breaks as tears spring in her eyes.

My anger deflates and I let out a long breath, giving her a wan smile when she meets my gaze again. “It’s alright, I think I understand. I’m just a bit overwhelmed at the moment, with all of this. I just…wish we could have skipped the whole keeping me in the dark part,” I murmur with a grimace, pressing my fingers to my temple in soothing circles.

“Hekate, could I speak with you for a moment, please?” Kyran’s deep voice rumbles from the kitchen and as our eyes meet, I see the amber color in his flash brightly and a sharp pain radiates in my head.

“Ah!” I gasp, clutching my head with both hands and squeeze my eyes shut, doubling over.

“Selene! What’s wrong?” my mother’s alarmed voice is immediately beside me and her hands press over mine.

“It feels—argh—like my head is…splitting in half,” I grit out as my breathing intensifies, my chest heavily rising and falling.

“Asteria, help me. I can’t pull the pain from her body,” my mother commands and I feel Ria’s hands press down on the top of my head.

I bite my lip hard to stop myself from crying out as the pain becomes unbearable. A small whimper escapes me, though, and I feel my eyes grow hot with tears.

“It’s her wolf, I can feel her,” Kyran’s husky voice murmurs softly close by, “let me try.”

The pressure of their hands disappear and I feel incredible warmth envelope me, the agony fading away like dust in the wind. Opening my eyes, I find Kyran crouched in front of me, his hands cupping my face gently with a hopeful look in his warm eyes. Sighing, I press my cheek into his palm, feeling beyond exhausted.

“How—” my voice cracks and I clear my throat, but Kyran answer’s me anyway.

“I remembered in my bathroom, how you responded to my touch when you were distraught. I noticed the way you instantly relaxed, and just now I felt the urge to reach out to calm you. I think your wolf is fighting to break free and it’s causing you this pain,” he speaks quietly, searching my eyes.

We stay like this for a moment in silence until a deep weariness washes over me. Reaching up, I lightly grasp Kyran’s wrist and pull one of his hands into mine. “Thank you,” I whisper, giving him a small smile and shyly lean my face into his other cupped hand.

“Always, sweetheart,” he murmurs as his thumb lightly strokes my cheek.

Tingles race down my body from his touch like an electric shock and I shiver slightly as he slowly removes his hands to stand. I feel this pull from within and rise quickly to my feet, reaching out to grasp his hand again.

Mate, an ethereal voice whispers in my mind, like the echo of a crystal bell.

Kyran’s eyes fly open wide as he gasps and clutches my hand firmly between both of his. From the corner of my eye, I see my mother press her hand to her chest and take a deep breath.

“Was—was that her?” I whisper, blinking my eyes owlishly as Kyran nods silently. “W—what did she mean by that?” I ask, searching his warm gaze.

“Selene, I think you should rest, you’re looking a bit faint, dear,” my mother’s voice is tight but quiet.

Nodding my head, I don’t remove my gaze from Kyran’s as I murmur, “Yes, I should, you’re right. Ria? Would you, um, put me to sleep like you did before, at the park?” I ask, glancing over my shoulder at her. “We need to talk more later, by the way,” I scrunch my nose at her.

As she nods her head and steps toward me, I turn back to Kyran and place my palm on his cheek. “Please stay,” I whisper.

“Of course,” he whispers back, reaching up and pulling my arm around his neck as he bends down to lift me off my feet, holding me in his strong arms.

Resting my head against his shoulder, I give Ria a tired smile, mumbling, “Thank you.”

She smiles back and reaches up, pressing her finger against my forehead as she whispers, “Somnum,” and I blissfully fall into unconsciousness.