#30

Aurora
After we had washed up and dressed, we brought the basket back to the kitchen only to receive another. We thanked Shelly, who grinned broadly, probably sensing the change in my domineer. Though the future was uncertain and littered with questions for the first time in a long time, I allowed myself to release some of the tension within me.

Tonight there was a hard cider and some kind of soft cheese Evander placed inside the stove to become gooey and delightful. It was less of a meal and more indicative of something you would find at a wine-tasting party on a fancy charcuterie board. The cider warmed me from the inside as we played at just being together and feeding each other bits of olives and figs, berries, and nuts. It was sweet and kind of intimate.

When we were finished with the food, which I put away more than I normally would, into the confines of my stomach, Evander grabbed our glasses and the bottle of what we had left of the cider and guided me upstairs. We had come home to a basket on the porch with, thankfully, a few more items and some of the ones I had come here with. The skirt and the sweater barely held the stains of Evander's blood, but I wouldn't be able to wear that in town. Walking around with faded bloodstains wasn't going to work, to blend, not to stand out was the idea. The black leggings I could wear and I sifted through the handful of oversized sweaters and tops. I could wear my grey tank under one of Evander’s shirts like a tunic and I'd bring the jacket to stay warm in the early morning and evening.

As I set my clothes aside for the morning, Evander came out of the bathroom in just his boxers. I took in the sight of him and smiled, enjoying the view. As he did the same to me. I was simply in the oversized white tee shirt and underwear. I discarded my bra for the evening. And I knew in the chill air my nipples were at full attention. He poured us both a mason jar of cider as I went back to the bookshelf to retrieve the book of poetry I had in my hands the previous night. I lay on the bed on my stomach opening the pages. "I assume you read a lot?” he asked. Passing me my glass. I took it. "Sometimes, I have only ever had time to enjoy reading if it's short or purely for studying. But poetry I could always slip into since it was a brief reprieve. Always felt like it spoke to my soul." He climbed on the bed next to me, pulling the book between us. He flipped the pages to a specific one.

"This is one of my favorites." I sat up sitting Indian style looking down at the vast tattoo that covered his back. "Will you read it to me?” I asked. As my fingers lazily began tracing the lines of the Yggdrasil (tree of life) symbol. A Celtic circle, which also portrayed the moon's phases, surrounded it. Celtic images of a howling wolf and a raven sat under the branches. There were also woven images of other woodland creatures knotted into the trunk and the leaves and branches of the tree in a beautiful design. As he began to read a poem out loud in his deep rich voice, I continued lazily tracing the lines of the sigls encrypted in the twists and turns of the images. The poem was about a man who fell in love with the moon. It spoke of how she was always so out of reach until she shone brightly in her fullness and the man could bask in her beams. With each month she grew more beautiful in his eyes and his love for her did grow. Her moon beams shined more brightly as his love grew. Then finally she materialized as a maiden his love making it possible. But she was forced to return to complete her cycle always returning to him until his death when she wept creating the stars and took him with her to the heavens.

When he finished the long poem, he smiled over at me as I took a sip from my glass. "Where did you get this?" My fingertip lightly tapped his back. “The elders gave it to me in my Alpha ceremony when I claimed the pack and territory. "Did my brother have his hand in it?" I asked, trying to get to the bottom of something. "No, why do you ask?'' he said, looking over his shoulder at my face, where I was considering if I should even bring this up. "Because it's littered with sigil symbols. Symbols that are common for witches. Symbols that grant strength protection and ward off evil." He seemed lost for a moment before he responded, "Well, Love, my pack derived from mostly my mother's people, and they go very far back in the bloodlines of daoine madadh-allaidh(wolf people)." I nodded, but my gut told me there was more to this. "Do only Alphas receive it?” I asked, out of curiosity. “No, the Betas and sometimes the Luna will also receive them. But the elders always plan and guild the tattoo based on the individual, so if you choose to get one, it would be different." I nodded.

”We will have some things to work out before we come together.” I warned him. "What’s that?" I sighed taking a large gulp of the cider before setting the glass down on the side table. "My abilities and the way our bond is forming are not entirely as you seem to recognize it. It is how the old priests and priestesses used to unite power. They could share it once their souls were bonded together. Typically, when a witch comes together with a spouse, their souls are simply linked similarly, as I am guessing your people's matings are just not as deep. But not in the way we are already experiencing. Not in the sense, when they join it is more of a tether for them. Something like I imagine the pack shares with each other. For a witch to have that kind of bond where our souls meld. This means the power we possess can be shared. So by me binding to you in the sense of the wolf and the witch theoretically would share gifts. Now think about how you are linked with your pack. I can not be certain it will not affect them as well.” Whereas Evander and his people's abilities were more instinctual. Which I understood because I was learning mine had an interesting ability to grow as I used it in such a way. Witches had over centuries tried to force power to their whims instead of cooperating with nature. It was a broad theory I was curious to experiment with.

Evander had sat up on his elbows considering my words. “Penny for your thoughts, Alpha?” I asked, crawling back down beside him, resting my chin on my hands as he sat up on his elbows and looked at me like bits were falling into place. “So that's what your brother was worried about, our soul's melding and us sharing the power?” he asked. I nodded.

He looked back at my bare feet, which were crossed and dangling over my backside. “What about this?” He asked, shifting to one side, so he lay facing me as he tapped my ankle. “That's the other thing,” I said, sitting up and reaching for the now-empty glasses and the bottle of cider. I stretched my feet out towards him so he would have a better view of the knotwork of the henna, as I filled mine and reached over, pouring the last of it into his. “Our magic awakens kinda like how the wolf awakens in your people, as I think you have touched on. I got mine between 2 and 3 and Blake got his at 8 on the same day. They considered him an early bloomer, but because I could control his power, my parents hid mine. That ability is unheard of and the idea to them is taboo. Blake's power was simple, though as a kid he had control issues l and I could put out his fires and so on. But while he remained just a sprout till puberty, mine continued to grow. I’d wander off into the woods, I find animals needing care and such. After they found me with an orphaned fawn, people started to wonder and Ma and Pa panicked, and Aunt Bess came up with this. Essentially, it dampens some of the external intakes of energy.” I explained. “So as a child, it interrupted the call of the wild, so to speak.”

He lifted my foot as he sat up, with him a free hand. “So all that power I can sense you manipulating is nothing compared to what will be available to you once this fades away?” I took another sip of cider, the soft buzz of the alcohol causing my body to relax. “In a nutshell, which is why I have concerns. Blake is great at manipulating ceremonies and rituals for specific instances. I don't know what practices you have in place that bind Luna to the Alpha or join her into the pack, but we should consider the repercussions of our binding and what that means to the bonds of these people. I will not blindside them. If they are to become a part of this, they will have to choose it.” He nodded, gently squeezing my ankle in his hands.

“Blake and I will speak to the elders tomorrow. You and Whinnie go to town and don't worry about anything for now. I may have to bring them into the fold.” I sighed. “Eventually, they all will need to know, If I am to stay and we are considering this. I don't want to leave. At least let me see what Dominic can do to help me disappear. Keep it to your elders.” He finished his cider, and I followed suit. As he curled around me, encompassing me with his scent and warmth, he whispered in my ear. “We have promise for another day may our destiny grant us another.” I supposed it was his way of saying he was grateful I was looking at tomorrow as a way to keep our future. He realizes I promised him the day, but I had to be sure I could disappear from my old life before I could offer him what he truly wanted.