#33

Aurora
Whinnie went into the bank to handle something as I slipped into a thrift store. It was like stepping back in time. Cowboy and vintage attire, as well as several unique relics, sat calling to me on the racks. I had a wad of cash hidden in the same pouch as the documents. I had slowly drained my bank account over the last few months so it wouldn't look strange. As my hands ran over a bohemian sundress, my heart ached for the woods, the tiny settlement, and, the man that waited for me there. A place where my brother and I could raise children side by side. When I found the dress was my size. I lifted it against me as I turned to the mirror. The magic was faintly sparking in my eyes. But that wasn't what I was looking at. They held hope, Dominic, no matter what an utter dick he was. Had just offered to give me the one thing nobody else could. And I was eternally grateful to the fucking bastard.

I wasn't here for dresses or pretty things. I was supposed to stock up on winter wear in case I had to flee. But the dress would fit. It was an excellent color and in good condition. My mother used to say something that came back to me. “Dove, some things you shouldn't overthink. Just let them be, and they will grow on their own accord.” I realized now that she had been consoling me, understanding far better where my mood had been that day. I had asked if they could just make it stop. Please make me normal. I just wanted to play with the other kids. “You are not meant to be like everyone else. Even though you need to hide it, you can still embrace it. Don't forsake your gifts. She will reward you for your strife in life when the time is right.”

The bell jangled, and I glanced over my shoulder at Whinnie as she came in. “You have to get that dress!” she mushed. “But we are here for winter things?” I said, about to put it back. “Nope! You're getting it and anything else your heart desires. I already screwed up on the Dom bit if you aren't laden with stuff when we go home. Evander will have another strike against me.” I sighed and agreed on the dress. Digging through the racks I found a few more appropriate items. Sweaters, scarves, and a few warm hats. My fingers ran over trinkets and jewelry and when my heart hit right, I added them to the pile. Whinnie even grabbed a few things claiming she’d never wandered in here because it was a thrift store but agreed that it was a gem. Hope felt good.

My eyes landed on an old doctor's medicine chest it had drawers and sectioned places containing old empty glass bottles with stoppers and various compartments. Was I even considering unpacking all of the things in my bag? Was I ready to declare this my home? I didn't even know if they would accept me but I had hope. I looked down at the dress draped over my arm and I grabbed the chest before I could talk myself out of it.

When I turned to the counter to pay, Whinnie snatched the lot from me, dumping it on the counter with hers. She tugged the chest out of my grip also.“Nope,” was all she said before pulling out a black card with Evander’s name on it. I huffed, crossing my arms across my chest, but not wanting to make a scene. It was now that my stomach growled. “I suppose he forgot to feed you this morning as we walked out with our bags. I shrugged. “Wasn't hungry anyway this morning. But he did make me the most amazing cup of coffee”. She rolled her eyes. “That coffee Vander makes is death in a cup. You must be made for each other. If you thought that was great. Shits like gasoline.” I laughed as she rounded into a diner.

“Two Please,” she told the blond waitress with wildly teased hair and caked-on makeup. She took us to a table off to the side and pointed at the wall of chalk-written menus for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. “Water please,” I asked, keeping my eyes off hers and on the lunch menu. “Dana, I'll take my usual,” Whinnie stated. “What does Blake normally get here?” I asked her. “Grilled cheese,” she stated. “I'll have that,” I mumbled. The kitchen door opened and the scent of meat in the air had me salivating. As Whinnie ordered for me, I reached for the water glass Dana set before me. Taking in a long sip. “You ok?” Whinnie asked, eyeing me curiously. “Yeah,” I sighed. I may as well tell her. “Apparently now I'm smelling and tasting things differently,” I barely whispered, figuring her ears could hear. “Interesting,” she said, looking at me curiously.

Our food came out a few moments later as we made small talk avoiding the obvious subjects with listening ears around. We ate quietly, my completely demolished grilled cheese, tomato soup, fries, and the pickle very obviously noted by my company. This wasn't normal. I didn't eat like that. As I looked at Whinnie, not voicing the concern. I wiped my hands clean, drained my water glass, and looked up at her once more. She sighed, shaking her head, and eyed me with worry. When Dana walked over with the check, I snatched it off the table and reached into my bag for a $50 bill for a $20 tab, slapping it on the table before ushering us out.

I held up a finger to silence her. “We will talk about it when we go home.” I shook my head. “Not here.” She nodded, her eyes concerned. “Where else do we need to go?” I asked. “We need to top off the grain and canned veggies at the feed and grocery, but we still need to get you a functioning wardrobe and women's things. “Let's get the feed and grocery situated. Then you can take me to my demise,” I said dramatically.

Our visit to the feed and grocery store was quick. She rambled off her needs to someone up front and they promised to deliver to Frank and Anna’s place within two hours. It was as we left we got a phone call. She handed it to me. “I hope you have good news for me, Dominic,” I said, pulling my confident air around me no matter how fake it was. “Your previous life in the US is now over. Only your memory remains. I will have a new identity hitting the PO box the pack uses in the next week. You, my dear, extra special badass Luna, are now Luna Star. I still need to forge the marriage certificates etc. for your new last name. So, what I'm sending is temporary. But that will only happen if you mate my brother.” He was giving me an out, allowing me to disappear without all this. “Thank you, Dominic, I appreciate your thoughtfulness. But I do have a job to do.” “Well, Dove.” he said, causing me to pause as we walked down the street. He had done his homework “Don't worry, sis, I didn’t find much.” I balked a little at his endearment. “Everything you said lined up, I'm just waiting for the overseas estates to come through. “How long will that take?” I asked, glancing at Whinnie, who was eavesdropping obviously. “By the end of the week, the questionable estates will be owned by some random woman named Luna Star. If… her last name is the same as my brother's. “That's too soon, Whinnie sassed back at him. “The ever gentleman that my brother is," he huffed. "Fine! You have until the full moon to become one of us, or else the overseas estates will become mine instead.” There it was, the catch. I knew there would be one. This was the life of being forced to trust assholes. “How? Pray to tell, am I supposed to prove I've mated your brother when I'm in the woods with no cell service?” I whispered/yelled. “Oh, I’ll know because I'm inviting myself to the ceremony”… Fuck! My eyes met Whinnie’s and we both tensed. This could be a good thing or it could be a bad thing. Sometimes you want your enemies closer. But was he truly an enemy? “I’ll have Evander call you.” I said before hanging up on the man who brought me the salvation I so desperately longed for. He was the complete opposite of the man that was the hope in my life. Yet now that hope was a gift, however, laced with blackmail.

Whinnie dragged my defeated ass into the store without words about the phone call. She grabbed a cart and wound me through the aisles. I was pretty distracted. She would hold up options and I would haphazardly point to one. She would look at me like I had 5 heads and throw the other one in. “You are the worst shopping companion I have ever had!” she spat. “I’m sorry, but why does your brother want to be at my ceremony?” She sighed. “Probably because he missed mine. He's a total ass, but deep down, he wants to believe in more. Evander's always afraid Dom is going to be envious and lash out, but honestly, he just wants to know there is more out there. He may be our father's son, but he is also our mothers, he wants us happy. He just wants to be happy too in his own way. Evander is going to shit a brick when he finds out though.” “Just tell him I invited him. He doesn't need to stress about my family assets. Dominic is basically forcing my hand to stay here at this point.” I huffed. “You have three weeks till the full moon.” Whinnie offered knowing that putting a time limit on my choices was harsh but necessary.

“Do you really want to go?” She asked, holding up some PJs. “Hell No, and I don't need those. I’ll just steal your brothers' shirts.” She grinned. “What?” “So you do want to stay?” She said, still grinning. “Whinnie, it's not that simple.” I huffed out. “Aurora, what do you want?” my fingers trailed over the fabrics of the clothing on the racks. It wasn’t something I was used to being asked. Really what did I want? “I’d like to believe I have a future, a chance at a family, maybe friendships. “I'm tired of hiding.” My fingers hit a corduroy jacket that I pulled off the rack and dumped in the cart. “We want you here,” she said quietly walking us to the underwear dept. While I was sifting through the sparse options for undies and bras in my size. She was at a rack of lingerie. She walked over with a hot pink number. “No,” I said tossing in a pack of thick socks and some basic undies. She looked down with disapproval noting my sizes. She went back through the rack and dumped a handful of skimpy lacy things in. “Trust me, I don’t want to know and I won't elaborate, but feeling sexy in your underwear is a must.” She dragged me over to the lingerie rack and I glared at her. “At least look to see if anything catches your fancy. We can order things online, but there's no telling who is gonna check the PO box.”

I found a burgundy lace halter contraption I threw in the cart to shut her up. My impending deflowering was starting to unnerve and thrill me. I shook my head as we passed the shampoo and such. Shaking my head no, “I'll make those.” “What do you need to do that?” she asked. I rambled off a list she wrote down. She pointed at the feminine products. I dumped a few boxes in. She doubled it. “We don't have much time for a dress.” She voiced her eyes darting around.

“Dress?” I asked. “You need something for the ceremony. Something nice, not too extravagant, something White, silver, purple, or blue?” Looking around at the store, we would not find it here. I hadn't noticed everything she put in the cart. As she unloaded at the checkout. I glared at her. It was more than I needed. And some things I didn't want to think about, like a box of pregnancy tests. I let her pay as the cash wad I'd have to pull out to count wouldn't be as discreet as quickly swiping Evander’s shiny black card. It was easy enough at the diner when I knew one bill blindly pulled out would cover the tab. When the assets were moved over and I had access to my accounts with my new identity documentation, I would transfer a chunk over to Evander’s account. “You're sneaky,” I said. “And you're distracted enough to let me be. Evander insisted I ensured we had everything you may need or desire.” I sighed as she was speaking the truth. We would already be in trouble with the Dominic situation.

“Let's try the hobby shop to see if they have fabric,” Whinnie said as we unloaded our bags into the car. “Now, that's more my speed.” The shop was littered with old and new. Anything from sewing supplies to model car builds. Whinnie ushered me to the fabrics. I looked at the white and blue swatches while mine lingered over the purple and gray. “What exactly are we looking for?” I whispered. The counter lady had the radio on, so it was easier to talk than at the last store. “Well, each color represents something a little different. “White like a traditional wedding dress would represent purity. Blue has more of a divine aspect to it. That's a rare choice but may be right for you. Silver pulls at the feminine energy and the sensitivity to the moon. You would be shifting if you sealed the bond sooner. It could be a good choice. Purple can go for a lot of different reasons, usually Lunas coming from wealth or a high pedigree will choose that. In my mother's case, it was more for the wisdom and pride of the pack. “Let's pick a purple and a silver. We don't know what will happen in the next three weeks.” I offered Whinnie. “Evander and Blake are having a pow-wow with the elders today. There's more going on than you know yet,” I let her know. Her brow arched. “I'll fill you in on the way home.” I whispered. She nodded.

After a heated discussion about my choice of a very sheer silver botch of fabric, I had to tell her I would explain that choice later. She finally relented, as she would hopefully be able to convince me to use the more “appropriate purple,” the pack would have to see me for who I was. A witch, a priestess, an extension of a goddess they did not fully understand. I would have to make a statement and they would have to choose to welcome me and embrace whatever was coming to us together or deny me flat out. We will learn more soon. I didn’t know who to make my ally yet in this decision, but my gut screamed for it. Winding through the aisles on our way to pay. I scooped up some colored cord and a few art supplies for my soul and managed to bypass Whinnie on the payment as she was preoccupied with pink and blue yarn.


On the way back to the farm, we got a text from Dominic. It stated that the overseas estates and accounts were secured. However, they would not be placed in my new name till after my mating. It was a strange kind of blackmail. "He's terrible at just wanting to know what we are up to, Evander is so secretive it makes him paranoid he's missing something," Whinnie stated. "Well, if he's gonna find out about me, might as well be on our turf." I said with a sigh. "Aurora, no matter how big of an asshat he comes off as, he will not betray the secret," Whinnie stated. This was after I explained some things about the mating we would have to hash out with Evander and Diablo. Along with how my sense of taste and smell seemed to be evolving. I didn't know a lot of things. And I needed to ensure that we were binding as the universe seemed hell-bent on us doing. It needed to be done correctly with both sides represented. Determining how that would affect the pack was a top priority.