Moonlit Songs

Chapter 5

     The manuscript lays open on the table as my eyes hover over the cover page. As itchy as my fingers are to turn the page and soak in the information, a part of me is terrified to find out what is written on these pages. The fairy tales of my childhood were filled with magic and lore, but this is real and they're somehow a reality.

     My fingers shake as I recall the memories with my mother. Her tall figure was over my bedside as she read to me. She had always chosen the storybooks related to the sea, telling me about the mermaids who lived in the depths. How beautifully elegant she had described them; the image I had created of them was still clear in my mind.

     To think all that is about to be altered. Well, it already has been after experiencing them firsthand really. Starting with the script about the werewolves would be the right choice as of now. I am in their presence, so I might as well draw myself a decent picture of who, or what, they are.

     How I crave to have a friend right now, someone who understands or can at least comfort me as I process what I'm going through. Paisley would find the humor in this and bring some light into it with her dark jokes and all.

     I shiver as a draft brushes my bare arms. The library has become cold, raising goosebumps upon my skin, the draft slipping from an unknown source. I curse myself for not wearing a sweater.

     I could read another-

     "Hello, Astrea, is it?" A very pregnant woman approaches me, her soft facial features brightening with her warm smile. I nod.

     "I'm Charlotte, Luna to the pack."

     I take her outstretched hand, and her warmth seeps into my skin. I take note of her distinctive raven black hair cascading down her back in beautiful soft waves, bringing out her bright amber eyes. I smile gently at her.

     Huh, Luna. I wonder what that's supposed to mean.

     I've heard the word tossed around, here and there by Xander, referring to her as Luna, out of respect. I figure it must be a title, much like Alpha is.

     "I see you've taken an interest in the books I've chosen for you." She points at the short stack beside the open to me, and I nod.

     "I haven't started. This is all so strange and new to me." I sigh and lean back in my seat.

     "All like a dream." She chuckles humorously. "I remember when I first saw the shift. I ran back the way I came." She smiles and shakes her head at the memory.

     "And look at me now." Her eyes twinkle as she rubs her belly tenderly.

     The stone placed in the ring on her right finger facing me catches the light. Her body hums as her skin glows with a motherly aura.

     I smile at her happiness and content.

     "Xander, he can shift... into a wolf?" My fingers graze the yellowed page of the book in front of me.

     My attention focuses on the intense gaze of the wolf in the script, its eyes too calculating and aware to belong to an animal.

     "Yes, everyone in this very house can. Aside from us." I giggle and scratch my eyebrow.

     So, she's human too.

     My mind can't wrap around this woman living with the supernatural, her heart seems so sweet and caring.

     "You just need a break from all this. Why don't you join me outside for some fresh air" she offers. "We could leave the scripts back in your room in the meantime."