The Luna's Gift

Chapter Six: Dawn

                                                                                            Stella

    I could hear Dorian cussing under his breath where I stood. If he wanted, he could probably reverse this back on her, but since we didn’t want her thinking we were a threat to her, he stayed in his position. 

    Dawn was looking out at me with pure disgust. Her hatred for werewolves was very clear, and I second-guessed if this was the right call. In my visions, Dawn seemed to be more level-headed than Athan, which is why I came to her first. Maybe I should have found another way to make this happen then going to them individually, but I was so wrapped in getting my first mates together that I didn’t care how it was done.

    “Why are you here? If it is a fight you want, it is a fight you will get, but I promise you, young wolf, you will not be the victor,” Dawn spoke calmly between us, knowing that I could hear her just fine.

    Against my body warning me differently, I took a step toward them. “Dawn, I am not here to start a fight with you. All I want is for you to be open enough to speak with me about something you do not yet understand about yourself or about me. That we are connected in a way that I need you to see and understand.”

    She laughed, not a short chuckle but a full-body laugh that made my skin crawl. “I could never be connected to a werewolf. Firstly, how do you even know my name? Have you and your vampire slave here been stalking me?”

    Dorian shifted in her arms, acting as if he was struggling. “She is telling you the truth. I’m not her vampire slave either. I am no one’s slave but my mates, if she so sees it to be that way.”

    “Mate?” Dawn asked, puzzled, pushing Dorian away from her as she backed away into her cabin. “We are vampires. We don’t have mates. That foolishness is only for the werewolves because they think they are the superior creatures.”

    “It’s true,” I said, taking another step closer. Dawn hissed at me the closer I got, and I could tell that she was ready to lunge at me any given second if I wasn’t careful. “We do have a Moon Goddess that has been specially created for only our kind, but times have changed. Dorian here is mated to one of my closest friends, but it was an extremely long journey for them to be together because, as you said, vampires have never been given the mate bond before.”

    “Stella changed that for me. I was one of the most ruthless vampires, taking what I wanted when I wanted because that is how the Vampire Elders trained me. I had no sympathy for any other creature, hell, not even my own kind. Savannah, my mate, changed that for me. I was just as confused as you because it has never been heard of before. When I saw her for the first time, I knew.” 

    Dorian has indeed come a long way from the vampire he used to be. I don’t exactly know how he and Savannah made it work, but I guess it was true what they say. Love does conquer all. Dawn didn’t know what to believe at this point, but I figured that she could smell the change in Dorian from your typical vampire. 

    She bravely took a step outside again, right up to Dorian, and sniffed. “Show me your mark, and maybe then will I entertain this idea.”

    Before, Dorian never had an official mark because Savannah was only a witch. She didn’t have the power to create a true mark, but when the Moon Goddess extended the offer for me to become anchor, she gifted Dorian with his mark. That way, the Vampire Elders would leave him alone for the time being. From now on, whenever a mating bond was created between creatures that could not naturally form the mark, it would appear after they mated with one another.

    “Okay, take a look for yourself,” Dorian said proudly, pushing back the collar of his shirt, revealing his mate's mark.

    “This can’t be,” Dawn said, stunned to see what she for sure thought was a trick. “This isn’t right. Our kind has always been told that we do not possess the abilities to have mates, that we are cold-blooded creatures incapable of love.”

    I remembered Dorian telling me this story before. Vampires slept around, often as werewolves did. The only difference was that once a werewolf found their mate, they only belonged to that one for the rest of their existence. Because vampires had no mates, they slept around to get their fix, but we're constantly told that they never could possess what was necessary to fall in love with someone. All of that changes with me. 

    “Dawn,” I started, walking to the steps of the cabin. Her eyes were glued on me like she half expected me and Dorian to attack her any second. “My name is Stella. Yes, I am a werewolf, but I am also a witch. Our Moon Goddess has given me a choice, a choice that I didn’t really think twice about taking when it was offered to me. When I stood up for Dorian, she saw something in me when the Vampire Elders threatened to take him away. I now hold the power to mate different creatures all over the world. Everyone should have another, a mate to stand by their side at all times, through the good times and the bad. Just because you are a vampire, a werewolf's supposed natural enemy, you still deserve a chance to be happy just like we werewolves do.”

    Her shoulders relaxed, and she was staring off into space, considering the possibility that this was, in fact, the real deal. “Why me?” she finally asked, staring directly at me. “Why was I chosen?”

    I shrugged my shoulders. “That isn’t known to me. I do know it would not be given to you if you weren’t worthy of it. I know that you are skeptical of me because of what I am, but I assure you that I do not want to cause you any harm or lie to you about something like this. If you need more proof, then I will be happy to show that to you.”

    “Go ahead then,” Dawn said, crossing her arms across her chest. “What else could you possibly have to show me to make me believe you?”

    A smile crept upon my lips, and Midnight was dancing enthusiastically, knowing that she had a chance to be a part of this. I shifted right then and there, breaking in my new form. Midnight broke through my shell, excited to show herself to someone other than myself or Jake. Our eyes glowed this purple color, our fur was tougher, more susceptible to attack than before, and we were bigger, much larger than any normal wolf, even an Alpha, the largest wolves you can encounter.

    Dawn fell back onto her feet. “s**t,” she muttered outright as she fell. “Warn someone next time that you are going to do that. Vampires don’t take too kindly to wolves shifting in front of them like that.” She stopped talking, now only staring at me. I could see it in her eyes that she was now taking what I said seriously. She believed me now. She had to. “You are so…. beautiful. May I?”

    We nodded, knowing what it was that she wanted to do. Dawn stood back to her feet, approaching us with caution. Her hand stuck out, slowly reaching out to touch my head. When her hand grazed our fur, she gasped. There was a shock that radiated through us, coming from me and going to her.

    “See,” Dorian stated. “Nothing to worry about. We aren’t your enemies, not anymore. Stella here wishes to change that. Her goal is to bring all our kinds together and stop this war that happened long before we were created. This war between species is futile. Stella now has the ability to change that for us, to make a real difference. We may be vampires, but regardless of what some may think, we still feel. We want love and acceptance as much as anyone else does, and knowing that we have that chance, everything can change.”

    “You know that the Vampire Elders will not stand for this. They will come after all those that involve themselves with her and any other werewolf for that matter,” Dawn said, still rubbing her hand along my fur.

    Dorian scoffed. His hatred for the Vampire Elders was apparent. “f**k them! If the werewolf elders can see the potential for this, to see past this feud, then why can’t they? It makes you wonder if there is something more going on. They have no reason not to give this a shot because it means peace for our kinds. That would stop this war, and countless lives will be saved. Why continue a war when you can throw up a white flag and find mutual ground? Tell me, Dawn, aren’t you a little curious as to who your mate is?”

    “What is his name?” Dawn asked me, her eyes glued to mine. 

    I didn’t have the ability to speak in this form, and she knew that. I quickly shifted back into human form. Dorian tore his eyes away quickly, still tossing me the backpack that I brought along with me. I had a feeling this wouldn’t be the first time that I had to shift in front of a vampire to get them to believe me. “Athan.”

    “Athan,” Dawn repeated, whispering his name repeatedly. “What is he like? Is he good-looking? Smart? Tall?”

    I chuckled, grabbing onto her arm and leading her into her cabin. “This will not do,” I said. The smell of blood invaded my nostrils the second I stepped through that door.

    Dawn pushed through before me, opening her refrigerator. “Don’t worry, little wolf. I only use blood bags. I’m a bit of a messy eater, but I have nearly starved myself over the past several months. I happened to get lucky running into a blood drive down the road last night. If you were wondering, I don’t kill for sport like a lot of other vampires do,” she said as her head turned to Dorian. “Being once a human myself, I value that part of myself. Just because I am now a vampire, it doesn’t mean that I share their same values. Now how about we move onto something more important. Tell me about this guy who is supposed to be my destined mate.”