By moonlight's shadow

Chapter 14

Once Lukas was up and quickly wore a pair of sweats he found that his Beta was coming towards his cottage and still the trap-door on the floor was open. He did not even think twice but jumped out of the room in three strides and locked the main door from outside.

“Good morning Alpha,” said the bulky hulk of a man with a puzzled expression on his face.

“Good morning. What brings you here so early in the morning?” asked Lukas, his face absolutely unreadable or scrutiny was not possible at all.

“I wanted to tell you something Alpha…rather it is something I have been sensing since last night but I could actually fathom what it was and so I came to tell you that as early as possible. I tried finding you at your ledge in the morning so that we could have a talk peacefully but there also I did not find you. I thought that might be you were resting probably because of the run last night,” said Charles, he was probably looking a bit more normal than the earlier sentence which he spoke.

“Charlie boy, you really think that I need to rest after a run like last night. It was the beginning of something so positive. Moreover Aurora was found outside that church. You know that I don’t believe in the Lord, Father so much but now I could not believe that still after everything he is looking after us,” said Lukas, as if he was talking to himself.

“I do understand why you might be having this epiphany Alpha but I wanted to talk to you about the babe,” said Charlie and Lukas looked at him as if something had struck him in the face.

“What is it about Aurora? Her newborn baby smile was as sweet as a summer strawberry and filled me with a sunshine I never knew existed in the world. I just met her today morning and everything seemed actually fine to me. What is it that you want to tell me?” asked Lukas as Charles stared back at him with infinite patience.

“She is not a normal babe, neither human, nor wolf and not even a hybrid like you. She is something dark, something we have been always asked to be aware about, something we always need to stay away from, especially men. I do understand why you would be feeling like that once you were near her. The babe has powers which we did not think are possible in this world rather they have been carried off as myths,” said Charles and the scowl on his face deepened.

“What are you exactly talking about Charlie? Why don’t you make a clean breast of it and come clean just now? If there is something that you want to tell me about Aurora you should do that now really,” said Lukas, wishing that Rhea was here as well to have part in this conversation.

“She is born of a sorceress. The babe is a witchling,” said Charlie, his face strong and look grim and the moment he uttered this sentence Lukas could not help himself but punch Charlie in the face making him stagger back reeling from the blow.

But then he suddenly felt that he was wrong in hitting Charles. Whatever he was saying might have some semblance of truth in it.

“I am sorry Charlie but I didn’t know what happened to me. I have no idea why I hit you in that way, I am really sorry Charlie,” said Lukas as he helped Charlie up from the ground and looked at him apologetically.

Charles nodded at him and did not say anything at all.

“You see the reason that I told you why she I not a normal babe? You see that she has already charmed you into protecting her against any threat that might arise against her? That is what I was talking about. She is hardly a few days old but all the wolves in the pack, the males they are specifically talking only about Aurora and not about even their own new-born babes. Do you think that it is normal? For any wolf the first loyalty is towards their pack, then their mate and after that comes their own pack. The one that they procreate themselves. I just want to tell you this Alpha that this entire thing is going to blow up in our faces very soon,” said Charlie as he wiped off the blood trickling down his nose.

“What are you exactly suggesting Charlie? None of you protested from the pack when Nina placed her request under the shadow of the moon, and all of you even went for a run for the cause and found her out along with me. Now what are you telling me to do? That I snap her pretty neck off and kill Nina as well, making her pine away with grief? What? I don’t understand anything of this world at Charlie, this is the first time that we have been thrust in this world that too without anyone of us wanting. She is a part of the pack now Charlie. I am bound to protect her. I cannot do anything wrong against her or Nina. That poor woman already has been wronged more than enough times in the world,” said Lukas, letting out a deep sigh.

“What was the first thing that you felt when you first picked her off those leaves on the stairs of that abandoned church?” asked Charles looking at Lukas carefully.

“Tiny fingers curled around my pinky. I watch the newborn peer through brand new eyes at what must be such a strange world after life in the womb. Her legs kick in a tiny jagged motion, looking for that resistance they are used to I guess, but finding nothing but air. I wonder if that's unsettling or a relief, it must have been pretty cramped in there. When she stretches her hands barely rise above her head and I think of how strange we'd all look if we kept those body proportions as we grew. She's such a doll. I just want to keep her safe, warm and protected all her life. That is what I felt when I took her in my arms for the very first time,” said Lukas, his eyes a bit distant and voice filled with love.

“Alpha, with all due respect none of us knew that she was going to be something of darker things. I did not know that something like this could have happened at all, if did do you think that I would not have protested? When it was Rhea’s turn to be brought home our fathers knew that she was the bastard child of your father and they knew that whatever mattered she was a wolf and that was all but here we did not even think about the consequences of what can happen if we do not come to know the back ground of the child that we are bringing into our packs before giving her protection,” said Charles as he saw that Rhea was looking at him from inside the house.

“What are you even saying Charlie? Do you know how odd it is to hear this being spoken from your mouth?” asked Lukas and this time his eyes were blazing. Before Charlie could open his mouth he said,” Listen up, if there is any problem then I am going to deal with it and that is my responsibility but mind this, if a single hair on the head of baby Aurora is singed then I am going to incinerate you. I don’t want to hear any arguments regarding this later on. It is what it is and there are going to be no talks against it. You were lucky that you are dealing with only me because if Rhea was here and she had heard what were you exactly saying about Aurora, then she would have torn your throats out,” said Lukas as he turned back towards his house and went inside without even glancing back.

He found Rhea standing there with a book in her hand.

“You heard?” asked Lukas as he saw her face.

Rhea nodded at him but did not say anything more. Lukas looked at the thing that she was carrying in her hand and it was a dusty old leather volume which was tightly shut as if its pages had been glued together.

“Where did you get that thing from? I mean I know that you got it from there but how did you know that this was what I needed?” asked Lukas as Rhea handed over the book to him. As Lukas got the thing he smelled the book and then started sneezing and coughing like anything.

Rhea rolled her eyes and said,” Seriously Lukas!! Really??? What are you? Like a pup? Who smells something this old without properly checking it out? And then again these are Mom’s stuff, who knows it might have been hexed or something. And what will happen if you cannot use your nose anymore? And I brought this up because I felt like this was calling out to me. It was this weird feeling of being pulled closer to this thing but I have no idea how to be opened. So I guessed might be it will be opened by you. Oh and I got another thing as well!!”

Rhea pulled out a beautiful ornate knife from the back of her waist band and then flicked it open and the light from the sun coming in through the window glinted at its sharp blade and Lukas looked at as if he recognized the blade from somewhere.

“I have seen it before, this blade Rhea, where did you get it from?” asked Lukas as he took the knife in his hand. And the moment he did that there was something wrong which actually happened the second time today. He nicked his finger on the knife and then the blood dripped from his cut onto the leather bound volume which he was carrying in his other hand and the diary fell open flat on the ground as if opening like a charm.

“What is it with me today with this blood and things opening like that?” asked Lukas sucked his thumb and suddenly he saw that the book contained his mother’s handwriting.

“Rhea, I think this is a diary,” said Lukas as Rhea picked it up.

“Yeah, true Brother. Surely looks like one and this one has her handwriting on it as well. See it is something about a spell to make dead things alive,” said Rhea as Lukas sheathed the knife back and took it from her and said,” Nope silly, this one here speaks about reanimating the dead.”

“Wow, never thought that I would have been discussing things like this with you one morning. Okay from the looks of the spell and the language it seems to be quite advanced and complicated. Why don’t we go to the beginning and start from something less complicated than this? Like how to make fires burn or lighting candles or make someone’s hair green?” asked Rhea, her eyes wild and gleaming with wicked ideas.

“Whoa!!! Where did that come from? Making someone’s hair green? Why would even want to do that?” asked Lukas, his eyes wide with mirth and shock at the same time.

“Oh just for fun!!! You know, Charlie would look good with green hair,” she replied winking at her brother who burst out laughing.