The Elemental Luna's Awakening

Chapter 12 - While You Were Sleeping

Seth

I'll give that horse credit. We were back to Julia's faster than I thought we would be. And I will never admit this out loud, but it wasn't a horrible ride either. The ride was so smooth that it didn't feel like we were moving as fast as we were. If it wasn't for the wind, I probably wouldn't have known we were moving at all.

Dub stopped in Julia's front yard, close to her cabin, so I wouldn't have to walk far carrying Rhi. I dismounted, then gently slid Rhi off of his back.

"I've got it under control from here, Guardian. You can go back to the pasture and indulge in your glutinous ways." He swung his head around and pinned his ears at me, clearly not amused at my remark. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot. Thanks for the ride!" I lightly patted his rump while I held on to Rhi, then turned to walk towards the cabin.

That's when I heard it. One of the longest releases of gas I have ever heard come from a living animal. It was like a convoy of tractor trailers releasing their air breaks, one by one. I stopped walking, both shocked and impressed, and turned to look at the horse over my shoulder just in time to see his tail go back down. He shook his head and snorted, then casually trotted back towards the pasture where he cleared the fence as if it wasn't even there.

"Fu.cking guardian animals." I quietly grumbled out loud, continuing my short walk to the cabin.

When I almost reached the door, Julia opened it for me with an eyebrow raised and a half smirk on her face. "You know Dub could easily kick you in the head if he wanted to, right?" She chastised me for my attitude towards the horse.

"Yeah, yeah. I know." I knew that horse could easily kill me if he really wanted to. All it would take is a second for me not to pay attention and BAM! Hoof to the forehead. In all honesty, I do like him. He has an attitude, but he's a good guardian.

We came to a mutual understanding earlier. He's pissed at Lucius for the stunt he pulled when Rhi first arrived. But we all want the same thing. We just want her happy and safe. To protect her. Lucius and Dub will just have to learn to let bygones be bygones.

I laid Rhi back down on the bed that I had laid her on just a few days ago. I took off her shoes and socks again. This time I took off her outer shirt as it had dried blood on it from when she cut herself. I was happy, yet also disappointed, that she was wearing an open plaid button down over a tank top. I admired the beautiful young woman lying on the bed before me and the way her clothes clung to her curvy body. I was happy that I could take off the bloody plaid outer shirt without crossing the line of being disrespectful, and wishing we were at a stage where I was allowed to see more of her.

I did let my hand trail down her arm, feeling the sensual sparks produced when our skin touched thanks to the mate bond. Even without the bond, I know I would have wanted her and only her. She's simply beautiful, inside and out.

Lucius was being well behaved for a change. I think that the events that happened were a wake up call for him on why we need to move slowly, especially in regards to claiming her as ours.

He and I had been waiting so many years for her that it was close to driving us both mad. But now we both understood everything had to be done on her terms and it couldn't be rushed.

I gently kissed her forehead. "Stay well, my sleeping beauty. I need to go discuss some things with Julia." I quietly whispered before I left the room. I don't know why I whispered, it was not like she was going to wakeup any time soon.

"Her wolf wants out." Lucius randomly blurted out in my head.

"I don't doubt that one bit. Can you talk to her?" I was eager to find out if her wolf felt the bond, or anything towards me for that matter.

"No, I can feel her though." He moaned in the back of my mind, like a dog would when you scratch behind his ear.

"Perv." I thought to myself. Knowing full well that Lucius could hear my thoughts. A low growl told me I was right.

I walked into the small dining room and saw Julia in the kitchen, standing in front of a brewing pot of coffee.

"So, I think you need to fill me in on some things." I decided to break the silence first as I sat down at the table.

"Can you wait until I get a cup of coffee? Is that too much to ask? I'm getting too old to be doing all of this running around. I'm technically supposed to be retired, you know" Julia said with attitude while watching her beloved beverage finish brewing.

I chuckled. "Well, we can wait if the coffee will help your attitude. But I doubt it will. You'll never be too old. You didn't once run anywhere. And you know da.mn well that you'll never retire."

Julia snorted. "You've always been my favorite wolf." She grabbed a cup, and filled it to the brim with black coffee, then she turned to fully look at me." Ok, why don't you tell me what you DO know, and we'll go from there?" she instructed while holding the cup with both hands.

"Well, I remember seeing Rhi when she was just a baby." I started, but Julia interrupted me.

"She told you that you could call her Rhi? Here I thought that I was the only one privileged enough to use that nickname for her!" She made her way to the table and sat down in a chair across from me. I swear that I saw Julia pout a little, bringing a smile to my face. Both for the fact that Rhi allowed me to use her nickname, and because Julia always tried to act so hard. I enjoyed seeing her other emotions.

"I think I had just turned 6 a few months before I saw her. I was with my parents when we came here for a visit. Matt and Catherine were just leaving with Rhi when we arrived. I remember being immediately drawn to her. Lucius was just a pup and was whining horribly in my head to get to her, though he didn't understand why. Gods was he awfully annoying."

Julia chuckled and smiled, but Lucius acted like I had stepped on his tail.

"We were both pups!" He growled in my head, disapproving of my choice of words.

"Yeah, and most kids don't have to grow up with an annoying pup running around in their head."

"I guess that just makes you lucky!" Lucius' words had attitude, causing me to roll my eyes.

"After our visit, mom and dad told me that Rhi was Matt and Catherine's adopted daughter, and that they lived with the humans. As time went on, I started to be able to feel it when she arrived on our territory, and eventually I realized we were mates. I felt a pull, but it was different, it felt off. I thought maybe it was because we were both young, then maybe because I was older than her. Lucius always knew that she had a wolf, but he said he couldn't reach her. That she seemed hidden. Which I was surprised that she had a wolf so young. I thought that I was the only one to suffer that burden."

I heard another growl from Lucius and I laughed and continued on.

"I'd come over just to watch her, see if she'd ever notice me. But she never did. When I started asking my parents about her more, they said that she was a powerful wolf and that all of hell wanted her. Not necessarily her as much as her wolf and the powers they could drain from her. They explained that she had to stay hidden for her own protection until she was 18 and could fully utilize her gifts. That living in a pack where she would access her wolf a lot wasn't good, as her energy would draw unwanted attention. I guess that there's no longer a pack around strong enough to fully protect her?"

I shrugged my shoulders and got up to get a cup of coffee for myself before sitting back down and continuing on.

"That was the first and last time we ever really talked about Rhi, until recently that is. I was told to never talk about it unless you decided to tell me." I rubbed my hands over my face, as if doing so would mean all of it was a bad dream and I could just take Rhi to my pack and live happily ever after. "We've been hearing word from other super natural beings that a dark energy is felt, that something is happening and no one knows what. At least, no one is willing to talk. With Rhi being back, and close to age, we can only assume they're looking for her" I let out a deep breath and took a sip of coffee.

I looked at Julia. This entire time she was surprisingly quiet. She just watched me talk as she enjoyed her own coffee.

She set her coffee down, and patted her lap. Amar walked over and rested his head where she had just patted. "Well, I guess it's due time that I helped fill in the gaps so that you have a better understanding." Her voice was calm as she smiled down at Amar, who was soaking up all of her attention.