The Pack Survives

[3] Home, No More.

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    Celeste'S POV 

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    Our driver parked the car in the driveway where the entrance to the home was, inside a circular driveway with a fountain in the middle. The fountain remained but had serious structural damage, you could tell magic was used on it.

    I stared across the vast area of ruins, history bleeding out before my eyes. I was born in this home. My vampric life began on the 3rd floor in my parent's room. The stables out back, which no longer held horses as we moved into the new ages, once used to be my salvation. That is where I ran to hide when my parents were irritating me. Now, it is a burning pile of rubble. 

    Norah takes my hand and I shudder, forgetting she was with me. I look over at her and there are tears pouring out of her eyes. She was born here, too, I remind myself. I gently squeeze her hand and we walk into the rubble. We are picking through debris, books, silverware, fabric. There will be no vampire remains here, of course, they are just dust in the wind now. The only way we can count the deceased is if we find their family rings. 

    When we join the coven, or are turned, each vampire gets a ring special to their family. Some of the older families, like mind and Norah's, our rings have spells on them. Some allowing us to transform our looks, protect us from spells or wolf bites. Many different things. Others are just blessed with their families magic blood. 

    Emily, a young witch from the New Hope coven and now mate to the Blackwater pack's warrior trainer, arrives with a few witches to survey the damage and try to trace it's origins. She has dark brown hair and hazel eyes that are intoxicating. She is stunning to say the least.

    "Lady Celeste, Lady Norah, it's been so long!" she says, gliding over to us and embracing us in hugs. 

    I go rigid. 

    "Oh! Sorry Celeste! I guess Pack life has softened my heart!" she laughs. 

    I crack and start chuckling as well, returning her embrace. It's been decades since we've seen each other. We were never close friends, nor enemies. More like work associates, but she had grown on me over the years with her tough, no non-sense attitude and that sick sense of humor. 

    "Emily, the pleasure is all mine and congratulations on your mate!! Who would have thought, huh?" I say.

    "Thanks C, yeah no one was more shocked than I, but I couldn't have picked a better mate. I am going to take some of the witches through the property to see what we can uncover. I will be right back. Norah, dear, I am so sorry to see you under these circumstances." she says, placing a kind hand on my friend's shoulder. 

    "You as well, cousin. Thank you." Norah replied.

    Norah's small frame was trembling slightly, her pale complexion turning almost gray. The human equivalent to their 'green' when ill.  Her usually tame blonde hair was now a mess from her ripping her fingers through it in frustration. She was gripping her tiny hands, digging her sharp nails into her skin. Where I processed and handled pain and chaos almost too well, she was a living breathing feeling machine. Every emotion laid on her face and in her posture. She also never had a problem vocalizing her feelings, but now, she was silent. 

    We stood there in silence just looking at our history snuffed out like a cigarette. I sent a message back home to my parents with an update on the situation along with photo's I had snapped, and a list of the victims. I received a message back, "C, you are missing someone, recount. Lady Beatrice was there."

    I called out to Emily just as she was rounding the house to me, shock and disgust on her face. "There is a survivor! Come quick, she is in bad shape. She is almost drained!" Norah started running first and I grabbed her shoulder, almost spinning her around.     

    "No, Norah please. Wait here. Call home and tell them we found a survivor and send for the remaining coven." I said to her as I pushed my phone into her hand. I turned on my heels and flew after Emily. 

    I reached the opposite side of the home behind the sole remaining wall on the east end. Emily and a few of the other witches there to assist were hovering over something I couldn't quite see. I did however, hear their thoughts. "Those seething reeking humans, I will have both of their heads!!" Getting closer now I can see the bright blue hair of my coven member Clarice. She is an elder member, compared to me, though my parents being who they are, I have the higher status. 

    Clarice was like an aunt to me. She taught me things outside of the knowledge of my parents. She taught me to get past my guilt over the blood lust years. She taught me how to reign in my magic and harness it as well. She was like a second mother to me when I really thought of it. I flew to the ground at her side and what I saw horrified me. UV bullets in her chest, her blood pouring out faster than we could stop it. Over half of her body burnt, unrecognizable. 

    "Claire! No no no, Clarice look at me, it's me! It's Celeste, please Auntie? Look at me! Per favore, zietta!?"  (Please, Auntie)  I begged. She was loosing too much blood, slipping into unconsciousness. I had to get her back, quickly. I had to find out any information on who did this. Their sent was covered by dark magic. My fangs elongated and I bit into my wrist, blood beginning to pool on my skin. I flipped my wrist over to her mouth and moved it around while pumping my fist. It took a few seconds, but soon she started to respond. Slowly her hands wrapped around my arm, pulling me in fast and hungry for her drink. Her eyes shot open, a burning orange- almost red- color, with gray surrounding her pupil.

            “Mia nipote, amore mio” (My niece, my love) she said. She started becoming frantic. I quickly sealed the wound on my wrist with one swipe of my tongue and wrapped my arms around her, applying pressure to her body to calm her nervous system down.

            “Claire, who did this? Who attacked the Coven?” I asked. She took a few seconds, breathing in my scent and relaxing against my hold on her. She looked up at me and the orange in her eyes was fading, fast. The blood I gave her did not allow much time. He death was inevitable. “The hunters, Celeste, my dear it was the twins. I saw them. We were inside the home, all of us going about our business, some in their rooms resting, some in the great hall. Others were outside and were taken out first. I smelled fire and smoke, but I never sensed them coming. They were using magic my dear, warlock magic. They set a fire around the perimeter of the house. I was in my room and once the home exploded, I was thrown from my bedroom window. My room was burning but I could not escape. They had over 2 dozen hunters surrounding the house until it blew. I stayed under the rubble and used my gift so anyone walking near would not see me. But I saw them. I saw the twins. Celeste, they’re back. You must call your parents and get the elders!” she told me, getting weaker with each word. I was losing her. I knew it.

            I held her and rocked her back and forth. I knew Norah had joined us now, I could feel her behind me. I didn’t have time to protect her from this sight though. I knew how much she adored Clarice, but I could not let go. I held her like that for Goddess knows how long until I could no longer smell her. My arms, suddenly, empty. I opened my eyes and looked down on my lap. I was covered in ash, and there in the middle of the pile, was Clarice’s coven ring. I started shaking. My eyes burning with rage. Not the rage of a thirsty vampire, no. The rage of a woman who just lost some of the most important people in her life. Whose best friend had to watch a woman she looked up to disappear into ash. I sensed the witches backing up, but Norah moving closer. I stood and turned around to meet her gaze. I could see in her eye’s reflection; my eyes were now silver.

            “I need to run Norah. Now! When will my parents be here?” I said, huffing out air, trying desperately to maintain composure. The witches had called in reinforcements to help clean up and recover what they could for us, Emily made sure I didn’t have to help this time. There were people everywhere in a flurry around me, all kinds of creatures. Witches, wolves, vampires. I knew Emily’s mate had sent pack warriors here too, probably to see that see to it she got home safe. I was grateful for that. I don’t need anymore of my beloved’s picked off!

            “Your parents and the coven decided to fly on foot to get here faster than human transport. They will arrive within the next hour and a half. We can go. Let me tell Emily.” She said, her voice still shaky. She put her hand on my arm, I could feel comfort flooding from her, through me. I knew she was doing this purposefully, so I returned the gesture. Using our powers, we helped calm each other down enough that the others were not afraid of us… as much. She walked over to Emily, shared a few words and was back to me in an instant. “Ok! Let us run!” And with that, we were off.

                We ran and ran for what felt like only a few minutes but was almost 2 hours. We were stretching our muscles out, regaining strength after losing so much back there. See? Vampires are most certainly not immortal in the sense that humans believe. We tire, we sleep, we eat human food and can be in the sun. We do, however, need blood to live, we experience blood lust, we can stay awake for extended periods of time, have superhuman strength and gifts, and if never provoked, can live forever.

                We came to a clearing and decided to take a breather. I jumped into a tree that had a branch reaching out sideways, PERFECT for a swing. On closer inspection, I could see two matching marks in the tree bark where it appears that a rope hung from. Hm, so someone had a swing here. Awesome! This tree must have been hundreds of years old. Its powerful roots reaching into the earth around it, demanding power from the other trees. There were no trees even close to it. The roots acted almost like a barrier, never allowing entrance of anything that could pose a risk to it. Much like me.

                I have lived hundreds of years and never did I take a mate. I was not actively seeking one, however I always wondered why I did not get one? I had been alive long enough, meeting enough people, hell even SLEEPING with enough people and not once did I get the mate call. For vampires, the mate call is when you almost hear a song in the rhythm of their blood pumping, coupled with their heartbeat. The smell of their blood is an undeniable force, pulling you in. Finally, the touch… skin to skin… will make you feel fire. See, we are naturally cold beings, touching another vampire is like a human touching a human…. Normal. But apparently, your mate’s touch is like a fire on your skin, traveling around your entire body, one that does not hurt but gives you energy and passion.

                I have had plenty of passion in my centuries, but not that. I have had a few lovers in life, trust me I am not a couple hundred-year-old virgin. I am an attractive woman, not being selfish or stuck up, but when you have been alive for as long as I have, you eventually learn to love yourself and be proud of it, too. I know my worth, I know I am attractive, I know I demand respect. That is because I spent the first half of my vampiric life giving away my worth, body and respect. I am about 5’ 6” tall, creamy white skin, freckles all over, silver hair and naturally blue crystal eyes. If I am in blood lust or injured, they are red. When I am in battle or enraged, they turn silver. I am curvy in the right places, for each liking. I have curvy legs, a killer ass, tight waste, toned arms and a pretty nice chest, if you ask me. Not too big, not too small. I need to be able to fight, fly and feed without them things getting in the way!

                We had been sitting there in comfortable silence, just listening to the birds and the sound of the leaves blowing in the breeze. I opened my mouth to tell Norah we should head back and wait for my parents and the elder’s arrival when a scent touched my tongue. I stopped dead in my tracks as this aroma infiltrated my nose, took over my senses. The voice in my head started screaming. Norah looked at me, no doubt confused, but I could not speak. My mouth was dry, my body was pulling me in a direction I did not ask to go. Norah was fast on my tail following me, trying to figure out what was going on. There! That smell. It smells like earth, fresh dug up earth and rain after a storm, a hint of something sweet, dammit what is that? Lavender?

                I kept running to the edge of the clearing and started to enter the tree line when my body froze. I could hear it.. ‘ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump…” twice the speed of a humans. Then “woosh, woosh, woosh…” It sounded like a symphony. I took another step forward and I heard a twig break. I crouched down with my razor-sharp claws stretched out, my fangs completely exposed. I saw two blue eyes looking back at me from behind a tree. About 6 or so feet high. The person stepped out into the sun light. His body, oh that beautiful body, was rigid and tensed. I shot back up and I could see his pulse in his neck getting stronger and stronger. His heart under his chest was pumping a mile a minute. He stepped closer to me and time suddenly stopped. Our eyes locked and the voice in my head screamed “MATE!”

                I did not even realize I was moving towards him again. I tried to maintain composure, but I heard Norah behind me hissing. s**t! I forgot she was here! I looked back at her and in that second, the man advanced, completely getting the drop on me. He grabbed my shoulders to turn me around to him and when he did, I almost fainted. The man in front of me, breathing down on me, this werewolf…is my mate. His smell is making my fangs drip with envy. He leans down, buries his face in the crook of my neck inhaling like I am the last bit of oxygen on this damn earth. Just as I thought he was finished he growled, so deep it shook my body being so close. My skin! Oh, my goddess, my skin is burning! It is making me sweat, and it feels so good. What is happening to me right now? He kept growling and leaned into me until his lips just barely grazed my ear.

                He said, “MINE. YOU. ARE. MINE. Do you understand, Luna?”

                I hissed back, “And you, my love, are MINE. My King. Do YOU understand?”

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Ethan’s POV

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    I had been walking with my sister, over looking the valley when my wolf started loosing his f*****g mind. He was screaming that our mate was here, and his dumb ass left the mind link open. I couldn’t ignore what he said because the most love crazed creature, my sister, heard him. She grabbed my arm and spun me around and stared into my eyes pulling my wolf out. Her wolf took over and agreed to run after my mate. Thanks for including me guys! We all shifted and took off. I let border patrol know we would have company, possibly unknowns, but said no more.

    We came up to the edge of a tree line that opens into a clearing. The tree that my dad set up a swing on was in the middle of that clearing, like it was meant to be the sole watcher of this field. I looked up at the tree and there, on the limb, investigating the spot where the swing used to be was the most magical being, I have ever laid eyes on. My wolf whimpered and I quickly shifted back to human form, collapsing to my knees. The beauty, my body could not handle it. And that smell? Oh, so mouthwatering. It was a mixture of sandalwood and vanilla, with a hint of berries maybe. Oh, Goddess, thank you for this gift!

                “Shut up loser, let’s go get our mate!!!” my wolf demanded.

                “I will, i***t, I need to calm down. Give me a damn second!” I replied.

    The last thing I wanted was my wolf to try and mark our mate within the first 5 seconds of introduction, and please believe that he would. My sister was still next to me, since shifting back into her human form. She was practically dancing and staring back and forth. All of a sudden she went rigid, on high alert, her nose up in the air. She looked at my mate, back at me, and back at my mate again. Finally she bore her eyes into me and mind liked me. “Brother, she is a vampire!!”.

    I looked back at the tree, she was sniffing the air! She knows I am here! I looked at my sister and growled, “MINE”. She shrugged as if to say ‘fine, whatever you say!’. I kept staring at my mate with her long wavy silver hair, her eyes a crystal blue hue almost. That body of hers was making my wolf threaten to end our existence if I didn’t go touch it RIGHT NOW. I took a step forward and stupidly stepped on a branch. Within a second, my beautiful mate was on the ground, in a protective stance covering her other small friend, claws out and fangs ready to devour someone. Yes, my mate is a badass!

                “Of course, she is! She is our mate! Now go get her!!” Dmitri scolded me, a growl escaping my lips.

    We were just staring into each other’s eyes. I could see her expression soften after a few moments. I stepped forward and her small friend hissed at me. When my mate turned to look at her friend, I saw her exposed neck and that was it. I took that last step, closing the space between us, grabbing her and spinning her around to meet my gaze. We locked eyes and my world came to a halt. All I could see was her eyes shifting from blue, to silver, to red. Her eyes almost mirroring her hair color when they were silver. That hair, blowing in the wind, her curls gently spinning around themselves. The sunlight reflecting off her ivory skin, such a contrast to my deeply tanned skin. She was strong, toned, curvy and…

     “MINE. YOU. ARE. MINE. Do you understand, Luna?” I heard myself say, growling with the word ‘Luna’. Goddess, it sounds so perfect coming from my lips!

     She looked up at me, and with a smirk, exposing her fangs a little more, she replied with what sounded like a hiss “And you, my love, are MINE. My King. Do YOU understand?”

     I bent down at the same time she reached up, our lips crashing into each other like waves during a hurricane. When her body touched mine, a burning sensation spread across my body, static in my brain. Dmitri purred in my head, satisfied to taste her lips. I had heard how it felt to kiss your mate, but no one told me that I would never want to stop. It was like electricity, NO, like I was born again. Her cold skin to my warm wolf body, we were made for each other. We heard a cough and a “Ahem..” and quickly broke our kiss forgetting where we were.

     The interruption made me growl, as my mate hissed. We snapped back looking at each other, breaking out into full on grins at our mirrored reactions. Then the laughing started. I could not stop laughing. She was perfect for me. She was shaking in my arms from laughing so hard, her hand over her mouth to muffle the sounds. I snatched her hand away and pulled her chin up to meet my gaze.

   “Don’t you ever, and I mean EVER, hide that laugh and that smile from me again. Or the world. That sound is heaven on earth. I could listen to it every day for the rest of my existence. Mate, what is your name?” I said, breathless by the contact of our skin once again.

    She looked like I had two heads, I don’t know what I said that could have been wrong, but then a tiny smile formed on her lips and she replied the 2 most beautiful words I have ever heard, “Celeste Benevenetti.”

   I looked back at her friend who was standing with her back against the tree and her jaw clearly on the ground. I looked the other way and my sister is on the grass, legs crossed and her fist on her chin smiling like she is watching a sappy rom-com. I look back to my mate and said, “I am Evan Blackwater, Alpha of the Blackwater River Pack. I have waited my whole life for you.”

    She beamed at that and took a step back looking to her friend who took a few shaky steps towards us. The friend put a hand on her shoulder and dropped her head out of respect, I think? Then, Celest turned around and placed her hand on my shoulder, dropping her head only for a moment. She lifted it back up and stood straight.

     “I, Celest Benevenetti, daughter of the Benevenetti Elders, of the former Lambertville Coven, accept you, Evan Blackwater, Alpha of the Blackwater River Pack to be my chosen mate, from the Moon Goddess above, if you would chose to have me. I vow to be a Luna worthy of her packs respect, and protector of all the wolves, to put their lives before my own, and protect them as long as I live.” Her voice cracking at the name of her coven, me being an i***t completely forgetting about the atrocities that had just happened early this morning. f**k.

                “Snap out of it, Ev, it’s your turn! Claim our mate!!!” Dimitri snapped, bringing me back to reality.

    “And I, Evan Jonathan Blackwater, Alpha of Blackwater Moon Pack, accept the gift of the Goddess who is Celeste Benevenetti, of the great Lambertville Coven, daughter to the Benevenetti Elders, as my mate in this life, and the next. I promise to protect you, encourage and strengthen you, to give you space as Luna, and as an individual. I vow to protect your people as my own. I welcome you into my heart.” I said, its as if I was put on this earth to speak those words.

    We leaned in and before we could kiss, we heard sniffling. We looked up and Erin was sitting with Celeste’s friend, later found out her name was Norah, hugging each other. Norah only needed to hold Celeste’s shoulder while she offered herself to me, then step back. A coven member, with their family, needs to be present in the offering, to ensure the safety of the ritual. I liked that.

    My sister ran over into my arms and was screaming “OH MY GOD EVAN, THAT WAS f*****g AWESOME! I WISH MOM AND DAD COULD HAVE SEEN THAT! Oh s**t I can’t wait to plan the mating ceremony, the introduction and wedding ceremony, the…” I cut her off, “HOLD ON little one!” I plopped her down on the ground and she gave me her signature puppy dog eyes.

     “First of all, you haven’t said a word to your new sister, I haven’t officially met what I presume is HER sister..” I said giving Celeste a questioning look to which she replied with a nod. “And I haven’t even had time to tell the pack, plus there is a whole tragedy back on her lands we need to take her back to!”

     “Uhhh… actually… the whole pack saw ALL of that.. my um… my mind link was open. I am so sorry Evan don’t kill me!!! My emotions got the best of me, I couldn’t stop it!” She cried, feigning remorse. I actually didn’t care; it was one less thing I had to worry about. For the next few minutes, all we heard were wolves howling all around the territory, congratulating us. I looked down at my mate who was smiling, but it wasn’t quite reaching her eyes.

   “Baby, what’s wrong?” I asked.

  “Nothing, I mean, this is the best day of my life, and I have lived for centuries, but we have to go back to the coven. It was attacked, as I am sure you know. But my parents and the rest of the elders are on their way in because we know who did it. We have been hunting them for some time now.” She explained, her hands now balled up in fists.

   My sister joined my side, party time over. I mind linked the nearest wolves to escort us back, with permission from Norah and Celeste to enter their territory. I held her in a hug and vowed to help her find out who ever did this to her family. I know the feeling. It happened to me. If she still had a chance to find the killers, I wanted to help her. I wanted to give her the world!

   “Evan, we already know who did it.” Norah said, biting her lip. Her eyes flushed an orangeed, then back to green.

  “Who?” Erin asked. She was standing with Norah. I think they were bonding which made me smile. I had just leaned down to give Celeste a kiss when 2 words shook me to the core, releasing Dmitri from his spot in the shadow of my mind. 

    “The twins.” she said.