Luna Rising: The Prophecy

Chapter 7: Broken Glass

Aeliana

I woke up in the morning tired and sore. I'd tossed and turned nearly the entire night, unable to calm my mind enough to truly rest. Now I was going to have to do what I could to put on a happy smiling face when I met with Luna Carlotta after breakfast.

Just as I sat up and tried to slap some life into my cheeks, a soft knock sounded. "Who is it?" I asked hopefully, thinking it might be Derek wishing me good morning.

"I have your breakfast, miss. Alpha Derek sends it with his regrets that he will be unable to join you for breakfast this morning," answered a timid voice on the other side of the door.

"Oh. Oh! Please come in," I said, reaching over and grabbing my dressing gown.

The door swung open and an omega who looked to be in her early forties came in, balancing a fully loaded breakfast tray in her hands.

"My goodness, there's enough food to feed a small army!" I exclaimed, looking at the overflowing tray.

The moment the words left my mouth, everything seemed to happen in slow motion. The large tray, which was blocking the omega's view, had prevented her from seeing the edge of the rug. Her foot got caught and she overbalanced, swaying precariously. She managed to regain her balance, but not before the glass of water at the edge of the tray tipped over and went smashing to the floor. Shards of glass exploded in all directions, and the patch of rug where the glass had fallen grew dark with water.

"Oh no!" I the omega cried out, quickly setting the tray down and grabbing a towel from the pocket of her apron. She pressed it onto the rug in an attempt to soak up the water. "I'm so so sorry, miss. It's my fault. I should have taken two trips, I—ah!"

She flinched back and held up her hand, which now had a cut with blood running down to her wrist.

By then I had snapped out of it and was reaching for my slippers. "Oh dear, you're hurt!" I exclaimed, grabbing one of my handkerchiefs and tiptoeing through the mess to her. I squatted down carefully and wrapped my handkerchief around the wound, which luckily looked like it was already starting to heal.

"Oh, miss, I'm sorry, now I've ruined your handkerchief, too!" she whispered, utter terror in her eyes. Then she realized I was in the middle of the debris with her. "Miss, you have to stand clear! If you get hurt on account of me, I don't know what would happen!"

Her words, said in a state of panic, chilled me a little. But I pushed it aside and tried to calm the woman down. "My dear Miss—what's your name?" I asked, realizing I didn't know.

"V-Violet," she stammered reluctantly.

I peeked under the handkerchief to check on the progress of the cut on her hand. It looked like it had healed enough to no longer bleed, so I tossed it on the floor beyond the edge of the rug and tugged on her forearms, pulling her to a stand with me. "Miss Violet," I said kindly. "It's alright. It was an accident. Things like this happen."

"No, no, no, they can't happen, especially not to a fine lady like you," she said hastily, literally trembling.

"Violet, please calm down," I pleaded. "It really wasn't a big deal. No permanent harm done, right? And the rug will dry. The glass will be cleared away. All will be well. I promise."

She took a deep breath, tears spilling over the brim of her lower lids. "I have no right to ask, but could you please...not tell anyone about this?"

I looked into her eyes. They were a similar shade of brown to mine, and filled with a desperation I couldn't understand. Why was she so terrified of a simple accident? Was she naturally timid? Or was there something bigger going on?

"If anyone asks, I broke it myself," I told her, patting her shoulder reassuringly. "After you left."

She sagged with relief. "Thank you miss."

"It's nothing," I said, embarrassed.

We cleared up the mess together, emptying a bowl of fruit on top of a short stack of pancakes and piling the glass in it instead. "Well, I think we got it all," I said, standing back up and smoothing out my dressing gown. "It would probably be a good idea to get a broom and sweep the floor, though."

"Yes, I will, right away, miss," Violet said, picking up the bowl and placing the soiled dish towel and my bloodied handkerchief over the top.

"Miss Violet," I said softly, stopping her as she was on her way to the door.

She closed her eyes and turned to face me, instantly on alert again. "Yes, miss?"

"Please, relax," I said. "You don't have to run to get the broom right away. I won't even be in here much longer, and if cleaning this room is part of your duties, you can just sweep it later after I'm gone."

"O-okay," she whispered.

"And Violet?"

"Yes, miss?"

"Thank you for bringing me breakfast," I said with a smile. "I really appreciate it."

She bobbed down in a curtsy. "You're welcome miss." She paused once more by the door. "You really are too kind, miss. Nothing like I expected."

"I hope that's a good thing," I said, tilting my head.

She nodded and smiled, then slipped out the door.

I turned to the tray, which contained the fruit and pancakes, but also eggs, sausages, toast, a small pitcher of syrup and salt and pepper shakers. "Oh, Derek," I said to myself. It was thoughtful of him, to be sure, but this tray was a little overboard. I wondered if he had given instructions for this amount of food to be prepared, or if it was the standard menu for breakfast in bed here.

As I dug in to my meal, I ruminated over Violet's frightened behavior. Her overreaction to a simple mistake was concerning. I wondered again if it was her personality, or if there was a particular cause in her past that made her more nervous. Either way, I truly felt for her. It was also a little odd, being treated that way by a woman old enough to be my mother. I wasn't used to it. Although, I supposed that once I was Luna I'd have to get used to all the older wolves in the pack treating me differently. I wished I could remember whether I'd seen her in the pack before on my previous summer visits.

I was inspecting my still half-filled plate when a note was slipped under the door. Deciding I couldn't possibly eat another bite, I abandoned the breakfast tray and walked over to the door to pick it up. Inside there was only one sentence.

Luna training is canceled today.

I flipped the paper over, but there was nothing else. I opened the door to see if the person that delivered it was still in the hallway, but it was empty. Sighing, I closed the door again. The day suddenly stretched out before me, empty and in need of filling. At least I could see Stella.

I went to the closet and pulled out a fresh shift and an amber-colored dress. I changed, stepping into the skirts of the dress and buttoning it up the front. I brushed out my hair and then pinned it up carefully. I didn't think I'd get a chance to let Eliora out for a run today, since guests weren't permitted to shift without permission or escort, so I might as well go the extra mile, since it was unlikely to get ruined.

Once I was presentable, I tried to link Stella. Are you awake?

...Noooooo.

I smiled. My sister was more of a night owl than a morning glory. Let me know when you're up for the day.

Heading down the stairs, I asked a passing omega where Derek was. "He's near the western border, miss, meeting with some of the warriors."

I thanked them, then continued outdoors. I hoped nothing else bad had happened overnight, and Derek was just in a routine meeting. Blue Moon couldn't keep taking the losses of family and friends.

I closed my eyes and felt the sun's morning rays shine on me. It lifted my mood immediately. Being outside always had that affect me. I loved being with nature, in both human and wolf form.

The sound of overlapping conversations and clattering of dishes made their way to my ears from the dining hall in the distance. I remembered Derek telling me during our tour yesterday that they sometimes had trouble keeping up with feeding everyone at mealtimes. These days, the people were stretched thin, with more and more being pulled out to the borders for protection, making it difficult to sustain operations within.

Rolling up my sleeves, I started walking toward the hall. At least I now had a plan for the morning. I was going to make myself useful to Blue Moon, starting right now.