Losing The Light Of The Moon

We Are All Capable of Change

Chapter 22: We Are All Capable Of Change

JACE

Knowing Nicholas and Madeline were having dinner with Luna at their treehouse, Constance suggested we walk over to Luna's wing for a short visit with Mother before heading back to our room for the night. As we walked down the hallway, Goddess and I noticed Umar leaned against the wall with an amused grin on his face. Quickly turning towards us, he brought his finger up to his lips to shush us before motioning for us to come stand beside him.

“What’s going on?” Constance questioned him in a hushed whisper, carefully peering around the corner.

His eyes moving to look ahead of him once more, Umar quietly murmured, “I know it’s rude to eavesdrop, but it’s nice—seeing Horacio this way again.”

Following their gazes, I saw Mother and Horacio animatedly conversing in Luna’s small open kitchen. Watching them as they happily interact with one another, I couldn’t help but notice the fun and ease in their rapport. Horacio’s broad smile never wavered as they chatted back and forth, causing me to thoughtfully whisper out, “Again? I’ve never seen Horacio like this. He’s always so—intense.”

At that moment, Mother was placing a batch of cookies in the oven while Horacio was sitting on a stool on the other side of the island across from her, admiring a plate of lasagna. I watched as they continued their banter back and forth, Horacio jovially teasing Mother that she didn’t eat enough and Mother playfully countering that she had never required much food, which was a good thing, because it looked like he was going to eat the entire pan of pasta.

Letting out a long, dejected sigh, Umar quietly said, “He hasn’t always been so intense, but what happened to make him that way is not my story to tell. I can tell you this, though, Horacio has been family to me for almost thirty years and I’ve not seen anyone bring back that side of him so easily in a long, long time. Not even my Celestia, who he adores.”

“He was refused by his mate, wasn’t he?” Constance sadly wondered out loud, “That’s why he changed.”

“Again, not my story to tell,” Umar respectfully replied, falling silent as he continued to gaze at his friend, his eyes full of despair, clearly indicating that my Goddess was right.

Soon after, however, Umar’s smile returned, “Horacio’s friendship with Tati—it’s good for him, Jace.”

Taking in her happy and carefree expression, I exhaled out, “Honestly, I think it’s good for her as well.”

Just then, a mischievous grin widened across Horacio’s face. Dropping his head in his hands, Umar quietly chuckled out, “Oh, here we go...that look has never changed, and I know it too well.” Constance and I looked at him curiously before turning our gazes back towards the kitchen.

After taking a large bite of lasagna, Horacio tauntingly chided between chews, “As I said earlier, Tati, the conversation has been great, but I’m afraid the food is going to be my favorite part of the evening. You might as well just place that whole pan in front of me. I promise, you won’t hear a peep out of me until it’s empty.”

“You better not eat that whole pan,” Umar harshly muttered, “It looks really good and I’m starving.” Goddess immediately had to stifle a giggle.

Back in the kitchen, Mother folded her arms in front of her, shooting Horacio a mocking hard glare, “And again, I’m really trying not to take offense to that! That is your third piece of lasagna. You do realize—”

Shoveling another large bite in his mouth, Horacio closed his eyes, interrupting Mother as he leaned forward on his elbows and let out a satisfied breath, “Shhh! I’m savoring this...and yes, I know there are cookies. Please don’t let them burn.”

Mother’s eyes went wide as she remained frozen in place, waiting for Horacio to open his eyes again, which he did—just as she quickly narrowed hers, sweetly asking, “So, cook more, talk less, hmmmmm?”

Covering my mouth to hold back my laughter, I lightly warned, “I know that look. His fur may look quite different at practice tomorrow. If he’s smart, Horacio will call another truce.”

Umar’s humored reply was immediate as he mumbled, “He’s not smart. A bottomless pit, maybe, but not smart. Trust me, I’ve seen it too many times with Celestia.”

“Look at it this way,” Horacio charmingly said as we silently watched, “You have been a huge part of the conversation and made the delicious food—so, either way, I’m complimenting you.”

“You i***t!” Umar exhaustively breathed out, sending Goddess and I into more hushed laughter.

Leaning forward against the island to get closer to his face, Mother impassively returned, “You didn’t answer the question.”

“Don’t say it,” Umar inaudibly coached an unaware Horacio.

His grin now a broad smirk, Horacio leaned forward to close the space between he and Mother even further, taking another huge bite before he playfully quipped, “I love to eat, which means it’s always going to be cook more!”

Mother warmly grinned at him before she threw a hand towel at Horacio’s face, cynically asking, “So, tell me while I’m burning the cookies, Horacio, what is your favorite color? I want to make sure you're happy with your wolf makeover at practice tomorrow!” Horacio let out a loud roar of laughter in response.

Shaking his head, Umar started towards the kitchen, muttering under his breath, “I guess some things will never change. This isn’t the first time I’ve had to save cookies from being incinerated!”

************

Propped up against some pillows on our window bed, I gazed out into the bright moonlit sky thinking about our evening with Mother, Horacio, and Umar. When Constance and I first revealed our presence in the kitchen, Horacio’s lighthearted demeanor seemed to fade, replaced by reserved politeness, something my mother obviously noticed as well. It wasn’t long, however, that Mother helped his walls come back down a bit, utilizing the banter and ease of conversation between them to relax Horacio—causing Umar to appreciatively glance at Goddess and I with every lighthearted jab Mother took at his friend. We ended up enjoying our time immensely in Luna’s kitchen with Mother and the two Betas. Horacio seemed to enjoy it as well—especially his time with my mother...

Her head lying on my chest, Goddess peered up at me, softly urging, “Alright, Smooth Talker, out with it. What’s on your mind?”

“Horacio,” I contemplatively replied, pausing for a moment before continuing, “He is quite different when Mother can get those walls of his to come down. I’ve always admired and respected both Horacio and Umar for their skills and strength on the field, but it was nice getting to know them better on a personal level this evening.”

“I enjoyed it immensely. They are both quite different than what I had expected—in so many good ways,” Constance reasoned out loud, “If you think about it, while not as harsh and standoffish with others as Horacio, Madeline struggled with walls as well and had thoughts of refusing Nicholas. Thankfully, he helped her navigate through it all and she came to her senses. But, my heart breaks for Horacio—it appears he wasn’t as fortunate.”

“Mmmmm,” I thoughtfully hummed, “I asked Nicholas about it. He had been curious as well at one point, but Lorenzo wouldn’t talk about it. Much like Umar, Lorenzo is very protective and respects Horacio’s privacy about it. Its obvious Mother has an influence on him, though...something Umar is incredibly grateful for.”

“And I believe you, my love, are being understandably protective over your mother. You’re worried about the way Horacio looked at her several times this evening, something I noticed as well,” Constance knowingly grinned, “He obviously cares about Auntie a great deal, Jace. But she has saved his life twice and they’ve known one another for many years.”

“I suppose you’re right. Lorenzo shares much of the same past and cares about her a great deal as well, which has surprised us all given his usual disregard for witches,” I rationalized. Exhaling out a humored breath, I chuckled, “I guess Mother has changed them both in many positive ways.”

************

TATIANA

As we sat in my small sitting area relaxing with a bit of party punch, Horacio and I went over plans with Umar for our workout tomorrow. Both of us were surprised when Umar showed up early, but I was glad he, Jace and Constance made their unexpected visit to the kitchen. Though at first, he shut down, Umar and I were eventually able to relax Horacio and, in the end, we all enjoyed a very fun evening.

“Good food, great conversation, and now party punch,” Umar grinned, “I’m not minding Soren insisting I get to Crescent Moon early. Although Celestia wasn’t as thrilled...Guntur has been quite the handful as of late. He and Mattias have been pulling quite a few disappearing acts and getting into mischief with a couple of girls.”

“They’re young, so their mischief is not too surprising,” I pleasantly replied, humorously adding, “And based on my first encounter with them, the girls don’t surprise me either.”

“Maybe, but being the future Alpha and Beta of Howling Winds comes with responsibility,” Umar irritatingly sighed out, taking a long drink from his mug before continuing, “and right now, they both seem to be struggling to realize that. While I am not planning to retire anytime soon, Soren wants to and he’s earned that right after dedicating his entire life to our pack. But Mattias is nowhere near ready to take over as Alpha. If only he could be more like Nicholas—granted Soren and Lorenzo guided him a great deal, but Nicholas took over Crescent Moon at seventeen and was focused and responsible from the very first day.”

“Everyone comes into their own at a different pace,” I comforted him, “Look at Alastor—until he met Vivian, he had no desire to become Alpha of Spirit Walker.”

“Tati does have a point there,” Horacio quickly interjected, “Alastor and Lorenzo battled back and forth for years. I didn’t think Alastor would ever come to his senses. We are all grateful to Vivian, believe me!”

As Umar let out another discouraged sigh against the rim of his mug before tilting it up again, I gently tried to assure him again, “See? Perhaps that is what will help Mattias—finding his mate. Though I’m sure we can all agree that we hope it happens sooner rather than later.”

************

While Umar decided to call it a night, Horacio asked if he could stay for a bit longer for one more glass of punch, which I graciously agreed to.

Looking down at his mug, Horacio quietly said, “It wasn’t bad—getting to know Jace and Constance a little better. I’ve always respected Jace. He’s the best tracker I’ve ever seen, though admittedly, I’m a little jealous of his tattoo—I’ve always loved the Firebird Phoenix Delta’s mark.”

“Yes, although it is incredibly painful from what I understand,” I solemnly told him, my protectiveness of Jace immediately evident in my tone as the unimaginable agony he endured replayed in my mind.

“Jace has the immense strength of his father, you know,” Horacio tenderly comforted, “And you more than understand because you are watching it in your head now—stop replaying the visions of when he got the tattoos.”

I flashed him a warm smile in return, “You know me well, don’t you?”

“Mmmmm,” he wittingly murmured, taking a large gulp of his punch before asking, “So I have a question, Jace’s tattoo, it’s magical, which is why it doesn’t go away. Can all witches do that? Or just Raven, because of her special magic?”

“Well, you are jealous, aren’t you?” I laughed out, “Honestly, I’m not sure. I’ve never attempted it personally but would be willing to try if you would like. What kind of tattoo do you want?”

“I don’t know,” Horacio thoughtfully chuckled, “Let me think about it and I’ll get back to you.”

“Alright,” I humorously agreed, sincerely continuing, “It was a lovely night, by the way. It’s nice seeing you so relaxed and I’m glad you got to know my Jace better. Although, you’re lucky Umar saved you from having burnt cookies for dessert!”

Laughing heartily, Horacio retorted, “Liar! You wouldn’t have burnt them, and you know it! And while a little change every now and then is good, I suppose, don’t think you’re going to ruin my reputation for being an ass or my preference for a small circle, Fairy Queen!”

*********

MATTIAS

After a long lecture from my grandparents—one of many as of late—I exhaustively fell onto my bed ready to call it a night. I knew they had a right to be mad about my escaping the main house, but there was also a part of me...the part that constantly worried I would never be able to live up to my grandfather’s legacy as Alpha...that wished so desperately, I could just be a warrior in our army. But, as I was the only one who my grandfather deemed worthy of his title, that wasn’t an option for me.

The truth was, like my grandparents constantly tell me, I wanted to be more like my cousin, Nicholas. But the pressure had become so overwhelming—living up to my grandfather, being a great and formidable young Alpha like Nicholas, fulfilling our family legacy—all the responsibility felt like a huge boulder on my shoulders.

Thankfully, I had Guntur, my best friend in the entire world and the only one who seemed to understand, always trying to find ways to take my mind off it, including sneaking me out to get away from the responsibility for a while. His father, Umar, wasn’t planning on retiring anytime soon, which enabled Guntur to train as a warrior and still have fun. But grandfather was desperate to retire and wanted me to become Alpha as soon as possible, which would change my life completely and leave no time for anything else...

My last thought replaying in my mind, I sighed out heavily as guilt settled back into my conscious—I needed to stop being selfish...

Lecture over yet? Guntur’s voice rang out in my head, Because I have news.

Yeah, it’s over. I sullenly replied, What’s up?

The girls want to meet up at the Forest of the Vines next Wednesday while Molly’s mom is at her grandmother’s house, Guntur told me, I told them that is the day of the demonstration, but maybe in the afternoon. What do you want to do?

I went silent for a long moment, before I replied, Tell them we will try to get back as soon as the demonstration is over and meet up. My last rebellious adventure...

Last rebellious adventure? Guntur humorously repeated, That must have been one heck of a lecture! So, my best friend is ready to become Alpha?

I don’t know about ready, but it’s time for me to stop thinking about just myself and focus on fulfilling my duties to our pack, Guntur, I resolutely stated, Why don’t you join me and start working with your dad more? I’m sure he would be as pleased as grandfather is going to be. Plus, it may be the only way we get to see each other much.

You’re sounding like a leader already, Mattias, Guntur earnestly said, Count me in, my friend! We will both make this our last rebellious adventure!