Reincarnation

Coven

Luna Elsbeth Leonida-Forrester

I had been frustrated lately, feeling stuffed into a box that I couldn’t get out of. It all started out great, for sure, before Elijah decided to fully take control of Crimson Moon once again, we canoodled and did everything new couples do. Sure, it was a little fast, but the passion itself was easy to fall into.

Feeling his intense love for me was definitely a mind whirling sensation all of its own, and with his feelings came the familiarity of what the mate bond felt for him as a wolf. I felt like I absolutely irrevocably belonged to him. So yes, for a while, it was amazing.

The s*x in and of itself… Granted, my only experience came from Ben. I felt a small guilty pang thinking of him from time to time, but enough time passed surely that he was just a distant high school memory. I had never seen him after living in Silver Moon territory. But the s*x…

Every moment, every touch, every kiss… Every gentle, yet dominant touch that flayed blissful embers onto my skin. I could never imagine such ecstasy. He read my body like a book, examining every detail on every page… Absorbing me. I surrendered to the claim of his rapturous embrace.

Eventually, we had to put a bookmark in our whirlwind fairytale romance, as duty called, especially after Lana turned down his offer to join the packs under Silver Moon. Our attention turned to the wellbeing of Crimson Moon and establishing it as a strong alliance instead.

There was one thing neither of us could have accounted for, however.

When he announced to the territory that he had taken me as a Luna, not everyone was happy about it. I didn’t realize that the pack would have any problems with it, but that’s also when the political reality of wolfen territories really settled in.

There was a sense of what I could call… Species-ism. A lot of wolves were filled with pride, and thought humans were beneath them. When news spread that I was a witch, well, let’s just say things took a turn for the worse.

Every time I went out in public, people recognized me instantly. With that recognition came a lot of feelings of resentment and distaste in my general direction. Some people were even afraid of my abilities. In the human world, I could fit in easily; here it was a completely different story. Every feeling felt the same: “You don’t belong here, get out.”

Feeling discouraged, I withdrew into myself for the time being. Outside of the public eye, I really delved into practicing my magic, and sometimes, I even surprised myself.

My mother used to always find something to bicker about, but now even she’s impressed and keeps her mouth shut more often than naught. I could feel her explicit pride in me.

After marrying Elijah, he and I, of course, moved to his Alpha’s mansion and had to do a lot of rehabilitation from war damages. My mother ended up staying in Silver Moon, where she lived in the magic quarters she made home. She also made herself extremely welcome to the kitchen and ordered around household staff she hired to keep on. Lana gave her a handsome wage, but I could tell she would have done it all for free if Lana hadn’t pressured her into taking the money.

I suppose she was already at the stage where she was ready to get away from human society and focus on her heritage.

Can’t fight off destiny… She laughed when I asked her if she missed teaching. I honestly feel like the goddess intended my path to be within this realm, and I’m accepting of it. Always trust your instincts. When it feels right, it’s right.

Fair enough.

Elijah was very patient with me and I was thankful for that. It was hard to believe Lana’s stories about how much of an asshole he used to be. Of course, he was very territorial towards me, and absolutely hated what people were saying about me. I had to stop him on several occasions from reacting on my behalf. I had to remind him that people were allowed to have their own opinions.

After that, I decided to make an effort to put myself out there more and follow my own advice. I would have to be more composed, and shut away any personal feelings of hurt by the way people regarded me. Lana really helped me with that. I found myself crying to her on more than one occasion when it became too much. Just her being there was enough.

Elijah was on a whole other level of supportive as well. Strong, warm arms to hold the pain away. He provided such a fierce stable security for me, that I couldn’t imagine life without him.

I asked him to train me and allow me to learn by watching him perform his duties as Alpha. He made sure I was in attendance at every scheduled Council meeting. Besides having the nifty ability to read the room, I tried to keep his perspectives open about how he could manage things, or view situations, if things got particularly heated or difficult.

I was also heavily involved in the rehabilitation of the territory after the war. I started a variety of therapeutic programs for pack members to seek if they were struggling with any post-traumatic mental injury. Some people actually became warmer to me afterwards.

Even three years later, I wake up to a fresh bouquet of roses from Elijah every morning. I always imagined that after three years the love would grow more stale, but with us… It was different. This was a bond on a whole other spiritual wave length. The feeling I could only experience through his emotions, and wouldn’t know otherwise if I had not been an empath and it only became stronger with time.

Feeling the hostile energy of the females that worked around him, I could tell that they absolutely despised that he wasn’t mated to any of them. In a way, it thrilled me watching their efforts to try to impress him and feeling his complete indifference towards it all.

It gave me so much satisfaction that every time I came into the room where he was blatantly ignoring their advances, that I could feel his passion rise so intensely. As soon as he caught a whiff of my scent, I could feel his wolf’s primal hunger for me. The more I spent around him, the more I was able to distinguish between the two combined entities.

Sometimes, it took everything for him not to take me then and there.

And I loved every bit of it.

He even made my own personal area in the mansion, so that I could freely practice magic without garnering too much attention for it. So, on the days that I had breathing room from my Luna duties, I locked myself in there pouring over whatever magical tome my mother had sent for me to read from Silver Moon.

I read about a place in another dimension in times long gone where witches dwelled in a country called Anor’Dol, before the great split. I felt such a fascination learning about the era and how the witches would aid in pack territories’ formations and established boundaries to thrive in, away from human eyes.

The country was long gone, after the witches decided to split reality in between dimensions because the war between humans and the supernatural became too great. It made me think though… Traces of that realm were present in current times as the packs that exist today were echoes of the same packs that existed in that dimension. If they existed, surely the presence of other witches also existed, outside of me and my mother.

As it had been some time since I'd actually seen Lana instead of just talking to her over the phone, I decided to get out of the little box I had set myself in and get out for the first time in a long time, especially after casting an enchantment to enhance my awareness to magic sensitives around me. What better way to do that than breaking back out into human society with Lana at Club Onyx?

So despite Lana’s warning not to get too drunk, I couldn’t help but feel a little guilty that I was already there. The mood of the crowd in the club was intoxicating in and of itself. Watching her as I sipped my own drink, I couldn’t help but notice how much she had grown into her beauty. She used to leave me breathless even as young adults. Even now, there was a queenly elegance about her that was tangible and awe-inspiring. Even humans that she didn’t notice around her couldn’t help but be drawn in by her. A strong yet somewhat subtle power lay inside of her that instantly caught people’s attention.

She had blossomed into the strongest soul that I’ve ever had the pleasure of encountering in my lifetime. Somehow, I was thrust into her world full throttle, but I took it in stride and being around her inspired me in so many ways.

She had survived so much pain and anguish and became this solid, amazing person that stands here today. And I could also tell that at one point she came really close to embracing a darker side of herself. I have a feeling if she went that way… Honestly, the thought in and of itself was terrifying as it would spell doom for the rest of the world.

I probably should have established more self control before coming out for the night, but in all honesty, a lot of me missed being around humans. Even if we were there to see what the fuss was about with the vampires that came into Denny’s.

The energy shifted around me as I felt her loosen up with the infused wine that was gifted to her and I became aware of…

I blinked, looking around. Two sensations hit me at the exact same time. Two swirling energies that manifested in the crowd downstairs. A vibrant yellow… A deep burgundy and purple…

The other was that of a friend that I had lost a long time ago that brought painful memories to the surface. When Lana mentioned Eli was her mate, for some reason it only made sense. I could feel him here in the area and I could feel his intentions towards Lana. I had to stop myself from grabbing at my chest. At this point, I couldn’t be entirely convinced that there was nothing left of the ghost of his former self. He still had some of his humanity inside of him, and that biggest part was tethered to her.

I made my decision. I set my cup down and looked up at Lana, giving her a small smile standing up. Two birds with one stone.

“I feel it. The pull. There are magic sensitives nearby.” I was right that Lana was entirely too keen to let me go off by myself, but she understood, considering she was just as hard-headed, if not more so. If she felt these sensations, she would follow them too.

“Witches?”

“Yes.” I answered, feeling Eli’s eagerness stir. He was ready to face Lana and was just waiting for the opportunity.

“Please be safe.” She sighed, swirling her cup. “It’s not the smartest idea to split up right now.”

“They’re in the building, I know it.” I gave her my bravest grin, even though my insides were crawling with anxiety. I would locate the colorful energies but would they accept me? “I promise I won’t take long, and I’ll be safe.”

I paused on the stairs, feeling that Eli was approaching her. I smiled to myself. Elijah would probably be pissed off I was egging this on, but something just told me I had to let this happen.

I made my way through the crowd of dancing bodies, the trail of energies getting stronger and stronger as I went along.

I paused, seeing a shimmering in the air that had nothing to do with the lights. They were actively using magic, just a little further…

The sounds of hoots and hollers around me made me realize the crowd was surrounding two individuals dancing in the middle. Two breathtakingly gorgeous girls were dancing together. Their movements were sweet and in unison, creating a trail of mystical castoff that was unseen to the average human eye. They looked completely different, yet there was a bond between them that was tangible. The shorter one stood at least under five feet tall. Her willowlike petite frame resonated, her energy like warm spring sunlight on a meadow of wild blossoms. The taller, curvier of the two had a darker energy that reminded me of a burning campfire underneath a starlit sky.

Their combined all-consuming energy drew me in, and they paused, their heads turning towards me in unison as they sensed my presence.

They spared each other a knowing look, and I felt that they had already sensed me before. They had felt me feeling them out, sensed the enchantments I had put in place.

They held their hands out as an invitation for me to join them. I obliged by joining them in dance. Between the three of us, it was like this own glow woke itself up inside me, and it was easy to fall into sync with them, adding my own flow of energy to the movements and our circle was complete.

This was it. We all felt it. We were a coven. I could feel their emotional ecstatic joy when the sensations between us all heightened. Soon, everyone who was close enough watching fell into the same rhythm, unable to help themselves as they were drawn into our magic.

Out of breath, they clasped hands with each other and my own.

“Aeryth.” The petite girl whispered breathlessly. “You can call me Ruth though.”

“Brooke.” The taller girl introduced herself, a twinkle in her dark eyes. “What’s your name, Sister?”

“Elsbeth.” I couldn’t help a twinge of shyness. “You guys can call me Libby, though.”

“This calls for a round of drinks. We came here with a couple of friends but they went off to do something,” Ruth said, leading me to a table while Brooke went to the bar. She had long rose-pink colored hair that reached down to the small of her back. There were intricate braids and flowers woven into her tresses.

“It’s strange that for the past couple months or so we have been feeling a pull. Now I see where that energy comes from.”

“How long have you guys been practicing?”

“We met when we were small kids, but we’ve been practicing since we were young. It started off slow, but we found out that together we can produce the most results.”

“I can’t believe this is real.” I mumbled as Brooke came back with drinks for us all.

“It’s weird isn’t it?” She said, lifting her cup to mine, folding a strand of her short amethyst-colored hair behind her ear. Her quartz earrings glinted with the club lighting. “But here we are today, and now… We have you, Libby.”

“Just like that?”

“Just like that.” They both said cheersing me.

“So where do you live?” Ruth asked, her amber eyes piqued in sparkling curiosity. I hesitated, not sure if mentioning the wolf packs was a good idea or not quite yet.

“I don’t think we should drill her with questions just yet.” Brooke said wisely, catching onto my hesitancy. “Let’s just have fun and bond.”

Grateful for the distraction, I downed my drink and had the next round ordered on my tab.

I peeked up at the balcony where I saw Lana sitting with Eli. She looked slightly distressed. I felt a pang of sadness.

“Oh there they are.” Ruth pointed somewhere in the crowd. “I was beginning to think they ditched us.”

My body went rigid when I felt the vampires approach. They were the same ones from last night.

“Damian, Cade, this is our new friend Libby.” Ruth introduced me to them. I had to stop myself from clenching my glass too hard. If vampires were their dates, were the vampires aware of what they were? A drop of dread tied knots in my chest as I remembered three years prior when I was kidnapped and mesmerized into tearing down Silver Moon’s boundary. The vampires were definitely aware of my existence, but it terrified me that maybe they talked to Ruth and Brooke with similar intentions.

Brooke silently watched my reaction to them, tilting her head curiously.

“Did we keep you ladies waiting long?” The one with sandy blonde hair asked. “Nice to meet you Libby, I’m Cade, and this is Damian.”

The dark brunette didn’t even spare me a fake friendly smile. He had no time for bullshit.

“Well, now there’s three of you, want to come to our place for more of a party?” Cade asked, a sexy cocky grin plastered on his face, but I could see behind his facade. I glanced at Ruth and Brooke, who finished their drinks and grabbed their purses.

They seemed like they wanted to go with the vampires. I couldn’t just stand by and watch them go off by themselves, so I spared a silent apology in Lana’s direction and followed them out of the club and down the alleyway.

“There’s a short cut down here, we can take it to our flat,” Cade said, with Damian following close behind us. I definitely didn’t like this. I glanced nervously at Damian’s looming form but followed closely behind the girls. I could tell they were a little bit nervous about the trek down the dark alleyway, and almost ran into Cade’s back when he suddenly stopped.

So they weren’t going to wait that long anyway.

“Well, here it is, isn’t it.” I couldn’t help but say out loud. “Are you sure you want to do this now?”

Cade blinked in surprise but gave me a grin. “You don’t like me too much, do you?”

I took a deep breath and stood my ground. Ruth and Brooke looked at me with confusion in their eyes. That confusion turned into terror when Cade suddenly grabbed Ruth. She flailed against his otherworldly strength, but to no avail. His eyes turned pitch black before he opened his mouth, his fangs growing.

“Let her go.” I seethed, but it was too late, he already bit into her neck. I felt Damian’s cold touch on the back of my neck before he gripped me by my hair and forced me to my knees. Brooke screamed.

“Let’s just get this s**t over with. Shut the f**k up all of you.” Damian commanded with mesmer laced in his tone. Brooke grabbed at her throat, unable to make a sound. I could only stare helplessly as Cade began to drink from Ruth.

Lana… Please hurry…