The Guardian: Full Moon

Chapter 7

The next day came quickly and the entire FireHeart pack was buzzing with gossip. Leon had been walking around for the past few hours with a dazed look in his eyes and a dreamy smile on his face. He couldn’t even seem to string together a completely coherent sentence when someone spoke to him. But his dream-like state slowly changed into a state of worry. By 9:30 he was pacing and running around his room like a chicken with its head cut off.

Leon's P.O.V

“Leon, if you don’t want to be late we should really get going.” Thorin said, trying to calm Leon down. “But what if I do something wrong? What if I say the wrong thing?” Leon said, internally freaking out. “Leon, you've been panicking about this for a couple hours now. It’s 9:45 now. If you don’t leave now, you'll be late. Do you want to leave Enya waiting for you?” Thorin asked. “No.” Leon said in a whiney voice. “Then stop being a coward and move your ass!” Thorin yelled. “Alright, alright, I’m going!” Leon yelled back irritated, running down the Pack House stairs and out the door. Shifting as he ran, he made his way to meet Enya.

“Enya, calm down.” Arima said in a calm tone. “Leon isn’t late yet.” “I know, I know.” Enya replied with a sigh. “It’s just… this is starting to feel like a date.” “What’s so bad about that?” Arima asked exasperated. “You like him, and from what I saw last night, he obviously likes you.” “You think so?” Enya asked, not quite believing Arima. “Yes.” Arima said in exasperated disbelief. “Look, just… spend some time with him, get to know him. At the very least the two of you can become friends.” “Alright Arima.” Enya said, huffing out a defeated sigh. “You win.” “Good, now finish getting ready.” Arima said in an almost motherly tone. “Okay, okay.” Enya said with a snort and a chortle.

Leon arrived at the Drago house right at noon. He had left his bag of extra clothes in a hollow tree near the home, and had already stopped to change. He nervously knocked on the front door and waited, his palms already beginning to sweat from how nervous he was. The door was answered by Akia. “Hello.” Akia greeted him, looking him up and down suspiciously. “Can I help you?” Leon cleared his throat nervously before he spoke. “Yes, um, my name is Leon Sterling. Enya and I agreed to meet for a run today.” “STERLING!!” Akia shouted angrily. “You’re the son of one of the Alphas that sentenced Enya, aren’t you?!” Akia yelled, and poked Leon in the chest. “Why in the name of Hades would Enya ever agree to hang out with YOU?!”

Leon's P.O.V

I backed away from the door with every accusatory poke to my chest. I assumed that this was one of Enya’s sisters, so her anger towards me was justified. I couldn’t even muster the nerve to deny her accusations. I was about to tuck tail and run from her, when I heard Enya call out from behind her. “Akia, leave him alone!” I looked past the angry woman in front of me towards the sound of Enya’s voice, and my breath caught in my throat. She was wearing black running shoes, black leggings with blue fire decals up the sides, and a blue sweater. Her hair was up in a high ponytail, and her hair swayed with every step she took. Even the seemingly perturbed look on her face appeared charming to me. “But Enya, he-” She tried to protest, but Enya cut her off. “No Akia.” Enya said sternly, hands on her hips. Dear Goddess, how I wish I could grab those hips myself.

Akia flashed a menacing glare at me before turning around to head back into the house. She kissed Enya on the temple on her way. Neither Enya nor I said a word until the door closed behind her sister. Enya sighed before turning to look at me. “Sorry about that.” Enya said looking at me with a sympathetic look in her beautiful jade eyes. “It’s fine.” I replied to her, my cheeks heating up in a nervous blush. “I don’t blame your family for being angry. Their anger is justified after all.” A sullen look crossed her face, and a feeling of dread rose in my chest. “Come walk with me.” She said, her eyes downcast. I followed her in silence, the feeling of dread growing with every step.

Enya’s P.O.V

Leon followed me quietly as we walked. I led us away from my house, and away from the forest that I loved to run in so much. After about an hour and 15 minutes of awkward and tense silence, I finally stopped walking. We had ended up at a large weeping willow. I glanced back at him. “Come on.” I motioned with my head for him to follow me, and walked through the curtain of leaves. The rustling of the leaves behind me was my only confirmation that Leon followed me in. I stifled my giggle as I heard Leon gasp in amazement. I had a similar reaction the first time I found this place when I was younger.

The willow tree grew on a patch of land in the center of a small lake. A section of it’s roots had grown twisted together, rising to form a natural bridge over the water. “Are you coming or what?” I asked teasingly. I resisted the urge to look back at him. With how easily he seemed to get flustered talking to me, I guessed that he probably had that adorable blush on his face again. I heard Leon shuffle forward and I kept walking. I walked straight over the root bridge to the willow’s trunk, and started climbing. I had climbed this tree so many times that I could have climbed it in my sleep.

I climbed up to a thick branch and sat down on it as I waited for Leon to join me. Given his werewolf strength, it didn’t take him too long. Soon we were sitting side-by-side, a peaceful yet still tense air between us. We both started to speak, only to pause and look at each other when we each heard our name. We both burst out into a fit of laughter, most of the tension between us disappearing. “Why don't you go first?” Leon offered. The mood turned serious again, as I took a deep breath and sighed. “My family doesn’t know.” I said solemnly. I glanced at him and saw the look of confusion on his face. “About my scars, and everything that happened.” I clarified before he could ask. A shadow was cast over his eyes as Leon lowered his gaze. A strained ‘Oh.’ was all I heard from him.

Leon and Enya sat in silence, neither able to say anything. Amidst the quiet tension, Enya started to absentmindedly play with the water below them. Leon eventually noticed the movement of the water, and the shapes she was forming with it. “What are you making?” Leon asked, bringing Enya’s attention back to the present. The water that Enya had been playing with fell back into the lake with a splash as she came out of her daze. “Huh?” Enya asked, turning to look at Leon. Leon chuckled at her expression. “I was asking what you were making in the water.” Leon repeated, motioning to the lake beneath them. “Oh!” Enya exclaimed and blushed in embarrassment. “I didn’t even realize I was doing it.” She said looking down at the water.

Leon gazed at Enya for a long moment, admiring how cute she looked when she was embarrassed. “So how did you find this place?” Leon asked, looking around them. “It’s really cool.” “Oh, this place is famous amongst the humans and Seers.” Enya said glancing at Leon and then looking up at the willow branches. “There’s actually a story about this place.” “Really?” Leon asked, his interest peaked. “Can you tell me?” Leon asked leaning closer to her, curiosity shining in his eyes. Enya giggled at his almost child-like behavior. “If you really want to know.” She said, and then laughed as Leon perked up, nodding enthusiastically. “Alright, alright, the story has two versions, so I’ll tell you the Seer version.” She said as she placed her hands on his shoulders and pushed him back slightly. “Just calm down.” Leon turned to sit fully facing Enya, his legs crossed and his attention fully focused on her. Enya shook her head and laughed, then she began to tell the story.

Enya’s P.O.V

“Long ago, many years before this tree had started to grow, a naiad lived in this lake. She was beautiful and kind hearted. Always making sure that the humans who had settled their village near here had clean water to drink, and that no one ever drowned when they swam. Then, one day, she fell in love with a man. He was a young Seer, though he himself didn’t know that he was. Both of his parents had died when he was just a baby, and the people who adopted him knew nothing of the Seers’ world. So he grew up thinking that there was something wrong with him, because he could see what others couldn’t. As he got older, it became easier for him to ignore the spirits around him. That is, until he saw her. He had been taking a walk, and he happened to spot her sitting in the shallows. He stopped to talk to her, and they were immediately drawn to one another.

For months after that day, the two of them would meet at the lake to spend time together. They took walks together, swam, talked; and it wasn’t long before they shared their first kiss. The man thought he couldn’t be happier, until he was confronted by the other villagers. They had noticed him going to the lake almost every day, and some had even followed him when he was with the naiad. But of course, since they were regular humans, they couldn’t see her. As far as they were concerned, he was talking to something that wasn’t there, and they thought he was crazy. He was upset, of course, by the villagers' accusations and went to find the naiad for an explanation. He rushed to the lake, where he found her playing with the water. Much like what I was doing earlier, and he wasn’t happy.

He felt betrayed, because the woman he loved wasn’t actually a human, and she obviously never told him the truth. To be honest, he was probably more hurt by the fact that she wasn’t what he expected her to be. So he stormed up to her and started yelling at her. It’s unknown exactly what was said, but at the end of it all he was walking away and she was crying. Over time, the man fell in love with a woman from the village and he forgot all about the naiad from the lake. Not long after, the man and the woman were married and they had the reception near the lake. The naiad was enraged when she saw them together, and she lashed out. She caused a geyser to rupture under the woman that washed her into the lake. Once in the lake, the naiad grabbed the woman and dragged her down to the bottom, drowning her.

From that day on, the naiad would drown anyone who went near the lake. Eventually the village elders forbid anyone from going near the lake all together. The naiad spent the next thirty years alone in the depths of the lake, isolated in heartbreak and darkness. During that time a dryad, who had also experienced heartbreak, planted the willow tree on the island in the center of the lake. The tree grew quickly, and in twenty years time, it covered the entire island. It was around this time that the man, who had spent the last fifty years alone, returned to the lake. He made a raft, and rowed over to the island. Filled with regret and remorse for the pain he caused the love of his life, he hung himself; and so the cycle of pain began.

Over the years that followed, there were many others who killed themselves here. Hundreds, possibly even thousands of heartbroken people have either drowned in the lake, or hung themselves from the branches. Eventually this place was nicknamed Heartbreak Lake and the Suicide Tree. In time the naiad and dryad both died, but the regular humans still believe that this place is cursed. So no one comes here because they’re afraid an evil spirit will kill them. And that’s the whole story as I know it.” I said, finishing my recollection of the story. “What’d you think?”

Leon’s P.O.V

“What’d you think?” Enya asked after she finished telling me the story. “What do I think?” I repeated gawking at her. “I think that you have bigger balls than any Hunter I’ve ever met.” Enya stared at me for a moment before busting out laughing. “What? What’s so funny?” I asked, genuinely confused. Sure I was complimenting her, but I really meant it. I don’t know many Hunter’s that would even get close to a place with so much death and dark energy surrounding it. “Exactly why do you think I possess larger gonads than a man?” She asked, still chuckling. “Well with the dark history and negative energy, I don’t see many people being brave enough to even come close to this place.” “Negative energy?” Enya said quirking an eyebrow at me. “Do you honestly sense anything negative about this place?”

I looked at her for a moment, and then looked around at the branches surrounding us. “Well, now that you mention it, I don’t.” I said looking back at her confused. “Why isn’t there any negative energy?” Enya smirked at me before standing up on the branch. “I’ll show you.” She said and jumped off the branch into the water. I watched as she came up out of the lake and swam back to the island, disappearing under the roots. “You coming, or what?!” Enya called up to me. Ah, to hell with it. I jumped off the branch, into the lake, and swam up to where Enya stood under the willow roots. I followed Enya as she led the way under the tree. I was impressed with how easily she navigated through the maze of roots. “Do you do this often?” I asked as we climbed over a root. “Often enough.” She said ducking under a root. After a few minutes of walking, she stopped and I almost bumped into her.

“You ready?” She asked me. “For what?” I asked, half curious and half cautious. She didn’t answer, but instead knelt down and moved a large rock. In moving the rock, she uncovered a hole with a small chest in it. “Mind your eyes.” She said before opening the chest, unleashing a bright light. I shielded my eyes with my hand, squinting and blinking to let them readjust to the light. When my eyes finally adjusted, I looked down to see what Enya had and my jaw dropped in awe. “Is that-” I started to ask, but she interrupted me. “A healing and purification crystal, yeah.” She said smiling at me as she picked up the crystal.

Enya’s P.O.V

I stood up with the crystal in hand. “Where did you get this?” Leon asked in awe. “I actually made it.” I said grinning at him. I had to stifle a laugh as Leon’s jaw dropped while he stared wide eyed at me. “What? How? Huh?” He stumbled as he tried to figure out a full question to ask. I giggled a bit before explaining everything the best I could. “I found how to make it in a book about healing magic. I studied and researched the spell for months before I tried it out. Initially I had to renew the spell every month, but I’ve been able to work it down to every six months. I estimate that soon I’ll only have to renew the spell once a year.” I said kneeling down and placing the crystal back in the chest. I was about to close the lid of the chest, when I felt Leon kneel down next to me. I turned my head to look at him, only to receive a shock of my own. Leon and I were nose-to-nose, our eyes wide, and our lips gently pressed together.