noun ~ gone by in time and no longer existing

The next few days were simple. I spent my time wandering the grounds, discovering all the pretty gardens that they had to offer. I could feel the air get cooler as the days went by, the lack of rain making it heavier on my chest.

After the day spent in the town, I had learned a lot about my parent's upbringing. Only the good things of course, of how my father was the eldest of two, and mother was of course the youngest. My father was apparently a lovesick, childish humoured man, and my mother, a gentle, stubborn soul. My heart warmed at the stories I was told of them as teenagers, of how my father chased my mother for all that he had until the day she was taken for blood. He had apparently gone crazy and hunted her down, killing the human's that took her.

She had told me of my mother's first turning when she was five years old. I shuddered at the thought of a child so young going through such a change, but apparently, it was relatively pain-free. My parents being the same age meant they went through hurdles together, saw the sights together and celebrated together. I kind of hoped that Phoenix and I could do the same.

"Aldren..." I asked.

He looked up from the green book he was reading. We had taken it upon ourselves to practice my vision skills in the library as that is where all the books regarding gifts were stored. The book in his hand was created by our very own grandmother and held most of the information about our inherited gift.

"Yes?" He wondered, raising an eyebrow.

"How old is the oldest werewolf?" I asked.

He frowned. "I'm not sure. I believe King Edward was one of the oldest, his father being one of the first turned wolves. If I remember correctly, he would have been around two hundred."

"You say, one of the first like there is more turned at the same time?" I asked.

He nodded. "We tend to refer to first turned as the first wolf each female turned. Your grandmother Abelia Hala, she turned the King's line. Hala are most connected to the moon and he became the strongest of the first three turned."

I remember that Hala relates to the moon's halo.

"So Hala is the moon, Cyrus is the sun and Terra is the earth, right? Who did your line turn? Are they still alive?" I asked warily.

He shook his head. "My grandmother turned a female and she lived until two hundred before she passed of natural causes. I think it was just her time, she was a nice lady."

"I see..." I mumbled.

So far I have learnt that only female Lycan can turn a wolf, and they have to be mated because the first bite of a Lycan is sacred for their mate...? Also that the Cyrus' original turned her first wolf when she was around three hundred years old. It was a long time, but the short life span of werewolves did not settle well in my mind.

My heart ached, wondering if I would live longer than Phoenix. I didn't want that to happen, I couldn't imagine living without him.

"What makes you ask?" He sighed, seeing the expression on my face.

I was never good at hiding my emotions.

"Phoenix..." I began, drifting off as I struggled for words. "If I live for hundreds of years and he doesn't... It's not fair. Why do we get to live so long?"

He frowned. "Their bodies are created strong, they are born strong. It's only a matter of time before their strength weakens. We, biologically, are weak and by nature, we tend to isolate ourselves. It's  our instinct, deep within us, to protect our weakness and not go seeking out danger." He frowned. "Did you ever wonder why you did not like hunting so much?"

"Well...I mean, I don't, but Celimene doesn't seem to mind..."

He chuckled slightly. "That's because she is five hundred years old, back then she had no choice to hunt for food. My wolf has no intention of hunting, he is content with others providing for him."

I rolled my eyes with a giggle. "You sound like my brother."

He laughed, shrugging. "Why hunt when people are so willing to do it for you?"

I rolled my eyes. "How about being self-sustainable? Instead of relying on others to do your bidding, your highness?"

He grinned at my teasing. "Perhaps one day. I do have plenty of time left, being only eighty-seven..."

I laughed. "Old man you are."

"That I am." He shook his head. "Let's continue the training anyway."

I nodded my head and came to sit back down beside him. I eyed the book he was reading, finding we were on page seven. So far we were unable to trigger the visions, but Aldren was not letting me read the book. I was taking sneaky glances when I could, but he always moved it away, much like now.

I sighed. "Why can't I read the book?"

"I don't want you to get too stuck in the details." He mumbled. "There is some old language in here."

I folded my arms, scowling at him. "You treat me like a child."

"You are young in my eyes."

I sighed. "Well so far, whatever we have tried has not worked. We have tried summoning my wolf but she is unaware of what to do. We have established she has no memory of her lives, how on earth are we supposed to even trigger one?"

"Well...when do you usually have visions?"

"In my sleep." I shrugged.

"Is there anything that leads up to this?" He wondered.

"Well... the first was when Pollux gave me his blood, then there was the time I was drunk and the night after the party."

"So, trauma triggers it." He mumbled. "Which was the one that was the most detail?"

"Of my mother's death?" I wondered and he nodded. "The night after the party."

"We could say that the vampires triggered it. It would make sense." He hummed, deep in thought. "Anything else you can think of?"

"Well, there was Aila and she spoke of my mother since she was her friend? Maybe it's a mixture of the whole evening." I shuddered, remembering the gut-wrenching fear I felt when I woke.

"So there was you marking Phoenix, then the King's coronation and then... when you were drunk? Perhaps because your mind was so relaxed and open, it allowed the vision in." He murmured.

"Do you think so?"

He nodded, trailing his fingers along the spine of the book. "Yes, it would make sense. Having visions, seeing the future... your mind and soul have to be open and prepared. But then again, fear is obviously a strong approach for them to find you..." He drifted off.

I was stood beside him and shrugged nonchalantly. "Maybe, only one way to know for sure and that's to trigger some."

He frowned, eyes fogging as he lost himself in his mind. I watched him curiously, as he stood still for a good ten seconds. Once back, he blinked, a faint smile gracing his lips. He took a step away and drifted his eyes across the library.

"What is it?" I asked.

He began to walk away, not answering me and I grumbled, staying where I was. As he shuffled behind me, I heard the familiar sound of his mumbles as he sought out a book. I found my eyes drawn back to the book my grandmother made, my eyes raking in its green cover. I licked my lips nervously, casting a glance over my shoulder to find Aldren disappearing down an aisle of books.

Taking my chance, I reached for the book, pulling it to my chest. A sudden bolt of electricity shot through my arm and down my spine and I gasped in agony as I felt my vision go blurry. I was stood still as a statue, my spine rigid as I fell into blackness.

My hands shook and I looked down at the book to find it no longer in my hands. I swallowed, looking around the dark room, fear rapidly beating my heart. I took a hesitant step forwards, the sound of a wooden floor creaking beneath me. A sudden flash of light hit me as a door a few metres away creaked open and agitated grumbling met my ears.

An unfamiliar hushing sound met my ears before a lamp illuminated the far wall by the door, the smell of oil hitting my nose. I blinked, surprised as a small figure came into my view. Where was I?

The woman stepped into the room, a large brown cloak shadowed her face, only her chin and tendrils of dirty blonde hair was visible. She cursed, stumbling into the room, her hand covering her abdomen. It was then I smelled her fear, a throat choking distress.

The door fell shut behind her, a wooden thud as it met its frame and she turned slightly to pull a wooden lock across its width. I watched as she walked further, clicking on two more lights on either side of the room. She shuddered, pulling herself into a wooden chair covered in furs that I now saw was by an open fire. The room was small, a wooden cabin with bare walls and only a fur rug beside the fire's edge.

She sighed as she sat and I watched her curiously. "Are you going to come sit down or just stand there?"

At first, I thought she was talking to me but then the door on the other side of the room opened and a familiar face entered. It was the woman from the store, Angela. She let out a loud squeak as she hurried into the room, hugging her cloak around her tighter. I observed her younger face, shocked by the fact she had two bright seeing eyes.

She fell into a chair beside the cloaked woman, her hood falling to the back of her head. I walked around the room quietly, despite not really existing in this world I felt like I was intruding. I noticed as I did so, that Angela tensed and eyed the room warily.

"You okay?" The hooded woman asked.

Angela's eyes searched the area in which I stood but I remained frozen, my eyes wide. She shook her head, blinking hard before looking to her companion, her dark hair falling over her face.

"Yeah, Celimene, I'm good." She shook her head.

My breath hitched and I looked to the hooded figure next just as she took off her cloak. "Good. That was a close call."

I drank in my grandmother's features with a sudden need to see her. I felt a strange pull towards her and I walked closer, getting a better view of my ancestor. Her dark blonde hair was caked in mud which smeared around her chin and neck. Her eyes were a brilliant green, much like mine, her cheeks round and supple and her nose small and dainty. She was stunning.

"It was." Angela frowned before barking a laugh. "That'll teach us to not meddle where we are not allowed."

"Who knew there were such creatures like those..." Celimene mumbled. "What do you think they are?"

Angela's eyes fogged over and Celimene sat in silence as her friend fell into a vision. I frowned, wondering what they were talking about but my answers were met when Angela blinked back into the present.

"Apparently they are creatures that survive from consuming flesh." She grimaced. "They have been living in shadows for quite some time now. They did not originate from these lands though."

"Strange. That is the third creature we have come across now." Celimene shuddered, poking the fire with a metal rod.

"Well, we have been travelling for one hundred and thirty years now." Angela laughed. "At least we are not the only strange creatures out here."

They fell into silence, Angela closing her eyes and looking peaceful. Celimene shifted her weight, bending to grab something from the table beside her. My eyes widened as the familiar green leather book came into my vision. She pulled out a piece of what looked like a feather and a small pot of dark liquid. I found myself leaning closer, my curiosity peaked as she wrote what appeared to be a foreign text.

This must be what Aldren was talking about.

Although my eyes saw words that were not English, my brain was able to understand. I assumed it was Latin, recognising a few words from the text's Phoenix had in his office. She was writing a diary, telling how they met a creature that feasted on flesh and blood. How it was blue and large, with claws and teeth sharp as knives.

Ghouls. They met ghouls.

"You writing that book again?" Angela sighed.

"Well, I have lived a long time already, what's to say I don't live another fifty years? Then no-one will know of what we have discovered." Celimene smiled, continuing her writing.

Angela shrugged. "I think it is silly, I have not seen your death for many centuries."

"Neither have I, but it could still happen." Celimene pointed her quill at her friend. "I have a purpose here, I know I do. When it will come to me, is another thing. But I can feel the itch within me, wanting me to find it."

"That is just because you are too high strung."

My grandmother tutted, going back to her writing. "My Goddess has shown me a life I could have. I have seen myself running in my furs, a small black pup beside me. My heart aches for a life I have not had yet."

"Well, you need a male of your kind for that." Angela snorted.

Celimene rolled her eyes, and they fell into silence again until once again Angela broke the quiet.

"What have you written so far?"

Celimene sighed. "I tell the tales of the creatures we have found, of the lands that have benefits for us. I have spoken of my Goddess, of my mission and I have mentioned the creature we met today, then myself and you. I have also written about my visions, and how they work."

"Is that not dangerous? What if it fell into the wrong hands?" She asked.

Celimene shook her head. "I have created a code, written in Latin too. Only those who are mine will understand."

"Yours?"

Celimene nodded, lips set in a firm line and Angela stared at her warily. "Okay. No answer to that one, I understand."

Celimene smiled softly before continuing writing but as I tried to read the book, it began to fade into blurs. I looked around confused but saw the room around me begin to blur together. My head swam, as the room faded back to black. I felt my legs give away beneath me before I was falling once again in my dreams.

•••
Hey all sorry it's bit late but it's here
This was meant to be posted with the family tree but I got so caught up in life yesterday idk one minute it was 9am next I was putting kids to bed lol

Question of the Day:
Do you have a pet? What's their name?
If you don't, do you have a 'dream' name?

wc: 2610

Finding Luna © 2021 XDeafening_SilenceX on W a t t p a d