Chapter 11
Amrin
I missed Sten.
He’d been gone since late that night, when he’d taken my virginity, but he’d left me a note claiming he would meet me at the festival. The Spring Equinox had arrived, and I was putting the finishing touches on my chart, heart thumping as the app rendered its results to me.
I knew we were supposed to be faking it for the sake of this project, but nothing about my feelings for Sten felt fake. It took me a long time to put in all the information I had on us, and slowly, ever so slowly, I watched the impossible happen.
“Oh, my fucking gods,” I whispered in the middle of the hallway.
I was on my way back to my dorm after finishing my final lecture for the day. But I had to know what it said about me and Sten before I handed my project over to Professor McEwan.
I covered my mouth with my free hand, eyes wide as I watched the app charting our paths, mine and his, across the skies. When it stopped, both blue dots, one for Sten and one for me, were in the same place and the words 100% matched flashed above them.
It was stupid, and likely meant nothing, but something inside me warmed at the thought. Witches did not have fated mates. At least, not exactly. But maybe, just maybe, Sten and I were written in the stars.
A bell rang, and I gasped as someone hit my shoulder.
“Watch it, fatty,” a familiar voice snarled behind me.
I turned around, eyes wide as I came face to face with that fucker, Gunner. He looked completely deranged. His hair was spikey and unwashed, and his facial hair looked unkempt.
“Your little boyfriend isn’t here to protect you this time,” he said, forcing me to step back as he stalked toward me.
“Amrin Cordoza,” Professor Wainwright came down the hall, calling out to me. “Come with me, please. You have an urgent call.”
“Coming, professor,” I replied.
“Run along, Witch. I’ll find you later,” Gunner whispered, way too close to my ear.
Hiding my shudder, I moved away from Gunner, walking backward so I could keep my eye on him, until I was far enough away to turn around. I tightened my grip on my bag and jogged over to the professor. There was a call for me from a Coven portal apparently, and I frowned as I went to the admin office to answer it.
* * *
An hour later,I was back in my dorm and getting dressed for the festival. I didn’t know why my mother felt the need to check on me, likely because she thought I was about to fail out. I gritted my teeth as I slathered lotion on my skin, replaying her words in my head.
“You are a Cordoza, Amrin, try to remember that and act accordingly.”
“I am trying, Mom—I mean, Mother,”I replied, knowing how she preferred a more formal title.
“You are not trying hard enough. I understand there is a Wolf Shifter there sniffing after you. Gunner McFadden. His father has sent me a proposal for you to mate with his son—”
“What? He hates me!”
“Well, there is a fine line between hate and all that, and since you have no other claims on you, I told him he had my blessing to initiate courting you,”she said, and I could not believe my ears.
“Are you out of your mind? I have, I mean, I met someone, Mother. And I will not allow Gunner, that creep, anywhere near me.”
“You will never speak to me like that again, Amrin. I am your mother and your leader. Be sensible, girl. Who else will take a powerless Witch as a mate? I command you to do this for your family.”
“No, I will not. And you can’t force me, Mother. If I embarrass you that much, then consider this my official notice. I am withdrawing my membership to the Cordoza Coven,”I said, chest heaving with anger.
“You can’t do that! I will refuse to pay your tuition. You horrible girl. I told your father seven was the number. Seven daughters to bring us fortune, but you... you have been nothing but a curse on our name—”
“Then allow me to remove myself from your name. I am no longer Amrin Cordoza. No longer of your line. I am leaving your Coven and never going back. Goodbye, Mo—just, goodbye.”
I knew I needed to find Headmistress Blackthorn, to explain my situation, and see if there was something I could do in terms of a scholarship. It wasn’t likely, seeing as how I was barely passing my classes. But I had to try. I was just not ready to talk about it all yet.
Truth was, I needed Sten. I needed to see him. One day was too long, and I missed him dearly. Sighing as I undressed, it was only when I looked down that I noticed a package wrapped in the most beautiful blue paper sitting on my bed.
It was not my birthday or anything, besides, even if it was, who would give me a present?
The paper was beautiful, and I did not want to rip it, so I grabbed a letter opener from my desk and carefully unwrapped the box. Inside was tissue paper, but it was fancier than any paper I had ever seen, and when I opened it, I gasped. Tucked away behind the folds was a shimmering dress in midnight blue. When I lifted it out of the box, I was taken aback by how beautiful. I was wrong about the color. It wasn’t one shade of blue, but thousands, and depending on how the light hit it, it would change.
“This is beautiful,” I whispered, running my hands across the gossamer like fabric.
I’d never seen its equal and since I was raised in a house with ten girls, that was saying something. Chills ran up and down my spine, and I took off my robe, pulling on the lace thong I’d planned to wear. The straps of the dress were skinny, and I didn’t think I could fit a bra beneath it, so I tried it on without. The fabric seemed to heat and change, like it was doing alterations by itself, and I stood, mouth agape as I watched it mold to my body in the floor-length mirror.
“This is amazing,” I said to myself, turning around to see my reflection.
The dress had morphed into something spectacular, and beyond my wildest dreams. It was soft and shimmery, making me feel like a princess. Even better, it seemed to understand my quandary about bras, and built one inside, lifting my breasts high. The fabric wove itself to form a sweetheart neckline with draped off the shoulder cap sleeves. The fabric ghosted over my curves, layers, and layers of it, and when I walked it glittered and shined. Like I was wearing a piece of the night sky.
I ran back to the box, hoping to find something else.
A letter maybe?
Something from Sten. It had to be him.
Who else would have done something like this for me?
I wasn’t disappointed either. When I lifted the tissue paper out, I found a note and a smaller box. Inside the box was some sort of spray, and on it was a label that read for your hair.
Trusting Sten, I uncapped the bottle and sprayed a few pumps over my long, now mostly faded locks. I’d wanted to try dying my hair before tonight, but that call with my mother had left me too frazzled to think. I was glad I hadn’t wasted my time because whatever was in that bottle, my hair went from lackluster and over-processed, to a shining wave of ocean blue with cobalt and azure highlights.
“Wow!” I gasped, tearing open the note.
Dearest Luna,
I can’t wait to see you tonight. Please wear this as a token of esteem from my heart to yours. No more secrets, no lies, tonight I will tell you everything.
Yours, Sten
I clutched the note to my heart, turning my head as magical fireworks and music pronouncing the start of the Spring Equinox Festival reached my ears. I slid my feet into a pair of wedge heels, and I paused, wondering if I’d need a coat.
As if the dress heard my thoughts, it began to shimmer and heat up. I watched in the mirror as the layers grew and separated by magic. Strange magic, but magic, nonetheless. Then I was draped in a matching cloak, and when I spun around, I saw the most beautiful images painted across the back.
Moths.
Lunar moths.
Dozens of them.
And Sten’s words came back to me.
“They are harbingers of good luck.”
I inhaled a fortifying breath and straightened my spine. Lunar moths were good, according to Sten. He was good. And he was mine. At least, I thought he was.
The very idea of Gunner McFadden asking to court me made me dry heave. I wanted nothing to do with that Wolf, or anyone. I only wanted Sten. And tonight, I was going to tell him so.
I grabbed my tablet, sending my project off in a magic powered email to Professor McEwan. Yes, I’d printed a copy of the chart and my report detailing how I arrived at my conclusions. Both were ready to go and since I didn’t plan on carrying a bag, I slipped them into a folder to hand off to the professor. Nerves assailed me and I wished I wasn’t walking to the festival alone.
“You can do this,” I whispered as I exited my dorm room, nearly bumping into a tall male with dark wings and the purple-haired Witch on his arm.
“Sorry—”
“Our fault entirely! Are you Luna? I’m Serena, this is Raven,” the Witch said, and I nodded.
“Um, yeah, well sort of. Only Sten calls me that. My name is Amrin,” I said, shrugging.
“He calls you Luna? Huh,” the big male with runes carved across his skin said, seemingly amused.
“Sten sent us to walk with you to the festival, you mind?” Serena asked, and I shook my head.
“When did you talk to Sten?” I asked, falling into step with Serena.
The enormous man, her mate as she informed me, walked behind us and I felt his presence pressing heavily on me. I glanced back twice, but he wasn’t doing anything. Simply existing, and holy fuck was he strong.
“Sorry, Raven can be a bit protective,” Serena confided, and I just giggled and waved it off.
What else could I say?
Um, would you mind asking your giant boyfriend to not be so dang scary?
Yeah, somehow, I didn’t think that would go over well.
“I love your dress!”
“Thanks, it’s from Sten,” I told her, preening under her compliments.
For all my sisters, I never had a girlfriend, and chatting with Serena as we made our way to the festival was really very nice. I hoped maybe we could hang out again in the future, but of course, that depended on my future. So far, nothing was really certain. My mother was in the process of disowning me and I still might fail out of school. I pushed those thoughts away, determined not to allow them to ruin my night.
The fairgrounds were decorated beautifully, with thousands of twinkling fairy lights floating above us and around every available pole and tree limb. Fantastic smells filled the air of cotton candy, popcorn, chocolate fudge, grilled meats, and veggies, and fried dough covered in powdered sugar. Serena’s stomach growled, and Raven stopped and pointed to a nearby stand.
“Be right back, ladies,” he rumbled.
“So, have you and Sten been together long?” Serena asked while her mate stood in line for some popcorn.
“No, um, actually, I’m not really sure if we’re together,” I whispered.
“You mean you haven’t, um,” she trailed off.
“Yes, no, I mean, yes, we were together, but then he had to go somewhere, and I’ve been sort of stuck in limbo the last day and a half, wondering,” I murmured, voicing my truth aloud.
“Oh, well, I’m sure he will clear things up when he returns. Raven tried to deny what we had in the beginning, but it just wasn’t possible,” she said, gazing fondly at her man. “The Fates just won’t be denied. Anyway, um, what are you holding?”
“It’s my extra credit project. I’ve been doing miserably all year,” I said, and explained about my lack of focus and the trouble I’d had sleeping all semester.
“You know, I’ve been doing some reading about different aspects of magic and how it affects Witches from the Earth realm,” Serena said. “You might want to check out Kincade’s Theory of Witches. It’s assigned reading in Professor Bannerman’s History of Magic class.”
“I was supposed to take that next semester, but I don’t know if I’ll be here.”
“Oh, that’s right, you have to pass your class. How thoughtless of me,” she murmured, biting her lip.
“Not at all. Besides, that isn’t my only obstacle. See, my mother wanted me to allow some jerk to court me while I was here, and I told her no. That was just tonight. Anyway, she’s not going to pay my tuition anymore, so pass or fail, I might be leaving Blackthorn either way.”
“Oh, no! That’s awful!” Serena said, her eyes going round.
It did sound pretty terrible when I said it aloud like that. But really, it was a small price to pay for freedom. For years, I’d lived under the shadow of my mother and sisters and the Cordoza Coven. And now that I’d finally stood up for myself and said no, I felt as if a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
“You know what? It’s not that bad. I’ll be okay,” I said, and for once, I actually believed it.
“You will be okay, Luna, and you will pass, and stay in school. Come.”
Serena was grinning at someone standing behind me, and I clasped my hands over my heart before I turned around slowly.
The crowd milling about, the lights and sights and sounds, everything, all of it, blurred into the background as I stared up at the male who’d been filling up every inch of headspace I had for days now, weeks even.
He made a deep, rumbling sound in the back of his throat as he looked me over from head to toe. And that was fine because I was doing some looking of my own.
There was something different about him, and not just his outfit. He wore pants that appeared made of dark navy leather, with buckles and straps crisscrossing over his broad chest and arms. His blue skin glittered like it was painted with a thousand stars, and those blue eyes I loved were so intense as they stared at me.
“So beautiful, my Luna,” he whispered, holding out his hand. His gaze flicked behind me and he nodded at someone. “Thank you, Draugr. Will you bear witness for me?”
“Well, Serena, want to follow these two around a bit more?” Raven asked his mate, wings flexed open behind him, warding off any who tried to walk too close.
“I wouldn’t miss it,” she said.
I was too stunned to speak, the feel of his warm hand in mind was making my ovaries explode. He was everything I ever wanted in a friend, in a lover, in a mate, and I had yet to share my findings with him. But I would. Soon.
“Let’s find Professor McEwan first.”