Chapter 5 Learning
It’s been two days since Zeta, and I had our talk.
The only time I left my room was to grab the food Zeta had left for me on a table in the hallway.
She hasn’t said a word to me, and I am very thankful to her for understanding that I need time to process.
I think today is the day where I am ready to learn as much as I can about my future and what is going to be expected of me.
When a light tap comes from my door, I know it is her.
I open the door and nervously whisper to her, “Zeta, I think I’m ready now.”
With the largest grin I had ever seen she embraced me and said “come downstairs after you bathe and the teaching will begin.”
I decided to take the longest shower of my life.
I am so nervous about going downstairs, but it is time.
I turn on the shower and strip out on my old clothes, folding them and placing them on the counter.
Climbing into the shower the water is nice and hot, and it makes my fair skin turn red under it.
I grab the shampoo and lather it into my hair, letting the soap suds run down my bare breasts and over my belly.
It’s so nice to feel clean, I take every chance I can to bathe.
I was only allowed to bathe once a week if I was lucky, so this feels like luxury.
I love this product called conditioner, I didn’t have it in the castle and it makes my hair shiny and feel so lovely, and the soap surprisingly smells of lilies, I scrub my body all over.
I finally feel clean, even though I have showered three times, the dirt from under my nails is finally gone and the water runs clear when I rinse my hair.
Once my fingers and toes look like raisins, I emerge.
I come out of my room and there are clean clothes on my bed and a hair clip that looks like purple and blue galaxies swirling together.
I have never seen anything like it before.
When I looked closer the colors were moving around each other, and I thought it was a very fitting gift for the Queen of the Cosmos.
I didn’t know what to expect as I walked down the stairs, but a table full of food was certainly not it.
The aroma of the food was mouth watering and I was salivating.
“Sit down sweet girl,” Zeta says, “eat whatever you like and as much as you want.
This food was sent here for you by Aylin, with this card.
I took the card from her and took a seat at the table.
Asher was exceptionally happy that I sat beside him.
“Hey Asher,” I said “why don’t you make me a plate of all your favorites; I have never seen food like this before and don’t know what to pick. While you’re at it, why don’t you all eat, I am not going to eat all this food on my own.”
Asher practically jumped out of his chair in excitement, as I opened the card. Inside there was a handwritten letter.
To my one and only,
I know we have not yet met, and the distance between us is a physical ache in my chest.
But please hold onto this certainty: very soon, I will finally have you in my arms.
I am currently traveling through a distant town, but I am counting the days until the next full moon.
I will return exactly then, so I can stand by your side for your very first shift.
I have known of your existence since the day you were born.
When you turned eighteen, I was supposed to feel the exact moment your power awakened, when that didn’t happen Sterling howled to the Moon Goddess asking why she had forsaken us.
I knew you were there, somewhere, but the bond was still too quiet for me to truly feel you.
Even without that physical connection, I already love you more than words can ever capture.
I know this is an overwhelming truth to accept all at once.
You must understand that I have been waiting for you my entire life.
My mother, Rigel, spoke often of our destiny, but she never could have prepared me for the sheer weight of love you can feel for someone you haven't yet held.
Ever since she passed, I believed I was the last of our kind.
When you were born it changed everything.
Before she died, my mother knew I would find you.
She left a small necklace for you, if you have yet to find it, it is waiting on your bedside table.
It carries a protection charm, Celest. Please, wear it.
I know your mind must be racing with questions.
I promise to answer every single one to the best of my ability.
What I do not know, we will figure out together.
For now, please accept this food and the hospitality of Zeta and her family.
They have shown me nothing but devotion over the years, and they will keep you safe until I return.
Dreaming of, and desiring only you.
With all my love,
Aylin
I felt a small hand against my face, and I jumped in my seat. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” Asher said, “you have tears running down your face, I’m sure Aylin didn’t mean to make you upset.”
I grabbed his little hand in mine and kissed the back of it.
“He didn’t make me upset Asher, he made me happy, these are happy tears. I have never felt loved before and this man, who I don’t even know says he loves me and can’t wait to be here with me.”
Asher looked up at me and smiled so brightly that my heart pounded even harder.
He leans in close and whispers loudly into my ear “He speaks to the Moon Goddess every night and begs her for his mate, and now you're finally here! He is going to be so jealous because I got to meet you first.”
Asher starts laughing. We look at him and all start laughing.
These people are very welcoming, I feel like I was meant to be here.
No one has shown me any ill will and everyone has been open to me being here.
We sat together and ate as much food as we could, but even then, we didn’t make a dent in it.
Zeta took me to an office and told me I would be learning about werewolves and lycan from her husband Archer.
Archer was a tall man with the most golden hair; like his son Asher.
His eyes were so green and intense that I had to look away.
He smiled at me. “Hello Luna, and welcome to my office. Am I wrong to think you know how to read and write?”
He asked. “I can read; it was one of the hobbies I was allowed to have growing up, however, I was not taught to write. I have spent many hours reading and have taught myself some, and my history teacher taught me a few letters, just so I could write my name, but my penmanship is not very good.”
I answered.
His eyes got wide “What do you mean by that Luna? All children are taught to read and write in Pleiades. It is mandatory to make sure our nation stays strong.”
“Archer, right?” I ask gently, and he nods, “I want to first say thank you for agreeing to teach me. Also, I was not raised here in the territory Pleiades, but in the neighboring territory of Vallmont, in the Bloodmoon Castle, and I was treated as a slave.
I was taught by teachers who came to the castle, because I wasn’t allowed to go off the grounds unless it was a family outing. My father told my teachers that writing was prohibited but I would be allowed to read, that way their image stayed strong to other nations,
so I was taught at a young age how to read. My English teacher Mr. Delton was just as cruel as my parents. I was to sit on my hands for my lessons. My hands were so sore that even if I wanted to try and write they would cramp up.
He would slap my fingers with a ruler if he caught me with my hands out, and he even broke one of my fingers.”
I held up my left hand to show him my crooked pinky finger.
“When my father found out he shook his hand and said ‘good job keeping her in line’. I don’t really know how to tell you my English skill, but I have read books with the adult level four writing on the front. Reading quickly turned into my favorite pastime, I longed for books, any kind,
but I wasn’t allowed in the library. I had other workers, who I had become close to, sneak me books. I was caught a few times with books that weren’t provided to me by my parents, and I received five lashings each time. Reading took me to a place I thought didn't exist.
I read about cultures and different people. I read about wars between mythical creatures, and I remember reading one book even about werewolves. I loved every book I could get my hands on, so I continued to sneak books,” I looked away ashamed of my previous life.
“My father also brought in teachers for history and math. My history teacher was the nicest to me but I still had very strict rules to follow. Everything I was taught I either had to read or be taught verbally. She always questioned why I could not write. Her lessons were long and tiring,
and even though all these races exist, I was only taught about human history. Wars or conflicts were always between two human nations, and the thought that anything else existed never crossed my mind. She brought in maps showing all six territories. So that information I already know,
though who and what creatures populate those areas I would need to learn. She, besides my best friend Agnes, was the only one who brought joy to my life. She would bring us special treats like a piece of chocolate, or a handful of chips, and I didn't have to sit on my hands during her lessons.
If she heard my father coming she would tap on the desk so I could put my hands back under my butt. When I turned 15 I remember her calling me over to her, ‘Celest come here, I am going to teach you to write your name okay, but you can’t tell anyone.’ She sat beside me and held my hand in hers,
‘C-e-l-e-s-t’ . We wrote it over and over, until I could do it on my own. A month or so later someone told my father that I was learning to write. I had already finished my english and history lesson for the day and I just started math when I heard her talking to my father about why I couldn't
write, that he was hindering my success and that it would benefit him to have a daughter who could write because if I found a mate in life he would expect that I would know the basics. I never saw her again, that was six years ago. I am not sure what my father did to her but Mrs.