A Memory Lost
I lay watching her, frozen still, breath raspy to match my elevated heart rate but my fears begin to calm and fade as she slides down her hood with a slow even movement and illuminates the room with a magical blue glow of both her hands. Like a mesmerising smoky orb around each that follows and traces with every movement. Hypnotic in nature.
Sierra Santo is a very beautiful woman with almost milky skin, despite looking exotic; her dark hair frames a delicate bone structure and her eyes although electrifying blue right now are almond shaped under straight thick dark brows so perfectly symmetrical. She has pouty lips, and an ever-present youthful charm that completely warms her to you. A face that says, ‘I can be trusted’ to match the surrounding atmosphere of serene she always carries.
I sit up, gasping in wonderment at the light show and reaching out to touch what I can see as she moves in and sits on the side of my bed with grace. She allows my hand to wander into hers, seeking out and investigating before firmly surrounding my small hand in her own fingers and encompassing me within the warmth. I expected the blue air to be cold but it’s almost like being submerged in a hot bubble bath and I giggle at the tickle of it.
“Don’t be afraid Alora… it’s magic. Special, gentle and yet so very beautiful and kind when used the right way. Would you like to do some magic with me while I tell you a story?” Her eyes are still that dazzling brightest azure and I look from her hands to her eyes in awe at the vibrance of this mystical light she is able to produce. My curiosity killing the last of my fears and I nod with the enthusiasm of a child who wants to discover more.
Of course, I shouldn’t be afraid, this is the Luna Santo and I do know her. She comes to the library to read us stories and play with us sometimes well she did, before all the grownups left to fight a battle. Just like my own mommy and daddy have and my big brother Jasper and my grandparents and most of the rets of the Whyte pack. I stay with Mommy’s friend while they are gone, Aisha Munro, one of our pack who is big and round because she says she is having puppies. Sierra has a son around my age, but I don’t like boys and I don’t like playing with Santo’s. They are always so pushy and aggressive when we do and I prefer my friends from the Whyte pack. We are softer, we play less rough and tough games about fighting and hunting. They are just stupid.
“How can a wolf do magic?” I ask, blinking innocently and adjusting to fully see her in this dimness, leaning up against my headboard and shuffling my butt so I can sit properly. With blue as our light source everything it touches between us is shaded in cold hues which add even more magic to the atmosphere all around us and I smile as I watch it envelope my own hand and spread up my arm. It feels strange but good, like soft gentle air being blown across the surface of my skin , only warm.
“Well that’s a story and one I would like to tell you. Remember how we used to read at the library, when you all laid on the floor and closed your eyes so you could get lost in the pictures your mind creates? We can do that now if you like, so you can listen and empty your mind form any distractions. I need you to just focus on my words and not my light.” Her voice is so soothing, low yet pretty. I have always liked Sierra’s voice it has such a calming quality like a warm wave washing over you on a cool day. A husky depth that is a little lower than most femmes but it’s melodic.
“Yes!! I love your stories.” I reply in unleashed excitement, hurrying to lay back down in my bed and eager to hear this one. I bounce and shuffle while still holding her hand and wriggle myself down like a squirming caterpillar into my sheets once more and push my head back against my cushion, sinking in. I don’t care why she has come in through my window and not the door. Or why she came in the night, I just want to be a good girl and listen to her magical adventure story. The one in which a wolf learns magic. That’s crazy and even I know that wolves can do no such thing!
My mommy used to read me stories in bed and maybe because she cannot be here right now, Sierra came to do it instead. She’s a queen so she can come home when she chooses but my mommy is a warrior and she has to stay away and protect us from the bad men who came to the mountain to hurt the wolves. My mommy is really strong and fast and such a good fighter for being a farmer wolf so she said it was important that she went with them to chase the darkness away.
Sierra tucks me in neatly, pulling my blanket up to my chest but keeps my one hand in hers snugly and tightens the grip she has on me. She slides back a little and lays my wrist on her knee which splays open my palm to disengage hers so she can touch my hand without holding it properly and with gentle strokes begins to circle in the centre in a rhythmic motion. The sensation sends both shivers and goosebumps across my skin but it brings back the sleepiness and has the same effect as rocking me back to sleepiness.
“I learned to do magic as a very small child, much the age you are now. It was not easy but when you discover a gift inside of you that aches to be set free, nothing can hold it down forever. Open your mouth Alora, I have a sweet tasting berry that will help you sleep when I am done telling my tale.” Her voice is hushed as though she’s telling me secrets and I obediently open my mouth as she pops a small round semi soft object in my mouth and I automatically begin to chew. The juicy little thing explodes with the first squish between my teeth, like a delicious fruit bomb of sticky sweet nectar, leaving a beautiful residue of raspberries, strawberries and other wild berries that seem to mingle in my mouth and coat my tongue as though I just drank a whole glass of squeezed berry juices.
“What was that? Can I have another?” I ask while opening one eye to look her way, it was so tasty I could eat a whole bowl of whatever that was. She is leaning over my hand looking at me and shakes her head with a soft smile on her face.
“Hush now and listen. Close your eyes. No, one is more than enough, for you see, one little berry has the power to make tonight fade away further than a forgotten dream, where no one will know where to look to find it. It’s a very special berry, only found in crevices of magical places in whimsical woods and with my help it has a little added spice.” Sierra picks up strand of my hair and twirls it with her free hand, never breaking contact of the first and I settle back down into my dark blankness as I shut my eyes once more and focus only on her voice.
The night air is still and quiet and for once I can’t even hear the owls in the trees or the leaves rustling on the wind outside my window. There are no other noises around us, not even the ones of the house creaking, or the Munro’s coughing in their sleep, which is a little odd but maybe I usually sleep through the night and don’t know the world sometimes falls silent.
“My story may not make sense sweetest child, but one day it will and when you remember it, remember this night and this moment….. all will fall into place. You will know why I came,” Sierra Santo brushes a hand across my forehead gently, a simple yet affectionate touch of a mother and I nod, not willing to interrupt her anymore, so eager for this story to begin even if I don’t grasp what she means. I love tales about witches and magic and brave hero’s and hope this is going to be a good one. I can already tell as she is playing, like we have started a great adventure.
I feel her sag and sigh against my thigh before her voice fills the air, still hushed yet clear and true.
“Once upon a time, there was a special girl called Danya, who lived near some very beautiful mountains in a land filled with immortals. She was unusual though, as before her no other of her kind had been borne that had ever survived beyond the womb. They say the fates blessed her very creation with a purpose in mind. She was of two breeds united who had lived on the land side by side for centuries; her mother a light walking wolf, fell in love with a dark creature who could never face the sun, a vampire. By their union they created a child of two worlds who could walk in either sun or moon and harness the best of both. You see these two breeds; they were once allies co-existing together. One in night and one in light protecting the lairs of each so other immortals and human hunters would never hurt them at their weakest, but a terrible king pulled them apart in the worst of ways. He believed the breeds uniting, creating a new kind would overpower all of the immortals, outbreeding his wolves and this girl with her special gifts could show them the way. See she was not just any hybrid child, she had powers unlike any we had seen before and she wanted only unity among her people.”
I gasp a little and cover my mouth right away, so as not to disturb her and utter only a breathless WOW as I become immersed in this tale. My little heart picking up speed with the wonder of it.
“The Alpha king was enraged with the audacity of the girl that she should one day rise up and derail him, taking his Wolf kingdom away. So he did what he thought would save his rule and slaughtered the girl Danya when she was merely a child; and her mother who tried to protect her was laid down too in a pool of blood. He blamed the dark creatures for the deaths of their own and ignited anger in the wolf packs to seek vengeance for the bloodshed of an innocent. He denied the act himself.”
“He killed the little girl and her mommy?” I can’t contain my outrage, inhaling hard and opening an eye to blink at Sierra. Sierra gently moves her hand over my face and closes my eyes once more with her delicate fingertips, pushing me back to quiet and continues on. I try so hard to keep my eyes closed this time.
“Now the dark walker, he was not just any creature…but he was what they call an original, much like the Alpha of the wolves was. An ancient; beings who were the first in line of our kinds and created many purebloods. Danya’s mother had lain with the king of Vampires, probably why her child took hold and come to fruition, as ancients are the purest of our kind. His broken heart and need to avenge his love and his child drove him to sheer madness and he swore to avenge her death by slaying all wolves he deemed responsible in their demise. The Kings, they met in battle and what were once allies and peaceable unions became bloodshed and death and it spilled onto every land until both were forced to find refuge in parts of the world where the other did not stray. Those born of mixed breed who came after in the years following where unions were made in secret from those who didn’t want the wars, were hunted down and slaughtered by both kinds for treason. Unions were forbidden between the two breeds. So those who were born of light and dark, they fled and hid and always kept their secret about who they really were in any way they could. Danya was not the last.”
I sigh heavily, letting out a tiny noise, but Sierra is making sure I keep my eyes closed and I picture such a pretty girl with white hair, saddened with little pangs in my heart that she was ended in such a cruel way. In wonder that a wolf can be both like me and one of those creatures out there, mommy is fighting. I wonder if this story could be a little it true and wouldn’t it be sad that all these wars were because a bad man killed a little girl because he was afraid she would take his crown away.
“Stories told are a funny thing, as they change and grow and details are forgotten or exaggerated and soon that story of years gone by were lost among the wolves, visionaries too afraid to correct the tellers. We witches became enemies because we held truth and sight as alphas removed traces from our history and beheaded witches who spoke out. The wars raged on decade after decade for hundreds of years until no wolf or vampire knew anymore why we came to hate one another with a passion. The witches still uttered the secrets though. All was to be forever that way, until a visionary, a seer saw something that changed everything and she sacrificed her life by spreading a prophecy to any who listened. Neither side trusts the motives of the witches but we have always been the peacekeepers and the healers among you all. Our hearts were open to love all kinds and we only wished to serve the needs and cure the sick, but this hatred has pushed some of my own kind into a terrible darkness who use their gifts for bad. And we no longer tried to right the wrongs of your people.”
Sierra again lifts her hands from my eyes , although I keep them closed, poised and waiting for her words and she returns to twirling my hair.
“This Seer, she saw an end to it all in the form of a white wolf with the blood of a vampire running through her veins. A direct descendent of both blood lines – both ancients. The prophecy was clear that only a femme could carry the gifts needed. She would rise up and lead her people….. not in war and hate and death, no, that was never the prophecy, but she was to unite and repair the bonds between the two because a warrior she may be but her truest gift will be the love she has inside of her and her power will be used to reset the balance. She isn’t going to wipe out the vampires…she is going to find something among them that will show her how to fix the rift. They possess something she needs from them. She is a healing balm.”
Sierra sighs heavily, fatigue overtaking her voice and a sense of hopelessness dulls her tone.
“A new King was rising among the people and his bloodline that of the king of old, was not willing to relinquish his throne either, that same power madness infected his mind and he began to purge the lands of any white wolves he came across on his battlefield. Not that there were many as the flaws in our kind make their birth almost impossible. He broke the laws and killed his own and to hide his secrets he killed all that were linked to them and purged the packs of any trace. You see losing our kind in battle raises no questions and he knew he could never let a white wolf rise. Such is his need for that power, that he married a witch wolf and hid her identity because he thought she would make him rise as the chosen one.”
I wonder if our Alpha Santo is that king? If Sierra is the magical witch in the story then maybe she means Juan Santo is the evil king. How silly.
“There was one who shone bright and started to lead a better way. Turn the battles in our favour but all too often she was letting the vampires live and showing mercy; she believed she could end things if she was allowed to meet with the Coven King of darkness and put an end to it all. A future with peace. The Alpha king was furious but the witch Luna had affection for the white wolf and she begged him to leave her be. The king knew the white wolf was too strong for him, and that his witch mate would try and intervene, so while he pretended to allow her to travel alone only to find this leader of the vampires for a solution to the fights, he struck down her family and her mate, putting an end to her own life too. He used the bond link to his advantage. He thought he had ground down to dust the prophecy once and for all, with no more traces of white among our kind. Until he was reminded of a child, who stayed behind and had not yet come to turn and show her true colours. A femme child with the possibility of her hybrid mothers gifts. But you see, the kings mate….she IS a witch, bound by a bond to him yet she does not support his actions. That wolf was her sister in friendship, maybe not in birth but she adored her as though blood and her heart was broken by what he had done. The betrayal of his people and the murder of his own, the betrayal of his bond to her in hurting her closest. That witch she knew that he would come after the rest of the white wolfs pack and end any chance of another rising ever again. She chose her people over her bond; she chose her love of the white wolf’s child and it brought me to you. “ Sierra stops stroking my face and her words make me jump. So caught in the wonder of her tale that it’s a surprise for her to say that.
“Why me? What am I to do?” I try not to open my eyes as she said not to and screw them shut as hard as I can while holding myself still. My little heartbeat rising again with awe and yet excitement for this exciting story.
“You are the last white femme, Alora, so I could not stay behind and let you die too. I had to come and protect you with the gifts I have hidden for so many years. Don’t be afraid, one day when this comes back you will know what to do. My son, Colton, he’s a good sweet boy and I must leave him for a little while even though it kills me to do so. You will be what he needs, and you will be drawn to him when the time comes. I have seen it, the fates have deemed it so. I have seen the pairing of my child and my Marina’s as a resolution to the binds we find ourselves in. Our children will be the unity our three kinds need and together they will rebalance what nature intended of our people. The berry I gave you, it will make you sleep and all that you know from the moment you woke at my appearance until you wake in morning, will be gone. Until such a time when we three touch and I can lift the binds I am about to place on you. If something happens and I can no longer be found or help to undo this, then your mate bond to my son, the finalising of the union will restore this memory and the gifts I am about to bind. It will break the spell and you will shine, sweet girl, with my son by your side. My aura ebbs around and through you, weaving it’s path as I have given you my words and our souls have become so completely entwined within my magic. Look now.”
I flutter my eyes open, now with her permission, a little slow at first and can see what she means, with a quit inhale of surprise. I am completely encapsulated in blue glow and lift my one free hand to see there is not a single piece of me that is not illuminated as it pulsates from every pore. Sierra takes both of my hand sin hers, holding my entire little fist inside her palms and firmly squeezing until I cannot let myself free. Her eyes glow brighter, the room becoming light with the power of the glow we are both emitting and I am transfixed to her face as she locks her eyes on mine.
“I am binding my life to thee… willingly our souls entwined.391Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEvYhLroBUV
My air is yours, our heart beats in rhyme, together we are one until the end of time.391Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTXAtQh7Dvc
By blood we may not be linked but in love and bond by magic synced.391Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgkUwzxwjRc
We now are forever to die as one, for you my child this spell will be done.391Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWHVTJY3ktZ
I bind thee gifts until a time predicted, when the world and all within shall be shifted.391Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB8kHif1sI5
When love breaks the ties I place upon thee, and your mind and power shall be set free.391Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNFb2RAktqz
We shall meet again, in a time and place that the fates decree.”
Sierra utters these words in an almost song like manner, as everything between us pulses and hums with a static that electrifies the room and we glow to an almost insane level of brightness. I screw my eyes shut, body energised and almost fit to bursting with the sudden rush of adrenalin coursing through me. I feel like I am standing in a wind tunnel, yet nothing moves and almost as quickly as it overwhelms me, it stops dead and drops back to a dim glow as only Sierras hands remain blue and those two piercing eyes return to dark and her natural brown colour. I blink my eyes at the sudden darkness of the room, acclimatising as it all comes back into focus and look at her with question. Her eyes are filled with tears and little rivulets stain her pale cheeks as she smiles at me softly.
“He is coming and soon this family will die too. They are killing what is left of the Whyte pack as we speak, and they will tell those of the mountain they chased vampires into our lands and couldn’t get to them in time. You will be a thorn in his shoe, as I have become, and he will have no choice but to now put you somewhere in the hopes you will be forgotten. My fate will be whatever he decides, but I doubt it will be here with my people. If you die, I die and he dies too. That will be my homage to your mother so her death was not in vain. Sleep now, sweet girl… before the horrors come to this room. I do not want that memory for you of this innocent family’s demise and I will stay here until he knows he cannot touch you, for now or eternity if he wishes to live. My sleeping berry is strong. You will not know of anything more my angel, only peaceful slumber before tomorrow, they break your heart and tell you of the saddest moment you will have to live through for the next ten years. I’m not a warrior, I’m a healer or else I would have done more for her, for all of you and I am so sorry. My son though… he has so much fire within him just waiting to be unleashed, he’s going to be a great warrior one day, your protector, your love but you will show him the way. I had to bind his witch gifts as a baby for fear others would see it in him or that Juan would see him as a threat, but he possesses sight and abilities that he has no concept of. I bound him and much like you , he will unbind his gifts when he marks you as his mate or I am returned to you both to do it myself. Whatever comes first. You two are our future.”
Sierra strokes my face one more time, the sleepiness becoming overwhelming and although the words she says alarms me and pushes a fear into my heart, a pain so deep because she said my mother is dead the effects of that berry are pulling me into darkness and I can’t fight them. Tears bite my eyes and I make a painful sound in response, yet it falls almost like a breathe and fades away as I succumb to this power.
“I want my mommy.” It’s a soft utterance as I try my hardest to out win the effects but my eyes drift closed and Sierra’s voice is all that gets through, her tone low and husky and torn as she cries through her voice.
“I’m so sorry. I really am. I want her to come back too. You are all I have left of her…. I only wish I could stand in her place and shelter you now, but he won’t let me be with you. Our time will come, I will see you again. ” She sobs a little under her breath and then seems to swallow it down and push herself back to calmer.
“I’ll sing to you, the wolf song , such a pretty lullaby which will help you go to sleep. Your mother said she used to sing it when she nursed and it was always Colton’s favourite melody to fall asleep to….. shhhh now.”
Sierra gently starts to sing, so quiet, hushed in volume so as not to disturb anyone else, the words of the Nordic song of olde that we used to sing at the awakening ceremonies as a child until Juan Santo forbade it’s use. The notes and melody filling the air like a beautiful serenading ghostly echo, calling on our ancestors to help pave my path to slumber and I black out completely as voices begin to invade the room in which I lay.
ns 15.158.61.6da2
