Filed to story: Tangled in Moonlight Unshifted Novel by Lenaleia
“Luna Ava.” Magister Orion’ is the first of the Fae to notice me, and his booming voice carries through the area. He stands near a crumbling section of wall, directing fragments of plaster and concrete into a pile. “I trust you slept well?”
“As well as can be expected.” My attention stays fixed on Eris’s work. “I had no idea magic could be so… specific.”
“Eris has a gift for repair and restoration.” Magister Orion guides a large chunk of wall into place. “Each Fae’s magic manifests differently. Some heal, some destroy, some—like Eris—excel at putting broken things back together.”
Three other Fae work alongside him, their movements synchronized as they float debris through the air. A few pack weave between them, pointing out what should go where. Two are in wolf form, sniffing at things, and it takes me a moment to realize they’re using scent to identify what pieces go together.
One points his nose at a section of metal frame, a human-shaped shifter gives the command, and a Fae immediately shifts it toward its matching piece. Like an assembly line.
“The scent helps them remember where everything belongs?” Even as someone raised in a shifter pack, I didn’t realize our noses could be so precise. More things I’m missing out on without the ability to shift.
“Indeed.”
A dresser reconstructs itself under Eris’s touch, drawers sliding home with soft clicks. She doesn’t speak, her focus absolute as she moves to the next broken item.
No one is showing signs of mistrust, and it warms my heart to watch this happen.
“Luna.” Kellan’s voice startles me. He appears at my side, Lisa a few steps behind him. He nods toward the repair efforts with a faint smile, no longer hostile himself. I can feel the burden on my shoulders lift. “Quite a sight, isn’t it?”
“I never expected—“
Kellan watches as a wolf directs a Fae toward a pile of broken glass. “Their presence at the rites changed things. Not all are comfortable being so close to magic, but these are all volunteers to work with the Fae to get this done.”
Lisa steps closer, her eyes wide as she watches Eris repair a window. “That’s crazy. Ava, can you do that?”
I shake my head. “Not in a million years.” The magic I have is not so precise or fine, and I can’t fathom how she’s able to take two broken pieces of concrete and blend them so it seems they were never broken. Or wood.
Magister Orion chuckles and claps a hand on my shoulder, winking at Lisa. “Most are incapable of such a magic. Eris has unique inclinations. While it is considered a weak and ineffectual magic among the Fae, I have always found it to be some of the most useful.”
“Man, where was she when I broke my mom’s special Christmas china when I was ten?” Lisa’s laugh rings clear across the courtyard. “I spent hours trying to superglue those pieces back together. She was so pissed.”
The others chuckle, but I catch the way Lisa’s smile falters. Her hand twitches toward her thigh. She hasn’t spoken about her family in a long time, and I watch the light dim in her eyes.
My chest aches. She must be worried about them, and yet she never speaks of it.
“Forget the china,” I say, trying to brighten her face again. “Remember that time the espresso machine at Beaniverse decided to have a meltdown during rush hour? We could have used Eris’ talents then. Those customers were pissed.”
Lisa’s shoulders relax as she laughs. “Yeah. That was not a fun day. And Stephanie thought unplugging it would make it work—“
“But then it wouldn’t turn back on!” My lips twitch. “And she tried to blame us.”
“Right? What a bitch.”
Eris pauses in her work, raising an eyebrow at our conversation. “I do not fix coffee machines.”
“Do you fix ice cream machines?” Lisa asks with a wide grin. Any sadness seems to have disappeared.
Eris blinks. “Do you sell ice cream along with coffee?” She asks, sounding mildly horrified.
It’s clear she doesn’t understand the reference, but that’s pretty normal. It’s a human world thing. Leaning over, I smack Lisa lightly on her shoulder, unable to stop the giggles from escaping. “Stop ordering ice cream from fast food places and you won’t need to worry about broken ice cream machines.”
Lisa rolls her eyes at me, then turns to Eris. “You would make a killing in the human world.”
The horror that spreads across Eris’s face is startling. Her lilac eyes widen, and she takes a step back, hands raised as if to ward off the suggestion. “I do not kill humans.”
“No, no.” Magister Orion steps forward, his massive form blocking my view of Eris. “The phrase ‘making a killing’ in human vernacular means to earn a substantial amount of money. Lisa suggests you would be quite wealthy if you offered your services in their world.”
“Oh.” Eris’s voice comes out small. She peers around Magister Orion’s bulk, her pointed ears twitching and cheeks faintly red. “You humans have the oddest expressions.”
Lisa sighs. “No kidding. Some of it’s really strange. Who decided ‘it’s raining cats and dogs’ was a good way to say it’s raining hard?”
“It rains… animals?” The horror returns to Eris’s face.
“No, it’s just another saying.” I bite my lip to keep from laughing. “Though now that I think about it, that would be terrifying.”
“Humans.” Eris shakes her head and returns to her work, though I notice her lips twitch. “At least ‘making a killing’ has some logical connection to acquiring wealth. But raining animals? Nonsense.”
The exchange lightens something in my chest. Watching a Fae and a human discuss idioms is fun. Light-hearted. Not stressful or anxiety-inducing. Even Kellan’s stern expression has softened into something approaching amusement.
“Just wait until she hears you telling someone to ‘break a leg’ for luck,” Lisa stage-whispers to me.
Eris turns around, a suspicious look on her face. “Why would you break a leg for luck?”
“Breaking a leg just means good luck!” Lisa holds up her hands in surrender. “I swear! I’m not making it up.”
“How does breaking bones equate to good fortune?” Eris demands. “Why would their limb equal your fortune?”
“You don’t actually break their leg,” my best friend protests, trying to explain, but the Fae just stares at her in suspicion. I have the distinct feeling Eris thinks Lisa’s just screwing with her at this point.
Another giggle escapes me as Lisa and Eris continue their back-and-forth about human expressions, and even the other pack members stop their work to listen in.
“What brings you here this morning, Luna?” Magister Orion’s smile is gentle, but his question snaps me back to my purpose.
The weight of my earlier conversation with Grimoire settles over me, and all the stress of our lives returns, like a yoke dropped onto my shoulders. My amusement disappears in an instant.
“I have something to discuss with you. Do you have time to come to my cabin?”
Magister Orion’s eyes sharpen with interest, though his expression remains neutral. “Of course.”
Lisa catches my change in mood, her brow furrowing with concern as she abandons her conversation with the horrified Fae. But before she can ask, Kellan places a hand on her shoulder, steering her attention back to Eris.
He knows me well enough to recognize when something needs to stay between fewer ears.
“Perhaps you can explain to Eris why humans ‘kick the bucket’ when they die,” Kellan suggests to Lisa, and just like that, the attention shifts away from me.
LUCAS
Pip is surprisingly resilient to our questions, and we learn nothing else. She’s decided to stay silent, even when I let some of Aurum’s presence leak out of me, to the point she struggles to breathe.
In the end, we’ve lost Jericho’s trail and still have no answers for Ryder’s scent, leaving us aggravated. Pip seems to understand we aren’t the enemy, and yet she won’t confide in us—probably because I came on too strong from the beginning.
It’s going to take us forever to get back to Wolf’s Landing at this rate, Vester says as he prods Pip into speeding up her pace once again.
The young Fae has no endurance to speak of.
A deep sigh escapes my lips as I watch Pip stumble through another snowdrift. The sun hangs low on the horizon, and we’ve made little progress toward Wolf’s Landing.
“Stop.” My voice cuts through the wind. “Take a break.”
Pip collapses into the snow, her purple hair stark against the white. The chains on her clothes jingle as she shivers.
We should have gone north, tried to find the survivors. Aurum is annoyed with her slowing us down.
I watch the strange Fae child suffer in silence, panting hard despite the short distance we’ve walked in the past few hours. She’d never make it. We would have been ripe for ambush. It is better we are bringing her back.
Killing her would be more efficient.
No. His lack of empathy for the Fae was understandable at first, but now borders on extreme. It’s as if she has no value to him because she isn’t a shifter. He’s never had a problem with humans, but Fae… Well, it’s understandable. I probably would have felt the same before Ava’s trip to the Unregistered city and her stories from that place.
Vester stands by my side, his eyes also trained on our strange captive. At this point, neither of us are sure if we’ve kidnapped her or are keeping her safe from the New Order. “We need to make better time. It will take us days to return at this rate. Maybe even a week.”
“I know.” The words taste bitter. Every moment we waste puts more distance between us and any survivors. This mission feels impossible.
My fingers brush against my watch, but it’s still not working.
Pip’s teeth chatter as she hugs her knees. She’s not dressed for this weather, and the coat we’ve pulled out of our travel pack is far too large for her. Still, it’s better than nothing.
Despite her rebellious appearance, she’s just a child. A child who chose silence over betrayal when pressed, even if she was a bit of a chatterbox at the start. That kind of loyalty deserves respect, even if it complicates our mission.
But we still have to move faster. “Ten minutes. Then we move.”
Her eyes widen at the gesture, but she stays silent. Smart girl. She’s learned she can’t trust herself to keep information safe in even casual conversation.
Better if she would just talk, Aurum mutters. Once we have the information, we could leave her. He’s worried about Jericho; I can feel it down the end of our bond link.
Vester keeps his voice low. “We’re wasting time here.” He’s not advocating to get rid of her, like Aurum, but he’s also struggling with the timelines.
I motion to my two nearest scouts, both still in wolf form. “Watch her.”
They pad over to flank Pip without complaint. Now that I think of it, they’re both married, with pups of their own. They must have some compassion for a child like her.
“Vester.” I tilt my head toward a copse of trees. Far enough that even Fae hearing won’t pick up our conversation, I hope. There’s too much I don’t know about the Fae and their capabilities. So far, this one has shown no sign of magic, aside from appearing out of nowhere with the press of a button.
We walk in silence until the distance feels right. The wind whips harder here, cutting through my coat. If I’m cold, that child must be freezing.
“Her hands are red.” The words come out harsh. “Her feet are probably soaked through her ridiculous shoes.” They’re for fashion, not utility.
Vester looks over his shoulder at our captive. His jaw tightens as he takes in her hunched form.
“If we don’t get her to Wolf’s Landing soon, we’ll lose her to exposure.” I rake a hand through my hair. “She’s our only source of information about Jericho and why they attacked him.”
“You have a plan.” It’s not a question. Vester’s known me long enough to read the set of my shoulders.
“Take two others and find the nearest town.” I meet his eyes. “We need a car.”
His eyebrows shoot up. “You want us to steal transportation?”
“Unless you have a better idea. We can’t keep walking with her like this.” I gesture toward Pip. “She needs to warm up, and we need to make better time. While you’re at it, find her some proper winter clothes. Boots. A coat that fits.”
“And if we encounter resistance?”
“Don’t get caught.” My lips quirk. “But ultimately, do what needs to be done.”