The Mythical Luna

Chapter Seventeen - Kenzie

The door slammed shut behind me as I stared at my childhood friend, and she just sat there looking amused. I looked her over, her once black hair was now rainbow and yet her pale skin remained, her eyes as dark as the night with specks of silver that looked like the stars. I giggled before rushing towards her and jumping into her arms. She held me tight and I could feel the slight shake in her grip.

“Girl, you tell me, you survived everything that happened and yet you didn’t like think to reach out and tell me you survived?!” She asked me as she shook me slightly. I laughed and shook my head.

“I was busy surviving.” I replied to her and she gave me a look, a look I knew from our childhood that meant we would talk about it later.

“Anyway!” I heard my mate’s mother pipe up and I remembered we weren’t alone. We let go of one another and turned to face her and I realized that my mates had also come in while we were hugging. Surprisingly they seemed fairly calm about the whole situation. “She was just telling us that they needed you in the Fae Realm, like now.”

I looked at my friend and I sighed. “Xiamara, is that true?” I knew my family worked closely with the Fae and we had great relations between our two kingdoms, but they had done nothing to help us when we needed it the most and I didn't want a lot to do with them. Our shared past aside Xia was the only I didn’t blame for the fact that we had no help against the massacre. Xia’s twin brother was once the man I thought would be my mate with how close we were when we were children, but now all I feel when I think of him is pain.

“Unfortunately, yes it’s true.” Xia replied and waved her hand, a portal opening behind her. She held out her hand and I went to reach for it when I hesitated.

“I want my mates to come with me.” I said it with such a conviction that I knew she wouldn’t be able to refuse. I knew going to her realm would be facing people I didn’t want to face but I had to do this because I was the last royal other than my aunt and sister alive. I wasn’t about to send them into a place that not even I could access if need be. Xiamara looked back at my mates behind me, I could hear them shuffling around and then she nodded tightly.

“I’ll go first to announce your presence and you will go after that.” I nodded so she knew I understood and then watched her go through the portal. I watched the boys go through one at a time each with a little less hesitance than the last. Then all that was left was me.

“If I come back and my sister or my aunt have been harmed in anyway, you’ll learn why the wrath of the kitsunes was to be feared.” I said calmly while staring at the parents of my mates. They loudly gulped which caused me to roll my eyes, and I let a little bit of my foxfire dance across my fingertips. I jumped through the portal and landed on the other side feeling sea sick.

The world I landed in was full of color, making our world seem dull in comparison. They stood in a courtyard with fruit trees that had jewel toned fruits the size of softballs sparkling in the rays of sunlight. Flowers of every color and shade seemed to grow here and the scent of far off baking permeated through the air. I watched as Xia picked a purple fruit off a tree and bit into it, its juices dripping down her chin as she chewed noisily.

“Hungry much, Xiamara?” A deep voice floated down from above and I looked up only to find myself face to face with Xia’s twin, Esper. I immediately looked away and busied myself with retying one of my laced up boots. I hated the fact that his presence affected me so much.

“I am welcome to anything in the courtyard, anyone in the castle is, even the guests. So what if I decide to eat after portaling.” Xia snapped back at her brother and I normally would have scoffed at their playful banter, now it only filled me with more pain and hurt.

“Kenzie… is that you? You… you survived?” His voice drew closer and I could see his bare feet right in front of me. I hated him. Nothing he could say coil ever make things right. He gently pushed my chin up until I was looking at his face, the face that shared so many similarities with my best friend, yet all I could see was all the differences that made him my enemy.

“Don’t you ever speak to me again.” I gritted out between clenched teeth. I wanted nothing to do with him. He wouldn’t let go of me, so I spit in his face making him flinch back and finally let go of my chin.

“What the fuck did I do to deserve this?” He asked, as he wiped spit off his face. I reacted out of instinct and punched him in the nose. I felt the bone crack under my fist and the second punch was aimed for his mouth, his jaw crunching.

“What did you do?!” I screamed in absolute rage, “You made me feel like the world would be better off without me, when you watched my parents die in front of me. You were my safe haven but now, standing in front of you makes me feel like I’m standing in a room full of broken glass with no shoes, each step, each goddamn fucking breath cutting deeper as I tried to salvage what we were. The worst fucking part is when I sleep trying to escape the memories of how you left us, I’m greeted by you in my dreams, with the you that I loved and I hate it cause I want to stay asleep and stay with that verison of you.” I took a shaky breath as tears streamed down my face, “I will never forgive you, Esper, and I hope that knowledge kills you one day.”