The Human Luna

Prologue Part 2

The young girl with the tight, dark curls was huddled by the fire in the Alpha's living room, after her best friend managed to carry her back to the pack's territory. When the visions she experienced had subsided, the nine-year old girl felt weak, too feeble to walk back through the forest in time with the boy she had come with.

**********

When they arrived at the large gates that surrounded the pack, the boys body stiffened as he saw his father, tall and angry, standing with his arms crossed and teeth bared. His fathers eyes burned a bright blue and his chest rose with each breath he took.

Tears welled up in the small boy's eyes, and he placed his best friend on the ground in front of him, mouth babbling words of 'sorry's' and 'we won't do it again'. The Book of Truths was still being held tightly by the young girl, who was lying on the ground with her eyes closed shut as if she was sleeping. Although the book was one of the most sacred texts of the pack, the Alpha wasn't at all concerned about it's state, but rather the state of his son, who would one day, many years after he died, take his place as leader of the pack.

"Are you hurt, son?" he asked, an angry tone still evident in his voice.

"No, I'm not hurt father," the boy said shaking his head. "But my friend, she doesn't feel too good, she-."

"Enough of your friend, Solomon! A female pup shouldn't be out on a full moon like this," he shouted. "It is far too dangerous for the both of you! Now come with me, we're going home." And with that, the young boy's father started walking off.

Solomon crouched down on the floor, holding his best friend by the arms, getting ready to pick her up again. Either his friend was getting heavier, or suddenly he was becoming weaker. Just as he was about to lift his friend, his father's voice echoed through the air.

"Leave your friend. If her father cared enough about her whereabouts, he would be out searching for her; but I haven't heard any other howls than my own." He said sternly, back still towards his son, who was now crying.

Solomon, eager to obey his dad but just as eager to stay with his friend and check to see if she was okay, began contemplating what to do. If he followed his father, maybe he would impress him and their bond would grow. But if he left his friend, maybe their friendship would end and she wouldn't talk to him ever again.

Solomon knew what meant more to him, and so he stood his ground next to the young girl lying calmly on the floor. "I won't leave my friend father. It was you who taught us that as an Alpha you must take care of your pack; which means I must stay and take care of my friend."

When he had said what he said, Solomon's father stopped in his tracks. The muscles in his back flexed, and for a moment the young boy wasn't sure if he had made his father proud or even angrier than before.

Solomon was surprised to see that when the Alpha turned towards him, something like pride gleamed in his fathers eyes, and a small smile began forming on the ends of his lips.

"Very well then," he said lowly. "Are you strong enough to carry her?" He asked. 

Solomon nodded his head immediately, ready to show his father just how tough he was. On the way back to the Alpha's house, the young boy couldn't help but smile as he walked in front of his father. Although, his best friend was draining his energy just a tad, Solomon didn't mind; it was more than worth it. 

**********

"Are you okay to speak now?" Solomon's mother was attending to his friend by the fireplace, soothing her with slow, long strokes on her back. 

The girl was staring blankly into the fireplace, unaware of the fact she had passed out on the forest floor, unaware of the fact that her best friend, although only nine years old and shorter than she was, had carried her all the way home. 

The young girl nodded, turning her face towards the gentle face of her Luna. She was a small, slender woman with dark, short hair just like Solomon. Her skin was pale, which made the tattoo on her neck, the image of a crescent moon with an A at the end, stand out much more. 

"What did you see,"Solomon's mother asked soothingly. 

His friend stayed quiet for a moment, hands shaking as she perhaps tried to reminisce of the images she had envisioned. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she began recalling what she had seen. 

"There was a dark shadow rolling slowly over the sky, blocking out the sunlight," she started. "Ghostly, dark silhouettes began appearing out of nowhere on the pack territory, following pack members until they were too weak to fight. Then I saw a war, fought on the battlefields of Aquatine - I think that's what it was calle-." 

Solomon jumped in his skin when his mother gasped loudly, turning her head to her husband standing in the doorway. "Are you sure that's what the battlefield was called my love," his mum said, sounding as calm as she could. 

"I'm sure of it," the young girl nodded, shivering in the towel that was wrapped around her. 

Solomon was unsure of what was going on, but he felt a foreboding feeling when he saw his mum look at his father, murmuring...

"It's happening again."