Kaden huffed. "Fine. Just be careful. And I want to know everything he says to you."
I rolled my eyes. "Anything else, alpha?"
"Yeah." He pinned me back against the wall, taking my chin in his hand. His lips crashed down on me roughly, demanding I accept his hard kiss, the swipe of his tongue in my mouth, and his body pressed against mine. "Don't ever forget you're my mate. Not his."
As if I could forget.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Days passed, and slowly the pack settled into their new home. I avoided both Kaden and Jordan, feeling far too sick of alpha male energy to deal with either of them. I did manage to convince some of the shifters to meet with Larkin for training one evening though. The more people we had using magic against the Sun Witches, the better.
The night air was brisk as I walked to the park with Stella, the streetlights creating pools of warm light in between the cooler puddles of moonlight filtering through the trees. A few of the other Ophiuchus pack shifters trailed after us to where Larkin told us to meet her. I was excited to see how the other shifters fared, and Stella was practically vibrating with excitement next to me as we walked.
We cut through the park to where Larkin was waiting, the moonlight spilling over her. Harper caught my eye as she formed a circle with her twin brother Dane. A few other Ophiuchus pack members joined us, and to my surprise, a familiar face joined the crowd.
“Mira?” I asked as she jogged over to me. “What are you doing here?”
“The Cancer pack used to be close allies with the Moon Witches,” Larkin said. “There's still some Moon Witch blood running in a few of the Cancer wolves' veins. Including Mira's.”
"I had no idea," Mira said. She clapped her hands like a small child, and then joined Stella and me in the circle.
We all turned to face Larkin, quieting down as she cleared her throat. I hadn't known how the other pack members would react to her, but they respected her just like they would any other adult. Even though she was trapped in a child's body, she still commanded the attention of an adult, and they realized that.
“The first part of training is about learning how to channel the moonlight,” Larkin said. “It's the most basic form of Moon Witch magic, and is something that is taught to us at a very young age.”
I was reminded of the very first lessons with Larkin and Celeste and had a brief moment of bittersweet nostalgia. Soon, I told myself. Soon I can go back and see my mother again.
Larkin met my gaze with a small smile and I nodded at her. I knew she wanted my help for this lesson. We had a lot of shifters to teach, and she couldn't handle all of them, but I was eager to help however I could.
“Repeat after me,” Larkin continued, drawing me back into the present. She spoke a few words in ancient Greek slowly. The shifters all repeated after her, and then she went around the circle, correcting pronunciation where it was needed, and beaming at everyone when they got it right.
I stepped forward to help her after that. We each took half of the students, and I was happy to get Stella and Mira in my group. I demonstrated the magic, and all of the shifters stared at me with awe. Most of them had never seen me use moon magic before.
“Who wants to give it a try?” I asked, trying to give an encouraging smile.
Stella raised her hand, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet. I nodded for her to step forward. It would be easier for her because she already had a Moon Touched gift and came from a strong lineage of Ophiuchus pack shifters. I walked her through the same steps Larkin and I had reviewed earlier that evening. Stella tried, but nothing happened.
“It's all right,” I said, trying to encourage her. “If you got it on the first try, I'd be really impressed. It took me forever to learn everything.” Which wasn't exactly true, but it had felt like forever. I remembered my frustration, and how that had seemed to impact how I was able to work. “Try not to get upset if it doesn't work, since the frustration only makes it harder."
Stella nodded and tried again. We went through the cycle a few more times before she finally got the barest flicker of light. “I'm glowing!” she yelled and lost it immediately. I stifled a laugh and had her try it again once she had calmed down. After that, it was relatively easy for her to get more and more light every time she called the moonlight down. It wasn't quite as bright as any of the Moon Witches I'd seen, but it was still impressive.
I moved on to the next student, and the process repeated. Everyone had a bit of a different process, I learned after working with a few of the other shifters, and we got varying results. One thing might work for someone, but that might not work for someone else. The amount of moonlight each shifter was able to call down also varied as well. Mira had the least success, but it didn't seem to sway her.
She laughed with joy at the tiny moonbeam she managed to call down into her hand, and I embraced her. “I can't believe I have actual magic,” she said, clinging to me. When she pulled back, I was surprised to see tears in her eyes. “Remember how cool we thought the Sun Witches were when we were younger?"
I smiled at her but felt a pang of sadness go through me. I almost wished I could have that level of ignorance once more, to believe that the Sun Witches were these amazing, mystical beings who only wanted to help us. But it was better to know the truth. We would never trust the Sun Witches again, and I hoped that we could convince the other packs to join us in our rebellion too.
After I made it through my half of the students, we rejoined into one big circle again and continued practicing. There was a lull in questions directed toward me, and I walked over to Larkin.
“I'm surprised,” I said, nodding my head toward Mira. “I never would have suspected that a Cancer pack member would have Moon Witch blood.”
“The Sun Witches want to wipe us out of the bloodlines,” Larkin said. “But we persist.”
“Yes, we do." I gestured at the students working, where Harper and Dane seemed to be having a contest for whose moonlight could shine the brightest. "This is a really good start.”
Larkin hummed in agreement. “The Ophiuchus pack is especially determined. They dig in and don't let go until they have achieved their goal.”
“What do you think you'll be able to teach them?” I asked.
Larkin shrugged. “I doubt any of them will be able to learn true battle magic like you and I can do, but they can help with shielding maybe. Most of them will only be able to shield themselves, but there are a few stronger ones who will be able to shield others as well, and Stella might be able to do some basic spell work that could be beneficial to us during fights.” She nodded and looked around, her young face serious. “Overall, this will be a huge asset in the fight against the Sun Witches.”
A knot in my stomach unclenched. We'd had the odds stacked astronomically high against us from the beginning, and getting any sort of edge would be incredible. Maybe, just maybe we can win. I didn't dare say the thought out loud.
“I wish that we could convince the other Moon Witches to fight with us,” I said. It wasn't the first time I'd brought it up, and I watched Larkin's shoulders fall as she also thought about it. I hadn't meant to dampen the mood, but the words had just slipped out.