Chapter 10 - Full Moon Blessing

  It took about another hour until I was confident enough to slip out of the cabin. Mom had already conked out the instant we got home - her snoring sending shockwaves throughout the house. Dad, however, stayed up much later, watching more shows on tv to either settle his own mind or to avoid the monster in the bedroom. With some courage, I snuck down the stairs, made sure he had fully passed out on the couch, and slowly made my way out the front door.

  Taking cover under a tree, I placed down Bleddyn’s plush and waited for him to return to his wolf form. The light from his transformation made me cringe and I had to hold my breath and pray no one saw us. After about five minutes, and a near anxiety attack, I finally felt safe to move again, and the two of us scampered out further into the night.

  There was little to no light outside with the moon covered behind clouds, but I didn’t want to risk being caught sneaking around by using mage lights close to where my parents or other mages could see. It was also much colder out and I was glad that I’d decided to wear my dark hoodie. It kept me warm and doubled as a form of camouflage in the dark. The ground was still wet from the rains yesterday, and even though my sneakers squelched on contact with the dirt, Bleddyn’s wolf form walked effortlessly over it all, leaving no paw prints behind.

  He led me behind a few other dark cabins, the two of us carefully making sure no one was around, rushing from cover to cover, before we reached the tree line. I gulped nervously when I saw just how dark it was under the canopy of leaves.

  “Just how far do we need to go?” I asked, now wondering if going out was such a good idea after all. But if it meant getting my second focus I needed to commit.

  Far enough to avoid prying eyes, Bleddyn comforted. But once we’re in a good spot, we’ll just have to hope that the clouds let up and the moonlight spills over us.

  “Will I need to pull from the leylines under the lake again?”

  That shouldn’t be necessary. Now come on. While the moon is still near its apex.

  He disappeared into the woods and I trudged carefully after him. He made running in the underbrush look so easy while I had to worry about twigs hitting my face as well as the shrubs scratching at my jeans. Within a few minutes they were soaked and I cursed under my breath at how uncomfortable it made the hike.

  Despite the heavy darkness of the woods, I realized that my eyes were starting to adjust to it. The further we moved on, the easier it became to make out the outlines of the trees and shapes of the forest. Keeping my attention to the white fur in front of me also helped as we continued deeper. After about a minute or so, I was somehow able to clearly see everything in my surroundings, albeit in muted hues. Almost as if everything was in grayscale. For a moment I tried to focus on the leaves of a bush near me, hoping some form of green would become recognizable, but no luck.

  The silence of the wood, I learned, was actually more alive than it let on. My ears picked up the heartbeat of mice scurrying underfoot, as well as two deer further to my right, hesitant to make any moves with me and Bleddyn so close. Their hooves pawed at the earth, a gentle scraping that gave me an idea of how far they were from us. I wasn’t sure how I knew, but I just did.

  After what felt like a long while of wading through muck and twigs, I began to wonder just how much further we needed to go. The cabins must be a good few miles behind us now and I no longer had any idea of where the hell we’d gone. “Just how much longer?” I finally asked once my patience started to thin.

  Not much longer now, the wolf answered, pausing a moment to look up at the sky. A few beams of moonlight spilled through the leaves above us as the skies finally started to clear out.

  Taking a few steps forward finally brought me under the dappled light and I found that it left a tingling sensation over my exposed face. It wasn’t entirely unpleasant, and I suddenly had this...urge...to bask in the light. What a...weird thing to want.

  Finally, we arrived at a small clearing in the woods just as the moon once again hid behind a cloud. I found myself missing the feeling on my skin, my brows knitting together as I pouted. Bleddyn made for a rock face that sat at the center of the clearing and turned to look at me, beckoning me closer.

  This looks to be a good spot. Are you able to ward it to keep you safe?

  I furrowed my brows together, stumbling clumsily through the tall grass. “Why do I need wards?”

  To keep you safe from critters who may want to come in.

  ”Isn’t that what you’re for?”

  Truth be told... no one can actually see me. Only you.

  My mouth was agape as I processed this information. “You mean this whole time I’ve been panicking about people seeing you and that bright light of your transformation and I didn’t need to worry?”

  Guilty. But it was kind of fun watching you squirm a bit.

  “That’s not funny at all! What if someone saw us?!”

  Well, they can’t see me unless you really want someone to.

  “I don’t want anyone seeing you out here!”

  Then there’s nothing to worry about.

  I growled in frustration. Literally growled. “Couldn’t you have told me all of this before? Wait. You offered to chew on Grandmother’s shoes. If no one can see you how could you even do that?”

  He rolled his eyes in a way only a wolf can. Just because no one can see me doesn’t mean I can’t interact in the world.

  “So you’re not going to protect me out here while I’m getting my focus.”

  Nope. Can’t do that.

  I groaned. “What kind of familiar are you? Doesn’t this make you kind of useless?”

  I’m not too sure how to completely read his expression but his eyes narrowed at me and he huffed. I’m not useless. But I understand your frustration. It’ll all make sense soon, once your blessing settles.

  I smiled. “Good. I’m eager to see just how Hecate decides to bless me. I wonder if it’ll be the school of elements this time. It’ll sure make my abjuration side more balanced. Then the other mages won’t be able to say anything about me and my family again.”

  Bleddyn huffed again. And if you’re not an elemental/abjuration mage then what would you want?

  I paused for a moment, remembering all the other schools of magic that Mom had taught me about. Obviously I already have a blessing in the school of warding. The school of elements is considered the strongest, allowing manipulation of powers and bolt spells. Restoration would play strongly with my gift too, but it wasn’t one I was fully interested nor invested in.

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  The school of spirits would be unique. It’d be like that mage I heard about during dinner. Though, if I thought deeply on it, using familiars was part of this school. Looking at Bleddyn made me consider if this was already happening to some extent. Perhaps I already knew my second focus after all?

  Last of all were the schools of illusion and enchanting. Somehow illusion was viewed more fondly upon than enchanting, but something about the modern era diminishing both schools made them both unwanted. Illusions, especially, were weak to anything electronic. A mage could simply use their phone cameras to break an illusion and see past any traps.

  “I guess restoration. Everyone needs healers, so if I don’t get elemental affinity, that’s the next best thing.”

  Huh. I would’ve expected you’d want enchanting like your mother.

  I frowned at him, not sure if he was making a jab at me or not. “It’s not looked well on from other mages.”

  So? Don’t worry about the opinions of others. What do you think and how you use your gifts are what really matters.

  “Hah! Easy for you to say. Everyone looks for strength here. The better your focus the better chance you have to get ahead in the supernatural world. Take that one guy who got the fire blessing. He’s already got the guild heads talking about giving him leadership roles. Just because his focus has potential to be great.”

  And if I told you that was pointless?

  Folding my arms, I shook my head and glared at him. “I think worrying about my future and the role I play isn’t pointless.”

  I’m just saying, he chuckled. You could use your magic to enhance your hobbies and talents you already have. Take your singing. Did you know you were really good? Enchant your voice and you could make going pro easy.

  I wasn’t prepared for the compliment and I snapped my mouth shut. No one had ever really heard me sing before, outside of a few muttered song lyrics in band class, riffing with Cayetana and Benji. Or when I got caught in the shower by Mom and Dad. But no one had ever told me I was good at singing before and hearing it from my familiar had me blushing. “Oh…thanks, I guess.”

  I was there listening while you were practicing all those nights on your guitar. I know how you sing, Ky. Just a bit more confidence and maybe you will be the lead singer over Cayetana.

  I grinned at him. “So you’re saying I’m already at that pro level?”

  Ok, and maybe a bit more humility would help too…

  I stuck out my tongue at him, and I could literally feel his annoyance with me.

  Alright. Enough stalling, set up a ward around us.

  “Yes, yes. One protection ward to keep out the critters, coming up!”

  What normally would have taken me about ten minutes to conjure up suddenly sparked into existence with just a mere thought. I blinked in surprise, seeing the silvery shimmer surround the area before it faded into the background. The ease of casting defensive spells like this still felt remarkable to me. Perhaps it would be more handy than I had expected.

  By now the clouds had started to thin and the rich moonlight reappeared. As soon as it touched my skin I felt the urge to bask in it once more. I looked up at the sky and at the full moon bearing down upon me. A warm sensation spread across my body and the feeling of electricity coursed over my torso and limbs, making me shudder. Adrenaline pumped through my body and I felt my heartbeat increasing.

  I wanted more of it.

  I grabbed at my hoody, pulling it over my head and tossing it to the ground to let the moonlight have access to more of my skin. But that wasn’t enough. As if on instinct, I found myself ripping off my shirt too, feeling the wonderful sensations spread as more of my skin was exposed to the light.

  Calm down, Ky. You might want to consider also conjuring up a silence ward.

  Calm down? Why should I? Not when this all felt so good…

  One more ward, Ky. Please…

  I groaned and looked at the familiar who was now sitting beside me, head about chest high. “I shouldn’t need to put up any more wards. The other is enough. Let me get my blessing!”

  But the last ward might be more important.

  “And just what would a silence ward protect me from?”

  It’d help save your dignity. Because you’ll be screaming soon.

  Suddenly, my stomach sank as I felt the bones in my arms snap. At first I was dumbfounded, staring at my deformed arms. The utter shock at my twisted limb made everything grow deathly silent. My breathing picked up and my heart rate spiked as I watched, horrified, as my other arm immediately twisted. And of course, now was when I recognized the pain. It was intense, my nerves registering the tightening and ripping of muscles happening all over my body. I screamed, as more bones started to break and realign in crunches and snaps.

  Something was happening to my face and my cries were soon turned into a gurgling mess. It felt like I was about to drown in a mix of my own blood and saliva, the fluid dripping liberally onto the ground. My legs thrusted backwards with a deafening crunch and I was immediately thrown to the grass, my deformed arms barely able to keep me up.

  The pain was too much.

  What was the point of coming out here? For my next focus? For another blessing, Bleddyn said? But this wasn’t a blessing. This wasn’t a blessing at all.

  This had to be a curse.

  Don’t fight it Ky, I heard whispered in my head. Let it happen. You’re only making it worse.

  I tried to turn my head toward the wolf beside me but the pain was like fire. Slowly, his image faded. Or was it my vision going out? I couldn’t tell which. Everywhere hurt. My blood felt like it was boiling and the sound of more bones cracking filled the silence all around us.

  Fuck him. Fuck this familiar. He tricked me!

  I wanted this all to stop. But the more I tried to resist everything just felt so much worse.

  Then my nose jutted forward and out of my face. I could feel my skull breaking and crunching as it extended forward into a long snout. My messy gurgles soon changed into a monstrous howl.

  It’s almost done.

  White fur spread across my body. And luckily, it was at this point my nerves shut off and instead of pain there was the discomfort of the hollow feel of my organs shifting inside me. My legs extended further and reshaped, my fingers warping into claws, and my nails extending out sharp and black. I felt something in my butt extend out like a tail.

  Suddenly, feeling returned and I felt itchy all over as the fur finished growing out. I noticed that my eyesight had improved drastically. My sense of smell was enormous and I could pick out multiple animals near and far. And my hearing… It was like I could hear EVERYTHING.

  The shield around me faded, its hum unwelcome in my ears. Something caused the bushes ahead to shudder and I immediately spotted a rabbit hiding underneath. Its eyes met mine momentarily and my mouth began salivating. The scent of it was strong. A mix of prey and fear. My stomach rumbled and my cloudy mind settled in on one thing. And the rabbit knew it too.

  It darted back further into the woods and I chased after it, feeling the thrill of the wind brush against my fur as I effortlessly dodged between trees and shrubs. The rabbit wasn’t far from me and I knew within moments I’d be catching up to it. I opened up my jaw and snatched it from the earth, stopping myself right before I reached the lake water’s edge. My jaws tightened more and I devoured my food quickly, feeling blood dripping off my maw.

  As I ate, I easily picked out the cabins in the distance. Despite the distance we had traveled, it was easy to spot a few of the lights here and there. But other than that, there was a stillness there, the mages obviously none the wiser that I had gone out for a quick snack.

  Wait…

  No, that wasn’t right.

  I didn’t go out for a snack, I went out for my second focus.

  A focus for magic…

  Not…

  My eyes widened and I turned my head to examine my body. I saw paws, fur, and, looking behind me, a long bushy tail. I rushed up toward the water’s edge and tried to see my reflection. And there…

  I saw Bleddyn.

  But it wasn’t Bleddyn.

  It was me. I was looking at myself! I had become Bleddyn! I tried to curse out but the words didn’t form at all. It was only a whiny yelp.

  How very eloquent of you. You should be a linguist.

  I jumped with another yelp, having not expected the words to pop into my mind as they did.

  Don’t fret, Ky. You and I are one and the same. Two beings that share the same soul. This is your true gift and what you’ve always been since you were born. We are a werewolf.

  Despite the pain I had gone through. Despite now realizing I had eaten a live animal. Despite even seeing my reflection. It was then I fainted.