Fawn
Why I Hate the Moon
March 16th
7:15pm
"Maple, where're my arrows? I think I'm gonna practice my aim while I'm upstairs."
"I don't know, why don't you keep track of your own stuff?'
"Maple, the moon should be up any minute now, and I need stuff to entertain me."
"Kids these days, man. When I was a little nymph I just had to wait out my tree time. The bow and arrows should be in the tent. See you around.. About 7:30?"
"Yeah, close enough."
I looked up at the light sky. The moon was almost visible at this point and I knew I didn't have enough time. I hopped over a bush and rolled into my tent, my silvery hair coming undone from my bun. I grabbed my silver bow, a gift from my mom and a bundle of arrows from my uncle. I stood up, my bow over my shoulder and my arrows gripped in my hand. I ran over to Maple's tree and ran my hand over it's smooth bark. "Alright, I'm out Maple." I closed my eyes and felt my body begin to seemingly melt. Everything was loud, roaring, screaming for a moment, my whole body aching.
Crack.
I was suddenly in the moon, like being trapped in a large glass ball. I could see the entire Earth, and Olympus. It happened on every full moon. Trapped until sunrise, forced to watch the world slowly go by.
Crack.
My brother, Wolf, appeared in the hollow room too. He wore a loose gray t-shirt, sweats, and had bags under his eyes.
"Fancy seeing you here, Abby." Wolf's face contorted into a mocking frown. I fired back at him instantly.
"My name's not Abby, it's Fawn. And if you're gonna call me Abby, I get to call you Thacker, not Wolf."
I reached for my bow on my back, but nothing was there.
"Mom blocked us from bringing weapons after last month. I'm not going to bother you anymore. Goodnight, A." Wolf stalked away to a pillow and blanket and began to lie down. I turned away to look out at the Earth, but my curiosity took the best of me.
"Wolf. What are you doing in New York? Maple told me that one of her replanted friends saw you."
"Why should I tell you?" Wolf didn't even turn around.
"Because- because I'm your only sister. And.." I struggled for a minute. "I miss you."
Wolf's face turned towards mine.
"Do you really want to know? I know you'll hunt me down regardless. And you know you'll never catch me."
I cautiously nodded, knowing that he was right about everything. He'd always been able to read me too well.
"I've made another half-blood friend. We are trying to seize control of one of the newer demigod camps. That is all you deserve to know. Good night. You can take my pillow too. See you next month."
Wolf stuck out his hand and an invisible force seemed to push me away from him. A pillow came flying into my face too.
"I don't need your stupid pillow. I'm a functioning human being, jackass." I pushed my hand out and felt a pulling on my arm, and the pillow began to fly away. If it wasn't obvious already, we were the kids of Artemis. Every month, we get teleported into the moon as soon as it's visible, wherever we are. No one really knew why that happened, but seeing as there was no precedent to kids of Artemis, it was anyone's guess. Mom wouldn't even tell us why we existed. From what I'd heard among the nymphs, it had happened because of a prophecy. But no one really knew for sure. It had bugged me since I was young. I was a naturally curious person, asking questions at every twist and turn, so not knowing what I was or why I was was frustrating. I stared out the window to the Earth. I could see Olympus, floating loosely, just above the atmosphere. There were lights illuminating every major country. I could see New York, one of the brightest lights. I sighed.
Seeing as I didn't have anything else to do, I laid down on the bare, cold ground, looking out into the deep, dark space.
It had been happening since we were 5. I still remember the first night. I was cuddled up in one of the Hunter's arms, playing with her hair while the others set up their tents. I'd felt a sinking feeling in my stomach, but wrote it off as an ache from the trip to the candy store earlier that day. Wolf had been playing around with the other dogs in the forest. The sun was just beginning to set. But then the world lurched, everything spun, everything hurt. And then I woke up inside a gray room with a large window inside. A window to the Earth. I remember the whole thing vividly. I was crying by the window, curled up alone, crying out for someone, anyone. Shapeshifting in and out from my deer form. Falling asleep in a puddle of tears, hungry and cold. And being waken up by Wolf. He had always been the more mature twin. Always ready to face new things, go explore. Me, not so much. I liked family, playing safely in a tent with the other Hunter girls. Petting all the dogs and chasing the baby deer. Wolf's 5-year-old words haunt me today.
"I'll always be here for you, Abby."
We'd sat there together all night, taking turns sleeping in case something happened, talking about the outside world and getting new dogs. It used to be fun when it was like that. Like a little sleepover, no one to intervene with our activities, no one to police our bedtimes. When we turned 8, he stopped talking to me when we were up there. It was almost like he was too cool for me or something. It lasted like that up until we were 10. He started disappearing after that. He seemed darker, more edgy. He'd talk to me about absurd doomsday theories, about how to kill certain monsters, how he'd kill certain people. I started ignoring him out of disgust. Then came our 12th birthday. I could barely think about it. The blood, the fighting, the bursts. And then he disappeared. Ever since then, we'd have awkward chats every month. Sometimes a spar would turn into a fight. And then mom would come. Nothing was the same anymore. Nothing would ever be the same. Unless I intervened.