Okay so here's the actual next chapter, I promise. Once again, introducing a new character plus the first appearance by our villain!
Read and Enjoy!
Chapter 10: Luna Millennia, Angel Appears
As we talked, a new voice spoke up. Turning around, I saw another girl walking up to MN. She looked older than me, Aurora and Dusty and when Solar saw her, she nodded at him, to which I raised an eyebrow. She walked up to MN. "Mother," she greeted MN with a hug. "May I also help with the quest?"
"Honey I don't know." MN said. "You know how your father feels about this…"
I immediately felt uncomfortable as the eyes of all those who were conscious turned to me. I knew what they were thinking. "He abandoned my mother!" I shouted as I crossed my arms over my chest in anger. "Manny abandoned both she and my father." I saw the spring and fall seasonal open their mouths to say something (no doubt protest what I was obviously right about), but Hot Stick held out a hand as he frowned at me.
"How dare you!" the strange girl exclaimed as she walked over to me in just a few steps. "How dare you say those things about my father! He did no such thing!"
"Just who are you supposed to be?" I retorted, challenging her.
"For your information, I am Luna Millennia Dusk, Manny's daughter." She said rather boldly.
"Millennia, that is quite enough." MN said, setting her hand on Luna's shoulder.
"Yes Mother." She said, turning back to us. "I apologize for my outburst, but I want to help ward off Angel Moon too."
I narrowed my eyes, but Aurora stepped in front of me, asking, "Why is it we've never heard your wish to join us until now, just curious?"
"I wasn't permitted to." Luna answered, folding her arms behind her back. "Father wouldn't let me. But I want to help." As she said this last sentence, Luna turned and looked at her mother with determination in her eyes.
"I'm sure you do, dear, but we have to respect your father's decision if that's what he wants for now…"
"Oh, so sweet, I never thought I'd see you again, Mother. It's been so long and what is this? Manny has chosen a bunch of children to stop me? Oh how predictable."
We all looked up to see a tall woman, possibly a little shorter than MN floating in the air above us. She had long grey-black hair pulled in a loose ponytail and crimson red eyes. She was wearing a long black dress with golden bands on the shoulders and a red belt across the middle, black pants, and red boots. She also wore a red bat-shaped necklace and had large black bat-like wings. No one made a sound as we stared up at this uninvited guest. I looked around and could tell from the looks of the older people here that whoever this was, she was bad news.
The stranger chuckled. "What? A silent party, and I wasn't invited? What a shame." We all watched as she smiled slightly as her eyes scanned over us.
"You know, as much as I'd love for this to be a party, it is not, Angel." MN said with a serious frown.
Aurora, Dusty and I looked at each other. "Angel Moon." We whispered. Aurora's paw moved to her side as Blaze and I gripped our staffs tighter, pointing them up towards Angel.
She laughed scornfully as she replied, "Oh, Terra, how you jest. You've always made me laugh."
"Angel stop this!" MN said as she stood in front of all of us.
"Hah, you haven't known me for 900 years. I'm surprised you'd even remember me," Angel snapped, flashing out of phase and appearing in front of MN. "After what you and the rest of the Guardians did to me." With those last words, she spread out the dark wings as she flew back up to hover above the globe.
"What did we do to you?" MN muttered the question, gazing up to follow Angel's trail around the globe.
Luna, it seemed, had had enough. With speed that surprised even me and Solar, Luna pushed past her mother, Taylor and Saige and called up at Angel, "What exactly did my mother and the Guardians ever do to you!? You're the one attacking them!"
Angel smirked and fluttered a little lower to say, "All in good time, little moonbeam."
Okay, I'd had it! Furious now, especially in the face of the one who was causing my family pain, I joined Luna, saying, "How's that!? Who exactly do you think you are!?"
"Why, I'm flattered you would even ask, little snowflake, when you already know too well who I am." Angel said, turning her crimson eyes to face my dual-colored ones with a sneer.
"Leave her alone!" Blaze shouted, stepping in front of me and firing his staff at her. I stumbled back, a little dizzy from the intense heat, right back into Aurora;s arms.
Met with the sudden brightness and warmth, Angel covered her eyes as she pulled back in surprise. "My, such spirit in ones so young." She said, turning back to face MN.
MN smirked at Angel. "You don't know the half of it."
As I rubbed my forehead, wiping away the sweat that had already formed, I hollered at Blaze, "I didn't need your protection, Hot Stick! I could've easily done that myself!"
"Snow, what if you had gotten hurt? I wasn't trying to take your shot. I
was just trying to protect-"
"I don't need your protection, alright!?" I screamed getting to my feet. I didn't get far and Aurora had to haul me the rest of the way with a firm hand.
"Snow, Blaze," Aurora said, letting go of my hand and handing me my staff. "That's enough."
"No it isn't." I said, diving down past Aurora's gaze and shooting a blast of ice from my staff at Angel. Angel didn't move as she turned her head over her shoulder with a clever grin. To my horror, the ice shot just phased through her like she wasn't even there. "What!?" I shrieked as I clenched my staff in both hands.
I heard Cloud and Dusty run to my side as we all heard laughing coming down at us. Looking up, we saw Angel clutching the edge of the skylight as she folded her black wings. "My, don't you kids know? Looks can be deceiving."
"What's going on in here?!" A voice boomed and we all turned to see North limp in, aided by Tooth whose pink shimmering wings just limped down her back like they were useless. Looking up at Angel, I saw a tear cross one of North's baby blue eyes, as he whispered, "Angel?"
"Hello, North." Angel said rather sweetly, but it was quickly covered by a smirk. "Oh we've had a few new recruits over the years haven't we?" Lifting her eyes, she watched as our parents stumbled in. My eyes widened when I saw my parents. They seemed weaker, somehow, but at the same time, stronger. The caramel coloring in my dad's white hair was darker and his icy eyes were even closer to amber color. With my mom, dark brown streaked black even more and it seemed that already her left eye had already turned emerald green. The other was still dark blue, but was speckled with green. I was so close to just running to them and throwing my arms around them like the child I was, but I shook my head, willing myself to be strong. I had to be.
Dusty and Aurora were also eyeing their parents, who, honestly seemed the same as my parents, weaker, but also stronger and I could see that they were also resisting the urge to run up to them. Uncle Sandy had a grim expression on his face, as did Aunt Song. One of Uncle Bunny's paws rested on the end of his boomerang pack while he had the other wrapped around Narain's shoulders to hold her up. However, Narain's eyes were dead set, as well, on the traitor above us all.
"Well," Angel continued. "This changes things. Now, not only have I faced abandonment, but I've been replaced too." Anger sparked in her eyes. Honestly, I could understand her last sentence quite a bit, not personally, but I could.
"No, it wasn't like that." North said, willing her to hear the truth.
"You lied to me!" she screeched. Flying back out the skylight, she called, "I think I may have overstepped my welcome."
"You're right about that, because you weren't even welcome here in the first place!" Uncle Bunny said, seething so bad I could practically see his fur standing on end.
"You think I don't know that? I would watch that anger, Bunnymund." She turned to us. "Something tells me I'll be seeing you all again. Ta-ta." And with that, she vanished with a quick and swift gesture of her wing.
How was it? Good? One of the longest chapters to this story yet if you ask me.
Review please!