Chapter 6
On Halloween night the group met first at Angel's, then trooped into the same clearing where we had fought the Hunters. "Julian?" Blaise asked, tapping her foot.
"At once, my fire." With a snap of his fingers, all our clothes were transformed. Angel was in a knee-length dress of deep purple, a tiara of gold and jewels on her head. Some of her curls were piled behind the tiara while the rest hung free to her waist. An amethyst was nestled against the hollow of her throat, the silver chain nearly invisible against her pale skin. Blaise was in a tight, black-leather dress that began at her breasts and ended at her thighs, milk-white shoulders unhindered by sleeves or straps. A bloodstone hung just above her ample cleavage, and a devilish smile lit up her face.
"Thank you, Jules," the vampire princess and Aphrodite-incarnate said. Julian was in a black tuxedo with a purple cummerbund that matched Angel's dress, and white gloves. A black-onyx stickpin held the collar of his white shirt in place. He smiled and bowed, handing each of the two women a silver rose that seemed to drip with moonlight.
"He's so good to them," Amber sighed. She was in an ice-blue dress that went a little past her knees, the color bringing out her eyes even more. A single, yet large diamond rested on her neck, tiny rainbows shining from it. The center of the jewel was as cold as ice, a perfect accessory for the Ice Princess. Marik was in brown doeskin breeches and a gray rabbit-fur vest. A garnet ring flashed on his left hand, almost as dark-red as the bloodstone.
"You look so pretty," he whispered into Amber's silky hair. Jason nuzzled her neck, and she reached up to caress both their faces. My pack-mate was in the same type of pants as Marik, but his rabbit-fur vest was black to match his hair. A ring of emerald brought out his eyes and added color to the other two. Kat was wearing a knee-length lavender dress with tiny sleeves and a scooping neckline. An amethyst pendant hung from a short gold chain and rested just below the hollow of her throat. Austin had on a brown tunic of soft cotton with matching breeches. A black belt held it all together, and a yellow topaz ring shone brightly on his finger.
"My lady," he addressed the kitty-witch, bowing to her.
"My hero," she giggled, ruffling his hair. Sage smiled as he clasped his hands in front of him, a jade ring on his left hand. He was dressed in a robe of dark-brown that fell to the ground, a hood thrown back from his face. On him, it didn't look like an outfit, but more like authentic clothing.
"I was a Druid once," he explained.
"Which explains a lot," Peter quipped, playing with a strand of my hair. His attire was similar to Marik and Jason's, except that his vest was brown. A sapphire ring shone brightly on his finger. All the boys except Sage and Julian were wearing black boots that started just below their knees. Julian was in shiny-black loafers while Sage was barefoot. I gazed down at my jade-green dress, swishing the velvet material around my knees. A ruby pendant hung on a gold chain and swung back and forth across my breastbone. All us girls were in black sandals that look like they were from ancient Greece. Flat on the bottom, they tied with criss-crossing straps halfway up our shins. Angel and Blaise tucked the roses into their hair.
"Let's begin," Angel said, producing a goblet from thin air. It shone like polished gold, and a dark-red liquid sloshed inside. Julian pulled out a dagger from inside his jacket, and Blaise sent a small fireball right above the Circle. Jason and I stepped into the center as Angel and Julian came forward.
"Tonight our Circle opens. Tonight we initiate you. Tonight the spirits come to dance. Tonight we accept these two," Angel chanted.
"Power is in blood. Blood will give us life. You will be part of us, if blood flows from this knife," Julian intoned. I took the silver dagger from his hand and cut my arm, letting the blood drip into the goblet. Jason followed my lead.
"Spirits around now hear my call. What's good for one is good for all. Open the Circle and let them inside. Let us ever be their pride," Blaise took over. Peter reached for my hand while Amber took Jason, pulling us into the ring. Everyone now held hands.
"Circle Starlight, neutral yet strong. We have no position, see nothing as wrong. The power of the Night World flows in our veins. When the Millenium comes, more power we'll gain!" we all shouted as Angel drank from the cup and passed it around. When my turn came I took a deep whiff of the liquid. A rich scent like that of coffee and vanilla assailed my nostrils, and it felt like I was wrapped in my wolf skin again. Darkness seemed to be everywhere, and it excited me to be able to sense it that close. The blood coated my throat like fine wine, its taste magnified by the power it held. I realized that it held the blood of everyone in Circle Starlight, and that now we were bound as tight as family. When the cup came back to Angel, it and the knife vanished back into the night.
"Behold Circle Starlight, our two new members," she finished as everyone cheered loudly.
"Time to celebrate!" Marik said excitedly, putting his arms around Amber and Jason. I pulled away from Peter's mouth and looked at him.
"A hunt," Sage clarified, shifting into wolf form. While Jason and I did the same, the vampires extended their fangs.
"Race ya!" Austin challenged, sprinting off into the darkness. Peter and Kat immediately gave chase, Blaise, Angel, and Julian following them. Amber and Marik took off after them. We three wolves were ready to follow, when from out of the bushes came a pack of ghost wolves.
'Our pack!' Jason shouted in alarm.
'They won't hurt you,' Sage assured. Two of them came forward, one male and one female. The Ulfric and Lupa stood watching.
'We came to say goodbye,' Tyler told us, stopping an inch in front of my face. I stood absolutely still.
'And to say that you'll always have a place in the pack,' Liona added. Jason and I nodded, tears in our eyes.
1.1 'Liona, I-'
'No Jason. I'm not of this world anymore. You live your life with Circle Starlight. They can protect you better than we can.'
'You will always hold a place in my heart,' I promised.
'Then that's all we can ask,' Tyler replied.
'You couldn't forget us even if you tried,' a small female spoke up.
'No Dora, I could never forget any of you.'
'And they defeated the Hunters in your memory,' Sage told them. All at once, Gavin and Sonya tipped their heads back and howled victoriously. Everyone else echoed the call, including us three live wolves. Then the pack vanished into the woods again, but not before Gavin turned around.
'You will have a place with us too, Sage.' His eyes flicked up, and we all turned to see Peter, Amber, and Marik standing there in awe. 'Take care of your friends.' After he vanished too, Jason turned and licked Amber's hand. She and Marik smiled at him when he said:
'Come on! We have a hunt to join!' The six of us raced through the forest to catch up with the rest of Circle Starlight. Up ahead I saw Kat's bobbing blonde head next to Austin's slightly taller figure, and Julian and Angel leaping from shadow to shadow. Blaise ran alongside Angel easily. Marik, Amber, and Jason surged forward, all of them keeping stride. Peter ran beside me, and I admired that he could keep up with me. On his other side was Sage, tongue lolling out of his mouth as he howled. Off in the distance, I heard the echoing calls of a pack on the hunt. All at once our old pack broke through the undergrowth, running with our new Circle. Everyone was laughing or barking excitedly, even me. I had a family once again.
On Halloween night the group met first at Angel's, then trooped into the same clearing where we had fought the Hunters. "Julian?" Blaise asked, tapping her foot.
"At once, my fire." With a snap of his fingers, all our clothes were transformed. Angel was in a knee-length dress of deep purple, a tiara of gold and jewels on her head. Some of her curls were piled behind the tiara while the rest hung free to her waist. An amethyst was nestled against the hollow of her throat, the silver chain nearly invisible against her pale skin. Blaise was in a tight, black-leather dress that began at her breasts and ended at her thighs, milk-white shoulders unhindered by sleeves or straps. A bloodstone hung just above her ample cleavage, and a devilish smile lit up her face.
"Thank you, Jules," the vampire princess and Aphrodite-incarnate said. Julian was in a black tuxedo with a purple cummerbund that matched Angel's dress, and white gloves. A black-onyx stickpin held the collar of his white shirt in place. He smiled and bowed, handing each of the two women a silver rose that seemed to drip with moonlight.
"He's so good to them," Amber sighed. She was in an ice-blue dress that went a little past her knees, the color bringing out her eyes even more. A single, yet large diamond rested on her neck, tiny rainbows shining from it. The center of the jewel was as cold as ice, a perfect accessory for the Ice Princess. Marik was in brown doeskin breeches and a gray rabbit-fur vest. A garnet ring flashed on his left hand, almost as dark-red as the bloodstone.
"You look so pretty," he whispered into Amber's silky hair. Jason nuzzled her neck, and she reached up to caress both their faces. My pack-mate was in the same type of pants as Marik, but his rabbit-fur vest was black to match his hair. A ring of emerald brought out his eyes and added color to the other two. Kat was wearing a knee-length lavender dress with tiny sleeves and a scooping neckline. An amethyst pendant hung from a short gold chain and rested just below the hollow of her throat. Austin had on a brown tunic of soft cotton with matching breeches. A black belt held it all together, and a yellow topaz ring shone brightly on his finger.
"My lady," he addressed the kitty-witch, bowing to her.
"My hero," she giggled, ruffling his hair. Sage smiled as he clasped his hands in front of him, a jade ring on his left hand. He was dressed in a robe of dark-brown that fell to the ground, a hood thrown back from his face. On him, it didn't look like an outfit, but more like authentic clothing.
"I was a Druid once," he explained.
"Which explains a lot," Peter quipped, playing with a strand of my hair. His attire was similar to Marik and Jason's, except that his vest was brown. A sapphire ring shone brightly on his finger. All the boys except Sage and Julian were wearing black boots that started just below their knees. Julian was in shiny-black loafers while Sage was barefoot. I gazed down at my jade-green dress, swishing the velvet material around my knees. A ruby pendant hung on a gold chain and swung back and forth across my breastbone. All us girls were in black sandals that look like they were from ancient Greece. Flat on the bottom, they tied with criss-crossing straps halfway up our shins. Angel and Blaise tucked the roses into their hair.
"Let's begin," Angel said, producing a goblet from thin air. It shone like polished gold, and a dark-red liquid sloshed inside. Julian pulled out a dagger from inside his jacket, and Blaise sent a small fireball right above the Circle. Jason and I stepped into the center as Angel and Julian came forward.
"Tonight our Circle opens. Tonight we initiate you. Tonight the spirits come to dance. Tonight we accept these two," Angel chanted.
"Power is in blood. Blood will give us life. You will be part of us, if blood flows from this knife," Julian intoned. I took the silver dagger from his hand and cut my arm, letting the blood drip into the goblet. Jason followed my lead.
"Spirits around now hear my call. What's good for one is good for all. Open the Circle and let them inside. Let us ever be their pride," Blaise took over. Peter reached for my hand while Amber took Jason, pulling us into the ring. Everyone now held hands.
"Circle Starlight, neutral yet strong. We have no position, see nothing as wrong. The power of the Night World flows in our veins. When the Millenium comes, more power we'll gain!" we all shouted as Angel drank from the cup and passed it around. When my turn came I took a deep whiff of the liquid. A rich scent like that of coffee and vanilla assailed my nostrils, and it felt like I was wrapped in my wolf skin again. Darkness seemed to be everywhere, and it excited me to be able to sense it that close. The blood coated my throat like fine wine, its taste magnified by the power it held. I realized that it held the blood of everyone in Circle Starlight, and that now we were bound as tight as family. When the cup came back to Angel, it and the knife vanished back into the night.
"Behold Circle Starlight, our two new members," she finished as everyone cheered loudly.
"Time to celebrate!" Marik said excitedly, putting his arms around Amber and Jason. I pulled away from Peter's mouth and looked at him.
"A hunt," Sage clarified, shifting into wolf form. While Jason and I did the same, the vampires extended their fangs.
"Race ya!" Austin challenged, sprinting off into the darkness. Peter and Kat immediately gave chase, Blaise, Angel, and Julian following them. Amber and Marik took off after them. We three wolves were ready to follow, when from out of the bushes came a pack of ghost wolves.
'Our pack!' Jason shouted in alarm.
'They won't hurt you,' Sage assured. Two of them came forward, one male and one female. The Ulfric and Lupa stood watching.
'We came to say goodbye,' Tyler told us, stopping an inch in front of my face. I stood absolutely still.
'And to say that you'll always have a place in the pack,' Liona added. Jason and I nodded, tears in our eyes.
1.1 'Liona, I-'
'No Jason. I'm not of this world anymore. You live your life with Circle Starlight. They can protect you better than we can.'
'You will always hold a place in my heart,' I promised.
'Then that's all we can ask,' Tyler replied.
'You couldn't forget us even if you tried,' a small female spoke up.
'No Dora, I could never forget any of you.'
'And they defeated the Hunters in your memory,' Sage told them. All at once, Gavin and Sonya tipped their heads back and howled victoriously. Everyone else echoed the call, including us three live wolves. Then the pack vanished into the woods again, but not before Gavin turned around.
'You will have a place with us too, Sage.' His eyes flicked up, and we all turned to see Peter, Amber, and Marik standing there in awe. 'Take care of your friends.' After he vanished too, Jason turned and licked Amber's hand. She and Marik smiled at him when he said:
'Come on! We have a hunt to join!' The six of us raced through the forest to catch up with the rest of Circle Starlight. Up ahead I saw Kat's bobbing blonde head next to Austin's slightly taller figure, and Julian and Angel leaping from shadow to shadow. Blaise ran alongside Angel easily. Marik, Amber, and Jason surged forward, all of them keeping stride. Peter ran beside me, and I admired that he could keep up with me. On his other side was Sage, tongue lolling out of his mouth as he howled. Off in the distance, I heard the echoing calls of a pack on the hunt. All at once our old pack broke through the undergrowth, running with our new Circle. Everyone was laughing or barking excitedly, even me. I had a family once again.