Chapter 24

“It’s nice to finally spend the day with you. It feels like we’ve taken far too long to do so,” Aurora said as we walked down the path through the forest.

It had been two days since I had met up with her that morning. This wasn’t an expected meeting, but I welcomed it, nonetheless.

Even though Rayne had been staying with me, there was a part of me that longed for female company. I wanted to continue getting to know those in my family.

I was happy that I’d gotten to spend time with Selenia and a bit with Lana. But I didn’t feel like I’d spent much time with Aurora at all.

Yet, in a way, it shouldn’t have been that surprising. It had been easy for me to detect a slight rift between Rayne and his twin brother Rin.

Even if the two had tried hard to make up for the events of the years before. Something still bothered them and often appeared to drive them away from each other.

Despite this, Aurora still wanted the chance to know me as much as I wanted to know her. That was what had brought her and Rin to us that morning.

Even if Rayne didn’t like the sudden visit, he didn’t say anything to make them leave. Instead, he opted to spend some time talking with his brother about a few things while Aurora and I took a walk together on the path outside of the glen.

“It has been too long. I’m sorry I haven’t been pushing more for this too. It makes me feel like I’ve unintentionally avoided you,” I confessed.

“Not at all. I think both of us were a little concerned at first about how things are between Rin and Rayne, and we’ve been trying to keep it civil. It still doesn’t always stay that way,” Aurora responded.

“It seems like that.” I glanced back toward the glen. “Out of curiosity, are they still not getting along that well? I mean, I see where Rayne was a bit miffed at the two of you suddenly showing up this morning, but it shouldn’t have been that bad.”

“I don’t think it is. I think it’s more that Rayne’s still been trying to avoid a lot of things. I don’t know if it’s out of guilt or what,” Aurora answered.

“Now that you mention it, it might be. Rayne did tell me before that he’s regretted a lot of things from the past and what happened when Rin first met you. I think he might still be beating himself up for that and his conflicted feelings about Rin,” I told her.

Aurora didn’t look the least bit surprised. “I think so too, and so does Rin. He’s told me that it bothers him a lot. They used to be very close, but he feels like he messed that up when he ran off to be on his own.”

My mind flashed back to the day Rayne and I had spoken of his relationship with his twin. No, this rift really had nothing to do with Rin himself.

It was more about Rayne comparing himself far too much to him and not feeling like enough. “Between you and I, I don’t believe any of it was either of their faults. Well, mostly. Please don’t repeat this, but it seems like Rayne has never felt like enough compared to Rin,” I admitted.

“How in the world would Rayne come to that conclusion? They’ve been treated equally their entire lives from what I’ve seen and heard,” Aurora responded.

“Yes, it seems that way to me too, but Rayne’s also felt this envy of Rin. I think it’s because of the freedoms Rin seemed to have growing up because he was born differently. I can’t say that I understand it that well, but it’s like Rayne feels more was always expected of him and he couldn’t have the same freedoms that Rin did,” I explained.

I honestly hoped that I wasn’t saying too much, but I wanted this to be out in the open. Pride probably kept Rayne from saying it, and in the end, all it was doing was hurting him more.

The funny thing was that Aurora completely agreed with that notion. “Rin was right then. I wonder why he doesn’t just bring it up to Rayne and try to talk it out. Are they both really ~that~ stubborn?”

“I think it’s possible,” I told her. “Aren’t alphas supposed to be stubborn and prideful?”

“That is true from everything I’ve heard since I came here, and even Lana says that Lord Jekia is still the same way at times. I personally call it foolish pride, and I’ve told Rin so. There are things you shouldn’t allow that to dictate,” Aurora went on.

I studied her as she spoke, taking in her appearance. I have to say that Aurora is such a beautiful woman.

Her long, light-blonde hair was silky and fell to her waist, and she had bright blue eyes that reminded me of the sky. Her dresses were just as elegant looking as she was, although also simple in design.

The sundress she wore on this day was white with a golden belt that had hanging jewels on it. But the thing that still caught me the most was that Aurora was human, just like Lana.

In all my time, I hadn’t seen any humans on this side except for them, and I’d been told that they were rarities. To be a human here was an eternal commitment for them.

After several days within the Veil, they could never return to the other side. They’d apparently get sick and die within a week of their time because their bodies wouldn’t be able to adapt to the spiritual changes.

With all this in mind, I decided to try to change the subject a little. I was far too curious about her to simply let it be now that we had the chance to talk one on one.

“Um, I hope you don’t mind Aurora, but can I ask you something?” I requested as we stopped and faced each other.

“If you’d like. I don’t mind. Actually, there are some things I was wondering about you too, so this might be a good time to talk about them,” Aurora allowed.

“It’s okay if you want to ask me anything. I don’t mind speaking about my past,” I moved on as we began walking again. “I was wondering about you too. Well, you and Lana. You’re both human women, aren’t you? Do you truly feel at home here in the Veil?”

“We do. I personally can’t say that I miss the mortal world at all, and it doesn’t seem like Lana does either. We’ve both made a very happy life here with the ones we love and our family,” Aurora answered.

“Did you have a family in that world?” I had to know.

“I did, but they aren’t worth talking about, as Rin would put it. The only real family I’ve known has been this one. I think Lana’s the same way. Without going too far into it, I know that we both came out of bad situations in our world. Maybe our start here wasn’t much better, but it’s turned into being right where we are meant to be,” Aurora explained.

Her eyes reflected a lot of conviction as she said this. It was a little surprising to me, but maybe it shouldn’t have been.

I’d always had this sense that Lana and Aurora were a lot more like me than I yet understood. Now I was learning why.

“I also never felt like I had a real home until the day I met Rayne, although I’ve always lived in this world. I never had parents to speak of and was raised to be a servant. They did take care of me, but there was never much more than making sure I was comfortable. I suppose that’s why I worry so much about Rayne at times. For all his strength of body and mind, I keep feeling that he’s quite lonely inside, though I haven’t completely understood why,” I confessed.

“It could be what you told me. He feels different, just as Rin has. After all, he, his father, and Selenia are the only Luna Dogs left, and he and Selenia have a human mother. I know that Lord Jekia’s bloodline is said to override the human one, but the feelings are probably still there.” Aurora looked down, holding her hands in front of her.

“I know that it was very hard on him when Rin left too. Neither like to talk about it, but Rin feels some guilt over it now. He feels like he abandoned Rayne and Selenia for that year, even though he needed to be on his own to figure himself out.”

“I wonder if they both do. Rayne did tell me how he hated how others viewed Rin when they were growing up, and how he envied how strong Rin was against all of that,” I allowed.

“Maybe they’re both missing how each other looks at things, but I’m not sure if they’ll come to terms with it anytime soon. As we said, they’re pretty stubborn when they want to be,” Aurora reminded me.

“Very true.” I couldn’t stop the small giggle from escaping me. “It ~has~ to be a trait of an alpha, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Very much so.” Aurora giggled back. She stopped to face me again. “You are okay with Rayne though, aren’t you? I know that Lana has told me that Lord Jekia was a bit demanding when they first met, and Rin was too, even if he was also very sweet to me.”

“If you are speaking of sexually, then I am fine. I hate saying this out loud and wouldn’t to most, but I fear I could be the same way with my heritage, so perhaps Rayne and I are a good fit with that,” I answered honestly.

I saw no reason not to speak candidly about this. We were both grown women, and it wasn’t like we needed to get into any details.

Aurora frowned at me. “You’re still putting yourself down for your heritage?”

“I guess it’s simply a bad habit I have, but I haven’t known any that have said being born to a Fallen father is any kind of good,” I responded.

“Maybe it’s not, but I agree that what we’re born to doesn’t define who we are. I didn’t come from a good place either. I was abused as I grew up, so badly that I stopped speaking. I even learned after I came here that my father didn’t really have me with my mother. I was born from him raping his own daughter,” Aurora confessed.

“~What?~”

I couldn’t hide my shock. While I had heard horror stories of such things, I never imagined meeting someone who had actually been born from them.

Aurora took my reaction in stride. “I wasn’t that surprised when I learned about it, but I promised myself that I wouldn’t let it define me and that I was going to make a good life with Rin here. I can’t help feeling like you and I are a lot alike in that aspect. We all know that you want a better life and you care deeply about Rayne, and you deserve to have peace and happiness too, even if you might have to fight some for it.”

“But how can I do that? I already have to rely on others to find out who’s been saying these things about me, and I still can’t stop feeling like those rumors are justified.”

I looked down, unable to face her. It was painful to think about all of that along with my reality.

That voice urging me to give in to those instincts was so strong that I wasn’t sure I could fight it, and I didn’t want it to ever put me in a position to betray Rayne.

Aurora appeared to read me like a book, and she stepped forward, giving me a comforting hug. “Everything will be fine, Luna. No matter what they say or try to do, you only need to be true to yourself. No one can judge you if you do that,” she reassured me.

It took me a lot of effort to hold back tears. How could she be so sure about this when so many others weren’t?

Maybe it was because we really were similar. She knew what it was like to not be wanted, and it sounded like Lana did too.

“Thanks, Aurora. I think I needed to hear that outside of Rayne,” I confessed as we pulled back to face each other.

“It’s not a problem. Sometimes we need to hear things outside of those closest to us,” Aurora reminded me.

I was about to respond when both of us realized that the woods around us had become quiet. I felt the prickly sensation that we were being watched, though I couldn’t figure out from where.

I couldn’t imagine who it could’ve been that I couldn’t sense it. I’d become pretty good at sensing the ones around this area since I’d come there with Rayne.

But this feeling…

Aurora appeared to sense the same thing I did, holding her arms and gesturing with her body back toward where we’d come from. “This doesn’t feel right, Luna. Let’s head back,” she urged me.

“Y-yes…,” I managed.

But as I turned to walk away with her, a male voice suddenly floated on the breeze. ~“Luna…”~

I stopped, standing very still as my mind processed what I thought I’d just heard. That voice. I knew that voice.

It was the same one I’d heard in my head before when the lustful side of me would awaken. Aurora noticed my apprehension, and hurried in front of me, holding my hands.

“What’s wrong? Are you all right?” she asked, sounding as worried as she looked.

I fought hard to pull myself out of the strange stupor the voice had put me in. As I did, it felt like the presence faded away.

Everything went back to normal, and we could hear the sounds of the forest return. But fear coursed through me as everything set in.

I was certain that I should recognize that voice, and I feared that it could’ve been my father. That was enough for me to want to get back to Rayne and Rin as soon as possible.

“I’m fine,” I finally responded. I took her hand. “Come on. Let’s get back and make sure that Rayne and Rin are behaving.”

It was a convenient excuse, and I didn’t want to take any chances of us staying out there if whatever that was reappeared. I felt some relief as Aurora and I slipped back into the glen.

It always felt safe there, not to mention there were two alpha males there who could help protect us. Said males were sitting outside under one of the willow trees, and appeared to be speaking civilly, although there was another debate brewing between them.

I swear, strong personalities always seemed to clash.

“I understand that, Rayne, but I just don’t feel like it’s a good idea to take it for granted. No, she’s not the issue, but you don’t know what could be following, and I believe Musket when he tells me those things,” Rin was saying.

“Even so, there’s no reason for us to worry too much about it. We haven’t had those issues in this world for a long time now, and Father wouldn’t allow it to slip past him,” Rayne countered.

“No, but it doesn’t mean he’d say anything to us right away. You know Father handles much of this himself,” Rin stated.

“What are you two talking about? Is something going on?” Aurora asked them as we walked over.

“Not really. We were just talking about rumors the foxes have been hearing, that’s all,” Rin answered.

“What kind of rumors?” I inquired.

“It’s nothing to worry about, Luna. The foxes tend to speak of many things they hear in passing, so it’s best to take most of it with a grain of salt,” Rayne assured me.

I had this feeling that there was something they didn’t want to say in front of us but decided to let it go while Aurora and Rin were here. I didn’t want to get into what happened out there either.

Rin didn’t seem to like that, but he went with it, probably for Aurora’s sake. “Yeah. A lot of times it’s like that, so there’s no reason to think much about it unless our father mentions it,” he added. “You two got back pretty quick too. Is something going on?”

“No, not really. We just felt a little uncomfortable out there, so we decided to head back. I guess the stress of things is getting to us,” Aurora explained.

“It’s possible, but there’s nothing to worry about around here. We’ve made sure of that,” Rin assured her.

“Come and sit with us. It’s quite comfortable out here, so let’s enjoy it a bit more,” Rayne insisted.

We took their offer, and I sat with him as Aurora sat with Rin. It was kind of nice to be there like that.

Again, I felt like I was part of the family, and how sweet it was for us to spend time with Rin and his beta. “I am glad to see Luna looking so well too. She seemed worn down when I first met her,” Rin went on.

“I was a little bit, but it’s felt better to get things out in the open, and I do feel like more is being taken care of, even if we haven’t found the main source of the problems yet,” I responded, sitting back against Rayne as he put his arms around me.

Rin had done the same with Aurora, who also didn’t seem to mind resting against him, though she did turn her head to look at him. “How have we not been able to figure that out yet? I would’ve thought tracking down the source of those rumors wouldn’t be that hard,” she stated.

“True, but this one’s covered their tracks pretty well. Even Father was surprised about that, although if it’s from what he’s been thinking, then we could all see how they might be able to do it,” Rin answered.

“You’re speaking of Madame Lucille’s House, aren’t you?” Rayne guessed.

“Guess you’ve already been catching onto all of it,” Rin noted.

“It wasn’t hard when we have Hailia entered into the whole mix, and we know now what probably happened with her,” Rayne informed him.

“I still find it strange that Madame Lucille would be involved in such a thing. I can’t for the life of me figure out the purpose behind it,” I admitted.

Rayne shrugged. “What else would there be but jealousy? They were angry that Father rejected all of their girls and missed out on the notoriety because of Mother, and now Rin and I have done the same. I’m surprised that they haven’t had some rumors aimed at Aurora too because of it.”

“Well, as much as I hate saying this, she wouldn’t be a prime target to them because of me. The ones like that still look at me as illegitimate because I was born to Sage, not Jekia,” Rin reminded him.

“Let us not get into that again. You and I were born at the same time to Mother and Father has always claimed us both. End of story,” Rayne stated.

Rin shrugged. “I completely agree with that and so do most others now, but we know how some will always view it, and we can’t change it.”

“True, as much as I hate admitting it,” Rayne slightly relented. He let out a tired sigh. “I’m just worried that they’ll keep up whatever they can against Luna too, although it was also the last thing I expected when I brought her here. It takes some gall to do what they are.”

“Let them say what they want. We know that the majority trust Luna just as much as they trust Mother and Aurora,” Rin scoffed.

“Do you believe that? They may simply be trying to play to favors,” I contended.

Rin wasn’t dissuaded. “Trust me, they don’t care about that. If they don’t like one then they’ll talk about them behind closed doors, and that’s not what’s been happening here. A lot were concerned about the rumors, but they’re not anymore because of Father setting the record straight,” he assured me.

“Rin would be the one to know what’s being said in the shadows. As he said, the foxes tend to hear and talk about a lot, so they’d pass it on if there were other issues,” Aurora added.

“Speaking of,” Rayne interrupted, now frowning at his twin, “how in the world did they miss what was being spread about Luna, or did you just ignore it?”

“Don’t start accusing me. I never would’ve ignored it, and I questioned Musket intensely about it,” Rin defended. “He swore up and down to me that it didn’t come up around them. I’m betting that the ones who were spreading all of that were probably told to be wary about saying it around the foxes, more than likely because of me.”

“They’d really have gone that far?” Aurora questioned.

Rayne wasn’t convinced. “It does support the case for Madame Lucille possibly having more involvement. She’d know firsthand to keep that kind of talk away from the foxes for how they’d immediately have told you. What I don’t understand is the aim of it all. Is this simply because she or someone close to her wants to drive Luna away, or is there something more to it?” he pondered.

“You think there could be more to it than that?” I asked.

“Well, you can’t discount the possibility, although I don’t see what that something more could be, and I’ve given it some thought too,” Rin admitted. He stroked a few strands of Aurora’s long hair. “But it’s all good. We’re taking care of it now and you seem like you’re doing better, so there shouldn’t be any more to worry about.”

“I suppose we can go with that, and I’d rather not anyway. Being happy here is enough for us,” Rayne concurred, planting a quick kiss on my temple.

I wasn’t too sure that it was a good idea for us to simply drop this like we were, but I decided to let it go for now and agree. After all, I only wanted to be happy here, and it felt so nice to be spending time with my new family. I was sure that things were going to work out.

The thing in the forest could’ve simply been some fluke within my own mind because I was paranoid and so was Aurora to an extent. It would all be okay in time.