BXBX NOVEL Chapter 124 - Star - More Family
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Star
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"Wait a minute." I was at a loss here. What was she saying? "He\'s your cousin?" I know I sounded confused.
"Yes. Aaron Fields. He\'s a pixie and as far as I know he\'s the only man with that name in the whole compound. That means that my cousin is your father. That makes us related." The woman, Acacia, was grinning happily.
"Family." I said the word like it confused me. "I never thought I would find any family members from my father\'s side of the family. I never thought I would find more from my mother\'s side either." I could feel the tears in the back of my eyes as they started to sting. The emotions that I was feeling today were getting a little overwhelming.
"I wish I had known that Aaron had fathered a child. I don\'t even know if he knows he fathered a child. As far as I know he thinks that he is free and clear with no children. I mean, I knew he had dated a wolf but I didn\'t know that it had gotten to that point, you know what I mean."
It was hard for me to think that this woman knew my father when he was dating my mother. She looked just a couple years older than me at most, how could she know him eighteen years ago. I guess I shouldn\'t judge though. I know nothing about the Fae after all.
"Where is my father now?" I asked her, curious to know what happened to him. "Do you know why he abandoned my mother? Do you know why he left her to handle everything alone?"
"Oh sweetheart." Acacia looked sad after I tearfully asked her those questions. "I wish I knew where he was right this minute, I would tell my aunt to slap him silly. But I will find him and I will make sure you get a chance to meet him."
"I don\'t know what I would say when I meet with him. I don\'t know what made him leave my mother. She wrote that he was her mate. Shouldn\'t that have meant something to him?"
"We will find out about it. There are many different things we could ask right now but there are no answers. Once all this business is settled how about you come with me to the Fae compound. I know that the queen will want to meet you."
"A-another qu-queen." I stuttered. "Just how many queens are part of the supernatural world?" I couldn\'t stop myself from answering that question though I instantly felt like I had been rude to say it at all.
"There are a fair few it seems." She laughed and didn\'t act like she was offended at all. "But the Fae Queen is my Aunt, Queen Gloriana. That means she is your great aunt. She is family to you as well as me."
"My aunt? The q-queen of the F-Fae is m-my aunt too?"
"Isn\'t that nice?" Acacia looked happy but I just felt like the whole room was shaking uncontrollably.
I thought that I would be happy to meet more family but I was scared enough with the Queen that was here with me. But to know that I had a great aunt that was a queen as well, that was going to drive me mad with nerves. What would she expect from me? Will she want me to know all the rules of her court before I even got there? This was so nerve wracking.
I buried my face in my hands and groaned at the idea of meeting such an important relative. That was when someone walked toward me and put a hand on my shoulder. The smell coming off of her was pleasant, earthy but still from a wolf. When I looked up I saw that it was the woman named Juniper.
"Don\'t worry, Star. It will all work out." Just from her words I was feeling better but there was also a warmth spreading from her hand. That warmth was slowly radiating through me like I was covered in a blanket and sitting next to a fire. It was like a bunch of different comforting warmths at the same time. That sensation was so pleasant that I never wanted it to end.
I listened to her as she spoke. She had been hunched over in a very uncomfortable looking position but then she knelt in front of me, her hand still on my shoulder.
"You\'ve been through a lot. So many things that someone as young as you should never have had to go through. You were only an innocent little girl."
Every word that Juniper said felt like it was soothing my soul. Somehow I felt like just listening to her would help me.
"It\'s OK to heal, Star. It\'s OK to move. You don\'t need to forget the past but you can overcome it. Don\'t let it weigh you down. Rise up and be stronger than it is. It\'s part of who you are but it\'s not the only thing that makes up Astraia Westbrook. You have your courage, your passion, your kind heart. Let that be what defines you. Choose the path that you will take. Don\'t take the road that others lead you to, forge your own way."
With every new thing that Juniper was saying I felt like I was getting lighter. It felt like the weight of the past was leaving me as it floated away. It was like all of my memories were still there but there was nothing in them that would hurt me anymore. Even a memory of Uncle Howard and the horrors he put me through didn\'t make me want to cry or cringe anymore. What was going on here?
"W-what are you doing to me?" I asked her, confusion clear in my voice.
"I am helping you to heal." She just smiled at me like that was all that she needed to say. When the Luna Queen saw that I was still confused she decided to add more.
"Juniper is one of the many special people among my pack." I saw her smile at me over Juniper\'s head. "I have been given an ability to bless those that show remarkable talent or loyalty. Juniper\'s ability is like a magical therapist." The Luna Queen laughed for a second then continued. "She helps heal the mental and emotional wounds that someone has suffered. And your uncle, Griffin, has been blessed as a healer as well. Though he heals physical injuries."
"Like a doctor?" I asked dumbfounded, it was the only thought that I was capable of saying. "Exactly. Griffin is a very capable doctor that works in the hospital and runs his own clinic. Lana, his mate, is a nurse and has the same ability as him. These three are the healers of all in the pack. And by all I mean they cover it all, mental, physical, and emotional." The Luna Queen was smiling at me with a kind look. She really was a good person, wasn\'t she?
I was lost in thought trying to wrap my head around all of this still, but Artem didn\'t seem to be suffering like I was.
"If you don\'t mind me asking, how did you manage to bless them with these abilities? That\'s quite the unique ability."
"I have been blessed by the Moon Goddess, Nehalennia, as well as the God of magic and sunlight, Thoth. I have abilities that go above and beyond that of the others." The Luna Queen didn\'t look or sound like she was being smug, she just sounded like she was explaining the way things were.
"My wife has markings that are unlike any of the other marks people have seen before."
Without seeming rude I looked at the Luna Queen a little closer and sure enough I saw markings in more places than where my mate mark was. There seemed to be a line of something moving across her collar bone that was just barely visible above the top of the shirt she was wearing. She definitely seemed to be a special person.
"I hate to move this along too quickly, but can we see the boys who have been affected with the mysterious illness. I would like to get an idea of what is going on here."
"Yes, of course. Please come with us." I did my best to smile and stand, which actually was a lot easier than I had thought it would be. Whatever Juniper did to me was actually helping.
Artem and I led the way from the room and up to the infirmary. It wasn\'t that long of a walk but I swear it felt like it was taking hours to reach our destination. I was getting more and more nervous, despite the feeling of clarity and ease I had had earlier. I guess nerves were not covered under Juniper\'s healing touch.
The reason I was nervous, though, was because I didn\'t know if the Luna Queen, the Alpha King, or any of the others they had brought with them were going to be able to help us. Honestly though, if not for the King and Queen and their group of blessed pack members, who else would be able to help us? These people seemed to be the most qualified by far.