Luna of Rogues

Part 22 - Midnight Rendezvous

Skye's turning eighteen and finally able to recognise her mate. All of you know who it is by now? Because if you don't you should really be paying more attention. Suggest that you listen to a romantic song while reading this.

I didn't enjoy parties, not when they were full of sweaty strangers. Being crowded into small spaces and getting wasted with random people didn't really appeal to me. But when it involved my family, I was just another party animal.

Three hundred rogues sounded like fun, when I knew all of their names. Last Haven lived together - one huge family. Parties were a blast, especially thanks to our live-and-let-rip attitudes to life in general. No one stood around awkwardly, afraid to go near the food table. No, we all stuffed our faces and went back for seconds.

By sunset everything was ready. Imagine a ruined castle on top of a hill, glowing against the night sky with the light of a hundred lanterns. The courtyard had been lined with tables from the canteen and plastered in dishes of food, both shop-bought and homemade. There were chairs under the eaves so you could sit down between dances. It may look like a refined paradise, but I had no doubts that the night would end with a rave.

In one corner, Kevin had set up a stereo. He was playing DJ for the evening, having taken our promise that he could pick the music one step further. And last but by no means least, all the alcohol was in a commercial-sized cooler by the gates. This wasn't officially a party where everyone would get hammered. There were going to be children present. But once they had gone to bed...

With the preparations complete, I went to my sleeping quarters to get changed. Our alcove was separated from the eaves by a curtain of plastic sheeting, so it was private enough for me. Fion and I took it in turns to stand watch while the other dressed. As none of us had a wide variety of clothes (they were either stolen or bought dirt-cheap) and dresses or suits were rare, nobody was expected to dress up.

Personally, I just threw on a clean pair of jeans and wore one of my smarter shirts under a dark jacket. Fion had managed to find a skirt - something I wouldn't be seen dead in. But, oddly, she discarded it for a less revealing pair of jeggings. When I asked why, she nervously reeled off some story about a rash. I didn't buy it.

As I turned to leave, I saw Rhys's empty bed, covers still crumpled and creased from the last time he slept there, four night ago. Four nights, and as many days. So much had happened, it felt like weeks. Some small, desperate part of me had hoped he would make it back in time for the party, but my common sense knew that New Dawn Pack wouldn't let him slip away so easily. It was still hard not to be disappointed.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by Fion's rueful smile. She had noticed what I was looking at and slipped an arm around my shoulder. "He'll be back. Rhodric, too. They're Llewellyns - I don't why you bother worrying. That family have more lives than cats."

Our family, I felt like saying. But I knew Fion had never considered herself a Llewellyn as much as I had. She had been older when she came here, and she still remembered her birth parents. And maybe, if she liked Rhys the way I suspected, she didn't want to be 'related' to him.

Kevin's music eventually dragged us out. He was playing Fallout Boy, which never failed to bring a smile to my face. Although 'The Kids Aren't Alright' was a little too appropriate for my liking.

I edged out from the shadows of the eaves and filched a bottle of beer from the cooler. The edge of my penknife took the lid off easily enough, but I could see rust gathering on the blade. Enough to dull the blade. It might take me the best part of a morning to clean and sharpen the knife. Dammit.

I resolved to get around to it (eventually) and poured the beer into a cup of apple juice to dilute it. That way, I could drink for longer without consuming too much alcohol. Getting drunk was fun, but I preferred to save those sorts of activities for the cabin.