Shifting Moons

5

    "Hunting night?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

    "Every Sunday I take the hunters and we hunt for the food for the week. We still have to eat, you know."

I nodded. "No I know that, I just kinda thought that you did what normal people do and go shopping for it."

    "We still do that too. The humans that live here usually go out every few days and get groceries for us. We can't risk going out and getting tied up in human issues." He said trailing off.

I nodded again recalling the story that Cyrus had told me. I guess it made sense though, if the pack was attacked back then, the enemy pack must have known members from this pack and what they looked like. If they sent the human members they wouldn't be as big a target. I was snapped out of my thoughts when a hand touched my shoulder, sparks immediately radiating from it.

    "I want to show you something," Isaac said quietly. That's when I noticed that the music had been turned down and the room was quieter now. Everyone was eating.

His hand grabbed mine and led me out of the kitchen and down the hallway again and past the hallway Cyrus led me down before. Once we reached the end of the hall he reached out and opened the door for me to walk through. A cold breeze hit my skin as I walked out onto the same patio he took me out on earlier.

It was like I was seeing it for the first time again. When before the woods were filled with sounds of nature and the pack shouting to each other it was now silent, the only sound was the sound of the wind rustling the leaves on the trees and an occasional hoot from an owl in the distance. The real jaw dropper was the sky. I had never seen so many stars in my entire life. I didn't even know there were so many. My eyes fell on the moon. It was only a half moon tonight but it was as bright as it would be if it were full and just as big. I smiled and turned to look at Isaac who was still standing by the door watching me with a smile on his face.

    "What?" I said quietly as he walked over to me.

He shook his head. "Nothing. You just look really happy right now."

    "I don't think I've ever felt this happy in my life," I smiled. Isaac's hands found mine causing his smile to grow.

My eyes left his hand and fell on the necklace he wore around his neck. It was on the smaller side, easily missed if you weren't looking for it, but it held the same charm of the wolf print as Cyrus' family.

    "I've seen this everywhere today. Cryus wears one too. What is it?" I asked, reaching up to look at the charm closer.

It was gold and no bigger than a nickel but the detail on it was immaculate. The chain seemed to vibrate ever so slightly as he began to speak. "Think of it as a family crest. It's a pack symbol that allows us to identify each other as well as other packs. This is the print of the first alpha of the Ozais pack. The name means strength," he said, his hand gently grabbing mine.

    "The first alpha- you mean one of Cyrus' ancestors?" I asked, dropping my hand.

He chuckled. "I see Cyrus already gave you the history lesson about us?"

I laughed and nodded.

    "Well then you know why it's dangerous for us to leave the reserve." He said, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "The Nero pack has been our enemy for centuries now and who knows how many hunters they've taken in since the first attack."

    "First attack?" I said, almost surprised. "You mean there's been more than one?"

He nodded. "They haven't been as bad as the first one but every now and again we get a stray that needs to be taken care of. The hunters know better than to step foot in our lands but the Nero alpha whoever they are now is ruthless, attacks have gotten more frequent the past nine years. Just before my connection to you formed actually."