Brenna
"Come in!" Magenta stood back and opened the door wide, making room for the kitchen staff.
They wheeled in the serving cart, and one of them asked, "Is there anything else I can get for you?"
Magenta shook her head. "No, thank you. You may go."
He bowed slightly as the others left. "As you wish." Then he turned and walked out.
A moment later, we heard Adan leave his suite and his footsteps faded as he headed down the hallway.
Magenta sighed, taking me in. "Do not keep him waiting too long." She motioned with her head toward the door. "You don't have much time before the Blood Moon approaches. You both must become Mates before it's too late."
I nodded, understanding. "I'm sorry, but he has a way of getting under my skin. He can make me mad or... not in the matter of seconds." I sighed, shaking my head. "I've never met anyone quite like him before."
Magenta nodded. "And it appears that you do the same to him." She let out a deep breath, shaking her head. "You love him. Do you not?"
My head snapped up.
"Just give it time, dear, but don't wait too long." Magenta smiled as she gently patted my hand. "Okay, enough of that. Brenna, dear, would you mind helping me with this?" She rose to her feet and headed toward the serving cart, and I did the same.
"Sorry about that. When you used magic to make coffee, I thought you used magic all the time." I lifted a cloche-covered platter and set it in the center of the table and smiled. "I was getting ready for the show."
Magenta chuckled, lifting one shoulder. "Well, I could, but you can't use magic for everything." She took another platter and set it on the table, too. "You don't want to get lazy."
"True." Whatever Adan had ordered smelled good. Guilt pulled at my chest as I passed out the plates, feeling bad about not inviting Adan to join us. "Why don't you sit down, and I'll get this?"
She chuckled. "Don't be silly! We'll do it together."
Once everything was ready and we were seated, Magenta waved her hand, and the coffee pot refilled our cups. She glanced over at me and smiled. "Well, you can't expect me never to use magic."
I laughed. "And the world would be poorer for it." I lifted the cloches off the platters, revealing a platter of bacon, pancakes, fruit-filled crepes, fried potatoes, and more. Adan sure knew how to get what he wanted... me included, remembering the time we shared this morning. But I quickly pushed the thought from my mind... for now.
I slid a pancake onto my plate and slathered it with syrup. "So, when and if I become a Luna, will I have as much power as you?"
Magenta filled up her plate. "The Moon Goddess will give you more raw magical talent—if you're chosen. But if you practice, you could become the most powerful Luna who ever lived."
My eyes nearly bugged out of my head. "Are you serious?"
She nodded, a smile lighting her lips. "Completely." She took a bite of her bacon.
After I loaded my plate, I took a bite of my pancake.
"Brenna, you and the Alpha need to find some common ground before you destroy each other." She took a sip of her coffee as if this were the most normal conversation in the world.
"We have found some common ground. We're great in bed together." I let out a deep breath. "But when he starts spouting off that macho crap, it triggers something inside me. He's not one for equality, and I'm not subservient."
Magenta nodded. "You'll need to tell him how you feel."
"I have." I took another sip of my coffee. "But he doesn't care. He wants everything his way."
Magenta nodded thoughtfully. "What do you want, Brenna?"
I shrugged. "I want to be treated as an equal. Not as a possession."
Magenta took a sip of her coffee and swallowed. "Brenna, between us, you'll need to find a way to... handle him and still let him save face as the Alpha of this Pack." She leaned in conspiratorially, looking into my eyes. "Let him think things are his idea and be careful not to undermine him in front of the Pack."
I nodded as my mind started to work on figuring out how I was going to do that. He had long since remained untamed. I doubt if I could ever tame him. But then again, would I want him to be?
"You want to know about something else. Am I right?" Magenta took another bite of her bacon.
My head snapped up. "I hate that you can read my mind."
She lifted one shoulder, a mischievous smile lighting her lips. "But you must admit. It comes in handy sometimes." Then her expression turned serious. "So, what is it that you want to know?"
I sighed, setting down my fork as I looked into her eyes. "I want to know why the white-haired Alpha attacked my Pack and killed my family."
Magenta nodded, a crease forming between her eyes. "After we eat, I'll do a reading on you. But there are no guarantees that I'll be able to help you. People attack and go to war for many different reasons. The same is true among Packs and shifters."
"I understand. But anything you could tell me would help." I finished off my pancake and took a bite of a crepe, and the vanilla cream combined with the sweet fruit nearly melted in my mouth. I hadn't tasted anything so delicious in a very long time.
When we were finished eating, we set the empty dishes on the serving cart and wheeled it out into the hallway.
"Please see this gets back to the kitchen," Magenta instructed.
"Aye," one of the guards replied and immediately wheeled it away.
"Now...." Magenta pushed up her sleeves as she headed over to the dining table. I had already wiped it off, so it was clean. She waved her arms, and six sticks appeared on a circle mat that looked Old World. She raised her hands over the table, and the sticks floated toward me. "If you noticed, I was careful not to touch them myself."
I plucked them from the air. "What are they?" I looked them over and they looked like chopsticks but had runes on them.
A smile lit her lips. "Those are called Haeret Temporis. They represent the six areas of tranquility: Spiritual Wellness, Physical Health, Mental Health, Family and Relationships, Work and Career, and Wealth and Money. Each represent different aspects of life: past, present, and future." Then she looked over the board. "This is a Speculum Temporis. Collectively, it's called a Temporis Set. Ask it a question, and the set can answer by seeing into the past, present, or future. That is, if the decision has been made. If not, then nothing will appear."
I nodded, understanding. "So, it's not my past, present, and future, per se, but the world's."
"The universe's." She shrugged. "As I'm sure you're learning, there is much more to this life than what you see physically."
"Oh, yes!" I chuckled. "So, what do I do next?"
"Hold the sticks in your hands and rub them together, like so." She rubbed her hands together, demonstrating, as if to warm them. "But be careful not to drop them."
"Oh-kay," I dragged out the word, rubbing the sticks vigorously between my hands. "Now, what do I do?"
"Concentrate on the question you want to ask, and cast the sticks onto the table," she instructed. "Then ask your question, and the answer will appear on the mat." She stepped away from the table. "Cast them when you're ready."
I thought about my father and the attack and wanted to know why my family and the Pack had been decimated. Then I threw them onto the table, but they hung in midair, forming a circle over the mat as mist rose from the mat.
"Quickly, dear!" Magenta shook her hands, clearly excited. "Ask your question!"
"Why did the White Alpha attack my Pack?"