by Unknown
“You guys get comfortable,” Trevor said as I took a seat beside Azrael. “I've gotta go start this shindig.”
“Before you go,” Horus called from his perch beside Hekate. “Let me just say that I think it's admirable, what you're doing for the wolves. I'm glad to see a god doing something for the animals. As opposed to killing them to make them into magic cloaks.”
“Here, here,” Finn lifted his glass in agreement. Those two were evidently still bitter about the feather cloaks they'd seen in Asgard.
“Thank you, Horus,” Trevor decided not to get into the cloak issue. “And thank you all for coming to support this. It means a lot to me.”
“We wouldn't miss it,” Mrs E said sweetly. She still hadn't been able to get in touch with her sons but I was glad in a way because it meant we were able to have this night off from the drama of fighting gods.
Trevor went downstairs and we all got up to stand at the railing and watch. He went straight to the stage in the far left corner of the first floor, right beside the bar and directly across from where we were standing. He'd placed the stage there on purpose of course, giving us a great view from our balcony. So we could see Trevor perfectly when he stepped up to the mic to address the crowd. The gathering of humans and gods quieted immediately for him.
I knew Trevor was handsome, gorgeous even, but under those unforgiving spotlights, up on that stage, his beauty was a knife in the heart. The kind of beauty that should be replicated in as many ways possible; with paintings, sculptures, video, or photograph. Hell, make a damn mosaic out of him. Any kind of tribute would be a work of art.
I've run my hands through his fur-soft hair, kissed the firm angle of his jaw, and learned the thick contours of his body with the press of my own. I knew him better than anyone else there but the physical distance somehow changed all that.
As an artist, I know that you can't really see the flaws in a painting until you take a step back from it. Being too close blinds you to distortions. Well sometimes it's the opposite. Being too close blinds you to perfection. I'd taken a step back from Trevor and found him to be flawless.
Those wide shoulders both restrained and enhanced by his suit jacket were intimidating in a very good way. The crisp white of his shirt against the light tan of his skin made his skin seem almost golden. His thick lashes were even darker in the bright light, surrounding eyes gone pale honey, and the dramatic sweep of his cheekbones and brows created a frame for those eyes worthy of any masterpiece. Then he smiled, a one-sided cocky twist of his lips that was so fierce, it made a lie out of all his elegant clothes. Women in the crowd sighed appreciatively… and I was one of them.
“Thank you, everyone, for being here tonight to celebrate and protect our endangered wolves!” The crowd cheered. “I hope you're having a wonderful time socializing with not only each other but with the magnificent animals themselves. Don't worry, they're all quite tame. Though I wouldn't go sticking any fingers into their mouths,” he teased and got a light round of chuckling. “There's actually a few things I wanted to tell you about wolves before we get on to the entertainment, provided by the well loved Dark Horses and the up and coming Roar!”
Another cheer and I smiled at that. Roar was an Intare band Darius had put together and I was thrilled that they were doing so well. In fact, they were performing first and I saw Darius wave to me happily from the shadows of the stage. I smiled and waved back.
He looked good on that stage, though Dare looked good anywhere, with his blonde, all-American boyish charm. He was amassing quite a female following, even outdoing Rain, the lead singer of Dark Horses, which was impressive as hell and which pissed Rain off royally.
“First off,” Trevor continued, “did you know that wolves will respond to humans howling? Go ahead and try it.”
The crowd obligingly started to howl and the wolves roaming the floor all stopped, lifted their heads, and howled back right on cue. The humans ate it up, laughing and clapping in delight.
“They're amazing animals with incredible senses. They have 200 million scent cells, compared to our measly 5 million but despite that, wolves are born both deaf and blind. They're a single pound when born but they can get up to 200 pounds,” Trevor's face was alight with passion for his cause and it was enthralling. The crowd practically leaned forward as he continued. “Wolves can live up to 16 years and will have only one mate during their entire life. With that mate, they'll create a pack and among that pack, wolves exhibit great affection, being known to even sacrifice themselves to protect their family.” He smiled at the obviously affected crowd, giving them a moment to be touched by his words before moving on. “They have small webs between their toes, did you know that? It helps them to swim. They also run on their toes, which protects the pads of their feet. Unlike other animals, wolves have a variety of facial expressions they use for communication. If you merely watch a wolf, you can tell what he's feeling.”
Trevor looked up towards me and smiled, love filling his face with obvious tenderness. The crowd followed his gaze and even for those humans, who had no idea that an actual wolf was speaking to them, it was clear that Trevor had been including himself in that description. I smiled back at him with as much love as I could return and even though I wasn't technically a Froekn, I think I was able to convey my emotions. He gave me a wide grin and then gave his attention back to the crowd. A crowd who was now filled with several swooning females.
“A hungry wolf can consume up to 20 pounds of meat. That's the equivalent of a human eating 100 hamburgers,” Trevor continued boisterously and the crowd twittered. “Where there are wolves, you can often find ravens, who follow after wolves to eat their leftovers.”
I blinked at that and exchanged a glance with Odin. He smiled at me and winked. I guess he'd known that already. I, however, did not and was fascinated to know there was something beyond magic linking Odin's animals.
“The ravens will play with the wolves,” Trevor went on, adding to my delight, “diving at them and pecking their tails. You'd think they had a death wish but the wolves take it all in stride, tolerating the birds with a sort of resentful affection.” The crowd chuckled and I did along with them. It sounded just like the relationship between Odin's wolves and ravens. Then Trevor went on, “The Japanese word for wolf means Great God but unfortunately, they aren't gods. They are very mortal and their greatest threat to survival... is us.”
Trevor paused, looking over the suddenly quiet crowd.
“Our wolves here in America were nearly annihilated in the 20th century. Can you believe that? We nearly hunted them into extinction and now they're in danger again. Federal sharpshooters are planning an aerial assault on these innocent creatures in Northern Idaho. Yes, they're going to slaughter them from the sky like rabid dogs,” a gasp from the crowd. “In Montana, the Anti-Wolf Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife are offering a hundred dollar bounty for every dead wolf. In Wyoming, they're planning to allow wolves to be shot on sight all across the state, including within their natural habitat, the National Forests. In the Southwest, politicians are refusing to allow Mexican gray wolves to be released into the wild despite the critically low numbers that threaten extinction for these rare wolves!”
The crowd was deathly quiet. Trevor's passion could be felt like a tangible thing. He was so angry, so righteously indignant, his bright eyes shining with tears that slowly began to trickle down his cheeks. It was impossible to not sympathize with him, to remain unmoved by his speech.
“We can't just sit back and do nothing,” his amazing eyes implored the room to do the right thing. “That would be an even greater evil. So I stand here tonight and ask for your help. Please, reach deep into your pockets and give generously so that we can save these amazing animals from ourselves.”
The room exploded with applause as Trevor got down from the stage and Darius stepped up with Roar.
“How do we follow that?” Darius joked into the microphone and the room laughed with the well-timed comic relief but
as Trevor made his way through the crowd, people stopped him to hand him checks and speak to him further about the cause.
I smiled down at him, so damn proud of the man he was and what he was accomplishing. Sometimes I got so caught up with the big picture of things, saving humanity and all that, that I forgot about the smaller issues. Issues that could be just as important. I continued to watch Trevor move through the room as the band began to play.
“He's impressive,” Rain said from my left.
“Who?” I glanced at him. “Trevor or Darius?”
“Both,” Rain snorted grudgingly.
Rain was pretty damn impressive himself but I wasn't going to tell him that. He, along with the rest of Dark Horses, was a horse shifter and had originally been a Roman Legionnaire. In my book, that made him an Italian stallion in the truest, most humorous sense of the term. In his book, that made him a stud.
His ego had taken a little knock recently from a friend of mine. Krystal had been uninterested in him due to his long, rocker locks and he'd gone and cut them off in an effort to win her over. It had worked for awhile but he'd met his match in Krystal and she'd moved on, leaving him with wounded pride and shorn hair. He was just starting to grow it out again and it was in that in-between stage where it could get annoying. He flicked an errant curl out of his eyes, clearly conveying the aforementioned annoyance.
“Shouldn't you be down there getting ready to go on?” I smirked at his irritation. His pride might have taken a few slaps from Krystal but it had centuries of adoring women to fall back on and Rain showed every indication of rapidly regressing into his arrogant self.
“I've got plenty of time,” he turned his face toward me and it started to go slack. “But you don't, Godhunter. Time is running out for you. Time. It turns. It twists upon itself. Is it a ring or a hoop? A new side of you shall emerge from the circle, like the moon in her-”
“Stop!” I grabbed his shoulder and shook him till he came sputtering out of the vision.
“What the hell, Vervain?” Rain blinked at me as everyone looked askance in our direction. “Don't do that when I'm mid-prophesy!”
“No more prophesies!” I declared. “I don't know why everyone seems to think it's helpful to give me dire and extremely vague warnings but I'm done with it. I'd like to just enjoy my evening without interference from the possible future, if you don't mind.”
“Well damn, V,” he huffed. “It's not like I have any control over it.”
“I know, Rain” I sighed, “and I'm sorry but I had to stop you before you continued or I'd be thinking about your words all night.”
“Da,” Kirill had come up behind me and put a hand around my waist. “No bad news tonight. Be gone, horse-man.”
“Well, that's just unnecessary rudeness,” Rain grimaced at Kirill but Kirill just stared blankly back. Russians make intimidation into an art form. “Fine,” Rain stalked away angrily, muttering under his breath. “But don't say I didn't warn you.”
“Sometimes it's good to be varned,” Kirill settled in beside me along the rail and gave me a sideways glance. The dramatic lighting made his face look more angular, more stern than I think he intended.
“And sometimes I'd rather not know what's coming,” I retorted.
“Very true,” he agreed and then his eyes narrowed on something at the bottom of the stairs.
I followed his gaze and saw a woman standing there, gesticulating wildly to the Froekn bouncer who was standing guard. He just kept shaking his head at her until Trevor arrived and she turned her attention on him. He spoke with her for a bit and then looked up at me with an odd expression before finally escorting her upstairs.
“Speaking of not knowing what's coming,” Azrael had snuck up on us and startled me a bit. Death could be pretty damn quiet when he wanted to, especially with his wings tucked discretely away. I shot him an irritated look before going to meet Trevor and the mystery woman at the top of the stairs.
“Vervain,” Trevor said immediately. “This is Aradia. She wants to talk to you about her father.”
“Aradia,” I frowned as I automatically reached out to shake her offered hand. “That sounds familiar but I can't place the name.”
“You'll probably be more familiar with the book than any of my myths,” she focused her black eyes on me. There was an Italian feel to her. She had thick black hair with a lot of wave to it and olive skin. She was very curvy too, very pretty in an open countryside, fresh-faced way. I could see Rain circling in from the side, an interested expression lighting his face, and I shot him a nasty look that had retreating again.
“Book?” I asked but then it hit me. “The Gospel of the Witches? That Aradia?”
“That's me,” she confirmed with a little self-deprecating smile.
“I didn't think you were an actual goddess,” I looked her over with more interest. According to the book, which was supposedly passed to the author by a coven of Tuscan witches, Aradia was the first witch. Daughter of Diana and... “Holy Hell!” I proclaimed. “You're supposed to be Lucifer's daughter.”
“What?” Azrael scoffed and his light blue eyes sparked briefly into their diamond color. “Impossible. I'm my father's only child.”
“You're the Morning Star's son?” Aradia looked immediately fascinated. Too fascinated for my comfort.
“Yep,” I angled in front of Az a little. “And my boyfriend.”
“I thought he was your boyfriend,” she pointed at Trevor.
“Yeah,” I grinned. “Him too. And him,” I nodded to Kirill, “and him,” another nod at Odin. “So look all you want but don't touch.”
I heard the men chuckle and I was a little relieved that they found my jealousy amusing instead of annoying.
“Damn,” she blinked wide eyes. “Leave some for the rest of us, why don't you?”
I burst out laughing. It was something I probably would have said if I'd been in her shoes and that made me like her immediately. Then I remembered what started it all.
“So Az says Luke isn't your dad,” I prompted her.
“He's right,” she agreed. “My mother, Diana-”
“Hold on one second,” something else occurred to me. “Diana is another name for Artemis, right?” I glanced over my shoulder to where Artemis was seated with Torrent.
“Not me, girlfriend,” Artie called. “The Roman pantheon is mostly different gods, despite the humans saying we're the same.”
“What?” I huffed. “But I thought aspects got lumped together with you guys?”
“When the Romans came and made new gods with aspects of the old, many saw a chance to give their children godhood,” Hades explained from his seat beside Persephone. “Most of the Roman gods are children of the Greeks, or just some lucky few who happened to be in the right place at the right time.”
“But what about the Moirai?” I pressed him. “You introduced them as both the Fates and the Moirai.”
“The Romans didn't really change them, so they remained the same,” Hades shrugged. “Apollo remained the same as well but Artemis was made into an entirely new goddess.”
“Yes, my mother,” Aradia inserted.
“So if Luke is not your father,” I said in a Darth Vader tone. “Who is?”
She blinked at my strangeness for a second before answering. “He's fey, an air-sidhe named Craigor.”
“What?!” I screeched and everyone stared at me. I ignored them and focused on Aradia. “Craigor? Big guy with moth wings? That Craigor?”
“I've never met him but Mom did say he had the wings of a moth,” she started to look excited. “Do you know him?”
“Do I know him?” I snorted. “He once...” I let the sentence trail off when I saw how hopeful she looked. She didn't need to hear how evil her father had been, especially since he'd kind of redeemed himself later.
“Yes?” She asked.
“He once tried to rescue me,” I said, focusing on the good he'd done instead. “But he was too late, I'd already worked things out b
y the time he got there.”
“I know how he feels,” Kirill rolled his eyes and I gave him a quick frown.
“My father's a hero?” Aradia's face went soft and I was happy I'd went with the nicer story.
“Basically,” I agreed, crossing my fingers behind my back. “But why are you coming to me about him?”
“Mom kept me a secret from him,” she explained. “Back then, the gods weren't too sure about the fey and when she conceived, she worried that he might take me to the Faerie Realm and then she'd never see me again.”
“So she told everyone your father was Luke,” I finished and she nodded. “Because who better to blame than the Devil?” I laughed at Azrael's irritated glance. “But again I ask, why do you need me?”
“By the time I was old enough and brave enough to want to meet my father, the Faerie Realm was closed. Now that it's been opened again, I'd like to meet him,” she explained.
“You're part fey,” I shrugged. “You should be able to go through on your own.”
“I tried,” she shook her head. “I guess you need to be full fey to pass through the wards without an invite.”
“Well that answers our question,” I said to Odin and he grimaced.
“What question?” Trevor asked.
“Later,” I waved it away.
“Besides,” Aradia started again. “Even if I got through, I wouldn't know where to go or how to find him.”
“Good point,” I chuckled. “I know from personal experience that wandering around the Faerie Realm only gets you into trouble. Possibly fatal trouble.”
“So will you take me there?” She looked so nervous, like I was going to smash her dreams to bits at any second.
“Hell yeah, I'll take you there,” I grinned. Craigor may have redeemed himself but I was still kind of irritated with him for his earlier attitude toward me and the thought of shocking him with the news of a unknown daughter tickled me pink.
