“No, as Hecate tells me, he will see what he believes and fooling him is easy.”
Luna chuckles, “Thank you Brighid. Tell my sister hello for me and that I will come to see her soon.”
Selena shakes her head in amazement, “Brighid, please also tell my aunt that she can come see us as herself. And thank her for us, I do love you.”
“Yes mistress, and I love you.”
Brighid leaves the room to go back to Kya and Selena sits there a minute just processing. Luna sips her tea while she waits on Selena to catch up. She knows that parts of these revelations will be difficult on Selena when they sink in.
“Does he care for anyone at all? In his whole life has he cared for anyone?”
Luna looks over at Selena, “I think everyone is seen as a means to an end. The creation event was hard for him I think. But, I have not been with him all this time. I can say that I have seen him when he was around you and he seemed to genuinely care.”
“Wait, what creation event? Are you talking about the creation of the world?”
Luna eyes her, “He has kept you ignorant all this time then? I suppose that it would serve his purpose better for you to be unaware. I do not know from where exactly your father came, he has kept his origins shrouded. I do know that he is of chaos. The chaos before creations. He is not the only one of his kind though he is set in his ways which is odd for his kind. The others like him, they changed with the flow of the universe while he refused. He is still unhappy about the creation of this planet. Well, not so much the creation of it as the fact that he couldn't find his way home because of all this.”
“Great. My father is an alien…”
Luna chuckles, “Well, yes. But also one of the original chaos gods of this universe. His kind are everywhere. They are necessary parts of creation. My kind are from elsewhere. We are gods on this planet and many others. We are sent to shepherd new planets as humans develop, to guide them. Usually it is a team effort but one of our team got greedy and spread it about that he was the only god. He really made a mess of things with his personal religion. He always thought that he was not getting enough attention. By the time we noticed his cult, it had roots. He has been chastised for his role in the creation of it and he takes no active part in the world anymore as his punishment, but his cult just keeps growing. I am off topic, where was I? Oh, new planet guiding. We are a race that was created by the universe to care for the rest of their creations. We have our own planet that acts as a base of operations but once we have been sent to our assignments we rarely go back to it. The life forms on whatever planet we are assigned generally regard us as gods. We are very long lived and have abilities beyond what they are capable of attaining. We are capable of having offspring with the humans of this planet, though it has generally been problematic for the offspring. Historically at least. Not so much in recent years.” She studies Selena’s face, “Are you ok? Do you need a minute to process this?”
“I have a question. If I am understanding you correctly, are you saying that I am a goddess?”
“Yes. That would be correct.”
“So Kya is part goddess? A demigoddess?”
“Hmm, well, Kya’s parentage is different. Gabriel has an odd parentage himself. He is born of Bath, who is an angel. Fallen in a manner of speaking, but still an angel. His father is one of the wind brothers, Zethes. They are descended from a god but are two or three times out of the line. They do have longevity and are more powerful than the exceptional human will be, but they are not gods. So Kya is demigoddess from your line and then from his she has half angelic and maybe an eighth god and the rest human. She will have your longevity but will not be powerful in the way that you are. She has quite a number of abilities from her mixed parentage, it will be interesting to watch her grow into them.”
“Wow. So Gabriel is partially a god?”
“Yes, but only a quarter or so.”
“My friends are human though, aren’t they?”
Luna looks a bit sad, “Yes.”
“So they won’t have the same longevity.”
“No, they will not. But, I do need to tell you, should you have a deep connection with a human, you can take away their mortality. You can give it back as well. Though that is a rare happening. We try not to do that very often, as one of us overdid it and there was a whole thing. All very dramatic and completely tiresome. Plus, they can become very cocky and they nearly always forget that long lived is not the same as cannot be killed. You probably should meet some others of our kind.”
“A whole thing?” Selena’s asks and then shakes her head, “No, wait, I don’t want to know. So Kya will be long lived, that is good to know. I wouldn’t want to live beyond her.”
“Yes, I understand. That is often the problem with having mortal lovers. Well, that and a few other things. We can worry about that later. For now, it is important that you know where you came from. That you have much more family than you have previously known about. Technically, you may have more that I am unaware of as your father has been very close mouthed on the subject of his family. He may have a great many or none. I don’t know. On my side however, there is myself and my two sisters. Along with a wide variety of cousins that were part of the original group sent here. As well as their offspring.”
Selena leans in, “Cousins? So they are gods as well? Which ones? How many? Have I met any of them?”
“I don’t think you have. Your father wouldn’t have wanted you to meet anyone that could have told you things and they all would have had questions about you on sight. Some may have been less than nice about retrieving the answers you didn’t have.” Luna looks out the window, her lips turned down.
“What? Why?”
“Because we are just like people only more powerful. Some of us are assholes and some of us are not. Some of us are just very suspicious of strange gods they haven’t met before, especially ones that are heavily bound like you were. Though there is the possibility that they would have realized you were mine and simply scooped you up and took you away to remove the ties that bound you. It is difficult to be sure what would have happened. Some are more cautious and others prefer not to be involved in most things.”
“Oh. Well, when you put it that way it makes rather more sense. Will I meet your sisters eventually? Will they like us? Wait, I met your sister already when she gave me the pup? Why didn’t she reveal who she was?”
Luna turns to Selena, “I cannot answer to my sister’s doings. I am sure she had her reasons but we are not answerable to each other. If she chooses to tell me when I ask her, that is her choice. We still feel incredibly lucky to have been sent here together so we try to respect each other since we have such a long time to spend with each other. Which we agreed to after the first argument we had in which the fallout lasted a century.” Selena sips her tea as she mulls over all she has learned today. Looking at her mother she asks, “Were you very in love with my father?”
“Well, that escalated quickly. I thought I was but I found later that I had been ensorcelled by him.” Her face screws up in disgust, “When I first met him I thought he was strange looking, repulsive sexually. All that paleness, it was just creepy. I had never seen anyone so pale that wasn’t an albino. Then one day he was all I could think about. My sisters and cousins tried to stop me but I couldn’t stay away from him. I needed to be near him all the time. A small part of me was horrified, but that part couldn’t be heard over the compulsion to be with him.”
“Oh Mom, that is awful. So it was all compulsion? You didn’t even like him? Oh my god, my father is a rapist.”
“What? Oh, well. Yes. Yes he is. I never thought of it that way but you’re right. I didn’t want to have sex with him and he compelled me not only to think I liked him but to have sex with him. I did get you and your sister out of the ordeal. So there is that. Eventually I did come to care for him.”
“I have a sister?”
“Yes.” Luna looks down briefly, “This wasn’t exactly
how I meant to tell you. But yes you do. She isn’t much younger than you.”
“Wow. This is more family than I ever dreamed I would get to have. My girl has an auntie she doesn’t know. When can I meet her? I do get to meet her, right?”
“Yes, of course. I just didn’t want to spring her on you for our second meeting. She knows about you. She has been very eager to meet you even though we are both very cautious about him because he doesn’t know about her. She says it won’t matter and she can take care of herself, but I don’t want her to have to worry about that. Is there more tea available? You do have a deft hand with the mixing.”
14
Selena pulls into a space at the park for this week’s visitation with Gabriel. Scanning the area she sees Dwayne and Nathan already there and sighs in relief.
“Come on Kya baby, let’s go see Dwayne and Nathan.”
“Yay! I love them momma, I just love them so much.” Kya’s says as she unbuckles herself from her carseat in record time and opening the door she hops out and shuts it again, then fast-walks around the truck to her mother. “Can I run momma?”
Selena smiles indulgently at her, “Yes baby you can.”
Dwayne turns, seeing Selena and Kya he smiles big and waves. Selena smiles and waves back as she starts walking toward him. I am really enjoying getting to see him so much more. I haven’t spent nearly enough time hanging out with him. Even if we do have to see Gabriel near every time. Maybe we could all have dinner after Gabriel leaves? I should ask him.
“Hi Dwayne, I hope you haven’t waited long?”
“Nah, we only got here a few minutes ago. I haven’t seen Gabriel yet,” he looks around for him, “does he have the right time?”
Selena completes her own scan for Gabriel and takes a seat on the bench next to Dwayne, “I told him to be here at 3. But he is late pretty much every time. I think it is his way of showing me that I am not the boss of him. But whatever. I was thinking, after we leave here, would you and Nathan like to come have dinner with us?”
“Why Miss Selena, are you asking me out?”
“What?” Selena blushes, “Well, um, I could be, maybe…I wouldn’t be averse to it… I mean, would you want me to ask you out?”
Suddenly very serious Dwayne turns to face her and says “Yes, I would very much like that. You have so much going on that I didn’t want to add to it and I wasn’t sure how things would be with Gabriel in the picture.”
With a now very dry mouth Selena says, “Then yes. Yes I am asking you out. I would very much like for you and Nathan to have dinner with Kya and I.”
“And we would love to have dinner with you both.” He grins at her and she grins back.
A shadow falls over the two of them and they look up to the source still grinning goofily, “Selena, may I speak to you? Alone please.” Gabriel stares pointedly at Dwayne. Dwayne grins back at him in pure alpha joy, “I’m going to go check on the kids. Shout if you need anything.”
Selena keeps her grin as she watches him leave, “Thank you Dwayne.” Her smile fading fast she turns to face Gabriel, “What’s up? Why do you need to speak alone?”
“Why is he here every time? Are you afraid of me or something?”
Selena laughs, “No. He is here because I like to have company and because his son makes Kya more comfortable around you. What do you care?”
“Because I would like to spend some time with both of you, Kya and you.”
Selena shrugs, “Well that’s nice but that is not what we are here for and definitely not what I am here for. I am not interested in spending time with you. I thought I made that clear before?”
Gabriel looks down and kicks some rocks lightly with the toe of his shoe, “Well yes, but I thought you would at least give me a chance to change your mind.” He sits down next to Selena in the spot so recently vacated by Dwayne.
Selena side-eyes him, “What made you think that? I am here so you can get to know Kya. I am not required to do that even. I want to let you be a part of her life but that does not mean I am going to start seeing you again.”
He leans forward into Selena’s line of sight, “How about dinner after the visit? Dwayne could watch Kya and we could talk.”
Selena rolls her eyes, “Are you kidding me? Kya and I have plans for dinner, and I just said I. Am. Not. Interested.”
Gabriel’s face begins to color, “Who do you have plans with? Why won’t you give me a chance? You never gave me a chance.” He sobs as he leans forward, elbows on his knees and head in his hands.
Selena”s eyes roll involuntarily, “You had your chance years ago and you threw it away. Who I have plans with is none of your business. You have no say in the matter and you need to mind your business. You are wasting time in which you could be visiting Kya by throwing yourself at a lost cause. Move on Gabriel. Get to know your daughter. Find a nice person to date that isn’t me. I’m not interested in trying our relationship a second time.”
He lifts his head from his hands to glare at her, “Your plans are with Dwayne aren’t they?” He sneers at her, “That is low. Even for you. How could you date one of my friends? But this isn’t the first time is it? Is she even mine or is she his?” Gabriel points at Kya on a swing next to Nathan, both being pushed in turn by Dwayne.
Selena sighs in disgust, “You know what you can do with this shit you are spouting right now Gabriel? This acting like a jealous lover when we haven’t been together in years? You can shove it right up your ass. You have no power over me and what I do with my life and Kya’s is my business. I really don’t think it will be good for Kya to see you in the state you are in. We are going to leave. You can call me next week to set up another date for visiting if you still want to at that point. Peace Gabriel.”
She stands up, walking over to Dwayne and the children and leaving him to stew, glaring angrily at her back.
Selena pastes on a smile to cover the irritation, “Hey guys, Gabriel isn’t doing so well today. How about we go have dinner now?”
Kya looks in surprise at her mother, “I don’t have to visit with him today?”
“Nope. He isn’t in a good frame of mind today and wants to postpone it. Are you hungry?”
Kya glances at Gabriel and Dwayne follows her lead, Gabriel is standing near the bench still glaring at them. “He looks awful mad momma.”
“He is baby, but that is his own fault and his own problem. Nothing to worry you about. Are you all ready to go get some food?”
Dwayne, still watching Gabriel nods, “Yes, I think leaving would be a good plan. Let’s go to my house, it’s near and we can drop one of the vehicles in the garage.”
Selena nods, “Sounds great.”
Selena lifts Kya to her hip and Dwayne swings Nathan to his back for the walk to their vehicles, Selena keeping an eye on Gabriel without looking directly at him while Dwayne stares hard at him. Dwayne murmurs to Selena as they near the vehicles, “What has him in such a mood?” They each set their child down and hit the unlock buttons on their key fobs, the children scramble to get in the vehicles.
Selena puffs a breath out in annoyance but keeps her voice low, “He’s mad I won’t spend time with him. He thinks I should give him a second chance. He is also very disturbed by the idea that we might date. I didn’t answer him one way or another because it is none of his business. I think the kids are really ready to go, look, they are both in the vehicles and watching him.”
“You’re right, let’s drop my car off at my house and we will talk over dinner.”
“See you there.”
A few minutes later Dwayne hits the button to close the garage and heads over to Selena’s truck, just as he is opening the door he sees Gabriel doing a slow cruise by and he angles his body to face toward Gabriel, challenging him as he stalks Selena. He gets in the truck and Selena shakes her head at him to let him know not to say anything just now. “Ready to find some food?”
“Definitely. Want to go to Pomodoro’s?” From the back seat Kya and N
athan shout “Yes!”
“Well,” Selena chuckles as she backs out of the driveway, “I suppose that has been decided.”
In Pomodoro’s, the group orders spaghetti with extra cheese for the two kids and alfredo’s for the adults. Kya and Nathan are quickly absorbed in coloring and whispering about a sleepover they want to happen.
Dwayne looks at Selena and says, “He is not likely to get better.”
She looks down at the table, “I know. I am torn. I want to let Kya have the opportunity to know him as a father but he seems less than interested in that role. Or, he is interested in that role but only so far as it allows him to get closer to me.”
“It would seem so. He spends most of the visitations watching you. What are you going to do about it?”
Selena shakes hangs her head, “I don’t know. I don’t know. I think I do want Kya to stay over with you tonight like the kids are plotting to happen. I feel like he is still watching us and he will be following me home.”
“Are you sure you want to go home knowing that? You could stay too.”
“Why Dwayne, are you propositioning me?” She looks at him flirtatiously and then laughs, “No, I can handle him. He doesn’t know how my powers have grown and still expects that I will be as weak as when he knew me before. Besides, I have Brighid at the house. She is much more formidable than I even knew. Oh! I forgot in all the drama to tell you about my most recent visit with mom. I had her out to the house!”
Their food arrives and they all start to eat.
Dwayne pauses between bites, “So, you invite precious few people to your home. What happened with your mom?”
Selena fills Dwayne in on all the details of her visit with her mother, including the bit about her family tree.
“That is a lot. Does this mean that if we started dating I would literally be dating a Goddess?”
Selena blushes, flustered she says, “Well, um, I mean, technically yes…”
Selena Rose: Daughter of the Moon Page 8
