Introducing Lenora

Chasing Bella's shadow   The Rogue and the Vampyre Queen.

The barkeeper placed another shot of whisky down in front of the young man, as he considered asking the troubled fellow if he needed an ear to listen, but Burt eventually turned back around, as he'd done time and again this evening, walking away to tend to the other customers. If the guy wanted to talk, Burt figured he would just start talking, as they all did eventually at The Gas and Gobble. Until then he would continue to provide the whisky.Onyx stared grimly at his glass as the old man walked away. His beast was raging and hurling himself at his cage cursing Onyx and his decision to leave their mate, but Onyx, stayed firm in his resolve, knowing he was doing the right thing for everybody. Even if his beast couldn't see it.As he nursed his drink, the sound of a baby gurgling pulled him from his melancholy, and a disheveled young woman sat on the stool next to him, flagging down the barkeeper with one arm, while the baby giggled happily in her other.

Chasing Bella's shadow   The Ascension

Valenar woke with a start, still holding Raeann as she slept, with their newly formed union sapping her energy. There was a change in the air, and he knew that something major had happened. As he tried to wake his tired brain up, there was a shimmer disturbing the air, and Quinley appeared in their bedroom. Her hair was so white it glowed, and as she looked at him with those haunting purple eyes, Valenar knew what that meant."How long?" He whispered, being careful not to disturb Raeann, and Quinley's lip trembled as she replied, "About an hour ago." Nodding to indicate that he understood, Valenar motioned for Quinley to leave the room so he could get dressed. She did so gratefully and after hastily donning on shorts and a t-shirt, Valenar left his room and tiptoed down the stairs into the Academy's study hall.Luckily it was quiet at this time of night and the hall was empty, no one was up late studying, or cramming for an early test in the morning so they were able t

Chasing Bella's shadow   Death comes for us all one day

Caroline stuck to the shadows as she looked grimly at her scrying map. The red marker shone brighter the closer she got to her mark and for a moment she was tempted to send for the elder council. But the abundance of bad leads made the high priestess pause, and reconsider her position, loathing to rouse them from their beds on a chance that this time her locator had worked. Stepping nimbly through the brambles with a grace that belies her age, Caroline gave a sigh of relief as she exited the forest and gazed upon the violet field. The gates to the pack pyres were open on the far end and she squinted her eyes in confusion, "They should be shut," She murmured and muttered " El gatus closeth" a simple spell to close doors, but nothing happened. 'Well that's odd.' Caroline thought, moving closer to the pyre field. "I have had to visit this place far too often lately." She grumbled, as, once again the pain of Caroline's losses threatened to overcome her. She was almost at the entra

Chasing Bella's shadow   In the still of the night.

"How long before he claims her?" Valenar asked as he and Raeann strolled down the pathway back to the Academy. His little mate giggled and her cheeks bloomed red as she shrugged her shoulders. Then Raeann shocked him by saying, " I hope he waits until after we've mated, we have been together longer." Valenars mouth dropped open and he stalled to a stop, his hand curling itself around her arm to keep her there while his reptilian eyes searched her deep purple ones."Rae, do you know what you're asking? You have just turned eighteen. Once we are mated your life won't be your own anymore. Are you prepared for that? If I die during battle, you'll be a Queen to a whole different realm, responsible for all the witches, wizards and supernaturals that reside there. There wont be anyone from your family close enough to share the burden with you either?" Valenar finished in frustration. He ran his fingers through his hair again, when she just stood before him quietly, not knowing what e

Chasing Bella's shadow   Will you accept us?

It was much later, after Maeve had finally settled down and everyone else left, that Onyx began to get a little stir crazy. It was clear that Isabella and Shadow had a good relationship. There were photos of the two of them scattered around their home in every nook and cranny. There were individual shots of their children too, and when he went over to the mantlepiece, two photographs, in particular, caught his attention. The first was an old one, with three kids posing for the camera. The red-headed girl seemed sad, but the other two, one boy and another girl were pulling bunny ears above each other's heads when the photo was taken. It was almost like looking at one of his own childhood photos and Onyx realized that this must be Isabella, Mikhail, and Raeann when they were younger. The other picture was also of three people, this time two males and a beautiful woman nestled snugly between them. Mikhail and his mates Elena and Ethan stared back at him with cheeky smiles and he felt a

Chasing Bella's shadow   Preparing for war

Lucy held one of the sleeping Quins in her arms, as she listened to Morgana and her mates report on what they had discovered during their flight over the neutral lands. The Alpha and Luna each held one of their precious babies, with the fourth one safely cuddled up to Raeann who was representing Ravenclaw so Valenar could catch up on some much-needed sleep. The war room looked more like a daycare than a strategy space, with punnets of half-eaten baby food decorating the war table nicely, but Lucy wouldn't change a thing. The people in this room were like family to her, and she only hoped that one day, when the time was right, she would find her fated mate and they could start a family of their own. She marveled at the knowledge that the next Alpha lay peacefully sleeping on her lap, his rusty hair as bright as the sun, clashing beautifully with his red onesie, and the fiery lashes that lay gently against his cheeks fluttering as he slumbered, blissfully unaware that they were prepar

Chasing Bella's shadow   The beginning of a memory

After an emotional visit from Mama and Papa, and an awkward moment with Shadow, Isabella was finally discharged into the care of her parents.

Chasing Bella's shadow   Even Roses have thorns

Chasing Bella's shadow   Poison in the Air

Isabella POV

Chasing Bella's shadow   The Hideaway

Sweat trickled down the back of his neck, raven black hair wet with sweat, and quads screaming as he inched slowly up the hill.