MoonLife (16 page)

Touched by the Goddess, that was just what it was like. I still couldn’t get over the fact that my
MOTHER
was a Goddess and that I am the soon-to-
be
q
ueen. Me, Sadie Jones, from Sacramento… a
q
ueen. I closed my eyes and let the warmth of Sebastian sink into me. He held me tight, running little circles down my arm with his fingers. I soon fell asleep, safe and loved in his embrace.

The dream started like all the rest. The white enveloped me then piece by piece, like a puzzle, the scene came into view. In my mind’s eye, I could see Sebastian
,
but he was older. He didn’t physically look older, but I sensed he was older. He was running around chasing a little boy. The boy was giggling and laughing. Sebastian was playing hide and seek with him near a beautiful garden. Then I saw myself, walking down a cobblestone path to meet them. I was laughing at their games and I could feel the happiness we all three shared. 

“This is your life
,
my Kali, the one you have chosen.” said my
m
other the Queen, as she put her arm around me. “I am immensely proud of you. You took my words and saved many
. Y
ou will save more my child.”

I smiled at her. Standing so close to her, it felt as if her power was radiating into me. “Thank you
m
other
,
for helping me, for helping us all. I know that if you wouldn’t have come to my rescue today we wouldn’t have made it.”

“I think you would have, you just needed a reminder of who you really are. You are extremely special my darling. You will do extraordinary things; you have a very pure heart. I had hoped great things for you, and I see them coming true around you. You are much stronger than you know, than anyone knows. You must use your power wisely, don’t let it corrupt you. Once you go down that path
,
it is not one to come back from.”

She took my hands and held them palms together with her hands on each side of them. “I have a wedding a present for you. It is a highly magical locket that has been passed down from
q
ueen to
p
rincess for generations. If you accept this locket, you are taking the oath that you will go back to the Oubliette Village and take the Royal
t
hrone; you are accepting becoming the
q
ueen. This is not something to take lightly my child; this is an oath you cannot go back on. If you are not ready to accept the locket
,
I understand. You are very young yet; I do not want to force you into this decision until you truly are ready.”

She looked down at me and let her feelings wash over me. I could feel her emotions at first like I do with Sebastian, but then they became stronger, as if I was living them myself. I felt the remorse of her life being taken and not being able to raise me in the Village. She so had wanted me to meet my Father, to know what it was like to have the love of my biological parents. She let me understand that she had watched me from a distance, through all the steps of my childhood and young adult life. She let me feel the joy she felt when I called upon Sebastian so early.
And
the worry she knew when Lars first showed up and feared that he might get to me before Sebastian did. How full of blissful joy she was the first time I used my Royal
b
lood powers to get away from the Rakshas in the underground tunnels. All these thoughts and emotions were flooding over me.

There was concern as well, worry that I would not want to be Queen
of the Magicals and preside over the Oubliette Village
. That I may want to stay in the modern world with Sebastian, and enjoy our eternity together there. She did not blame me for either decision
. S
he let me know that it was my choice to make, and she would support whichever I chose.

I knew then what I wanted to do, and I released my feelings upon her. I let her feel how much I missed her, what I loner I felt like all my life, a complete outcast. How I never fit in, how I felt different all these years. I let her feel what it had felt to me, being alone in the modern world. I could feel her emotions change, heartbreak came over her. Sadness rising in her chest, flooding back at me because her child had been so unhappy growing up, and she could not have been there fully to help. She held my hands tighter. Then I released my new feelings. My surprise of meeting Sebastian in the dream, of finding out I wasn’t discarded
,
but was special and loved and protected. I let her feel my innermost feelings for Sebastian, for Wendy and her healing powers, for all the outstanding beings that I have grown to love. I then released to her my thoughts on being a
p
rincess and a
q
ueen. I showed her how the best things in my life have happened since I have learned who I truly am, and being
q
ueen to the Magicals is what my destiny must be. I looked at her beautiful face and deep into her eyes, “I, of course will follow in your footsteps
,
Mother. I will be
q
ueen and I will make you proud.”

Tears came to her eyes and she wrapped her arms around me. “I was so hoping you would, my precious one. I have seen the future and the truly wonderful things that you will do. But you had two diverging paths
.
I wasn’t sure which you would take. I am so proud to call you my daughter.” She kissed me on the forehead and I felt a magical little tingle where her lips touched.

She pulled back and took the locket, placing it around my neck. “This is a direct connection to me. If you need me for any reason
,
just open the locket and I will be there. Oh
,
you may not see me, you may not get a direct answer, but trust in the fact that I can hear you and I will do everything in my power to help you. You are my daughter, My Kali Princess, and I am proud to be your
m
other.” She leaned down and hugged me tight.

“I love you too
,
Mother
. T
hank you.”

She smiled. “Now you better wake up, you have an extremely important ceremony tonight. Wear the locket during
the Turn
, it will help.” She smiled and before I could say anything more
,
I woke up…safe in Sebastian’s arms.

Waking up from what felt like a haze, I thought about my dream. My eyes slowly started to flicker open, adjusting to the light. I thought about what she said, and put my hand to my neck. It was there, around my neck I could feel the locket she had given me. Sebastian started to stir next to me.

“Sebastian
,
look.” I lifted up the gorgeous antique locket in the air to see it from where I was laying without taking it off. It was breathtaking, made of gold with a delicate engraved pattern that looked like a family crest on the front. It was large
,
too, probably close to almost two inches long. I opened it to find a picture of
m
y
m
other the Queen, and one of Sebastian. All the people I love
,
I thought.

Sebastian looked at the locket and then in my eyes. “You accepted?” he asked, looking a little shocked.

I looked at him wondering if he was speaking about becoming the
q
ueen, and gave him a questioning look.

“You accepted the throne? You told the Queen you would succeed her?” he asked.

“Yes
,
she came into my dream, we spoke and I accepted. Everything I love has come to me since I have found out who I am. Why would I deny that?”

He leaned down and kissed me, kissed me deeply and passionately. Then stopped and pulled away. Looking in my eyes, I could see a thought come over him. His gaze moved to my forehead and carefully he pushed my bangs away. A look of awe came over him. “You have the mark, the mark of the
q
ueen now.”

“What? What mark?”

“On your forehead
is
the symbol of the
q
ueen. It is but a little small star that looks like a birthmark. It is given to all
Queens
of the Magicals. It is certain, you have accepted and now you will take the throne in Oubliette Village, you are their
q
ueen.” He hugged me tight.

I was a little unsure of a few things. “Sebastian
,
I thought I was always going to be
q
ueen. My
m
other said I had a choice, that she saw two paths for me and wasn’t sure which one I would take.”

“Well
,
yes
,
you of course have a choice. You don’t have to go and be
q
ueen. You and I could stay here and just be us forever, but you were born to be the
q
ueen.”

I understood that a little better now. Before talking with my
mother,
I thought I was going to be the
q
ueen whether I lived in New Jersey or the Oubliette Village. But actually being the
q
ueen meant going there and taking the
t
hrone, leading the people and joining all the Magicals. I knew deep down in me that I could not refuse the calling. I wanted to help all the Magicals and I wanted to see Sebastian chase our little boy over the countryside.

“My
m
other showed me a glimpse of our future
,
too.” I teased Sebastian with the thought.

“Tell me what you saw
,
”
h
e said with the biggest crimson eyes.

“You were laughing and smiling, running through a beautiful country garden.”

“I was running through a garden? That doesn’t sound like me.”

“It does, you were playing hide and seek…with our son.” He looked at me and all the color rushed out of his face. He was bemused and I could see there was something wrong.

“What’s wrong Sebastian, did you not want children?”

He looked down, almost ashamed. “It is not that my
L
ove
.
I have always loved children
. I
t’s just that Manduragos cannot have children. We are made, not born.”

I thought to myself for a moment. I looked back on the vision my
m
other had shown me. How much that little boy looked like Sebastian. It could only have been his, no one else’s. I remember the feeling I felt seeing them together and how happy we all were. I looked deep into his eyes and sent him the vision my
m
other shared with me. The feelings of being there, the scent of the flowers, the happiness and joy the three of us felt, and the laughter from the face of our beautiful son.

“I know you say that Manduragos are not born, but I can tell you Sebastian with pure conviction, that we will have a child together. I don’t honestly know if he will be Mandurago or not but he will be ours, and he will be your son.” I leaned over and kissed him and a smile erupted from his face. He picked me up in his arms and held me tight. He jumped off the bed and whirled us around in circles to the point where I thought I might be sick.

“Yes
,
my Sadie, he must be our child and someday that will be our future. A Mandurago has never been marked for a Kali Princess before
,
so who knows what is possible. All I know today is that it is our wedding day and I am more anxious than ever to make you mine!”

With that, he carried me out of the room… I guess it was time to get ready!

Chapter
Fifteen

Sebastian carried me in his strong arms out to the main living area where we met up with Wendy. She hugged me, and we got caught up on what had been happening. I had no idea of the time, but I could tell by the look in her eyes that she was worried we might not get up in time for the ceremony. I snuck a look at the clock and it was close to 9
p
.
m
.
already. The ceremony starts at a quarter to midnight, so thankfully we still had plenty of time. 

I looked around the room as everyone piled in, talking loudly amongst themselves. It felt like a party atmosphere, all of the Mandurago bodyguards were there, including Dante. I went over and gave him a hug and told him I was glad he was back. It must have been hard for him to have been tied up and locked under the stairwell, while Talia was running around with his identity. I walked back to Sebastian and listened to him finish his story
.
I chuckled over his telling of how we met. I guess while moving my head my bangs must have parted, and my new star birthmark revealed itself to Dario and Ludwik. They gasp in unison, and dropped to their knees, bowing to me. I was surprised by their actions and looked over at Sebastian for some clarification. 
What are they doing?
I thought to him.