Beneath the Zodiac Moon

Today was another gloomy day, just like it has been for almost a month now, just like my mood. I sat in my office at the bottom of the tower, staring out the huge glass window, looking out towards the forest. The tower was now complete, and I have been spending the last couple of months getting it set up just the way that I wanted. My office was on the very last floor, and it connected to the main part of the pack house. It was just a couple of doors down from where Belen’s office was. He was spending more time in that one instead of the one in our home upstairs. The very top floor of the tower was reserved for the library, with storage rooms in between. On the opposite wall from my office on the ground floor was a room that was to be used as a medical wing if you wanted to call it that. As my abilities as a Healer have strengthened, there has been less and less need for a doctor for the mundane things. It frees them up for the more serious stuff.

Everything from Naomi’s shop had a place and I was really liking the way it was coming along. I even put a few of the non-essential stuff in my office to help make it feel more like me. I let out a heavy sigh as I spun around in my chair and turned my attention back to the task at hand. I was now a Luna with all of the responsibilities, and it was certainly keeping me busy. Between training with Naomi and Tanner, and resuming my physical training with Roger and Aegeus, my plate was overflowing. I was exhausted, but at least it kept my mind busy. It didn’t leave any room to think about anything else.

Laying on my desk was a pile of paperwork. I had been spending the afternoon sorting through them and placing them in separate piles. I had pack members requesting a temporary leave to find their mates, and a few files that I needed to look through for a new program that I had instilled at the high school. With everything going on I felt it was important to add a mandatory defense class. A few of the parents didn’t feel comfortable with it, but after explaining why it was needed, they understood.

 I just needed to sign the paperwork for the necessary funding and find a teacher. I had gone through file after file of eligible candidates. None seemed to pique my interest. There was also another pack member requesting a permit to run a new restaurant in the village. New businesses were coming in, which provided more income for our pack members and more revenue for the pack. I even increased our trading with the human community in some of the surrounding cities. Our territory had increased by almost 2,000 square miles over the summer. I suggested to Belen that we send out a few small groups of wolves into each community so that there was a presence there, just in case something was to happen. It also provide a wolf from our pack to run a few of the businesses that we had purchased.

 I was nose deep in my work that I didn’t even bother to look up when someone knocked on the door. “Come in!” I said loudly, signing the document for the inventory sheet of one of the new stores. I had stamped it and placed it in my ‘completed’ bin. The door creaked open and the scent of nervousness filled the air. I looked up to see Tobias standing in the doorway, shuffling his feet and picking at the hem of his coat. It was still hard to believe that this wolf was my mother’s mate. We had a long talk after the ceremony three months ago and it seemed to lift a weight off his shoulders. However, he was still very apprehensive of me. I offered him a warm smile as I gestured to the seat in front of my desk, “Tobias, what a pleasure. How can I help you?” I asked, placing my pen down to give him my full attention. I was working on my Luna voice and how to sound warm and caring, but also authoritative at the same time. He bowed his head and cast his gaze down before he made his way over to the chair. I know that it was a sign of respect, but I didn’t like it when they didn’t look me in the eye. Selene assured me that they were being respectful of our title, but it still made me feel uneasy. I liked having eye contact, you can tell so much from a wolf’s eyes.

“Hello, Luna. I was hoping to have a moment of your time.” He said with a slight catch in his throat. He was officially a member of this pack, along with his children. They all seemed to be adjusting well, especially Taralynn. She had never been a part of a pack before.

“Sure thing. What is on your mind? And please call me Adelynne.” I leaned forward in my chair, sending out the calming vibe that I had mastered. I could visibly see him release his tension. He let out a heavy sigh as he looked up at me.

 “Lu-Adelynne, I was hoping that I could put in my application for the new teaching position at the school. Back in my old pack, I was a General, you know before…Anyway, I was wanting to do something other than work the farm, and with it falling now, there won’t be a whole lot of anything left to do. So, I was hoping maybe you would consider me?” He rushed out, hope lingering in his eyes.

I smiled at him and then sat back in my chair, I thought for a minute. “I will have to run it by Belen, to see what he has to say, but I don’t see why you can’t be in consideration. Just leave your application with me and I’ll go over it.”

He smiled brightly as he placed a tan folder on my desk. He nodded his head and then headed towards the door.

 “Thank you,” He said before walking out of my office and closing the door behind him.

 I looked at the clock on the desk and realized that I was almost late for my session with Naomi and Tanner. I cursed quietly as I cleaned up my desk. I locked my office door from the inside and then headed over to the door along the wall.

I opened it up and rushed up the stairs that led up to the library. Passing my storerooms, stopping at the landing that led to the entrance into the hallway inside our home. I paused for a moment, thinking about stopping in to see if he was home, but I knew I would only find an empty house. I shook my head and continued racing up the stairs. I was thankful for all the training that Aegeus and Roger were making me do. I would have been out of breath a long time ago. I reached the top of the tower in record time. I had just put my hand on the doorknob when I could hear loud shouting from the other side. Here we go again.

“You have no idea what you are talking about! You can’t just go from creating a string of whipping vines to a torrential downpour of rain. That could cause an overload and then what? Huh? We would have a Luna who is incapable of fighting!” Naomi shouted as she stood on a chair to point her finger in Tanner’s face.

He growled lowly at her before walking away and running his hands through his tangled hair. He let out a frustrated roar, “The book clearly states that a Celestial Wolf can wield more than one ability simultaneously. So why couldn’t she use her Elemental abilities at the same time?! I mean other than her Guardian ability, this is the only other useful ability to use during the fight!” He argued back.

Naomi let out an angry scream as she carefully got off the chair. My heart sank at the sight of her growing belly. I couldn’t help but place a hand on my small, flat one. I could hear Selene whimpering in my mind. Before they could see me, I composed myself and put