Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted (Ava and Lucas)

Chapter 39 Ava: Her Identity

You have the potential, Selene says, her voice a cautious whisper in my mind. The arcane flows through your veins. But…

My breath escapes me in a giddy rush. Magic. Real magic. Human magic. It's something out of a fairy tale, not something that should exist in my life. Then again, supernaturals exist—and we're pretty nonstandard, ourselves.

It's not that simple, Selene continues, her tone growing more serious. Magic is not a toy, little one. It's a force of nature, raw and untamed. To wield it requires knowledge, discipline, and control.

I swallow hard, feeling the warning in her words. "But how do I learn? I don't even know where to start."

You would need a teacher, Selene explains, her voice tinged with hesitation. Someone well-versed in the arcane arts, who could guide you, show you how to harness and control your power. But magic is a lost art. Magicians were lost to the curse and became shifters.

Talk about a letdown.

"So, I won't be able to do magic." Is that how you say it? Do magic? Cast magic? Spell magic? Cast spells? It all feels weird in my mouth.

It is unlikely, Selene says, but she still has that cautious sound to her voice.

"If I tried, what's the worst that could happen?"

Death.

A simple word, bluntly given, with all the truth in the world behind it. I shudder at the matter-of-fact tone.

magical talent. Until magicians began to teach each other, too many lives were lost in the pursuit of the power within them. Do not open that

to regain some of the warmth

have been amazing to learn, of course. But—if Selene says it's too dangerous, I

that's been bothering me from the beginning. "Selene, you're my

Of course.

me? No shifter has a

born bonded with the ancient magic, she explains in

groan. "That makes no sense. You're being cryptic again. All shifters are bonded with ancient magic, and they don't have

helped, Selene sighs, and I can almost picture her shaking her head.

now? And what are we, exactly? Are you a

her voice filled with a quiet pride. I

work better. "How is that possible? Doesn't the curse decide who is

a story for another time, Selene says, her tone turning brisk. For now, it's more important that you take a cold shower before your heat starts

sends a shiver down my spine, and I can feel the first tendrils

to be in a frantic state like yesterday. But I can't

with me? And what do you mean, we're separate and one at the

voice softening. There is much you don't understand yet. But trust me when I say that everything will be revealed in time. For now, focus

heat is building faster now, and I can feel my skin starting to prickle with sweat. I need to get this under control before I become a feral,

One humiliation is enough.

off my hospital gown and tossing it on the ground as I go. Niceties are foregone; I just want to get control of my body as soon as I

they are, but they're close enough that I'm lifting my chin to sniff, trying