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.

Until magicians began to teach each other, too many lives were lost in the pursuit of the power within them. Do

arms vigorously, trying to regain some of the

the odd sense of loss. Magic would have been amazing to learn, of course. But—if Selene says it's too dangerous, I believe her. It isn't worth my life to try and grasp something

focus on a question that's been bothering me

Of course.

No shifter has a

echoes through my mind. You were born bonded with the ancient magic, she explains in that non-explaining way, where nothing is really answered. We are both separate and one

"That makes no sense. You're being cryptic again. All shifters are bonded with ancient magic, and they

I can almost picture her shaking her head.

what are we, exactly? Are you

am pure, Selene says, her voice filled with a quiet pride. I came to be with

somehow makes my brain work better.

more important that you take a cold shower before your

and I can feel the

yesterday. But I can't let this

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

I say that everything will be revealed in time. For now, focus on getting through your heat. We can

to argue, to demand answers, but the 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, slutty

One humiliation is enough.

as I go. Niceties are foregone; I just want to get control of my

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