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.

magicians began to teach each

trying to regain some of the warmth that fled my body as she

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

bothering me from the beginning. "Selene, you're

Of course.

No shifter has a

she explains in that non-explaining way, where nothing is really answered. We are

shifters are bonded with ancient magic, and

almost picture her shaking her head. It's the

you, an English professor now? And what are we, exactly? Are you a Lycan or

with a quiet pride. I

squint, as if that somehow makes my brain work better. "How is that possible?

tone turning brisk. For now, it's more important that you take a cold shower before your heat

sends a shiver down my spine, and I can feel the first tendrils of heat starting to uncurl

yesterday. But I can't let this conversation go just yet. I'm

can you just choose to be with me? And what do you mean, we're separate and one at

her 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,

want 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

One humiliation is enough.

bathroom, tearing off my hospital gown and tossing it on the ground as I go. Niceties are foregone; I just

they are, but they're