The Ivory Queen
Chapter 61

*** Aurora’s POV***

I get up on my feet and Celina is embraces me in hug.

“I’m so proud of you!”

“There is still one more thing you must come to terms with, but this is something you must do with your mate…” Moon Goddess says.

I know exactly what she means and nod my understanding.

“Do not fear opening up to Oliver. There is a reason I picked him for you. He will understand,” she reassures. “Now, it’s time for Celina to face her guilt.”

Before Celina and I can question her, Moon Goddess grabs our hands once again, the flash of white light blinding us instantly.

We replace ourselves in a pretty pink bedroom filled with toys, books and dolls.

“Where are we?” I ask.

“My old room…” Celina smiles, sitting down to touch a small rag doll on the bed. “Why would Moon Goddess send us here?”

“It’s your therapy session, not mine!”

We walk out of her house and towards the porch to replace little 6 year old Celina sitting in Valentina’s lap as she reads to her. They look so happy together, pointing at the pictures and giggling as they read ‘Don’t let the Pigeon drive the Bus’.

They fade away and we are transported to a rainy day on a soccer field. In the crowd, Valentina, Danny and Diego cheer and shout as 12 year old Celina scores the winning goal for her team. She and her team mates run across the field and slide across a large puddle of mud, rolling around and laughing uncontrollably. Diego runs in and joins them, grabbing fist fills of mud to throw at the squealing girls..

The scene morphs again into a beautiful forest where 12 year old Celina and tia Valentina are waiting patiently in silence. I sense Celina’s uneasiness beside me and hold her hand to comfort her.

“Celina?” I ask. “What is it you have to face?”

She stares at her feet in shame. “Just watch.”

Suddenly tia Valentina holds back a sob and sinks to the floor, her thoughts playing like a record in our ears.

“He’s really dead…. Oh, Moon Goddess no! Not my brother! Not again!” She whimpers, cupping her mouth with her hand to keep from crying out. “I’m all alone now.”

Younger Celina looks at our tia with confusion. “Mom? What’s wrong?”

Valentina takes a few deep breaths and calms herself down. “Celina, mija. I need to tell you something.”

Valentina pulls out the box containing the letter and medallion for Celina to open. As she reads, tears stream down her face before a look of absolute betrayal washes over her. We listen as tia explains the war, the death of our birth parents, my existence and the purpose of the meeting.

“You’re not my mother…” Younger Celina mumbles, her bottom l*p quivering. Suddenly her face hardens. “You’ve lied to me this whole time? You’ve lied to me! How could you do this to me? How could you keep all of this a secret? What right did you have to keep me from my sister?”

“ Celina we were just trying to protect you. Both of you-“

“Protect me?” She scoffs. “No, you’ve never cared for me, you’re just a liar-“

“Celina that’s enough! I am still your mother-“

“Don’t you ever say that word to me again. I am nothing but the goddamn niece you were burdened with! A stupid charity case!” Younger Celina screams. “You lied to me! You never cared! You should have left me! You should have left me to die with my real parents!”

The white light flashes again and we are back at the stream with Moon Goddess. Celina crashes to her knees, staring blankly ahead with a few unshed tears in her eyes. I sit down beside her and pull her into my arms.

“Celina, you were just angry. You can’t beat yourself up about what you said that night. I’m sure she understood you pain,” I say, rubbing her back.

“That’s not the only thing I did, Aurora,” she whispers. “I haven’t called her Mom since that night. I can’t bring myself to say it anymore. I shut her out. For five years, I shut her out. She lost her entire family because of us and I had the balls to be angry with her! How f*****g cruel could I be?”

She holds back her sob but Moon Goddess scolds her.

“Don’t run away from you feelings now, you’ve been running from them since that night. Let it out, my child,” She encourages. “You must face them.”

Celina pants as her heart begins to accelerate and she starts to gasp for air. Finally a sob ripples through her body and she cries furiously into her hands, shaking her head.

“You lived carefree all those years until you read that letter and you’ve carried the guilt of living ever since. You believed you didn’t deserve all that love and adoration from Valentina. You thought the price that was paid for your life was too high. All the b***d-shed, all the years your aunt could not live with her family… it tore you up inside. To this day, you can’t even look Valentina in the eye without wishing you had been taken.”

Celina wails grow louder and she plants her hands into soil to keep her body steady as she cries out her sorrows.

“Valentina made her choice willingly, Celina. She’s loved you from the moment she held you in her arms. Nothing in this world could have stopped her from becoming you mom. Nothing. She chose to give you a shot at a happy life and you have every right to enjoy the love she wants to give you.”

Celina gives a final cry before she starts to grow quieter. She pants, desperately trying to replace the strength to breathe. A few more tears fall down her cheek before a calm trickles into her eyes and she sighs with relief.

“I love you mom,” she whispers.

Celina turns to me and we wrap our arms around each other. “We did it,” I murmur. “We faced the past.”

“And now,” Moon Goddess smiles, “you are ready to receive your gifts.” She twirls her finger and the pink and purple orbs fly down in front of us, just within our reach. “The gifts I am bestowing upon you are to be used to help you fight against the slaughter of your race. You shall share some gifts but some of your powers will be different and will complement each other. Alone, you will be strong, but together, you will be unstoppable.”

Celina and I glance at each other before taking deep breaths and reaching out to touch our respective orbs. My body is filled with warmth and light, the purple flames engulfing me slowly. The flames burn across my skin, traveling towards my chest before seeping into it. I look down at my arms and realize my scars are gone, smooth golden skin replacing them. On my palms, I replace gorgeous, geometric sun tattoos.

I step back and gasp when I see Celina’s transformation. Her long black hair is gone, now flowing white and silky while her eyes gleam violet and pink. She gasps when she sees me and I know I look the same.

“Holy s**t!” Celina squeaks and Moon Goddess frowns at her.

“You have freed yourselves from the chains of your past and have received your gifts. Unfortunately, there is a war on the horizon and I’m afraid the time for peace is at its end. But do not fear for I have given you the tools to fight and protect your kind. I will guide you every step of the way but remember you have each other and you are each other’s strength. Go now my daughters. You are ready to complete your shift.”

We thank her and say our goodbyes before Moon Goddess reaches out to touch our foreheads.

We awaken curled up together in the freezing snow, our medallions no longer on our necks but in our hands. Valentina and her clones are pacing back and forth, keeping guard while Oliver stares back at me in awe. My white hair and tattoos must be freaking him out. Celina grabs my hands, snapping me back to our task.

“Its time for our shift,” she says, taking a deep breath. “Ready?”

“Ready,” I reply. A jolt of energy runs between us and Reyna’s voice comes forward.

Just relax, Aurora, she soothes before a pain begins to radiate from my temples. It intensifies as it spreads across my face and down my neck.

The pain shoots down my spine and I double over on all fours as my bones begin to break, elongate, and rearrange. My skin feels like it’s on fire as white fur begins to sprout across my body and my neat fingernails become long white claws. There’s a ringing in my ears and itching at my nose as my senses become hypersensitive.

After a few moments, the pain begins to evaporate and I look down between my paws to see my white tail wagging. I lift my big head to see a gorgeous white wolf staring back at me with glowing pink and purple eyes.

Celina’s wolf howls and Reyna joins her. Valentina’s clones morph into one and she jumps around excitedly, yipping and howling. Valentina runs up to us and bows. Celina licks her face and rubs noses with her. They both begin to kick the snow at each other before taking off in a run together. I glance back at Oliver and make my way towards him. He has the biggest smile on his face, making him look absolutely adorable. He bows before me and chuckles when I lick his face.

He grabs my head and leans his forehead on mine. “Estas hermosa {You’re beautiful},” he whispers.

I want him to shift. I want Reyna to meet Michael. I start to whine and push his shirt up with my nose. He seems to understand because he starts to undress, his beautiful blue eyes fading to silver as Michael takes over. I crouch down in a play bow as I wait for him to complete his shift before pouncing on his wolf. We roll around on the snow together and he pins me down with his paws and licks my face lovingly.

I sit back and watch as Reyna and Michael get to know each other. She growls playfully and pushes him off. As she stands next to him, I realize my wolf is exactly the same size as his. We truly are equals.

Reyna nips at his ear and takes off. I hear him run after us and she picks up the speed. Michael is fast, however, and somehow manages to pounce on me. He pulls at my ear and takes off while Reyna chases after him. After a few rounds of tag, we catch up with Celina and Valentina for a little group run. It feels incredible, running at full speed whilst dodging past trees and bushes until our lungs burn.

We make our way back to our pile of clothes as the sun begins to peak through the trees. The four of us shift back to our human forms, allowing us to finally examine the changes to our bodies.

My palms and wrists contain geometric sun tattoos and while I can’t see my back, judging by Celina’s body, I know there’s a sun and moon tattoo resting between my shoulder blades. The long black hair I once had is now white, almost glowing against my tan skin. The biggest changes, however, are my scars. They’re gone.

I blink hard as I get dressed, unsure of what to make of the flawless skin now covering my body. For years I had been ashamed of my scars and now…they’re gone. I wipe at my eyes to ensure I’m not dreaming. Celina gives me a sympathetic look.

“Are you happy they’re gone?” She asks.

I shake my head in disbelief. “I used to be disgusted by them and now … you’re going to think I’m crazy but … I actually miss them,” I admit, holding back a sob. “What’s wrong with me?”

“Nothing,” Oliver says, wrapping me up in his arms. “You just learned to love yourself as you were. I’m proud of you. This will just take some getting used too. I’m sure Moon Goddess just wanted you to have a clean slate after everything you’ve been through,” he says, kissing my forehead. “By the way, I like the tattoos and the hair,” he whispers in my ear, effectively making me blush.

Celina yawns and we all erupt into a symphony of tired moaning and groaning. The adrenaline from the shift has worn off and I’m completely exhausted.

“I can drive, mom. You look exhausted,” Celina offers nonchalantly as we make our way back to the car.

Our tia stops dead in her tracks and a smile spreads across her face. “What did you call me?” She asks, her voice trembling.

“Mom,” Celina answers, her voice small. “C-can I still call -“

She doesn’t even finish her sentence as Valentina wraps her up in a hug. “You don’t have to ask. You’ve never stopped being my daughter, mija.”

“I’m so sorry mom! I didn’t mean to hurt — I just— I was so-“

“I know mija. I know,” Valentina interrupts, squeezing her tightly. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too, mami.”

My heart fills with happiness as I watch them hug and my thoughts shift to Emiliano. No matter what, Emiliano will always be my dad.

I did it, Dad. I shifted. I just wish you were here.

I wipe at the tear threatening to fall and force a smile.

Celina and Valentina chat happily in the front seat while Oliver and I sit together in the back. He drapes his arm across my shoulder and I lean into him, inhaling his intoxicating scent. He starts to play with my hair, wrapping it around his finger and massaging my scalp and I struggle to keep my eyes open.

We pull up to the hotel and I feel Oliver carry my out of the car. I curl up to his chest and fall asleep before we even make it to our room.