*This is the Tenth Part of Maggie’s Point of View of the latest scheme from Luna and Maggie.

If you’re trying to keep track, the first part was Newfound Depths by Luna,

The Second was Unusual Depths by Maggie.

The Third was Newfound Desires by Luna.

The Fourth was Unusual Desires by Maggie.

The fifth was Newfound Strength by Luna.

The sixth was Unusual Strength by Maggie.

The seventh was Newfound Determination by Luna.

The eighth was Unusual Determination by Maggie.

The ninth was Newfound Dangers by Luna

The tenth was Unusual Dangers by Maggie

The eleventh was Newfound Realities by Luna

The twelfth was Unusual Realities by Maggie

The thirteenth was Newfound Existence by Luna

The fourteenth was Unusual Existence by Maggie

The Fifteenth was Newfound Enemies by Luna.

The Sixteenth was Unusual Enemies by Maggie

The Seventeenth was Newfound Adversaries by Luna.

The Eighteenth was Unusual Adversaries by Maggie.

The Nineteenth was Newfound Longings by Luna.

Now comes Unusual Longings from this corner…notice trend?

For anyone that is trying to catch up late in the game, all of the chapters can be found in the files section in the folder “Newfound and Unusual Series.”

My chapters can also be found on my website under “fiction” then “Unusual Series.” There is a bunch of background role-play stories that explain a lot of the past posted there too though I am still constantly updating it. The site is at: www.oocities.org/margaret_mary69 Oh there is a link to Luna’s sections from the Unusual Series as well as a link to her homepage from my Fiction page.

Disclaimer: Laurell K. Hamilton and the Berkley Publishing Group do not authorize this author. All characters that you recognize belong to Laurell K. Hamilton except for the ones created by the people in this group. This is solely for entertainment purposes.

Rating: PG-13 to be safe for some language

Thanks: To Luna for being an awesome beta, and great friend! *hugs* Also thanks to anyone out there that takes the time to read my humble efforts. I appreciate it!

I hope you’re all enjoying reading this as much as we are writing it.

Hugs!
Maggie

Unusual Longings

The next few days were busy ones at Haven. Jean Claude didn’t try calling again and I wasn’t quite sure what to make of that. Still, I wasn’t going to turn down the gift of his silence. Frankly I was too damned busy to spend a lot of time wondering what the French Fop was up to anyway. Busy doing what, you may ask. Well I would be glad to whine, or should I say share the details with you.

The first morning after our big Powwow, Noah came bounding in to wake me up. Despite my years of residency and medical practice, I was so not a morning person by choice. Needless to say it didn’t go very well.

I came groggily awake as the offending leopard shook my shoulder. “Wake up doll. Rise and shine. Daylight’s wasting.”

I think I mumbled something about how daylight could rot for all I cared but maybe I just dreamt it. The next thing I knew, my warm covers were gone and Noah was pulling me into a sitting position. I raised one weary eyelid and told him, “You better be waking me to tell me there is a patient that needs me in ICU or YOU’LL be in ICU, you overgrown Toy Soldier.”

He just chuckled in that annoying male way. “Toy Soldier huh? Luna hasn’t even used that one in a long time. You must be pissed. Get dressed and we’ll put that angry energy to good use” Apparently deciding I wasn’t going to fall back asleep he headed for the door before turning back to tell me. “Dress warm but comfortably. Put on your hiking shoes and meet me downstairs.”

Before I could protest or ask him what the hell he was up to, he was out the door. I thought about continuing the conversation mentally but I knew he wasn’t that comfortable with the mystical stuff yet. Besides, with my increased senses I could hear others up and about in the house. It would be rude to have a private conversation with him if he was talking to someone else.

Sighing, I dragged my butt out of bed and went about getting dressed. Luckily, I’d taken a shower right before bed. I knew better than to trust there would be any hot water left by the time I woke up in the morning. A house full of weres who all liked super hot showers was rather taxing on our heater. Next time I talked to Lija, I might ask him about putting a second tank in or something. I was sick of being the one stuck with cold water for my shower.

Having taken care of the unmentionables, I pulled on a pair of stretch denim jeans. He did say warm but comfy after all. I put on a form fitting blue V-neck shirt and pulled a royal blue sweatshirt on over it. The sweatshirt was custom made. The front said “Springheads Unite” in Pink Block letters above a silver guitar outline and was a tribute to the days when I used to travel to Rick Springfield concerts. Noah hated that former obsession of mine but hey, he’s the one that dragged me out of bed. He could deal with the reminder; I grinned, checking my appearance in the mirror as I pulled my hair back in a ponytail with a silver hair scrunchie.

One pair of thick socks and pair of hiking boots later, I was ready to head downstairs. Rounding the corner at the bottom of the stairs, I heard Josh arguing with Noah. “She’s not stupid. Why not just tell her what we’re doing? She’s going to figure it out anyway.”

I could hear Noah struggling to stay calm as he answered the younger leopard, “Because I don’t want to scare her any more than she already is. Not to mention the fact that if we tell her this is something I thought of she’ll balk just to be able to disagree with me. Besides, it will make her nervous. We’ll get a better handle on what is going on if she doesn’t know we’re watching.”

Frankly I was surprised they hadn’t heard me coming down the stairs and cut off the conversation. They must have been really distracted or else they weren’t talking about me. As I walked into kitchen, Tara was the first to turn to greet me. “Good Morning Mags.” She smiled then winked. Okay, maybe she at least knew I was on my way down.

Noah and Josh both stopped what they were saying and turned to me, looking way too guilty, busted. They were talking about me. Which meant Tara most likely didn’t agree with keeping me out of the loop. It was always good to know who my allies were.

I looked from one man to the other but it appeared neither one was going to tell me anything. It was typical behavior that should have been expected. Noah did glare at my sweatshirt for a minute. Good to know I still had my touch. He was so easy to goad.

I was staring hard at Josh trying to break him, when Noah cleared his throat, drawing his attention back to me. “I see you’re ready. We were getting ready for our morning hike. Since it isn’t that safe for you to be alone right now, I thought it might be good for you to tag along.” The wariness in his eyes belied the casual tone of his invitation and made me suspicious.

I leaned against the breakfast counter and raised an eyebrow. “Really? Where are the others?”

Noah noticeably tensed. “They’ve all gone out on errands for the morning. Even Raven had Lydia take her into town. She wanted to check on her place and get a few more things she thought might be useful.”

He was so not telling me everything. I hopped up on one of the kitchen stools and grabbed an apple out of the fruit basket sitting on the counter to munch on. As I sat there eating the apple, I could feel three pairs of eyes watching me. I looked up innocently, “What? Couldn’t one of you stay behind to keep me company and do their morning run when the other two got back?”

The boys looked from me to each other. Tara just stood there but I could swear she was fighting not to grin. I could see the corners of her mouth struggling to turn up. Noah finally answered, “Doll, it’s really safest for us to all go together. Besides the fresh air might do you some good. It would help clear your mind to work on the problem of finding Luna. Have you already decided you’re not strong enough? Are you going to sit back and wait for us to find a way to fix the problem for you? Wait for her to rescue herself? You do want to find her, don’t you?”

I saw red at that. Damn it. I’d been through a lot the past few days, a good part of it thanks to Noah and Luna. I had been doing pretty well all things considered. I even stood up to Jean Claude who scared the shit out of me. What more did they want? To accuse me of NOT wanting to rescue my sister was beyond insulting. It was downright mean. Before I knew what I was doing, I threw what was left of my apple at Noah’s head. Unfortunately for him, my anger caused few pans to come flying off their hooks at the same time, apparently distracting him. Already heading for the door, a grunted “ouch” from Noah let me know I had hit my target. I called over my shoulder. “Pick up your mess Noah. I’ll be waiting outside.”

I heard the back door open and Tara came out on the back deck to join me. I was still too angry to talk and turned back to watch the sunrise in the distance. “Nice aim. Unfortunately it didn’t hit anything he uses, just his head.”

I couldn’t help giggling at that. My anger dissipating, I turned to face the younger woman. “How are you doing this morning?”

She shook her head. “Sick of Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum’s bickering, otherwise I’m pretty good. I want Luna home though.”

I leaned over to hug her, sighing, “We all do. I’ll get her back somehow.”

She headed down the stairs of the deck shouting back, “Heads up,” as a new apple came my way. “You’ll probably want that before we get back. Let’s get started. See how long it takes the children to catch up.” She grinned mischievously, waving at me to follow.

I headed down the stairs and followed her back toward the edge of our back clearing. Our home was right up against the forest so a few steps off our back lawn put us on a hiking trail through some dense wooded terrain. I stopped a few steps into the underbrush, overwhelmed by the scents in the air. I had never noticed how alive this whole area smelled before. I looked around, wondering if I had missed some radical shift in the land to explain the sudden richness.

Tara came back to me, grinning, knowingly. “You haven’t been back here since whatever Luna did to you have you? The woods always smell alive to some degree out here. Wait until you get a whiff of what they smell like in the heat of summer when everything is in bloom not to mention the chorus of all the animals singing.” She giggled at my obviously shocked expression. “Don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll have a handle on controlling the input by then. It’s already better than it was the first day, isn’t it?” I hesitantly nodded that it was. “See. You’re going to be fine. The key is to learn to ignore most of what you smell and hear. Just focus on your target.”

I grinned back. It was clear she was enjoying being the teacher for a change. “Okay but what’s my target?”

She stood there contemplating for a minute, tapping her chin absently with her fingers. “How about the creek? It’ll probably be safest on your first hike to stick to places you won’t get lost. We’ll just mark where we met up with the creek from the woods so we can come back this way and follow it up higher into the hills. Now what direction do your senses tell you to take?”

I closed my eyes and tried to do what she asked. At first everything just became more intense, overwhelming and I had to stop. Tara gently reminded me to let everything go except what I was looking for. Okay, I could do that. It wasn’t so very different from the way I was learning to focus with my psychic gifts. I tried again and almost had it but I got excited and let too much in at once, drowning my senses once again. The third time was the proverbial charm though. I opened my eyes grinning. The air felt moister to the west of us. I started walking in that direction and soon heard the gentle trickle of the water over the rock bed. It wasn’t as loud as it would be in the spring when the snow’s melt would fill it to the brim but it was enough to let me know I was on the right track.

I couldn’t help jumping around Tara, giggling like a silly schoolgirl when we entered the clearing and found the creek. Tara laughed with me though she eventually grabbed my hand to stop me after marking our entrance with a small pile of colored rocks from the riverbed discretely placed under a tree trunk. “Save that energy for the hike. You’ll need it.” She pointed in the direction of the creek that went up hill.

I whined, “Uphill. It WOULD be uphill. I hate uphill.”

She walked in front of me, encouraging me on, “Trust me, you’ll be grateful we did the uphill portion first by the time we head home. Come on. Let’s see how far ahead we can really get of the boys.”

Tara challenged me to a brief run then we settled in for a moderate but steady power walk up the hill. About 20 minutes later, we had stopped to splash in the creek water when I heard the rustle of breaking branches behind us. Noah and Josh came running into the clearing. They stopped short when they found us standing there.

Noah practically roared, “Damn it. I said we were going to all go together.” Tara started to back up but I was used to Noah’s fits. I had certainly dealt with them enough when we lived together.

“Well I thought that since I’d probably be slower, I should get a head start. Tara was kind enough to accompany me so I wouldn’t be alone. Besides I had no idea it would take you two so long to catch up with little old me?” I smiled sweetly at Noah.

Noah looked like he would enjoy nothing more than to stand there, arguing with me but Josh intervened. “Well we did have a bit of mess to clean up in the kitchen. Sorry for slowing you down. Let’s get a move on.” He grabbed my hand to pull me away from the stream and back toward the path.

The four of us headed up the trail with Josh in the lead, followed by myself then Tara. Noah brought up the rear whether he was keeping his distance to cool down, or it was for security reasons I wasn’t sure.

Tara had gotten a bit quieter since Noah’s outburst so I tried to strike up a conversation with Josh. He was clearly distracted as he only gave me one answer replies back. After perhaps the sixth question I asked him, I heard Noah growl. I turned to look at him. “If you would be quiet for five minutes you might be surprised what you learn around here.” I was about to tell him what he could do with his orders when I saw the yellow glint in his eyes. Yep, he was definitely back there to cool down. Maybe now was a good time to concede the point and save my battles for a more opportune time.

The rest of the hike passed in the relative silence of a cease-fire, and ninety minutes later we were back inside Haven. Achy, tired and sick of Noah’s bossy tactics I went upstairs to take a long shower. The hot water tank should be refilled by now from the morning drain on it. Stepping into the hard blast of water I finally let my emotions go, my anger at the unfairness of the challenges I faced, the damned bickering with Noah, my fears about Jean Claude’s motives in all this, most of all how much my heart hurt from missing my sister. I might have been able to handle it better if I had my lover with me. I was missing him too, more than I cared to admit. I knew he had responsibilities so I didn’t want to add to his burdens. Still, I knew I’d be calmer if I could snuggle in Lija’s arms for a just a little while and forget the rest of the world existed but he was an ocean away at the moment.

I stood in the shower, tears running down my face until I was drained and the water was starting to get cooler. I finished my shower and got out. I sat on the edge of the nearby Jacuzzi for a few minutes wrapped in towels, allowing myself to become re-centered.

I must have lowered my shields in the process because I felt a warm wave of love surrounding me. The scent of heather was suddenly strong in the bathroom as I heard Lija’s steady voice in my head. “I told you to draw on my strength if you needed it Doc. Are you okay? Do need me?”

I smiled as I quietly told him, “Forever and a Day my Druid. That’s how I need you.” I sighed. “We have things under control here. I’ll call soon.”

He sent me one more wave of comfort before starting to pull back. Apparently he understood that I didn’t want to leave the link open too long. I was still afraid of Jean Claude’s prying mind though he should be down for the day right now. “Call SOON Doc. I love you.”

I whispered, “I love you too” and he was gone.

I dried my hair and pulled it back into a ponytail then headed back to the bedroom to pull some clothes on. I pulled one some black leggings and one of Lija’s deep blue t-shirts. It was the same color blue as Lija’s eyes when he was lost in thought. It was long enough to be closer to a dress on me but it made me feel safer. After the brief contact, I was reluctant to let him go though I knew there were too many wandering souls to keep the connection open. The shirt reminded me of him; so it was my compromise.

I headed downstairs to find the others. A quick glance down the hall showed two strange men working at the front door. Grabbing Josh as he walked by, I pointed at the men. “Oh, Lija sent them to change the security system. They had a hand written note from that bartender friend of his, Liam. Noah said it was legit.” I nodded and followed him into the kitchen. Lydia and Raven had come back along with Aries and everyone was convening around the breakfast bar.

I hoped nobody would notice the redness in my eyes from earlier. They probably had heard me crying if they were home; I thought belated. Well hell, even scientists were allowed to lose it once in a while, especially ones who have sisters doing magic spells on them and then skipping dimensions. I wasn’t even going to bring up being kidnapped by my vampire employer or having a group of weres, some of whom I wasn’t real comfortable with, looking at me like the magician that was going to pull the hellcat out of the hat. Shaking my head, I thought yep, I think only one break down in the past few days was damned good all things considered. I smiled and moved forward to greet everybody.

“Hey guys. Something smells good.” Taking another sniff, I amended that, “Something smells REALLY good.” I looked over toward the stove. Noah was standing there looking at something Tara was showing him in her notebook. He looked up at me and nodded for Tara to go put her book away.

He nodded sheepishly at me, “Hey Doll. I figured since we tortured you this morning, I’d fix your favorite brunch. We have that egg toast casserole thing you like in the oven with sausage and cheese. I even remembered to put the green chili peppers in there for you. There’s fruit salad. Raven stopped at the bakery. She got some chocolate croissants and cheese Danish. There’s fresh orange juice on the counter over there and I’m just about finished frying the potatoes to go on the side. If you don’t have room for it all, I’m sure the rest of this bunch won’t let it go to waste. “

I nodded, “Sound great. What are you all waiting for?”

Raven came over with two plates to hug me and steered me toward the stove to start filling my plate. “We were waiting for you of course. Now eat up. If Noah didn’t wear you out too much, I thought we find a nice quiet place this afternoon to curl up and brainstorm ideas about how to pinpoint Luna’s exact location.”

We all filled up our plates and sat down to eat. Josh and Tara were telling the others about our hike. I chimed in to share my thoughts about adventure. Before I knew it, Noah had me relating every detail I remembered from the hike, what I saw, what I felt, how I felt along the way. I wasn’t quite sure if he really wanted to know what I thought of the hike or he was trying to keep my mind off Luna. Either way, he became more relaxed as the conversation continued.

The two security men came into the kitchen as we were cleaning up the dishes from brunch. Noah walked over to take the folder of information from the shorter man but his bigger partner moved to stand in front of him. “Sorry Sir but we have strict orders that the new code is only to be given to Maggie.” I looked at the pair as they moved toward me, my gaze apparently questioning.

The first guy handed the folder to me. “I’m Sean and this is Brady. We’ve seen you at the club before when Lija was on duty. Liam said to tell you not to be such a stranger, that you still had friends at the club even if Lija isn’t there at the moment. He said if you need anything to call.”

I nodded, “Tell him thanks. I’ll try to drop in as soon as things settle down. I want to talk to him about a trip I might be taking after things are resolved anyway.”

Brady grinned knowingly, “Yeah, he mentioned that too. Said to tell to you just say the word and you’re half way there.”

I blushed then remembered the others were still in the room and looked back to see frightened faces. I sighed. “I’m not going anywhere until Luna is home safe. Then I might take a short vacation. Don’t worry. I don’t have any plans to bring Luna home just to desert you all. If I was going to do that, I would have already been gone. “

Sensing the tension ease slightly in the room, I nodded toward the leftover food on the counter. “Did you two want some lunch before you left?”

Sean shook his head. “Thank you but we promised a friend we’d meet them for lunch when we finished up here.”

I nodded and offered to escort them out. When we were out by their van, away from the prying ears, they went over the codes with me to make sure I was okay with system. I thanked them again for their help and watched them drive off. Then I went inside and locked the codes in my office safe. That way I knew they would be safe.

I was sitting on the front doorstep enjoying the midday sun when the door opened. Noah came out and sat down next to me. “So now that they are gone, can I have the codes?”

I shook my head. “No.”

He growled. “Give me one good reason.”

I turned to glare at him. “I’ll give you two. Jean Claude and Richard.”

“I already said I was sorry about that. I was worried about you.” He tried to reach over to hug me but I stood up.

I turned to face him. “What happens next time you get worried Noah? I can’t afford any more mistakes.” Sighing, I was suddenly tired. “I don’t want to fight with you Noah. I have too many other battles to waste one bit of energy.”

He looked up at me, his eyes slightly glazed with tears. “I wouldn’t make that mistake twice. I’m sorry if I’ve been a jerk but I’m scared. I’m scared something is going to happen to you and I’m terrified we aren’t going to be able to find a way to bring Luna back. I care about you both and am afraid of letting both you and her “kids” down.”

I reached down to stroke his cheek and smiled reassuringly at him. “I know you are Noah. It’s going to be alright. I know you’ll do your best to help us and I will bring Luna home.” I moved past him to open the door and looked back. “And Noah, “ he looked up at me expectantly and I grinned, “You still can’t have the codes.” I shut the door behind me, leaving him to ponder the error of his ways.

Walking through the house, it looked like everyone had cleaned up and then dispersed. Raven caught me in the hallway. “Just the Gate I was looking for. Let’s go sit on the back deck. I feel the need to be closer to Gaia. ”

I felt a charge of energy as I took her hand. I looked up into her face and saw her staring back at me. She grinned and pulled me toward the door. I tried to stop her. “Raven did you….”

She opened the sliding door and let go of my hand. “Well I’m going outside. You can stay in here if you prefer.” That said she went out the door and out of sight.

I thought about it for a moment and realized I wasn’t going to get any answers standing in here. I trusted her despite the strange circumstances that brought us together. I headed out onto the deck and found her sitting at the patio table near the railing.

I walked over and sat down across from her. “What did you do in there?”

She gazed at me critically. I wasn’t sure she was going to answer when she finally replied. “What makes you think *I* did it?”

I shook my head but she continued. “You are always so quick to assume that anything out of the ordinary must be coming from someone else. Why not look first to yourself? You know you have power, or you should. Your willingness to give the credit to others weakens your faith in your own abilities.” She reached over to run her hand along my cheek before cupping my chin, forcing me to look at her. “That has never been good for you or those you serve.”

I could feel my heart rate increasing and knew my eyes were probably becoming silver but I couldn’t stop myself. What she had said mirrored what my spirit guides had been telling me too closely, too damned close by half in fact.

I jerked my chin out of her grasp. “Who are you really?”

I heard the raspy slight growl in my voice. At this point I didn’t care. There were too many games being played and I was sick of them.

She simply drew her hand back and stared at me. There was no condemnation in her eyes but no answers either. She just sat there waiting, waiting for what I didn’t know. Eventually she smiled, laying her hands on the table in front of her. “What does your heart tell you Precious?”

I stared back at her. What did my heart tell me? At the moment, it was telling me to run like hell. I took a deep breath and thought about it. No, it wasn’t my heart that was telling me that. It was my fear that was blinding me to everything else.

I closed my eyes and tried to find my center of calm again. It wasn’t easy but it was there like a peaceful lake waiting for the wandering stream of my thoughts to flow back into it.

Once I felt secure, I opened my eyes and looked at Raven again. I lowered my shields just a bit to reach out towards her. All I felt coming from her was love and a need to help me. I could sense that her reasons for wanting to help were just beyond my grasp. On the surface there was concern for me as well as some sort of ancient debt she was honor bound to repay.

I tried to follow that train of thought further to find the root of our relationship but the boundaries suddenly came down as she drew my focus away from my objective. “Well, how do you feel Maggie Mae?”

I looked at her in surprise. “Who told you to call me that?”

She grinned mischievously, “A friend. Now how do you feel?”

I shook my head, “Confused, a bit tired from Noah’s hike though psychically charged if that makes sense.”

She nodded in understanding. “Yes it does. How about you and try a few things and see what you can do? You’ve been working on your telekinesis alone already haven’t you?”

I sheepishly nodded, “Yeah though I don’t often move what I intend much less send it where I intended it to go.”

She smiled, “Then why don’t we work on improving your mental aim a bit?” I looked at her warily but she didn’t back down. “Come on, just think of the fun you could have with a bit more control?”

“I thought magic was never supposed to be used for personal gain.” I really didn’t want any more spells gone wrong because the rules were not followed.

“This isn’t about personal gain, it’s about evening the playing field. Besides, it technically isn’t magic. It is your own natural ability. It’s just boosted a bit by the fact you are the Gate.”

I tilted my head trying to figure her out. “That sounds like a semantic run around job to me, designed to get us off on a technicality.”

She grinned. “It may be a technicality and close to the line but close only counts in horse shoes. Besides, we aren’t talking about Wiccan spells. We’re talking about an ancient power you’ve been entrusted with for countless centuries. The Ancients never expected you to shun the use of your gifts at the cost of your own safety. Claim what is yours.”

I had been hearing the same thing from too many sources lately. I really couldn’t find it in me to disagree anymore. What was more, even if it was technically against the rules to use to my powers I was willing to risk the consequences. I was willing to risk almost anything to get my sister home safely.

We started working on my telekinesis. I hated looking stupid or inept. Unfortunately, the learning curve here was pretty steep so I looked both. I could move things especially if I was angry or upset but focused movement seemed to be beyond me.

As a potted plant went crashing from the railing to the grass below, I lost it. Turning to Raven I practically screamed, “How the hell are these games going to help me get Luna back anyway? Am I supposed to just float her through dimensions until I pull her into the right one? I thought we were supposed to be brainstorming ideas for where she is.”

My new mentor was completely un-phased by my reaction. She waited for me to stop screaming then calmly told me, “What we need to get Luna back, to find out where she is in fact, is your powers. You already have the tools you need to bring your sister home. You simply lack the control to use them. So learning to focus on the simple things will hone your abilities so you can accomplish the impossible.”

I looked at her and shook my head, “Why do I suddenly feel like I’m Luke Skywalker and you’re Yoda, telling me to use the Force out in that swamp?”

She grinned at me. “Actually I was thinking it was more like a Karate Kid moment. Wax on. Wax off.” She winked at me. “Besides I’m way better looking than Yoda.”

I laughed and told her in my best Yoda voice, “When 900 years old you reach, look as good, you will not.”

She had a twinkle in her eye as she pointed at the plants that were still undamaged on the railing, “Come on. How about we try again?”

Sighing, I begrudgingly agreed and we spent the next few hours working on my powers of concentration. We made some progress but I knew I still had a lot to learn about what I could do and how the hell to do it.

That night I was so exhausted I don’t remember even climbing into bed, just waking up at some point in the night to see Aries sitting on the floor by my door.

”What are you doing there?” I groggily asked him.

I thought I saw him wipe something from his eyes and that woke me up pretty quick. I got up to move closer to him. I could smell the faint tangy scent of salty water and realized he’d been crying. I understood Aries wasn’t the type of person who liked to be caught in a vulnerable position so I sat down beside him. I pretended I hadn’t noticed the tears. “So, you just hanging out here?”

He shrugged, his voice a bit gruff. “Yeah, we thought we’d take turns watching you to make sure Jean Claude doesn’t try anything else.”

I nodded. “I appreciate it, but you know it would be more difficult for him to pull anything now that we are expecting trouble. Besides, the locks have been changed and only I have the code.” I grinned. “You guys really don’t have to worry about me. Go on to bed.”

He shook his head, “We can’t lose you too.” He blurted out.

Ah, it was finally becoming clear in my hazy brain. Aries was close to Luna. With the possible exception of me, he was the closest person to her here at Haven. I hadn’t even thought how much her absence might be affecting him.

I turned to look at him, “Aries I WILL get Luna back. I promise you that and I’m not going anywhere.” I grinned at him, “Well except back to bed. Now if you really feel the need to stay to make sure I’m safe, you do what you need to do. I would suggest you find something a bit more comfortable than the floor. There are chairs in here or you’re welcome on the bed. There’s more than enough room to share. Hell, this bed is big enough for 10 of us I think. I honestly don’t know how they got it into the room but it was the bed Lija wanted. I’d do just about anything to make that man smile.” I yawned as I climbed back under the covers. “I’m babbling. Good night.”

I snuggled under the covers trying to find a comfortable position to drift off. I hated sleeping alone. I was just starting to drift off when I felt the bed move and a warm body snuggle up next to me. An arm reached across my stomach to settle on the bed as I barely heard Aries quiet reply. “Good night Maggie.”

I woke up to two more bodies in the bed. Sometime during the night, Tara and Lydia had climbed in to join us. I didn’t mind the company. Luna had gotten me used to sleeping in a puppy pile, or as it were kitten pile. The problem was that it was really hot being the only human buried under a comforter then surrounded by weres who’s body heat was steadily rising as we moved closer to the full moon.

I pushed Aries and the girls off me so I scoot up to get out from under the covers. Unfortunately I woke them all I the process. I blushed, whispering a quiet “Sorry.”

That was when Noah came barging in. “Oh good. You’re all up. It looks like another good day for a hike. I’ll meet you all downstairs shortly.”

I raised one eyebrow at my ex, “You’ve GOT to be kidding me.”

He grinned, “No actually I’m not. I figured it went so well yesterday we should give in another try. You need to keep your body as busy as your mind or will feel left out Doll.” He barely made it out the door before the pillow I threw hit the doorframe.

So, the next day turning into something of a repeat of the previous one. A long hike, though we had Aries with us this time along with Lydia, was followed by a post shower brunch. Afternoon studies with Raven and collapsing into bed that night. If I didn’t find Luna soon, I was going to go dimension hopping myself just to get away from this mad house.

By the fourth day I knew something was up. Noah’s excuses for me going on the morning hikes were wearing really thin. He seemed to be pushing me further each day, seeing how much I could take, putting more challenges in my way. Tara seemed to be keeping close tabs on what I did along the way. Noah quizzed me after every hike about what I had noticed along the way. Then this afternoon after brunch he pulled me away from Raven to go over some self-defense moves.

Yeah, he was definitely up to something. I had a growing feeling that he was worried that there was going to a physical show down and he was worried about my safety. It certainly fit with the training he seemed to be putting me through. I would have asked him about it but I didn’t want to risk upsetting the delicate peace we had forged. So I just let him think I was buying the excuses. Sure, cute sweet clueless blonde was a part I could project well. Heaven help him if he crossed me and still believed it though.

I escaped Noah and went in search of Raven. I found her curled up with a pitcher of Iced Tea and couple glasses under a tree out near the edge of the yard. I sat down beside her as she handed me a glass of the cool drink.

She looked over at me with a mock stern expression. “He let you go?”

I grinned back at her. “I declared Mutiny because of undue punishment and escaped. It’s a little cold this time of year to be sitting outside with Iced Tea isn’t it?

She smiled back at me, “It’s a bit chilly but it’s good to be out here. You need to feel the cold of winter, let its winds blow away the dead leaves of summers gone by from your life. Only then can you truly feel the rebirth of Spring when it comes.”

I looked out across somewhat brown lawn. “Yeah but the key lies in knowing what to let go of, what is truly dead, while holding on to what simply lies dormant, waiting for the warmth of spring to re-bloom.”

She chuckled, “You’re starting to sound like me. You’re going to shock me to death if you tell me you’ve actually been listening to what I’ve been trying to tell you.”

I turned to look at her, all humor gone from my face, “Raven, we’re running out of time. I had a dream last night. I don’t think Luna can wait too much longer to be rescued.”

She paused before asking “A dream, a nightmare induced by stress, or a vision? Are you sure of the source?”

I nodded, “Yes I’m sure of the source. I couldn’t contact her directly but I could get close. It felt like there was something evil, something trying to barricade the bridge that joins our souls. I’ve never felt so scared, so alone.”

She reached over to brush strands of hair away from my face, “Then it’s time to bring her home. We need a lock on her location to do the portal spell.”

I sighed, “I know that. We’ve been going over this for days. I can think of a half a dozen places that would be close to her heart. I haven’t been able to narrow down which one it is.”

“Then you need to contact her directly and ask her.”

I rolled my eyes, “Gee why didn’t I think of that. Sorry Raven but I can’t make contact.”

“You can’t or you are afraid to try? I know you’ve been wary to open any links fully. I could sense that even when you were testing me. Why?”

“Because I can’t.” I shook my head. “Okay that’s not true. It’s because I’m afraid. The last time I consciously tried to draw on one of my links Jean Claude piggy backed on the ride. I’m afraid of him getting into my dreams. I’m also worried about all the spirits that are always drawn to me when I fully open my shields. Not to mention the Ancients who always seem to have their own agenda where I’m concerned.”

Raven raised her hand to stop me. “The Ancients won’t interfere with you on this one. If they can help you they will, but they make not be allowed to. They definitely won’t make your task more difficult though. Before you ask, no I cannot tell you how I know that. Just trust me that I am telling the truth.”

I bit my lip thinking about it for a moment. She hadn’t steered me wrong yet. “Okay that solves one problem what about the others?”

“I don’t think the others are as big a problem as you do. Remember that first spell you tried? It was you that kept them at bay.”

I shook my head. “It was the sacred circle Raven.”

”The circle is only as strong as the one who casts it. It was YOU. As for Jean Claude, I think even he is wary of crossing you at the moment. But if you want some insurance, why not boost the link so there is no room for outside power to become a rider?”

“I thought learning to focus was about boosting my power and it didn’t help last night.”

“Yes it did. You hadn’t been able to even sense her before last night were you?”

I nodded, “Yeah you’re right but it wasn’t enough. What now?”

She stood, “Well your links seem to be stronger when you’re in a dream state. There is less interference. Yes I know that wasn’t enough either.” She reached out to pull me up, “That’s why we have to look to other ways to boost your power. You and Luna have a third. If he were in contact with you when you tried the dream walk, it would give you an anchor. “

We picked up the tea and glasses and headed toward the deck as she continued. “You’ll want someone who isn’t as emotionally tied to Luna as the two of you to act as a watcher in case things get too intense. I’d suggest Tara.”

”Why not you?” I wondered.

She smiled disarmingly. “For several reasons, one of which is that I don’t want a angry were coming at me with his claws if I feel the need to pull you away from him to severe the link. At least Tara is pard so she stands a fighting chance. Lastly, you will want someone who has strong emotional ties to Luna that aren’t dependent on you and Noah. They will act as secondary bait to pull Luna into the dream if your Triumvirate is being blocked.”

She opened the back sliding door, ushering me in. “Come on. I have a dream walking potion to mix and you have a couple friends you need to fill in on the plan.”

That’s how I ended up in bed with Noah, Tara and Aries curled around me. I took the potion and closed my eyes, ready to visit another world in my dreams. I prayed to the goddess that Luna was waiting for me on the other side.