Prologue

K ili

“I’ll be fine,” I hear my sister say with an annoyed huff just outside the door Crow has me locked behind. Well, not locked… He couldn’t keep me in if he tried. But it’s the room he has me hiding from our sister in. Okay, that’s also a lie. This is the room I chose to hide from my sister in. We’re at his home, and thankfully, there are many rooms to hide in if I need to.

“Genevieve…” I hear Crow sigh, ever the patient fatherly big brother. It didn’t take us long to get here, once Crow retrieved me from my little outdoor hidey-hole. I have an actual home, with four walls and a roof. But my inner beast likes to roam.

“Just let her in. I can’t hide forever, I suppose. I won’t hurt her, promise,” I chuckle, and Crow snorts. I step away from the large, opulent door. Crow has always had finer tastes than me. I prefer dirt, whereas he prefers marble.

“I’m not worried you’re going to hurt her. I’m worried she’s going to maim you if I let her in there. You hid for a reason, didn’t you?” His words make me nod in agreement, even though he can’t see me. I did hide. I heard her light footfalls, and I sprinted down the hall in the opposite direction. Evie is shoving her way through the door in the next instant, marching straight for me. I should have hidden from her outside.

Her elegant beauty doesn’t hide the rage in her blue eyes, though to anyone who doesn’t know her, she would just look mildly judgmental. She’s stunning, much like her mother was. Nothing like me, lucky for her. But then, I take after my mother, and they take after theirs. Both Crow and Evie have long blonde hair, and a regal bone structure that gives them an air of royalty. My siblings’ eyes shine like crystals, and mine are dull like unpolished stone.

I would question our relation to one another if I hadn’t been there the day they were each born.

I reach up, pushing my hand through my long silver hair. It’s black at the roots, but as it grows out it turns silver. My father hated that. Said I look just like the Witch. He viewed my mother as weak. She died when I was just four years old, giving birth to a child that lived only one day. Father refused to name him, blaming him for her death, but I called him Warrior. I shifted into my other form and dug a hole for their bodies until it was deep enough. Her best friend, and a woman I used to call family, was coming over to visit my mother and her new baby.

I still remember how it sounded when she screamed through her grief. She found me in the forest, digging. She carried my mother out in the bloodied sheet she died on then helped me bury her, along with my first sibling. She used her power to scribe Warrior across his heart, saying she wanted him to know his name on the other side. That was the hardest day of my life.

“Eighteen years, Kili!?” Evie scolds, crossing her arms over her chest, and pinning me with a disapproving look, bringing my mind out of the past. She’s wearing a long, flowing white dress with gold trim lace, which makes her look older than she really is. She looks like a Queen. Hell, she presents herself to the world like she is a Queen.

“Uh…” I stumble backward a step, eyes wide, as I throw my calloused hands up in surrender. Evie is much more powerful than I realized. Just the look of disappointment in her eyes has me wilting like a petal over a flame. I assess her, wondering if she’s been body snatched. She's a full-blooded Elf…should she be so powerful? I consider the repercussions of attacking her when Crow flicks the side of my head and shoots a glare my way.

“Kili, you’re being paranoid again, and Genevieve, we’ve had this conversation before,” Crow says in an attempt to defend me, but Evie scoffs, having none of the bullshit.

“You joined the Tournament of Blood when I was eight years old, Crow. You weren’t exactly a saintly father figure yourself. I would have done better with you both in my life, not just you,” Evie says to Crow, lifts a brow, looking between the two of us, and when neither of us speaks, she sighs. I watch as she spins away and walks out the door. Disappointment fills my chest when she’s gone. Once she was here, I wanted more time with her, and now that she’s left, I feel a sense of emptiness setting in.

My mouth falls open, and my eyes go wide when she returns, holding a knife made from crystal.

“Well, that’s hardly a fair consequence! The punishment should fit the crime. Is she about to murder me? I knew she was body snatched!” I accuse, and she narrows her eyes.

“I haven’t been body snatched, Kili. I’m using the crystal to cleanse you. The hope is that it will aid you when you need it most, granting clarity and confidence in battle,” my sister says, as she raises the crystal dagger and waves it first over my head, and then my brothers.

Powerful Elven women can do spells, but it’s not common. Crow has some magic as well, so I suppose this shouldn’t be too surprising. I guess I just never noticed she was practicing.

“But I’m already capable of…that…” I mutter, and my little sister lifts her brow.

“Your natural instincts are just…stronger. This isn’t a fool-proof fix-all. It’s just an aid. Oh, and this will hide you from the game’s cameras,” she adds, holding out gold bracelets for the both of us. As soon as I get mine on, she steps into me and wraps her small arms around me in a tight hug. She smells like roses. It’s comforting and familiar. “I told Crow bringing you into this might have been a mistake. I was just mad. I’m glad you’re here.”

“Thank you, little sister,” I whisper, patting her head, before stepping away.

“Granted, my concerns are still valid. You might very well cause chaos and attempt to kidnap his Heart Bonded and keep her all for yourself…bonds or no,” she teases, shooting me a wink. “But at least I know Crow will be safer with you there. But again, it’s good to have you back,” she adds with a shoulder shrug, totally ruining the sentimental moment.

I don’t explain my absence in her life because she isn’t ready. No one is, I’m afraid. Crow suspects, but I don’t think he knows the full truth of my disappearance. Or maybe he does. I raised him, after all. Children raising children is a theme in my family. I also don’t mention that I can’t steal what is meant to be mine.

“Come on then,” Crow snaps after Evie hugs him as well, and I nod, taking one last look at my little sister.

“Be safe,” I say, frowning as Evie smiles at us sadly. There’s a strange energy emanating from her that bothers me, but I can’t pinpoint why.

“Everything will be better, once you return,” Evie says, bowing her head. She’s so petite compared to me, and with her long, beautiful blonde hair, she looks a little like an angel. I look away, wondering how the three of us could all be so different, and yet, bonded by blood.

We leave shortly after that, and I spend a long time trying to understand my sister better. There was something bothering her, something she wasn’t telling us.

It takes a few hours of walking, but eventually, Crow and I make it to the game’s portal at the edge of the Elven Realm. We needed to travel unseen. The best way to do so is on foot, and through the forest areas.

“You know what to do?” my brother asks, speaking for the first time since we parted with our sister.

“Of course,” I nod, before shifting into my other form. A giant, white, shadow wolf that makes Crow look small. A gift from my mother’s bloodline. I’m not a pure Elf, like my siblings. Warrior would have been like me if he had survived. My paw print is bigger than my footprint in my other form. My fur transforms from soft, to tendrils of white smoke. My eyes glow a blazing blue, looking just like a flame. The only time the blue doesn’t remind me of a sad storm cloud is in this form.

“Show off.” He shakes his head, smirking, and I huff. Crow is well acquainted with this form. He spent a lot of time on my back as a young child. It was the easiest way to keep him safe. Even as a child, this form was intimidating. If only I had known this was my least dangerous form.

I turn to the portal and relax slightly. Finally, after years, I get to meet my Moonlight in person.