Chapter 83

Gideon

"Hello, my boy. Come hug your grandmother." She's so familiar to me for some reason. I have this sense of comfort, almost motherly. She's beautiful but more in a celestial or angelic way. Her hair is white but has an iridescent quality to it. She feels ancient but barely looks 40. Her eyes are the same as mine, deep green, and I look at them every day in the mirror and in the girls. I feel a push from behind.

I look back, and Amelie pushes me forward and waves her hand for me to go to this woman. I shake my head 'no,' and she pushes me again. I feel drawn to her, but I'm hesitant to give in to that urge.

"Daddy, come give grandma a hug!" Daisy grabs one of my hands and Rose the other, and they pull me toward the mysterious woman. I could resist them easily, but I don't. I'm standing in front of her. She has her arms outstretched, and she pulls me into a hug. It's the most soothing feeling I've felt since before my mother passed away as a pup. I feel tears fill my eyes, and I pull her closer.

"There, there, my boy. I have missed you. Now let me get a proper look at you." She pulls back to look at me. The look on her face is pure joy and complete recognition. She cups my cheek, and I feel like I'm five years old all of a sudden.

"Who are you? Who are you to me?" I need to know now more than ever. Why was I feeling this way?

"Sit, we should talk. I'll make tea." She takes off her cloak and lays on the back of the chair. Now in regular clothes I know I have seen her before but where?

I sit at the kitchen table, and Amelie sits next to me; the girls play on the floor with toys Amelie keeps in the kitchen for them. This mystery woman seems to know her way around our kitchen. "Oh, I guess you have an electric kettle now." She starts the water for the tea and comes to sit down with us.

"While we wait for the tea, let me start. My name is Ithildin Alois.” Alois is our family name. How could it be the same? "I am the Druit Guards first Luna and mate to your four times great-grandfather. In other words, I'm your grandmother."

"How?" is all I could get out.

"As you can tell, I am not a wolf but a Vanir from Alfheim. In English, I am an Elf from Scandinavia. I've kept an eye on you for your whole life. The last time we met, I looked like this." She waved her hand in front of her face, and she changed completely. "I have often checked on you in this way. It's called a glimmer."

"The violets! I got the violets from you on the way to the Ashwood Pack! That was you! Did you know Amelie and I were mates?" She waves her hand in front of her face again, and it's normal again.

"I did know. I am the messenger sent by the goddess." I think my mouth is wide open, and my jaw is on the floor.

"Ouch! Sorry, hard kick that time." Amelie rubs her side.

"They feel it. They are strong. Them and the little ones over there are why I am here in this capacity today." Ithildin stands and continues to make tea for us.

"What do you mean?" I take Amelie's hand.

"Selene has taken great care in twisting fate just enough to get you two and your wolves together. You two are more than fated mates. You two are the parents of the worlds Truth Seers and Guardians." She brings the mugs of piping hot water over. "Here, this is my special blend." With a flick of her wrist, three tea bags appear and plop into our mugs. I think my eyes are bludging out of my head.

Amelie keeps her composer better than me. "I have so many questions with just that statement alone. I understand you are the messenger sent by the goddess and an elf, thousands of years old, but why hide away for so long?"

"For the same reason, your family doesn't boast about being the only pureblood werewolves."

"I guess that makes sense people will want you for your magic. Wait, does Gideon or the twins have magic?" Amelie leans forward.

"Gideon did, but since he didn't awaken it before coming of age, it went dormant. The girls have it, and it's strong. Those boys in your belly will be even stronger since they are born from the first werewolf spirits and have elf royalty blood." She casually sips her tea.

"WHAT!?" I shout, causing everyone to jump. The block tower the girls were building topples over and earning me a scowl from the twins.

"Oh, I guess you don't know. So much to explain. So, your wolf sprites Ulv and Inari are the reincarnations of the first mated wolves. It took the goddess thousands of years to get them back together for this." Ithildin takes each of our hands in hers and closes her eyes. I feel Ulv push forward, and something snaps into place. A rush of memories flash in front of my eyes, but I don't recognize any of them, but somehow they are mine. I pull my hand away.

"What was that? Am, did you feel it too?" She looks at me, and she's pale as a sheet. I guess she saw it too.

"I just pushed your wolves to unlock their memories." She smiles like it's no big deal, but I can feel Ulv stir, and somehow, he's stronger than ever.

"Ulv, you OK, buddy."

"The goddess has given us a great duty. We must fulfill it." I see his head is not on the current topic. My head, on the other hand, is a mess. I need to ask more questions.

"Ithildin, umm." I'm cut off

"Grandma."

"What?"

"Call me Grandma."

"OK…Grandma. I am confused if Amelie is my distend mate, what about Mandy. I know she was also my mate." I feel odd bringing this up, but I know I felt the mate bond with her, and we had the twins together. She was a part of my life, and I did love her.

"Mandy, poor girl. Yes, the goddess intervened in her fate. The fates had her dying so young, and Selene couldn't bear letting her die how it was planned without ever experiencing love. She needed a wolf who was half-human to complete her four 'blessed bloods' to create Truth Seers. She couldn't stop her death, but she could make her life better, so she did." Ithildin has a sad half-smile on her face.

I let it sink in for a second. I thank the goddess who spared Mandy a horrible death. She was a good person, and she didn't deserve to die, but the fates rule over us all. I look over at Amelie, and she's crying, "you said four 'blessed bloods'? What does that mean?" I squeeze her hand.

"For any seer to be born, they have to hold the blood of four blessed species human, werewolf, Vanir, and fae. Oh, that's right, you, my boy, are also part fae. That's part of why you can get so violent. Fea might be blessed and beautiful, but they have nasty tempers. Blood-thirsty things." She shutters and continues drinking her tea. How is she so casual about all of this?

"So, the girls have four species of bloodlines, and the boys will have three? But Ashwood blood cancels out other bloodlines." Amelie nervously rubs her belly.

"It does, but that doesn't mean it cancels out its magic. In this case, it's amplified and fortified by the Ashwood bloodline. As I said, Selene took her time on you two." Ithildin retakes Amelie's hand. I take the other.

I have so many questions still swirling in my head I don't know where to start. I didn't even know my family's bloodlines. "I'm doing the best I can to wrap my brain around all of this, but to be honest, it's over whelming. Why are we and our children so important to the goddess? Why did Ulv and Inari get reincarnated? Why does the world need Truth Seers and Guardians? We haven't even addressed the royal elf blood or how I'm now part fae! How did you become the goddess' messenger? And why is this tea so good?"