"...you are a mixture of both."
"Do you remember mom's wolf?" Connor asked. Selena didn't understand where this question came from all of a sudden and looked at him with confusion.
"Mom never shifted," Selena shook her head, "something about not feeling her wolf since some past war."
Connor nodded, "She didn't feel her wolf because it wasn't there."
Selena remained quietly seated right where she was. Her mind wandered back to the dream she had this morning.
"I had a dream," she said. She could feel how the two men were holding their breaths and continued, "My whole family was there. Mom... she said something about how I don't know something which you and Lorcan did, that it was time for me to know now."
"Your mom wasn't a werewolf, princess," Lorcan said, he now stood up from where he sat and walked until he reached her, "She was a witch."
For a few seconds, Selena looked at him like she was seeing him for the first time, but then she laughed. This had to some another prank of theirs right?
"It's really not a great idea to prank me about my dead mother on my birthday, guys." She laughed sardonically.
"Marcella Lysandra Genevieve Wilson, your mother, was not born a werewolf."
Selena folded her hands over her chest and leaned back against the tree behind her, "Oh really?" She folded her hands over her chest.
"She was born a witch," Lorcan said seriously paying no attention to her mocking tone, "But she wasn't just a random witch, she was royalty. She was the eldest daughter of Irene, the Queen of the witches. She was the next in line to be the Queen of all good Magic."
"What the hell are you talking about?!" Selena said now standing up too. She was too tense to remain seated.
"You're not a werewolf, you are a mixture of both," Lorcan said.
Everyone stood up too, all of them looking at both Lorcan and Selena, and glancing a few times at Connor too.
Xavier opened his mouth to speak, but he had no idea what he could say. He wanted to comfort her, but how could he if all of this was a surprise to him too? So he decided to just provide her as much comfort as he could without actually saying anything.
He wasn't sure if she would want him to touch her right then since the mate bond does often cloud the power of thinking clearly.
So he slid his hand into hers but didn't grasp it, seeing if she would pull back. When she didn't, only then he allowed his hold to tighten.
The physical contact allowed Izzy to feel Zion too, calming down both the human and the wolf.
"You knew?" Connor looked up to find Selena looking at him.
His voice was a mere whisper as he spoke, "I just knew that as her firstborn daughter, you are supposed to have her powers, but she wasn't sure since you showed traits of being a werewolf."
"You knew and you never told me?"
Lorcan looked at Connor and Evelyn stood by the side of her mate, with her hand on his back. "Mom wasn't sure if you would get the magic, she wanted to wait until you got it to tell you."
"I wish you had told me. That would have given me the time to prepare," she muttered with a sigh, "So it's not a prank?"
'Nope, it isn't.'
"The fuck?!" Selena exclaimed as her eyes became wide.
"You heard her didn't you?"
Selena looked at Lorcan who now had an amused grin on his face.
"Witches don't usually have another consciousness in them. But the Royal family has."
"That makes no sense."
"Sit down, it's a long story. If you wanna understand you have to be patient and hear the whole thing."
'Yeah, only if you can be patient long enough.'
"Are all the witch consciousness so..."
'Above you all? Yes, we are,'
Selena stopped the moment she noticed that there was no privacy from the new being in her mind.
Lorcan smirked, "She's a part of you, just like Izzy is."
'She's nothing like me,' Izzy growled.
'Calm this animal down, will you?'
"Lorcan?" Selena said louder than necessary, "If these two keep bickering inside my head I am gonna die because of a headache."
The warlock chuckled, "Just block her out like you do with Izzy. You can block them out separately too. With time you will get used to her presence. You are the first werewolf-witch hybrid, Selena. Expect the unexpected."
"Great advice," Selena grumbled.
She looked at Xavier and heard someone whistle inside her mind, 'Damn, is that big bad alpha ours? Mm, the things I'd do to that...'
"You okay?" Xavier asked with concern and rubbed her back comfortingly.
Selena on the other hand was being attacked constantly by every image that the new entity threw at her. Her face was blushing hard and she was barely able to mumble a "Mhmm".
She closed her eyes and focused on locking away the angry and growling Izzy and the sassy and horny new one whose name she was yet to learn.
Taking a deep breath, she sat down and pulled Xavier along with her, not that he had any intention of leaving.
Lorcan sat too, prepared to start with the story. Everyone was waiting quietly to know more, they knew them all speaking together would only confuse her more.
When Evelyn looked at Connor, she saw that his face had fallen and he kept constantly stealing glances at Selena.
"You know how werewolves age right? They age one year in five human years." Lorcan began, Selena nodded, "So, Robert and Damien were born in the same year. They were best of friends for a long time."
"Wait, but Damien looks so much younger than dad..."
"I am getting there," Lorcan said, he looked at Connor and Selena, "Do you guys wanna talk about it separately?"
"They are all family here," Selena shrugged.
"Shh..." Lorcan smirked, "You don't know who is hiding in the woods."
Within a blink, all the members present there found themselves in Xavier's office. Lorcan huffed and sat down on one of the chairs.
"I am too young to be losing my charm," he muttered.
"What?" Xavier asked.
Lorcan just shook his head and continued, "Now, this is a soundproof room, so we can talk. By the way congratulations, princess, on successfully enchanting your first spell."
Selena scoffed but stayed quiet. If Lorcan didn't start the fire, was it really her? Did she really not know who she was?
"Okay, guys... Guys, we are getting a whiplash here, can we know first what's going on? Selena is a werewolf, she is our Luna. What magic?" Ryan asked.
Lorcan chuckled, "She is not just a werewolf. Sit down you all, Damien wanted to be here but we cannot wait, it is time."
Everyone occupied some places around the room, and Lorcan made sure that he sat directly in front of Selena and Xavier so that he could see their faces while talking.
"When the supernatural and humans coexisted, a lot of the witches were going off the track and falling under the influence of Satanic magic."
"Satanic magic as in Black Magic?" Xavier voiced, "That's real?"
"Contrary to popular belief, black magic is not the worst. Black Magic is when someone is misusing magic for selfish purposes. Satanic magic is using magic to worship and serve Satan," Lorcan explained. "And yes, Xavier, those are real. Everything that you have heard of is real. Werewolves, witches, vampires, angels, demons, Satan, God... everything."
Xavier took a heavy breath.
"Carrying on, so the Goddess of Witchcraft, Hecate, had descended on the planet, and they had chosen your ancestors as the Royalty of Witches, they were given the responsibility to make sure that people didn't lurk to the darker side."
Everyone remained quiet, the room was dead silent and Lorcan decided to continue.
"Your great-grandmother was the first one. And since then, it was always the firstborn female in the family which became the next in line."
"That's kinda sexist, isn't it?" Ryan voiced. Connor scoffed but remained quiet.
"I mean, centuries ago even werewolves only had male alphas," Ileana pointed out.
Lorcan chuckled, "True. Well here, no one really dared to question the goddess of magic and witchcraft. It was her decision. And weirdly enough, all the firstborns were always females so there never came an occasion to question it."
"Why don't werewolves have any royal line yet?" Evelyn asked suddenly changing the topic. Lorcan shook his head.
"You guys did. But your king had lost his sanity after the death of his mate. The other werewolves in the court exploited that and the whole system turned corrupted. Their hunger and greed for power made them turn dangerous. It was your mother's family," he looked at Selena, "who had ended the royal werewolves, with the help of Hecate, as well as the Moon Goddess. That is why there has been a long going rivalry within the two communities."
"Didn't he have an heir?"
"He did," Lorcan answered, "It is not known whether he survived or was killed."
"How is that even possible?"
"Irene had created such a terror at that time among the werewolves that no one questioned anything. Whether the heir lived as a normal werewolf or died in the attack no one knows. The whole place was burnt, no bodies remained," he said with a sad smile.
"The Goddess helped in destroying her own children?"
"They were beyond the line of helping," Lorcan smiled sadly, "Since then, the Goddess had not chosen anyone for the role. Some wolves say that there won't be anyone anymore. Since the previous royal line was killed, every werewolf believes that the Goddess herself is ruling over them. Personally, I think she just hasn't found anyone worthy of the role and power yet."
"Why are you telling me this, Lorcan? Why is this relevant?"
Lorcan looked at Selena, "Marcella Lysandra Genevieve, she was a princess, the next in line for the throne, after her mother, Irene. Her heart was pure, and she..." Lorcan smiled sadly, "She was the most beautiful girl you could have ever laid your eyes on."
Selena and Connor exchanged glances, this seemed much more intimate than Lorcan was letting in.
"She had a younger sister too. Her name is Asteria."
"No way, is it..."
"Yes," Lorcan interrupted Aiden, "It is the same Asteria. These two were the closest to each other, best of friends. One day, the sisters and a friend of theirs had gone into the forest for a stroll, deeper than they had wanted to go. That was the time they came across Robert, Damien, Shardul and Saanjh.
"The girls couldn't believe it, and neither could the men." Lorcan took a deep breath, his voice shook slightly which he tried to cover but the people in the room had already heard the tremble. "Saanjh recognized Asteria as his mate, and Robert recognized Marcella. Now before this, it was unheard of that witches and werewolves can be mates, there was hardly any communication between the two communities as they had become sworn enemies after Irene and her army of witches had assassinated the previous royalty of the wolves.
"The witches were a bit hesitant, but so were the werewolves, they didn't know if it was another ploy of the witches. But the mate bond has its wonders. Saanjh was not a werewolf, he was a witch. Asteria was a free soul, she did what she felt like, not really caring much about the consequences, she was an 'I'll deal with it as I go' type of a girl.
"Marcella on the other hand was someone who always thought before acting. So when Asteria actually went out to meet Saanjh, Marcella made sure to get as much information as she can on Robert and also Saanjh to make sure her sister was not risking something.
"Marcella started meeting with Robert too. Saanjh and Asteria had grown really close now, and Marcella and Robert were just beginning."
"They sound adorable," Ileana noted.
"It's not like Marcella and Robert didn't struggle with their relationship. Asteria and Saanjh were both witches, but the formers belonged to two different species with a lot of beef between them.
"When Irina got to know about her daughters' outings, she was enraged. She had once allowed her daughter to indulge in a romance she didn't approve of. She didn't love it, but she accepted it. But this was unacceptable for her. She was not happy with the men her daughters were dating. The empire that she had created with her blood and sweat had no successor if she didn't stop her daughters. There was a lot of blackmailing for that."
"Her own mother?" Connor asked.
Lorcan nodded, "Asteria didn't care about it. When Saanjh was leaving to go back to his country, Asteria left with him, of course, Marcella knew but she didn't tell their mother. So, Asteria left, and for years, Marcella didn't go with Robert just because she didn't wanna hurt her mother anymore. This made Robert turn ruthless. He put all of his free time into training and pack. That is how they became the most powerful."
"She doesn't sound like a very good mother."
Lorcan chuckled, "She wasn't the best, princess, but she wasn't the worst either."
Selena sighed, "So... what happened then?"
"It was many years after these that Marcella left to be with Robert, she just couldn't take being apart from him anymore. That was the turning point for Irene. She became cruel, evil almost. She wanted to hurt her kids for hurting her like that."
"Holy shit."
Lorcan nodded, "She had started brainwashing two young boys. Both of them had some darkness in their soul, which Irene saw easily. She trained them to be hunters."
"No freaking way," Aiden whispered.
"She trained them and made sure they had enough hatred in their hearts for the wolves. Irene even had their family killed, she made it seem like they were killed by wolves to solidify their hatred against the wolves. But this move also made them slip from her control. Irene wanted them to kidnap Asteria and bring her back. They did kidnap Asteria, but they never let her go. She wanted them to attack Robert's pack and bring back Marcella and their kids alive. They attacked the pack, and killed all of them."
"Wait..." Selena interrupted. Everyone noticed how her face had turned completely white. "You're saying that the witch in the hunter's den is actually my aunt?"
Lorcan nodded. He could feel the eyes of a specific beta on him but he made sure not to look in his direction.
"And my grandmother is the reason there is such a strong and huge army of hunters right now coming for our lives?"
"She wanted to make them stop," Lorcan sighed, "But it was too late. Your grandmother is growing old, princess. She needs someone to be there. Marcella is not here anymore, Asteria..." he shook his head, "I don't think she will forgive her mother. The witches need a queen, they need you."
Selena stood up, Xavier getting up along with her, "I am gonna need some time."
Lorcan stood up too and moved to her, "I know it is all new to you, and I am sorry to throw all these on you on your birthday. But..."
"Lorcan, I am glad you told me. Just... give me some time."
"Of course, Princess."
Selena looked at him weirdly, now understanding why he kept calling her princess since he met her.
Xavier however, took her hand and led her back to their room. They quietly did their nightly routine and lied on the bed side by side.
Selena was lying still, her eyes on the ceiling, when Xavier got on his aide, rested his head on his head, and looked at his mate.
"You okay?"
"My grandmother created those people," she chuckled but a single tear slid past her cheeks, "She is responsible for so many deaths..."
"Hey, it isn't your fault," Xavier pulled her close to him, she too turned to her side and looked at her mate. There was very little distance between them, so less that they could feel each other's breath.
Xavier leaned in to place a kiss on her lips, but Selena pulled him closer as she kissed him, putting in it every little emotion that she was feeling.
Xavier moved so that he was now over her, resting his body on his four limbs as he attacked her lips. Selena moaned into the kiss and Xavier moved from her lips to her neck now, sucking and nibbling on the place where he would mark her.
Selena held his head and pulled him up so that they are both face to face.
Her face flushed and she was breathing really deeply. "Mark me."
Xavier stilled. He frowned slightly but he still didn't move, "Are you sure, baby? You have a lot on your mind."
Selena nodded, "I know... just... I need you right now. I have wanted to for a long time, today I am asking you, please..."
"Hey," Xavier interrupted, "You don't have to say please to me. I just don't want you to regret it later."
Selena smiled, "I won't... I want to mark you, and to have your mark on me."
Xaviersmiled, mirroring hers, not wasting one more second.