#3 By the Light of the Silver Moon

Marigold

“And this prophecy is worth killing over?” Finn’s words sent a chill up my spine. I felt my face go white. Little did Finn know just how deadly this prophecy truly was, how much it terrified my father.

“Yes.” I choked out,

“He killed my mother over the prophecy. He sentenced me to exile for it.”

“What is it?” Finn asked, practically on the edge of his seat with curiosity. I shook my head vigorously,

“It will put you in danger.”

“Marigold, it’s already put you in danger which means I’m in it. My job is to keep you safe, to protect you, I need to know what I’m up against.” Finn cupped my face in his hand and rubbed his thumb across my cheek. I sighed, giving in to his request.

I held open my hand and watched as a flower bloomed in my palm. Out of the flower came a piece of parchment paper. I unfolded the note and showed it to Finn.

The daughter of the moon and the King of the fae will have four sons of nature. These sons will rise in power and bathe in strength, giving way to a time of glory and conquest to the Fae Kingdom. But, beware, should a daughter bloom, the Fae King will fall. The power will fail. The strength of a daughter will overshadow that of the sons and she will take the crown in blood. The moon will rise on the conquered Fae and the time of the wolf will begin.

“Well….” Finn mumbled, speechless.

“Yeah, it doesn’t shine a good light on me.” I grumbled.

“So, you were born, and your father assumed that you would be the reason he loses power and, what, dies?” Finn asked.

“I would suspect that my father took the prophecy to mean that his daughter would overthrow him and the princes, taking his power, and, yes, killing him, in the end. Of course, there’s always a million different ways to interpret a prophecy.”

“What does it mean, the time of the wolf?” Finn asked. I shook my head,

“I’ve never really been able to figure that one out. My guess is, neither has my father, which is why he wants a strong alliance with a werewolf pack.” Finn was just staring at me, gawking really. I laughed at his expression,

“I told you that you didn’t want to get involved with me.” Finn pressed his forehead against mine,

“None of this changes how I feel about you. I wouldn’t trade you for anything.” He whispered, pressing his lips to my forehead,

“When and if the time comes for the prophecy to come true or your father decides he wants to act on his fears, this pack will protect you. I will protect you.” Finn promised. I had to come clean about one more thing,

“Solaris wants to overthrow my father.” Finn leaned back and stared at me,

“What?”

“Our father is never going to relinquish the throne voluntarily and Solaris is tired of waiting. Both of my brothers are tired of blindly following his lead and they want to take a stand against what he did to me.” I explained.

“Do they know about the prophecy?” Finn asked.

“No.” I replied truthfully.

“Do they want your help?” He asked again, trying to keep his tone level.

“They didn’t ask, but I volunteered.” I braced myself for Finn’s outburst, but it never came. Instead, he sat silently, just staring at the space in front of him,

“I can’t go into the fae realm, Finn, I know that.” I assured him, I would never put his life at risk.

“So, how can you help?” Finn grumbled.

“I’m not sure yet. Bay and Sol haven’t come up with a plan yet.” I explained.

“Well that’s comforting.” Finn groaned. I leaned my head on his shoulder, trying to comfort him,

“It’s just a conversation right now, Finn.”

“You’ll let me know if it becomes more than that?” He asked, leaning his head on top of mine.

“Of course, I promise.” I tilted my head upwards to press my lips firmly against his. He passionately returned my kiss.