~~

Cedar

~~

Things got a little busy after my date with Casey. I went to the pack estate with Paul in preparation for a trip to visit the Warlocks. I may not feel like I was in love with Trinity anymore, not since I met Acacia, but she was still a good friend of mine. I would still love her in a way, I always would, and because I would always love her like family I would do what I could to help her. Not to mention she was my Luna Queen after all.

What surprised me the most about that visit to the estate was joining the Goddess Guard. Not only that but I was named as Reece's second Gamma and Paul and I were both granted abilities by Trinity. Paul could see where someone's true strength lies so he could train them better and I could control foliage like trees and plants. That was pretty awesome if I do say so myself.

After the new powers were granted to me and Paul we ended up leaving to head to the Aerie Convento, riding on Reece's private helicopter and making it there before everyone else. When we got there we had to prove ourselves in more ways than one.

First came proving ourselves head Warlock then we were almost immediately launched into a battle against some strange beasts that the evil sadistic bastard we were searching for had created.

And during that battle I had learned that Trinity was pregnant. Well, she had been. During the fight she had been injured and the baby was lost.

I used my new powers along with Trinity's cousin to help rebuild the headquarters for the Warlocks but we had to stay elsewhere that night. We all went to a resort and stayed for the night. During that time, Trinity ascended again. She was now not just the Queen of Shifters but also the Queen of the Warlock and Witches.

The next I was part of Trinity's group that rescued the kids that had been kidnapped. We had accomplished our mission and done what we wanted to do, casualties notwithstanding. Things could have ended better, yes, but they also could have been a lot worse.

There was a lot going on in the pack following that trip, but I wasn't part of it. I was a Gamma now but I was not one of Trinity's personal guards. Maybe I would be eventually but I was not yet.

That's fine though, the personal guards to Trinity were leaving for France and no one really knew how long they were going to be gone. Noah, Trinity's cousin, was staying behind to run the pack. And since Vincent, Trinity's guard and the first Gamma, was going with them I was responsible for helping Noah run the pack in Trinity and Reece's stead.

The pack was not an unruly one, so it didn't require too much work to make it all happen. And since Noah was a very confident overachiever I was not given too much work to do. Because of that, I was given permission to accompany my new mate to her home and meet her family, and her Queen.

To say that I was nervous to be meeting the Queen of the Fae was an understatement. I mean, who wouldn't be nervous about meeting a two thousand year old queen that looks like she is maybe thirty or forty years old. According to Casey she is an eternal beauty who has ruled for over a millennium. What the hell was I supposed to say to the woman?

I was nervous as fucking hell! But I wouldn't let that stop me. I wanted to be with my mate. I needed to be with her. I would never abandon her. I would never reject her. I would make her the most important woman to me in the entire world. So, I guess I was about to meet the Queen.

Can someone promise me this wouldn't be like the Queen that Alice had met? I don't want to hear anyone say off with his head.

~~

Acacia

~~

A lot had happened since I had met Cedar. He was a wonderful guy, and an excellent lover. He was strong and had a sense of justice that was hard to rival.

Not to mention, he was part of his Queen's Goddess Guard and had been granted an ability. When I told my Queen that my new mate could do plant magic she didn't believe me at first. She said she would expect a demonstration when I brought him to meet her. But seriously, how perfect was that?

I am a Dryad, all of my magic revolves around trees and plants. Now to have met a mate, a wolf mate at that, who could use similar magic. We must have been made for each other. This was wonderful.

We were on our way now, heading toward the private compound that was the home of all the Fae that didn't live in the human world. I could tell the Cedar was nervous, but he really didn't have a reason to be. Queen Gloriana was going to love him.

When Cedar pulled his car to a stop outside the gate Valoc was the one on guard duty. That was a tiny bit awkward for me since Valoc had been my first boyfriend, but we had remained friends after it.

"Good morning Acacia. I see you have returned. Is this the new soulmate that we have all heard about?" Valoc didn't sound any different than usual which was good.

"Indeed it is." I smiled at Cedar, showing my growing love for him. "I've come to introduce him to my family and to Queen Gloriana."

"Well, don't let me hold you up. Have fun you two." Valoc grinned and opened the gate for us.

"Is it me, or were his words a little ominous?" Cedar questioned as he started to drive forward.

"You're just being nervous. Relax." I soothed him as best as I could. "Everyone will love you."

"But, don't most Fae think like Breon? Don't they think that having a non Fae mate is a bad thing?" There was worry clearly dripping from those words.

"Some do. I admit that. But there are a lot that don't care. There are two factions among us Fae. Those that cling desperately to the past and the old ways, and those that are embracing a more accepting and varied future. We can't hope to remain strong as a whole if we do not evolve with the times, can we?"

"Having a different species for a mate is a little different than evolving with the times." He was laughing when he said that, like he thought I had been funny.

"Not to me. We used to be a closed off society that only bred within our own people. But that will severely limit us, don't you think? There will never be any new blood and everything will eventually get sullied. We need to bring in fresh faces and fresh genetics so that we can continue to grow and expand."

"Not to sound rude, but you know about genetics?" He looked confused.

"Several of us have been to college. I have been educated. And the books of the outside world have been brought in here for us to read. I may not have any hands- on experience but I have read medical texts for the last fifty years. It's fascinating to see how much things have advanced over that time."

"That is both really cool and very strange." He was laughing again. "You've been researching science since before I was born." He laughed even louder then. "I have myself a cougar."

"No, I'm a Dryad not a feline." How could he ever mix me up with a cat shifter?

"That's not what I meant." I don't know how he managed to continue driving with how much he was laughing.

Cedar then explained what a 'cougar' was and I also started to laugh. Well, he wasn't wrong I guess. I couldn't help myself, I laughed as well.

We finished the drive through our compound and went straight to the Queen's castle. Yes she actually lives in a castle at the center of the compound. The castle was the same one that had been in the earth mounds long ago. She had brought it with us when we purchased and enchanted this land.

The castle was large and looked just like the ones out of fairy tales. They really had based those tales off of us. The tall towers and spires. The lovely robins eggs blue. The stained glass that filled the windows. It was all so wonderful and perfect. And I was happy to call that place my home. I had grown up in that castle and I would never tire of seeing it. In there I would find my family: mom, dad, my seventeen brothers and sisters, most of my cousins, not to mention my favorite relative of all, my aunt the Queen.

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