8. A Pinch Of Reality, And A Gallon Of Crazy.

“Well, we have one hour until the portal opens. Until then, I’m going to be sleeping. Because this is all just some crazy dream and I’ll wake up eventually.” I stood up and groaned as my aching muscles screamed in pain.

“This isn’t a dream, Luna. You’re not going to wake up from it because it’s reality, and you’ll have to accept that.” He sighed, walking over to the fridge and pulling out a bag of marshmallows. “Go to sleep, you’ll need your energy.”

“Why? So I can go through something like a sci-fi movie?! I didn’t ask for this and I don’t want it. It’s your fault I’m here in the first place!” I huffed and threw a couple pillows at him.

“What?! How is it MY fault? Huh?” He yelled, throwing the bag of marshmallows at me.

“You could’ve just let me die when I was a baby! Who knows, I might’ve survived anyways! I don’t need someone to protect me, alright? Just…just go!” I shrieked, jerking my arm to point at the door. Orion flew through the air and slammed into the door.

“Ughh.” He groaned, getting back up as I raced over.

“Orion, are you okay?!” I asked, helping him over to the bed. “Why the hell did you fling yourself into the door?!” Plucking pillows up from the ground, I rolled him onto the bed and shoved the pillows underneath his head.

“That wasn’t me, it was you.” He grinned weakly then closed his eyes.

“You- you’re not dying, right?!” I shook his shoulders and he let out a yelp. Pushing my hands away, he laughed.

“Of course I’m not dying. But marble doors hurt, you know. And you slammed me into it pretty hard.” He smiled and pulled me into a hug. “No more slamming people into doors, hm?”

“Yeah, okay,” I blushed and squirmed out of his arms. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to. I just got so mad and…and…” I started waving me arms frantically.

“I know, you didn’t know that you could do that, right? Listen, we have about fifty minutes of sleep, so we better use it, kay?”

“Alright,” I sighed and plopped onto the couch, “but if we get killed, I’m blaming you.” I smirked, pulling blankets over my head.

“You would.”




“Luna.”

“Mmm, no, lemme sleep.”

“Luna!”

“Noooo…”

“LUNA, WAKE UP!” A woman shrieked, making my eyes snap open.

“What?! Ow!” I shielded my eyes from the bright light she emitted.

“Look at me.”

“I’ll pass, thanks. Don’t wanna go blind anytime soon.” I shrugged, not lowering my arm.

“Look at your mother when she speaks to you!”

“Wha?!” I lowered my arm to stare at her. She had my straight black hair, my blue eyes, and my pale skin. Her presence was commanding and she wore the smirk I normally did. “Mom? I thought you were dead!”

“Well, gee. Thanks.” She rolled her eyes. “I am, but you’re dreaming. This is the only time I will be able to talk to you like this unless…”

“Unless what?”

“Well, there’s this necklace…but it’s in the Shadow’s Realm. I put a part of my soul into it so that I would be able to speak to people even after I died.”

“That’s weird.”

“Yes, but it works! Well, it does, but I dropped it into the ocean when I was flying a couple years ago.” She smiled nervously.

“Smooth move. So, I’ll look for it. Where is it in the ocean?”

“I think I dropped it in an area filled with sharks. It’s near an island with trees that grow weapons of diamonds and gold.”

“What is this?! Fairy Tale Land? Great, so I’ll pick up a couple weapons, kill the sharks, and get the necklace.”

“It’s not that easy.”

“What? Why not?”

“Well, uh, the sharks…are…made of diamond.”

“Oh! Great!” I threw my hands up and sighed. “What am I supposed to do, huh?”

“On the island, there is one tree. It is hidden deep within a cave, it emits a strong light and it itself is enormous. The weapon it makes will be tougher than diamonds, it’s clear and deathly sharp. If you can get it, you can kill the sharks.”

“Well, that’s great. I feel like an elf on a quest. So why didn’t you talk to me before?”

“When you were hidden as a baby, even I didn’t know where you were. Either half of you.”

“Yeah, so, what happened to the other me?”

“She died.”

“Great.”

“Oh no! I have to go, as soon as you’re in the Realm, take Orion with you to look for the island, no one else.”

“Gotcha. Bye, mom.”

“Goodbye, Artemis.”

“Who’s Artemis?”

“You are! Luna is just your nickname.”

“Oh.” I smirked then blacked out.




“LUNA!”

“AGH!” I screamed and fell off of the couch. “What?” I snapped at Orion.

“It’s time to go.” He laughed, helping me to my feet. “So, think you’re ready? Being as you were freaking out a little while ago.”

“I’m never ready.”

“Alright, it should be here any moment,” he mumbled, dragging me to the center of the room. “Now Luna, no matter what happens, stay calm. Don’t freak out.”

“Gotcha,” I grinned and gave him a thumbs up. “I mean, have you ever known me to do something stupid?”

“Yes.” He stared blankly at me.

“Yeah, well, who asked for your opinion?” I stuck my tongue out at him.

“Uh, you?”

“Yeah, yeah. Shut up.”

“Here it comes!” He yelled, as a gust of wind swept through the room. A circle appeared in front of us. As it got bigger and bigger, it looked like a black hole, waiting to suck us in.

“Whoa…dude, this is awesome.”

“Just wait till you’re on the other side. You’ll get to meet your subjects, your sisters, the animals.”

“Do the animals look weird?”

“Some of them.”

“Am I going to die by the black hole tearing me to shreds? And then the pieces of me drift on throughout space but no one ever finds them?”

“No, now let’s go!” he laughed and pulled me into it.

7. Always More To Life.

By the time I walked into the room, Orion had fallen asleep on the bed. “Orion, wake up.” I walked over and started poking him.

“Nyuuuh,” he groaned and pulled the covers over his head.

“I get to sleep during daylight, you don’t.” I jumped onto bed, ripping the covers from him. Flopping down, I buried myself in the covers.

“Ugh.” Groggily he got out of bed and went over to the fridge, pulling a sandwich and some juice out of it. “Cover stealer.” He smirked at the giant bundled up lump on the bed.

“It’s what I do.” I grinned.

“Of course it is,” he flicked on the T.V. and drank some juice.

“What kind of sammich is that?” I asked, scurrying across the floor with the blankets.

“Turkey. Last one.” He waved it in front of my face and took a bite. “But, as you now know, it’s mine.” He shrugged and started flipping through the channels.

“Like hell, it is.” I grabbed the sandwich, tore of the part he’d bitten and tossed it back at him. “It’s mine now, loser.” I smirked and stole his juice.

“Hey, that was mine!” he grabbed for it and I pulled it away. “And that was my sandwich.”

“Keyword being was.” I snickered then shoved the whole sandwich in my mouth and slowly ate it. Downing the juice, I handed the glass back to him and smacked my lips. “Thanks for the snack.” Plopping down next to him, I stole the remote and flipped to a channel.

“That was mean.” He said, narrowing his eyes.

“I’m mean,” I shrugged, staring at the TV.

“No, you’re an evil, maniacal genius.” He stared at the TV, too.

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Hm, nothing good is on.” I flipped through the channels once more before tossing the remote back to him. “So what are we gonna do till dinner?” I glanced at my watch, “Ugh, it’s two hours away.”

“Wanna go to the beach?” he flipped the TV off and flicked the remote into a couch corner.

“Um,” I glanced out the window, there was a furious thunderstorm raging, “Sure.”




“Hey, Luna!” Orion screamed from twenty feet away as I slowly waded through the icy cold water. “Don’t drown,” he pointed at the giant waves crashing in, several yards away.

“I won’t. If I did, who’d be here to get on your nerves?” I laughed. “Besides, the worst that’ll happen is the waves drown me, carry me away to the middle of nowhere, I get eaten by sharks and nobody misses me. Doesn’t sound too terribly bad.”

“Yeah, well, just don’t drown.” He laughed, setting up a beach chair and lying down in it. “We’ve been here for an hour, when do ya wanna head back?”

“Five more minutes,” I sighed, staring down at the rippling water. Suddenly the water smoothed and a girl stared back. “Holy crap!” I shouted, quickly backing away from the water. The reflection followed me no matter where I went so I decided to just stay put.

“What’s wrong, Luna?” Orion shouted as he stood at the edge of the beach.

“Nothing, go back to your chair thingy.” I waved him away and stared back at the girl. “Cassie?” I choked out as I stared at the familiar image of a girl with long, silver hair and blood-red eyes.

“Luna!” the girl shrieked, reaching to grab me in a hug before she hit whatever it was she saw me through and fell backwards. Rubbing her head, she got back up.

“I thought you were just a figment of my imagination, appearing only in my dreams?” I raised an eyebrow and folded my arms, staring at her expectantly.

“No! Well, sort of,” she said, her face twisting in thought. “That dream happened, and didn’t.”

“Eh?”

“You’re only half of you,” she stated, tilting her head.

“I repeat, eh?”

“Okay, it’s like this: you’re the eldest daughter of the Queen of Shadows. Shadows are one-third vampire, one-third werewolf, and one-third of all other mythological creatures with the appearance of a human, until they reach a certain age. Unless you’re to be the next queen, then you look the same,” she nodded at me then continued, “Shadows are the peacemakers of all creatures. Chaos is reigning because the queen died two months ago, and we need your help.”

“…I’m a queen now?” I sighed, rubbing my temples, “AND I’m supposed to settle a feud between giant, powerful monsters? End chaos, happy ending, that sort of thing?”

“Basically, yes.” She stared blankly back.

“You were wanted dead as a baby by evil creatures, you know. Your spirit was split in half, each getting an identical body, just in case someone actually killed one of you.” Orion hugged me from behind and poked the mirror thing. A spark flew through his finger. “I was sent to guard this half of you,” he grinned and flashed fangs.

“Lemme guess, you didn’t have your shadow power stuff or appearance all this time? And you just got it by touching that mirror thing?”

“Yup.”

“You knew about this all this time?”

“Yup.”

Turning around, I punched him in the face. “You should’ve told me,” I pouted. “Oh, hey, I want powers.” I glanced at Cassie, waiting for her answer.

“You’ll get several after you break this crystal. You’ll learn or pick up others later.”

“Alright!” I raised my arm, ready to punch the crystal.

“WAIT!” she waved frantically. “We need you here. There will be a gate in your room in exactly three hours. Go through it.”

“That all?”

“Yes.”

“Alrighty then!” I beamed and smashed my fist against the crystal. Pulling my arm back, I yelped in pain, the crystal wasn’t broken. “Oh, let me guess.” I sighed, rolling my eyes and flicked the glass lightly. It shattered into a million pieces and flew into me. Pain soared through my body like spikes and the world blacked out.




“Lunaaaa.” My blurry vision cleared, and I saw Orion staring down at me. “You okay? You’ve been out cold for two hours. I had to cancel meeting Ceres for dinner.”

“Ughhh,” I groaned and sat up, my head was spinning.

“How do you feel?”

“Like I’ve been pounded with sledgehammers and struck by lightning,” I smirked, standing up and stretching. “Alright, let’s try this.” I jumped onto the couch, ready to take of. Dashing from one edge to the other, I flew, for two seconds, then fell. “Alright, so I can’t fly.”

Orion burst out laughing, “No, apparently not.” He came over and helped me up. “What on earth made you think that you could fly?”

“I thought it’d be a power I got.”

“What?” he asked confused, staring at me like I was nuts.

“I’m a shadow, aren’t I?”

“A what?”

“Are you kidding me? That couldn’t have been a dream.” I sighed and plopped down onto the couch. Too bad she can’t fly yet, I wonder when she’ll get it. “What’d you say?” I asked, turning to stare at Orion.

“I didn’t say anything,” He shrugged. Did her head get messed up when I whacked it against the door on accident when I was bringing her back from the beach?

“AHA! I knew it! I am a shadow,” I jumped up and pointed at him. “I can read minds. Now why were you trying to convince me that I wasn’t a shadow?”

Sighing, he rubbed the back of his neck. “I didn’t want you to be put in danger.” I love her too much.

“Geez, I thought the you-liking-me thing was a joke.” I stared, wide-eyed.

“Nope.” He shrugged and sat down, obviously uncomfortable.

“Well, this is awkward,” I plucked a pillow from the couch and started poking at it while avoiding eye contact with Orion.

“Yup.”

6. Kids At A Hotel.

“Ohnoohnoohnohnoohno!” Orion cried s he fell out of the elevator, his face impaling into the ground. A heavy suitcase followed after him, landing with a hard ‘thud’ on his back.

“I told you my suitcase was too heavy for you,” I laughed, walking out of the elevator and picking the suitcase up, off his back. “But, hey, what do I know?” I shrugged as Ceres and I stared down at him.

“Apparently everything.” He grunted, trying unsuccessfully to shove the suitcase off his back or even roll out from under it.

“Good to know that you finally realized it.” I plucked the suitcase off of him and casually slung it over my shoulder. “So. Are you getting up or what?” I grinned and started walking off.

“Yeah, yeah,” he groaned as he got up, “what did you put in there, rocks?” Grumbling, he caught up next to me, Ceres following behind him.

“No, I put a rock in there.”

“Isn’t that what I said?”

“Pfsh. No. You said rocks, I said a rock. I had to take it. It has an ancient spell written on it from my great great great great,” I started counting on my fingers as I spoke, “great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great--”

“ENOUGH!” he interrupted, clamping his hand over my mouth. I bit one of his fingers and he yelped.

“Great Grandmother. Geez, Orion, you’re so impatient.” I rolled my eyes and Ceres giggled. “Yo, Ceres, it’s your room.” I pointed at the giant black marble door with silver swirls running through it. “Fanciful.” I remarked, lightly brushing a finger against it. “I feel sorry for the dude who has to polish this thing.”

“Yeah, the poor guy.” Ceres mumbled, rummaging through her bag and pulling the key out. “Huh, the locks not on the door, weird.” She slid the card through a slot on the wall. Gears turned and we heard several clicks before the door slid open. “Now THAT’S cool.” Ceres grinned and stepped into the room. “I’ll see you guys at dinner.” She waved right before the door slammed shut.

“All right then, to our room! Wait, no, that didn’t sound right. To our love nest!” I burst out laughing and dashed over to the next door, sliding the key through the slot and slamming the door before Orion could get in. “Ooo, you don’t know what you’re missing,” I whispered through the door. “There’s a hot tub, a giant fluffy bed with tons of pillows, there’s two floors, a giant fridge stocked with food…hey, is this champagne?”

“C’mon, Luna. Let me iinnnnn.” He whined, scratching at the door. “Please?” I felt sorry for him after he repeatedly whacked his head against the door and unlatched the door.

“You know you DO have a key.” I peeked through the partially opened door, watching him search his pockets until he pulled out the card key.

“…you’re dead.” He grinned deviously and pushed the door open the rest of the way then started chasing me.

“Ahhhh!” I shrieked, running up the steps to the fridge and pulling a container of whipped cream out. “Back! I’ll shoot.” I narrowed my eyes, pulling the lid off and pointing the can at him.

“You wouldn’t.” He said and reached for the whipped cream. Startled, I squirted him in the face. “I can’t see!” he stumbled around for a few seconds before falling over the rail, into the hot tub.

He came up gasping and I leaned over the rail, smirking. “How’s the water? I always wanted to see someone do that, but I never thought it’d really happen.”

“I hope you’re happy,” he grumbled, splashing his way out and grabbing a towel to dry off.

“I’m never happy,” I retorted and stuck my tongue out at him.

“And just why not?” he asked, balling the towel up and throwing it in my face. “You had to have been happy at least once.” Rolling his eyes, he walked over and started rummaging through his suitcase and pulling new clothes out.

“Yeah, when I was ignorant. The world is a cruel, cruel place and unless you learn to be heartless and unhappy at some points, you’ll never last.” I tossed the towel back at him and flopped onto the bed in a belly flop then bounced back up and stared at him.

“You like giving people the cold, harsh truth, don’t you?” he muttered and started to change, tossing his wet shirt in a corner.

“It’s called tough love. And you know you shouldn’t undress in front of a girl unless you know that it’s okay, right?” I said, getting up and standing beside him.

“You’re not a normal girl, Luna. We’ve known each other for like, ever.” He rolled his eyes and started slipping his pants off.

“You’re right.” I grinned and slapped his bare back as hard as I could. Laughing, I took off through the door to the hallway, hearing him shriek behind me.





Groaning, I picked up my ringing cell phone, “You’ve reached the depths of Hades, how may I direct your call?” I said perkily.

“Where are you!?” Orion screamed through the phone, forcing me to hold it arm’s length away. “You left a red handprint on my back and it feels worse than sunburn.” He groaned.

“I told you not to get undressed in front of me,” I smirked, twirling a pen through my fingers.

“Alright, I learned my lesson,” he chuckled, “how do you put up with me? I never listen to anybody.”

“I think I can break you of that. I’m in the lobby at the front desk, by the way.”

“What are you doing there?”

“Well, when I was running, I tripped over a luggage cart and went flying. I fell on top of the guy at the desk, and he went unconscious.”

“By you falling on him?”

“Sort of, his head put a hole through the wall. I think he’s okay, though. It doesn’t look like he has a concussion or broken bones or anything.”

“You mean he put a hole in a wall, right?”

“Nope, through.”

“You better get back here.”

“Yeah, I paid the manager for the damages already. I guess I’ll come back up. PROVIDED you don’t try to get me back.”

“Deal.”

“Alright, I’ll be up in a few minutes.” Sighing, I put the phone back in its case and hopped over the desk.

5. Old Friends.

“Luna!” a tiny, gothic Japanese girl with black streaks through her hot pink hair waved as we exited the airport. “I haven’t seen you in forever!” she shrieked, running over and tackling me.

“You know, Ceres. It looks kind of odd to have some random person attack you while you’re on vacation in Hawaii,” I smirked, getting up. “And!” I continued, holding up a finger, “it’s only been three years.” I grinned looking at the saddened Ceres from the corner of my eye. “Buuut, I suppose it has been a while.”

She perked up and beamed. “Yay!” she giggled wrapping me in a death hold. I mean, hug. “Oohh, lemme guess, this is Orion?” she asked, letting go of me as she walked around Orion and stared at him.

“Sadly, yes,” I grinned, stepping between them and linking my arms in theirs. “Come onnnn, I don’t want to grow old and die before exploring the island!” I tugged them along side of me.

“Waiiiit! Who’s this person?” Orion asked, peeking over at Ceres as we walked. “You didn’t tell me there was a person waiting for us.”

“Well, I didn’t know. Remember the nerdy kid from our class three years ago? She wore the whole nerd get-up and I was the only one who talked to her?” I laughed as Ceres made a face at me. “The nerd that seems to have acquired style over the years.”

“The one who followed you over to my house when I was sick? And helped you throw me into the tub filled with boiling water?” he grumbled, staring at the two of us as we tried our best to look angelic.

“Yup, Ceres is that girl,” I smirked and nodded at her. “I bet she knew we were coming here so she traveled ahead of time to greet us. Little Miss psychic person!” I gasped, pointing at the laughing Ceres.

“What? She is not,” Orion chuckled disbelievingly. “How do I know that you didn’t call her up and organize this? It’s a conspiracy against me, I tell you! A conspiracy!”

“I’ve dealt with this for an adequate length of time,” I sighed. “Stupid techno-irritant. Orion, turn around. Every time, I swear. She always thinks it’s a conspiracy.” I said, spinning him around. “Stupid little chips,” I muttered, lifting Orion’s hair up and pulling a flashing chip off of his skin then tossing it into the ocean.

“Thank You, Luna!!!!” Orion yelled, gripping me in a bear hug. “Never ever let me go to Sam’s house again. She’s pure evil.” He gasped, putting me down then falling over.

“She’s not ‘evil’ per say. She’s more of a… stalker. Heh, you have a stalker.” I snickered, plucking one of his hairs. “If you don’t want to fight for your free will, stay away from her.” I sighed, pulling him back up. “If she thinks I’ll never tell the difference between the two of you, she’s sadly mistaken.”

“You’re cruel.” He grinned, getting back up.

“Cruel, but honest. So, I’m guessing she activated the chip after I dashed off towards the airport?” I started walking again and they followed. “I’m going to enjoy my vacation with Ceres and lover boy, nothing shall stop me!” I beamed as we walked towards the hotel.





“Whoa,” I stared in awe at the towering gold structure with tropical plants in the gardens on all sides. Vines wrapping around the building, covering a good amount of it.

“Double whoa,” Ceres added.

“Dude,” Orion gasped.

“Shall we go in?” I asked, tearing my gaze from the building and picking up some of the luggage. “Orionnn, get the rest? Pretty please?”

“’Kay,” he mumbled, dragging the rest of the luggage in with us.

“I got the keys!” Ceres waved the plastic cards as she walked back from the desk. “I get 706 and you two get, um…” she pushed the bag slung over her shoulder behind her and squinted at the numbers. “…708. Yay, our rooms are next to each others!”

“What?” Orion asked, flabbergasted. “I thought you were joking about sharing a room?” he nervously chuckled.

“Orion, relax. Just think of it as the sleepover we had when we were four,” I patted his back, then walked over to the elevator and pressed the ‘up’ button.

“But you tried to kill me then!”

“I had a logical explanation!” I snapped. “I thought you were a character from a horror movie! A creature so vile, it chilled me to my very soul.” I murmured, staring blankly ahead of me.

“We watched a videotape of Barney,” he folded his arms as he came up next to me.

“Sha, his eyes were freaky. All plastic and lifeless, singing songs about manners and whatnot. I mean honestly, parents can teach their kids a whole book of etiquette in the time it takes to recover from watching the episode!” I shouted, throwing my arms up as we walked into the elevator.