My grandparents must have known I wasn't leaving my bed because I wasn't bothered at all the next morning. I wasn't completely devastated about Liam, but I sure as hell didn't want to face him, or them together. I woke on my own accord at 10 a.m. I felt sluggish and sick. I didn't have the motivation to move, so I didn't. I only got up to use the bathroom occasionally. I was too embarrassed to face even my grandparents. I was left alone, but I could sense when one of my grandparents would stand outside the door, tempted to check on me, only to change their mind at the last moment. They were trying to respect that I wanted to be left alone, but they were still worried about me.

I, being too embarrassed to leave my room, decided to use the time to try and Google about my newfound abilities on my laptop. The empath stuff came up no problem, but the rest of it was a bit hard to make sense of. Of course, searching about the visions just pulled up a bunch of ads for psychics. I tried searching for things related to the moon, moon goddess and werewolves. I just ended up with a lot of stories and folklore.

I was so engrossed in my research that I didn't leave the house for the next week as I tried to make sense of what was happening to me. If I were honest with myself, I was scared to be around people when I didn't know what the consequences would be. Plus, it was a good way to get my mind off of Liam, and it only worked half of the time. He wasn't consuming my every thought, but he did come to mind every now and then.

The most interesting thing I found during my research was about the Moon Goddess. There were stories of the Moon Goddess having the power to grant love and punish the evil. Another story said the Moon Goddess was directly connected with the Fates and could see the future to protect her creatures, the wolves. The depiction from werewolf knowledge is a glowing figure with flowing white hair, glowing skin, and blue orbs for eyes with irises that mirrored the moon like mine did. It had her in flowing gray Grecian-style clothing that seemed to flow around her without the need for wind.

My research for moon-like eyes got a completely different result. There was a lot of speculation about what it meant, and plenty of forums to prove it. I sighed heavily as I leaned back and took a break. It seemed like it was just something I would have to discover on my own. After the first week of research, I moved on to trying to control whatever was happening to me. I started by focusing on my grandparents thoughts whenever I saw them or felt them outside my door. The more I practiced, the clearer their thoughts were. It wasn't just a feeling anymore; it was as if the words of their thoughts were scrolling across the bottom of a TV screen. It wasn't so loud that it was all I could think about. I worked on turning it on and off, although that was proving to be a lot harder.

"I was wondering when you would stop running from your gift," a voice said from inside my room. I knew that voice.

I despised that voice.

I turned slowly, praying it was just a trick of the mind, but lo and behold, there she was, perched on my vanity with her legs crossed. I couldn't help the way my heart sped up in fear as adrenaline ran through my veins.

"You're not real. You died, and I'm just going crazy. This is another weird tick, that's all," I said, trying to convince myself and make her disappear. I backed myself into a corner and slid my back down the wall until I was curled up with my knees in my chest. She rolled her eyes and hopped down from her perch.

"I am real. You're not imagining me. I know you can feel that much," she said as she came closer. She was right. I felt a pull of connection to her, even though my brain was telling me to fear her from history and habit. She smiled as she motioned to herself.

"Surprise! I'm not really dead," she said sarcastically. I wanted to cry and scream for help, but habit told me to keep my mouth shut out of self-preservation. I didn't want to make it worse.

"How?" I asked in a whisper as I tried to hold my tears back. She sighed and sat on the edge of my bed.

"Well, for one, I can't actually die because I'm immortal. But if you want the actual steps of how I did it, I staged the accident, used a little magic to look dead, and then waited until you got older," she explained.

"Magic?" I asked. She sighed and rolled her eyes.

"I had to keep you in the dark when it came to your abilities. You were too young. Your father was the one who wanted to keep your wolf heritage a secret. Although, he should've just told you. Why do you think I stuck around?" she asked. I shrugged.

"You got a kick out of torture?" I guessed. Her eyes went fiery... literally. Her irises turned to flames for a quick second before she calmed down a hair.

"I did not 'get a kick' out of torturing a child, but it was the only way. The whip I used suppressed your abilities. It was enhanced that way a long time ago by a very old and very powerful goddess. You were a child, I had to at least pretend there was a reason for it. And when your powers did surface, I had to make you forget; which is where the force-fed chicken came in," she explained.

Evelyn was alive and standing right in front of me... my brain was still trying to process that.

"Why did it involve torture?" I asked, too scared to relax. "And why leave when I was 12 is that was the case?" I added.

"I left because it was time for you to begin learning, but he never told you," she explained. "As for the torture, the magic was not set up by me. Witches created their tools to restrict abilities and memories from enemies, not children. I couldn't control the form it came in," she answered.

"So you want me to believe that you beat me to protect me... from myself?" I asked confused. She nodded. I tried to read her to see if she was telling the truth, but I was getting nothing from her except a strange sense that we were connected. It felt like I was trying to read myself. I couldn't find her thoughts no matter how hard I concentrated. She rolled her eyes at me.

"You won't be able to read me, child. I'm not a mortal. My real name is Arianrhod. I am the goddess of the stars and the sky of Welsh origin. Goddess of beauty, the moon, and magic. More commonly referred to as the Moon Goddess by my children. But I prefer Aria," she explained. I stared at her not quite sure how to feel or what to do. I didn't believe it. That would mean that my childhood nightmare was the Moon Goddess herself. It was impossible.

"You can't be... there's no way," I said, trying to come to terms with what was happening, if it was even real. She wasn't the glowing white figure depicted from Liam's memories. This was Evelyn, not the Moon Goddess. She sighed heavily before she stood and changed into the exact depiction I was thinking of. My eyes bulged. Had I not already been sitting, I would've fallen over. She wasn't kidding.

"This," she said motioning to her body as it lit up the room. I had to squint with how bright she seemed to glow, "is just for flash. People fear you more when you look nothing like them. But I prefer my true Welsh image," she said, changing back into the red-headed figure I was more familiar with.

"I'm dreaming. I have got to be dreaming," I said to myself as I looked away from her.

"I would slap you to prove otherwise but you would only freak out more. You have seriously got to toughen up. I thought I would've helped you in some way by showing you the world can be a lot crueler than you know, but you're even more timid if that's even possible. Pull up your big girl panties and respect your gift. You're the only one who has anything like it," she said.

"I-I have no idea what I'm doing! I don't even know what I can do, or if I can turn it off, or if I'll pass out every time I use it even if it's an accident," I rambled.

"That was because of the New Moon. That's why I'm here. Watching you suffer was getting pathetic. You haven't left this house in two weeks, and for no other reason other than the fact that you're embarrassed. I even made the full moon closer to help you feel more energized and you didn't even notice! Do you know how often I pull the moon closer? Not often," she complained. She reminded me of an upset teenager. A giggle escaped my lips and I felt a little better.

"So you're going to teach me?" I asked unsurely. I was worried that 'teaching' involved more whips and undercooked chicken.

"No, not in the way you think. Like actual classes, no pain, just strain because you've never done it before. You are my Earthly representation after all, and you're embarrassing. Hiding from your mate and always feeling sorry for yourself. Grow a pair. Liam will come around, he's just being childish right now. And Sophia will get hers, too. There's an order of things in this world. She's going against it," the Moon Goddess/Evelyn/Arianrhod/Aria said. I had no idea what to call her. She wore too many hats. I was offended and relieved at the same time.

"What do I call you?" I asked confused. She laughed something that sounded like clear crisp bells.

"Aria will do. Evelyn seems a bit evil, doesn't she?" she asked as her head tilted slightly. Her perfect red curls falling over her shoulder slightly. I nodded slowly. She chuckled as she stood in front of me and offered me a hand up. I hesitated before I took it and stood in front of her. Her hands brushed my hair behind my shoulders before she placed a kiss on my forehead. I instantly felt ten times better. My anxiety was gone, and I felt... confident and happy.

"You're going to be just fine," she promised.

"What was that?" I asked curiously.

"A temporary mute on your visions until I can teach you how to block them out yourself. Tomorrow, you will go to school, and you can touch people without your eyes going all lunar. We'll start training tomorrow when you get back. It's a gift, not a burden," she explained before she disappeared.

I felt... better.