"The Replacement Luna..."

Today...

Atlas:

"Something's different."

"What do you mean?" Glare asked holding the tome with both hands.

"The water level wasn't like this the last time I was here. It was like more than a hundred yards out there."

"So, more land is underwater?"

"Yes. Some rock formations. A few trees. A small cave that was a bit there, on that side." I enumerated what I remembered to be missing.

"From the present area we can work on right now, do you think there's an altar somewhere that we can use to summon the Oracle?"

I looked around at all the shrubberies, and overgrown weeds. Shaking my head I looked at Glare.

"Great. This has gotten more difficult than I expected. Good thing there's no one else out here." He handed the tome to me, then pushed the air infront of him with a murmured incantation. Immediately the water receeded and more land was divulged to us.

"Or, you could've just walked on water to find something." I said, embracing the tome.

"I didn't want you confusing me with a particular religious figure."

"Oh believe me, I know you're not that holy." I snickered.

"Shut up." He jokingly pushed me away. "Now let's walk and find this Oracle." He began leading the way.

"So, what are these Whiffs anyway?"

"They used to be Lycans like you. They turned to the dark arts and exchanged their ability to shift, for the ability to vanish."

"Why?" I asked curiously.

"They got their hearts broken. They lost the affection of someone they loved, either through death or the revelation that they were not mates."

"Wait. Shouldn't they have known to begin with if they were mates or not?" I asked, confused.

"Sometimes we like to take charge of our lives, and not rely on some divine intervention to shape our future."

"That's madness. Look at what happened to them, they got hurt because they chose to love someone other than who the goddess intended for them." It was too late for me to catch myself, I saw Glare look at me nervously before turning away.

"See anything suspicious?" He asked, obviously trying to change the subject.

"Glare, I'm sorry. I didn't mean..."

"It's alright Atlas. I've accepted that what we have is temporary. Only until you meet your mate, right? Just help me find this Oracle so we can be over and done with this mission."

Glare quickly walked ahead of me, a frown on his face. I felt real bad.

From the beginning, Glare has always had reservations about giving me his heart. He knew that what we were getting ourselves into was risky, more so for him. He could lose a lot if this relationship didn't work... and yet, he jumped right into it because he too felt the inexplicable pull.

I appreciate all that he's given me. His attention, his time, his love. I know I should try harder not to hurt him, afterall this was my idea, but what can I say? I'm not perfect. I know I'll slip from time to time, and say something dumb... and this was one of those times.

I rushed to catch up to him, and gently held his arm as I tried to keep him in place.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you." I apolgized.

"Like I said, Atlas. It's fine. Your question was valid. But it also warrants another question: why are we doing this eventhough we know we could end up hurt?" He asked, refusing to look at me.

"There is no guarantee of forever. Even mates have difficulties making their relationship work. It doesn't mean that just because they were destined by the goddess that it would be smooth sailing, it only meant that it had more chances of working out."

"Still... that's better than nothing. We're rushing into a relationship that already has a negative predisposition." He whispered.

"We have today. We have now. Tomorrow may not be certain, but right now we have each other. We've already won as a couple... today. Let's just do this day to day. Don't plan too much, don't think too much. Today is all we really have... share that, with me. I love you Glare, today I offer my heart to you if you'll have me?"

"Today. Yes. You have me, today. I love you too Atlas." And I felt both the happiness in his embrace, and the sadness in his heart.