The Moonlight Ritual

This one has all my favorites wrapped up in it. :D
It's also an AU (also known as Alternate Universe), and is in no way associated with the actual storyline I have in place for my "under construction" book.
It's just that, sometimes, I need a break from Gla'nnara. And then my characters end up in Seattle, or Los Angeles...anywhere other than Baton Rouge, really....................

Kael kicked the bottom of the door, lightly at first, then harder when no one came to open it for him. He shifted the paper bags in his arms, catching his breath when he nearly dropped one of the nine bags.

"Heeeeey!" Kael shouted. His deep voice rumbled through the open air walkways that separated their upscale condo from the thirty others who lived nearby.

Growling under his breath, Kael glared at the imposing door. It was only because of this slight blockade that he was kept out of his house. Kael felt his fingers dig into the paper bags as his hands tightened into fists. They were in there, the three of them, clearly ignoring his call for assistance. And this...this flimsy excuse for a barricade in front of him! Kael grit his teeth with anger. He was mere steps away from his journey's end. If only this door were gone!

Kael glanced both ways down the walkway before turning his red hot gaze back to the unwelcome hinderance. With a loud, earth shaking roar, Kael kicked. He felt it as his heavy, weighted boot connected with the wood of the door. A smile appeared on his face when he felt the door give way and splinter, allowing his foot all the way through.

Kael walked into his home, satisfied with the emotional release he had experienced. He dumped his bags onto the awaiting kitchen counter, and began removing the groceries from them.

"Kael!" Footsteps echoed through the room as Tiyana and Aldon rushed into the kitchen. "What did you do to our new door?" Tiyana exclaimed.

Looking over, Kael let his eyes drift over Tiyana's form briefly. She had a towel wrapped tight around her slender figure and her hair piled on top of her head messily, held by bobby pins.

"Geez, Kael! C'mon, man! That is not cool! We just fixed the door from last time!" Aldon whined, his hands on his hips. He too had a towel wrapped around him.

Kael quickly turned away from that image. "I yelled for help." He said as he returned to the groceries.

Cystenn laughed as he joined them in the kitchen. He held a margarita glass that was nearly empty. "Again, huh?" He set down his cup on the bar counter to lean over it and watch Kael's hands at work. "What was it this time?"

Kael glanced up at Cystenn. He noticed how Cystenn's hair had remained long, and glossy black, despite how times had changed. It seemed that no matter where or when they were, Cystenn would never change. "I needed in." Kael simply replied.

"Mmhmm." Cystenn downed the rest of his drink before swinging around the counter to stand next to Kael. "Ooh! Red bellpepper! Awesome!" He held the pepper in one  hand and used the other to trail along Kael's bicep. He grinned. "So, are you going to help me make dinner, gorgeous?"

Kael's facial features hardened. "No." Cystenn's flirtations were also something he would never be used to either.

"Oh, how terribly sad." Cystenn said, laughing. "In that case, leave this to me. Aldon?"

"Of course." Aldon answered quickly. He winked at Cystenn. "I would never refuse you, Prince."

Cystenn's smile faded. "Don't call me that." He demanded. "Tiyana, my love. Ready the things we'll need for tonight?"

Tiyana mockingly saluted him. "Certainly!"

Cystenn smiled again. "Now then." He turned back to Kael, who was shoving paper bags into the trash can. "Kael, if you would, go up to the roof. The tent still needs to be set up. Ha'Tera is up there, working on it right now." Cystenn gasped softly. Closing his eyes as though pained, he said, "Sorry. Adam is what I meant." He sighed. "I'll never get used to the idea that my Ha'Tera was reincarnated."

Kael nodded slowly. "At least...he came back to you." Cystenn's eyes opened, moist at the edges as he blinked away unshed tears. He smiled sadly, nodding at Kael.

The group split, each going their own ways to ready for the night. They only had two hours until nightfall, and performing the ritual would take most of the night. Every year, on June 16th, they would come together, no matter where they had been. This tradition had been started three years after the group had first settled together.

"I'm nervous, Aldon." Cystenn confessed as he stirred the bubbling pots on the stove.

Aldon chuckled. "Worried I'll kill him again?" Cystenn narrowed his eyes at Aldon and pressed his lips into a thin line. Aldon quickly pulled Cystenn close and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. "You don't have to worry about Ha'Tera, my prince."

Cystenn half heartedly shoved Aldon away. "I'm not a prince anymore." He muttered before biting into the strawberries he had set out for snacking.

"No, but you most certainly are still spoiled like a prince!" Aldon exclaimed, laughing loudly.
~
Kael hammered the last lock for the tent legs in place. Adam was at the other side of the tent, pulling the cover fabric into place and securing it. He glanced over at Kael, remembering Cystenn's speech to him about being friendly on the plane ride over.

"So...Kael. How do you know Cystenn? I've never heard him mention any of his friends or family before." Adam asked, trying desperately to start a conversation. Cystenn's happiness meant the world to him, and after nearly a year and a half, Adam was glad to finally meet Cystenn's "family". He wanted to make a good impression.

Kael stood up and tossed his hammer into his tool bag. "I've known Cystenn a long time. Not nearly as long as Aldon or Tiyana, but it still seems like an eternity."

"Oh, ok. So, childhood friends then?" Adam replied with a smile.

"Not exactly. But you'll learn about that tonght, I suppose."

This is where I'm ending it...for now. Sorry about the kind of abrupt ending, but I AM working on it, so I'll post more to it soon enough. Also, I realized there isn't much about Tiyana in this one, though at least now I can say there's something about her on here.

♥


Everything posted here is first draft material. This is how it comes from my head and onto the paper. So if you come across any horribly spelled words or anything that you yourself would change in my posts, please let me know. I love to hear other's opinions.