Beneath Midnight's Moon

style='font-size:14.0pt;font-family:Papyrus;color:blue'>Chapter Seven:

Getting
up from his hiding place, Eclipse brushed himself off and walked out of the
woods. Immediately after the sunlight
touched him, he could feel Balder’s gaze sweeping over him.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> His hair was pulled back in its usual
ponytail at the base of his neck, and he’d chosen to leave his shirt at his
aunt’s, leaving him clad in his jeans.
Despite the heat, even loups garous weren’t immune to poison
ivy. He wore two gold loops in each of
his earlobes, and one in his cartilage, giving him three piercings in each
ear. On his right wrist he wore a
silver-colored bracelet engraved with Celtic knots and ancient runes, an
earlier gift from his mother.

He
tried to steady his voice, “I apologize for trespassing, Sir, as well as for
lying in wait the way I did.”

“Why
would a young lad like you be so far away from home?”

“I
came to see you. At least, if your name
is Balder.” Eclipse said, immediately
wishing he hadn’t, for Balder’s stance grew defensive as he stood.

“And
just what would you want with him?” He asked, the Scottish accent gone, “Who
sent you?”

“You
know, you won’t convince anyone that you’re not him if you get so
defensive. A human could see through
you. Please, no one sent me.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> Actually, I sent myself, if that makes you
feel any better?”

It
did, if only minimally, and Eclipse noticed the more relaxed stance, “What’s
your name?”

“Eclipse
Quentin Rouvel. May I assume that you
are Lord Balder?” He asked, noticing the
lack of accent was still present, and that the other man’s stance was prepared
to get defensive if need be.

“You
may. Balder is fine, no formality for
me,” he said, checking the woods, “you alone?”

“No,
I came with my familiar. Other than him,
I came with no one else.”

He
nodded, “Good. Why’re you here, then?”

“Merely
to speak with you, Sir. I actually had
no idea that I would be speaking with you.
Not today, anyway.”

“Come
inside,” he commanded suddenly, “quickly!”

By
no means about to question or argue, Eclipse saw Midnight lope away from his
hiding place while his master rushed to do Balder’s bidding.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> Stepping into the entryway behind the ivy,
Eclipse first saw the card table Balder must use as a dining table.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> This sight wasn’t the first thing to greet
him, however. Smell was the sense that
overrode the other four, and it was one scent in particular that struck him
like a herd of stampeding bulls:

Bitch.

Before
he could make any further mental notes about the she-wolf’s scent, Eclipse
heard Balder enter, “So why...?”

“Sshhh!style='mso-spacerun:yes'> Head for the stairs.”

Doing
as he was told, Eclipse headed for a set of stairs that had been carved into
the stone, “What the hell’s going on here?!”

“If
only we could hide our scents from outside...”
Balder muttered just as Eclipse’s right foot touched the top of the
stairs.

“I
can,” Eclipse said without thinking, “just let me face the entrance.”

Not
waiting for Balder’s response, Eclipse turned and willed the wildflowers to
spread and to increase the scent they put into the air.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> He also willed poison ivy to weave itself
about the flowers to make a sort of net.
It would make even the most graceful loup garou trip and fall
into an itchy trap. Not wanting to take
any chances, he willed the flowers to grow on the ivy over the cave’s
entrance. Pleased with his work, he
directed the flowers to put out their scent into the clearing and not the cave.

Balder’s
voice hitched, “What did you do?”

“Botany,”
he answered simply, “it’s my specialty.
Do we still need to go downstairs?”

He
shook his head and put his index finger to his lips, a signal even Eclipse
could understand. Once again not about
to question the elder loup garou, he waited to hear just what they were
hiding from.

Voices.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> About fifteen different voices were nearing
their small enclosure, all of them loups garous.

“Nioki’s
spear! This place reeks!style='mso-spacerun:yes'> No way any of us could live
here.” Exclaimed one.

“Lord
Falcon says that she’s powerful. Almost
as powerful as he is.”

“Then
that means she has a stronger nose!” The first argued, “Meaning that this stuff
smells worse to her than it does to us!
It’s too damn strong for any loup garou.”

Silence.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> Then, “All right, you’ve got a point.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> We’ll tell him that we searched here and
found nothing. C’mon, let’s get out of
here. I got a headache.”

Ears
picking up the sound of fifteen pairs of footsteps heading in the opposite
direction, Eclipse let out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> Lord Falcon had sent those men to find the
woman that he’d claimed with neither her knowledge nor consent.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> The very thought made his blood boil.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> Unable to explain the sudden urge to protect,
Eclipse drew in a few calming breaths before turning to face Balder.

“So
tell me, Eclipse,” the elder loup garou began, his face hidden by
shadows, “why are you really here?”