Ghosts of Solstice Past

Hello Readers, 

Another gift from me to you this holiday season in the only way I know how with a *FREE* Chapter! This one does focus on our lovely leads, Damon and Elle but is flashback scenes like the Thanksgiving day dinner...or should I say fiasco? These chapters would have been included as bonuses at the end of the book, but I decided to spread them throughout the holidays as little gifts to all of you. *THE POSSESSIVE ALPHA IS STILL ONGOING* *REGULAR POSTING WILL RESUME 12/26/2022.* 

Please check out Emma's Little Rebels for all the latest gossip, sneak peeks, fan theories, and character teasers. 

I hope you have had a wonderful time with your friends, family, and loved ones this holiday season.

XOXO 

Emma Taylor 

P.S. I plan on doing a New Years' Eve flashback as well, completely free. 

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ELLE POV 

Damon 11 and Elle "Ten"- Before The Spells 

"Can we go any faster," I say, growing impatient with the drive from our pack to New Moon. It had been weeks since I had seen Damon, and I miss him. There is an explainable comfort in having him around, and I don't understand it, but if I go another week without seeing him, I might die. 

"Penelope, honey..." my mother sighs once more from the front seat, "we will be there in fifteen minutes. Can you please stop asking now?" She turns to look at me in the middle, her bright green eyes shining at me. 

"We aren't there yet, and no one else is around. Can you please call me by my name?" I ask with an air of attitude, hating the fake name they gave me, and especially hate lying to Damon about it. He is my best friend, we talk on the phone daily, and every time the name Penelope leaves his mouth, I internally cringe. "Secondly, it's been weeks since I saw Damon, and dad is intentionally driving like an old man."

"Elle," comes my father's stern voice from the driver's side, "you know why we keep your name and true looks under disguise, don't you? We hate doing it, but it's for your protection. You understand, right?" 

"Don't I get a say in this?" I demand to know, looking between the adults who had decided the course of my life without my input. "It is my life, you know? You can't just dictate everything about it!" I counter-entering in an argument we have had too many times for me to count when the reality of keeping this lie settled in was too late for any intervention on my part. They had already dug a hole too deep for me to climb out of. 

"Enough!" My mother says, with more force behind her words, smacking her knees in annoyance. She turns back to look at me, her brows pinched with annoyance. "Damnit, Elle, how many times will we have this conversation? You know the reasons for our decisions, and you know we aren't changing it, so drop it!" 

Eyes that mirror mine stare back at me, playing chicken to see who dares to look away first, neither of us willing to relent. "Goddess, help me," my father, Alaric, mutters from his front breath while his eyes look up at the car ceiling like he is silently praying for relief. 

"What?" My mother says, glancing at my father, a grin taking over my face, silently gloating at her ability to get easily distracted, "she gets it all from you." She remarks, teasing him, but my father only smiles as he grabs her hand to kiss the palm of her hand in admiration, the love between them almost sickening. 

"Sure," he says, keeping his attention on the road in front of him as we approach the front gates of New Moon, my excitement spiking once more at finally returning. "she gets her fiery red hair and personality from me, sure." The amount of sarcasm in his words is enough to fill the entire car. 

Waving us through the gate, I am excited as our SUV roars down the long drive toward the New Moon pack house. 

*******************

Ten minutes later, we are standing in front of the New Moon packhouse, and it takes every ounce of control I have not to run around looking for Damon to give him the gifts I got for him. A car pulling up behind us reveals the Beta family, with Theo practically jumping out of the car to meet me at the steps. 

He always takes responsibility as my Beta so seriously and hates leaving my side if he can help. I know the only reason he is here is that he probably demanded to join. He absolutely detests when I am gone too far or for too long. 

"Theo," I scold him as he steps out of the car, crossing my arms over my chest, "why are you here? I am visiting Damon, not going to war; you didn't need to tag along." 

"And if something happened on the ride?" he  questions, giving the attitude right back, "what then, Little Luna?" 

Hearing the nickname he and the other boys insist on calling makes me roll my eyes. Idiots can only see me for what I will be to someone else and not who I am for me. "Don't call me that," I demand, throwing my energy into it, earning a glare from my mother to cool it. 

A smart remark sits on tip of my tongue, begging for escape but thank the Goddess, the door opens, Damon's bright smile greeting me. "Finally," he exclaims, "It took you guys long enough." 

"Blame dad," I chirp, turning to greet him, relaxing for the first time in ages, "he was driving slower than a snail. Happy Solstice, Damon." 

"Hi, Little Luna," he smiles, his eyes focused on me until Theo stands beside me with a bag in his hand, obviously staying with us. As he takes in Theo, his eyes narrow, his fists tensing into tight little balls of fury. "Theo, what are you doing here?" He demands while our parents shuffle past, not paying attention to the never-ending battle between the two. 

"I thought the answer was rather obvious," Theo replies dryly as he stares at Damon, knowing exactly how to push his buttons. I was afraid this would happen. That these two would spend the whole weekend bickering over me. "Where Penelope goes, that's where I go."

"Must you two fight? It's Solstice for the of the love of the Goddess!" I moan, already over their childish bickering. "Can we find a way to get along this weekend?"

"Yeah," Damon replies, "by making him leave! Then we can have a great weekend!"

"Damon!" I snap at him, resorting to the last weapon in my arsenal. 

"I am sorry," he whines, "but he doesn't need to be around all the time. Seriously, can't he go somewhere else?"

"Do you know what a Beta's job is," Theo throws into the sparring match, his anger radiating in waves, "to protect their Luna." 

Growling, Damon steps down the stairs, releasing his aura into the air around us. For only eleven, his power is undeniable as it wraps around us, slowly trying to suffocate Theo and make him submit. "So is an Alpha's," Damon snarls, "are you suggesting that you're any better than an Alpha?"

Refusing to be a part of this any longer, I walk past them and up the rest of the stairs into the packhouse, finding Andrew and Matt inside the door. 

"Happy Solstice, Little Luna," They greet with warm smiles, "where is Damon?" Andrew asks, surprised not to find him beside me, the two of us inseparable. You'd think we were conjoined at the hip. 

Sighing, I look behind me, at the open door with Damon and Theo still standing there arguing over me. Without needing more, Andrew nods in understanding, always knowing how to calm down both outside. For being a Beta, I expected mine to be more like Andrew and less like a Gamma, always ready to start a fight. 

Walking further into the house, I can hear the boys following behind me, having calmed down enough to get further into the house. Heavy footsteps come up behind me as eucalyptus and sandalwood fill my nostrils. Damon stands next to me, slinging an arm over my shoulder and pulling me closer in a lopsided hug. "Biscuit?" he asks, handing me one of Helena's famous cinnamon biscuits. 

"Goddess, yes!" I say greedily, snatching the treat from his hand, acting surprised like this is the first time he has done this when it had been a tradition between us for as long as I can remember. Taking a large bite, I can't help the involuntary groan leaving my throat as my eyes roll back into my head, enjoying every cinnamon-filled bite. 

"Happy?" he asks; a chuckle leaves his lips, and his blue eyes shine with boyish charm as he removes his arm from around my shoulder. Turning his attention to the group of men behind us, he only has to give them a look before they disperse like shrapnel, Andrew dragging Theo along with him, despite his grumbles. 

"Don't worry," he grins, watching me lick my fingers clean of the delectable little treat, "I have more, you little fiend!"

"It's not my fault the little buggers are so delicious," I retort, grinning back at him, missing this easy banter between us. It had been so long since we had seen each other, and while we talk on the phone daily, it's not the same. 

"And comforting," he comments, with a shrug as he continues down the hallways towards his bedroom while I stare at him in confusion. 

"What does that mean?" I ask him as I follow behind as we trek up the stairs to his area of the large mansion. 

"Helena makes those when I haven't seen you in a while," he says calmly, "the smell reminds me of you." 

"Really?" I ask. slightly shocked at the revelation, "I sleep in the library when I haven't seen you in a while, the smell reminding me of you too." I tell him, revealing a secret even my parents don't know, a blush creeping up my face as I continue following him. 

Once we enter his room, he hurries toward the dresser opening the top drawer, while I take a seat on the couch, turning on the tv to flip through the channels looking for a show for us to watch, deciding on a mindless re-run while Damon hands me a small delicately wrapped box a sheepish grin covering his face. 

"Merry Solstice, Little Luna," he says, handing me the treasure in his hands, looking around for my bag with his gift stored safely inside, only to realize that it is still downstairs, stilling by the front door. 

"Oh, shoot!" I curse, my cheeks warming as they turn pink in embarrassment, "I forgot your gift downstairs. I'll run down and get it quick." I tell him, jumping up from the couch and racing out the door to grab it quickly before one of the adults sees us and prevents us from exchanging them. 

Making it past the gang of grownups hanging about, I grab the present from my bag before hurrying back up the stairs toward Damon's room. Reentering the room, I find him sitting on the couch watching the tv show I had chosen, the gift still clutched in his hands. 

Sitting beside him once more, I hold out the gift to him while taking the one meant for me. "Count of three?" Damon asks, clearly eager to see what I got him this year. 

"One..." I say, grinning wildly, the anticipation killing me. 

"Two..." 

"Three.." we say together, ripping into the paper like a starving man eats his first meal after weeks without it. 

As the paper reveals the box inside, I can't help the chuckle rumbling through my body as I look at the gift. A second later, Damon's giggle joined mine as we stare at the iPod we got for each other. 

"Great minds think alike," he smiles, opening the box and giving the gift a once over before turning it on. I do the same, not wanting to waste any time trying out my newest gadget. Turning on the song on the iPod, I see a picture of a blonde-haired girl smiling on the screen, the name Taylor Swift sitting underneath. 

"Taylor Swift?" I ask him, my brows furrowing in an unspoken question. 

"Yeah?" he asks, a little offended by my question, "I heard her song on the radio and thought you'd like it." 

"Well," I say, "I added some to yours as well. Dad introduced me to this band I think you'd like," I inform him, "I already put them on the iPod before wrapping," I say, as I continue flicking through the tunes already added to the little gadget. 

"Blink-182?" He asks, skepticism clear in his voice as he shoots me a questioning look.

"I promise they're an amazing band," I say self-assured, as I lean into the couch, putting the headphones in one of my ears, as Damon copies me doing the exact same, neither of us saying a word as we listen in silence enjoying the music we have chosen for each other.