Blood Rose

"Blood rose?"

"Hmm. It's a blue flower that used to grow in this pack many years ago. Whenever it was the full moon, the flower would glow. Although it was not bright enough for illumination, it's beauty was good enough to keep the night lively; kids running and playing around it, here and there. You know, there's a particular someone who smells just like that blood rose. It's a tragedy the flower just vanished. A lot of people must have even forgotten about it and even how it looks."

"Why is it called a Blood Rose?" Evie asked.

"It's called a Blood Rose because it was named after our pack, where it could only grow. And it did look just like the normal rose flower but with a few lines on it where it's glow comes from." he replied.

"So, what happened to it?"

"Well, on a particular night, it was a full moon when the flower was expected to be at its best, the light from the full moon made the flower glow. Kids were dancing around, men were either hunting or drinking and women busy with home stuff. But then, all of a sudden, the moon turned darker. A lot of people thought it was an eclipse which was not the case. Every single one of the Blood Rose began to wither one after the other and ever since that day, everything changed. Time in this realm moved too fast. A year in the human realm was equivalent to about fifty years over here. A particular plague in the human realm wiped out a lot of people."

"It was not a good time for both humans, witches and werewolves. But it kinda strengthened our bond and made werewolves and witches allies. Some who had shorter life span, especially the witches wanted to avoid quick aging here. People were prohibited from migrating to the human realm at that time but they formed a riot squad for their freedom. The authorities then were almost powerless and couldn't help but give in to avoid more casualties than there already was. Unfortunately, most of them got caught up in the plague and the few survivors came running back. Rouge attacks increased on a large scale and people started losing faith in the authorities."

"The condition of the moon didn't change either. It still held it's dark color but the moon was just fine in the human realm. Tch... only heaven knows how that's even possible. The people started getting used to the tough situation they were in but at least, the collaboration of the werewolves and witches did pay off in keeping the realm in check. But then, about two years ago, everything changed. The darkness lurking around the moon disappeared, time became balanced, and the plague stopped. No, the plague stopped three years after it started, that is, time in the human realm, but people were just too scared to leave. Within a few months, life continued like it used to in the old days with the addition of greater technology but absence of our precious Blood Rose."

Brody looked down and saw her staring right into his eyes. "Tch. My boring story really made the atmosphere kinda heavy. It's in the past you know. Everything's fine now and everyone's glad that things are okay."

"It's not boring. But I fell bad for the pack members. It must have been a really tough time for everyone."

"You don't have to feel bad. The good times now is making up for the tough times they had to go through."

"But what about the flower? Aren't people sad that they don't get to see their flower?"

"Well they are- or were. It was a little bit of a big deal for them the first few months after the plague was gone but soon after, people moved on and maybe some have even forgotten about it totally. It think they are pretty satisfied with the situation of things now." 'At least, most of it. The mate issue is still on ground.'

"What does the flower smell like? Does it also smell like a Rose?"

"It doesn't smell like anything, but like itself. I don't know how any scent that can be used to describe it. I know a lot of people must have forgotten what it smells like and I almost did but it was always somewhere lurking around. Fortunately, I met someone recently who reminded me of that flower's scent. That person smells just like the flower."

"That person must be really special to remind you of your favorite thing. I bet that person is your favorite person too." she said and then chuckled.

'Yeah... my favorite person.' "Aren't you sleepy?"

"I wasn't before but after listening to the best bedtime story ever, I wanna sleep so bad. Are you sleepy? (yawn)"

"A little bit. You should sleep now. You must be tired."

"Okay."

"Goodnight, Evie."

"Night."

Right after her eyes closed, she was already fast asleep. A smile appeared on Brody's lips as he watched her sleeping face. 'So cute. I can't believe I told you a bedtime story. If only I could tell you the whole truth.'