(Azaria Point of View)
I awoke, laid across the back seat of a vehicle that was definitely not a limo. The unfamiliar sensation of the car's rumbling beneath me sent a jolt of panic through my body. I sat up quickly, ignoring the sharp pain that radiated through my abdomen and chest, my eyes darting around to understand my surroundings. My heart pounded in my chest, each beat echoing with urgency and confusion.
The interior of the car was dimly lit by the soft glow of the dashboard. It took a few seconds for my vision to adjust, but once it did, I realized we were on a dark, empty road. The night sky stretched infinitely above us, a vast expanse of darkness speckled with stars. The moon was almost full, casting a silvery light that bathed the landscape in an eerie, otherworldly glow. It wasn't quite the blood moon yet, but its pinkish hue sent a shiver down my spine, reminding me of everything I was trying to leave behind.
I turned my head toward the driver, my muscles relaxing once I catch a good glance at the driver. "Lilly?" I rasped, my voice thick with confusion and lingering pain. "What the hell? Where are we, and why are we on the road in what looks like the middle of the night?"
Lilly glanced at me through the rearview mirror, her worried eyes softening into a sad smile. Her face was illuminated in the dim light, and I could see the lines of concern etched deeply into her features. Her hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, knuckles white with tension.
"Well, somebody decided to pass out on the way back and almost got us caught," she said, her tone a mix of frustration and relief. "Not only that, you were mumbling strange things, and your fucking hair faded out! If it wasn't for the witches reassuring me that you weren't in any real danger, I would have admitted you, and we never would have escaped. I had to get us out of there before anyone knew you were back and going through whatever the hell that was."
Her words hit me like a punch to the gut. I tilted my head, confusion knitting my brow as I processed what she was saying. "My hair faded out?" I asked, trying to wrap my mind around the bizarre turn of events. I reached up to touch my hair, finding it still stark white and feeling like fine silk between my fingers.
Lilly sighed heavily, her shoulders slumping as if the weight of the world rested on them. "Yes, Azi, your hair went from its usual dark color to white, and then there were these golden markings that disappeared just as quickly as they came. It was like you were transforming into something… else. It freaked me out, okay? I didn't know what was happening or if you were even going to wake up."
I could see the fear lingering in her eyes, the same fear that I felt creeping into my own heart. My gaze softened as I tried to make sense of everything. "Lilly, I'm sorry I scared you," I said, my voice trembling slightly. "I didn't mean to. I didn't even know that was happening. I just… I felt so much pain. I couldn't handle it."
She nodded, her expression still tense. "I know. That's why I got us out of there as fast as I could. We're heading to our new lives. I have a few connections that will help us relocate and live as big or small of lives as we want, new identities included."
Her words brought a strange mixture of comfort and unease. I knew we were on the run, leaving everything behind, but hearing it said out loud made it all feel so real and irreversible. She passed me a file with information on…me? I opened it, my eyes widening as I saw my pictures. Only, the pictures had been altered, my once dark hair now a brilliant white. There were forms with my new name—Ziya Alidan. A new birth certificate, ID, everything. It was all so meticulously planned.
I skimmed through the documents, a strange sense of detachment washing over me. It was like looking at someone else's life on paper. I felt my stomach churn with anxiety. "Why… How?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper, my mind struggling to comprehend the enormity of what was happening.
Lilly's soft giggle broke the tension. "Your mom really was something special and still has loyal family members. With the help of a few of your powerful cousins and my med school friend, I've arranged everything. Even Kalima and Wairimu helped change the appearance on the photos before we left. You don't have to worry anymore."
I nodded slowly, my mind spinning with a whirlwind of thoughts. My mother's legacy had always been a shadow over me, but now it seemed to be the lifeline pulling me out of the darkness. "I didn't even know she had that many loyal people left," I murmured, more to myself than to Lilly. The idea that my mother's influence was still strong enough to help us escape brought a small measure of comfort, but it also reminded me of how much I didn't know about her.
Lilly's expression shifted, her eyes widening as if she remembered something important. She took a deep breath, her fingers tightening on the steering wheel. "Do you remember the test I kept rerunning?" she asked, her voice hesitant, as if bracing herself for my reaction.
I nodded slowly, my confusion deepening. "Yeah, you said it was inconclusive or something. Why?"
She licked her lips nervously, her gaze flicking between the road and the rearview mirror. "Well, it was a pregnancy test. Although you didn't smell as if you were, and the checkup two weeks prior showed negative results, I did a test on your blood and confirmed that you are pregnant. Nyrie had to have been concealing your scent, since I could clearly smell you today. That's why I fast-forwarded the plan a little."
My mouth fell open, my heart stopping in my chest. Pregnant? How could I be pregnant? "How far?" I managed to ask, my voice barely audible, a tremor of panic threading through it.
Lilly swallowed, her eyes filled with concern. "W-well…you only have four months left."
The words hung in the air like a heavy cloud, suffocating me with their weight. Four months? That means I've been pregnant for four months already.
I just stared at Lilly, my mind reeling with the implications. I was carrying a child this whole time, and I had no idea. I couldn't even process it. The only thing I could manage to say was, "Well, fuck."
Lilly tried to offer a comforting smile, but it was clear she was just as overwhelmed as I was. "I know it's a lot to take in, Zari. But we're in this together, okay? We'll figure it out. You're not alone."
Her words were meant to be reassuring, but all I felt was a crushing sense of responsibility weighing down on me. I was about to bring a child into this chaotic world, a world where I didn't even know who I was anymore. I wanted to scream, cry, do something to release the torrent of emotions building up inside me, but all I could do was sit there in stunned silence.
Lilly continued driving, her focus now solely on the road ahead. I could see the determination in her eyes, the resolve to keep us safe no matter what. She had always been the strong one, the one who kept everything together when it felt like the world was falling apart. I owed her my life, and now I owed her even more for saving not just me, but my unborn child.
I took a deep breath, trying to calm the storm inside me. "Lilly, thank you," I said, my voice barely a whisper. "I don't know what I would do without you."
She glanced at me through the mirror, her eyes softening with a mixture of sadness and understanding. "You'd do the same for me, Zari. That's what family is for."
Family. The word felt foreign on my tongue, like something I hadn't truly known in a long time. My mother's family might have helped us escape, but the only real family I had left was Lilly. And now, this child.
I looked out the window, watching the dark landscape blur by. The road stretched on endlessly, disappearing into the horizon like a path into the unknown. I had no idea where we were going or what awaited us at the end of this journey, but I knew one thing: there was no turning back now.
As we drove through the night, the weight of my new reality settled on my shoulders, pressing down with a suffocating heaviness. I was no longer just Azaria, the Luna who had lost everything and on the run. I was Ziya Alidan, a woman with a new life growing inside her. A life I was determined to protect at all costs.
The silence in the car was deafening, broken only by the steady hum of the engine and the occasional rustle of papers as I flipped through the file Lilly had given me. I stared at the new name on my documents, trying to wrap my mind around this new identity. Ziya. It sounded strange, unfamiliar, yet there was a strength to it that I could almost feel resonating within me.
A thought suddenly crossed my mind, pulling me out of my reverie. "Lilly, why are our new names so similar?" I asked, my voice tinged with concern. "I mean, can't we get caught because of that? Doesn't it make us more traceable?"
Lilly chuckled softly, shaking her head. "I knew you'd ask that. And no, it doesn't make us more traceable. In fact, it does the opposite. The Alidan name is powerful, yes, but it's also very common among the distant branches of your family. By using a variant of the name, we're hiding in plain sight. Anyone searching for Azaria Thorne or Azaria Millo would never think to look for Ziya Alidan, especially not in the records of distant Alidan packs, full of relatives who have no direct connection to your mother."
I frowned, trying to understand her reasoning. "But doesn't that still tie us to my mother's bloodline?"
Lilly shook her head again, this time more firmly. "No, Zari. We're not using your mother's direct bloodline. We're creating a new lineage, one that suggests you're a distant cousin of the main Alidan branch, not the heir. It's a common practice among packs to have distant relatives who carry the name but have no claim to any real power or inheritance. This way, you're just another Alidan, not the daughter of Helena Alidan, the last heir to run the Bloodwolf Pack."
I nodded slowly, starting to see the logic in her plan. It was clever, hiding in plain sight by blending in with a name that was both familiar and unremarkable. "I see," I said, my voice more confident now. "So, this way, no one will suspect we're hiding under my own family name."
"Exactly," Lilly replied, her smile widening. "And with the help of your cousins and my friend Sirona, we've made sure all the records are airtight. There's no way anyone will find us unless we want to be found."
I felt a wave of relief wash over me, her explanation easing some of the tension that had been building in my chest. "Thank you, Lilly," I said, my voice filled with gratitude. "I don't know what I'd do without you."
She reached over and squeezed my hand, her touch warm and reassuring. "You'd find a way, Zari. You always do. But I'm here for you, and I'm not going anywhere. We're in this together, remember?"
I nodded, squeezing her hand back. Her unwavering support gave me the strength I needed to keep going, to keep fighting for the future we were trying to build.
As we continued down the dark, winding road, I couldn't help but feel a spark of hope flickering within me. It was faint, barely more than a whisper in the darkness, but it was there. And with Lilly by my side, I knew that spark would grow into a flame, lighting our way through whatever challenges lay ahead.
The road was long, and the night was dark, but we were moving forward, step by step, toward a new life and a new beginning. And for the first time in a long while, I felt a glimmer of optimism for the future. We would find our way, no matter what it took, and together, we would build the life we had always dreamed of.
I looked out the window once more, the moon's soft glow casting a gentle light on the path ahead. It was a reminder that even in the darkest of nights, there was always a light to guide the way. And as long as we had each other, we would never be truly lost.
With a deep breath, I leaned back against the seat, closing my eyes and letting the rhythm of the road lull me into a sense of calm. I didn't know what the future held, but I knew one thing for certain: I would face it head-on, with courage and determination, and with Lilly by my side, I knew I could overcome anything.
As the car sped through the night, carrying us toward our new lives, I felt a strange sense of peace settle over me. I wasn't sure where we were going or what awaited us at the end of this journey, but I knew one thing: I was ready to embrace whatever came next, with an open heart and a fierce resolve.