A Mother to her daughter

Anastasia was in the balcony of her room wearing one of the silk night gowns that the maids had provided her. She looked at the moon which resembled a bright smile that of a child. Although the moon was smiling at her, she was unhappy. Every time she saw the moon it reminded her of her mother.

Her mother always said that if she ever felt sad or depressed she had to look at the moon smiling at her and that it was a message from her mother for her to always be happy. How could she smile when she didn't even know if her mother was alive or not? Her family, her only source of happiness was taken away from her and the smiling moon only reminded her of her long lost family.

A sudden knock on the door burst her bubble of thoughts. She covered her exposing night dress with a robe and went to door. She opened the door to find the queen standing in front of her room. Anastasia bowed to the queen to convey her greetings.

"May I come in, if you don't mind?" The queen asked.

"Sure, your highness" Anastasia said as she backed away from the entrance. The queen gracefully entered her room and walked past her to the balcony.

"You have quite a view from your room dear" she said as she looked through the balcony for a moment and then turned to Anastasia. Anastasia just smiled.

"The reason I am here is to thank you properly. Noah is my only son and if something ever happened to him I would have never forgiven myself. You brought him back alive and also saved his life twice. How can I ever repay your favor?" she said. The way the queen looked just like her mother under the moonlight made tears roll down from her eyes without her realizing it.

"Oh dear! Why do you cry? Did I say something wrong? I never meant to hurt you" the queen said as she panicked at the younger female who teared up all of a sudden. Anastasia giggled at the panicking queen.

"No, Your Highness it’s just that you remind me of my mother. Unfortunately I don't know where she is or if she is even alive. For a moment you looked so similar that it made me happy to see her again" she said wiping of the tears that had escaped from her eyes.

"If that is the case, why don't you consider me as your mother until you find her" the queen said as she delicately caressed Anastasia's head. Anastasia just stood there like a statue. The queen smiled at her and walked to her bed. She sat on the bed comfortably and patted the seat beside her indicating Anastasia to join her.

Anastasia slowly walked to her and sat beside her gingerly. The queen held Anastasia's head gently and made her lay her head on her lap. She started brushing her hair softly.

"Think of it as a thank you from my side since you saved my son. Until you find your real mother, let me comfort you. I always wanted a daughter but I only have Noah who is nowhere near to a daughter. So, just this once, let me have my dream come true" the queen said not stopping the gentle caressing on Anastasia's head.

"Thank you, Mother" Anastasia said as her voice broke due to the lump in her throat. It was like a dream but still it felt real for Anastasia.

"But Anastasia, I want to know something from you. If you don't mind can I ask?" she said which caught Anastasia's attention. But Anastasia was enjoying the moment too much to open her mouth so she just nodded.

"Since you are a fire elemental, your father or mother must be from a fire elemental as well. Which means they might be from Solis. Can you tell me their names?" she asked to which Anastasia slowly got up from her position to sit straight which took the queen by surprise.

"Mother, I am not a fire elemental" Anastasia said to which the queen frowned but smiled again and asked.

"Then what are you love?" she asked caressing Anastasia's cheek.

"I am a hybrid. My father was Draco Vatra" Anastasia said. The queen was surprised but she did not reveal her true emotions on her face. Anastasia scanned the queen's face for any sign of anger or disapproval but she found none. The queen just nodded as a sign for her to continue.

"Me, my brother, my mother and father lived in the woods away from eyes of any kind of supernaturals or humans. But everything was ruined when a mob of Mayongs attacked us. I was still five years old then but the images are clear even till this day. My mother took me and ran to the humans and handed me to one of her friends. I lived there, safely away from any kind of magic. But I had to lose my family. They sacrificed themselves for me" Anastasia said and went silent. Her breath hitched as she cried like a baby.

The queen hugged her and patted her back as she whispered words of comfort into Anastasia's ears. She stayed with her until she fell asleep.

After an hour or so, Anastasia was finally asleep and the queen looked at the young beauty that slept peacefully as she caressed her head. She had listened to the whole story Anastasia told her carefully and the only thing she could feel was pity. But one name was ringing in her mind repeatedly, Draco Vatra.

How could she forget that name? The name that was so familiar to her ears even after so many years. The name of the person whom she had loved deeply even to this day. Her eyes filled with tears to the fact that the person she was now thinking about was dead and would never return.

She placed a feather-like kiss on Anastasia's temple and whispered with determination in each word she said,

"I will protect you, Anastasia. No matter what it takes"