The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!

Beneath the Glorious Moon
by Terrie Leigh Relf

Maureen wasn’t in the mood to attend Clyde’s annual celebration. Nevertheless, she donned the requisite flowing temple priestess gown and topped it off with a circlet of flowers, feeling that she looked more like an innocuous character from Midsummer’s Night Dream rather than the witch, she purported to be. 

As she crossed the street to Clyde’s house, she looked up into the sky. A blue moon hovered over the roof, casting an eerie light. There was a single pumpkin resting on a woodpile just off the walkway, mist flowing from its feral eyes and sinister mouth.

Maureen sighed as she reached for the heavy doorknocker, which Clyde opened before it even dropped. “Come in. Come in. So glad you could make it.”

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” she responded, knowing that Clyde knew otherwise. 

He offered a crooked smile. Grasping one of Maureen’s hands, he lead her through the familiar spacious living room, through the ornate French doors, and then into the back yard where his special guests had gathered. 

“This is not just another Halloween,” Clyde murmured, handing her a goblet of red wine. “Tonight is special.”

“But it’s next year’s blue moon that is supposed to be astrologically significant,” Maureen whispered back. Clyde winked at her as if they shared a secret, and then turned toward his guests. “Please join me in a toast!”

Everyone tilted their heads back while lifting their goblets above their heads. “To the blue moon!” After lowering their goblets, each guest offered a toast to Clyde before parting their lips to drink. 

Clyde nodded to the guests in turn as he guided Maureen beneath the luxurious limbs of a wild oak tree. Her back against his chest, Clyde pressed her close, then closer still. Together, they watched as each sip inspired his guests to cast off their costumes, to embrace each other in a sensuous dance beneath the promise of a full moon.

Maureen felt the heat radiating from Clyde’s chest, the cacophonous beating of his heart, how his skin undulated between them with every breath . . . 

And then a palpable silence before she felt the first spasms wrench through her body, the first bone-altering agony, the first glorious night of transformation . . . 

before their nuptial feast beneath the blue moon.

Fiction © Copyright Terrie Leigh Relf
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com

More from author Terrie Leigh Relf:

The Sisterhood of the Blood Moon

For thousands of Earth years, the Transgalactic Consortium has had a quiet interest in this planet and its inhabitants, the Haurans. While the Sisterhood of the Blood Moon works together with the Consortium and Haurans to maintain balance in the universe, the Blood Moon is fast approaching. The power of this moon reveals untold secrets . . . including a sacred covenant with the Mora Spiders. There is an ancient pact that needs to be honored—but at what cost and for whose purpose? The world may come to an end. But will there be a chance for a new beginning?

Available for purchase from the Alban Lake Store!