**Chapter 11 – Permission Slips & Passports**
**Tuesday, 6:12 a.m.**
My alarm hadn't even gone off and I was already pacing the kitchen in sock-feet, phone hot in my hand.
**Group chat – "Operation Dacia"**
**me:** passports?
**remy:** got mine. alpha dad says "bring the pack, keep the queen safe."
**seras:** parents still asleep. japanese breakfast negotiation pending.
**julian:** booking the red-eye. bucharest → cluj. private charter. no questions.
Mom shuffled in, robe half-on, coffee mug already steaming.
"Explain," she said, one eyebrow arched at the whiteboard I'd hijacked:
**ROMANIA – MORAU CLUJ**
- Ana (cousin)
- Crown of Dacia
- Moroi queen history
- 10 days
Dad followed, newspaper under one arm.
"International field trip?"
He squinted at the board.
"Cluj? That's… Transylvania."
I inhaled.
"Grandma Elowene **spoke in my head last night**.
She's **dead**, Mom.
Died in 2017, right after I turned six.
But her voice was **real**.
She said I have cousins in Romania.
An ancient crown.
The valley's awake and it's **calling** me."
Mom set her mug down hard.
"Elowene **died** when you were six.
2017.
She kissed your forehead in the hospital, said '**see you when the light wakes**,' and passed that night.
We buried her ashes under the cedar by the orchard."
Dad's eyes flicked to the stone on the counter—smooth, warm, **glowing**.
He rubbed his beard.
"I remember the lights in the orchard when you were three **and** when you were six.
She was teaching you something **before** she went."
Mom exhaled, shaky.
"Fine.
But **we're** coming.
Chaperones.
And you're calling your father's cousin in Morau—**Ana's dad**—tonight.
Video.
I want to see family."
I squealed.
Hugged them both.
Dad grunted, but his arms tightened.
**7:03 a.m. – Remy's house**
The coyote compound smelled like pine, motor oil, and bacon.
Remy's dad—**Alpha Calder**—leaned against the garage door, arms crossed, flannel straining over shoulders that could bench a truck.
Remy stood beside him in yesterday's jeans, hair still damp from the shower.
"Romania," Alpha said.
Not a question.
"Morau Cluj," I answered.
"Grandma Elowene's **voice**.
Living cousins.
Crown.
Valley business."
He studied me.
Ruby eyes—**my** eyes—reflected in his.
"You kept my boy breathing last night."
He jerked his chin at Remy.
"Pack goes where the queen goes.
But you bring him back in one piece."
Remy grinned.
"Permission granted?"
Alpha ruffled his hair.
"Take the YZ.
Ship it.
And the board."
**7:45 a.m. – Seras's house**
Traditional Japanese breakfast: miso, rice, and grilled fish.
Seras's mom—**Keiko**—poured tea with surgeon precision.
Her dad—**Takeshi**—read the paper, glasses low on his nose.
Seras bowed.
**"Okaa-san, Otou-san.
Celeste no kazoku ni au tame ni, Romania e ikitai desu.
Juunichi. Morau Cluj."**
Keiko's chopsticks paused.
"Elowene **shinda**?"
She glanced at me.
"The old woman who sent the maple seed when Seras was born?"
I nodded.
"Her **voice** came through the stone.
Crown of Dacia.
Ana.
History."
Takeshi folded the paper.
"You burned a vampire to ash."
He said it like weather.
"Fire runs in the family."
He looked at Keiko.
"She goes.
We trust the spring queen."
Seras's eyes went anime-wide.
**"Hontou ni?!"**
Keiko smiled.
"Pack your **haori**.
And the pendant."
**8:30 a.m. – School parking lot**
We met under the flagpole.
Julian leaned against a blacked-out SUV, keys dangling.
"Charter leaves Thursday, 11:55 p.m.
Bucharest touch-down 6:00 a.m. local.
Drive to Morau Cluj—three hours."
Remy tossed me a duffel.
"Coyote-proof luggage."
Seras zipped hers—maple pendant glowing through the mesh.
"Fire-proof."
I slung my board bag over my shoulder.
Hot-pink grip tape **shimmered** with four-point stars.
**Thursday, 11:55 p.m. – Private airstrip**
The jet was sleek, unmarked.
Julian's "family connections."
Mom and Dad boarded first—passports stamped, eyes wide.
Alpha Calder waved from the tarmac, pack howling behind him.
Remy buckled in beside me.
Locket warm.
Heartbeat sync.
Seras took the window.
"First time out of the country," she whispered.
"First time meeting **ghosts**."
Julian sat across, laptop open.
"Morau Cluj—old Dacian stronghold.
Elowene's **ashes** were scattered here eight years ago.
Her bloodline guards the **Crown of Dacia** in a salt mine under the city.
Moroi queen—**strigoi** and **wizard** bloodlines merged.
Dacia was the first to cast off-grid.
Light.
Blood.
**Dawn**."
I pulled the stone from my pocket.
It **flared**—four-point stars spinning.
**Grandma Elowene's voice, soft:**
**"Almost home, cariad."**
Engines roared.
We lifted into the night.
Below, the valley **breathed**—one last exhale.
**Friday, 9:12 a.m. olderau Cluj, Romania**
The drive from Cluj-Napoca was pine and mist and **stone**.
**Ana** waited at the gates of an ancient salt mine—**Salina Turda** reborn as something older.
She was **me**—taller, sharper cheekbones, hair black as midnight.
Eyes **gold**, not ruby.
**"Verişoară,"** she said.
Cousin.
She wore a leather jacket over a Dacian **draco** shirt.
Behind her, **wolf-cousins**—actual wolves the size of motorcycles—padded in the shadows.
"Grandma Elowene's **ashes** are in the crown chamber," Ana said.
"Her voice rides the stone.
Crown's below.
History first.
Then **blood**."
She led us down.
Salt walls glowed.
Carvings—**Dacia**, wolf-headed queen, four-point crown blazing.
**"She wasn't myth,"** Ana said.
**"She was **us**."**
At the bottom: a cavern lit by **dawn trapped in crystal**.
A small cedar box sat beneath the beam—**Elowene's ashes**.
The **Crown of Dacia** floated above it.
Gold.
Four points.
Each tipped with a **star** that **moved**.
Ana turned to me.
"Elowene died guarding this.
Her last words: **'Send my girl when the light wakes.'**
The valley woke you.
Now **claim** it."
I stepped forward.
The crown **lowered**.
Fit like it was forged for my skull.
Light **exploded**.
Not shadow.
Not fire.
**Dawn**.
And for the first time,
I heard **her**—Dacia's voice, ancient and young:
**"Welcome home, Spring Queen.
The war begins at winter solstice.
Carpathian Cousins and the Blood Crown Interface
---
**Saturday, 2:07 a.m.**
**Morua Family Manor – Cluj-Napoca, Transylvania**
**Silver moonlight** **poured** through **stained-glass windows**—wolves, dragons, four-point stars.
The **Crown of Dacia** **settled** on my **white-blonde hair**—**invisible** at a distance, **snug**, **warm**, **diamond-shaped bloodstone** **glowing** like a **third eye** on my forehead.
**A translucent screen** **unfolded** in my **vision**—**soft gold letters**, **Moroi runes** **circling** the edges.
```
BLOOD WIZARD INTERFACE
Name: Celeste Valentina Morua
Level: 1 / 10
Title: Heir of Morau
Crown Equipped: Morau Blood Crown (Rank S)
Active Skills: 0 / 5
Passive Skills: 0 / 3
Crafting: LOCKED (0 / 47 components)
AVAILABLE SKILLS (5):
1. Crimson Veil – cloak allies in blood-shield (3 sec)
2. Moroi Whisper – command lesser strigoi (1 target)
3. Vital Surge – heal ally 15% HP (1/day)
4. Blood Echo – copy one ally skill (1/day)
5. Resonance Lock – seal one enemy skill (1/day)
SKILL TREE: 42 branches grayed out
CRAFTING TREE: 46/47 components missing
```
**Dacia's voice** **echoed** in my **mind**, **calm**, **ancient**, **Romanian accent thick**:
**Dacia:**
*"Acum începe antrenamentul adevărat.
This is not a game, copilă.
Power without character is poison.
Integrity and conscience—**those** level you up.
Choose poorly, and the Crown will **burn**."*
**Celeste (whisper):**
"**So the other 40 treasures… can wait?**"
**Dacia (soft laugh):**
*"They will **call** when you are **ready**.
Not before.
Now—**where do we begin**?"*
**Celeste (eyes on the five glowing skills):**
"**Teach me Crimson Veil**.
I want to protect them first."
**Screen flashed**—**skill slot 1/5 filled**.
```
Crimson Veil – Learned (Rank F)
Cost: 5% blood volume
Duration: 3 seconds
Cooldown: 30 seconds
```
**Bloodstone** **pulsed**—**warmth spread** through **veins**, **maple-gold lines** **faintly glowing** under **skin**.
---
**2:19 a.m. – Manor Balcony**
**Remy** **leaned** on **stone rail**, **coyote eyes** **reflecting moon**.
**Remy:**
"**You're glowing again**.
**Crown looks good**."
**Celeste (touching bloodstone):**
"**Level 1**.
**Five skills**.
**Dacia says **character** matters more than **power**."
**Remy (smiling):**
"**You've got both**, queen."
**Seras (yawning, wrapped in blanket):**
"**Strigoi** in the village **bowed** when we walked past.
**Begged** for mercy.
**We're **safe** here."
**Mom (from doorway, coffee in hand, crisp German accent):**
"**Sicher genug zum Schlafen**.
**No more midnight crown parties**, Liebling."
**Dad (behind her, Romanian rumble):**
"**Mara, lasă-i pe copii**.
**Let the kids breathe**."
**Ana (stepping out, arms full of blankets):**
"**Tante Mara, Unchiul Dan—stop flirting on my balcony**.
**Celeste**, come.
**Kitchen**.
**Sarmale** don't wrap themselves."
**Mom (switching to Japanese, soft):**
「**Ana-chan, まだ起きてるの?**」
*"Ana-chan, still awake?"*
**Ana (grinning, fluent):**
「**おばちゃん,いつも通り.**
**Sarmale** are midnight therapy, remember?"*
**Dad (chuckling):**
"**Your mother learned that from my mother**.
**1978**.
I was **twelve**.
She said, **'Boy, if you can't wrap a leaf, you can't wrap a heart.'**"
**Celeste (laughing):**
"**Did it work?**"
**Mom (wiping tears with onion hand, German precision):**
"**He proposed with a sarmale leaf**.
**Still pressed in my wedding album**.
**Between the sakura petals from Obaachan**."
**Ana (teasing):**
"**That's why I'm single**.
**No one's offered me cabbage **and** cherry blossoms yet**."
**Remy (stealing filling):**
"**I'll wrap you one**.
**Extra sour cream and wasabi**."
**Seras (sketching runes):**
"**Documenting: 'Coyote learns multicultural vampire cuisine.'**"
**Uncle Radu (ruffling Remy's hair):**
"**Coyote, wolf, strigoi—same stomach**.
**Eat**."
---
**2:25 a.m. – Manor Kitchen**
**Copper pots**, **herb bundles**, **salt-crusted bread**.
**Ana** rolled cabbage like a pro.
**Uncle Radu** stirred **mămăligă**.
**Mom** chopped onions—**German efficiency**, **Japanese silence**, tears streaming.
**Mom (to Ana, Japanese):**
「**玉ねぎが目に入るね…**」
*"Onions always get in my eyes…"*
**Ana (handing tissue, Romanian):**
"**Tante, you cry every time**.
**Obaachan's genes**."
**Celeste (rolling a lumpy one):**
"**Mine looks like a burrito**."
**Uncle Radu (snorting):**
"**American-German-Japanese-Romanian burrito**.
**Fix the tuck**—like this."
He guided my fingers.
**Warm**, **calloused**, **gentle**.
**Dad (leaning in doorway):**
"**Your Opa Hans taught me the same way**.
**1978**.
He said, **'Junge, Ordnung muss sein—even in cabbage.'**"
**Mom (laughing through tears):**
"**And Obaachan said, 'Wrap with love, not perfection.'**
**You got both**."
**Ana (to Celeste):**
"**Your blood's four rivers, verişoară**.
**German steel, Japanese grace, Romanian fire, American… chaos**."
**Remy (mouth full):**
"**Chaos tastes good**."
**Seras (filming):**
"**For the vlog: 'Sarmale diplomacy.'**"
---
**Telepathic Trio**
**Elowene (warm, amused, Japanese):**
*「愛を包め.」*
*Wrap with love, cariad.*
**Dacia (layered beneath):**
*"Lecția unu: protejează înainte de a lovi.
**Family first**."*
**Celeste (rolling perfect sarmale):**
"**Got it**."
---
**2:33 a.m. – Bedroom Window**
**Crown interface** **minimized** to **tiny bloodstone icon**.
**Celeste (whisper):**
"**Where do we begin, Dacia? Grandma?**"
**Dacia (gentle):**
*"Tomorrow.
**Family**.
**Forgiveness**.
**Fire**."*
**Elowene (overlapping):**
*"**And sarmale**.
**Tell Ana the secret is **smoked paprika** and **a pinch of Obaachan's shichimi**."*
**Screen updated**:
```
Quest Added: Roots & Wings
Objective: Spend one week with Morau cousins — no magic, no treasures.
Reward: +1 Integrity | Unlock Passive Skill Slot
```
**Celeste (smiling):**
"**A week off**.
**I can do that**."
**Bloodstone dimmed**—**crown warm**, **protective**, **patient**.
**Locket thumped**—**Remy's heartbeat** + **Seras's spark** + **Ana's laugh** + **Uncle Radu's rumble** + **Mom's onion tears** + **Dad's old joke** + **Obaachan's shichimi** + **Opa's Ordnung**.
**Texts (saved):**
**Remy:** *"Love you, Level 1 girlfriend. Also, your uncle just adopted me."*
**Seras:** *"I'm stealing all the sarmale tomorrow. And the shichimi."*
**Ana:** *"Bunica says you rolled 17 perfect ones. Obaachan approves."*
**Mom:** *「**寝なさい.** Schlaf, Liebling. Heaven."*
**Dad:** *"Sleep. Real beds. No mirrors cracking. Heaven."*
The **crown hummed** a **lullaby** in **Romanian**, **Welsh**, **German**, **Japanese**, and **cabbage-scented love**.
**Celeste Valentina Morua**—**14-year-old white-blonde Blood Wizard**, **Level 1**, **Crown equipped*