Talia was happy to hear that Zina would help organize this mixer. Talia loved parties, but she had no idea how to organize one. Luckily, with Zina's and Mindy's help, it shouldn't be too difficult.
Talia went to the side table and got a notepad and a pen, ready to write down stuff.
"What do you have so far?" Talia asked Maya.
"Nothing for this one. The idea is the most important part, but I exhausted everything I had, and I fear we will need to repeat something."
Talia tapped her chin while thinking. She didn't want to simply repeat what Maya already did. This was her party, and Talia wanted to give it her personal touch. But what could that be?
Talia remembered events she attended, and one stood out as fantastic.
"How about a fair?" Talia asked.
Maya paused. "A what?"
"A fair." Talia had many fantastic memories from the Summer Solstice festival. The day was full of ups and downs, but the evening was unforgettable. She watched fireworks with Damon, he held her hand, they ate delicious food, played games, she danced around the bonfire… and it all ended with her giving him the garland and then... their first kiss. Wasn't that perfect for a mixer where werewolves should find their mates?
Seeing that both Maya and Zina looked at her in confusion, Talia explained, "We can set up a few stalls for food, have an area with outdoor seating, and organize games like a ring toss, balloon pop, bobbing for apples, and spin the wheel."
"Oh, yes!" Zina exclaimed. "We can add cute prizes for games, call a band, and have an area for dancing."
Maya pouted. "If the two of you are so motivated and full of ideas, why don't you help with other events also?"
Talia stuck her tongue out at Maya. "Because you do everything on your own without asking for help. If you need our assistance, you only need to ask. Now, for this event, do you have a location set, or can we pick?"
Three females started sharing their thoughts, and quickly they had a list of things to do. Maya suggested a few spots, and Zina and Talia said they would check them out to pick one.
Talia said that Mindy will take care of decorations, Zina volunteered to deal with whatever was needed for the games, and Talia was responsible for securing food items.
Talia pointed her fork at the now nearly empty plate with cakes. "We should get sweets from this bakery."
Maya clicked her tongue. "You are thinking small. If the word spreads that Luna is organizing an event, every restaurant in Darkbourne will rush to set up a stall."
Talia thought of something. "Zina, can you help me talk to Chef Page?"
Zina froze. That was Lulu's father, and Zina felt responsible for Lulu's untimely death.
"Sure," Zina said stiffly.
"You want him to participate at the fair?" Maya asked.
Talia confirmed. "Damon and I visited him, and he seemed… not good. I hope that giving him something to do might cheer him up." And she also hoped that Zina would feel less guilty about everything if she talked to the man.
Talia put her hand on Zina's.
"Hey," Talia called. "You need to stop blaming yourself. It was just a lot of innocent things that piled up into something no one could predict. None of us knew the rogues will attack, and none knew that Lulu…" Talia couldn't finish that. "But it happened, and we are all grieving. Let's help each other move on while honoring memories of those who died so that we can live in peace."
"Oh…" Maya sighed while wiping the tears that suddenly swelled in her eyes. "That was beautiful. Why don't you make that a theme for the fair?"
"What?" Talia asked.
"Every fair needs a theme. You can make this fair's theme be honoring fallen heroes."
Talia sniffled and looked at Zina. "What do you think?"
"I think it will be wonderful," Zina said.
"I will ask Tanya to see if they want to join," Talia said. "They lost a lot of people recently as well." Keeping people busy will be a welcome distraction, and everyone could use some cheering up.
Zina was collecting the empty plates when Damon and Caden joined their ladies.
Damon slid onto the sofa next to Talia and wrapped his arms around her. "Did you miss me?"
"Of course," Talia said while leaning on him. "Are you done with work?"
"Work is never done," Caden said as his eyes followed plates that Zina carried away. "But it seems you girls finished something tasty. Without us."
Talia would laugh at Caden's grumpy expression, but she also felt guilty for eating so much cake and not leaving anything for the guys.
"Your Luna is pregnant," Damon said sternly. "I won't allow anyone to make her feel guilty for eating. She is feeding the next Alpha."
Caden spoke sorrowfully, "I wanted some cake also."
Maya hugged him and patted his back. "There, there… do you want us to go to the sweetshop now? They are still open."
Caden pouted. "I don't feel like going out now, but you can give me some sugar." He winked. "Later."
Maya giggled and gave him a smacking kiss on the lips. They all knew Caden was talking about sex.
Talia was desperate to talk about something else.
"What did you do?" She asked Damon.
"Normal stuff and…" Damon paused. "I looked at the guestlist for your Luna ceremony."
Talia blinked. "Was it not good?"
"No, no."
Talia knew he wouldn't bring it up without reason. "But?"
"I noticed that those are all either my connections or high-ranking people related to the pack. What about you, kitten?"
"What about me?"
"Don't you want to invite someone?"
Talia didn't expect this question. "Uhm… I have no one. All my friends are here."
"What about your enemies?" Maya asked from the side.
"Why would I invite my enemies into my house?"
Maya smiled maliciously. "To rub it in, of course! Think of people who looked down on you while you were in the Red Moon pack. Think of the ones who called you names because they thought you were sticking to Damon."
Talia was not interested in such things, but… "There is one person."
Damon perked up. "Who?"
"I told you about Olivia," Talia said to Damon, and then she turned to Maya and Caden. "She was my friend while I was in the Red Moon pack."
"Oh, great!" Maya exclaimed. "We should put her on the guest list. Alpha Edward will go nuts to see that you made friends with someone from his pack, and you are ignoring him."
Talia's face fell. "Olivia left the Red Moon pack a while ago when she found her mate."
Maya didn't think that was a big deal. "Do you know where she went?"
Talia shook her head. Maybe Olivia mentioned it, but Talia forgot. However… "Her father is the pack doctor in the Red Moon pack."
"We have a lead," Maya said. "With Cornelia coming here daily, we can tell her to find out for us. Someone should know where Olivia is now."
Talia's heart rate picked up. She liked the idea of reuniting with her friend. Her only friend at that time.
Talia hoped she could meet Olivia and show her that she was not a scrawny girl in the attic anymore. Will Olivia be happy for her? Talia surely hoped so.
