Moonshadow (11 page)

After saying her farewells to Maurice, Diana stood on the white marble steps leading up to the museum, her stomach filled with butterflies, as she waited for Miri to tell the valet what time he was expected to return.

Under the evening lights of the busy city street, Diana marveled at Miri’s chosen ensemble. In her thin-strapped, shimmering, calf-length, royal blue gown, she was the very image a stylish flapper out for a night on the town. The dress perfectly complemented the color of her blonde hair, which was lightly crimped and held with a matching bejeweled silver clip. The look suited her. Gazing on her next to the antique Rolls-Royce, Diana felt transported back into a bygone era filled with nightclubs, illegal underground casinos, and speakeasies.

Once Maurice drove away, Miri joined Diana on the museum steps. As they ascended, Diana’s eyes darted across the fellow attendees making their way into the museum for the night’s event. Each man was dressed in black-tie and the women all wore beautiful fancy dresses that probably cost more money than Diana’s parents made in a week. Though her stomach was filled with butterflies, Diana felt excited and proud to be among the guests of the gala. She felt like Eliza Doolittle; but unlike the poor flower-girl, Diana was going to be in her natural element—a museum filled with ancient artifacts.

Stepping into the building, Diana’s excitement finally began to overshadow her nervousness and she was eager to begin exploring the treasures held within. The museum wasn’t the largest Diana had been in, but it had two floors and four wings. The gala itself was being held in a garden area in the center. Trees, ferns, and tropical flowers of all sorts surrounded the attendees, with the starry night’s sky looking down through the glass ceiling overhead.

People mingling and conversing merrily with drinks in their hands stood about as servers walked around them with Hors d'œuvre platters or champagne trays.

I wonder if I’m going to be carded
—
probably not.
Diana didn’t see many people her age among the attendees; she and the Shepherds were likely the youngest people at the gala.

When Diana descended the two steps into the center garden area, her eyes were drawn to a small group conversing in one of the corners. Darien was in the midst of them.

He wore a fancy black suit—possibly a tuxedo—and Diana was struck by how natural he looked in it. Most guys her age seemed out of place when they were this dressed up, as if formal wear was meant for a different time. That was most certainly not the case with Darien—he seemed out of place in normal clothes compared to black-tie, and she’d never seen him wear anything one could call “casual” either. Diana definitely couldn’t imagine him wearing a t-shirt and jeans. Like Miri, Darien did not seem to belong in the current era.

When Darien’s eyes met hers, he seemed to lose all sense of everything around him. He left the group of people that he had been talking to and walked straight towards the newly arrived ladies. His eyes never left Diana’s and she couldn’t bring herself to look away from them.

“You look simply breath-taking Miss Selene,” he said, smiling wide. “You are easily the most beautiful piece of art in this entire building,”

Diana immediately felt the heat rushing to her cheeks. It was a cheesy line, but she sensed Darien’s genuine sincerity and it had made her heart skip a beat.

“Thank you, but Miri and Marjorie did all the work.  I’m sure this wonderful dress more than makes up for my usual lack of glamour.”

Darien frowned.

“Nonsense,” he said with a furrowed brow. “Presentation doesn’t make a person beautiful, Miss Selene. It’s their
presence.
” He took Diana’s hand gently into his own and then gestured towards the people standing about the gardens. “When you stepped into the room, I didn’t see a woman so consumed by her own vanity that she feels she should be the center of attention.” He shook his head slightly at the thought. “Unrestrained vanity is the first step towards a wretched existence, in my opinion.”

The look in Darien’s sparkling gray eyes made Diana feel she was only person in the room. “There is nothing more stunning than a woman who is unaware of how beautiful she actually is.”

If her heart had skipped a beat a moment ago, it had all but stopped when Darien’s smile crept onto his mouth. She’d not seen him this happy before, and she empathically knew it was all because of her.

Diana felt a twinge of tension creep into Darien and his smile quickly faded as he turned to Miri.

“Miriam, thank you for helping Miss Selene get ready and for escorting her here; Andrew is waiting for you in the main foyer.”

“Have fun you two,” Miri said with a grin and walked off.

Diana began to feel strangely vulnerable watching Miri leave. Though she had only met her a few hours ago, Miri felt very much like an older sister to Diana and she sensed her strong natural desire to love and care for others.  

“I trust Miriam took good care of you this afternoon?” Darien asked, his manner warm but awkward. Miri’s absence made him nervous as well. Perhaps he didn’t have much experience with dates. According to Eric, Darien very rarely socialized with people. Diana didn’t need her unique empathy to know how socially anxious introverted people can be.

“Yes, she did,” she replied with a playful smirk to ease his nerves. “Although, I was disappointed to find that her room did not contain the large amount of pretty shiny things that someone had led me to believe. I counted only three.”

Darien matched her expression and Diana could feel the mood between them lighten considerably.

“Yes, well, there are quite a few pretty pieces here in the museum,” he replied. “I’m glad you decided to accept my invitation—in spite of your first impression of me.”

“Honestly, I was probably more upset that you had your own fine antiquities collection in that awesome study of yours.”

Darien chuckled and extended his arm to her. “Shall we? If you envied my meager catalogue you are probably dying to see the exhibit below.”

“You have no idea,” Diana replied with a smile. After taking Darien’s arm, they ascended the few steps out of the garden area and made their way to the large staircase leading to the floor below.

“I am sorry if all of this makes you uncomfortable,” Darien said as they passed by a group of fancy schmoozers laughing away with each other.  “I thought you might enjoy dressing up and attending something with a little more class than a college party.”

Diana smiled at the very accurate notion. “I am a bit uncomfortable, but you’re right; I have always wanted to come to something like this.”

“I’m not usually one for events like this myself—too much socializing. If I’m required to attend, I usually stand in a corner someplace waiting for it to end. ” Darien sighed with a bit of frustration. “My sister has always been the conversationalist of the pair.”

“Edea, right?” Diana asked and she felt Darien tense, apparently surprised that she knew his sister’s name. “Miri told me,” she quickly replied with a sheepish smile. “I wasn’t prying or anything, I swear. I was just wondering about that exquisite bust you carved.”

Darien arched a semi-disapproving eyebrow. “Miriam seems to have been quite the chatter-box this afternoon; what else did she tell you?”

“Just that I must be a pretty remarkable person to get you to leave your rocks and fables for an evening and have a good time.”

He chuckled warmly at the notion. “Well that’s certainly true.”

Once they were below, it was obvious that the exhibits weren’t the reason most people came to the gala that night. The majority of the attendees remained upstairs, hob-knobbing over their flutes of champagne. Apart from a few interested parties, Diana and Darien were practically alone.

Every ounce of first date angst melted away as Diana gazed upon the banner and instinctively read it out loud. “Gods and Monsters: Heroes and Epics of the Ancient World.” She turned around and looked at Darien with a wide grin full of excitement.

He smiled at her enthusiasm. “I’m glad I kept it a surprise; your reaction was worth it.”

“Let’s start at the beginning and work our way through everything,” she declared. It wasn’t a suggestion—it was going to happen.  She pulled Darien by the hand toward the displays.

To Diana’s immense satisfaction, the artifacts were separated by region and then subdivided chronologically. The exhibit began with the ancient Sumerians, particularly pieces from Uruk—one of first cities built by man. Each item, be it a magnificent necklace made from shimming gold and rich blue lapis, or a roughly hewn altar in which one could still see the soot from incense burned in ages past, fascinated Diana as she imagined the ancient people who owned them and wondered what their life had been like.

Darien followed close behind her, almost as content as she was. He commented on small things here and there—about where the pieces were found, and the excavators, etc.—but for the most part, he simply let Diana enjoy the human history around her in peaceful tranquility.

She had perused similar exhibits in the past, even having seen a handful of these artifacts before at the museum of the Oriental Institute of Chicago, but never had she been to one that had been so concentrated on her particular areas of interest. She honestly didn’t know what to do with herself; she often spent too much time staring at one thing and had to force herself to move along. Darien had to be getting annoyed with her.

She looked behind to gauge his level of annoyance only to find him waiting patiently with a smile on his face.

“I’m sorry if I’m not a very exciting date,” she said with an apologetic sideways grin.

“Quite the opposite, in fact. Your enthusiasm over the most mundane pieces is refreshing.”

Diana chuckled at the notion. “I find that hard to believe.”

“Look around.” He gestured to the quiet, empty, room with his hands. “Each person upstairs could be down here, marveling at the wonders of history the same as you, but they hardly care.” An exacerbated smile crept onto Darien’s mouth and he shook his head. “I’ve been working on bringing this exhibit here for quite some time, but it appears I have done it all for you, Miss Selene. So have no fear, be as excited as you like.”

“If you think I’m spending too much time in one area, don’t be afraid to nudge me a bit.”

“Well, there is one particular section I would like you to see before we run out of time.”

“Then lead the way,” Diana replied eagerly.

After a few minutes of twisting and turning as they navigated through the veins of history, they emerged into a large area filled with engraved steles and monuments, stone tablets, and cases displaying scrolls. The long scroll of the Egyptian
Book of the Dead
took up the entire wall to Diana’s immediate right. It was a whole section dedicated to ancient writings.

“Here we are,” Darien said with enthusiasm.

Practically forgetting about her date, Diana immediately began scanning the room to see what treasures awaited.

She found a small clay tablet of the
Epic of Gilgamesh
in one case, and one of the epic creation account,
Enuma Elish,
in another—she was actually seeing, with her own eyes, what she had enjoyed translating in Akkadian class. Looking at the tablet of
Gilgamesh
more closely, she immediately recognized various elements of the tiny cuneiform wedges. Even though she couldn’t make out much of it, Diana was amazed that she could read something that had been written over three thousand years ago—on the original clay tablet, no less. She was absolutely giddy with joy.

“This is so amazing,” she declared but was surprised to find that Darien wasn’t behind her—it was the first time he had left her side since she’d walked into the garden. He was on the other side of the room, gazing intently at a large stone stele standing tall in the corner.

What has him so captivated?
Curious, Diana made her way to Darien.

Standing beside him, she too began to stare at the dark granite stele in wonder. Carved in the shape of a large stone tablet, it was easily ten feet tall and had a very commanding presence; most likely having been erected to convey an important message in a public place. An image, engraved in relief, decorated the hemispherical portion at the top—a garden scene with a man and a woman under a tree canopy. She’d not seen the particular art style before, but it reminded Diana of ancient Greek vase paintings.  The woman, who wore long, flowing, robes while bearing a crescent moon on her shoulders, was most likely a moon goddess. In her hands she held a cup, filled with blazing fire, in presentation it to the man, who was lounging peacefully on a rock. The crook resting beside him signaled that he was a shepherd.

The scene struck Diana as familiar somehow; had she seen it before?

She had—in Flinders’ book on the ancient Minoans.

Foxwell Flinders discovered this stele.
The realization also brought to mind Flinders’ study of Grail lore. The engraved garden scene looked very similar to medieval paintings of the Grail Queen presenting the holy cup, blazing with sacred fire, to the heroic knight who finishes the quest. Had Flinders’ discovery of the stele inspired him to investigate the Holy Grail? Could this ancient monument have inspired Charlotte’s version of the sacred cup—the Chalice of the Moon?