Tianna Moore Quotes

“I really like hanging out with you, Tianna."
"What?" She wiped her eyes. "After tonight I thought you'd never want to see me again."
"Are you kidding?" He seemed as surprised as she felt. "I've never had such an exciting night."
"Are you making fun of me?"
He shook his head. "From the first moment I met you, I knew you were the kind of girl who went running off the high dive into the deep end of the pool before you even knew how to swim."
She laughed.
He pulled her closer to him. "I like that rush of adrenaline I felt tonight.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“Shannon took her hand and squeezed it tightly. "We're here for you, Tianna. We're family now, just like Mary said."
"You were an emergency placement-" Mary began.
"Placement?" Tianna asked.
"I'm a foster mother," Mary explained.
"I have no home?" Tianna felt her heart drop, but it wasn't as much of a shock as it should have been. Part of her had known she had been running for a long time. Still, she had hoped.
"I'm sorry," Mary answered with true concern. "They called two weeks ago and asked if I could take..." She stopped.
"What?" Tianna asked, wondering if there was something wrong with her.
Mary regarded her kindly. "The social worker wanted to know if there was any way I could handle a problem teen."
Tianna waited for Mary to explain.
"She said you kept running away from your placement homes and she thought maybe I could make a difference because I had been so successful with others in the past."
Tianna knew immediately that there was something Mary wasn't saying.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“An hour later Tianna was walking toward Planet Bang, wearing a sweater shell with sequins and an ankle-grazing skirt slit up the sides to the top of her thighs. She glanced at the waning moon and stopped. There was something important she had to do before the moon turned dark and it was in some way connected to Justin and Mason, but what? She stared at the sky as she continued, hoping the memory would come to her the way soccer and skateboarding had.
When she rounded the corner, the music grew louder. A neon sign throbbed pink, blue, green, and orange lights over the kids waiting to go inside. She recognized some of them. It seemed as if everyone had come with a friend or friends. Their heads turned and watched her as she walked to the end of the line.
She spread her hands through her hair and arched her back. As long as they were going to stare, she might as well give them a show. She twisted her body and stuck one long leg out from the slit in her skirt. Guys smiled back at her as she stretched her arms in a sexy pose. The girls mostly turned away, pretending they hadn't been checking out their competition.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“She stood and tripped over something in the dark, then stumbled and fell on Derek.
"Ouch," he moaned.
"Are you all right?" she whispered, and realized she was lying on top of him. She liked the way his body felt so familiar and comfortable beneath hers. She rested her head against his chest and closed her eyes, suddenly regretting all the mean things she had said to him.
"Aren't you going to get up?" he asked.
"Sure," she answered, and let her hands smooth down his chest and then his arms. She was surprised by the feel of his rock-hard muscles.
"I work out," he murmured unexpectedly.
"What?"
He snickered. "The way you're feeling my chest and arms-"
"I am not." She jumped up, indignant, then knelt beside him. "I was searching for your ropes."
"Liar," he whispered.
She felt a blush rise to her cheeks and was glad it was dark so he couldn't see.
"The ropes are tied around my ankles and wrists," he said, but there was still laughter in his voice.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“She lifted her arms and wrapped them around his neck. She had liked him from the moment she had met him Monday at school. No wonder he thought she had been acting weird on Wednesday when she couldn't even remember his name.
But other memories came to her now. Ones that filled her with sadness. She saw her mother, father, and sister. Tears burned into her eyes. Having her memories suddenly restored made it feel as if they had died all over again.
"You're crying." Derek pressed her against him and rubbed her back soothingly.
She remembered the way she had struggled through the woodlot that first night and finally found shelter in the trashed boxes behind a liquor store. She had fallen into a deep sleep and was awakened the next morning by the woman who owned the store.
That began her first foster placement. More than anything she had wanted a home. She had lived in so many different houses and towns. West Covina. Ontario. Long Beach. Wilmington. She had kept a key from each one. That's why there were so many on her key chain. She felt suddenly sorry for herself, sorry that she had lived like a stray.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“Selene, the goddess of the moon-"
"She's real, too?" Tianna knew at once that Selene was the mysterious force who had directed her to run. That also explained why her internal guide was strongest during the full moon and weakest during the dark of the moon.
"Selene saw the creature that had been sent by the Atrox to devour hope," Serena said. "She took pity on the people of earth and gave her daughters, like guardian angels, to guard hope. We're those daughters. We're goddesses.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“I don't have a home to go to. I guess I can go to a shelter or the nearest police station."
He thought about it. "My older sister is away at college. I bet my mom would let you spend the night in her room."
Jimena was suddenly beside her. "You can stay with me. My abuelita would love to have someone living with her who hasn't heard all her stories."
"Or you could live with me," Vanessa offered quickly. "We'll clear out the bedroom where my mom stores all her clothes. She could use another daughter as a model for her dress designs."
"We have room, too," Catty put in. "My mom will say yes to anything once she sees that I'm okay."
"See?" Vanessa said. "You have plenty of homes."
Tianna took a deep breath. "Thanks.”
― Lynne Ewing

“Tianna felt happy. Since she had lost her family, she had wanted to belong somewhere.
"That mysterious voice that seemed like an inner guide," Tianna asked. "Was that Selene?"
Maggie nodded. "Selene was always guiding you. She looked down on you that first night and felt pity for what the Followers had done and for what you were going to endure. And now because you have proved yourself, she is allowing you to become-"
"A goddess," Tianna whispered.
"A Daughter of the Moon." Maggie corrected her with a smile.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“Can I stay here?"
In response, Mary smiled and opened the door wide. Tianna walked inside. Flames flickered in the hearth, and the smell of popcorn wrapped around her.
Shannon and Todd looked up in surprise when they saw her. Shannon ran to her with arms spread as wide as wings, and Todd did happy wheelies around the room.
Hours later, stomach filled with popcorn and Pepsi, Tianna crawled onto the soft cotton-flowered sheet and pulled the comforter over her head. Her bed smelled fresh and new, and she had a cozy feeling that she hadn't felt for a long time. Tears stung her eyes. She missed her parents and Jamie, but now at least she had a chance to start to live a normal life after so many years of running and living on the street.
She stared out the window at the dark night sky and touched the amulet hanging around her neck.
"Goddess," she murmured. The word felt so right.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“Let's go home," Vanessa said.
Tianna sighed. More than anything she wanted to go home, but she didn't have a place to go. She walked slower and fell behind the others.
Derek took her arm. "What's wrong?"
She couldn't look at him.
"After what we've been through tonight, I can't believe you have a secret you're not going to tell me." He put a comforting arm around her.
She looked up. “I don't have a home to go to. I guess I can go to a shelter or the nearest police station."
He thought about it. "My older sister is away at college. I bet my mom would let you spend the night in her room."
Jimena was suddenly beside her. "You can stay with me. My abuelita would love to have someone living with her who hasn't heard all her stories."
"Or you could live with me," Vanessa offered quickly. "We'll clear out the bedroom where my mom stores all her clothes. She could use another daughter as a model for her dress designs."
"We have room, too," Catty put in. "My mom will say yes to anything once she sees that I'm okay."
"See?" Vanessa said. "You have plenty of homes."
Tianna took a deep breath. "Thanks.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“You are a Goddess, a Daughter of the Moon."
But, now more than ever, Tianna was certain it had been a mistake. She felt like a fraud--- just a girl, not a goddess. Besides, she was the outsider; she hadn't been born a Daughter, like Serena, Vanessa, Jimena, and Catty. Selene, the goddess of the moon, had looked down and decided to make her a Daughter because she had saved the others from the Followers of an ancient evil called the Atrox.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“Vanessa.” Catty waved, then ran toward her, her arm extended to keep her coffee from spilling. She wore a see-through green top over a polka-dot bra and hip-hugging jeans that showed off the hoop piercing her belly button. When she got closer, Vanessa saw the blue stains on her wrist and thumb, and knew she’d been up late painting.
“I’m so glad I found you first.” Catty’s straight brown hair glimmered with coppery streaks. Her face had a natural glow. “You’ll never guess what!”
“Tell me.”
“The art department is entering one of my paintings in the school-district competition.” Catty took a sip of coffee, her eyes watching Vanessa over the rim.
“That’s great! Which one?” Vanessa asked.
“You haven’t seen it yet.”
“I haven’t?” Vanessa was surprised. “I thought I’d seen everything.”
“I used Tianna for my model this time,” Catty explained.
“Oh.” Vanessa could feel her smile slipping from her lips. “Why didn’t you ask me?” Vanessa posed for Catty all the time. The goddesses in her paintings always resembled Vanessa.
“You were busy with Michael.” Catty pulled yellow-tinted sunglasses from her messenger bag and slid them on.
“It’s all right,” Vanessa said, feeling hurt.”
― Lynne Ewing, Moon Demon

“You're too late!" she yelled to the other Daughters. "I'm bound to him already."
"We're never too late!" Tianna shouted back, squinting, her concentration severe.
Vanessa could feel the bands on her wrists vibrating, then with a sudden flash, they split apart, breaking into chunks and rattling to the ground as sparks cascaded over them.
Tianna folded her arms across her chest. "Nothing holds you now."
Vanessa glanced up. The ring around the moon was no more than a hazy mist, drifting across the sky. She looked at Hector. He did nothing to restrain her. She took a tentative step into the moonlight. When the gentle radiance didn't burn her, she ran to her friends.”
― Lynne Ewing, Moon Demon

“You should have taken her car registration.” Vanessa looked after the car. “Then we’d at least have her name.”
“Too late now,” Serena said, feeling defeated.
“It’s never too late,” Tianna said with confidence, her eyes narrowing in concentration as she pushed out with her telekinetic power to the fast-moving car.
At the corner the Lexus slowed, then hitched, its frame seeming to shudder as it came to a stop in the middle of the street. The back tires spun, peeling off a layer of rubber and churning blue smoke into the air.
“We should have used Tianna in the first place,” Jimena said to Serena as they ran toward the car.
“Don’t lie to me,” Serena answered, breathless. “I know you wanted to see if you could still jack a car. I can read your mind. Remember?”
Jimena smiled sheepishly.”
― Lynne Ewing, Possession

“Each of the Daughters had a powerful dark side. Vanessa was a Daughter of the Moon, but she was also a Daughter of Pandora. Serena was the key, the one with the power to alter the balance between light and dark, and she was in love with Stanton, a Follower. Catty's father was a powerful member of the Inner Circle, and her birth mother had been a Daughter of the Moon who had turned to the Atrox. Kendra had found Catty walking along an Arizona highway after her real mother had deserted her.
Then Jimena glanced at Tianna. Did she have another side? She hadn't been born a goddess.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Choice

“How can anyone look so gorgeous?" Serena asked, bewilderment in her voice.
"If I dressed like that—" Vanessa said, referring to Tianna's B-girl style.
"You'd still be the glamour queen," Catty interrupted, but Tianna's unearthly beauty made Catty pause. Even dressed casually in Tommy jeans and big hoop earrings, she looked incredible.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Prophecy

“Finally, Jimena spoke. "Maybe Tianna is the becoming."
"What does that mean?" Tianna asked.
"I don't remember completely," Jimena said. "In the beginning of the ancient world, when Selene stopped the Atrox from destroying hope, the Atrox vowed to bring an unimaginable curse upon the world. Followers call it the becoming. The gods call it the becoming sorrows, but what that means I don't know yet."
"Do you think Tianna will do something?" Serena asked. "Maybe like Pandora, she'll release—"
"I would never do anything to hurt people." Tianna interrupted, folding her arms tightly across her chest. "Do you think I'd free disease and misery like Pandora? I'm not that stupid."
Catty put an arm around Tianna. "You'd never do it on purpose, but maybe—"
She shrugged off Catty's hand. "I wouldn't do it even by accident. Think about it. If the Atrox asked you to open a jar or a trunk, would you?"
Catty shrugged.
"But suppose there's something you're going to do or have already done that will start an unstoppable series of events," Serena suggested. "Like when you used the Secret Scroll—"
"Would you get off it?" Tianna shot back angrily. "I thought I could defeat the Atrox then."
Serena ignored her and looked at Jimena. "Do you think that could be it? Could Tianna have done something when she summoned the Atrox? Maybe the becoming sorrows only refers to a new era when the Atrox is stronger and Tianna would be the becoming because she helped it escape its binding."
"It's possible," Jimena agreed.
"She didn't do it intentionally," Catty added as if trying to protect Tianna from their accusations.
"Of course it was accidental," Jimena agreed, but there was doubt in her eyes. "Tianna would never do anything like that on purpose. We'll have to wait and see what happens.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“Tianna held her power in check. It prowled near the surface, petulant and strong, a primitive urge needing expression. She grimaced. She had been a brat, indulging in a temper tantrum. Why was she acting this way?
Her powers had always been stronger than those of the other Daughters, and her unexplained gift hadn’t come from Selene. Was she by some angry twist of fate going to “become” a Pandora and release something dreadful on the world?”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“She pulled on her silver miniskirt, loving the way it showed off her hip bones and belly ring, then she twisted into a black cropped top. The sleeves covered her arms from wrist to shoulder and hid the worst of her bruises. She stretched and let the neckline slip low.
Her heart raced with anticipation. She took a deep breath, trying to quell her excitement about telling Derek her decision. Then she stared into the mirror, brushed on glitter eye shadow, and added sparkle to her hair. Tiny diamonds glimmered against her black curls. She pasted three pink stars on her cheek, then squeezed strobe cream into her palms and rubbed it over her legs. Her skin glowed, and the sweet fragrance of gardenias scented the air. She angled one foot in front of the other and cast a sly smile at her reflection. A thrill rushed through her. She looked like an enchantress.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“Tianna listened, wondering why Mary hadn’t turned to shadow and glided up to their hiding place. Maybe Shannon in her innocence had created a magic room. Maggie had said the Atrox was unable to feel love and was therefore blind to anything hidden in loving thoughts. Now Tianna wondered if Mary was unable to sense their presence because the sacred images in the attic concealed them in a circle of love.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“At last she unclasped her moon amulet and fastened it around Shannon’s neck. “You keep it. You’re more goddess than I am. I’m just a street kid with the weird ability to move things.”
Then she looked back at the others. “Take care of Shannon for me.”
Catty put an arm around her. “Maybe Kendra can become her foster mom. She needs someone who isn’t always in trouble like me.”
“How do you know I’m not always in trouble?” Shannon snapped.
Her response pleased Catty, and she gave her a wild hug. “You’re a perfect sister for me.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“Selene stole a baby from the Atrox. She gave the infant to one of her Daughters to rear. The Daughter was turning seventeen and had bravely asked to make the change. The metamorphosis doesn’t always involve turning into a spiritual form. In rare cases it means taking on a difficult duty or an impossible challenge, and keeping one’s goddess powers and memories.”
Tianna nodded impatiently, trying to get Jimena to hurry.
“Selene needed to protect the child from her destiny, and the Daughter accepted the responsibility of rearing the baby as her transformation. She succeeded far beyond anyone’s hopes. The child grew strong and good. That little girl was you.”
“My mother was a goddess, a Daughter of the Moon?”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“When Selene stopped the Atrox from abducting Pandora, it vowed to learn how to create the breath of life and make its own irresistibly beautiful woman. Throughout the centuries it has had countless failures, many monstrous outcomes—”
“What happened to them?” Tianna asked, curious now, and feeling unexpected compassion for the creatures.
“Most live in Nefandus, the Atrox’s realm,” Jimena said. “Some are Regulators, and a few, like Mary, try to live in our world.”
“Mary?” Tianna’s hatred for Mary suddenly fell away, replaced by a terrible pity. “But what does that have to do with what’s happening now?”
“You were its first success,” Jimena said finally. “The Atrox created you.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“Tianna stopped suddenly, remembering the meticulous way her mother had reinterpreted every event in her life to give her confidence and make her feel normal.
“She let you see a good side to everything you did or said,” Jimena continued for her. “Even when you felt—”
“Even when I felt I wasn’t good.” Tianna stared at the clock on top of the television. She had less than an hour left. “But I was never brutal or cruel or evil,” she added, hating the feel of the last word on her tongue. “I learned to love and feel compassion.”
“Your mother fed you moon dew, a magic elixir, to give you heart and soul,” Jimena explained.
Tianna remembered walking barefoot in the wet grass, sipping sweet liquid form honeysuckle blossoms under a full moon. She had thought it was only a game.
“My mother loved the moonlight,” she said sadly. Tears spilled from her eyes again and she felt the warmth of her mother’s devotion, love, and care, and then her head shot up as another idea jumped into her mind. “You’re mistaken. I know you are. You must have me confused with someone else, because Maggie said I was—”
Jimena touched her lips and silenced her. “Maggie knew who you were and gave you the moon amulet, hoping the charm would protect you,” Jimena explained. “Any of her deceptions came from love, and were attempts to safeguard you from your destiny.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“He pulled back his cape and his fingers grasped the hilt of a sword. He drew it from the scabbard and pointed it at the sky. Moonlight reflected off the blade in dazzling rainbow lights. The sword seemed to be carved from gray stone.
“Maggie used this centuries back to bind the Atrox to its shadow. Do it again for Serena, Catty, and Vanessa.” He offered it to her.
As Tianna grasped the pommel, energy vibrated up her arm. Maggie’s love enveloped her, as if her spirit still lingered inside the cold stone. “But I thought using weapons only made the Atrox stronger.”
“The sword was forged with love out of rock cut from the moon,” he explained. “It will bind the Atrox to its shadow so it can no longer transform.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“I’ll do this for everyone I’ve loved that it has destroyed.”
“It’s the only way to stop your becoming,” he said, as if that would give her solace. Then he kissed her cheek and started to fall back, dissolving into a flicker of shade.
“Stanton,” she asked, stopping him. “What is this becoming everyone has been talking about?”
His words drifted to her as the wind swept his shadow away. “Becoming the mother of the Atrox’s child.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“Shadows writhed over her with sensual slowness, lulling her with each caress, and the faint scent of sulfur permeated the air. Something familiar stirred inside her, awakening, and she no longer felt afraid. She stretched, enjoying the sensation of soft air wrapping around her. She slid her hands down her body, reveling in a primitive feeling of wickedness. Her fingers caught on the sword’s hilt. She jerked her hand away and jarred the blade, making the tip slice her ankle. Pain shot up her leg.
Do you have something you want to do? The Atrox asked.
The words slipped across her mind.
“Yes,” she whispered.
Her will to fight had vanished, replaced with only one desire: to please her master. She drew the sword from her waistband. The blade licked her thigh and its energy flared in warning, igniting her blood on the point. She let it fall. It hit something solid, as if she were still standing on the rocky shore. The clatter rang into the universe and echoed through her with terrible, foreboding force.
For the briefest moment she hesitated, unsure, but then the swarming dark twirled lazily around her. She closed her eyes again and fell back, dissolving in the Atrox’s embrace. She was becoming.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“You were born from the first stirrings of the dark as the sun gave way to night. The Fates helped me. No one could stop me once they had agreed. Even Zeus had to bow to their decree. They gathered the power of the moon, and Klotho spun the thread of life and gave it to me. Then Lachesis wove a cloth that reached to infinity to give you immortality. Atropos gave me her cruel scissors so you'd never face death."
"But the failures—" Tianna started to say, thinking of Mary.
"There were too many." He nodded. "Treading on the boundary between death and birth is delicate, and countless mistakes were made."
"But if you could create me, then why not a son?" she asked.
The suggestion seemed to anger him. "My son will have a mother to nurture him. No human has ever measured up. I tested many, but all failed me. Now I have you."
"Am I good enough or evil enough to be its mother?" she asked.
He ignored her question and kissed her. Frost covered her lips, spreading out to her cheeks. He pulled back.
"Maybe I shouldn't have given you so much intelligence," he said, as if she had asked too many questions, "and only given you the need to destroy— but then you would never have come to love me."
"Love?" she repeated. The word hung oddly in the air and she couldn't quite recall what it meant. But then its sound filled her with an odd glow and she remembered Jamie, her mother and father, the Daughters, Derek, and Maggie. Memories of them broke the spell seducing her. Desire slipped away and was replaced by fear.
"Why would you want love when you can't feel love yourself?" she bravely asked.
Ethan stepped away from her, angered, as if he coveted most what he could never possess.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“Come here, Ethan. I’m waiting for another kiss.”
He smiled and stepped toward her, then closed his eyes and started to embrace her.
She swung the sword high over her head and plunged the blade into his shoulder, down into his chest.
His eyes flashed open.
“You created me to destroy,” she said. “Now I have fulfilled my destiny.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming

“Suddenly, Catty, Serena, and Vanessa broke into the room and ran toward her. Tianna sensed intuitively that they had come to rescue her, in spite of the danger to themselves. The three Daughters joined hands, forming a ring around Tianna, and together they repeated the prayer Maggie had taught them. Then, silver moonlight appeared, cascading through the tall, narrow windows, even though Tianna knew it was impossible. No moon glowed in Nefandus. The cleansing luminescence cradled her and filled her with unbearable love and happiness. She stretched her arms toward the light, longing for its touch, and anxious to fall back into eternity.
Catty, Vanessa, and Serena each whispered their good-byes, and then everything became blindingly bright, each tiny sound magnified a thousandfold. This time something pure and longed-for penetrated her chest, and she joyously released her soul. Her spirit retreated from her body and rode on tranquil moonbeams, flowing upward, the strength of the universe pulling her away.
At last, Selene reached down and took her home.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Becoming