Leonardo's room was huge, befitting. The teardrop windows were the only source of light in the room. The rays of sunlight filtered in from the windows.
The walls of the room were made of stone, just like every other wall in the castle. There was a magnificent king sized four poster bed with blood red silk sheets and pillows. A small lounge area had been set up near the balcony, where there was a sofa and a coffee table that was filled with books, there were also bottles of wines and alcohol on the makeshift shelf on the wall. There was a large wardrobe and nothing more, and half of Leonardo's clothes were already in it. Two bedside drawers at each side of the bed. There was a large circular persian rug that the bed was on, Viola took off her shoes to sink into them, she savored the feeling of her feet on them. There were paintings on the wall, most of them old and strange but not as strange as the giant head of a stag that was casually resting on top of the fireplace that wasThe elders were seated at the great hall, Viola counted about fifteen of them, all seated and watching her every move. They seemed to be studying her, Leonardo held her hand tightly, as if trying to comfort her. Viola could manage on her own, she would try. She said to herself as they stood at the head of the table.There was silence in the hall, an uncomfortable silence so much so that if a pin dropped it would be heard all around the room. The only familiar face on the table of elders was Leonardo's grandfather and his face didn't look so friendly either.Leonardo cleared his throat, there was no fear in his voice or any stammer."Elders, this is my mate, Viola Santangelo."Viola nodded, a small smile on her face."It's a pleasure to meet you all."She said as confident as she could muster, it was hard not to be anxious when they were all glaring at her. She managed the attention well, despite the mean glares.
It was noon, the full moon drew closer, Leonardo was getting everything in order, getting the whole pack in order. He could already feel the effects of the full moon slowly creeping in. The soreness in his muscles and the mild fatigue that was creeping in. He looked around again and found Selena talking animatedly to Viola, the two of them seemed to have clicked so fast and they seemed to be the best of friends. Viola was adjusting well to the place, surprisingly. He didn't know she would be so well adjusted to the lace, even after the weird meeting with the elders. He had left the room for her to spend the night in his study, he didn't want to cause her any inconvenience. He knew they were to be married, but he was determined to take things slow.He had to talk to her, he had a lot of things to talk to her about. The pack initiation, it was no joke, the elders had demanded for it and Leonardo was not quite ready to deny them.They were right, if she was going to be a memb
Nothing happened. It felt like nothing happened. She thought as she flipped open the pages and she started to see words. Words, actual words. Old words, but word nevertheless. Written in Italian, some parts of it were in English but mostly Italian. That was good. she would read it anyways. Some of them were inchorent, starting off like some mumbling, she couldn't make any sense of them but the more she read the more she began to understand. Her great grandmother was writing about the story of her life, before she met her great grandfather. I was born during the war, a long time ago. My parents were long gone, the war felt like it was drawn out for ages. I went to so many places, saw so many deaths, it was brutal. It was cold and hard and I was in a new world, where I had nothing to do but adapt. I joined a band of witches, but they quickly sensed I was not like them and tried to trick me into a ritual where my power would be theirs. That was
"What happened?"Loki asked as he walked up to Leonardo at dawn. He had been so far away from the territory during the full moon that he was unaware of the fact that something had happened. Until he heard the warning howls. By then he was already tired and worn out and he had no other choice but to run back to the pack house in his human form. Whatever had happened, nobody seemed to be able to provide adequate information of what happened but something told him that it had to do with the blonde haired woman that was sleeping in Leonardo's chambers. He wouldn't put it past her. She was unhinged, she was uncontrollable and she was certainly not to be left alone. She had caused them more trouble than she should have. Leonardo looked at the closed door and sighed. He was about two miles away from the pack house when he could sense Viola's fear, it was pungent and so strong that the air had carried it. And so he had ran back to the packhouse as soon as he could, fe
They had returned to town, with Viola heading straight back to her grandfather's home. Leonardo had been silent all through the ride home. She rode with him and his sister Selena.He didn’t talk to her, he was mute. He must have been really angry with her. But Viola couldn't help it, she partly blamed him.Ria would have not tried to attack her if he wasn't with her in the first place. How many more women like that would Viola have to deal with? She wondered has she sighed. Ria had attacked her out of jealousy and envy, Viola didn’t even have an idea of her existence.Her mind went to Gwenda Mae and she shivered at the thought of the witch waiting for her at home. If not that her grandfather wouldn't listen to her, she would have asked him to dismiss the witch. Her great grandmother Eudora didn't like witches, that much she knew, Viola didn't think it right to associate with
Leonardo arrived at his penthouse in Soho a few minutes after midnight. He was tired, but he had work to do. He had spent his whole day in the office, then his second beta Jed had come to see him to give him a report. He'd deal with things later, but everything seemed to be fine with his pack.The only issue was that Loki had forwarded him a troubling mail that he had gotten from the Bureau. They were sending an agent to him, they wanted an explanation about their agent who got injured at his place.He wondered if they already knew he was in New York and if the agent was making his way towards him.He had to deal with that, a formal investigation was the last thing he needed. He didn't want them sniffing around. News in the supernatural world spread fast, really fast. And he could only imagine what would happen if they learnt about the powers Viola Santangelo possessed.They woul
"I'll come see you at home. Don't worry. I just need to sort things out with my aunt here. She's short on staff and she wants me to help her till she gets back on her feet."Lyra said and Viola nodded."I understand."Lyra shrugged."It gives me time to find a real job and explore Milan at the same time. I'm killing two birds with one stone.""Yes. And if you need any help Lyra please let me know. I know you don't want me meddling, but I'm sure they're a few people I can call who can get you a job back in America."Lyra sighed."You know that's exactly what I'm avoiding. If not my parents would have found me a job by now. Don't worry.""Besides I'm enjoying myself here. I kind of like it here.She said as she looked around the cafe and tried to reassure Viola."I
"Out with it then. Tell me what you came for and leave."Leonardo said as he poured himself a glass of bourbon. Vanessa's eyes darted around nervously, Leonardo was not as receptive but towards her like she had expected.Could he really and truly be done with her?She asked herself again as she shifted in the sofa."Won't you offer me a drink? I won't mind a glass of bourbon myself."She said as she pointed to a spare glass on the table and Leonardo sighed."Stalling will get you nowhere Vanessa. I meant what I said."Vanessa waved him off."Oh I just want a class of drink! Nothing more."She commented and Leonardo poured her a glass of bourbon and handed it to her."Thank you. Now if you'll please just sit down."Truth was, she had come to see Leonardo on
Viola had made dinner. And it was delicious. Leonardo came back home to the smell of spaghetti wafting into his nostrils. She invited him to have dinner. He was surprised at the gesture, she didn't have to and yet she did, he wondered why she had even bothered. The clinking of cutlery and the soft hum of the music playing in the background filled the air as they savored their meal. Viola stole a glance at Leonardo, who looked dashing in his suit that he had not taken off, and her heart raced. She took a deep breath and decided it was now or never. Vanessa visiting had made her think about some things and she decided that now, more than ever, they needed to clarify their relationship.They were mates, that was true, but lately it felt like something more had been blooming between the two of them. Something deeper. "Leonardo," she began hesitantly, "there's something I've been wanting to talk to you about."Leonardo, his eyes warm and attentive, put down his fork. "What is it, Viola?
Leonardo sat in his office, poring over files in preparation for an upcoming meeting. The faint sound of footsteps reached his ears, and he glanced up to find his beta, Loki, standing at the doorway. Loki's mischievous grin was as usual, but there was something different in his eyes today."Alpha, how's it going?" Loki asked, leaning casually against the doorframe. "Give me a moment... I should be done here soon and then we can head to the meeting." Loki nodded. "And how is Viola doing?""She's recovering very nicely."Leonardo answered with a smile on his face. He looked a little relieved too. "She's staying with me in the meantime, I think seeing her grandfather will annoy her too much." Loki raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Staying with you? That's good."Leonardo looked at Loki with a curious expression. "Do you have something to say? I feel like there's something on your mind...""Well... it's just that lately, you've been all about Viola. Talking about her, caring for her...
In the bedroom, Viola lay still, her chest rising and falling in the rhythm of deep exhaustion. The air was heavy with the remnants of magic, a testament to the draining spell she had just performed. Leonardo, sat by her side, quiet, unwavering and still. She had completed the spell. She had finally unbinded herself from Gwenda. Which meant, Gwenda was dead. She still did not know the full details of how she had done what she needed to do, but all she could remember was that she had found a door in her mind to Gwenda's mind and she had opened that door and she had tampered with things she shouldn't have tampered with. No part of her felt sorry, at least not yet. She couldn't tell if it was because of the exhaustion or because of something else. As moonlight streamed through the window, casting a gentle glow over Viola's face, Leonardo's eyes gleamed with pride. With a tender smile, he brushed a strand of hair from her forehead and leaned in close. His warm breath danced on her skin
“Leonardo! Leonardo!”Viola’s voice was low and raspy, her lips devoid of colour and her face pale and gaunt, she looked like she was about to faint. "I think she wants to kill me... this headache feels too much. It feels like my head is about to split into two."Viola moaned as she sat on the bedroom floor, Leonardo was by her side, holding on to her closely."I hate this so much! I feel so useless! I wish I could help!"He sounded agitated. The two of them were. It had barely been hours since they arrived from Vincenzo's place. "It should pass soon….”Viola murmured but even she wasn't sure of the words that were coming out of her mouth. The pain was so intense that she could feel it clouding her vision. "Should we try what Vincenzo said? Do you think it'll work?"Viola was too tired to speak. She couldn't even move her lips if she tried, but she nodded to Leonardo and he swung into action. Vincenzo had mentioned that the technique he was about to tell Viola was a theory his own
The pain subsided moments later, but Viola knew she had only succeeded in distracting Gwenda momentarily. Gwenda would continue her wicked spells soon enough and she would be able to do nothing to stop it. The thought alone frightened her, that one person could take advantage of her power in such away.Leonardo looked distraught, she had made him cut her with a knife and even pour salt on the wound to slow down the healing. He didn't want to do it, but she had pleaded that for her sake he should. He tried his best and she had tried not to faint and the sight of her blood.The wound was slowly healing now and she was no longer trying to stop it from healing. Stalling would only delay, Gwenda would perform her spells anyway, she needed a way out.She flipped through Eudora's diaries hoping to find some answers, but there was so many information, but not on the
"Miss Viola! Are you sure you're not making a terrible mistake?! What would happen if your grandfather comes back and doesn't see you at home?!"Alessandra pleaded but Viola ignored her, she continued dumping her clothes into the suitcase. It really was the last straw, she couldn't wait to leave. She also had to find a way to break the spell and since Gwenda was of no use to her she would have to find another way."I don't care. And what would he do? Really what would he do?!"She said as she laughed manically.She had had enough. Enough of his antics and enough of his games, if he wanted her to come back home he would have to right his wrongs."Oh please Viola! Just think it through...""I've made up my mind. I'm not coming to this house anymore. I'm leaving."She had called Leonardo, so he would be there any minute to pick her up."Viola please! Just think this through!""Think what through?! That man has had a hold on my life ever since I was born! And now, even when I'm grown he's
Leonardo dropped off Viola at her home, he wanted to be with her but he was going to have a lot of work to do and he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to watch over her properly. Viola was still very weak, her body was sore and she could barely walk on her feet, Leonardo had to carry her to her room.Gwenda rushed to her room few minutes after he left after being informed by Alessandra that Viola was sick and weak. "What happened?!"She exclaimed as she saw Viola lying on her bed weak. She had eye-bags underneath her eyes, her skin looked pale and her lips were chapped. Viola smiled weakly, few hours ago she had felt on top of the world, racing through the woods with inhuman speed and now she couldn't even lift her legs without pain shooting through her."The transformation spell... took more out of me than I expected."She said and Gwenda shook her head.“Oh dear! I’m so sorry! If I had known it would we would have found another way.”Viola shrugged.“It was the only way.”"I'll make
Leonardo watched Viola sleeping peacefully in his bed. He had opened the curtains, letting the sunlight in and hoping that it would prompt her to wake up. She had been sleeping all morning, granted, the transformation spell must have taken a lot of her energy but he didn't plan to stay in the pack house the whole day and he wanted to leave. He was meant to take her with him. She stirred slightly, then her eyes fluttered open. She turned and looked straight at him."Glad you're awake.""How are you doing?"He asked her and she nodded."I'm fine."She said as she slowly sat upright.God she felt like someone had hit her with bricks all over and she felt so sore. She didn’t imagine that she would feel so sick and exhausted. "Do you remember everything that happened?"He asked and she nodded, her fingers slightly massaging her forehead. Did she? "Yes. Yes. I think I do.""Did I pass my initiation?"She asked eagerly and Leonardo nodded."You did. The elders would be here any minute to
Leonardo and Viola arrived at the pack house late. Around seven pm. The initiation ritual was in a few minutes. They had left pretty late because Viola had been stuck on the transformation spell for hours. Hours and hours on end before Gwenda finally made a breakthrough. Even when she finally did, she didn't get time to practice the spell because Leonardo had come around to pick her up shortly after. She had no other choice but to leave with him. He didn't tell her what her ordeal would be or if he managed to make it easier for her but from the grim look on his face and the unspoken words he said, Viola could tell that it was not good.She tried to remain calm and Leonardo had offered her words of encouragement. She knew she had tried her best from her end, even with the limited time, she had pushed herself, more than she had ever done before just to make sure she had least had a fighting chance at her ordeal.When they arrived at the pack house they were led straight to an opening