RowenaThe cool night air blew across my face as I stepped out into the backyard. As I made my way toward the lone figure sitting by the pond, the sounds of the party began to fade and were soon replaced by the chirping crickets and the wind rustling through the trees.As I approached, the figure didn’t look up. But I knew it was Eric, not just from his familiar head of blond hair, but from his broad shoulders in the darkness.He was sitting in the grass by the edge of the pond that was situated at the center of all of the warrior cottages. It was a serene place here, with the sounds of the bullfrogs croaking just offshore.Without saying anything, I walked up to Eric and stood beside him. We both stayed like that for a while, neither of us speaking, just enjoying the view.Across the pond, the golden lights of the other cottages twinkled and mingled with the light of the moon rippling on the surface of the calm water. With each passing breeze, another ripple would blow across the sur
RowenaI ran.I ran so fast that the cold wind hitting my cheeks caused my tears to blow back across my face, into my hair. I ran so fast that I lost all of the breath from my lungs. I ran so fast that my knees felt weak and my feet stung from slapping against the pavement.And it still didn’t feel fast enough.Eric’s calls after me had long since faded, and I still hadn’t stopped. Even as the warriors’ village faded into the distance and all that was around me were the towering trees and the sounds of the night time creatures, I refused to stop.No, I had to keep running. Because maybe, if I ran fast and far enough, it wouldn’t be true.Eric was my mate.Or at least, that was what he had said. I could still hear his voice in my ears when he had uttered those words.“You are my mate!” he had said.We had both stood there in stunned silence after he had said those words, and at first, I couldn’t help but laugh. In fact, I laughed so hard that I doubled over, clutching my stomach as sti
RowenaI stood in front of the bathroom mirror, smoothing down my hair as my heart pounded in my chest. Today, I was wearing my usual: a pair of jeans, a white button-down, and a blue cardigan. I had my hair pulled back into a neat bun and wore my glasses, with my leather bag slung across my body.But today, when I should have been busy thinking about my upcoming classes and my assignments, my mind was on other things. Or rather, one thing in particular.
Rowena & EricRowenaThe dining room smelled like garlic and roast chicken, the only sounds that of cutlery on dishes and soft classical music in the background. My parents sat on either end of the table, wearing their more dressed-down—but still dressy enough for a family dinner—clothes. Eric and I sat between them, our gazes fixed on our plates.This was our monthly occasion&mdas
Rowena“Today, you’re going to be getting up from your desks and performing a physical assessment.”There was an audible murmuring amongst the class. From where I sat near the window, I could see my classmates shifting uncomfortably in their seats; it was a Friday morning, and the last thing that anyone wanted to do was physical exams, which usually involved having to pair up and exercise.
RowenaWhen I finally found refuge beneath the stairs, there were tears in my eyes for reasons I couldn’t quite understand. I huffed to myself as I sat down, dropping my leather satchel onto the tile floor.“Dammit,” I muttered as I wiped my eyes with my sleeve.I couldn’t believe I was skippin
RowenaI couldn’t believe my ears when Emma actually said yes to my request to get hot cocoa together. After purchasing our things, we found ourselves sitting at a small corner table in a nearby cafe, our shopping bags piled around us and two steaming mugs of hot chocolate on the table.“So,” I said, trying to sound nonchalant, “how have you… how have you been?”
RowenaThe sound of fists pummeling leather filled the air as Eric stood with his back turned to me, sweat running down his skin. He almost seemed to be hitting his punching bag with a primal, feral intensity—almost as though he was trying to get out his anger, or perhaps his frustration.I wasn’t sure why I just stood there, staring at him. Maybe it was simply fascination with his form.
RowenaThe sun cast golden rays on the carpet as I stood in the middle of my bedroom, surveying the half-packed bag on my bed with a frown. Would this be enough for three months of training?Finally, after deciding that I wasn’t quite ready yet and stuffing in a few more shirts, I zipped it closed and slung the strap over my shoulder. A soft sniffle made me turn toward the doorway, and I felt my face drop slightly when I saw the sad faces staring back at me.My parents lingered there, my mom’s eyes red-rimmed and glistening with tears. She attempted a watery smile when she saw me looking, but I could see right through it. She didn’t want me to leave.“You’re really going, huh?” she murmured.Crossing the room with a sigh, I pulled my mom into a tight hug and shot my dad an apologetic look over her slender shoulder. “It’s only for a few months, Mom,” I reassured her. “I’ll be back before you know it.”“I know, I know.” She squeezed me tighter, her fingers digging into my back. “It’s ju
RowenaI stood in the hallway just outside the parlor, my heart pounding in my ears. The voices behind the door were hushed, but I could still make out every word through the thick wood.“Your Majesty, we can’t thank you enough for making this journey,” my father’s voice echoed softly. “I can assure you that, had circumstances been different, we would have liked to have met you much sooner.”There was a pause, and then a deeper, richer voice responded—one I didn’t recognize yet. “Please, call me Stefan. And the honor is all mine—you protected my daughter despite everything. Although a part of me still can’t believe my little girl is actually alive after all these years.”My heart leapt into my throat. My father—King Stefan from the Northern kingdom. I knew he was coming to visit, but to finally hear his voice… It was unreal.A trembling hand came up to rest against the door as I tried to conjure up any memory of my father, of my past life. But there was nothing, of course; I had been
RowenaMy heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest as I watched Eric mouth those two simple words to me.“Kiss me.”His bright blue eyes bored endlessly into mine, and in those moments, time stopped. Kiss him? Kiss him? Now? In front of everyone?“C’mon, Ro,” Eric murmured, sensing my fear. “You promised.”I gulped, unsure of what to say; and at that second, I felt myself being thrust back to our childhood, back to one summer afternoon so many years ago when things were so much different…“Hey, Ro?” “Yeah?”“Do you ever wonder what it would be like if you were born in a different family?”I remembered that day clearly; Eric and I had been laying out in the grass beneath the big oak tree behind our house, watching as the leaves waved back and forth. I was nine, and he was going on twelve. Oddly enough, I remembered exactly what we were wearing: he had on a blue shirt, and I wore a pair of overalls. I think I remembered the shirt because it matched his eyes, and the color
EricI tightened the cloth wraps around my fists, feeling the familiar ache in my knuckles as I stared across the sandy expanse at Darius. With Adrian and Heather gone, it was just the two of us left.Darius grinned at me, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “Quite a show you and your girl put on back there,” he said, loud enough for just us to hear over the roaring crowd.I allowed myself a slight smirk, although my stomach still twisted painfully when I thought about how close I had just come to losing Rowena forever—all thanks to Adrian and some demented scheme to assassinate the Northern princess.“My girl?” I said, feigning ignorance.Darius smirked at me. “Oh, come on; everyone has suspected that she’s not actually a Griffith for months. And we both know what you two were doing the other day in her office.”The tips of my ears turned pink, but I couldn’t help but shake my head and laugh. Of course everyone had known. I hadn’t exactly put in the greatest effort to hide it since I
RowenaI could only stand there, frozen in place as Heather and Adrian were hauled away by the guards. Their hateful glares burned into me until the very last moment when they disappeared into the tunnels.And then they were gone. It was over… For now, at least.A sudden cacophony of sound slammed back into me all at once—the roaring of the crowd, shouts and exclamations from students and spectators alike. I flinched as hands grabbed at me from all sides, my parents’ frantic faces appearing like a lifeline through the throng of people.“Rowena! Oh god, are you alright?” My mother clutched at me desperately and drew me toward her, tears streaming down her cheeks as she looked me over for injuries. “We were so worried, we thought… We thought…”She trailed off, unable to put her worst fears into words as she smoothed my hair back from my ears, checking me over as if I were made of glass. My father wasn’t much better, one large hand cupping the side of my face while his eyes bored into me
RowenaEverything seemed to move in agonizingly slow motion as Adrian’s arrow sailed straight for my head. Time itself seemed to go still, the crowd’s roar fading into an eerie silence.In that endless moment, a thousand different thoughts raced through my mind. Eric’s handsome face, his last wink burned into my memory. The way his fingers had threaded through my hair just this morning as we had secretly made love under my sheets. My parents’ smiling faces from their seats up in the crowd, now twisted into masks of horror.So this was how it ended, then? Struck down by a coward’s arrow in front of thousands of spectators? My identity revealed to everyone, only for it to be snuffed out before I even had the chance to meet my biological family?There was no time to move, no time to even scream. All I could do was brace myself, my eyes squeezed shut as I awaited the impact. The embrace of death. I hoped it would be quick, if nothing else.But it never came. Instead, a sudden whistle of a
RowenaThe roar of the crowd was deafening as Emma and I made our way through the tunnels toward the main arena. I could feel the vibrations of thousands of stomping feet even from here, and it made my heart pound in anticipation.Inside of me, my wolf was practically roiling with excitement; I had grown used to her presence over the passing days, although it felt completely and utterly natural from the beginning.“Are you ready for this?” Emma asked with a grin, giving my arm an excited squeeze.I took a deep breath, squaring my shoulders. “As long as I’ve got you by my side,” I replied.When we finally emerged into the bright stadium lights, I had to blink a few times to adjust. The massive arena stretched out like a desert in front of us, the sandy pit already prepped for the combat rounds. Lining the walls were the colorful pavilions and banners for each warrior and manager pair.My gaze immediately found Eric, standing tall and proud beside his pavilion across the way. He caught
RowenaEric and I sprang apart at the sound of the doorknob turning, frantically smoothing our clothes down and covering ourselves just as a group of warriors walked into my office. I felt my cheeks flush hot as the apparent leader flicked on the light, blinking in confusion.“Rowena,” the warrior at the forefront said, glancing back and forth between Eric and me for a moment. “I wasn’t sure if you were in here. Why were the lights out?”Before I could answer, Eric stepped in. “I was just helping her change the lightbulb,” he said, gesturing to the light dangling from the ceiling. “You came just in time.”“Oh.” The warrior seemed to buy that, at least. Thank goodness.“What can I do for you?” I asked in a shockingly confident tone despite myself, tucking a stray lock of hair behind my ear and pushing my glasses up on my nose.“Well, we heard that you both made it on the list and we just wanted to wish you luck,” the lead warrior said easily, shoving his hands into his pockets. “As the
RowenaTaking a deep breath, Eric and I pushed our way through the crowd so we could see the results. As we approached, we received curious looks from the other students—no doubt word of what had happened at the party on Friday, or at least what people thought had happened, had spread like wildfire.Or…As I read the names on the list, I knew now why they were really staring.“Eric,” I gasped, gripping his arm with one hand while I pointed at the list with the other. “It’s you!”I couldn’t help but grin as I looked up at him. Even Eric was beaming from ear to ear; he was at the top of the list of the three warriors who would be competing in the tournament. Of course he was—he was the best warrior at this camp, after all. He had earned it, fair and square.“Congrats, Eric!” a nearby student called out. “I can’t wait to see you fight next week!”Eric’s smile grew. “And I can’t wait to win,” he quipped, eliciting giggles from a nearby gaggle of cheerleaders who were smiling and twirling