The ride home was uneventful in Forrest’s opinion. Something he grew to appreciate, in his current circumstance. Sitting with him in the back of the car were Christen and Christian. Both who seemed to be in their own little world, as they played a few games in the car. Nothing rowdy; just small games between the two of them. Christian offered Forrest to play with them, but he declined. Both because he didn’t want to get in the way of their family time together, and because he sensed Christen is not yet used to his presence. Not in a way that she would feel comfortable being around him.Looking at the pair- specifically the older of the two- Forrest thought back to when he last saw Christen, prior to the day of their divorce. Not just that one time, but also the many times before that. Every last bit of moment the pair had when they were married.He recalled how happy Christen seemed every time they were together. Joy in which she tried to hide, so as to not make a fool of herself or
"Come on, Momma! You’ll love it here!”“O-Okay…” Christen muttered out in a low tone.She was pretty much a nervous wreck as she was escorted out of the car with her son, who enthusiastically rushed to the doorway of an extravagant mansion before them. She had been to plenty of fancy places growing up. Be they 5-Star restaurants, a nice cruise, even parties at famous hotels. However, none of those would compare to this place.‘Now I see why he thought of our house as a shack,’ she thought, recalling to the day of her and Forrest’s divorce."This is our new home! Isn’t it awesome?" Christian announced.Christen didn’t share that jay. She ‘couldn’t’ share it. If anything, she felt intimidated being here. At the doorway to Forrest’s real world. She thought they lived in similar worlds before, with Forrest having a far better position than her. This? She couldn’t believe she was even involved with someone like him.“Come on. There's nothing interesting at the entrance. Time to go inside,”
With the situation somewhat resolved by Kiara, Christen was taken up to her room by one of the maids, with Christian following. Once they left, everyone else just stared at the trio. Particularly Christen."What are the rest of you staring at? Back to work!" Forrest ordered, prompting them all to disperse. With them gone to deal with their respective tasks, he let out a sigh, and pinched the bridge of his nose.“Someone's looking tired,” Kiara stated, as she walked over to her mate."Today has been quite eventful,” he explained. "Thank you for the assist. And I'm sorry I didn’t tell you about the sudden arrangement.”"Understatement of the day. And it’s okay. I’m sure you have your reason. Unless if you were just unsure about how I would react to the news." “It’s not that I worried about how you would react. At least, not given how helpful you have been, taking Christian to see his mother whenever I couldn’t, even though you could’ve just had a guard escort him there. You even went a
Christen followed one of the maids to the guest room she was to be residing in for the time being. As she walked with her and Christian, Christen could not help still feeling both nervous and unwelcome being here.“You’re gonna love it here! This place is way better than the hospital!” Christen assured.“You think so?” she could only say, trying to be careful not to say anything that may trigger the maid in any way. At least, nothing that would state any sort of comfort being in a place she clearly doesn't belong.“Definitely! And even more than our former home!” Christian added on, not noticing the unease in her voice.The maid chuckled a bit at the reassurance. "Well, I can at least assure you won’t be held prisoner here,” she stated. "At least you'll be free to do as you please here. That includes leaving, if you wish to not reside here for any reason. So long as you don't cause any sort of trouble for the master and mistress, that is.”“She won't do that. Right, Momma?" Christian
All attention turned to the voice that spoke, where the trio saw Forrest approaching them, as he glared at them. “Don’t make me ask again. What are you all doing out here?”Christen trembled in fright when he repeated the question. Especially when it sounded as though he had growled at the end there."My deepest apologies, Master,” the maid spoke first, bowing her head to the head of the house. “I was only taking this girl to her room as ordered. However, it seems she is dissatisfied with the room chosen for her.”Christen panicked slightly at that, for the way the maid said it made it sound as though she thought the room was cheap or found something unpleasant about it.“T-That’s not…” She tried to explain herself to Forrest, but could unfortunately only barely find her voice to speak. Which was not much at all.“That’s not true!” Christian spoke for her. “Momma just didn’t want to use this room because this is Grandpa Keenan’s room!”Forrest raised a brow at this, as he turned to th
"I must say, I have never had a roast beef as tender and juicy as this. And you say this was made by your new servant?” Keenan asked, taking a bite of the sliced meat on his plate."Why yes. I knew you'd be pleased with this Father,” Kiara confirmed, before turning to the servant in question. “Christen, as well. Thank you for accepting my request for this dish. I really wanted to have this again as soon as you got settled in.”Christen only nodded at the gratitude, unable to say anything as she stood with her peers around the dining hall, watching Forrest, Kiara, Christian, and Keenan eat.Earlier, not long after her son began the tour around the house for his mother, Kiara came by, asking for Christen’s assistance on something. At first the human was unsure about taking any requests from her, but in retrospect to her and Forrest's kindness in taking care of Christian while she was hospitalized, she accepted the request as a way to thank them. She did not expect, though, for the reque
Meanwhile, elsewhere far from the Riverdale Household, in a building as grand as theirs, there gathered a group of people in one room. One that looked much like a meeting room in many big company buildings. Each person there were quite aged, yet held a powerful presence in their own right.Along with such powerful-looking figures was Fenris, sitting at the head of the table, with a strange smile on his face."I thank you all for gathering in my humble abode on this fine evening,” he greeted."This is quite the surprise, Fenris. Normally, you wouldn’t have called for a meeting at this time of night," said one elderly men in a suit.“Yes, indeed. For a moment there, I thought you were trying to pull some prank on us or something,” a slender man with long curly hair lightly joked.“As did I. So pray tell, Alpha Fenris. To what do we owe this little gathering?" asked an elderly woman.Fenris gave no answer; just looked at the elders with a smile on his face. A smile that does not seem to
Not one of the advisors knew what to think when Fenris told them the truth about the business he requested the Krawler werewolves to keep watch over. They who had never thought the ones running any business in the human world side from one of their Alphas was a fellow werewolf. Moreover, it was practically a pack of wolves working at that very place.“Werewolves?! Acting criminal in the human realm?!”“If it was a robbery or murder, that would have nothing to do with us. But a pack toying with the humans?"“Even Rogues wouldn’t do something so disgusting. Regardless of how inferior they are to us, how could there be any werewolf who would do that to humans?”Fenris narrowed his eyes at all the murmuring he was hearing. “So, from what I’m hearing from you all, at least some of you know well enough of the business being run, and yet, no one knew a thing about the group behind it? Much less the man who started that business.”This time, all the werewolves present flinched at the accusing
"What do you mean ‘you don’t know what’s wrong with her’?” Fenris demanded the healers, after spending hours watching them do their jobs, constantly checking Christen’s condition and comparing notes with one another, and even overheard them coming up with various theories as to what became of her. Theories shot down but the other healers.“Exactly as we mean it, Alpha. We checked over as many things as we could, and even took blood samples to see if there was anything wrong. Unfortunately, as far as we could tell, there was nothing wrong with her at all,” one of the healers explained.“‘Nothing wrong with her’ would mean that she would have no problem with waking up. Yet, she hasn’t so much as respond to our call to her one bit. You cannot be telling me that this is all nothing,” he demanded. “Check her again. Use every method you can think of to find out what is wrong with her. Try to get her to wake. And if I see so much as a scratch on her, I will hold all of you accountable. Is th
Fenris ran in the snow in his werewolf form on all fours at full speed like his life depended on it. Desperate to get to his house in the Diamante-Krawler Pack as quickly as he could. Only it was not his life that needed the saving, but Christen’s, who was strapped to his back with the blanket. Body practically limp on him.“You’re going to be just fine, Christen! I promise you, you’re going to be okay!” he shouted to her, not receiving any response from her at all.‘How could this have happened?! Right after I promise her!’ he frantically questioned. That indeed. How could it be possible? He had just woken up from the nap he was having with her, feeling refreshed, and wanted to make some light meal to have with her. By the time he woke, she was still asleep, not that it bothered him. And since her body was warm- a sign that she was still alive- Fenris just thought to let her sleep peacefully a little longer while he was getting lunch ready for them. While her appetite may not drasti
Fenris was shocked enough with everything he had found out that involved Christen. The way she so nonchalantly accused him of being like the other guys who toyed her really took the cake. “I would never play you like they did!” he exclaimed.Christen was unfazed by the shout, though, as she shook her head. “Of course you wouldn’t. You’re not human like my customers are; maybe you have a different preference in games, too. And now that you’re married, maybe this game you’re playing is one that your wife would be okay with. So long as it ends with my blood being spilled or something.”Shell shocked, Fenris did not know what to think or say about this. “How could you have so little view of yourself? Of me?” he could only ask.“Like I said. It wouldn’t matter what I say. Not to anyone else. Only Christian- my own son- cared, but now he’s gone. With a much better family, who would give him more than I ever could.”“You really think I don’t care? When I saved you from death, cared for you,
Fenris did not know what to think at this point, when he saw Christen crying for her son’s leave. Not out of sadness or desperation for him to come back, but accepting the leave? Accepting that he was happier with another family? But what about him? When he didn’t even know he had a son until now? Not that it was her fault, he supposed…“So… That was our- uh… ‘Your’ son I saw?” he asked.“Yes. And he’s happier with another family,” Christen answered, not daring to look at him, as she only sat on the bed, hugging her legs close to her, with the blanket wrapped around her body.Running a hand across his face in an attempt to calm himself down from this revelation, he asked, “And you know that. How?”“Because I was with him at the time.” The response confused Fenris. She was with Christian when he was with his new family? He had thought that once a child is given to another family, the original would not be allowed to see the kid. Then again, it was not as though she lost custody over hi
Fenris was shocked enough when Christen responded to him, then when she wanted him out of her life- when she wanted to have no further involvement in anything at all- but that last one? That one claim she made in her plea? Did he even hear her right?“Baby? What baby?” he asked, kneeling down to her side. As he was about to place a comforting hand on her shoulder, before he could even touch the blanket, Christen toppled over a bit, leaning against the door, with the blanket falling off her body. To his shock, astonishment, bewilderment, and all other words he could think of to describe the sight before him… Her belly was swelling. No, not ‘swelling’. “Pregnant… You were pregnant?” he asked her, looking to his mate and notice how pale she seemed. While he was no doctor, nor did he know much about pregnancy for human females, he could tell that it was not a good sign for the mother. Just as he was about to comfort her, the scene changed again. Not really the scene itself, as it was mo
It took a while for Christen to calm down. Unlike the last time she had a panic attack, she was still awake. Just huddled against the corner with the blanket wrapped tightly around her. Her eyes were red and puffy from the frightful crying, and seemed very distant.Fenris walked to her, a cup of tea in hand. “Here. Something to warm you up,” he offered.Christen did not take the offering, much less acknowledge it. Her mind wondering around to other matters.Fenris did not know what to think or say now, as he licked his dry lips. He sat down by her with a light sigh, and brought his tail to her, hoping she would at least react to it. Even then, there was nothing. Fenris was at a loss. Why was his mate refusing to answer now? Was taking her out really that bad an idea? Then again, she was hesitant on coming out earlier.“Did you have some bad experience being outside? Maybe a kidnapping or something?” he asked. A question that was left unanswered, considering how unresponsive Christen h
"Okay, I think that’s enough combing now,” Fenris said to Christen, having endured the gentle grooming long enough, as he moved his tail out of his mate’s hold. He could sense the small dismay his beloved was feeling, but for once, chose to ignore it. For he knew for certain he would not be able to handle any more of that touch if he continued to let Christen continue.He glanced behind him, wondering if his mate’s mood has improved after all that combing. While she did have a small frown on her face, he could see that it was not from the earlier experience; just the loss of his tail. The moment she noticed him looking, however, the frown turned into a slightly frightened, hesitating expression. “As I said, this will be a part of your job,” he reminded her. “I have you cleaning the cabin, it will become too sparkling bright as a hideout. If you do feel restless not having anything else to do, you can comb my tail. In fact, I will even allow you to cook, if you so wish. It gets tireso
When Finral confirmed his son’s bond’s legitimacy, the other werewolves looked on in interest with what the evidence was. “Everyone here tell me first. Has there ever been a time when a werewolf has ever linked their mind to a human in any way?” he began.There were some murmurs at the question, all with uncertain expressions. There were even some who wanted to think that the man was about to talk nonsense- especially from the Krawlers, namely Winston- but could see from the tone and expression that Finral was quite serious in the topic. “My son is able to do that with the human. Linking his mind to her’s when asleep.”The moment the explanation left Finral’s mouth, Winston brushed off the claim. “In other words, the boy was doing nothing dreaming, as are you. And yet it is my and my daughter’s positions that are called to question? If this is dreams we’re talking about, I’m sure many of us here has had plenty of dreams where there are other people included. Loved ones or otherwise.
Back in Fenris's house, in the Diamanté-Krawler Pack, things have gotten quite troubling for the Advisors. “This is the last time we have let your daughter get any sort of freedom, Winston. Not once did she get in the way of another werewolf’s mate bond, but twice. Nay, THRICE, if you include her meeting with Alpha Fenris’s mate the other day!” a male elderly Advisor from the Diamante Pack scolded.“But Allister, this ‘mate’ Fenris claims to be with is human. How do we know for certain of that person if his mate? And furthermore, let’s not forget that the boy is cursed. His senses dulled to the point that they have become equal to that of a human’s senses. Who is to say that he is not mistaken in what he feels?” Winston reasoned. “He’s not wrong,” a male Advisor of the Krawler agreed. “While those of us amongst the Krawler know little of this curse your Alpha has, as the people who have watched over him, you should have some idea of the curse. Better than we do, at least. That being