6:30am, Zipfarah's Palace."Emma, you can't be seen anywhere out of these walls..." Prescott tried to advise Emma for the umpteenth time. She was bending down to fix the lace of the tennis shoes which Lily had brought for her some minutes ago. They were all preparing to meet the Queen. She had called for a royal meeting, which also involved the elders."Prescott, I have to go. He is in trouble." She said, standing up from the bed, as she was done with her dress up. Her eyes stretched far to the horizon of the door, seeking to see Lily or her twin, but her expectations were cut off.Where were they?She needed to be in inner court with the queen, before those elders stomped in. She feared that if she got in any late, they might start up their bantering again which had the ability to take over the whole day."He is a werewolf. You are a human. Of what help could you possibly be to him?" Prescott asked, finding her reply ludicrous."I don't know Prescott. I don't know. I just have a stro
6:30am, Blue Moon's PackDerek stirred on his bed, as he felt his body undergoing some changes which made him uncomfortable even in his dream.Yes, he was dreaming again.He was talking with a woman.He was sure that he hadn't seen her before."We will commence our operations today. You remember what you ought to do eh?" The woman clothed in black apparel all over asked him.He found himself nodding.And then he knew that the woman wasn't actually talking with him, but to the beast within him."And don't play around like you did some hours ago. I didn't ask you to kill the little girl. As a matter of fact, I have some plans for her. So, don't touch her. Don't touch anyone of them, until I ask you to do so." She stated, and he shrugged."I was hungry." He said, or rather the beast said through him." You know that human meal does nothing for me. You know how blood is essential to our kind. I am weak without it." He pointed out." Well, if you were, you should've gone out to hunt for so
Zipfarah's Palace: 6:50am"Emma, wait up! Prescott do something!" Lily shouted, as she ran after Emma who had left the room when they had been talking about the upcoming carnival; a discussion that had been meant to stall Emma who had been pacing in impatience some minutes ago.But it seems that she had discovered their plans, and had run out of the room, before they could scream bingo!"I said it, and will keep saying it; that girl is no good." Leila muttered, getting up lazily from Emma's bed as she trudged towards the opened door."Aren't you coming?" She asked Prescott when she noticed that the latter was still on the bed, his head hung low. It seemed he was ravaged by thoughts."Prescott!" She shouted, placing her hands on her waist when he lifted up his head, startled at her loud voice most likely."Do you want to scream down the palace?" He asked, jumping off the bed in a second, and walking towards her."I wouldn't have, if you had answered my question." She replied, bending d
Emma smirked as she watched Prescott and Leila walk into the room.For a minute while running out of the room, she had thought that the squirrel would have thrown her across the wall like he had done to Daniel last night.But he hadn't, or he couldn't.She wasn't sure again.The elf had said that she had outran his missiles.Perhaps, she had outran Prescott's too."I didn't throw any." She heard Prescott mutter in her mind."Whatever." She replied, exchanging wry glances with them, before the former walked to seats opposite to hers and sat down."Good morning, my Queen." Leila and Prescott greeted together after taking their seats."Good morning." Zipfara replied."Hope y'all slept well?" She inquired, smiling at the squirrel which was bobbing his head."Yes, we did." Leila replied,with a smile before returning her gaze back to Emma. Oh what a scornful gaze that was!Her sister had told about Emma dodging their blockages."Emma, tell me about your dreams then." Zipfara requested, broa
Someplace; the same time: A young beautiful lady pulled the long black shawl closer, making certain her hair was covered and there was little to see of her face. Her heart beat so hard she was afraid anyone close would hear. Everything hinged on making the official believe her. Yodar had forged the papers, and he was the best. He could hack any computer, provide information or get it. She didn't doubt for a minute that the papers he created would be in order and pass close scrutiny, but she still had to make the official believe her. The tin building was rusted and looked as if it might fall apart at any moment. A man came forward to meet her, looking solemn as the casket was wheeled ahead of her into the shade of the building. Fortunately the sun was setting and shadows fell around her, helping to make it more difficult to see her clearly. "Your papers?" He asked. His voice was kind. The name on his badge identified him as Rendal Owens. She glanced back toward the small plane sh
The lid of the coffin opened with the same series of ominous, horror film creaks he'd used when the official had opened the lid. There was silence. Freya's heart beat steadily. She leaned over the coffin and glared at the young man who laid as if dead, his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes closed. His skin was pale porcelain and his black spiky hair with the dyed blue tips stood out starkly against the white backdrop."You look amazingly robust for a man who starved himself to death," She said sarcastically, mimicking the official. "You could have blown everything with your absurd story."Yodah's eyes snapped open dramatically. He faked an accent as he slowly sat up. "I could use a drop of blood or two, my dear."She smacked him over the head with her papers. "The customs official didn't believe I was twenty-five."He flashed a cocky grin. "You're not. You're barely eighteen, and when Kane and Doban find out what we've done, we're both going to be in more trouble than eithe
Back at Zipfara's Palace:Dead silence still reined in the inner courts of the palace. It seemed that Zipfara's words had casted a dumb spell on the occupants of the room. The aged man with white long beards opened his mouth, and then closed it, at a loss of what to say.Emma's right eyebrow was raised as she stared at Zipfarah. 'What the hell was the queen talking about?' She thought, aware of the stunned silence in the room. She tried reading the queen's mind but was met with a huge block, even as the latter shifted her gaze to her that same second, causing her to squirm a bit on her seat, and direct her attention to Prescott.The squirrel was appraising her.She couldn't read his mind either. It seemed that he had been expecting her to do so."Seems she caught you huh?" He asked, telepathically." Who?" She asked, a bit surprised that he had caught in, on the silent transaction that had gone on between her and Zipfarah."The queen, dumbo. You are really crazy, yunno. What were you
Emma watched as the woman who could be around thirty years of age, approached her steadily.( well, she couldn't be sure since Zipfarah who seemed to be middle aged, was already a grandmother)Already she could hear Prescott's 'what is the woman up to?' in her mind. She couldn't help but reason in the same way too.With her face scrunched in scrutiny, she drew back on her chair a bit, as the woman came to stand right beside her, staring down at her with dark brown eyes."What are you doing?" She shrieked the next second, as she felt the woman's hand at the helm of her top.She instantly held down the woman's hand, before turning to stare at Zipfarah who wasn't looking at her, but at the woman, her smile gone."What are you doing, Shitta?" Zipfarah asked."The symbol. The symbol that marks out the prophecy should be etched on her back." The woman, Shitta, replied."And you didn't think it wise to tell me first, before touching her without her will or my permission?" Zipfara inquired, an
Emma’s eyes were as active as anything active as she watched the elders slowly walk into the hall reserved for judging cases, like Annabel’s. As she watched them, her feet kept dancing on the floor in a funny unsteady motion; she was unsteady. One, one. Then two, two. Then one two. Once, Amelia had looked at her, with a piqued eyebrow. ‘What is that?’ Her eyes seemed to ask, but Emma had given no answer. What is it? It should be what are they?! When they were hurrying over to the hall, after convincing the guards that they would be around for the trial too, her sister had whispered that the cabin, her parent’s cabin, had been burnt by the master, Slediv. It had brought Emma up short, making her stagger on her feet for two reasons. That Slediv had really traced them, even without her then, and that the cabin was burnt; the loss it meant for her parents. Would they regret helping her then? Prescott didn’t think so. But Emma was still worried about it, just like her mind had tried
One week later:Emma had run to the clinic, immediately Adah had burst into her apartment with the news that Annabel and Amelia were awake. Over the couple of days in class, they had bonded over gossip, and training, seeing as the latter was the only one that had been sincerely interested in her. Emma had run with Prescott in her hands, and Adah right behind her. And when she arrived at the room she had frequented daily with prayers, and saw her sister and her friend chatting tiredly, she let out a scream of happiness and hurried over to them. “Amelia! Annabel!” She called gaily, garnering the attention of the two females sitting cross-legged on the same bed. Before they could let out a shout or smile of their own, Emma’s hands were already around them. “Oh my goodness, I am so happy for both of you…” she paused. “but give me a heartache again, and I will skin you both alive..” Annabel and Amelia divulged bouts of laughter, with the nurses. Prescott and Adah weren’t left behind,
Caden sighed in relief at his mate’s words, wanting to believe at all costs that the years he had spent with her, that the love they had shared, hadn’t been in vain. He didn’t know what he would have done otherwise. Cry, brood? Neither was acceptable in these times. And so, he wasn’t moved when his son piqued an eyebrow at his mate’s words, or when his daughter’s lips turned up—in disgust or curiosity, he wasn’t sure. But he didn’t care. He just hung on to the thread that his mate was spinning with. “I didn’t cheat on my mate, I’m sure he would have found out if I had done so, considering the mate bond and all that…” There was a pause, where relief sunk its foothold the more in Caden and his children. “So, if that’s what you are thinking, Caden… if that’s what you all are thinking, cut it out. I was surprised too when Claire had met me with the news at first, and I didn’t tell you, Caden, because I wasn’t sure how to explain the phenomena to you. I knew you held the lineage of you
Chyra didn’t know what Clem was talking about—the end of the world, and all that—but she knew that she was to blame for Claire rejecting her mate considering what she had soaked into her daughter’s mind about the alpha’s family, about how the Luna seat was her birthright. She also knew that she shouldn’t be working with Arnold. But she was too proud to concede to that, to concede to anyone, and so she shrugged her shoulders to Clem’s question. In the next second, she saw why that had been a wrong play on her part. When she saw Clem fume in anger, when she saw Claire glare at her stinkingly, when she saw her mate watch her like she was foolish, she knew that she had made a mistake. It would have been best if she had kept quiet, than giving off that nonchalant attitude. But her pride held her back from apologizing. Why should she apologize for being a mother caring to give her daughter the best? “Mother, are you so daft that…” Clem was saying when his father shouted him down. Caden
At this point, Clem didn’t know what to think about his sister, Claire. He had thought that their parents had been her motivator to reject Curtis, to follow Curtis up and down, to join the meetings that prince Nathan held with the others, but from the thick astounded silence that dwelled in the room, it could be safe to say that his sister had been acting on her own, without any external influence. He didn’t know what to think of that. He looked at his mother; she looked more shocked out of her shoes and mind than his father, quite expected since the mother and daughter duo were quite close, since his sister had no mind of hers, except put into place by his mother. As much as he was not happy with his twin, he was happy that for once his mother had no part to play in her recent escapades. “What do you mean…Claire?” Caden asked, pushing himself ahead, his elbow resting on his knees. “What do you mean when you say that Curtis is your mate? When did that happen? When did you find out?
What Claire saw first when she stepped into her father’s room was her parents sitting in the living room, with Clem, their backs hunched, the air filled with pregnant silence, waiting. They were waiting for her. She knew it from the moment she had dropped a note in Clem’s mind that she was on her way home. That he hadn’t bothered with a response, should have been enough to let her know that her twin was still angry with her. But she had held out hope, until she had reached the borders of the pack and he hadn’t been waiting for her. This was very different from the times they had quarrels. She knew, however, that this quarrel was different. She had denied her mate, because of the throne; had gone ahead to push Emma away from the pack; and when Derek still hadn’t chosen her, she had returned to Curtis because he was an Alpha. Would she have returned to him if he wasn’t that? She didn’t know. That was the truth. She didn’t know. She might have gone back to Curtis, even if he wasn’t a
At Wind Winders Pack.“Dad, what is this? What was Zoe doing in my room so early in the morning?” Curtis questioned, a second after he rushed into the dining room where his parents were having breakfast. He had slept in obviously, but he didn’t care. Yesterday’s training had been rigorous after all. He darted his eyes between his mother and father; his mother’s widened eyes told him that she had no idea what he was talking about; quite expected since this turn of event hadn’t been part of their plans. Hence, he trained his eyes on his father; the old man just continued eating his breakfast like he hadn’t spoken. Curtis thought of repeating himself, but thought better of it. He walked up to his father, and took away his plate of food; an act that he wouldn’t have been able to try before; an act that might have spelt his death; but considering his father’s few options of allies, he knew that he had a chance to live. And so, when his father glared at him heatedly, he didn’t quake in hi
“Hey…how are you feeling?” Emma whispered, touching Prescott’s head softly, as she watched him open his eyes for the second time. The first time, she had screamed and had called for the nurse in charge of his treatment, not minding that Adah was with her. Nothing could have dampened her joy. She had just checked on Annabel and Amelia, who although their vitals were stable, was still asleep, yet out of coma. According to the chief nurse, a week was enough for them to wake up now. Then she had checked on Prescott, and only touching him with fondness had elicited the response of his eyes opening. Emma had been overjoyed. “Prescott, can you hear me?” She asked softly, dragging a seat to herself, whilst Adah watched on, not understanding the communication method of the squirrel and Emma. Like the people in the community, she had never seen a talking animal, or rather an animal that communicates as Emma had painted Prescott to be. Her friend who was in the upper echelons of the community
No professor spoke to her, and Emma couldn’t help but wonder why. Had Prince Shiloh ask them to avoid her? Or had professor Brooks’ defeat scared them away from her? Well, if that was the matter, then she believed it was for the greater good. She had no interest in making affiliations after all, so long as they taught her what she wanted to know, and treated her fairly. “So, do you think you can cope?” She heard Adah ask, and turned aside to see her new seat mate. The mischievous glint in the latter’s eyes made her smile, howbeit small. “I believe I can.” She answered, before getting on her feet. She took her bag which Gira had provided that morning and slung the straps across her shoulder. It was time to go home, or rather check on her friends. Classes were done for the day. “Where are you going?” Adah asked her, getting to her feet. As they walked toward the door, a couple of the students swiftly moved, and stood before the door, causing Emma to furrow her eyebrows. But she chose