With that resolve, she held the two sides of the tray where his tea sat and walked up the stairs. "The first door to the right." They had said, and she could already see it. As she walked slowly, she forced herself to take deep breaths in and out, she would need a lot of strength to see him again; mostly mental strength. When she stood in front of his door, she closed her eyes shut and counted to ten, while praying and telling herself that she would drop his tea for him and leave. She would not say anything, and she would only answer questions in a dismissing tone. It was high time she began to look after herself. With these thoughts, balanced the tray on the palm of her right hand and stretched her left to knock on the door. However, the door opened right in front of her instead. Roxanne staggered back in shock, she wasn't ready to come face to face with him yet, she needed to breathe properly once more, she needed to...She stopped panicking when she realised Lancelot wasn't th
Once again, sleeping had become an impossibility for Roxanne. Within her, she could not wait to be done with this journey and her job in total. Meanwhile, she continued to toss and turn in her bed, restless from the thought of how far his lips would have gone around her body, at the same time, furious about his audacity. No matter how much she tried to stay away from him, he had always ended up pulling her closer to himself, and dumping her without even saying a word. Yes, silent rejection was more hurtful than verbal one; at least for her. Finally, he would come to understand that she was not a joke. Roxanne was a real woman, with feelings; and he always played with them. But, she would not give him that power anymore. Whatever hold he had on her, had to be severed, and as soon as possible. Alas, after six hours of turning in her sleep, Roxanne was awakened by the sound of a knock on her door. Once again, she pulled herself up with a frustrated groan, digging her fingers into her
Lancelot felt himself shriek when Madeline placed her hands on both his shoulders and tiptoed to plant kisses on his cheeks, and even on his forehead. What was all this sudden show of motherly love? "We heard everything about your journey Lancelot! I am so proud of you my son, so proud of you!" Of course, there had to be something attached to it. His mother had never been one to just shower love on him without condition. Hell! This wasn't even really love. She was just satisfied by the results he had given her, and now, she was acting with all the dopamine in her head. Madeline locked her left arm with Lancelot's right arm and led him to the rest of the waiting party. Roxanne and Peter followed him behind, equally in awe of their reception. "Believe me son, I wanted to make a bigger deal out of your return, but your father insisted that I do not close down the streets of London!"By the goddess! This was the happiest Lancelot had seen his mother be in a long time. He tried to find
After his salute, Peter watched Lancelot walk away from him, heading towards the door of the palace. He sighed, with worry. Deep down, he feared for Roxanne and wished more than anything, that Lancelot would finally tell her the truth, and the real reason she was here. "Let's go join the party!" Roxanne's voice called out, barely inches behind him. Peter snapped out of his range of thoughts and turned swiftly towards her. Speak of the devil, and she gracefully appears, Peter thought. He tried to make his stance and expression as believable as possible, before clearing his throat. "We are not allowed into the party." Disappointment replaced the enthusiasm in Roxanne's eyes. Thirty minutes ago, she only wanted to lie on her bed and force herself to sleep. But now, after the announcement of a feast, she had thought "there was no harm in feasting on food before resting, was there?" After answering herself affirmatively, she decided to join the feast, grab one or two meals before leavi
"I would hurry up and get those out of there if I were you. But if you want to spend all day here, then be my guest." The huge woman thundered above a dumbstruck Roxanne, who was still trying to make sense of it all, in her head. She blinked twice, trying to ask herself how it came to this. How did she go from having everything she had ever wanted, to slaving away in someone's kitchen? Life had really done a number on her. But, this was one hurdle that she had to cross. She had crossed so many before and had come out victorious, therefore, some stale plates and contaminated water in the kitchen sink was not going to break her. Not at all. With that thought, Roxanne swallowed hard. She took one long and pitiful glance at her white suit, knowing very well that this might be the last day she would ever get to use it, before heaving a sigh, while mentally bidding the dress farewell. She looked up at Marilyn and managed a forced smile. "Can I get gloves?" She asked, trying her best to
Everyone settled around the huge dining table in the banquet hall, specially designed and reserved for small feasts and gatherings, such as this one. Everyone here was either a member of the royal family or important to them. Madeline was dressed in one of her best blue gowns, Edward looked as charming as he always was, so did the rest of his sons. Albert did not know why he had to sit through this torture, since he had rather hoped Lancelot would fail. But Hermione had insisted it was important to act as though they were on Roxanne's side. Elizabeth and her mother were beautifully dressed. The two elderly women of the house; lady Eloise and Lady Marion were not left out of the elegance spree. Richard, Bailey and Reuben were present as well. And so was every member of the council. Each, sat down, drank, laughed out loud and was merry. As they feasted, Ava leaned into Lancelot, who was seated by her side. He had not said a word or spoken to anyone except he was asked a question. Ev
Lancelot did nothing to stop himself from fuming with anger. He would no longer pretend and allow his mother do as she pleased. He was tired, genuinely tired of allowing her kick everybody around for her own pleasure. Today, he would set her straight and remind her of all the lines she could not cross; each and everyone of them. With a sturdy gaze and irritation stirring and boiling his temper, he dashed out the door of the banquet hall, and did nothing to stop himself from crashing into an incoming servant. The man fell to the ground, flat on his back, but Lancelot did not spare him a second glance, talk more of an apology. Peter, who hurried behind his boss, was left with the responsibility of helping the man up and apologizing to him. By the time Peter had his head up, Lancelot was far down the corridor, several meters ahead of him. He stood still, his hands lay helpless by his sides, with a gleaming sadness in his eyes as he watched Lancelot stomp off to confront the queen. He
"Get rid of those clothes immediately." The head maid, Marilyn, spoke harshly, while sending daggers in glares towards Roxanne. Confused, Roxanne looked up at the woman. She was at a loss for both words and actions, and she was also genuinely tired of being here. Nothing she did seemed to please Marilyn, or pacify any of the maids for whatever she had done. It was crazy. She had never met or spoken to any of them before now. Yet, they collectively seemed to despise her.After she got here last night, she was made to sleep on the shaky bunk and Roxanne spent all night worrying if the wooden bunk would collapse and send her to the floor. That would be death, she thought. Considering how high the bunk beds were. It was funny, how she thought she would return to the palace and have a good rest. Little did she know, that the worst of it all had been in front, waiting patiently for her. Roxanne could still remember being woken up by the feeling of cold water being splashed on her face. A
EPILOGUE FIVE YEARS LATER **************"Tehilah, get back here this instant!" Roxanne screamed at the top of her voice, whole laughter erupted from around the table. The five year old didn't mind her mother, she continued to run eagerly towards her father, who held her three year old younger brother in his arms as he stepped into the dinning room. "Daddy and Jojo!" She screamed out loud, when she griiped Lancelot's leg. Lancelot's eyes rose up from his daughter and rested on Roxanne's frowning face. "The girl is just happy to see me, which is more than she's been to see you." Lancelot teased and everyone at the table laughed, Roxanne's scowl deepened. "Ouuuuu, burner!" Hera screamed out loud, and everyone laughed again. Peter squeezed the top of her lap to show her that Roxanne wasn't smiling. Peter and Hera had been together, and were now a married couple. Peter had gotten a very big promotion; from Lancelot's personal assistant, to his beta wolf. And Hera was right by his sid
LATER THAT NIGHT was the mating ritual; the ritual of bonding. The palace was in high spirits, and the chief priest was invited to perform the ritual. Eloise and Marion, the two elderly women in the palace stayed with the priest to get things ready, while Madeline and Edward, along with the rest of the Dankworth house got themselves ready to attend. Peter was in Lancelot's chambers, putting all necessary things in order, while Emily stayed with her best friend, and finally had the guts - after her sloppy discussion with James - to take care of her "chief bridesmaid" duties. At exactly eleven PM, both bride and groom were ready for their precession. Lancelot was the first to be ushered down the stairs, out of the palace and into the courtyard, where the ritual was to take place under the full moon. The ground was set; royal woven stools placed side by side, in front of a large fire place. The members of the Dankworth family were behind him, while the musicians and dancers played and
In the middle of the heightened song and dance, James grabbed a bottle of champagne before he slipped out of the banquet hall, went up the stairs and into a dark corridor he did not recognize - at least, not in his state - without anyone noticing. No one would miss his presence after all, not after the man of the moment had just made his grand announcement. With his sloppy steps and regrettable dance moves, he was able to keep the champagne bottle under his armpit for five minutes. The man was drunk out of his mind. All he had done since the part started was down glasses of champagne without speaking to anyone. When he got to the corridor, he leaned against the wall and slid all the way to the ground, until his butt touched the hard floor, he winced in pain. "You definitely had that coming for ya." He heard a female voice say. James would have jerked up, since he didn't see anyone there before he entered, but he was way above the clouds to bother about that right now. He corked h
SIX DAYS LATER The big party Emily had spoke about was happening today, even if no one knew exactly what the party was about, Roxanne was pumped to finally celebrate with Lancelot. It had been long since she did that. So, when she woke up in the morning and found three maids staring at her, Roxanne was more than surprised. It was just a party, why did they treat her as though she were a bride getting dressed for her wedding? She asked herself. After greeting her, two of the maids offered her green tea and stood still while watching her drink the tea. When she was done, they helped her get up, undressed her, and ushered her into the bathroom, where warm rose water waited for her. She had not even been given the time to update Emily, who stayed in the next room, about what was going on. After a massage in the rose water, she was scrubbed and thoroughly cleaned. Roxanne felt like a stubborn five year old baby when one of the maids asked her to lift her foot up so she could scrub it.
Peter had barely had time to check his phone in the course of the last few days. Everything that had happened in the palace, from the poisoning attempt, to the death of the maid, Lancelot's fake Luna crowning ceremony, Ava's arrest and Garrett's banishment, to the post effects of all those events, Peter had finally found a day of rest..While Lancelot was preparing to tell his family the real truth about all that had happened to Roxanne, and what he intended to do next, Peter was given some free time to clear his head and get his issues sorted out. That was how he was able to sit on his bed in the guest chambers and go through his phone. And, that was how he was able to see the countless missed calls and messages that had been sent in by an unknown number. He was perplexed, while wondering who the person was, and what he or she wanted from him. It wasn't until he opened the first message and read the first line aloud, that he knew who the messages were from. Hera, he thought out lou
"Girl, don't tell me you're still asleep!" That was the first thing Roxanne heard, before Emily sent a pillow crashing down on her head. She groaned in pain - let it be known that she felt no pain, the pillow was filled with feathers - and sat up slowly, scrubbing her eyes with the back of her palms. Roxanne and Emily broke into laughter when they stared at each other in their pyjamas. They had missed each other an awful lot. The past three days if being together had taught both of them the true value of real friendship. With Emily around, Roxanne felt like no matter what happened, she would always have a home to run back to. Emily was everything to her; her best friend and her family, and she would not ever take that for granted. Emily, on the otherhand, felt the same way for Roxanne. They had spent so much time apart, but none of that had affected their friendship. Roxanne had been the only person Emily had ever let close to her, and she had not disappointed. Just like Roxanne, Em
The past three days had been hectic for every single member of the Dankworth house. While Lancelot was burdened with the role of acting sulky and vengeful over Roxanne's "demise", he was also saddled with the responsibility of preparing himself for his Luna picking ceremony with Ava. Whom, he now utterly despised and couldn't wait to get rid of. However, despite all that was going on, he was glad that he had finally gotten Roxanne, and that she was safe. He has sent Emily over to her and given the women his black card to do as their hearts seemed fit on this auspicious day. The day he would finally be putting an end to all their problems. He simply couldn't wait. Lancelot had noticed that his mother's mood had been better in the past few days. Now that Roxanne was out of the way, and Lancelot and Ava's ceremony around the corner, the future she had meticulously planned for her son, was finally here. The goddess had taken away all obstacles, and now, everything would be back to norma
Hera touched down at London's airport at exactly 3:00pm that day. She took a deep breath in before shading her eyes with her huge sunglasses. She was away from Greece, granted, but she didn't know how long it would be until Ahab sent spies into London to look for her. That was the same reason why she couldn't go to the palace, at least not until she was sure of what to do. She couldn't risk endangering Peter's life, or the life of anyone else in the palace. Yes, werewolves were strong, but Ahab - no matter how old he might be - was the grand master of witches. That meant, he was the most treacherous, sneaky, evil and wisest of them all - except her mother of course. Then again, even Athaliah had a lot to say about her leaving. As she pulled her luggage towards the entrance of the airport, where cabs waited for passengers, she couldn't help but replay her last conversation with her mother, before she took off. "You do not know what you're playing with. Do you think Ahab would sit s
"What?" Emily yelled out, she sprung up from her bed and rushed to meet Lancelot. Peter, who was seated beside her, rose up and rushed to his boss as well. "What's happening your grace?" He asked, scanning Lancelot's appearance. His boss was visibly shaking, while his facial features looked squeezed with rage. "The pasta, was poisoned...Roxanne." Emily's eyes widened with horror as she held on to Lancelot's shirt, tears gathered in her eyelids immediately. She did not want to believe her ears. "What do you mean by Roxanne? What's going on?"Peter sensed that something wasn't right. He drew Emily back from Lancelot's body and cuffed her in his arms. Lancelot stood straight before turning away from them, while Emily threw curses at him. If anything had happened to Roxanne, she would not hesitate to burn this entire palace to the ground, she swore it. "She's alive, come on, let's go." Lancelot said as he walked briskly out of the room. Relief washed over Peter, and Emily managed to