"I just want to go home." She whimpered, still relaxing on Elizabeth's shoulder. The princess smiled sadly, and raised Roxanne's face to meet hers. "I know just the thing that can cheer you up." Her eyes glittered under the evening sun, and Roxanne was forced to acknowledge the princess's beauty once again. Now that she had been so kind to her, the princess looked even more beautiful. "A flight back home?" Roxanne asked, and Elizabeth chuckled, even though Roxanne hadn't meant to make a joke. "No, but a very nice place with ice cream that gives joy. Not quite far from the palace. I could take you there this evening..." She stopped when she sensed the hesitation in Roxanne's eyes. She also felt Roxanne's body grow tense and stiff. Elizabeth cast her a reassuring smile, as if saying "I have got you, trust me and you'll be okay." The princess has already been so nice to her, what bad would trusting her do? Roxanne asked herself. When she did not find an answer to the question, she
It seemed like hours, so many unbearable hours since she was last able to breathe, or see, or even feel anything. Now, as her eyelids parted slowly, to reveal nothing but darkness, it almost felt as though her head would split into several tiny pieces and scatter all over the floor. It was only when her eyelids had fully opened - despite how bad it stung - that she realised her head was covered. And in a dusty sack cloth. Her nostrils began to itch. She sought to sneeze but it just wasn't coming out. Then, she thought of bringing her hand to her face and ridding herself of the dusty sackcloth and to clean her nose from all the dirt and filt in it. But, when she tried to find her hands, she suddenly realised something. Her eyelids expanded in fear, and her body resumed it's instant shaking again. Her hands were tied to her back! Her face was covered. And few minutes, or hours ago - Roxanne wasn't even sure how long it was - she had been kidnapped. Roxanne could remember being snatch
The throne room was filled to the brim of its capacity. A group of entertainers and dancers performed in the center of the room, while chairs and tables were arranged around them. On each of these tables were the finest of grape fruit, strawberries, cakes, lemonade drinks, wine and champagne in all of Europe. The event had begun in full swing. Alpha Edward had given his welcome toast, the Luna queen had already read ber welcome speech, before the entertainment began. This was the last performance before it would be time for Edward to pass the crown to his son, Lancelot Dankworth. Members of the Dankworth royal family were seated around one table, all dressed in glamourous attires they had prepared for this occassion. From Madeline, to her husband, to sons and other members of their extended family. Every eye in the room could see that the Dankworth's had prepared for this occassion all their lives. The hall was filled with dignitaries from all over the continent. Alphas and Lunas o
"Poor Juliet, let's see how long it would take your Romeo to come find you. Or if he will at all! Once we get word that his coronation is over, you're of no use to us." Lancelot shot Peter a hostile glare, one that sent his back crashing with the hard wall. Lancelot took few steps forward, covering the distance between them. His eyes were fuming with rage and for the first time ever, Peter saw a faint resemblance of fear in Lancelot's eyes. "What is the meaning of this?" "I ... I was going to tell you sir, believe me." "After she was dead?!" Lancelot cried out loud, between his clenched teeth. Peter shook his head vehemently. "I needed that wait for your coronation to end. I summoned hunters, they are searching London for her right now. She couldn't have been taken far away from the city..." "Bullshit!" Lancelot barked, and Peter shut his eyes in fear. "Everyone is seated here, your grace. If you walk out of this coronation now, the damage would be unfixable. And your mother w
He bursted through the gate, with no regards for either the gate, or what it did to the front of the car. Lancelot pushed his feet harder against the accelerator, charging up the speed of his car as he drove past the fence of bushes in the palace. A part of his gaze focused on the piece of clothing that would help him find her, while the rest of his gaze was focused on the road. He knew he had to be quick, there was barely anytime left. His heart continued to thunder against the surface of his chest, threatening to pop out of it. He was almost breathless with rage, and pressed the automatic button on his door that took the windows down. The artificial air of the air conditioner was not soothing enough for him. Within him, Ziko was even more restless. His wolf had been growling and pacing about since he found out about Roxanne. The thought of her being tortured sent him spiralling towards the edge, all strings holding his temper back had been severed. When Ziko finally got a hold on
The empty barrels - which Ziko was grateful for - fell to the ground, making loud sounds, and scattering to the ground around him. Lancelot couldn't lie, he was relieved to find out the barrels were empty, but even more relieved to know that he was close, very close to her. Despite the harsh smell of pertroluem around him, Lancelot could pick her famous lavender scent from the atmosphere of the warehouse. He was sure she was in there, and he was going to get her out. His car came to a rough halt, turning in a harsh circles and making a loud screeching sound before he turned off the engine, pulled the car door open and jumped out of it. As expected, the noise from his dramatic and triumphant entry had attracted the attention of Roxanne's captors. Two men, dressed in all black, from head to toe - not leaving out the ski mask covering their faces - ran out of the entrance and charged towards him. Lancelot could pick up the scent of four men in total. After these two and two others. A
"Lancelot" Her faint voice called. Now in his human form, he turned towards the chair she sat on, and rushed towards her. The ropes around her were now loose, and she was going to fall to the ground. In a flash, Lancelot was there to hold her just in time. He caught her midair and spooned her in his arms. He sat on the floor and looked over her battered body. His felt a painful squeeze in his heart, and his usual dark eyes softened at the sight of her. She had suffered so much, been through so much, and all because of him. He wished he could take all her pain away, bear all her bruises for her. As she lay on his body, he held both her arms tightly, as if pleading with her not to go. "Lancelot..." She continued to whisper in her dazed state. His grip on her hands tightened every time she mentioned his name. He needed her to know that he was with her, he wasn't going anywhere now. Not until she was completely fine. Lancelot heard five cars pull up outside the warehouse. They had to
Elizabeth gasped when she saw Lancelot push open the doors of the throne room. She watched as he stepped inside with so much confidence and a carefree aura. He walked in as though he did not just keep hundreds of esteemed royalties waiting. He walked in as if he did not know that his hands and face were stained with blood. Still, there was something extremely chivalrous about him. Despite the blood on his chiseled jaw, his blue eyes still sparkled in their dark and sexual allure. His dark blonde hair was disheveled, some strands falling to his forehead. The black and long winter jacket he had on accentuated the broadness of his shoulders. Walking into the room now, he was as handsome and seductive as he always ways, the blood only made him more dangerous. And Elizabeth loved it! If only he wasn't her cousin, she thought, as she drooled over him. Even if he was her cousin, she would have definitely found a way for the both of them to be together, if his silly bethroted and chosen mat
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