She gulped as she approached the house. It wasn't something that was easily accomplished. She'd left her bike leaning against the brick fence that gave the Kingsley family the privacy equivalent to that of royalty.
Her hands were shaky and cold as she reached forward to use the ornate knocker, shaped like a lions head. There wasn't a doorbell that she could see, just the knocker.
The sound echoed in her eyes long after the knocker was left against the door. "I'll get it." She heard the muffled sounds of a hastened argument. "No, Lumiere, I said I'll get it."
She took a quick step back as the ornate door swung open to reveal a tall smirking man with salt and pepper hair beaming down at her. Behind him Ben was working to school his face into a mask of calm, but his chest was was moving too quickly and his eyes were a touch too manic for him to look completely at ease. She met the taller man's gaze and took another cautious step back.
"I was invited to dinner. My name is Mal Faye." She licked her lips and suppressed the urge to bolt. "Mrs. Knightly invited me."
"Yes, Miss Faye. I'm Lumiere, the valet. So lovely to finally meet you." He leaned over and stage whispered conspiratorially, "not just from Madame Belle. The young upstart they call a son is rather obsessed. I recommend running and applying for a restraining order."
"Haha!" Ben moved forward then and urged Lumiere back into the entry way. "Such a kidder, that one." He licked his lips and gave the man one last dark look over his shoulder. "He was just getting back to his job of attending my father. Weren't you?"
Lumiere nodded solemnly, but passed Mal one last cheeky wink before disappearing out of sight. Ben leaned against the door frame and smirked down at her. She shoved her hands into her pockets and rocked on her heals to avoid having to meet his gaze.
"You agreed to have dinner with my family." She huffed and rolled her eyes to the sky at his pleased tone. "You agreed to meet my parents."
"Yeah, well," Mal swiped some hair behind her ear and dared to meet his eyes, which were twinkling with mischief. "Listen, lets just get through this, okay? I just want to survive this dinner and get on with our lives."
Ben nodded enthusiastically and leaned in close as if they were co-conspirators. "I wanna kiss you." She was stunned into silence as he planted a chaste kiss on her cheek. "They'll love you."
She didn't have the heart to reiterate that she simply wanted to survive. To hell if his parent's liked her! She just didn't want to end up on some bad anti-werewolf agenda list. Then there was that his dad was a senator, so getting on any bad list of his was an awful prospect.
"Right." Ben gently took her hand and led her into the house. "You aren't just rich, are you? You're filthy freaking rich. Like, when I die, heaven better look at least half this lovely."
"You believe in heaven?"
Mal shrugged and rubbed her free hand on her sweater sleeve. "I don't know. Won't know until I really do kick the bucket, I guess. What about you lot? Do wolves believe in heaven?"
"Why not? Bible doesn't say werewolves don't exist."
She snickered as he wagged his eyebrows suggestively. "I suppose it doesn't. Very convenient that."
"We are actually catholic." She laughed out right as he began saying something in latin. "That was the holy prayer. I was not an altar boy, but I was in the choir."
She laughed even harder, snorting at the mental image the news conjured. She didn't know what he looked like as a child, and instead of faking, her mind simply shrunk the current Ben to the size of a seven year old and shoved him into a choir of other youths. He chuckled along with her and met her gaze, eyes still bright with humour.
"And this is the ground floor study. My father prefers to entertain guests in here, unless its business. Then he meets them in his private study in the west wing. It's much more intimidating and disconcertingly dark. He likes scaring people who meet him at home for business."
"He likes to keep the two separate?"
Ben nodded and guided her to the loveseat by the fire. "Home is where he wants to come to decompress from the troubles of the government and the district. Here he doesn't have to work so hard to make people happy."
"I'm sure Mrs. Kingsley appreciates that."
"I do." Mal whipped around, ripping her hand from Ben's and raising them as if in defence. "It's good to finally meet you, Mal. My husband is finishing up a call, unfortunately. We'll get seated at the table and he should join us shortly."
Mal nodded stiffly, but didn't move until Ben began guiding her by the shoulders from the room. She didn't want to leave. The study was nice and warm and small. The more of the house she saw, it's sure size alone, was enough to make her sick.
Ben guided her into the dining room and managed to catch her as she instinctively turned on her heel to flee. "I'll manage from here, Ben. Why don't you go check on your father?" He opened his mouth to protest, Mal assumed, but ultimately did as his mother asked. "Now, that we're alone I can tell you this wasn't meant to scare you. Despite how my husband acts, this isn't a court room. We aren't your judge and jury. Adam just can't quite shake his lawyer roots."
Mal nodded, not sure what she was agreeing with. Belle continued through the dining room and showed Mal to a seat at a table she considered to be a bit small for the rest of the houses grander. After taking her seat, Belle settled into one to her right instead of one the open chairs at the ends of the table.
"I know this is all a bit much to take in. I'm sorry things have come about this way. It's not the normal way, but messy starts seem to run in the family. I stumbled upon Adam's secret by complete accident, as well. I was working a part time job as a clerk at his families firm and had been running an after hours errand when I happened across Adam in the middle of one of his cycles."
She snorted, and it was such a normal sound out of such an elegant woman, that Mal nearly choked. "Adam Kingsley was not easy to deal with. When he was in his twenties, before we got married and he calmed down, the man was a real asshole. I nearly left him. Honest to God, I was ready to leave him to it."
"What made you change your mind?"
Belle's eyes grew distant as she looked back on the memory. "His father had died the year before we met. He was feeling pressured and like the world was falling down around him. The rest of the board members weren't the most understanding of his youthful energy and ideas. The man wasn't the most wonderful to deal with, but the beast? He was kind and gentle. I liked him better that way for a good while until the man started to get his act together."
"I don't understand." Belle hummed curiously. "Why did you stick around, though? Why not just leave in the beginning when you found out?"
"He was lonely, he needed an assistant, and I had several years to go on my degree. I had worked as an unofficial veterinarian assistant the summer prior. Things were much more lax when I was in school, now that I think about it." Mal chuckled as the woman somehow set her at ease in a den of wolves. "Anyway, I knew the basics of animal handling and was always told I had a calming nature with wayward beasts. Adam Kingsley was most definitely a wayward beast in his youth."
"Mrs. Kingsley, are you one of them?"
Belle's tinkling laugh filled the room and made Mal blush. "Am I a werewolf? Heavens no. I'm human, just like you." Mal felt her shoulders sag in relief. "I couldn't be one even if I tried. There's a sort of magic to it, inherently, but the gene can only be passed through birth."
"Oh, thank God."
"But you do have to be catholic." Mal's relief died under Belle's serious gaze. "I'm kidding, Mal. You need to relax. You're safe here with us. No wolf has killed a human in throws of a change in ages. We keep a close eye on the population of were's under our charge."
"You can't tell her everything in one night, Mom." Ben's strained complaint made both woman turn to see the men entering the room. "She needs to be eased in. Keyword there is "eased."
"Ben, son, it's a bit late for that." Adam Kingsley was a formidable man and Mal felt herself shrink into the cushion of her seat. "You've gone and gotten caught. She needs to know what she's involved in. The Perrault's aren't happy about your attachment to her. Or the way you dumped that brat of theirs."
"Dear, that's a bit harsh." Belle sighed and rose to greet her husband with an affection but brief embrace. "Still, very true. She wasn't the nicest girl. Bit of gold digger, actually."
"She's still my friend, mom." Ben moved to sit opposite Mal and rolled his eyes. "She will be when she starts talking to me, anyway."
"Good luck with that. I heard she started making out with Chad under the bleachers to spite you." She wanted to bite off her tongue when she remembered the rest of her audience. "Just a rumour, probably. Can't be sure."
"She is something else, and we'll leave that topic on a high note." Belle made her way to the seat on the end from the door. "Sit, dear. Dinner will be out momentarily."
"Don't mind us, Mal. We like a bit of wine with our dinner. Strong French heritage and all."
Mal shook her head and watched as a handful of servants brought breads, salads, soups and drinks. Wine was a served to the adults and lemon water for Ben and her. She was afraid to touch anything as they were served their soup and salad starters.
"What's for dinner?"
Belle's eyes twinkled over the rim of her wine glass. "Just some basics. Nothing to be concerned over."
Ben guffawed and glared between his parents. "You didn't. You did?"
"It's a wonderful dish that your father and I happen to enjoy and only request on special occasions." Belle winked at her son, and Mal realised that she was where Ben got his cheeky side from. "An old standard, you could say."
"This is Soup du Jour. A favourite of my Belle's." Adam smiled adoringly at his wife. "I assume we will also be subject to beef ragout and a lovely pie before we settle for chocolate tart and coffee and tea in the study to continue your crash course in Aurodon's furrier history."
Ben groaned and focused on his food. Mal noticed his blush, though. It touched the tops of his ears and made her smile fondly at the reaction. His embarrassment eased her mind a bit until it started to nag at her.
She discretely shot Ben a text asking about his dark mood. She barely noticed him respond since his head was already down. Her phone screen lit up soon enough, though, and her own blush deepened at the text's contents.
It was the first meal my mother ate here the night she found about my dad. Technically, their first date. In a weird non-date way.
"Oh."
Don't get caught with your phone out. My parent's are pretty strict about family dinner.
She snapped her phone shut, wincing at the very not subtle sound, and tried to be as nonchalant as possible as she put it back in her pocket. She heard a grunt and looked up to see Ben's father looking between them. His expression was not a happy one.
"That's one, Ben."
Ben nodded and shot Mal a conspiratorial smile before returning his focus to his meal. As predicted by Mr. Kingsley, the meal progressed with Beef Ragout and a blueberry pie. By the time desert was taken away, Mal was so full and entertained she barely noticed how much time had passed.
"Shall we adjourn to the study, Belle?" Mrs. Kingsley sighed as if perplexed, before gracefully lifting herself from her seat to join her husband. "I feel there are a few more details we must cover before sending Miss Faye on her way."
Ben gave his watch a quick glance before rushing to Mal's side. For her part, she was hesitating by her chair, not sure if she was supposed to follow. He offered his hand and she took it in an attempt to find an anchor.
"It's getting late, Dad."
His father waived off his concern. "Not terribly late, just yet. Won't be but another hour or so, I should imagine."
He leaned in close so Mal felt his breath against her ear. "It's the "or so" part I worry about. As much as I would love to keep you, having you stay the night in one of the spare rooms would not be taken well by the council."
"There's a council?" She cringed as her panic laden cry echoed through the entrance hall. "Sorry. Seriously, Ben, a council?"
"It's not as scary as it sounds. They meet once a quarter unless there's an emergency." He tried to muster a smile, but couldn't manage it. "That being said, Audrey's dad is on the council and he's difficult, and only some of it is because his in-laws have very "traditional" ideas."
"That means what?"
She was so stunned by the most recent revelation that she let Ben guide her blindly back into the study and sit her down on the loveseat. He didn't let go of her hand as he joined her. She blinked as she took in his parents sitting in matching winged back chairs across from them.
"Well, Mal, prior to the last Century or so, we wolves tried to keep the gene pool all in the family, so to speak." Mr. Kingsley paused as an elderly woman arrived with a cart of the promised coffee, tea and chocolate tart. "Thank you, Mrs. Potts. Decaf for the children."
She served the drinks and smiled when Mal simply asked for a scant amount of sugar in hers. "You look dreadfully pale, dear. This should warm you right up."
Mrs. Potts took her leave when everyone was sorted and Mr. Kingsley busied himself with a slice of tart. "You know how the royal family is werewolves." Mal choked on her coffee. "Careful. Wolves have lived amongst humans for many millennia. Our roots go all the way back to Ancient Greece. It's a balance between man and beast. Unfortunately, the myths and legends are built off the worst of us. So when there's a high population in one area, we tend to from packs. In such situations, of course, there's an alpha. The Kingsley's have been the alpha family in this region since Auradon was established."
"That makes sense, but can we go back to the royal family being like you guys? England's royal family is made up of werewolves?"
"Wolves are natural leaders." Mal heard herself laugh in disbelief. "You can't honestly say you're surprised."
She shrugged and considered her coffee. "I just can't really process all this in one sitting, I think. There's just a lot."
Belle smiled knowingly. "I know. If it's any consolation, at least you're getting the answers up front. I had to stumble through on my own and figure things out using cryptic clues with no help from the source."
She very blatantly did not look at her husband as he scowled beside her. "I'm never going to live that down, am I?"
"Am I still breathing?" He grumbled and shoved the remainder of his treat into his mouth. "Don't mind the child that is my husband. Now, since the basics have been covered I will allow Ben to take you home, if you're finished. Please, don't feel rushed."
"Oh, no!" She blanched at her own eager cry. "I mean, I'm tired and I need to try and understand all this. Home sounds great."
"Excellent. So, we'll put a pin in this for now and see you next Thursday." Mal heard herself release an odd squeak. "I would love to say this is all that needs to happen, but with discovery comes responsibility. Once we feel you are educated enough, you can stop coming to dinners if you so choose. Until that time, we will continue to monitor the situation."
Mal sat stunned in the passenger seat of Ben's sedan. She considered that it was less conspicuous than his Vespa or the motorcycle she's spied in the garage that was about the size of her house. The car was warm, cozy, and a punk band played at a low volume over the speakers.
"Why is this happening, Ben?"
He sighed and parked outside her aunt's house. "I just," he paused and chuckled quietly. "I really like you. I know you're scared and you probably don't believe me, but I desperately needed you to know this part of my world."
"I'm not saying I'm okay with this." She chewed her lip and rested her hand on the handle. "I'm less freaked out, though. At least it's not transferable."
"You're a dragon, Mal. You're fierce and powerful and stronger than any girl I've met before." His hand gently gripped her chin, turning her to face him. "I won't say it because I know it could be scarier than what I am, but know that I do, you know. Deeply."
"Huh."
A/N: Dinner, done! For now. We're getting close guys. I hope it was worth wait. Reviews are appreciated. Much love from this cheeseball writer.
