The morning light filtered into the room, bringing warmth into it, filling their spirits with joy. She hadn't realized how bright her life could be, not until she broke away from her fears and her pain. Hadn't he been saying that all along? She was so happy when she was just living, just existing, but she understood that she couldn't stay her and hide her problems, but she wanted to. Fenrir had made it so easy for her to do so.
She smiled up at him, starry-eyed, as he kissed her tenderly. Her arms were wrapped around his neck and her fingers played in his hair, damp with sweat, as he chuckled. "I'm glad to see you so eager," she said passionately. His lips stretched into a grin with her comment.
"I'm not sure if you're kidding or not," he retorted playfully with a wink. She rolled her eyes and shook her head slightly, her damp hair sticking to the sheets.
"I'm serious." Her hand moved and cupped his face, her thumb caressing his jaw as her blue eyes filled with her concern. "You weren't yourself the other day and I was worried that it was going to be a common thing." She shifted slightly under him, tension still between her loins as she blushed hard. She hated to admit it, but it felt good. She still wanted more.
She pulled him closer to her as she kissed him deeply. Soon, the kisses grew more eager, more needing as their breathing started to grow heavy. "Sira," he whispered between kisses as he pulled her body harder into his. She loved him so much, even though she never said it. She knew that she couldn't live without him now, even if she tried. They were so alike, like they were meant for each other.
Maybe, just maybe.
As quickly as it had started, he pulled away. He wore his fear like a mask. "Fenrir," she said, puzzled by his sudden change of heart. He hushed her and shook his head, trying to listen for something. She stared at him, trying to listen as well, but hearing nothing. Then shouting, like there was a fight going on. He got out of the bed and started to dress as she sat up, pulling on her clothes. She stood up to follow him out, but he stopped her, looking down at her urgently.
"You need to stay here," he stated, his fear shook his voice.
"I can help," she replied rapidly, causing him to shake his head.
"Sira," he stressed, "please, stay here. I don't want you getting hurt." She gazed up at him for a long while before moving around him and walking away. He sighed and followed her out of the tent, wishing that she wouldn't have done that. He raced to go find the fight and to break it up before it got too violent and she was about to follow him when a thought crossed her mind.
Before she knew it, a hand was covering her mouth. "Don't scream," the voice whispered and she realized who it was. "I need to talk to you in private." Kael, she told herself and she nodded. He uncovered her mouth and led her into the woods, some distance away from the pack. She watched him like a hawk. He didn't seem like he was up to something, but then again, it seemed like he was always up to something. At least he didn't seem like a major threat at that moment.
He grinned at her as he stopped, letting her go as he turned to face her. "So you're Fenrir's mate now," he stated arrogantly as his grin turned cocky. She set her jaw and looked him in the eye. He chuckled at her gesture, moving closer to her so their faces were just inches apart. She saw no life in those blue eyes, only darkness.
"Why do you need to know?" she questioned, staying still as his smile wiped off of his lips.
"Because that makes you Alpha as well," he retorted as he fingered a strand of her hair, "and that makes you at risk. The Alpha Female may not be as powerful as the Alpha Male in the pack's eyes, but the Alpha Female as an ability that no one else in the pack possesses. The only one who can tell the Alpha what to do is his mate," he brushed her hair back behind her ear, grinning cruelly as he did so, "and it looks like that person is you." He took in a deep breath, his eyes taunting her. "It smells like it too."
"Why are you telling me this?" she asked flatly, keeping her cool even though he was starting to agitate her. His hand grabbed her jaw, tilting her head up as he moved in close again, smirking. His eyes glinted with power, something that frightened her.
"I need you to do something for me," his grip on her tightened as she tried to pull away. "Convince Fenrir to give up his position as Alpha and I'll let both of you go quietly, and you can take his son and his family along with you. You will never have any harm come your way, nor will we ever call on you again. You all may go on living your normal, wizard lives like I know you all want to, and you'll never have to deal with this again. If you don't, you will be persecuted by the pack after I take Fenrir out of power myself, understood?" She smiled mischievously at his statement.
"Giving death threats to an auror, are we?" she taunted, causing him to tighten his grip on her jaw even more as he backed her into a tree.
"I know that you won't run to the Ministry with this," he snarled into her ear. "I know that you understand that the pack will suffer under the restrictions the Ministry will set on them. And I know that your aurors won't come to your plea for help because of a death threat, because you know why, Sira Volkov?" She looked him in the eye, her eyes matching the coldness in his. "Because you're a Death Eater. You've been through much worse than a death threat." He loosen his grip on her jaw and dropped his hand, but he didn't back away. "The option is yours." He turned away from her and walked back to the camp.
She stayed back for a long while and watched him go, noting how tired his walk seemed. She could see that he was getting desperate and that was vital for her. He would run himself thin here shortly and snap, allowing for her to overtake him.
He had just chosen to who he would be playing his game with, and she knew he had chosen wrong.
Scabior walked to the door and opened it, wondering who was there at this late hour. He gazed at her, stunned that she was there and even more stunned that she felt like she had to knock. It was her house after all. "Hi," she breathed, her blue eyes bright and warm as she stood on the doorstep. "Can I talk to you?"
"Sure," he said and she walked into the house. To him, she was acting so distant and it hurt him. It was like this wasn't going to work out after all.
"Are the kids here?" she questioned, walking into the living room, as he followed. He shook his head.
"Anthony went to go see Burgundy and Izzy went on a date," he stated as she sat down on the sofa, looking up at him as she let her hair out of the messy bun it was in. "What do you need to talk to me about?" He sat down next to her, folding his hands as he studied her. She glanced down at his hands before looking at him again.
"I'm in danger, Scabior," she replied calmly. "The werewolf that was in charge of the pack while Fenrir was in Azkaban wishes to be Alpha again and he wants me to convince Fenrir to step down. If I don't, Fenrir will be killed and I'll be 'persecuted.' From what I know about him, it'll mean my death as well." She rubbed her hands together, sighing. "He's cunning, and he has contacts that I don't know about, but I know that I can outsmart him. I don't want to tell Fenrir about this because I know that he'll worry and get protective over me. Most likely, he'll send me away and I won't get the chance to take this werewolf down."
"Why are you telling me this?" he asked. She had been absent from his life for the past few weeks and now she was trusting him with her secret. He couldn't help but feel a little angry with her, but then again, he was glad that she came back. He was glad to see that she still had some trust in him.
"I need your help." She took his hands in hers, squeezing them gently as a slight smile formed on her lips. "It'll be like old times when we both were young and reckless. When I was a Death Eater and we were madly in love." The smile dropped from her lips as she looked him directly in the eyes. "I want to forget what has happened between us for a while and see if we can work past this. I want to give us one last chance. What do you say?" He sighed as he looked at their hands, trying to calm his feelings.
"Alright," he whispered as she noticed how tense he looked, "but can I ask something in return?"
"Go ahead."
"Will you be honest me?" She nodded, her eyes showing her hope. "Have you been having an affair with Fenrir?" Once again, she nodded as she rested her head on his shoulder as he put his arm around her waist. He sighed, closing his eyes as his fears became reality. He deserved it, didn't he? He did the same thing to her.
"I've made love with him a few times," she admitted. "I just needed to know what love is again and what it's supposed to be. I forgot what it meant to love, but he helped me feel it again."
"Do you love him?" he asked, leaning his head on hers as he rubbed her shoulder.
"I do, but I love you too." She placed her hand on his jaw, resting her forehead against his as she closed her eyes, taking in a slow breath. He pulled her close as she started to tear up, wetting her eyelashes. "Where did we go wrong?" She opened her eyes, seeing herself in his blue-grey eyes.
"I don't know," he whispered as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "So much changed so quickly."
"I miss you, Scabior," she breathed as tear ran down her cheek. "I miss who we once were."
"I miss us too." She gazed into his eyes, seeing his sadness, feeling his pain. She wasn't angry with him anymore, but when she was with Fenrir, she didn't realize how much she missed him and how hard it was for her to look past the things they had done to each other. She loved him, but he felt so distant. She loved him, but he felt like a different person now. Her mind told her it was too late for them, but her heart said that they still had a chance. He cupped her face in his hands, his thumbs gently wiping away her tears. "It's alright, beautiful," he whispered before pressing his lips against her forehead. She looked up at him, her eyes sparkling with her joy. He hadn't called her that in years.
Gently, his mouth met hers as she closed her eyes, wanting to break the distance between them. She moved into him, leaning into the kiss as he wrapped his arms around her waist. She pulled away slightly as a smiled grew on her lips. He smiled back as she put her face in the crook of his neck, closing her eyes as she sighed. His hand tenderly rubbed her back as he hugged her tightly, not wanting to let her go.
She was happy that she came, but she realized that it made her decision even harder. She didn't want to play the hearts of the men she loved, but she felt that was all she was doing. The feeling confused her. She could do what was right, even though it felt wrong, or she could do what was wrong, even though it felt so right.
She sighed, wishing she hadn't thought of that and would've just enjoyed the moment. She hugged his neck tightly, breathing in his scent.
"Are you alright, Anthony?" Burgundy asked, leaning her head on his shoulder as he looked at her, giving her a light smile. She knew that he'd been going through a lot, but she was glad that he had come over finally. He had needed his distance because of what had been going on with his family, but she had missed seeing him and being with him.
"I'm okay," he said. "I was just wondering how my dad was doing."
"Scabior?"
"No, Fenrir," he replied with a sigh as he put his arm around her. "I haven't had the chance to go see him in about a month with working at the Auror Office and being there for Scabior. I just wonder how he's been doing, and I really haven't seen my mom in a while either." He glanced down to the floor, his yellow eyes hazing over with a thought. "I hope they're doing alright."
"Most likely, they are," she reassured, smiling gently as warmth filled her emerald eyes. "If they weren't, I think you would've heard something by now."
"Harry's fairly upset that my mother hasn't reported in a while," he stated, looking into her eyes, "and Arian has been wondering where she has been as well. The Ministry isn't too happy with her right now." She took his hand and held it, still smiling.
"Do you want to go talk to her? I'll go with you if you want."
"You don't have to go if you don't want to. I know that being around werewolves makes you uncomfortable," he stated, holding her close.
"I'll be alright, Anthony," she said with a smirk. "You'll be there and I want to go."
"Okay." He smiled at her as he gazed into her eyes, not seeing fear in them. It made him feel that this was alright.
He entered the tent behind her, taking her hand as they walked farther into the tent. "Dad?" he called out, as his half-brother stepped out of the kitchen, grinning with a sandwich in his hand.
"Hey, bro. Long time no see," he said as he came over and gave him a half hug, chuckling as he looked at Burgundy. "Who's this?"
"This is my girlfriend, Burgundy," Anthony stated as Elliot smiled at her. He offered her his hand and she shook it.
"It's nice to finally get to meet you, Burgundy," Elliot said as she smiled back at him. "I'm Elliot, his half-brother." She looked at her boyfriend, stunned.
"You never told me you had a half-brother," she said flatly as Elliot glanced at them, taking a few steps back. Anthony's cheeks turned bright red.
"Were you looking for your parents, Anthony?" Elliot questioned, changing the subject. "Fenrir went to get Heros and the pack elders because we're going to have a meeting here shortly, so he should be back fairly soon. I don't know where Sira ran off to but Fenrir would probably know." Anthony looked at Burgundy as his cheeks stopped flushing.
"Is it alright if we wait here a while?" he asked and she nodded in return. As they sat down on the sofa, Fenrir entered the tent alone as he ran his hand through his long hair. He didn't even seem to notice them for a while. Finally, he looked over to where they sat and greeted them.
"It's good to see you again, son," Fenrir said as he sat down across from them, "and it's wonderful to finally meet you, Burgundy. Anthony has only said wonderful things about you." She smiled at his comment, but Anthony couldn't help but notice how distracted and anxious he seemed.
"Thank you," she replied kindly, looking up at her boyfriend. He put his arm around her and held her close.
"It's good to see you too, Dad. I hope that everything's been going alright within the pack." His statement caused his father to focus on him as his dread filled his eyes.
"It hasn't been going well," he stated, "but we knew that this would happen." He looked at his hands as he folded them, as if he was trying to find the right words to say. "So far, the pack has little trust in the Ministry and wizards in general and they are ready to get rid of Kael once and for all. I feel that Kael can be dealt with without violence, but that is getting harder and harder to continue believing.
"During the last full moon, he attacked a few people, including Malakai, but we were able to stop the fights before they became too severe. He captured Elliot for a while as well and now I've heard that he's been threatening other members of the pack." He sighed as he looked at Elliot, who gave him a nod for reassurance, before looking at his other son. "It's been good that you've been away, Anthony."
"Could you call in the Aurors?" he questioned as Burgundy continued to look up at him.
"I'm afraid that the pack wouldn't take too kindly to that, they barely trust Sira," his father explained, "and we don't have hard evidence against him."
"Where is she anyway?" Elliot asked, sitting down in a chair adjacent to them as he looked at his father. "She's supposed to be here for the meeting."
"She told me she needed to go take care of some things and that she'd be back before the meeting started," Fenrir explained. "I figured she was either going to the Ministry, or she was going to her house. I wasn't going to press her for details. She seemed fairly upset as it was." Just after he said that, she walked into the tent with a bag in her hands.
"Sorry, I meant to be back sooner," she said, turning to look at them. "Oh, Anthony, there you are, and Burgundy, it's nice to see you again."
"Where have you been?" Anthony questioned as she glanced down, noting the hint of irritation in his voice.
"Can we speak in private?" He stood and followed her into one of the spare bedrooms, one of the ones that he usually stayed in when he was visiting. She set her bag down on the bed as he closed the door behind him. Carefully, she unzipped the bag and started to take her things out of it.
"Mom," he said flatly as she refused to look up at him, concentrating fully on her work, "where have you been?"
"I've been here, Anthony," she replied, finally finding what she had been searching for. A long, black cloak, old and ragged. "I been trying to help your father straighten out this pack, but as he may have told you, it hasn't been working so well." She pulled out her wand and went around the room, casting defensive spells, as he continued to watch her.
"Why did you do that?" His eyes were curious, but his face seemed cold. He missed seeing her, and he wasn't proud that she had been gone for so long. It had caused him a lot of strife.
"Because I don't want him to hear what I'm about to tell you." She placed her wand on her belongings as she looked up into her son's eyes. "Kael approached me and gave me an option. Either I convince Fenrir to step down as Alpha and appoint him to fill the position, or Kael kills Fenrir and eventually kills me. I know that if I tell your father this, he'd send me away and I wouldn't get the chance to take down Kael once and for all. I know I can outsmart him because he's getting desperate and with that comes mistakes. He's powerful, but through trying to assert his power over me, he did tell me something that holds some truth. He said that the Aurors wouldn't come and help me because I'm a Death Eater. And he's right. I hope you understand."
"But why the distance? Why the isolation?" her son asked, becoming a bit desperate. "I haven't seen you in weeks and you haven't come into the Ministry in months. Dad's struggling without you, Harry's upset that you haven't reported in, and Arian asks about you constantly. I hate telling them all that I don't know when you're coming back. There's a lot of people who care about you and it hurts us to not know where you are or if you're alright. We just want to know why you've distanced yourself from us."
"It's safer that way," she stated, as she ran her hand through her hair, "and it has given me some time to think." She looked down for a moment before returning her attention to him. "I know I need to report back into work, but I've been so busy planning this out and keeping my eye on your father. And I just went and talked to Scabior. We both agreed that this hasn't really been working out, and I understand that it's my fault that it is so. I've been trying to figure out my feelings with him, but every time I try to come to a conclusion, I'm reminded that he betrayed me. I know he says that he won't do it again, but I can't help but think he will.
"Then, all I feel around him is a distance, like we've become completely different people and we'll never be able to be together again because of that. No matter how close we get, I still feel completely alone. I love him, but I'm not happy around him, and I'm not sure if he feels that way as well. All we've done for the last five years is caused each other pain and I don't think time will heal the wounds we've given each other. We're going to give each other one more chance, and after that, we'll decide what we want to do."
"Izzy was wondering if you'd marry Fenrir if this did end in divorce," he said softly as her eyes filled with her shame.
"Most likely," she replied, as her tears welled up in her eyes. "I'm happy when I'm around him and he's happy when he's around me." She wiped his eyes with her hand quickly, sniffling a bit. "Anthony, please understand that I don't want my marriage to end any more than what he does, but I know that our relationship is hurting our family. I feel that separating may be the best thing for us in the long run, even though it may hurt for a while." He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a hug, holding her tightly. She hugged him back as she sniffled.
"I missed you, Mom," he said gently.
"I missed you too." She took in a long, slow breath. "I don't know what I'd do without you in my life." She pulled out of the hug as she smiled warmly, her tears still in her eyes as she gathered her things and went into the other room.
She sat down on Fenrir's right before the rest of them sat down. She hated to admit it, but she wasn't too fond of some of the elders that were there and she wasn't too fond that the female elders refused to come to this meeting. Delwyn, an ancient werewolf with snow-white hair and blue eyes, sat to her right, while Fenrir sat to her left at the head of the table. She was thankful that she was sitting next to Delwyn and even more thankful that the kind, understanding Mathias was sitting across from her. At least she didn't have to sit close to Lysander or Pontius. In total, there were thirteen people in the room, sitting around the long, wooden table. Fenrir, her, Delwyn, Madoc, Dacian, Kennard, Rudolph, Mathias, Pontius, Lysander, Dorian, Elliot, and Heros.
"Thank you all for coming," Fenrir stated after they all took their seats. Sira watched him for a while, before looking down at her hands that rested on the table. "I know that we're all be busy lately, so it's been difficult to get together, but I appreciate you all for coming tonight. Now, to get down to business. We've done many things already for this pack, but I understand that we can still do more, and I want to ask you what you feel should be done next."
For the longest time, they were all completely silent and after a while, Sira felt a stare fall on her. She looked up to see Pontius scowling at her, his strong, scarred face cold, reflecting the darkness of his eyes. She looked at him blankly before he turned his attention towards Fenrir. "Why is she here?" he questioned in a gruff voice with the same coldness that shown on his face.
"You know well, Pontius, that she's allowed to be here," Mathias explained as he looked at Pontius, seeming certain with himself.
"If she wants to be," Rudolph agreed with a nod.
"Actually, that's not the case," Dacian retorted, glaring at Mathias. "According to the old ways, she is only allowed to be here if she's his mate." Fenrir rested his elbows on the table and started to rub his temples as she looked back down at her hands. Here we go, she told herself. "Isn't that right, Delwyn?"
"That is correct," Delwyn explained, his voice soft and frail, "but as we have discussed before, some of the old ways are flawed."
"They've guided the packs for hundreds of years," Dacian stressed. "Why go against them now?"
"Because most of the old ways have no relevance to today's pack structure," Kennard stated with a roll of his green eyes. "They may have worked for hundreds of years, but they don't work anymore."
"And the old ways are what Kael so desperately clings to," Rudolph replied.
The last statement caused an uproar between Mathias, Dacian, Pontius, and Rudolph and an arguing match ensued. As quickly as it started, everyone lost their patience, and Fenrir slammed his hands down on the table.
All eyes were on him as he sighed, looking to them. "What is really the source of this issue?" he questioned, his voice holding no anger. She watched him carefully, noting how tired he looked. Like he just wanted to give up.
Eventually, Lysander glanced at Pontius, before looking at Fenrir. "I know you already know this, but the pack does not believe that she is your mate even though you claim her to be," he explained coldly. "She is not one of us and you have no plans on making her one of us. If she is your mate, you might consider holding the traditional ceremony to assure the pack, to assure us, that what you're claiming can be trusted, and that she can be trusted. That, in fact, she is your mate."
"None of you ever questioned me when Sorrel came to our meetings," Fenrir stated flatly, causing Elliot to look down at the mention of his mother.
"She was one of us. She was respected," Pontius answered in a growl.
"Then why did you allow her to be murdered?"
Sira looked at Elliot, thinking for a second that it had been him who had asked the question, but he only looked stunned, like he was thinking the same question about his mother, but never dared to ask it. They both looked to the one who asked it. His father.
Pontius looked down, knowing that he was fighting a losing battle, and he seemed to hate it.
"We are here to protect this pack," Fenrir continued, "and that means we have to respect all who are in it. Werewolf or not. Also, Sira and I will decide if we want to do the formal ceremony to confirm our claims, but it should not be a concern that the council, or the pack has to deal with. She is one of us and you need to treat her as such."
Lysander looked to Sira with a smirk on his lips. "Sira, I'm amazed with how silent you've been through this whole endeavor and so far, this meeting has been all about you." Her question entered her eyes as she stared in his grey ones, causing him to smile with his arrogance. "Of course, we're heard Fenrir's side of this story more than anyone else's, and especially more than yours. Tell me, do you consider Fenrir to be your mate?"
"She doesn't have to answer-."
"Yes," she stated, interrupting Fenrir. "He is my mate." Lysander nodded as she excused herself from the table, not believing that she had said that in front of the elders. Her stomach flipped at the thought of what she had done.
It wasn't that she felt horrible about being his mate, or that she had confessed it to them, it was more that she was uncomfortable with idea of being his mate and still trying to give one last shot at her marriage. She had no idea what she was supposed to do as his mate, or what that even included. She was afraid that she had messed everything up even more by fixing this one, little problem.
I'll never be like Sorrel.
She sighed as she shook her head, going into their room to try to clear her muddled thoughts.