Chapter 50

"I told you we shouldn't have come here." Ash said as he inspected the cave walls. No sooner had he and Leeta entered the werewolf camp before they had been locked up in the same cave that had once been Macros holding cell. Ash had wanted to fight, but Leeta had grabbed his arm and held it tight to her as if silently pleading with him. Ash had held back and allowed himself and Leeta to be shoved into this dark hole. He was currently looking for a soft spot in the cave walls. "Marcos stink is all over this cave." Ash could pick up the stale scent of Marcos within the cave, and once more he could also smell the Wolf's Maiden as well. Finally his hand grazed over a soft spot in the stone. "This is our way out of here." He turned to Leeta, and his previously hard expression suddenly changed to a much gentler one.

Leeta sat on the floor of the cave with her back against the wall and her knees to her chest. Her eyes had a slight glow to them as they glossed over from where she was crying. Ash had never seen such an expression on her before. He left the site at the wall and approached her. He slid down beside her. Leeta didn't look at him. Her eyes were still staring off into space as she continued to cry. "If you want to leave Ash I understand, but I'm staying." Even though her eyes were wet with tears rolling down her cheeks, there wasn't any sobbing in her voice. For once it was as if Leeta was trying to be strong. "I want to talk to them. I have to warn them about Marco. I just can't leave knowing Amy might be in trouble." She simply couldn't do it. Amy had been one of the very few people to walk into Leeta's life and like her just the way she was. Amy never once asked her to change, she supported her, cared for just as she was, and Leeta was determined to do all that was in her power to help Amy now.

"I'll never leave you." Leeta looked up at she heard Ash's tender voice. She felt a warmth fall over her as he moved in closer, and put his arm around her. When she turned to look at him he pressed his forehead against hers and nuzzled. "You think I'd leave you alone in a place like this?" His muzzle ran softly up the crest of her nose. "Do you really think I could leave you?" He finally pulled her over into his lap unable to keep his distant from her any longer. She blushed slightly as she rested the side of her face against his chest. "I thought you understood by now." He took her chin between his forefinger and thumb and lifted her face up so that she had to look at him. "I love you and I'll never let anything happen to you." As he stared into her eyes he couldn't resist; he pressed his lips against hers. As he slowly turned the kiss more passionate he could taste her tears in the kiss, but soon the salty taste disappeared and a sweeter flavor filled his mouth. He liked this taste very much, it was a honeyed essence that came whenever he lavished her like this. Finally he broke the kiss, his eyes were half closed with a soft look as he stared at her.

Leeta's breathing was a little quicker as she blushed. "Please," she said as her expression looked like she was drowning in all the passion of his previous kiss. "Don't stop."

"Want more?" He couldn't help but tease her. That look on her face made him want to eat her.

"Don't make me say it again." She blushed as the back of her fingers brushed against her lips in embarrassment.

He took her wrist and pulled her fingers away from her lips. "Just say that you want me."

"Ash." She blushed turning slightly in his lap as she felt his other hand cradling her hip in a sensual grasp that made her gasp slightly.

"Say it." He said as he pressed the curve of his face into her neck allowing his hot breath to trace up her skin.

"I want you." She said unable to take his teasing any longer.

With that one phrase Ash's less gentle side emerged. Truth be told he was a ravenous lover. His desire for Leeta was easily manifesting through physical means. It showed in the way he held her body tight to his as he mated with her. It was as if his inner wolf showed through even in his human form, he was always dominating her and never giving her a moment's rest until he was satisfied. Yes, he was certainly a greedy lover, a flaw perhaps? Not in Leeta's eyes, she was endeared to Ash in her mind and in her heart, she would happily give herself to him as many times as he wished. Certainly Ash knew his way around her body, and he gave her bliss with every caress, kiss, and stride of his hips, but it was not just the physical ecstasy. She cherished the connection of their bodies, feeling as if they were one and the same being, their energies and spirits flowing from one to the other as their love took on physical form. It was a kind of bond she knew she could never feel with anyone but him.

Ash placed a hand on her knee as he thrust into her with hard full-bodied strokes. He felt so good inside her, he had had women before, but none of them compared with Leeta. There was something about making a mess of a woman you were in love with, it was in the sounds she made, and the expression on her face when he would make her cum, it only excited him more has he thought about how it was he who made her act in such a way. He plunged into her as he felt her squeezing him even harder. "I love you!" He heard her voice in his ear and his eyes suddenly opened.

Those words, they made his ears burn and his heart pound, and he suddenly grew larger inside her causing Leeta to cry out in outrageous pleasure. He leaned forward and leaned into her ear. "I love you too." In that moment he felt her wrap so hard around him that he felt himself reach his limit, he pushed hard into her one last time before he finally let go of his release. He could feel her contracting around him as she drowned in an orgasm of her own. He pulled back slightly and took her chin in his fingers turning her face to meet his. He loved that sloppy exhausted expression of hers. It gave him satisfaction to know that she would never make it for anyone but him. He leaned in and kissed her lightly on her lips, before he parted and stared into her eyes. "I'll never let you go."

x-x-x

Espio wrinkled his nose slightly as he followed behind the group of strange Lycans. He suppressed a growl as he his sense of smell seem to be over rout with the scent of these new wolves. He looked to his own pack for a moment not sure what would become of them. They were huttled in a group inside a ring made up of the new Lycans. Amy was in the center flanked by Sonic and Marcos, Espio never had seen the two of them agree on anything accept Amy. The pink hedgehog was obviously excited about the recent events, Espio could smell it on her. He never had noticed her scent much before, but since Mina's death the smell of her Wolf Maiden's essence had been very obvious to him, he wondered if it had been Mina's love that had blocked out his basic desire to eat Amy? It didn't matter anyhow, even now when he could smell her fragrance he didn't want to eat her, she had grieved for Mina and he knew how close the two had been, she was almost a reminder of his beloved, especially when he thought of Mina's gentleness. He ignored the hunger in his belly and looked over at Viper. He sighed as he saw her staring at the green hedgehog that was walking in front of them. He didn't like the way her eyes seem to glitter every now and then. It was downright unnerving, they didn't know anything about these wolves and she was making eyes at one of them. Lastly the chameleon turned his eyes on their leader. Shadow walked ahead of their group with the same strength and power in his eyes as he always had. Even here, in this foreign land, surrounded by unfamiliar wolves, Shadow was unflinching.

Amy looked at the wolves that were surrounding her and her friends. She studied them, but no matter how she looked at them, she was sure of it. These wolves didn't appear any different then would any others. Amy had thought that wolves of the Motherland would appear different somehow from the wolves from their home. But if she had met them under any other circumstance she wouldn't have known they were from the Motherland at all. The only thing that seemed a miss at all was their attire, some of them seem to wear clothing that looked outdated. Her eyes shifted from them as something else caught her attention. She noticed that though the mist and fog had not cleared, she could see that they were being followed. Every now and again she'd see a watery body run past. The dryads were following them. Once again the watery beings had entranced her, she couldn't help but want to know more about them. She quickly looked over at of the Motherland wolf that was to the left side of their escort. She was a black hedgehog with white streaks in her quills and one strip on her arms and legs. Her long quills went all the way to the back of her knees. She wore a tube top and mini vest, she had on tight jeans and sturdy boots. "Excuse me." Amy said with a questioning tone. The Motherland she wolf looked over at Amy. "I was just wondering, can you tell me about the dryads?"

"You know what they are?" The she wolf's demeanor was calm, but showed some slight surprise.

"Yes," Amy said realizing that it must be unexpected for a human to be questioning about such things. "I know what they are, but why are they following us?" The she wolf looked forward to her leader, she obviously didn't think it was right for her to say anything as she hadn't been given permission to divulge anything about their clan or their home.

Flade looked back at Amy for a moment, it was as if he were amused by her curiosity. His tall demeanor and strong eyes reminded her of Shadow. He turned back to face the front again as he continued to lead them further into the mist. "We have an agreement with the queen of the dryads." He stopped in his tracks as did the others; the fog was the worst it had been yet. Amy could barely see the wolves standing right beside her. Was it just her imagination or was this mist just getting thicker and thicker? She felt a little spark of fear, and it was as if Flade could smell it. "No need to be frightened." He said still staring off into the blindness that was before them. "We're home." In the next moment the mist vanished from sight. There was a pale brightness of a setting sun as they stood at the top of a hill. As they looked below they were able to see a clear view of a huge Irish castle, and adjoining it were homes and shops made of stone and wood, the surrounding area was dotted with hundreds of tress. The entire picture was like something out of an ancient fairytale. "Come." Flade said as he began the trek down into the olden settlement.

"Shadow." Sonic said his name, his voice was filled with weary apprehension; this was their last chance. With the numbers as they were the werewolves stood a chance at escaping these Lycans, but once they were within the confines of their den they would be totally outnumbered.

The dark hedgehog looked back to acknowledge the blue rebel. "We keep going."

"Umph, like you have a choice." The snappy tone came from a cat. Sonic looked over at the Lycan male. He had a strong expression and his jade green eyes stood out against his orange fur. He had a plucky attitude and there was an unforgiving determination echoing from his face. Sonic growled at his insulting words, but before he could return any of his own another voice broke in.

"That's enough Thorn." Flade spoke to the cat, but did not turn to look at him or stop his march down the hill. "That's no way to speak to our guests."

"Guests?" The orange cat had a look of surprise and irritation. "They could be spies for the anarchies. How do we know we can trust them?"

"They will be free to come and go as they please." This was the only response that Flade gave the cat as they reached the bottom of the hill. His eyes seem to turn slightly to Shadow who had come to stand beside him now.

"But!" Thorn wanted to protest.

"I should think you would realize they aren't going to leave us just yet." Flade said in a matter of fact tone. "After all, they've been searching for us." Thorn just seem to brood as fell back into line with the other Lycans.

"How did he know that?" Amy questioned softly.

"What else would a group of werewolves and a Lycan be looking for in the middle of uncharted Ireland?" Marco was the one to point this out, he couldn't think of anything more conspicuous.

As they got closer Amy realized that there was a clear path the lead through the trees toward the civilization, and while they walked along the trail she noticed wolves were dotting the space between the trees each one seem to be tending to the forest, whether it was cutting dead branches or watering the roots. She'd never seen anything like it. It wasn't long before they took their first few step into the village. The group was greeted by crowds that were forming on the sidewalks as they continued down the middle of the road. People were opening windows, standing in doors, and almost climbing over one another to get a look at the strangers as they passed. Amy didn't seem phased as she looked around. Being the Wolf's Maiden she'd grown used to being stared at. She was more interested in their new surroundings. It was as if it had been untouched by time, the only modern thing seem to be a few of the people living there. She saw rabbits, hedgehogs, wolves, cats, dogs, and others of all sorts. She had imagined the line of Lycans here would be only wolves, but that certainly wasn't the case. As she continued to observe every now and then she would see a hedgehog or wolf or someone else wearing modern looking clothes, but it was only a few, most of the others seem to wear older looking clothes, much like some of the wolves that were in their current escort.

Marco looked at the crowds that were watching, his eyes seem to narrow. He took in a deep breath through his nose. "Smell that?" He looked at Sonic who seem to be doing the same.

"Yeah." He said with the same rough tone of surprise.

"What is it?" Amy asked as she heard their conversation.

"These aren't just Lycans." Marco said as he continued to look around.

"There are also werewolves." Sonic's expression seem to match Marco's at the moment.

"And humans." The Lycan prince finished.

"Humans, and werewolves?" Amy looked from one side to the other. "All living together with Lycans?"