AN: Okay, you guys ready for a dip into some Pack and Coven history?
I know this is a slow build, but I am really trying to build my little universe here.
As a Norwegian I love when I can find small ways to blend in some nordic elements.
Enjoy!
My Heritage
Following behind Caius, I do my best to ignore his frustrated ramblings and instead allow my eyes to wander as I walk. Taking in the gloomy and dark atmosphere of the Vault, I try to imagine my bright and radiant mother spending hours on end here, but after a moment I give up. Luckily, Caius appears to have stopped, having arrived at what looks to be his office. He hurries around his desk, rummaging around in one of the bottom drawers before practically collapsing onto his chair while lifting a rather large metallic flask to his lips. His entire face pinches together in an extraordinary grimace as he gulps down what must be an incredibly strong alcoholic beverage.
"Feeling better?" Seraphina asks, taking a seat in the chair closest to his desk.
The dark look he sends her causes my lips to twitch and I'm forced to bite back a smile as I see him throw back a few more mouthfuls.
There's a rather large table in the room, clearly used for a study group of some sort and quite a few chairs scattered around. Jake leans against the table, respectfully keeping his distance while maintaining a slightly elevated position. Embry, Nessie and Quil find seats at the table staying close to their Beta, while Alec and Jane opt to stay close to their mother, pulling a pair of chairs up to where she's sitting near Caius' desk. Spotting a large lounge chair near the wall almost just across from Seraphina, I make my way towards it. Glancing over at Caius to check if he's alright with my proximity. With his desk between us and some liquid courage swirling around inside of him, he appears to accept my choice.
Tension builds as silence fills the room, each of us waiting for Caius to open up the conversation. With a deep and reluctant sigh, he finally does.
"Tell me about the Grimoires. Seraphina only mentioned they'd been found."
He doesn't look in my direction, keeping his eyes fixed on his cluttered desk.
"I don't know very much about them," I hesitate.
"Aro had a storage unit with quite a few of my mother's old things. We recently moved the contents to the garage next to my house to sort through them, and when I found the Grimoires I called Aro this morning to ask what I should do with them and he recommended I bring them back here."
This time, Caius lifts his gaze and looks for confirmation with Seraphina, who immediately gives it.
"That's when I called you."
"I left the house for a few hours and when I came back, everything in the garage was destroyed and the Grimoires were gone."
Silence spreads yet again, but this time Jake is the one to break it, a steely and hard edge to his tone.
"Which bears the question, who else could have known about their whereabouts?"
Caius' brows tighten together in confusion.
"What exactly are you implying?"
We can all hear the hint of anger in his voice.
"We're not accusing you, Caius, we're just wondering if you might have told someone that I'd called you? Or perhaps if someone could have overheard you?" Seraphina shoots in, trying to soothe his ruffled feathers.
Caius' jaw clenches tightly, clearly still annoyed by Jake's not-so-subtle accusation.
"Please, Caius," my aunt asks, clearly knowing exactly which buttons she should push.
Exhaling deeply, he places his flask on the table in front of him with a small thud before leaning back, bravely allowing his eyes to meet Jake's, but only briefly before returning to the safety of Seraphina's.
"I was here when you called," he pauses. "Royce was sitting over there," he points to the table where Jake, Quil, Nessie and Embry are seated. "We spoke about it briefly after you hung up, Phina, but seeing as you didn't mentioned where they were, it would be impossible for-."
My wolf bares her teeth and releases a low growl. Immediately I'm able to sense much of the same reaction radiating from each one of the wolf-shifters in the room. Caius' eyes widen with alarm and quickly rushes to explain.
"Royce has worked in the Vault as a volunteer for years now and the Freki Ulvdahl Grimoires-."
"As in Geri and Freki? The wolves of Odin?" Nessie takes us all by surprise by her sudden involvement.
Genuine interest spreads across Caius' face and his eyes flash to hers before he's even had the time to realize that he's locking eyes with what's supposed to be his greatest fear.
"You know Norse mythology?"
Nessie's pale cheeks turn bright pink as all of the attention is turned in her direction.
"Uhm," she hesitates, "I'm interested in pack history and since the Midnight-Sun Pack has a direct lineage to the wolves in Norse mythology, I've studied quite a few of the legends connected to Fenrisúlfr, Hati Hróðvitnisson, Sköll, Garmr…"
"And Geri and Freki, the gluttonous wolves of Odin." Caius completes, his lips curling into the barest hint of a smile.
Nessie simply nods her head, her wolf strangely subdued. The reality of what he's doing appears to seep into his consciousness, because in the next second his eyes return back to the safety of his desk and flask. Lifting it once more to his lips, he winces before continuing with his explanation.
"The Freki Ulvdahl Grimoires are a set of books written by witches living in a place called Ulvdahl, or Wolf's Valley in English, in Norway several hundreds of years ago. They lived amongst the Freki Pack who, legend told, were direct descendants to Freki himself," Caius pauses.
"Royce has spent months working his way through them, and the ones in your mother's possessions were the final ones in that particular collection. When you told me about them, I felt it was only fair that I share the information with him seeing as they were of high interest to him. However," he raises his voice sharply, "Royce ended up staying here at the Vault for several hours after. In fact, he left perhaps some ten minutes before you arrived, so it couldn't have been him. I have the security tapes to prove that."
It's clear that Caius is doing what he can to convince us of Royce's innocence, however there's something about his explanation that feels… off. Forcing a small smile to my lips, I take a page in Seraphina's book and make my voice as sweet and angelic-like as possible.
"Good. Thank you, Mr. Campbell, we really appreciate this."
I hear Jake's snort, but openly ignore him, giving Caius my full attention.
"Unfortunately I wasn't given the chance to read much of them, seeing as they were in a different language."
His gray eyes flicker to mine for the briefest of seconds, giving me proof that I've chosen the correct strategy.
"I was hoping that since you knew my mother, you would be willing to help me read them, but now that won't be possible."
Looking away, I pretend to be fighting back tears. As I do so, I feel his eyes on me once more. Carefully, so that I won't spook him, I lift my gaze, hesitantly meeting his. I'm thrilled when he doesn't look away.
"Perhaps, you could explain their importance to me?" I pause, making sure I still have his attention.
"I know they meant a lot to my mother. Including the Grimoires, I found several notebooks with translations amongst her things, so I know she must have spent hours studying them," I reveal with a sniffle.
Caius' eyes soften with empathy.
"The items that were both stolen and destroyed were the last things I had after my mother and you're the only connection I have to them now."
I allow my voice to trail off, deliberately leaving out the fact that I still have my mother's personal journals. Caius' jaw moves ever so slightly, as he carefully considers my request. After a moment of hesitation, he releases a deep breath before leaning back into his chair.
"Your mother was a sweet, young girl when she first started volunteering here at the Library. She was having a few… uhm… issues," he draws the words out as though he isn't sure how much he should reveal.
He must be alluding to the depression she struggled with after Carlie's death. I nod my head solemnly, as though I know exactly what he's talking about.
"Early on she showed an immense talent and interest in the Norse language, so the librarian directed her in my direction. She worked with me for several years after that."
His eyes lower and I catch a glimpse of the genuine affection he felt for my mother. Seeing this makes my heart warm.
"Charlie, your father, was able to awaken a spark in her that I was never able to do when he got her involved in that beach cleanup project of his. I don't care what some might say about their relationship, but the change in her after they became friends was remarkable."
The expression on his face is soft and I feel a true smile spread across my face.
"She still enjoyed assisting me here and would do so from time to time, however, during the next few years she spent more and more time outdoors, living life," he pauses.
As opposed to the way she lived prior to my father.
It is what I feel Caius is leaving unspoken.
"Then something changed and her interest in the Grimoires, particularly those that mentioned wolf-shifters, had grown ten-fold."
The tight v-shape of his brow reveals that he was never told the reason for my mother's sudden change of heart.
"The Grimoires give us an insight into our Coven's long and rich history. They are written by a wide variety of witches recounting their lives and way of living through different stages of time," he explains, taking his time to make sure that I understand.
"They aren't magical, although several of them do present a selection of spells and potions, most of which aren't of that much interest today because of the evolvement of technology and modern medicine."
A light smile touches his lips.
"But they can help us appreciate the life we have and give guidance."
The look he sends my way makes me believe that this was what he suspected my mother had been after.
"The Freki Ulvdahl Grimoires tell the tale of two loving sisters, Inga and Ingrid, and are presumably written down by Inga herself."
Talking about the Grimoires appears to have given Caius the confidence he needs to move past his fear of wolf-shifters, his eyes alight with passion and enthusiasm.
"Through her descriptions we learn that Inga was a powerful witch and a great healer, who loved her sister and family dearly. During that time, there wasn't a clear division between the different species. They didn't group themselves together in large Covens or Packs. It was the family unit that was important, both for witches and wolves alike. So although the Fenrisúlfr Treaty clearly stated the need to live separately, many witches and wolves still found themselves in situations where they needed to cooperate."
I raise a hand to stop him.
"I'm sorry, I wasn't raised here, so please explain. Fenri-what?"
"The Fenrisúlfr Treaty was the original treaty created between the witches and the wolves. It was where the imprint first came to be," Nessie shoots in.
My mind immediately locks onto a distant memory of Leah trying to explain the imprint to me after Edward's wolf had visited me for the very first time. I bob my head ever so slightly and Caius is quick to continue where he left off.
"Ulvdahl was a small town where humans, witches and wolves lived amongst one another in relative peace and harmony. Inga was a well-respected healer and her potions and spells were highly sought after and she wrote most of them down. I think that was partly the reason why your mother became so interested in those Grimoires in particular. She had several friends within the Pack and I could see that she wanted to help them, much as Ingrid and Inga used to. She'd found a kinship with these historical women and when I realized that I immediately sent the books home with her. It isn't often that I find someone who genuinely appreciates history and tries to find ways in which we can learn from it. Renee was truly one of a kind."
This time I don't have to fake the tears welling up in my eyes.
"I only wish that their tale hadn't been so tragic, however, I remember your mother saying that their tragedy was one of the reasons why she'd fallen in love with their story," he pauses, taking a deep breath.
"The Fenrisúlfr Treaty was formed by a direct descendant of the Fenris-wolf (son of Loke and Angerboda) representing the wolves, and a number of incredibly powerful witches, several of which were related to the first humans in Norse mythology, Askr and Embla."
Glancing over at Nessie, I see that she is listening carefully to everything Caius is saying, the suspicion on her face revealing that she's waiting to find errors in his description. He apparently hasn't slipped up yet.
"The imprint ensured that the wolves could no longer mix with other species and it became forbidden for witches and wolves to have relationships. Directly after the first treaty, they made sure to spread out and find areas to inhabit where they could ensure their privacy and never need to deal with the other. However, as the years went by, the strong borders began to dissolve as more and more witches and wolves began to move and slowly but surely they began to mingle again. As in the story of Inga and Ingrid," Caius takes a breath, his voice suddenly somber and sad.
"Ingrid was Inga's beloved sister. She's described as a great beauty and the shining light of her family. The Grimoire doesn't go into detail, but there is one entry that leads us to believe that Ingrid must have fallen in love with a wolf-shifter from the Freki Pack, who Inga never once mentions by name. You can tell that she is clearly against the relationship, but her love for her sister prevails and she spends the next fifteen to twenty years helping them."
In my chest I feel my heart skip a beat at Caius' description of Ingrid and her forbidden love. Immediately, those two fragile pieces of paper hidden away in my mother's old jewelry box pop into my mind and my stomach rolls uncomfortably.
"Inga clearly did what she could for them to not conceive. There are several potions and spells created to ensure infertility and prevent pregnancy. From what I remember from Inga's descriptions, Ingrid and her wolf ended up living in a reclusive area, separated from the rest of the community, which was probably why Inga's help was so necessary. Even though they had their struggles, they appeared to have lived a good life together, filled with love and a lot of happiness."
"He never imprinted?"
Embry is the one to ask the question several of us are thinking.
Caius shakes his head.
"The members of the Freki Pack were spread out across a massively large area and they rarely come together."
Nessie looks as though she wants to ask something, but for some reason remains silent.
"You mentioned a tragic end?" Jane asks, her voice revealing that she's almost too afraid to hear the answer.
Caius' expression turns grim and he immediately lifts his flask to his lips and knocks his head back.
"Yes, indeed," he begins, his voice distant.
"Again the Grimoire only mentions bits and pieces, and never really gives a full account of what happened, but from what I can gather, Ingrid passes away very suddenly. There is no mention of any disease or injury, only that she suddenly collapses and the next moment she's gone. After her sister's death Inga never returns back to the town, choosing instead to live out her days in Ingrid's old reclusive home. Ingrid's husband isn't mentioned after her death, other than hinting to him in a few small lines where Inga briefly describes a black, lone wolf wandering the nearby woods all alone."
The room goes painfully still, everyone clearly affected by the story's sad ending. For some reason Ingrid's story reminds me of my mother and her tragic death… My stomach churns. Although my mother had been sick for months before she died, the shock of when she did pass still lingers inside of me as though it just happened. They'd never found out what was wrong with her and one day she simply collapsed and was gone.
Wiping a tear from my eye, I slowly rise to my feet, taking my time as I walk the few steps over to Caius' desk before stretching my hand out towards him. He immediately complies and curls his hand around mine.
"Thank you," I whisper, my voice rough with emotion.
Then without another word, I turn on my heel and leave the room, tears trailing down my cheeks as an almost seven year wound tears open, the shock and overwhelming grief over my mother's sudden death knocking the wind out of me as I struggle to maintain my composure. Finally after locating the nearest ladies room, I lock the door and allow myself a moment to grieve.
When I eventually feel a little more like myself, I make sure to wash my face before opening the door. I'm not surprised when I find that someone has decided to wait for me, however the fact that it is Embry and Jane (not Alec), strikes me as a little odd. As soon as I walk out the door, their conversation stops as they study me carefully. Shaking my head at them, I try to convey that I'm fine. In the next second, Jane rushes over to me, wrapping her arms around my waist, hugging me close while Embry locks his gaze with mine, silently asking if I'm sure. Suddenly, I realize that it is their deep compassion for others and unconditional love that has them both together here offering their support. Tightening my arm around Jane, I hold one hand out to Embry, squeezing his affectionately to show my gratitude. Linked together, we walk back to the others.
"You've mentioned that the Grimoires don't hold any magical qualities and that most witches aren't very interested in them, but can you think of any reason for why someone would take them?"
I can hear that Jake has already begun his questioning.
Stepping back into the room, I pass Jake, making sure to place a hand on his back to remind him to take it easy and not spook our new "friend". Feeling everyone's eyes on me, I bob my head ever so slightly before finding my seat again. Holding Caius' gaze, I await for his reply. Although he looks a little flustered, I'm pleased to see that there isn't even a single ounce of fear on his features.
"Ah… well… I can only presume that whoever it is must be looking for a specific spell. Most witches aren't interested in using them because all spells always carry a pretty steep price, but if one is desperate enough-," his voice trails off.
"What kind of spells were there in these specific Grimoires?" I ask, my voice still a little rough from my little breakdown.
Caius's face pinches together in concentration.
"God, there were so many and they were quite complicated. To be honest, your mother was the first and only witch I think to translate and work on every single spell and potion cover to cover. I've always been more interested in the history behind them, not the spells themselves," he reveals, before releasing yet another tired sigh.
"Whoever took the Grimoires must be either a wolf-shifter or a witch that either wishes to assist the Pack in some way or do harm."
Bricks of ice fills my gut at just the mention of someone wanting to hurt the Pack.
"Harm? Ingrid was in love with a wolf-shifter and didn't you just say that her sister helped her?"
Caius' expression grows serious.
"Inga was complicated. Yes, she helped her sister because she loved her, but it was clear that she blamed Ingrid's husband for their downfall. You see, because of the Fenrisúlfr Treaty, their love was forbidden, and when they chose to be together regardless, they were both exiled, from their Coven and from their Pack," he pauses.
"Although I never read all of them, I recall several spells Inga must have created in anger. If anyone ever were to try to cast any of those… well, the effects would be detrimental."
The ominous tone in his voice makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand at attention and I can hear my wolf release a whine, showing her worry and concern over what we've just learned. Caius shakes his head.
"But doing so would be madness," his nervous chuckle sets me on edge.
"How so?" Jake demands, his Beta shining through.
Some of that initial fear begins to slowly but surely return to Caius' features.
"The current treaty clearly states that no magic may be used against our allies… if a witch even attempted to do one of the spells… well," his voice trails off.
"It would mean war," Seraphina is the one to complete his sentence.
The bottom of my stomach drops uncomfortably and a nervous energy expands within me, filling every inch of my body.
"Which we must ensure never happens, Caius," she continues, urgency in her tone.
"Is Royce capable of doing something like this?"
Caius' eyes widened at her direct question.
"No! I told you, he was here the entire afternoon!" he repeats.
Seraphina's eyes hold an authority to them that I've never experienced before.
"He could have had help," she says simply, to which Caius violently shakes his head.
"No!" he insists, his voice rising to a desperate pitch.
"Then where is he now? Did he go home? Leave to visit his mother?"
Caius continues to shake his head as though just the idea of Royce being a suspect is too much for him to bear.
Seraphina slaps her palm loudly against the table, her tone demanding, her role as wife of the Coven leader shining through.
"Where is he, Caius?!"
"I don't know!"
The entire room falls deadly still in reaction to his shrill cry. Caius' chest heaves as he visibly tries to calm himself down. Grabbing his flask, he holds it almost lovingly in his hands, the look in his eyes devastated, but resolute.
"He said he was leaving town for a couple of days."
His voice sounds surprisingly numb.
"But he didn't say where he was going?" Seraphina pushes, but Caius simply shakes his head, eyes focused on his metal flask.
"I'll call Riley and see if he's heard from him. But you need to tell me if he contacts you, Caius. Until we're able to question him, he's still a suspect, do you understand that?" her voice softens ever so slightly.
Caius nods his head dejectedly. Seraphina gets to her feet and walks over to him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"I'm sorry you were put in the middle of this."
His shoulders crumble.
Glancing in my direction, Seraphina silently portrays that it's time for us to leave. Standing, I soon realize that she has no intention of going anywhere. Looking over at Alec and Jane, I'm surprised to see them still seated.
"We'll wait until Mom's ready to go," Alec tells me, his voice determined and strong.
Turning around to face my packmates, I see all of them standing except Quil.
"I'll stay and make sure they get home safe, then I'll phase and run home to the Ranch."
I nod, pleased that my cousin's protective instinct now includes the witch side of my family. Before we make our departure, I turn towards Caius one final time.
"Thank you for your time and for all the information," I pause.
"It's clear that you truly cared about my mother, and I can't tell you how much that means to me."
His sad eyes flicker hesitantly to mine, holding my gaze for a second before returning to his flask.
Sending my aunt a final nod, I turn and follow my packmates as we silently make our way through the old building. Exiting the library, my head feels heavy with all of the additional information we've been given. Sighing, I realize that although we've received quite a few answers, we're also leaving with a large number of new questions that I really don't know how to deal with.
God, I wish Edward was here.
