Chapter Five- Bold Plans

Atem uncurled himself from his spot and looked around, pleased. He was in an empty house on the edge of the city with his court and Kisara curled up around him. He had marked this house a year ago when he became pharaoh as did his father when he ascended the throne like all alphas did when leading the pack. This house was marked for use by the current pharaoh and his court and their mates. His father had died from a fatal strike from a vampire; of course the vampire had died from the silver jewelry.

He closed his eyes to call up his memories of last night. Let's see. I recall smelling my court's familiar scents and then an unfamiliar one. Oh. I growled at Kisara. I saw her as a possible threat, but Seto's scent on her paw told me otherwise.

I remember finding prey, but I didn't chase it down and it was barely alive. A mental picture of the man flashed through his mind and his breath caught. Oh, gods. I had interrupted a vampire's feeding. Lucky I was well-protected.

The stirring of the others brought him out of his musings. One by one they sat up and closed their eyes to recall the night. He saw Kisara by Seto, but her eyes were open and her nostrils were flaring. He smiled slightly. She's discovering her senses. "Kisara," he said very softly and she turned to look at him. "I apologize for my behavior toward you last night," he said still softly so as to give her practice with her sharper hearing.

"No apology necessary, pharaoh," she said just as softly. "I sensed you saw me as a threat."

"You're correct, but Seto's scent on your paw where he bit you told me you were mates. I won't be making that mistake again."

"And yet you might," Mahad spoke up teasingly. "We know you have short-term memory problems during the moons."

There was gentle laughter and even Atem laughed. "Well, I am the ruler with many issues demanding my attention. And that reminds me of something last night I must warn the city about." He stood and left the house with the others behind him. He emerged to see the people emerge from where they had slept. They turned to him and he called, "My people, last night I came across prey that was barely alive. I believe I had interrupted a vampire that had been feeding. I recall no run-in with a vampire, but I urge caution if you find dead or barley alive prey tonight or tomorrow as it could be a trap. Of course, I know you will not recall this warning, but heed your instincts as they won't steer you wrong."

"Isis, my hearing and sense of smell are incredible. The pharaoh spoke so softly, but I heard every word."

Hearing and smell are the ones that take some time to get used to, but they are our most important senses when we're wild."

"Speaking of that, you were right. I now recall what happened last night. After the pharaoh left, I remember Seto and me hunting together. We shared a camel."

Isis smiled. "Mahad and I hunted together too, I actually led the tracking and chasing. A human for each of us."

"Is it possible that Seto knew I wouldn't be comfortable eating a human?"

"Possible. Our emotions are still there, but are simple, less complex. It's possible that he knew your feelings on some level."

"Mahad, I noticed our mates spending quite a bit of time in the last two days."

"Well, Isis was asked a lot of questions by Kisara and they do have a few things in common such as being bitten instead of being born and mated to purebloods."

"I see. I am trying to be considerate of her transition from human to werewolf. I chose to kill an animal than a human."

"That's very considerate, Seto. I let Isis take charge of our meal and she tracked two humans."

"Hmm, perhaps I should ask her if she would like to lead in hunting tonight. It may make the transition a little more easily."

"It may." Mahad watched Seto walk away in the direction Isis and Kisara had gone, obviously following their scents. He remembered the guilt he had felt over biting Isis, a long time ago. He had done it out of hurt and anger at Isis' anger of him keeping his true nature hidden from her. She had been furious at being made a werewolf and he had distanced himself from her until after the moons were over.

When she asked to talk, he cautiously agreed and once they had sat down, he began to apologize over and over for biting her. She had seemed amused by his regret and assured him that she wasn't mad anymore and still loved him. He had felt relief at hearing all that and was thrilled when she said she'd like them to be mates. And since then, I have never been happier.

Seto tracked the females' scents to Kisara's chambers. He stood there for a moment to take in their scents. Isis' scent was werewolf and incense perfume while Kisara's was werewolf and fresh linen with the innocence of a human still. He knew that innocent scent would fade and disappear in time; surely by the moons next time that smell will be gone. He knocked and heard Isis say, "Yes, Seto?"

He entered the room and smiled at the women. "Kisara, I was wondering if you would like to take the lead in hunting for dinner tonight."

"Really?" Kisara gasped. "Me, lead?"

"Do it," Isis encouraged her. "You might just like it."

"Well…okay. I'll do it."

Seto gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Wonderful. I'll see you ladies outside the gate as usual." He left the room and listened to their excited voices as he walked away.

Atem's body and mind shifted into wolf and the familiar scents of seven wolves behind him gave him comfort. He padded away to hunt for his dinner. He had no concerns of any trap or roaming vampires. He was simply a hungry wolf.

Seto looked at his mate and barked at her to lead the hunt. She barked for him to follow as she led the way out of the city. She sniffed the ground and then the air before heading further into the desert. She sniffed the ground and the scent of prey reached her. She howled in success and ran toward it, Seto racing behind her.

Bakura crept through the deserted city. He searched out crevices and spots where he could hide and not be seen. He was good at not being seen or heard, but knew he could be detected by scent. He wasn't sure what vampires smelled like as vampires can't smell one another. He, nonetheless, kept noting hiding places.

He soon reached the palace gates and looked it up and along the walls. How do they get in? His eyes moved down and something prompted him to get down on all fours. There were tiny latches along the bottom. A normal human would think nothing of them or assumed the gate was wearing down, but Bakura was no human. He stuck two claws face-up beside a latch and slid them up against it and heard a click. There was a rumbling sound and the gates swung inward. Bakura grinned. He was in!

Clever, these werewolves, he thought as he entered the palace. They are not the mangy dogs I had been told they were. He moved through the palace carefully, keeping an eye out for silver. He saw the palace decorated in gold and limestone, but no silver. They must use it for jewelry and possibly weapons. He felt his admiration for them grow. They were clever and could associate with human villages and kingdoms, but only in daylight. Bakura also felt jealous. Here were his eternal enemies living it up like gods while his kingdom was forced to sulk in squalor and live in the shadows to survive. It didn't seem fair!

I wouldn't mind living in a palace under the ground, safe and secure. If I could speak with the pharaoh, I would show him that I would be willing to end the hostilities between our races. I could invite him to my kingdom, guaranteeing his safety. We could get to know one another and in time, perhaps we could co-exist in the same city. Smiling at the idea of living peacefully with the werewolves, Bakura left the palace, planning to explore the structure extensively the following night. After that, he would plan when to visit the pharaoh and speak with him.