4 - Arrogance

~Dawson’s Point of View~

I had William fix our dinner plates and bring them to our private cabin. It was far beneath me to dine with the children and all their mindless chatter. I brought a lot of work with me and I intended to get through most of it. I’d already arranged for messengers to discreetly carry my paperwork back and forth every other day.

“I heard about this crazy incident while I was getting dinner. Some female pup attacked another at the lake. She just charged out of nowhere at the poor girl who was checking out the water or getting a drink I guess. She didn’t know how to swim and Damien of all people jumped in and saved her,” he said, finishing his meal.

“Hmm. You don’t know why she attacked her? Must be some reason, I said, not actually caring. 

I thought about it for a few more seconds and was actually annoyed.

“Damien just has to swoop in and be the hero, there was probably an audience, people around to cheer him on. He’s a total attention whore! I do all the work and he gets all the damn glory,” I said, bitter and irritated. 

“The pup didn’t even know how to swim. There’s no excuse to throw someone in the lake fully dressed at that,” he said, rather animated.

William cared too much, I used to think it was a flaw but sometimes it can be helpful. I am often told I need to work on softening my image but a future King couldn’t be a pushover. 

It was quiet for a few minutes, I was busy working and even though he was staring at me and I was close to throwing him out to give me space.

“Oh yeah, you still have curfew patrol tonight, from 11-4am. No getting out of that,” he said.

I grumbled. I could give a damn about catching pups trying to sneak out or sneak back in at all hours. The curfew was nonsense and I had to be available to patrol both sides of the lake. Hmm, though the idea of catching my idiot brother at a party and getting him in trouble might not be so bad.

I had to remember I was here to do my duty and every little thing that had to be done was one step closer to claiming my Queen. Then I’d never set foot in this dump again.

“Well I should get a couple hours of shut eye then, why don’t you go find something to do that isn’t in here,” I said, putting my paperwork in a neat stack. 

“Yeah maybe some sleep will help with that crankiness,” he laughed.

I let William get away with a few jabs here and there. But only him. No one else would dare speak to me in that regard.

“Out then,” I said, flipping off the light. 

He rolled off his bed and I heard the door shut. I set my alarm and found sleep quickly.

…

I’d been out on patrol for about two hours and I was bored out of my mind. Next time I’d have to bring headphones, anything to help pass the time. I was a glorified map, just helping lost pups find their cabins after a night of wandering or worse. They needed to step up their game if they were going to survive. How could they not know their way home? Granted some of them were from the other side of the lake and wandered over here but still, they needed to get their acts together if they wanted to make it.

I was just near the craft building and the outdoor movie theater which was half way between the two sides of camp when I heard some loud giggling. It was a small group of females, all pups. I quickly caught up to them. They were standing around a cabin with tall bushes. It was obvious that it wasn’t their home.

“Ladies, you’re out past curfew, get home directly,” I said, with a firm tone.

I clapped my hands for good measure to get their attention, then I crossed my arms in anger when it didn’t work. Suddenly the sounds and smells of retching filled the air and I turned my nose away. Really?

“You ladies have been drinking,” I said, getting more pissed off. 

I put my hands on my hips. I would give them a stern lecture that would hopefully scare them enough to not do this again.

While I wasn’t dumb to the fact that parties went on, they were supposed to be shut down immediately. Unfortunately you had assholes like Damien that did nothing about them, just looked the other way.

The wind picked up for a moment and a sweet scent hit me, even through the bile in the air. Vanilla, with a bit of cinnamon. Oh how delightful! Is someone baking something? At this hour? No, surely not. But what is it? I started to feel a bit dizzy and I moved to lean against the building to support myself. Was I sick, did I eat something bad?

Get it together! The beast within me stirred and forced my eyes to look everywhere at once. What was he trying to see? I had to get rid of these girls, I couldn’t risk looking weak in front of them.

“Now ladies,” I said, louder and with force … making the pups jump and turn around. Several were all still laughing and it was pissing me off. Did they not have a fear of authority? 

Suddenly, my eyes locked with a tall, thin blonde. She was absolutely stunning. My mind went blank. Who was she?

MATE! MATE! MATE! 

My inner beast vibrated my entire body, forcing the word MATE to every pore of my being. My mind demanded I grab her, that I mark her, immediately. 

Finding your mate was so rare for us that we simply didn’t waste time when we found our perfect other half. Our beast mode went into full effect and we didn’t dare let our mate move another step without a mark. Everyone would have to know they were claimed.

I blinked rapidly, no. No! Surely it couldn’t be!! My heart raced, my mind suddenly a mess.

Although, I could do worse, this she-wolf was sexy, even if she had a little chest and flat ass. She was however, dressed and groomed nicely, clearly from at least Kingdom 3 or higher.

My eyes went to her hands that were holding a dark mass … hair? The owner of the hair stood up and turned to face me. She looked me up and down with a silly grin, her cheeks were rosey from drinking. She reeked of bile and … vanilla cinnamon. What….?

NO! NO! NO! This wasn’t happening!! My eyes darted quickly between the two. But they didn’t seem to take notice of my deep internal struggle. 

“Just had to stop for a rest Mr. Fancy Pants counselor,” the blonde said, stroking my neon yellow patrol vest with her free hand.

“All better now I think,” the black haired pup giggled, wiping her face.

She didn’t know…

Well how could she? She didn’t yet have her wolf. The lycan in me growled, trying to move my feet forward. I fought him with everything I had. I must have looked like an idiot.

I got it together and gaped at this creature. She was only about 5’3 to my 6’5. She was maybe 130 lbs, hard to tell with her baggy clothing. She had to have been from one of the lesser Kingdoms, no self respecting person of status would be wearing rags. Her jeans had holes and her feet were bare. Could she not even afford shoes?! How humiliating! The Goddess wanted our Queen to be a drunken hobo?? Absolutely not! 

My lycan half didn’t care about any of the things, but I certainly did … and I would win this fight for the good of our family name.

I was briefly distracted as howls erupted from the woods, pups coming home from their first shifts. It would be like this every night. I quickly turned my head back to the girls.

The rest of the pups were in a fit of giggles but the blonde began to pull my mate away. I quickly moved around the side of the building and out of sight. 

My mind had a million thoughts at once. But the main one, the glaring one currently winning its way to the top of my mind was that I had to reject her, the sooner the better. 

I would have to wait until we were alone then I would order her under penalty of certain death not to share this with anyone. Absolutely NO one could know about this.

How could the Goddess do this to me? Saddle me with such a burden, right now when I’m so close to naming my Queen. Life is completely unfair!!