เข้าสู่ระบบ[CW- This chapter contains body and cosmic horror. Look after yourself while reading.]
Finally, Peggy saw something other than snow and ice. She blinked her eyes open, struggling to stay awake.
“Is that-?”
“Yeah,” Mikael confirmed, nuzzling into her neck. “We’re nearly there, hold
CLANGPeggy stirred from her sleep. Glancing around the shared room, the moonlight was filtering in through the window, and the shadows were a deep violet. She yawned and cuddled back into Yonus.PINGShe slowly opened one eye. Looking around again, she quickly counted all the bodies she could see…Someone was missing.BANGShe sat up. North wasn’t on the pillow where Ariadne had left him. Peggy frowned. Of course, she knew that North wasn’t just an infant, but would he really have been so stupid as to get up in the middle of the night and cause chaos?THUNKShe shifted around Yonus and started to stand, her mind drifting back to her last conversation with North…“I talk because I special.”“Special?”He nodded.“Special how?”“Is a secret,” he grinned. “And don’t tell mommy.”“... What happens if I do tell your mommy?” Peggy asked. North pushed himself up and crawled over to her. He gestured for her to lean closer. Peggy nodded and obeyed.“... She’ll never believe you,” North whispe
Ariadne watched the wolf, expecting a mental response.None came.He just watched her from the floor, keeping all four paws on the floor and his soft eyes on her. The silence unsettled her. From what she remembered of the night, Song had spoken to Archer immediately upon meeting him. This wolf being silent…“I said, what are you doing in my room?” she asked. Maybe he hadn’t heard her? Maybe his senses were still fuzzy-“I heard you,” he said mentally.“But you’re not answering me?”“You won’t like the answer…”Ariadne frowned.“That makes me want to hear the answer more,” she said, folding her arms. All at once, she became aware that she was in her pajamas and much smaller than the wolf. Even Song would be smaller than him.“He wanted to see you,” he replied. Ariadne stiffened.“I don’t-”“I know,” he replied. “He’s your mate, but he’s been…”Silence filled the space between them again.“Been… What?” she asked.“... I am new to this plane of existence,” the wolf said. “And even I know
Ariadne watched Archer run up the stairs after the group. She kept North close as she opened the door to their room in the inn. Even watching him now, her mind still couldn’t convince her that he wasn’t the boy she used to know. She ran through her normal nightly routines, trying to settle North, who was fussing, and then getting herself ready for bed.The room was large, with deep green furnishings and orange curtains. Peggy and Mikael had already taken the double bed on one side, Eli had taken the couch… So there was just the large master bed in the middle of the room. Ariadne glanced around for Archer, but he was in the bathroom.She hesitated. She didn’t want to be in bed with Archer, really, but with all the other spaces taken up, she may not have another choice… She settled onto the bed, settling North onto one of the pillows in the middle of the bed. Closing her eyes, she tried to settle and let herself sleep.After a few minutes, she felt the mattress dip. She tensed. Then, s
Archer kept his arm around Ariadne’s waist as they walked into town. It clearly wasn’t a metropolis, just a small settlement that had done well enough to grow. He glanced around. Rather than the brick or wood he was used to, the houses around here were mainly made of mud with what appeared to be wooden supports. The Lycans watched them as they walked through the towns.“Head down,” he murmured to Ariadne. She nodded, keeping her head down and holding North closer to her chest.“Ah! Madam!” a voice called out. The group of them froze as a Lycan woman ran over to them. Archer and Nieve prepared to shift, ready to defend everyone.“What-”“You dropped this!” the woman said, running over and pressing something into Peggy’s hand. The human looked into her hand and looked embarrassed.“Ah, thank you…” she said, looking at a handkerchief. “You didn’t need to-”“No, no, it’s no problem,” the Lycan said, before running away.“Sorry,” Peggy squawked out to the group.“It’s ok,” Ariadne said gen
Peggy sat, snuggled into Mikael as Eli cooked breakfast the next day. They were all still huddled up in the cave. It was uncomfortable, but necessary. They will need to move out soon, trying to get out of Lycan territory as soon as they can.“You said Kurnich won’t have realized you’re gone immediately, but that doesn’t mean we can hang around,” Archer said.“I know,” Ariadne sighed. “I have some things to help us, like some stuff to sell and some leather to reinforce clothes or backpacks, but only enough for one person.”“You were planning to leave on your own?” Eli asked, their head snapping up from the pot.“Well… Yeah. In about a month, but-” Ariadne started.
[CW- References to marital rape, marital abuse, and violence. Please take care of yourself while reading.]The day the prince had been born… Kurnich had not felt the spark that new parents are expected to feel. This squirming, pink, weak child was part his, part his bride. The prince was wriggling, squirming, crying… His little ears flapped. His dolichocephalic face was far from the regal muzzle his people would be expecting of his offspring.He looked too much like her.If he loved her, this would have been a blessing.He didn’t.He looked up at her. She was looking at the prince, tears in her eyes, a desperation and affection in her eyes that she had never shown him. Turning the prince over in his paws, he practically threw the newborn back into the queen’s arms.“Clean them up,” he hissed to the nurses who quickly swarmed the queen and the baby. He stalked down the hallway, his temper rising.Kurnich was not a Lycan that had much love to give. His people had learned that a long tim







