by Raven Willow
“What the hell was that? Why am I made to be displayed in front of those... people like some common whore?” She struggled in his arms, but he would not put her down.
“My love, it was not for that purpose, although I would be lying if I said I did not enjoy it. It was merely a social custom, a rite if you will. Each member of the pack not born into it must take part of it. It is to prove that they accept the pack body and soul, and to prove that they bear the marks of the one who turned them.”
Alistair gestured to her bruised body, as well as the bite mark. Riona covered herself up as much as she could with only her arms, wishing he would not stare. It made her stomach flutter.
He made his way to his bed, their bed now; the one they would share as mates for life, he said. Alistair set her down gently on the soft furs, keeping one hand locked firmly around her wrist. A raise of his eyebrow warned against her running from him again. Riona looked down, defeated. There was no way she felt confident in fleeing now knowing dozens of others of his kind were right outside, who no doubt would have no difficulties in eating her alive.
She wrinkled her nose in shame thinking about how they all knew her scent now. How they all had seen her at her most vulnerable. Looking out the window, she could see a couple frolicking around the den laughing and kissing. The female had long unruly blonde hair and was about as small as Riona was, while the male had almost black hair and towered above her like most other males in the pack. He threw her over his shoulder and spun them both around, grinning like a small boy. They would look to be a normal contented pair had she not known what they really were.
She glanced at Alistair right as he removed his shirt, and saw the scars that nearly covered his top half. One long mark was faded and pink, going down his ribcage. It moved and rippled along with him as he twisted his body around. Another curved around his left shoulder while another was placed on his bicep, looking fairly new. She couldn’t help but wonder what gave him such scars. The bite mark she now sported was just about healed, so wouldn’t any injuries he sustained heal as well?
Alistair looked over and caught her staring, smirking when she quickly turned her head.
“Some wounds even I cannot heal on my own, my sweet. And do they really look so terrible?” He joked with her as her nostrils flared.
“I was not staring!”
“There is no shame in looking, love. Naturally, you would be curious. In time, you will come to learn everything about me as I you.” He left the room for a moment, giving her a look that read ‘do not move’ before walking out.
Riona scrambled up, in that moment not caring about her nakedness. She’d run through the forest as she was before staying a moment longer there. Several good tugs of the window failed, as it seemed to be sealed shut. She searched the room for something, anything she could use to pry it open, but no luck. He was smart, leaving quite literally nothing that could be used to escape. The sheets, a wardrobe, and furniture that had been nailed to the floor were all that remained. No heavy objects could be found. She felt like a child that had had toys taken from her to keep her from acting out, and it only enraged her more. Cursing, she tried the window again, only to be alerted by his presence when he began laughing.
“I leave you for mere moments and you already attempt to escape from me. Tut tut, I suppose I’ll just have to keep a much closer eye on you, my mate. Shall I tie you to the bed frame?” He leaned on the door frame, crossing his arms.
“Why can you not let me go?” Riona huddled in the corner, hugging herself as she fought back tears.
“Because you are mine. I knew you were meant to belong to me from the moment I saw you, and from the moment I heard your voice.” Alistair slowly stalked to where she stood, his eyes taking in every inch of her.
“Gods, you are beautiful.” His eyes fell on the bruises he had left on her inner thighs, causing the blood to rush to her cheeks.
“You stand here before me, bare to my gaze and shaking, when I only wish to love and protect you.” He held out his arms, offering his embrace. She wanted to not want to accept it.
“You, the beauty who I admired from afar, who I could hardly believe was chosen just for me. Whose beauty pales in comparison to any woman I had ever laid eyes on in my many years of life, but you ask why I cannot let you go?”
Riona could not help but feel her heart flutter at such words. Never before had a man said anything like this to her. The men in her village were not romantic or gentlemanly. She felt her face begin to flush, her breathing turning shallow as her nipples pebbled and her womb ached. The bite throbbed and she was suddenly very aware of how turned on she had become. Something in her mind told her there would be no hiding it from him.
“Please...”
“Please what? Please throw you onto this bed and take you the way I know you crave from me?”
Riona squirmed as he inched closer. She felt her pussy clench, feeling how wet she was becoming.
“Is that what you desire? For me to show you who you belong to and rut into you until I have you screaming and begging for my cock harder in that tight little cunt of yours until I fill you with my seed?” Alistair stopped in front of her, putting both hands on the wall by either side of her head, thus trapping her. She squirmed against the corner as he moved even closer, his lips touching hers as he spoke. So close now that her nipples grazed his hairy chest. Riona whimpered as a low growl emanated from his throat when he inhaled the air around them.
“I can smell you... you cannot hide your desire from me, my dear.” Alistair moved one hand from the wall to between her trembling legs, lightly stroking her most intimate parts.
“Ah! N-no...” Her mouth hung open against his as she moaned, his fingers playing on her engorged clit.
“No?” One finger trailed down further, slipping inside her with ease. She was so wet, feeling so wanton as the pleasure he was giving her forced her to open her legs. Riona cried out as he added a second digit, wanting more but fighting the pleasure.
“It will hurt! Please!” Riona pressed her own hands against his shoulders but found herself holding on to him.
“Shhhh...” Alistair pressed himself closer to her, bending his head to kiss her neck.
She breathlessly sighed as he used the flat of his hand to rub her in little circles. Her moans were becoming music to his ears. He hummed every time she rewarded him with one.
“I-I can’t.”
“You can, you are, and you will.” He spread her lips with two fingers, exposing her little bud to the chilly air.
“Please... please...” Riona begged as she pressed her palms against his broad shoulders. Wherever she wriggled her hips to get away from his hand, it followed. It was useless.
Alistair pulled his hand from between her legs, hooking them underneath her thighs, effortlessly lifting her. She gasped, unable to keep herself from wrapping herself around him, earning her a grin.
“So eager, little one.”
Riona whimpered and buried her face in his shoulder, knowing she was powerless against him. He walked them over to the bed, gently laying her down on her back. A red flush spread across her body, and she could hear her heartbeat thumping as he leaned over her squirming body.
“You want this. You want me.”
Riona shook her head, but her hand that inched its way down her tummy to her wet pussy betrayed her as her fingers made contact with her swollen lips, as if on its own accord.
“I—unnnghhh, I c-can’t have this...” Riona moaned in pure bliss as she spread her legs wide, arching her back. Her breasts heaved, testing his self-control.
“Your body is already recognizing who owns it, sweetheart. Your desire for me will torment and bedevil you until you surrender.”
Riona only cried out in response, unable to form coherent words.
“So hold out as long as you think you can, little one. Eventually, you will come to accept it.” Alistair leaned in close, his scent mixed with her arousal filling her lungs. “Soon, you
will grow eager to please me. You will beg me to fill you with my pups. Can you see it? Swollen with my young, the very future of this pack, inside you?”
Alistair looked down at her. Riona had begun putting on her show all for him. She had become lost in her own pleasure, now reaching above her head fisting the furs as she spread her legs wide for him, crying out as her newly heightened senses overwhelmed her.
Riona felt a strange tingle spread throughout her body. Her heart was now beating faster than she could register, and she felt as if she couldn’t catch her breath. The room around her, as well as the man on top of her began to spin and she was forced to close her eyes as she fingered herself with reckless abandon before this monster. Every rational thought that remained screamed for her to stop, to run away as fast as her legs would carry her and seek shelter, but her body screamed for Alistair. She heard herself moan his name as she obscenely tilted her hips up to him.
She wanted to stop, to scold herself and hit him as hard as she could to wipe the grin off his face. No respectable lady would be behaving this way for a man who was not her husband. No, not until her wedding night. Hell, if her village elders could see her now she’d likely be branded a whore and cast out into the cold. Yet here she was. All she was able to do was lie there beneath him helpless against her own desires and her own body.
“W-what is happeninggggg to meeee...” Riona sobbed as she felt a strange ache spread all over.
“Your body is adapting, being so close to its mate is causing every little molecule, every little sensation to react this way. What you are feeling is yourself begin a new change. Quite literally, your very mind and soul are calling out to me.”
Riona wailed as her breaths came shorter and faster; she knew she would not last much longer in this state.
“Do not worry, pet. I will take you again. But watching this subtle transformation for the first time in my years of life is far too irresistible to spoil. The fact that it is of someone I love so dearly when she is wet and filled with need for me... oh, sweetheart. It makes it so much better.” He held her behind her neck, exposing her bite.
“Are you close, little one? Do you want to show me how you can come on your little fingers when you’re beneath me this way?” The only sound to be heard next to her labored breathing was her slick pussy against her fingers.
“Open your eyes and look at me, love. Always look at me.” Riona forced herself to obey, being met with his hungry gaze as she grew closer to her impending orgasm.
“Tell me you need this. Tell me you crave me. Say it, say it. Tell me how much you want me... please...” Alistair’s voice had dropped as the animal inside fought for freedom. Riona imagined how it wanted to do such despicable things to her, to take her in ways even he couldn’t imagine. But his touch softened as he stroked her warm cheek.
“I need it... yes... I-I want this... yes, Alistair...” Her voice quivered as her eyes rolled in the back of her head.
“I want you!”
Alistair smiled as he finally heard the words.
“Then come for me, little darling.”
Riona’s body stiffened as her mouth opened in a silent scream, her eyes closed as her body contorted in a nearly impossible position beneath him. In desperation, her body forced her legs around him, her pelvis grinding against his crotch. She unconsciously rubbed her body against his while her fingers worked herself faster. She didn’t even feel his hands support her as he lifted her from the bed to allow her comfort while she rode out her orgasm. The waves of pleasure were endless, which Riona lost control over until Alistair knelt down and pressed his face into the crook of her neck, kissing the salty skin there.
His interference seemed to be the only force that allowed her body to finally come down from its high, while also holding her still until she stopped jerking. Riona finally moved her hand away, instinctively reaching up to touch Alistair’s shoulders. She was unsure of why she did so, but something deep within her craved to feel him against her. It made her feel... secure.
When Riona finally opened her eyes, Alistair was stunned.
“Look there, in the mirror, love.”
Hazily, Riona obeyed and tilted her head toward the vanity mirror placed just across from them. She was met with a pair of amber eyes instead of her natural brown color. It couldn’t be!
He smiled, looking content that her body had accepted the small change, albeit rather traumatic for her.
“Good girl... what a sweet, good little girl,” Alistair purred as he petted her head, leaning down to kiss her. She moaned into the kiss, still in the throes of her pleasure as her newly adapting body calmed itself. She ran her hands up and down his toned arms slowly, like the lover’s caress he had so desired from her. Sensual, yet subtle.
He looked down at her as she exhaled; Riona was exhausted. A glance back in the mirror revealed her eyes had gone back to their pretty brown color, and she now lay limp, hardly able to even hold him.
“You are tired, little one. I would like for you to sleep now. I can fetch you a small tincture to aid you, or you may lie here with me and sleep on your own. But either way, you will be as you are, naked and in my arms where you belong.” Alistair moved a stray curl from her forehead.
“I-I cannot have something to sleep in?”
He raised an eyebrow and smirked. “Clothing will be sent for tomorrow. I cannot have my new bride running through this den naked, now can I?” He lay down beside her, pulling her close to him as she stiffly looked up at him.
Alistair leaned over and blew out the candles on Riona’s side of the bed, which made him roll on top of her. She gasped, able to feel his member against her thigh as he moved closer into her.
“Do not worry your pretty head, love. Your body must have time to heal before I can have you again.” He kissed her on the forehead, unable to keep from inhaling more of the scent of hers he couldn’t seem to get enough of.
“However, it does not mean I am forbidden from taking these soft lips.” Alistair cupped her chin as he lovingly took her lips again, running his fingers through her hair as she reciprocated the kiss. To her surprise, her body responded with a hand moving up the back of his neck and in his own long hair, taking a small fistful and pulling him even closer to her.
Alistair reluctantly ended the kiss. Riona could not tell him she was secretly wishing he could do more to sate the hunger bubbling beneath the surface.
“You must rest now, dove, for tomorrow begins a new life for you.” Riona fearfully nodded, covering her breasts with her arms as he lay back down beside her, satisfied and content. She made an attempt to turn away from him, but his hand on her waist stopped her.
“No no no, right here, Riona, come now. There will be no hiding from me tonight.”
Defeated, Riona allowed him to shift her body where she faced him. She was acutely aware of her nakedness against his own. More than anything she wanted to cry until there were no tears left. For the loss of her freedom? Her security? The life she knew up until two days ago was no longer there. She would never be the independent Riona she had grown to be in her life. Through all her struggles, through all her misfortune, Riona persisted.
And now it was gone.
Riona wanted to kick and scream and curse the man who did this to her to hell and beyond. She could feel her entire body change with each passing hour, knowing it was just another way her whole life would change.
If she was truly what he claimed her to be... a true mate, how could it be? Riona grew up with stories of the wolves who could slaughter all your cattle and murder faster than one could blink. They come in the night and steal the women and murder children, the texts said. The evil hideous beasts from her stories were meant to be hated.
And yet... Riona never hated them. She was intrigued by them. She longed to hear more about them, never believing the tales. She could not help but sympathize with them. Sure, she loved her princesses and their happy endings. But a small part of her longed to discover what lay beyond the
mystery behind the villain. If the wolves really were the villains. It came from the same part of her tiny child mind that wondered what lurked in the dark forest beyond the village.
“No, my darling. We never venture beyond the creek. Remember this always, my child. Danger lives in those woods. And when it finds you, it will never let you go.”
The words of her mother always stayed with her, even after she passed all those years ago. And lying here now, in the arms of this strange man, this... creature, Riona finally understood what her mother meant.
Before finally willing herself to drift off to sleep, Riona accepted the closeness of his body against hers, when he whispered one final thing.
“Sleep well, my beautiful mate.”
Chapter Six
The sun peeked through the trees surrounding the den as Alistair’s internal clock woke him from his slumber. The events of the past two days came rushing back to him, and his eyes snapped open. He could now feel his mate curled up against him sleeping soundly. Her head rested on his chest with one hand on his ribs. Her dark tangled mass of hair tickled his face as she stirred, and it took every ounce of self-control he possessed not to pin her vulnerable little body down and claim her once more.
Alistair realized the furs had slipped from their bodies overnight, thus exposing everything from her head all the way down to her mid-thigh. She looked especially pale in the morning, a stark difference with the mound of curls between her legs. His eyes fixed there as he inhaled. The scent of her arousal still filled the room.
He lifted the arm wrapped around underneath her, lightly trailing his fingers along her shoulder blade. This very scene had played out in his mind his entire life; waking next to his bride naked in their mating bed while the sun just barely rose. He could have stayed here to watch her sleep forever, but that same rising sun forbade staying in bed all day. And he had not fed since he had brought her home.
Before he could extract his arm from beneath her, Riona began to shift in his arms. She lifted her head sleepily, seeming to forget where she was for a moment and jerked herself away once their eyes met.