by Raven Willow
Riona always remembered the fear instilled in her from the time she was a young child to never approach other adults who would come to visit with her parents. Especially not one she had never seen before. Her father was much harsher.
“Children should be seen, and not heard! Away with you now!” he would always say.
But her mother, as sweet as she was, never defied him. Though she tried, there were some things her mother could not fix.
“Isla, remember your manners, please,” Murdock gently chastised.
Isla then extracted herself from Riona, but not before cupping her tiny hands around her ear to whisper a secret.
“Do not tell Papa, but I am going to practice climbing the tree again. Shhh!” Isla then hopped off Riona’s lap to join her brothers playing in the leaves.
“She is... precious, Ailith...” Riona couldn’t suppress her laughter as the woman covered her face in embarrassment.
“Yes, my young are quite friendly, but they mean well.” Ailith reached out, taking Riona’s hand in hers.
It was warm, inviting, a genuine gesture that Riona had been starved of for a very long time. She was so used to the coldness of her village. The unfriendly exterior of those around her was what she was used to. But sometimes she longed for warmth, a happy contented smile that made her feel welcome, and not that she was a bother. Yet it was still her home, how could one hate home? It almost felt like a betrayal to those she loved. Only sitting here now, surrounded by a happy family, made Riona crave the love and affection she dreamed of.
Alistair’s thumb circled her palm and she looked down at their joined hands. It felt so... right all of a sudden.
“We have been waiting for so long for another to enter our pack.”
Chapter Eight
“Did you not think I would notice you trying to escape from me yet again, Riona?”
Each time she hid in what she deemed a safe place, his booming voice followed. Riona tried regulating her breathing as not to be discovered, and not to let her fear be known, but it was always fruitless. He laughed in her ears as she grunted and stepped out to begin running again. Her lungs burned and screamed at her to stop and take a breath, but her mind told her to keep running.
Run. Run away as fast as you can.
This was hopeless; he sensed her panic. She was sure of it. Alistair would surely come for her again and she had a feeling that he would show no mercy.
Stop. Breathe. It’s useless if you’re exhausted. He’s nowhere in sight, you can’t hear him.
Riona alternated between calmly walking to crawling behind brush for what seemed like forever, actually hoping she had fooled him.
“Just what are you doing, little one?” His voice echoed in her head again, only it sounded deeper, much gruffer. He was growing impatient with this game.
Riona jumped as she realized her position was compromised. Abandoning any rational thought, she picked up speed until she was sprinting in every direction, using low-hanging branches to hoist herself further ahead.
How... how am I doing this...?
She realized she was running faster than she ever had before in her life, the trees whizzing by in blurry green shapes as she focused her eyes and ears on possible civilization. Surely he wouldn’t risk following her then.
But suddenly, his laughter was everywhere she turned. Unable to get away from the sickening sound of his howl, she tripped over sticks and cut herself on large branches, hindering her previous speed.
Alistair taunted her mind, telling her how running from him was pointless, and that he could see her as if she were standing right in front of him.
How? How is that possible?
Riona spun around in circles, frantically searching for any sign he was near, but alas, nothing. If she hadn’t known any better, she would have thought she was completely alone in the forest.
“You severely underestimate me, my darling.”
No...
“This world is where you belong. You were meant to be here.”
Stop it...
“You will never leave this pack. And you will never leave me. You. Are. Mine.”
Please stop...
“We are bound, you and I. Forever and throughout all eternity, as long as we both remain on this earth.”
She could almost see his grin as he spoke to her, but while his voice grew louder, the world around her grew smaller.
Riona panicked, her heart racing as she ran as fast as her tired legs could carry her. She grunted and held back tears as she tried to outrun Alistair, but deep down she knew he would find her. No matter what, he always would.
“Leave me alone! Why can you not just leave me be! Leave me alone!”
Riona screamed at the sky, wailing as hot tears burned her cheeks, struggling to catch her breath. She slumped to the ground, exhausted from running. Her legs cramped up and failed her as she wheezed and coughed into the hard earth. Riona stared at the ground, remembering how these woods witnessed her being mated to him. Nothing else in the world knew of her terrible ordeal but the quiet forest, as if it could help her.
This was his territory, his domain. It bent to his will and he used it to his advantage; to hide or to camouflage when he hunted. She hardly noticed the pain she was in as she curled up in a ball, feeling the colorful leaves circle around her as she sobbed, defeated and all alone.
At least until Alistair found her and brought her back to his den.
Her energy had depleted. Her nerve was faded. All she could do was wait until he found her and accept his punishment. Whatever that would be.
In moments, his unmistakable footsteps crunched the leaves on the ground approached her from behind. His breath came quick as he finally slowed down, having caught her. His shadow crossed over her. It signaled her impending punishment.
“I told you to stay. You did not listen to me.”
“Please... just leave me alone.” Riona would not give him the satisfaction of looking at him.
He had taken her to hunt as promised. But unable to handle watching him, she seized an opportunity for escape. She just ran, having no sense of direction. In minutes she began to hear his paws behind her, only fueling her fear.
“You know I can’t do that. I will not do that. I refuse.” He stood over her. Riona knew he would wait until she stood up and faced him. She had to at some point.
“I suppose you will punish me then,” Riona sniffled.
“I told you. Defiance will earn you one.” She felt him kneel behind her. Alistair tried to touch her, but her body racked with more tears in the anticipation.
“Just get on with it then!” Riona raised her voice. In response, her mate gently lifted her off the ground. He turned her to face him, examining her for any wounds from her little attempt.
He meticulously picked stray leaves from her hair and gown, and adjusted her skirts. Riona closed her eyes and waited for a slap to the face or some other kind of assault. That’s what the men in her village did when their wives stepped out of line. She had heard more stories than she’d care to remember in the tavern.
“I want you to step over there to that log.”
She opened her eyes. He didn’t sound stern or angry.
“W-why?”
“Because I asked you to. Go on, right there.”
Alistair led her to it while he walked behind her. His presence made her feel uneasy, but her body responded to his closeness.
He sat down in front of her. His frown was heavy on his face while he crooked his finger at her.
“I need you to understand that I am doing this because I love you, and thus I will correct you. I told you to stay by me, and you ran. You put yourself in danger.” His voice cracked as he finished his statement. Were those tears behind his eyes?
“W-what will you do?” Riona hugged herself.
“Lie across my lap and pull your skirts up.”
No... not that. Anything but that.
Riona shook her head and almost backed away again
, but he caught her hand.
“I will tell you this once. Across my lap.” His stern order prompted her legs to move, positioning herself how he asked.
“Please... not like this. I won’t do it again...”
Riona frantically shook her head as he firmly handled her body.
He adjusted her, being sure not to press her against a spot that would be tender for her. She now lay over his lap comfortably, but she had not pulled her skirts up yet.
“What else did I tell you to do, sweetheart?”
“P-pull my dress up.”
“Do that for me now, please.” He was making her perform this act as part of her punishment. Being made to expose herself would add to her embarrassment.
Riona’s face flushed as she pressed it against his thigh. She felt his hand rub over her bottom and over the backs of her thighs. Her body jumped as his fingers made contact. He wouldn’t even swat her over her layers of skirts?
“You know why I must do this, little one?”
“Yes...”
“Why?”
“Because I disobeyed.”
The first swat came without warning, making her head shoot up.
“Ah!” Riona sucked in air through her teeth.
“No, you disobeyed by doing what?”
“B-by running away...”
Another swat hit the same area as the first. The sting went straight between her legs.
“By running away when I was told not to!” He was going to make her voice every single reason why she was being delivered a spanking.
“Yes. What do you think this one is for?” His hand came down to the other cheek, making a loud echo in the forest.
“Ahh! I don’t know!”
What else could he mean?
“Try that again, little girl. What else have you done besides this little foolish act you pulled today?”
Riona could feel him smirk. What else? She searched her mind from the day before. Being with the pack? Earlier that morning? Breakfast. Yes, breakfast. When she would not eat.
“Yesterday! Ah!”
Another swat.
“Yesterday, when I would not eat!” He delivered several more spanks to each cheek until tears began to prickle behind her eyes. He repositioned one leg so it held her ass higher in the air for him.
“It hurts!” Riona held on to the leg her upper half was draped across to keep her from falling while he continued his work on her bottom.
“It is supposed to, mate. This is how my kind disciplines our unruly little females. We pull them across our laps or bend them over and spank their little asses until we are satisfied with their apologies. Then we fuck these naughty little bottom holes.”
He ceased his spanking for a moment and spread her open, exposing her puckered hole.
“No! No, you can’t!” Riona squirmed, prompting more sound spanks to her reddened flesh.
“Relax, little one. I will not do that—yet. You must be properly trained to take me there. In the meantime...”
His hand came down several more times before Riona could barely take anymore. Her tears dropped to the ground as she sniffed and begged for her mate to stop.
“You are lucky I do not do this publicly, for all our pack to see. In my day, our females were tied down and punished so all could see their shame.”
She heard him hum as he pondered the thought.
“Please! I will behave...”
There was one thing worse than the stinging pain of his punishment, and that was how increasingly wet she was becoming. She had begun grinding her pelvis into him for relief. If she hadn’t known better, she would have reached down and touched herself.
“I know, little girl. I know your arousal better than anything. You will come. But not now.”
Of course he would know. There was absolutely nothing she could hide from him anymore.
“Please make it stop!” Riona sobbed. Stop the spanking? Or the ever growing desire that was building in her womb that was aching to enjoy his touch again?
“Be still. We’re almost done.”
Riona wailed and kicked her legs as he delivered more loud spanks. She had lost count by now, but grew quiet and clutched the material of his breeches and waited until he was through with her punishment.
When he finally slowed, he was actually panting. His cock was poking into her belly. In the last handful of swats, he soothed her with his words telling her how good she had done. What a sweet mate she was for him. A strange sense of satisfaction entered Riona’s mind as he sat her upright, but she was too exhausted to respond.
Without hesitation, he promptly lifted her into his arms, taking special care around her well used bottom. She winced as the fabric rubbed against it, but felt better when he bunched her skirts toward her waist.
Riona felt cold all of a sudden, just realizing how the temperature had dropped. The forest had gone silent. Not a bird chirping, not an owl hooting.
She couldn’t fight her heavy lids as her tears stained his shirt, but he didn’t seem to mind. He proudly held her as he walked them back to the den, where Riona felt herself drift off in his arms.
Chapter Nine
Alistair intensely watched Riona stir in his bed. Elspeth had come to assess her, insisting she would be alright. She was dehydrated and exhausted, but otherwise okay. Her fear was overwhelming. With each passing day as her body changed, it only made that fear stronger. Elspeth advised that she slowly be acclimated to the pack, spending more time with each member.
“I would be happy to take her under my wing for a day. Perhaps the company of a woman would ease her.”
Alistair nodded; Elspeth was right. He had underestimated how much Riona would not understand. It was foolish for him to assume she would fall right into her role in the pack. As promised, he took her hunting with him, and this was the end result. He turned his back on her for a mere minute and she ran from the spot he explicitly told her to stay. She disobeyed and hurt herself in the process. For all he knew, his young grew in her belly as they spoke. Alistair feared her body rejecting them, as he had seen it happen before.
Even unborn, his kind were unbearably strong. Too demanding. What they required of their mother, especially if she were human, sometimes proved to be far too difficult. Whether they were simply not strong enough or succumbed during the birth, the risk was tremendous. Alistair took a deep breath in, cloaking his anxiety. He would not allow that to happen. It was preventable, so long as Riona listened to him.
But she didn’t listen.
On cue, Riona’s eyes fluttered open, falling on Alistair and Elspeth.
“Easy now, my dear, take it slow, we cannot have you fainting again.” Elspeth helped Riona sit up on the bed, which she allowed.
“Y-you are Elspeth?”
“Yes, darling. I am part of this pack, and a good friend of your mate.”
She cocked her head to Alistair as he nervously crossed his arms. She dabbed a damp cloth on Riona’s head to wipe away the sweat.
“I am the pack healer, little one. When Alistair first brought you here, I assessed you in order to confirm your coupling.”
Riona’s cheeks turned red as she looked at her hands. Alistair would need to remind Elspeth to use caution. Their ways were not the ways of his mate, but they would be.
“I am only evaluating you to be sure you are alright. You did quite the number on your body, dear. You pushed yourself to hard too quickly when you are so early in your transformation stages.”
Elspeth’s kind gentle voice was a disparity from her rough exterior, which was making Riona nervous at first glance. She was quite tall, with the longest white-blonde hair. Her flawless complexion complemented the sharp edges of her face, and she had large, delicate hands. Beautiful as she was, she would have been slightly intimidating to look upon to a newcomer. But instead of being scared of her, Riona began to calm in her presence.
“Here, drink this, darling. You are dehydrated.” Elspeth noted her dry mouth and skin, and h
anded her a cup of water, which with help, Riona drank down eagerly.
“I have prepared you some tea, dear, when you are feeling up to it. I put licorice root in it to fight your fatigue. You will have your strength back soon enough, love.”
Elspeth stayed some minutes longer before she got up to leave, only to be stopped by Riona grabbing her hand.
“Oh, no! Please don’t go...”
Elspeth cocked her head.
“I... have not spoken with many people since I arrived... and well—I only felt that it was nice to have someone here to... speak to is all.”
She was tiptoeing around her words, afraid to ask anything of anyone. Immediately, the regret traveled across her face and his beautiful mate let go of Elspeth’s hand. Alistair’s heart hurt. Those feelings would take time to heal. Elspeth smiled and kneeled down beside her, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Oh, of course, my darling, I understand. Do not be afraid to ask me anything! Why not have you spend the afternoon with me tomorrow? That is if Alistair can possibly stand it?”
She looked at him, but sought no permission. Truthfully, he trusted her judgment almost more than his own, next to Ceardach’s. If she felt it was what Riona needed, Elspeth knew he would allow it.
Riona searched his eyes for his blessing. After what he had put her through, she would have anything she desired.
He nodded in approval, knowing it would make Riona happy.
“Wonderful! So it is settled then. You will have some fresh air and a chance to spend more time with the pack.”
Elspeth stayed and talked to Riona some more, and Alistair took the cue to leave them be.
Elspeth left some minutes later, reassuring Riona she would return to check her again if she wished. Riona smiled and nodded, genuinely looking like she wanted to see Elspeth again.
If only she could smile at me that way.
“Riona.” Alistair’s voice was calm, but he prayed she would not ignore him. Ignoring him would only test his already thin patience.
She looked up, acknowledging him.
“I should not have to tell you why running from me was a poor decision, but nevertheless at least you are home now safe and sound.”