That fucking rat bastard Sebastian; I swear to the Gods if I see him, I am ripping his fucking head off. His head is going on my goddamn wall right beside his fucking mother’s. Between the two of them, they have stolen way too goddamn much from me and I will never forgive them for that. They better hope and pray that I'm not the one who finds them first because, unlike the others, I'm going to make it fucking painful. I growl as I work through my inner monologue, and everybody's head whips to look at me and see what exactly is going on. I smile and wave and start to laugh. Yeah, I just had a Harley Quinn moment. Oops.
I find my twins standing together and talking by the fire. Gently, I touch Jayce's shoulder and get him to turn to me. I kiss him deeply and passionately, making him growl. His fingertips dig into the meat of my ass as he lifts me off the ground.
I smile against his lips and whisper, "I love you." He returns the passionate kiss and tells me he loves me too. Slowly, Jayce lowers me to the floor. I don't even have both feet on the ground before Dom twirls me around and aggressively kisses me. Damn, I love when he tries to get all dominant with me. I growl and bite his lip before I start giggling. I whisper against his lips, "I love you." In no way am I saying goodbye. In my mind, I'm just making sure they know they are loved. Hesitantly, Dom lowers me to the ground.
I smile at both of my mates before I head off to find my father. When I find him, he's in a deep discussion with Dimitri and Klaus. I run my fingers up Klaus' back as I pass him on my way to my father. Klaus makes a soft growl in the back of his throat. I stop and turn to look at him. His wolf's eyes are beautiful; they're a pale grey in color. I break eye contact and move to my father and hug him tightly. I'm not sure who needed it more, me or him. Gently, I place a kiss on my father's cheek and tell him I love him. In turn, my father kisses my forehead and tells me he's proud of me and loves me.
Just to fuck with Dimitri, I go to Klaus next to hug him and kiss his cheek. I thank him for coming to our aide and being there for me. He smiles at me then gently kisses my cheek. Klaus' hand slides through my long, snow white hair, his smile radiating affection. Does he wish for more than just my allegiance? It doesn't really matter right now; Sebastian's false bond won't let me find my true mate. I break away from Klaus and move toward Dimitri.
Dimitri appears nervous, which isn’t like him. I move slowly toward him and circle around his figure, looking him over. He's definitely a handsome man. His shoulders are so broad and thick, and I can't help but run my fingers over them. Dimitri's frame tenses the minute my fingers make contact with his shoulders. It's not fear that makes him tense, so what could it be? When I move to stand before Dimitri, he’s not looking at me like he normally does. That fatherly look of adoration is gone. Now, his hazel eyes move over my frame, almost caressing my flesh. Quickly, my eyes dart to my father and he just smiles at me. I seek out the twins and they're smiling too.
What the fuck is going on around here? I start to back up and Dimitri wraps his large hands around my elbows to stop me. I stare at his hands and notice how gently they grip my arms. I draw in a deep breath then look up to meet his eyes. Dimitri slowly raises his left hand to cup my right cheek, and I lean into his touch.
“Aurora,” he says in his deep husky voice. I can't help but feel like my insides are on fire with the way he's looking at me. “Your father and I suspect that Elena casted a spell to keep us apart. We believe she used blood magic to stop our bond from forming.” Dimitri gently rubs my cheek as his eyes beg me to understand. I stop breathing the moment everything Dimitri says clicks. Frost begins to spread from the spot that I’m standing and starts to coat the entire cavern.
“I wasn’t crazy? My wolf was right?” I start crying; I can’t help it. The tears flow freely down my cheeks, and all I can do is stare up into Dimitri’s eyes. I have loved this man before me for the better half of a hundred years. All that time, I thought I was insane, that my wolf was wrong and tricked by the binding. Dimitri quickly pulls me flush with his chest and holds me tightly. I feel the rumble of his bear in his chest trying to sooth me like he used to. I push back lightly so I can look back up at Dimitri again.
“I swear you will have Elena’s head. I will give it to you.” I feel my canines descend and my eyes churn to liquid mercury. Dimitri chuckles just before he kisses me on the lips for the first time ever. I can sense Jayce and Dom approach, but they don't interfere. My hands slowly slide up Dimitri’s broad chest, and I rest my palms on his cheeks and hold him to me. I can feel him smiling mid-kiss, then I slowly pull back to look at him.
“KIll the witch, break the spell. Easy enough. Then, off to storm the castle!” Poor Dom facepalms again and complains it's not going to be that easy. I tilt my head to the right then give Dom the middle finger.
I start to turn away from Dimitri before I make my announcement, “I am the Poke-master! I collected them all!” I scream “all” because Dimitri slapped my ass hard. Quickly, I spin to face him as I rub my poor ass cheeks.
“Remember princess, you collected the others. I’ve been right here waiting for you.” Dimitri’s dominant attitude is kind of a turn on, and I start laughing as I look at him. He went all cheesey on me by quoting one of my favorite eighties songs: the Richard Marx song about the guy waiting for his love to return. Damn emotional wolf; fucking tears start rolling down my cheeks. What the fuck? I’m starting to turn into a freaking wuss. I roughly wipe the tears away then look to the pack, who’s trying to act like they didn't see anything.
“We leave in ten minutes so be fucking ready!” I head off to my part of the cavern. I can still hear the guys congratulating Dimitri. I slowly turn around to look at him, and he has a giant grin on his face. I haven't seen him smile so much in so long. He deserves to be happy. Several moments passed, and I decide it's time to shift. Quickly, I consume the last of the rations I horded away for myself before I head to the gathering point.
We have our marching orders from Nic, and we break off in our assigned groups to head toward Siberia. The larger one of the two Diomede Islands separates our forces. I feel Alaric's anxiety spike just as our groups pass the second island. I clamber up my father's back and start to watch behind us, keeping an eye out for any enemies. Knowing those sneaky scum bags, they'll attack from behind. Through the pack link, I order the group to converge and form a circle. Once everyone is in place, we have eyes in all directions.
What we didn't account for was a red wyvern swooping down to snatch me off my father's back. Stupid move grabbing me. The wyvern continues gaining in altitude. I'm guessing it's planning on dropping me. Without warning, I reach up and cut the tendons on one foot. Once it loses its grip on me, I reach up and grasp onto the remaining foot. With my free hand, I slash at its exposed abdomen. The wyvern screams in pain as I continue to disembowel it. Blood and intestinal contents coat my scales as I continue to rip. In the distance, I sense Alaric gaining ground. He should reach me once I start to fall.
Now, I grip both legs of the wyvern and hold on tight. It's only a matter of time before it bleeds out. In my head, I start singing Limp Bizkit's “Break Stuff.” It seems quite appropriate right about now. Suddenly, the wyvern starts to fall from the sky. I use my talons to climb up onto it's back and hold it's wings open to slow our descent.
I feel Alaric before I see him. His giant, taloned dragon hand comes down and gently grips me, and I release my hold on the wyvern's corpse. I gently rub my muzzle on Alaric's scales as he carries me. Then, I notice he has a group of dragons flying with him in formation. Once the wyvern corps reaches the ground, we watch it take out some of the enemy’s lycan forces. Yes! Two for one! Alaric's nest mates break off to fight the remaining wyverns.
We gain speed as we approach a black dragon. This thing is fucking huge; it dwarfs Alaric's dragon. I pat his hand to get him to drop me on the monster’s back, but his dragon only shakes his head no at my idea. Through the bond, I push my plan to him. Hopefully, he sees it's the only way to take out that acid breathing monster. I ca
n hear him huff before he changes course. Honestly, I can't believe I won that discussion.
He aligns himself over the center of the black dragon’s back. While a small gold dragon keeps him occupied, I drop down from twenty feet above him. The black dragon keeps circling the battle below, yet he’s not interfering. Ever so carefully, I walk along the spines on his back, making sure to remain on his armored plates.
In the back of my mind, I start humming the Mission Impossible theme song. This dragon is much larger than I was anticipating. I start to get concerned when I notice missing scales at the base of his skull. Mentally, I reach out to my father and he confirms what I’m thinking: dig quickly and sever the spinal cord. Alaric and his group is close, making sure no one gets close to me.
When I feel the time is right, I sink my talons into the exposed flesh. The black dragon roars and starts to whip his head from side to side, trying to shake me off. I hold on for dear life and sink my talons into his skin as I wedge myself between his spines. He stops whipping his head around, so I go back on the attack. I rip out several more large chunks before he starts thrashing his head around again. My once white fur is now covered in blood and flesh chunks from the black dragon. This is getting irritating; every time I start getting somewhere, he starts thrashing.
Good news is that I can see two decent-sized blood vessels and a vertebrae. As the thrashing slows down, I lunge quickly and easily slice through one of the blood vessels. Blood goes everywhere! It covers me as well as the dragon's scales. His blood is coagulating almost the second it hits his scales and me. I'm a big, gloppy, blood covered mess. The only bonus to this gory mess is that he’s slowly losing altitude. The dragon’s roars are getting weaker and he's not thrashing as hard.
Seizing the opportunity, I sever the second blood vessel. I feel as though I am swimming in a sea of blood. I have to sink my talons deep into his flesh just to keep from sliding off. I carefully move to stand after I notice the ground is approaching fast. Thankfully, he's headed right toward his own reinforcements. I grab on to the crown of horns that adorn his head and brace for impact. Just as I sense the impending crash, I jump up to lessen the blow to my body. The black dragon’s body slides for several hundred feet before stopping.
I jump off the dragon’s corpse quickly. Alaric's dragon lands close by and watches me carefully. I'm cold, wet, and feeling gross. The blood in my fur is coagulating and freezing at the same time. I can't shift to my human form or else I will turn into an ice cube. Alaric lowers his massive head to my level and starts blowing his hot breath on me. I'm just thankful he has enough sense not to try his flames on me. One great wing comes forward and shelters me from the wind.
There's a war going on about two thousand feet from us, but Alaric's only concern is my health and well-being. After about his fifth or sixth heated breaths, I'm defrosted and the blood chunks have started falling away. I rub my muzzle against his dragon’s nose and then I lick it affectionately. Alaric forgets his strength when he tries to nuzzle me back. I end up on my ass in the snow, shaking my head at him. If a dragon could look sorry, his was doing it. I dust myself off and start walking back to the battle. Apparently, I'm not allowed to walk anymore because Alaric's dragon scoops me up, flies me over to my father, and drops me on his back. With my arrival after the black dragon crashed, the remaining forces retreat quickly.
Without a second thought, I leap off my father's back and give chase. My mates come up alongside me as well as the rest of the dire wolves. One by one, we hunt down and slaughter the remaining polar bears and lycans.
The only unanswered question I have: Where the fuck is Sebastian? I stand there and watch as the last of my enemies fall around me. All this bloodshed and for what? The polar bears didn't need to die; they were lied to and misled. The lycans that fought, I wonder which pack they were from? I stand here in the middle of the tundra and surrounded by corpses, and all I can think about is the pups back in America.
My father's dragon comes up behind me and bathes me in his blue flames. All the dirt and grime from the day is gone. I nod my wolven head at my father before I start walking.
Alaric's dragon lands before me and opens his taloned hand, revealing a wooden box. I tilt my head left then right, studying it. Carefully, I use my talons and open the box. Within it is clothing, a heavy coat, and boots. I look up at Alaric and motion to his wing. Taking the hint, he drops both of his wings to block me from the cold winds. I get dressed quickly in the clothes provided. My gloved hand lightly touches Alaric's wing and he lifts it. The clothing he picked out for me fits beautifully, and I step out looking like a princess for the first time in my life. The twins and Dimitri come to stand before me. I gently rub my face along their muzzles.
"Alaric and I are going to fly to his summer chalet." I look over to my father and his dragon is smiling—well, he’s showing his teeth so I assume he’s smiling. "I know you remember where the chalet is. Please lead our forces there." Nico nods his great dragon head and roars, assembling the troops. They turn and start heading south as they follow behind Nico.
I look back to Alaric's dragon and he lays down in the snow and extends his wing. Carefully, I step on the scaled bone of his wing and begin climbing toward his back. Once on Alaric's back, I remove my glove and press it to his scales.
"Where should I sit?" I look around his dragon’s back, puzzled.
I'll lower my head. Sit directly behind the ridge of horns. It should protect you from the wind. I look toward Alaric's head where he indicated. He turns his body so his head is close to his back. I carefully climb onto his neck then move to sit behind the ridge of horns. It’s a perfect fit for me, and I feel safe and secure where I’m sitting. I pat Alaric’s neck and we take off.
It's interesting sitting here with a dragon's eye view of the world around me. I shift my eyes to that of my beast, and I get to see the world how Alaric sees it. Everything looks so amazing up here above the clouds. It looks like we are flying over a field of cotton balls. Through the bond, I can feel that my joy from flying with him pleases him and his dragon. Carefully, I reach down and start scratching at his scales under the horn ridge. It seems like there's a build up of dead skin in some spots, so I carefully remove it. I keep working on his scales while I'm back here. Soft rumbles can be felt from his dragon as I preen his scales. I know I love the feel of my father's fire through my fur, so I assume Alaric is enjoying the attention.
In the distance, a castle on a cliff face comes into view. It looks like it stepped right out of a fairy tale story. Without warning, two gold dragons flank us. I shift my arms and hands quickly, ready to fight.
Through the bond, I hear Alaric's voice, Settle, my love. It's my mother and sister escorting us home. His words offer me a little comfort, and reassures me that we're safe for the moment. However, I have trust issues now and it's hard to relax when I’m surrounded by strangers. Love, my life is tied to yours now. I would never put our lives at risk. I have too much to live for now.
Without a second thought, I shift my hands back and rub his scales. I attempt to relax and enjoy the remainder of our flight to his castle.
The castle is one that you would expect to hear about in a fairy tale novel. Tall spires adorn the four corners and a tall wall surrounds the main structure. We fly in lazy circles, gliding on the thermals around the castle grounds so I can get a good look at his home. I can tell he and his dragon are very concerned if I approve of their nest because his anxiety is spiking. I gently rub his scales.
“Your nest is beautiful. Can we land so I can get a better look at you and your home?”
No sooner do the words leave my mouth than his dragon banks and lands softly in the courtyard. Alaric lowers his head, allowing me to slowly slide off his neck to land on his foreleg. My hand rests on his dragon’s cheek as I step down. Once I’m safely on the ground, he sits up and spreads his wings and roars. My inner beast stirs at his call and I feel compelled to howl along with him. We roar and howl several times unt
il my human throat is sore from the effort. I smile up at him and shake my head as I laugh. His large dragon head lowers to my level.
When I’m this close, I notice the blues mixed in with the white. His scales also slightly change color depending on the angle I look from. Alaric stands perfectly still as I continue to touch his scales and look at his dragon form. His large, golden, serpentine eye follows my movements.
Out of the corner of my eye, I notice movement off to my right. I quickly duck under Alaric’s lowered wing. I remain firmly pressed against his body, slowly working on climbing up his leg to get my feet off the ground. Alaric’s dragon huffs, and I guess he’s laughing for some reason. I remain perched on his leg directly under where his wing attaches to his body. If he chose to stand up now, I would surely fall. A woman's voice reaches my ears and I start to growl, not happy another female is near what’s mine. Slowly, Alaric lifts his wing and turns his head to face me. I stare into his dragon’s eyes, my own churing liquid mercury. Every move I make Alaric mimic’s.
My love, mother wishes to meet you. That's the female you heard speaking. No threat, I promise, Alaric’s voice echoes in my head. I gradually calm down and nod to him. I slip carefully back to the ground and straighten my hair back out. I draw in a deep, measured breath and make sure my eyes are back to normal. I adjust my stance to how Dimitri told me I should carry myself at court. My hand rests on Alaric’s side just before I step out from under his wing.
His mother is a vision of beauty. Her hair is long like mine, but is the color of spun gold. Her skin is the most perfect of porcelain with lips the color of blood. She rushes forward and embraces me tightly. My look of apparent panic causes Alaric to make a rumbling noise, which gets his mother to back off.
Hunt Little Wolf: The Aurora Marelup Series Page 18