“Not entirely!”
“We are wolves!”
“No we’re not!”
Remy looked at them in frustration, struggling to stay composed. If anyone did support her, they were quiet. The mixed emotions of the party hung in the air, and it seemed inevitable for a massacre. I balanced on the balls of my feet, waiting anxiously.
“That is not what we are! Most of you were turned, were you not?” She yelled at them, fighting for control of the crowd once again. I saw the barely masked fury as she clenched her hands. “You know what it’s like to be human. To be frail, to be afraid. Who are you to hunt them? What are you trying to do, wipe out the whole race?”
It was clear she did not expect the peals of laughter and excitement. It took all of my strength to stay back and do nothing, sickened by these creatures. This was the first moment I doubted my new existence, almost wishing I had returned to my town. My heartbeat quickened as a breeze brought her scent, and I inhaled deeply to remind myself why I was there.
“What else did you think we were going?”
“Only the strong survive!”
“Get rid of them all!”
“No!” Lyell took front and center, waving his arms up and down. Remy let him take the stage, and I saw her look around in resentment. She paced behind him, arms clasped around her ribs. “We can’t do that. Even if you wanted to, it would never work. That’s ridiculous. We’re not on the attack here, people. We’re looking at survival!”
Jereth and the other woman stood next to one another, tall against Lyell and Remy. The split became more apparent as the conversation grew louder and evolved into a full-fledged argument. Even those sitting down were raising their voices and spitting back harsh comments to one another and those across from them.
“We don’t want survival! We have power and we have the right to use it!”
“It’s not about power either. It’s a responsibility. No lifestyle should include murder.”
“Murder is careless. We feast on our enemies. As one who has walked on both sides, I have more of a say than yourself. You are young and naïve!”
Remy had a hard time restraining herself from the other woman who snapped at her. Lyell stepped forward to stand between them, but Remy stopped him, and went head to head with the other woman.
“I come from the Tiraeth tribe,” she stated loudly, and that immediately silenced everyone. Her words struck my bones and I could almost feel her breath against my skin. Every word she said, I wished she was carving into my skin with her tongue.
She continued. “My family are descended straight from the First. You do not mock my heritage, and you do not mock me. The pathway to violence comes at a dead end. If you intend to continue in your false ways of glory, you will meet your termination whether by the hands of your own people or by mine.”
Silence hung in the crowd as the others sat back down, glancing warily at one another. I swallowed hard and rubbed my hands together, attempting to focus on anything but the blood rushing through my body. I had desired women before, and dreamed of the girl I thought was meant to be mine. But those were all childish fantasies compared to her.
I was so distracted I barely heard the retort made against her. “You may have been something before today, but now that means nothing. You are nothing. We cannot be stopped! You have made your threat and now I make mine. By the next full moon, you accept the new ways or else.”
“Or else what?” Lyell spat in the face of Jereth.
Jereth stepped forward, shoving the man back. Those that agreed with him took their stand, eagerly awaiting the next move. I shook my head free of my woman in the center and reminded myself I was only there to ensure her safety and hers alone. If they did anything to hurt her, I would be there.
“Your ways are over,” Jereth snarled. The threat was made, and evidently that was enough for him. His pent up anger hung in the air as he took his woman by the hand, they turned their backs to everyone deliberately and left. Those who remained watched in silence.
Within minutes, they were disbanding. Lyell spoke with several of them but Remy was done. They had taken the rest of her strength with them and she stood back on her own, shaking her head at anyone who tried to approach her.
I bit my tongue, thinking of our last conversation and gave in. I could never resist her, no matter how much I fought it. She was too intoxicating, too addicting. I drew closer, stepping quietly over broken branches and browning grass. When I reached her from behind, I put a hand to her shoulder and she jumped.
“You have to stop doing that,” she muttered upon realizing it was me.
I smirked when I heard her heartbeat skip, knowing I had the power to do that. Still, she looked at me with a sense of relief that made me hope for the best. My eyes dropped from her face to her chest, which was heaving more than usual, caught up from the recent debate. My mouth turned dry and I tried to focus. She leaned into me and I could smell her scent, like fresh grass after rain.
She looked up at me with a pouty expression with her light blue eyes that sent a shiver down my spine. I remembered how the fever had struck me and the entire time I had been so sure that at first, she was an angel. Then, I had called her a siren and wondered if she were a demon sent to drag me down. Even then, I would have gone willingly. Somehow she had this power over me and I felt a weakness in my skin.
“I looked for you.” Her hesitant words brought me back to reality. The longer I spent time with her, the stronger this feeling of passion grew. And the stronger it got, the harder it was to ignore.
“I was there,” I promised her, and couldn’t resist pulling a strand of hair from her cheek and planting a large kiss on her lips. Every part of her was warm and soft. I leaned in for another, and didn’t stop until she emitted a low moan, then pulled away hurriedly. I glanced around to the looks we received and I couldn’t help but smirk, wrapping my other arm around her.
Remy shook her head at me and tried to pull away, but I didn’t let her. Her eyes glanced around at the party that remained behind and I tried to comfort her. “You did what you could.”
“I don’t know…” She was quiet, rubbing my arm with a thoughtful expression as she gazed around. I watched her gnaw on her lip and saw that she was worried about what had happened. Shaking my head, I gave her a small squeeze around the waist. Her gaze dropped to the hem of my shirt. “I’m just not satisfied.”
It was enough to trigger a small smile as I contemplated on how I could fix that for her. I started to slide my grasp lower past her waist, but she stopped me with a frantic expression and I couldn’t help but grin at her.
“So you did what you could. Now, you should take some time, say, relax.” Glancing at her arm on mine, I considered all the possibilities we could test out somewhere without our clothes on. I opened my mouth to suggest this, but she stopped me with a finger to my lips. I held my breath, gazing at her as I reigned myself in.
“Not here,” she murmured in what sounded like a regretful tone. “Give me a minute.” Her seductive tone sent a shiver down my spine and I grudgingly allowed her to step away. The air seemed chilled without her beside me as she approached Lyell to talk quietly to them for a minute. I watched her, trying to decide what mood she was in but this was revealed the moment she pulled me away and dragged me back towards a far corner of Lyell’s territory.
It was a grove she appeared familiar with, her sure steps leading us forward. I opened my mouth but first Remy dragged me over and pushed me against a tree. The electricity in her eyes said it all as she pressed herself into me. I was only too willing to have her, my nerves instantly in a frenzy with her skin compelled against mine. Her lips found mine and I pulled her closer.
Gasping for air, we clung to each other with a fervor I hadn’t known before now. After seeing her in power talking to everyone and knowing her strengths already, I couldn’t get enough of her. I had wanted to stay in control for the respect I had begun to grow towards her, but every fiber in my body ig
nored the instincts. All of the pent up energy I’d had lately was released through every stroke and kiss. Her nimble fingers finally found the hem of my shirt just as I found her ear, tugging on it to elicit that groan I knew so well.
“Come on, faster,” I teased her in a low voice. She finished her laugh with a grin that bubbled against my bare chest, and I grasped her by the back of her head, moving from her ear down her throat. I could feel her hot breath against my bare skin as she buried her face and I was lost within her.
Her buttons on her shirt were smooth and I nimbly freed her female form from her clothes. Remy’s fingers dug into my skin and we sunk in against the tree as we became one. It was only here, when the two of us were alone, that I remembered how she made me feel like a man and she reminded me that she needed me. Even if I wanted to resist her, my body would never have had the motivation to move away from her. This was more animalistic than our first time, and more frenzied than in the river. It was like nothing I had experienced, and neither of us could get enough of each other.
“More,” she moaned, her chapped lips raw against my bare flesh as I felt the curves of her body dissolve into mine and I could do nothing but obey. She was no longer guarded, but open and eager to exploit our vulnerabilities. With her pressed against my chest, our hearts beat in one as we fought to keep breathing and to keep moving. Her scent only grew more intoxicating as we grew hot and sweaty, leaving the world behind to indulge our starved bodies.
We finished in a heap of tangled limbs, breathing heavily and gazing into one another’s eyes. Her eyes were wide as she licked her lips, fingers rubbing lightly against my chest. One of her legs rested against mine, and I rubbed her knee in response, gasping for air. Pulling her closer, I closed my eyes and nearly lost myself in her scent all over again.
She sighed in gratification and when I turned to her, I saw a vulnerability stronger than even that of the other night upon seeing Lyell. It was a look of openness that I had never seen before, and wanted to do everything in my power to protect her from the world and to keep her mine. Listening to her heartbeat, I kissed her forehead in reassurance.
When I looked at her again, it was gone. Remy was once again the strong woman I had known before and she offered me a soft smile that quickly turned into something more. I raised my eyebrow at her, getting a good look at the cleavage still pressed against me. Inch by inch, she drew closer, teasing me.
“You’re not too tired, are you?” It was too tantalizing the way her hands began to dance down my ribcage to my hips was enough to get us started again. She was quick, throwing herself over me and holding me firmly down to the ground.
I couldn’t resist the groan creeping out from my lips and she laughed against my skin. Her tongue retraced where her hands had gone, and I felt her breath grow shallow and hotter against me, clinging to me like raindrops after a storm. She became unstoppable, and every doubt of mine ceased to exist as my body tingled with every touch. Everything about her was flawless, and she held me in her thralls of pleasure until she decided she was finished.
We were lost to the world as day passed into night. Remy became everything to me, winding her body around me for hours. Little else was said, but it wasn’t necessary. We craved one another, and we let our bodies melt into one repeatedly, always looking for more. I had never known this kind of energy, not even on the full moon, but Remy’s touch seemed to electrocute me and give me what I needed.
The night was nearly through when our bodies stopped aching from the pleasure enough for us to stand, deciding that we had had enough for now. But even then, I couldn’t resist stealing a small touch and brushing against her, or kissing her somewhere between her shoulder blades and fingertips. We would pull ourselves apart but within the next moment, find ourselves reconnected in one way or another. It made Remy laugh when I stole another kiss at the nape of her neck, and the feeling in my chest only swelled.
“Stop,” she giggled, shaking her head and pushing me away. I took her hand and held it tight, but she kept me at a distance trying to look stern. “Benjamin, I’m serious. We should return. They’ll wonder where we’ve been.”
I lowered my voice huskily as I wrapped my arms around her. “Let them wonder.” Just as I knew it would, I could feel the tremor beneath her skin when I spoke like that. Her breathing skipped a beat and she freed herself to shoot me another unkind look.
“I mean it, let’s return.” It was hard to focus however, as a strand of dark auburn hair fell and rested softly against her cheek. Everything about her seemed to be a tease.
“Fine,” I groaned, conceding once more to the woman pouting in front of me. It wasn’t my favorite way to give in but it did garner a kiss on my cheek, and I would have to be satisfied with that for now, that kiss and our time together in the grove. “Fine. Have it your way.”
7: Remy
“Did you know you are beautiful? More than beautiful?” Benjamin kissed my forehead as we stepped out of the grove, well rested and reenergized from our time intertwined. He made it so difficult to think on anything else. I tried to remind myself of the impending troubles we faced with the others but his lips made my thoughts blurry.
A small giggle escaped my lips before I could stop it, and I stepped away so he couldn’t keep doing that. “You flatter me.”
“I only state the truth,” he swore with his wicked grin and in attempting to suppress another laugh, I snorted and his smile only widened when I blushed. He relented by taking my hand and kissed each of my fingers as we started to walk.
His hand was warm and so large that my fingers were engulfed, practically hidden within his own. We glanced around and saw the skies were clear as the moon made its way into the heavens; I could feel its comfort around us. Benjamin’s heart beat in rhythm to mine and everything felt right.
So that was when all hell broke loose.
We had been drawing closer to the encampment when I first smelled blood and realized the howling in the distance wasn’t directed towards the moon. I stopped and held my breath for a minute. It was the shouts of pain and fury melded in battle. Furrowing my brow, I turned to Benjamin with a tight grip on his hand.
“Something’s happened.”
His face was troubled as I felt as he nodded cautiously. “And it’s nothing good,” he added. In silent agreement, we dropped hands to change form and ran towards the nearby chaos to investigate.
My heartbeat pounded in my ears as I ran alongside Benjamin, keeping an even pace with him. Our muscles stretched and the wind raced through my fur all the way down my spine. But this was no time to embrace the freedom. There was a fight going on and the closer we grew, the bigger it appeared to be. My senses grew stronger and I could smell spilled blood on dry grass, sweat, and the scent of death.
We rounded and came upon Lyell and his pack, caught up and tangled with others. It didn’t take long to spot Jereth, his woman, and the rest of his followers. This pandemonium had to include most of the packs from both sides, I realized as I stared in amazement at the battle raging on. Wolves everywhere howled and fought one another, barely able to distinguish foe from friend. Ben pulled up beside me as we took in the sight.
Ben grunted and it took a second nudge from him before I shook my head and nodded. We couldn’t just stand here and watch them. The time for words was long since over and it had come down to this moment. Somebody would win and they would dictate the new path for our kind. I glanced at Ben and saw the support in his eyes. We had to help. With that, we entered the fray.
The moment I stepped forward, Jereth’s Alpha female found me out. I couldn’t recall her name but the ferocity in her eyes was more than enough to communicate her emotions. She left behind the young she-wolf of Lyell’s pack, barely standing, and ran at me. I snarled a warning but the wolf never hesitated as she lunged forward off a large rock. I slid to the left and scratched her side before she ever touched me. We fought one another in the midst of the crowd, for our cause and our lives.
Jer
eth wrung the neck of another wolf, and seeing his woman bleeding, he decided to help her out. Suddenly it was two of them against just me and it made me nervous in the middle of the melee. My eyes kept looking out for Benjamin and it was difficult to focus on anything. They began to pull me away from the crowd, and I didn’t realize the maneuver until it was too late. The two of them came at me from different directions and I was spinning around repeatedly to keep my defenses up.
He nipped at my tail and then she would peck at a leg. I grew dizzy and nearly lost my footing twice as they cornered me against the bushes, unable to run unless I managed to get past one of them. I growled in frustration for getting caught up, and tried to keep my eyes open for any escape. They laughed at me mockingly and made threats to enjoy the moment before going in for the kill. Blood rushed in my ears as my shoulders grew tense, wondering how I had made such a foolish mistake. It was like I was a young, naïve pup all over again. I pawed the ground anxiously, but I was trapped until Benjamin came out of nowhere.
Words evaded me in all forms as he charged Jereth from behind, shoving his shoulder against the other wolf. I jumped back in dismay as they began to claw at each other, each of them trying to get the upper ground. They were both big, great black wolves that became a blur on the hillside and I watched them disappear into the madness.
I didn’t have much time to watch them as the Alpha female made a dart at me. Since I had forgotten about her for a second, she managed to rip her claws into my side. I could feel her scrape my ribs and I yelled out in pain as I attempted to pull away from her. The warmth of blood began to pool through the torn fur and I rolled my shoulders testing out the damage. Using the pain to fuel my energy, I howled a challenge to her.
She wasn’t afraid, for she was as nearly as quick as myself. The woman turned and ran as I lunged. We chased each other around the encampment, biting at one another and taking every chance we could to spill blood. Above us, the moon was a small crescent watching over us.
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