by Jen Wylie
Looking away from Kei, she forced a smile and rubbed a hand over his soft fur. I hope so.
∞ ∞ ∞
From north to south, Rhee-En's lands were generally a three-and-half to a four-day journey, depending on terrain, how many times they stopped and for how long they stayed before moving on. Of course, this was at their more sedate pace. She imagined the Were running full out could make it in a day or less. She wondered if they could run that fast for so long.
Their guide left them in the early evening. Even though some daylight remained, they decided to set up camp and go over the small map Rhee-En had given her, and their plans.
Garen found them a good site. Baelan dismounted and then they all just…stood there. The awkwardness grew as they looked at each other in strained silence.
She'd forgotten.
This wasn't her old group of boys who had their duties memorized. Bo was gone. Prince was gone. Baelan was new and Kei apparently couldn't remember a thing.
She cleared her suddenly tight throat and then started giving orders. The resulting chaos made her head ache, but eventually everything got done.
It will get easier, Garen assured her as she set about cooking. Her teeth ground together in frustration. They'd literally been tripping over each other and it had taken forever.
I know. It's just…different.
Change isn't always a bad thing.
She snorted her disagreement.
Well, prepare for some more. Rhee-En's beta comes.
Do we know anything about her?
Garen let out a huff as he walked up to her. I did not find out much in the village. No one was very talkative.
She frowned as she glanced down at him. I'm sorry.
They will get used to the thought of us in time.
She hoped so, at least for his sake.
Baelan and Kei both turned toward the woods, also sensing the Were's approach. Giving the fire a poke with a long stick, she jabbed it into the ground before turning her attention to the shadows.
The lone wolf slinked into view, pausing as it reached the light of the fire.
Wither me, she's big.
Size is usually determined by status in the pack. Being a beta, she is one of the largest.
Rhee-En is bigger, she mused. Though they were similar in coloring, she too being mostly black.
As alpha, yes. He paused a moment. The king is larger still.
Of course, he had to say that.
Between one blink and the next the wolf disappeared, a tall woman taking its place. She was dressed to kill, clothed in thick black leathers over a dark shirt with a good number of weapons, considering Were mostly fought in their wolf form. Firelight glinted off her straight black hair, which was surprisingly short, not even reaching her shoulders. A strong jaw complimented high cheekbones and full lips. Pale blue eyes regarded them all slowly, no emotion showing on her face.
Finally, she strode forward, all grace and swinging hips, before stopping and meeting Aro's gaze.
She couldn't believe how awkward this meeting was and cleared her throat before speaking. "Welcome, Terris."
The Were kept eye contact, her chin up, though Aro wasn't quite sure if the woman was being defensive or just plain arrogant.
Garen's hackles rose slightly and she felt Baelan shift beside her.
She disrespects you, Garen snapped out.
I see that. She just didn't know why. Her muscles tensed as she waited to see what the Were would do.
Terris finally broke her gaze, glanced at Kei, Garen, and then Baelan. Her eyes narrowed before taking in their disorganized camp, the small meal cooking on the fire. She sniffed and her lip curled. "Glad I ate earlier," she muttered.
Aro clenched her teeth for a moment, fighting down her rising anger. "You are welcome to leave. I did not request your presence."
"No, but my alpha did."
At a loss for words, she just frowned. What was wrong with this woman?
Hearing her stray thought, Garen answered, It could be any number of things. She could be testing you, or dislike you are human, or that the king made you an alpha. All of those, or something else entirely.
The woman noticed the pile of packs and strode over, knelt, and began going through them.
When she noticed the Were leaving a mess in her wake, Aro strode over, her fury rising. "What are you looking for?"
"A pack for me was to have been sent with you."
Baelan moved forward, confident and in no hurry, easily picking out one of the bags and tossing it beside the Were.
Terris didn't acknowledge him at all, but grasped the pack, opening it and quickly going through the contents.
"Put everything else back as you found it," Aro finally said as the woman continued to ignore them.
The Were's head shot up and she opened her mouth to say something, but Aro turned on her heel and walked away.
Very good, Garen murmured.
I don't like this, Baelan grumbled, following her back to the fire.
I know, I don't understand why Rhee-En would send her, or why she's acting this way.
Perhaps all is not as it seems.
She glanced over at him, finding the assassin. What do you mean?
You think Rhee-En to be your friend.
She glanced back at the Were, frowning.
You think too simply and never consider the possibility of duplicity.
Not everyone is out to kill me.
Killing you is not the outcome some may desire. We don't know what Rhee-En is thinking, or wants. He sent his beta to watch us, under the guise of assistance.
Well, if he's trying to be sneaky he shouldn't have sent her. I don't trust her already.
Agreed. However, you don't need to trust her if her objective is something other than gaining your confidence.
With a small, sad sigh she just shook her head. How could she have been so stupid? She'd liked Rhee-En. She started as Bay lightly touched her elbow to gain her attention.
I could be wrong, Arowyn. Perhaps it is not Rhee-En at all, but the King's orders.
That doesn't make me feel better, she muttered.
Perhaps I am wrong, he said again after a long silence. Trusting no one has kept me alive for a long time. He glanced down at her and she met his stormy eyes. A faint smile crossed his lips for a moment. Except for you. I don't believe you could deceive me if you tried.
She shook her head at that. She knew very well she was too trusting… and forgiving.
It is something you will learn in time, he continued. His head tipped slightly. And I stand corrected. Your deception with Garen being a dog was well done. Though I suppose it was more of an omission, a secret, than purposeful deceit.
I… She stopped, unsure what to say.
You do not trust me, at least not fully. I do not blame you for your secrets, Arowyn.
Secrets. Yes, she still had a number of those.
∞ ∞ ∞
Terris did not stay with them that night, but shifted back into her wolf form and wandered back into the forest. Aro didn't complain and tried not to grimace when the woman returned the next morning as they finished packing up to leave.
"Good morning." She forced a smile.
Terris stopped before her, hands on her hips. "What are your plans for the day?"
She shrugged a shoulder. "We're travelling east. Going to spread out to cover as much ground as possible."
"Understood. I will roam ahead and inform you of any obstacles or dangers and water sources." Without waiting for a reply, the Were shifted and left.
Aro stared after her for a moment and sucked in a slow breath. Between the queasy feeling of not being liked, to the anger at the woman's attitude, she felt a bit nauseous.
"Is everyone ready to go?"
Baelan stepped close to Kei and leaned forward, sliding his cheek along the side of Kei's.
Kei froze. "What are you doing?"
"Refreshing my memory on what a Fey smells like."
The Fey scowled and pushed him away. "You know very well."
Baelan grinned.
Kei suddenly lunged forward, snapping his teeth in the Elf's face. Baelan stumbled back, startled.
Aro couldn't help but laugh. "You should be careful. One of these days, he's going to rip your pretty face off."
Kei flashed a bit of fang and then with a smirk, turned and headed into the forest.
Her laughter died. It'd been funny, but not like her Kei.
Baelan smiled wryly, but then the smile grew mischievous. "So, you think I'm pretty?"
She groaned. "I think you're impossible!" Frowning, she glanced over at him. "But really…Kei?"
"I appreciate beauty, in any form." His mirth faded, turning serious, thoughtful. "But not only that. I am not so shallow. Like that woman Terris. She is strong and beautiful, but I would rather sleep alone than with her."
"I see."
"Do you really, Aro?" The slight snappiness in his tone made her brows rise.
"I don't care who you take to your bed," she said honestly. "Just…please be careful with Kei."
The Elf stared at her for a long moment before making a surprised noise and shaking his head in amusement. "Very well, you are right, he doesn't need any games right now. I will try to leave him alone."
"Try?"
His face scrunched up in dismay as he turned away. "I forget sometimes," he said quietly.
She decided not to ask.
They did not come across any traces of Fey that day, or the next. Even though she knew finding them would be hard, and take time, and that the likelihood of many being this far west was low, a gloom still settled over her and the others.
Part of it she blamed on Terris. The unfriendly Were remained distant, but brought a bad mood with her whenever she did show up, and it seemed to linger.
Aro wished the Were would just leave. She wasn't particularly helpful anyway.
Putting away the cooking supplies, she frowned and looked around. Their camp was so quiet. She missed the sound of Bo's loud laughter, the talk of the men.
Music began to softly play, filling the silence. She turned, a faint smile curving her lips as she shook her head in amusement at Baelan, now playing his pipes. He gave a helpless shrug of his shoulders. Stupid spell.
When she returned to the fire she saw Kei with his arms around his legs, forehead against his knees as he rocked. Frowning, she moved quickly to his side.
"The Guardian is the key," he murmured. "The Guardian is the key."
"Kei?" She set a hand gently on his shoulder.
With a start, he raised his head. "The Guardian is the key."
"Of course," she said hesitantly.
He blinked and looked over at her. "Goodnight, Aro."
She forced a smile and struggled to speak beyond the lump in her throat. "Goodnight, Kei."
Morning brought gray skies and an unfortunate shift of the wind. While the others grumbled it came from the west, giving them little advantage to sniffing out the Fey as they traveled south, she shrugged and paid more attention to the darkening skies.
By late morning, a light rain began and they quickly set up one of the tents, using the tarp-like piece instead to make a lean-to. With their packs at the lower end, Garen then crawled in, leaving them free to sit against him and watch the rain.
Baelan frowned as he glared outside. "What do you plan to do now? This mess," he waved a hand dramatically at the rain, "will wash away all traces of any Fey."
"It depends on how long it lasts. We might be done for the day, though."
Kei nodded his agreement and then leaned back against Garen, closing his eyes. "Call me if we head out again."
She stared at him for a long moment before twisting to turn her attention to the Elf on her other side. "Shall we find something productive to do?" She paused. "One of us should still be able to keep watch, though."
They decided on working on her mental defenses. Baelan would attempt to invade or attack her mind and she would repel him.
As the rain turned into a bleak drizzle, she found she did well enough at pushing him out of her mind. However, when he attacked she didn't fare as well.
"You needn't hold back, my lovely."
"I'm not," she grumbled.
"You most certainly are." He regarded her calmly for a moment. "You don't see me as a threat, I believe. Which is true enough. And," he continued, nodding to himself, "you aren't angry. I've noticed your emotions are quite often tied into your powers, which is not ideal. We'll keep working on it. At least you are learning the correct techniques."
When they thought it was around noon, Aro poked Kei to get his attention.
His eyes snapped open as he startled. Blinking up at her, he smiled. "Aro." His brows then drew together in confusion as he looked around. "Where are we?"
She forced a smile and spoke calmly. "In the Were forest, looking for Fey." When he just stared up at her, still lost, she continued. "To heal them. We're just waiting for the rain to stop before we go out again."
He looked out into the forest and then nodded slowly. "Of course," he said quietly. She reached for his hand, but he shook himself and sat up. "Of course," he said more firmly, the confusion fading away.
Curling her fingers into a fist, she pulled her hand away and set it in her lap. She hated seeing him like this. Anger for Damon once again rose within her.
They ate a quick meal of dry goods. By the time they finished, the rain puttered out, but they sat and waited to see if it would start up again.
"Someone comes," Baelan whispered, sitting up straighter. His hand suddenly gripped her forearm. "Aro, they are Fey!" He turned to her, his eyes bright with excitement.
She grinned, having seen the four Fey as they emerged from the trees. "Yes, we have met them before. This is good." She stood, pulling him up with her. "You can meet a few other Fey who aren't wild first."
"Aren't wild?" He rose, following her and Kei as they moved toward their visitors.
"We met them some time ago, before we got Prince home." She smiled up at him. "I have already healed them."
The four Fey stopped before them, all giving a nod of respect. It struck her again how much they all reminded her of Kei, though her Fey was a bit taller now.
"It is a pleasure to see you all again," she said to them.
"As it is for us," the one man said.
"This is Baelan, and Garen. You remember Kei." She gestured to the Fey before her. "This is Cano and Lissana, their son Aron and his mate Meena." All but Meena had dark hair, the mens' short, and Lissana's in a long braid down her back. Meena's pale hair was just as long, but in a multitude of braids all bound together. All had the golden eyes and slightly curved ears of the Fey.
Baelan smiled brightly at all of them.
"You are back in the forest," Cano said, his voice raised lightly in question.
"Yes, we are looking for Fey." She grimaced up at the sky. "Unfortunately, we had to stop because of the rain."
"We had waited by the ridge for a time once the snows began to melt, but you never came. We had thought the worst." He bowed his head. "I apologize."
She shook her head. "There is no need. We were…delayed. Winter was not kind to us."
"I am sorry to hear that," the Fey said with a frown. It deepened as his eyes shot briefly to Kei, now noting his thinner frame. Looking back to her, he quickly smiled. "But you are here now. We have come to offer any aid we can."
"And we would be happy to have you." Somehow, she avoided doing a happy dance.
"The rain has passed," Lissana told them. "Will you continue today?"
She glanced at the others, and then nodded. "Yes. With extra people, we can cover the same amount of land well enough despite the wind and rain being against us."
As they took down the tent and loaded up the horses, she gave them a brief account of what befell them over the winter, and then explained their plans for searching for the Fey. Of everything, they seemed
most surprised to learn the Were king had made her an alpha and did comment on how she smelled "more like a Were" this time.
At least the Fey were correct about the passing rain. As the afternoon wore on the sun even came out.
She didn't see or hear the first arrow.
One moment she walked beside the horse, concentrating on the ground, looking for any trace of Fey, then the next she was face first in the mud with an Elf spread over her.
Another arrow thwumped into the ground near her face. She stopped trying to push Baelan off and froze.
The horses pranced and whinnied and then turned and trotted quickly back the way they'd come.
Elves?
Elves, Bay agreed, his arms wrapping around her, tucking her head safely beneath him.
She silently cursed as she elbowed him in the ribs. How many?
The wind is not working in our favor today, but I believe only one.
She let out a slow breath and relaxed. One they could handle. Another arrow landed too close and she jerked in surprise. Why aren't they hitting?
I don't know.
"Get up, outcast. I will let your human woman go."
Well, that answered that. Can we trust him?
Of course. We are not mindless killers. There is no reason for you to die.
She snorted. They keep trying to kill me.
It appears he is only hunting outcasts.
But…how does he know you're one?
His body tensed above hers for a moment. You have seen all the runes on my body. One marks me as outcast. Elves can…sense it.
But–
Not now.
She elbowed him again. From how far? Do they–
When they see me, they sense it, he snapped. Now shush.
Her eyes widened. Had he just shushed her?
Bay shifted, lifting her up to bring her face closer to his, cupping her cheek in one hand. "You have to go. Run."
She shook her head. What are you doing?
Using his mistake to our advantage. He believes you are my woman. "I need you safe. You have to go," he said again, his voice rough and firm.
Understanding, she nodded. "I don't want to leave you." It wasn't lost on her, this was also the truth.
His tense shoulders relaxed slightly as she played along. "I know, sweetheart. I'll be fine." Standing, he pulled her up with him, still shielding her body despite his assurance the Elf wouldn't kill her. "Go find the horses." He is somewhere ahead of us. I'll find you when I'm done. When she opened her mouth to argue, his eyes narrowed. Are you…worried about me?