by Marian Tee
His claws dug deeper, and the changes became more rapid. Not until you listen to me.
The land she was trying to balance herself on suddenly dipped, like a flat and even road gaining a downward slope out of the blue. It had her stumbling and falling, rolling and tumbling down...until she found herself landing on her butt and a twelve-foot beast staring down at her.
A beast with the most hurtfully beautiful violet eyes---
She started to cry, and the sight devastated him. One would think that Estrella in her Lyccan form would look fiercer, but no. With her blood-matted fur, her green wolf eyes silently welling up with tears --- she had never looked more fragile, and it killed him, knowing he was the one who had hurt her.
The beast sank to its knees. I'm so fucking sorry.
Then let me go, she sobbed in his mind. You never wanted me, never chose me---
I'm choosing you now, he said savagely.
But she just shook her head, and the beast howled as fear and desperation ravaged the man. He could feel her slipping from him, her mind frantically doing its best to build walls between them, and the growing distance was pushing Lysander towards the furthest edge of his sanity.
Listen. Please. Just please goddamn listen.
But for every wall he demolished, she kept building new ones, higher and unscalable ones that were filling him with terror. He started to shift, thinking that by holding her and kissing her his touch might convey what his words couldn't. But the moment the wind turned icy, he heard her cry out---
Don't!
The walls in her mind wavered at the depth of her distress, enough to let him catch a glimpse of what she was hiding---
I d-don't think I'll be able to stand myself if I see you...knowing...
And that was when he saw the girl hiding within the wolf.
Please...please don't make me see you now---
She wasn't just crying. Wasn't just hurting. She was fading.
I w-wouldn't be able to bear it.
Because he had made her believe she wasn't bright enough to shine.
My love.
Whispered so faintly, the words almost didn't register, and only when he spoke again did Estrella realize that she hadn't imagined hearing him say the words.
Listen to me one last time, my love.
Her brain begged her not to listen, but her heart was stubborn even as it continued to bleed.
Green eyes lifted to his, and the despair in them slashed at him. One last time, he thought bleakly. He had to fucking try one last time, because he knew, imperfect as he was, no one in this world could ever love her the way both the beast and man in him loved her.
So just one last fucking time, and then he would go, if it turned out that she could only shine with him out of his life.
You were right. I never chose you.
Estrella's heart lurched.
I never chose you the way I once wanted to marry Misty. Guilt flayed him at the way her lips trembled at his words, but he forced himself to continue, knowing that this time, everything had to come out in the open. I never chose you the way I wanted Fina to be my mate.
Estrella's nails dug deep into her palms.
But you, my Star... Lysander's throat tightened. I chose to love you.
Her gaze flew back to his.
The beast doesn't need me to love my mate. But I fell in love with you anyway. And that was my choice. I loved you when I thought you were perfect. I loved you when I was being an idiot and thought you had fallen off the pedestal I myself had put you on.
An icy wind blew around them, and Estrella cried out. No. But when she opened her eyes, it was too late. The man she had loved, and the man who had broken her heart far too many times, the man who was so beautiful that her heart still ached at the sight of him---
That man was staring at her now with love in his eyes.
And she just couldn't make herself believe it.
She just couldn't.
Couldn't.
The wolf tried to run away, but the prince with the soul of a beast was faster, and Lysander locked her into place as his arms wrapped tightly around her body. I'm not done talking.
The wolf howled and snarled, baring its fangs as it attempted to free itself.
The jinn spoke of a prophecy---
I don't want to hear it, she screamed in his mind. Just let me go---
But still the prince held on and kept talking. A wall that breaks his heart...
She knew immediately what the words meant, and her pain knew no bounds. She twisted around and sank her teeth into his flesh.
The one that shines to make it beat once more, he continued doggedly as her teeth dug deeper.
A beast to overcome. And he started to bleed.
And a betrayal that may ruin all.
She pounced on top of him, her claws just inches away from slitting his throat, but he didn't look away.
I thought you'd betray me. It was why I believed in Fina's lies so easily. It never occurred to me that the betrayal...would come from me.
Both wolf and princess cried.
I should've never doubted what I already knew when I first met you. He pushed himself up. The first time we met, I already knew you'd be the kind of woman to take everyone's breaths away. The kind of princess everyone would worship. But most of all, I knew even then that you'd be the kind of star that would shine so brightly you could light up the fucking universe.
He slowly laid out one hand. I'm sorry I made myself forget those things, ma belle etoile. But if you trust me just one last time, I will devote my entire life to you. His eyes closed. I love you, Star. And then he waited. Even with hope dying for every second that passed and he heard and felt nothing - he waited. After all the pain he caused her, waiting was the only thing he had a right to do.
More moments ticked by.
It was over, he thought dully. If he opened his eyes, she would be gone, and the rest of his life would be swathed in darkness. No more Star squealing in his mind just because he called her 'wife'. No more Star looking up at him like he was the most beautiful thing in the world even if he was a twelve-foot beast with the horns, fangs, and tail to match.
Oh God.
He might as well be dead. But it was the least---
And then he felt it.
Thick, silky soft fur rubbing against his palm.
His eyes flew open.
And he found himself staring into green eyes filled with tears as the wolf rubbed its head against his hand. God. So much tears. But glimmering more brightly behind them was forgiveness...and love.
Lysander.
Her voice shook, and as he pulled her close to wrap his arms around her flank, she felt his own tears wet her fur---
Je t'aime, ma belle etoile.
The way his own voice broke at the end had her crying harder. Je t'aime aussi. Her eyes closed as his arms tightened around her. Never let me go, she whispered.
A rather difficult request, considering how his (gaping) soldiers and all three of her (glowering) brothers had finally caught up with them...and saw him naked with his arms around their baby sister's wolf form.
But because he had meant it when told his wife he would devote his entire life to her---
He kissed the top of her forehead, saying gruffly, Never.
Epilogue
Excited murmurs rose in the air as the ornately carved twenty-foot-tall doors of the red-and-gold Cathedral were finally thrown open. In moments, the entire place was filled to the topmost rows of the gallery, so much so that the avian preters had shifted into their other form in order to perch themselves on window ledges and the bronze arms that curved from the hundreds of chandeliers hanging suspended from the domed ceiling.
It was rare for all 308 ruling seats to be filled, and even rarer for all ten members of the Blood Oval to be in attendance. It only showed just how much tonight's Assembly mattered, Estrella thought uneasily, not only to her and the Faes but to every member of L'Alliance.
A fem
ale Invisa soon stepped up to the dais, and a hushed silence swept over the crowd. Invisas were Caro females who dedicated their lives to work anonymously for the Brethren, which was the governing body of their race.
The Invisa called for Lysander to step forward, and Estrella's heart literally ached. People would probably say she was being biased, but she didn't really think so. She was absolutely certain he became more ethereally beautiful each day, with the way his ebony hair turned into the most mesmerizing shade of violet under the moonlight and the way his eyes gleamed---
I can hear you all the way from here, my Star. He saw Estrella turn pink and had to lower his gaze to hide his smile.
"On the matter of the membership of Prince Lysander's," the Invisa was saying, "it has been decided that the Blood Oval shall have the final say---"
Gasps broke out all over the cathedral, and Estrella fought to keep her expression blank even as she struggled with her own incredulity. Her worried gaze flew to Lysander's direction, and her gaze immediately collided with her husband's. It was as if he had already been expecting her to worry, and his smile curved ever so slightly just as his gruffly soothing voice purred into his mind.
Be at ease, my wife. The words had its intended effect, and his amusement deepened when the color of her cheeks deepened even as she gave him a resolute nod.
Oui, mon mari.
He nearly smirked.
Three...two...one...
She started gnawing on her lip, which he knew was one of her ploys to keep herself from squealing out loud. His beautiful Star was really like no other. She knew calling him 'husband' would have her feeling giddy and embarrassed. It was always like that, and yet she kept doing it anyway, and it had him starting to wonder if she had a masochistic streak hidden inside of her.
"To announce the decision on the membership of Lysander Allard, we invite the heir to the Moretti pack, Domenico Moretti."
Estrella's brows shot up. What? Her head turned sharply to where the rest of the Moretti pack was seated, and the expressions on her family's faces told her they were just as stunned as she was.
Television cameras immediately zoomed in as the Lyccan prince stepped up the dais.
"On the matter of Lysander Allard joining L'Alliance, we, the members of the Blood Oval, unanimously vote---"
Estrella held her breath.
"Nay."
Pandemonium threatened to break out, but the noise just as abruptly died the moment Domenico's steely gaze swept over the crowd.
"The rules of L'Alliance were not designed with the likes of Lysander Allard in mind, whose soul has been fused with that of an ancient beast. Moreover, verified historical accounts present concrete and consistent evidence of the very simple rules that Ammon lives by. The beast is devoted to its mate, and for as long as Princess Estrella, ruler of the Faes, remain a member of L'Alliance, then Ammon remains on our side as well."
Estrella was beginning to recover from her shock, and as her brain started working again, she also started seeing why the Blood Oval, no doubt at Domenico's urging, had to deny membership to L'Alliance.
Since the public emergence of their kind, many preters had come asking Domenico for help, sharing numerous stories about how humans had come to take advantage of the lax policies of L'Alliance. And in all those instances, Domenico had only a single reply. It isn't yet time to make a move.
"Leave the beast and its loved ones in peace," Estrella's brother went on, "and no blood shall be shed. Befriend the beast and those it cares for, and Ammon will come to your defense---"
"Bullshit." The irate interruption came from one of the human reporters invited to cover the assembly. "If you don't force this monster---"
Estrella stiffened at the insult, as did majority of the preters in the room.
"To play by the rules, then how the hell can we feel safe, knowing it could snap anytime---"
"Your kind and mind have lived amidst volcanoes that can explode at anytime," Domenico interjected silkily, "and yet I do not hear of any human squads torching or bulldozing them into extinction."
"It's not the same," the reporter blustered.
"Is it not? Volcanoes are of the earth, and so is Ammon. Volcanoes are ancient, and so is Ammon. Volcanoes have the power to kill, as does Ammon. But unlike volcanoes, Ammon is a force of power that can be leashed. Through Lysander, we can reason with it. Even have the beast fight with us. So if anything, the Fae prince offers significantly better odds than any volcano."
The reporter was nearly purple with rage. Everyone was either laughing or gazing at him with pity, with the way Domenico Moretti seemed to be toying with him. "Enough about the goddamn volcano---"
"If it brings you any comfort," Domenico said in a hard voice, "then go ahead and think of Lysander as the monster that's always been living in the periphery of your existence. He's the monster that can eat you alive. The monster that you'll never see coming. He's the kind of monster that's more terrifying than all your worst nightmares combined. So if I were you, Mr. Gluck---" Domenico's contemptuous gaze flicked to the man's name badge so he could properly address the idiot. "I'd suggest you don't do anything that will invite this monster into your life. Because if you do---" The Lyccan prince bared his fangs. "Trust me when I say you won't survive it."
A few hours later, with dinner over and the ball in full swing, and people were still talking about Domenico's earlier speech, which had officially become viral with over two million views on YouTube...and counting.
Apparently, Domenico - upon learning from Misty about the possibility of Lysander having his soul fused with Ammon's - had made the rare gamble on the prince's return.
The Lyccan prince had always been known as the type to take only the most calculated risks, but his trust in Lysander had been such that Domenico had been willing to play the long game, racking up early losses as human offenders were allowed to walk scot-free while preters were left no choice but to suffer.
But that era has finally ended, Estrella thought happily, and a new one has now begun. With Lysander no longer bound to the rules of L'Alliance, her husband was able to work independently, and humans that sought to cause trouble against preters would now have an ancient beast to contend with.
Lysander was going to be everyone's guardian angel in other words, Estrella thought dreamily as she allowed her husband to take her hand and lead her to the dance floor, and no role could be more fitting.
The prince's lips pressed together as his wife's thoughts took an increasingly whimsical trend. Words like 'real-life Avenger', 'John Wick with horns', and 'Mr. Danaerys but sane' were now popping in her mind. Whatever makes her happy, Lysander thought. Right now, he was just damn happy himself, with how Estrella was once again relaxed and confident in his love for her.
Three months had passed since the deadly trap that had almost killed Lysander and his men, and almost all of those days had been an uphill battle. The first weeks, she had kept her guard up with him at all times, and he had let it be, knowing that it was the least he deserved.
Instead, he worked tirelessly to regain her trust and prove his trust in her in return. At first, she had been reluctant to resume her role as the Faes' ruler, but he had been adamant, and he made it a point to not only require her presence in their internal strategic meetings but to also ask for her opinion.
And in the times he would catch a flash of pain in her eyes...he would be by her side in a snap, whispering words of love to her ear just before dragging her to the nearest room with a door so that he could fuck his love into her as well.
As for Estrella's response, she had been tentative and wary at first, her confidence increasing gradually.
Until finally...they were now back to normal. Her thoughts were once again completely his to see, she was once again his internally squealing wife, and he would never fucking risk losing this again.
When Estrella opened her eyes the next morning, it was to the rare sight of finding herself awake before her husband.
Oh.
Lysander looked so much younger and innocent when he was asleep, and just gazing at him made her heart feel close to bursting. Life was really good these days, so much so that she sometimes had to pinch herself to make sure she wasn't dreaming any of it.
Fina was gone, with Lysander deploying her to take a post outside the country. And Misty - she was just Misty now; Lysander no longer gazed at the other woman like she was a treasure he had lost, and more surprisingly, he and Domenico had started getting along.
Granted, they only seemed to see eye to eye whenever talk about killing vampires came up, but that was a start right?
Her gaze drifted back to her husband, and Estrella could only sigh again. So beautiful, she couldn't help mentally gushing over him. Beautiful like an angel. In fact, as far as she was concerned, he was the most gorgeous angel in the world, with the longest lashes and the most beautiful lips...
Her gaze drifted down, and she couldn't help gulping when she realized that her husband had kicked his half of the covers to his feet...which of course left him completely naked to her gaze.
Estrella gulped again.
How could she have forgotten her husband also happened to be the sexiest beast in the planet? Like, seriously, how? When he had a monstrously oversized dick---
The guards posted outside their doors suddenly guffawed...the very same time she heard laughter, snickers, and groans from below their bedroom window. What in the world---
"Good morning, wife."
Estrella nearly fell out of the bed. "Y-You're awake," she stammered. Oh my God. How long had he been---
His lips curved. From the very angelic start.
Estrella moaned in embarrassment.
And you know what, wife?
She dived under the covers, knowing by now that whatever it was her husband was going to say, it probably would just be more of him teasing her---
I recently discovered another one of Ammon's powers.
Estrella poked her face out of the covers at his words. For real?
He nodded. Do you want to know what it is?
Of course! She gazed at her husband expectantly, but instead of speaking Lysander sat up and reached for his phone. She peeked at his shoulder as he began to type a message in the chat group he, Estrella, and the Fournier brothers were in.