☽ Chapter 27: Acceptance ☾

?Chapter 27 – Acceptance?

“Darling. It’s time to wake up.” I groan, the warmth of the bed too tempting to get up as I snuggle deeper under the blanket with an amused, deep chuckle coming from behind me. Strong arms wrap around my waist, pulling me closer to a familiar body. “Come on Gem, we promised Lace to train the wolves of Hidden Claws today.” Ariven’s voice registers in my mind. I sigh, turning in his arms to snuggle closer to him, my mind still a sleep-filled haze. Last night was exhausting between the attack from the Soulless, to the memories of being raped by Lupus surfacing, and crying as I explain my past to Ariven. Fingers run through my hair, lulling me in and out of sleep as my face is buried into the crook of his neck. “Geminie, you’re naked.” I bolt awake with the statement, making sure to cover myself for a moment with Ariven clutching his stomach, laughing so hard at my brief moment of panic. “C’mon, Gem; it’s not the first time you’ve been naked in my arms.” He teases, sitting up and tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. “I get that, but usually I wear my shorts and tank top. Why am I naked?” My question comes out in confusion, wondering what happened after the talk with Ariven. “You cried yourself to sleep as we talked, and every time I tried to set you down, you wouldn’t let go. So I couldn’t help you dress.” Ariven answers calmly, moving closer and pulling me into his lap. His eyes stare into mine, the forest-green that I adore so much reflecting my image back as he leans closer to me. Eyes searching for permission, Ariven stops moving, our lips inches away from one another. I nod my head slightly, my breath hitching and heart beating in anticipation until, finally, he connects our lips together. The kiss is slow but not so gentle. I can feel him claiming me in a way that makes me blush and my stomach flutter. I want him. The kiss is ended prematurely with the door to our room being swung opened, Maddie and Matt strolling in with easy going grins. These twins are going to be the bane of my existence. “Hey—” Maddie begins, trailing off as she notices the glare I send her and her brother. “Were we, uh, interrupting something?” Matt asks, just as clueless as his sister. I growl in frustration, not liking being interrupted and couldn’t wait to be back home in my own cabin with locks and wards created by Lizaria. I need to remind her to make one specifically for keeping the twins out. “Every time with you two!” I growl, Ariven chuckling as he pulls me tighter to him. “Don’t you two ever know how to mind link?!” I ask with another growl. [We do—] Maddie starts. [—But we like to annoy you.] Matt finishes. Without hesitation, I send the twins out with a gust of wind, making sure they slam into the wall across the room not so gently and that the door is slammed shut and locked. This won’t keep them out, but it will definitely give them a scare and me some peace of mind for the time being. “Why did we let them into the pack two years ago?” I ask, leaning into Ariven and letting out an annoyed sigh. “Because you are soft-hearted and wanted to protect them from the Rogue pack that was hunting them down.” Ariven retorts, slipping a finger under my chin and moving closer to my lips. “Now, where were we?” His voice is husky, his lips returning to mine as my hands snake into his long hair. His strong arms hold me tight, protective, and possessive all in one. I shiver when he nips at my bottom lips, his tongue sliding in without hesitation until I let out a small moan. A moment passes and he pulls away, the kiss leaving both of us breathless. “I think I need a cold shower.” He groans, pressing his forehead to mine. A swift kiss is planted on my forehead and I am gently removed from his lap and placed on the bed. As Ariven gets up, keeping the front of his body turned away from me. I reach for his hand and stop him from walking away. “Riv,” I call out quietly, looking down at the floor. “Could… Could we go on a-” “Yes, darling, we can go on a date.” He answers before I can finish asking. Once again, my head is lifted as a chaste kiss is planted on my lips, my face feeling hot, and I just know I’m as red as a tomato. “Now, I’m going to shower. You get changed and be ready to go for training.” He mock orders me. I nod, not trusting myself to speak, while Ariven walks into the bathroom, the door closing then followed by the spray of water. I sigh, deciding that Ariven is right and that I need to get up and ready myself for the day. I did promise Lace to train her wolves and get them up to par with the Soulless pack that is constantly growing. Leaving the warmth of the bed, I walk to the closet and take out a black sports bra and leggings, changing into them before searching for my sneakers. The door to the bathroom opens behind me, a cloud of steam rushing out. “Hey, have you seen my sneake-” I start asking, pausing as I turn towards Ariven walking out with a towel hung loosely around his hips, drops of water snaking down his well-toned body. “I think I saw them downstairs.” He answers, chuckling as he catches my expression. “See something you like, darling?” His voice is a seductive purr that has me blushing and looking away quickly. “I’ll see you downstairs.” I mumble, ignoring his playful demeanour and rushing out the bedroom door with his laughter echoing behind me.

◆◆◆

Waiting for everyone to arrive to the training grounds, Lace and I decide to talk about the alliance treaty I plan to sign before leaving. Both of us promise to be there for each other not only as allies, but also as friends. “I’m happy you came back, Gem, even if it was to help make Hidden Claws strong again.” Lace whispers, and I smile. “To be honest, if Ariven had told me we were coming here, I would have denied any help and let this pack rot. He was right that coming here would help me heal.” I state honestly, seeing the understanding look that Lace shoots my way. I know she would not have blamed me for not helping, and I am grateful for that. I might have even offered her a place in my pack had I not helped, and she came looking for me, apologizing and explaining her side. “Looks like everyone is here.” I change the subject so that we can focus on training as Mika arrives last. “What took you so long?” Lace asks, and Mika just sighs. “Long story short, Gem’s dad scares me.” Mika answers, and I chuckle. My father linked me as soon as he arrived at Hidden Claws, finally free from pack duties, to make his way down here with some Warriors to take care of the Blakes this morning. I had a feeling he would be speaking to Mika before I see any signs of him. “What did he do?” I ask out of curiosity, watching Mika shiver with fear for a moment. “I don’t want to talk about it.” He mumbles and looks away. I guess Mika had a front-row seat of just the type of torture tactics my father can perform on wolves, considering the Blakes are traitors to the Goddess and the Crown. Deciding to drop the subject, I lead the siblings towards the group of wolves going through the warm-up stretch Ariven is leading and motion for them to stop. “Okay, wolves, the last few days of me being here has been spent analyzing how you all train and to be honest, you all could use some work.” I call out, waiting for everyone to stand to attention before I continue, watching a few eager faces brighten up at the prospect of being properly trained. “Many of you might remember, I was once a member of this pack. As such, I remember the days Alpha Sorus and Luna Reena had everyone run twenty miles.” I see the look of dread on their faces and internally groan. “I also know that when the Blakes took over, they stopped this. This means the majority of you are out of shape.” A look of guilt washes across the group in front of me, and I know my words are true. Great, I have even more work ahead of me. “So, I am going to go easy on all of you. Since the youngest of this group is sixteen and just starting to really focus on training, you all will run ten miles, and after a quick break, we will go into hand-to-hand practice. Lace and I will be looking to see whom we can trust to train the pups ages ten to fifteen, so work hard and know a promotion is up for grabs.” I continue, seeing a look of relief and confusion on the Hidden Claws pack faces. A she-wolf with curly red hair tied into a bun raises her hand. “Yes?” I ask, allowing her to speak. “Why do we have to train the pups?” She asks. I motion for Lace to answer. “Because we want every wolf to know basic defense. With the Soulless population on the rise, knowing defense can turn the tide in any fight and give the pups enough time until help can arrive.” Hushed conversations arise after the answer is given, some agreeing to pups training, some thinking they are too young. I roll my eyes, ready to cut in and get training going, but Ariven beats me to it. “The reason why Silver Crystal Crescent was able to grow so fast is because everyone is trained from the age of five. We make games for the pups to enjoy that help to improve their small bodies. It is beneficial to their health overall and makes transitioning to regular training easier.” His statement cuts the conversations short, and I smile, ready to start the training for the day. “So, just a few rules before we start the run. One, no shifting into wolf form. We want to train your human side to be just as strong as your wolf. Two, anyone who shifts will have to perform one-hundred suicides after being injected with a small dose of Wolfsbane.” A collective groan goes through the crowd, and I chuckle. Suicides suck. Suicides while weak with Wolfsbane suck even worse. “Geminie will be in wolf form as we expect your human form to be able to keep up with a wolf. Of course, she won’t be going too fast, but will be running and trying to keep the pace similar to a Soulless on the verge of death.” Lace cuts in making me I smile before I run behind a large tree while Lace continues to explain everything included in todays training to her pack. I quickly remove my clothes, folding and storing them in a water proof bin then shift into my wolf form. As usual, the tuft of fur keeps falling into my face and I growl in frustration as I trot from my hiding spot toward Ariven. The crowd gasps in surprise as the sun reflects off of my fur, the prism-colour caused by sunlight shimmering with the silver stars on my body. Ignoring the awestruck stares, especially the one from Mika, I paw at Ariven’s pocket and shake my head, indicating the fur blocking my eyes is annoying me. He chuckles and reaches into his pocket, revealing two hair clips when he pulls his hand back out. Bending down, he helps to pin my fur back, and I am able to see properly without fur in my face. “Come on, guys, we all saw her wolf last night during the fight.” Mika growls, stopping his pack from continuing to talk about me. I roll my eyes, deciding now is a good time to start the run and trot off down a route that will be challenging for a ten-mile run. “And that’s our cue to run!” Ariven calls out, the sound of the group running being heard behind me makes me run faster to really test theses wolves' limits.