154. Dominik

CHAPTER 154

Dominik

I spent the better half of the day yesterday planning for the trip down to see Dimitri's clan. We enlisted the help of several other dragons just to be able to spread the family out and ensure our safety. The flight over was easy and quick, and the children enjoyed it immensely.

Aurora was on Alaric, directing him to where there was a clearing big enough for the dragons to land. Once everyone disembarks their rides, the extra dragons take off, leaving us with just our family—Edgar, Dante, Marco, and of course Nicodeamus and my mom. Dimitri shifts almost immediately once we come to the stream that Aurora had told us about. He rises up on his hind paws and roars several times, announcing our arrival

Several minutes pass before a chorus of roars answer him. At this point, his daughter, Odette, has weaseled her way out of her clothing and shifted to that of her bear cub. The cute little darling toddles alongside her father. Poor Dimitri has to walk painfully slow for her to keep up. It was probably the most adorable thing watching that little cub trying to keep up and attacking her father's hind leg.

I look over to see Aurora smirking and shaking her head, trying to stifle a laugh. "So, sweetness, what's got you borderline cracking up over there?" I ask as I give her a dazzling smile and a wink. I know something's going on that I don't know about, and I'm quite curious to find out what it is.

"Well, you see," she says as she walks up alongside me. "Little Odette is purposely attacking her father because she wants a ride. Dimitri told her if she shifted, she was going to walk the whole way as her bear to be properly introduced to the clan."

Aurora starts laughing. "Odette has my wonderful temperament and because her daddy's not listening, she has decided she's going to keep biting him until he lets her get a piggyback ride." As soon as Aurora finishes the sentence, she starts cracking up laughing.

Dimitri's head whips around and glares at her and issues a soft rumbling growl. Which has the absolute opposite effect that he was hoping for: she starts cracking up even harder. She's full-on belly laughing with tears streaming from her eyes, almost ready to double over holding her stomach. I just raise my brows and look between Dimitri and Aurora, then over to Alaric, and he just shakes his head, looking at me.

"Aurora can't take him seriously," he says to me and starts laughing himself. "She knows all too well all she has to do is nip him, and he'll pretty much roll over and give her his belly," Alaric says, still laughing. Dimitri turns and growls at Alaric this time.

He growls right back at him and then starts laughing harder. "Yeah, bring it, furball. I'll roast your ass," Alaric says with a chuckle.

Even though Alaric is joking, both of Dimitri's eyebrows shoot up in mock shock. Then I hear the familiar crack of Aurora's hand slapping Alaric on the shoulder. "You will do no such thing. Do you want me to put you on a ban? Because I will!" Aurora says, raising her eyebrow and crossing her arms over her ample chest.

I just look between the two of them, and I have got to ask the question. "Love, what the hell do you mean by putting him on a ban?" I ask with the utmost level of confusion evident in my voice.

"Well," she says as she uncrosses her arms and does the "oh well" with her hands palms up facing the sky. "Being put on a ban means this: no playing hide the sausage, no riding the pony, basically zero sexual contact with me." She smiles and then blows a kiss at Alaric and tilts her head while looking ever so sweetly.

"Just think of it this way, Dom," she says, then snuggles up against my side. "He fucks up; it's your gain." She smiles and then nips at my jaw before bouncing off.

The look of shock on Alaric's face is quite comical. I don't think the king has ever been put on a ban or ever grounded in his entire existence. The fact that Aurora just stated that as if she had planned it definitely threw him off his game.

I look over at Jayce, and he starts laughing. "Don't look at me, cause if she puts him on a ban, I know she's going to make me put him on a ban." Jayce turns around, looks at Alaric, and mouths I'm sorry.

Alaric quickly turns and looks at Klaus. Klaus looks shocked; his eyes dart between Jayce and Aurora and then back over to Alaric. "Oh no, my friend, I'm Switzerland in this shit. She put you on a ban; he put you on a ban. I'm going to just go on strike altogether because, yeah. You both scare me." Klaus throws his hands up in defeat, trying to show that he is not contesting or fighting anything. He is unwilling to be involved in this conversation.

Alaric huffs and walks off, dragging his son Ladon behind him. I look over to my brother and he's slowly passing a sleeping Luna over to Aurora. She smiles as she nuzzles her littlest toddler and then looks up at me. "You're next, Dom, you're next." Her eyes flare when she says the word next. I know in my heart that she absolutely means it when she says it. I see Arnulf sneak up alongside her and give her a peck on her cheek. "Yeah, you too, big guy." She lightly punches him in the shoulder as she situates Luna in her arms.

I watch little Luna play with her mother's hair as we walk towards the village that is now in sight. By the time we reach the first row of houses, Luna has part of Aurora's hair braided. A big burly man comes out to greet Dimitri and Odette. Not knowing the new man, Odette's little cub scoots underneath her father and peeks out from beneath his chest. Aurora walks up and lays a hand on Dimitri's shoulder. "It's good to see you again, Alpha Karl," she says with a slight dip of her head.

"Congratulations on your decisive victory. I must say it was quite impressive." He slightly bows his head, never taking his eyes off of Aurora. It's now that I figure out as to why she's holding Luna. Her instinct to protect Luna and shield her from things is what is going to keep her massive temper in check. Especially since my niece is an Omega and scares very easily.

Aurora looks over to Klaus and motions for him to take Dimitri and give him his clothes. Both the guys wander off into the woods briefly before returning with a fully dressed Dimitri. On the other hand, Odette has decided to remain as her cub, now hiding between her mother's ankles. "Karl, old friend," Dimitri says in a booming voice as he extends one hand and then wraps his arm in a modified bro hug around the Alpha. They greet each other and start speaking in their native tongue.

Aurora rolls her eyes and looks at the two of them. "You two jackasses do realize that I can understand you perfectly? And to speak in your native tongue is pointless and rude?" The Alpha looks up, shocked, as his eyes dart between Dimitri and Aurora.

"This is an old dialect; there is no way someone as young as you could possibly know what we're saying," he says harshly. Aurora turns to me, kisses my cheek, and puts Luna in my arms. Uh oh, shit just got real .

She goes to stand before the Alpha and stares at him. Her eyes shifting to that of her beast as I watch the scales ripple down the back of her neck, disappearing into her shirt. I can see the twitchiness that she's getting in her hands as she opens and closes her fist several times, trying not to shift to her gauntlets. Aurora answers the Alpha in the ancient dialect, stunning him immediately. Shortly after, an almost oppressive wave of Alpha power booms out from her, causing him to waver. Little Luna tenses in my arms as I turn my back to shield her from the brunt of it. "Just because I am young does not mean that I am not knowledgeable."

Aurora goes on to list Karl's entire bloodline back almost a thousand years. She then decides to start spewing the knowledge of the clan going back to its beginnings. The Alpha is stunned completely and left rendered speechless. Even Nicodeamus is shocked at the history she is verbalizing. I can only assume that this knowledge came from Gallus. She looks over to Dimitri, then bows her head to him ever so slightly, and then presses her nose under his jaw. Soon as she makes contact with Dimitri, the wave of power ceases. She moves quietly back over to Alaric. Along the way, she grabs Luna from me.

"Please, forgive me for my insolence. I meant no disrespect for someone as knowledgeable and powerful as you." He sighs with his eyes still downcast, completely defeated. He somehow managed to remain standing during Aurora's wave of power that I must question later. "The meeting hall is ready for us to sit and chat. But realize, there are others older than I, that are more set in their ways and their beliefs about the Lycans." His tone is completely defeated; his shoulders are not held as proudly as they were before. He moves slowly, carefully pacing his steps over to the meeting hall.

Dimitri scoops up Odette and carries her, following directly behind the Alpha. Soon after, his daughter and granddaughter come out to meet him. He quickly does introductions and lets them meet Odette as well as the rest of the family. I'm watching the entire clan, and I still feel as if something is bound to happen. Maybe it's my years of being an enforcer, or it could be the years of constantly having battles within my father's pack.

Once inside the meeting hall, Dimitri stands before all of the elders and starts laying out the plans that we had all gone over yesterday. We figured as a family it would be better for Dimitri to relay the plans to his people than for any of us to do it. Aurora has both Luna and Odette in her lap; both girls are watching their Papa Bear intently.

I can tell the moment that Aurora starts putting thoughts and ideas into Dimitri's mind. His eyes take on that slight gold glow of his bear as they speak. The course of the conversation almost immediately changes which throws the Alpha off. "What is the meaning of this?" the Alpha says as he stands, looking between Aurora and Dimitri. "Are you this wolf's puppet?" he asks, slamming his fists down on the tabletop.

Dimitri stands abruptly, sending the chair he was sitting in flying backward. Fur ripples up and down his forearms as he stares at the Alpha. "I am no one's puppet," he says with the distinctive growl of his bear evident in his voice. His eyes are glowing brightly as he stares at Karl. Dimitri does not notice that a slight tinge of frost is starting to coat the table surrounding his hands. I raise an eyebrow looking at Aurora and motioning with my eyes to Dimitri's hands. She smiles and nods and gets that sadistic look in her eyes. She's obviously up to something.

"I shall tell you what. I shall leave the meeting since Karl is obviously threatened by an Alpha female." She looks at Dimitri and raises a brow. "Just remember, love, WWAD," she says and ends it with the most sick, twisted smile I have ever seen grace her ruby red lips.

Dimitri gives her a curt nod, and she leaves with Alaric, my brother, and Arnulf in tow. "Why are these two still here?" he practically snarls as he looks at Klaus and me. Well, he doesn't realize that Aurora pretty much just gave the kill order for the Alpha if he gets out of line. "And what is this WWAD mean?" he asks, still snarling, looking between myself and Dimitri. I just start to laugh.

"The short version," I say, sounding way too jovial. "What would Aurora do?" I smile as I feel my canines descend, and I give him a wolfish smile. "You have a thing against wolves, yet, it was my people. My Dire Wolves were the ones who stood guard around your people during the assault on the castle. And now you attempt to shun me, my mate, my brother, as well as my bond mate Klaus." I narrow my eyes as I look at him. He's starting to realize how deep of a hole he has just dug himself into.