Chapter 31

Tyson
She glittered like a gemstone….
How my mate shined…. And most importantly, she was happy…
I think that was my biggest worry… Besides all the nonsense and politics, I don’t want her to be miserable, or feel caged as she did with her restrictive family…. And I get that too. Their peoples are both prim and proper, formalities matter almost as much as their bloodlines.
And in both their cultures, werewolves carried a reputation of being simple minded boars.
“It’s been 10 minutes.” Giggled Heidi, my aunt.
“Yeah, what gives.” Said my cousin Harry, looking almost like his father’s twin. Our people tend to do that…. Daughters look a lot like their mothers, or sometimes female versions of their father.
Heidi is Grandpa Kaiden and Grandma Eclipse’s eldest; my mother’s sister. She serves on the council as Second Luna Heir. In the event of Ron or Aemi’s demise, her and John will fulfill his parents’ positions.
Heidi was also the only redhead in the family, being the only half witch. She was also abnormally small. Initially, it makes she wolves question their authority, but none would do that now. Through her, the Second Seat and the Royal House share blood, and for it I’m happy. I actually like Ronitus and John. They’re trustworthy… capable… what you’d need for a good Beta.
Unlike Kaizen… Fuck I’m not looking forward to seeing my pack…
[I’ll give her a minute more. She’s having so much fun.] I said looking at the footage. We had a drone and Shakira filming. I don’t get how she *didn’t* see my captain, but maybe it would have startled her.
I mean she’s a kind of horse shifter chased by my largest hyena shifter, a creature with one of the strongest bites and highest levels of aggression… I’m sure that would be a natural reaction…. The same with me. It’s why I hesitated.
“Go!” Heidi got behind me and pushed my legs. “Why are you so heavy?! MOVE!! I want to see when you both meet!” She complained.
I took three steps forward, and the next thing I knew, I was about halfway to her already…
Her trail wasn’t exactly ambiguous… The glitter lingered, sparkling in the light.
I leaped over the bluewood tree she pranced around. I wonder did she notice that the bark is a dark blue-gray, and the leaves are cobalt blue up there? They even glow at night… We have to keep a magical illusion over the forest to make sure that no one sees that.
I swam through the medium sized river. It was a slow moving one that could be used in the summer as a watering hole. This is actually where I catch slackers too. The cold, clear water felt nice on the skin… So was steaming it off with my fire.
I saw a glimpse of her in the light. It seemed the dappled forest aimed a beam just for her to sparkle too. I cleared my throat, and she reared on back legs, and galloped again.
Her giggle made me smile… That I gave her joy… it gave me happiness. Catching up took only a minute at best. That was still a little surprising. I expected to be winded right now.
I ran beside her, then in front like I was supposed to. The way it works is that I’m the ‘lead’ stallion. She’s coming into my pack, so if it were the other way around, she’d lead.
But now that she followed me, I could show her what I wanted.
/I think that’s enough./ I linked Shakira.
/I’ll head back, but keep a detail close for you sir./ She linked back.
/That isn’t needed, but I’ll allow it./ I linked hiding my annoyance. They just wanted to show loyalty, hardly anything to be upset about.
I slowed to a trot, and my mate followed. A certain sense of pride comes from knowing all this is mine. That up here she will be safe and secure…. At least from outside threats… I still didn’t trust my council. I had an itch that told me one of them is up to no good. I don’t know *what* but as I told my mate, this moment is meant to be happy. I’ll worry about all the other incidents and rulings I must make later.
----Samira----
Tyson steamed in the morning light, while I sparkled. The stark contrast of both our trails I think will look best in the newsletter footage. It’s interesting to see his dark smoke linger on the ground, and steam wisp off his back.
He shifted. “Over that hill is my hideout, passed down from the First Wolf.”
“You mean Grindel? Isn’t he the keeper of the In-Between?” She asked.
“Yes; he’s also the patriarch of my mother’s side, but I’ve never met him. He made this his den. You have to see the inside.” He shifted, and dipped his head down.
I didn’t know what that bow was, until he put his nose under my arm.
“You want me to ride you?” I asked with a smirk.
He nodded his head.
I jumped on and grabbed his neck fur. This *doesn’t* happen, even with mates!
“Onward mighty steed!” I pointed forward and he shook his head.
He walked.
“Giddy up!” I jumped like a small child, and I could tell he was laughing. I knew he wasn’t 100%.... And I was glad that I managed to cheer him up some. He worries about his brother, his people, and my people.
He ran suddenly, and I squealed. He was faster than me, nearly flying by jumping so high that I could see over the normal tree line. Flames were under his feet… It slowed the fall, and I could see for miles… Besides the castle it was only forest.
We landed at the base of a steep hill, and he darted up it so fast I pulled some of his fur out! He leaped off the top of the sharp ended cliff face and floated down slowly…. I could see his guards freaking out below, and he barked orders at them. At least, I think…
I don’t know why I can’t understand anymore… Maybe it was a temporary blessing from the paring…?
The enormous blue, redwood-like trees had glowing blue markings on the bark… I didn’t notice ANY of that before! The scenery kind of took my mind off the mystery.
I screamed in terror and delight as he landed. He was showing off and I didn’t mind. If anything, I would be more surprised if he didn’t.
The other side of the hill was normal, except a large boulder. It was domed, but I could tell the other side of the rock was flat…. At first, I thought there was a rockslide, until my mate showed how strong he was. Tyson took no effort to roll it out the way, and inside was a cave. It was *well* maintained. I could see the clawed slashes of whoever carved and plastered the sort of smooth walls, and they were multiple sizes. I wonder were all those little hands the former king’s children….
None of King Ashital’s sons live. Even the former Crown Prince, Kaiden, is a grandson… The corners of the room also had supports and pillars embedded into the structure…. Seeing the remnants of those now gone made it special to me, even though I hold no relation other than marriage…
One day, I want our child to put a hand on this wall… Tyson was busy getting the power on; he didn’t hear. There was a single crank generator with a surge protector plugged in. You have to wind it up, and he seemed more like he was trying not to be too rough.
The white walls were lit with magic crystals that glowed a soft yellow, mimicking daylight. There was grass on the floor, soft as a carpet, though there were no bugs or anything that I could see.
The ceiling had to be 20 feet high, since the hill was hollowed out. It was a giant square room, with hanging knickknacks and a wood stove.
Next to the generator was a Tv and dresser to serve as a stand. There was a giant beanbag bed that was stuffed, so it was more like an 8 foot round dog bed… Clever. When Tyson was done, he wiped his hands on his naked legs.
“This cave was made by the first wolf, Grindel. It was one of his dens, and the only one that’s been preserved. This one was the biggest, being about 5 times the size of the real castle. Under the bed is an 8ft wide hatch that leads to the old tunnels. This is also the only non-magical exit. The others are deactivated, but they used to teleport you to a random spot in the woods.” Tyson admitted.
“I bet he slept comfortably with how soft the ground is.” I mumbled.
The dirt here really was as soft as a mattress, warm, and the aura of this place made me feel at peace… I wonder was that old magic.
“We don’t know how they did that.” Admitted Tyson, responding to my thoughts. “I’ve gone to sleep in here a hundred times. This is where I come to be left alone. So what do you think of my spot?”
“It feels like… there’s peace here.” It felt like below housed my mother…. Or that dinner was being readied. There was a nostalgia to this simple home...