My thoughts had started to clash again, wanting to have Fang touch me and hold me in his arms, just like he had done back in the alley. No, not just like that, I wanted more… Everything. 

I closed my eyes, shaking my head to dismiss them. 

The energy within this room was calling out to me, my wolf. Fang stood so close to me I could hear his heartbeat. His hand continued to hold the back of my palm as he slid them down my arm. So far, whatever Fang had said was making so much sense to me, but I still did not get the point of him bringing me here. This place felt like the home for my wolf and I found it hard to hold on to my thoughts and resistance.

I felt Fang’s breath on my neck. He rested my arms over my elbows before he whispered, “Close your eyes, feel the energy that flows here.” 

His soft voice made all the walls crumble around me. 

This wasn’t what I wanted, but I had lost control. I cursed inside my head, thinking this was what he wanted. For my wolf to surrender to her soulmate so he could make me his!

But I was at a loss with my defiance here. 

He spoke about my two conflicting mentalities and somehow everything made sense. I guess he was listening to me all this time. For some reason, my temper did not rise in this place. I took a deep breath before letting my head rest against his chest. A peaceful feeling. This was not what I wanted, but my body was reacting on its own. My control over myself had run slack and it worried me to the core. I did not want to be absent if Fang decided to seal our bond when I was weak against my wolf. 

Fang lifted my palms from over my arms and slowly brought them to my chest, to rest them over my heart. His touch igniting a desire inside me. 

“Talk to your wolf. See what it wants,” Fang spoke. I could not sense any alter motive in his voice. It was rather me, my wolf, to be exact, who was drawn closer to Fang, its soulmate. “Every wolf has a growing phase where it wants to enjoy its own freedom, its will. Let her out, let her see the world through your eyes. Our wolves are not for us to tame bit to befriend. Let her thoughts merge with your,” Fang said as he let go of my hands as they rested over my heart, “be one with your reality.” 

He held my shoulder to push me up and slowly applied pressure, letting me know I had to sit down. 

I tilted my head upwards while looking back. Our eyes met and Fang was broke the eye contact as soon as it occurred. Staying away from him was torture here. He let go of my shoulder and walked in front of me. When I was about to lower my hands from over my chest, she held them and brought them back over my heart. 

“Accept yourself, Selene, so your wolf can accept you. Never underestimate an Alpha, no matter the animal,” he spoke and my brows furrowed. 

My eyes cast down as I looked at the crystal clear water which surrounded me. 

I gazed at my reflection in the water and looked into my hazel eyes, “I don’t want what my wolf desires.” There were a lot of things my wolf wanted, a certain kind of lifestyle which I did not want to promote. 

Fang got up from his place, “That is why you need to make sure she understands you.” 

I looked up at him and he smiled at me before walking behind me. He was planning to leave me alone here for whatever he had brought me here for. This place did not scare me but I turned my head to the side and spoke to him even though he wasn’t in my visible range, “Why are you doing this?” 

Fang sighed, “I tired of seeing you struggle like this. You need to come to terms with yourself and let your wolf run out of the dungeon chains.”

A smile surfaced on my lips. Those weren’t the dungeon chains. The castle chains were bound around me and it was me who had suppressed my wolf. It is easier to suppress an Alpha if done soon enough, but that was untrue. It was easy to suppress the person, never the wolf. “You know you are letting me get from you, right?” I asked. If I managed to master and own my wolf, the chances of me choosing Fang were close to none. 

“I know,” Fang replied. 

I was hoping to hear more but there was nothing else he said. My brows furrowed with a hint of sadness and for one thing, I knew there was nothing conflicting inside me towards this feeling. However, there were duties and responsibilities deeply engraved in my heart and I needed to take care of them. Maybe in some other reality, I would give Fang another chance and maybe… I cut my thoughts before I could change my mind and closed my eyes. 

It was not tough to find my wolf, as she had always been in my head. As a part of me. 

Everything went dark in front of my eyes as the energy of the caves called my wolf out and its voice ricocheted in my brain, ‘Why do you deter from your path! You have brought nothing but shame to my blood I share with you. We are born to rule.’

‘And we will,’ I talked back calmly in my head, ‘as the queen of another land.’

‘Rubbish! We never lend our service to our enemy. We will pride ourselves as the Alpha and the only service we extend is to our people,’ came the other voice. 

There were was so much unresolved and truly angsty about that voice. Fang was kind of right about my wolf being in an angsty teen phase. It held all the principles I was taught as a child, dearly in its heart. Even after I had let go of them a long time ago inside the castle dungeons. 

‘Pathetic, look at yourself so pathetic,’ I heard the voice continue, ‘all you do is act like a damsel. Where is your pride?’

I took a deep breath. 

Before I made it come to my understanding, I had to calm this ego. ‘A werewolf ruler is expected to produce an heir, you know. Or else we will lose our legacy forever to the hands of the dirty ministers.’

‘You can do that when you accept Fang,’ the voice screamed in my head. 

I smiled, ‘yes, of course, but since he is an Alpha as well we will become the Luna of this kingdom as his soulmate. The companion who stands behind the throne assisting the Alpha’s rule.’ I waited but the voice spoke nothing. Got it! ‘When we marry the prince of the other kingdom, we will rule and spread the werewolves there as well, taking charge of an enemy kingdom. Now isn’t that a true ruling Alpha?’ 

There was silence again before the voice said, ‘Yes.’

No arguments. This was going right. “Our duty together is to not just rule,” I spoke out loud in a serene tone, “We offer our gifts as service to our people. Our brother needs us and this marriage is important to bring something powerful to this kingdom. Isn’t it important we perform our duties through and through… Even though sacrifices?” 

I took the deep silence as a yes. My wolf had a sense of duty that I had lost and somewhere it made me feel bad for it.

‘You speak the truth,’ I heard it again and this time it was fading yet mature, ‘I hope are ready to fight for ourselves as much as you would for others.’ It wasn’t too hard to understand what that meant and it had me speechless for a moment.

‘Stay with me and I promise to fulfil your wishes as well,’ I replied in my head. 

There was no desire to adventure or explore inside the wolf. It was a pure desire to be a just ruler towards our people. How ironic, I thought to myself. Just when I had given up on the thought, my wolf rekindled it inside me. I had not just convinced my wolf but it had also convinced me to bring my own desires to the surface and fight for them. I wasn’t afraid of my political marriage anymore, rather ready to fight for my life and then extend myself in service for the betterment of the kingdom I go into.

There was no saying that my wolf was with me now and did not plan on breaking my promise to it. 

‘Thank y-‘

“Aghhh!” a sharp pain shot through my head before travelling to my heart. I clutched my chest in a desperate effort to kill the pain. My control over my abilities had returned but no matter how much I healed myself, the pain kept increasing till a horde of voices poured inside my head. 

“Selene,” I heard Fang’s faint voice and I opened my eyes to see his blurred image. He held me in his arms, “What is wrong? Tell me I can’t feel you, Selene!” 

I breathed heavily while sweating as I clutched my head. The voices kept of increasing-

‘Come to me, my child,’ came a union of voices

‘Death! death awaits.’

Another deep voice roared, ‘kill the queen.’

‘I will save the werewolves,’ came a woman’s voice

There was nothing I could make out from them. It was painful and irritating. I screamed in pain as the noise in my mind almost ripped my head apart. “Stop, stop!” I screamed as I scratched my head but Fang held my wrist. I squirmed in his hold and it was getting tough for him to hold me in place. 

“Selene, I am here,” Fang said as he kept restraining my arms, “follow my voice.” 

But I shook my head and screamed, “Nooooooo. Make this stop!” 

This was unbearable and slowly the voices poured in my ears and I felt a warm liquid rush down my skin from my ear. Fang desperately wound his legs around my torso, trapping my arms with it. I felt his hands cup my face while tears rolled out of my eyes. The distinctive chattering was so bad I tried to flutter my eyes open but they were foggy. I could see Fang moving his mouth, but I could not understand anything. 

I desperately closed my eyes, giving in. If anything, I felt like I was about to be killed here. 

‘Selene,’ came a faint voice in the midst of the chaos.

It was not Fang. it was a woman someone with a beautiful melody. I felt a warm embrace of the wind around me. 

A third hand rested on my forehead when the noise slowly started fading away. 

I heard that peaceful voice yet again, ‘You have grown so much, baby.’ I opened my eyes slowly to see who it was but there was no one sitting by my head. The touch still lingered, yet I could see no one. The only person here was Fang, who pulled me up by my shoulder and held my chin. His mouth moving but my ear played the melody of that lingering voice.

I saw his face as it slowly became visible. 

My ears were damaged and I closed my eyes before slowly setting my heal in motion. 

It took me a few seconds to be back with a calm heart and working ears. “Hey, can you hear me?” Fang asked, “Selene, come on, respond.” He splashed some water on my face and I shut my eyes in reflex. 

“I-” there was energy left in me even after iI had healed myself. 

“Yes,” Fang brought his ear close to my mouth, “Take your time, I am right here.” 

“I…. need,” I took a deep breath as I whispered, “sleep.”