A Griffin's Voice: Finding Her Path

Chapter 13

A Date with Avalon (One out of two)

Fawn’s P.o.V.

I smile as we head down the stairs with Seth tagging along. “Normally, we would take my Aston Martin Victor, but since it is three of us……I think we should take the SUV today. Okay, Darling?”

“That’s fine, Avalon,” I chirp as we walk out of the castle and into the garage. We get into a gray Lincoln Aviator. I am in the back. Seth is in the passenger’s seat. Avalon is in the driver’s seat. Avalon starts to drive as I look out the window. “So, what’s first, Avalon?”

“Well, I forgot to give you your present earlier, so I will give it to you when we get back tonight. Right now, we are heading to the Eastern Bay Mall. I want to take you shopping for four hours or so. I know that you love to shop. If you get bored shopping, maybe we could meet Mystery a little or Mystery, Jackal, and Major could spend some time together.”

“I would absolutely love that! Thank you so much, Avalon!” My eyes glisten with tears of excitement. I am so thankful to how amazing these five princes are. “You guys treat me far too amazingly.”

“Sweetheart, you have seen nothing yet. We will treat you even better in the future. This is nothing yet.” I blush and look down as Seth speaks. “Look at me, Sweetheart. Don’t look away from us.”

Avalon shakes his head with a smile. “See, dude, this is why I wanted you with. I just suck at talking to our pretty little mate still. Darling, can we play a question game?”

“Like twenty questions,” I ask as I look up at them.

“That would definitely work otherwise like two truths and a lie. Just something so we can get to know each other better?”

“Let’s do two truths and a lie!”

Avalon’s P.o.V.

I chuckle at her enthusiasm. “Okay. One, I love to roller skate. Two, I have always wanted a dog. Three, Jackal has taken control and drank from Seth before.” Number two is the lie.

“I honestly don’t know. I want to say number three is the lie? At least I hope it is.” I listen to her giggle at my three statements.

“Number two, Avalon.”

“Seth is right, Darling. Number two is the lie. I do love to roller skate, and I really wish I had told you that on the first day. I don’t get why I didn’t. I have never wanted a dog, but I have always wanted a cat, which is why I put up with Seth.” He glares at me for that comment. “Number three is also true. Jackal once got so mad at Seth that he took control of my human form and bit Seth. It took me five minutes to get Jackal back under control.”

“It sucked, but it was a really nice experience to learn what having my blood drank feels like.”

“Seth, you are so strange. Darling, this was a few years ago. I promise Jackal is a little less……well Jackal.”

She starts to giggle at me. “My turn! One, I train sixteen hours a day. Two, I have owned and still own a pet cat. Three, my brother and I want to overthrow our parents.”

“Sweetheart, I am going to have to say number three is the lie. You are far too sweet for that.”

“I disagree with him, Darling. I think it has to be number two. All griffins seem to do is train. No time for a pet.”

I giggle softly. “You are both wrong. It’s number one. We train twenty hours a day. I do have two cats: Athari and Ghubari. Their names are in Swahili. And Fox and I do want to overthrow our parents.”

“Darling, we will have to talk about the overthrowing, because that does affect us now. As for the cats, I demand that you introduce us to them eventually.”

“What kind of cats, Sweetheart?”

“A dark brown tabby and a pale dusty brown tabby.”

“They sound adorable, Sweetheart. My turn, now. One, I got Major two years early. Two, I have had s*x three times ever. Three, I love coffee.”

“Ummmmm……I am really hoping two is the lie in a good way, but I know you have had s*x. Ugh! I will say two……”

“Two.”

“You both are correct. Sweetheart, I have only had s*x one time ever. I absolutely love coffee more than anything in the world. I also got Major two years earlier than I was supposed to, which is a big reason as to why we are so close. The guys helped me out a lot during those two years. I got bullied a lot for it, and that is rare to say as a prince.”

We arrive at the mall and I help my darling out of the vehicle. “Darling, two things. One, I want to continue this later. Two, is it okay if we both hold you in some way today?”

“I would really love it if you both did.” She smiles softly at the idea. I wrap and arm around her shoulders and pull her closer to me. Seth wraps an arm around her waist and gets closer to her as well. We head into the mall contently.

Honestly, it surprises me how okay I am with being close to Seth in this way. Maybe sharing a bed won’t be as weird as we think……Or it is just because it is with Seth. It is hard to know. But it does give me an idea.

“So, I am thinking-” I start to say until Seth interrupts me.

“Uh oh! Avalon is thinking. Goddess, help us all. Don’t hurt yourself, dude,” he jokes. I punch his arm lightly and scowl at him as Fawn giggles softly. “Sorry, I had too, Avalon. Please continue.”

“As I was saying before Seth so rudely interrupted me……I am thinking that maybe this won’t be so weird between us six after all. I don’t know if it is just because it is Seth today, but this feels really comfortable and easy. Other than the fact that I struggle to talk to our little mate on my own.”

“You will get there, Avalon. Don’t rush yourself,” our little mate softly says as she looks up at me with gentle eyes. I smile down at her and nod my head slightly. It makes me happy to know that she really doesn’t matter either way.

We lead her around and go into any stores that she wants to go into. Suddenly she turns towards me. “Avalon!”

“Yeah, Darling?”

“The Bath and Body Works stuff that I used earlier. What scent was it?”

“In the Stars, Darling. Did you like it?”

“Yeah. So far all three of you picked amazing scents.”

“You can thank Seth for that. He is super feminine in that department.”

“HEY! I am not feminine! I just pay attention unlike the rest of you.”

She giggles and leans up and kisses his cheek. “I think you’re very masculine, Seth. Thank you so much for being so amazing. They are so lucky to have your help with everything.”

I chuckle as he puffs out his chest with pride. Needy cub! I roll my eyes at him and whack the back of his head. “So needy, Seth. So desperate for her approval, huh?”

“Oh, shut up, Avalon.” I chuckle at Seth and watch as our little mate hugs him to give him comfort. I smile down at her with soft eyes. Goddess this female is simply amazing.

Seth’s P.o.V.

I love this princess of ours so much. She is so sweet and kind and loving. She is just so caring about everyone. I just am so in love with her. She is so perfect for us.

“Darling, can we have a conversation about what you and your brother want to do? It is pretty important.” I am glad that Avalon brought that up. For three reasons. One, I don’t know what I would even say at all. Two, I don’t really want to bring it up yet. Three, and most importantly, it means that Avalon is speaking to her.

“What about it?”

“What did you mean, Darling?”

I notice that she looks down slightly. “We want to take them down. Ablaria and the griffin kingdom deserve better than what our parents and those before them have done. We want change for our kingdom. Obviously, I am not going to be part of that change due to this situation between us six, but Fox can be. He would make such an amazing king, and he deserves it. But we don’t have the strength to do it alone. Ablaria griffins are too afraid to stand up for what they want.”

I sigh and look at Avalon. This puts us in a hard situation, because I know exactly where this is going. They want our help to convince our parents. I can already tell that the young princess doesn’t want to talk about this or ask. But I know, just as well as she does, that she does need to ask. “Just ask, Sweetheart. Please.”

“We would like to ask for our guys help in convincing your parents to support us. The griffins will follow if they see that we can win. I don’t want to ask though, especially since I want this to work between the six of us.”

She looks down and Avalon pushes her chin back up. “Darling, we will help you in an instant and so would our parents. All of us despise your parents due to how they are treating you and your brother. We will always support you in whatever you want to do as long as your happy.”

“Really, Avalon?”

“Yes, Darling.”

“Seth?” She looks up at me with wide, pleading eyes.”

“Of course, Sweetheart. We will always support you.” I wrap my arms around her. “I get that you were having anxiety over this, Fawn. Just don’t doubt us ever. We will always back you up. I promise.”

She nods and walks ahead with Avalon in a*****e as I get a text from Carter. Yo, dude! Where are you? We can’t find you and we are ready to take Fox paintballing.

I am with Avalon and Fawn. Avalon texted me this morning in a huge panic. After I calmed him down, he asked that I join them on their date today. He wasn’t certain of being alone with her. I agreed to go with them, as long as Fawn was okay with it.

And she was?

Yeah, she actually requested that since I am coming today, that Avalon joins us on our date in two days. I am fine with it. It is going to help Avalon feel more comfortable with her.

That is very true, Seth. I am glad that you are helping him out today. How is it going?

It is going pretty well. She just dropped a bombshell on us. We have played two truths and a lie. We are just walking around the mall right now.

Fun. Fun. Fun. What was the bombshell?

We will talk about it more tonight, but Fox and her want to overthrow their parents. They need help though. Like I said, we will talk about it later, Carter.

I get it, Seth. I will talk to you later!

Later, Carter! I stop texting him and catch up to Avalon and Fawn. “Sorry about that! Carter was texting me.”

“What’s up with Carter,” Fawn asks softly.

“Nothing! He was just wondering where I was at. He didn’t realize that Avalon asked me to come him. It was my mistake. I should have sent a text to Carter at the very least. We do a lot together, so it just makes him anxious and nervous when he doesn’t know what’s up with me. I get the same way with him.”

“Carter and Seth are super close. None of us are as close as Carter and Seth. They will do anything together, even if they hate the activity. It is entertaining. I remember when Carter wanted to go ziplining so badly with Seth. Well, Seth is terrified of heights and stuff like that. Seth still did it with Carter.”

“That is so sweet,” Fawn squeals. I shake my head and smile as I notice her happiness. I am not even mad that Avalon is teasing me. I feel Major stir within me as I watch her.

Major, I really love her.

So do I, Seth. We can’t lose her

We won’t.

Avalon’s P.o.V.

Hours later, we are heading to The Rolling Stone Rink. I am so thrilled that I took her shopping, I got to buy her stuff and so did Seth. We are back to playing two truths and a lie while we drive. “One, I have three younger siblings that live back in Despye. Two, I love the color green. Three, I love to hunt with rifles or bows.”

“One?” I chuckle as I hear the question and hesitance in her voice.

“Two.”

“Seth is right, Darling. My favorite color is actually pale purple. I do have three younger siblings. They live with my grandparents for the most part though. Two little sisters and a little brother. Shelby, 12. Abby, 9. Blake, 5. I also love to hunt with the boys and sometimes I take my little brother hunting.”

“What do you guys like to hunt?”

“Deer mainly. Sometimes boar and bear. Your turn, Darling.”

“One, Fox and I have always loved the legends of the dinosaur shifters. Two, Fox and I believe in those legends. Three, Fox and I believe there aren’t any dinosaur shifters left.

“That is a hard one, Darling. I don’t think we have heard those legends ever. I would love to hear one sometime. I have to say two though.” I look back at her through the rear-view mirror.

“Two, Sweetheart. I would love to hear these legends though!”

“You are both wrong. We love listening to and reading the legends of these shifters. The accounts and stories leave little room for doubt. So, we do believe that they were real at some point. The lie is number three. There is no way that they are all gone. I am sure there is a small population that has remained hidden somewhere.”

“One, Carter drags me horseback riding at least once a week. Two, I have the best date planned for our date and for the date in Vucron. Three, my favorite thing to hunt in bear.”

She immediately looks at me as I stare uncertainly at Seth. I really have no clue about this one. “Ummmm……Three?”

“Avalon doesn’t sound certain, so I am going to say two.”

“You’re both wrong. One is the lie. He drags me riding at least twice a week and ten times a month at minimum. I love to hunt bears. It is so exciting. I also have amazing dates planned for us on my day and for Vucron.”

“Darling, can you tell us a legend about the dinosaur shifters?”

“I suppose that I can. The dinosaur shifters fell into three types. Velociraptors. Deinonychus’. Dilophosaurus’. They could take human forms and then their dinosaur forms, just like us. Stories date back millions of years……back to the time of the dinosaurs.”

We both look back at her with stunned eyes. Like she really believes this? How? There is no way this is real or anything. “What else, Sweetheart?”

“There isn’t much to tell about them besides the legends. There are other legends about other shifters as well though. There are so many legends out there that are just dumbfounding and amazing to hear about. That is one thing that is amazing about being a griffin. We see so many different kingdoms and hear legends from each kingdom that are just too amazing to be real, but they are real to the people that tell us. The legends are just too detailed to be fake also. They are just so amazing.”

I smile at the wistful look in her eyes. It is clear that she desperately wants everything to be real. I really hope that they are for her sake. I also know that Fox believes them just as much. I really want things to be real. “Darling, I would love to hear these legends sometime.”

Fawn’s P.o.V.

I smile at him. His words mean the absolute world to me. It really tells me just how much he does love me. I means the world to me that he wants to hear the legends of these other shifters.

It means the world to me as well.

It does, Mystery?

Yeah.

That is really surprising to me. I will make sure to tell Avalon though at some point. What do you think of this date?

I am having a lot of fun. Avalon is definitely talking a lot more than he would if Seth wasn’t with. I know it seems odd that he had Seth come with, but he seems happier and more comfortable having him with us. That is what matters.

I agree and I am happy to know that you feel the same way. Avalon has to be comfortable with us if we are going to be mates. If this is what it takes……then so be it. It is progress of some sort.

That’s how I feel, Fawn. I close our link and think about our conversation. I am so happy to know that she feels the same way that I do. If she didn’t……well, I don’t know what I would do. I want this to all work out, but if she wasn’t willing to take the long road with Avalon……it would put me in a really tough position. As much as Mystery is a grump, we are the best of friends, and I know that she will always back up my decisions. Regardless, whether she agrees or not.

Seth’s P.o.V.

I smile as I sit and watch Avalon trying to teach Fawn to roller skate. I shake my head and laugh as she whacks him upside the head. I get up and skate over to them. “What’s wrong, Sweetheart? What did Avalon do?”

“He is making fun of me!” I laugh at her pout as she whines. “It isn’t funny. This is hard!”

I look over at Avalon, who is rubbing the back of his head. “Avalon, be nice to our sweet mate. She is trying and is very delicate.” I immediately am whacked. I chuckle and so does Avalon. “And what was that for, Sweetheart?”

“I am not delicate,” she growls at me. “I am strong and independent female! I am a griffin princess of Ablaria. Arrogant males!”

We chuckle at her as we back off with our hands raised. Neither of us really want to piss her off too much and we have. Now, we are in trouble. “We know that, Darling. We love you so much. You are so beautiful.”

“Flattery gets you no where with me,” she deadpans. We instantly go deathly still with frowns, knowing we really f****d up. But then she smiles. “But I do like it. Fine. You two are forgiven for your male moment.”

We roll our eyes at the male comment as we chuckle. “We get it, Sweetheart. You’re in charge here. Always and forever.”

“Agreed, Darling.”

She giggles and gives us both a hug and I know that we are truly forgiven. I wrap my arms around her. “Sweetheart, I know this is Avalon’s date with you, but I would really like to have some fun with you and him. But I also know that on my date with you……I will have plenty of opportunities. Which means so will Avalon. And I really can’t wait for that date. Just Carter’s tomorrow and then I get to have some serious fun with you.”

I watch as she blushes and looks down. She glances shyly up at me. “I can’t wait either.”

Avalon pulls her away from me. “Darling, can I please finish teaching you too skate? Or we can head back and fore go dinner, but I think you will love what I have planned for dinner. I don’t think you want to decide to not go. So, what do you want to do?”

“Keep learning to skate. I would love to get better at something that you enjoy, Avalon.”

I grin as I walk away and sit back down. I watch them continue to practice and by the time it is time to head to dinner she is doing so much better. She barely even needs his help by the end. Both are laughing and joking, especially at me. I am not good at roller skating at all, so I didn’t really participate in it at all. I just enjoyed watching her eyes light up as she enjoys some time with Avalon.

I didn’t miss the fact that Avalon looked at me every five or so minutes. Almost like he is nervous that I would leave him alone with her. I roll my eyes at him each time. I wouldn’t do that to him and deep down he knows that. I love Avalon too much to disrespect him in that way. I know he isn’t ready to be alone with her yet.

I sigh and look at them. “Avalon! Fawn! We have dinner reservations in like thirty minutes. You two should come back over to get those skates off.”

Fawn starts to laugh, and Avalon flips me off causing her to laugh even more. I roll my eyes at them. I am just glad that they both start to come back. Me too!

I know you are, Major. I shake my head at my damn panthera. Goddess, help me with him. I don’t know what I would do without him, but most of the time I don’t know what I am going to do with him. But I would never wish for a different panthera.