The Goddess and her Sleuth Hound

How Could This Happen?

October 18th, 2020 10:17 am

Adrian

Adrian groaned, his body aching from falling asleep in the old arm chair. He couldn't believe he'd fallen asleep, no one ever sat in this stiff old thing. Sitting up with a gasp at the pins and needles in his very asleep left foot, Adrian began to curse himself. Why the f**k had he put his leg over the arm like that?

The small giggle from the entry way to the kitchen brought his head up, the quick movement pulling at a kink in his neck.

"s**t!", he yelped, reaching up to put a hand to the back of his neck. Rubbing the spot tenderly he looked at the still giggling Persephonie, her body leaned against the arch of the door. "Something funny, Sephi?"

"I tried to wake you up earlier, but boy, you were not moving. I was gonna see if you wanted to move to the couch, but since you didn't wanna get up and move I figured I'd make some breakfast since everyone else ate hours ago.", she disappeared into the kitchen with those last words. Luckily, she couldn't hear the growl of his stomach from in there; the mention of food making him suddenly ravenous. Seph walked back into the room, a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon in hand. "I heard that.", the laughter in her voice making him smile. She had such an amazing laugh; the sound was so musical and total at odds with serious woman Seph was.

 As Persephonie walked toward the arm chair Adrian straightened, reaching his hand out to take the plate from her. Once he'd taken it, she reached into her back pocket, her hand coming back with a small bottle of his favorite Cholula hot sauce. Persephonie held it out to him with a smile, looking pleased with herself for having remembered. It normally would have gotten on his nerves, that cocky little grin; but he was smiling back. He said a soft thanks, looking down at his plate to find the fork stuck beneath the eggs. 

She continued to stand there as he balanced the plate on his knees, attempting to open the hot sauce as quickly as possible so he could dig in and eat some of the crispy bacon. "You still standing there for a reason, Seph?', his question went unanswered. Twisting the lid onto the bottle he looked up at her once again, her eyes had glazed over a bit and she was just staring, looking down at nothing in particular. 

Adrian had never set a plate of food down so quickly, the glass clattering as he quickly stood to place his hands on her biceps. She was so very close, the smell of warm cinnamon and amber filling his senses and driving the already mated beast within him crazy. He had to tamp down on the sudden urge to grab her and pull her close, his need to be sure was alright at the forefront of his mind.

"Persephonie.", his voice was as soft as he could manage. "Persephonie, I need you to answer me, hon. Are you okay? Do you need to sit down?"

Persephonie

"Persephonie?"

She could only vaguely hear Adrian speaking, her vision going hazy. She could smell it, where was it coming from? The scent of Justin's blood was faint, almost hidden by Arian's earthy aroma.

"I can smell him, Di. I can smell him. Where is it coming from?", she sounded hysterical. Looking around frantically she began to draw the air in deep through her nose. "Where is the smell coming from, Adrian?!"

"Persephonie, Seph!", Adrian had started shaking her gently, forcing her eyes back up to his. "They had to move his body, Seph. I'm sure the men that had to help brought the scent home with them. I know it's hard, but you have to breathe. You need to calm yourself."

Persephonie was taken aback at herself. Where was her head? She was the future leader of this pack and she couldn't even think straight. Men, their men, had had to carry the remains of that poor boy out of the woods. They had to clean that horrible scene up so no humans stumbled upon the blood. It was sobering, thinking of them. And where had she been? In the damned pack house, with Adrian coddling her as if she were a puppy.

Suddenly disgusted with herself it was as if she were waking up from a bad dream. The haze within her mind dissipating as the realization of her actions struck her to her core.

Persephonie shook her head, looking up into Adrian's confused expression with a sigh, "I'm so sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me. I shouldn't be putting this all on you. I'm supposed to be so much better than this."

As she went to pull back Adrian caught her again by her biceps, his large hands gripping her firmly. "You aren't putting anything on me, Seph. That was some traumatic s**t and I'm sorry I acted that way. You have the right to be just as f****d up by what we saw as everyone else is. Knowing that I needed to make sure you were okay is the only thing that has kept me from losing my s**t with you."

Adrian's sigh was long before he let her go and run his fingers through his curls. It was hard not to giggle as his finger got caught up in a small tangle, the pull causing the stand to stand up straighter than the rest. As he smiled at her giggle she sobered, "I am still sorry all the same. I know my father has had to do a lot without me, and he didn't deserve that. I understand shock, but it doesn't help me to feel ay less guilty that he has had to be alone throughout this. That while he and our men were out searching and taking care of that gruesome scene, while he had to share the news with Justin's parents, I've been here being coddled like a freshly whelped pup."

Her father's voice made her head whip around, "Stop right there. I don't know want to hear any more of that bullshit." He was walking toward her, his large frame making the floorboards squeak. No matter how much she grew, how much she towered over most of the females and males of their pack, her father would forever be able to make her feel small. As he came to a stop in front of her she felt like a little girl again, having to tilt her head back to look him in the eye. "Your strength is second only to your mother, may she rest with the Goddess, and I will hear no more of how you have let me down. All I asked the Moon Goddess for as I completed each of those things last night is that my daughter be okay. And that nothing ever take her from me in such a way. The scream of loss let out by that boy's mother will be burned into my memory forever."

As Tristan finished he pulled Persephonie close, hugging her closer than ever before. She could do nothing but wrap her arms around him, having only heard such pain in his voice when she spoke of her mother.

"Nothing will ever be able to take me from you, Daddy. There's nothing in this world strong enough."