Magically entwined

Part wolf and something else

** Rainy's POV **

Its tea time, and King Felix and Queen Sophie have insisted that there be a small banquet at the Demorian palace in honour of their new guests. It seems a bit much, but I suppose some of us will be fighting their war - the least they can do is learn our names and feed us. Since tonight's all about getting to know everyone and signifying an allegiance to the crown, the Royals sit at one end of the preposterously long table, and I - as the somewhat self-proclaimed leader of the sanctuary - sit at the head of the opposite end.

"Is it just me, or do the king and queen keep staring at me?" I ask Hunter.

He glances over. "Yep, definitely staring. But then i'd also be staring at the girl who brought a bunch of knives to a royal dinner".

I kicked him, very unsubtly, underneath the table. "Hey, it's better to be prepared for an ambush than unprepared. And i'm just saying - a bunch of posh people in fancy dresses and suits, eating hors d'oeuvres are pretty easy targets".

"It's a shame you have to rely on your weapons so much, but then I suppose we don't all have the brawn and pure strength that I do" Hunter smirks, flexing his muscles.

I roll my eyes - He is impossible. I try to eat something, but just end up pushing the food around on my plate. Cella and Hunter are deep in conversation, but it all just sounds like white noise to me at the current moment. As charming and goofy as he is, Hunter can be a very thoughtful and serious person when the moment arises. In a fight, there's no one I'd rather have watching my back. Cella on the other hand is very ... emotionally supportive. She's training in medicine and enjoys looking after those she can, always wanting the best for people. She always has good intentions, but they don't always come across the way she intends them to. And these are usually my two favourite person in the world, apart from Rylie of course. But i'm a little preoccupied with worrying about why the king and queen are staring at me to enjoy their company. It's not until the table vibrates slightly from Cella kicking Hunter under it that I bring my attention back.

"Since when did females become so aggressive?!" Hunter says, faking a wounded expression.

"You totally deserved it and you know it" retorts Cella.

"You two pack it in! I'm the only one allowed to beat up Hunter, he goes easy on you! This is supposed to be a fancy gathering and fancy people do not kick people under tables". I whisper at them under my breath.

"But you kicked him fir-"

"Never happened. Don't remember it. And in the event that I did in fact kick him, he probably deserved i-"

At that moment, Hunter coughs loudly and gestures for me look up. I notice there's a hand on my shoulder, covered up to the wrist in lace and all of the fingers sport rare jewels embedded into rings. The king is trying to get my attention!

"Miss Rainy, do you have a moment?" he asks.

"Of course your highness, excuse my rudeness." I say, excusing myself from table. I follow King Felix and Queen Sophie to a side room, and find myself sitting on a plush velvet couch opposite them. The room has a very stately feel to it, with marble pillars dotted here and there, an ornate rug covers almost the entire length of the floor, and there's a grand piano in the corner. I can't held but feel just a tad under dressed.

"Well my dear you seem to know a fine group of people indeed. They've only been in their new positions for a few hours today, but our pre-existing staff have already informed us that they've been doing a grand job and have been a tremendous help. They wish they'd had this sort of help sooner!" says Queen Sophie, clapping her hands together.

"Well i'm glad we're able to live up to your standards ma'am. You've shown us all great hospitality, and we could never possibly repay you."

"Nonsense dear! Your efforts are more than enough! I'm positive that in the coming weeks we'll be more than prepared for whatever Roman is planning. You and friends were just what we needed!".

Before I can speak, the king himself begins to talk.

"Your friends are indeed a great help to us. But more importantly, we're interested in you, Rainy, and we have a more urgent matter to discuss. We must apologise for staring at you, but there is a reason for it." he clears his throat before carrying on. "Many years ago, when we were your age even, there was a person we knew, and she looked incredibly alike to you."

The queen carried on: "She was our best friend, and we loved her very very dearly. We never thought we'd see her face again, so it took us by surprise to see you standing there when you arrived - you really are her spitting image."

"We still weren't entirely sure of course, crazy coincidences do happen. But then Jax told us your last name was Dennison, and it confirmed our suspicions. Our friend's name was Nevaeh Summers, and she was in love with a man called Elliott Dennison. After many happy years together they had a gorgeous little girl, but sadly Nevaeh didn't survive the labour. As she'd passed, we never thought we'd see her again."

My heart was beating out of my chest, and I was shaking. I was in complete shock, and I could not get my body to cooperate with me.

"But she's here right now Rainy, she's you. You are the daughter of Elliott Dennison and Nevaeh summers. And Rainy we are so happy to meet you. Nevaeh was a dear friend to us, and we are so sorry you never had the chance to meet her. I know you were probably never looking for answers about her, and definitely didn't expect to find any here. But if there is anything you would like to know, we will try to help as best as we can. We owe it to her, to look after you." finished Queen Sophie, and she takes my hand in hers.

I had no idea what to say, what to think, what to do. My father had told me my mothers name and what happened to her, but he just couldn't talk about her without getting choked up, so I let it lie. He was important to me, and I didn't want to spend the time I had with him pestering him with questions that would make him feel upset or inadequate. But I had always been a curious person by nature, and I wanted to know about the person I apparently looked so much like. Luckily, I didn't have to speak right in this moment though -

"We'll give you time to collect your thoughts. The offer always stands - if you have a question about your mother or any part of your history we will always be available to assist if we can. But there is one thing we think you should know, because you have a lot of hidden potential Rainy. If we don't tell you this, we think we'd be doing your mother a great dishonour."

It was Queen Sophie who then spoke the words that would plague my mind for a while.

"Your mother, Nevaeh Summers, was one of the most powerful witches we have ever known. By relation, we believe that you too may possess the ability to harness magic."