Frost Bite

Chapter Six.

Blythe.

The sun had long since set and people were no longer filling the Courtyard by the time I reached it. The door to the armory was still slightly open and an orange hue was coming from the inside. The sound of a hammer meeting steel had been replaced by the crackling of a fire. I slipped in through the door and came to a stop at the figure sitting in a chair with his bare back towards me, facing the fire. His hair was a mess from having ran his fingers through it too many times and his shoulders were slightly hunched with his hands clutched together between his parted legs. I stopped dead in my tracks, my wolf beginning to stir restlessly in the depths of my mind "Aron" I breathed into the cold, watching his back muscles stiffen as he turned to glance back at me from over his shoulder. He was wild, like the lands and forests I had been roaming all my life, he was free like the birds that took flight from tree tops in early winter but he was also unpredictable, like a storm approaching over the vast sea. He stayed silent, the light of the fire dancing across his features and crooked nose from having been broken a few times. I couldn't take the distance anymore and moved towards him, feet dancing across the straw and dirt as he stood to meet me. I paused again, a foot away from him this time, my hand fiddling with the top button of his coat. There was a raging war inside of me, one where I circled my wolf and she snapped at me but not even my burning skin or trembling body from the dull ache could stop me from crashing into him. My hands moved to cup the sides of his face, my lips colliding with his in what started as a slow, loving exchange but turned into a blazing fire of passion the moment his hands gripped my hips and pulled me into him. He deepened the kiss, his tongue dancing with mine, running across my canines while one of his hands roamed lower, tracing the back of my thigh, up beneath the material of his coat and to my rear. I gasped, eyes half closed when his hand gripped the skin there, pinching and squeezing until bruises would form on a normal human woman. His teeth bit my lower lip, pulling it and finally letting go to bend down, his arms around me to pick me up until I was looming over him, claws dragging across his skin with a need to bite into it at the place where his neck met his shoulder. He carried me over to the cement platform in the middle of the room where his father had been hammering the metal before and laid me down onto it. His hands gripped my calved and dragged my body closer to his until his groin and my core met with a hard crash. I moaned at the contact even if it was separated by his pants and reached up, seducing him to lean over me until I could run my tongue along the shell of his ear and nip at the skin behind it "Please" I whispered, breathlessly. I wanted him, I needed him. He hurried to tear the coat from my body but stopped, the hunger in his eyes turning to anger when he noticed the necklace that dangled from my neck. He tore himself away from me, despite my protests and turned to run a hand over his face, his body glistening with sweat in the light of the fire "Aron?" I questioned, sitting up on the platform, my body naked and exposed to his eyes but he refused to look at me. There was something wrong. I got up from the platform and went to him but he avoided me, moving away when I would near "You need to leave" he announced, grabbing for his sleeveless shirt and tossing it in my direction. I caught it but stood stunned, confusion written clear across my face. I thought he wanted me like I wanted him. I tried again to get closer to him "What did I do wrong?" I asked in a gentle tone, wanting him to confide in me, to tell me why he was rejecting me. He pulled his arm away from my hands as if I had burnt him and turned on me with an insane look in his eyes, madness swirled with jealousy and rage "You're not mine, you're his!" my wolf cackled in the back of my mind, almost mocking me at his words, at the way he phrased them. Did he know about the mate bond? Did he think that I cared for the King? I was a strong woman, strong enough to take down an entire army is need be but in that moment I could feel my eyes start to sting with frustration and pain. My entire body felt like it was being torn to pieces from just being there with him yet there I was, enduring that pain just to kiss him, to touch him and he was pushing me away "Blythe" a single tear, silent and haunting rolled down the side of my face but I wiped it away as quickly as it did, pushing all that hurt down into the darkness as I turned and tugged the shirt on over my head. His hand moved to touch me but he paused and I had had enough. I left the armory, my strides turning into a run as soon as my feet made contact with the snow. They carried me into the castle, down the hall and to the West wing where, on one of the staircases, I felt like collapsing, like screaming from the pain that I felt. My hand gripped the wall while the other cupped one eye. They were squeezed shut, fighting off the tears and willing my breathing to calm down when a voice reached out to me "Are you alright?"

Aron.

I wanted to take her right there in that armory, on that platform and when she whimpered a beg, I lost it. I tore at my own coat, the buttons flying across the room to expose her naked form, one I had seen a few times prior to that moment but still managed to make my stomach tighten and my groin stir. I took in her spread legs, her center pressed up against me, her navel and her breasts that were big enough to fill my hand. It was her neck that forced me to stop, the thing around it that gleamed in the light, it's sapphire eyes blinking almost tauntingly at me. The image of her wrapped in his arms came to me, of how she looked at him and calmed down by his touch. It enraged me that she would cling to the necklace as if it were her very life, almost as if she were clinging to him. I turned away from her, my mind racing as I ran a hand over my face to try and calm down. He was a King, the King of all four of the Realms within the continent of Myres and I was just his faithful dog, his Huntsman, forced to do his bidding. I was a peasant and peasants should not mess with the spoils of a King "Aron?" her voice was small, laced with confusion as she sat up on the platform, hair a mess and eyebrows furrowed with so many questions hidden in her dark blue eyes. I ignored her and went to retrieve my white shirt when she moved towards me. I tossed it at her and she caught it, pressing it to her chest to cover up herself as she walked to where I was standing near the fire "What did I do wrong?" she pleaded with me, her eyes searching for my face but I couldn't bring myself to look at her. She did nothing wrong, it was the fact that she was so beautiful that even the King wanted her for himself. She tried to reach for my arm, her fingers brushing over my skin for a split second before I tore away from her "You're not mine, you're his!" the words escaped me long prior to me realizing what I had said. I had expected her to be the usual stubborn and playful Blythe, to turn around and walk away with a grin on her lips and eyes accepting my challenge but instead they filled with tears in the glow of that orange light. She looked at me, really looked at me. No one had ever looked at me like that in my entire life "Blythe" I whispered faintly, moving to touch her but I paused when his face laughed right back at me. A single tear ran down the side of her face, quickly to be wiped away as she shook her head, turned and tugged my shirt onto her body. It was too big for her and on the sides were the sleeves would normally be you could see the sides of her breasts peeking through. She left, taking quick strides to the door and without so much as a glance back she disappeared into the night. My hands shook at my sides and I balled them into fists, striking the wooden ball beside the hearth once before I fell back into the chair I had been sitting in when she came to the armory.

Blythe.

"Are you alright?" it was a nobleman's voice, a voice very similar to that of King Nixtoni but not as dominant nor as strong. I lowered my hand from my face and turned to look up at the man that stood at the top of the stairs I was halfway crumpled on, leaning against the wall. Prince Zane was watching me with his light blue eyes, dressed in black with gold detailing and a head of golden blonde hair that was cropped short "My Prince" I slid down the wall to one knee and bowed my head to show my respect towards him. He was not the King but he was not my mate either which demanded some formality. He chuckled as he descended the steps to where I was and bent down to lift my chin, gently, calmly "You can pardon the formalities" he stated, his hand dropping back to his side when he stood upright again "After all, you look like you're in need of some comforting" I stood, managing a small smile that barely graced my eyes. There were no more tears left in my eyes but they were red and puffy and my corners still looked wet "It is nothing to worry about, my Prince" Zane's hands moved to fold themselves neatly behind his back, eyes of their mother staring back at me and causing Nixon's words to repeat themselves in the depths of my mind 'It used to belong to my mother before she passed'. The cold silver of the necklace bit into my skin "If you insist, I will be in the library if you feel like talking" he moved past me and headed down the steps when I realized something. My skin wasn't burning, my heart not aching, my legs not trembling. I wasn't in any type of pain around the Prince like I was when I was around Nixon and Aron. It was comforting to have someone like that, that could make me feel normal "My Prince" I called down to him. He stopped at the foot of the stairs and looked back up at me, his eyes holding a knowing gleam in them. I wasn't sure what I was planning on saying but the words slipped past my lips before I could stop them "Would you mind if I joined you?" he was younger than the King but looked to be far more mature when he smiled faintly at me and turned to head down the hallway, calling after him when he continued on "Come along!"

Zane.

She sat on one of the many desks, her bare legs dangling over the edge as she paged through a random book, hair neatly tucked back behind her ear as her eyes scanned the words with minimal interest. The shirt she wore was old and worn and hug down to just above her knees but went up to her neck. The sides were sleeveless which meant that the sides of her breasts were visible through the slits and the thin material did little to hide her pert n*****s in the cold air of the castle Library. She noticed that I was starring at her from across the room from under the cover of her hair and smiled lightly, her canines seeming whiter in the faint glow of the candles "You seem happier" I said, turning back to the book I held open in my hand, finger running across the old worn pages to read the first sentence that was scribbled onto it in hand written, black ink. She closed her own book and hopped off the desk, feet touching the ground with toes pointed downward "I am" she muttered, pushing her body away from the desk and giving a spin so that she was at my side, her arms folded behind her back as she looked down at the book I was busy reading. Her eyes scanned the page for a few moments then she turned her gaze onto me when I spoke again "Tell me about yourself" I insisted, closing the book with one hand and tossing it aside into the pile that was already starting to form on the desk. She unwound her arms and used one to grip the edge of the desk as she slightly tilted her head to the side "About myself?" she questioned, the shadows from the candles dancing across her face, legs and arms. I could see the claws on her fingertips dancing across the tabletop while she waited for my reply "Yes, after all, you are the very reason I'm here in the first place" I informed, motioning to the shelves of books that stood like pillars around us. Her head turned to look down at the books I had been reading, eyes scanning the titles and old hand bound leather. She knew that I had been studying up on wolves ever since she had laid eyes on the page I had been reading. I studied her, noticing that she looked livelier, almost alive compared to the daylight hours as if she had just woken up "What do I have to do with any of it?" she asked, playing dumb. I turned to lean back against the desk, crossing my arms over my chest as I gazed down at her since I stood at nearly a head taller than her. My head tilted back, looking up at the painted ceiling overhead although it seemed pitch black that far up at night. It hovered at least five stories above us "I trust you know that I, along with my brothers are members of the Royal Court" it was common sense and something she already knew as she nodded, reaching for one of the books on the desk, leafing through it while I continued to speak, steeling glances in her direction every now and then "I am in charge of the Royal Armada which means that I am in charge of you, it's new Commander" I turned to face her, hand placed palm down on the surface of the desk as I leaned across to get closer to her, my nose nearly brushing up against her cheek while she continued paging through the book. She hummed, unaffected by the close proximity "Therefor it is my job to learn as much about you as possible" I concluded, my hand gripping the book and slipping it out from under her index finger. She looked up at me, eyes snapping silently at me when she realized that her lips were mere inches away from mine. Her gaze flickered down to my lips and then she was gone, making her way around the desk to stand behind it with both hands propped flat onto its top "Then ask and you shall know" her cryptic words lead me to believe that she was in the mood to play games so I humored her, a faint grin slipping onto my lips when she shot me a daring glance, one that no normal commoner would dare give their first Prince. I turned, leaning across the desk to meet her head on "What is a wolf exactly?"

Blythe.

Prince Zane was not at all what i was expecting. He was a man who knew how to sway a woman with words, a dangerous man if he wanted to be. He wasn't as rough and wild as Aron, nor was he as dominant and powerful as Nixtoni but he was sly and cunning, a charmer by trait. He leaned across the desk and gazed into my eyes with a look that playfully dared me to come closer. I smiled and turned my back to him, leaning back against the wooden surface with my hands gripping the edges of either side beside me. This man was one of seduction and I would not rise to the bate "A wolf is a single being made up of two separate souls" I began, turning my head to glance back at him from over my shoulder. It was late and the hands on the old grandfather clock read close to midnight. The light of the candles flickered in his light blue eyes, making them seem as if they were on fire "That of a wolf and that of a human" my eyes glowed a brighter blue when the word 'wolf' left my lips. She stirred inside me at the mention of her, like a beast who had been in a deep slumber but was provoked to roll over onto her side with a deep rumble in her chest "We are two entirely different beings that inhabit one body, a body able to shift from a wolf to a human on will" I turned my head away to stare into the darkness, able to make out every detail of the black world around me through my eyes that could still see at night. I could hear the steady beating of his heart in hid rib cage, the blood pumping through his veins and his breathing however low it may be "But even though we share the same body-." I paused, my hands tightening on the edge of the desk, claws digging into the wood with little care as who would see the markings or be tasked with replacing the table. My mind flickered from Aron to Nixon as the next words flowed out of me "Our thoughts and emotions are different" silence fell around me, the two faces in my sights mashing together as I blinked to find tables stacked with books, shelves that lined the walls and candles burning in the dead of night. I was no longer in that armory, on that platform with Aron on top of me. I was no longer in that bed Chamber with Nixtoni hovering over me, his hand gripping my chin and his lips inches away from mine "What transpired in the throne room?" his question was something I had been expecting but not from him, rather from his brother or Aron. It was hard to explain to someone who had not been born a wolf what I had happened but I would try "There is a thin line that separates us, a thread strung between control and inhumanity" I turned to look at him, my hair flowing around me from the movement, catching the light and framing my face. Zane was just as handsome as Nixon despite the gaping difference between their appearances, whereas Aron was gruff and unpredictable which made him just as alluring, not that he wasn't attractive "I am the control and she is the rogue within me" I raised my hand to grip at the material of the shirt that hovered over my chest, my fingers tugging at the fabric as my eyes gazed aimlessly down at the desk that stood a foot or so in front of me "If I am threatened she tends to take control and we become dangerous" I could feel the former Commander's armored boot striking my body from below, the toe digging into my rib cage and drawing the air from my lungs as I collapsed onto the marble flooring. I could feel my heartbeat ringing in my ears as she clawed her way to the surface, forcefully taking control over my body, our body "Think of it as a defense mechanism" I concluded, my hand dropping back to my side as I looked up at him, his eyes never having strayed from my form. He finally nodded, standing upright with his arms at his sides when I was finished speaking. There were many questions hidden in his eyes but there was also understanding "I read something earlier-." he began to say, his hand motioning to the books splayed out before me. My eyes darted down to them and I knew what question was next to come from the page I had scanned. A small, sad smile touched my lips "Can you explain to me the concept of mates?" my eyes drooped slightly with joyful agony mixing in their irises like a never ending storm, tangling together like the flames of a fire. I watched the flickering of the candle light, my head nodding once, slowly, almost unsure. The concept was something beautiful to my kind, something treasured and valued. It was what I had been taught ever since I was a little girl yet there I was wishing that I could change the path Selene, the goddess of the moon, had chosen for me "To you mates would be a husband and wife" I could feel my mind searching for ways to explain it as I spoke, cautiously. My wolf howled in the back of my mind, her cry of agony and pain enough to cause my heart to ache as an image of Nixtoni flickered before my eyes, in the flame of the candle "It is an intimate bond between two beings except far stronger than that of what humans are capable of" my feet began to move on their own accord, placing one foot before the other, leading me around the desk until I stood in front of Zane, my hand placed down on the desk as I continued to look down "Mates are linked by their souls, each pair hand chosen by Selene herself" his fists balled at his sides when I neared almost as if the proximity was too much for him to handle. I gave a sad smile, a brief twitch of my lips "If mates choose to accept each other-." my eyes lifted from the ground to meet his as my hand dragged along the surface, moving to be placed palm down on the left side of his chest "Then they can feel each others' emotions, they can share their thoughts and pain" the words were almost a whisper as I spoke them, my hand slipping down his chest until it fell limp at my sides, balling when Aron's face came to mind, his eyes filled with anger causing my heart to shatter in my chest, his rejection ringing in my ears 'You're not mine, you're his!' "It is truly a beautiful bond" Zane's hand moved, knuckles brushing across my cheek and temple to gently cup the side of my face. The gold from his rings were cool against my skin as he bent his head down, eyes searching mine for a moment. I wasn't sure what he was going to do, whether it was him trying to seduce me or not but instead of kissing me, instead of touching me, he whispered "But if it causes you pain then is it really love?" he knew what I was feeling, he could see the conflict in my eyes which was more than I could say for both Nixon and Aron. He stood upright and let go of my face, turning to stack the books on the desk into a neat pile then picked the candle holder up, holding it in between us "It's getting late, please allow me to escort you back to your Cambers" who was this man? How did he see right through me? How was it possible for him to know exactly what to say and when to say it? I stood staring at him, my lips slightly parted, my body free of pain in his presence and mind racing with questions.