The Chosen

CHAPTER 2: CARPE DIEM

  SOREN’S POV

 Today I couldn’t focus on anything or anyone. I have been a nervous mess ever since River agreed to spend the day with me. To be honest I didn’t think she would accept my invitation, I was just trying my luck and lo behold-it worked out.

“…your highness?” I heard a whisper at the back of my mind.

“Prince Soren!” I heard someone yelling. Yelling- why yelling? Oh, Soren-that’s my name.

“Huh? What? What happened?” I snapped out of my haze while the hand that was supporting my head slipped from my cheek and I nearly face-planted on the table. I had been sitting here for the past one hour listening to their drivel until my mind wandered off to my mysterious River. When I lifted my head a room full of casters, elves, fairies, vampires, witches, and werewolves were staring right at me. This was a meeting of ‘unifying the species’, supposedly. But I recognised it for what it was-a coup. The humans call it campaigning; I call it overthrowing. Lady Eleanor for the past four years has been gathering us together like this, pointing out her niece’s inability to lead. From what I have observed, these gatherings are unnecessary. She already has the wolves, vampires and the council of casters on her side. The witches and the fairies where inconsequential since the witches will do as the werewolves dictate and the fairies will likewise follow whatever I say.

“I realise these meetings might seem tedious to you sire but if you would indulge us with your attention, it would be greatly appreciated.” I looked straight into the red eyes of Duke Egan; he was the second in command of the vampires and I gave him a curt nod.

“As I was saying, Lady Eleanor makes a good point; the child is weak and knows nothing about the kingdom or its politics. She is merely royalty by name, what is it that she can offer us? Has she bothered to verse herself with the traditions of our people much less with the happenings in our territories? For example does she know that your land Alpha Wright is shrinking because the humans keep tearing down your lands for their own amusement? Or you Prince Soren, I heard about the issue with the humans poisoning your rivers with their toxic waste. Or my people for example, we live in the shadows feeding on lowly animals because their human hunters have deemed us leeches that are not worthy of life. How many more injustices must we suffer before we acknowledge the fact that she is simply unworthy?”

“Must we all go extinct before we take act…?” Alpha King Arkadi added in an attempt to support his co-conspirator.

“Enough!” I bellowed as I slammed my fist on the table cutting him off and startling everyone else.

“This is heresy! And I will not be part of it. We are her subjects and if we have complaints or concerns then we raise them up with her, not behind her back like filthy conspirators.” I simply could not endure anymore of the rubbish pouring out of his mouth. And I certainly could not stomach anymore of the others’ complaisance. If we are unsatisfied with River’s leadership then it is her we must talk to, not among ourselves plotting her demise like spineless cowards. And if River sees fit then she herself should be left to decide to step down. Until then I will support her in whatever way possible and in whatever capacity she accords me. Up until the moment I spoke up I had noticed that Lady Eleanor’s lips were slightly curved up into a rather unnoticeable smirk if you were not paying enough attention. But small as it was I saw it, more than that I felt it; her elation-it almost flowed into me in droves.

“But…” Lady Eleanor attempted to cajole me. But I had seen and heard enough.

“But; nothing!” I interrupted her attempt at calming me down.

“I have heard enough to make these elven ears flame ablaze with mortification and bile. You all can stay if you wish but I will not lower myself to such contemptible standards.” As I stood up to leave it was no surprise that Lady Sanaa, head of the fairies stood up to leave. What no one saw coming however was Christopher, the representative of the witches stand up as well.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Alpha Lincoln sneered with his flimsy alpha aura releasing in the room.

“I may not hold much power in this room but I do know the difference between right and wrong.” Was all Christopher supplied before looking at me and gesturing to the exit with his hand. By the time we left the council hall I was seething. The blood in my veins was boiling, I needed to hit something. The gall of that woman, attempting to make ME commit treason! She obviously miscalculated; neither I nor the people of Huldra will support her. Even if I had no romantic feelings toward River; I would never do such a thing. River - just thinking about her calmed me down some. But that woman, Lady Eleanor, something must be done about her before it is too late. I knew something was off about her from the moment I met her. I was just sixteen years old. I was on the training grounds with Kieran my younger brother. He was only thirteen at the time. I was sparring with him because his body was just too small for me to trust anyone else not to hurt him if they sparred with him. I was after all his big brother and it was my duty to protect him. And unlike him or my other family members I was rather tall and I had filled out for someone my age – or so I was told. With our bo staffs I continued to test his strengths and point out his weaknesses. I was a natural fighter and teacher; I was observant, patient, fast, light on my feet and quick to think. We got to a point where we were just standing and I was telling Kieran where he should improve when all of a sudden I felt a little tug in my mind and my heart. I blinked twice thinking that I had just imagined it. Then I felt it again, stronger than the first time. It knocked me right off my feet making me kneel down on one leg while I shifted my body weight to lean on my staff. It was a tug at first, then a feeling – one of admiration. But I knew it wasn’t my admiration, no offense to anyone but the only person I admired was my father. And then I felt immense worry. All at once like a violent storm I could feel everything, my head felt like an overloading operating system and my heart felt like a balloon getting pumped with too much air. I couldn’t hold on to a single coherent thought and I couldn’t breathe. Everything hurt to a point where I couldn’t hold it in anymore. I let out a scream so intense it sounded more like a roar than a scream and I doubled over on the ground writhing in pain. I only remember three clear things about that moment. The first one being the scream I let out was so powerful it levelled the entire training arena and knocked everyone out cold. The second was a lady I did not recognise, she hurried to me, lifted my head and laid it on her thighs and she put her forehead on mine as she willed me to sleep. The third was Eleanor’s eyes leching over me like I was a piece of meat and she was a hungry beast before I was out like a light. When I came to I was introduced to Lady Eleanor and since then she has been like the bad habit I just can’t seem to shake. She shows up on our lands uninvited with no substantial business or reason, and demands for my presence like I am her property. I looked down on my soapy hands trying to rid myself of the mere thought of that wretched wench that calls herself Eleanor so I could focus on my time with River. Though my mind had been plagued, my body was moving mechanically on its own as if it knew it would be in close proximity with River. Every nanosecond that passed I grew anxious and excited all at once.  I even managed to get dressed without realizing what I was doing. I only became self-aware as I was walking to the east wing of the palace where her suite was. Before I knew it – I was standing at her front door about to ring the doorbell. But before I could do anything the door swung open revealing no one at all. I peeked inside to see if there was anyone there but I could see no one. I stepped inside cautiously even though I knew that there was no danger. I moved from the foyer, passed the stairs on my right and turned left to her living room. It was a dim lighted room but it was also warm and cosy. It wasn’t fancy, gaudy or extravagant – on the contrary it felt like a home. I walked further into the room, more specifically to the wall facing me. There were two decorations that interested me. It was three planks mounted together, each one looking taller than the other. At the bottom there was a wooden shelf that ran across all three planks. And as you looked up there were three smaller shelves overlapping on just two of the planks. Each of the planks had candles on them but the bottom shelves also had small golden boxes with intricate designs on them. At the centre of the wall, in-between the plank decorations was a large painting of two wolf pups in the snow, a black pup and a white pup. The black pup had striking blue eyes and was hovering over the white pup as if to protect it from any danger. As I was turning around to explore some more I suddenly felt all the hairs on my body stand to attention as if electrically charged. I took a deep breath to calm my drumming heart and turned around.  I saw the most curious and breath-taking hazel eyes staring back at me. She had let her chestnut hair down today and along with her bangs it framed her oval shaped face to perfection. Her heart shaped lips were tinted with a light pink lip gloss and I swear my feet nearly ran to her so I could devour them. She wore a white sun dress which ended mid-thigh. She wore an emerald pendant and dark green ankle boots. Kill me now, because I don’t know how I’m supposed to keep my hands to myself when she looks like that.

“…Your highness?” and her melodious voice that is just music to my ears. Wait, what?

“I uh...i mean you uh…and uh…ahem…well uh…I just uh…huh?” I believe I've just been reduced to a hormonal teenage blubbering mess.

“Your highness, are you alright? We can cancel today’s plans if you are unwell.” Amusement, is that amusement I hear in her voice? Well that’s new. After four years of curt nods and scattered hellos here and there I finally got an actual emotion from her. I’m not complaining though, I mean whatever mojo these people put in the water today I hope they keep it up. And it’s not just in her voice either; it is her eyes and her aura. There’s just something different about her. It is like there is a c***k in her otherwise impenetrable wall. Shoot! She wants to cancel and I can’t let that happen.

“NO! I am perfectly fine.” I quickly clarified with an unusually high pitch tone.

“And please call me Soren.” I added. Thankfully my voice was normal this time. She nodded her head and then she walked slowly to me, stood on her tippy toes and kissed my cheek. My hand automatically lifted up and touched the spot where she had kissed. I could not believe what was happening. But if today she is letting down her walls, then I Soren Hildron will make sure they stay down. I swear it.

“Thank you for agreeing to spend the day with me. But I’m curious, why did you do it?” don’t get me wrong or anything, I’m ecstatic about her decision. But I am no fool. For three years straight every time I walk into a room where she is; she leaves. When I greet her she smiles, gives me a curt nod and then she leaves. When she is told I am coming she purposefully makes herself unavailable. She refuses to come to Huldra territory. And this morning when I saw her in the palace drawing room playing the piano, I couldn’t help myself. But when I got near her it just didn’t feel the same. Her aura wasn’t the intoxicating elixir I desperately crave for day and night. And her eyes didn’t carry the same deceiving mischief. River always has an air of mystery around her. She never gives a straight answer to any question. It always feels like what you see isn’t what you get. And even though she is always undoubtedly the smartest person in the room she acts like she is the most oblivious. And where I am concerned she is most definitely the most aloof. So agreeing to a date – not just a date but the whole day with me is suspiciously out of character.

“Interesting, I wonder – why do you think I agreed?” see what I mean? She never gives a straight answer. I narrowed my eyes at her as she gracefully sat on one of the sofa’s that were facing the wall I was admiring earlier before she came.

“How about this, I will tell you my theory. But I have a condition.”

“A condition?” I could tell she was intrigued. My little bold challenge had piqued her interest. The corners of her mouth moved slightly into an almost smirk but she refused to give anything else away. She gestured with her hand for me to continue.

“Yes a condition. I will tell you how I know if you allow me to ask you some questions and you answer them truthfully.”

“Hmm…” is that all she’s going to say? Hmm? What does hmm mean anyway? Is it a yes, a no or a maybe? And again no clear answer so now we’re back to me reading her expressions since that is all I ever get anyway. She seemed to be thinking, considering my proposal but it didn’t look like she would concede.

“I only have seven questions I need you to answer truthfully. After that any questions I ask you are free to answer as you please.”

“I have a better idea. You tell me your theory. If it is convincing enough you can ask your questions but I will choose which ones to answer. I will also ask you some questions and you will choose which ones to answer. Deal?”

“Yeah, I can work with that.” I said.

“So tell me Soren, why do you think I agreed to today?” she asked me again, her eyes dancing in mischievous delight. Ever since she came into her living room I had been standing next to the wolf painting and she had since taken a seat on the sofa that was facing said painting. I walked over to the sofa and I sat right next to her. I wasn’t happy with how far I was to her so I shifted even closer. I was happy when she didn’t make a move to get away from me.

“It is simple…” I started saying. “The person who agreed to the date was not you. And I am not insinuating that you weren’t yourself emotionally when you agreed. But I am saying that person and this one sitting next to me are two different people, two different bodies.” I whispered that last part out with the sexiest voice I could muster. And it seemed to work because I saw her visibly shiver and I wasn’t even touching her yet. I had to take a deep breath so that I could continue because I was so close to pulling her onto my lap and attacking her lips like a hungry beast.

“You see River, more than anyone else in existence I am aware of you. The closer you are the more my body reacts to you…” I raised my hand and used my index finger to outline the shape of her body. I started from her jaw, down her neck, over her shoulder and all the way down to her arm to her fingers where I lightly intertwined them. Not all the way but just the tips of the fingers. I made sure not to touch her skin when I was outlining, I only wanted to touch the hairs on her body to drive my point across.

“Did you feel that?” she didn’t say anything but I saw the slight nod of her head.

“Just like the sensation I gave to you just now, the hairs on my body stand to attention when I am near you because when you are around all my senses become more in tune to you. My sense of smell adjusts to your scent. My sense of hearing adjusts to your voice. Sometimes you don’t even need to speak, all you have to do is be within certain proximity and I will hear your heart beat even if I am in a room full of people. My body starts to heat up all on its own sometimes to a point where in order to breathe I need to catch your scent or hold your gaze.” She had a knowing look on her face. Like this was not the first time she had been told all of this. But I knew better. I could feel it. It was not that she had heard it all before – she had felt it.

“This morning I couldn’t feel you. But I heard Debussy playing in the drawing room I wanted to know who would be bold enough to play one of your favourite pieces. When I walked in I saw a girl, she had your face but she wasn’t you.”  

 “Ahem…fair is fair. You can ask whatever you want.” She said. But this time the mischief was gone and it was replaced with vulnerability. It seemed that I had stripped off a layer with my brazen honesty. I was beginning to understand why she liked her mischief so much. I moved even closer to her so that our thighs were firmly pressed against each other. I twisted my body slightly and brought my mouth to her ear. I dropped my head a little so my mouth was right under her ear but between her neck and jaw. It was fun – I was having fun at her expense.  “I can hear your heart beating faster and faster, it’s reacting to my every move isn’t it?” I whispered in an octave so low even I didn’t recognise my own voice. But she didn’t respond. She was a stubborn one.

“I can feel the heat from your body increasing and radiating into mine.” I pressed my body against hers gently and painfully slowly but still respectful enough to indicate that I didn’t have ungentlemanly intentions toward her. But she still wouldn’t yield. But her cheeks were starting to colour. That’s when I knew I had her.

“Do I make you nervous River?” I moved my head back a little so our right eyes were facing one another and our right cheeks could feel each other’s every breaths. I was tempted to kiss her right then and there but I knew if I wanted to be her forever I would have to wait until I earned her trust. I wasn’t a saint after all and I still had that problem of her evil aunt trying to get me in her corner and her bed. But I loved this girl more than my own life and I was going to steal her heart.