Frost Bite.

Chapter Six.

Aron.

I went to measure her thigh, half pushing her dress up, half sticking my hands in underneath to get the top of it when the back of my hand brushed across something warm and wet. Blythe gasped, a small sound that reached my ears even before her hand clasped down on my shoulder, claws digging into the exposed flesh and muscle. Pain shot through my arm but it was replaced by a pulse between my legs at her aggressive touch. I quickly moved to place some distance between us and turned my back to her, reading the measurements to my father. He set the charcoal down when Blythe stepped down from the stool and let her dress drape to the floor "What style would you prefer?" my father asked, motioning towards the table as he took the rope from me, wrapping it around one of his hands. She danced across the dirt and hay to glance at the rough sketches that had been drawn in black on the sheet of paper. Her fingertips danced over it, smudging the work "What are you-?" my father began to demand but she ignored him, reaching for the coal to begin scribbling something down on the paper, not bothering to use the measurements as she worked, her white palms quickly turning black. When she was done, she tossed the charcoal aside and tore the piece of paper from the rest, turning and holding it up for us to see "I require something less restricting" she explained. The picture she had drawn was of a two piece armor, the top going down to just below her breasts in a breast plate that was layered in various patterns of metal. The neck and upper part of the breasts was covered in thin chain mail while standard cup caressed the shoulders. The wrists had bands of steel wrapped around them while the hips had a type of skirt that was also layered in metal, similar to that of the top piece. The armored boots only went up to just above the knee area "If I have to shift, I don't want the struggle of removing the armor first" she added, her eyes meeting those of my father. He studied the sketch for a few moments then took it from her, fingers scratching at his white beard as he contemplated her suggestion "Shift?" the question slipped past my lips before I even had the time to process it. Blythe looked up at me, a light smile coating her redder than usual lips while my father stood upright, crossing his muscular arms over his chest "Tell me Aronis, do you know why wolves are called wolves?" I had never met a wolf before Blythe, never really heard stories about them either except that they were strong, blood thirty creatures that had human faces but were far from human. My father only ever used my full name when he was deadly serious. He glanced back at me from over his shoulder "It is because their bodies are able to-." he fell silent when Blythe's hand landed on his shoulder. He turned his head to her and she held out the piece of paper for him to take. He took it with a creased forehead "Let me show him, smith" they watched each other for some time before my father gave a stern nod. He turned to me, shook his head then addressed Blythe once more "You may call me Vern, my lady" she bowed her head slightly in respect then began moving towards the door, pausing only briefly to look back at me with eyes that asked whether I was coming or not. I was unsure but I grabbed my coat from the wall and followed her out into the Courtyard. She lead the way, swerving in and out of men and horses and carts until she reached the back gates that lead out into the forest that was part of the castle grounds. She smiled back at me then began running, kicking her sandals off as she went, almost begging me to hurry after her, like a hunter tracking down a helpless doe. Her hands gripped the skirt of her dress and her hair began to come undone from its braid as she bounced in between the layers of snow. I tugged my coat on and followed her into the wall of trees where she toyed with me, her body dancing around trees and eventually coming to a stop in the middle of it all, looking up at the grey sky in between the dead tree branches. Her back was bare and her grip seemed to tighten on the royal blue material of her dress as I neared, heavy boots crunching in the snow "Promise me something" her voice, a voice rough yet sweet and alluring said, blue eyes looking back at me and glowing brightly like they had when my father had called her out on being a wolf. I stopped dead in my tracks, realizing that she was far more dangerous than I had originally thought. Her hands began to tear the material from her skin, shredding at it as if it was nothing, claws cutting through it like a sword through flesh "Don't be scared" she removed the necklace from her throat and dropped it into the snow once she stood naked before me and began walking away from me. The sound of bones snapping and flesh ripping reached my ears, a sound so sickening that it made my skin tingle with excitement. It wasn't long before she dropped to her knees in the snow, body wringing and mouth gaping as she cried out in pain and agony. I had to clench my teeth and bite my tongue to refrain from wanting to move closer to her. Her hands tore at her skin to reveal grey fur as her spine elongated into what would form a tail. She became a wolf, hands turning into paws, mouth becoming a muzzle, ears stretching to the top of her head. Once her cries and yelps died down, she stood and shook out her fur, a mess of grey, black and white that was thicker than that of a regular wolf and more beautiful in color. Her body began to turn, facing me, one paw being set before the other until she was stood directly in front of me. I barely moved, barely flinched at her appearance or height. She stood taller than I did, the bottom of her head beginning where mine ended. As I gazed up at her, that was when I realized that her eyes had turned black again like they had when we were in the throne room.

Blythe.

My eyes locked onto a figure behind the trees, the figure of a man that stood dressed in black in the snow with his hands stuffed into the pockets of his black dress pants. His black hair was a stark contrast to the white and grey world around us and his green eyes bored into mine from across the small opening in the trees. My eyes turned black the moment his scent touched my senses, the smell of iron, mint and pine overwhelming me and causing my wolf to start stirring in the back of my mind. She began to claw at my mind, her snarls and growls echoing in the back of my head. I lowered my head and began to shake it from side to side, trying to clear it, trying to get her to stop her desperate attempts at escaping, at taking control of my body. I looked up at Aron who stood in front of me, completely oblivious of the person behind him that was driving me insane. My canines ached with longing, a need to taste him, a desire to be close to him. My wolf managed to gain control and began walking forward, her steps, forcing Aron to move to the side and notice the man for the first time. She lowered her head in submission towards him, our skin vibrating, burning with a need for him to touch us. I pushed her aside, one of our eyes turning blue as I watched the man dressed in all black begin to move closer. My legs trembled, pupils dilating as both eyes became blue and I turned to run in the opposite direction, tearing my wolf away from the man. I eventually collapsed in the snow beside the necklace, shifting back to my human form with the sound of bones snapping and skin ripping until I was sat on my knees, back facing towards the man as Aron looked on in silence. I cried out in pain the moment I had finished shifting, canines bared as the sound escaped my lips, half a howl, half a scream of agony. I was at war with my own mind, my own body and it hurt, it hurt worse than any wound I had ever endured. My hands dug into the snow, gripping, clawing at the frost, breathing ragged, heartbeat racing as my eyes flickered from black to blue and back to black. My skin began to sting and my arms wrapped themselves around my torso, clawing, scratching desperately at my sides. I squeezed my eyes shut, upper canines digging into my lower lip causing blood and saliva to drip down into the snow beneath me. My waist, hips and thighs were soaked in my own blood from the wounds I had inflicted to my own body but none of them hurt as much as her trying to tear free of my mind. I sat back on my knees, throwing my head back to stare up at the grey sky, my mouth gaping and eyes wide with a mixture of fear and pain. My breath caught in my throat making it almost impossible to breathe as the intense pain pulsed throughout my head, arms, neck, chest and legs. I was being torn to pieces from the inside out. I was on the brink of passing out, my vision fading, blurring when she finally relented and I collapsed into the snow, gasping for air, coughing violently and trembling from the pain that was starting to subside. My head pounded and my strength was gone, drained from my body as the veins that had risen because of the pain and tension began to fall back into my skin. I was laying in the snow, having fallen to the side, my eyes blinking at the sight in front of me. A silver necklace lay there with a bear pendant that had vibrant sapphire eyes. I was so weak, so tired but somehow I managed to move my arm, hand curling around the necklace as if my life depended on it. Why was I so drawn to it? Why did that necklace mean so much to me? I could hear them, crunching boots in the snow, their heartbeats and breathing as one of them shrugged off a fur coat and the other took it, demanding "Leave us" his voice was so sweet, so alluring like a siren's song almost stringing my mind and body along with it. Aron left the open patch of woods and headed back in the direction of the castle as the second man moved closer to me. Each step was like a hammer to my skull, beating in my ears. My wolf stirred and I squeezed my eyes shut, praying that she wouldn't try to fight me again. I knew that if she did i would loose control and be unable to stop her. He loomed over me, my eyes opening to glance at him from out of the corner of my eyes. I couldn't even manage moving my head to look at him as he draped the coat over my naked body and moved to kneel down in front of me. My eyes could hardly focus but was able to get a clear glimpse of his face. He was so handsome, I wanted to reach out and touch him, to be close to him to feel safe in his arms but an image of Aron flashed before my eyes almost as if trying to remind myself that my wolf wanted the man before me and I did not. My body tensed again, a pain shooting through me once more that caused a strangled cry to come from my lips. The man reached out a hand and brushed a stray strand of hair back behind my ear, at his touch the pain vanished, replaced by sparks of pleasure that coursed through me "Be still" his voice whispered as my eyes began to droop from the sheer exhaustion. He moved to scoop me into his arms, making sure that the coat hid most of my nudity as he began to walk towards the castle. My body shook from his movements and my eyes focused once more on the face of King Nixtoni that hovered above before darkness consumed me and I was dragged down into a deep sleep with the sound of his heartbeat echoing in my ears.