The Lycan's Healer Mate

Chapter 13 Join Us

Mia's POV

Ryan's lips feel so soft and even more kissable than it appears to be. He is too stunned to respond in the beginning but soon gathers it up and kisses back. One of his hands slips down and rests on my waist while the other presses the nape of my neck, leaving me no way to step back but lean to him. My initial plan is to steal a kiss from Ryan to make myself understood. Once I prove to him that we're level-pegging, I'll move back and ask him to help him find out why my scar is gone.

However, his way of holding me makes my retreat impossible. I try to stay calm despite every inch of my nerves cheering for the blissful feeling. The concerto of our heartbeat is deafening, and the sparks his fingertips leave on my skin spread like wildfire, burning me from head to toe. The whole situation goes beyond my control when I sense his tongue teasing my lips, silently begging me to part my lips and give him access.

Reject him? Easier said than done. I laugh at myself and ignore the shriek of my reason, bite his lower lip slightly and invite him in. I don't expect that his lip is too fragile to take the bite, causing blood to well up from the invisible cut. Before I apologize to him, Ryan licks it clean and gazes at me with lust in his eyes.

"Do you want to get out of here?" Ryan whispers to me, "I can show you around the library."

"The library." I am bemused at the mention of the place.

"You sound quite disappointed. Don't worry, there is a secret chamber where no one will interfere with our explorations on—" He pauses and intentionally leaves the sentence unfinished, creating enough space for me to imagine.

"On what?" I swallow the sudden dryness in my throat.

"I will show you there." Ryan chuckles and leads me to the entrance.

Very unfortunately, we are stopped by Madam Agnes at the gate. Ryan tries to excuse us, but Madam Agnes whispers something to him and the pure joy in his eyes fades. Ryan contemplates for a while and says, "My auntie wants a word with you."

"Sorry to ruin your date, Ryan. I will make you compensation in the future. I'll appreciate it a lot if you can keep an eye on Aurora for me. I don't want any fireworks targeting on us when this lovely lady and I have a chat." Madam Agnes speaks to Ryan, yet she is focusing her attention on me.

Ryan is reluctant to leg go of my hand, so I loosen his hand instead, which is because I sense that Madam Agnes wants the conversation to be private and I am curious what she is going to say.

"You may leave us now, Ryan." Madam Agnes waves her hand, "And don't eavesdrop."

"I'll see you later." Ryan nods at me and goes to Aurora, lifting her over his head, which gives the girl a startle and then she starts to giggle.

I can't take my eyes off the lovely scene and smile until Madam Agnes clears her throat to draw my attention, "May I have your name?"

I snap out of my thought and quickly answer, "Yes, of course. I am Mia, Mia Hill. I am——was an omega from the Black Moon pack. Sorry that I didn't introduce myself properly."

"I believe the opposite. It will be improper to introduce oneself on a Masquerade." Madame Agnes smiles and her stare becomes less intense.

I relax a little bit, and Madame Agnes notices it. She c***s her head and asks curiously, "Seemingly, you're afraid of me. What do you know about me?"

"I am more excited than frightened." I confess my true feeling, "I've heard that you're a royal healer to the lycan, and you're the greatest healer in the present day. Words have it you can heal people without even being noticed by them——"

An idea strikes me, and I widen my eyes, "You are the person who makes my scar gone."

"Am I?" Madame Agnes raises her eyebrows at me.

"Before the ball starts, you offered your hand to help me steady my leg when I was tumbling forward." I feel more certain about my theory, "You healed me."

"We healed you." Madam Agnes shakes her head and corrects me, "A healer can never heal a patient who doesn't want to be healed."

"What does this mean?" I am confused about her statement.

"When you read a book, you don't passively receive whatever information authors offer you. Instead, you actively participate in the course of reading and produce your interpretations. Analogically, the healing process requires not only the healer's power, but the receiver's will to recover. The stronger your will is, the sooner the pain can be healed. I notice that you didn't respond to my healing call until the moment Ryan asked you to lift your mask." Madam Agnes smiles.

I am stunned by the knowledge that I've never heard about. At the same time I am embarrassed about my shallowness. I confidently claimed that I wouldn't let anyone take off my mask and I wouldn't care if the ugly scar upset Ryan. However, the truth is I care. I even pray to the moon goddess to stop him from seeing my face. I lower my gaze and dare not to meet Madam Agnes' eyes.

"I'm not blaming you, Mia." Madam Agnes says softly, "It's our nature to show our best side, especially when we are desperate to impress someone."

"It is wrong to judge a book by its cover."

"Well, a book cannot be blamed for wanting a better cover." Madam Agnes raises my chin, "My nephew gave you a purpose, didn't he?"

"Yes," I admit, blushing a little.

Madam Agnes smiles again and asks, "Have you ever received any healing calls before tonight?"

"I suppose so. I happened to be an energetic child and my mom happened to be a healer. I got injuries from time to time and mom would heal me." I frown, "But the healing didn't last long so it never occurred to me I was responding to a call."

"Your mother is a talented healer." Madam Agnes concludes, "That's why you barely felt the healing was undergoing."

"She was." I answer with mingled feelings of pride and sorrow, "I did recognize and respond to her healing call once. It was the first time and the last time. The power pierced through my veins and exploded in my body, too strong to be ignored. "

"It sounds very powerful." Madam Agnes muses, "You must be badly wounded that time."

"You're right. I was nearly dead and my mom was sparing no effort to bring me back to life, after which she lost her healing power." I take a deep breath and don't want to be tortured by my memory.

"I am sorry." Madam Agnes sends me a sympathetic look and asks tentatively, "Did you lose your wolf in that accident?"

I feel a little bit offended and furrow my eyebrows, "How do you know I lost my wolf? Did Ryan tell you this?"

"You didn't respond to him when he mind-linked all of us to toast to the moon." Madam Agnes shrugs, "I assume you wouldn't ignore his proposal if you have a wolf."

"But Aurora neglected him, too."

"Your comparison doesn't make sense." Madam Agnes smiles and informs me, "Aurora is a witch so she is deemed to be wolfless. Otherwise, she will possess more than one gift, which is unfair to other species. Speaking of gifts, I find the power in you promising. Would you like to be my apprentice?"

"Promising?" I nearly choke on my words and widen my eyes in disbelief, "But I don't have any gifts."

"You can't sense that yet; it doesn't mean you don't have one. Be my apprentice and I'll teach you how to heal people. What do you say?" Madam Agnes touches my cheek, slowly and lightly, as mild as the night breeze.

Overwhelmed by her words, I dare not to accept her invitation despite of my willingness to say yes. My rationality takes the best side of me, allowing me to inquire more about the deals instead of blindly signing myself up to be her trainee.

I contemplate the chance in front of me and negotiate with the royal healer, "I highly appreciate your generous offer, Madam Agnes, but I'd like to know more about Healer's Tenets before I make my decision".

I worry that Madam Agnes will be impatient about my appeal, yet there is a smile flickering across her face when she hears my mention of Healer's Tenets. She stares at me for a while and eventually gives me an elegant nod.

After that, she summons the person standing at the gate and says, "Patrick, would you please go fetch a scroll for me? It is stored in a chest lying at the corner of the attic."

"At your service, my lady." The servant named Patrick takes the order and heads to the house, shouldering his way through the crowded dance floor.

During the waiting, Ryan suddenly appears on my right side and grins at us, "Aurora wants to know what you're talking about."

"Even Aurora can find a better excuse than you, Ryan." Madam Agnes scoffs and compromises, "I just invited Lady Hill to be my apprentice and I'm waiting for her to make the decision."

"Does that mean she will be your last apprentice?" Aurora widens her eyes in surprise, "You've told me each healer can have not more than three apprentices in his or her life; and you already selected Daisy and me."

"Correct." Madam Agnes nods while looking at me, "She'll be my last apprentice if that's what she wants."

"But why?" Aurora carefully examines my face and asks, "Is she as special as us?"

"The three of you are quite similar in a way." Madam Agnes muses, "Wandless witch, voiceless siren, and wolfless werewolf."

"I see." Aurora sends me a curious look and steps forward, giving me a hug, mumbling against my waist, "Don't worry, we'll take good care of you."

The intimacy is so warming yet unfamiliar to me. I am frozen to the spot and don't know how to reward her kindness. After a long pause, I gradually recollect myself and lower my arms, hugging her back in an awkward way.

"Now I can tell you who I am, since I've set off the fireworks. Did you see those colorful flowerings? They are so beautiful." Aurora speaks in a mumble and suddenly raises her head and looks at me, "Do you still want to know who I am?"

"I'm afraid not." I drawl and add quickly before the disappointment overtook her face, "I already know you."

"Do you?" Aurora narrows her eyes and asks, "Who am I?"

"You're Aurora the witch, the most beautiful woman in the world." I chuckle, "That's what Ryan told me."

Aurora's face reddens like ruby and she swiftly buries her face against my waist.

"Manners." Ryan pulls her away.

"Says someone who already kisses her." Aurora retorts with a triumphant smirk, nostril in the air.