Connection - Golden Lycans Sequel 3/3 [Complete]

What do you Want?

***Austin***

"It has been a very long time since I got the train. Or any public transportation, for that matter," Ollie grumbles as he enters the cabin, "what the hell is going on?"

He'd just got back from being in London for the night, and evidently wasn't too impressed with the lack of instantaneous travel.

"Tell me about it," I sigh, rubbing my face, "I didn’t want to tell you over the phone, but the kids were attacked here, last night. Rogues broke into the house."

"Whoa WHAT?" Ollie exclaims, sinking into a chair.

"They're all fine. Now. The girls said they wanted to send me a message. They've actually formed their own pack, Ol. Probably not one recognised by the rest of us or the Goddess, but they've banded together to form a group at the very least. Unfortunately, this now means that the current legislation does not apply to them, because they are no longer classified as rogue. They're the ones who have evaded imprisonment, the radicals, those who oppose every moral that so many of us work hard to uphold. All the worst of our kind, rolled into one pack, one without territory or boundaries. One that can just…move," I explain, feeling weary over this new annoyance.

"So, what happened?"

"Fern and Olive are naturally incredibly fast; they escaped. Sage was let go, after Ophelia pleaded with them. After Fern and Olive got away, they only wanted Ophelia. They wanted to sell her blood to vampires and prove a point to me at the same time," I sigh.

"Whoa, so where is Ophelia now?" Ollie exclaims, getting to his feet and balling his fists.

"Come on! Do you really think I’d be sat here if my heir wasn’t okay, Ol? She is in the house. She was severely injured, but she is being well looked after," I inform him.

"Fair, I am sure Ella is in full doctor mode," Ollie says, sitting back down. I laugh lightly at the turn of events.

"Actually, Ella is giving blood at Gaia, which she is then going to give to Ophelia. Ophelia is being tended to by Augustus Katz's son..."

"WHOA! I was not expecting that.That’s random, how did that come about? I mean, a lot of women like Atticus. Even Freya gets a little flustered around him sometimes. I make fun of her for it," Ollie laughs, "hasn't really struck me as the caring type, though...and definitely not that wanker Amadeus."

"Ha, neither of them. He has a previously secret, natural-born son who has been attending Vale with Ophelia," I inform him.

"That's...new information. So, what, did he kill all the rogues or something?" Ollie asks.

"No. He found her injured, and alone. Once Ophelia is feeling a bit better, I am going to find out what happened to those rogues."

...

***Ella***

I slam the door of the taxi grumpily and start to walk up the long, winding driveway to our home. It had been a long time since I had done this. I hadn't been in a taxi for at least twenty years. There was something nice about it, but at the same time it also reminded me of the fact the world was regressing. There was no longer enough goodwill in the world to allow well intentioned travel between the trees, and that saddened me to my very core.

"Ophelia?" I call out as I enter the house. She was the only occupant I ever had to verbally call for.

I'm back, Aus. Are you still in the cabin? I ask inside my head to Austin.

Yep, just with Ol. I think Ophelia is in her room, Austin replies.

I remove my shoes and then head up the stairs, tentatively pushing Ophelia's door further open.

My eyes fall on a similar sight to a number of hours before, and I smile warmly at Ares as he turns his head towards me. Ophelia is sleeping peacefully, tightly cuddled up against him.

In a moment such as this I have to wonder to myself; did I somehow know this was a potential result of allowing Ares into Vale?

Did I do it on my own accord?

Or...was the idea dropped into my head when in Austin's office with Augustus?

Did I leave an empty spot on purpose...or was I made to?

With so much in our lives that had transpired according to some higher plan, I had to wonder whether this was random or something greater.

His story about the voice alerting him to Ophelia being in danger, only reminded me of Serena and James being guided by Her.

The butterfly was a quirky new addition, though. Knowing that Serena was still acting on Her behalf and she had purposefully taken Ophelia to Katz's ball to meet Ares...was this meant to be happening? And if so, why?

For the time being, though, I needed to make sure she was healthy and well.

"I need to wake her," I tell him softly. He nods and turns his attention back to Ophelia, sweetly stroking some of her hair back as he uses his other hand to shake her shoulder a little.

There is such a sweet innocence in how he is with her, and it warms my heart to witness it. Within a minute or so, she is awake. Her aura is a little stronger, but she still really needs the blood.

"I'd rather do this downstairs in case it makes a mess. Can you?-” I say to Ares, and he immediately scoops Ophelia up into his arms. He follows me all the way down to the kitchen. The dining chairs are supportive and have arm rests, which are perfect for this.

"Please set her down on this chair," I ask Ares, as I gesture towards one I've just added some cushions to, “are you going to be okay with this? You can leave the room if you need to.”

Ares frowns at me.

“I was covered in her blood not too long ago, I am sure I can handle this,” he points out, “but...thank you for considering me.”

"When are they coming home?" Ophelia asks quietly, sounding very fatigued.

"Will is getting some of his pack members to drive the girls back tomorrow evening. A number now need to drive their kids to Exton, so they're already having to make the journey anyway, now that the trees no longer work," I explain as I tie a tourniquet around her arm. She automatically clenches her fist for me, but I am having a hard time finding a good vein to put a cannula into, probably because she is so dehydrated and weak.

"Umm...may I?" Ares suddenly asks just behind me.

"You've done this before?" I ask in disbelief.

"He would be excellent at it. Always has beginners luck," Ophelia jokes wearily, and Ares shoots her a quick smile.

"No, I have not. But...locating veins is, sadly, within my specific skillset," he says, looking unhappy about that fact.

I consider for a moment before I hand the cannula over to him.

"No gloves?" he asks, frowning a little.

"You healed her cuts with your saliva," I remind him.

"What?" Ophelia says, looking more alert than before. Ares sighs, ignores her exclamation, and immediately drops to his knees, starting to look at Ophelia's inner elbow. Within a few seconds he cleans the area, and swiftly inserts the needle, getting a flush of blood back in the barrel almost immediately.

"That was easier than I thought. I have read the theory on it, but wasn't too sure on the angle," he mutters, standing back up to allow me to finish.

"That was impressive," I concede, remembering all the times I had failed to locate a suitable vein on a patient. I open my bag back up and remove two blood bags, catching Ares' expression as he sees them. Most vampires would look hungrily at it, but he seems to react the opposite.

"How is it that you crave only hers? Why not mine?" I ask as I start connecting it to Ophelia.

"I do not know, nor do I care to," he admits, avoiding Ophelia's gaze, "my life would be a lot simpler if I didn't."

I hang the bag of blood on the light fitting above her.

"Each bag takes around forty minutes," I tell her, squeezing her shoulder fondly.

She's all hooked up in the kitchen, I tell Austin.

"Well, it's mid afternoon; you must be very hungry," I say to both of them.

"Yes," Ares says immediately, before looking horrified, "for food."

"Austin will be in shortly and he will cook. We were meant to have a large, family roast dinner, being New Year's Day and all," I say airily, heading over to the fruit bowl. I grab one of my home grown apples and toss it towards Ares. He catches easily, even while he is staring at Ophelia, and gratefully takes a bite.

The patio door opens and Austin rushes in towards Ophelia, immediately on the floor in front of her and hugging her in his large arms.

"OH my Ophelia," he breathes with relief, "I am never leaving you at home on your own again!"

Ophelia laughs a little at this but looks to be enjoying the warm embrace from her father. Her aura is already looking less dull, and I feel more relief go through me.

"Right. Dinner in two hours," Austin says, standing up, "in the meantime, how about you explain what happened while I cook?"

Ophelia nods, but looks upset at the idea of it.

She starts to recount what had happened, from the moment all the power went out just after midnight, realising there were rogues outside, to finding some sort of ring-leader in the kitchen who threatened them.

"...I threw one of the chairs at him and we ran out the patio doors. One of them collided with me and...I don't know where it came from, but...I hit it with some sort of magic. This...blue light just came out of my hands, and the rogue was dead on the floor. Olive and Fern managed to get to Dalston through the tree, and then Sage and I...we got cornered. I pleaded with them. I asked for them to let Sage go, because in reality, they only wanted me," she says at a point, her eyes filling with tears.

"What I would expect to hear, from my heir," Austin says pointedly, while chopping potatoes.

"After Sage escaped, they realised they ought to move, so the guy grabbed me," Ophelia now says, her expression becoming rather pained. I can feel an immense feeling of anguish, of pain...of guilt. Ares clearly feels it too as he immediately drops down next to her and takes her hand, looking at her with compassion.

"He..." she begins, her face scrunching up in supreme sadness, "I...felt it...it just rose up inside me...and...I had no control over it. It was like some sort of electricity just....burned him up from the inside out- from ME! He burst into flames and turned to ash right in front of me..." she describes, looking deeply uncomfortable with what had happened.

I cannot blame her, that sounded...alarming. Concerning, even, for someone who had no control just yet. Austin looks up from what he is doing and regards her from across the kitchen.

"What happened after that?" he asks, urging her to continue, despite how concerned he has become inside.

"I was very distracted by what happened, and...that's when the rogues all attacked me," she says, looking down to the floor, "I really thought they were going to kill me. I could feel so much blood coming out of the biggest bite. But...once again, something inside me just...I had my eyes shut, but I still heard them. I opened my eyes and there was nothing but glowing ash...everywhere..."

I glance over to Austin, already looking in the same way over at me.

That doesn't sound like standard Fae power or even mine, I tell him.

I was just thinking the same thing. She essentially blew them up, Els. Without even meaning to, Austin replies, sounding concerned.

I should be overjoyed that magic is finally coming to her...but I am just worried now, instead, I admit.

She can handle it. She is our daughter, after all. She was always going to be built for something weird, Austin says a little proudly.

"I couldn't move, and again, I really thought that it was the end. But then, I heard someone call my name," Ophelia continues, turning to smile sweetly at Ares, "and then...I wasn't terrified anymore. I felt safe."

Silence hangs in the air for a short time.

...

***Ares***

Nothing about the last twenty-four hours had been remotely normal.

Ophelia had dozed off again in the chair as her mother had replaced the empty bag of blood with another.

Thankfully, her aura was getting brighter and more active by the hour. It had changed, since I had last seen it, when she was hurrying past me in the foyer of our home.

It looked so...alive, now, like the sea. The sea-green, navy and gold that was ever present, was now joined by copious amounts of more shimmering gold and various shades of vivid arctic blues, now. The colours reminded me of the underside of centuries old glaciers.

I had been largely silent, as several people had come and gone, speaking urgently to Ophelia's parents. It still baffled me, that my friend had been the daughter of these two prominent people in our supernatural society, all this time. Two people that are still casually pottering around in the kitchen, making dinner, but talking urgently to each other about various things.

Eventually, Austin's beta, Ollie, returns from collecting Ophelia's car at Vale, along with who I assume is his wife. Just as dinner is being plated up, I wake Ophelia up.

"How are you feeling?" I ask her, as the last bag ended half an hour ago. She takes a deep breath in and soon smiles at me.

"Monumentally better," she replies, and then looks rather confused, "I still don't get how you're here. How did you even get here? How did you know?"

Her eyes are back to their usual, bright, curious state and I simply smile back at her, and tuck some hair behind her ear.

She is back.

"I’ll tell you later," I assure her, as Ollie's wife comes to see Ophelia, dropping down in front of her, her thick wavy curls bouncing as she does so.

"Lia, honey, Ol filled me in. What the heck, huh?" she says, embracing her gently, "not shocked you're turning into a badass with those two as your parents."

Ophelia bites her lip a little. She feels great guilt over what happened, and I can see that she is trying to keep that hidden.

"I got lucky, to be honest," Ophelia answers, avoiding her gaze. The woman now turns her attention to me and holds out her hand.

"About time Ophelia got a boyfriend. I'm Freya, Austin's, sister," she says proudly. I shake her hand.

"Good to meet you, my name is Ares," I reply, feeling a little anxious. I was getting better with meeting new people, but this day had thrown me a little; it was a little too many new people in a new place I was entirely unfamiliar with. I sense she can tell that I am uncomfortable, as she smiles warmly at me before disappearing to help with plating the food.

..

Dinner was perhaps one of the best meals I have ever had, and I can definitely see who Ophelia had got her skills in the kitchen from.

"Time for tradition; let's go around the table and say what we hope for this year," Freya says, swirling red wine around her large glass, "I'll start. I hope Rose gets into university to study archeology."

"Hoping for the third Supernatural Olympiad this summer, to be the most successful yet," Ollie says, toasting the air with his beer. He looks at Austin.

"Uh...honestly, at this point, I hope to not be voted out of the council, but we shall see," he sighs, doing a half hearted toast.

"It is going to be okay, Aus," Ella says fondly, "as for me, I hope for Vale to reach the top one hundred league table after just one academic year."

She then drinks the rest of her wine. They all look at Ophelia, now.

"Same thing that I wish for every year," she says quietly, "my wolf, and my wings."

…

***Ophelia***

"You were yawning all the way through dinner. I think it's time you took yourself upstairs for a shower, got all that dried blood off you, and then more sleep. You've been through a lot, Ophelia," mum says kindly.

I yawn again, as if on cue, and I relent; because both of those things sound like a good idea. I turn to Ares, wondering what to say. I don't want him to go, I don't want to be apart from him, but I know he ought to go home. He is looking a little apprehensive himself.

"I...ought to be leaving soon. I will call a taxi company shortly," he says, glancing around awkwardly at my family.

Indeed, they are hanging on to every word we exchange with each other, which is only making this more awkward.

I still had things I needed to say to him, and I wanted to know how he'd gotten here in the first place.

I need to say more, but as I stand up, fatigue hits my limbs as I do so, and it just doesn't feel like the right moment, particularly with an audience like this. I look back at Ares, briefly.

"Umm...I'll see you in a few days, I suppose," I say with a somewhat heavy heart. His dark eyes look downcast too as he nods back at me, "thank you, Ares. Truly."

I then say goodnight to everyone else before I leave the room, heading for the bathroom.

..

With my back facing the mirror, I slowly peel away the dressing from where one of the rogues had munched into my flank. I breathe in sharply as I remove it entirely, seeing only vague remains of the wound. It was still rather sore, but all the other cuts and grazes had miraculously healed, and I could scarcely believe it. Physically, it looks as if nothing had even happened. Mentally, however, I know I am struggling.

After hoping for years to exhibit anything from either side of myself, things were finally happening, even if they weren't in my control just yet. But, going from a large thunderstorm and growing a whole garden of flowers was one thing; disintegrating a team of rogue Lycans into smoldering ashes had been too much.

Too much for me to address, right now.

I still have dried blood in various places, so I am rather thankful to step into a hot shower, armed with a loofah and some shower gel. My mind feels quite full, and I definitely have a lot of things to think about and to consider.

Ares was a big topic for me to think about, and I felt sad that he would be gone by the time I had finished washing. I knew I'd see him back at Vale in a couple of days, but last night had definitely been a rather crucial turning point in our friendship.

I could remember it all; how he had so cautiously tended to my many wounds, the nervous babble he had uttered in his efforts to keep me conscious, and then best of all, I could remember those sweet, soft and tentative kisses he had given me, so full of worry, at first...kisses that had actually kick-started me, that had unwittingly given me life.

I could distinctly remember how each kiss had made me feel, how I could feel each wound knitting back together. He had saved me and he had healed me.

The next chance I got, I was telling him exactly how I felt. Even if he felt it from me already, I wasn't going to shy away from being candid about it, because I was still here, and there was no doubt in my mind that I'd be dead, had Ares not found me when he had.

...

***Ares***

"You really did not need to help with cleaning up," Ella says kindly, as I hang up two saucepans I had seen Austin lift down earlier in the evening. Ophelia's goodbye had felt forced, and in my heart I hoped it was because she didn't want me to go, but it was likely because she was tired.

"That was an excellent meal, and I am incredibly grateful, so this is the least I can do. But...admittedly, I am delaying going home," I admit, thinking that if I were busy, it was less awkward than having me sitting around, "but, I will leave soon."

Ella sighs and puts her hands onto her hips.

"Ares, do you understand what is happening with Ophelia?" she asks.

"She told me at my father's ball, that she has never blended, and that she does not have any magic. Which finally made sense of what I have felt from her ever since I met her- which is a great feeling of loss. I know she has managed to do a few things now, which has suggested that there is magic within her, but she has no control over it," I reply, summing up what I did know.

"You will be learning about the Fae in the new year-" she begins to say.

"-perhaps this is the ideal time that I tell you about my mother," I interject, and Ella stops abruptly, looking rather curious, one eyebrow arched.

"Before my mother Adelina was turned, she was Fae," I explain.

Ella's resulting reaction is surprising, as she looks as if I'd just given her a missing piece to a puzzle.

"I knew it!" she exclaims, "instinctively I think I have known that. You have never felt like a vampire. At times I have even thought to myself, that you have felt Fae. Even though the Fae are all women, it has been a crazy notion."

"Maybe not. I have always felt more like my mother than my father. Particularly since I met Ophelia," I say with a smile, "there have been moments, when I feel like I can almost reach out to nature like a faerie can. But it has always felt just out of my reach. It is largely what makes me despise what I am. I don't want to just cure my mother, I want to cure myself."

"Then, you must know where a faerie gets her power?" Ella asks.

"My mother has said, that a faerie is only as powerful as the love she has for the world, and the love the world has for her. But this is what perplexes me about Ophelia, as she is evidently very loved by her family alone-"

"-and that is exactly what has baffled us too. But...she is unique. There have never been Fae hybrids, before. I don't know why she is the first, and largely I don't care, but...something hasn't worked," Ella agrees, sliding onto one of the stools on the other side of the breakfast bar, "until you came along, Ares."

I immediately make a face, because even though Ophelia seemed un-phased by the revelation, it still bothered me considerably.

"Perhaps it has something to do with whatever happened when she touched me, in the hospital when she was sick, on the day that I was born," I say quietly, causing Ella's eyes to widen considerably. She leans back and sighs, once again looking as if I'd just answered a question she'd had.

"The day your father came to see me about you going to Vale," she says, shaking her head in amusement, "your date of birth struck me, and I asked your father where you were born. I have wondered..."

"Ophelia is aware," I assure her.

"It might have some bearing, who can know," Ella points out, "but the fact is, you and Ophelia have...you both feel an affection for each other, and that is the only reason that she is alive and showering upstairs."

Her voice cracks, her eyes look glassy, and she bites her lip. I can tell she is perhaps only now realising just how close she had come to losing her daughter.

"Had you not come, had you come and not cared, she would have DIED. Had you come and she not cared for you too, she would have died," Ella explains, her voice thicker than usual, "being around her all day today, embracing her the way that you have, feeling affection the way that you have - because it is as plain as day in your aura - has helped her heal, when she has never healed before."

I nod, understanding what she is saying.

"Since you came into her life and you have grown closer, little by little she has drawn closer. There is...a terrifying potential of power inside of her, Ares. Mate bonded as I am, which has granted me a ridiculous level of power compared to other Fae that I have met...even I do not have the ability to do what she did last night. Ophelia hasn't even crossed a threshold where she has her wings- do you understand what I am saying?"

I clench my jaw anxiously, because I am beginning to.

In which case, I was also the person making her blood more desirable.

"My mother has said, that the closer she became with my father, the more her blood appealed to him. Their love made her stronger, and she was therefore more enticing to him," I say with a sigh, "Atticus was right...I am bringing it out in her."

"You most definitely are," Ella says tentatively, "and while I can see that the realisation of that has saddened you, Ares, you need to NOT be afraid of it. For Ophelia's sake. You are not doing her a disservice by caring for her, even though it has now made her a target. Whatever is happening between you...it brings her closer to what her heart has desired for so long now, which is to be everything that she could be."

I look down at my fingertips, rubbing them together as I now wonder about myself.

"Whenever we have kissed, we have both felt the same thing. An electricity in our fingers, our hands...Ophelia said you have suggested in the past that this is the feeling of magic. So, what does that mean for me?" I ask her. For the first time during our conversation, she looks quite surprised at something I've said.

"It is...because that is precisely how I first felt it when I kissed Aus for the first time," she admits.

"Did he feel it too?" I ask cautiously. She shakes her head, looking mystified.

"No...he did not, and I unfortunately don't know why you have, Ares," she says kindly. I nod, because life just got more confusing by the day, and this was just another aspect of that.

"Umm, well...it is getting late," I say, glancing up at the clock, "I shall call for that taxi."

I take their phone off the stand on the worktop, but it suddenly whips out of my hand and straight into Ella's.

I am stunned, for a moment, having never witnessed telekinesis before.

"Telekinesis is a useful gift," she says with a light smirk, putting the phone on the worktop in front of her, "now, stop being polite and think for a moment, Ares, about what we have just been discussing. Take your clear anxiety of Ophelia's parents being here, out of the equation and really think for a moment; What do you want?"

She pauses as she temples her hands on the worktop once again.

"The way I see it, you currently have two choices. If you want to go home, by all means, call a taxi. Ophelia thinks you're going home, so this won't be a surprise. You'll see her again in two days. Or, you can take the t-shirt and jogging bottoms that I've put out in the utility room next door, go upstairs and go be with Ophelia."

I let out a long exhale as I consider her words. Her expression is kind once more, and I can tell she is being sincere.

I also feel like I am at a bit of a crossroad, with two paths ahead.

If I continued down the route where I went up to Ophelia's room, she might just get everything she wanted.

She would be happy, and I was certain I would be too. But at the same time, her blood would be more and more tantalising as a result. Not just to me, but to every other vampire out there, who I would endeavour to protect her from. I hadn't succumbed to the urge even when my hand was covered in her blood, but I still worried about hurting her.

Then, if I went home, if I cut ties with her...she may eventually have feelings for someone else. Ash, perhaps, as he had described feelings for her too. She'd be safe...but eventually, she wouldn't be safe around other vampires, once again...and Ash was no match-was anyone?

I reach out and put my hand on the phone, pausing for a moment as I make a decision.

I remove my hand from the phone.

I look into Ella's eyes and she smiles back at me, evidently making the choice she had hoped for.

"Thank you for trusting me...with her," I tell her sincerely, because I appreciated that more than she would ever know.

"Fourth door on the left," she says simply, before she leaves the room.