Alice and The Rogue Wolf

Chapter 5

Jonathan

All eyes turned in the direction of wail, including mine. It was Mrs. Walker walking towards the group weakly. As one of the eldest in the pack, she was obligated to be in these meetings but ever since the death of the previous Alpha male and his beta, she had exempted herself from the pack's affairs. No wonder it was quite a surprise seeing her around.

But to me, I wasn't that shocked. When Alice had announced her desire to return to her role in the pack, I had an inkling she would want to come back as well. Besides the matter of concern, today involved her, that was why after inviting her over, I had kept an extra seat for her in case she changed her mind.

"Okay, the list of guests is now complete. Now onto the reason for this meeting, My marriage to Alice."

Chatterings rose from the crowd but after a while, the noise quieted down. No one could deny the love between me and Alice. It was evident ever since we were kids, and I always longed until I finally got the chance when I was elected as the new Alpha male and she got betrothed to me. I approached a lot of people and they always encouraged me that I was right in choosing her. What a lucky man I am, I thought.

The proposal was laid before the wise sages. Compatibility rituals were made and after the eldest sage was done with summoning the goddess's verdict on the union, he joined them together. The ritual usually took place in a week interval to the wedding.

"The wedding and coronation will happen on the same day," the sage declared, waving his talisman in the air amidst the chants of merriment from the rest of the group.

Hands buried in the three crates of beer steadily draining it free of its liquor contents. We, the newlyweds, deserved to be celebrated and I made sure that everyone was entertained. Amongst all this, my bride was seated beside me looking all shy.

"I overdid myself there, didn't I?" I asked teasingly. The smile disappeared from my face when she noticed her countenance was in no way joyous. "What's going on? You don't like beer? "

"No, it's not the beer, " she replied, setting down the bottle of beer that lay idle in her grip. "I just find this kind of strange, you know. I woke up from a coma and three days later I'm getting married. It's all kind of fast, don't you think?"

"But I couldn't wait anymore," I replied, my eyes pleading with her to understand. "I mean by right me and you are supposed to be together but since I love you, I wanted it to be special. I want to throw you a party like you always wanted."

"Like I always wanted?"

"Yes! You have always wanted to have a nice fancy wedding and it has been my dream to get you one. You might not remember, but I do. We shared a lot of beautiful moments and I just thought I could make your dreams come true quicker but it seems I mean nothing to you," I said, lowering my gaze. My heart hurts just thinking I was doing no good to hear.

"I'm sorry," she said, engulfing me in a warm embrace. "C'mon you're the Alpha male of the pack, get it together before someone sees you crying like a kid."

I let out a giggle. That was one of the reasons I loved Alice. She could get me out of every bad moment with just a simple sentence just like this. Given the chance to go for anyone else, I'd still go for her.

"Well, we better join the others in drinking, then," and in one gulp the contents of her beer were emptying down her throat.

Having cleared the tension, I scanned the gathering and in the corner of my eyes, I could see Mrs.. Walker fidgeting with her bottle also. I had overheard my mother trying to start up a conversation with her earlier all to no avail. Now, I was left with no choice but to go appease her too.

"Mrs. Walker thanks for letting me wed your daughter," I said as I stood in front of her.

"I didn't. Her father did," she retorted, still not taking her eyes off her half-empty bottle. "Besides, traditions decided even before I was given a choice."

"Don't be like Mrs.. Walker," I whined. Truth be told, I didn't need any sort of approval from her before the marriage could hold but one of the things I had learned from my late father was to always strive to maintain a cordial relationship with my in-laws. "You and I both know I love Alice so much and I want nothing but the best for her. I don't know why you're so insecure about me, but I assure you I could never harm your daughter even if I tried."

"Go and keep Alice company and call off this meeting as some of us have things to do in the morning, " she ordered, taking a sip of my liquor.

Why are they treating me this way? Am I not good enough for her? Questions like this plagued me as I told everyone to disperse leaving behind me and Alice.

"Your mother doesn't seem to like me!" I complained about slumping down beside her as we enjoyed the forest's breathtaking view.

"What are you talking about? She loves you," she replied, scoffing.

"Yeah, right. The only one who supported us being together was your fa… I'm sorry, " I swallowed back my words when I found out her countenance had changed.

"No, don't be. It wasn't your fault, was it?"

I sighed. Her father was a good man and deserved nothing of what came to him. How I wished he was present during the just-concluded meeting, it would have had an, even more, epic ending.

" Alice!" I called softly. "Being an Alpha male is so stressful and without anyone to properly guide me through it, I think I'm going to suck at it. But, honestly, your father was the best leader I ever knew, and yet to top it all, he loved you more than anything."

She let out a loud sigh. "I'm just so sad I can't recall anything about him. How did he even die?"

I fiddled with my hair trying to escape answering the question but it seemed the longer I prolonged the silence, the more I would stretch her curiosity. Perhaps, her mother must have already revealed it to her so I wouldn't do much damage telling her.

"He was gruesomely slain by the Rogues," I replied in a low tone. "A lot of good men were killed the day the Rogues invaded our dwelling and one of them was my father."

We both sat in silence both trying to juggle the grief in our hearts. Our cause of greatest pain was linked to one source - the Rogues.

"The vilest of all tribes who wander around feasting off any pack they see as weak and vulnerable. On one of their voyages, they stumbled on Excelsis and thought it was another prey but were taken aback when we retaliated. Your father committed his best of warriors into the heat of the battle but unfortunately broke through our defenses, killing the Alpha male and his beta, my dad."

"I'm sorry to hear that," she consoled, caressing my shoulders compassionately. "What happened afterward."

"Well, our wise sages summoned the moon goddess and with her magical power, we were able to push them back… My father died in my arms…"

I couldn't help but let out tears as the dreadful event replayed in my head. My night for the past few weeks since the incident has been filled with nightmares.

Alice clasped her arms around me. "Hey, I'm sorry you had to go through all that. And as for the so-called Rogues we need to teach them a lesson and make them pay for what they did to us."

I heard a lot of determination in the tone with which she spoke and was elated. I knew that having gone through a similar experience as mine, she would be willing to put all she had into making sure that the enemy paid for their sins. I disengaged the embrace and stared her deep in the eyes.

"Look at us. We are so perfect together. I love you, Alice, I always did and always will do."

Her cheeks flushed red. My words had made an impact and I couldn't have any better moment to make a move. The mid-afternoon breeze brushed against our faces releasing a few strands of her and scattering them on her face. With stealth, I slowly tucked the strands behind her ears and slowly made for her slightly parted lips with my eyes goes on them.

Our lips smashed gently against each other, I lazied around nibbling but just when I was about to explore deeper with my tongue she broke off the kiss and looked up at me with a strange look on her face.