Rune
Father holds up two bottles in front of me, stopping me in my pacing. "Come drink with me."
I wish to refuse, but panicking and pacing frantically outside the room does nothing to reduce Astrid's screams.
It is all I can do to not lose my mind.
"Make that three," Ronan Blackwood chimes in, snatching my bottle before my fingers can even grip it. "Four, perhaps."
I let out a ragged sigh. "Astrid--"
"Will have your head for drinking while she delivers your child, but I assure you, you do not want to be in that room with her right now." Ronan pulls down the collar of his regal jacket, revealing an old scar across his neck. "This was her mother's gift to me when I thought to ease her of the pain by staying by her side."
Father snickers, leading us to his receiving chambers. "Zephyr..." He shakes his head, voice trailing off into silent laughter.
Minutes span out into hours, and the slow burn of the alcohol in my throat has become somewhat soothing, lulling me and hazing my thoughts.
"I don't think they will take it well, merging the realms again. It will take ages to adjust once again," King Ronan says. "The aftermath will be ugly."
"You're just saying that because you do not wish to adapt to our ways," Father says, taking a deep swig from his bottle.
Ronan snorts, a small smile teasing his lips, but I cut in, before they consider turning it into one of their prideful banters. "With the threat of the Void gone, and the Priestess' lies brought to the light, it very well seems like a good idea to bring the realms together. We have lived apart for too long. Perhaps, gradually. Small changes first."
King Ronan points in my direction, blue eyes flaring with laughter in them. "And the humans? Shall we include them in this? What say you of our thrones and seats of power? Shall I give up mine to be ruled by your kind once more?"
I lean forward, vision blurring slightly. I may be drunk. I cannot tell if that is a good or a bad thing. It has dulled the pain flowing through the bond, and Astrid's yelling. Small mercies, I suppose. Worry has me still on edge, and no amount of liquor I consume can take the edge off. "It is thinking like that that separated our races in the first place, placing one above the other."
The King gives me a wolfish grin, all sharp teeth and canines. "Thinking something doesn't make it the truth. There are more complicated things at play, boy. I will play no part in ruining what semblance of peace we have."
I grin in return. "You do not have to. My wife is your heir. Should she agree, your acceptance becomes inconsequential. We are, after all, the future of the realms."
Silence.
The Alpha King and I access each other for several seconds, in which father merely sips from his bottle, watching keenly and waiting for whoever might be the first to cave.
I don't. Neither does he.
Slowly, a smile creeps up my cheeks, mirroring his growing smile. "The things I would do to--"
The door bursts open, and Astrid's guard stumbles in. My heart slows as he grabs his knees, panting. I straighten, the chair toppling behind me. "Has she--"
Boris gazes up, brows furrowing and he sighs. "It's a girl, and the princess demands your presence immediately..."
I am out the door halfway through his sentence. I might have stumbled racing across hallways. The maids might have laughed, as well as the guards. Nothing, absolutely nothing, could compare to the fullness in my heart at the...cry.
With trembling hands, I push the door back, and my heart seizes at the sight before me. I vaguely register the doctor and mid wives, as well as our mothers and my grandmother giving us the space we need.
One step forward, and a shuddering breath leaves me. Another and...my eyes sting.
The third has me sobbing.
At Astrid who smiles at me, eyes shinning with exhaustion and joy all the same time. At the bundle she cradles in her slim arms, fingers caressing lightly on her sleeping form.
My lips part, but I have no words. I approach, drawn by an invisible force. My hands shake as I reach out to stroke the baby's red hair, wet with perspiration, much like her mother's.
As if sensing my presence, she stirs in her sleep, eyes fluttering open, and deep green eyes meet mine, holding it as she cooes.
I laugh, even as another tear slides down my cheek. In that moment, I fall in love again. I understand what it means again to love so dearly, I would go to the ends of the earth if need be to protect her. Them.
Astrid's fingers cups my cheeks, and my gaze rises to meet hers, lined with silver. "Don't go soft on me now, Rune. I can't care for two children at once."
I laugh again, leaning into her light touch and tilting my head to kiss her palm. "Thank you... She is beautiful. You're beautiful."
"I love you," she tells me, voice a little strained as she leans back into the pillow.
Settling in beside her, I take our daughter from her, heart warming as she watches me with wide eyes that seem to take in everything. Tiny fingers reach for my hair, tangling in it, and her eyes brighten with awe.
"I could have sworn I heard her cry on my way here," I mutter, cradling her to my chest.
Astrid's head drops on my shoulder. "She was. It's only been seconds and I am tired of having my breast sucked on. It is the weirdest feeling ever. It's like having a tiny milk-powered vacuum cleaner attached to me."
"Not when we do it," Hekate cooes, and Astrid's answering growl has us chuckling.
Lifting my daughter, I press a kiss to her forehead. "Which of the names did you decide on?" I ask.
A soft snore interrupts the silence shortly after, and I chuckle, gaze flicking to meet fierce green eyes that won't stop watching me, as if waiting to hear what I might call her.
"Ember," I say, and her lips part, letting out an adorable wail that nearly makes me jump. Astrid doesn't move an inch, her breathing deeper, and her snoring louder.
She is out cold. What, pray tell, do I do next?
**********
Astrid
A year later...
"Give me one reason why I have to do this again, Rune," I whine, adjusting the straps of my bag. "I hate this place."
He cups my cheeks, forcing me to look into his eyes. "First, one day, you will be queen. Graduating from the academy is imperative for every royal. Second, this gives you another chance to let them get to know you. Love you. Third, I could teach you everything you need to know for the shift, but the school provides a safe space for true growth, alongside the others. We may not move in packs, but when push comes to shove, we discard the word 'solitary'. Fourth, you look absolutely stunning in uniform."
I roll my eyes, and he leans in, locking his lips with mine, stealing my breath away until I'm left breathless and my toes curl up in my shoes.
He pulls back then, lips swollen and stained with cherry lipstick. I wipe his mouth as he says, "Need me to come along?"
I shrug. "I can handle Vesper."
His lips kick up into a smirk. "Sure you can, just like you handled Em this morning."
I turn beet red as he pulls me forward, taking me through the familiar hallway teeming with students who bow as we walk past. This morning had been hard. Leaving Ember behind with Queen Zephyr. I know she is in good hands, but I absolutely hated it.
She wouldn't stop crying, and I joined in at some point. Rune laughed his head off, and his father had the nerve to hand me a box of tissues on my way out.
"Astrid!"
I smile at the sound of Maya's voice, and Rune's fingers tighten around mine, a knowing look in his eyes. "Later, Red."
I have all but ten seconds to watch my mate's powerful, beautiful back as he saunters off, taking the stairs to the Star Hall, before Maya comes careening into me, hugging me so tight, I literally can't breathe anymore.
She pulls away, grinning from ear to ear. "I missed you. You look great. I might just get myself knocked up to get hips like yours!"
"Be my guest," I tell her as we trail the hallways leading to Vesper's office. "That is, if you don't mind having leaking boobs."
She grimaces, and I shove down the urge to inquire about Darian. It doesn't concern me. I've found the closure I needed from our relationship and sought his forgiveness. And though what follows depends on him, I am free of any form of guilt or sadness.
We stop by Vesper's door, and as I place my palm against it, I let out an exasperated sigh. "I'll be out in a jiffy."
The door gives way under my palm, revolving to lead me into the office that hasn't changed since the last time I was here. My gaze sweeps across, and there, in his ever-crisp white suit, Vesper sits in his chair, scribbling something down.
He doesn't raise his head as he says, "Good to see you again, Bla--Wilder." He points at the door where the sets of uniforms sit unattended. "Grab a set from each, and head to the Lycan King's Hall for reassignments."
My brows furrow. "Reassignment? I was placed under Rune last year. Shouldn't I still be his charge?"
He looks up then, taking me in swiftly with one look. "You were unable to complete the session, and as such, you will repeat the first year. The Prince has other responsibilities now, and training under him might be viewed as partial or, even worse, disrupt the process, which is why I've placed you under Star Darian."
My jaw drops, and I pick it up almost immediately. "What--no. I'm not training under Darian. What about Raven? And...Cass?" I spit the last name out with disgust, but I'd take Cass's masturbating ass over Darian's angry ass any day.
Not in the other sense. Never in that sense.
Vesper's eyes remain cool as ever. "Raven has her hands full, and Cass is...busy." My lips part to argue, but he waves me off. "Out, Wilder. I'm busy."
What in the three realms and...
Growling, I stomp over to his table, ripping his pen out of his grasp and breaking it in half before chunking it into the trash can behind him. "When I become queen, I'm taking your job."
Vesper bursts out laughing, leaning back in his chair to peer into my face. "It really is nice to see you again, Your Grace, and I look forward to that."
THE END.