The Red Cloak Girls

Two: Prince Raoul

Two

Prince Raoul

    The Mating Season was upon us. It came every year. As the world became iced over and blanketed in snow. Every year, from the time that I was fifteen, I had gone into the village looking for a mate. Centuries ago, a witch had cursed the wolves so that they could only mate with humans instead of each other. If we tried to be with someone else, our wolves would go mad until they killed themselves. And once a human mated with a wolf, they became one too.

    I woke to the sound of Castle Lupine bustling, making preparations for the girls that would be brought there that night. The Mating Season started on the Winter Equinox, and the wolves went into the village to pick their mates. Once they’d picked their mates, the girls would spend a year and a day with us. If the girls accepted us as their mates, they would stay with us. If not, they would return to their village. There had only been one girl that had chosen to do that in all of the time I’d witnessed the mating season.

    I’d waited six, long years going through mating season after mating season. All for a girl who I was fairly certain loathed me. I’d known who my mate was since I was seventeen years-old, but I hadn’t been able to do anything about it because she wasn’t eighteen yet.

    Her name was Crimson. Crimson Ashland. She was tall, with thick eyebrows that furrowed in anger easily. Her skin was pale, and she had long, jet black hair. She was also sick. She had a disease called Devils Lung, one that made her cough up blood whenever the air was too cold. Which, for half of the year where we lived, was all of the time.

    For years, I’d watched her be sick, struggling to survive. When we mated, she would become a wolf, and the illness wouldn’t be able to affect her. It pained me knowing that I could help her and not being able to  yet. I got myself up, and I dressed in a silk, white shirt, leather pants, and boots. I wrapped a fur cloak around me. When I went outside, I found my second in command waiting for me. My Beta, Conan.

    Conan was tall, with russet, curly hair, and warm, brown eyes. He smirked when he saw me. “Well, how many times do you think she’ll call you an arrogant arse today, your highness?”

    I frowned. “She didn’t call me an arrogant arse. She called me a big arse. There’s a difference.”

    “Oh, but of course,” said Conan.

    The first time I had met Crimson, I had been so annoyed that she’d been so young that I couldn’t claim her on the spot. I’d insulted her, calling her a runt because all I had wanted to do was to tear into her then and there in the middle of the village square. She hadn’t taken kindly to my words and spoken the most rude thing any village girl had ever said to me. Of course, I only wanted her more.

    I patted Conan on the shoulder. “You wait and see, my friend. She’ll be howling with pleasure before the night is over. It won’t even take a full year to make her mine. You’ll see.”

    Conan laughed. “I think you’ll have blue balls the whole year, and it won’t be from the cold.”

    “Bastard,” I said, smacking him on the head.

    “Come on, your father’s expecting us in the dining hall.”

    We made our way down the stone steps of Castle Lupine, to the grand dining all where the whole of our pack was gathered. Young and old took part in The Mating Season. It was an excuse to meet others not of our pack, to see the world beyond ours. My father stood at the front of the dining hall, gestured for me to come stand next to him. He wore an outfit similar to mine. A white, silk shirt. Leather pants, and leather boots, with a fur wrapped around him. On his head was a golden crown.

    He was a mirror image of me, gray eyes, and dark hair. Next to him was my mother, a tall, blond woman wearing a midnight blue dress with a fur wrapped around her neck. A golden crown was on her head also.

    “Members of Pack Lupine, welcome! Welcome all to another Mating Season!” My father’s voice boomed out across the dining hall. The pack erupted in ruckus applause, causing the whole of the room to shake.

    Father gestured at them to quiet down, and several howls echoed throughout the room. His lips twitched into a smile. “Tonight, our young wolves will find their mates. We will bring them back here, to begin her year and a day. We must treat these young maidens with respect. They help us continue on our legacy and keep Pack Lupine strong. For that, we owe them a great debt. Treat them with love, honor, and respect and they will do the same. Now, onwards!”

    Father let out a roar that echoed through the cabin. We shifted into our wolf selves, running from Castle Lupine through the cold, wet snow. Ice crunched under my paws and as I neared the village, I couldn’t wait to see Crimson.

    The girls wore special dresses for the mating season, to indicate if they were interested. We never took girls by force. I had watched Crimson carefully since that day in the village market, and I could only hope she knew she was mine. Girls who belonged to royal wolves like me wore gold. I wanted her in gold, so the whole world would know that she was mine. Surely, she had to know she was mine. I had done nothing but watch her since the first day I saw her.

    The shades all meant different things. Grey, if she was already promised to. White, to mark that they were underage. Black, to indicate they were interested. Gold, to indicate they wanted a wolf of status. Brown, to indicate they weren’t interested at all.

When we arrived in the village in our wolf forms, the villagers had all gathered in the town square. I followed my father, the old, black wolf to the front, with my mother who had rare, golden fur. I went to stand next to them in the front.

    I scanned the crowd and saw Crimson there. She lived with her grandmother, the village midwife, her sister, and her sister’s family. She was, to my surprise, wearing brown. I let out a growl that echoed through the village.

    The growl came out sounding like her name. “Crimson.”

    The whole of the village stilled, and Crimson locked eyes directly to me. There was pure terror in her eyes. To my complete surprise, she stared at me head long. Then, she gave chase. Still in wolf form, I gave chase, through the hordes of shrieking villagers that had been startled by the giant werewolf.