Luna Created

Chapter 29

Draven's POV

"Stop! Draven, I said stop!" She yells from her seat on my back, pulling harshly on my fur, causing me to jerk and buck her off. She landed on the ground with a thump and I could see she did not look impressed with me. "Why were you following me? Did you come to collect me again for Caraway?" I growled at her suggestion, but she still came at me, her eyes fixating on me with fury. "Well, are you going to answer me or hide behind your fur you f*****g coward!" She was screaming at me now, pulling on her vivid red curls that hung to her hips. She is crazy, why even bother?

The cold nips at my bare skin as I change back, my body towering over her as I come face to face with her, her sweet scent of vanilla and plums made me feel hungry, like a plum pie and vanilla custard- my favourite childhood dessert. She stands firm in front of me, showing no fear and a whole lot of anger. Her eyes deadpan into mine as I tell her "You're welcome." She guffaws in my face at that, like an irate clown. "Oh, oh, really? Really?! How do you think you have done me any favours since you abandoned me yesterday." Abandon - her choice of words left me extremely uncomfortable. I never abandoned her. She knew we were going to separate. The plan was we wouldn't see each other again and instead of stepping out of the way, she kept getting thrown into my path. It was infuriating. She messed with a ruffle on the dress that Caraway picked out for her, that dress alone was bugging me. "What is your problem?" I had been staring at her neck for the last few minutes. "You look ridiculous," I stated, furious that Caraway put his mark on her, even if just in the form of some cloth. I shouldn't be here, I should be getting paid for my next job and moving on forgetting I had ever met this menace of a woman. "I look ridiculous. I look ridiculous, do you think I don't know I look so ridiculous!" She was bouncing about as she spoke, her arms swinging out to either side, her hands shaking at me as if she was carrying an invisible box. "You tricked me to stop running, you took me to Caraways, and you stood back as he forced me to be bathed and dressed to his liking. It is clear he holds the remote that controls you, what did he ever do that so many people would work for that vile cockroach?" Her face was twisted showing her repulsion, her nose wrinkling as she did, making her look cuter than I'm sure she intended. The anger building inside me at her accusations was frustrating. It takes a lot to bother me but she manages with ease and with what she was saying. The fact she was saying it was tipping me over the end. "You might as well just take me back there now. After all, I'm sure he still expects his 'guest' in his bed chambers!" Furious, I rapidly backed her into a tree, struggling to hold back my anger. "You will never be in his bed chambers! You will take nothing from him." I looked up and down at her dress and fury took over me "this dress is f*****g ridiculous!" I growled, tearing off the clown costume from the neck down. She falls silent, her steely grey eyes locked on my own. Worried that I am invading her personal space, I stumble back, allowing her room to move. Her eyes trailed my body, a heat traveling over my skin as if a personal map to her eyes. Her eyes burn into my groin slightly longer than other parts as she gazes on at all of me. I'm used to being naked. It comes with the territory, but something about her staring at me in this way leaves me unsettled. She steps out of the tattered clothing towards me, her pale skin looks like butter in the light of the moon. Still, in undergarments, I'm sure they were from him. I'm not sure if I'm turned on or furious about it right now - I hate that guy at the best of times, but right now I loathe him. My groin twinges as she picks up her bag - how she still has that thing I can't tell you. She turns her back to me, looking over her shoulder. "You're right, it is ridiculous..." The remaining underwear drop to the floor leaving her naked as she heads behind a tree, her hips and hair swaying as she moves. The gods have mercy on me. A liar is all I would be if I pretended not to notice her beauty. Anyone with eyes can see she is stunning. Her long auburn hair hangs down and hits all the right places, her almond shaped eyes, her lips just the right level of fullness, and her beautiful pale skin dotted with a small number of freckles. Even her voice is like a melody so easy to listen to, but let me say she is infuriating - the woman drives me insane. Why do I keep putting myself in these situations, running after her like a little lost pup? Gods only know what trouble I've got myself into now. I'm meant to live a low profile, do what I need to get paid, and survive. That is all. A girl was never part of my plan. She doesn't even want my help anyway, she's made it clear she's not a fan.

When she returned from behind the large sycamore she was fully covered in a red silk cloak. How much stuff is in that bag of hers, it's still bugging me that I couldn't open it up! "Yes very funny, little red and the big bad wolf?" she accuses pointing at herself then me, I'm lost and my face shows this. "Little red riding hood?" She continues pulling at her new cloak, she sounds exasperated that I don't understand huffing out. "What now?" I shrug my shoulders palms face up, I have no clue what she's saying. "Well, clearly you put this in my bag right?" Her face lacks her earlier conviction as she doubts it was me.

"No." Strange she would say that since she's the only one able to open the bag, I saw a few of the staff try back at Caraways, even he gave it a go with no luck- he would never let anyone see him fail, so you know he played it off, but I saw his mask slip. He was worried about what she could do. She wasn't a guest, not at first, but only strong magic could create the spell on that bag. If he couldn't break it, he may have met his match. Shaking my head, I let her know it wasn't me, and her face was filled with confusion. "What are you?" I wanted to know "You say you are not a wolf, you're not a mage as you would have fought back, you're ears suggest your not an elf or fae, you're clearly not a vampyre and you obviously have access to strong magic due to that bag you're carrying. So what are you, a siren?" Siren would make sense, it would explain the pull and attention she is receiving. Her eyes stare at me in shock. She desperately looks everywhere but at me and when she does I can see her eyes glued to my face - clearly she's still very aware I am naked and trying her darndest not to look. Staying silent is a good way to have people talk. I've practiced staying quiet for years and something I've always noticed, people hate the gap. They can't help but fill it with noise even if it means they share something they weren't originally intending to. "I'm not a siren." I knew she would speak. I stayed silent, waiting for her to continue. To my surprise, she didn't continue and just walked past me instead. This sent my inner wolf into a primal drive, like a game of cat and mouse. I needed to catch her. She was running, though this would be more of a mental cat and mouse game. I walked with her until I could see a way to back her into a corner. Grabbing her arm to bring her attention back to me, I see her glance over my body and shudder - does she find me repulsive? Our eyes connect and I stare deeply into hers, watching the shade change from grey to green before my eyes. Is she a changeling? Taking a step towards her, which she matches by taking a step back. We continue this dance until her back is up against a tree blocking her from retreating further. "What are you?" I breathe into her ear, goosebumps appear on her neck. This unlocks a reaction I didn't know goosebumps could as I feel my manhood spring to life against my torso. Not wanting to scare her, I did not close in further and slightly retreat, noticing this she glanced down, spotting the change. She nervously bites her lip and looks back at me, though I can't detect any fear from her, and her previous sass has gone. she says something too quiet to make out, she knows it too as she waits for a reaction. "I am human." Holy crap. Of all the things she could have said, human did not even enter the equation. Could she be lying to me? Do human eyes change colour? Who knows, maybe they do. I've never met one, I step back closer to stare at her. To be honest, this has rattled me. My knowledge of humans is almost none existent. I have no idea what they're capable of and if I should be concerned. She steps towards me, her face horrified at my reaction, "is it that bad?" Her lips quake, her eyes full of worry. I close the gap I had created in my panic, seeing her like this fills me with guilt. "I've never met a human." She stares at me, holding back something as she twists her mouth. We stay silent waiting for the other to speak and I find calmness in listening to our breathing as we stare into one another's eyes. Alone in the night, vulnerable and honest, a wolf and a human finding understanding in silence. It's poetic. She's intoxicating, I could stay here forever to hear her, to see her, to smell her. The urge to touch her is overwhelming, we are so close, a hairbreadth between us, but I cannot move.

A cough breaks the spell she placed on me "I hear you're looking for a flower. I can help you find it." The fact she caught me off guard, enraged me. How could I be so stupid? My number one rule - survive. How long will I be able to do that if I allow others to catch me unaware? A growl comes from deep within my chest as I stare at the woman in front of me. Long wavy ebony hair, she was a beautiful woman looking about 40 - her navy blue cloak and the talisman of the owl hanging on her neck explains it. She's a mage, which likely means she's older than she looks too, a lot older, and that talisman's how she got here unheard. My eyes focused on the mage. "What do you want, witch?" I could see my word choice had offended her, the last thing a practitioner wants to be called is a witch and I know it. "Let it be known if I was here to help you, I would have already left." She spat on the ground to show her disgust. She looks me up and down, my p***s still erect from Sara's effect on me. She doesn't even glance twice, which in itself is insulting. "Why would you want to help?" Witches have done little to help me over the years. I can't help but look for her agenda - they always have one. "I don't care why. Where can I find it and what will it cost me?" Sara interrupted, pushing past me, her red cloak flowing as she moves. "I have my reasons." She directed at me before turning to Sara, "Let's call it a favor, when I'm ready I will collect." The mage states giving away nothing, simulations throwing a large black cloak to me, Sara nodding in agreement immediately. That woman is driving me insane, who agrees to something like that? "You can leave if you want. Thank you for everything." She sounds so hopeful, so naive, I hate how frustrating this is, but against my instincts, I know I can't leave her with the witch. She needs someone to look out for her, just till the witch moves on. Glaring at the black haired con artist, I begrudgingly shook my head. "Im staying - for now."

Keeping slightly ahead, I continued down the route the mage, Prita, had sent us down. "It's a few day's treks." She told us, great guess I'm in this for the foreseeable. The women walked behind me muttering among themselves as I went on ahead, ensuring there was no danger. If there was, I want to be the first to know. Prita has taken us to a land I've never explored. Currently, we are walking down a long canyon, with huge cliffs on each side. The hairs on the back of my neck stand to attention, something feels off about this place. The earth began to tremble and the path they were walking on suddenly felt dark and cold. Prita had picked up on the change too, moving over to my side as we stood in defense. Sara stood completely still watching in concern. I could sense she was near and this put me on edge - I'm usually every man for himself, I take care of myself and myself alone. How could I do that when she can't take care of herself? Humans don't belong here, they are just asking for trouble by being here. Now I have to take care of her. Let's face it, I wouldn't even be here if I hadn't met her. A hard thud landed a blow on my face, causing me to stumble. As we were thrashing around, Prita fought on too, but there was nothing there. Nothing but dark shadows engulfing us. You touch them and feel them but it was more of a cold feeling than a solid body. s**t - I made a mistake and lost my footing. The shadow monster saw its opportunity, wrapping its dark smoky limbs around my throat, and squeezing it tightly until I was getting dizzy.

The sound of a stone skimming across the ground brought my attention back to the fight. The creature had dropped its grip on me and all 4 of them were heading in Sara's direction at some speed. Her hand still clutching stones - had she thrown them to distract the shadows? They were dangerously close to her, even as she attempted to flee. I couldn't get to her in time. I felt an invisible rope tightening around my neck as I panicked. My body reacted without my brain kicking in, my eyes burned as I threw all of my energy around her, protecting her from the shadows. My energy was depleting rapidly, like a match that was lit, burning down until there was nothing left.

A ball of light danced around, and the shadow creatures screamed before disappearing into nothing as if they never were. What just happened? I looked first at Sara, who seemed just as shocked, then at Prita, who was looking at me in such a way it left me unnerved. Rushing to Sara's side, I grabbed her face in my hands, "You i***t! You're alright, you're alright..." Blackness took hold of me, and the last thing I felt was my body hit the rough floor abruptly.