Under the moonlight

Let thou eyes see

Faint knocks on the door were heard as Alexandria was unpacking her bag, back facing the door. The sun was already setting and after breakfast, she took the leisure to familiarize the castle with Riven and Maeve before they went to their own rooms to unpack.

“Come in!” Alexandria shouts. She had not bothered to lock her room, guessing it was just Riven or Maeve, well probably the latter as it isn’t in Riven’s language to knock.

“Alexandria.” She heard a familiar soft husky-voice speak from behind who certainly wasn’t Riven nor Maeve.

“Don’t you think I’ve seen enough of you today?” Alexandria dryly said as she stopped unpacking to look at Selene, who was now standing in her bedroom chamber. She was wearing a comfortable beige coat over jade black breeches.

“I wanted to speak with you alone.” Selene replied coolly, ignoring Alexandria’s previous remark. “We need to be civil with each other. I can’t have you acting like how you did at breakfast.”

“Me?” Alexandria pointed at herself in disbelief, “I wasn’t the one who decided to show up late to please my women. “Alexandria stood up, unpacking all but forgotten.

“It was not only at breakfast. As much as it amuses me, you’re always actively challenging me, even in front of my people. They’re beginning to think that you’re not respectful, in my own home no less. Such actions of my subjects are usually punished.”

“I am not one of your subjects,” Alexandria closed the distance between them until they were only a few inches away and looked up at Selene defiantly, “And if they think I don’t respect you or any of your people for that matter, truthfully, I really don’t.”

“I am well aware. I don’t need your respect to me, but your respect to this alliance do. Believe me, working with you was the last thing I wished.”

“So send me back to Avalair.”

“I’m afraid I can’t do that. I know you hate us with every fiber of your being, reasonably so… But you weren’t the only one who’s lost someone in our war, maybe it’s time you understand that.”

“Don’t forget that this is the war you and your people started…” Alexandria said, not backing down.

“War Vorkalth started,” Alexandria was surprised to hear hatred in Selene’s voice when she mentioned the previous Alpha, wasn’t he the one who raised her? “And the one I’m trying to end.” Selene said, sincerity in her eyes like it was carved in there.

When her hatred involuntarily simmered down, Alexandria realized how close they were to each other. She could now see the freckles on the bridge of Selene’s nose that were normally invisible from afar. Could see the gold and gray flecks inside Selene’s green eyes, highlighting them. Her knitted eyebrows looking like it was brushed to perfection.

There she was, forgetting the whole ordeal. She was supposed to intimidate Selene, not be rendered speechless like this, and for entirely different reasons. When her eyes uncontrollably glanced down at Selene’s slightly chapped lips, she forces herself out of the trance and took a few steps back to exit Selene’s personal space.

Alexandria could only hope Selene haven’t noticed her checking her out.

“Fine.” Alexandria eventually said, “Can you go now?”

Selene offered nothing other than a small nod and when she was about to leave, Alexandria added, “I would be civil with you in public… but it doesn’t mean that you can order me around. As I said, I am not one of your subjects.”

“I know you are not, Alexandria.”  

“When you first came here, I know we were not what you expected, or should I say, what you wished we were that make us easier to hate. Don’t be blind to hatred Alexandria, sometimes the people are not to blame for a leader's fault. We're all just trying to survive." Selene said, closing the door to leave Alexa with her thoughts.

///

The following days have been relatively peaceful, aside from occasional glares they receive from the people at the castle or the ones they receive when they're needed to go to the town to accommodate humans who have just arrived.

There was tension, for sure, and Alexa's sure they wanted to murder her, but so far, no one ever acted on it. Alexandria felt no far from them too, the feeling was mutual after all. But eventually, she learned to ignore it. Acted civil as she can to Selene and any werewolf she encountered.

She believes she deserves a f*****g award.

Though the more she stays, the more she's getting a change of perspective that she's uncertain she wants to have. The people here were just like her own. When she looks at Selene's people through the windows of her own chamber, they don’t seem like monsters at all, as she previously has thought. They were humble farmers, parents to their children, relentless traders.

Even in the castle, there were patient healers, intellectual advisors, and Selene... Alexandria would rather die than admit this in front of her, but she is a great leader to their people.

She could see it from the way Selene values her people, how she would listen to the victims staying in the castle, and how she's always trying to help them. Selene makes practical intellectual decisions too, and so different from a traditional Alpha who were all pheromones and power.

Selene commanded the respect of her people, and certainly was not just because she was their strongest werewolf.

After their talk that day, they haven't had any personal conversations since. They talk only when needed, when discussing about plans, the current situation, and the letters from Avalair when they hold council meetings.

Heusef and a couple of scholars who were mostly from Caelum, have almost covered the entire library and yet, they haven't found any relevant information that could be used. In all the lands, Helike had the vastest collections of historical books.

People before did not have time to read books for leisure, reading was deemed useless in comparison to other productive things to do. But to the first dynasty in Helike, they were known to have an obsession with history. They would gather written evidences, translate them, and listen to folklores, all to map out history. They would even write books themselves.

So it was quite discouraging to hear about the lack of information still from the library. It was decided previously in a council meeting that as much as possible, they needed all the weaknesses of the enemy they could find.

Knowing about targeting the ghouls' heart muscles wasn't enough, they were flying swift beasts with enormous wings that could possibly change the trajectory of the arrows. The beasts were all still physically stronger and more agile.

They would also need to know more about the Kwin. So right now, Alexandria's trying to release all frustration and hopelessness through sparring with Riven, who's less than thrilled being the receiving end of it.

"Calm down, won’t you?" Riven huffed as he parried Alexa's heavy blows, "May I remind you-" he catches his breath as he twirled around to avoid one of Alexa's strikes "that this is 'light' sparring, not a death match..."

When he’s rewarded with no reply, he turns to Maeve, “Maeve! Help me with her!”

“No. Good luck with that” Maeve turned her attention back at the book from the library that she was reading. They were in the courtyard of the castle in the afternoon, and Maeve brought along with her some books to help with Heusef as she knows how to read, while Riven and Alexa were sparring with each other.

Before that, they were teaching some werewolves hand-to-hand combat without relying on their transfiguring abilities. Figured it would be a useful skillset when they were actually in the battlefield. Maeve also taught the lot of them how to use bows and arrows, and Riven taught them how to use spear.

"We've been here for days already, and yet we're still as hopeless as we started" Selene said, still exchanging blows with Riven.

“No we’re not, Alexa. And you know that,” Riven said sternly, it was then that they stopped when Alexa felt that he was serious, “we’ve been making a lot of progress thanks to you and everyone here. Barricade are already being built, mining for iron increased tenfold with the werewolves help, we’ve almost covered the library, and we’re bound to find something. Don’t undermine the efforts of everyone here.”

“I know, I’m sorry… I’m just frustrated and tired.”

“Is Selene overworking you? I swear that–”

“I’m overworking who?” Riven and Alexa both jumped at the voice.

“Oh hi, my friend Selene.” Riven nervous laughs, not because he’s scared but because it’s awkward to be caught by the person he was talking about.

“We were just talking about how Alexa’s been trying to kill me under the pretense of sparring. It’s overworking.” Alexa kicked Riven’s feet in light speed, “ow.”

Selene raised her eyebrows at their weird demeanor before speaking, “Well, if she’s overworking you, I could spar with her if she’d like.”