In the Alpha's Possession

Chapter Seven- Growing Pains

“You can either be born into a life you were meant to have or live a life you were born to have.”

This is what you have decided to wear?" His voice echoed throughout the greenhouse as Drew emerged from the hallway and towards Lavender. The clothing she wore had been that of a basic white button down shirt and capris pants-as these were the only "training clothes" she had on hand. "Remind me to have someone go shop for something more comfortable...for right now, I guess we can focus on the less physical portions of the lessons." The thought of what he meant behind being physical made her blush. Each second she spent with him, she felt more drawn to him-able to feel the tension grow between them without a word of validation to confirm it. "Okay...how do you think you are with perception?" His words made her realize the lesson was beginning immediately. 

"Fine, I guess..." she spoke with a shrug, given the fact that being perceptive wasn't exactly a subject in school in which she had been graded. 

"Let me see...I have hidden a branch of wolfsbane within the room. Let us see how long it takes for you to find it." He spoke before waiting her begin about the room. At first, she focused on any purple colored flower, in thinking that perhaps he had hidden it in plain sight. However, this didn't seem to be the case as she found nothing more than beautiful flowers in a stunning array, but none that stood out. This continued throughout the entire room, before she became frustrated in gaining the faint scent, but not being able to pin it. 

"Let's take a break...perhaps some tea would allow you to not second guess yourself." He spoke as the butler made his way within the room. The tea had been served on a shining silver tray that acted as a mirror to items near and far within the room. She noted that Drew's gaze kept onto her, almost as if waiting for her to say something. It was only when she brought the tea to her lips to blow on it, that she gained the overpowering scent of wolfsbane set before her. 

"Gotcha!" She called out before holding up the tea bag. 

"Good. But that bag was sitting there since last night..." he commented, knocking down her victory by a few notches. 

"What exactly is this supposed to do?" She asked in confusion. 

"Being my mate means others will try to bring harm to you-especially when you least expect it. It can be in dinner, in dancing-even in bed-" her eyes grew wide and froze onto him. She hadn't thought about that aspect until now-not in depth anyway. Sure, he had a s****l allure to him that had been unmistakable in their isolated moments together-but to be his mate in full...it terrified her to be connected to someone as dangerous as him. But it was also this danger that made him able to protect her. 

"I'm sorry...I forget-" he stopped himself, seeing the blush form on her face when speaking of her virtue. "On to the next task…" he spoke before motioning out of the greenhouse and into the corridor. He led the way, passing by several rooms she hadn't recalled in the short time as a resident, and stopped when coming to a distant yet feminine room decorated with flowers and colored a deep red. It had been the only room in the entire castle that had modern paint within its walls, allowing her to forget the antique building it sat a part of. 

"What is this?" She asked, worried that she would be forced in here as a room or locked away from an unseen change of his heart. However, as the door closed behind them, he made his way towards the desk across the way and brought an old fashioned perfume bottle. 

"I cannot have my future mate dressed as if she can only afford hand-me-downs. That includes perfume, makeup, anything you need to be protected and first class." He spoke in an odd way to tell her he wanted her to have her heart's desires. She was taken aback by the items set before her. The perfumes she had on the vanity were made of heavenly scents, each one better than the last. There had been at least four hundred dollars in makeup, made up of at least three of every kind applicator or color and everything having been professionally organized. Her fingers ran across the lipsticks set on the counter before her attention was pulled towards Drew. 

His handsome middle eastern ancestry stood strong in his dark and alluring features. She found herself looking at him constantly, almost as if glancing to him would allow her to read his thoughts. She was desperate to know so much within his mind-but nothing more than what it was about her that made him seemingly break his own persona to comfort her. There was still so much that Lavender didn't know.

"Here…" he spoke, his monotone speech having drawn her gaze to fall to him. Resting in his palm had been a single violet colored bottle with a silver butterfly design on the neck and the base of the perfume atomizer. Spraying a section of it upon her neck, she could feel her sense of scent stand at attention from the jasmine and vanilla scent that made her relaxed. "What do you think?" She asked upon finding him to lean in to her to bring in the scent to his own nasal sensory cortex. He set his fingers upon her neck, set soft on her skin to pull at the fabric that kept the scent from him. Her body gained goosebumps from this feeling, before he rested the tip of his nose upon her neck. She could feel his entire body breathe her in, lingering as if wanting to take a bite of the delicious scent, before deciding against it. As he pulled back, their gazes locked, as they both knew whatever animosity was still there, had now grown into something far different. Something romantic.

"I hope I'm not interrupting-" Astrid spoke while breaking this moment between them. 

"Not at all." Drew spoke with a blase reaction, before Astrid spoke of how he had a package to sign for. Rather bizarre as very few people knew the location to Drew's estate, Lavender followed behind in curiosity. Astrid looked forward to Lavender with a deep glare that could have melted a glacier with how much envy and hate she held behind the heat of her stare. It was clear the feelings she held for Drew had been more romantic than the ones he held for her-and it showed with greed and jealousy coming through in silent exchanges. 

“Sign here…” The man dressed in tan spoke before extending a tablet to have Drew sign his name. He looked to the small package that lied in the shape of a grade school pencil box, and set it beneath his arm, before pressing his name via the pen and closing the door to see the package. Astrid held a childlike curiosity to the item, wanting to know if it was something noble from the lycan elders or even something from his mother. But as the door closed and the package was brought to view, it held the scent of raw meat-the same scent present when Lavender was brought down to see her husband’s lifeless body. It seemed both Drew and Lavender picked up on this, as they exchanged a look, before his fingers pulled at wrapping of the item-exposing a thick dark oak box, accented with a golden lock and floral designed corners. 

As the top of the box had been forced open by Drew’s fingers, he pulled it open to reveal the horrific sight of a paw on one side of the box, and a human finger set upon the other. The finger had been damp with blood-recently cut, with the temperature having just begun to turn cold, and the pay present with dirt still on its fingers. However, the appearance of the morbid objects had been made present in such a way to seem elegant as they were laid in a satin bottom and arranged to appear as a gift instead of a threat. 

“What does it mean?” Astrid asked, peering into the box and wincing before looking to Drew for an answer. Drew studied the items before him, almost as if staring at them allowed him to understand the sender and his or her motives. But the girls were left to look at each other in wonder, trying to comprehend just what it was that made Drew clench his jaw in preparation for what was about to be stated. 

“It’s a duel. They have summoned me to a Duel.”

“Who?” Astrid and Lavender both asked in unison before Drew looked both of them in true dramatic fashion before looking back to the box. “Kayden.” As he spoke this name, Astrid seemed to read the same fear into her own expression, while Lavender was left to assume this had been Drew’s mortal enemy-but it would be something she wouldn’t know for sure just yet.