Don't Misunderstand.... This Is Not A Date.
1200 Words
[Roanna’s Pov]
King Zane agreed to help me enjoy life. Now while my anger would be the fuel pushing me forward, that first test seemed to suck some fight right out of me. I’m all for trying to enjoy this day. It isn’t easy. After my talk with Aspen, I had a nightmare. There was a woman, and I was so young, she was berating me. I hated it. Hated her even more.
But I found that I couldn’t speak up to defend myself. That only aggravated her more. She questioned my integrity as an alpha, but being an alpha wasn’t anything special, I wasn’t treated differently in my pack.
As Zane walked down the stairs, I tried to push the feel of the nightmare to the back of my mind. He was shirtless as always, I wanted to ask if he had something against shirts... but I didn’t. He wore a solerian designed pants that were tight on him. He didn’t look happy about this, but I wasn’t about to throw out blame.
“Are you ready to go?” I gave him a thumbs up, and a nod. Zane rolled his eyes at me and pointed towards the door. A silent command for me to go. The urge to bite back was slowly rising, but I was shoving that down.
I’m in this mess, I should make the most of it. When I die... what am I going to remember? The voice telling me I’m just a dog? My family, and their horrible treatment of me? What good thing did I have to remember?
I need this more than I need my pride, and that was hard for me to say. I draw in a deep breath and start walking.
Once we were in the carriage, I finally asked the important question.
“Where are we going?”
“To a solerian ram festival. There will be alot of food, music, and fights. It’s one of my favorite things to attend.”
A Solerian ram festival? Interesting. I could try to ask to join the fight part, but against dragon shifters that are as aggressive and as primal as solerians? I don’t think so. I’ll die instantly. I’d have to train really f*****g hard and do it before my third test. After that, it’s time to start trying to procreate.
I held back my shudder.
“Sounds fun. Do you fight at these festivals?”
His expression is empty but he nods. Do you want to know something interesting about Zane? When we first met, he struck me as this happy go lucky guy.
Cheering, laughing, and bringing the prisoner a bunch of Soleria’s best meals because he felt like it. He didn’t think that was weird, he had done it and we spent the entire day talking about our scars and how we got them.
I was loyal by default, whatever small truce we’d formed was thrown away.
I need to try and find a way to pull that light hearted guy back. But how? I was never good at making friends, and for everything I did to protect my family ... I never apologized for it. I didn’t think what we did was right. But I just didn’t apologize. It would have been un-alpha like of me to do that.
I blame them for so much.
We were silent throughout the ride, the silence was incredibly awkward. If I knew how to make it go away, I would do it. Perhaps an official apology?
Did I ever tell him sorry for the BS my family and I pulled? I don’t know. But maybe it was worth the try.
Before I could get my mouth to work, we’d arrived. The festival was loud, it was beautiful at first glance... hot and already filled with drunk people. Solerians were big, they were strong, and they radiated mostly alpha energy. Even the omegas.
I was dressed almost similar to them, but lacking all their tattoos and machoism. My attire was a long skirt, it covered my sandled feet. And a short top that only covers the private parts of my chest. The beds around my wrist were to keep my temperature balanced from the incredible heat that affected this side of draconia.
It was like the son left himself for solerians alone.
They seemed too drunk to care that I was a wolf. There were dancers and omegas, and the alphas were cheering them on.
Zane walked me towards a pillow made fort that overlooked the party. He pointed towards it and I sat.
There was one thing he didn’t change. And that was the collar. I was still asked to keep that on in case I tried to do something stupid again.
I watched the party, if I could dance I would. I was supposed to have fun. These were people who looked like me. I watched a female, she was taller than me, bulkier too but it wasn’t too much. It suited her so well, she was arm wrestling a guy and talking a lot of s**t. I was so engrossed in watching how relaxed she was, the guy struggled.
She was so clearly an ace. The people around them were taking bets. I wanted to do the same, but I had no money. My bet would be on her.
These people looked kind of like me. Solerians were titans. Almost like unnatural warriors but they were incredible, good looking, and deadly.
“Ever arm wrestled?” Zane asked out of the blue, I tried to draw my attention away from the warrior. When the bell rang to signal that they’d been holding hands for one minute, she immediately slammed the man’s hand to the table. Cracking it in half.
I cheered along with the crowd because it was so much fun. She was funny. Telling jokes, and dissing her competitor to get in his head.
Her win was insane, the guy held his hand and groaned with pain. The people who had placed their bets on him didn’t look upset. They only handed in their money to the people who won and patted the man on his shoulder. They were telling him to cheer up-
“You were never gonna beat Mona and you know it.”
Zane cleared his throat softly, and I realized he’d asked me a question before. The party continued on as Mona started gloating.
“Yes?”
How was it okay for Solerians to be this way but I was the freak for being a bit muscular? Couldn’t girls work out to earn muscles too? In my pack that was atrocious.
“I asked if you had arm wrestled before.”
“No, I haven’t.”
He hums. “Well look around, you want to have fun solerian way... then challenge somebody. Win or lose, as long as you don’t back out, it should be a fun game.”
challenge someone? And that would be fun? I mean they made arm wrestling fun. I could try that. Maybe if I did things right, I could learn more about soleria. Understand their culture and how it seemed like almost everyone was confident.
- Writer
