The White Wolf's Mate

Secrets Unheard

Raven's heart fluttered in her chest as Marcellus escorted her quickly away from the terrace through the winding corridors of the Grand Palace of Amber City. It took her a while to realize that they were inside a palace, but after listening to the Alpha and Luna of the Fireleaf speak about the Palace, she concluded that they were referring to the magical place before her. She blushed at the thoughts of Dante and his closeness at the table. It was as if she could still feel his lingering presence. She smiled as she thought about his piercing gaze. To some, it may be intimidating, but to her, he seemed to look into her soul. "Are you paying attention, love?" she heard Marcellus's annoyed voice break through her dreamy thoughts.

"Um... I will admit. I was not," she smiled coyly, unable to hide a smile as she looked at Marcellus's questioning face.

"Well, that's to be expected. I'm sure you can think of nothing more than your dear, Dante," He said matter-of-factly, causing Raven to blush profusely.

She tried her best to brush off her embarrassment and pay attention to where Marcellus was leading her; she could still smell the fresh, outside air, so she wondered if they were going outside again. She trusted him as he guided her to a narrow door, that widened as Marcellus placed his right hand along the sides, whispering the language she heard many of the Elders speaking,

"Areta ar loomet,"

she heard him whisper as the door widened and a set of stairs appeared from the ground.

"This way, my Lady. I would like to give you a brief lesson in the etiquette of riding with the Elites. We don't have much time before the ride, so quickly, love." Raven held his arm tightly as he led her down the winding staircase, the steps appearing as they walked. She was almost afraid to step down, fearing that the steps may not appear, and she would fall straight down, but Marcellus did not hesitate as he led her downward with pure confidence in the steps appearing just before his foot landed on to nothing.

"Here we are," Marcellus said with a smile, propelling her forward out of the darkness of the corridor of steps and into a beautiful scene of a grassy clearing with a private stable. She could see a beautiful white horse roaming freely in the distance, alone away from the stables. She took a deep breath of the fresh air and closed her eyes as a soft breeze danced across her cheeks. Her curls began to dance in the wind.

"My, Lady Raven?" Raven opened her eyes at the sound of Marcellus's inquiring voice.

"Sorry, I just..." Raven couldn't seem to find the words to explain the feeling. It was a beautiful scene like she had never encountered, and after being inside the palace, it felt wonderful to be outside. She smiled instead of finishing her statement and decided to run towards the stables before Marcellus could interject. She took off in a sprint, her heart racing as it did when she ran with Dante from the party crashers. Marcellus watched with a soft smile, deciding to give her a moment of freedom since she would seldom have any as she settled more into her role as an Elite of Amber City.

"Oh, Ghea, what are you doing over there?" he said aloud, noticing the beautiful white horse in the distance. Kneeling down, he plucked a purple Ola flower from the ground, Ghea's favorite snack, and began to walk toward her.

As Raven neared the stables, she slowed and began to walk, enjoying the feeling of her blood pumping from her sprint. She held her breath as she thought that she overheard a voice speaking inside the stables. She looked at the ground as she walked, careful not to make a sound so that she could hear better.

"Yet, in the waters deep and vast,

A choice awaits, the die is cast.

Alpha of Water, Alpha of Fire,

The Luna of Light must now aspire."

"Shhhh, lower your voice," she heard a voice admonish. "We can't have these matters discussed in the company of commoners."