Filed to story: Wolf Crying Mate of the Alpha by Jazz Ford
They both stare down at their hands with obvious guilt.
‘Next time you decide to get into a fight with each other, at least be more discreet about it,’ I say, raising my hands in defeat. ‘Anyway, are you both ready to return to Moon Crest Castle?’
As they nod, a pair of beautiful fairy wings in the nearby garden grabs my attention.
‘Quinn!’ I growl and give chase after her. She looks back and frets when she sees I’m gaining on her. ‘Get back here, you little brat!’ I yell.
Her wings pick up speed, and I see her scurry and hide behind her cottage. I quietly creep up and slowly scan the area. Finally, I see her toes sticking out from behind a large bushy potted plant.
‘Gotcha!’ I say, about to pull her out from hiding, but I trip and fall flat on my face. Quinn bursts into laughter and runs across my back.
I let out a growl and shift into my wolf and give chase. I lunge and gently tackle her to the ground and shift back. We roll around a few times.
‘You drugged me with fairy dust!’ I growl.
‘It’s your fault for being so na?ve,’ she giggles.
I glare at her as we roll around in the vegetable garden. ‘Oh, have you spoken to the flowers lately?’ she asks, laughing even harder. I blush with embarrassment, remembering Sir Hugo having a good laugh at my expense from talking to the flowers in the window and being under the effects of fairy dust. ‘I thought you would fall for that old nutshell,’ she smiles.
‘You little!’
‘What’s the meaning of all this?’ Nadia says, hands-on, hip glaring at both of us. We both nervously laugh and pat down our messy hair. I wrap my arms around Quinn and hug her, ‘Can’t breathe,’ she mumbles.
‘Oh, Nadia. Quinn and I are the best of friends now,’ I say, smiling and continuing to hug Quinn tight. ‘We were just… playing,’
‘Oh, I see. Well, next time you play, can you not do it in my vegetable garden?’ She says, waving her hand around.
Quinn and I look around at her ruined garden and peer down at our hands with guilt.
‘Sorry,’ we both mumble, and I release Quinn from the tight hug.
‘Revito Sprouto,’ I say, revitalising the garden again.
‘That’s much better,’ Nadia smiles.
‘Are you going to come along and watch the orc trials?’ I ask Nadia.
‘I have too much to do, perhaps next time,’ she says.
‘Okay, well, have a nice day,’ I say and wave goodbye to her. She returns to her cottage, and Quinn sticks her tongue out and pulls a face. I return the gesture.
‘You know, they say, if the wind changes, your face will stay that way,’ Alec muses, scaring the cauldron out of me.
Magnus is smirking.
I heaved, ‘Let’s go,’ I say, ignoring Alec’s comment.
We all port through, back to Moon Crest Castle. It didn’t take us long to get there in wolf form. We take our seats. Sir Hugo steps into the arena.
‘First to fight is Ornak and Grim.’ He announces.
Two orcs, around nine and ten years old, appear and face each other. They pound their chest with their fists as Sir Hugo counts down from three. The orcs spread their feet apart and grip each other’s arms firmly. They use all their strength to try and pin each other down. Ornak releases his grip from Grim’s arms and sweeps his foot around, making Grim fall back. Grim immediately jumps back up and lunges towards Ornak. They roll a few times until Ornak successfully keeps Grim down. Sir Hugo holds Ornak’s arm up high, ‘Ornak wins the round,’ he declares.
We all cheer and applaud. Ornak helps Grim up off the ground, and they beat their fists against their chest again but as a sign of respect for each other. It was incredibly endearing to watch and know Grim wasn’t upset but proud of Ornak.
Over thirty orcs compete. Ornak ended up making it to the top five, then lost. He didn’t seem to mind, though. He seemed quite pleased with himself. Zorlag, an eleven-year-old orc one the final round. The orcs run back into the arena and lift Zorlag and cheer. My mother stands and applauds with the biggest grin on her face.
‘Well, that was quite the show,’ she says.
‘I’m glad you enjoyed it,’ I smile.
We wave everyone goodbye as they return home to Wolfwell through the portal.
‘Thank you for inviting us along,’ I say to Maia and hug her.
‘You will have to join us again next week for Midsummer Solstice. Come early so we can make flower garlands together?’ She says.
‘Sure! I would love that. What happens at the Midsummer solstice?’
‘It’s the night that the veil between Mysteria and the Gods and Goddess’ connects. They celebrate us, and we celebrate them. Legend says that during Midsummer’s eve, it’s possible for a God or Goddess to enter through the veil to Mysteria. However, they must return through the veil before the Midsummer solstice ends. Otherwise, they are trapped here until the next Midsummer solstice. Although it’s just a myth as no one here has actually met a God or Goddess. We will have a large fire, and together we will sing and dance around to celebrate the Gods and Goddesses who gave us life. It’s also the night men seek out their maiden or mate,’ she says, blushing.
‘Oh, I see,’ I grin.
‘There will be a maypole, lots of food, wine, Meade and all females will be decorated with crowns of flowers, along with necklaces and bracelets we make from threading flowers together. This will be my second time celebrating it. I had never known about it when I lived in the forest,’ she shrugs.
‘Well, we know about it now, and I’m sure it will be so much fun,’ I smile. We hug, and I port back to Emerald Island.
‘The midsummer solstice sounds like it will be lots of fun,’ Magnus says.
‘I can’t wait!’ I say with excitement.
‘I bet you can’t,’ Alec smirks.
We walk through the courtyard, and I see Yiselda sitting by herself. She appears troubled.
‘How about you two go on ahead? I’m going to see if Yiselda is okay,’ I say.
Magnus and Alec peer over to Yiselda and see her moping on a bench seat. They nod and walk away together. Sometimes I don’t get Alec and Magnus. They argue and fight, yet they are by each other’s side more than mine at times. They truly are like brothers. I roll my eyes at the back of them again.
‘Yiselda,’ I say in a chirpy tone and sit beside her. ‘You didn’t come to the orc trials?’
‘No,’ she says quietly.
‘Oh, I was hoping to see you there, but that’s okay,’ I smile.
She waves her wand at the ground in a circular motion making the leaves float from the ground and swirl into a tiny whirlwind.
‘So, you seem pretty quiet… and glum?’ I say. ‘You don’t like it here?’ I add.
‘It’s not that I don’t like it here. It’s absolutely beautiful here. I miss Pandora’s box, though. It’s always been my home, and to see it burn down like that and to know we won’t be returning to the human world. I can’t rebuild my home there. I think I’m feeling homesick. I’m sure I’ll adjust over time,’ she frowns.
‘What if we were to rebuild a Covenstead here for you on Emerald Island? We have people with the knowledge and skills of different trades, and with the help of some magic, we can have it built in no time at all!’
‘Really?’
‘Truly,’ I smile, ‘You gather the coven, and I’ll gather the tradesmen.’