Ártur found Orsolya and Guillame sitting by the river where they had first met. He sighed as he watched them from afar. His heart broke for them. He knew he and Leona were asking them each to sacrifice much for the good of the pack. And he knew they would comply. Ártur knew what it was to lose a mate. But at least he had almost two hundred years together with his before she was killed. He hated to come between them right now, but his duty as Orsolya's father dictated that he must.
Guillame wanted every moment possible to be with his little red wolf before they had to rejoin the pack. Just laying here together and talking took a little of the sting out of their earlier conversation with her grandmother. He liked watching how Orsolya's brow wrinkled when he tickled her just a little too much. Or how her mouth looked after he'd kissed it tenderly. If they had only two years, then he would use their every moment to memorize every little thing about her. He wanted to be able to close his eyes and see her just as she was today. He heard her soft giggle as he took a leaf and dragged it across her earlobe, followed by his tongue.
Orsolya felt her entire body respond to every touch from her mate. For years, watching the pack members after a hunt had made her curious, and since turning eighteen many males had offered her the chance to discover the wonders of lovemaking. She had always demurred though; she had known Guillame was coming soon and, in her heart, he had already been her mate. Tomorrow night they would be joined for the remainder of their lives. She knew that even though they would be physically parted in the near future, neither of them would find another mate while the other lived. She fully expected to meet him again someday; at least, she hoped and prayed for it.
She felt her father's presence before she saw him. Guillame could feel the slight change in her body. She had stiffened almost imperceptibly, but he had learned much in a short time. They both looked up at the imposing Alpha approaching them.
"I am sorry to interrupt, daughter, but I must speak with Guillame." He waited patiently as they disentangled themselves.
Guillame stood up and put out a hand to help his mate off the ground. He watched her with great admiration. He had never seen a young female with as much grace as she possessed. There was something different about her, almost cat-like. But she was a wolf, not a panther. Maybe it was just something inherited. "I will join you soon, my love." He smiled tenderly at her as she dusted off her dress and winked at him.
Orsolya walked towards her father and stopped in front of him, standing on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek as he bent down. She took the occasion to whisper in his ear, "Please father, do not frighten him away." She looked up into his eyes, truly worried for a moment at what he wanted to say to her new mate.
Ártur laughed heartily. "Do not worry, my little bear cub. I only mean to discuss family matters of great importance, as any father would do when his daughter is about to mate." He kissed the top of her head and watched as she walked towards the compound. He knew that she would find her way to her grandmother. He then turned his attention to his new son-in-law. "Guillame, let us walk, shall we?" He turned towards the riverbank and began strolling, not waiting to see if Guillame was following; he knew that he was.
"Have I done something to displease you, Alpha?" Guillame was very uneasy about what Ártur wanted.
"Guillame, I am very happy that you have come here. I know you will be a fit mate for my daughter, and an excellent protector for my pack's cubs. You and I will become very close in the next two years. There is much to plan and never enough time. I trust you, my boy." He continued to walk, never looking Guillame's way.
"Thank you, Alpha. I am humbled by the faith you put in me after knowing me for less than a day."
"I can read a wolf better than any alpha I know, Guillame. And I can see your character. You are a fine match for my daughter. I only wish you would be able to have a long life together. But that is not to be. And that is not what I wished to speak about." His face was serious.
Guillame watched him out of the corner of his eye, unsure as to what was to come. "Oh? Then what would you like to discuss?"
"You are an alpha. That was obvious from the moment I first saw you. I wanted to tell you that I will not consider it an affront if you do not bond with me after the mating. If you feel the need to take Orsolya and begin your own pack, I would understand." Ártur continued to walk as if the conversation they were having was a common one.
Guillame was speechless. There had been stories of pack leadership changing after an alpha's daughter mated with an alpha who did not have his own pack. But Ártur was giving him the option of starting his own pack. "Sir, I relinquished leadership of my own pack to join the Council. I have no desire to form a pack, nor to take yours from you. And I will not take Orsolya from her family any sooner than prophecy dictates." He slowed his steps as Ártur came to a halt.
Ártur turned and faced Guillame with a broad smile on his face. "Just the answer I expected my boy." He placed his hands on Guillame's shoulders. "Thank you for your honesty. Welcome to my pack. And do not worry. My sons feel no jealousy at your position in the pack. They know the future you will be protecting."
Guillame felt the tenseness leave his body after hearing those words. He also knew he could trust Ártur as he would his own father. They continued to walk, side by side, towards the pack's houses, neither saying a word.
Orsolya looked out the window and saw the two tall males walking together up the hill. She smiled and turned to her grandmother. "They are coming this way. And they are both unharmed." She was just now able to relax. Despite what her father had said, she had still had some worry. A protective father and pack Alpha was capable of doing great damage, even to a younger, larger wolf.
"Orsolya, come here and try on this dress. It is the one your mother wore at her mating." Leona patiently waited for the girl to cross the room. She smiled when she saw her granddaughter's eyes go wide at the billowing cloth she held carefully. She had protected it carefully all these years for just this purpose.
Orsolya had never seen a dress as beautiful in her life. It was a soft golden color, and she knew it would bring out the colors of her hair and eyes perfectly. "Oh Grandmother, it is the most wonderful dress I have ever seen." Her voice was quiet, almost reverent. "You have kept it well-hidden. We never found it when we were cubs." She laughed as she remembered the fun she and Zsálya had wearing any dress they could find in their grandmother's home. She quickly slipped off the green dress and wriggled into the proffered gown.
Leona walked around her, making adjustments here and there. She stood back for a moment, hands on hips, and grinned. "Yes, that will do nicely. I think your mate will love it, and remove it from you as soon as possible." She was so glad she was able to do this in her daughter's stead. Suddenly tears formed in the corners of her eyes. After twenty years she still missed Allegria terribly.
With ten sons, Allegria had wanted a female cub so badly and had been ecstatic when her twins girls were born. But her joy was short lived. She had taken the two cubs with her to the stream while she hunted for fish. The bear had taken her by surprise, and when it lunged at Zsálya, she had stood between the bear and her precious cubs. Her calls for help to her mate were too late, and he was too far. By the time Ártur and his betas arrived, Allegria was dead. The bear was found less than a kilometer away, dead from the wounds she had been able to inflict before her own demise. Ártur had been inconsolable. If it had not been for the plaintive cries of his two daughters, who knows what the brokenhearted werewolf would have done.
Leona sighed and cleared her mind. This was a happy time. Allegria's reincarnated spirit would be close. This she knew. She spied the males quickly approaching and turned to Orsolya. "Hurry child, change back to the green dress. We cannot let your mate see the gown yet." Leona was so proud of Orsolya. Considering the pain she knew she would have to endure in the not-so-distant future, she was looking forward only to her mating, and the child she knew she would have.
Orsolya had just finished changing when the door opened and her father and mate entered. She ran to Guillame as if she had not seen him in years and threw herself into his arms.
He laughed and lifted her into the air, holding her close, her feet dangling in midair and her face at level with his. "Did you miss me, my little red-haired wolf?" Being this close was heaven to his wolf. He was entranced by her scent and struggled to keep himself from shifting and taking her now.
She whispered in his ear. "I missed you terribly, my big brown wolf. I was worried you had forsaken me for some other female." She flicked her tongue along his neck and felt his body shiver in response. She giggled when he growled in reply.
"Never!" He buried his nose in her hair and inhaled deeply. His body responded, his cock hard and pressing against his restrictive clothing. Tomorrow night's full moon could not come soon enough. It would be torture to wait to taste his young mate. But he knew that if he began now he would not be able to stop. He had forgotten there was anyone else in the room until he heard the Alpha clearing his throat. He reluctantly replaced Orsolya on the ground, but continued to hold her close.
"Guillame, it is important to keep your mating secret from the outside. You must not tell even your own father. Luckily, you are too far for any family bond to still hold." He saw the incredulous look on Guillame's face. "This is imperative, my boy. If anyone finds out, you will never be trusted again by the Council, and thus, unable to protect our cubs. You will have to become an adept liar, I'm afraid."
