74__Thick and thin

Natalia rubbed her aching neck as she descended the stairs from Cyrus’s chambers. The past few hours had been far too much drama for her, someone who’d nearly perished into the afterlife just a week ago.

Sighing, she smiled weakly at Nicki and Milana who waited anxiously at the bottom of the stairs as she signaled for a servant.

As soon as the girl came hurrying over, Natalia nodded up the stairs. “Run a bath for Cyrus, make it hot and put therapeutic herbs in it.”

“Yes, my lady,” said the girl, curtseying and hurrying off up the stairs.

“Is he okay?” Nicki asked worriedly. “What happened?”

Natalia saw the anxiety in the girl’s eyes even though she tried to hide it.

“Did they fight a lot?” she continued. “And… the Alphas… what’s happening?”

A heavy sigh blew out of Natalia’s lungs and she suddenly felt even more tired. “There were some… disputes. It’s all alright now and, no, Cyrus and Raiden did not fight, Nicki. Don’t worry.”

At that, the girl visibly calmed down, glancing at Milana who smiled at her.

“Now,” said Natalia. “You two have been staying in Cyrus’s castle, so I need you both to promise me that you won’t bother him for a while. He needs his space, at least for today.”

The girls both nodded.

With a nod, Natalia made her way out.

She’d been planning to call for Aspen as soon as she’d arrived, but had changed her mind. It was important that she informed him of all that had happened lately, but there were other things to take care of first. Raiden hadn’t come out of his room since he’d quite literally banished Brian, she had to go and check on him.

The image of him in full rage mode filled her mind whenever she thought of going into his chambers, but she pushed it aside.

She wouldn’t let that infiltrate her mind because once she did, there was no going back. The anxiety would just built and mount until she couldn’t go anywhere near his room.

Steeling herself against her runaway thoughts, she marched across to the main castle.

When she finally reached Raiden’s chambers, she stood outside, her feet rooted to the floor.

She didn’t know if she should go in. Now that she was here, she hesitated. It wasn’t as much that she feared him than that she was worried she would be intruding.

When Natalia was upset, if she couldn’t take it to Aspen, she’d keep to herself for days, brooding silently until she felt better. And she hated to be disturbed during such a time.

Slowly raising her hand, she held the door handle.

What if she opened the door and he glared at her? Pursing her lips, she nodded. Well, that image was all she needed to make her decision.

Sighing, she released the handle and stepped away.

The door was wrenched open.

Jolted out of her thoughts, Natalia stared up as Raiden appeared in the doorway to his dark and shadowy room.

“Are you going to stand in the hallway all day?”

He’d had a change of clothes so he wasn’t all bloody any longer, but she couldn’t focus on that at the moment. Natalia frowned, staring at his face. “Oh… I…” She squinted at his face. “Are… you okay? Your… your eyes.”

Raiden pressed his lips together. “Oh, that.”

“They’re green,” she whispered, wide-eyed.

“I know.”

“What happened?”

With a groan, Raiden reached out, took her wrist and tugged her inside. “I’m tired, Natalia.”

She let him drag her over to the bed where he sat. Silently, he pulled her onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her, resting his head against her shoulder.

She stared at him in total silence. His eyes were green, what the hell? Was he turning into a Vampire?

“Are you turning into a Vampire?” she whispered. Did she accidentally turn him?! Was this werewolf kingdom going to have a Vampire king?!

A scoff puffed out of him and Raiden found his mouth curving. “You poured gallons of your blood into me, my little darling, this is the result. It’ll happen and go away several times for a long while.”

“Aahh,” she said, remembering. Surely, this wasn’t the right time to get giddy at being called his little darling? Surely not.

“How's Cyrus?”

She nodded slowly. “He’s… okay. He should be having a relaxing bath right now.”

With a nod, he lowered his head again.

They fell silent and she looked at the top of his thick, black hair. Giving in to her urge, she raised a hand, stroking it into his hair. “Are you okay? After… everything.”

He was silent for a moment.

Finally, he raised his head and looked at her. When Natalia looked into his eyes, the answer was clear. Raiden shook his head. “Me? I’m not… I’m not okay.”

Immediate heartache tightened her chest and she held his face between her palms.

“I couldn’t possibly be okay,” he whispered, grief filling his eyes. “How could I be okay, Natalia? My brother spent years in silent pain and I did nothing to help him.”

“You couldn’t have known, *frithir mi.*”

“I should have,” he insisted. “I should have sat him down and asked, even when he fought me and avoided the topic, I should have insisted. I should have made sure he was alright. What kind of brother am I? I wasn’t even there when he needed me most. And then earlier today I said he was…” He leaned his head back with a groan. “God, I said he was acting entitled. Oh, I fucked up, Natalia.”

“Raiden, he isn’t angry at you any longer,” she told him. “Cyrus. He doesn’t blame you or hate you, so don’t be so hard on yourself, please? You’re just one person, Raiden, it’s understandable that you’d mess up with at least one thing. You had an entire kingdom to lead and a baby to raise, you were young and you tried your best.”

He closed his eyes and she saw his expression grow tight with pain. Feeling sad, she tugged him forward and wrapped him in a hug. His arms tightened around her and he buried his face into her neck.

Barely aware of her actions, she laid a kiss on his head. This moment was another thing that, months ago, neither one of them would have predicted, but neither of them was thinking of who they were months ago anymore. All that mattered was who they had become to each other and how they felt for each other at that very moment. Who was to say what would happen to them tomorrow, but so long as they could find comfort with each other like this right now, they would revel in it. As for the future, there was no fear of it. *Que sera, sera.*

She’d known he would be in pain, but she hadn’t thought it would be this bad. She wanted to physically pour comfort into him, being unable to do so was saddening her even more.

“You don’t have to hate yourself so much, Raiden,” she whispered. “You don’t have to ignore the thousand great things you’ve done to focus on a single mistake. If there’s anything I’ve learnt, that’s it. After my sister became ill again because of my negligence, this is exactly how I felt. So take it from me.”

He looked up at her. “I don’t think it’s the same, that couldn’t have been your fault, Natalia.”

“Who else’s fault would it be?” she asked with a shrug. “You know… that night, when I was going out and Amie asked to come with, I should have said no. I shouldn’t have let her, it was dark outside, it was raining, Amie has been unwell since birth, I and my spontaneity shouldn’t have let her come along. When we were in the forest and… and that wolf appeared…”

Raiden grew still, staring at her as her gaze became unfocused and her voice grew softer.

“The moment I realized we were in danger, I should have protected Amethyst. Or sent her home while I stayed to fight the beast. I took too long to protect her. By the time she was limp in my arms and I was frozen stiff from the horror of seeing my first werewolf, it was too late. Amie stone was gone and she was nearly dead. I understand the pain of such guilt.”

“It wasn’t your fault, Natalia. You, too, couldn’t have known what would happen that night.”

She remained silent, only sighing in response to his words.

“It was a wolf of Zaire,” he said quietly.

She nodded. “Yes. Somewhere in this kingdom is the wolf who attacked my sister and I. The wolf who stole her gemstone and left her for dead. For years, I had to see, both, my sister and my mother in pain because of that, on top of everything else. I have to get that healing stone back, or I’ll never forgive myself.”

Her eyes glistened with tears and Raiden wanted to wipe them away. That’s not all he wanted to do, he also wanted to find that bastard she was after and mop the floor with him.

“I’ll find him for you,” he promised.

Blinking, Natalia refocused her gaze on his face and smiled sadly. “Don’t worry. I’ve nearly got him in my hands.”

“When you have him, shall we kick his ass together?”

Her smile widened. “Are you trying to romance me?”

His own lips curved into a smile and he shrugged a shoulder. “Perhaps I am.”

Holding his face in her hands, she leaned forward and planted a kiss on his lips.

When she finally pulled away, Natalia found Raiden’s eyes filled with a look she had never seen before. It was something that made her feel far too warm inside for a Vampire.

“Shall I change your bandages?” she asked softly.

He shook his head with a slow blink, staring at her. “They’re fine still. Let’s take a nap.”

She nodded and he moved back, securing her with one arm as he laid them both down in the center of the bed. He pulled the covers over them and tucked her in like she were a delicate duckling.

He laid down beside her then and stared tiredly into her eyes.

“This week… has been so eventful.”

Natalia sighed. “It's been hell.”

They laid in comfortable silence for a long moment, looking at each other. Natalia came to acceptance of it. She had truly, genuinely, fallen deeply in love with Raiden, Alpha King of Zaire.

Who would’ve thought?

Raising a hand, he rested it on the side of her head, stroking his thumb over her cheek. Natalia stopped breathing for a moment. Oh, God. She loved him madly.

A look of hesitation suddenly entered his eyes. “Did I… scare you earlier?”

Natalia blinked drowsily. “Hm? When?”

He pressed his lips together, remembering how he’d lost control in front of her. “In the den…”

Natalia remembered it. His eyes had gone a totally different colour. Only now did she remember that she’d wanted to talk about that. What had happened to him?

Before she could ask, there was a sudden knock at the door.

“Apologies, Alpha Raiden.”

With a tired groan, Raiden let his eyes fall closed.

With no response, the servant outside the door became audibly flustered. “There is… er… th-there is…. You have visitors, Alpha King. Devil and Shadow are downstairs. They request your presence.”