The pishnies were frightened because of my reaction.
I apologized later on then their fear vanished as they tried to communicate with me. But I can't understand what they're trying to tell me. "Okay, just show me what you want to say as much as possible." They exchange glances with each other then the pishnies pull my pants again as they lead the way to somewhere. They can understand me but I can't understand them. They have better perceptions than I do!
There's an old room hidden inside a big tree hole. They opened the wooden door for me and the interior surpassed my expectations. The ceiling is high for my height to pass. It's guaranteed that this room was used by a human. And I only have Matheo in mind. However, the room is filled with an abandoned heap of papers on the table, scrolls on the cabinet, and several drawers.
Similar to the library of the mages I've seen before. On the table at the center of this medium extent, outdated notebooks were left by the author. Each page has sketches that only mages can understand. I'm gathering my suspicions.
The pishnies have been rummaging on the drawer on the wall. There's a long table in that corner and a chair made of wood. I noticed that some of the records have torn and missing pages. One of the pishnies found a locked book in the drawers and proudly presented it to me. I sat on the chair and then reviewed this book which I later figured out was a journal of someone.
The very first page contains a sketch of a beautiful woman. I read the whole story in this journal that was written about 300 years ago. I'm amazed how these things were preserved after all those years. The male author wrote how in love he was with the woman in the sketch. Am I supposed to read their culture of wooing back in time? The pishnies gave this book to me anyway. Maybe I'm meant to barge into someone's privacy.
It feels like reading a romance book. Other than love, the author wrote about his struggles to become an Eldar. How smart was his competitor and how did the war of the werewolf race affect his profession. He lived with the humans but being involved with the chaos is the consequence of him loving a werewolf. That didn't falter him. I was rooting for their love story but the journal is incomplete! The journal ended with them giving birth to a child. 'Twas an exciting journey towards a cliffhanger!
I was about to outburst my frustration with the pishnies but they're sleeping, fell for it while waiting for me. I lost count of time, too. Hence it's a great diversion. I rummage through the drawers on my own until I found more pictures of the woman and one picture where both of them were there. These two seem dear to me. I only need the verification before I react. Another painted picture of the woman is here and her eyes are similar to mine.
"Pureblood?" The note behind that has the same penmanship says 'I was caught with these eyes.' This author was deeply mesmerized. A knock on the open door called my attention.
"How long have you been here? Dinner is served," Matheo approached. He came in and sat at the table.
"I've been here since the first page. Did you know that this is the office of the Eldar who created this place?"
"Your father, yes."
I purse my hanging mouth and then mumble, "I knew it," with a smile. So, these couples are my parents. No questioning now why this place is embracing me. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
"The steps to revelations are on your own path. We are aware of your situation but a spell is imprinted upon you. It'll only confuse you. I don't know everything other than this place was prepared for you by your father, Lanasia's ancestor."
"I need to spend my night here reading."
"Sure, you can. But fill your stomach first."
"What kind of food is served?"
He shrugs. "We'll see."
I'm expecting a type of food for bugs. And I regret that it enervates my appetite. What I'm craving is to discover my life with my family. Every pishney is busy preparing the table utensils, cleaning the floor, and putting unnecessary decorations in the dining. The moment I came inside, my appetite rejoiced from the smell of the roasted meats! Zaeramil is already waiting on the presidential table, containing the complete endurance not to touch the foods until everyone is present.
"They know how to serve human food. Good thing I'm not compelled to be a cow for one day," he said.
Matheo sat beside his son and there's a space between them. And I sat in front of him. Matheo says, "Of course, they're aware of what humans eat. Their hospitality will make you visit this place oftentimes."
There are pishnies on the table refilling the glass of fruit juice. The mood is ultimately friendly until Dandeline arrives. Not because of her but because of me feeling guilty! She takes the seat in front of Zaeramil, leaving space between us, without saying a word.
"Everyone is here!" Matheo said welcomingly. "Thank you for the food. Let's dig in." The sound of the cluttering plates ruled our ears. The meals are complete with dessert and appetizer; veggie soup, turkey, and chocolate bread. It's written in my father's journal that part of his reason for creating pishnies is to impress my mother. Maybe I can use their talent, too.
The silence confuses the pishnies sitting at the table. Emotionally, it made them sad. They approach Matheo with their language and he waves his hand. "No! We love it! It's delicious, right?" he passed the question to me.
"Absolutely! I can eat all of these tonight."
Then the mood of the pishnies was lightened. I did what I say. I ate all the different types of meals just to keep my mouth busy. But one thing I notice between the father and son, other than the distance, is that they aren't giving attention to each other.
When I met Matheo's eyes, I communicate through it by looking at Zaeramil and then at him. He shook his head while he sighs his discouragement. Then he presses my feet underneath the table, he looks at me then at Dandeline with a question on his eyebrows. I lift a piece of meat pierced in the fork in front of my face and kiss it. His eyes widen then we sigh the discouragement at the same time before I devour the meat.
☪ ✧ ✧
On the top of a rock, I watch the sunless sky. Even the cold breeze that gently brushes my furs is embracing me as if my father commanded it to do so. Father... He's such an amazing man to create his own world. Too bad I don't have the privilege anymore to meet him, only in my memories, but even my memories of him are vague.
Matheo switches my lonesome spot when he sits beside me. ["What happened?"] he started the topic I'm trying to avoid. I flatten my paws on the rock.
["Why is romance such a complicated thing?"]
["What made you say that?"]
["... I suck at it."]
["In fact, you're right about romance being complicated when mistreated. Or if the receiver of your confession rejects it. Yet expressing what you feel is worthwhile."]
["Can I? I mean I'm a werewolf."]
["I don't think I'm in the right place to answer that. But if you're looking for my advice, it's up to you to heed it. Based on what I've been through, sacrificing for your love is better than sacrificing your love."]
["Whether I win the love or not?"]
["Be sure. Don't risk yourself like that."]
["See? It's complicated! I can't even decide on how I'm supposed to express it aligned to the present."]
["What do you mean? Love didn't change through time. Sometimes you just have to think twice if you're expressing love or something else that contaminates the real meaning of it."]
I draw a smile on my mouth. Apparently, he's being fatherly to me. ["And how about you and Zaeramil? What happened?"]
["He's blaming me for not knowing until a while ago that his mother is alive. It's just a childish tantrum and I accepted the responsibility even before choosing to be a father."]
["But why did you hide it? If I were him, maybe I'll do the same."]
["It's my own way of protecting him. Those who've been looking for the truth cannot make use of him. We had to make him believe that Lanasia is dead."]
I looked at the glowing tiny light and trees again and thought to myself, fathers do have their own ways to protect their children. While looking afar, I saw Acro flying in that empty sky but something was off. She's staggering. When she's landing towards me, I take steps backward and catch her in my arms.
"Acro? What's wrong? What took you so long?" Her right wing is bleeding. "Who did this...?"
["It's a trap!"] She's been shaking her left claw as well while clinging to my left arm. There's a tiny orb tied on her feet and the moment Matheo sees it, he unknots and tosses it in the sky. Not longer than a minute when the orb explodes gas.
"They found us," he said, then gritted his fangs. "We have to warn them all!"
We hurried back to the treehouses and that's when I heard the howl again, but not just one, there are many. I shouldn't have left Acro alone! She's sheltered in my arms as we alarm the pishnies about the danger. Later on, wild wolves invaded the place and they all exploded into fire. It permeated rapidly with the treehouses. Matheo is evacuating the pishnies and Zaeramil is helping.
I entrusted Acro's safety to one of the pishnies then I roamed around hurriedly to rescue the trapped pishnies in the treehouses. Their only way to escape is to jump and I'm catching them one by one. I halted when I saw a running fire in a shape of a wolf spreading the fire even faster! I'm still trying to make sure that all pishnies are safe when I found Dandeline exterminating the running fire one after another with her enchantment.
When she can't handle the number, she raises a barrier outside the boundary to prevent the fire from coming. However, it's getting stronger when accumulated. I sprinted towards Dandeline and made it on time when the fire erupted and destroyed the barrier. I used myself to cover her and the impact pushed us to the ground but I managed to keep her protected under me.
"Thanks," she said without sincerity. Then she fires an enchantment to the sky where dark clouds form and release heavy rainfall. "I can handle this!" The fire is diminishing. I came back to rescue the pishnies until all houses were clear. But my father's office is in a bad situation. Despite the residue of raging fire, I came there on my own.
The inside is burning along with the papers and books preserved for a very long time! I rummage for anything I can save but not even the burnt journal escaped the fire. Gladly, the picture of my parents is unscathed and I think this is more than enough. When I was about to leave, a half-naked man standing at the doorway made me flinch.
"I knew it it's you," I said.
"This is just a reminder that you shouldn't take easy on me."
"Oh, you are easy." I push the table by kicking to block him at that doorway then I jump at the window. But this burning house is surrounded by his Omegas—a faction of werewolf warriors. Elibur walks in the middle of them to face me.
"This is where you're hiding your ace plan against the Vengeance pack. The first base to fall will be the defeated."
"Then that makes you destroy the home of the innocent creatures. You're the one who's declaring war."
"What I'm doing is saving the future. That's why from here, I will destroy you!"
"Let me resist a little," I spoke with haste before I dash against the two werewolves in front of me and tackle them with my arms stretched, hitting their stomach, then I ran straightway into the woods without looking back. I have no direction either. But when I learn they're coming after me, my diversion works. Some of them fell into a trap. I leap to escape the sag ground but when my foot landed, I mistakenly stepped on a half-buried rock that sprained my ankle!
I lost my balance and fell onto the ground, my face powdered with ashes. That tiny mistake shortened my resistance. The Omegas caught up and surrounded me before Elibur's arrival. "You're having an unfortunate day," he said with a baleful stare down on me.
The pain is diminishing when I hopped up to attack him but a comrade of his stamps on my back, leaving me to grovel onto the ground. And without any second of dawdling, Elibur knees my face. Two men lock my arms from behind and the rest of the Omegas batter me to my face and stomach without any sense of mercy. They're more skilled than Mraz's pack. No matter how painful, I hold on tight to the picture albeit it crumples on my clench.
My lips numb, and my blood taints their fists. In a single raise of Elibur's hand, all of them ceased and left me frailty. I can feel my wounds regenerating. But I'm determined not to fight back anymore. Elibur's fists are igniting, and a magic circle surrounds his wrists, too. He sat down in front of me, examining my face and my hand.
My fangs appear as he pierces through his claws into my wrist and steals the picture from my clench. He looks at it silently before he drops it on the drenched ground. "You have someone you cherish, too?"
His eyes seem thoughtless. He began hitting me repeatedly with his fists, and my stomach churns. And the heavy rain makes it hard for me to breathe. The men toss me to the ground then Elibur locks me from above and says, "What happened to your strength?" Then hits me endlessly. "What the hell is wrong with you, huh!? hiding your tail in between your thighs!?"
That hurts! His hands are like heavy metal on my face! Not even my regeneration could defy!
"..."
"Answer me, silver wolf!"
"... Hit me... all you want... if that will avenge your dead comrades..."
His first tightens in the air before he socks my nose and my nape hits the ground due to the furor impact. I'm losing my hearing, I can't feel my nose, and blood keeps flowing through my tongue. I lie down on the ground helplessly.
"Take him to the Alpha."