Mangled

Mangled
Romain 
The main hall is where all the noise is coming from and I head in blindly. 
No words could capture the carnage before my eyes. I look around for familiar faces and register a few. Shifting, I lunge at a man attacking a female wolf trying to keep her daughter safe. Almost everyone is in wolf form—those who aren't are the males who were with me in prison. We weren't ever allowed to shift, so our fighting skill in wolf form are shit.  
Especially those who never got to practice like I did when I was younger. 
Fang. I don't see him. This worries me because what if he's dead? I can't lose anyone else. I'd feel too guilty. It's bad enough as it is, with all these people being harmed because I rejected that lunatic and Fang ended up killing her because of me. 
Sasha's mother must be as crazy as she was. 
I move from one attacker to the other, well aware that Emmalee will be waiting for my signal to burst in. I won't give any signal unless I'm sure it's safe for her to be in here. As I fight, making my way through the crowd, I search for the culprit behind this whole thing—Sasha's mother. I don't know how she looks like but it's usually easy to spot the leader of any group. 
They should be at the center of the whole thing. 
And sure enough, I find her. 
She's several feet away, in wolf form, fighting with Fang. I recognize him because of his scar—I had no idea it would be visible in wolf form, too. Most scars tend to be hidden by our fur but with Fang, it's right across his eye. 
I suspect he got it when he was in this form. 
The signal—a howl from me—would bring her into this room. I look around, assessing the situation. 
And that's when she bursts in, looking around for me. 
Dammit. 
She misses me entirely, racing through the fallen wolves and getting blood on her milky white fur. Her eyes find Fang and I see a flash of recognition in her eyes before she bares her teeth in anger and races toward them.
I don't think twice. I race forward, hoping to intercept her. Is she crazy? I told her to stay put. 
I don't make it on time. By the time I reach her, she has her jaws closed around Sasha's mother's neck, and she's biting down hard. The female howls, shaking her body vigorously to get Em to dismount. Still, she holds on, growling. 
Even when the wolf, in a desperate attempt to free herself, bites Emmalee's hind leg. 
I have to intervene and Fang does the same. I swipe my paw across her face before biting her ear off. Still, she doesn't let go of Em's leg. Blood is spraying everywhere. I attack viciously, tearing off chunks of her flesh with my teeth. Fang is brutal, too. We show no mercy until she dies. 
And even then, Em's leg is still caught between her teeth. 
It's mangled. Broken. I shift back, desperately prying the dead wolf's jaws open with my hands. I manage and Em limps a few paces, howling in pain. 
"Don't shift back!" Fang yells. "It'll be easier to heal this way. You'll lose that leg if you do."
"Em," I whisper, inching closer to her. Her eyes meet mine and I see her apology written all over her eyes. I curl my fingers into her fur, wishing I could pull her close. She lies on the ground, her hurt paw in front of her. I can't even look at it. It looks terrible. 
Fang was right. If she shifted back, it would just fall off. 
"Dammit, Em," I can't stop myself from saying. Tears burn my eyes but I keep them at bay. She'll be alright. I have to believe that. I can tell by the look in her eyes that she's in pain. It's killing me because I know there isn't much I can do. 
Fang joins me suddenly, and I realize I'd forgotten all about him. He has a syringe with him, which he uncaps. "This is for the pain. It'll last several hours but this is all I've got and you can't be moved."
Emmalee falls asleep minutes later. I run a hand through my hair and groan in frustration. Fang stands and fastens his robe. "Well. There's that."
"You could show more gratitude," I grit out, rising. "This happened because she was trying to save your ass!"
"I am grateful or I wouldn't give her the last syringe of morphine I had, believe me," he grumbles. "I needed that. I've got pains you know nothing about! Worry less about me and more about your nearly-crippled girlfriend."
"You're being back to being yourself, I see. You're a cantankerous old fool, Fang."
"Get used to it. You'll be the same when you're my age. Oh, loss does that to you, too. See if Emmalee here dies. You'll hate the world for daring to move on. For allowing the days to pass without her. That's what I deal with everyday, and on top of that, I have another person to mourn."
Fang turns away after this, leaving me by myself.
I don't know what the future holds in store for us but I'll make each day count. For fifteen years, I lived in torment. Waiting. Always waiting. I thought about Emmalee even when I thought she'd abandoned me. I prayed for this precise moment when we'd have a chance to be together again. 
Now, we're here. 
Despite the shitstorm, there's much to be thankful for. 
Five days later, her fever breaks, and she manages to eat something. Her leg is still recovering. It's bruised and she can't put any weight on it. There are chunks of tissue missing, but at least she didn't lose it. Em was lucky. 
A week after that, we leave the rogue territory. I've had enough fighting to last me a lifetime and I'm sick of it. Fang expected this—I know he's disappointed in me. He wanted me to rule by his side. Take over after that. But his goals aren't mine. 
I've only ever wanted one thing. Now that I have it, I don't need anything else. 
Fang comes down to say goodbye to us. He and Emmalee don't see eye to eye even though she saved his life. So, she moves away from us, giving us privacy to talk.
"Romain, Romain," he begins with a sigh. "My biggest disappointment."
"I don't care what you think."
"Don't I know it. Where will you go?"
"Why? Wanna pay me a visit?"
"Maybe. Why not? You're the only child I have left."
"We're not sure yet," I admit. "We'll settle wherever we can."
"What about your son?"
I exhale sharply. The matter of Brent is so complicated. We didn't want to leave him here but at the same time, there's no way we can stay with him. "He can take care of himself. We'll visit."
"I'll keep an eye on him, too," Fang promises. "Don't worry about it, alright?"
"Thanks."
Fang extends his hand for me to shake. I grasp it and we stand looking at each other. Then, it's time for me to go.
"Tell that cripple I said goodbye."
I shake my head and walk toward Emmalee. Putting an arm around her, we begin our journey, hoping to find peace wherever we end up. "What did he say?"
"Just goodbye," I say before kissing her temple. 
I feel better than I have in over fifteen years. 
Finally, our lives can begin.