526- Two Halves of One Soul, United
POV Thalyndra Moonclaw:
"I think my body confirmed that on its own," I joked.
Anton walked to the bedside table, opened the drawer, and took my dagger out of it, handing it to me.
"This belongs to you, it was lying in the forest."
I took it by the hilt, avoiding touching the blade, as he did. He was immune to silver, but I wasn't. I analyzed the knife that accompanied me everywhere, at all times, and sighed.
"It was a gift from my father, one of the few I thought I could bring with me, until you recovered the painting and the vase." I rubbed my fingertip on the hilt. "The Mercantes…, they don't care about our history or what it means. They are a clan of wolves who live for power, money, and the luxury it can buy. They spend their lives hunting and stealing ancient artifacts, objects that date back to our origin, only to auction them off to the highest bidder, without caring what they will do with them. My father, he was the opposite. He spent all his centuries of life dedicated to studying and preserving our history. Every book, every legend, every ancient object he found, he kept, trying to protect what remained of our origins. The Mercantes pursued him, not only for the artifacts he kept, but for the knowledge he carried. To them, my father was a compass, a means to achieve their goals. To me, he was the last hope of keeping our history alive. And now he's gone."
"He's gone, but he left you, as intelligent and astute as he was. Don't compare yourself to your father, he had centuries of existence, while you just turned twenty. In time, you will be as skilled as he was," he stated, resolute.
I took a deep breath.
"I think that's why I agreed to tell all of this to the children, I wanted to pass the knowledge on. Not everyone is interested in history, in our origin, they only know the basics, what matters most." I placed the blade beside me on the bed. "I hope, one day, to be as good as he was."
"You will be, I have no doubt about that."
I got up, testing the strength of my legs. I needed to take a shower and eat something. Once I was sure they wouldn't give way, I headed toward the bathroom, but stopped when I remembered something.
"Why didn't your father want the mating? I know part of it was fearing for your safety, but he seemed concerned about my right to choose."
Anton rubbed his hair.
"Because, as I already told you, he and my mother mated forcibly, and their beginning wasn't easy at all, neither of them saw the possibility that they were fated mates. They don't want that for any of their pups, so when he saw what I would do, without your consent, he was fearful of your reaction and how things might unfold."
I pressed my lips together, understanding the situation better.
"We are not like them, despite it not happening as it should have, we already have a history. And... I don't regret what happened, nor do I judge you for it. I am grateful that you saved my life, that you dealt with the truth alone so I could experience my grief, that you respected my time." I swallowed with difficulty. "And I think it was these small gestures that made me fall in love with you, long before I knew it would happen one way or another, because we are two halves of one soul."
"In love with me?" I nodded. He tilted his head, smiling. "Well... that was inevitable, and I always warned you."
I rolled my eyes and huffed.
"Arrogant."
"For which you had the good sense to fall in love," he repeated the words, letting them dance on his tongue.
I entered the bathroom, leaving him behind, but not before hearing his sincere laughter.
I faced my reflection in the mirror and was shocked. Only true love, really, could make Anton interested in me in that state. I was a disaster. Messy hair, face crumpled from so much sleeping, and all swollen.
I smiled, appreciating the truth of the facts.
In the end, I wasn't going crazy, I just didn't know how to deal with my instincts, with the fact that I was right in front of my other half.
...
I watched Mira and Nerea running in all directions, circling the trees without stopping and without tiring. I tried to understand where they got so much energy from, but I couldn't find an answer. The identical twins were very restless. Vladren ran after them, trying to calm them down, but the more he chased them, the more they ran, playing with their father.
"I know, sometimes I find myself looking at them like you and trying to understand where they get all that energy," Lana commented, sitting beside me. "My uncle is lucky to have a support network or he'd already be crazy."
I nodded, agreeing.
"I think he's going to miss that craziness when they grow up."
She laughed.
"I think he's going to go even crazier, since with adolescence come the little boyfriends. Let's just say Uncle Vladren isn't very... receptive to that idea."
I took a sip of my butterbeer and choked on the liquid imagining the scene of Vladren terrorizing all of his daughters' suitors.
"My father and brothers weren't either, and I survived, I think they can get through the same thing," Aurelka retorted, sitting on my other side.
Lana leaned forward to cast a sideways glance at her friend.
"Come on, you were always a saint compared to these girls."
"I think that's karma," said Aurelka.
"Karma?" I asked, confused.
"Yes, Uncle Vladren was always a card-carrying scoundrel, the biggest womanizer of them all, and for a long time he wore that title with pride. So life gave him two daughters who are more like him than he could imagine." She shrugged. "That's why I think it's karma."