Reflecting
1110 Words
Jameson POV
We were both in somber moods when we got back to Linda and Dave's house. Neither of us had ever seen a scene like that or been in a battle of any sort, and to say that it was shocking was an understatement. And yet the warriors we'd been around didn't seemed shocked by any of it. I can't say that they were indifferent to it, or disrespectful to the she-wolves that were killed, but they all seemed like they'd seen scenes like that before.
"Does this kind of thing happen often?" Jonathan asked Dave. We had just gotten back to the house, and Linda wasn't back yet.
Dave sighed. "Not often, thankfully, but unfortunately it does happen. Most rogues don't do well without being part of a pack, and a lot of them go insane. Werewolves are not meant to live alone, without a pack. Our wolves need the connections with other wolves. The situation that happened today is often a tragic side effect. Every family sets a firm rule that their pups are not to leave the pack territory without an adult, and every pup is made aware of where the territory lines are as soon as they're old enough to be outside without their parents. And because of rogues being spotted in the area, Alpha Terrance recently made it a rule that young wolves, particularly those not trained as warriors, are not to walk around outside the territory in the area the girls were found in. Sadly, those girls decided it would be an adventure to break that rule, and they paid for it with their lives. Now their families and the rest of us are left to grieve and pick up the pieces. I've had to be the one to break the news to the families before, and it's the hardest thing I've ever had to do."
"You said that the Luna did that today, right?" I asked.
He nodded. "Yes, she did. And I hate to admit this, but I'm glad. It was probably better that the families heard it from her, anyway, since she went to school with those girls and the families knew her because of that." He sighed. "At least one good part about being part of a pack is that the families will have a great support system as they grieve. Linda just mind linked a few minutes ago to let me know that several of the ladies are taking food to them all, and Luna Ana and a few others have offered to take their younger pups, the ones that are too little to understand what's happened, for a little while to give them some time to process. They're going to take them to the park to play. They'll do that again a few times over the next few days, to let the parents have some time to themselves and plan the girls' funerals. Such a sad situation."
"And we're sure that the rogues we took out today were the ones responsible?" Jonathan asked.
Dave nodded again. "Yes. Their scents were the same ones that were all over the girls when they were found."
"In that case, even though it's going to take time to get past the horrible feeling of taking a life, I'm glad we did it. They won't be able to hurt anyone else," I replied sadly.
"That's what I have to tell myself every time." Dave gave both of us a once-over. "Speaking of that, are you two ok? It seems that your physical injuries have pretty much healed, but the mind is a different story."
We both hesitated.
"I think we'll be ok," Jonathan said, speaking for both of us. "I'm thinking this will unfortunately not be the last time we deal with something like this."
Dave smiled kindly at us. "Probably not. If you are indeed Lycan princes - and I'm pretty sure that you are - you'll likely have to fight a few times to defend your subjects and to defend the throne. A lot of people would kill to get their hands on the throne."
"Or, more accurately, their butts," I joked, trying to lighten the mood.
The two of them laughed. "Very true," Dave replied. "They'd look pretty funny doing a handstand on the throne."
Jonathan and I both laughed at that mental image.
"Speaking of that, how did your research go today?" he asked us.
We filled Dave in on all the things we'd found out that morning, and showed him the picture we'd come across. He studied it, then looked back up at us. "Wow. For one thing, I'd forgotten what a good looking couple the king and queen are. For another, you look just like the king. Has Linda seen this?"
We shook our heads.
"We didn't get a chance to show her earlier," Jonathan told him. "We'll show her when she gets back."
"She's going to love this," he told us.
"There's a picture in there of us when we were toddlers," I told him, pointing to the album that Linda had left sitting on the coffee table.
"You know, I've seen the pictures and articles in here a couple of times, but it's been awhile," he replied, opening the album and carefully leafing through it. He turned it towards us. "Is this the picture you're talking about?"
I nodded. "I can even see the mole on the left side of my neck, so we're positive that's us."
He looked back down at the picture. "Wow. This is so amazing. I know the king and queen are going to be ecstatic to find out that the two of you are alive and well. Have you found a way to contact them yet?"
"Alpha Terrance has an email address for them, but we've decided to wait until his dad gets back to try to reach out to them," Jonathan explained. "We don't want the wrong people finding out that we're alive and aware of who we are. Arthur may have been the one that actually kidnapped us, but we can't be sure if there was anyone helping him that might still be around the palace."
"Smart thinking," he told us. "So where do you go from here?"
"We're going to wait for Anthony to get back to make any plans," I replied. "Since he's been to the palace and has met the king and queen before, we're thinking he may be able to point us in the right direction."
Dave smiled. "Again, good thinking. Alpha Anthony is a smart man, and a good leader. He'll likely know exactly what to do."
I smiled. "I hope so."
- Writer
