Connection - Golden Lycans Sequel 3/3 [in progress]

Meaningful Connections

***Austin***

As I head down the stairs on a Thursday morning, my eyes are immediately drawn to a blood-red envelope that has been pushed through our letterbox.

After picking it up, I note how high quality the envelope feels, in addition to the elaborate calligraphy on the front.

Who is THIS old-school? When did we last get post? Atlas muses as I wander off down the corridor towards the kitchen.

Honestly there are a few options, with this, I reply.

I enter the kitchen, starting to flick various parts of our coffee machine on, learning against the worktop as I open the envelope.

"What is that?" I hear Ella ask as she emerges through the patio door. I pull out a thick piece of white, gilded card and turn it over, shiny gold text is embossed onto it, and it is immediately apparent who it is from.

Oh dear, Atlas sighs.

"Looks like Valmir is hosting a New Years Eve ball," I mutter, tossing the invite onto the breakfast bar. Ella reaches out for it, her eyes quickly scanning the front.

"Oh, I enjoy how I am listed first, for once," she says in amusement.

"Yes, well, as good as his taste in women is, I do wish he would be less enthusiastic about you," I reply, pressing the button to start filling my cup with espresso. Ella laughs as she comes around the breakfast island, looping her arms around my waist and pulling me up against her.

"Let him," she says simply as she gazes adoringly up at me, "no king is ever going to compare to mine."

I give her a quick peck on her lips in appreciation.

"Perhaps if I were a real king, this legislation wouldn't have taken so long to finalise," I grumble, picking up my coffee and taking a sip.

"Truthfully...I am a little worried about the potential kickback," Ella replies, her expression one of concern.

"I'm not," I say simply, "because legislation is just legislation. Rogues don't care for it, but perception-wise, we need it. The real drama will come when we enforce it. But even then, I am not worried. Atlas can handle it all himself if we have to."

"Atlas cannot be everywhere at once," Ella reminds me.

"Yes, we can, or we can damn well try. Alpha and beta level rogues are a new, worrying deal. They're still smaller but their numbers grow. They're being hired for all sorts. They are dangerous," I grumble.

"But I am worried about the kickback on the pack. Perhaps we need to actually bring back patrols?" Ella says. I shake my head.

"No need. We have enough trees that I can be everywhere and anywhere in this pack within a matter of moments, even from Zurich," I reassure her, taking her hands in mine, "don't worry Els, we've got this.”

...

***Ophelia***

This was still new territory.

Namely because the last time I had a crush on a guy, I was thirteen years old, and that was a long time ago to me, now.

Yet here I am, slowly eating my cereal, watching Ares do something highly mundane...something he did every morning.

Except, I am watching every movement he is making right now, and finding it utterly captivating. Even just watching his hands move as he butters his toast...were bare forearms always this appealing?

Just his?

Did he know he that looked really good in a casual shirt?

I am then back to staring at his mouth once again, considering the shape of his lips…taking a long time to realise that he appears to be talking by the way that they are moving.

I avert my eyes up quickly and his dark eyes lock with mine as he casually sucks some butter off the end of his thumb.

"...I do feel ready for all of this, don't you?" he then says as my concentration and hearing apparently returns.

"Ready for....?" I ask, feeling my cheeks flush as I realise I had been staring at his mouth the whole time he was talking to me. He narrows his eyes at me and steps back a little.

"Uhh," he says, his eyes leaving mine to look at me in a strange way, "skeletal anatomy. The exam?"

I make a sound of understanding, and he quickly leans down towards me, his eyes not far from my own. My heart leaps a little as his dark eyes scrutinise me from mere inches away.

"Lia, are you feeling okay? Physically?" he asks.

I nod several times as I slide off the stool, feeling rather flustered, now. My heart is racing again, so physically, I am feeling rather different to how I normally do. Over the past few days I was definitely acting strangely, to him. I just didn’t know how to look at him normally again, nor how to act.

Everything was different; in a good way, but different.

...I wasn't okay.

"Yes, I am fine, Ares, why do you keep asking me that this week?" I reply, genuinely wondering why he does. I may be acting differently around him, but did I look unhappy? He laughs lightly and he shrugs a little.

"You do not seem yourself. You seem different since Madeleine's party. But I cannot tell if it is in a good way, just yet," he replies carefully. Oh gods, he has definitely cottoned on to the fact I am feeling differently. Clearly, I am acting differently, too.

"I wish I could say," I reply truthfully, as I was still on the fence about what to do about it all.

Being honest about who and what I truly was, was to also invite him into the very thing that made me miserable. I didn’t want to do that, just yet. Besides, I still couldn’t tell if he even slightly felt the same way. He narrows his eyes at me again. If I am acting strange, I could say he is too, lately.

"I really need to go research something in the library, before our exam at eleven," he says, before biting into his slice of toast.

...

***Ares***

The campus library is vast. A lot of books were now digital, but there was something comforting about a physical book to hold and to read.

It is a sprawling circular building, much like many of the others here at Vale, with large sections of glass along the walls. It had two levels, and the upper level consisted only of private study pods and comfortable seating where people could relax with a book under the glass dome ceiling.

Upon entering, I head straight over to one of the vertical search screens, typing in the word 'Auras' into the search bar and hitting enter.

There are sixty-three results of the word appearing occasionally in digitalised books, but just one physical book that is available, that appears to actually be about aura reading. I clear my search and I enter the main part of the library.

Shelves ran from the outer edge of the circular building, all the way into the centre, like a wheel with multiple spokes.

Part of a shelf dedicated to "Empathic Abilities" houses the thick, worn looking book titled 'Guiding the Aura Reader'.

I have a quick flick through, realising I might as well make myself comfortable; the text is tiny and there is a lot inside. I take the book and head up to the top level, leaving the general din of the lower floor.

After a certain point on the staircase, there is a notice on the wall:

The upper level is enchanted to reduce noise from below, however alarms will ring in case of fire or another emergency.

Indeed, as I ascend, the noise abruptly vanishes. I take a seat on one of the sofas, with no one else in sight. I open the book and start scanning the pages, hoping I can find what I am looking for. Unfortunately, there is nothing in the index about 'red streaks', nor anything about specific colours.

An hour goes by, and all I've managed to realise is that this book is most definitely just a guide; there is no clear way to read someone's aura. The red, almost electric-looking streaks in Lia's were multiplying by the day, and I was now beginning to worry about her.

"I have alerts set up to tell me when someone searches for particular words," I hear a female voice say suddenly. I jump, not used to being snuck up on, but that is mainly due to being hyper-focussed on the book.

Ella Landry is standing in front of me.

Gone are the formal clothes. Today she is wearing jeans and a jumper, much to my surprise.

"Vice Chancellor Landry," I say with a polite smile, feeling awkward. She smiles and makes a gesture with her hand.

"You can call me Ella, Ares," she says gently before she gestures towards the book I am holding, "now tell me, why is a natural-born vampire searching for literature on reading auras?"

Her eyes are alive with intrigue.

"Curiosity,” I suggest.

"Really? What are you hoping to glean from this? Curious people have a flick through, but you've been sat here for around an hour...this is more than a simple curiosity, isn't it?" She asks quite directly. She is not stupid, that is for sure. I sigh a little and she drops onto an armchair opposite me, "you can see auras, can't you?"

There was little point in lying.

She was right; spending an hour reading this hefty, confusing book, was clearly pointing to something beyond basic intrigue.

"In a sense," I admit with a half-hearted shrug.

"Either you can, or you can't," Ella replies bluntly.

"I believe I am. But I can only see one. Just one person's," I explain. Her surprise at this is obvious. she then leans forward and looks even more curious than she had before.

"Whose?" asks.

"My friend Lia's," I admit. She looks away from me for a moment, her eyes widening briefly. She is clearly thinking about this.

"For a time, I could only see the aura of one of my closest friends," Ella explains, her expression a little nostalgic, "it took a little longer to see other people's, longer than that to understand the basics of what I was seeing, and many years to TRULY understand them. It is a never-ending learning process, Ares. Everyone, every aura reader, and every aura, are so different."

I look down at the book in my hands and I sigh.

"This...is not getting me anywhere. I have understood most things, particularly at times when I am able to have some physical contact-" I begin to explain, and her immediate surprise is clear.

"Goodness…you're also an empath. You're vampire, but you..." She says, faltering with her words for a moment, "you are nothing like any other vampire that I have met."

I shrug, unable to explain anything myself.

"I am as surprised as you. I have learned a lot about myself since I came here, but I now have many more questions," I admit.

"I am sure. Your parentage is unique," she says kindly, before she reaches out and places her hand on the book, "but—this is not going to help you. Interpretation is vast, and it is truly a skill that is honed across many avenues. It isn't just about the sight, the colours—it's the texture. The feeling. Body language...it is so much more than reading a map, or looking at a colour-coded cheat-sheet."

I lean back and run my hand through my hair.

"I have become aware of all that, and it has been very interesting to see how it changes based on her mood, the day, the time of day...all sorts. But..." I trail off as I frown.

"Describe what you are seeing," Ella prompts. I look back at her and nod, leaning forwards as I explain.

"Since Sunday morning, it's been happening. I found her upset and so I had considered it to be anger—at first. But anger is darker and less...vibrant. It is muted. But...every day there is more of it and I am starting to worry that she could be unwell, particularly as she just isn’t acting the same as she usually does. I am just not sure," I muse with a sigh, finding it strange to be talking about this with Ella Landry, of all people, "they are vivid, red streaks that appear periodically. Sometimes more, sometimes less. Almost like...like lightning."

Ella immediately bites her lip and leans back in the chair, her lips turning up at the edges in a vague smile as her eyes look intrigued. I look expectantly at her, as it is very clear that she knows exactly what this means.

"Tell me," I ask bluntly, before I remember my manners, "...please?"

She smirks and then shakes her head.

"I do know, but…no. Our own discoveries are important. But, I think....that perhaps you sometimes need to consider your own feelings before you can begin to understand someone else's," she says gently.

"So...it is related to a feeling? She isn't sick?" I ask hopefully.

"She is definitely not sick," Ella says, her expression hard to read. She stands up from the chair, "put the book away, Ares. Take it from me, it isn't that helpful. I once tried to read it myself."

"Okay, well, I am just glad she isn't sick. That is very encouraging," I say with relief. I stand too, still feeling lost, but glad to know that Lia is okay. Ella looks at me in a strange way, before she puts her hand out onto my arm.

"Simple touch tells an empath a fair amount," she says, looking at her hand on my arm, "but...try a more meaningful connection...and I think you'll find the answer that you seek."

She lets go of my arm and strides elegantly away, her long, platinum blonde hair swishing down her back. I go down to the bottom floor, back into the noise, and I return the book to the shelf.

What did Ella mean by a meaningful connection?

...

***Ophelia***

I feel rather tightly wound as Ares takes a seat in the chair opposite me in the exam room.

It is our first exam, after three months of learning about all two hundred and six bones of the human body, along with all the strange bumps, grooves, holes and more.

I could have done with facing anyone else during this exam, but it was a bit late now. Ideally, I would be sat opposite someone I didn't have recently discovered feelings for, and not someone I kept gazing at.

"Don't fail, don't fail, don't fail," I mutter rapidly to myself.

We are in a dedicated exam hall, with each station seating two opposing people, the three sides visually blocked off.

I could still see Ares fully, even if I couldn't see his tablet, and there was a camera watching our faces the whole time, assessing us for potential cheating. The exams are on large tablets, allowing for multiple-choice and drawing with a stylus and all sorts—very fancy.

I glance upwards at Ares, feeling nervous in two ways; nerves for my exam but also because I felt my friendship with him was a little ruined, now.

I had zero idea how to navigate it anymore, and each day I just liked him more and more.

But that worry needed to wait until after the exam.

In an unexpected move, he winks at me briefly and smiles.

Ash was a winker, so that was probably where he got it from. I can't help but chuckle at him and smile back. It's actually helpful, as I then relax a little and I let out a long sigh, finally able to level my anxious brain. My friendship didn't have to be ruined.

Ares never even had to know.

I just needed to work on being normal again. My court skills had taken a clear nosedive this past week and I think he'd noticed. I felt uneasy about getting close to him to grab the ball, where a week before I had no problem with it.

I look back down at the tablet as the first question soon appears.

I've got this...I think?

...

***Ella***

"Did you see Ophelia today?" Austin asks me as he plates up our dinner. I shake my head as I pour some wine into our glasses.

"No, I did not, but I did find out something intriguing, to say the least," I inform him as he carries our plates over to the dining table.

"Oh? And what would that be?" He asks as I hand him his wine glass.

"Ares Katz. He can see auras, and he is an empath,” I reveal.

Austin looks as surprised as I had been.

"Whoa…now that is intriguing, particularly when we know those aren't skills any of them have. How did you manage to find that out?" He asks, skewering a king prawn with his fork.

"He was in the library with the one single book we have at Vale, regarding the interpretation of auras. I have certain keywords on a search alert. I went to see who and why someone would be researching the subject of auras. I like to meet people who can. He is the first to search for it," I explain.

"How does this relate to Ophelia?" Austin asks.

"Well...it is only hers that he sees."

"Really?" He asks.

"Yes," I reply, about to go into our conversation in more detail, but I stop myself. It hadn't been me who looked at Ophelia's aura. But now I knew what was in it, I felt the need to give her some privacy on the matter; even from her father and alpha.

"It's a bit like how I could only see Will's, for a time. Close friend, etcetera," I add nonchalantly, "but...yes, Ares Katz can see auras; who knew?"

...

***Ares***

I gratefully take a hot mocha from Lia as she smiles back at me, before she sits down on the opposite lounger out on the balcony.

Snow was beginning to fall across the campus, so we had come to sit outside.

No telescope this time, as the sky was sporting heavy snow clouds instead. Outside with just Lia, I can feel her emotions, glad to know that she is content and happy. There is an underlying feeling of nervousness there, but I assume this is left over from today's exam.

"Thank you, this looks great," I tell her with a chuckle, as I notice she has made a smiley face out of mini marshmallows, on top of the drink.

"Some of my best childhood memories involve snow," I tell her, as we watch the snow silently fall, "my brothers would terrify me, sitting me on a small sled, whizzing me down the hilly areas around our land. But, I always knew that I was safe."

Lia makes a sound of agreement.

"My family loves to ski," she replies, taking a sip out of her drink and getting a blob of cream on the end of her nose. I laugh at her a little.

"What is funny about skiing?" She asks, looking put out. I shake my head and I reach up to wipe the cream off her nose with my thumb, causing her to laugh too.

"I would like to try skiing, one day," I interject as I lick the cream off my thumb.

"You will," she replies confidently, giving me a knowing smile, "I will take you. Besides, doctors like to ski; it is basically an expectation."

"I'd probably be terrible," I suggest, drinking more mocha myself. She shakes her head.

"NOT possible. You are quickly so good at almost anything."

I exchange a smile with her, and we finish our drinks in a comfortable silence.

I put my mug down and stand up by the railing, reaching my hand out into the falling snow. It feels so delicate and, indeed, looks so finely made when I bring my hand back to look at the individual snowflakes; one of the times in my life that I am thankful for my enhanced vision.

My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I check the front screen briefly.

The exam results are already available...Ninety-eight percent....is pretty astonishing for my first exam.

Maybe I was good at things?

"The exam results have been released already," I tell Lia, and her eyes widen. She stands up herself to get her phone out her pocket, and she eagerly looks at it, her expression a little tense.

"Oh my GOD! I got ninety-three percent!" Lia exclaims with a mild squeal.

Her expression is ecstatic as she looks up at me, a big, genuine smile lighting up her pretty face, her sea-green eyes so bright and vivid.

I am overcome for a moment, and I am not sure what compels me to do so, but I reach out for her, pulling her towards me into a hug, wrapping my arms tightly around her. The scent of her blood fills my nose more than ever as she immediately slides her arms around my waist and hugs me back against her.

The next few moments bring forth a complicated mix of emotions...from us both.

To hold her against me like this feels unexpectedly...wonderful.

I feel protective of her and almost possessive of her, all at the same time. Her face is hugged up against my chest, and underneath the heady smell of her blood, the top of her head smells sweet...almost like honey. She feels small under me, yet strong and warm, and…I just don't want to ever let go of her...

In fact, I pull her tighter against me, delighting in this new and wonderful feeling...a feeling that feels a little familiar at the same time. I realise I have felt it a number of times before, always when I have been with her.

...and I recognise now...it is the feeling of affection.

She also tightens her grip around me as I press my face against the top of her head, my senses going wild all at once, as my brain finally catches up, piecing together all the little things I had been feeling for a while now. Finally...it all made sense, and like two, wonderful, parallel lines, I feel the exact same from her, too. Her aura comes into view as I hold her against me, the red streaks having formed an ever-present, solid shimmering colour amongst the gold, sea-green and navy, as we hold onto each other tightly out here on the snowy balcony.

I understand now.

I feel a deep affection for Lia. An affection that, to my absolute delight, she clearly shares for me too. Moreover, she feels something else, something more; there is...a want...a physical desire...

...for me.

It overwhelms me for a split second. I hadn't expected to feel this myself, let alone from Lia. The nervously hopeful, happy, swooping sensation returns to my chest as I consider it all...right at the same moment my instincts decide to puncture this amazing revelation, rapidly going into overdrive with a vengeance.

My fangs emerge rapidly from my gums and an all-consuming need entirely takes over. I feel a blazing hunger burning down the back of my throat, all the way down to my very core. I am unable to control the swift motion of my hand as it immediately brings her head one way.

It smells of sweet heaven as I bury my face into the crook of her neck, my lips grazing the delicate skin there as I nuzzle the area in some sort of natural, autonomic action, my lips able to sense the blood flow underneath her warm, soft skin.

I feel her shiver under my touch as I simultaneously fight the urge that I have, with an escalating feeling of pure panic.

I manage to lift my face away from her neck, holding my head above hers as I continue to battle this unwanted instinct. She similarly rubs her own face into the side of my neck, her feeling of desire becoming stronger as her arms slide higher up my back.

It feels so good, and it suddenly becomes everything I could ever want...but...

...She has no idea...

I am going to bite her...if I don't get away from her.

It feels too much as my heart hammers madly, my face turning towards her as she raises her own now too, our lips briefly touching as I battle with myself, shaking my head to try to dispel what I don’t want to feel, while wanting to feel vastly more of the rest...

I lean my forehead against hers, thankful her eyes are shut, and that she cannot see my altered features.

Then, with a mental strength I had not known I could ever possess, I pull myself away from her, heading immediately into the flat.

I rush past Ash, averting my face from him as I dash towards my bedroom.

My tongue feels the end of my sharp fangs. I feel a wave of revulsion for myself as sit down on the edge of my bed, needing to sort a variety out things out in my head.

My friendship with Lia had quietly become far more than I had realised.

I now wanted her in a way I hadn't felt before....and insanely, she appeared to feel the exact same way for me too.

Ella Landry's vague smile towards me earlier today now made sense, including her comment about considering my own feelings, about my own discovery.

She knew exactly what was going on.

Through my spur of the moment, 'meaningful connection' with Lia, I had felt everything fully myself, which, in turn, allowed me to understand what it was that Lia was feeling, too.

But, regardless of how we both felt about each other, the overwhelming desire to feed on her was just too strong, and I knew I would only end up hurting her and ruining the life that I had built here.

My father had been right...

...

***Ophelia***

Snow is blowing into my face right now, but I don't care as I stand here on the balcony by the railing.

I am stunned.

My heart is still racing, having gone on its own exciting jaunt within the last minute, leaving my brain far behind it, but now my brain was catching up.

Ares had hugged me and pulled me tightly against him, something that had taken me pleasantly by surprise. I had embraced him back, giving in to the escalating craving I had felt over the last week.

He had not seemed like a tactile person before now, so his action had immediately planted a seed of hope within me, particularly when he had buried his face into the top of my head. For a fleeting second, I believed that I could actually feel him; in the same way my mother could feel me.

He had buried his face in my neck and nuzzled me, those soft, shapely lips of his dragging across my skin…

My Lycan body had finally felt what it desperately wanted, awakening inside me with a distinct roar as a flustered shiver surged through my body in response.

I had thrown myself into this awakened instinct, nuzzling him back, raising my face toward his in a desperate want for him to kiss me, wanting him to want me as much as I wanted him. I felt his lips lightly graze mine—before he abandoned the idea. Rather than mirror the desire I was feeling, I instead felt a wave of panic, that I had clearly felt from him...

...and then he had run, leaving me on the frozen balcony with a racing heart.

"Lia?" I hear Ash say behind me. I turn to look at him, not knowing what to say. He comes forward and puts his hands out onto my shoulders and looks at me kindly.

"I...might have seen that," he says, looking briefly out across the campus at the falling snow, "are you okay?"

I stare back at him and bite my lip.

No, I was not okay!

"I'm fine," I lie. Something I wanted had just been inexplicably snatched out from under me, once again—so really, I was used to this by now.

I turn to lean against the railing, but my eyes are quickly drawn to the new, vibrant red lilies that had abruptly bloomed into being since I had come out here.

"Are those…lillies?" Ash comments in confusion behind me, noticing them himself, now.

I let out a quiet sob, unable to ignore what is so clear in front of me; a flower that should only bloom in summer...yet full of life and so vibrant among the flurries of snow out here on a frozen balcony in mid-December.

"I-I did that," I stammer shakily, scarcely believing it as I walk over and reach out for the lily, needing to feel that it is real. Ash gets down next to me, and he rubs my upper back with his hand.

"Was it the snow?..." he suggests, somewhat stupidly. I laugh but let out another sob at the same time as I shake my head furiously.

"That is not how it works, Ash," I tell him as I swipe at my eyes to wipe tears away "a faerie's power is linked to...love."

I hear him let out a long exhale, and he hangs his head.

"I had wondered..." he mutters, his expression becoming a little sombre, "and I'll tell you right now, Lia; if Ares cannot see how great you are, then...I mean I would date you in a heartbeat. You. Not 'Ophelia Landry', but you, Lia."