Red Wolf

Cui peccare licet piccat minus

Cui peccare licet peccat minus - One Who is Allowed to Sin, Sins Less

"So tell me Ariadne, how have you been feeling lately?" Layla Alabaery asked primly, her bright red lips creating identical twins on her wine glass.

"I've been good, helping my mother bake bread and sew." I answered politely, skipping over my various adventures with Gabe. Beside me sat Regina who continued to nudge my leg with her foot under the table, each nudge reminding me of all of the rules at the Alabaery house, one was no slouching and I did that more than often. Across the table sat the famous Damien Alabaery, my reluctant but slightly good looking fiance, he had a reasonable looking face, tan but not nut brown. His blond hair flopped boyishly over his face when it wasn't combed two ways like his father's hair, piercing blue eyes met my green ones over the table and Damien raised an eyebrow questioningly, I looked away and decided it was better to talk to prim and proper Mr. and Mrs. Alabaery than attract the attention of Damien.

I sipped a glass of white wine and waited for the conversation to pick up again but it didn't, so I turned to Regina and began to talk, "Have you ever been outside of the gates?"

Everybody paused and waited for Regina's answer, her parents shocked at my daring topic and Damien, amused that I had attempted such conversation. She looked at her parents then said, "Nawww, I prefer inside the gates, the forest is too scary!" She shuddered, a typical Regina act to try and throw her parents off the idea that she had actually been in the forest more than a couple times then said, "Why? Have you?"

"Yes actually, when I was five. I almost got eaten up by a wolf." I said as matter-of-factly as possible, Layla Alabaery and Samson Alabaery glanced at me in surprise and I continued, "My mother was out collecting some herbs and I think that wolf rather liked my red cloak. It's quite a nice shade of red isn't it? Very bright and cheerful." I smiled at the sullen family around me, sighed, then went back to eating, so much for a fun conversation.

After the dinner Regina and I exited the house, Damien not far behind us. I glanced back and then whispered to Regina, "Why do I have to marry your brother? I mean, he looks okay but this is just strange."

"Mmmhm, I have to agree with you there, thought actually, I never thought of Damien as good looking, he's just kind of, boring." Regina answered and then her face broke out into a huge grin, "But maybe I can fix that problem..." She said slyly and stopped in her tracks and waited for Damien to catch up to us.

I turned around, the moonlight highlighting Damien's chiseled face, structured cheekbones and slim lips, he narrowed his eyes when he saw that we had stopped and said, "What would you guys like?" 

"Well, your fiance would like a walk with you." Regina nearly burst out laughing before she pushed me towards Damien then gave both of us a devious wave of her hand and hurried away before I could catch up to her.

"Regina Alabaery you get back here right now you sneaky little - " I stopped and flushed in embarrassment as I saw Damien watching me with a curious expression in his eyes. "Yes?" I asked tentatively.

"Nothing." Damien answered in his gravely voice and then said, "You might as well take my arm and let us walk like a real couple now that my sister has abandoned you with me." He offered his arm and I took it reluctantly, before our marriage had been arranged, when Regina and I were very little, around seven years old, we viewed Damien as the annoying big brother who ruined all of our fun, now Damien was sometimes part of our circle of secrets because of our engagement.

The both of us strolled around the village, the moonlight casting shadows, every so often a small animal would scurry across the road and each time I would jump and Damien would hold me still and each time I would pull back guiltily and we would continue our weird jump-hold-pull away act.