Beneath the Surface

Standing on a lonely beach

Harry was immensely relieved to see us when we arrived, but the imminent threat of war prevented him and I from delving too much into our feelings. But I refused to be sad; at least now we were together, and as soon as we had a spare moment, we undertook our long overdue bonding. 

It wasn't the fiery, overwhelming passion I'd had with Brody; rather it was gentler, like the tide coming in, but it was no less fierce, and it was definitely sincere. I knew, as we lay together afterwards, that even if this was all we had before things went to pot, it was much better than not having had anything at all. 

Never had a moment been more bittersweet

Rather than dwell on the future, we decided instead to draw this moment out for as long as we could. War was inevitable, but at least we had each other. That made all the suffering worth it as we got to work reaffirming our bond, to ensure it stayed as strong as possible. We were determined not to let anything come between us, and by the time Darcy knocked respectfully on the door, just after lunchtime, we knew we were ready to face anything. 

That didn't stop us from sneaking in one last passionate kiss before reluctantly facing the world again. 

Timing was everything, as it turned out; the next day, Ben came to the packhouse to declare a time and location had been set; the next full moon, one week from now, at Stonehenge. No quarter to be given or taken, and all survivors to be killed should one or the other side be victorious. "There shall be no mercy given," he said coldly, his eyes glittering with barely surpressed rage as he confronted us in the main room. "I do not intend to leave anyone alive to carry on your legacy."

"Funny you should say that," Harry said casually. "I plan to do the same to you and your pack."

Sarah glared at him. "Save it," she said. "We are going to win, and we are going to make sure no Darkshards ever walk the earth again." She turned a cruel smile on me. "Of course," she added, "that doesn't include freaks."

"Oh save it, for God's sake," I said wearily. "I've had it up to my neck with your lousy attitude."

Sarah took a menacing step towards me. "Watch your mouth, freak," she growled. "I might just take your other foot this time."

Harry got between us, his easygoing manner extinguished. "Leave," he said quietly. "We'll meet you on the battlefield one week from now. Do not undertake any hostility between now and then, or our agreement is null and void, and we kill you outright, intead of this ridiculous tit-for-tat war you started when we refused to play by your rules."

Ben's glare said it all, but he acquiesced with bad grace. "Same goes for you," he said through gritted teeth.

"Oh, I can be a perfect gentleman when I want to be," Harry said, giving him a disarming grin. Sarah looked like she wanted to say something, but Ben tugged her arm, and she left sullenly. Harry watched them go, his face pensive. 

"I'm not a cub-killer," he said quietly, once the door had closed behind them. 

"Sarah is," I said.

Harry winced as he caught my meaning. "She'd rather abort her cub than let him or her be raised by someone kinder?" he said. 

I nodded. "But I wouldn't be allowed to abort any cub I carry," I said. "Sarah would ensure that I watched her raise my cub, taunting me all the while. She threatened to do that when I was carrying Brody's cub, and if I do somehow manage to get with cub again, that's going to drive her to greater desperation."

"Could you concieve again?" Harry asked anxiously. 

"Couldn't tell you," I admitted. "But if I do, I will let you know."

Harry sighed and drew me into his arms, holding me close. "Let's hope not," he said soberly. "I'd rather no cubs were conceived until after this battle is over."

I hoped so too. But as I rested my head against his chest so I could hear his heartbeat, I had the bad feeling genetics were going to have something to say about that; the lack of a wolf didn't mean I had none of my parents' abilities. The healing process was a lot slower, but if my insides had healed enough following the loss of my first cub, there was every chance I was already carrying a second. 

But at least this time, only Harry and myself would know about it. Sarah wasn't getting any extra leverage over me.

The day of the battle, my worst fears were realised, and I groaned in annoyance. "Talk about lousy timing," I complained, and Harry tightened his arms around me as we looked at the positive test. I wasn't mad at the poor cub for being conceived, but the timing was about as lousy as you could get. 

Still, if there was one consolation I could gain from this mess, it was that the egg had barely started to make its presence felt inside me. It would be quite some time before anyone would be able to tell I was pregnant again. 

Even so, I wished for a different outcome. I didn't want history repeating itself.

"Never mind about that," Harry said firmly, giving me an extra firm squeeze before letting me go and turning me to face him. "Let's get through this fight first. If we can squash those Nightstalkers, we defang further resistance, and you and I will be able to raise our cub in peace."

I nodded and kissed him, resolving to have at least one more morning of bliss with the man I loved before the world intruded again. Harry seemed to have the same idea in mind, and he set about making sure I knew just how much he loved me. I returned the favour, desperate to savour this bittersweet moment for as long as I could, praying the battle would turn in our favour. I had about ten million scores that needed settling against Sarah and Ben, but more than that, I wanted a world in which I didn't have to fear betrayal from one quarter and another. 

I'd had enough of that to last me a lifetime.