𝑷𝑨𝑷𝑬𝑹 𝑹𝑰𝑵𝑮𝑺 • 𝐫𝐡𝐲𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐧. 𝐦 (wolfblood)

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲

It wasn't that Lia didn't trust Rhydian to take care of himself - of course she did - but she could not get rid of the terrible feeling in the gut of her stomach every time she thought about it. And it may not be just Rhydian they had to protect. She was concerned for Jana, too. Her father had thrown her out of his pack mere weeks ago, and this proposition of friendship, or at the very least, an understanding - it seemed too sudden. Too good to be true. And clearly, she wasn't the only one who felt that way, and the proof of this was her three friends who walked beside her as they trailed into the forest, the two wolfbloods wary of keeping their distance so their scents wouldn't be picked up by either of the two parties already in the forest.

The sun had set, and the sky had turned from a soft shade of dark blue to navy and eventually black. They had formulated a plan in case this was truly a trap: Maddy and Tom would stick together, covering the right side of the gathering ready to take action and Lia and Shannon would do the same from the left. The sisters had accepted (after much nagging) that their human friends would not leave if things took a turn for the worse, so by each of them sticking with a wolfblood who could protect them, there was less chance of them coming to harm.

As it turned out, this formation worked out perfectly. Alric was waiting with his beta wolf (who would bear witness to the submission) in a circular dip in the forest ground. 

Good. That gave them the high ground if they needed to pounce.

Even seeing Alric's face again made her heart drop to her stomach and pound loudly in her ears. God, he looked vile. And that thought came to her not due to him being covered in dirt and grime but due to the look on his face when Rhydian and Jana came into view. He eyed the blonde boy with pure glee in his eyes, but not because he was happy to see him. The smile on his face, the twinkle in his eyes... he was delighted because he was about to make a fool out of the boy he had tried to kill.

Lia took a breath to fill her lungs, trying to be as quiet as she could - but that only made her inhale shakier. The four of them watched from the cover of the shadows as Jana walked toward her father, ducking her head in a nod and sending the man a small smile. He didn't return it. He was too focused on the boy trailing behind her.

"Well, well, well," He started, then grinned, revealing a set of yellowing teeth, "You've got more guts than I thought."

"Don't be like that," Jana snapped, but Lia noticed how her tone didn't hold the same amount of fire that it usually did when she was angry, "He's come to beg for your forgiveness."

Alric didn't even spare his daughter a glance as he muttered, "Then get on with it."

Anger flushed Lia's skin, taking her by surprise, but calmed slightly and adoration flooded her heart at Rhydian's next words, "Make sure you treat her well." Even despite the fact that he was facing a man who was a looming threat, he was concerned for Jana's welfare, and that made her heart swell with pride.

"Are you telling me how to treat my own daughter?" Alric growled, straightening his posture.

"I didn't come here to argue..."

"Then don't," The smirk returned to Alric's face, "Submit."

As Rhydian began to kneel on the forest floor before him, her frustration only grew. She hated seeing him like this. Rhydian always kept himself tall, even if he was quiet. It was his way of defending himself before anyone even tried anything, physically or verbally. Like a warning. But seeing him like this, knelt before Alric as he began to recite the pledge of submission, "Yr wyf yn cyflwyno yr un a chledd. Fel ac yr wyf yn cyflwyno darlun diarwyneb y pegwn."

The wild wolfblood language (an adaption from common Welsh) fell smoothly from his tongue, a signifier of his months spent in the wild where he learnt the basics of the language. It was done. He had submitted.