Choleric

Chapter VI

•••     Unedited.     •••

Celia was accompanied down the hall by Aleara who walked a few paces ahead with envious grace.

Alpha Cassius had not yet shown his face causing Celia to grow nervous as she descended the rusted spiral staircase. The noise from the room below grew louder as she progressed down, creating a tight knot in the pit of her stomach.

Celia's eyes greedily took in her surroundings as she reached the last step. The whole place was alive, just as she had imagined before. People were talking casually, teens were gossiping in the corner and young children wildly ran around the tables.

Celia almost felt at home. Almost. There was something that made her feel uncomfortable and it wasn't until everyone noticed her presence that she figured out what it was. Tension seemed to engulf the large group of people. Each and every one of them seemed to be waiting for something bad to happen, waiting for a reason to run.

The barks of laughter and loud talking had dwindled into a curious whisper as Celia walked down an aisle behind Aleara. She averted her gaze to the ground, not daring to meet anyones eyes.

Every set of eyes watched her every move, taking her in as she nervously shuffled behind the High Lady. It was rare – an occurrence that had only happened once before. As Celia sat down, questions buzzed through everybody's minds and whispers erupted.

There was only one reason why she would be descending down those stairs. This girl was the new High Lady. The thought of their Alpha with such a fragile looking girl was almost comical.

Aleara sharp eyes swept across the room, diminishing the stares with a warning glare before turning back to Celia. "The bell will ring when the food has been prepared. Remember the seat you are in now, it is your placing at the table from now on," Aleara explained as she straightened up her fork.

Celia waited in silence, feeling the heavy weight of the room caving in on her as everyone sat in complete stillness. It wasn't until the soft bell rang and everyone collected their food that Celia felt her insides unravel as the conversations and laughter started up again.

She stared down at her plate, looking over the small pizza on her plate. She hated pizza, but still she found herself eating in silence as she listened to the conversations around her.

Everything felt so surreal, the way the pack interacted, how they all inhaled their food as if it were the last meal they'd ever see.

And lastly, the way each person looked, as if they were ready to fight at any moment. The constant tension within this new pack put Celia on edge. She had never been in a fight before and if she had a choice she would like to keep it that way.

Slowly, she lifted a soggy slice to her mouth, wincing slightly as melted cheese burnt her lips. The pizza was better than she first expected but wasn't fond of the mess it made. It seemed to her that the only ingredient that made its way into her mouth was the base. The part she disliked the most.

Looking over at Aleara, her eyes narrowed enviously at the clean plate and fingers. I could only dream to be that elegant she thought to herself as she looked back on the slop of melted cheese, sauce and toppings mangled like a dog's breakfast on top of her plate.

It wasn't until Celia finished her last slice when Alpha Cassius stormed in. His eyes glowed in anger and his jaw looked like it was about to pop out. People dropped their gaze to the floor in both fear and respect as he stalked past them.

Celia's heart froze in her chest as his scent washed over her before dissipating into the air as he passed. The room sat in a stiff silence as his feet pounded against the stairs and disappearing above them.

The pack seemed to simultaneously sigh with relief as the wave of anger washed away, sailing with the Alpha as he left the room in raging haste. Celia looked down at her empty plate, a small blush on her cheeks for reasons she didn't understand.

"Looks like the meeting didn't go too well," a man sitting across from her mumbled. The table seemed to either nod or grunt in agreement before going back to their original conversations. Celia sat uncomfortably, slowly lifting an icy glass to her chapped lips.

"You should go to him Celia," she choked on her water as Aleara calmly placed a slice of pizza in her mouth.

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So I figured out my password for googledrive... I was going to add some more but QCS was my assassin and you guys have been waiting YEARS for an update. :) I'm really busy with school as it's my last year and ((the biggest pain in the ass)). But I will update as frequently as possible. Xxx