Patience of a Gordon

Chapter Eighteen

The winner of the contest was SkyWolf14, congratulations!!! A dedication will be given to each contestant, along with their desired prize as a way of thanking them :) You can read all the stories, including the winning one, under the reading list on my profile titled "Property of a Gordon: Short Stories" This is a Gordon ball; I hope you didn't expect it to go smoothly ;)

Chapter Eighteen

Her skin was light, its hue reminding me that not everyone spent as much time outdoors as my leap had. We'd soaked in the sun until it departed, but it was clear she hadn't done the same.

Her hair was piled on top of her head, but I could tell there was a massive amount, much more so than my own. It was beautiful, and putting her hair up allowed for her brown eyes to capture attention.

"Ivy, I would like for you to meet Princess Ewells," Prince Gordon started, a hand gesturing towards her. I smiled in return, lightly bowing.

"Princess Ewells, this is Ivy, one of the shape-shifters temporarily residing here," he finished, a smile on his own face. It seemed as if he was finally relaxing around the Princess.

Princess Ewells was quick to offer her hand, a smile blooming on her own face. I took it, realizing how dainty it felt.

"I am honored to meet you, Ivy! We've heard so much about your kind, but I've never had the pleasure of meeting one. I've never seen one either, but I can say I am grateful to meet one so wonderful," she said and I laughed lightly, relieved she wasn't like most humans. She was kind.

"Thank you, Princess Ewells. I'm delightful by the opportunity given to me by Prince Gordon, and that it has allowed me to meet such people as yourself," I said happily, causing her smile to grow.

Her eyes slid over to Prince Gordon, and the two smiled at each other. I couldn't help but wonder if this was the first moment they began to truly see one another.

"I think Prince Gordon has gained respect for his actions from my kind; however, I'm sure he deserved so beforehand. What do you think, Princess Ewells?" I asked, seeing Prince Gordon tense the slightest at the question as if she would answer negatively.

She smiled at him, tilting her head slightly before replying. "He has certainly earned his title and is the Gordon I most respect and admire." At those words, I could see Prince Gordon relax once again, a smile appearing on his face.

"You are going to make an excellent Queen one day," he replied easily, and she laughed softly.

"Perhaps I'll be excellent by your side," she said boldly, and I could hear his laughter before they began talking lightly, both more comfortable around the other.

I could see Kai walking in our direction and I smiled at him, but it dissolved when I noticed his eyes weren't focused on me but on Prince Gordon.

I opened my mouth, but before I could say anything, Kai was by Prince Gordon's side within a second. The next, his fist was connecting with the Prince's jaw, the blow creating a painful sound.

Enforcers surrounded us all, yanking Kai back, shouting at him. But Kai was quick to shift, his lumeleopard no match for the enforcers who were staggering backwards.

The ballroom had gone silent, and everyone was as far away from us as they could be. Prince Gordon was now on the floor, the Princess next to him, completely still.

I could hear Kai's low growl even from here, and when it stopped was when he flew towards us, coming in for a second attack. I knew snapping at him would do nothing, so I followed instinct and shifted.

It was enough that Kai stopped, but he began growling again, his eyes on me. I bared my teeth, backing closer to Prince Gordon.

I knew I wouldn't last long against him. My leopard-side would recognize his dominance and submit, no matter the situation. However, even this was enough to stall him, it seemed. Some of the enforcers had left—I supposed to bring back more. I only had to hold on until then.

I shifted slightly and heard his low growl, one of warning. My eyes focused, and I could see his muscles coiling together, but he was no longer interested in Prince Gordon. His muscles were coiled, prepared to pounce on me.

Before he could do so, I ran. I ran out the ballroom as fast as I could. I could hear his paws gliding across the ground, bringing him closer and closer to me.

It wasn't long before he was on my tail. The time it took for him to leap and tackle me to the ground was even shorter.

I attempted to stand, but I felt his teeth dig into the fur in my neck, eliciting a whine out of me. He didn't let go, however, until I stopped struggling, tail tucked between my legs and ears pressed flat against my skull.

I knew I should've put up a bigger fight, but I couldn't. Kai was barely in control and I knew going against him for much longer would send him straight off the edge. I also knew he would never cause me any harm, as he would've Prince Gordon.

I could feel him running his whiskers along me, pressing his nose along my fur. It was his way of claiming me, something he had done before, however with much less force.

His eyes were closed as he did so, and I knew it was calming him. He was lost in his own world, comforting himself as he continued nuzzling my neck.

Neither of us were aware of the enforcers that came behind us, quietly surrounding the area. I wasn't aware that they had brought a tranquilizer gun with them either.

It wasn't until I heard a snarl from Kai, who struggled to stand only to end up collapsing by my side, that I realized we weren't alone. I whirled around, baring my teeth, growling lowly.

"Take him to the cells. Take her to her room," one of them snapped. Instantly, several swarmed around me, blocking Kai from my view.

"Go, now!" they snapped, shoving the ends of the guns in my direction until I began moving, going to the direction of my room.

They kept pushing me with the guns until I was within the room, the door slamming shut behind me. I thought about running out to find Kai but knew I wouldn't get anywhere.

After a moment or so, I shifted and found comfort in the shower and its hot water that ran along my back, soothing me.

It was then I allowed myself to think about everything that has happened between Kai and me, and how it had all gone bad the moment we came here. It was turning out to be a horrid experience for us.

It was trading at our relationship, thread by thread. Soon, only a single thread would be left, frayed by ourselves when we grew tired of it all.

I was beginning to doubt everything about our relationship. Kai had seemed so happy, so carefree dancing with another, and wasn't as interested in my proposal towards him as I had hoped.

Was I willing to risk our future together, the possibility of starting our own leap, for the future of our kind? Was I ready to take that step?

Or, perhaps I was selfish enough to take Kai and leave. I knew when it was just us, he would be fine. It had been easy when we were within our leap; perhaps we could find that ease if we left here and began our future earlier than expected.

I stepped out of the shower, my tears no longer mixing with the water. They were the ones that remained, still running after.

I walked out, hoping to find one of Kai's shirts lying around before I curled in it and slept, but instead, what I found was Prince Gordon standing there.

[lumeleopard - snow leopard]

*When Kai grabs Ivy by the neck, this doesn't harm her. In the wild and with domestic animals, this is how the young are picked up by their mothers. Even when grown, they have that extra skin, and it doesn't hurt them.

**At the end, Ivy does walk out naked, as she wasn't expecting anyone and had much on her mind.