Crowns And Swords

Chapter Eleven

It's been a few days since I was given the title of Alpha Female of this werewolf tribe. Everyone under this roof follows a very simplistic routine; sleep, eat, fight. I can't help but mistake them for actual dogs...
The only ones I could consider "civil" were, of course, Levi and Harry. I already know Levi well enough and what he's been through, so he has an excuse for behaving like the pack leader he is. Harry is just an overall gentleman with the simple desire to pick a sword fight with the right person. For the first two or three days, I accompanied him and Levi in some training, but I almost suddenly felt out of place, sword fighting in a dirt lot with two werewolves. Not only that, but we also gathered an audience. Some of the more rowdy men from the tribe watched and often cheered for the guys. To make the already uncomfortable experience worse, they had thrown rude remarks into the ring. I can still hear them ringing in my ears.
"Tear her throat out, Harry!"
"Get her in the gut, Alpha!"
"Boo! Go eat a mouse, you stupid cat! You don't belong here!!"
Eventually, Levi lashed out at them and brought me inside. I've been inside his room for the majority of the time, which is fine by me. Even though there's nothing for me to really do than wait for either one of the gentlemen to come and visit me in the evening, I've found fun in, well...
That's a lie.
I get so bored in here, but there's nothing I can do to avoid the death threats of those mutts. I ache to go back outside, but every time I try to slip out the door, someone sees me and tells me to go back and stay in Levi's room... if only he weren't so preoccupied with leader duties, then my stay here may have been more enjoyable. I don't like being trapped alone by my own thoughts, because I'm too afraid I'll get too deep and accidentally think about something a lady would never consider.

As dusk falls, I can hear a chorus of howls from outside of the room. Covering my ears, I hide under the covers of the bed in a tight ball. The door creeks open, a quiet voice follows.
"Hello?"
I lift the covers and see my man at the door. He has a small plate of food and sets it on the table before proceeding to the edge of the bed. "Is everything okay?"
"They're always so loud when they howl... Seriously, I don't understand why they do that. It hurts my ears," I complain quietly.
"It's just a werewolf thing, I guess. I try not to do it, since I know you're sensitive... I can always try and get them to do it somewhere else, if you wouldn't mind-"
"It's fine, I can live with it. You don't always have to go out of your way for me, you know."
The howling settles down within the next few minutes, enough for me to relax and let go of my head. My stomach growls a bit, and almost immediately, Levi grabs the food plate again and brings it over. Sitting up, I push away the blankets and observe the contents of the plate; a pile of grapes, slices of bread and cheese, and some pie. Levi gets on the other side of the bed, handing me the plate, as he takes off his robes and boots. I can feel his bushy tail swishing against my back and I smile.
He's like a soft puppy, I think to myself, popping a grape in the hatchet.
"I hope this is enough for tonight, there wasn't much food down there when I got there..." Levi says, a little discontented. He sits parallel to me, looking at me as I chew. I look back at him and ask if he wants anything, but he only waves and says he got something to eat earlier. As I take a bite of the warm bread and soft cheese together, Levi lowers his head.
"I don't think I've ever told you, but..."
I look over, mouth full, brows raised.
"...I hate being the Alpha. It's too much work, and these werewolves are too much for me to take on, let alone lead.."
Little does he know how much I can understand, especially since I was raised to lead a kingdom, no less..
"You do? I never thought you did, since you never talked about it."
"Well, not only that, but I hate having to see you suffer because of my position," he mumbles.
I stop chewing for a moment and open my mouth to talk, but a small sticky, gushy ball of bread and cheese (combined with my saliva, gross) rolls out of my mouth and into my lap. Levi looks over and chuckles, watching me pick up and fling the ball across the room in a flurry of rushed movements. My face begins to burn a little as his laugh gets louder.
"Stop it! I was going to say something meaningful, but the bread ruined the mood!"
He tries to speak through his laughter; "I'm sorry, but it just happened all so suddenly, and I couldn't help myself!"
His face, a deep hue of magenta, is filled with joy. I finish my bite before starting my sentence. "Well, before that piece of bread so rudely interrupted me," I say as Levi laughs more, "I wanted to say thank you for worrying about me. I appreciate it. On another note, you wouldn't believe what I would do to get out of this room. I'm so sick of being stuck here all day."
Levi wipes the tears from his eyes and calms down. "Well, hah, I have a plan, luckily for you!" I set my plate aside as he leans in closer, grabbing my shoulder and whispering into my ear. In short, he has an escape route all planned out, an Alpha to take his place, and a place to stay until further notice before we head back to the academy. It's a good plan, and he plans to execute it early in the morning. That being said, he gets up, tells me to look away, and as I cover my eyes, I listen to him get undressed. By the time he lets me open my eyes again, he's in your average nightgown. Levi jumps back into the bed and gets close to the center as I lay down. Underneath the covers, I can feel his arm wrapping around my waist, so I wrap mine around his. Immediately, I hear his tail thump.
"Are you cozy?" He asks me, smiling and blushing like crazy.
"Very cozy," I respond. I give him a goodnight kiss on his warm lips before dozing off.
That night, I dreamt of tiny puppies and kittens dancing in the clouds, with Levi and I watching them from above.