The Rose

Chapter fourteen: the paths that forged futures

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Draco's POV

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I held her close as the carriage continued to move. The unseen horses hooves clicked as they ran across the dirt paths. I pet her hair carefully, she looked so peaceful despite what had happened hours before.

The wolves were starting a war? Well at least that pack, that large pack. Over five hundred warriors. If they got more wolf packs together it could be all out war.

Why did we have to disagree so much? I knew why, but I hated the idea, the reason why we fight.

I held her close, she would never be theirs, that damn wolves.

We had been friends once, the prince of wolves and the prince of vampires had been friends.

Then he lost his mother, and his father went insane, he found my mother worthy of taking the queen of wolves place, and now he wishes to take my fathers crown. Would he take my mother too? Do what he had done so long ago? Wolves aged normally, until about twenty then they only seemed to age physically once every five years. Alphas aged less.

I felt my fangs bite my lip again, it was a habit I had that I couldn't control. When I was angry or concentrating to much I would bite my lip.

"Draco?" I looked down to see that beautiful face, she rolled over. "Why do the wolves hate us?"

"Not all of them my pet, only that pack. There are many packs, all with their own kings. It is a long story, one that ended in broken ties. And now it is a danger for you and my family." I began to explain to her what happened to make our families so bitter.

"Twenty four years ago, the wolf prince and I had met in the woods. He was young, about thirteen. I had taken him under my wing teaching him how to hunt better and fight. His father a king, to busy to train him, and his mother not allowed to teach him. Doing such would get her a month locked away in the kings chambers. The wolves are very set in their ways, women have no rights, and men have them all. Soon we, the two kingdoms began to become friends. His mother and mine spoke often, the two women became pregnant at the same time, my brothers and now ten almost eleven, and the queen of wolves will be dead for the same time. She died in child birth, and my mother did not. All was still fine, my mother helped the grieving king with his loss, my father offered whatever he could to help them. He soon went to far, he locked my mother in a room with him. She was still weak only a month after my brothers birth."

She looked at me slightly confused. I realized I should explain something to her. "Vampire babies do not need milk but blood, so the mother allows them to feed from her until they are six months old. Having twins will drain you faster then one child, making one weak." She nodded at me.

I continued to explain. "My mother could not fight back. Thankfully my father new how to access the chambers through the window. He tossed him out the window into a lake. With that, our friendship ceased, I saw that his father was willing to take my mother in her weakened state, and if he was willing, then so was this boy. For son and father are much alike. I now see that is true because I know that his father is not interested in you, but his son is."

She nodded I could tell she knew I was holding back.

"There is more?"

"He was bidding against me for you." I replied. "He also...that isn't something I want to answer." I looked down.

"Please, I want to know."

"He wanted to hurt me. After the fight between our parents I went to ask him about our friendship, if it was smart for us to still be friends in public. I wanted to continue to help him. I had trained him to fight after all. When I came to speak to him, he was waiting with a stake, and guards. He had them grab me, held me down. I managed to escape, but the stake had already been staked, he missed however."

I removed my shirt and turned to the side, a scar that had never healed correctly was there. The mark would remind me that even friends could become enemies.

I looked to her. She touched my scar. I felt her delicate fingers placing itself over the scar.

"I..also had to..knock him out. He lied to his father about what I did, said I called him there. Knocked him out tried to kill him. He ruined the first feeling of friendship I ever had. It took me everything I had not to really hurt him, but I thought if I didn't he would come back to me. As a friend."

I felt myself shutter I didn't want to cry, not in front of her. I wanted to be strong, strong for her. She smiled and hugged me. I put my shirt back on. I felt the cart stop. I looked out the window to see what made the horses stop.

I saw we had come to a fork in the road. Left was dangerous, right was more dangerous. I pointed left, when I entered the cart the horses began to move once more.

Each path we took would rewrite history for better or for worst but I knew it was needed. It was written in the stars.

"You told me some of your past, but what about those seven years you were with a family?"

She stiffened but nodded as she began to explain. "So we were in a sector, that is what we humans would call a pack. Very few exist. Those that do usually consist of three to six families with one to four children. I was one of the free female children. Males were more common because they are the ones they last the longest during childhood. Most female children in the wild die due to illnesses."

I nodded very interested in human culture. "Uhmm so my family was in a sector with four other families. Four boys and two girls. The other girl went missing and soon it was just me. But she hadn't gone missing, she was found and because of that she led the raid to us. I escaped because my mother hid me. She covered me in dirt and berries. I managed to run after I saw them be slaughtered. They took all the children, and women other then my mother. I dont know why they did not spare her."

I saw the tears began to form. "Shh it's okay love. Shh calm down no more, you don't have to tell me any more."

She held onto me tightly. "I'm so sorry. I should be able to explain to you things. It's been eleven years. I should be over it."

I held her tightly. "No no don't worry." I felt the cart lurch but kept going. I held her close knowing it was the only way to calm her. "I love you baby girl, my mouse, my rose."