Into The Mountains(COMPLETED)

Chapter Seven

Lisa POV

Jen's embroidery work had earned her the protection of the Alpha, which meant she'd finally gained some freedom, and I no longer had to watch her every second that she wasn't locked safely away in our home. Still, I found myself worrying about her a lot. I knew HyunSuk wouldn't go against his word, especially not since he'd made it in front of witnesses, but I also knew that he hated me, and he would do what he could to make my life worse. My life in this pack was a constant reminder that there had been better times.

I'd put off doing what I knew I needed to do for a long time, but it was almost time. I hadn't yet explained to Jen about the Seer, but I knew I should soon. We needed to visit the white wolf. It was clear to me that we couldn't leave things as they were indefinitely, and that meant making a dangerous decision. We would have to stay and hope we were left alone, stay and fight, or risk scooping up everything that we had and leaving the lands of the pack. I wasn't ready to just throw my fate randomly in one of these directions, and that meant I needed to speak to the Seer. Of course, there was always a price for asking for her information, and depending on how important that information was, the price could be quite steep. She'd been known to demand murder, pieces of flesh, sometimes an eye, or rare botanicals that were dangerous to acquire. She always had a purpose of her own, and to get what you wanted from her, you had to serve her purpose.

My father had taken me to see her when I was little, to ask what my fate would be. It was tradition for my family. Generally she asked for a feasts worth of game, but when it came time to read my future, and my twin sisters future, she'd asked for the life of our mother. "Deliver unto me the heart of your mate, Chitthip." She'd told my father. "This, or your children go towards a dark fate with no warning." My father had refused, aghast that he would be asked for such a price, and my sister had become the bride of HyunSuk the next year, at just twelve years old. My father and mother were both dead, and all because my father wouldn't pay the price for knowledge of the future. What a terrible price it had been. I knew, had it been Jen's life I'd been asked to give, I wouldn't have paid that price either.

I returned home from the hunt and walked into my home with a heavy heart. It was forbidden for our pack to visit the Seer, so I knew that if we went it would have to be done in secret. I was worried for our family, but I also knew that we were walking a fine line between life and death by remaining in the pack as we were now. I shifted from my werewolf form into my wolf form as the door closed behind me. "Jen, my love, we must talk." There was a shuffling in the kitchen, a soft groan. "Just a minute." Jennie finally called back. Jen came to the kitchen doorway a moment later, hand on her lower belly, face pale and slightly pained looking. She made her way to the couch and sat heavily on it. "Alright." "How are you feeling?" I asked, my other concerns temporarily pushed back for a moment.

"Better now that my stomach is empty." Jen said, tone agitated, and then she laughed a little. "Sorry, it puts me in an off mood." She frowned. "I think things are happened a lot faster than they should, I'm trying to remember what I've been told about carrying children." "Pregnancies go a bit faster for children of the kin." I explained apologetically. "The press of time is ever upon us, and it has forced me to contemplate doing something I didn't want to do." I took a deep breath and went into an explanation of the Seer, telling her the story of my own history with the woman.

"I think we need her advice." Jen frowned, thinking over everything I'd said. "Of course if that's what you want to do, I'll come with you. I think it's a dangerous game to play though, chasing after knowledge of the future. Your father might have saved some of his family if he'd sacrificed his wife, instead you lost everyone, but what kind of person would he have been if he'd killed his wife like that? I think you might be better off picking a path and sticking to it, and not second guessing yourself because you went to the Seer and she demanded something we couldn't or wouldn't pay. I suppose if you feel stuck, unable to pick a path, then we should see the Seer and maybe she can help you decide."