Arabella, true to the rumours surrounding her, was cooped up inside her room. A new lock on her door had me confused before I shouted at her to open up. It took some convincing, and I softened my tone when I noticed the uneasy edge in her voice. 

Entering her room, it was relatively tidy. It surprised me because Arabella was definitely not the person to tidy up after herself. Every day in Evermore, I would find her dirty dishes still in the sink, or her laundry washed but still damp in the basket.

She told me she spent most of her time locked away in here, and that was answer enough. She spent her time tidying, and her once cluttered room was now as pristine as the rest of the house.

After spending an hour with her casually, I finally opened up the tense can of worms that were desperate to be released.

"I understand that it's been scary, but Asra isn't like that anymore." I told her.

"How do you know?" She narrowed her eyes. "How do you know this isn't part of the ploy?"

It was a good question, one that had me hesitating as I thought about my answer.

"Because I know Asra." I shook my head. "When he was not himself, he didn't call me what he used to, his mind... He didn't look at me the same way. He was hard-headed, rude, and blanked me. Asra isn't like that."

"I don't know. It seems rather fitting." She sarcastically rolled her eyes.

"Arabella!" I gasped, offended. "How could you say that?"

"Have you looked at him?" She cocked her head. "Have you seen the size of him? His smirks, his glares, how he holds himself. It's only fitting that the attitude matches."

I scowled at her, not liking the attitude. I felt like her mother right now, and she was pissing me off just by looking at me like I was stupid.

"Arabella, he is the alpha. Most of them look like that."

"No, no. It's true. You didn't see what I saw. He was horrible. He was terrifying, the things he did to people..."

"That wasn't him!" I insisted. "Bella-

"He is an alpha, I know. Even more horrid."

"If you honestly think that, then I am done here." I shook my head, scowling. "I shouldn't have to sway you, because you obviously will not change your mind."

I had thrown her off, because her eyes widened from the sarcastic, daring slits, to her normal doe-eyed shock. Her lips parted, muddling confused words. Arabella wanted a fight, and I wasn't about to give her one. I knew Asra, and that was all that mattered to me. If my sister could not see past her prejudices, then I would not satisfy her otherwise. She wouldn't believe me.

Rising from her bed, I walked toward the door. "I'm going to go to breakfast. You do what you want."

"Ailia..."

But I didn't respond, leaving her room with an agitated jolt to my step. I even boarded the elevator without caring, glaring a hole into the wall. Arriving at the ground floor, I found my way back into the breakfast buffet. After plating some hash browns, scrambled eggs, toast and bacon, I finally raised my head to search for Asra in the crowd.

To my surprise, he was sitting down at a table, a coffee mug in his hand. Already watching me.

Creep.

I narrowed my eyes at him as I walked toward his table, and his lips pulled into a smirk. Sitting down opposite him, he straightened up, passing me the mug.

Taking a sip of the warm liquid, I hummed with satisfaction. Asra was still watching me with amusement, even as I ate my food. I felt my agitation wear away enough until I could ask what crawled up his nosey arse.

"What?" I wondered. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"It's amazing how you can control a room."

I scowled, looking around but finding nothing out of place. "What? I have done nothing."

He chuckled. "You don't have to. Your mere agitation was enough to have the pack fall quiet."

It was?

"Yeah, right." I rolled my eyes. "Why are you really looking at me like that?"

Asra tutted, leaning forward in his chair. "I can't help but notice your agitation, Tulip. What happened with your sister?"

I paused chewing, the sourness of our sibling debacle resurfacing in my mind. "Nothing."

"Nothing?" He mused. "To storm into a room and quieten the whole place, is nothing?"

I grunted a laugh. "It's nothing."

"Tulip..."

"Butterscotch..."

His smirk broadened, flashing his teeth. "It won't work. So, tell me, what happened?"

I grunted, shaking my head. "She's just being a brat."

"She is a teenager. They all are brats."

This had my scowl turning slightly, a soft hint of humour. "Bella is usually fine. She is usually kind but... I think what happened while I was gone has shaken her up."

Asra had turned into a stone-faced wolf as I spoke, and he leaned closer to me. "Does this need to be discussed in private?"

I shook my head. "I will not bitch to you about my sister, Asra. We are siblings, we fight. It's normal. She is just so hard-headed sometimes, it's hard to get through to her."

"Really? Huh. Reminds me of someone else," He suggested.

Rolling my eyes, I picked up the coffee mug. "At least I give people a chance to show who they really are and not what prejudice they may fall into."

Asra's posture tensed before he released it with a soft growl. "So it is me."

I shrugged, indifferently. "The entire past few weeks have made her think wolves are worse than what they are. I'm not about to fight her about it, Asra. I'm not that immature. If she wants to be stubborn, then it's her loss."

"She has befriended Mya, has she not?" He wondered.

I nodded, Bella telling me she and Mya had become friends. I knew they were close from when Mya started training her to work out, so them becoming closer friends was no surprise. If Bella was as scared as she was hinting at, then having Mya was bound to make anybody feel comfortable.

As if cursed by fate's design itself, Mya appeared in my line of vision. She glanced my way, sending a friendly smile. I forced a smile to hide my grouchiness, watching as she carried her dish for seconds. Or thirds. It was Mya; could be any number.

"They are closer than I expected." I agreed.

"Maybe speak with Mya?"

"And pry at my sister's privacy?" I frowned. "I bet she has told Mya things that I do not need to hear. Mya will tell me the moment I harden my tone, it's not fair."

"Tulip, your sister is still a minor." Asra insisted. "You are her guardian, no? Does that not mean you get to ask these questions?"

I shook my head, still not feeling happy about it. The last thing I wanted somebody to do was dig into my friend and get all my secrets and feelings behind my back, and then give them to my mother!

"Arabella is just... working things out. It's a big change moving here."

"She has been here longer than just a week now, Tulip. I think she settled here fine. She is doing well in school."

My head raised from my nearly empty plate with surprise. "She is? How'd you know?"

"I check in on her." He rolled his eyes. "I had to make sure she was doing okay."

A strange warmth settled in my chest, and it must've shown on my face, because Asra's eyes narrowed into a scowl. He shifted in his seat, glancing briefly to his side before levelling his gaze with mine again.

"What's that grin for?" He muttered.

"You being sweet."

He scoffed. "I am not sweet."

"You sure about that, Butterscotch?" I teased.

He growled at me, and with a sharp grin, I growled back. It made his eyes widen, blazing with an instinct that promised me a game. I laughed, shaking my head.

"Anyway, told you I could walk."

"Did you?" He cocked his head. "I could've sworn I remember you saying you wanted to lie back in bed."

I snorted a laugh. "Well, yeah, who doesn't at eight in the morning?"

"Nu-uh, if this was a workday, you would be up at first light."

Ignoring how amused his 'nu-uh' made me, I rolled my eyes. "That's because I enjoy work."

"Enjoy the work? Or just enjoy spending the day in a work-haze?" He smirked.

I tutted at him, trying to pretend like he hadn't just caught me out. What else was I supposed to do? I didn't have any hobbies other than swimming. I could follow him around like a lost puppy?

That reminds me.

"Hey! I just remembered; you said you were going to follow me everywhere." I pointed my fork at him. "Why did you not follow me to Arabella's room?"

Asra chuckled. "You deserved privacy."

Hilarious.

"Like I'd believe that after what you said to me last night." I rolled my eyes. "Who was it?"

"Who do you think?"

"Sebastian? Where is he?" I wondered, eager to see my main man.

Asra jerked his head to behind me, and with a quick spin in my seat, I searched for him. Like a game of Where's Wally, Sebastian blended in well with his environment. The breakfast room was busy, thanks to it being such a glorious buffet, and I caught sight of so many hungry wolves on third or fourth plates. It had me hesitate, a sharp pang in my chest when I thought about what hunger they must've faced.

Finally, I found Sebastian standing by the coffee machine, and he was already watching. His lips pulled into a soft smile, and he nodded at me. I eagerly waved, and with a sarcastic roll of his eyes, he lifted his hand in a lame-ass wave.

Tutting, I turned back around. "A statue, that man."

Asra chuckled. "Sure is. He will be with us at the lake."

I frowned. "Why?"

Asra never usually bothered for security when he was around me.

"Because I realise that if something was to go wrong, who would protect you?"

"You would, you dummy." I rolled my eyes.

"No, if something happened to me again." He shook his head, grabbing my hand. "What if the spell hasn't truly gone?"

"I know it has."

"How do you? How could you?"

"It was like a sickness before. It took away your mind." I started staring into his mind. "It was closed off, dark, scary... Empty. No emotions. No thoughts."

"It was?"

"Yes." I swallowed, squeezing his hand. "That's why I was so nonchalant about death. At one point, I thought you were truly gone. That they really won."

"Never." He shook his head. "I came back in glimmers, saw things I wish I could undo."

I squeezed his hand again, forcing a smile. "Not here."

Asra nodded, falling silent. Eager to change the subject, I rose to my feet and rounded the table. He watched me dubiously, glancing at our conjoined hands.

"Now, it is time to swim."

"Don't humans have to wait half an hour after food before they swim?"

I scoffed. "That is totally a myth."

"I don't know..."

I huffed. "Well, either we spend half an hour going upstairs and trying on costumes, before walking all the way to the lake... Or..."

His eyebrows quirked. "Or?"

I leaned in, squishing our hands between our bodies to whisper in his ear. "Or we go now, and forget the costumes."

A low grumble started in his chest, one that had my body buzzing. "Then what are we waiting for?"

A sharp giggle escaped me when he suddenly scooped me up into his arms. Thrown over his shoulder, Asra quick-walked out of the dining area.

"Sebastian, you do not need to come." He stated.

"Alpha?" His blue eyes widened.

"Trust me." Asra insisted.

I giggled like a damn teenager, watching as Sebastian's face hardened at his understanding. He mumbled an agreement, dropping his eyes to stare at something on the ground instead. Asra continued carrying me like a feather out of the house. Once we hit the treelines, I insisted I could walk myself, and that perhaps this was silly, but he didn't agree.

"We don't even have towels!" I tutted, hearing the waterfall close by.

"We do."

"We do?"

His chuckle vibrated my stomach. "I had a new store built. It holds towels and costumes. Which we won't be needing, right?"

"Right." I agreed, almost sarcastically.

The smell of the lake wafted up my nose, and I greedily inhaled it. Pushing up on Asra's back, I peered around him to look at the surroundings. The lake glistened in the otherwise cool air. Thankfully, Asra was warm, and I hoped the lake still felt as good as it did in the summer. It didn't give away its temperature, no heat or steam, just the gentle ripples of the waterfall.

"You sure you want to do this?" Asra wondered after setting me down on my feet.

I faced him with a grin, fingers curling into my shirt. "Are you?"

Eyes narrowed with a challenge, my grin broadened. Our bond hummed, eagerly lapping the attention we were feeding it. Ready for the action; for the chase. Ready for the pursuit.

********

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