The morning air was fresh and already growing warm. Fenrys leaned against the fence around a training ring, watching Nascha spar with Aeron and two other novices. She was making quick work of her opponents with the help of her duel bladed swords. Briefly, Fenrys wished he could see her use them in a real fight. She would be deadly. She would be devastating.

He clenched his jaw, letting his gaze travel over her curvy frame. She was wearing the leather outfit he had given her. Already, the leather was broken in and pliable. Nascha's movements were fluid as she parried one blow and landed a solid kick to her opponent's side. Aeron flashed her a proud grin.

She returned it, her crimson braid falling over her shoulder. They returned their focus to their opponents as the males swiftly righted themselves and lunged. One of them said something to Nascha. She laughed and pushed him back a few paces. The male smirked and Fenrys smothered a growl, catching the way his gaze briefly fell to Nascha's chest.

"Easy, Fenrys," Vaughan said, appearing beside him. "Aedion will be pissed if you scare his warriors away."

"Maybe he should tell his warriors to keep their eyes where they belong," Fenrys muttered. He sighed a moment later. "I'm sorry. I'm trying not to act so..."

"Possessive, claiming, territorial..."

"Yeah."

The male's gaze had fallen again. Fenrys lowered his head, gritting his teeth almost painfully. His every instinct was urging him to jump into the ring and show that male exactly where he could keep his eyes.

"Don't look now, but Nascha is about to kick his ass."

Fenrys looked up. Nascha ducked beneath the male's sword and rammed her palm into his elbow, forcing his arm up at an awkward angle. She grabbed his wrist and wrenched it backwards. The male yelped, dropping his sword. Nascha jerked him forward and kicked the back of his knees in as he stumbled past her. He hit the dirt and she pointed a blade at his throat.

Fenrys' lips curled into a smirk and he gave an approving whistle. Nascha caught his eye with a grin. Aeron quickly dispatched their second opponent and the two of them crossed the ring, joining Fenrys and Vaughan.

"I enjoyed that," Aeron chuckled. He shot a glare back at the males. "Those two love to belittle me for being Demi-Fae. They do the same to the Humans in the camp."

"Remind them that their general is Demi-Fae, and he wouldn't take kindly to hearing about one of his own being treated like that," Vaughan said. "And if that doesn't work, threaten them with Lorcan."

"They wouldn't believe that Lorcan would give a crap about me."

"Then we'll ask him to come prove a point," Fenrys replied. "He would if one of us asked him to. Well, maybe not me. We're still not on good terms with each other."

Nascha perched on top of the fence and leaned towards him. "You need to fix that. I don't want you two to dislike each other because of me."

"I'll see what I can do." He let his hand rest on her thigh and brought his mouth close to her ear. "But I can't help the way I react to things when you're around. The way you dispatched that male was very attractive, by the way."

"I think you find everything attractive," Nascha laughed.

"Everything that has to do with you." He kissed the hollow below her ear.

"Vaughan and Aeron are standing right here," she whispered.

"That male is watching too." Fenrys met his gaze. With a sly smirk, he touched a kiss to Nascha's neck.

"Territorial Fae bullshit," she scoffed.

Fenrys laughed and straightened. Nascha's cheeks were red. Vaughan was kindly looking the other way. Aeron, however, watched them with a knowing look in his brown eyes. He grinned, raising his brows suggestively. Nascha groaned and rolled her eyes.

"Oh, come on," Aeron teased, elbowing her ribs. "Don't pretend you don't want to act the same way when you spot people watching Fenrys. Especially females."

"Especially you," she corrected.

Aeron smirked. "I'm flattered that you would consider me a threat, but don't worry. I have no long term interests in your White Wolf. We established that the one and only time we..."

"If you don't stop talking, I'm going to hit you."

"Keep talking," Fenrys urged. "I like seeing her act possessive of me."

"You do?"

"I value the structure of my face, so I'll side with her this time," Aeron laughed.

Fenrys shook his head with a disappointed sigh. "And here I thought my dick held more sway than Nascha's mouth."

"I seem to recall it being the opposite," Nascha crooned. "After all, it was my mouth that..."

Vaughan cleared his throat, interrupting them. "As much as I'm enjoying this...discussion, Nascha still has training to do, and so does Aeron. Fenrys, you're not invited to watch our session."

Fenrys frowned and Nascha hopped off the fence with a laugh. She shifted into her owl as Vaughan became an osprey. The two of them flew off, leaving Fenrys alone with Aeron. "So, are you two..." The male began.

"We haven't discussed anything yet," Fenrys replied.

"Maybe you should."

Fenrys smiled as Nascha made a loop into the air, darkness and starlight swirling around her feathers. His heart leaped with affection. She was beautiful in both of her forms.

"Fenrys?" Aeron called.

"Yes?"

"Do you love her?" He didn't respond. "Because if you do, I think you should tell her. No one has loved her since her family died. That's a long time to go without being loved. Why make her wait any longer?" Fenrys met his gaze. "Why make yourself wait any longer?" Aeron added.

He backed away from the fence and joined the next three novices who entered the ring. Fenrys watched them spar, but his thoughts weren't on their moves. They were on Aeron's words and the sense behind them. They were on his own feelings...and the suspicions he'd begun to have. What Nascha meant to him, and who she really was. What they really were. Two halves of a whole. Equals in every way.

He knew that no matter how much he ignored the instincts raging beneath his skin... The way his heart leaped at the sight of Nascha... The way her smile and laughter filled him with inexplicable happiness... The way her sobs ignited fierce concern and a need to make things better in the pit of his stomach... The way her vulnerability dredged up protective primal instincts that had been dormant within him before now... He could never care for another the way he cared for her.

No one else would mean as much to him as she did. Not even Seraphina had coaxed such strong feelings and instincts from him. No one else ever would. Nascha was the beginning and the end. If she returned his feelings, it would mark the beginning of his future. If she didn't...it would mark the end of that part of his life.

He would never care for another the way he cared for her. He would care for her the rest of his days even if she didn't return his feelings. He would never be able to see another the way he saw her. He would never... He would never love another the way he loved her.

◦ ~ ❘ ☼ ❘ ~ ◦

Later that evening, Nascha bent over her notebook, working on a new story. There had been a constant blush in her cheeks since she left to train with Vaughan that morning. The male hadn't questioned her about her interaction with Fenrys, for which she was grateful. She wasn't sure she would have had a straight answer for him if he had.

Fenrys had still been at the camp when she and Vaughan returned that afternoon. He didn't bring up what had transpired either, but she noticed the thoughtful look in his eyes. It was still there when he returned to the bedroom, hair damp from a shower.

He hastily tugged on a pair of pants and caught Nascha's eye with a smile. She returned it and straightened when he approached. He paused at his dresser and opened one of the drawers. Fenrys pulled out two small boxes. One was slightly larger than the other. He placed that one in front of her.

Nascha knit her brows and opened it. Her eyes lit up. "Chocolate!" She exclaimed.

"I've owed you that for a while," he chuckled. Nascha took one and popped it in her mouth. She let her eyes drift shut as the sweetness melted over her tongue. "I've owed you this too." She opened her eyes, feeling something cool against her collarbone.

Nascha's breath caught as Fenrys fastened the pendant around her neck. The front of it was shaped like the face of a barn owl, crowned by a star. She could feel something on the smooth underside of it too. Nascha lifted it and found words engraved there in the Old Language.

"Not even death can contain all things which are wild and free," Fenrys murmured beside her ear. She ran her thumb over the delicate marks. "You are wild and free, Nascha. You are wild and beautiful."

She faced him and said, her voice thick with emotion, "I love it. Thank you."

"Will you wear it to the ball tomorrow?" Fenrys asked.

"Yes."

"Along with this?" He drew away from her and opened the closet, revealing a gown partially obscured by a protective covering. "Lysandra and I had it made for you."

"Now you really are spoiling me," Nascha laughed.

She rose and joined him, unbuttoning the cover so she could see the gown. It was made of red and black material. She couldn't pick out the finer details of the gown with it still tucked into the closet. She could tell that it would be beautiful.

    She smiled, running her hands over the soft material. "It's stunning."

    "You'll wear it?"

    "Of course."

    Fenrys beamed and kissed her forehead. "Let's go to bed. Tomorrow can't get here soon enough."

    "You aren't putting me in that dress just to get me out of it, are you?" She asked as he closed the closet.

    "No, although my plans can easily be altered to accommodate that."

    "Why am I not surprised?" Nascha rolled her eyes and joined him on the bed.

    Fenrys tucked an arm around her waist and pulled her close. She didn't protest. Her hands curled against his chest while he stroked her hair gently. His scent was warm around her: mist, oak, and heather. Nascha gave a contented sigh.

    "I like this," she murmured.

    "So do I." He rubbed his thumb over her shoulder beneath her shirt. "You're silvery again, Stardust." She made a small sound in reply, sleep already beckoning her away.