Again updating early today :)

I have a question; if I were to start a Teen Fiction/Romance series, would you guys read it? I've had this trilogy in my mind for a while now and I want to try it out. If you're curious, check out Just Add Love and Miss Monroe in my works :)

Fun fact; I had the strangest dream a few nights ago but it was literally the best idea for a book! A Werewolf/Thriller :D Scary but freaking epic! Might see that up in a few months ;)

Let me know what you think of this chapter!!

Libby xx
@LHBlake

Thalia heaved the bag of food and bedrolls onto her shoulders, walking towards the rising sun. The golden light charged up the Princess and she powered through the woods. Raven hobbled after her but was constantly leaning on the dew-coated trees around her. The tight burns around her ankles that were finally taking the chance to heal were throbbing at the physical activity she was doing. Walking around the morning forest was not something Raven was used to; not something she could remember. The red haired girl watched the Princess ahead of her, confident in her stride through the thick foliage on the mud soaked ground. Her brown hair swung as she scanned the forest around her; no doubt checking for her mate yet to return from his breakfast hunt. Motivated by her strength, Raven stood tall and tried to copy her Princess. But after a few steps she stumbled into another tree desperately out of breath. While Princess Thalia was placing one foot in front of the other, Raven was dragging her shaky legs with the little strength she had. Hearing the struggle, Thalia halted beside a thick oak and turned towards the weak girl.
“Raven, what can I do to make this journey easier for you?” She asked, worry filling her dark gaze. Raven rested against the oak, eyes shut as her legs trembled at usage. Her entire body was burning with ache; she needed some support. Gulping down oxygen quickly, Raven rushed out her words.
“C-Could you… lend me a stick?” She breathed heavily, grey eyes filled with both pain and shame. Raven could barely walk, and she was a werewolf. Born to be strong and defend, but could barely breathe after walking a mere one hundred metres.
Thalia’s gaze flickered between Raven’s cloud-like orbs before she nodded. Looking around the shrubbery at their feet, she spotted a fallen branch from the night before. The Princess grasped it, ripping off the twigs and leaves attached before handing it to Raven, who took it gingerly. Two frail shivering white hands clasped the branch in desperation to stay upright. Taking another minute to adjust her hold on the makeshift walking stick, Raven started to move forward again. It was only after a few more moments when Thalia snapped her head towards the right. Both female wolves searched the shrubbery, and smile came over the Princess’s face.
“Elijah?” She called, waving him out. Raven frowned slightly when Elijah came out carrying three rabbits in his hands. Quickly kissing his mate on the cheek, he shoved the rabbits in her bag, adding more weight to her back.
“Miss me?” He asked, grinning at his successful hunt. His grin faltered through when he saw the panting red-head leaning against a stick. “You don’t look too good Red, are you hungry?”
Raven frowned at the term, too exhausted to retaliate with her new name. Looking to her Princess for help, she received the message.
“Elijah…” Thalia said, gently placing a hand on his shoulder. “Her name is not ‘Red’, it’s Raven.” Elijah’s face blanked briefly before a small smile came over his face.
“Good to meet you Raven; let’s get you back to camp, eh?” Elijah said, walking beside Thalia as they kept walking towards the next campsite destination.
Raven heaved the stick forward and hobbled after her superiors. They didn’t notice the amount of pain she was in; the throbbing of her ankles, her jabbed joints burning, her lungs screaming… Even her heart was pacing too fast for a werewolf. The experiments had…

No. She didn’t want to think about that.

Ignoring the weakness throughout her body and the fire attacking it, Raven focused on putting one foot in front of the other. She allowed her senses to take over her clouded mind. Her bare feet crushed the fallen leaves as she stood, the feeling of bark scraping the palms of her hands… it distracted her from the pain of her body. Lifting her grey eyes from the ground she faced the biting wind. It tickled her body, slowly caressing her bruises and biting at her thin rags. The cold gave her pale skin goose-bumps. Like the wind around her, the sounds of the birds in the canopy chilled her. Raven hadn’t heard any creatures outside of her imprisonment; the birds giving her new life for the day.
A small smile came over her face as she saw a flock of birds fleeing from their halt in the trees above them. They swooped away from the trio and towards the rising sun; their bodies glowing as the sun illuminated their retreating forms. Raven beamed at the force of nature… unaware to the danger around them.
Elijah and Thalia had halted at Raven’s lack of movement. The hunter frowned at the flying commotion and slowly scanned the surroundings around them. His princess stiffened, like a skewer going through her back, as the harsh scent of vampire wafted around them. Raven’s body trembled when she recognised the scent, spinning with fear in her grey eyes to her guides. The red-haired girl started to hyperventilate, her wolf smashing against the walls around Raven’s mind as she lost focus. Thalia moved towards the victim out of worry but didn’t see the vampires to her left.
The blurs slammed into Thalia and sent the startled brunette into a neighbouring tree. Elijah yelled in anger and charged at the blur. Ducking, slicing with his twin sliver blades towards the vampire he just missed each time. The vampire was fast, but couldn’t attack with Elijah’s vast anger ever growing in his attacks.
Instinct drove Raven towards the unconscious Princess. An old loyal bond; to protect the Royals no matter the cost even if it meant your life. Raven crouched over the sleeping beauty and willed to shift into her wolf.

But something went wrong; all that came across her vision was darkness.

Thalia bolted awake at the impact of a body landing on her back. Panicking, she threw the body off her and drew her claws. Snarling at the figure, Thalia realised it was an unconscious Raven. Her hair spilled out around her like blood. The Princess looked towards the sounds of snarling and yelling to see her mate tackling another vampire blur. One body already down, one being beaten, four more emerged from the woods around them. Embracing the darkness of killing within her, Thalia held her ground as she waited for them to come to her. Not being careless in her attack; waiting for the moment to strike them down quickly. Two vampires moved to take down Elijah, while the remaining two stalked towards her.
“Give her to us, bitch.” One hissed, his blue eyes flashing with an aura of death. The other was looking at Raven estimating how long it would take to pry her limp body from the protection of the Princess.
Thalia snarled ferociously, spreading apart her feet as she braced for her fight. Her claws sheathed themselves further as her fingers throbbed at the compulsion to rip out their hearts immediately. But the vampires only smirked at her menacing display. Playfulness and humour entered their dark gazes as they stalked forward slowly.
They doubted her. The blood-suckers doubted the King’s sister, Princess Thalia. Anger and determination poured into her stubborn bones; she was going to show them in fourteen seconds flat. Just because she was a Princess does not mean she was clueless to a fight. The two vampires snarled at her before checking her out slowly and advancing. Thalia’s wolf powered her to slaughter these judgemental monsters so she started her countdown. Fourteen seconds; starting now.
The vampire to her left took one step closer to her and she struck out with her leg, swiping at him with sheathed claws at the same time. The vampire to her right lunged at the start of the attack but Thalia caught him in her hand. Digging her sharp claws into his neck, lifting him off the ground, he started to struggle as his life cut out. Using her left foot, Thalia slammed it against his pelvis. It crushed under her strength and the vampire screamed in pain. Using her free hand the furious Princess grasped his neck. With her foot still pressed against his shattered hips, she pulled her hand towards her. The anger from her wolf drew her strength as she ripped the vampire’s head from her body. The monster hanging from her clasped fist squelched as he tried to mourn for his friend but Thalia’s hand cut off his scream. Blazing brown eyes stared him down as she squeezed his throat tighter.
“Don’t doubt me, you menace.” She snarled as her hair blazed with a golden sheen. Her wolf powered through and snapped his neck in two. Watching as the vampire’s body fell at her feet, both Thalia and her wolf calmed with accomplishment. Hearing no more fighting, the eerily calm Princess turned to her Elijah. The hunter was breathing heavily as he clasped his still drawn daggers. They were soaked in blood, dark red stains falling to the leaf-soaked ground. Green eyes were trained onto Thalia’s unharmed form.
“Are you okay?” Elijah asked, his breathing starting to slow. He stood in the middle of four vampire bodies, all sliced to chunks. The adrenaline still pumped through his veins, his camouflaged gear heavy against his sweaty skin but Elijah instead focused on his Princess.
Thalia ignored him, still slightly reeling from the vampires and turned towards Raven. She still lay on the soaked ground near the beheaded vampires. Kneeling down Thalia pressed her two fingers against Raven’s throat. A small pulse echoed through her tips and Thalia released a breath she didn’t realise she was holding.
“Raven’s fine.” Thalia informed her mate, and she heard him approach.
“But Thalia, are you alright?” Elijah repeated, gently resting a hand on her shoulder. Thalia stood, glaring at Elijah briefly.
“I’m fine.” Thalia sternly replied. “What, don’t you think I can defend myself?!”
“No, of-”
“Good. You would have ended up like those blood-suckers then.” She snarled. “They had the thought to doubt me; me! The second in line to the Wolf Throne, a Princess! They doubted I couldn’t fight, thought it would be easy…” Thalia seethed, eyes darkening in anger, but blazed when she saw Elijah smiling slightly.
“Is something amusing to you?!” She accused, placing her bloody hands on her hips.
“Thalia, sweetheart, you took them down in about 10 seconds.” Elijah said, pride filling his green eyes. “I watched. It was their mistake to doubt you.”
Thalia’s wolf filled with pride as she revelled on the time taken to take down the two bloodsuckers. The Princess lifted her head high as she looked down on the remainder of her victims. While revelling in her ego, she noticed that Elijah’s sleeve was soaked.
“You’re injured!” She explained, grabbing his right arm viciously. Elijah expressed his pain with the release of some creative curses and Thalia ripped his sleeve in two. A thin line stretched across the ball of his shoulder. Flesh wound. He’ll live. She breathed deeply before ripping the bottom of her shirt.
“Thalia, I’m fine-” Elijah tried to explain but the Princess quickly shushed him. She stood on her tiptoes and licked his would. Elijah cringed at the action but watched as she spat out his blood and wrapped her shirt strip around the now clean wound.
“What was that?!” He harshly whispered, looking between his slobbered shoulder and his mental mate.
“Wolf saliva can heal.” Thalia stated, tightening the strip. Elijah flinched at the motion before rolling his shoulder. Thalia checked the rest of him for injuries while he looked towards the knocked-out red-headed teenager.
“Are you sure she’s okay?” The hunter asked, worried for the girl. She’d been experimented on for who knows how long and all they knew about her was her name. Was it even her name? Did she fear us? Why hasn’t she broken yet? Or was she already?
“I checked her pulse Elijah, she’s just knocked out.” Thalia sternly replied as she checked his face for any more injuries. It was already covered in scars; no more room for anymore. Elijah suddenly frowned.
“What?” Thalia asked, worried that she’d missed a spot. Was he injured internally?
“How did you check her pulse?” He suddenly asked, looking down at the unconscious red-head at their feet.
“I checked her pulse.” Thalia repeated, confused. “It was too weak for me to hear outside her body, so I put my fingers on her neck and felt to see if Raven was still alive.”
Elijah was still frowning as he looked from his woman’s hand to Raven’s neck. “Do it again.” He ordered.
“I can hear her heart beat from here Elijah…” The Princess found as she fingered with some drying blood under her nails. Elijah ran a hand through his hair in agitation before glaring at his mate.
“Check again Thalia!” He commanded as he glared at Thalia with blazing green eyes.
The bloody brunette beauty raised an eyebrow at the order and was about to retaliate with a lot more anger when Elijah explained himself. “I’m just checking something; can you please do it again?” He reworded with a calmer tone than before.  
Thalia, still frowning, pressed her fingers against Raven’s neck. Her pulse pounded against her bloody fingertips. It was stronger than before but still weaker than a normal werewolf.
“Thalia…” Elijah grabbed her attention from the teenager. “You can touch her.”
Silence enveloped the three of them with sudden curiosity. After seeing Raven on the concrete block, they both assumed that she had been injected with silver like Queen Seraphina. It was why Elijah took it as his duty to carry her out of the hell house she was in, and why Thalia had never touched her before now.
“But….” Thalia paused. “That means she wasn’t injected with silver…”
“No.” Elijah agreed, gazing down at the sleeping red-head at their feet. Thalia stood and rested against her mate’s shoulder in worry. The Princess spoke the words that were on both of their minds.

“Then what did they do to Raven?”