So, did I shock you with Ansel being there?  And how is Ren going to have a plan as to why he won’t go back?  So many questions, so many places to leave cliffhangers.  Well, I won’t keep you waiting.  A shout out to Destiny and Fruity for reviewing!  Y’all made me smile (and I just had a complete blonde moment.  I forgot how to spell y’all…)

Quote of the Chapter:
“I'll even sing you a lullaby . . . and maybe you could show me what makes you howl.”
~Connor from Wolfsbane
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Chapter 6: Blue Rose

Ren 

He stared in shock at Ansel, who seem to share the sentiment equally, although his appeared to be coming from the fact that he had actually found Ren.

“I knew you wouldn’t leave,” Ansel said with a grin.  Ren rolled his eyes.  Ansel’s eyes rested on Arya, who was looking curiously at him.

“You must be Ansel,” Arya finally said with a sweet smile.  She extended her hand out for him to shake. “I’m Arya.”

“Nice to meet you,” he replied, shaking her hand firmly. “You’re an alpha, aren’t you?”

Arya grinned and Ren saw that she was turning on her charm. “How could you tell?”

“Mainly by the way you act as if Ren is your equal,” Ansel said casually.

“Well, you’re not wrong there.  Welcome to Estes Park, by the way.”

“Thank you… and sorry I attacked you.  I thought Ren was going to be the one coming out first, not you.  You’re one hell of a fighter,” Ansel complimented.  Ren secretly was grateful Arya was talking to Ansel, mainly so he could gather his wits, especially for what he was about to do.

“Thank you,” Arya replied. “You’re not bad yourself.”

Ansel looked between Arya and Ren, realizing how close they were standing next to each other. “So how do you two know each other?”

“She’s my girlfriend,” Ren replied coolly as he threaded his hand through Arya’s.  He felt her tense but she relaxed and thankfully went along.

Ansel raised an eyebrow. “Girlfriend?”

“Yes, Ansel.  She’s my girlfriend.  You know what those are.  Bryn is yours,” Ren answered sarcastically.

Ansel rolled his eyes. “So who asked who?”

“He asked me,” Arya replied. “It was quite romantic.”

“Oh really?” Ansel looked amused.

“Yes, but I’m not one to brag.  If you want to know, you’ll have to ask him.  Ren, would you two like to be alone?” Arya inquired, looking up at him.  Her eyes were sparkling and she looked beautiful in the moonlight, especially with the silver halo surrounding her hair.

“Is that okay with you?  I hate to leave you alone because you have a nasty habit of getting yourself into trouble,” Ren joked with a smirk.

“Oh shut up,” Arya retorted, shoving him a little. “I’ll stay within rescuing range but far enough away where I can’t hear you.  I’ll see you later.”

“All right, beautiful,” Ren replied.  Then, knowing it was a risky move on his part, he gave her a kiss.  She froze but let him.

“Well then…” Arya laughed.

“Has he never kissed you before?” Ansel inquired suspiciously; he had obviously seen her tense up.

“I’m not one to kiss and tell.  It was nice meeting you Ansel,” Arya said before she shifted forms and trotted off into a field.  Ansel and Ren watched her figure retreat and they made sure she was out of hearing range before they said anything.

“She’s beautiful,” Ansel commented appreciatively.

“She is,” Ren agreed wholeheartedly. “So what are you doing here?”

“I’m came to see you and make sure you’re doing all right.  Obviously, with a girlfriend like that, you are.”

“She’s great,” Ren admitted, and he was telling the truth. “How are you and Bryn?”

At that, although he was smiling from ear to ear, Ansel blushed. “We’re doing much better now that I’m full Guardian again and not stuck as a human.”

“That’s good.  I’m happy for you,” Ren said sincerely.

“Listen, Ren, Calla’s worried about you.  She’s scared you’ll do something rash… like when you were leaping towards Emile…” Ansel said hesitantly.

“She chose Shay.  Calla doesn’t need to worry about me.  Besides, I have a secret wolf guardian that will save my butt if something comes up.” Ren didn’t add the fact that he was actually with his secret Guardian wolf.  He felt that small fact would make Arya mad.  She acted as if she didn’t want people outside of her pack and Ren to know she had saved him.

“Just because she chose Shay doesn’t mean she’s forgotten you,” Ansel pointed out.

“She still chose him!” Ren nearly shouted.  Seeing his former pack mate flinch, he recollected himself and calmly added, “I’m with Arya now, and she’s the only one I care about.”

“Do you love her?” Ansel questioned seriously. “Calla, I mean.”

“I thought I did… and I think I still do, but not the way I previously I did.  My love for her was because we were bonded by our status as alphas and I perceived it to be something more.  Perhaps if Shay hadn’t come along, it would’ve turned into true love, but now we’ll never know.”

“What about Arya?  Do you love her?”

“I do,” Ren replied without any hesitation, although he still shocked himself by saying that, but he tried to hide it from the younger wolf; thankfully, Ansel didn’t catch it.

“Does she know?” Ansel queried, looking in Arya’s direction.  They couldn’t see her anymore but Ren could sense she was nearby.  He had a feeling she wouldn’t be too far away from him in a situation where she knew he was nervous or uncomfortable.

“No… and I’m not sure she feels the same way, but I can hope,” Ren said quietly.  He chuckled to himself. “I never thought I would turn into one of those hopeless romantics but for her, I think I’d turn into anything she wanted me to be.”

“Tell her you love her because if something happens to either of you, she’ll never know how you felt,” Ansel pointed out.

“It’s too early in the relationship An… but I will tell her one day.  Just not anytime soon,” Ren said. “Listen, it’s good to see you, but you have to promise me something.”

“Shoot.”

“You can’t tell any of the Nightshade pack that you saw me or that you know where I am,” Ren ordered sternly.

“Why not?” Ansel demanded.

“Because I don’t want anything to do with Calla and Shay.  I don’t want anyone’s sympathy.  Why do you think I’m with Arya and her pack?  They treat me like I’ve always been a part of their pack… okay, maybe not her second.  In fact, I think he would like to gut me but I think Arya is the only reason he hasn’t.  But that’s not the point.  The point is that I’m happy here because I don’t have to worry about Calla or Shay.  I never realized how trapped I was by my feelings for Calla.  But now I feel free, and it’s thanks to Arya and her pack.  Don’t ruin that for me,” Ren ranted.

Ansel stared at him. “You felt trapped by my sister?”

“I didn’t realize it at the time and I know it sounds horrible but I was always so damn worried about what mess she was going to get herself into next that I never realized the only reason I thought I loved her was because we were bonded as alphas.  Maybe that’s the case with Arya but I don’t think it is and I want to chase that feeling with her.”

“She loved you, you know,” Ansel said quietly.

“Oh yeah?  Then why did she choose Shay?”

“I don’t know, only she could explain that.  Just talk to her and-”

“No!” Ren protested heatedly. “I told you, I don’t want to talk to her.  Mason, Nev, Bryn, you- I have nothing against any of you but I refuse to talk to your alphas.  If I ever have to, it will be because of business and nothing else.”

Ansel looked hurt but Ren didn’t care.  He didn’t want to see Calla and it seemed that Ansel couldn’t get that through his head. “Well, if you ever change your mind, our doors are always open.  And you can bring Arya.  She’s welcome too, although my sister may flip out a bit and she might be a bitch to her.”

“Arya can handle it,” Ren promised.

“I know she can,” Ansel said, with a slight smirk. “It was nice seeing you Ren… and just keep in touch with me at least, just so I know you’re doing all right, okay?  At least promise me that,” he requested.

With a defeated sigh, Ren agreed.  Ansel smiled drolly. “See you around, alpha.”

“See you Ansel,” Ren said.  They gave each other a bro hug and Ansel left.  Ren shifted into wolf form and projected his thoughts to Arya. You there?

I’m here. Arya responded instantly.  There was some shuffling to his left and when he turned around, she was padding quietly over to him. Is everything okay?

Yeah… did you hear anything?

Ren felt Arya’s embarrassment. A little. She admitted. But not much.

What did you hear?

Just the last part when Ansel said he thought his sister would be a bitch to me and you said I could handle it.

Well you could. Ren pointed out.

If wolves could grin, Arya would be. Come on, let’s go home.  I think we’ve had enough excitement for one night.

I couldn’t agree with you more.  And thank you, for going along with my plan.  Sorry if the kiss shocked you but I wanted to make the whole girlfriend/boyfriend thing seem genuine.

It’s fine… if you want to know the truth, that was one of my backup plans… the girlfriend/boyfriend thing I mean.  It seems we have similar minds alpha.  And you’re a good kisser so that made it much more pleasant.

You think I’m a good kisser? Ren asked cockily as they headed up towards the Lightwood Compound.  Arya merely sent him a slight chuckle but didn’t say anything.

As they neared the hill that led up to the house, Arya stopped. That’s weird… She said.

What is? Ren questioned.

Shiloh’s scent is here.  I know he came down here earlier but this is recent.  It’s really strong.

Ren sniffed and instantly knew what she was talking about.  The smoky smell was powerful and it made him wary.  What if Shiloh had heard his conversation with Ansel?  If that was the case, he was so screwed…

Come on. Arya said, trotting up the hill.  Ren followed her closely and Shiloh’s scent got stronger and stronger.  Ren knew the beta wolf had gone up this path just a few minutes before him.  The two alphas shifted into human form when the ground leveled out.  Instantly, Ren received a punch to the jaw.

“Shiloh!” Arya screamed.  Ren, completely dazed by the punch, shook his head to try and clear his thoughts.  He started to stand up but was roughly grabbed and pinned to the side of a house.

“You bastard!” Shiloh snarled, showing his razor sharp canines.  Ren had had enough of this guy and with all the force he could gather, he kicked Shiloh in the legs.  He howled in pain and let go of Ren.

“Don’t you dare grab me again,” Ren growled.  Shiloh looked up at him, pure hatred on his face.

“I’ll do whatever I damn well want,” he replied sharply, before lunging at Ren.  He leapt out of the way, not wanting to fight the guy but it seemed he wasn’t going to get a choice if this kept up.  He didn’t want to hurt Shiloh because he knew it would hurt Arya.

“Shiloh!  Stop!” Arya commanded.  By now, the other pack mates were racing out of their houses to see what was happening.  Shiloh seemed not to hear Arya because he swung at Ren with a force that probably would’ve knocked Ren out had he not dodged out of the way.  The punch, however, connected with his ribs, and he heard several of them crack.  He grunted in pain before kicking Shiloh in the stomach.  He tackled him and the two boys rolled over in the dirt each trying to get the upper hand.  Sometime during the fight, the two of them had changed into wolves and jaws were snapping, fur was flying, and blood was being shed.

“Damn it!  Get off of him!” Arya yelled as she changed forms and charged into the two fighting boys.  The impact sent Shiloh and Ren sprawling away from each other; Rigg and Dmitri immediately grabbed onto Ren while Derek and Austin held onto Shiloh.  Both boys were desperately trying to fight each other again.

“What the hell was that about?” Arya demanded, walking up to her second.  She looked extremely pissed.

“Why didn’t you tell me?  Tell us?” he shouted.

“Tell you what?” Arya asked furiously.

“That you two were dating!”

The pack fell silent as they took in the words.  Arya’s eyes blazed with her fury.  With a growl she explained, “One of Ren’s old pack mates showed up and he needed an excuse to say why he didn’t want to return.  We lied saying I was his girlfriend.”

“Then why did he kiss you?” Shiloh snarled.

“To make the relationship seem legitimate,” Arya informed. “In case you were wondering, it was my idea in the first place.  So if you want someone to blame, blame it on me, not him.”

Shiloh breathed heavily.  Blood trickled down his face and his face was bruising from where Ren had punched him sometime during the altercation. “Derek, Austin, get him cleaned up,” Arya directed.  Without words, the two boys complied and dragged the beta into his house.

“Everyone, go back to bed,” Arya said, her voice sounding extremely tired.  Her pack listened without hesitation, although Dmitri and Rigg stayed, not sure if they could let Ren go.  When she saw this, she said, “Y’all can let him go.”

Ren was freed and he just stood there while Dmitri and Rigg went into their house.  Awkwardly, he stood there, waiting for Arya to explode on him.  Surprisingly she didn’t but merely told him to follow her.  Ren tried not to wince with every step he took but his ribs were killing him and a few groans escaped his lips.  Arya turned around and without asking, put his arm around her shoulders and helped him inside.  They walked into the kitchen where she ordered him to sit.  He did so without any argument because it felt good to sit.

“Where does it hurt?” She asked stoically.

“Everywhere, pretty much,” Ren admitted.  Arya gave a humorless chuckle as she opened a cabinet and took out various items.  She walked over to him and gently started to clean the blood off his face with a damp towel.  Ren said nothing and let her clean him up.  He was afraid to say anything at all.  When his face was taken care of, she said, “Take off your shirt.”

Ren painfully took off his t-shirt and was shocked to see how black and blue his abdomen was from Shiloh’s punch.  Arya grimaced. “You need blood to heal that.”  With a sigh she started to make a cut in her arm for him to drink from but he stopped her.

“Arya, don’t.  I deserve to be like this,” Ren said softly.  She looked at him like was crazy.

“That’s stupid, Ren.  If anyone deserves to heal naturally, it’s Shiloh.  He’s the one that started the whole thing,” Arya answered.

“I shouldn’t have fought back the way I did,” Ren pointed out.

“You were defending yourself… besides, you’re an alpha.  It’s in your blood to fight back.  Now drink.” Before he could stop her, she made a small incision on her forearm and put it to his mouth.  Not wanting to piss her off any more than she already was, he drank; instantly Ren felt the magic properties of the Guardian blood healing his ribs.  He stopped when he felt his ribs were just bruised.  Arya frowned and tried to get him to keep drinking but he said, “They’re not broken anymore, just bruised, and the blood is still working.  I’ll be fine in the morning.”

“Are you sure?” Arya inquired.  Ren nodded. “Okay.  Then let’s get you up to bed.  I need to go talk to Shiloh and make sure he’s okay.  I hate yelling at him… but he infuriates me so much!” Ren put on his t-shirt as Arya kept ranting. “He wants me to be happy but then he attacks my guest and expects me to just let it slide?  Hell no.”

Ren didn’t know what to say but he was shocked to see Arya on the verge of tears.  Slowly he got up and walked over to her.

“He loves you… that’s why he got so mad,” Ren whispered.

“I wished he didn’t love me,” Arya muttered.

“He’s afraid to lose you.”

“I’m not going anywhere.”

“He’s afraid to lose you to me,” Ren told her kindly.  She looked up at him.

“Why?”

“Because he thinks just because I’m an alpha, you’ll instantly be attracted to me.”

Arya gave a small smile. “That still doesn’t give him the right to attack you.”

“Not to you, but he justified it in his mind that he could.  I just wonder how much of the conversation he heard between me and Ansel…”

“Why?”

“I said some things that I don’t want him repeating,” Ren explained, “at least not yet.”

“Are they personal?”

“They’re feelings that I don’t want anyone to know yet.  Listen, it’s late.  Why don’t you go to bed and you can talk to Shiloh in the morning?  You’ll be more reasonable and patient when you’re not high-strung and tired,” Ren suggested.

“I guess you’re right…” Arya mumbled.  She turned around and headed up the stairs.  He followed her.  When they reached their rooms, Arya turned around and was about to say goodnight but he cut her off. “About that kiss, I’m not sorry I did it, even if it did get me a beating by Shiloh.  In fact, it was the best kiss I’ve had in a long time.”

Arya looked at him curiously. “That makes two of us… although I could’ve done without Shiloh attacking you.”

Ren smiled. “When you talk to him in the morning, whether he believes this or not, tell him I didn’t want to fight.  I don’t want to fight with any of your pack mates.”

“I’ll let him know,” She assured.  Arya stood on her tippy-toes and gave Ren a kiss on the cheek. “That’s for sweet dreams.” She winked before heading into her room, leaving Ren wanting more than just a kiss on the cheek.
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Hope you enjoyed the chapter!  So Shiloh finally snapped… anyways, please review!  They make me so happy it’s pathetic.