5. NAKED MAN

The fire went out at some point, my teeth chattering in my sleep, my arms all around me as I crawled into a ball. My nose got blocked only to unblock itself with the process going over and over again.

I shifted and turned, it not helping at all, rain pouring at some point with my eyes finally opening wide, all of me blue with nothing but cold deep to my bone. My eyes travelled to my right, the man just lying there staring at the sky, enjoying the view as the rain fell on him. I cursed over and over again, my lips as if to fall off. Sleep was not coming back to me, just letting the rain have its way on me.

What I would do to be a werewolf at that point. He was warm, I could see with his skin the perfect color. Mucus fell to dry, the rain heavy on us with me getting dirty from the splatter of mud as the rain drops hit the ground. My feet moved, jumping up as I picked up my clothes and folded them. All I needed was his fur, just to bury myself in it and the only way to get it was if he shifted.

“I think we can continue with our journey. I won’t be going back to sleep and it doesn’t look like you were sleeping at all. I am sure we have a lot of ground to cover.” I said to him, sly little me wanting nothing but his warm body. The man said nothing back, cursing under my breath with me deciding to hop around as a sort of exercise to warm myself up. I was just wasting my energy, the rain heavy on us.

Movement was seen, hope blooming in me. He stood up, stretched his arms then walked to the forest. I nearly laughed in excitement especially when I heard the bones crack. I even giggled, clutching my clothes.

The large wolf came out, just holding myself from clapping my hands like an excited five-year-old. He maneuvered his way to me where he stood. I did not waste time, hopping onto him with my stomach on his back before turning around and straddling on him.

Aahh, he was so warm I could just hug him.

It was nothing but bliss, my skin on his fur with it so hot it left goosebumps on my skin as the cold met heat.

The rain was nothing on the heat I was getting, my face deep in his fur holding on tightly, my clothes under me, squashed between us. I felt the sleep come back at me, smiling even wider as I let the darkness take me.

It was the best sleep I had in a long time. I smiled as I woke up, my eyes taking the area around us seeing that it was a cold day. I sat up, stretching carefully as the wolf ran so fast I could barely see anything. I could not stay up for long since the air was just blocking my airways with how harsh it was. I lay back on his back, closing my eyes. It was a vacation for me, as if flying in a warm bubble.

I wondered how far we had gone. He was moving so fast in a way one would have thought impossible for a wolf and I doubt he took a single break. He was probably tired but I understood why the king left us behind. I was sure they were way far ahead from us but what kind of a mate left their chosen with another man. I guess he really trusted the man I was riding on, or he just did not care. The second option was probably the one. Why would he care, he just picked a girl he hated the most and left just like that.

Some part of me had hoped that since he had picked me my life would be better. I could start afresh and I would build something with him but after what the man said it looked like the king wanted nothing to be built. He needed a mate for political reasons so he picked a random girl who he had no interest in knowing. I could already see my life, I could already see myself literally begging for his attention which he would never give and it already hurt even before the games began.

How many more lashes could my heart take, how many more scars could it carry? I hoped a lot for it was still going to be a hard long life.

The day went away thinking the man would stop and rest but he never did. His speed decreased just a little but from there he maintained it all day long. It was amazing seriously. The night came, the darkness covering us as we passed more and more packs rushing back, chasing the king. I was worried, hours trickling away with the man still running. Was he used to it? I guessed so.

My mind went back to his words. He had said the place I was going to had nothing but death for me. He meant the war. I was going to see what nearly most of the wolves were oblivious to— the death war. I would be right in it and if so then surely they were taking me to my death.

His words made sense. They could not take someone who was like Elissa who was beautiful and full of life, someone who had a loving family and friends, someone who could still marry someone great and live happily with beautiful kids. It would be cruel to take all that away from her but me…I was the perfect cow to slaughter.

My hand slid back and forth on his fur. I don’t know why but I felt like it eased away his exhaustion in a way. It was the dead of night and he picked up his speed, running like none I had seen. I lay my head down and found sleep with nothing else to do and the next time I opened my eyes it was day.

We kept going, running with animals, passing through large waterfalls and beautiful land marks that stole my breath away. The ride quickly turned to an adventure for me. My eyes were wide, seeing different kinds of animals. I loved animals, I actually just loved nature. It was my dose of happiness. The animals ran after us in excitement as I stared back, giggling wishing I could pat them.

We went past the open land into another forest that was dense and dark but the man never slowed down. He ran through, making it out as the day passed. Even I was exhausted. My skin hurt where it was touching on his fur. At some point I bled but I healed immediately, it happening over and over again. He seemed determined so I did not want to slow him down. I just shifted, my legs coming to swing on the side, my upper body laying on him and holding tightly. It was an awkward position but it helped my inner thighs heal.

The night went on. The man took a sharp turn, sniffing in the air with my head picking up. I shifted and got back to my straddling position while listening around and that was when I heard the heartbeat of the animal he wanted. He went running fast, creeping behind bushes with me on his back and in no time, he went for the kill. I buried my face in his fur not to see. My heart broke, that poor animal. He tore it apart, the wolf eating so savagely getting blood all over his face and my hair too. I nearly puked all I had in me, the metallic smell of blood hitting me up.

Luckily for me he did not waste much time on his dinner. He ate fast and when done left the dead animal there for the sky birds that ate dead animals. It was just all disgusting for me. He tracked to a river where he drank water as they washed away the blood and I guess that was his pit stop. I hopped off, stretching my legs, getting some water to drink myself then peed.

He was done, me getting up and getting comfortable. The adventure was nice, first time being away from my pack but I really needed us to get to the royal pack at that point. I was dead tired.

The wolf leapt over the river and ran on. He ran through the morning, the day breaking with him not taking it slow. The sun was out burning down on me and having me nearly die where I was. My vacation turned to a torture ride with me sweating buckets, my skin taking the brutal beating of the sun rays.

When the day ended, I was more than relieved but I did not even want to see how I looked at that point. My clothes which I had been holding fell away at some point and I did not care really, I just wanted to get to civilization where I would sleep and not wake up for the longest time.

The further we went, the weather got cold. It began raining again then white things fell from the sky. I guess it was too cold the rain just froze in the air. That was the only explanation I could come up with. We reached mountains which the wolf began leaping up. His body heat was suddenly failing me with how cold it was. He jumped from rock to rock, it a dangerous route which was why halfway through he decided it was enough, taking refugee in a cave.

I hopped off, my whole body shaking as we went in. He went deeper in, and the deeper we went the warmer it became. I went to lean on a rock, they were warm and I got better. He did not change back to his human form since he did not have any clothes to wear. He just went to a corner where he sat and took rest. I decided to also pick a corner where I sat on the ground but as I sat something caught my eye. I shifted, moving to pick up the strand of fur. It was black in color, so long and I just knew the king had been there. I was not sure it was his strand but some wolves had also camped there. I wondered how far off they were, what if they had just left but I am sure the man I was with could have known and rushed to catch up to them. I guess they were far off. My eyes stayed on the fur not helping but to wonder what life waited for me where I was going.

I wished for nothing but a kind mate. I wished for nothing but a mate that could just look at me and see me. I wished for nothing more than to belong to someone to call my own.

My eyes closed, lying there with sleep claiming me.

The wind got harsher with the night, whistling where we were knowing that outside it was bad. I shivered, the rocks no longer enough to keep me warm with no fire to help me. I opened my eyes, peering to find the wolf just lying there having the sleep of his life. I knew if I snuck to him, I would wake him up and he needed his sleep. He had not slept in so many days and I could not even remember how many at that point.

I would not die from the cold, I hoped.

My eyes closed, sleep not coming to me until late. I sank in it, shaking even in my sleep and the next thing I knew something smelling of nothing but stale blood was pushing at me. I groaned, my eyes opening and finding nothing but fur before me. I groaned and sighed with my body slow to shake off the sleep.

A loud growl came from the wolf, it echoing all over the curve in a way that had all the sleep vanish away from my body just like that. I stood up quickly, staring at the wolf, him staring at me with his deadly eyes as a shiver ran down my body. Even with all the time spent with him he still scared the shit out of me.

I climbed up on him, my inner thighs sore just as I sat. They had bruises; I was sure. I held on for dear life. He walked out of there, the mouth of the cave white with the frozen rain drops. They were still falling, harder than when we first climbed up but better than at night for sure. The wolf jumped out. He was jumping from rock to rock. Fog was so thick you could cut it, barely seeing anything. The wolf jumped up a rock with the rock crumbling away. A whimper pulled from him as he went scrapping down the rocks trying to get his footing. Nothing but fur and blood was left behind, him finally getting a rock stable enough. He whimpered again, scared to go up again but he was a man, he was the kind of man that hated fear for sure. He went jumping up higher than before. My heart was doing nothing but crying out for him. I placed my hand in his fur, digging it in and touching the warm skin.

I don’t know what got into me for suddenly I thought I could take away his pain. My eyes closed, feeling the darkness stir in me, my hand warm, probably his heat sipping into my own skin. I opened my eyes, feeling stupid really. Who did I think I was yet my hand never moved from his skin? He leapt over and over, falling a couple of times but getting up again.

It was a long torturous climb that left his hinds shaking. I hoped we would reach the top soon for I was sure anytime he would slip and fall back down to the bottom. I was sure that fall would kill us.

I prayed and prayed. Both hands on his skin, because somehow in my mind I had created a picture that I was this being that could take away his pain. It was silly but hope never killed anyone. I did not feel useless at all, I felt as if I was someone of importance no matter how little it was.

The higher we went the colder it became. The rocks were frozen with ice. My bare feet would do nothing but freeze to disfunction if I even dared touch with a toe. He tried gripping with his paws but he was having much difficulty.

I did not see us surviving. I did not know how we would survive seriously. It seemed we were still far from the top.

The wolf suddenly shook me off with a growl. My eyes went wide knowing he wanted me to climb off him. I did not see a way he could continue climbing too. My head turned, staring down and nearly dying. Nothing but sharp rocks waited to catch us if we fell. My whole body froze and shook yet he kept shaking me and it was unfair to keep clinging to him when even my weight could have us trampling down. I turned slowly and carefully got off him. As soon as my feet touched ground, I thought I would die. It was like knives cutting through, my skin sticking on the ice. If I stood there my feet would be stuck and frozen on the ice. I jumped away, hopping over and over from one rock to the other with such burning pain going through my body. Did I dare turn, I wanted to see what he was doing?

My head turned only for me to frown in horror. The fact that wolves were okay with nudity did not mean I was too. I mean, I was okay with someone half naked but the man behind me was dead naked. I jumped even faster because imagine if he hopped on the rock I was in. My goddess, his thing would brush on me. I would rather fall.

I jumped over and over, rushing with him fast behind me. He was taller, he was stronger so he was just eating the distance away while I freaked the fur out. I moved faster, slipping now again but too much in a dilemma to care. It seemed it would not end, heaving with nothing but exhaustion. Nothing but blood was left after me, my feet bleeding. The cuts opened and healed to open again and heal. It was pure agony. I wondered how the king and his men went through. Some part of me felt a bit angry. What kind of man left his mate to go through all this alone and I was left running from a naked man.

HE DOES NOT CARE!

My inner voice screamed at me as I huffed.

My legs were shaking at some point, so tired yet I could not stop. I thought I would fall having been at it for the longest of time. I was sure it was midday or even going for late afternoon. Everything hurt.

We hopped and hopped only to look up and nearly cry out. I could see an apex and it could only be the mountain top. I rushed up, hopping with all the energy I had to reach the top and nearly cried out in nothing but relief. I had climbed an icy mountain, who could say that. I was ready to collapse. My head turned back in excitement only to nearly scream, chills going down my body. It was so wrong in all ways. The only tangling thing I was supposed to be seeing was my mate’s.

My feet moved, rushing down the mountain side. I ran down, stones rolling before me. It was a long way but because we were going down it would be faster and less straining. I hopped and jumped, running where it was less rugged. Could we get there already. I was tired. I slipped and hit with my butt hard on a hard rock leaving me cursing over and over. The pain was too much but I could bare through it. I stood up, running down and going for it. The skies got dark which made it even harder to see the way but the man was after me and I was not waiting to feel his naked skin on me. I ran, jumping and dashing. I was surely going to tell the story to my children and grandchildren for it was one for the books.

It was midnight when we finally made it down and I was done.

The man leapt in the air only to hit as a wolf. My dead weight was thrown on his back, burning hot with my clothes wet and cold. We ran through what I would say was a frozen ocean, miles and miles.

It was so beautiful to see, fish swimming right under us. It was one of the most amazing things to see, smiling with my arm stretched wishing I could touch them. I closed my eyes, the morning breaking with me fed up with how long the way was. I was sure a week had passed.

The day moved on just as we finished the ocean. It had been so large. We jumped into a forest; the forest was so green it looked so unnatural. The air in it so different like nothing I had ever tasted. No matter how tired I was, I could not help but sit up, my eyes wide, taking everything in. Such beautiful insects flying about in all sorts of colors. The forest was alive and so breath taking. It felt like home. I closed my eyes, taking everything in knowing we had arrived. We had arrived to my new home.

My eyes opened for suddenly we were not running alone. Wolves were besides us, running with us. They were smaller compared to the wolf I was ridding on yet they were still beautiful. I could not help the smile, everything so wonderful. We ran and ran until my smile slowly slipped. How far were we from the houses? Hours passed I tell you and all the excitement wore off with my body shutting down.

We went through rivers and around mountains. It was a beautiful pack I will tell you that.

All the other wolves suddenly fell away and turned back. I looked up just as the wolf I was riding on jumped through the forest and my goddess.

There were so many houses, all gorgeous but then I realized it was not houses but stores. I gasped. I had never been to the stores. My pack did not have any, they were in the next pack and I was not allowed to go out of the boundary. There were windows with things on them, beautiful things. I saw beautiful dresses.

My excitement and happiness was cut short as people began walking out of the shops and watched. My body shot down and yes, I was hiding. I dug myself as much as I could into the wolf, hiding from the eyes. I was sure they would put two and two together and I was just not ready for the gasps and questions with the start of disapproval. We tore through the city and it was large itself. I would come back when everything was sorted and explore all the stores.

I could not believe it though. I was in the royal pack; I was actually in the royal pack. I felt like screaming and jumping up. I was out of that prison; Elissa could not bully me anymore. I was finally free. I could make friends and start a new life.

A breath escaped me, praying to the moon goddess or any other God my real people worshipped. Could they please help me make a beautiful life for myself? I was tortured enough, I surely had cried enough and all I needed from there was just a good life. Nothing fancy, just my mate which I would treasure, a few friends that I would love with all of me and create a family. I prayed over and over until I felt the wolf slow down.

My eyes flew open seeing that we had left the city behind and we were going through more forests. I sighed, looking up but it was not long before we jumped and a large, a very large stone castle came to view. I gasped, my hand coming to my mouth as I sat up and stared up at it but a few people walked out of the door with me ducking down. Not yet lovely people, not yet. I looked like a wolf’s ass I knew, and I probably smelt like one too. It was not a look for first impressions.

The people who were walking out of the castle seemed to be help. They immediately bowed where they were when they saw the wolf I was riding on. Their heads stayed bowed, knees on the ground. I sucked in a breath, wondering who exactly the man I had spent so many days with was. He had never said anything about himself, he actually had not said anything at all.

He stopped right before the steps and I knew it was my turn to climb down. I could not believe it was over. I turned and hopped off nearly crying out for my inner thighs were burning hot. I was sure they were red and had been bleeding at some point. I stared down and indeed there was dried blood smudged there. It was seriously not a good look for me.

The men that were kneeling on the steps suddenly turned around, rushing back into the house. The wolf turned and tracked away. I was left wide eyed. Was he leaving, please please please may he come back.

Imagine what I would do if he never came back, just walk into the house like this asking for the king. Wouldn’t they chuck me out especially with my different scent I wore which stated that I was not a werewolf.

The wolf went all the way around the castle and the castle was huge I have to tell you that. I shook where I was promising in my head that if he dared leave me there I would hunt him down later and show him what these fists could do. Please please may he come back.

Time ticked away as I stared around. A few people were walking by, their noses swirling with them frowning. One was even just approaching when the man came to view again. He had turned back to his human and I had never been so happy to see him. I could just hug him I swear.

The men that had went running in the house came back running down to stop at the very feet of the man that I had spent so many days with. They knelt down as all the others had from seeing the man.

“Here your excellency.” One of the men said, holding out a thin blanket to the man who was apparently so important they called his excellence. Who was he? I felt like my mind was going to pop. Had I been mistaken. Was he the king? But no. There was no way, he seemed a little less in power than the man that had chased me down the forest back in my pack.

The man walked to me then threw the blanket he was carrying over me. He threw it in a way to hide me. My body was brought to him, his arm around my waist and soon I was stumbling with him pushing me forward. Thank the goddess for my sight for if not for it I would not be able to see anything. I walked, taking the steps. We went through the door. All I could see was the floor, my whole body covered except for my feet which were dirty and bloody. I really needed to clean myself.

Commotion could be heard, people in the house. I could see the bent knees from under the blanket.

“Your royal highness.”

“His excellency.”

My goddess who was this man?  I gave up finding out with all the praise said. I was sure all the siblings of the king were dead as per word going by but who knew. We got into something that moved up. It was a box that was flying up. I was shocked, wanting to see more of it but I could not. A button was pressed with it moving. It finally stopped and its doors opened.

Plush white carpets greeted us that looked as if feathers of the purest bird; it was breath taking.

We reached a large golden door, seeing the edge of it. It was opened, swinging open with marble tile greeting me.

The blanket was pulled away with the man pushing me in as I stumbled nearly falling. His push had been rough. I caught myself to turn and stand up straight staring back at the man who we went through a lot together. I was going to miss him I wont lie.

He stared back at me, seeming so rough himself, needing a shower, some shaving and surely some rest.

“This is your room.” He said as I nod my head not even believing.

“Thank you for everything.” I said to him wishing at some point we could be friends.

“The king will come before morning.” He added, those his last words before the door shut closed right on my face.