Fin's Claim

Break My Pride

He takes my challenge as he approaches me "maybe I need to school you in the art of obedience...again." His voice is gruff and deep, muscles bunching under his skin, the wolf of his peers out slightly.

"From you Finian, I wouldn't expect anything less, you remind me so much of my father." I let those words sink in deep...I really don't care anymore, everything has been taken from me by my own hands.

He crosses his arms across his chest, almost like he's shielding himself against my words, against me.

"The truth is Victoria, I don't think I can ever get past the fact that my brother had you first, that you gave him what should have been mine to take." He's now starting to get agitated, I can tell his heart rate is accelerating by the pulsing carotid in his neck. A flush comes to his face as I see that he's taking shorter breaths.

"All I can ever picture is you underneath him, it keeps me up at night just thinking what you've done with him. What you were to each other." He looks at me hard and shakes his head as if talking to himself. "You know he would call me about you, how he thought you were this Queen, how amazing you were and the whole time he was talking I was wishing I could meet someone like you and I was so jealous of him."

"He told me everything you did together....I made him, I needed to know." He judges my reaction, I have none, it's best to remain masked up.

'I can't even believe I was saving myself for you...for my mate." He laughs sadly to himself. "I was an idiot back then."

"You still are Finian nothing has changed." It just came out quicker than I thought possible. It's me who turns from him when I hear a menacing growl rumble from his chest.

"Where are you going?" His hand grips my shoulder roughly, shrugging it off turning back towards him "I'm going to bury Charlie and my brother." With that I turn from him stepping out of my sanctuary, steeling my nerves for what awaits me today.

Hearing the tractor already digging up the soft earth for the burial of the dead. The bodies are lined up like cattle after the slaughter, I take a deep breath as I approach those who were not cowards.

They all deserve a proper resting place, I find my Charlie and Elliot among the wreckage of limbs and torsos.

The solitary weeping willow tree has the impression of its limbs dropping sorrowful and mournful, its branches swaying with the light wind as if in mourning for the loss of life.

Starting with Charlie, making my way with him to the grave where his true soul lies. A sob threatens to escape my mouth as I puncture the earth with my shovel, I grit my teeth and bare my pain.

One shovelful of dirt at a time makes me reflect on everything he was for me...my one true friend to the absolute end. It takes a while to make the hole big enough but I have nothing else to do besides this.

The hole's depth now adequate, I grab the broken body of Charlie placing him in the deep earth.... he will never be with me again, what have I done. His blood, my brother's blood will forever taint my hands with my own disgrace.

Raw blisters are forming where the wooden handle meets the delicate flesh. Rubbing the skin off slowly, I like the pain... in fact, I welcome it, savoring the feeling as I shovel the earth back on top of Charlie. Watching him slowly being covered by the brown earth I fight against my self hate. His soul now with his love and at least I'm grateful for that.

Wiping the sweat from my forehead I make my way back towards Elliot body. It's hard to look at him, the way his eyes are open but unseeing. Skin has such an odd color in death, waxy with an off color of pale.