The Skin Walker

07 | Animal Eyes

"Zephaniah? Really?" Ander narrowed his eyes on me, speculating. "You're telling me you two will act civil around her while discussing this?"

"He'll have no other choice," I replied, starting to make my way toward Ruth. My mother was no longer with her. She was alone with Reese. 

"And if you scare her away?" Ander's voice projected from behind me in curiosity.

"Then you'll take her back home and she'll never want to come near us again." When Ander didn't respond to me, I walked over to Reese and the queen that stood before him.

Her back was still facing me when I reached them and Reese stopped talking.

"Great, take over," He rushed out before dashing away without delay.

Ruth eventually turned around and when she saw me, all the confusion left from her face in realisation.

"Rueben," Her eyes widened slightly. "Surely you're not going to tell me to run back to my room, right?"

For a moment, her words fogged up in my mind and her eyes were the only things I saw. They were as radiant as gems, yet as dense as a rainforest after a rainstorm all at once, and I couldn't bring myself to look away.

"Rueben?" A faint mumble of my name sounded from her mouth, transporting me back to the timeless beauty that stood before me.

"Yeah?" I spoke cluelessly and secretly admired the rest of her face.

"Can we go somewhere private to talk?" Ruth's head slightly tilted to the side as she questioned me.

Don't get attached. She's not staying for long.

The quiet grumble from my chest told me otherwise.

I sighed and steadied my thoughts while offering my hand out to Ruth, silently hoping she'd take it.

Her hand slid past my hand and hooked onto my arm as she stood beside me. I tensed when her hand enclosed around my bicep.

'I want to talk to her,' Theodoros was nudging at the back of my mind, but I couldn't let him mess up this moment, so I pushed him away. He fought back. 'I want her to see me again,' and that was it. I shut him out entirely after that, leaving him whimpering like a puppy.

"This way," I nodded toward the back doors, the glass revealing guests lingering outside.

She walked beside me without question, holding her head up high with confidence. Even when Ruth was oblivious and had tons of unanswered questions, she was holding herself up with such courage that I couldn't help but admire.

I opened the glass doors and felt her unhook her hand from my arm. Ruth walked ahead of me, and I followed. Her eyes naturally lifted to the stars, shaping constellations in the sky, and I noticed the moonlight glistening in her eyes.

"The sky looks like a masterpiece," Ruth murmured with a smile on her face, walking further on the trimmed grass to get a larger view of the sky. 

I thought the true masterpiece was standing in front of me in the shape of a woman glancing at the stars with so much admiration.

As she turned to face me, her hair slid off her shoulder, revealing the bruises that made my blood boil again. I forced myself to breathe before Theodoros could leap out again. He'd make me go feral, and I couldn't risk it. Ruth wanted to discuss business, so that was what I was going to do.

"So, give me a rundown of the situation." Her voice was gentle, but I knew she was ordering me to spill every little detail.

"In the last two months, there have been dead wolves appearing on the border of my town," I crossed my arms and lifted my gaze to the moon she stared at not long ago. "The natural vegetation and soil surrounding the carcass- I'm not sure how to explain it. They've rotted faster than usual."