Following Her

Aftermath

Heavily edited 

:Annabelle's POV:

I run faster than the wind. I can feel My Lady's presence. I run farther and faster. After running miles into the forest with no break, I'm tired. 

"Rest." I gasp, shifting back into a human. 

"Rest." She agrees.

I collapse near a pond and look at myself. My cropped black hair doesn't fall beneath my shoulders. My pale skin and chapped lips are signs of dehydration. My backpack is small, it's almost concealed. The Goddess's wolf isn't like they say hers is. It's pure black, but it has a grey patch on the tip of its tail. I fill up a few bottles with water, put some iodine in and seal the lid. After enough time has passed, I open the lid and drink some water. My soft but durable leather boots have left no marks in the mossy forest floor. I let out all the tension in my chest. A minute later, the noise of various feet -wolf feet, paws- makes quickly rearrange my things and shift. I bolt further into the woods, shifting into a wolf as I run farther and farther. I trip over a root and struggle to get up, my body unnaturally weak. I hear paws come closer and as my eyes threaten to close, I slip into a state of unconsciousness that I didn't know existed. I shift into a human with the last bit of energy that I have and slip into unconsciousness. Someone picks me up. They'd found me. I felt a heavy blow hit my head and I'm knocked out immediately.

I wake up with a start, nervous. "Relax, girly." A voice says.

I don't reply and lie back down, pulling the covers over my head in the process. I'm wearing whatever I was, including my backpack. The man next to me was asleep. I go through my backpack. Everything is still there, my water bottles, my nutrition pills and everything else, including a silver Swiss Army Knife. For some reason, even though I'm a werewolf, silver doesn't affect me. I creep out of my bed quietly and shift. I hop out the window and run into the forest. I see someone follow me and speed up. Fiona surfaces, using her energy, so I push myself to keep going. The person catches up to me and tackles me down. I growl menacingly. Shut up, he says through mind-link. You can't do anything to me.

Oh, but I can, I reply. I push him off me and continue running. The path forks and I take the left fork and dart in there. There I hide in the trees and look at myself. Thin. Fast. Strong. My Lady can most definitely survive longer than me. Someone comes between the trees, and I try to run. But they're already there. I won't hurt you, he says softly. His wolf is pure white, with black ear tips.

"Mate!" My Lady tells me. Then it dawns on me. That's Xavier Stewart, Alpha of the Royals pack. The guy who organises the Rising. The guy who condemned me. Don't run, it'll do you no good, he warns me. I roll my eyes, who does he think he is. I shift back into a human.

"Piss off, Stewart." I spit at him. He shifts back into a human too. 

"Annabelle, just listen to me!" He says desperately. "You're my mate and it's not my fault! In how many languages do you want me to say that in?"

"One is fine." I say. 

"Tell me why you ran."

"Because.... I have a family that needs support. And I can't die, because I'm the main provider. You, on the other hand, have the world on the palm of your hand. You're arrogant idiots. You take things for granted, because you have everything. We have to watch you pick up names and this year, my name was first."

"Annabelle, you can't do that."

"Of course I can! In fact I just did! Not everybody wants to, and you can't volunteer to do it! And my family up should stay whole."

Xavier looks at his feet. "Why, Annabelle?"

"What do you mean, why?"

"Why are you hiding something from me?"

He'd found out about The Goddess. "My wolf isn't my wolf." The words tumble out of my lips.

"That's not possible." My eyes go black.

"Oh it is, little Lycan. I'm the Moon Goddess." Fiona says, changing into herself. The pure white dress, the light blonde hair, the pitch black eyes, and the characteristic moon lace headpiece.

"Is this a joke?"
"Does it look like one?'
"No."
I smile. Big bad Xavier, afraid of My Lady. "Belle, I'm giving you control." My Lady tells me and my eyes become grey again.

"Creepy." Xavier tells me. "But I can manage."

He moves closer to me and I back up. I feel my back hit a tree. "Don't." I snap. "Just don't."

Too little, too late. His lips are already on mine, and I find frozen and stunned. His arms hold my waist and keep me steady.

But I still hate him. Julie loves him, not me or My Lady. He breaks off and I feel better. He grips my hand, preventing me from running. 

"Alpha?" A voice asks. "You found her?"

His grip loosens and I slip my hand out and scurry up a tree. I hide in the dark foliage.

"We're taking her back... Where is she?" Xavier suddenly turns around. I climb onto the next tree, the foliage covering me. "Gray, I suggest you come here right now."

"Stewart-" My Lady's voice has a warning tone but she's gone in a flash.

His head whips around, unable to find the source. His eyes flash black, but his voice is hoarse when he talks.

"Annabelle, stop it."

"I'm not doing anything!" I reply, puzzled.

"Stop it! Stop this fucking thing, Annabelle! Just stop it!" He yells, holding his head.
  
"I'm not doing anything, really!"

He drops to his knees as a blinding headache pierces me. He's looks much better. I scream in pain.

"My Lady, what're you doing?" I scream.

"Nothing!..... I.... I..."

I fall out of the tree and I close my eyes, the pain worse than ever. Xavier catches me.

"Annabelle, what happened?"

I don't answer, instead I groan. 

"Xavier." My Lady's voice is filled with urgency. "Get us to your pack."

Xavier shifts and he puts me on his back. I clutch his neck. As soon as we start running, the pain worsens and I black out.

"Annabelle, wake up." I hear someone say, faintly, distantly. 

"Hush." I whisper.

"Belle, wake up." I hear a familiar voice say.

"My Lady?"

"I'm right here."

"Xavier."

"Annabelle, I'm right here."

"No."

"No what?"

My body is almost immediately feels like it's being set on fire. I scream in pain, eyes wide open and bloodshot. I twist and writhe, hearing the echoes bounce off the walls. I see Xavier panicking and I see his eyes flash violet, and barely make out something cover the walls and ceiling. My Lady casts spells on me and slowly, the pain starts fading away. I feel Xavier pick me up bridal style, but I'm in too much shock to protest. I'm still sobbing and I can feel a flutter of conflict in Julie's heart.

"You were in a witch's territory. She's cursed her. That's all the damage that will happen." Fiona says tiredly.

"Thank you." I sob.

"Hush." Xavier snaps. I glare at him. "Sleep."

I sigh, looking to My Lady, who nods. Xavier sets me down, and I realize just how tired I really am. My body aches and my throat's hoarse and rough from screaming. My eyes close and my mind melts into a blissful sleep.

 

A/N
Hellooooooooooooooo!
I made this extra long because I had a writer's block. And no ideas for 5 months!!! Sorry guys :(
But anyways, Xavier DOES care for Belle which is kinda cute
Anyway, I pictured Sean O'Pry as Cole, pic above. And the video is a song by Icona Pop, I Love It. I listened to it while typing this out, it's awesome! But really, nice and peppy.
Expect a bit of a gap between updates, this is a less thought out story. :)

Edit - I'm revising the story, and unfortunately this took longer than expected to update because my previous edits weren't saved :( *sigh* tbh I really like this story as for extra long... hehe 1500 words oops, idk if that's more or less..

Question of the chapter - do you want Xavier and Belle to fall in love or do you want Belle to find another person or just nobody at all?

The reason I ask is because I just can't picture her and Xavier at the moment. Those of you who read it before will remember Cole, who still exists but will reappear later on down the line, and I can kinda see her and Cole, but even then, I feel like Belle is a solo kinda girl. Or I could take the Merry Ravenell/ Iron Oracle approach and introduce something like potential mates or suitors or something? Something rogues don't know about but the pack wolves do?

Maybe!

I shall see you in the next update :D

Jen x