| manipulation (n): the action of manipulating something or someone in a skillful manner |
JORDYN HAD BEEN out of the loop as of late, and she was extremely annoyed with Klaus. The man had basically locked her in room after room. Although Jordyn wasn't exactly keen on getting involved in the New Orleans fight—especially considering that she was only really strong on the full moon—she was sick and tired of being carted around more like luggage instead of a person. She knew that Mercy was safe, as well as Hope and Hayley, so she hadn't started any arguments with Klaus since she knew how worried he'd been. But Jordyn was getting cabin fever, and if she stayed inside of a room any longer—whether that was at a hotel or the Abattoir—she was sure she'd lose her mind.
She knew that Klaus was gone, probably plotting world domination as a hobby, and she needed to take her mind off of all the craziness that she'd stepped into since they all came to this city. Getting ready, Jordyn gathered her things and headed toward the bayou; maybe she could get some details from Tokala, considering that the werewolf would know more than she did. She left without too much trouble, the Abattoir being the quietest it's ever been since Jordyn started staying there.
It wasn't long before she had driven to the bayou, stepping out of the rental car and taking a deep breath to center herself. She had never been in the bayou before, but she was a relatively good navigator, so she hoped she would be able to find her way. Not only that, but from the few things she's been told by Klaus, there were more werewolves in the bayou than ever in New Orleans history. Jordyn suspected that so many people would eventually be easy to find if she knew she was looking for them.
So she set out, thinking quietly to herself as she did so. She was worried about Mercy—especially after what had happened with Greta—and her worry automatically filtered to Klaus because of it. The man she cared for so much had a habit of making himself responsible for all the horror that Mercy was going through, despite not being at fault whatsoever. He couldn't control the vampire terrorists that were so convinced hybrids would bring about their downfall, and he certainly couldn't control Mercy. Jordyn knew that first-hand after taking care of the girl on her own. Mercy was too hard-headed to be controlled by anyone, even her father.
As far as Jordyn knew, Mercy was resting after being brought back to the Abattoir. Jordyn was concerned just as Klaus was, but she usually had a much more calmer way of dealing with her emotions. It was the entire reason why she was able to help manage Klaus's constant mood-swings. It was also the entire reason why her relationship with the hybrid worked at all. She was always the one balancing him out, keeping him focused and on-track.
This was precisely why she felt so annoyed with Klaus's lack of trust in her now. He wasn't telling her a lot of what was happening in New Orleans—probably believing that he was protecting her by withholding the information. However, Jordyn wasn't one to sit on the sidelines and wait for everyone to kill the Mikaelsons during such a tumultuous time in Mercy's life. She wanted to help in any way possible, to provide both Mercy and Klaus with empathy and helpfulness.
She walked through the bayou, but Jordyn was distracted by her thoughts when she heard bustling from about a mile away. The woman didn't hesitate to follow the sound, recognizing it as the wolves, but as she got closer, she started to feel uneasy. She felt like something was wrong, and that was never a good sign. If Klaus knew that she was going out even after hearing the telltale signs of revenge, he would probably lock her in a tower far away from here, but Jordyn didn't want to turn around just yet. She wanted to find Tokala, and to demand him to tell her about what Klaus was up to in New Orleans. At least then, she would know what to expect from the man she loved so completely, and maybe she would be able to convince him into another calm state of mind once she got back.
When Jordyn approached the wolf encampment, she was blown away. She'd heard from both Klaus and Tokala that Mercy called more wolves to the bayou than ever before, but she hadn't expected this many people. It was almost as busy as the heart of the French Quarter, and Jordyn had to admit that she'd never seen this many wolves in her entire life. The pack in California wasn't even close to the numbers that greeted her within the trees and greenery just outside of New Orleans. She didn't even think that there were this many wolves still alive after all of the fighting between them and the vampires. She'd assumed that most of them had been slaughtered or hunted down by their blood-sucking counterparts, but it was obvious that the main bloodlines had stayed somewhat safe underneath all of the warfare.
Jordyn walked amongst the other wolves when a sudden body collided with her. "Jordyn!" They exclaimed, and the woman only hugged back when she realized that it was Mavis—one of Mercy's closest friends from California. The younger girl was a little reckless, and sometimes insane, but she was always there for Mercy, and Jordyn would always treat her as one of her own. "I've missed you so much!"
"Mavis?" Jordyn said in confusion, pulling back from the hug for a second in order to send the teenager a puzzled look. "What are you doing here?"
Mavis appeared just as confused as she was in that moment, tilting her head. "You don't know?" She asked, and Jordyn shook her head resolutely. This was a moment that she wished Klaus confided everything with her, not just a few details that he wanted to share. Mavis frowned then, grabbing Jordyn's arm and pulling her to the side.
Jordyn looked around, still noticing that there were people around that she had never seen before. Some wore traditional tribal patterns on their clothes, and others had their hair braided in elegant, yet beautiful, designs. There was a couple looking around themselves with face paint decorating their face and neck, and Jordyn knew that there were some packs that had remained hidden for centuries until this moment. There were people here from all corners of the world, and the cultural shock that she was going through was shaking Jordyn to her bones, not having expected this when she first set out to come to the bayou.
But her attention shifted to Mavis when the younger girl pulled her out of the hubbub that was considered the main trail for everyone to travel on. The new wolves continued walking on the ground she had been previously standing on, and Jordyn could actually hear her own thoughts. They stood a little ways away now, on a small patch of grass where they could gain some semblance of privacy. Concern growing ever more higher, Jordyn tuned to Mavis with a soft and yet stern expression. "Mavis?" She asked, using her best motherly voice and noticing as the teenager flinched. "What's going on?"
Taking a deep breath, Mavis finally met her gaze. "Mercy's back," she started, and the older woman's eyes widened exceptionally. "She's back and she's not afraid to strike against the vampires."
Jordyn was shaking her head. "Strike? What are you talking about?" Her voice was strained, heavy with apprehension.
"She called to all of the wolves in order to get them here," Mavis explained as quickly as possible, not wanting to go too much into detail considering that Jordyn wanted the overall summary of what's been going down. "She talked with the Alpha Advisors, and ever since, everything around here has been going crazy, I'm not completely sure what's happening either, seeing as Mercy's still hanging around the elders." She shrugged pessimistically, not sure what else to say. "I'm just waiting on her to be finished so that I can ask her exactly what the hell is going on. All I know is that war is coming to New Orleans."
Jordyn paled, and she was already panicking when she grabbed onto Mavis's arm. "She can't do that," she pleaded with a shake of her head. "Klaus will go crazier than he already is, and Mercy isn't ready to face off with Greta's vampires..." At Mavis's forlorn expression, Jordyn trailed off, quirking an eyebrow. "What else did I miss?"
"Well..." Mavis started, already twiddling with her thumbs. "Mercy isn't just trying to go against Greta's vampires..." Jordyn gestured for her to say more—she knew that she already had the answer, but she wanted Mavis to confirm her words. "Mercy's waging war against all vampires, especially the ones in New Orleans, no matter what they've done to her personally."
"Are you sure?" The woman asked—wanting to be certain—but when Mavis nodded, her heart plummeted in her chest. Wavering slightly, Jordyn directed another question to the young girl. "Do you know where Mercy is now?"
Mavis looked at her with a perplexed expression, but she nodded nonetheless. "She's still finalizing stuff with the werewolf Advisors, and—Hey! Where are you going?" Jordyn left Mavis behind, walking quickly—almost running—to where she assumed Mercy must be. She contemplated using her werewolf bond to find the girl herself, but she didn't think she needed it once she saw the Mikaelson walking amongst many other werewolves—ever the center of attention.
Jordyn fastened her pace to keep up. "Hey!" She yelled, catching the group's attention effectively. Mercy rolled her eyes when she saw her, but she mumbled a few words to the others and they dispersed immediately. Jordyn tried not to be offended by the lack of a warm welcome, especially considering all that she had learned from Mavis in the few moments that she had talked to her.
As Jordyn got closer, she couldn't help but notice that Mercy looked...different. Jordyn raised Mercy for four years before Klaus came into the picture, so she prided herself on being able to tell what Mercy was feeling or thinking. However, now, she couldn't tell a single thing from Mercy outward appearance; she seemed hardened, a little bit cold, and perhaps quite vengeful if she was thinking about the context of her situation. The face that she had come to love was gone—not only because Mercy's mark had disappeared—because the teenager in front of her was something different than she had ever been.
She had outgrown Klaus's borders and his warnings, and Jordyn tried not to panic while she desperately hoped that Mercy might listen to her instead.
"Mercy, hey," Jordyn breathed, trying to keep her voice level despite the deep fear in her bones. She wasn't sure how she felt about the younger girl's decision to declare war, but she definitely knew that Klaus wouldn't be happy about it, and Jordyn didn't want to lose the girl again in this crazy revenge plot against the vampires. "I didn't know you were here."
Mercy shrugged, smiling a little as if she knew a joke that Jordyn didn't. "You weren't supposed to," Mercy replied with a raise of her eyebrow. "No doubt you're simply collecting info to take back to my father. Since I just spoke with him, I'm assuming that he doesn't know you're here though, which was unexpected." Jordyn paled a little at the tone of voice Mercy was using—one that was identical to Klaus's plotting. The girl leaned forward, so close that Jordyn stepped back a little. "Why didn't you tell him?"
"Why didn't you?" Jordyn snapped back, becoming a little defensive at what Mercy was saying. It seemed that the girl was amused by her response, because her smile widened even more. "Mercy, I know what you're trying to do, and I don't think it's right."
"It doesn't matter," Tokala appeared out of nowhere, sticking up for Mercy as he usually did. Jordyn saw Mercy look his way, and she wasn't immune to noticing the new tension between the two teenagers. If Jordyn had thought there was an unspoken bond between them before, then it was tenfold now. The werewolf boy stood next to the Mikaelson girl, raising his chin with hardened eyes. "She's your Queen, Jordyn. Or did you forget?'
Jordyn shrank a little at that. She knew that Mercy was the Queen of Alphas, and she would never challenge the girl on her position, but she also knew that Mercy was still recovering from her torture session with the vampires. She couldn't possibly be in the right mind to make decisions like these—especially when a war like this would cause a ripple effect all across the supernatural world. "No, I just—" She sighed, raising herself higher and staring straight into Mercy's eyes. "Are you sure this is the right decision? Not only are you putting the wolves at risk, but the Mikaelsons too. Your mother. Your sister. Mercy I—"
In an instant, Jordyn was on the ground with Mercy on top of her, grasping her throat tightly in her hand. Jordyn widened her eyes, hearing the bayou fall silent around them. The werewolves had stopped what they were doing to turn and stare at the pair of women, and Jordyn could hear the growls of the animal wolves, Lyra being amongst them and closest to where Mercy stood. Tokala smirked at the turn of events, leaning his shoulder casually against a tree, and Jordyn was trying not to find the irony in realizing that both Mercy and Tokala had attacked her during her time in New Orleans. She was beginning to understand why Klaus was so paranoid, since the girl Jordyn loved like a daughter was currently holding her life in her hands.
Mercy's face was a mask of indifference, but there was a familiar fury in the depths of her hazel-green eyes. Jordyn realized that this was the first time she was looking deep into Mercy's eyes—the ones she was born with, not the ones she was given when she first turned. "Don't attempt to know how I think and what I plan ahead for," she commanded, and Jordyn could feel the werewolf bond in her stomach pulse, as if it was recoiling against Mercy's disapproval. "My mother and sister were almost victims of the same vampires that hurt me. I can assure you, I have not forgotten their precarious positions in this upcoming war. Don't worry," she leaned close, and Jordyn's heart was pounding in her ears. She always knew Mercy was threatening when she wanted to be, but she never would've thought this intimidating nature to be aimed at her. "You'll have a role to play too. Just not yet."
She released Jordyn, and the woman was gasping against the twigs and leaves on the ground. The bruises that had healed from Tokala earlier in the week were reappearing quickly, but Mercy didn't seem to look sympathetic whatsoever. She looked like an avenging angel, ready to burn the world down to the ashes only to rebuild it again as her own. "I don't need to explain my justifications to you, nor to anyone else," she reiterated, tilting her head a little as Jordyn glared up at her, still rubbing her throat. "Why don't you run back to the French Quarter? You're not needed in my territory, and if I see you here without my permission again, I will not be as lenient."
Jordyn watched the girl walk away, horror filling her gaze as Tokala followed and the wolves returned to what they were doing beforehand. The tension that was there only moments ago was gone, and Mercy didn't seem perturbed by what she did to the woman. Jordyn tried not to feel discarded—knowing that the girl was going through a lot, including teenage rebellion—but she couldn't deny the hurt that filled her heart. She knew Mercy was a kind and considerate person deep down, but that part of herself was being buried, and what had taken its place was something Jordyn had never seen coming.
When Alpha Advisor, Dane Hollow, approached Jordyn, she knew that her time in the bayou was up. Mercy had just stated how much she didn't want Jordyn there, and the wolves were following her orders to a tee. The Advisor led her back to her car—she tried not to appear disturbed that he already knew where it was—before disappearing back into the bayou without even a parting word. Jordyn didn't hesitate, getting into her car and dialing the only number she had memorized.
The line picked up immediately. "Where the bloody hell have you been?" He bit out the second he answered, and Jordyn rolled her eyes, looking at the damage to her neck in the review mirror.
"Bad news now, apologies later," Jordyn said, turning the key in the ignition and pulling out quickly. "Mercy's going nuts. She's ready to start a full blown war with the vampires and I don't think she'll stop once she gets revenge on Greta's crew." She could hear Klaus sigh deeply. "She's preparing the wolves for something big, but she kicked me out before I could really learn more."
"Kicked you out?" Klaus asked, confusion seeping into his voice. "What do you mean? Kicked you out of where?"
"The bayou," she answered, speeding along the roads to get back to the French Quarter as quickly as possible. "She said she doesn't want me to spill anything to you—and by the topic of this conversation, I don't exactly blame her." She frowned, realizing that she had done exactly what Mercy suspected her to do. She knew the Mikaelson girl was observant, but she was being incredibly clever and smart right now too. "Something's...different about her, Klaus. I'm worried."
"I know, I am too," Klaus replied softly, but she knew it wouldn't take long for him to revert back to his worrying and constant scheming. In this instance, she didn't mind it. "But if Mercy doesn't want you to tell me what she's doing, it means she doesn't want any of us to know what her next moves are going to be." She could hear him pacing in the background of the call, shuffling a few papers around. "I knew she wanted a fight, but this will create repercussions with vampires all over the world. They won't lie down and let Mercy slaughter their entire species. She'll be putting herself at risk."
"Yeah, well, she doesn't really seem to care that much," Jordyn said, biting her lip between her teeth. "Frankly, I don't know whether she's in over her head or if she knows exactly what she's doing. She seemed pretty confident when I spoke to her."
"Perhaps a little bit of both," Klaus said quietly. "Are you almost here? Hayley should be back in a few hours, and I'm hoping to confront Mercy then."
Jordyn nodded, already seeing somewhat familiar buildings as she pulled into the chaotic city. "I'll be there in five," she answered. She worried about whether Hayley's presence would even matter to Mercy or not. When Jordyn mentioned the girl's mother, she was reactive, but she was also calm. She appeared flippant, but there was fear in her eyes too. She was looking more and more like an oxymoron everyday, and Jordyn only hoped that they could get through to her before she made a mistake that she couldn't take back.
<<>>
Mercy rolled her eyes in exasperation as her phone buzzed for the hundredth time in the last hour. While she was currently blocking her father's calls—not wanting to listen to him demand her to return—her sister apparently didn't know how to take a hint. Hope hadn't given up, despite the many times that Mercy sent her straight to voicemail. It was grating on her nerves, but she had already done everything she needed to do for the day—all the wolves had their respective jobs to do—so maybe she could spare a few minutes to see what was so goddamn important.
"You going to answer that or just stare at it all day?" Tokala asked, and she shoved his shoulder without even needing to look up, feeling his presence like a magnet yet again. She heard him chuckle at her antics, and she couldn't stop her lips from quirking even if she wanted to.
Looking up at him, she shrugged, declining the call again. "I don't really feel like dealing with my guilt-ridden sister at the moment," she commented with a roll of her eyes, stuffing the phone into her back pocket as she did so. "She's annoying, and I have better things to do than to reassure her that her stupid decisions didn't get me killed."
Tokala smirked, draping one of his arms around her shoulders as they walked through the bayou, checking in on everything. She could feel his skin like an overwhelming aura, and she tried not to lean closer when she felt the breath of his words fan over her face. He was getting more intoxicating by the second, and she had a feeling that it somewhat had to do with her mastering the ability to move between this world and the spirit one. Perhaps her heightened abilities gave way to more, heightened emotions—but at least now she could tell that Tokala was affected by her the same amount that she was affected by him. She could feel his emotions still, and it was comforting to know that they felt the same about one another, at least for now.
"You know, you could always use her to your advantage," he suggested with ease, and Mercy grew interested. As they walked through the bayou, the wolves around them bowed their heads toward the two, and Mercy tried not to realize that she and Tokala were slowly becoming a pair—even if it was only within werewolf relations. "You need Klaus off your back to get what you want done, and Hope wants to be reunited with her family more than anything. You get her back in New Orleans, and you get Klaus distracted."
Mercy was already shaking her head. "As much as I don't like Hope right now," she shoved his arm off her shoulder, ignoring his pointed look at the action. "I don't want her hurt or vulnerable. Besides, bringing her back here will only make the Hollow more powerful, and New Orleans can't be taken back by anyone if there's nothing left standing in the city."
Tokala raised his hands in surrender. "It was just an offer," he amended. "Besides, how long do you think your sister will hold off on knowing her father until she takes matters into her own hands? Again." He chuckled at Mercy's glare, but she had to say that what he was saying made perfect sense. Hope would stop at nothing until they were all reunited under one household again, and Mercy didn't want a repeat of the whole fake-kidnapping fiasco.
Mercy stopped walking and turned to Tokala fully, staring at him for a moment. She knew that she was trying to change the subject, but the only thoughts in her head left the moment she looked at Tokala. For a moment, she was entranced, almost forgetting that while Tokala could be frustrating, he was still very nice to look at; she stared at the ocean blue of his eyes, the turquoise and azure and aquamarine floating amongst each other, threatening to swallow her whole. Tokala stared back at her, raising an eyebrow when she didn't speak and only continued to look at him.
"I know I'm good looking, but this is getting a little awkward," he told her, succeeding in pulling a smile out of her. Mercy looked to the ground, and then looked back up at him from under her eyelashes.
Shaking her head slowly, she studied Tokala, even as she kept her own expressions hidden under her cold and indifferent mask. "You know, you're always saying how much we're bound to be together," she began softly, and Tokala's face shifted to one of confusion. "You write me poems, comfort me, and you've shown time and time again that you want to be by my side for eternity." She paused, not sure if she should say what she wanted to say next. Her courage was depleting, and Tokala obviously felt it, because he grabbed her hand in his own, rubbing the back of it with his thumb in slow circles.
"Are you doubting me?" He asked with a grin, and she shook her head. Surprisingly, she didn't doubt Tokala at all. She had back in California, but after being able to feel his emotions and remembering how hard he searched to find her, she knew with absolute certainty that Tokala would do anything for her. Once again, she was drawn to the sight of his eyes, and she was not immune to seeing the adoration he had for her there.
Still looking into his eyes, she stepped closer to him. They were on the outskirts of the bayou, away from the other werewolves prying gossip. Mercy took a deep breath, placing her hand on Tokala's chest and feeling his heart underneath the surface of his shirt. The tension between them was growing, but Tokala remained silent—she was surprised that he didn't spew out another cocky comment, but he seemed to understand that this was a serious moment for her. She just needed to get the words out, and then she would feel a whole lot better. The question had been bothering her for a little while now, especially when she was in captivity and didn't know if she would ever see Tokala again.
"You say we're meant to be. And yet..." She could practically feel the pressure of the air around them, pushing the two closer to each other so that they were basically chest-to-chest. Mercy felt Tokala's desire, mixed in with puzzlement and curiosity. Her heart was beating faster than Tokala's, but she knew she had to say it. "But you've never even tried to kiss me. Why?"
Tokala's eyes widened a little, surprised by her words and Mercy smirked slightly, knowing that he hadn't expected her to say that at all. She couldn't blame him; one minute she was being the Queen of Alphas, and the next, she wanted to be a teenage girl, infatuated by the boy in front of her. She knew that the wolves could handle their respective jobs, and she also knew that she might not get many more quiet moments with the boy before the trouble really came after them. She needed to take advantage of it, because who knew when she would be on the verge of death again? Who knew what the future held, and if she didn't ask him now, she'd regret it for the rest of her life.
He sighed, his eyes boring deeply into her own as his hand came up to cup her face. His touch was gentle and electrifying at the same time, and Mercy fought against the urge to close her eyes at the connection; it was as if she couldn't possibly get close enough to him, and she was thankful that she'd decided to forbid her father from the bayou when she casted the barrier spell. There would be hell to pay if he found the two of them in this position.
"Mercy," Tokala spoke her name like a warning, and she could hear the undercurrent of longing in his voice. "You never wanted to be forced into a marriage—even the First Powers knew it would take a hell of a lot of convincing on my part," he grinned, and she giggled softly, remembering how disgusted and terrified she had been when Tokala first told her who he was supposed to mean to her. But those feelings were long gone, and maybe it had been her reunion with Noah that helped bring this clarity to her, but she couldn't deny that she actually cared for him. While she had been scared of the commitment before, she wasn't anymore. She didn't care if she had forever to decide, she wanted him to kiss her now, but he stepped back from her instead. She felt a burst of rejection in her chest, but Tokala was quick to speak again. "That choice...to decide who you might want...it was taken from you without your knowledge. I don't want to take away this choice too."
Mercy gaped at that, not sure how to respond. She never realized that Tokala was holding back from making the first real move in order to let her decide on her own. He didn't want to coerce her into wanting something she didn't—even if their bond was growing stronger with each passing minute they spent in each other's company. He didn't want to take that final leap, because he believed he already imposed too much on her life. She wanted to laugh, surprised by his chivalry and thoughtfulness. Underneath all of his cocky nature and snarky remarks, he truly tried to do his best for her—so he would never take this decision from her, despite how much he might want to. It was sweet and wonderful, and Mercy felt a stronger, more unfamiliar emotion fill her chest.
He ran his hands through his hair, shaking his head with a trembling sigh. "You really need to learn to keep your emotions to yourself," he told her, not unkindly. He seemed to be struggling against something, and Mercy looked closer at him as he explained. "You make it extremely difficult to stay away when you feel those things, and I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable or as if you have no other choice besides me, but sometimes you can be so infuriatingly beautiful that it drives me insane and—"
She wasn't sure if she was annoyed by his ramblings or enjoyed it, but she didn't care either way. She had already pressed her lips up against his, because if he didn't want to make that decision, then she would. After all this time spent with him—which wasn't that long if she was being honest with herself—she just wanted one kiss. She wanted to know what the feeling of his lips would be like, especially when small touches here and there sent her reeling on a high. She wanted to know how it felt to kiss someone again, because she hadn't done it for years.
And Tokala didn't disappoint. Perhaps it was the bond between the two, but she felt like she was swooped into him, a feeling both soothing and thrilling and completely blissful to the point that most of her thoughts ran out of her mind the second they connected. She was much shorter than Tokala, and she could feel the differences now as he finally reacted after a moment of surprise. He brushed his fingers over her waist, pulling her closer and closer until she was almost sure that they were bleeding into one another. She could feel his emotions, coupled with her own, and it created an inferno of intoxicating heat that she couldn't get enough of. Her hands rose to intertwine with the curly locks of his hair, and his lips moved expertly against her own, almost teaching her.
She had only ever kissed one person before, and the shared moments between her and Noah could've never prepared her for how it felt to kiss Tokala. It was like nothing she could describe, but she'll try anyway. It was like the most perfect, sun-lit stroll near the water, or a candlelit flame that flickered against the night sky, or the wonderful feeling of running through trees and forests until her body grew exhausted. It was freeing and extraordinary and Mercy berated herself for never doing this earlier. She had wanted to, of course, but she'd always pulled away.
Now, she was pulling him closer.
Each and every brush of his fingers against the open expanse of her skin erased all of the hurt and the pain that she'd been feeling under Greta's imprisonment. Every kiss shared soothed her worries and fears, forcing them into the back of her mind because all she could think of was Tokala. Every second she spent in his arms, she felt a little lighter, as if the earthly shackles that bound her to this city were released, and she felt like she could do anything. She was flying, soaring higher than the sky, and it was like she could reach out and touch the burning hot stars with her fingertips.
It was the most euphoric thing Mercy had ever experienced.
His lips tasted like candy—sweet and sugary—but also bitter, like lemons and limes. She breathed in the smell of oak and leaves that always followed him around, reminding her of the forest. She felt the brush of his lips like burning cotton candy in her mouth, and she wouldn't be able to stop until a cavity prohibited her from tasting it again. She could feel her desire building, and she wondered how she had denied him this long. When they kissed, it was like everything fell into perfect place, and she wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.
They both pulled away to gasp for air, but he held her close to him still, so that they were inches apart. She still felt dizzy, unused to this kind of emotion blossoming inside, turning her organs into flames that licked up every part of her body. After a moment, she looked up at him, and she smiled once she saw his expression.
"If that was just a way to shut me up, then you're more cruel than I thought," he told her, and she laughed happily then. Leave it to Tokala to ruin the sweet moment—but then again, did he really ruin it at all? Wasn't his snarky comments one of the reasons she was drawn to him back in California? She didn't care to analyze it too heavily, wanting to remain in this sliver of time forever.
But then her phone buzzed yet again in her back pocket, and Mercy huffed in annoyance. Tokala pulled away a little, but one of his hands stayed wrapped around her own, rubbing small circles into her skin. She wouldn't deny that it was comforting. When she saw Hope's name on the screen, she rolled her eyes, showcasing the phone to Tokala.
He shrugged. "Do you want to answer it?" He asked her, and she could tell that he didn't really care if she did or not. She could tell that he was still joyous from what had transpired between them.
Looking down at the phone, Mercy sighed, knowing that Tokala's earlier words were right to an certain extent. If she could get Hope involved again, then she could keep her family distracted and out of the way. And if Hope wanted a chance to reunite their families, now would be the best time. If she spent anymore time around their father or their aunts and uncles, New Orleans would fall, and nobody wanted that.
So, sending Tokala one more look, she answered the call, placing the phone at her ear. "Hello?" She began cooly, brushing down the strands of her hair that Tokala ran his fingers through. She didn't want to appear as flustered as she felt, but she knew that Tokala could see right through her, if his wide smirk was anything to go by.
"Mercy? Oh my god, I am so, so sorry," Hope was already tripping over her words, sounding breathless and compassionate and all of the things that made her so good. It was hard to stay mad at the girl, even after everything she had done. Mercy spent so long without her sister that even now—when Hope had almost gotten Mercy and Hayley killed—she couldn't push her away. "I never meant for any of this to happen, and if I'd have known that they'd go after you, I never would've done it in the first place. I wouldn't have thought you'd get hurt, and you probably hate me for it now, but I just needed to tell you how sorry I am for lying and getting you in this mess in the first place."
Mercy sighed, letting Hope babble on with her apologies for another minute before she finally interrupted. "Hope—Hope, it's alright. I'm not angry with you," she said, and there was a moment of silence on the other end. Mercy wanted to laugh at the thought of what Hope might look like in that moment, because it sounded like she was taken completely off guard.
"You're not?" She asked, her voice small and insecure. Mercy softened even more, knowing that Hope had good intentions—even if she didn't have the best planning skills.
"I'm not mad, Hope," she reassured the girl, but then she looked at Tokala, suddenly getting an idea as she smiled. "But do you want to make it up to me?"
"Yes, anything," Hope was quick to say, and Mercy's smile widened.
"Alright, but if you help me, I'm going to need you to do exactly what I say," she told her firmly. If Hope was going to be involved, then Mercy wanted her to be as safe as possible. "And you can't tell anybody about this. Not Mom. Not Dad. Not anybody."
Hope was quiet for another long moment, possibly debating whether or not she should agree to Mercy's terms. The werewolf girl knew that she would, and her thoughts were confirmed when Hope sighed on the other end.
"What do you need me to do?"
<<>>
okay everyone, here's the next chapter!
ahhh!! lots of fun stuff happened in this update and i'd absolutely love to know all of your thoughts and feelings about Tokala and Mercy. is their relationship moving a little too fast? is it moving too slow? is it just right? i was debating whether or not to include their kiss in this chapter, so any feedback on the pacing of their relationship would be greatly appreciated! i never want to be one of those authors that just push two people together when they really shouldn't be, so i hope that Mercy and Tokala's kiss was set up well enough in the story.
any other thoughts about mercy's change of character are also welcomed, because she's being much more different then she was before—in more ways than one. you guys are amazing to write for and i can't wait to see what you think!
with all that out of the way, thank you for reading and i hope you enjoyed!!
-kay <3