| CHAPTER 9 : YOU'RE DOGS |
The maid had wiped the last trace of blood from my skin which I hadn't known had dripped from my neck during my trip to the kitchen. They bandaged my neck and packed their kit, walking out the door. I inspected my bandaged neck in the mirror, a look of disgust masking my features.
"Why did you bite me?" I asked turning around in the small chair I was sitting on in front of the dresser.
"It's not called biting," King Alpha rolled his eyes, his long body perched against his desk, "If I would have bitten you then you would have died the second my venom reaches your heart. What I did my not-so-precious blondie is that I marked you."
"But you still bit me."
"It's not called biting."
"But you did! The fangs and your mouth and-"
"That's-that's a different kind of—ugh." He ran a hand along his face, before running the same hand through his caramel brown hair.
"Stupid humans." He muttered before looking back at me, "Fine. In a sense, I did bite you, but it isn't exactly called biting. It's called marking. Where I put my fangs in the curve of your soft weak shoulder and possess your soul."
"You have my soul?" I frowned in confusion, my hand reaching out towards my bandaged neck, barely grazing it.
"Yup." He popped the 'p', flashing me a wicked grin.
"You could have just done a séance or something."
"Are you a ghost?" He gave me a flat look.
"Then do I look like a person who wants her soul to be 'possessed'?" I snapped.
"You'll get over it. Probably after this week. Maybe I didn't really have to come to check what's going on after hearing you scream. I mean you are going to die anyway. But I might not let that bastard Drew do it. Anywho, seeming that I broke off from my work to come to your girly scream, I might as well take the whole day off."
"Day off?" I raised an eyebrow, "From what? Being a dick?"
"No." He drawled out. "I own every hotel in New York City."
I laughed, "Sure, sure."
"I do."
"Yeah, I know." I smiled giving a shake of my head.
"I said I do!"
"Yeah and I'm Queen Elizabeth."
He gave me a flat look.
Silence.
I blinked once.
I blinked twice.
"What, really?"
He ran a hand down his face with a sigh that said 'I'm fed up with this.'
"You own every hotel?"
"Yup, our world is divided between the firebird, the scaly fishes, the dead phantoms, blood-sucking suckers, strippers with shrilly voice, fire-breathing lizards-"
"What? What? What?" I frustratingly yelled, cutting him off, "Please for the sake of my sanity, speak human language!"
"Don't tell me what to do," He gave an annoyed huff of breath, "What I was trying to say is that humans live in a world full of illusions. They think whatever and whoever is in front of them are completely and perfectly normal. Well, you thought wrong. We supernatural beings, we own this world. We make it work and you humans are just a part of our world. A part which only helps us get better and better."
"So you mean to say is that vampires, werewolves, witches and what all other creatures' name you took-"
"Dragons, phoenix, mermaids, angels, demons." He shrugged. "Many more."
"-yeah those," I waved a hand, "All of them are real?"
"Yup," He popped the 'p', "We existed before your great grandfather's great grandfather. Except for phoenix, I guess. Acre. That's what his name was or is- who knows. I accidentally wiped out his entire line of existence."
I raised my eyebrows, "Accidentally?"
"He tried killing me first to be fair. It wasn't my fault either that his wife was interested in me. Heck! I didn't even know she was his wife. Then some boom-bam happened and I ended up with ashes on my clothes and he just kinda...left." King made an act of a bird flying with his hands and made small sounds of birds chirping. "Peep, peep, peep."
I shook my head, clasping my hands together in front of me as an act of holding myself together, "This is insane."
"I know right. I mean his wife didn't even love him back. She was wholly obsessed with me. Can't blame her. I give the night's best se-"
"That's enough."
"Ooo virgin?" He flashed me a grin.
"Shut up."
His grin widened, "Want me to take that away?"
I shook my head, looking away from him, "You're an ass."
"No, that's Drew. I'm the King, baby."
"And your childish, and a sadist, and a loner and definitely a psychopath."
"That's too many adjectives. Someone's passing their English class." He remarked pushing himself off his desk, "Anyways, I don't have time for chit-chat. If you want to get killed you'll most likely step out of this room and if you're smart enough, you'll stay here like a good girl. I think I'll head off to work after all." He grabbed his keys off the table and gave me a wink before walking out the door, slamming it shut.
I let myself take in a huge amount of breath, unclasping my hands and letting them shake.
I'm not going to go down like this.
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I strode through hallways after hallways, daring to open every single door and peeking inside. I didn't know if I should really be looking for him or not, but he knows King Alpha more than I do. Most of the rooms were just plain bedrooms with no trace of someone living in them. Other rooms were filled old looking files, new files, books, old books, and drawers after drawers.
I made a mental note to check all of them someday. Maybe those could give me some clues or help me in some ways.
A small tug made me halt in my place. I frowned in confusion and turned towards a door. A large wooden door with a gold-painted handle. A creepy feeling settled within me when something tugged on me towards the door.
I tried ignoring it, deciding to leave this place as the creeps started crawling on my skin.
I turned around towards the hallways but found myself turning around again towards the door.
Frowning, I placed my hand on the door handle, feeling the cool metal of it chilling my skin to my spine. I pulled the handle down, ignoring the small creak it gave. I pushed the door open, wincing when it gave a much bigger creak. I peered into the dark room. Soft peaks of sunlight fell from the window through the white curtains. It was a bedroom. I gazed around while automatically stepping in.
An odd feeling settled in this place. Something more...ghostly. The room almost matched King Alpha's except for everything being white; the bedsheets, the curtains, the walls, the floor. An eerie feeling lingered.
If I thought the hallways outside were silent then I was dead wrong. This room held silence like someone holding the sea.
I padded towards the white cupboards, running my fingers in a light manner over them. No speck of dust. It looked like someone lived here at the same time someone didn't live here. My eyes slowly trailed over every single detail of the room which I thought wasn't possible until yesterday.
Since King Alpha "marked" me, as he so less horribly put it, I've been feeling much stronger, alert and sharp.
There wasn't dust anywhere, nor any signs of someone living here. My eyes glazed over the plain white queen-sized bed with white covers and pillows then to the lace embroidered white curtains.
The room slowly spun making me furrow my eyebrows.
"Whoa." I exclaimed quietly when I almost tipped off, banging my head on the wall. I gripped my head with my hands, pressing hard as everything swam in a circle around me. White flashes flashed in front of me, blinding me for a second before my vision became clear.
Or changed from reality to actual insanity...
Because I no longer was gazing at a plain white bedroom.
Instead, I was gazing at a clear blue sky.
I sat up almost mechanically from where I was seated. My hands curled around something, and I looked down to see my hands clutching grass. Various scars lined on my hands like a spider's web making me gasp. No. These weren't my hands. They're more masculine with a rough calloused touch.
I looked up from my-someone else's-hands. I was no longer in the plain white room. I sat in the middle of an open field, gazing at the farmers who sowed seeds into the rich soils.
One life
My head snapped to the right at someone's voice.
No one was there.
One life
My head snapped to the other side. Confusion swarmed over me as the voice murmured among itself until a few moments later, I realized the voice came from my head. My confusion rose as my fingers ran through short thick hair when instead I had long straight ones.
This is not my body.
My eyes widened.
One life
Where am I?
My eyes dropped to my body to see where my slim waist was supposed to be, was now clad by a huge belt. My arms bulged with muscles and further scars that didn't belong to me.
My surroundings were unfamiliar with a scanty amount of people scattered here and there carrying on with their lives as if everything were normal. The daylight sun shone moderately; the green fields full of rich soil ready to accept new seeds.
From the corner of my eye, I spotted someone running toward me. A body getting bigger and bigger, the nearer it reached me.
He had caramel brown hair with icy blue eyes which looked all too familiar to King Alpha's. He was well built with broad shoulders and a burly form. His long legs gracefully, and fast, running towards me with a dazzling smile. Something about him seemed the affectioning, caring type.
Whose life?
My body rose without my control, planting itself firmly on the ground gazing at the man who stopped in front of me, not seeming out of breath like I expected him to.
"Mother has called for you." The man said, seeming to be over his twenties yet smiling like a boy. His accent and the way he spoke seemed like he was one of those characters from the black and white channel of a TV. He wore a white tunic.
I found myself shaking my head- even if I hadn't planned to do so at all, "I don't want to go to her." My mouth spoke.
I'm in someone else's body. I'm living or re-living someone else's memory.
"She is missing you. You don't seem to talk to her anymore."
"She chose what she wants. I have no right to say. But I cannot act like I'm okay."
"I see some poetry going on there." The man nudged my side with his elbow.
A defeated sigh came out my-or the boy's lips whose body I'm in, "For how long can this continue, Alexandros?"
The man's smile deflated into a small sorry look before he gripped my shoulder, the smile returning, "They say they have it under control, so they do. You need not worry."
"They don't see them destroying themselves."
"That is not your concern for now. Mother is expecting you. Do not disgrace her."
The man, whose name I believe was Alexandros, gazed at me with his lively icy blue eyes, missing the black flecks King Alpha had. My thoughts were invaded by someone else's.
One life
A much stronger and forceful one.
His life?
"...expect to find you here...Amour...? Are you alright...? Ez? Ez? EZLYNN!"
Hands shook my shoulders. My head seemed to float in a pool of darkness again. When my eyes opened, I met with a pair of frowning slender blue ones. Fingers tightly gripped my shoulders with a hot breath fanning my face.
"Wha—AH! GET AWAY!"
I jumped away from Drew, frowning at him and then quickly scanning my surroundings as if I'm seeing everything for the first time.
"What are you doing here?" I asked looking back at Drew, moving back to keep as much distance between us as possible.
A grin spread on his face, "'Am I doing here? This is my home, ma chére. What are you doing here?"
"What?" I scanned my surroundings again, ignoring the sweat sliding down my forehead despite how cold this white room was. I gripped my head, running my fingernails through my hair, not caring if I grazed my scalp, "What's happening to me?" I asked in a panic.
"How are you feeling right now?" He asked taking a step closer.
"Don't come near me," I warned taking a step back.
"You need to calm down if you don't want to blow up my mansion." I didn't understand what he was talking about.
Then my eyes followed his trail of gaze to my hand. I gasped, jumping back, holding my left hand out in front of me.
A bright white light glowed from the middle of my palm, tingling my skin while also noticeably draining what energy I have.
"What is going on?" I visibly panicked, eyes wide and frantic. The panic seemed to fuel in the light as it grew bigger, making my eyes hurt to watch.
"You need to calm down." Drew spoke calmly, "You're overthinking it."
I panicked more. The light grew bigger making my heart beat faster and my head lighter.
"Just take in deep breaths and try to relax."
"I can't!"
The light seemed to be draining every bit of energy from my body. I went to touch it with my other hand but shrieked when the light flamed my finger.
Drew raised his eyebrows before shrugging. He disappeared and reappeared in front of me.
He slapped me.
Right across the face.
If I thought I wasn't going crazy before, I was definitely now.
I lifted my head from where it had snapped to the right and gaped at Drew, placing my hand on my cheek, "You-you slapped me."
"You were going to blow up this room, ma chérie. King Alpha would like to keep this room fresh and clean like it is. Although I wouldn't mind some dirt." A grin appeared on his face, "I always had a thing for clean things with a little bit of dirt. Have you ever seen angel-looking girls dancing in short black dresses? I personally like when they perform the Rumba dance. Looking all innocent, but extremely sexy. Do you know how to Rumba?"
"I can literally slap you back right now."
"That's one way to seduce a man."
"Dude!"
He held out his hands in defence, "No need to get riled up. I was just trying to help. See. You're all calmed down."
My eyes fell to my palm, void of any light or anything freaky. I shook my head, closing my eyes.
What the hell was that?
"It's fine. I won't tell King Alpha you have magic."
"He knows," I stated, opening my eyes and then frowning, "I think. Maybe."
"It's fascinating indeed. A human with magic." He said eyeing my face, an amused smirk on his face.
I frowned and moved away from him, "Keep your eyes to yourself."
He shrugged, "Clearly, you're not experienced in this magic stuff."
"Oh, and what do you know about magic?" I crossed my arms against my chest, raising an eyebrow at him, still regaining myself from what happened earlier.
His smirk widened and he held out his palm. I frowned in confusion and looked down at his calloused palm. For a moment, nothing happened. His hand was faced up, with nothing but the dark creases on his huge strong palm.
But then it did. It did with a small heat radiating from his palm to a small glow of light. Small enough for me to feel its heat before Drew clamped his hand shut.
My mouth parted open in shock as my eyes snapped to Drew's amused ones.
"You're a witch," I whispered in shock.
He gave a flat look, "I almost turned into a wolf a few hours ago, chérie"
"You're like me," I said pointing a finger at him and then at me.
"Eh not exactly."
I shook my head, "This doesn't make sense."
"It doesn't have to," He responded.
"King Alpha will kill you."
He waved it off, "He's a pissed-off little pup."
"What do you want from me?"
"Ah now that's the question I've been waiting for." He smiled, "You don't have to do anything, mi amour. At least not for now. You just learn to keep your magic under control."
"Can a werewolf normally do magic?"
"No, but Royals can."
I furrowed my eyebrows, "Royals?"
"I see King Alpha didn't tell you anything about our history or origin."
"He was too busy smothering me with his 'I'll kill you' speeches."
He chuckled, "You're a funny one. The last prisoners King Alpha had always cried themselves to death. No fun. None at all."
I think I went a little pale, "Last prisoners?"
He waved his hand, "Not important. Vieux et mort. Now." He said grabbing more of my attention, "We can come to two conclusions about you."
"And that is...?"
He grinned, "I'll send something to you. By King Alpha's room exactly at 3. When the moon is high in the sky. I hope you'll be very attentive with it."
"What are you gonna send?"
"A book."
My face went blunt, "A book?"
"You'll see."
"What if King Alpha catches me reading whatever you're sending?"
"He's a heavy sleeper. Porc."
I glared, "Did you just call me pork?"
A small furrow came on his eyebrows, "I called King Alpha a pig."
"Oh." My glare flattened, "Okay then."
"See you later then. I'll be waiting by the horses exactly at 12 tomorrow. Noon." He smiled.
I furrowed my eyebrows, "You people have horses?"
"Oui."
"You're dogs riding horses?"
He shook his head, an amused smile caking his features, before turning around and walking towards the door, "Je vous verrai plus tard. Also." He turned towards me again, a warning look on his face. "Don't come to this room if you want to anger King Alpha."
Saying that he left the room, leaving me alone to myself.
I looked at my palm once again, before clenching it close.
I don't know where I'm heading anymore.
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Date: 14 July 2021