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He took my hand between his teeth and dragged me to the balcony.
"Let's sit here." he said, showing one corner. "Now close your eyes."
I closed them and put my hands on the ground. I felt the air tingling around me. Soon after, there was something touching my hands.
"Open your eyes, sweetheart."
I lifted my eyelids and gasped in surprise. I was sitting in the grass and flowers were growing around me. There was colours everywhere: blue, red, purple, yellow. I saw Rilos, sitting among them, his tail wagging. I tackled him, rubbing my face on his neck.
****
"Thank you! They are so pretty. You can really do anything, can you?"
"I do have the same powers as you, so yeah, I can do anything. You're welcome, Lyra. Making you happy makes me happy and your smile is beautiful. It's like a two for the price of one deal."
"You're dumb," I said, shoving him.
"But it makes you smile, doesn't it? That's all I want."
****
We laid there, me half on him, looking at the stars in the middle of our private little garden. The night was cold, but I didn't feel it since Rilos was keeping me warm. His regular breathing finally got the best of me and I fell peacefully asleep.
When my eyes fluttered open, it was still dark outside. I sat in the bed and looked next to me. Rilos was still sleeping and hadn't woke up when I stirred. Yesterday must have tired him more than I thought. Having your soul-mate attacked twice in the same morning could drain your energy. Especially since he had to use his powers to protect me as I couldn't use mine to protect myself. No wonder he was tired. If I could use my powers, he wouldn't be as tired and could use his energy for something else. I put my hand on his head, ruffling his fur. His fur was so soft and warm. It was reassuring in a way. His ears twitched and he turned towards me.
****
"Hey, sweetheart. What's going on? Did you have a nightmare?"
"No, I just woke up. You should go back to sleep, you need it."
"Not that much. Now tell me what you were thinking about."
"I was thinking of how tired you looked. That maybe using your powers to protect me was tiring you and that I should learn to use mine so you wouldn't have to."
"Lyra, protecting you isn't tiring at all. In fact, I like protecting you, it makes up for the 18 years that I wasn't able to be there for you."
"Those 18 years weren't your fault."
"I know, but that's how I feel. Now, if you want to learn to control your powers, we can start tomorrow, well more like today. I actually asked Ylna to stay to teach you about controlling water while I search for a new Alpha for the Northern wolves. Would that be okay?"
"Yes! Thank you." I said, snuggling closer to him.
"You're welcome. Now, go back to sleep, little lamb, or the big bad wolf is going to eat you."
I chuckled as sleep washed over me.
****
The sun woke me up. It was shining directly on the bed through the windows. Wait, how can it be sunny if I can hear rain? I looked beside me and saw that Rilos wasn't there. The bathroom door was closed. That's where the rain sound was coming from. He wasn't singing this time. Maybe, he didn't want to wake me up. I got up, got dressed and went to the new little garden on the balcony. I sat down in the middle of the flowers and let the sun shine on my face. A butterfly landed on my shoulder. I looked at it and chuckled. I took it on my finger, smiling, and put it on a flower so it could eat. Rilos was standing in the doorway, his head tilted.
****
"That was a scene taken from a painting, if I've ever seen one. Good morning, Lyra."
"Good morning, Rilos." I said getting up.
"It has been so far." he said with a smile on his face.
I blushed. I still wasn't used to getting compliments. Especially from a man.
"Get used to it because I will never stop complimenting you."
"Did I said that out loud?"
"No, but you blushing was a good indicator. Let's go eat, you need food."
****
We sat in the garden and ate breakfast. When we were done, someone knocked at the door.
"Lyra? Rilos? It's Phylana, can I come in?"
Rilos looked at me, waiting for my answer. Is my mental link with her still there?
"Yes, it still is."
Phylana, you can come in. She came in and walked to the balcony.
"Well look at that. How beautiful! Did you do that for her, Rilos?"
"Why else would I grow a garden on my balcony since we have one in the courtyard?"
"He has been waiting for you for so long, I don't think he'll ever stop spoiling you. Be prepared, Lyra."
"Why are you even here, Phylana?"
"I just came to see how Lyra was doing after what happened yesterday before going to class. How are you doing, Lyra?"
Better, thank you. Where are you teaching?
"I teach at Wulfric. You're coming today, aren't you, Rilos?"
"Yeah, I'm searching for a new Alpha for the Northern wolves."
"I'll see you there. Bye, Lyra. Take care."
Goodbye, Phylana. Thanks for coming.
She left as quickly as she came. I turned to face Rilos.
****
"How long exactly have you been waiting for me? How old are you?"
I was scared. If he was old, we wouldn't have a lot of time together. I didn't want to lose my soul-mate so soon after having found him.
"Lyra, look at me. You are not going to lose me. I'm immortal."
"What? How do you know?"
"I cannot be decapitated and I am way over 200 years old. I think you are the same, since we are soul-mates."
"How much over 200?"
"Let's just say that I was there when the kingdoms were founded."
"Rilos, that was a thousand years ago! How did you not go insane without your soul-mate for over a thousand years?"
"I knew that I would find you eventually and that me being insane would not help my soul-mate to be happy."
"You survived with only your willpower? That's actually more insane than you going insane. Are you sure you're not crazy?"
"Oh, I am crazy, crazy about..."
"Don't say it!"
"You."
"Ew," I said jokingly, pushing him away and running inside. "Everyone to safety, this man is crazy!"
"You can't escape, Lyra. If I go crazy, you go crazy too."
"I must be crazy, staying in the same room as the big bad wolf who wants to eat me."
He tackled me and put his teeth around my throat.
"Surrender or I will eat you."
"Never! "
"Good girl, that's what I want to hear. I'm going to eat you anyway."
"I knew it! I really can't trust you, can I?"
He froze and let me go. His ears and tail went down. I could feel sadness coming from him and I didn't like it. I was about to cry too.
"I was joking, Rilos. I trust you, I promise. If I didn't trust you, would I have let you put your jaws around my neck? I let you do it, I didn't panic. I know that you would never hurt me, even though I still can't see you as a man. Believe me."
He approached carefully and put his head on my chest. I encircled him with my arms. We stayed like that for I don't know how long.
"I know that you trust me, but deep down, I'm still afraid that you will back down once I'm human. That you will be too traumatized for me to ever be a man. Being a wolf isn't bad, but not being able to hug you or kiss you, hurt more than I like to think."
"I don't think that I will never be able to see you as a human. You said yourself that I made huge progresses since I've been here. We'll get there."
I kissed him on the nose.
"Someone is here to see you, sweetheart."
****