Chapter 8: Suspicions

When Darren woke up Sephrina was not in bed. He rubbed his eyes, sat up, and listened. He could hear the shower going in the bathroom. He wiped the sleep from his eyes some more and noticed a squirrel with an envelope in its mouth sitting on her dresser. He got up and made his way over to the squirrel petting it's fluffy head with one hand he took the envelope in the other. Opening it he saw two lines running from the top to the bottom of the page. He wanted to stay and make sure that Sephrina was okay but he knew that two lines meant that what she needed was extremely important or she may be in danger. The squirrel grabbed onto his hand and pulled as if trying to help him decide. He started to leave the room when something landed on his right shoulder, looking over to the new weight he found the squirrel holding on as if he was a ride. He chuckled a bit at the silliness and continued out of the house. Once he was to the stair that lead to the foyer he heard a door close, looking around everything was still, there was an eerie silence about. Then he heard a click coming from the base of the stairs. looking behind as he walked down the stairs he noticed one of the doors were cracked and he watched as it closed slowly. Someone was on the other side of the forbidden halls. Mentally preparing himself he followed, ignoring the squirrels tugging at his shirt. He peeked his head inside and could only barely make out the footsteps fleeing down the spiral stair.

He follows making sure his steps are as light as he can make them as he speeds down the steps taking two or three at the time. At the bottom of the stairs he couldn't hear the footsteps anymore. He sniffs the air inhaling deep for any scent. Only one scent comes back but it doesn't belong to anyone in the house. Walking slowly down the pitch black hallway he followed the scent but couldn't concentrate closely enough with the squirrels constant and furious tugging. He sighed as the scent faded to nothing and finally listen led to the woodland creature making his way back up the stairs. When he remerges josh is walking out of the kitchen with a couple of sandwiches in hand. Josh looks at Darren and smiles after taking a bite of one of the sandwiches. "Hey." his voice is muffled by the food in his mouth. "Where did you get a squirrel from?"

"He got inside and I was gonna take him back out to the forest." Darren stated as he strolled to the front doors.

"Can I come? I was just thinking about going on a walk but I didn't want to go alone."

"Even if I said no, I know you are still going to follow me."

"Fair enough." Both men walked out the doors and started on the path that Darren had taken before to get to Unniass. "So who's squirrel is that?"

"How do you know it's someone's squirrel?"

"Well you just told me for one." Darren shook his head as he realized that he fell right for Josh's confession trap. "For two, you wouldn't just take a squirrel back to the forest that happened into the house. You know what you normally do."

"Yes, however we are not discussing that in front of the little creature."

"I know, that's why I didn't say anything."

"I need to ask you something." Darren turns his head to Josh "And I want the full honest truth."

Josh takes another bite of his sandwich keeping his eye's facing forward. "Shoot."

"What do you think Sephrina's intentions are?"

Josh did not respond for a long minute, but Darren knew that he was trying to find the words. "You still haven't answered my question."

Darren's face turns to that of confusion and slight annoyance. "What are you talking about?"

"I asked you who's squirrel that is and you deflected the question with a question of your own. So tell me the owner of your fur baby there and I'll tell you what my thoughts are of Sephrina's intentions. Sound fair?"

"No it doesn't because I know that you already know who this squirrel belongs to." Josh stayed silent. "It's Unniass' messenger."

Again he was quiet for another long minute. "You still haven't told her of your suspicions have you?"

"Suspicions about what, I have a lot of suspicions."

"About you being her rider. You haven't touched her since you found her so until you do then there will be no way for you to tell, but I am sure that if you tell her then she might be okay with it."

"Now who is deflecting. Come on. Tell me what you think of Sephrina's intentions." He could have used his alpha blood to make him, but he also knew that any trust between them would be severely damaged.

To use an alpha command on a pack mate when they are not in danger would affect their relationship greatly, that's why he knows that his father will fall hard because he uses his alpha tone as if he is a toddler with a fun toy that he was told is unbreakable. Josh let out a long sigh. "I think that she is confused. We did kidnap her, but she also didn't try to escape despite having more than one opportunity. I feel like this confusion frustrates her, the frustration turns to anger and she lashes out in violence. Though this violence may seem unwarranted by the rest of the group it's her way of dealing with it, even if she does something she regrets afterwards. However if she sought any of us harm I know that she would easily be able to do so, she took down Kyle without breaking a sweat and actually looked like she was having fun. She has the strength and speed to take us down one on one, but I doubt she would be able to take all of us on so she either doesn't harm us because she knows she wont make it out of it or she just generally doesn't want to hurt us."

"You know you could be an advisor to the Alpha King if you really tried."

"I will not serve your father."

Darren allows himself to get lost in thought. His father is basically that of a tyrant who does what he want's when he want's, keeping everyone under his control with fear. Sephrina cares about other people, yesterday on the cliff side, she was protecting him from something, he may not know what but he knew that she took the full force of whatever it may have been. What if doing that causes her to feel that pain she was talking about, it was something about dying, but she didn't die, if she did he knew he would die too. After finding her he can't really remember life without her laugh, her smile, or even her smell. God her smell would make him forget everything else. Darren is brought out of his thoughts by a hand on his left shoulder. "Listen, you need to talk to Unniass about the possible bond. I am not going to go any farther because I promised Lilly that we would do something together. I just wanted to talk to you, make sure you were gonna be okay."

Darren smiled at his friend. "You are much more observant than you let on."

"What can I say?" Josh throws his hands out to the side, his sandwich's now gone and he walks backwards. "It's my secret super power." Josh turns and starts walking back to the house.

Darren continues on to Unniass. When he arrives her tail is hitting the ground with obvious impatient. "Where have you been?" She demanded.

"I got distracted by someone who was not meant to be in my house sneaking around, then Josh decided to come with me for most of the way. What's going on? Why the urgency?"

"Something happened to you yesterday, there is even more magic emitting itself from you. Not your usual magic either. What is it?"

"I'm not sure what your talking about."

"Take off your shirt and come here."

"Geez Unniass at least ask me out to dinner first."

A sort of chortle came from the dragons throat. "You are not as attractive as you think you are."

"Maybe not to you." Darren takes off his shirt after the squirrel jumps down and watches as the massive dragons eye's narrow and stare at him in curiosity.

Getting a little impatient he taps his foot a little. "That isn't a tattoo. That is very powerful and very old magic. Long before I was born. Tell me of how you got this. Oh, and you may redress."

After recounting the tale again Darren has now seen a new side to the massive dragon. Deep thought. She concentrated on every word. she asked in depth questions to most of his story once he had finished and thought long on each of his words. "Those tattoo's she said that she got before you went on your date, I would have to see them to be certain, but they also sound as though they are from a powerful magic. With all of this magic being practically thrown about in each different way it is bound to draw creatures to your land. Keep everyone inside after dark if you wish to keep them safe, do not let anyone go out until the sun has been up for an hour and make sure they are home an hour before the sun sets across the horizon."

"What are you talking about?"

"Magic draws in magic, those that seek power will be on their way to your land and most hunt at night, so be weary."

"What creatures?"

"I am not entirely sure but head my words to the t or else you will lose more than you will be able to withstand."

He was going to think about her words but words of his own flew from his lips before he could filter them. "I've been meaning to ask..."

When he doesn't continue she turns her head sideways. "Ask what?"

"Never mind, it's stupid."

"Darren, you know better than to do that."

Darren copied Josh's long sigh from earlier now understanding why it was so long, to say something you didn't want to but know there is no other way out of the situation. "What if you and I are meant to be bonded?"

Unniass' face relaxes slightly. "If we are meant to then we would both feel a pull to one another and we would bond when we are meant to, almost always a dragon will bond with their rider when they are still an egg. That is if they have one."

"I do feel a pull towards you though, that's how I found you. Do you not feel the same pull?"

"I never said that. If we are meant to bond then we shall when the time is right."

"We would have to touch to bond though, we could try it."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I said so."

"That is not an answer."

Unniass barred her teeth and smacked her tail on the ground hard. "Don't you dare try that with me. If we are meant to bond then we will, however this just now has proven to me that even if we are meant to be bonded then you are not ready."

Darren stumbled back as the ground vibrated. "Oh come on. I have been coming to see you for ages I've begged to just feel a scale and you still have not let me. Why?"

"Because I am not ready." She lets out a puff of air and her voice grows soft. "I was bonded once, long before your time, she and I flew together and became so close it was hard to tell who was who." The same as Darren and his wolf. "When she died I racked havoc to find her killer. I cried so hard I thought for sure my end would come from a broken heart. Alas I am still here, so my purpose is not done yet."

Darren starred at her as a giant drop of water fell from her eye. "I'm sorry I had no idea. How can I make it up to you?"

There was silence and only silence as a few more tears fell from the dragons eyes. "Bring Sephrina to see me. I want to meet her, person to dragon tomorrow."

Darren didn't hide his astonishment as his jaw fell. "What?" He said breathless. "I don't even think that she knows dragons exists and she is-"

"If you wish to continue coming here and talk to me as friends like we have been for ages, then you must do this. I need to be alone with my thoughts, if I don't see her tomorrow, don't come back."

Without another word she retired into her cave. Darren walked back to the house his mind racing. Unniass want's me to bring Sephrina to her, that alone is extraordinarily out of the ordinary for her to want to see anybody else but to demand that they are brought to where she lives is another thing entirely. How would Sephrina react to this, she probably hasn't even seen another dragon before so what the hell will she do when she see's her. He can't tell her that they are going to go see a dragon because that alone will probably make her run for the hill's, that is if she thought she would be able to leave without him following her.

He didn't even originally want her here, he just saw her and lost control after smelling her. Well they lost control, he wouldn't have bit her as a human, that would have been weird. He emerges from the forest and slows his pace as he gets to the house. When he gets inside he goes straight to the kitchen and starts pulling things out for lunch. Cooking also allows his mind to wander and he thinks about how tomorrow is going to go and how asking her tonight will go. He could ask her if she would be willing to go on a walk with him, she goes on runs practically every day so that may actually work, ask her if she is willing to have company on her run and if she wouldn't mind going on a new path. So now that he has managed to figure out how to get her there, what are Unniass' intentions once she gets there? She want's to see the markings that he was talking about but what else? Could that simply be it? "I didn't know you could cook." Turning to the door he see's Lillianna leaning against the door frame. "Looks like lover boy is discovering all sorts of new talents ever since he-"

"I need to ask you something."

"That was rude."

Darren's mind flies to the early morning. "It's important. Has there been anyone else's scent in the house recently besides Sephrina."

Thinking for a moment before she decides she looks to Darren with concern. "Not that I have noticed. Why what's up?"

"This morning on my way out of the house I heard a door to the forbidden halls being messed with. When I went to investigate there were footsteps making their way down the hall and there was the scent of someone who has not been in the house before. It wasn't Sephrina though."

"You'd be able to smell her from miles away."

She wasn't wrong, mates can smell each other for so many miles away it's unrealistic. "I am going to implement some rules, I do except everyone to follow them, that includes you and your lover pup."

"Oh don't be so salty. Your just jealous that you had to kidnap your mate when Josh and I had been friends long before we knew we were mates."

He smiled at her words as they sting him. Lately it seems as though the word kidnapping has been the subject of everything. "I will call a meeting just before we eat lunch. Can you make sure that everyone is going to be there?"

"Maybe. If you tell me at least three of the rules."

"How about one rule."

She straightens. "Whoa really, you never share anything like that before meetings? Is it that important?"

"It's probably one of the most important things I have needed to talk to any of you about."

Lillianna stared at him for a moment thinking before speaking. "I'll make sure everyone is here for lunch."

"Thank you."

Darren continued cooking while Lillianna stood beside him in silence. He was most of the way through lunch preparations before she talked again. "So what's going on? There's something bothering you that I know you are not going to talk about at lunch."

"Stop trying to tap into that twin bond thing."

"Darren." He looked at her and kept his poker face up. "It has something to do with Unniass. Tell me." It wasn't a question or a demand, more so a statement. "I'm your beta. Tell me."

He let out a deep breath. "She want's to meet Sephrina. I don't know why and she wouldn't tell me." Lillianna's surprise was more than evident as her eye's became as big as Jupiter. "Please go gather everyone. I will be done with the food soon."

She didn't say another word before leaving. Darren set the table and the food was out and ready as everyone came into the dinning hall all at once. When Sephrina caught his eyes he felt a flutter in his chest and pulled out a seat to his right for her. Lillianna sat in front of Sephrina and next to Josh who had Kyle in front of him and next to Kyle Hallie sat. Once everyone was seated they looked to Darren expectantly. "As you all know I have called this meeting to set some new rules and to go over some things. I will start with the rules. No one is to go outside an hour before the sun sets or rises and must be home and in the house at said time of the days or to be at a friends." He is met with groans. "If at a friends, you are not allowed to come back here before those times. The reason being is that there are new threats arising and we must be diligent. The other rule is that we will have patrols of two. No one will be patrolling by themselves anymore." Waiting for any objections he was met with silence. "Now to the things that we must go over. Unniass has told me of the dangers that are going to arise. She has also requested that she meet Sephrina tomorrow." At this there was the same reaction from everyone except Sephrina who looks confused, everyone else looked stunned. "She has not told me why, and though I would like for you all to come along, I know how Unniass would react to that. I am going to ask that you listen to your instincts. If you feel like something is wrong then make sure you waste no time in getting to us."

Everyone looked at each other and nodded, Sephrina was the only one to speak. "Who is Unniass"

"She is someone who protects our pack. She keeps us safe and we keep her safe, she has been a long time friend of few in our family. The fact that she is wanting to meet you..." He waved his hand. "I'm sure everybody here is hungry. Let's eat. Sephrina, will you please accompany me tomorrow to go meet Unniass?"

She smiled and nodded and everyone passed plates and grabbed food. When everyone started talking about their day the tension seemed to fade. The rest of the day went by mostly as a blur. Everything was a blur until Him and Sephrina we're walking on the trail for Unniass and Sephrina to meet.