The Werewolf King's Bride

[Hehe, we have reached the four hundredth chapter. Keep on following Blue and Dem to know what comes next. Thanks for all the support. Love you all]

(From Blue's Perspective)

"Whoa! Aunt rides faster than Father!" Ava exclaimed, sitting on the horse with me. One of my hands was around her to make sure she was safe even though she was holding onto the leash pretty well.

"At least, I ride faster than Merrick. I can never ride the horse as fast as your mother," I sighed.

Evelyn rode the horse as if she did not fear falling at all. It was way too fast. Dem rode even faster. They scared me.

"Mother says that's the way to ride a horse. It has to be that fast," she said. "But I think Aunt rides in the perfect way."

"Is that so?" I chuckled. "I am glad it's the perfect way."

"Your Highness, are you comfortable?" Calix asked. He had wanted to take Ava with him or make her ride with Abel, but Ava insisted on riding with me.

"I am. Don't worry," I reassured him.

We reached the palace quickly. It was time for dinner already. Since Ava did not have dinner, we decided to have dinner together.

"It's lamb meat today," I said. "You like lamb meat, don't you?"

"Uh-huh. They are the tastiest," she said. "What does Aunt like the most?"

"I like all types of meat," I said.

"Aunt, may I ask you something?"

"Yes?"

"I heard… Uncle came back a few days ago… Is that true?"

"Where did you hear that?"

"Some people claim Aunt fell sick all of a sudden and so Uncle came back. Some people even say they saw him," she said.

"It's true," I nodded. "I fell sick suddenly. So, your uncle came back because he was worried."

"Are you okay now?" she asked softly, clearly worried.

"I am," I said. "I was not that sick. I mean, I was slightly sick. Dem worries too much. He did not need to come back."

"Uncle is right to worry. Aunt worries me too," she said.

"I worry you?" I asked, surprised.

"Yeah. I think Aunt is very fragile. That's why you worry me," she said. "Even the slightest pressure can hurt Aunt."

"I… Am I that weak…?" I mumbled, seriously thinking about it. After all, I heard what a kid said was almost all the time the truth.

"I also heard another rumor. Aunt, am I having a cousin for real this time?"

"Eh…? Cousin?"

'Why do people keep thinking I am pregnant? Do I act pregnant? Or, is it because I get sick often?'

"Do you want a cousin, Ava?"

"It's not like that…"

"It will be good if you have a cousin. I know you will love your cousin dearly. But… it's not time yet," I said. "It's just a rumor. When it happens, you will know through me or your uncle, not through a rumor. It will be special news, so it is only natural to let the family know first."

"Really?"

"Yes, that's right. You will be one of the first people to know that," I said.

She chewed her food slowly, absorbed in thoughts. "I don't like kids."

"You don't want a cousin?"

She did not reply. I did not understand why she was against it. Eventually, Dem and I would have a kid or more. Well, nothing could change our decision anyway. Besides, Ava would eventually love that kid.

I ate, keeping an eye on her movements. I usually had a knack for understanding kids. I could understand them better than most adults for some reason, probably because I was fascinated by kids' innocence and always wanted to protect them.

But oddly, I did not understand Ava fully. She confused me. Was it because she belonged to the Easton family? Dem always said his family was exceptional.

After dinner, I took her to her room. There was a room in the main palace always prepared for her in case she wanted to stay there. I always had the maids keep the room clean and ready. What if she came suddenly? I did not want her to stay in another room.

"Good night, Ava. Sweet dreams," I said as I kissed her on the forehead. She lay down on the bed and smiled broadly at me. Her fever was still high, but not as high as before. I made sure she took her medicines too.

The headmaster said she would send the teacher tomorrow to be with Ava. I had given her an earful because of her failure to look after Ava and make sure she took her medicines. She apologized and promised to make sure it never happened again.

"Good night, Aunt," she said.

"Go to sleep now. I have put all your plushies on the bed, so you can hug them to sleep. You like to have them on your bed, don't you?"

"Uh-huh. Thank you, Aunt."

"You are welcome, sweetie. Sleep now. I will be in my room. If you get scared, or can't sleep, come to my room, okay?"

"Okay…"

I closed the door. Abel was waiting for me in front of Ava's room. He did not leave me alone even for just a second.

"Let me escort you to your room, Your Highness?"

"My room? No… I will go out for a bit."

"Now? It's ten at night," he pointed out.

"I know."

"I see. I will prepare the horse."

It did not take long for him to prepare the horse. I quickly jumped on the horse and accelerated with Abel right beside me. He did not ask where I was going as if he knew what was on my mind.

"Do you know a shortcut?" I asked.

He gave me a look of approval. "Follow me, Your Highness."

Our horses ran very fast through the jungle, matching the rhythms as if there was only one horse, not two.

"Oh…! It's gonna rain…" I barely finished my sentence when it started raining suddenly. The weather was cold, but no one expected it would rain suddenly. The droplets were quite big and left both of us soaked in a matter of moments.

"I should have brought umbrellas. Your Highness is soaked," Abel said.

"So are you," I pointed out. "No one expected it anyway. It's fine."

"Your Highness will catch a cold."

'That's for sure. But what can we do? We can't stop in the middle of the forest. I don't have anything to change into. I am bound to catch a cold.'

"Let's just go where we are supposed to go," I said. "There is no point in worrying about that since I will catch a cold nonetheless."

We reached the place within thirty minutes. It was quite a long way from the palace. But I needed to come here, at least see this place.

When Azure used to talk to me in the library, he often mentioned this place. A lavender field, a mesmerizing art of violet and light purple, spread over at least 1000 acres. I had never come to this place, but always wondered what it looked like. Azure mentioned this place saying his mind always took him here whenever he wanted to make something work. For some reason, I felt like I should come here.

I asked Abel about this place for the last few days after Reece got missing. So, he knew I would come here.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"It's gorgeous…," I mumbled, as I got down from the horse, in the rain. I looked around, ignoring the raindrops falling on my face.

"Your Highness…"

"Yeah…?"

"Look on your right," he muttered, standing beside me, his eyes focused on something. I followed his eyes and that was when I noticed it.

Something was there. Or, was it someone?

"It's a body…?" I muttered. "A human was murdered here? Oh my god!"

"A werewolf, you mean," he corrected.

"Ah, that's right," I said.

'I keep forgetting only werewolves exist in this world.'

"Your Highness, let's go back. Never check something strange out by yourself. I cannot check it as well because I can't leave Your Highness alone," he said.

"That's a woman…," I mumbled, squinting at the thing. I listened to what he said, but was not paying much attention to him. "I think I know her."

"How can Your Highness understand anything? We are standing too far."

"That's…," I muttered, squinting harder to make sure I was right, "… Lady Caerlion."

"Lady Caerlion?" he repeated. "That's… the wife of Lord Victor."

"She is the King's aunt," I said. "I can't believe it. Why is she here? Abel, let's go and see. We can't just…"

"We can leave her be. But if this is what Your Highness wants…," he said, motioning with his hands for me to follow him.

I would not have recognized her or anyone from this far. But I did, thanks to the locket she was wearing. That locket illuminated in the dark and it was in the shape of an arrow. She always wore it. She even bragged about it when she invited me to her tea party.

'Well, I agree it is made of high-quality materials, but not enough to be bragged about. But I am glad she did.'