#13 The Dragon King and his Werewolf Princess
Chapter 14 River

“You’ll have to forgive him. He’s not usually this awkward, but he’s also not usually conflicted or confused on how to act.” Grier said,

“Yeah, well, he’s also not the one who got dropped into a foreign realm, captured, and thrown into a dungeon for a week, so forgive me if my patience is a little thin.” I replied with a snarky attitude.

“Okay, that’s fair.” Grier nodded.

“Can I ask you something about him?” I said, leaning back on my arms as I sat on the edge of the bed.

Grier moved to lean against the wall adjacent to the bed, folding his arms across his chest and nodding.

“Calix told me that I’m his second chance mate….”

Grier interjected,

“You’re his what?” He was as confused with the term as Calix was.

“He had a mate before me.” I clarified.

“Oh, he told you about Revena?” Grier looked shocked.

“Was that her name? He said she had a longstanding affair and he caught her before their wedding.” I said,

“Yes, that’s correct.” Grier nodded.

“Are you so loyal to me that you’ll spill Calix’s secrets?” I wondered.

Grier cocked an eyebrow,

“I won’t betray him if it’s not necessary to your safety or comfort.” He answered strategically.

“Good, then, this falls under the comfort category,” I said, “How long ago was that?”

“Just before his coronation, so over a century ago.” Grier answered.

“Do I need to be worried about what that did to him and his ability to trust a woman? I need to know what I’m working with here, Grier.”

“Short answer is, yes. He’s damaged, Lady Storm, I won’t lie about that. However, he also craves a new mate and a Queen. He thought he wouldn’t get one, but he also refused to take anyone else. Second chance mates, as you say, are not heard of here and neither is taking someone other than our destined mate. It put him in a lonely spot. He wants you, Lady Storm, he needs you.” Grier’s expression was fierce and serious.

“I have sympathy for his situation, I really do, but I can’t give up everything for him.” I sighed.

“Think about everything that you’re going to gain.” Grier countered.

“I’m not convinced that it’s worth the cost.” I replied solemnly.

“It’s only day one, give it time.” Grier seemed confident.

I opened my mouth to say more, but a knock at the door silenced me. Grier jumped up and held up his hand, silently telling me to stay back. I rolled my eyes and was reminded instantly of my chosen Beta, Beau, and Gamma, Kennedy, who were just as paranoid. Grier opened the door a crack and then wider when he saw who it was.

“It’s just Vix.” Grier announced as she glides into the room.

“You wound me, Grier.” Vix faked offense.

Grier rolled his eyes, but didn’t comment.

“The kingship says that you need supplies. You’re so teeny tiny that you won’t fit into any of my clothes, so I convinced him to let me take you to the market.” Vix said,

“The market?” I asked.

“It’s inside a building that used to be a warehouse of sorts. Vendors set up and sell their goods, produce, trinkets, blankets, soaps, clothes, you name it. It’s only a few minutes from the castle.” Vix explained.

“You want to take her out of the castle?” Grier looked panicked.

“With you as chaperone, of course.” Vix said in a mocking tone.

“Calix said she wasn’t supposed to leave the castle, yet.” Grier replied.

“She is sitting right here.” I waved from the bed and two sets of eyes turned towards me.

“Sorry, Lady Storm.”

“For the love of the Goddess, Grier, stop calling me that!” I groaned loudly, “If we’re going to make this work, you need to call me River or I’m going to start ignoring you.”

Grier looked at Vix who shrugged.

“Fine, River.” He mumbled, clearly not happy about it.

“I want to go out,” I declared, “And you have to listen to me over Calix, you said so.” I jabbed a finger into Grier’s chest.

Vix snorted,

“I like you.”

“Let’s go then.” Grier grumbled, opening up the door.

I followed him out with Vix behind me. By the time we made it to the main foyer of the castle, four more gigantic men had joined us. I recognized their marks, located on their necks, wrists, and forearms, although I still wasn’t sure what they meant.

“Is this really necessary?” I mumbled, looking around at the group standing on the front porch.

“Yes, River, it is,” Calix’s voice came up from behind us,

I sighed dramatically, but didn’t turn to face him.

“Enar and Bjorn are Benders, Koll and Rolf are Guardians. They have been chosen as your guard for whenever you leave the castle.” Calix introduced the men.

I looked back at them and nodded, offering them a two finger wave.

“It’s an honor to serve you, your highness.” The one named Enar said.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” I waved my hand dismissively and the Bender looked confused.

“River….” Calix started to speak,

“Are we going or what?” I asked Vix, interrupting him.

Vix glanced between the two of us with an amused expression.

“Yes, ma’am.” She laughed.

I heard Calix sigh, but he didn’t say anything to stop us. We stepped off the front porch and walked the short distance to the market. It was the first time I had been outside other than my trip from the Tower to the Castle. I studied my surroundings carefully. The castle was in a beautiful wilderness setting with tall, thick trees towering above it. Lush green grass surrounded the property with cobblestone pathways curving throughout.

Between the castle and the markethouse were a few buildings. A pavilion built beside a large pond with benches scattered around the perimeter, a rectangular building with a fence around the back that looked to house a playground, and a larger building built in the same style were all that I could see.

“That’s the Royal City elementary school and daycare,” Vix said, pointing to the building with the playground, “And the community center.”

“The Royal City?” I asked.

“You can’t see it from here, but it’s just over that hill, about a ten minute walk,” She pointed over a tall grassy hill where the hint of smoke could be seen rising above it, “It’s where most of the realm’s people live along with the best amenities the realm has to offer.”

“When I first ended up here, I was in some sort of snowy tundra.” I said and Vix nodded,

“That’s the Snow Cap Mountains region. As the name implies, it’s always winter there and covered in snow. It’s the least inhabited area, but it’s also the location of our top security prison.” Vix said,

“How many regions are there?”

“Four. Other than the Royal City and the Snow Cap Mountains, there’s the Dark Forest and the Seaside Harbor. The Harbor is basically a fishing village, it’s where all the seafood comes from. The Dark Forest is home to our hunters and is where all the game is harvested.” Grier spoke up this time.

By now, we had reached the markethouse which didn’t look like much from the outside, just a large brick building with boarded up windows. Vix pushed open the heavy metal door and revealed a bustling epicenter.

It still had the industrial bones of a warehouse with dirty concrete floor, but the open room had been separated into vendor spots of various sizes. Colors, sounds, and smells whirled around the room, nearly overwhelming my senses. People were shouting from their stalls, calling out to the shoulder to shoulder crowd that were pushing their way down the too-small asiles. Here, it was clear that status or category didn’t matter. No one even blinked as the royal entourage entered the market house.

“The clothes stands are in the back, come on.” Vix said,

Enar and Koll took the lead while Bjorn and Rolf flanked our group. Vix was beside me, her arm looped with mine, and Grier was close to my back. I felt like I was trapped inside a protective bubble of giants, my own body dwarfed by their size. From the outside, I probably wasn’t even visible, which I guess was the point.

I left the negotiations up to Vix as she worked her way through the stalls. We came away with baskets of loose fitting shirts in a muted palette, flowy floral dresses, dark tight fitting pants, and all the required undergarments. She also came away with some hair accessories that I wasn’t completely on board with, bows and headbands of different neutral colors, and hair ties. She got me a horsehair brush as well.

We went to a stand selling strong smelling soaps and perfumes, and Vix had me pick out several that I liked. There were bars of brown, pink, green, and purple soap, colorful clear bottles filled with shampoo, and odd shaped glass spray bottles with amber liquid inside.

The boys each had an arm full of large woven baskets filled to the top with our finds. It was so much different than the shopping malls and stores I was used to, but, somehow, it was better. I enjoyed the chaos of it all, the shouting and the claustrophobic crowds, the overbearing sales people yelling numbers at you, and the random animals that darted between your legs. My head was pounding by the time we left, but I was also grinning from ear to ear.

“We don’t have anything like that where I come from.” I laughed loudly, my ears still ringing in the silence of the outside.

“Really? What are your markets like?” Vix asked.

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“We call them stores or shopping malls, and they are individual shops. Each item is priced already and you take it up to the cashier to play. There’s not usually any negotiating.” I tried to explain what a “shopping mall” was.

“Calix will be glad to hear that you had fun.” Vix said, winking at me.

“Will he?” I scoffed.

“Of course he will. He wants you to stay here, River.” Vix sighed.

“Save it for another day, Vix, I’m tired.” I cut her off with a wave of my hand.

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