A Werewolf Fantasy

The closer Erin got to the group of people waiting for her, the more she feared that she would faint for the second time that day. As she continued her tentative walk towards the group, she shivered a little but not from the cold wind. A feeling of déjà vu swept over her as she began to recognize familiar faces, although she instinctively knew that they were different people from who they were supposed to be in the future.

Her father looked younger here and he was dressed in a leather garb that was ostentatiously decorated with beads and feathers. He wore a feather headdress, marking him as the leader of the clan, although his dressing seemed modest compared to the elaborate regalia of the supreme leader.

Her mother stood beside him with a proud smile on her lips. She paused briefly in front of her parents and they took turns embracing her warmly.

"I am glad to see you looking well," her father said softly. "As I already told you yesterday, this is going to be the beginning of a new season in your life, and I wish you happiness and good health until we meet again. Now, go and present yourself to your family."

Erin felt tears stinging her eyes after hearing that brief but heartfelt speech from her father. She could tell that her parents loved her very much and were sad to see her go, even though they know it was inevitable.

She blinked back her tears and continued her walk towards the Prime Alpha werewolf, Vak Smallchief, who turned out to be a younger, more virile version of her future uncle, Antoine Brown.

My goodness! Uncle Antoine is our ancestor? Erin thought in surprise. So, her uncle was incarnate of the first werewolf in history? Wow!

"Come closer, child," said the exquisitely beautiful woman sitting beside Vak. Erin instantly knew it was his wife and she recognized the woman as the younger version of Cherise Golden, wife of Byron Golden.

The couple were flanked by their sons; the oldest was - oh god! Gary Silver? And then there was the second son, Danshak, and the third who turned out to be her future older brother, Eric.

It was as if Vak's family was involved in some kind of werewolf sudoku because everyone in her clan in Fairbanks seemed to be mixed up in it. It was crazy! How was she supposed to keep up with this mismatched family? "I heard you were not feeling too well this morning," said the Prime Alpha. "Do you feel better now?"

"Yes, sir," said Erin unsurely. How did they address the supreme leader in this era? Was it sir? Your majesty? Or your Lordship?

"Please, pardon her manners, my Alpha King. She is clearly still in recovery," her father spoke up from behind her.

Vak responded to the apology with an understanding smile, but Erin could see that her new husband, Danshak, wasn't too pleased with her slip up judging by the scowl on his face as he regarded her with hard eyes.

"I apologize, my Alpha King," said Erin quietly. It wouldn't do to offend her father-in-law and shock the entire clan with bad manners on her first day of joining the ruling family.

"You will ride in the wagon with your maid," said Vak. "I do not believe that you are strong enough to ride on your mare just yet. Now that we have settled that, let us begin our journey home. Weruona here misses his wife and children very much, and I believe Zanisk has a horde of she-wolves eagerly awaiting his return."

There was a murmur of laughter among the families and clan members in the gathering. In this era, Weruona was the name of Gary Silver, the firstborn son of Vak Smallchief and the next in line to become Prime Alpha.

Whereas, Zanisk was Eric's name here. It felt weird to her that her brother was her in-law in this life and he didn't recognize her or know who she was in 'reality'.

The journey to the northeast land of Denai' Vena began after much fanfare and celebration by everyone in the clan. Erin was allowed to hug her family one last time before climbing onto a horse-drawn wagon due to her supposed inability to ride her horse after her 'breakdown' in the morning.

Her maid, Seisa, joined her in the wagon as she had been commissioned to travel with Erin and serve her in her new home. Plus, her family believed having a familiar face with her would make it easier for her to settle into her new home. They rode in companionable silence, watching their home slowly vanish behind the wide trees and tall grasses that they'd passed.

Two hours later, they pulled to a stop near a hill settlement where the fully human locals offered them water and light refreshments. Vak was a very popular warrior in this era and was treated like royalty by both humans and werewolves. While snacking on an apple underneath an oak tree, Erin wondered why they were making this trip in human form when they could have just changed into werewolves and covered more distance in lesser time. She'd overheard her mother-in- law asking one of the servants if they were certain that the food supplies they had in store would be enough for the three-day journey.

Imagine that! Traveling on horseback and wagons in this windy October weather like mere humans, when they had the power to zip through the forests and reach their destination in record time as giant wolves.

She sighed. This time travel adventure was slowly becoming a snooze fest especially because she hated road trips and she'd been hoping for more action than what she was getting now.

"Do you feel tired?" asked her maid.

"Not really," she replied absently. "Just bored."

Seisa smiled understandingly. "I know you do not enjoy traveling, but I am sure that this journey will be worth your while eventually."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because when you arrive at your new home with your husband, all of this long trip will be forgotten and you will begin your new life as a wife and homemaker."

"So, in your opinion, being a wife and a homemaker is supposed to make me happy?" Erin asked sarcastically.

"Of course," said Seisa, confidently. "Especially being that you will now be living in the household of the supreme werewolf leader, the Prime Alpha. There is no greater honor for our kind beyond that!" Erin chuckled. "I beg to differ, my dear Seisa, but that is a conversation for another time."

The teenage maid couldn't possibly know that there was more to a woman's life than being a wife and a homemaker even in a seemingly royal household, but there was no point in trying to enlighten her on matters that were beyond her imagination at this time in history.

Their conversation was cut short when Danshak strode towards them, looking annoyed as usual. Seisa scurried to her feet and vanished behind the wagon to give the couple some privacy.

"Mother asked me to come and see how you are faring," he said dutifully.

"Which means you would not have come to see me if your mother hadn't asked you to," Erin concluded.

"At least I am here, am I not?" he asked irritably.

"Why are you always angry?"

"Who says I am angry?"

"You look like you are."

"I am not, and that is the last I want to hear about my mood. I can see that you are back to your usual self. I will let Mother know."

He turned to leave stiffly, looking relieved and more annoyed than he did when he'd first showed up.

"Wait," Erin stopped him.

"Now what?" he growled.

"Why did you agree to marry me if you hate me so much?"

His expression wavered for a moment. "And who says that I hate you?"

"Don't you?"

"Look, you and I both know what is at stake at the moment and making sure that we survive the oncoming battle with Nikjin is far more important than how either of us feels about being married to each other. Do you understand me?" "No," said Erin defiantly. "Are you saying that you only agreed to this marriage simply out of duty and nothing else?"

"What else could there be?" he asked incredulously.

"What about the part about us being mates? Doesn't that at least make you happy that you're not being tied to the wrong partner for life? Doesn't that tell you that our union is more than just a political alliance between our fathers?" Danshak studied her for several seconds before responding to her questions, "I do not know what you are expecting from this union beyond respect and position, but if it is what I am thinking, then you will be sorely disappointed and it will not be my fault."

"What does that even mean?"

"It means that you should be satisfied with having me as your mate. That should be enough for you. If you are looking for tenderness or love, you will not get them from me."

Erin was taken aback by his harsh words and her temper bubbled to the surface, propelling her to her feet. "I should be satisfied with having you as a mate? What is that supposed to mean? Listen, I am the prize here, not you. Your father needed mine in his army and that was why you were thrown into the mix to keep my father happy and yours secure in the knowledge that he has a strong warrior backing him up.

"You should be grateful to me and my father for agreeing to this alliance, and not the other way around. And as for expectations... you don't have what it takes to be tender or loving, even if you tried because you don't know what any of that means. You can't give what you don't have, so don't bother your head about that.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to return to the wagon for the next leg of this trip. I can see the riders in front already mounting their horses. You should go and join them."

She swept past him with her head held high like a queen, while he stood there staring after her in stunned silence. In all of his life, no female had ever dared to speak to him in that manner.

Danshak couldn't decide which annoyed him the most; that she had had the effrontery to speak to him so rudely, or that he'd let her have the last word.

He would have to discuss this with his mother and encourage her to teach Edvana a few lessons on manners and proper wifely behavior because it seemed that her mother had skipped that part when preparing her for matrimony.

He will not be disrespected by the daughter of some lowly chief in an obscure land simply because his father thought it would be a brilliant idea to have the famed warrior in his army.

He knew that his father only agreed to the marriage proposal by Chief Anamak as a way to gain the latter's unwavering loyalty and prevent him from being corrupted by Nikjin in his quest for power.

And in all of this, his own reward was to be unwillingly mated to a loudmouthed she-wolf who didn't know her place in the grand scheme of things. Never mind that the gods seemed to think that they were perfect life partners, even though their pairing had happened by chance.

What a cruel joke! Grinding his teeth in annoyance, he marched past the wagon where she sat regally like the queen of werewolves, pointedly ignoring him as he passed. He hoped that he would not have to share a tent with her tonight when they paused their journey to rest, because he might be tempted to wring her neck if she got mouthy with him again.