The Beast's Possession

**Aife

pov**

I hated to admit it, but Jonathan was right. While there was no reason for me to freak out and worry, I still felt a little safer knowing he was about to show me a way to escape.

"Okay," I beamed as I looked up at his hopeful eyes.

The moment I agreed out loud, tension visibly fainted from Jonathan's features and he could smile again.

He led me deeper into the forest, his arm still around my waist, and cracked a few jokes as we walked.

Not only that, the man actually came prepared. At one point, I was so darn tempted to turn around and return home, but he told me there was no reason for me to do so since he had brought snacks and food with him. Had I ever mentioned how much of a godsent that man was?

Jonathan found a cozy little area we could sit in, right under a massive oak tree that looked out of place in this forest.

As we sat down, I leaned my head against the tree trunk and sighed in content. The shadow this tree provided was far better than the little protection created by pine trees.

"I have sandwiches, a piece of cake for you and some jelly beans, which one would you prefer?" Jonathan asked as he started pulling bags of food out of his coat pockets.

How I didn't notice how stuffed those pockets were earlier was beyond me. I grabbed one of the sandwiches, a small pack of jelly beans and a bottle of water.

Both of us ate and laughed about how grateful we were that the pregnancy cravings weren't hitting in yet.

Eventually, after all those jokes and laughter, we sat in silence, clearly relishing the comfort it provided.

Well, at least until he cleared his throat to catch my attention. "Would it be weird if I asked you a very personal question?"

I studied him for a bit, but since I couldn't notice any possible judgment or malice, I nodded my head.

"If you had a chance, right now, at this moment, to return to Alpha Bane and live happily ever after, would you?"

Questions like this one usually were packed with some hidden stuff behind them, but when Jonathan asked that, I didn't feel like his words were more than just a question brought up by curiosity. Slowly, I folded the empty sandwich bag and took a swig of water while I gathered my thoughts.

Funny how I didn't really know the answer. I should have known, but I didn't.

However, since he was expecting an answer, I would have to say something anyway, so I decided to figure it out while having a discussion with him.

"To answer that, first, I need to clear my thoughts. While I understand where you are coming from when you ask that, there are far too many things I would have to take in consideration before I made the decision," I announced and looked up at the tree branches above us.

Perhaps I was losing my mind, but I swear, it felt like there was someone sitting up there, watching us and listening to our private conversation.

"Like? If that's not too much to ask for, of course," Jonathan insisted.

I really admired how he managed to sound easy going and tense at the same time. I knew he was eager to learn more but didn't want to pressure me too.

I shrugged my shoulders and focused my eyes back on him. "I didn't leave him because I wanted to, I left because I needed to reasons like that one. Also, am I being weird and paranoid or is someone watching us right now?"

As soon as I became the one who questioned the other person, Jonathan looked up at the same branch I was watching earlier and grinned. "You're not paranoid because someone is, in fact, watching us. Don't mind them, the creatures that live here are harmless," he explained, sounding more relaxed than I've heard him before.

"Aren't you weirded out? I mean there's someone stalking us and you sound so.. happy? Are you okay? Should we check if you have a fever or something?"

All Jonathan did was laugh at me. He didn't take offense to my words and just waved me off. "Don't be like that, trust me, this is no big deal. I know many things are new for you, but there's a reason why I told you no one who doesn't belong here could set foot on these lands. And that reason is above us, watching and making sure we don't harm the lands and don't enter with ill intentions."

"Does the reason have a name? Is it fair to ignore him or her? I don't feel good ignoring anyone, especially someone who you make sound like a protector."

Jonathan flashed me a blinding smile. "I have no idea about their names, but we call them all creatures since no one has ever seen any of them and gotten a chance to study them. All we know is that creatures are harmless if you behave and they're here to protect, not hurt."

I nodded again and glanced up. While I couldn't see anything, an idea still struck and I figured that would be the best one I've had up to this day.

Reaching for the piece of cake Jonathan brought for me, I carefully opened the packaging and placed the cake a little further away from me. "There, Miss or Mister creature, sorry I don't know your name, but I want you to have this. I'm sure hunting and protecting at the same time gets exhausting so the least I can do is offer some sugar for energy. And don't worry, it's not bad - if I can safely eat it, so can you."

"See, I told you, nothing like your family. You're special, Aife," Jonathan mused and reached over to ruffle my hair. "Now that we had some rest, how about we find those tunnels, I show you around and we return home? A nap would be good for you."

He didn't need to ask me twice. In no time, I was back on my feet, ready to explore and even more ready to return to our new home. Gosh, the bed was already calling my name, I never wanted to leave it again.

However, just as fast as the happiness surged through me it was scared out by a barrage of loud howls, followed with muffled whispers coming from all sides, surrounding us both.

"I thought you said rogues couldn't enter," I gasped, looking at Jonathan for any reassurance that we weren't in any danger standing here.

His hand found mine and gripped it. "They can't. Someone's exiting the tunnels. Come on, let's go and see who it is."