Lycan's Affection

Conaan sucked in a sharp breath, the pain in his chest shooting up and spreading everywhere. He gave a small groan, then slowly brought his hand to maneuver to his chest, his chest lightly heaving. His hand, however, touched another hand. Instead, his eyes opened slowly, the dark green behind them covered by a layer of fluid.

Eleanor was sitting right next to him in bed, her lips half parted as she tried to breathe through her tears, her hand resting almost protectively on his chest.

She leaned forward as he turned to her, her hand that was on his chest reaching for his hand instead, and she pulled it towards her chest, her breaths slightly ragged.

"Conaan..." Her voice was small, teary, and she closed her eyes as she fought the tears back, her fingers clasping even tighter around his fingers.

She brought her other hand to slowly pat his hair backwards, her body starting to tremble with the force of her tears all over again.

"Eleanor."

She let her gaze drift towards his eyes and she swallowed, shaking her head.

"How could you keep something like this from me?"

He swallowed. He had expected the outburst if she ever found out on her own. But things had not gone his way, for if they had, she would have never had to.

"Eleanor, I..."

"No. Did you hide it from me because you did not trust me enough? Did you hide it from me because you you did not think I would keep it away from your enemies? Or because I was with Alexander, I.."

"That is not it, Eleanor." His voice was firm, and she stopped talking, but broke down into more tears, her hair falling on either sides of her.

He swallowed. "I wanted to spare you all of this."

"Why should I be spared all of this? It is my fault you ate that poison. You ate it because I gave it to you and I was naive and foolish enough to bring you pudding from Alexander. I should be by your side, nursing you to health, not running around the palace, picking dresses and doing whatever I want. You should have...."

"We have all made mistakes. You did not know about the poison but I knew and I ate it anyway. And we have been foolish before, all of us. It is not your fault the past came back to haunt me like this."

She shook her head, her lips pursing against the tear that ran across them. "But..I should have taken responsibility. You should have told me just what I have done to you and even if I had to go on my knees in front of Alexander in order to find the cure..."

"Eleanor."

She went quiet, her hands leaving him as she fell back on the bed, her hands cradling her face, her chest heaving. Conaan swallowed, then weakly pushed himself to a sitting position. His hands wrapping around her. She immediately fell into his warmth. Her hand gripping the robe he was wearing, her face buried in his chest so her incessant cries were muffled.

"I cannot lose you," she said, her head shaking. "I can not be the reason that I lose you. I will mot ever be able to live with it. I will not ever be able to live on. If something happens to you, Conaan...just consider me dead too."

He swallowed as she moved away, her eyes boring into his, her tears running down her face in three, four lines, her eyes slightly swollen from how much she has cried.

"Nothing will happen to me," he said to her, his hand cupping her cheek, his thumb running along it horizontally to wipe the tears. "I promise."

She swallowed. "What of a cure? What of an antidote? Tell me there is a cure and even if I have to go to the very ends of both worlds to find it, I will."

Conaan nodded. "There is..."

"Your Highness?"

Conaan stopped, then turned to the door. The servant bowed, and he gave a small respectful sign of acknowledgement to Eleanor.

"Your Highness, the festival started two hours ago. It is sunset already, and the people aare expecting you."

Conaan blinked, then immediately nodded, waving the servant away.

"You can not go, Conaan."

"Eleanor. I have to..."

"No. I will make an appearance on your behalf. You have to stay here. The healer has prepared this for you, and I will bring some food for you myself. I will only make an appearance and come back to you, and you have to tell me what that cure is."

Conaan slowly nodded, her hand coming up to gently caress his face, patting his hair in an affectionate manner. Slowly, she leaned forward, then placed a small kiss on his forehead. He gave a small approving smile, and she pulled away, then slowly got off the bed, leaving him alone once more, ger scent filling the room even as she walked away.

Jenna fixed the belt around her waist as Eric watched solemnly, his eyes down. She was not speaking to him still, and he was not sure what to do to appease her now.

He did feel the same way she did, maybe a little more, but he knew he could not indulge. It was the cross they both had to bear.

"Jenna?"

She stopped, then turned to him, her eyes small. "What do you want?"

He bit down on his lips, then slowly shook his head. "Jenna, I..."

"Do you have something to say?" She asked, but without giving him time to actually speak, started to walk away.

She was dressed as a substitute caretaker as the palace chief had requested for a few of them. Making good her promise to Eric, she would be taking him there, but she still could not hide how much the fact that he probably did not reciprocate her feelings disappointed her.

Suddenly, Eric held her hand, stopping her from walking away, his chest lightly heaving.

"I miss you, Jenna. I don't know what to do when you are so cold."

She turned, her lips parting. "You did not know what to do before I was this cold."

"Jenna, it's not that easy."

"You could make it that easy. It was easy to admit that you missed me just now. It would have been better for you and I if you had admitted that you harbored no feelings for me at all."

"Jenna..."

"Eric, please. It's already late, we need to go to the palace."

"Jenna."

"I said, let's go."

Eric swallowed, then slowly started to let his fingers open around her hand. But a last minute decision struck, and suddenly, he pulled he to him instead, his hand cupping the side of her neck as he brought her to him, his lips taking hers.

She let out a small breath, her eyes slowly closing, her hands gently resting on his shoulder. She slowly yielded, her lips parting for him, her body slowly becoming fluid in his hands.

Conaan turned to the window, his eyes squinted at the sky that had so suddenly and rapidly darkened, vibrant streaks of lightning passing through it in fast, intermittent strokes.

He bit down on his lips, his chest slowly heaving. It was not the time of the year for rains yet, and he knew what those meant. Meredith had told him about them before and if she was here...

"Someone has wronged us," he muttered under his nreath, a feeling of dread quickly overtaking as he turned to the window again. "Someone has wronged me."

Jenna suddenly broke away from Eric, her eyes wide as she fell back to the floor. Her breaths came out in small, rapid bursts, her eyes quickly watering. She swallowed, her hand clasping over her lips, her body shaking hard and fast.

"Jenna?" Eric said, his brows furrowed. He stood up, but she immediately moved away, her body now trembling. Suddenly, at top speed, she stood up, then ran into her room, slamming the door behind her.

"Jenna?" Eric called again, walking to her door, his brows furrowed in confusion. Was there something wrong with the kiss? He couldn't quite figure it out, but she had seemed almost hainted. Almost like she had done something she was not supposed to.

He swallowed. Jamie had said it once. She had a destiny, and her destiny did not involve a man. Could it...could this have...

"What are you doing?"

Eric turned swiftly to Jamie, his eyes blinking rapidly. "I....I was just...we were supposed to go to the palace but she suddenly..."

"I am going to the palace too," Jamie said. "His Majesty is ill. You can tag along with me."

Eric contemplated the decision. Jenna had not seemed fine at all, but he needed to see Conaan too. He was desperate for both, but he knew Jenna might wait. Matthew, Conaan, Alexander...those could not.

"Thank you. I will go with you."

Jamie nodded then stopped for a bit, grabbing a bite of an apple, before he turned to the door, Eric following closely behind him.

Alpha Alexander walkes briskly, his sword held tightly in his right hand as he walked, his eyes examining the path in front and around him. He was making it to the gate, where Anderson and Ian had already gone to lead the soldiers in, while he stayed back to see Shadow's appearance.

Ian had lost him in the pursuit, and so had Alexander, and even though he had wanted badly to get rid of him first, he knew there was nothing they could do. He had outsmarted both of them, even with the cut Alexander had managed to leave on his stomach, and even Anderson had adviced it would be much better to let it be. Afterall, even if he was to tell Conaan, they would have entered the city by then.

Suddenly, he felt a cold blade rest on his throat, and he stopped, his eyes wide. Slowly, he turned, and Brandon was examining him, his eyes thin with disgust.

"If it isn't Conaan's dog."

Brandon swallowed. "Something told me I would find you once I get back to the city. Turns out I was right."

"Bonus point for you."

Brandon moved, his eyes thin. "What will happen if I kill you now?"

"You will not get to," Came Ian from behind them, his sword resting on Brandon's neck, and behind him, the full entirety of the one thousand man troop that Alexander had brought to infiltrate the kingdom.