Gauri....

By morning I awoke to the sound of birds singing, I stretched and smiled brightly. I stood and glanced around for Omkara , now walking down the hall and stopping in front of one of the rooms.

I lean against the door frame and peek at him as he stood in just pants by a desk, his eyes looking over a large piece of paper.

I slowly walk towards him and hug him from behind, softly kissing his back. I then looked at the large paper, it was a large map.

The map that king Abhay said he would give if we protected his kingdom.

"I have bad news an good news Gauri ." He only said, turning to glance at me.

"Hm..?" I only question.

"..Good news this map shows an entirely different area that is unknown to anyone, the bad news is I'm planning to leave here to explore it. It could be a place where we could settle down. Where there's no danger. I want that for you and our kids. So I'm going to go there." Omkara said firmly, already set on his plan.

"But..." My heart dropped before picking up again. "I'm going with you."

"You can't, it's too dangerous of a journey and we have pups Gauri ." He growled out softly and turned to look down at me.

His hand gently tucking my hair behind my ear.

"..I can have Papa and Mama raise them, they raised you and your brothers pretty well. And Mama did want more time with them, I'm not going to stay there and wait for you to come back, I'm not going to cry every night because I'd miss you so much. I can't bear it Om ! I'll go crazy and I will lose my sanity so let me go with you, i don't care whether you like it or not." I say stubornly, looking him straight in the eyes.

The kids are precious for her but nothing more for her than her beloved man.

As if she will lose all her sanity if he is not with her .

He grunted, then kissing me roughly, a grow leaving his lips as he pressed me against the desk. "Why can't you just obey, Gauri ?"

I knew it was a rhetorical question as he continued to kiss me, inhaling my scent and then held me close.

"You can come, but only after we do training first. I need you to be able to not get into so much trouble little chirraya, and I need you to be able to protect yourself easily."

I glare slightly but don't object it, "Fine, if that's what's it takes to go with you. I'll do it."

"Good girl .We'll start training right away."
I follow him out of the house an outside, the sun shining brightly into the sky giving off a warm glow, I inhale the fresh air and smile.

He stared out into the distance, "I can't wait to finally get out of this place even if it's only for a little bit."

I look at him, he looked so relieved and curious, determined. I felt the bugging to know what was out there too, and why the human had that map.

"Well it seems like a new adventure awaits."

*********

"Did you forget about me, Gauri ?."

A familiar voice calls out in her head, causing her to toss and turn. But she couldnʼt quite pin down who the voice belonged to. It was just so awfully familiar to her for some reason.

The voice only began to deepen and soon grew louder and louder until it was roaring out in her mind. Repeating her name over and over again until she screamed out for it to stop.

"Stop it!!! Stop it!" A loud cry left her lips as she started to writhe around, soon feeling hands grab onto her.

"Jaan...Jaan, Itʼs okay." Someone interrupted the stranger that was roaring in her head, making her mind go silent and only focus in on the voice that she knew all to well.

Her rigid body soon relaxing as strong arms drew her into a warm embrace.

It's was Her man.

He was the only one who could pull her out of her night terrors. The only one who knew how to calm her.

"..Iʼm worried about you Gauri ." He murmurs out as she finally opens her eyes and snuggles further against him, seeking out comfort.

Omkara nuzzles her neck and pulls her closer as he inhales the strong scent of her fear, which now mingled with her natural scent of blush and roses.

He began to draw small circles on her back to soothe her, though she just exhaled shakily and pressed a gentle kiss to his collarbone.

"Iʼm fine."Gauri  finally whispers out, still held within her lovers arms as a moment passes by.

"Are you sure, my little chirraya ?" Omkara asks, beginning to trail his fingertips down her spine to the small of her back.

A tingling sensation ran through her body before she gave him a small nod, her head resting on his bare chest as they laid on the bed of one of the old wooden inns.

The inn was a bit dusty, dark, and creaky. But they had no other choice but to stay there.

Itʼs been a couple of years since their journey began, they had ventured as far as they could each day, every month they were getting closer to their destination.

It took a whole year to train Gauri  and teach her how to control her wolf a bit more, he had to make sure that she would be okay on this journey in case he wasnʼt there to protect her.

It took a year or more after that to venture out by foot into the woods and they havenʼt found any sign of civilization until now and that was just this old inn. But thankfully the map said they were very close to getting to their destination.

They were a whole week journey away from the place they wanted to explore and maybe even claim. So they decided to take a break when they found the little inn on the way.

Both of them were tired, hungry, and cold, so staying at the inn till they could fill up and
regather their bearings was a huge benefit.

Omkara lowered his head to kiss the shoulder of his petite woman . He could never tire of her and her delightful scent, along with her breathtakingly beautiful body.

He loved all of her, but most of all he loved her spirit and heart. She was perfect for him and he didnʼt know where heʼd be without her.

They were like two puzzle pieces that fit so well together. Each balancing the other out, being able to provide each other with what they needed.

She needed his love, comfort, protection. He needed her love, patience, kindness, and integrity.

Even though he had hurt her far too many times, she always came back and loved him all over again.

He silently hope that she will madly in love like this with him always .

Gauri  sucked in a breath as she felt his lips brush against her skin. Her heart beating faster in her chest as she lifted her head to look at him, their eyes meeting for a brief moment.

She couldnʼt help but stare into his exquisite blue eyes, her own amber ones connecting with his. Their bond only seemed to strengthen each day. Which made them feel even more strongly for each other.

Slowly, she leaned closer, till she felt his breath fan her neck and heard his heart beating loudly in her ears. Her eyes finally tore away from his gaze and lowered to his lips.

She inched closer and lightly brushed her soft lips against his firmer ones. ".Om ,Do you think weʼll ever return?"

The question spilled out of her lips as she then pulled away, his darkening gaze meeting hers once more. "..Of course we will..I miss them too.." He responded, his voice husky and deep.

She had felt the rumble of
his voice as she laid beside him and heard his response.

He knew exactly what she meant whenever she said something, he never ceased to amaze her.

It was true, she was getting a bit home sick, most of all mom sick. She missed her babies, though they were barely babies anymore.

They were almost fully grown and left in the care of Omkara's parents. She didnʼt want to miss seeing their children grow, and knew that eventually they would all leave and go on their own paths once of age.

Which was 18. Once 18, the young wolves would have a choice of either staying and waiting for their mate to come to them, or leaving and going off on their own to make their own pack and meet their mate.

Omkara's eyes softened as he reassured her as best he could. "Gauri , weʼll return as soon as we finish this. If you need one urgently ,we can make anytime you want.." He smirked after adding in the last part, which made her laugh and playfully whack his arm. "Om!"

"You know itʼs true." He kept on, teasing his petite and lovely mate who began to roll her eyes and move away from him.

Omkara gave a low growl, pulling her back to him, his arms wrapping around her slim waist.

"Gauri..."

"Fine. Youʼre right." She quietly admitted, though she hated when he looked all smug.

"Good girl." He then said and claimed her lips roughly with his own.

Her hands were placed on his chest as she kissed him back, melting against him.

Things were about to get much more heated when suddenly there was a hard knock on the door. "Delivery!"

A growl tore from Omkara's  throat as he hovered above his woman, frustrated since they got interrupted.

"What is it?!" He got up , wrap a towel on his waist and walked towards the door in all his almost naked glory, opening it once Gauri  had moved further under the covers, her brow raised as she peeked at his round butt. She wanted to bite it. But at the same time she wanted to kill anyone who checked out her man.

She silently watched as he talked with the delivery woman, the woman flustered. While he stood, looking rather upset, and of course naked.

He didnʼt seem at all bothered by being almost naked in front of anyone.

As a direwolf, it seemed normal.

Since every time they shifted, their bodies stretched and grew till their clothes tore off.

And when shifting back they were left exposed. So he just stood there and folded his arms across his broad chest, brow raised at the woman, as he tried not to lose his patience.

The woman could tell that the man was angry and becoming impatient as she stammered out that she had mail for him, she also knew his lover was watching her with a dark gaze.

So she quickly dropped the envelope and rushed off, her face the color of a tomato.

Omkara  just bent down, grasped it, and kicked the door shut with his foot. He walked back to the bed and observed the letter that had his name on it.

As he sat down, Gauri came up behind him and rested her chin on his shoulder so she could sneak a peek at the envelope.

His blue eyes began to scan over the cursive writing before he decided to just open it and read it.

As soon as he finished reading it, he tossed it onto the nightstand and gathered his mate up in his arms.

A surprised squeak left her as she felt him turn and pull her onto his lap. "Are you gonna tell me what the letter was about?"

Omkara only dipped his head down low to press a kiss to her throat, "It was just an invitation.." He murmured then against her soft skin.

She wasnʼt satisfied with the little information he gave and began to move out of his lap. He growls out lowly, causing her to sink back into his lap.

"Alright. It was just an invitation to the King Atharva masquerade ball.
Apparently, everyone there knows about us already. They had spies watching
our every move and found out who we were in a matter of days.

He said in quotes, "King to King. Letʼs meet. Come join my masquerade ball tomorrow night. Iʼll have a farm boy fetch for you. He will arrive at 7am, take you to my kingdom, then prepare you and your mate for the ball that evening. See you then." Omkara  finished mimicking what was written down on the letter and only rolled his eyes and rested his forehead on her shoulder.

"This doesnʼt sound good. I donʼt trust people who call themselves Kings. Sure, I am one. But Iʼve never flaunted it around and labeled myself as such." He muttered making her smile and run her fingertips through his hair.

"There there, your highness . Itʼs just a ball, but I do think thereʼs something odd about him sending people to spy on us."

"Say it again." He only said, his voice becoming quiet and low.

"Say what again?" She asked, confused.

"Call me that again." Omkara growled into her ear and gripped her hips, his dark gaze meeting hers as she started to fidget in his lap.

She could feel how aroused he was when she finally figured out what he meant. "Your highness ?"

It wasnʼt even two seconds and he already had her pinned down beneath him. "Say it again."

"Your highness ." She almost laughed out but his lips crashed against hers, stopping her from doing so.

Instinctively, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. And together their bodies entwined and danced the night away.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Previously..

The dark figure opened up the stone wall and
quickly moved inside. The hood of their cloak covering their face.

Their misty-grey eyes searching around as they held up a lantern. Finally, the light landed on what they wanted, a glass casket.

A pale body rested in there as the figure crept closer and seemed oddly shaky as they quickly slit open the palm of their hand with a knife and opened up the casket.

Not wasting any more time, the figure shakily put their hand out and let their blood drip into the figures mouth.

Moments passed before the figures eyes flew open.Thus they were awakened and knew exactly what they wanted to do.

The hooded figure quickly tried to run off, a bit startled by what they had done but it was too late.

The figure had gotten out of its casket and threw them onto the ground, choking them.
"Leaving so soon?"