Chapter 97: Friends
Emira almost jumped out of her skin when she pushed open the small room Ryn had told her was her office yesterday and was met with the sound of clapping.
Her first thought was that someone else was inside, waiting for her, and her heart gave a painful jump. But it was only Ryn, standing there with a wide grin, coming straight to her and throwing her arms around her.
"What are you doing? Why are you trying to scare me?" Emira asked quickly once Ryn stepped back, still trying to catch her breath as she patted her heart, a bit uncomfortable with the hug. She had never really been hugged in the past... Not even her mother had hugged her...
"Scare you? You must be kidding! Are you even scared of anything at all? You! You actually dared to step in Prince Kael’s way. Ok, that was partly my fault but then you punched him! Who even does that? And as if that wasn’t enough, you followed him home too. I thought you were already brave for staying under the same roof as him, but this- this is far more than I imagined. Emira! You are quite an inspiration!"
Emira pulled a face. Brave? That wasn’t bravery. That was foolishness, plain and simple. Why did things keep happening to get her into trouble?
Why hadn’t she thought to beg for a separate lodging of her own? The place Ryn had shown her yesterday had been so beautiful, quiet, and perfect. A place where she could have kept to herself.
A place where she wouldn’t constantly run into the Princes and risk becoming the target of their schemes against the mate. That would have saved her a lot of stress, and maybe increase her life by a few years.
Even now, she could feel the future Luna’s eyes burning holes into her before she ran away with a cry... If a glance could burn, Emira was sure she would have been charred meat by now.
"Tell me something," Ryn leaned forward with curious eyes, lowering her voice as if someone might overhear, "is Prince Kael really as scary as he looks? As the legends say? What does he even do at night? People say he keeps the things he’s taken from those he killed, and he talks to them when everyone else is asleep. Is that true?"
Emira blinked. There were many things in his house taken from the dead. She had seen the cut-off body parts, bones, and other remains. They were kept like trophies and displayed quite proudly. But did he really sit there and talk to them? She didn’t think so. She had not even seen Prince Kael glance at them. So, she didn’t think he actually spoke to them.
Then another thought struck her. Legend? Ryn had used the word like everyone knew what it meant. But hadn’t Prince Kael grown up in the pack? Why then was Ryn asking her about him, as if she would know him better? Could this so-called legend be the reason everyone feared him so much?
And what if that fear could be solved? She remembered last night. The future Luna had come to Prince Kael and had even tried to kiss him. That meant Prince Zen’s plan might really work. But if the Luna could stop being afraid of Kael, if she could stand near him without trembling, then maybe things would move faster and everything would work better.
Her thoughts turned quickly, and she looked back at Ryn. "What legend? Tell me, Ryn. What is this legend? Why is everyone so scared of Prince Kael?"
Ryn’s smile faded at once. She stared at Emira, as her expression changed to one of worry. "I see. You are not scared of Prince Kael because you do not know the legend. That explains it."
She shook her head fast, almost as if she was closing the door on the subject. "Forget it. Forget it. Here—" she pulled out a sheet and handed it over, "I have a list of jobs for you. See what you are up for, and I will arrange something."
But Emira quickly caught her hand. "Ryn! Tell me, please..."
Ryn glanced around the empty office before letting out a long sigh. "Emira... it is forbidden to speak of the past. I... I think it is better that you do not know. I can see that you fear him, but your fear is not poisoned by the knowledge of what came before. Everyone in the pack fears him too, but they also respect him. It is out of that respect that no one speaks about the past."
Emira looked down at the list in her hand but even suddenly the need to know was too strong so she could only look at Ryn with pleading in her eyes. If someone could tell her, it was this girl...
Ryn sighed and caught her hand," My God! You are quite good at giving this pitiful look. I will have to be careful in the future or you will make me spill all my secrets."
Emira smiled then and promised," Don’t worry. Even if you spill all your secrets, I’ll keep them to myself and not tell anyone."
Ryn gave her a wry look then. " As if that is reassuring. Okay okay. I will tell you. But not here. If someone were to come and listen, then I’d end up dead. So, why don’t you look this list up. We’ll fix your job for now and then discuss other things?"
Satisfied that she had received the promise to get what she wanted and looked down at the list of things that Ryn had prepared for her... and saw one that made her light up.
"This. This would be perfect."
But when Ryn looked over, her smile faded into a frown. "You want to take care of the Scroll Room? Emira, that is the worst job you could have chosen! I’ve been trying to push that job onto someone for years, but no one ever accepts it. Every time a new pack member comes, I try to convince them, but somehow they always find a way to escape."
She leaned closer, lowering her voice. "Emira, I really like you, so I’ll warn you. The Scroll Room... it’s not where you want to be. That’s the kind of job I’d only ever give to my enemy. Its a punishment."
But Emira could only grin," I want it."