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She met his eyes of determination before she slowly nodded.
“Yes,” she replied. “We’ll get through it together.”
“Good girl,” he praised. “See you soon. I’ll make sure Loki and Arthur don’t kill each other.”
“Please.” She managed a smile.
We were making our way down the halls of our house, but Willow’s eyes were downcast as she seemed to only worry about walking forward.
“We never really got to take a tour of this place,” I noted as we made our way. “Dimitris really worked hard to make this fit everyone’s unique standards.”
That drew Willow’s attention as she briefly lifted her head to admire the current hallway we were in.
“You have a point,” she admitted as she glanced around. “I wanted to admire this place more. He worked super hard to get us a place we could actually call home. The last safe house…Well, I kinda burned it down.”
“Is that the place where you cut off the guy’s cock, fed it to him, and let him burn to the death with the rest of the place?” I summed up in question.
“Ya.” No sense of guilt. “He deserved it, the fucker. I didn’t know it was Garfield’s twin brother or some shit, but I don’t care. He should have known not to mess with us.”
I smirked at her boldness.
“I was a bit mad then…or maybe it was more driven to a sense of revenge,” she confessed and actually came to a stop, which forced me to do the same. “A fae hybrid forced Dimitris to say a lot of shitty things to me. I knew it was all a façade, that they were just using the situation to their advantage by pouring gasoline onto the already burning blaze of our heightened emotions. Jayce got hurt with a silver bullet, and Dimitris simply thought I was being rebellious which was why Jayce got injured. He didn’t know I’d gotten shot multiple times or that he was being manipulated magically until it was too late.”
“Do you still hold that against him?” I was curious.
“No. I never really held it against him. Dimitris is far too smart to play with others' emotions. Unless it's going to invoke a valuable lesson that makes you strong, he’d never prey on our weakness or make things worse. I knew that even back then in that heightened moment of trickery, but then again, I was suicidal.”
The admission made me stare blankly at her which made her smile as her tired eyes met mine.
“Surprised?”
I held my tongue because I wanted to think properly before threading through such a sensitive topic.
“When you guys saved me from what would have a been a predetermined death with those other police fuckers, I did research you a bit. I found the news broadcast where you admitted that you tried to kill yourself. To be honest, I didn’t understand why,” I honestly explained as I moved to face her—my hand still in hers. “You had everything. A life that was projected so boldly to the world. I read articles about how so many were shocked that you felt like your flicker of light was so insignificant when you’re such a dramatic flame in so many others’ lives. You’re truly a beam of light for so many, and I couldn’t wrap my head around why you’d decide to leave this world behind.”
I paused and took a deep inhale then let it out slowly.
“Now that I’ve been in your life for a bit, I can see why. I understand why it’s so fucking hard. It’s a balancing act that keeps going and going, and it only gets harder as more burdens and responsibilities are thrown onto both sides of your balance beam which you have to figure out how to scale. You do all of this while carrying a persona of power and grace. The world can’t see you struggle, which leaves you in the dark. I’m not sure how things were before I arrived, but I feel like your emotions were valid back then.”
I bit my lip for a moment before I quietly whispered, “My only fear is whether you’re feeling that looming pressure now?”
She said nothing at first, her eyes simply staring into mine. It was as if she were searching for the proper answer in her mind while trying to get a speck of judgment from mine. I bet she knew I carried none. I would never judge her for feeling like she was drowning with everything going on.
I wanted to confront it now because I knew deep within, we wouldn’t get another shot. Everything would simply get harder and harder until we were officially victorious.
And who knows how long it’s going to take.
“Is the pressure intense?” she began as she offered the question more to herself. “Yes. Intense. Boiling. Poisonous. It feels like days have gone by when in reality, it’s only been a few hours between chaos and mayhem.”
She paused again, but I didn’t rush her, waiting for her to answer the second part of the looming question.
“Is it to the point where I feel suicidal?” she continued. “No. I don’t feel like ending my life over the strain of this final challenge. It’s this hard because the finish line is right there. My enemies know it. We know it. Anyone who understands the power dynamic of this world knows how big of a deal this is. What I’m about to undergo is Wolf Domination. I’m reclaiming my crown after being awakened, discovering how endangered I was as a rare hybrid, and understanding that I was outcast from my community on purpose to make me stronger. And now I’m here. At that final step.”
“Does it frighten you?” I knew all too well of the burdensome weight of having to step into your role as a royal. It was scary for me, just like my whole journey upon these lands which ended in me escaping the Vile Queen’s clutches and being given a second chance at life thanks to Willow’s mercy.
“It does,” she confessed and gave me a sad smile. “It’s funny actually. I’m not frightened by the idea of rising to power.”
“Then what are you frightened of?” I couldn’t help but inquire because what was more frightening than claiming royal power?
