Wolf Sprite
Forty-One. My Return

POV – Lillia

“You can do this,” Elijah tells me, pressing his forehead against mine. I nod.

“I can do this,” I repeat. Elijah takes my hand and opens the door to the car for me before sliding in through the other side of the vehicle.

Because this is an ‘official’ visit, Elder Diomedes insisted that Elijah and I travel in our own car with him while our personal guards take the vehicle in the front, and some Royal Guards take the two cars behind us. The plan for our arrival had been meticulously discussed, every step put into place done so to make me feel safe, but still… I was anxious.

I squeeze Elijah’s hand as our car travels through the street. I can do this, I tell myself.

As we reach the familiar streets I grew up on, I’m reminded of the lonely walks to and from school and the grocery store. My heart begins to beat quickly, and Elijah squeezes my hand, giving me a reassuring smile. I can do this, I tell myself again.

The convoy travels past familiar shops, and I can’t help but look up at them. I notice no one is looking at the street through the windows, and my nerves increase. Urban Wolves is an interesting pack in that their pack house is just the upper floors above the many shop buildings, built in one long rectangular shape.

The car turns down Thomas Street, which leads to the caravan park and large parking area behind the shops and packhouse. I first noticed that the fence around the caravan park had been rebuilt. No longer is it a chain-link fence that you could literally step over to get to the carpark, but a built-up six-foot wooden fence hiding the caravans inside. The carpark has no cars inside. Instead, I see my old pack waiting for us.

The car stops in front of the carpark, and I nervously swallow and look out the window, watching as Pim and Arald open the car door for us. Elder Diomedes slides out first, followed by Elijah and then me.

Thankfully the guards we brought took their positions on either side of us, making ourselves challenging to see. My heart beats wildly as we step forward, following Pim, Bear, Arald and Kyle. Elijah squeezes my hand, and I look into his reassuring brown eyes. Elijah smiles at me and then faces the wall of guards in front of us, who step away to reveal Alpha Marcus, Luna Cheryl, Clark and the Beta family.

My senses fire up, and I breathe through my nose, their familiar scents becoming stronger. I sense the Alpha Wolf in Marcus, but it’s not strong. Even their Beta wolf, David, does not have a strong aura of power. I look at Elijah, who I know is a second-born Alpha, and his aura is a one-hundred times stronger than Marcus’. It’s odd.

“Your Highness,” They all say simultaneously, bowing or curtsying in greeting. I’m distracted from my thoughts as I watch Clark and his parents. Clark’s face shows he recognises me, but it’s almost as if he can’t picture how he knows who I am.

“Welcome to our pack, Urban Wolves, Your Highness. I am Alpha Marcus Winston; this is my mate, Luna Cheryl Winston, and our son, Clark Winston. Our Beta, David Garrison and his mate, Fiona Garrison, and their son David Junior Garrison,” Alpha Marcus introduces. We nod politely at their introductions.

“Thank you, Alpha Marcus. I would like to introduce you to my honoured guests, Princeps Lillia Lapis-Canutus de Sprigganager and her mate, Alpha Elijah Hillcrest of the Redwood pack,” Elder Diomedes replies.

“It is an honour to have you here. Please follow us; we have lunch waiting for us in the dining hall,” Luna Cheryl smiles, looking over at us. If she recognises me, she doesn’t show it, but as we follow the Alpha family, I notice Clark turn and look at us.

We follow the Alpha and Beta family upstairs, Alpha Marcus apologising for not having lifts. The dining hall is extensive, covering the space of two shops, with windows on one side looking out at the street. From below, you would think it was a private restaurant, but we knew better. Two long tables were set lengthwise on either side of the room, with a clear space in the middle. I look around and notice that the walls have been given a fresh coat of paint, and the curtains have been replaced with heavy-looking brown ones. The parquet floor has been polished, and memories of me and my fellow omegas on our hands and knees scrubbing it after a night of one of the pack’s partying fill my head.

I give Elijah a small smile as he takes my hand, and we follow the Alpha family quietly as we are directed to our seats. Elder Diomedes is next to Alpha Marcus, and I am seated between him and Elijah. Next to Elijah is Clark, then Beta David and Fiona, and David Junior.

Quietly I watch as the higher members of the pack take their seats at the other table. They’re not all here, which I knew when we arrived. The omegas, those who lived in the caravan park, weren’t there. I also note that some of the chairs are left empty. For the children, perhaps? They’re not here either.

A man walks into the middle of the room and clears his throat before speaking. I recognise him as the Gamma of the pack. He always gave me the creeps with how he looked at Mum and me.

“Your Highnesses, I am Gamma Hayden Grogan, and on behalf of my Alpha and Luna, I would like to welcome you to our pack, Urban Wolves….” Gamma Hayden speaks.

- You know, grogan is another word for shit? – Elijah links me. I begin to laugh and hold it back, making me cough.

“Are you alright?” Elder Diomedes asks. I nod, embarrassed.

- Thanks for that – I tell Elijah, nudging him. Thanks to that comment, I missed Hayden’s announcement of our dinner menu, so I have to wait and see. I’m excited to try it; I know it’ll be good; everything our chefs put together for the high-blood meals was good.

“So, Alpha Elijah, what pack are you from?” Alpha Marcus asks.

“I grew up in Ginger Foot pack, but I will take over the role as Alpha for Redwood Pack when I turn twenty-five,” Elijah says.

“I’ve never heard of Redwood Pack. Is it a large pack?” Clark asks.

“Yes. We currently have about four and a half thousand members,” Elijah explains.

“Wow. How did you become the Alpha of a pack that size?” David Junior asks.

“I was asked to take the position by the Royal Council, and it helps that my mate is the pack’s heir,” Elijah says, resting his hand on my thigh.

Our first dish arrives, something called an entrée, and I quietly thank the server who places the plate in front of me. She moved too quickly for me to recognise who she was, but I noticed that all the servers were dressed in uniforms, and the uniforms looked new.

“What about you, Princeps Lillia Lapis-Canutus de Sprigganager? Did you grow up in a pack or in a fairy hub?” Luna Cheryl asks. I look over at her. Doesn’t she recognise me?

“I grew up in a pack,” I say, looking over at Elijah, who nods.

“Now for tonight’s entertainment,” Gamma Hayden says, standing proudly from his seat at the table. The door to the dining room enters, and a group of the pack’s children and teenagers walk in, dressed in similar black and white clothing and holding recorders. I recognise the children, having gone to school with most of them. The children of the omegas stand at one side of the room while the rest of the children and teens stand on the other. Still segregated.

They raise their recorders to their lips and begin to play. I smile as I recognise the tune- ‘Hot Cross Buns’. When I went to primary school, I also had to learn that on the recorder. The children finish their song, and everyone claps.

“How come half the children stand away from the rest?” I ask Alpha Marcus, knowing precisely the reason why. They’re omegas.

“Oh… uh, um… well…” Alpha Marcus begins as the children play their next tune.

I smile to myself after they finish when I see Gamma Hayden walk over to the omegas and tell them to stand with the rest of the children.

- Well done – Elder Diomedes links me as we watch.

The main course was served while the children continued to play, and then dessert. The children were shuffled out during dessert, and the high-blood children joined their families in the dining hall.

“That was wonderful, Alpha Marcus. Pray tell, where are the rest of the children eating?” Elder Diomedes asked when he, too, noticed only some of the children returned.

“We do not have room for all our members to eat here at the same time,” Luna Cheryl explains, making a pained expression on her face.

“It’s fascinating you say that when the families who are not here are the ones who live in the caravan park,” I comment.

“Some of your pack members live in the caravan park?” Elder Diomedes asks, interrupting whatever reply the pack is going to make.

“It’s only temporary until an apartment opens up for them,” Alpha Marcus explains.

- We’ll talk about this some more in our meeting after lunch – Elder Diomedes advises before I can retort. I nod and continue to eat my dessert, not enjoying the sweetness anymore.

Nothing more is said about the missing omegas, and after the desserts are finished and the plates are cleared, we are given time to mingle with the rest of the pack.

“Princeps Lillia, you wouldn’t be….” Clark says as he walks up to me.

“Alpha Clark, we can have a proper conversation with the Princess at our meeting. In the meantime, I would like the Princess to speak with your pack members, if that is all right?” Elder Diomedes interrupts. Clarks looks at me before returning his focus to Elder Diomedes.

“Of course, Your Highness. My apologies,” Clark replies, bowing before walking away. I sigh in relief. I feel as if I’ve been keeping my breath steady most of the night, trying hard not to let my nerves get hold of my emotions.

I walk with Elijah and Elder Diomedes around the room, listening as the men speak to the pack members. They all seem happy, but of course, these pack members aren’t omegas, so their responses are not genuine reflections of the life I grew up in.

“Your Highness, it is time for the meeting,” Arald says, walking over to us.

“Ah yes, it was kind of you to talk to us,” Elder Diomedes says, turning towards Mr Cartwright, who has been telling us about his bookstore in the city. From what Mr Cartwright said, business is booming, and most profits return to the pack.

“Thank you for listening,” Mr Cartwright says, bowing with a proud smile.

Luna Cheryl walks over to us with a smile.

“Princeps Lillia, I feel as if I know you from somewhere,” she says, looking me over. Of course, she knows me. She spent my life shoving me and my mother away.

“That was what I was thinking,” Clark adds, standing beside his mother.

“As I said, let’s discuss this at our meeting,” Elder Diomedes interrupts. Luna Cheryl nods while Clark glares in my direction. I can feel him trying to breach my mind to link me, but I block him. It’s bad enough that he bullied me verbally out loud and that his words rattled my brain at night, but I didn’t want to hear it through a mind link as well.

We follow Alpha Marcus and Luna Cheryl down familiar hallways. I notice they have been recently vacuumed, with the scent of cotton from the carpet deodoriser in the air. Elijah starts sneezing, and I smile, looking at him. The smell is strong and potent.

“Our housekeepers keep our rooms clean,” Luna Cheryl says, smiling over her shoulder at my mate. Elijah nods and sneezes again.

We entered a room with a large rectangular table that sits twelve and a large television at one end. A man I don’t recognise sits near the television, a computer keyboard in front of him. The man stands and bows deeply when he sees Elder Diomedes.

“Your Highnesses,” the man greets.

“Ethan, you may sit,” Elder Diomedes replies. The man, who must be Ethan, sits.

“Mr Breyrues recommended we meet in this room,” Alpha Marcus states, indicating we take a seat. Alpha Marcus and Clark sit, and Beta David takes his seat next to him. I watch Elder Diomedes replace a seat next to Ethan and I sit between him and Elijah.

“We will leave you to this if you would like to come with us, Princess? Let the men do their work?” Luna Cheryl states, standing next to Beta Fiona.

“No. You both will sit and join us. This includes you as well,” I reply, indicating both Luna Cheryl and Beta Fiona. My Alpha tone seeps through my instruction. Luna Cheryl looks inquisitively at her mate, who nods, before joining the table and sitting down.

“I do not know how this meeting has anything to do with us,” Luna Cheryl complains softly, making Elder Diomedes growl.

“How can this not involve you, Cheryl? This is your pack, and you are also accountable for it,” Elder Diomedes scolds. For all her faults, I am surprised to see Luna Cheryl blush. I have never seen her put in her place before.

Quietness fills the room, almost as if nobody has the guts to say anything.

“Of course, we are honoured and happy to have you here today,” Alpha Marcus says, cutting through the silence. Clark and Beta David nod their heads in agreement.

“We’ll see how happy everyone is after all is said and done,” Elijah says, glaring at the Alpha, who visibly gulps.

~

Princeps Lillia Lapis-Canutus de Sprigganager – Princess Lillia Greystone of the land of Sprite/ of fairland.

~

Edited with Grammarly