Page 41 of Knot Quite Ready

Kathleen's face contorts with a feral smile as she looks at Storm up and down. Storm narrows her eyes at her briefly before turning to everyone else, "Well met."

"We've spoken," Calder responds with a chuckle. "It's nice to meet you in person. I admit I expected you to be slightly taller. Tell me, Storm, do you still think you can use my scales as toothpicks?"

Storm laughs. "Miniature exterior, ferocious interior, or in my case, miniature mare, force to beware. Besides, Calder, you should know more than anyone here. It's not the size of the boat but the motion of the blood-red ocean."

Calder gives a booming laugh while several of the members and their entourage snicker. Calian smiles softly with a shake of his head.

A large, imposing wolf-shifter moves closer, his robe billowing in the breeze, his Scottish accent thick with an air of authority. "Having dispensed with all the threats," he begins, a small smile on his face, "Safe to say that you are Casimir?” He directs the question at me. There is something vaguely familiar about him; in fact, he reminds me a bit of Aneira.

I step forward and extend my hand, which he shakes firmly. “Yes, I am Casimir, Alpha to the Spiorad pack.”

He grins widely, creases forming at the edges of his eyes and gray irises sparkling. The expression is at odds with his rough exterior: he must be over six and a half feet tall, with long, black hair tied back, and a deep, jagged scar that runs from the top of his forehead all the way across his left eye, which is still intact, down to his bottom lip. The smile is one I've seen before, and I resist the urge to look toward Aneira.

“Pleasure to meet you. My name is Harailt of the Hellraizer Pack. I know this may all seem sudden and unexpected, as it's not often that the famous," he says sarcastically, "and esteemed Calian asks for our presence in any sort of capacity. It's even rarer for him to recommend a pack to be set up in his jurisdiction. In fact," he glances around at the other members of the council, “I think this may be the first time he has ever asked our help with his beloved Cabria Shifter Falls.”

I keep my face carefully blank, but his comment grates on me, and if Aneira's suddenly tense body is anything to go by, it pisses her off too.They rush to meet a pack for the sake of gossip, but when it came to protecting shifters, they moved at a glacial pace?

Another man chuckles throatily, stepping closer to us. “That's a nice way of saying we are a bloody nosy lot, and we scrambled here faster than eggs in a pan! This is the first time Calian has invited us anywhere near this shifter oasis.”

“You know damn well why, Kenai,” Calian says, a frown on his face.

“Yes, yes. You're a private man. We get it.” He clears his throat and looks toward me, “Apologies. My name is Kenai of the Collins Grizzly pack,” he nods his head with a fatherly smile.

I raise my voice to drown out Storm's small squeal and subsequent humming of the Brother Bear songs, ironic, really. Kenai's eyes flick her way, and he stifles a laugh before waving a hand to the rest of the members, prompting them to introduce themselves. Rory's aunt, Mila Daria of the Feralis Pack, who is head of the bird shifters, and Pierce's father, Jonas of Leopardo Pack, head of all feline shifters. Kathleen is their mage liaison who is paid to protect the council and assist them with instant travel. Everyone else in their party, other than Pierce and Rory, were either guards like Ralph or Seconds like Tristan.

“It is a pleasure to meet you all. My pack and I are grateful for your quick visit. I hope to prove to all of you how our pack will be an integral addition to the shifter community as a formally established pack. Before I take you around, may I formally introduce you to my second in command, Tristan, as well as my mate, Aneira?” Tristan nods respectfully as I turn to grab Aneira's hand and bring her closer, tucking her into my side, if only to keep her from losing it as rage and annoyance reverberate through our bond.

“It is an absolute pleasure to meet all of you,” she smiles brightly, her voice slightly strained.

Harailt makes a soft noise in the back of his throat as he looks at Aneira, as if in a dream, before shaking his head.

Kenai clears his throat as he looks at Harailt curiously. “Well then, let's not waste any time, shall we? Casimir, lead the way please. I am sure Calian went over a few basic things, but we will walk around your pack land twice, once with you as our guide and then again without your guidance so we can ask your packmates a few questions. We will then have a formal sit-down with your pack, followed by a quick deliberation, and our decision will be after dinner. In this case, Calian has also requested that, if everything goes favorably for your pack, for us to formally acknowledge your mate bond and accept Aneira as your chosen. While this is usually done at the yearly Alpha-shifter meetings, in your case, Harailt has already had his yearly meeting. No sense in having you wait when we are all here."

I don't respond. Instead, I briefly lock gazes with Aneira.

Her eyes flood with understanding, and I feel a surge of confidence flood our bond as she presses herself against me---my arms instinctively wrapping around her.

“Show them your heart, Casimir. When they see what I did from the moment I met you..."

"They'll run?" I tease.

Her warm laugh envelopes me, and she reaches on her toes to press a kiss on my lips,” "They will fall in love so hard, they will have no choice but to accept your greatness and your vision."

My pulse quickens as I fall into her eyes. Calian clears his throat, breaking the spell. I take a deep breath and gratefully squeeze Aneira's hand, feeling the tension in my chest dissipate.

Steeling myself, I move forward, wondering how I can show them my heart when I was just looking into it’s eyes?

* * *

Aneira

I hang backwith Storm as Casimir leads the council on a tour of the pack lands. Although I had been formally introduced to the pack myself after a quick walk-through the afternoon before, I'm still interested in learning a bit more about the pack and what was in the works for them as a whole. Part of me feels like a tourist to my own pack lands, and that's a mind-fuck itself—the fact that these lands are technically mine now too. “Sure, just give me a moment to channel my inner quest-giver and transform into a wise old sage,” Storm deepens her voice to mimic Casimir as she keeps pace by my side.

I laugh softly, “part of me wanted to pretend they were talking to me so I could say, ‘Right, then. First years this way, please! Come on, now, don't be shy! Follow me!’”

“Fuck, Hagrid. That was way better than mine,” she says softly as Calian shoots her a look. She sticks out her tongue.

“I admit, in a short time, he has pulled a fucking HGTV miracle,” Storm marvels a few minutes later, and I smile with pride as Casimir showcases the new buildings and their features, starting with a state-of-the-art library—swoon—that he says is soon to be filled with books donated by various charities he has ties with. I have to agree with Storm. When Tristan mentioned being tired of seeing the wolves build homes, I was picturing a quaint rustic town, but the architecture here would make Wilder faint.

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