L Y C A N

17

"Hell to the no"

Alec stared at her in annoyance "not your call" he pulled a shirt over his head roughly.

"Not my call?" She scuffed in disbelief "I think you're forgetting who has the power here!" folding her arms she came to stand before him, blocking his way.

"How could I forget, you're the reason I'm being thrown to the wolves in the first place" her stomach sank "gosh, I know it's my fault but do you have to be such an ass" he pointed a figure at her, his face stern and voice firm "don't say anything about this, the last thing I need is people thinking I'm getting special treatment because I'm related to you" 

When Alec finished throwing everything in his bag he winked at her playfully "you know me, no one can kick my ass but you" his lighthearted joke did nothing but make her want to throw up. 

"This isn't a joke Alec, they'll give you wolves bane! Do you even know what that is? And your opponents will be at their full strength, I'm talking well trained royal guards at their full health while you're going to be like a human on drugs" 

He rolled his eyes at her "very few people die during this" he offered lamely and her eyes widened
"Alec!"
"Hey, do yourself and me a favor and don't watch"
"But Alec-"
"Calm down, Alexandra, nothing bad is going to happen" she didn't know how to tell him that for a few days her dreams had been filled with death and blood, she didn't know how to explain that this made her feel helpless or how to tell Alec that her worries weren't unfounded. So when she offered no other excuse he simply hugged her softly and left and she stood there wondering if she was maybe worrying too much and blowing things out of proportion.

she trailed after him slowly, his back broad and bare except for a flimsy tank top, how that was suppose to protect him from a blow she wasn't sure, her stomach twisted. 

She knew it was her fault, he was being punished for following her and disobeying the King's orders

"the King gave orders to not allow you to enter the arena" Nixon, imposing as ever blocked her way.

"unless you're going to physically restrain me move" Alexandra all but growled as Alec's silhouette became smaller, Nixon sighed deeply and stubbornly stood before her.

"Alec is being punished for assisting you, you should allow him to regain his dignity in the face of the King"

Alexandra sputtered " are you lecturing me right now" she asked incredulously, "If anyone should be punished its you!" she jabbed, Nixon bowed deeply "My apologies your highness I would not dare-"

"save it" she muttered, "I was at fault, completely, so move before I do something even more reckless"
"what's going on?" Amid came up beside her "Nixon aren't you one of the royal guards being punished for putting the future Queen in danger?"

Alexandra's stomach dropped, Nixon turned to Amid with a bow, "I'm needed now, temporary guards will be with the Queen shortly, I hope you can protect her until then" he muttered before leaving 

Amid tsked, "knowing Dimitri's temper when he's in that ring he just might put them in a coma"

Alexandra rushed off at those words, entering the mostly empty arena save for a few soldiers, guards and castle personnel, her stomach burning.

She was a fool to think everything would be fine, a fool to think that because Dimitri was forgiving of her he'd do the same with his guards.

" I don't think you should watch this" Amid said next to her, sounding a little nervous "it's very gruesome" 

Dimitri entered the arena, shirtless, eyes fierce. Instinctively Alexandra moved closer until the metal bars at the very end of the stairs stopped her from moving any further. It was the closest place to the circular pit and so she didn't have to strain when Dimitri began speaking.

"After you have received your dose of wolfsbane you'll fight against one another and won't stop until every bone in your opponents body is broken, if you find that too barbaric then I challenge you to pin me to the ground for a total of ten seconds, if you achieve this, this entire thing will be called off"

Alexandra instinctively let go of the railing when she felt a sharp pinch on her palms from holding it too tight

"Your highness we should exit the arena" She didn't need to turn to know it was her temporary guards 

"This doesn't make any sense!, even without wolfsbane they'd stand no chance against Dimitri th-"

"It's another punishment, it's to ensure that the entire time they're in that ring they are in excruciating pain, if they can't function with the wolfsbane members of the royal guard will start attacking them until they fight back" Amid sounded strange to her and as their eyes met, he seemed cold, distant.

"This isn't something you should see, he's a totally different person when he fights, you won't look at him the same"

She felt as if her knees would give out, something was odd  "This punishment is excessive for the-"

"You are the future Queen, they knew what they signed up for when they took it upon themselves to be your guards, a punishment like this is something that every single royal guard has been through, it's apart of their strength and resistance training. as for your cousin this won't be the first or last time he will need to fight with wolfsbane if he truly wants to be a member of the royal guards".

She didn't have time to form a reply before someone came to whisper to Amid, the frown that marred his face made her even more anxious.

"You should leave Alexandra"

"bu-"

"The King's Father  would like to have dinner with you"