Seeing Sergio again turned out to be more challenging than Regina thought. Mavis went from minorly protective to full-on lockdown. Aisha had to come to see her, and that still meant not leaving her room. Atta was now working from home, and that kept Regina under constant surveillance.
Mavis said it was for her protection. When they got home that night from the forest, they all sat down, and Mavis told Regina why she was never to see Sergio again.
"Years ago, Sergio met his Fated, and they were a happy couple. Atta had grown up with Sergio, and they were friends. The four of us hung out quite often. Then there was a rogue attack, and his Fated and his son died."
"Sergio went feral; he attacked everyone in sight, even his siblings and Atta. He killed some wolves; one was a child. It took several warriors to take him down and make Scudo give back control to Sergio."
"He should have been forced out of the pack." Mavis spat out, and Atta wrapped an arm around her waist. "But his siblings vouched for him. He promised to stay near the border, only fighting to protect the pack."
Regina understood that Mavis and Atta were worried Sergio would go feral with her around. But Regina disagreed with them. She felt something from him and his wolf, something that made her feel safer. Somehow, she knew that he wouldn't attack her.
If she ever had the chance to meet up with Sergio. Mavis was checking up on her every five minutes, her window was locked, and Atta was at the front door. And until they could, 'trust her' nothing would change.
"Go along for a couple of days, they loosen up, and you meet him in secret. It's not that hard; I do it with my parents all the time."
Regina sighed and dropped her head into her hands; of course, that would be the advice Aisha would give her.
"Say you need to go shopping for Father's Day. We go shopping, you, me and Mavis. And if you somehow sneak away or get taken, it's not your fault."
'If I were kidnapped, Mavis would get even worse. I'd be locked in my room instead of the whole house.'
Aisha groaned and fell to the floor. Regia let out a laugh and, in turn, fell to the bed.
'I do want to go out. Shopping would be fun; I'm sure if Mavis went with us, she would agree.'
"Fine." Aisha held out the word, and Regina laughed at her friend. "I'll go tell Mavis; you get ready to go. Kalu and Barasa are down there, so Mavis should be good to go now."
Aisha was out of her room before she even finished her sentence. Regina went along, actually getting dressed out of sleeping clothes and brushing her hair. She really hadn't done much with herself; it wasn't like she was going anywhere. Shopping would be good for her, breathing fresh air and seeing people.
She glanced at the clock and grinned. Maybe she could even convince Mavis to go back to that woodshop. There had to be something in the shop that Atta would like, Mavis would know.
"Luce! You ready to go?"
Mavis knocked as she shouted, and Regina opened the door with a skip in her step.
"Well, let's go out then. Aisha sends her apologies; Mable needed her for something she didn't really explain. You good just shopping with me?"
Oh, this was all just a game for Aisha. She invites Mavis to go out; then she suddenly has something else to do. That forces Regina to spend time alone with Aisha. Smart.
Regina smiled anyway; it had been some time since she did something with Mavis. Looking back, they really didn't do anything together.
Mavis kissed Atta on the way out, and they went to the garage in silence. Music filled the car ride, and no one said anything until Mavis pulled into the Mall's parking lot. It was a painful drive.
"So, a Father's Day gift. That's what Aisha said you were looking for."
'Yeah, I just don't know what to get. Aisha said to bring you since you would know Atta better.'
Why was this so awkward!
Mavis hummed, and the two got out. Regina looked all around, avoiding eye contact with Mavis. She didn't know why; she just felt like this was all too forced. What did you do with your mom? Regina didn't know; she spent her childhood running around in wolf form.
They shopped without saying a word. Mavis would point out a store; they would look and end up leaving. Mavis did say that Atta was a book lover and a history buff. Regina didn't understand, so she just followed Mavis.
After taking a water break, Mavis sat down with a dramatic sigh.
"I'm sorry you're stuck shopping with me. I know you would have had more fun with Aisha. I've never done this; I don't know what we are supposed to be even doing."
'I don't know either, I've never done stuff with a mom figure.'
Mavis looked down, and a strange look overcame her. Regina leaned back as a wicked smile grew on Mavis's face.
"Well, since we don't know what to do, let's have some fun. Come on!"
Mavis pulled Regina up and started running through the crowd. They stopped at a store Regina didn't recognize, and Mavis didn't explain.
"Hi, I'd like a treatment for my daughter and me."
It turns out; it was called a Spa. Ladies took them to the back and put colors and designs in front of the two of them. Mavis got a simple 'French nails,' and Regina had no idea what was going on. So, Mavis told her just to pick a color.
Looking down at the wheel, Regina pointed to a pretty color; it was like the water at the lake. Blue, but not quite. Mavis then told the ladies to add glitter, and they down at a table.
Regina watched as Mavis went first. The lady took Mavis's hand and started messing around with her fingernails. Confusion turned to awe as Mavis's nails were suddenly longer and had white tips. It was like magic, making nails different with only some tools.
When it was her turn, Regina happily turned her hands over to the lady. Mavis said to just paint them, and Regina was disappointed when the lady didn't make her nails any longer. But she did change the color to the color she had picked out earlier. Some nails were even shiny!
"Aqua, that's the color you picked. Pretty, huh?"
Regina held her hands up, watching as her nails caught the light. They were very pretty; Mavis's were more simple but just as cool.
After that, the awkward air seemed to vanish. Mavis took Regina to several other cool shops. There was sparkly clothing, scary pointy shoes, and even metal that could dangle from your ears. Aisha had taken her to this very same Mall, but she hadn't seen any of these things when they were shopping for Mavis.
Seeing that Regina loved the earrings, Mavis asked if she would want them. Regina nodded, unsure of how they would even get the metal through her ears. She was shown the piercing gun and rapidly changed her mind.
Mavis held her hand the whole time as her ears were pierced. It turns out; it doesn't hurt that much. The lady said she had to keep the earrings in for a while before wearing the other earrings they bought. Regina agreed, excited for the chance to wear the dangling earrings.
Eventually, they did find something for Atta. Mavis got him his favorite treat, and then they found a book he had wanted for years. It looked boring to Regina, but it was for Atta.
"Wasn't that fun? I guess we should go home; dinner should be done when we get home."
Mavis started to go for the large doors, but Regina pulled her arm in the other direction.
'One more shop, please?'
Regina looked up, trying to use what Aisha called 'puppy eyes.' It must have worked because Mavis went along.
She didn't know where the shop was, but she knew which way to go anyways. There was a feeling, a tugging in her chest to go a specific direction.
On the other side of the Mall, near the exit doors, Regina found the Little Forest. In the window, there were new creations, but she went back to the same spot.
"Is this where you got your clock? I don't think I've ever been here."
There was a new smell in the shop. It was faint, the scent of wood and fruits. The wood made sense, but she didn't smell this fruity smell last time.
Dropping Mavis's hand, Regina walked around the store to find where the smell was coming from. It smelt so good; she just had to find the source.
She heard Mavis and the counter girl talking, but she kept walking to the back. The smell grew slightly stronger, but it was faint. It was mostly near the back door and that small shelf where she got the clock. That meant she was looking for the person who carved these, someone that wasn't there at the moment.
"Regina? Did you find something you wanted to buy?"
"Hi Regina, good to see you again!"
She just smiled and waved, suddenly wanting to go home. Whoever she was looking for was gone, no use being here anymore.
She did look at the shelf, most of the items were the same, but there was a new one.
It was perfectly smooth and in the shape of a wolf. It was looking up, and it seemed to be howling. Regina picked it up, and it fit perfectly in her hand, small and smooth. It was beautiful.
"Do you want to get that? It's only five dollars, it's small, and my brother doesn't like to charge a lot for his works."
Regina nodded and Mavis gently guided her to the counter.
Mavis paid, and Regina happily took it back into her hand.
"Thank you, Robin, have a good day!"
"You, too, come back again."
As soon as the door was closed, Mavis looked back, causing Regina to stop.
'Is something wrong?'
"They are pack members, just by blood. They don't go to the packhouse or meetings, but I know they are pack members. It makes me wonder, though, who they are and why they don't come."
Mavis stopped there, shook her head, and continued walking. Regina didn't understand, so she just followed along.
The car ride was quiet, but now awkward like it was on the way to the Mall. Mavis seemed to be focusing on the whole pack member situation while Regina kept running her thumb up and down the wolf's back.
This trip had been a success. They got something for Atta, something for themselves, and it was fun. Regina did like shopping with Aisha, but Mavis wasn't too bad either.
They had barely even set the bags down when an urgent thought raced through Regina's and Mavis's head.
'Rogues attacking from the south!'
Mavis reacted first, pulling away the rug in the family room, unlocking the steel door, and pushing Regina down. The door was closed, and her parents left in a flash.
Sitting on the floor, Regina pulled her knees in close. There were lights, food, and even games down here. But Regina couldn't think of anything other than the rogues.
Wolves had attacked her pack years ago. Her family had all died because of those rogues. And they were attacking again.
This pack was different than Lotta Lunare; they are warrior wolves while this pack was not. They had the mountains and used them for protection. Lotta Lunare didn't, and so they trained more and were known for being warriors.
Could her pack take on these rogues? Or would they end up all dead like her family?
She couldn't hear anything; Regina didn't know if that was good or bad. Maybe everyone would die, and she would end up rotting away in the floor. No one would even know. Her family would all be dead anyway.
"Hurry up! Boss will be mad if we don't get her."
Someone was trying to get in. There was knocking and banging; someone who didn't know how to get in was trying to break in. That meant there weren't any friends of Mavis or Atta.
Regina picked up a knife from the small kitchen set and sat behind a chair, trying to stay as quiet as possible. It was a tiny space, but it would work.
'Mavis, Atta.'
No response.
'Aisha!'
Nothing.
She didn't feel any link; there weren't any strings. Was she too far down from the pack? Did that affect the link?
Reaching out to the pack, Regina tried to pull at anyone. 'Hello!'
No one reached back.
'Please.'
'The pack link has been shut down, no one will respond.'
Regina let out a sigh; Speranza was fine; she still had her wolf.
'During attacks, it's reserved for those fighting. They don't want outside distractions, so no one will hear you.'
"How long will it take, stupid!"
"I've almost cracked it, shut up."
'What do I do, Speranza? I can't fight, can you?'
Her heart rate increased at the idea; she couldn't fight; she had to leave. She was trapped, literally. The rogues could enter, and it would all be over.
'I can try, I will do my best to keep you safe.'
Speranza momentarily took control, forcing her to shift. The knife hit the floor as Speranza kept her eye on the ceiling.
'I can help.'
It was that voice, one that Speranza couldn't even hear.
'Let me have a little bit of power; I can reach out and get someone to help.'
Could she trust a voice she didn't even hear or a voice Speranza couldn't? But if she didn't, would she be attacked or killed by whoever was trying to come in? Nothing terrible would happen, right?
Relaxing, Regina let this strange voice have more control.
It was bizarre. Speranza was already in control, but giving the rest to this strange voice left Regina in the back, powerless.
She didn't hear anything. Not from the people trying to come in or whoever that voice was trying to contract. Regina couldn't see or feel; the wolf and voice were in control. Lost in the dark, Regina finally relaxed, unable to worry or fear.
Speranza had no idea what was happening, only hearing growls and screams coming from above. The ceiling was torn away, gold eyes peeking through.
****
"The attempt failed, sir."
A fist pounded the desk, and the man let out a growl.
"We finally find her, and you let her slip through your fingers? Are you really that useless!"
"But she is close; I promise to bring her back home."
The man took a breath and leaned back in his chair.
"I trust you, after all, you where the one who found her the first time. Bring her back; we are all missing her. And once she is home with us, you can come home too."
The man slammed the phone down before the person on the other side spoke.
She was so close, just barely out of his reach. But not for much longer, he would bring her home and make his Fated happy once more.
"Just you wait, my dear," He traced the photograph on his desk, smiling at the young girl's face." You will be safe once more very soon."
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