Racing to the kitchen. It was a mess. The china cabinet was open and there was blood and glass everywhere. It didn’t look like a single cup or plate made it out of the attack. Deep sadness filled me the more I looked at the mess. I hoped whoever was the reason for all the blood and broken china; I hoped they suffered great misfortune. Anger overtook the sadness, and I punched the cabinet, causing most of the rest of the broken glass inside to hit the floor. Unable to fully process the loss of my mother's special things, I attacked the china cabinet, punching and ripping chunks of it off until it was nothing more than kindling for a fire. The glass under my feet was definitely cutting in, but I was too angry to care. There was nothing left in here I wanted. 

Walking away from the kitchen, I headed in the direction of my room, remembering at the last second about the teacup in my study. Praying to all the gods and goddesses that were listening, I hoped the cup was well and fine. It was literally the only one I had left, and I needed it to be alright.

Opening the door, I stepped inside, someone grabbing me and pulling me back out of the study. 

“No! Let me go! I need to make sure it’s—-”

“Elias, enough.”

Alpha William's voice flowed into my ears. 

“No! Let me go, damn you! I need to make sure—”

“Stop thrashing!”

“I need to make sure her last cup is alright! You don't understand—-”

“Elias, please stop thrashing, and I'll let you go.” His tone was gentle now, and it caught me off guard. 

“What?”

“Relax and I'll let you look at whatever it is you've come here for.”

He let me go a few moments later, and I entered the office. The cup sat there in its perfect glory. Overwhelmed by seeing it perfectly fine and ok, I started to tear up. Deep breathing was the only thing right at this moment that kept me from sobbing and turning into a complete mess. 

“What is so important about the china cup?” He asked, suddenly.

I turned, looking at him. Using my sleeves to wipe my eyes. 

“It belonged to my late mother. They were something she collected. This is the last one. The others got broken when you and your people attacked me.” I said, anger lacing my tone towards the end of the statement.

“I see. They are important to you.”

“I have a few more things of hers that I need, and I will protect them with my life.” I declared. 

“While you are here, you might as well get everything you need. I will make sure they keep and bring all of your belongings for you. But grab anything you need at this moment.”

I nodded and pushed past William, out the door and down the hall to my bedroom. Opening the door, everything was the same as when I woke up. The sunlight filled my room and William looked around. He touched my blankets on my bed and hummed. 

“Did you want these?”

“The blankets?”

“Yes, they are far nicer than the furs and wools that I have.”

“If you would like it, you're welcome to take it. You have claimed my territory, so everything inside belongs to you as it is.”

“That's not exactly true, but I get what you're saying.”

Getting down on my knees on the far side of the bed, I pulled a trunk out from underneath and opened it. The hand sewn blankets inside were still in perfect condition. I touched them softly before pulling them out and setting them on the bed top. 

“More blankets?”

“My mother made these. I've never actually used them. They are more like keepsakes. They are important to me, like the teacup.”

“Your mother, how did she pass?”

“She passed away in childbirth with my brother. My aunt sent my brother away to live with another family. He was not my father’s child, rather he was the child of a wolf, or that’s what I was told.” I said, not realising exactly what I was saying. 

“Your mother birthed a living hybrid? How? It’s supposed to be impossible, not to mention shameful for both parties and their families.” William said, not holding back on his opinion of that matter. 

“I don't know if he is still alive, and I don't know where he is, but yes. He was alive when he was sent away. I was twenty then. Eighty-three years ago, now.”

“You've never looked for him?”

“No. I was forbidden. My father refused to allow me to do so.”

“That’s why your father hated us so damn much. All because your mother sought the company of a werewolf and conceived and birthed a blood hybrid child.” William said, disgusted with my mother and father clearly. 

“My mother deserved to be happy, regardless of with whom.”

“Your father didn't share that opinion.”

That ended our conversation. William made me grab anything I needed and practically hauled me back to his pack. He clarified I was not allowed to leave his pack again, not without him. I belonged to him, after all. He refrained from calling me his war prize.

Settling on just declaring that I was his belonging. I didn’t like it, but there was little I could do about it. 

Here we were, standing in the cabin, arguing about my father again, but this time I had given him more bullets to use against me, my brother, and my mother. 

“I'm done fighting with you, William. You are growing tiresome on my nerves.”

“Is that so, your highness?”

“Yes, you pin my father’s sins on me and act like it’s my job to shoulder it. You've taken my freedom and my home. What else do you want? My entire life, perhaps?”

“I haven't decided yet.”

“Lovely, so my whole life is to be dictated by a man who has done nothing but show me anger the entire time I've been here.” I snapped. 

“If your mother would have kept her legs closed and been loyal to her marriage instead of giving birth to an abomination, then maybe we wouldn’t—---”

His words hit me like bricks, and I punched him in the face. 

“Don't you dare speak of mother that way and don't call my brother an abomination! You don't know either of them!” I yelled, far past livid. 

He was vibrating with anger again. He took two steps towards me and closed the space between us. 

“I’m sure your daddy would be so proud of you!” He snarled. 

“Proud of me? I think you're projecting, he would be so proud of you, living up to everything he instilled in you. You're right, you're reaping what he sewed.” I yelled, not sure the impact my words would have but hoping that they would hurt him. 

He grabbed me and slammed me against the wall, his teeth bared and his eyes yellow, the brightest yellow. It was the first time I had ever seen such a yellow. I should have been terrified of him, but I was memorized with the yellow of his eyes. Reaching up with one of my hands, I touched his cheek. 

He growled lowly, slowly showing me his canine teeth, but I wasn't scared of him, not like I should have been. Fear was the last thing in this moment. 

“I've never seen such a colour of yellow.” I murmured, not moving my hand. He backed up and looked so confused. My hand fell back to my side, and I still looked at his eyes, even as they faded back to his normal emerald green colour.

“Never do that again.” He hissed. 

I nodded, not saying another word. 

“Let’s go. We need to get something to eat sometime today.”

He made me walk in front of him, right to the hall and inside there were fewer werewolves and vampires than there had been before. Panic set in and I looked at him, speaking. 

“Where are the rest of them?”

“They are probably in the few cabins that my Beta gave them. Relax, I would know if something happened, like what you're clearly thinking.” 

I faked sitting and once he was sitting down; I took off. To my people. He was calling my name, and I was blatantly ignoring him. My aunt spoke low when I sat down beside her. 

“Elias, are you trying to get yourself killed? We all heard about your stunt this morning.”

“I needed to get mom’s things before they ruined it all.”

“The beta is allowing us all to return to our homes and grab the things we need. But there needs to be a wolf for every vampire. We can't go home, so we have no choice but to listen to their rules. We are alive because they saw some kind of mercy.”

“No, you're alive because you didn’t harm them forty years ago, like my father and many others did.”

“What?”

“I said the same thing, but William has assured me that is the whole truth in the matter and he intends to hold me responsible for my father’s sins, and I accidentally let it slip about my mother’s sin, my brother and now he is blaming my mother for my fathers hate—--”

“Elias! How could you let it slip about your brother? You know because of what he is that he is not safe. That’s why he had to be sent away and you just—--”

“Elias, I have been calling your name. You would do well to listen.”

“Let me have a few more minutes with my people, please.”

“Fine. But I’ll be watching you.”

“Alright.”

As soon as William sat back down, my aunt whispered to Felix, who once was her assistant when she did paperwork at the castle. He rolled up his sleeve and held his arm out to me.

“Your highness, you need to feed. We are all able to feed, but they trapped you with the alpha and cannot feed, so do so now.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I wouldn't just offer, even if your aunt begged me too if I wasn't alright with it.”

Without so much of a second thought, I took his arm and brought it to my lips, biting down and feeding. I felt the surge of my full strength returning as I fed,and I was all too aware of William making his way over. He stopped a foot away and Felix looked nervous. 

“How often do you vampires need to feed?” he said, speaking to Felix.

“Every couple of d..days.” He stuttered. 

I looked up, meeting eyes with William as I fed. 

“Elias, release him.” William demanded.

A growl rumbled low in my chest and Felix yanked his arm away from me when I pulled my fangs out to fully growl at William. I looked at Felix and he was scared of William. My aunt lightly touched my arm.

I followed William back to where he was sitting and sat down. He was served food, and then I was. I ate the inconsiderable amount and relaxed when pain didn't blossom inside me.