Aggie continued to play with her son for a while, still not seeing me until I leaned too hard on the doorframe and it creaked.

"Mama, look!"

Maldeo jumped up and ran to the door to push it the rest of the way open leaving Aggie to stand up in her figure hugging white skirt. Her dark hair was loosely curled and she wore a little lipstick that was just a shade lighter than the carnation color on her shirt.

"Mrs. Stone. Welcome."

"Luna Aggie, you look well."

"Thank you," she nodded to the small child tugging at my dirt covered arm," You remember my son, Maldeo."

"Of course, how could anyone forget him?"

A small smile crossed her lips and tickled her pretty green eyes as she looked at her pup. Somehow, Maldeo looked much much younger now than he did back at my pack. Maybe it's because this is where he is. He lives here, he plays here, he loves here.

"He is quite special."

"It's easy to tell. You're quite lucky."

She shook her head to relieve herself of the sweet smile before turning her head to my eyes. 

"Luck has nothing to do with it, Luna," she gestured to the door," Shall we?"

I gave her a short nod before crouching down to be on Maldeo's level. I promised him I'd swing by later and told him my room is right across the hall should he want to see me before then.

Aggie stepped past the pair of us and I turned to follow suit. First she went down the hall to her room to lend me a plain, white nightdress that stopped about just about my knee and hung from a pair of delicate strings. It felt like clouds and made me look like the angels that lived in them.

"You can't be walking around my house looking like you've just gone a few rounds with a garbage disposal. You trekked up here, I assume?"

"Yes, it was a long way up. There wasn't a bus or taxi that would bring us up."

"Why didn't you simply change? It would have been much easier to run the way."

I looked down at my hands. Changing into the very form of the voice in my head? That sounds scary. I'm not ready for that. 

But I can't let her know that. A woman like Aggie, so strict and proper, wouldn't understand this kind of fear.

"How long will I be staying? Do you know?"

"As far as I'm aware, forever. Don't take my word for it, however. Forever has a different meaning to me than it does for most people."

"What does forever mean to you?"

She turned to look at me, her bright eyes turning darker as she scanned my body. Compared to her I was so young, naive. I wondered if I would ever be as powerful and sophisticated as this she-wolf. 

Aggie gave a small tsk before turning back around and walking off in her sultry way to the next wing of the house. The way she began to talk about all the different paintings and past Alphas told me she expected me to not only follow along but to memorize this house for everything it was and could be.

A house, as Aggie put it, is only a house until you know what it can be.

She knew very well this house could be the start of an astounding legacy.

I thought it was the center of a castle. The beast, lurking in the shadows until his beauty would come and save him from his depressed state and break the curse forever. 

Maybe there's another side to that story, one where the beast marries someone he doesn't love and they have a beautiful child. Maybe Maldeo was the real beauty.

Or, perhaps, Maldeo will be a beast when he grows. Then he, too, will need saving.

___

There's an opening in the eastern part of the pack territory, Holly scouted it out this morning.

"But if we go in that direction we will run into the river. No."

What about the mountains? Those could be helpful. No one would expect you to enter through such rough terrain.

"The mountains scream trouble. Don't even mention the ocean because that will definitely be guarded after my departure."

What do you suggest then?

"I don't suggest anything," I groaned, pulling my tired arms up to rub my eyes.

It was roughly 2 a.m. and I hadn't slept a wink. The moment I was alone my wolf told me to look around and when I did I found a few maps of the territory. She started making battle plans but all I wanted to do was take a break. We don't even have anyone to back us up if we went back. All it would do is get me back to where I'm defenseless. 

My stomach grumbled under the thin fabric of the nightgown, a sign that I should go to bed or eat. The thought of going to bed had my wolf jumping for the next plan. The main highway going through Alaska.

Instead of listening to her ramble- apparently you can tune out wolves, though I have yet to learn that skill- I got up and went out the door and entered the dark, dreary hallway.

The  tour Aggie had forced me on had been at the very least educational. The kitchen was in the southern wing of the gigantic house and it had been rebuilt after that part of the house burned down in August of 1953. 

Now it stood out from the original woodwork and was much more modern. There was a bay window off to the side that looked out off the ridge and down to the raging ravine below with a small set of table and chairs next to it and the cooking area to the far right.

My wolf whimpered at me to stop when I started looking for the flour and baking soda but I didn't listen. I was tired and cold and I wanted a god damned cookie.

I was just starting to mix the ingredients together when I heard the door being gently pushed open, my fingers curled around the end of knife in the block in front of me. A small step back had my legs shaking.

Then a hand was on my shoulder.