The Gate of Shadows

The atmosphere turned heavy, prompting me to fiddle with Shade’s fur.

"No! I won’t sleep on the floor outside! Just turn it off! A few days without it won’t kill you!" Kira glared at me.

Much to Fenris's annoyance, a soft sigh left my lips, turning the device off. A slight growl left him, triggering me to smile, trying to let him know it was okay, but to him, it wasn’t.

"Lilith, this is your room. She shouldn’t have a say in the matter." He argued.

I shook my head, desiring no more drama for today.

"It’s fine. She’s right. A few days won’t kill me." I assured him.

I didn’t want the wolf to go ballistic over me to keep it on. Kira scuffed before dropping on the bed, where Layla had been asleep for a while, probably after too many drinks. It was perhaps one of the hardest nights I experienced falling asleep.

I was so used to having the incense, leaving me feeling odd without it, and being surrounded by wolves surely didn’t help. The fact I was lacking in my comforts, such as Fenris's personal touch, wasn’t good either.

Every attempt to sleep ended with no results. Not even Shade’s purring ball next to me helped. However, once the rest of the invading Lycans were deeply asleep. My wolf grabbed me from behind, tugging me into his arms for a simple embrace.

We couldn’t do much without disturbing the other wolves, but he held me tightly against him, allowing his warmth to radiate into me. His tail rested on my hip, leaving me warmer than usual. Shifting my gaze towards him, I turned to see those vibrant amber eyes watching me.

A soft smile rose on my lips, triggering him to lean into me, brushing his lips lightly against mine. It was the lightest kiss I had with him in years. When we tugged away from the sweet moment, I snuggled into his chest, finding enough comfort to soothe my troubled soul.

Luckily, that night, I had no nightmares, even though I lacked most of the comforts he had accustomed me to. The following day, Fenris was the first up when my eyes fluttered open because the ruckus from the other boys waking up got me up as well.

They were making their way out of the room and into the public bathroom nearby. To my surprise, they wouldn’t dare use a bathroom where a girl showered. The girls did the same, respecting my privacy.

Although they waited for the boys to return before leaving me alone with Fenris, it was a simple and effective way to rob me of his attention. I had hoped to have a little bit of him when they decided to leave the room, but that wasn’t in the cards they wanted me to play.

I didn’t know how much longer I could live without the silver wolf’s personal touch.

When my monthly lady event comes, it always leads to five days of nothing but cuddles.

This was different; I wasn’t in my menstrual cycle. An itch was starting to form differently from when I was too preoccupied with my bleeding hole.

This is something new...

When I finished my daily routine, I walked out of the room towards the library, which wasn’t on high alert after my encounter with Lilith's grimoire. However, my wolf told me I had to return to the room after I picked out what I wanted to read.

Perhaps what I experienced that day was a dream. Nothing more...

On the way to the library, Melody hauled me again to the side. This time, she ran away after handing me two beautiful boxes, one labeled for Liam and the other for you.

You... Does she mean me? Is this a thank-you gift for handing one to Liam?

Bewildered, I stared at where she once was.

This wolf… is odd.

After finding the books, Cora saw me once again, but I excused myself to return to the room. I didn’t want to anger Fenris by being late. Instead of letting me leave the room alone, she accompanied me to it before bidding farewell.

I opened the door to see the boys speaking about girls once again. Layla and Kira weren’t in there. However, they quickly stopped when I walked in, allowing their amber gaze to land on me.

“Liam… I…” I trailed off, feeling a little startled once in the spotlight.

The brown wolf was quick to stand and meet me by the door.

"Another?" he asked, spotting the beautifully decorated box in my hand.

I nodded, handing it to him before glancing at the box labeled you. Unlike me, the boys teased Liam over Melody, appearing familiar with her.

Why choose me instead of them?

I hesitated to open the box momentarily, sitting on my bed. Fenris joined me, prompting my glance to shift to him. There, I spotted a soft smile on his lips.

"Open it. You’ll probably be surprised by what’s in it." He assured me.

I squinted, unable to figure out why she gave me this.

I didn’t do anything to be grateful for.

"You know her too?" I mumbled.

Open it! Open it! It smells so good! Shade pawed my hands.

The way her claws dug into the ribbon made me realize she wanted that more than anything else.

"Yeah. I usually bring you sweets from her shop. Although Melody only has eyes for Liam." Fenris added to the teases of his friend.

Liam told his friends to shut up like he did to me the day before.

Ah... It’s just a reaction.

Their small banter caused me to giggle. A question arose in my head, glancing over to Fenris, who appeared to be having fun. The other boys seemed too busy with Liam when I whispered something to Fenris.

"Who do I have eyes for?" I whispered, triggering his cheeks to turn into a shade of pink.

I turned my glance back into the box with a small smile.

So, you can even have those reactions too.

Leaving the hesitation behind, I opened the box to reveal the most beautifully decorated, heart-shaped chocolate I had ever seen with gold flakes. The treat was almost too precious to eat. Fenris grabbed my hand as the girls came in, quickly quieting the teasing Liam was getting.

However, Kira didn’t appear happy about what she heard when she opened the door. The room was soundproof, thanks to a sigil Fenris placed when we moved in. It was to keep all matters in this room private, but it was another matter if they opened the door.

Ignoring Kira's complaints, Fenris traced his fingertips on my hand.

For me. He wrote.

I glanced at him, feeling butterflies in my stomach. With rosy cheeks, he avoided my gaze, taking a deep breath before tugging away from me.

Ah… you know how I feel; I don’t have to say it.

Yet I wanted to. Everyone who saw my gaze aimed at him knew how I felt.

It’s probably why Layla always gazes at me like I stole something from her.

If only she knew what happened when she wasn’t around.

She’ll hate me beyond belief.

Hesitantly, I ate the chocolate, only to find myself in bliss. The raspberry filling hit all the right spots on my tongue. I had nothing as good as this—at least in chocolate. Usually, Fenris would bring me cakes or other baked goods, but Melody's chocolates were out of this world.

I never knew that she was making my palate dance when Fenris brought me treats. She was beautiful and able to create the most delicious things.

While my hands…

The black wolf would fit Liam if she weren’t cursed. Lycans who couldn’t shift couldn’t marry each other.

All because of purity and keeping the bloodline going.

Melody would do the same for the next three days without leaving me a chance to speak. On the fourth day, I had enough, nabbing her by her hand before she could run away. Even though she couldn’t shift, she could run faster than most humans.

The wolf could have torn my arm off if she wanted.

"Wait!" I yelped before she could drag me along with her.

It would be the first time I had raised my voice to someone I didn’t know, and it wasn’t out of anger. Stunned, Melody slowly shifted her gaze toward me, shaking where she stood.

"I’m sorry!" she apologized, bowing her head.

"No! I... I... Thank you so much for the treats you’ve been giving me. Also... My name isn’t you... It’s Lilith." I declared, holding onto her hand.

Melody turned towards me before dragging me away from the doors that held Liam and into another hallway.

"You... Lilith, don’t thank me. I’m just using you.” She mumbled, glancing towards the door before focusing back on me.

Usually, people avoid runts like her, yet I…

"You still gave me something so delicious. How can I not thank you?" I simpered.

You’re such a silly, sweet girl. Using me to deliver a tiny package to my room? Does that even count? You even gave me some.

"Ah... I’m glad you liked them. I didn’t know what you liked. So, I just went with personal favorites." Melody smiled, fidgeting with her fingers.

I shook my head. "I didn’t like them.” I sighed, making her gaze at me wide-eyed. “I loved them. Thank you so much." I thanked her again, smiling.

Her tail wagged rapidly when a smile rose on her lips. It was too cute.

"But... you really should be the one coming to give them to Liam," I added, causing her to become stiff as her cheeks turned rosy.

"I-I would n-never..." Melody trailed off, holding onto her dress.

I grabbed onto her hand before she could run away again.

"Yes, you can. Come." I was bold for once.

Perhaps it would work better for her than it ever did for me.

"Wait!" She squealed, allowing me to lead her.

Silly, if you don’t want to, you can just run.

"I’ll be with you, and I promise you’ll be fine." I chuckled, feeling something rise within me.

One I hadn’t quite felt before. This girl posed no danger to me. She also gazed at me as she did at anyone else. I was nothing more than an ordinary witch in her eyes. Even Shade had a positive feeling about Melody, jumping off me and onto her head.

Knowing the little black cat, it was probably from all the treats Fenris brought to the room. There was no better way to win her over than sweets.

"You aren’t like other witches. Are you?" Melody commented, allowing me to tug her along to my room.

"I try not to be," I whispered.

With that, I held the black wolf’s hand when she finally handed the gift directly to Liam. He appeared flustered by the entire event, too. However, his smile couldn’t be more defined on his lips.

Kira, though, sent death glares towards Melody, who, instead of feeling intimidated, shrugged them off without an issue.

Her only weakness is Liam. How cute…

I could feel her wanting to run away every time he addressed her, but since I held onto her, she didn’t. No matter how embarrassing it was for her, her tail swayed happily. Liam invited her into the room, where she spent most of the time by my side instead of his.

Although the brown wolf was always nearby, chattering with us the same as Fenris. The other boys joined, too. Most of them tried to make a move on beautiful Melody, who rejected them flat out.

Ezra appeared seriously hurt, tumbling onto his sleeping bed to mope. Owen laughed at him, suffering inside from his rejection. Feeling comfortable leaving me with Melody alone, Fenris and the boys left the room to find us some food.

I thought I would never experience this much fun again. The black wolf was opening a part of me I had long shut away.