.

Ponds filled and became over doused in chaos, stirring to the rim within Vera Lee's ears.

Her throat felt to be stuffed with glass and the rime of many watermelons, and to feel the strangeness of grain slicing down the tunnels of her esophagus. Her appetite swirled to the top of her throat, making her realize she was never breathing.

Until Vera started to breathe again. Deepening sighs echoed in the darkened void, and it was overcame by water that pooled down from her, while a he laid face down into what she could assume was a river.

The raven haired girl wanted to scream loudly. So loud she wouldn't be able to recognize her inner voice any longer, coaxing her to surrender underneath endless feats. Vera's hands felt to be clammy and dried out. Similar to how it would be once she got out of a shower, after a very long time.

Vera weirdly reconstructs her jaw with a grunt before attempting to stand— but her legs wouldn't bother to function. She was tied down. No matter how many times she applied friction to her knees to raise upward, the objective seemed to grow tighter.

The petite fragility of a girl,tugged her wrist that seemed moderated by the same conjunction. Maybe it was a rope, whatever it was— it was kinda leafy and restraining.

These confinements were alike to a grape vine, except more strong and thickening, like branches and it recked of poison ivy.

"Help!" Vera goes to scream, but she's whining instead.

Questions washed over in Vera's mind, like why is she sobered down with her legs buckled and spread apart. Why could she hear the water tide overlapping and hitting the rocks along the shore.

If she stayed in place any longe, her hands would surely become stained viridescent— just like the greenery beneath the contraption which kept her body buried into hard soil and stones. Something trickled down the length of her thigh that was cold and red, Vera was almost positive it was indeed blood.

But whose blood could it be?

She reared her head over in attempt to steal a glance from above her, only seeing what was on the side of the trees, undeniably the sun was setting. The rays danced and became more visibly prominent, once the sun hid behind denouncing clouds.

"Someone! Help!" Vera manages to all but holler. "Come quick!" She spat again, with tears mixing in the dirt.

"I'm stranded," the raven haired girl cries, "Abandoned."

The suppressing weight of the contraptions— milked her of energy, captivating her endlessly for the torment.

Vera cries harder, slumping face down despite her backside being hoisted upward spreading apart even more. By this moment, she is exposed with only a long shirt covering her bare lady-parts from the outside world, she weren't ashamed seeing as she were the only one around.

Her neck burned, sizzling into a thump— matching the raging sound of her heartbeat.

Suddenly Vera yips once a hand clasps around her ankles and pulls her legs farther apart. Vera releases a desperate sigh in what she thought was contempt. She thanks the person over and over again, for helping her. Vera began to offer things she did not own, to whoever decided to rescue her.

Only the person who she thought was releasing her, tightened the ropes and slides underneath her ass, where he begins to smash her waist line into his own. To where her rear sat on his chest, Vera could see only the boots that he sported on his two feet.

"What are you doing!" Vera growls as hot tears collected at the bottom of her swampy brown eyes.

She couldn't see the person who dared to impose but he grunted like a man and smelled of masculinity.

"Oh please won't you let me go," Vera begged to bargain, "I'll give you anything." She rested upon her elbows more stunned as she took lazily breaths in, when the man only chuckles.

"Anything?"

He tears the bottom halve of the long shirt to the belly and pulls the rest from over Vera's head, all this being done whilst something hard and big, poked at her stomach from within the black pants he sported— meanwhile her breast poked harshly against them.

Vera's back naturally arches more, while the faceless man lightly places his hand above her lower back to nudge her farther down.

His dark greedy irises— milk the sight of a flustered Vera, who couldn't help but to close her eyes and wince when she felt something cold lick the valley between her arse. Instantly she starts to punch the guy's legs, which he responded to with a deep wistful chuckle.

"Yes...I will give you anything...just remove my restraints." Vera begs and pleads further but the tedious male wasn't having any of it, he wouldn't budge.

In the spur of a moment—did the man's canines begin to extend from underneath his plush lips while the hollowness in his being dulled with eerie and ill filled suggestion.

"I don't believe you'll do it," he scoffs.

Vera's eyes widened and looked to be burning from within their sockets, more disbelief washed across her face even as her muscles whined and begged for submission.

"God, I'll do anything. I am begging!" She pleaded even more and searched in this man's eyes for mercy.

In his vacant irises riveted everything but.

"You'll give me you."

.~.

As if she had awoken into a new pair of eyes, rays of beaming light leaked from the blinds. Black satin sheets covered her sweaty body in reminisce to the heated slumber which followed a dream.

Shaking it off, Vera sees a figure in the corner of the room but didn't mind it. She couldn't tell who it was until brown optics focused onto the silhouette, once she began to rub them with the pad of her thumb; repeating the cycle until everything could be seen clearly.

Who the figure belonged to, stuns her. Instead of overreacting —Vera feels a rage of something burning on the side of her neck, wincing aloud before pressing onto the wound with the tip of her fingers. So much blood now covered her fingertips, whilst all she did was brush over it.

"It'll do that a lot." The short woman says this, running her hands throughout her blonde tresses.

With her wavy blonde locks, it reveals how old she was and yet she could've been easily mistaken for an young lady to Vera. "It will bleed a lot, but the wound sill close in a matter of days."

Vera takes a deep breath inward despite her throat begging for water. It could've been drier than sand, and suddenly Vera wasn't fighting the growl that escaped her tight lips anymore. How could she put on a facade when everything around her made zero sense.

"What are you doing here Ms. Hart?" The question escapes out so lethal from Vera's mouth.

"You're the last person I expected to see when I wake." Vera admits nonchalantly but Ms. Hart only smiles and chuckles more to herself.

A strange critical thing Mrs Hart was, but inside Vera's heart she was more pissed than shocked.

Vera openly glared at her with how she looked so young, as for the teacher glowed brighter than Vera ever noticed with red stained cheeks.

Slightly Vera felt guilty for thinking she couldn't have been no older than thirty with the time she'd spent teaching her. "Let me guess you weren't just my normal school teacher." Ms. Hart simply nods.

Ms. Hart could see the disappointment colored all across Vera's face. She hadn't known why.

"In summary. I have business here." Is all the teacher says.

Vera notices how everything she has said in the past— came out like riddles with doubled meanings that failed to serve her educationally wise.

"Might I ask what is that business?" At this point Vera wanted to skip the small talk. She couldn't surpass the feeling of something being poised and dejected.

Craning her head awkwardly, Vera feels the sting come from the puncture wound in her neck but pretends she hadn't felt a thing. A poking thought of a certain Prince invaded her head but she pushed it back frustratedly.

"Let's just say a little birdy sent me here to do his bidding and leave it at that...shall we?" Vera rolls her eyes at Ms Hart's cryptic response.

Here Ms. Hart was, the day hadn't even begun and she's spewing ultimatums. That and the way she stares so emptily at Vera with those sharp hawk like eyes.

Ms. Hart sat so earnestly. She had an answer for everything but what Vera says next takes her by surprise.

"Where is the prince?" Vera asks with the attitude more evident accompanied by a scowl. "Stop the act. He's the one who sent you here so where the hell is he?"

"Woah there! tsk tsk you're moving rather fast for someone whose been asleep for a couple of days." Vera raises her eyebrow at the woman in front of her out of anticipation.

"Well I'll get to that later—but tell me how are things between you two? Still in the honeymoon phase are we?" Ms. Hart continues.
If she hadn't known any before, by the passing minute she only pissed Vera off even more.

Why couldn't she mind her own damn business? Vera thought.

Vera's temper suddenly skyrockets and this was the unlikeness of her regular day to day diminutive moods, hence the inferior calmness she kept —was always steady. So instead of snarling at her former school teacher, Vera suffices with the clearing of her throat in dismissal.

It hadn't crossed her mind that Mrs Hart had willing left her at the castle so easily. Vera wanted to ask her about her sister, her classmates, but debated against it. Something else had easily came to light and Vera was eager to know what.

Confusion washed over the raven haired girl's face while she began to sit up straight in the hospital bed. "You knew," Vera announces.

Ms Hart corresponds, with the rocking back and forth on her feet before standing— to hunch over a distraught petite girl.

"You knew this entire time. How- You knew we were mates didn't you." Vera's question is vague but she only wanted someone to admit it and be honest with her for once.

Ms. Hart stares openly into Vera's hazel green orbs as if searching for something. She was really good at reading people, "Of course I did." She confirms.

"Can't tell you how. You just had something about you. I knew you were Alexander's mate, since the first day you walked into my class."

Vera shakes her head in denial. There's no way she knew all along and she didn't even know herself. This was all suppose to be a weird obsession. Vera never intended for it to escalate like it did.

"Thats not possible. Why are you here?" Vera tries again. She couldn't be fooled, there had to be more to the reason that Mrs. Hart was desperate to avoid.

Ms. Hart looks taken aback pressing her hand against her chest though she internally debated whether to confess.

"Does there have to be any reasoning behind why I decide to come back to my own home Vera? Honestly what has gotten into you." Vera sighs leaning back defeated.

"Ms. Hart for one second can you be bloody truthful. Gosh why everything has to be so cryptic with you! Even as a school teacher you never failed getting on my nerves," Vera barks out.

Ms. Hart releases a frustrated low groan. "For one my name isn't Ms. Hart. I am apart of the royal family, blink twice if you understand." In between sentences, Vera rolls her eyes.

For a split second, Vera sat dazed. She contemplated for a moment before blinking rapidly in belated comprehension.

"I knew that, I just wanted you to admit it." Vera says tossing back the hair that was beginning to cover her forehead, while poking out her tongue.

"Yeah right, Of course you did." It was Ms. Hart's turn to roll her eyes.

Now that Vera knew some part of the truth, she began to rise from her bed side and tightened the gown she wore by the strings. She hears Ms Hart mumble a 'careful' as she rocked back and forth on her own feet.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"I'm going to go see my Mate. Ms- Whatever your name is. He owes me some answers." Vera replies in the middle of  turning sharply out of the vacated room, into the hallway where she saw no one in sight.

Vera felt the slightly taller woman shuffling behind her.

Ms. Hart goes to stand by Vera's side when something clicks, another thought.

"I never knew you were royalty," Vera shies.

"think it's safe to admit I did a lot of research on Alexander before...You never came up. Why is that?" The question comes out sounding reprimanded but Ms. Hart didn't mind it.

Ms. Hart sends the child a toothy grin before opening the door to exit the infirmary.

"You've met Clarity the youngest daughter of the King. Mind you there's only one other daughter to the royal family. How come you still haven't figured it out yet?"

Vera shakes her head cluelessly, while she awaited the response she sought from the blonde lady with blistering irises.

"Vera. I am Heidi. the eldest daughter to King Augustus. Now please would you stop calling me Ms. Hart. To be frank, I'm not actually that old." Heidi admitted sheepishly.

Vera smiles in realization. She shares Alexander's grey eyes, that he never really showed often and their hair was similar with its natural waves but that was it.

Then Vera noticed, Heidi had such towering height to be only an adult she-wolf.

"Wait I have one more last question." Finally, Vera and Heidi came to the main entrance to the manor.

Vera played with her finger nails, she looks back up to see Heidi opening the door to the biblical mansion.

"Why now do you come back, why now do you tell me your name." Vera's question riveted a truth, Heidi dared to confess.

"Vera my only place in the town of BeckonStone, was to watch over you. You were always a potential mate to my brother and the only. Now that we've found you, I'm much needed here, with you." A small blush coats Vera's face as she tries to push it back but fails.

The burning on Vera's neck doesn't cease, only growing hotter, as it began to spread over her whole entire physique — slightly warmer in a certain area. "Now. We have to find your male."

.~.