Cora steeled herself for this confrontation.

In the continent of Eloria, lycans had fought tooth and nail for the hold they had on their lands. The lycans would not tolerate insurrections, as they were not known for their leniency.

Especially if they were the Ashmore Clan, which was a family inside the Reiger Pack. Cora knew of them, and they were a Clan that took pride in their severity.

Despite hearing stories of how lycans looked, it was another thing to witness them – the Ashmores were all of varying shades of blonde. One sported very clean dreadlocks, the others with braided hair, and another with the sides of their head shaven. One of them bore a distinct beard, consisting of two braids with metal decorations lining through his hair.

They were all well-muscled, including a female that was among them. They wore some variations of leather or well-tailored wool, either donning leather boots for shoes, or sandals, or completely barefooted.

Cora lightly jogged through the dirt path and slowing when she stepped on the rocks, as Ben was on the other side of the gentle stream. Nearly thirty villagers gathered to watch. Despite the torches, it was still hard to see everything as she crossed the cold river, wetting her feet and the edge of her dress. Ben was on the other side, a giant claw mark striking across his face to reveal red tissue on his cheeks, even a little white sticking through where fat was exposed. The claws had struck deep.

He'd be scarred for life, there was no question.

A younger girl sat next to him, along with an older one while they cleaned the rags in the river. Both were a dirty blonde and wore maroon dresses. The younger girl came over to Cora once glancing her way, her large eyes encasing burning, blue irises.

Cora, right away, realized it was Macie. That's right. The stonemason's daughter. A smile nearly formed on Cora's face, happy to meet the young girl that stole her brother's heart and gave him hope of a new life, but it was all weighed down with the reality of what happened. The young girl placed a bloodied finger to her lips and spoke quietly. "Shh, he's really out of it. Don't get him all startled."

Cora asked, "Macie, is it?"

Angry tears welled in the girl's eyes, and fortunately, Macie seemed not to see the red in Cora's eyes in the dark of night as she gave a firm nod. "Yes. Ben saved me from one of them. Don't be mad at him, please. And don't let them take him."

Cora nodded a few times, speaking with what little comfort she could muster. "Yeah, it's alright. I am here to help."

In the slight distance, down the river, Cora heard someone speak with an accent that she had never heard before, his voice carrying over the river. "Come over here, witch. We waited, per agreement with our truce. I can smell that the boy belongs to you."

Hilda walked forward, careful with the slippery rocks as the lycans stood in a shallow section of the stream. Cora dropped her gaze once stealing a quick look at them, trying to watch through her fallen hair.

With a burning strength in her voice, Hilda asked, "Please, do explain to me, why are you demanding to take him as punishment. It looks like you already punished him enough."

Cora dropped to her knees to help with stitching up Ben's face, running a hand down his arm, his clothes soaked in blood and water. He was breathing shallow breaths and his eyes were shut. Cora whispered to him, "Don't worry, brother, I am here. You're safe, I am safe, Hilda is safe, it's all be okay. Just keep breathing, okay?"

Ben didn't answer, but she hoped the words reached him somewhere in there. If Ben died tonight, she'd never go with the lycans.

The lycan answered and the crowd around Cora was silent. She took Ben in for every detail that he had, certain it would be one of the last times she'd see him. She grit her teeth and had to bite down her rage as the foreign voice said,  "Because, the boy stabbed one of our own. With silver. That's breaking a few agreements in the truce, at the very least."

Hilda countered. "Do you really need him to go with you? He will be marred for life and will take months to recover. I dare he say he has learned his lesson."

Cora wanted to look at the lycan, but she didn't, staring at Ben with a burning hate for the lycan that did this to him. She'd wait for Hilda to say so and grabbed a wet rag to help clean her brother's wounds. They still lightly bled as the older woman stitched them together while Macie helped with the thread.

The lycan said, "That blade went through a ligament. Silver will take as long to heal as a human. It won't heal right, because of that."

"And what is the story?" Hilda asked. "What if your lycan was misbehaving?"

Another spoke up, his accent thicker. "I not misbehaving. Humans not listen to me."

The former spoke, "Now, now. I admit our own acted outside of truce as well. He is young and full of hot blood, and he wanted one of your human girls. But I cannot overlook the infraction of a silver dagger being used upon us."

Cora didn't like this lycan. He was mean and spoke with superiority wrapped in false politeness. She wanted to laugh at him for thinking he was so much more important than they were. Are they all like this? Surely not. Sometimes Ben would come home speaking of an interesting lycan he met, not one of these.

Hilda said, "Then why not let this flow under the bridge and pretend like this never happened? We go our way, and you go yours?"

The lycan spoke with a cold edge, as if forged in of the dead of winter. His patience clearly waned. "Because, if we did, then all of your people would be finding silver into their homes, marring us with the metal, despite all we do to protect your borders from the dangers of the forests."

Cora hated it, but the lycan wasn't wrong. Without them, the world would tear these villagers apart.

Humans were prey this far north, whereas the south was full of hunters that filled the coasts with large cities, the oceans creating natural barriers. The only cost was that they were responsible for their own safety, and in these northern mountains, the humans were protected by the lycans. People could be born and hope to die of a natural causes in these lands, which was as feat of luxury in their world. It wasn't even afforded in the south, who often died from some kind of resulting injury.

An incident, like the one that had happened with Ben, truly was rare in this village.

Cora sighed. Despite the rarity, it was happening to her. To her brother.

How did we get so unlucky? She didn't question why he did it, as she was sure there was some kind of logic to his decision. Something made him act this way. If he was brave enough to face a lycan, then she could face what she knew was coming next.

After a deep pause, Hilda darkly added, "I should warn you that maltreatment of humanity will cause most of them to leave. It will not be the first village to migrate south."

The lycan snickered. "Then go, if you insist. All of you can go! See how well you fare."

She knew that no one would leave. It was why many humans remained in these mountains, aside from the obvious protection and rare infractions. To get south to the hunters, the Gray Woods had to be passed through, and those woods were as dangerous to humans as silver was to lycans.

Many of the packs that did not belong to the Bound Six, or the large packs that owned the territories of these mountains. The Gray Woods was where the rest of them were, killing any and all humans that passed through.

Cora wiped Ben's face gently, wondering if she'd ever see him grow as a man. What if she only ever knew him as thing young boy with a few whiskers he was so proud to grow? His wounds were grievous, but at least it looked like he'd survive them. His heart beat strongly, and his breathing was steady. Now he'd just have to fight the infection, but with Hilda at his side, she knew he'd be fine. Hilda's magic was not strong for blood loss, but she could handle infected wounds well.

Hilda tempered her words. "I merely warn of your callous behavior. I know those tattoos, Ashmore. Your Clan within the Reiger Pack is not known for its positive treatment of humans. I am truly disturbed that you'd not only want to mar this young boy, but take him as punishment as well."

A few of the humans mumbled, and not all of the voices were in support of Hilda. Cora knew that many of them would happily give Ben to the lycans if it meant preserving the peace.

The lycan spoke louder, and it was clear that he addressed all that had gathered at the river. Cora glanced his way. He held out a muscles arm as he spoke. "Is this how you treat us? You send this witch to come to me? No, we will be taking the boy, perhaps feed his body to the wolves" --Macie's mother had to grab the girl's arm before she protested-- "No more words from you witch, or I will give you a matching wound. I entertained you long enough for the sake of peace."

Cora stood up, holding out her arms for balance as she nearly tripped over a tree root in the dark. Why was Hilda taking so long to reveal Cora? The lycan glanced at Cora when she nearly fell, but didn't give her his attention. She looked back down at Ben, and her throat burned but she pressed on.

Maybe, one day, I can write him a letter. Tell him I am proud and that I love him, and lie about happy I am.

She turned around and neared Hilda and the lycan, walking alongside the river before taking cautious steps onto the wide rocks where Hilda and the lycan stood. Hilda addressed Cora, "How is he?"

"He'll live," Cora said, stealing glances at the lycan in the front of her as she finally found a flat rock of her own to stand on.

"And who is this?" the lycan asked languidly. He clearly was tired of all of this.

Cora straightened her dress, taking in the lycan's sharp features, from jaw to nose, his eyes a dark brown. Although when their eyes connected, the dark brown glowed amber. He looked at Hilda, breathing heavily with a rise and fall of his shoulders, the lycans behind him trying to look at Cora. "Is this a joke? Whatever you've done to change her eyes is clever, but a trick none the less. Now you're just wasting my time."

Hilda sighed and looked at Cora, the expression as full of sorrow as when her mother died with Ben in her arms. Quietly, and with great regret, Hilda said, "Forgive me for not protecting you further."

Cora held down the tears, not wanting this lycan to see her so weak. "It's alright, Hilda. You've done more than I could ever ask for."

The lycan raised a hand, clearly tired of this and the hairs on Cora's arm rose when he growled.

But he paused before striking either of them, as Hilda mumbled a few words that Cora never recognized. The wind picked up around them to pull on Cora's dress and hair, along with the leaves of the trees above, and then the eyes of the lycan glowed so bright with a deep orange that Cora took a step

With possession, he said, "A Ruby."