Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

 "I am Alpha Reese Falcon and this here is my beta Mander Bhathom." 

 Ivora drew in a sharp breath as her eyes widened involuntarily at the revelation. She had heard tales. Tales of the oh-so-cruel Alpha who killed his own Father at the age of 16 just to become the Alpha. She had heard of his impatient Beta who had been with him since he was a kid.

 It was only now that she knew who he was that she suddenly felt the cold aura surrounding him. 

 How she didn't figure out was a surprise to her. After all, who else put on masks? Ivora felt she was extremely stupid. 

 But then again, it was completely hard to link this man who had been warm to her with the infamous Alpha Reese. 

 "You will have to come with us so I can properly keep an eye on you. If what you said was true then you would receive a reward and if it isn't... " The man whom she had come to know as Alpha Reese said. 

 Ivora stared at his black eyes and felt her heart skip a beat. It had been easier when all she had to do was disguise herself, find the Alpha of the Grim Fiend Pack make a deal with him but now that she met him, it didn't seem so easy anymore.

 EARIENWERE 

Unlike every other pack domain Ivora knew, the Grim Fiend pack domain was situated in front of a humongous mountain. The tips of the mountain stretched far into the clouds that one couldn't even know where it ended.

 As if by its name, the place had a cold feel to it. The thick, grey, heavy clouds that hung over them provided the place with a somber feeling. In front and sides of the domain, there were trees surrounding it. Peculiar trees that Ivora could only describe as weird. The brownish-grey trunks had sharp, thorn-like things attached to them. Only they were longer and much bigger.

 Ivora thought that was weird but it was the branches that were twisted into each other as if they were born of the same roots that left her in awe.

 "What are these trees?" Ivora asked, still in awe.

 "Trees," Mander replied.

 "I know what trees are!" 

 "The trees have been here since the history of Earienwere. No one knows what they are. Perhaps they are just... Trees." 

 It was Alpha Reese who spoke this time. No wonder nobody outside Earienwere knew where the Grim Fiend pack lived. With the trees surrounding it, finding it seemed almost impossible. 

 Ivora shivered as they left the trees behind. The snow had started to fall a while back. 

 She tried hard to follow the figures of the two men in front of her but it was proving difficult as her vision had started to become hazy. 

 "You're even slower than a snail." Mander's annoying voice rang out.

 "You should carry him then." Reese pointed.

 "WHAT!" They said in unison. 

 "In your wolf form. I have some business to take care of." Alpha Reese said.

*************

 Ivora stepped into the dark room Mander had led her in. The room was faintly lit but she didn't have the strength to look around the room. She moved to the bed still in a haze.

 As Ivora drifted off to sleep that night, all she could think of was the warmth of the room and the plush softness of the bed. 

 Ivora woke up with a soft hum in her head. She didn't ever remember sleeping this peacefully. She opened her eyes as she let herself take in the room. The beds were Hoge and plush grey colored the silver curtains parted just a little to let a little light come in. She looked at the floors as she stepped down, they were made of a granite-like substance. They were like dark-colored silver substances mixed with black and ny white dots decorated them.

 A table lay at the far side of the bed. It was so much better than the one she and her father had back at home. Ivora sighed, she would have given anything for her father to be here with her. But maybe it was all for the better. Though she didn't look like it, she was a prisoner here till they made out whether she was lying or not.

 She walked around the room and saw two huge walls that looked like closets. Moving towards it, she felt the closet and chose to open the first one. Inside it were different kinds of clothes, ranging from black to grey to purple to white and red. It seemed dark colors were mostly worn by her.

 Ivora went closer to look at the clothes and chuckled when she saw they were male clothing. So they still thought she was a boy, great. She moved back to the bed, deciding to open the second one later when she spotted someone at the far end of the bed.

 A girl in a plain blue gown and her hair held up in ringlets was staring back at her with a huge smile. "What are you doing here?" Ivora asked with a raise of her brow.

 " Good morning. Mister Snow. I'm glad you liked your room. I was sent here to help you bathe and prepare for the day. "

 " Bath? "Ivora asked perturbed.

 " Yes. I have prepared the water and the soap. Now if you'd just let me undress you and take you to the bathroom." The girl said moving fast towards her.

 Ivora was flabbergasted.

 "Why would you want to bathe me?" She asked stepping back.

 "It is what we do, my work is to tend to the baths of people here, but you can refuse if you want to though. You were given that privilege." She said. Ivora watched her running mouth, stunned. She had never seen anyone talk that fast.

 "Great then. I would be taking care of my bath by myself thank you very much." Ivora said relieved. The girl just laughed, giving her a slug-understanding look. It seemed she thought she was a shy gentle man.

 "In that case, I'll be showing you the bathroom." She said, passing Ivora to the door Ivora planned to open after she rested. She opened the closet-like thing and pushed it open, stepping inside, she asked Ivora to come after her.

 "This is where you take your bath, there is everything you need here. I'd be just outside your room in the corridors. Shout my name if you need me" she said as Ivora looked at the beautiful white walls of the bathroom. The bathroom was so big that her whole house could fit inside.

 "I will call you if I need you," Ivora said. Looking all too pleased to let her go. She stepped inside the bathroom and looked into the pool-like bath. The tile of the floor was pure white which contrasted with the purple-grey tile of the pool. Inside of it were steps that you could climb when you got In. Ivora peeled off her clothes, one by one, letting it fall to the floor. She stepped into the water with a shuddering breath. The water was warm. Ivora swarms inside for a while letting her thoughts relax. When she was done, she stepped out, spotting neat, folded clothes on the floor beside the tub she picked it up to clean her body.

 She moved to the small mirror hung on the wall that she hadn't spotted earlier and looked at her face. Her face was wiped clean and her hair which she shampooed was cleaner than it had ever been. Picking up the towel the young girl gave her, she brought it up to her face to disguise herself again. When she was sure she didn't look like a 20-year-old girl anymore but a young boy of about 16, she cleaned her teeth and left the mirror.

 She went to the other closet and picked up the clothes she wanted to wear then she put her hair in a man bun, put on a cloak and let the hood fall over her face to her brows.

 When she finally stepped out of the room, the young girl was no longer there.