Chapter 7

𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚐𝚎

Helen decided that if Jake and Grace were gonna sleep there, they'd sleep in the living room. It was a large room with a large empty wall. A projector sat on the ceiling that shone on most of the wall.

The floor was covered by a large brown carpet, a coffee table, and a large L-shaped couch. Max brought blankets for them, taking the comforter from his bed for himself.

Maybe if Grace decided to sleep in his arms, it'd be for her, too. He wasn't sure how he felt about that thought. He was torn, like there were two different beings fighting for control of what he was gonna do.

One of them wanted to hold her, never let her go, and protect her forever. The other one was cautious of getting into a relationship so quickly. However, he didn't know which to listen to.

Does he give in to the first, and bring her close into his arms and life. Or the second, and push her away until he can be sure she won't do anything.

In the end, he decided to let nature play its course. He threw a blanket at Jake, who caught it with his face and a chuckle. Then, he sat in the corner of the couch, so that his feet laid across the bottom of the L.

Grace came and sat next to him, but not too close. It seemed that she wasn't sure what to do either. She took the blanket Max had brought for her, apparently choosing not to cuddle up to Max in his comforter.

About halfway through the movie they had decided to watch, Max looped an arm around Grace and pulled her over. He was surprised how light she was, given that - despite her small frame - her muscles were denser than his, and thus should have been heavier as well. Stronger, too.

Max knew that was the reason Werewolves couldn't swim. Their muscles were so dense and heavy that they just sank to the bottom of the water.

She rubbed her nose on his chest for a second before turning back to the wall that was being projected on. She laid her head against him and moved so she was sitting in his lap.

He wrapped their blankets around them like a Werewolf-Mage Burrito. Jake just snorted and kept looking at the movie.

"Why'd you do that - Rub your nose on my chest?" Max asked her, quietly.

"I like how you smell." He could see her ears turned red right before she started to grow fur. He ran his fingers through her short white fur and rubbed her cheek softly with his knuckles.

He thought he could hear her purr, but he wasn't exactly sure. Did Werewolves purr like dogs did? Either way, he didn't mind. He liked running his fingers through her short fur and petting her as well.

She grabbed his hand softly, intertwining her fingers with his. He could see her fur start to shrink back, meaning she had some sort of control over the shift.

When she got back to her normal form, her ears were still bright red. Max rested his chin on her head and looked towards the movie that was about to end.

On screen, the main character had a large revolver in his hand. For the duration of the movie, he had been hunting his brother's killer.

He was walking down darkly lit stairs into a room filled with neon lights. When he got to the bottom, the door was open.

Inside the room, three people were fighting. Two smaller ones and a large one. The large one was who he was after.

He walked in while they were distracted and pulled his trigger. The bullet struck the big man in the chest, causing him to fall forward.

Then, the main character walked up and shot him in the head. He walked out of the room as the other two stared at his back, the large man's blood all over his shoes.

The credits rolled and Jake yawned. Max reached for the remote, but found his hand stuck in that of the sleeping Grace. He smiled and reached with his other hand, though it was quite the stretch for him.

He turned off the projector and leaned further into the couch.

The next morning, Max awoke to being poked in the face. He opened his eyes and saw Grace laying on his chest, looking up at him.

"You looked like you were having a bad dream." Her soft voice filled his ears.

Max didn't remember his dream. Was it really that bad? He hugged Grace closely, "I'm better now."

She blushed once more, but didn't shift - not even partially. She definitely had control over it, at least enough to hold back from shifting.

Max wiped her hair from her face, her cheeks were like Tomatoes. Maybe he should pick them if they were so ripe?

He pulled her up further and kissed her cheek. Her eyes opened wide and she smiled, her dimples forming.

He didn't think it was possible for a Werewolf to have dimples - as they were an imperfection in the muscle - but, man, hers were so cute.

They stayed like that, her laying in his chest for a couple minutes before the clearing of someone's throat drew their attention.

Orwell, Grace's father and the Aster County Sheriff, was standing in the doorway of the living room. He didn't look happy at all, glaring at Max.

"Now, what's going on here?" He questioned, trying to stifle anger. Max could see the shift trying to take hold of him, his eyes were shifting color slightly, and glowing a dim red.

"Papa." Grace ran to him and hugged him. Max just watched. He was definitely not strong enough to oppose a Werewolf, especially not an Alpha like Orwell.

"Max," Orwell growled out, "What did you plan to do with my daughter?"

"Uh, honestly?" Max started, "I wanted to be happy with her."

Orwell's eyes softened slightly, losing their glow, but the snarl on his face was ever-present. Grace blushed and looked down.

Max was on his own for this one, he didn't want to - nor could he - bother Proctor for something as trivial as this. Also, his parents were at work, so he couldn't rely on Druid Magic either.

"How do you intend to do that?" Max could tell that Orwell was now more worried for his daughter's happiness than her safety.

Max smiled brightly, "However she wants, whatever she wants, whenever she wants."

He could see the surprise on both of their faces. Max stood from his position on the couch and walked towards them. He didn't meet eyes with Orwell, so as not to cause him to think Max was challenging him.

Orwell looked Max up and down, "You'd make a good Wolf. Do you want to be changed?"

Max was surprised, he glanced at Grace who was looking at him with kind, somewhat loving, eyes. Should he take up the Alpha on that offer?

As he was thinking about it, he spotted Jake behind Orwell. Jake was looking down, shame filled his face.

"No." Orwell grunted at Max softly. Grace looked sad, "Don't get me wrong, I… like Grace very much, but I'm a Mage, and I don't think those two things mesh well."

Orwell nodded, "No, they don't. However, I don't see another way for you to keep dating my daughter."

"What if I can beat you in a fight - one-on-one?" Max chirped. He instantly regretted his decision, as Orwell grinned viciously.

"I'll give you a week, boy." Orwell turned to leave. He stopped right next to the front door, "To say your goodbyes."

Grace had a horrified expression on her face that told Max he was probably not going to survive. He wanted to call after Orwell, tell him that he wasn't serious.

Jake followed after the Alpha, Grace hugged Max, kissed him, and ran after them. She stopped in the doorway, "No matter what happens, Max. I love you."

She began to follow after her father and brother with tears in her eyes. Max just stood there, the door slowly closing as a breeze came.

"So, you only have a short time." Max heard a voice that sounded just like his own, just a bit deeper and a bit more sinister. He turned only to find nobody around, he was alone.

"What do we do?" This voice was a bit softer than his, and sounded kinder.

"We could kick start his training by throwing him into hell?" The sinister voice suggested.

"Or, we could do something a bit more… civilized."

"Who the hell are you? Where are you?" Max spoke loudly.

"We are two of the four Pillars of Existence. Light and Dark." The sinister voice said.

"Aether and Nether." The kinder voice said, "I am Aether, Embodiment of Light, and Ruler of my Namesake Realm."

"Nether," The sinister voice added, "Embodiment of Darkness; also Ruler of my Namesake Realm."

"Sure, sure," Max reasoned, "What the hell are you doing talking to me?"

"We are bound to you, obviously." Nether explained, "Dumbass."

"We are sort of like your Grandparents, we figured someone who will be as powerful as you should be able to harness and rule both of our realms." Aether added.

"Why me, though?"

"You're the only god new enough not to have their own aspect. And, we figured you'd like to be able to have your girlfriend live with you, forever and always." Max could almost feel Nether grinning.

"Our true intentions are to pass our torches to you. We are so very tired, but we don't want to leave the multiverse with no one to watch over it." Aether explained.

"What about Eternity and Infinity?" There was an almost uncomfortable silence for a while.

"They want to leave the multiverse in your hands as well." Aether said softly.

"So, I'm just supposed to become a single Pillar in place of four?" Max questioned angrily.

"No, you could assign an Aspect to someone else later on. Their control wouldn't be absolute like yours, but it would certainly be above everyone else's." Nether said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"So, how does this work?" Max asked.

"Over the next 12 months, you will slowly gain our power. Your body may change as a result, so I'm warning you now." Aether spoke softly and calmly.

"Do you accept, Brat?" Nether asked, probably grinning again.

"I… guess so. Who's first?"

"Me." Nether jumped at the chance to be free of his deathless existence as the lord of the afterlife.

Max instantly felt a tiny bit different, like a hole had been put into his forehead on both sides. He touched his forehead and ran to the bathroom.

On his forehead were two small black horns, they were barely the size of the smallest digit of his pinky. They didn't hurt, even when he touched the skin that surrounded them.

He then noticed his eyes were different. The irises used to be blue, but now they were black. He was worried that he'd be treated weirdly because of his horns, but he was more worried about what Grace would think.

"The horns can be hidden just like your ring. Except they actually disappear. Well, more like shrink back into your head, but oh well." Nether explained to Max.

He thought of hiding them and they slowly retreated into his skull, but there was no pressure or pain. He was expecting it to hurt.

He looked into the mirror and noted that he looked completely normal. There was no sign of the horns he had previously.

"Along with the horns, you'll find you are no longer restricted by the normal magic laws. Your control will be virtually perfect in a year's time, and you will be the ruler of existence." Nether said.

Max pulled out his phone and dialed a number. His father picked up, "Max? It's not like you to call while we're at work. What's going on?"

"I'm gonna be gone for a few days, dad." Max said, "I'm going to train."

"Well…" His father sighed, "I'll let your mother know. Thank you for telling us."

"I love you, dad." Max said before hanging up. He exited his house, closing the door behind him, and ran to the forest as fast as he could.

It still took him an hour to get there, but he wasn't tired at all. He leaned against a tree and sighed to himself, "I've gone and screwed the pooch."

"Not yet." Nether said, "Grace is still a-"

"Shut up." Max commanded, "Don't say anything that isn't important."

"Max?" He heard Grace's voice. He drew in a cold voice and walked out from behind the tree. She was standing there in the snow looking at him confused.

"Who are you talking to?" She asked, looking around for anyone else.

"Uh." Max didn't know how to respond. He wasn't expecting anyone to be around, "You… don't want to know."

She walked closer and smiled at him, "I wouldn't have asked if I didn't want to know."

"It's… uh… how do I say this?" Max scratched the back of his head with his right hand.

"Just say it. Nothing you say can make me feel any different about you." Grace assured.

"Nether and Aether." Max blurted out. Grace squinted at him.

"If you didn't want to tell me that was fine." Grace said, "But I don't like being lied to."

She turned and started walking away. Max walked to her quickly and placed her hand on his chest, "Feel my heart. I'm not lying. I was talking to Aether and Nether."

"You…" Her eyes widened, "How?"

"They just started talking to me earlier today. Right after you left my house." Max said, "Speaking of. Why are you here, Grace?"

"I got into an argument with my dad. I came out here to get away from him and the pack" Grace said, "Why are you out here?"

"I'm training. I'm hoping I can get stronger so I'm not obliterated by your dad." Max joked, causing Grace to chuckle softly.

She suddenly pulled Max in and kissed him. His eyes widened before closing. He put a hand around her waist and pulled her closer to him.