Wrong Place at the Right Time, Pt. 4 - (Chapter Finale)

Syrana and Myranda left the safety of the master bedroom, and went back down the hall to Syri's room. They could hear little yips and barks, which sounded like Syri whimpering and crying - and due to both of their fierce affections for the small wolf, they burst through the door and startled both Metas who was playing dead, and the little pup who was 'defeating' him again.

Syrana gasped. She hadn't seen her child in her lycan form before. Despite how hard she and Silas tried, they had never been able to get Syri to transform entirely and keep her canine shape. Yet here she was, chewing on Metas' pitch black ear and now looking up to her mother and aunt with confusion.

"Are we in trouble?" Syri asked immediately.

"No, not at all! Look at you my little girl - you're a full-fledged Werewolf. Your coat is so beautiful - look at your colors! Oh, you have a coat just like uncle Jyriahs," Syrana started to tear up with joy from seeing her child finally embracing the wild magic in her blood.

She was a tiny little thing, with a very puffy coat. The top of her head and back mimicked the deep mahogany of her mother's coat, with gold streaks and highlights from her father. Her underbelly and chest were white, though - and it made her look regal and beautiful for someone so tiny.

"Look, Syrana - she has an empress stripe, just like you" Myranda squealed with excitement. It was rare for females of close generations to have what they deemed the 'empress stripe'.

It had been named after the first Luna of their clan - the wolf who started their empire and dared to carve into the mountain side to make it their own. Her name had been lost to time due to a culture war a few thousand years back, but her legend still lives, even if just a smear of what it used to be. The Empress Luna was painted and depicted to have that same white underbelly and chest that was so rare in their clan, and so any female born with it was often seen as beautiful and influential.

"What made you be able to shift?" her mother asked as she knelt down onto her knees and held her arms out to hug her child, who easily shifted back into her mortal form.

"Unlce Metas taught me how with a game. It was so fun!" Syri replied bubbly.

"I...thank you, Pr--King Metas," Syrana said with a warm respect. She started to bow, but Metas shook his head as his large black canine body sat up from the floor.

"None of that. You and your siblings don't bow to me. We're equals in my eyes. You're going to be my pack-sister. I won't accept any genuflection from you, please..." the now mortal-shaped male said as he adjusted his long hair back behind his shoulders and began the task of tying it back into a warrior's ponytail.

The sides of his head had been shaved recently, and when he gathered his hair all the way up and back, they could see a few scars and raised lines of flesh that were along the sides of his head. Although it did make him look a lot more dashing, Myranda wasn't happy to see that he had been hurt so badly in his past.

He had never worn his hair in such a fashion in front of her before, but now that he had styled it back and exposed more of his strong jawline and neck - the male before her looked so much more handsome than previously. In fact, he was drop-dead gorgeous, which made Myranda feel a bit insecure as she realized his beauty outweighed her own.

"Myranda told me your guess about...." Syrana stopped to put her hands over Syri's ears and whisper 'Veltar' to him. The last thing she wanted was her daughter to ask about the wolf she loved so much, and missed more than she ever did her parents.

Metas nodded slowly once. "It is not a fact, but a very educated guess. We will look into it for you regardless of your choice to join our cause. I am just sorry you are caught up in this mess. No one was supposed to get hurt in my quest to retaking what is rightfully mine - but when I knew Myranda was my mate, everything changed. I am sorry to all three of you."

"No apologies, please. I need you two to leave though. Not because I don't want you here, but because I want you safe. I have to talk to Syri about this, and make sure she doesn't mention this to her father at all. The results would be catastrophic otherwise..."

"Metas - no matter what, you have my loyalty. I will support your efforts," she added with a nod.

Little Syri just looked around with bright eyes of confusion as her mother kept her hands pressed to her ears as they talked about very adult, and very serious things not meant for what we would measure a nearly four year old to hear. As boredom sat in, she started to hum quietly.

"I don't want to be with Silas anymore. There is no reason for me to keep up this act for you since you know - but keep Jyriah out of it for now, please. He's too hot-headed to leave Silas in peace. You know how he is, and how much he loves us. I want him to be alive when you finally take your place at the top, and you and Myranda finally get to accept one another in front of the entire kingdom. Veltar being alive would give me the happiest ever after, but no offense - I am not counting on it," Syrana finished with a broken sigh.

"I will find out for you as soon as I can, Syrana. Wait until you know for sure before we decide what to do with Silas. Don't do anything for now - and pass anything you need through Jyriah. I'll see to it that you are kept safe," Metas replied and leaned forward to put his forehead against hers briefly as a sign of respect and affection.

"You keeping Myranda and Syri safe are all I truly care about....and as much as I want you both to be here with me for a bit longer, you have to go right now before we put this off anymore and Silas walks in to find you here. Please, go" Syrana replied with haste in her voice.

"Love you, mean it, bye..." Myranda said sadly and hugged both her sister and niece at the same time.

"Love you, mean it, bye..." Syrana returned with a broken tone, and a frown.

Myranda was really relieved to have her sister apart of the circle now, but she was also terrified that her elder sibling was now in serious danger should things go awry.

She would stuff her worries into the back of her mind and save them for late that night when she was trying to sleep. Right now, she had to leave with her mate to escape a fate worse than death - being a captive of Silas.