I stand against the stone barrier of the terrace which overlooks one of the two main gates of Tophet's keep. This particular one faces the north — where Tabitha is journeying from, once again riding on the back of a wolf to traverse the winter's icy obstacles. It has been a week since I have last seen her, but we have communicated through formal, cautious letters.

My days without her continued to grow as she stayed to arrange the announcement of my mating. The news was released this morning and will surely unfurl to every corner of my land by sunset. But, because Tabitha has finished each duty on our list, she is able to travel back to me. My pack will be alright until Tophet and I make our promise under the moonlight in eight days, and then I will hurry home to tend to my people myself.

I uncross my arms that are tucked in the folds of my cloak and instead place them on the chilled stone top of the terrace's wall. The guard — Harrold — whose turn it is to stand at my door now waits only a few feet behind me. I thought it would be best to have his protection near when wandering the keep alone. Someone may slip through the terrace's door then throw me over the edge. I lean over the wall and peer to the sole-compacted dirt of the courtyard below.

Such a fall would kill me.

"Careful," Harrold calls over my shoulder.

I reel myself in. "I can't wait here a second longer; it's making time go by so slowly. Let's walk."

"Where to?"

I leave the terrace with Harrold at my side. I randomly pick a direction in the hall and let it lead me wherever it beckons, and Harrold keeps up just fine. "It could still be hours until she arrives, so we may as well use our time wisely and familiarize ourselves with this place. We'll be visiting quite frequently, I can imagine."

Harrold nods.

"Tophet is smarter than to keep his secrets out in the open, behind closed doors, don't you think? Even if I wanted to snoop about, I don't think we'd be able to find anything. Just from the short time I've been stuck with him, I can already tell that he has all of his secrets safe in his mind. He's utterly impenetrable."

Harrold only listens, but I don't expect him to gossip with me anyway.

"Now everyone knows we're mated. Goddess, I wonder what people are thinking. Did you know that Alpha Tophet expects me to exchange my title as Alpha for the title of Luna? Don't worry. I would never be so foolish. Just because we've announced our bond, does not mean I've agreed to anything having to do with the merger. If he keeps proposing ridiculous clauses, then there will be no merger, even if I could benefit from it. I'm tired of men constantly undermining me." I sarcastically laugh, "Luna? Never."

My gaze catches on an archway illuminated cooly by what could only be sunlight. I stop walking, causing Harrold to halt. "What's this?" I murmur and stray through.

The archway leads into a narrow corridor that curves right and slopes downward in long, mild steps. At the end is a door to the outside left ajar. Harrold swiftly slides past me and takes the first look, ensuring that the area is secure.

"Is it beyond the keep walls?" I ask, only able to see slivers past his frame.

"No," he says and moves aside, "it's a courtyard."

I push the door open to venture through. On the other side rests a garden of sorts, overgrown yet scraggly and colorless in the season. Moss fills the cracks between the bricks of the stone path — some stones almost entirely coated and others broken by some unknown force. The courtyard itself is quaint compared to others and is obviously far less visited.

I step forward softly as my eyes linger with child-like wonder. My brother and I would have loved to play in a place as magical as this.

I caress the shoulder of the statue that sits in the very center. I hold onto it as I circle to its front, then there I realize it is a woman draped in a waved fabric that gathers at her feet. The fabric covers her face and is held there by a crown, but her feminine features show in the delicate nature of her hands which are uncovered and that grasp upward at something unseen.

My eyes trickle down her body then sweep over the hideaway as a whole. "What a strange place," I mutter.

Harrold clears his throat. "Perhaps we should carry on."

As we exit, I try my hardest to remember the insignificant archway's location, wanting to return sometime. I hope its insignificance is great enough so that even Alpha Tophet is unaware of its existence. That would be an advantage — to have a hiding place in my enemy's own fortress.

We continue along, and I again find myself wanting to fill the silence. I say, "I thought I would be busier here. I know I have meetings regarding the merger and work with the ceremony, but back home, I'd never been able to stroll around the keep like this. I feel a bit like my mother."

"Your mother was an honorable Luna."

"She was, wasn't she?" I mumble and study my steps. "She always walked about — watching. I swear that whenever I was somewhere I wasn't supposed to be, my mother would appear."

"A mother's instincts," Harrold says.

"I only wish she was still alive. I'm afraid I need her instincts now more than ever."

"A mother only leaves once she knows her babies are capable without her."

I glance at my guard with peaked interest. "Then I suppose she saw something in me that I didn't."

When we come across the more public part of the keep, I find myself missing the serene quiet of the forgotten courtyard. However, we have made our way down and back around to the northern entry. The large room isn't as busy as others I've swerved through, but enough is going on to preoccupy me. My stomach twinges and my fingertips tingle when Alpha Tophet strides into my vision in perfect timing. He stops with a graceful severity right in front of me and skips past proper greetings.

"Your witch has arrived," He says. My face promptly brightens, and he offers, "Come, then. I'll bring you to her."

"When did she arrive? Just now?" I ask as I excitedly follow behind him.

"She arrived not long ago."

"Is she in good health?"

"You'll have to ask her yourself."

We exit into the gate's courtyard. I secure my cloak and smooth my dress, and in my moment of refinement, I run into Tophet's back. He twists to look at me, but my bubbling annoyance chooses to blame him for the minor incident. We don't glare at each other for long because the sight of Tabitha yanks me forward. I hurry from Tophet and Harrold, immediately enveloping Tabitha in a hug. She's bulky with her heavy clothes and layered cloaks, but her face reveals warmth and life.

"Oh, please tell me the journey was quick," I say and ease my hold. "You weren't too miserable, were you?"

"Better than the journey to the battlefield," she says, her teeth slightly chattering.

"We must get you unraveled and by a fire. We'll go to my chambers, come on."

She shuffles along, and when we pass Alpha Tophet, the two share a short yet territorial stare, so I rush us indoors to avoid any bickering. Harrold accompanies, and as predicted, Tophet stays behind. The bond between us stretches. No matter how many walls or shut doors are separating us, it doesn't thin or snap. The stretching isn't uncomfortable, but it feels better to be near him.

Tabitha was right to warn me. From just our short time together, I can understand why she worried over my feelings for Alpha Tophet. The bond is clever and too often unexpected in its methods. If I don't keep a level head, I could very well be, think, and feel like any other mated woman.

In the corridors of the apartments, we find enough privacy to speak quietly. We link our arms and huddle, discussing like young girls. She asks, "How have you been? Have you stood your ground?"

"I haven't given much away. No matter how hard he tries in our meetings, I haven't given an official answer regarding the merger. I can tell it's bothering him."

"Have you two spoken much outside of meetings?"

I swallow. "No. He isn't around. Today was the first day that I came across him by chance."

She judges behind her calculative eyes. "Busy Alpha, I suppose."

"Which I should be, but instead I'm taking walks through gardens and down hallways like a ghost."

"Well, we can return home once you've given an answer."

I nod. "Right."

"So what is your answer, Brea? Are we merging?"

"Oh, well, I've really considered both options."

"And?"

I stand straight and admit, "I don't know. I-I know what you see in the opportunity; we could gain a lot for the pack and ourselves, but the cost is... I've made decisions before without considering the consequences, and I'm scared to make such a decision again."

Tabitha shakes her head. "That's not what I'm hearing. What I'm hearing is that all you've done is consider the consequences."

"That's — yes, I have. But I can't predict everything. What if he has his own plans? What if we're walking into one big trap? The risk is too high."

"A high risk for a high reward."

I pull a face and cover it with my palms. "The pack—"

"Have you made any progress with Tophet at all? The risk lessens if he's fond of you, but I'm assuming you're as cold as you were before since today is the first day you've seen him outside of a meeting room."

"Says the woman who scowled at him the first chance she got," I accuse.

"He doesn't have to love me."

My face flushes. "So now he has to love me? Tabitha, please, be reasonable."

She presses her lips together and breathes through her pierced nose. "He's your mate. I am being very reasonable."

"If he's my mate, then why does he look at me like I'm a screaming baby?"

"Probably because you're a relentless tease!"

Harrold grunts. I look back at him and smile sheepishly. "I'm sorry you have to listen to her rude speech, Harrold."

"Oh, it's true," she insists. "The man wants you, but he can't have you, and it's making him all angry."

"He was angry before. That's just how he is." I change the subject when I say, "My apartment is just up these stairs. Let's spare Harrold and discuss when we're alone."

When we reach my apartment, Harrold opens the doors for us, yet I hardly make it inside the chamber as two servants — one carrying a large package — intercept me. I turn and look at the delivery, unaware one was going to be made. "What's this?" I question.

The young, empty-handed servant says, "This is the dress you will wear for your mating ceremony."

"Mating ceremony?" Tabitha repeats.

"Oh, okay, well, bring it on in."

I step aside so the women can place the package on the table in the sitting room. Tabitha and I approach as the servants remove the brown wrapping to reveal a box and not one from a dressmaker.

"You didn't mention a mating ceremony," Tabitha says through her teeth.

I hold up my hand to her then ask the women, "Can I open it?"

"Please, let me."

The audible woman lifts the top off of the box then unfolds the fabric covering the dress, a detail I find odd until I see the material of the gown. "Are these jewels?" I ask and bend to get a better look.

"Yes. This gown has been worn by the Alpha's mother, grandmother, and the women before. It was a priceless gift from the Tophet's first Alpha to his mate, made of precious stones from all over the world. If you may try it on, we can see where we must make temporary adjustments."

My heart aches. "Try it on," I murmur. "Why don't you leave the dress here so I can do so after my advisor is settled? She just arrived after a very long journey. But I will leave notes on any adjustments and send them back to you with the dress."

The servant breathes in to withhold her preferred words. "Very well. Thank you, Alpha Pryor."

Harrold sees the two women out then shuts the doors. My attention looms over the gown, my fingers tempted to lift it up, until Tabitha says, "Why didn't you tell me about this ceremony? What is it?"

"Tophet and I will make a promise to our bond under the Goddess's light. It's a mere performance to secure our reputation."

She joins at my side. "I thought you said you and Tophet have made no progress, but this is progress, Brea. A promise to each other; that means something."

"He said we'll do it to gain the temple's favor, to feed into the idea that our mating is a special act done by the Goddess's hand," I explain. "It has nothing to do with our actual bond. His promise may as well be whisked off by the wind and never heard again."

"He may think his promise means nothing, but it is your job to convince him that it does and that your own words do as well."

I move away from the dress and instead fix my attention on her. As I turn about the room, I tell her, "Nothing will make him care for me. He made it quite clear that he has not wanted to love or be loved in a very long time."

I try to act unbothered when Tabitha takes the gown from its box. She holds it up. "It's very heavy."

"And the back?"

She examines it. "It might work. Try it on."

I sigh and watch as it shimmers and glitters in the daylight pouring upon it from the windows. Each gem is utter perfection. Blues, reds, greens, yellows — each one ranging in size from a pinky nail to a ripened strawberry — I bite my lip. The extravagance is otherworldly.

"It's gorgeous," I confess. "Fine. Help me get it on."

I remove my cloak and undo my dress as Tabitha prepares the gown. "What should I wear underneath it?"

"Nothing. It's clearly meant to be worn over the naked body."

"Are you sure? There are tiny gaps in the setting."

"There's fabric at the breasts and also to cover your nether regions. It's made to match skin, well, not mine, but it will create an illusion with yours."

I look at the fabric she's talking about while in my underthings. "How bizarre."

She grins. "The Alphas must love this. All they do is pluck off the dress and their mate is ready for—"

"Tabitha."

"Is that not what will happen?"

"No! Of course not. Don't be silly."

"Why not take the Alpha for a ride?"

I take off my undergarments and motion for her to bring the dress down; I'll have to step into it. "Because we are on opposite sides. Because we hated him. Because we were willing to bring his pack to extinction no matter the cost. Not to mention the fact that you want me to manipulate him."

She says, "Sex is a tactic of manipulation — perhaps the most convincing one."

I frown and guide the gown up my nudity, carefully extending my arms through the weighted, cold sleeves. Tabitha fascines the back, and I feel it rest against my chest and waist. It drapes exquisitely, and the sensation of the dress over one's body is indescribable. I've never been excited to wear a dress before, but this one is nothing like the pieces I've worn.

I run my hands over the gemstones. "Can you see my scar?"

Tabitha moves my hair. "Just the very top of it. It's so unnoticeable that I'm sure you'll be fine, especially with your hair down."

My fingertips then follow the neckline which lies straight from one shoulder to the other. In a sense, it is modest. Some gowns dip between breasts or display entire backs, but almost all of my skin is covered. However, any inch of modesty is smothered by the draping. It conforms to the body and displays the entirety of my shape.

"It fits you nicely," Tabitha says and inspects the front. "I don't think any alterations have to be made. Do you?"

"Is this how it's supposed to look?"

"You don't like it? Is there a mirror?"

I take Tabitha into the bedroom and have a twist in front of the mirror there. "I can't wear this in front of foreign leaders."

"You look grown-up," she says and places her hands on my shoulders. "And strong. You look like an Alpha female."

"I do?"

"You'll wear it."

"Do I have a choice?"

She drops her hands. "Remember, you want him to be fond of you, so wear his family heirloom and do so confidently."

I take my eyes from my reflection. "So mote it be."

******************************************
Thank you for your patience! I hope you had a wonderful holiday, and I can't wait to see where this story takes us.