The Wheepingthorne's White Wolf

Selene blankly stares at the fireplace in front when Kaden suddenly blocks her view before offering her a warm cup of milk.  Selene gratefully accepted it and waited for him to sit down. He settled down in front of her and regarded her with an intense stare. Selene clears her throat and shifts her attention to her drink. She tightly grips her cup and takes a quick sip to ease her nervousness.

However, Kaden coughs, asking for her attention, and she groans inwardly. She is forced to look up and meet his penetrating gaze. 

"So, how long are you going to stay here?" Kaden asks, his voice scathingly cold. When she heard his voice, Selene's first thought was how much it was the same as the freezing weather. Also, after having the chance to take a closer inspection on him, Kaden's ash-grey hair, ice-blue eyes, and pale skin evenly match his cold and sharp impression of him. It also vaguely reminds her of someone.

"Honestly speaking, I don't know," Selene murmurs. Kaden's almost indiscernible gestures didn't escape her eyes. Kaden's mouth twitches, and she can see his jaw clenches hard. He clasps his hands tightly as if restraining himself and gives her a strained smile.

"Why don't you just go home?" Selene can feel Kaden's covert hostility through his simple words that make her sweat anxiously. This is one of the situations she hates the most, being indebted to someone. Still, Selene doesn't have much choice. To survive in this foreign place, she needs to do everything she can, even if it means bothering him.

"If I can, I would have done it already, but I don't know how. And I can't go home not until I accomplish what is asked of me." though that is something Selene is not sure she is capable of doing. Kaden will surely throw a fit if he learns what she needs to do and how long they will be staying together because of it.

"I will help you. Just tell me where it is." Kaden retorts in a short, clipped tone.

Selene falters, realizing Kaden's obliviousness about the situation. He doesn't seem to know what's going on. Maybe, she'll give him a shock. She's curious to see how he will react. "Really? Do you know how to bring me back to my world?"

Upon hearing her words, Kaden swiftly shot up from his seat as if burned and getting paler by the second. She never thought that he could get paler than he already was. His face is also stricken with something Selene couldn't quite understand. Kaden roughly snatched her arm and forced her to stand up so that she accidentally dropped her mug. The loud crash of the cup as it rolled down the wooden floor added tension to the atmosphere. At that moment, the only thing that Selene can hear is his ragged breathing as he fights to control his emotions. However, his heart's loud beating and cold, clammy hands as he tightly grasps her arm reveal his true feelings.

Before she could even stop herself, Selene opened her mouth and said something that made Kaden even more agitated. "What are you scared of? Is it because of what I said earlier that I'm from another world? Or is there another reason for it?"

Kaden tightly shut his eyes as if trying to regain his wits back. "If you already know, then stop talking. I will not help you. All I want you to do is step out of this house and never return."

"I'm afraid that I can't do that. I will apologize in advance, but I will be imposing on you for a long time. However, in exchange, I will do everything to protect and help you in any way I can."

Kaden laughs contemptuously, giving him an open and honest glare that he's been holding out on her earlier. 

"What can you do? Who the hell do you think you are? There's no way someone like you who can't even break away from me can protect anyone!" 

As if emphasizing his argument, he grips her arms brutally that Selene has to bite her lips to stop her whimper from escaping her lips. It will leave a nasty bruise on her skin. She bet Kaden can even break her arm if he wants to. However, she has to hold her ground. This isn't the time to be afraid.

Selene smiles in response. "I may not look like it, but I know how to fight, and just earlier, I find out something incredible. Want to test it out?"

Before she can even hear his reply, Selene kicks him hard at the side of his knee to partially incapacitate him. Kaden only grunts in pain with that tremendous force, confirming her suspicions. When Kaden's grip loosens in her arm, Selene takes that chance to hold his wrist using her right hand and effortlessly flips him over. Once on the ground, she pushes him firmly by putting pressure on his neck to prevent him from breaking away. Selene grins from ear to ear because of the sudden development. After her weird conversation with the woman with the blonde hair, she found out how strong she had become after breaking the bed into two with a simple punch from her bare fist. With this additional display, she had incapacitated Kaden while still holding back her full strength. 

For a brief moment, Kaden looked bewildered. His mouth hangs open in disbelief. He stays frozen on the hard wooden floor until something snaps him out of his stupor. Something in the air changes, and Selene can feel it in her skin. Suddenly, Kaden shoves her hard that her body flies to another side of the room, and Selene finds herself plastered to the wall. Splinters of wood flew out, and her body left a massive dent in it. However, surprisingly it didn't feel that hurt, and Selene gasped in disbelief. 

She shifts her attention to Kaden, who begins to act strangely and is suddenly on his knees while quivering in pain. Kaden's face is rigid, while his mouth is tightly clenched to fight off the sudden waves of agony. As seconds passed, Kaden couldn't hold the pain anymore, and a harsh growl escaped his lips. Suddenly, Kaden's body changes, and she watches in a daze when ash-grey hair sprouts all over his face. Slowly and agonizingly, the skin on Kaden's body ruptures as if shedding its former skin. Selene covered her mouth with her cold, clammy hands to stifle the scream that escaped her lips. However, her body becomes as solid as a rock when he hears the loud sound of his bones breaking as it forcibly elongates and drastically changes shape before her eyes. It feels like she fell out of the grid. She couldn't take it anymore. Selene tightly shut her eyes while trying her best to take away the painful image of Kaden as he transformed into something she couldn't understand.

A few minutes passed, and everything had become quiet except for the loud beating of her heart. Selene wants to open her eyes, but she's afraid of what she will see. She couldn't bear seeing Kaden go through that unbearable pain again. However, Selene jumps in surprise when she hears faint footsteps walking in her direction. She slowly opens her eyes, and she finds a pair of glowing eyes staring back at her. Those eyes don't belong to a human but a predator. 

A gigantic wolf almost thrice the size of a typical wolf she'd seen on television looms over Selene, his enthralling but chilling eyes fixated on her. At that moment, the bizarre situation she'd gotten herself into had finally sunk in. It's not enough that she got transported to another world and reverted to a child-like body while gaining an incredible strength that she could flip a man twice her size. Ultimately, that man had to turn into a wolf. 

Selene is not sure what to think or feel anymore. A broken laugh came out of her mouth, but sounds of cry instantly followed it. Selene's tears flood like a broken dam, and her whole body is shaking; she can't stop. She can't believe that a grown woman like her is bawling her eyes like a baby. She wanted to stop, but her tear ducts had no intention of listening to her. It's been a long time since Selene cried like this. She can feel her energy slowly draining when unexpectedly, she feels something cold rubbing the side of her face. Selene stares wide-eyed as Kaden, in his wolf form, attempts to wipe her tears. A brief memory flashes inside her while looking closely at him, and Selene finds herself smiling. No wonder he feels familiar. It feels like she is staring at Snow because they have the same ice-blue eyes who always gaze deeply into her eyes.

Before she can even stop herself, Selene's hand has found its way to his face and gently rubs it. She wants to ask if he is still in pain, but she doesn't have the strength to talk. Instead, she's suddenly overcome with the overwhelming feeling of his warmth. She tightly hugs his body and nuzzles her face on his neck without thinking. His fur feels soft and ticklish. Selene inhales deeply, his scent invading her senses and slowly calming her. However, unlike what she feels at that moment, she can feel Kaden stiffen in his arms. And when the loud sound of the door opening snaps them out of their world, Kaden, as if regaining his reasoning, quickly runs out of the door, still in his wolf form, leaving her and his dumbfounded grandfather at the entrance.

Selene almost forgot about grandfather Kenshin. When she asked him if they had any mirrors, he went out for a while and told her to wait because he would find one. Her request might have been too fickle, but he must have sensed the urgency in her voice and immediately granted her request. And now, she just made her grandson angry that he storms out of the house. Selene feels embarrassed because of it.

"What happened between the two of you?" he asks, his face covered with puzzlement.

Selene smiles sheepishly. "We were just talking. And then he suddenly got angry at me when I said that I was from another world. After that, he quivered in pain one moment, turning into a wolf. I just feel—" Selene suddenly stops talking when grandfather Kenshin drops the mirror he is holding and stares at her in utter disbelief as if she'd suddenly grown two heads. Being a person from another world is more significant than she realizes. Judging from their reaction, she doesn't even want to think about what kind of life she will have because of that simple fact. 

It has become terribly obvious what kind of problems she will have to deal with while looking at her face through the round-shaped glass mirror given to him by grandfather Kenshin. And despite repeatedly convincing herself that everything will be just fine, she just can't calm down. Selene still can't believe the fact staring right in front of her. She did become a child, and if she is not mistaken, her current age must be around twelve or thirteen years old. Although her face remains the same, just like when she was younger, it still doesn't make her feel better. It is because her hair and eye color have changed. Her black straight hair turns into glossy waves of bluish-silver while her dark eyes become a shade of reddish-orange. She undeniably became prettier, she won't reject it, but there is a lingering fear that she can't shake off. She also feels anxious that her family and friends might not recognize her. Besides that, Selene is also weirded out by her eyes, they may be beautiful, but it looks eerie. Her shoulders slump in defeat, and she stares off into space while gathering her thoughts. 

After conversing with grandfather Kenshin, he told her to go back into her room and rest. Although she already had plenty of rest, Selene immediately agreed because she wanted time alone to think. Besides, Kaden hasn't gone back since he left in the afternoon, and it's already night-time. At this point, Selene is not surprised that he must hate seeing a troublesome burden like her. And to sum up, in the conversation she had with her grandfather, it is a fact that travelers from another world are a unique existence that must be reported to the church. Typically, people like her hold an immense pool of mana that others seek to monopolize. 

According to Mr. Kenshin, only two ways others like her can come into their world. First is when magicians perform a summoning ritual that usually needs sacrifices. Secondly, the souls of those who died are allowed to reincarnate into this world with their memories intact. As for Selene, it seems like she doesn't fit into any category. Kaden met a dark-haired woman ten years ago, and her arrival was also foretold. Grandfather Kenshin believes that the woman is an oracle.

The world that she is tasked to save is called Albion. She is in the Kingdom of Lyriboña, where a queen rules the land. She is currently staying at Weepingthorne village, located in the far north of the kingdom behind the jagged peaks of Aldes Mountain. Due to harsh and extreme weather conditions, it is rare for people from the city to travel to this village, and no one would want to live there aside from the current residents. Since it is a forgotten village, grandfather Kenshin said it is a perfect place for them to live in. Selene doesn't want to pry, but it must be about the conversation she overheard while pretending to be asleep. If Selene remembers it correctly, they are talking about bounty hunters. Since she saw Kaden transforms into a massive white wolf, she can only come up with one conclusion. The bounty hunters must be after this village because of their abilities. As for Khalil, he looks like an average human in her eyes. He is frail and sickly that even walking seems to be a difficult task for him. He is the complete opposite of Kaden, his older brother. After taking his meal, Khalil quietly returned to his room and took his rest, leaving her and his brother alone, leading to a series of unfortunate incidents. 

Although she has gained some necessary information about this world, it is not enough to develop a plan. Selene needs to gather as much information about Albion to lay out a detailed strategy. Her first task should be to visit the nearby city and observe the state of things and maybe find a library to check on some historical records. If this world is really on the brink of extinction, there must be some signs that she needs to look into. Maybe from there, she can think about her next step.

Furthermore, suppose she is currently in the far north. There is no available form of transportation that she can easily use. In that case, her only option must be to travel on foot. For that, she needs a guide, and the only person she can think of to ask for help is Kaden, who glaringly hates her. Selene groans loudly. It seems that her utmost priority, for now, is to convince Kaden and get on his good side. However, it will be a tall order for the prickly and temperamental personality, even for her. She's already getting a headache just by thinking about it. 

A soft knock from her door made Selene stop rambling on her own. Grandfather Kenshin's head pokes out from the small crevice. "Can I come in?" 

Selene smiles sheepishly. "Yes, come in."

Grandfather Kenshin opens the door widely, and Selene's eyes immediately move to what he is holding. "I almost forget to give it to you. I already burned your clothes, and these are the only things remaining.

Selene immediately stands up from her bed and takes hold of the necklace with a signet ring and the amethyst stone resting in his palm. "Thank you for keeping it safe," Selene murmurs gratefully. She promptly wears the necklace, suddenly feeling empty without it. And when the signet ring perfectly settles in the hollow of her neck, Selene feels relief. However, she notices grandfather Kenshin's anxious look as he spares a glance towards the ring she is wearing. "Is there something wrong?"

"No, it's nothing. I just thought the symbol in your signet ring looks a bit familiar, but I must be wrong."

Selene clutches the ring and rubs it with her fingers. "It's an important gift I received on my birthday. I've been wearing it for a long time; I'm grateful that you kept it safe."

"I somehow understand how important it is because Kaden also has almost the same ring that he always keeps secure in a pouch, but I have never seen him wear it. Anyway, here, take this."

Selene didn't instantly notice it, but he held a small wooden box carved with an intricate design in his other hand. "This is for you. Although my grandson is the one who's supposed to be keeping it until you arrive, I kept it instead because he tends to throw away things out of spite."

It must be the thing that the woman in her dreams talked about. She somehow feels afraid to touch it, but Selene knows that it must be something important that she needs to have. She reluctantly takes the box from grandfather Kenshin, and she abruptly feels a tingling sensation flowing towards her hand. Selene almost drops the box but manages to catch herself. Her heart hammers uncontrollably, and her body shudders.

"Take a rest. We will talk again once Kaden comes back." 

Selene quietly nodded. Once grandfather Kenshin left the room, she collapsed like a heap of mess in the bed while looking at the wooden box in her hands. Selene lies on the bed and hugs herself in a fetal position. Her problems keep on piling up, and she is worried that she's afraid to sleep. However, against her will, Selene is slowly being pulled into the darkness of her haunting dreams.