the beast general’s feelings

She heard Sam let out shouts of laughter. Kiera had to smile herself as the sound made its way into her ears from underneath the howl of the wind as it brushed past their rapidly moving bodies.

Her black hair pushed back around her face at the speed they were going. Kiera and Sam raced their two horses across the lush green plains, urging each of their horses to go faster.

Kiera looked behind them, watching briefly as the kingdom disappeared, getting further and further away from them.

She turned back around as she heard another round of laughter coming from the prince in front of her. Her hair whipped her face as she turned her focus to the front. The sting of her hair on her face was enough to get her to put her worries to the side for now.

More than anything, she wanted to catch up to the prince. Her inner Wolf Beast demanded her to catch up to him. Her Wolf couldn't bare another bout of the prince's crystal-clear laughter, mocking her, enticing her to chase after him as a predator does to prey.

Sam looked behind his shoulder at her, the appearance of his glittering emerald eyes only added fuel to the fire. She did not know what came over her next.

Kiera pushed her horse to her limit, spurring the horse to take her even closer still to the prince.

"What are you doing?" He yelled at her to get his voice across the sound of the rushing wind between them. There was confusion in his eyes as she got closer.

Her hand let go of the reins at the same time as her body went to the side, knocking the prince out of his horse.

They went tumbling down onto the soft green grass. Their bodies rolled together until they finally came to a stop at the bottom of a small grassy hill.

Kiera's body was on top of the prince. Breathing heavy, she pinned him down. Sam looked up at her, he was also breathing hard from their fall.

Both of them were out of breath and their hair was in a state of total disarray.

Sam was the first to laugh. His laugh was soon followed by Kiera's laughter though. She rolled off the prince, no longer pinning him to the ground. The both of them continued laughing as they laid out on the grass. Their laughter only died down when they needed to catch their breath.

"I didn't think you hated losing that much." He grinned, white teeth flashing.

"Neither did I." She reciprocated the smile with one of her own.

Sam clasped his hands together and brought them behind his head.

"The night of the full moon is approaching." He kept his gaze on her, his smile diminishing slightly.

Kiera's smile also dampened.

"Yes. The night of transformation is this week."

If the Beasts had taken full advantage of the full moon in Wolfcyre before they left for Solomon, it would mean they would be forced to transform this time around. There were very few Beasts that could last more than two full moon cycles without transforming at least once. Kiera had transformed with Jade not that long ago and therefore the pull to transform wasn't as strong as it was for some of the other Beasts.

King William left instructions of what to do for this upcoming full moon before he left for Wolfcyre, and all the remaining Beasts had to do was to make sure the night of transformation went as uneventful as possible.

His sighs made Kiera switch her attention back to him. His resting figure among the grass seemed to fit the image of him so beautifully well.

"I wonder how the famous Blackcrested Wolf looks?" He asked the question nonchalantly but Kiera knew the intention of the prince.

"The Blackcrested Wolf is just another black furred wolf. She isn't anything beyond the ordinary."

"There's nothing ordinary about her." Sam quickly retorted. "A wolf of azure colored eyes and a coat of glossy black fur. I can only picture it if I close my eyes." As he said that he closed his eyes, picturing the azure eyed wolf.

"A shame that I can only imagine such a wolf in my head. Oh what a crying shame," he opened one eye, playfully jesting with her. Jest or not, Kiera had to put an end to any developing romantic thoughts about the transformation. She did not want the prince to entertain any thoughts of him watching the Beasts as they transformed.

She shook her head.

"The transformation isn't a sight for the faint of heart. I heard humans run away after watching it."

"Does it hurt?"

"It's a pain you get used to after a couple of times. Our pain tolerance adjusts with our growing bodies. As babies, we transform more often because our bodies mend bones easily. We are more malleable then."

"Typically human mates attend the night of transformation no?"

"Human mates are few and far between Sam. It would take a very brave human to want to stay for the night of transformation as even the howls of the predator Beasts terrify other Beasts as well. Imagine standing in the middle of the forest, surrounded by all kinds of animals."

"I'm not that weak Kiera."

She did not know what to reply to that. The prince watched her in silence, a rare time when he did not have a smile on his face.

"Another month has passed by us quickly." He continued, and Kiera knew where their conversation was heading towards. She turned her head to look away.

"Kiera," he spoke out her name softly, "it seems my three months are almost up."

"It appears so," she spoke with no emotion.

From beside her, she heard him lift his upper body from the grass. Kiera saw from the corner of her eye the prince as he stared at her. His body was casting a shadow over her body.

"Kiera, I know you feel something for me too. I can see it, and I'm sure others can see it as well." Kiera released a breath, his words were as if he had doused her with an ice-cold buck of water. "It wasn't that long ago that you even kissed me."

Kiera could not let him speak anymore. She rose up from the ground in a flash as the mood had now turned sour.

"I did not mean it. I don't know what came over me." She was being harsh with him, that she knew, but there was no other way to get it across to him their relationship could progress no further. "It was a mistake. A mistake that I have already apologized for." She looked down at him as her hands formed into fists at her side.

Sam scoffed, "A mistake?" He looked angry, but most of all he looked sad. "Kissing me was a mistake? Kiera, you make it seem as if you only kissed me once."

Her cheeks burned as the memories came flooding back to her all at once. She knew his words were true.

"You kissed me many times."

He got up from the ground to stand in front of her. "It was you that had started it, and you cannot look me in the eye and say that you did not enjoy any one of those kisses."

Their eyes were locked together in a staring battle that none of them wanted to lose. Kiera glared at him while Sam only watched her calmly. The wind blew past them, shaking their hair and clothing in the breeze. It died down suddenly as if the wind wanted Kiera to hear his next words with clarity.

"You hold feelings for me." He said confidently and Kiera could only shake her head.

"You have fallen for me." She continued glaring at him, her blue eyes burning with intensity as she denied his words for the second time.

"No."

He smiled, shaking his brilliant blond head.

"What is there about me that the Beast General does not like?" He asked her then. Kiera hated the smile that had occupied his lips.

"There are a lot of aspects about you that I do not like." He waited for her to list them but she floundered and began listing every single thing she could think of.

"I don't like your eyes, your nose, your lips, your hair," she didn't know why his smile only widened as he listened to her rant, "your entire personality." She was quickly running out of things to say and it showed.

"Hilarious. The same aspects you said are the very things that I like about you." He said softly. Kiera thought his emerald eyes were brimming with life as he looked at her lovingly. "Your eyes, your nose, your lips, your hair. The strong and just personality of yours. Your sense of responsibility. Should I go on?"

"The way you fight, the confidence you possess, and the-"

"Enough!" She screamed. "Please." Sam ended his list, shocked that the Beast General was reduced to begging.

Kiera peered at him with stinging eyes.

"What do you want me to say Sam?" The question left her lips and was followed by complete silence. After a while, the prince cleared his throat.

"Only confirm what I know is true. You want me just as much as I want you."

"And what if I do?" She said angrily. "What then?" Her upper lip curled up into a sarcastic smile.

"Will you renounce your status as royalty and live as a human among Beasts? Or will I give up my position? Trade in my sword for a tiara and a dress?" Neither one of those options seemed likely to occur, as she could not change and she did not expect the prince to change either.

"What difference does it make?" Her anger subsided as she uttered under her breath. To her, the mounting emotions were all for nothing. There was no outlet for them, as their affections held no future for them.

Her eyes now dry, she sighed and looked at the prince squarely in the face.

"I hold feelings for you," there was an immediate reaction from him as she said the words he longed for. Kiera watched with sad eyes as the prince's smile sweetened, his face brightened like the sun. "As much as I keep telling myself to ignore these rising feelings, I can't seem to keep my hands to myself."

She felt his hand as it reached up to touch her cheek.

"Thank you."

Kiera let out a meek laugh that died quickly on her lips as she heard the prince thank her.

"For what are you thanking me for prince? Me confessing my feelings for you changes absolutely nothing."

His thumb caressed her cheek, rubbing it across her skin tenderly. An action he did so calmly it first appeared as if he did not hear her.

"This changes everything Kiera. You are aware of your feelings and even told me," she was mesmerized by the flame of hope he held inside his eyes. "Our feelings are mutual." He whispered to her and she caught the moment his eyes glanced briefly down at her lips. Kiera expected him to kiss her but he only moved his hand that was on her cheek to grab her hand that was at her side.

"Which means there's no reason for me to feel anxious anymore. I have won your affection." He kissed her hand. "I promise you I will work out a way for us to be together Kiera."

He looked back at her, his eyes a lively green, as lush as the grasses that surrounded them.

"What do you say? Can you place your trust in me?"

Kiera's heart thumped loudly inside her chest. Her ears picked up the sound of her conflicted heart and of another sound. She realized it was the sound of the prince's own heart. It beat strongly against his chest, just as loudly as her own beating heart.

"Kiera?" He asked her again, his smile faltering on his lips.

"Together," she spoke slowly, "we will figure it all out as we go."

He rapidly nodded his head.

"Yes, together."

She smiled at how quickly he responded.

"Not so fast," she spoke with seriousness in her voice, "I still have no plans of making you my mate. We must first try to find a way to stay together. If we can't find a way we must promise to separate cleanly. Do you understand?"

He nodded and Kiera's heart swelled when she thought of his quick acceptance of her terms. It dawned on her how it had been mostly him that gave way to the conditions she kept putting forth. For that she was grateful.

She leaned close to him, resting her forehead against his for a moment before joining their lips. She enjoyed the way he accepted her lips easily. As if it had already become second nature to him.