16- Maeve is missing

As soon as Maeve called out to Lugh, the guard at the door came and heard a message she wanted to send to Lugh.

It was scandalous.

He came to the king and informed him. "Your magesty, the damsel has sent me to tell you a message my liege." He said embarrassed. The guards face went red as he finished his message, "and she says that if you want to mate her then she has decided she is reckless today."

Lugh furrowed his brows, this woman was a scandal. He had thought she wanted a boyfriend and now this? "Why such a change in demeanor?"

The guard must have misunderstood. "those aren't my words your magesty, they came from her!" He said as he gave a questioning look.

"Why would she say such a thing to me? It doesn't make sense, she is such an innocent girl I'm sure she is a virgin, as am I; I didn't want to disgrace her like this. Did something happen?"

The guard shook his head, "I don't know my liege but she sounds….dangerous."

The guard was utterly embarrassed at this point and he just wanted to go home.

"Very well." Lugh dismissed him. "You may take your leave, it appears I must talk to my girlfriend."

All of the servants around him that he was dealing with felt that a scandal had entered the island by bringing her here, the king would never have mated a woman he wasn't married to, and now he was saying he would go to her, they worried what it might mean.

They made excuses to leave and he was left alone as he went towards their bedchamber.

He did not open the door however. He knocked and Maeve yelled from inside. "Wait! I'm not ready yet!" She was actually quite a chicken about being seen without her clothes for the first time.

Sirius had only managed to remove her shirt when he tried to bite her once, but that was a long time ago it seemed, and she was told no man had ever been with her even before her death and rebirth.

Still she had promised a naked woman in his bed and so she told him to wait.

But he didn't wait. He barged in, in that moment and she shrieked.

"Stop it Maeve." He exclaimed, grabbing her wrist. "What has gotten into you? Why are you so reckless?"

She blinked. "But I thought you wanted….."

"—Marry me Maeve." He interrupted, "if you want to sleep with me so badly then let's have an engagement then. We will do things properly, Maeve: be my queen."

All of her anger at him left once again, as she realized that she would keep her dignity.

"Really?"

Then Loki, god of mischief took the dark magic and moved the bond from Sirius. He moved the fate of the world to Lugh, his expression grim. "This is such a sad future for them; it would have been been better if Sirius would be with her, but this is necessary for Maeve." Loki said. "For her to become….her true self."

——————-

As soon as the bond moved to Lugh his desires for her amplified. He struggled now against some unseen force, his body desired to take off her clothes, betraying his composure he had always exhibited.

"What is this?" He exclaimed alarmed. He suddenly pressed his lips to hers with excitement. He straddled over her with his clothing still on and kissed her on the bed, pressing her hands into the blankets, struggling to fight the urge to press himself against her.

Her face went red with shock. She loved the kiss; it made her melt, but she couldn't go down like this. She fought the urge and tried to push him off.

He pushed her back down. Kissing her again.

She began to panic.

"Lugh…." She said between kisses. "You said…."

"—I know I know." He said breaking away. Once again fighting the urge to ravage her, some magical power coming over him all of the sudden.

He pulled away and turned around excitedly moving to exit the room. "Let's have a wedding."

Maeve watched him go, her only chance to escape fading as she feared he would once again lock the door. She pulled out a knife she had found in his bedside table.

Breathe Maeve. Breathe.

———————————

Vali woke up the next morning wondering how things had gone yesterday with Maeve and Lugh. Assuming that he had ruined their date, he went to make his way to her apartment.

He walked passed the shore, where the pier and fishing boats usually held their market and the smell of fish would be strong and the air would be salty and the mists would be lighter for a minute of the day.

But there was no one at the pier. No fish had come in today and so they had nothing to sell, which he found odd, especially the absence of Ronan troubled his mind.

With confusion on his face he went to the werewolf compound and decided to ask why the pier was so empty. He knocked on Maeve's apartment but there was no one there.

Bam bam bam bam bam he knocked, "Maeve!"

Silence.

He looked in the window. "Maeve!"

Confused he went around the building, jumping up with his claws onto the balcony and then banged on the upstairs balcony door, but still no response.

I swear if she is still sleeping….."Maeeeeeeevvvvvve!" He called out banging on the door some more. "Open the door Maeve or I'm coming in!"

He pushed open the door with his werewolf strength, and announced once again his presence. "Maeve! I'm going to eat your cereal!" He said. Grabbing the box of toasted strawberry shredded wheat squares. And shoving some of them into his mouth.

He went to her bedroom but she wasn't there.

Strange….where is she?

Then he saw her food was all expired. It was as if time had passed without him. Freaking out he went outside, and tripped over morning newspapers, seven of them! Something werewolves delivered daily in this town.

More and more details seemed off to him, it seemed like he had slept for a week. Where was Narfi?

He ran back home and his food was expired too. Narfi was still sleeping. He shook him and shook him, "Narfi wake up!" He cried.

Eventually waking his brother, he shouted, "Narfi! Maeve is missing! We've been tricked! I don't know how but we've been asleep for a week!"

Narfi groggily chuckled. "That's impossible Vali we would have to eat!"

"No I'm serious! We've missed a whole week!" Vali insisted, and Maeve hasn't returned to her home!"

The boys rushed to the beach— the secluded area where they had last seen Maeve, and the groceries looked weathered now, the crab reduced to bones and sun bleached.

"Oh no." Narfi exclaimed, "it really has been a week."