~Breaking the Walls~

ELRICH

A few weeks later…

The camp felt tense that morning. Whispers moved quicker than smoke, carrying unease from one wolf to the next. I had woken up early, leaving Eira to have some more sleep while I kept an eye on what was going on in the camp.

“…a border outpost was hit last night,” someone murmured.

“The attack was too precise. Definitely Bloodfang tactics,” another replied.

I didn’t need to hear more. Their shadow lingered here, even inside my walls. When I stepped into the yard, voices cut off instantly. Silence stretched thin. Wolves shifted on their feet, eyes sliding away. Guilt clung to them like a scent, heavy and sour. They didn’t have to say what they were thinking. I already knew.

And Eira had heard them too but she remained quiet.

She came to the war room to meet me much later. Her eyes burned with something I could not place.

“You knew,” she said.

I didn’t bother to deny it.

“So it’s true?” Her voice cracked. “You struck them?”

“They struck first.” My tone was steady, though my chest thundered. I stepped closer, holding her gaze. “Do you really believe you can stay apart from this? You carry it already. In your blood. In your name.”

Her lips trembled. “I never asked for this.”

“And I never asked to bury half my people,” I said, sharper than I intended. Regret tugged at me. My voice softened. “But this is where we are.”

Her eyes shone, hurt but unbroken. She was stronger than she realized, carrying pain like armor. Every time she pushed back, sparks flared between us. I told myself they were dangerous. But I couldn’t look away. She had exempted herself from anything that had to do with the BloodFang pack. I had no idea why but my best guess was that she was still trying to heal from the pain.

By midday, I called her to the yard.

“You’re not helpless,” I said, tossing her a staff. “But you’re not ready either. This isn’t politics anymore. It’s survival. While you were a part of them, you were blinded by your father. There has always been a fight between us and them and it is because of things that have been hidden from every member of the BloodFang pack.”

“I want you to teach me how to fight and defend myself.” was all the response I got from her.

I didn't object, I told her to tell her maid to help her get dressed for sparring and she should meet me at the training field when she was done.

In a few minutes, the guards gathered and I showed Eira the stance to take. They all watched quietly as I guided her through the basics: block, pivot, hold your ground. She fumbled at first, but stubbornness steadied her. Every time she faltered, I stepped in, correcting her grip, fingers adjusting her shoulders, my body close enough to steal her breath.

“Focus,” I said when she stumbled.

“Hard to focus when you keep touching me,” she shot back, her cheeks flushed.

A smile tugged at me before I could stop it. “Then maybe you’re learning.”

The air thickened with every strike, every brush of her skin against mine. My wolf prowled under my skin, restless. When I pinned her against the post, the staff pressed across her chest, her mouth was just a breath from mine… I nearly gave in. One heartbeat more and I would have claimed her, right there.

But I didn’t. Not yet.

***

That night, we were all seated in the hall. It was almost as if some of my people were waiting for something to go wrong. To me, it felt like they had not fully accepted her as one of us. They had no choice anyway, I am their alpha and she is now my Luna.

I sat at the head of the table, where an Alpha should. But I wasn’t really with them. My attention kept drifting, drawn again and again to Eira.

The way she sat, back straight but hands restless, her eyes looked like they were shadowed by thoughts she wasn’t saying out loud. She carried herself like she wanted to be untouchable, I wondered if anyone else noticed. I doubted it. They only saw the surface. But me? I couldn’t look away.

When she slipped outside afterwards, I couldn’t let her go alone. My feet moved before I gave it a thought, following her into the cool hush of the night.

We stopped right outside my quarters, shadows wrapping around us. Her heartbeat thundered, quick and unsteady, and when her hand brushed mine, I braced myself to hear her give an excuse of why she needs to leave and can't stay to talk. But she didn’t, she stayed. In one fluid motion, I held her hands and placed my lips on hers without thinking.

Our first real kiss was cautious, almost trembling…like testing a flame you’re afraid might burn. But the moment she softened against me, all restraint shattered. Hunger tore through me, in an unstoppable way, spilling into every desperate press of my mouth on hers. She melted into me as if she had been waiting for this just as long, and I knew then there was no pulling back.

By the time we stumbled inside, the walls we had fought to keep between us were gone. There was nothing left but us and an unguarded desire.

The door shut behind us and the wolf in me surged forward. My presence filled the space, and I meant to dominate, to take, but she surprised me.

Her hands shoved me hard, enough to knock me back onto the bed. For the first time in years, I was caught off guard. And then she took a hold of my briefs, yanking it away, exposing my already stretched cock. Surprise still clouded my mind in a pleasant way, when she hopped on and began to straddle me, fire blazing in her eyes, her palms pressed to my chest.

“You’re not always the one in control,” she whispered, her voice was shaking but fierce.

My wolf growled, vibrating low in my chest. Damn, the sound should have warned her. Instead it only fueled her defiance. She rocked against me, teasing me, making my breath hitch. I gripped her thighs, hard, fighting every instinct to flip her and remind her who I was.

And still, for a moment, I let her dominate. Maybe because I wanted to see more of this part of her I didn't know. As I enjoyed the moment, a part of me hoped that she would not regret this.

The power in her eyes, the heat of her body pressing down thrilled me. She thought she had the Alpha at her mercy. She thought she could break me.

But Alphas don’t surrender.

With one twist, I caught her waist and rolled her over, pinning her beneath me in a heartbeat. My mouth crashed onto hers, taking what I’d denied myself.

“You can test me, Luna,” I rasped against her lips, pride and hunger blazing inside me. “But it'll be a little harder than that to dominate me.”

I flipped her, forcing her onto her hands and knees. My palm pressed against her lower back, holding her in place. My breath burned.

“It’s my first time, Elrich.” She whispered and I paused for a moment.

I turned her over and looked into her eyes. “Do you want me to stop?” I asked her softly.