Chapter 40: _Trauma Bonding

Chapter 40: _Trauma Bonding "I’m sorry, his parents died how?" I asked Marcellus after he casually dumped info on Kaelos’ past. He’d been walking forward until he realized that I paused in my tracks, forcing him to glance back at me with an arched eyebrow. "That’s not my place to say even if I knew how, Dessa." He muttered, a somber expression on his face. "It’s one of the mysteries of this pack. Scratch that, of the entire continent. His mother was cursed with a strange illness earlier in his childhood but then his father..." He paused, his eyes seeming tense. That tension easily got to me, causing me to subconsciously gulp. Just how many mysteries did this forsaken pack hold? "So, is his parents’ death the cause of his being a dick? Is that what you’re telling me?" I couldn’t help but ask, scoffing to myself with a bitter smile. "That’s no excuse." Marcellus tilted his head, dimming his eyes at me but I tried avoiding his gaze and proceeded to keep walking. However, just when I walked past him, he grabbed my shoulder, forcing me to turn around and look at him. "Why would you say that?" He asked, seeming genuinely curious. There was a hint of concern in his voice, softening my mind and causing me to sigh as my shoulders relaxed. I’ve never told anyone in this pack this... Heck, I rarely tell people back in my coven since most of them already know. But here goes... "When I was six, there was a raid on our coven’s territory by werewolves." I began, looking away from him and staring at the moon as I remembered that terrible night. I’d just been a child, barely able to write, yet I could still remember the screams. Oh, the screams haunted my nightmares even today. And then the blood, the death, the flames... The beasts ran past me and slaughtered my people like chickens, ripping them apart limb by limb and destroying the weapons of the humans. It was a terrible day in the history of my coven. Anyway, after drawing in a deep breath, I continued speaking. "Both humans and witches were slaughtered that night, in abundance. I remember hiding in my parents’ house and watching my mother, a witch, trying to hold them off with her magic while my father, a human Hunter, had his weapons, standing in front of me to defend me." My heart began pounding heavily against my chest as I recalled these dark memories. Witches and human procreation were normal, and their children almost always ended up being born with magic. For those at the Luminari coven... The probability was even higher and procreating with certain humans could help strengthen the bloodline of magic. But that’s beside the point... "My father was the first to fall. Ripped in half after he shoved me away from the grasp of one of the wolves." I muttered, lowering my head. "And then my mother, Esther Pierce, one of the most powerful witches in the continent... Fell too. Trying to protect me." Throughout my narration, Marcellus was silent and stared at me with pity and what I thought was guilt. Well, that’s expected I guess. I was talking about how his kind slaughtered mine, after all... "And do you want to know the most annoying part in all this?" I asked, chuckling dryly and raising my head once again, staring at the Beta straight in his face. "The werewolf who slaughtered my mother that night spared me. I saw a hint of something... Human in his eyes. As if he was regretting his actions." My hands subconsciously balled into fists as my hair blew into the wind. But I was too angry to even notice that small sign of my magic awakening. My magic has been awakening a lot recently. Ever since I met... "Odessa." Marcellus stepped forward, placing a hand on my shoulder. "I can’t... I can’t imagine the pain you must have felt then. I’ve gone through my fair share of losses during this war... But still." I smiled wryly before I spoke with a sarcastic tone, raising my arms in a false show of cheer. "Yay, we’re trauma bonding." He fluttered his eyelids at me at first before he shook his head, causing the both of us to giggle. But soon enough, a serious expression returned to his face. "I wouldn’t be surprised if you grew a deep hatred for wolves after all that." I clicked my tongue but managed to keep the sarcasm out of my voice. "Yup. But it was less of hatred and more of... Fear." There was an awkward silence after I said that. Marcellus left his hand on my shoulder for a while as we both stood there. However, his gaze soon fell on my hand after which his hand trailed to my palm, caressing the ring on my finger. My heart instantly skipped a beat as I withdrew my hand. "Sorry, that’s valuable to me," I muttered, staring at the ring, which looked pretty simple apart from its golden shine. "It belonged to my mother and it’s the only thing I have of her. My aunt said it’s supposed to be for protection... But so far, I haven’t seen any signs of that." Marcellus nodded his understanding, staring at the ring with an interest that made me arch an eyebrow. Right now, he seemed like one of those scientists back in my coven studying something new. "Well, even if it doesn’t show any signs of protecting you, at least you have something of your mother’s to hold on to." I smiled, glancing at the ring as I held it close to my chest. There was a warmth in my heart anytime I remembered my mother. She was almost a figment of my imagination now but I remembered that she was a good woman. And I’d love to cherish those memories somehow. "Thank you, Marcellus." I blurted, smiling brightly at him. "But my point still stands that Kaelos has no right to be a dick." Marcellus couldn’t help but laugh out loud as we continued walking to gods knows where. Frankly, I was already getting tired. "I’d like to head back to the mansion now, Beta," I muttered, pausing and glancing at him. There were barely any people around at this time, which I found a bit... Odd? Maybe the werewolves were trying to be extra careful since there was a witch around, AKA, me. Hypocrites... "All right then, I should go get some sleep as well," Marcellus responded with a satisfied sigh. "It was nice walking with you, Dessa. I have a better understanding of you now..." My smile widened as he stepped forward, but soon enough, that smile turned into a frown when he stared into my eyes for a long time. My heart raced against my chest and a shiver ran up my spine, causing my knees to buckle. But I was quick to regain my composure by shaking my head before I smiled again. "Good night, Marcellus." Without waiting for him to respond, I turned away from him and walked away as quickly as my legs could let me. What in the unholy fuck was that?!