4. Dragonfly and Teddy Bear

Nikolai

"What the hell is happening here?" I growled at Javier and Josias who were about to get into a fight. What he hell was Javier doing here anyways? From the looks of it, he was here to pick a fight with his twin whom we knew nothing about up until five hours ago.

Dimitri and Marc held Javier back and Josias's men held him back.

"Stay out of this, Nikolai. This is long overdue." Javier hissed.

"You want to fight, go ahead and fight, I don't fucking care. Just not here." Javier fell under my jurisdiction. Him attacking someone will mean that I commanded it. And there is no way I'm giving Josias a chance to get all the Kingdoms together to attack me.

We won't stand a chance.

"I'm not a fucking pussy who will run away." Josias hissed at Javier and then looked at me. "My fight will remain my fight. No one else will get involved."

"I said no!" I growled.

Josias flashed me his fangs.

I brought my wolf forward and Josias's anger lessened. I flashed him my canines and he tore his eyes away from mine.

"I didn't run away." Javier said, his voice impassive as he talked to his brother. "You will understand the day you meet your beloved." And then he shrugged out of Marc's and Dimitri's hold, turned around and left.

'Nikolai you need to come here right now.' Rhazien said, urgency clear in his voice.

'I'm coming.' I replied.

"Javier is family. The next time I see you threatening my family again, you will see my army at your doorstep. It's not a threat, King Josias. It's a promise." I sneered before I too, walked out.

Ava's burning anger was only growing.

I heard a crash and then the walls vibrated.

Wrenching the door open, I stepped inside our living quarters.

Ava was spitting fire in all her silver haired and blue eyed glory.

The foyer was half destroyed and the banister was half hanging.

Rhazien was standing in front of a wall that had a dent— probably from where she threw him.

It pissed me off. How many fucking times have I told her to not use her powers like this?

She never fucking listens.

And then she apologise after she has released her anger, whilst making false promises that she never adheres to.

I cracked my knuckles. "Get back, Javier."

He was directly in the line of fire right now.

"You!" Her finger rose and she pointed it at me. There was so much anger in her that her entire body vibrated with it.

"Vladimir, take Sofiya back to your room." They were looking down from the living room and this is no place for a pregnant woman. Things are about to get ugly.

Knowing what was to come, Dimitri pulled Rhazien, Jessica, Ezra, Jester and Marc to the side.

Javier was confused but he too remained back.

I look at Ava.

Now I was the only one who was the focus of her anger.

Good. I was fucking angry too.

"You didn't do anything!" She screamed. "You are just as bad as all of them!" Her hands came up and she pushed them, making me fly behind.

The shelves on the wall crushed under my weight and some collapsed, falling on me.

Fuck.

I stood up again. "You have seen nothing. What you saw was nothing!" I growled. "You have no idea what goes behind closed doors."

"Then do something!" She growled. "Or let me do something."

"What will you do huh? Fight five armies together?" I took slow measured steps towards her.

She always says that she will not use her powers when she is angry. That she doesn't want to hurt anybody. Hurt me. But all those promises are forgotten when she's angry. Because goddess-forbid if anyone pisses her off. The world does not revolve according to us. We need to accept the way things are, especially those things that are not under our control. She knows this. She knows we cannot afford a war right now. We are not in a position to deal with the repercussions. This isn't our land, it isn't our kingdom. We are here as guests. And unfortunately, here, what we say, doesn't just happen.

I shook my head, clearing my thoughts. It was only my anger that I couldn't shake off. And if I don't manage to bring Ava's anger down, it's going to be a problem for us.

"If I have to, yes!" She flashed me her canines. "Not that you would know anything about defending the weak."

She flicked her hand, sending me flying back again.

"All you care about is revenge!" She yelled.

"I did it for you!" I seethed.

Her hand raised again and the glass flower vase came flying at my face.

I caught it in the air and smashed it against the ground.

"Stop this fucking nonsense, Avalyn. I know how to throw things at you too."

Her eyes widened and it pissed her off further.

The next thing that came flying towards me was the couch.

A growl left my mouth. I caught it and threw it aside. It crashed against the wall, making it crumble. The couch fell on the floor, making a loud noise.

"Have you ever asked what I wanted?" She jabbed her finger in her chest.

I stalked towards her again, mad as fuck now.

"That is not what you were saying when you were stabbing Emilio in the chest and bathing in his fucking blood!"

She froze me in my place before I could reach her.

I grunted in annoyance.

"That's not what you said when I told you I would make you a fucking palace." I tried to move my body but except of slight movements, it was difficult.

"Tell me one thing that you wanted and I denied you!" I demanded.

"I want you to stop slavery!" She vibrated with fury.

"Fine!" I growled in anger. "Let's start the good deed right away, okay?" And then my eyes snapped to Dimitri. "Slash the necks of every fucking slave we have in Soare-Luna the second we land home. Start with Tessa."

"No!" Ava thundered. Jessica protested too but I paid her no attention.

"Why?" I snarled. "We can't let them go free. You don't want them. And I'm not keeping fucking humans in my pack for your amusement."

She snarled in anger.

"What do you want, huh? What do you want from me?" I shouted.

I'm tired of her fucking nonsense. She doesn't understand. She never understands me. She doesn't know the kind of position will be in if we actually do end slavery.

Tears grew in her eyes.

"Don't fucking cry!" I hissed. "Name it. What. Do. You. Want." I pushed myself harder and then suddenly I was free.

"I -I want—" a shuddering breath left her body.

I walked to her again, daring her to use her powers on me again.

Her body began vibrating with anger. The floor shook. The walls shook. Everything started rattling and things started falling on the ground, crashing and breaking.

Her hand raised up and I braced myself but nothing happened.

Her eyes widened.

"Step back." Both her arms came up, trying to stop me.

But nothing happened.

Glass pieces from the window behind her came at me and I crossed my arms in front of my face and ducked.

A growl reverberated through my chest.

I stood up straight again and crossed the foyer to get to her.

Her hands came up again.

"Stop." I growled in my Master tone.

And in the split second she instinctively stopped, I lunged on her.

I grabbed her wrists and spun her around, holding them tightly against her back so she couldn't move.

I pushed her against the cabinet so her front was pressed against the flat surface.

"Calm down, Avalyn." I said in a soft voice.

"I am calm." She smarted and I pressed her down harder, ignoring her efforts to shake me off.

"I said, calm down." I commanded, my voice hard.

She went limp but her anger remained. I decided that I would try different methods to try to calm her. Let's try the breathing technique this time.

"Take deep breaths. Inhale." I said, gently but with command in my tone.

When she didn't, I squeezed her wrists till she did.

"Exhale." She breathed out.

"Again." I ordered.

She took a deep breath in and then let it out. I felt her anger simmer down. But just a tad bit. I could still feel the waves for her anger. A lot gentle than before but it was still present. And angry Ava is volatile.

"Release me right fucking now!" She screamed, thrashing in my hold now.

This isn't fucking working. And the last thing I fucking want is destruction of this palace. So I decided to use the most effective method that I knew would work.

"Tessa!" I shouted so she could hear me from wherever she was. The scared slave came rushing down the stairs. She had tears in his eyes, presumably because of the show was witnessing.

"Kneel." I ordered and Ava started struggling again.

My eyes snapped to Tessa and she jumped to his knees.

I released Ava and she stood up straight and shielded Tessa from me. She brought her hands up to do something but it didn't work. So she placed her hands on my chest in an attempt to push me away from herself and her slave. I didn't move an inch. But it pissed me off a lot more.

"Use your powers again and I will drop her heart at your feet." I hissed.

Her hands clenched into fists.

"You asked me to end slavery. I want you to start with the good work. End her." I commanded.

Tears gathered in her eyes at my words.

"No." She whispered.

"Do it." I shouted.

"No!" She shouted back.

"Why not?" I cocked my head. "You asked me to end slavery. I don't like to not fulfil your wishes. Do it or I will."

She placed her hand on Tessa's head and for a split second I thought she will actually do it, that she will actually snap her neck.

Tessa's heart was beating so fast that everyone in the room could hear it. But outwardly, she was perfectly still.

"No," Jessica hissed as she darted to protect her sister.

I growled, asserting my dominance on her till she stopped in her spot, "you have no say in this. She is Avalyn's property now. Stay the fuck out of this." I swear to god this woman lacked a few brain cells and a had little too much courage.

"You can't jus—"

"I can't kill her." Ava whispered, her response the one I had expected. Her eyes flickered between blue and brown before they settled to brown.

"Why not?" I crossed my arms.

Her hair turned back to brown.

My Ava is back.

"Because— because she is innocent." She whispered, her fingers caressing Tessa's hair. Her eyes closed in relief.

"As opposed all of us," I motioned towards everyone standing in room, pressed against the wall, "how exactly?"

"Have you all never in your entire life tortured someone for your own amusement?" She fired with a snarl, not breaking eye contact with me.

"Humans, no." Wolves and vampires who are threats, hell yes. We don't bother ourselves with measly humans.

Her mouth opened but then closed again. She did not expect that.

And thank fuck Max isn't here right now. I know for sure that he's gotten his hands dirty a couple hundred times.

And then her eyes flickered between blue and brown again. "You pushed April off the tree. Dimitri whipped those girls."

"Was it without merit? Was it for our personal amusement?" I demanded.

"But they didn't deserve it!" She growled.

"And we deserve this?" I spread my arms across the room.

That's when she snapped into reality. She saw the destruction she had caused. She saw how the people she loved had pushed themselves into the corners, afraid to get into her line of sight and face her wrath.

Her eyes teared up.

And then her eyes fell on Javier who was in shock. She didn't expect him to be here. And I don't think that he had realised just how dangerous Ava could be until now, if his expression is anything to go by.

His little firefly was actually more of a dragonfly.

"I —" she started but she stopped and her eyes closed in deep regret.

She staggered and in a flash, I caught her.

Her head rested on my chest and her hands fisted my robe. She's done now. Her anger has finally submerged.

"Do you have anything so say to Rhazien?"

"Sorry." She whispered.

And she then broke down, sobbing and crying uncontrollably. My hands tightened on her waist and before I picked her up.

"Get someone to clean the mess. I suggest everyone to get some rest, we have another sleepless night ahead of us." With that, I carried Ava up the stairs and to our bedroom.

I placed her on the bed but she rose into a sitting position, her cries dimming eventually.

"Leave us." I ordered the two slaves that were kneeling by the walls.

"No wait." Ava called softly, brushing away her tears. "You are hurt."

My eyes followed her gaze and I saw that some shards of glass had pierced the skin of my hand.

"Bring me a first aid kit." Ava ordered.

A female quickly got up and handed her a box before all of them filed out of the room.

She patted the bed next to her and I took a seat there.

She folded my arm so she could see the cuts and then began plucking out the glass pieces with a pair of tweezers. She winced every time she thought it would hurt me.

"Won't use your powers now?"

She flinched but then replied softly. "My powers scare me. They have hurt you more than they have helped you."

"You control your powers Avalyn."

"I'm not even sure if I want them anymore. What good are they if they keep hurting people?" A tear slipped down her cheek, which she promptly wiped away.

"Your powers can be your greatest strength or your biggest downfall. The decision rests in your hands, Ava." I watched her clean the wounds.

They were small and would heal in an hour.

She looked down at her hands. "I -I get very angry, Nikolai. And it feels like the power is bleeding out of me and I feel this... urge to release them, or I will combust."

"You are a strong woman, Avalyn. But you need to grow strong mentally. Only then you will be able to control your anger and your powers. Until then, they will control you."

"And how do I do that?" Her tear filled eyes look up at me with hope.

"It won't happen over night. It takes practice and patience. You have a very long way to go." I grabbed the back of her neck and pulled her into a soft kiss.

She rested her forehead against mine and closed her eyes and her plump lips parted. "I -I want you to... I want you to punish me."

"No, Avalyn," I said softly. We were past that stage. We aren't moving backwards, only forward. "Never ask me that again."

"I —we aren't alone. The responsibility of a lot of lives rest on our shoulders. I need to do better, I need to learn how to do better. I'm scared that one day I won't be able to control myself and I will be the reason for the death of many people. Many innocent people." She chewed her bottom lip. "I won't be able to live with that, Nikolai." She shook her head crying and slid her arms around my shoulders.

I lifted her on my lap and hugged her to me, letting her cry it out. I buried my face in her neck let her scent calm me down and she did the same. "You're right. But punishment isn't the way to learn how to do better. Practice is. I'll help you."

"Okay." She whispered and then remained silent for a while before she asked, "They think of me as a monster now, don't they?" My arms tightened around her waist. I loved that she was so small that she would easily fit in my arms.

"No, Love. You are the most compassionate person I've ever known, Ava. If anything, I'm a monster." She would not be saying this if she knew the sins of my blood.

"You're not a monster, Nikolai." She whispered against my neck. "If anything, you are a...you are a teddy bear." Her shoulders shook with light laughter.

"Teddy bear, huh?" I ticked her sides and she squirmed. "Let me show you how I'm not what you claimed I am." I slid my hands down her back and moulded her ass before slapping it.

"That's exactly the kind of spank a teddy bear would give." She giggled.

I flicked my claw out and ripped her clothes before attacking her mouth with mine.

"I'm all wolf, darling."