[29] The Mountain Morning

When everything had been going right in a row, you might feel the faint chills running down your spine in suspicion that this might not last any soon.

I was feeling those chills.

Settled in his muscular arms while he would take every step gently to not swing me much, I was moving my eyes around to look through the morning for and observe the deep trench covered with those dense jungles.

The story of Severa was slowly soaking in my mind in a way that I might not forget it ever. The more I would come to know bout her, the more it scared me. Because she was alive on this territory years ago for real. And she was alive now as a Goddess her followers worshipped.

We follow Gods because they aren't humans like us. They are magic. They are deities. But Severa was a Lycan like them just been born in a time too earlier than theirs. They didn't know what traits she had. They were just following what their ancestors did and not taking the risk of making her upset by not continuing that faith. Now, that belief in her powers and existence was genuine in their hearts and minds.

I only knew that she had been wronged by the males. Her brothers and her mate.

The Lycans being feared by all the wolves outside and inside the border, were themselves scared of this woman who wasn't even alive.

This new day of the journey was going smooth. We had seen the temple from that peak we stayed last night. We had covered more miles ahead after passing through the mountain of longing. Until I felt my legs shaking like nothing before. All my stamina was lost. I was sweating and begging for breaks to catch my breaths.

"But if we stop now, we won't reach the temple before they close the gate after cleaning it, my mate. Then, not even our calls of their names or of their Goddess will open the gates." Karam had said to alert me of our slow speed.

I was conflicted in keeping myself alive and ambitious.

At last, without asking me, he had snaked his arms behind my back and the knees to solve the dilemma.

I was so grateful to him for carrying me like that from past fifteen to twenty minutes without a single break. It was slightly making me shocked too because he wasn't even looking affected by this.

He just had that calm expression on his face of concentrating on the plain muddy path with stones stuck in it ahead. He was neither tired nor bored. His eyes held a certain relief as if he was enjoying the journey.

But as we were going closer to our destination by every passing minute, this sudden terror was spreading in my chest.

After all, I was just a human.

I was thrown on to this side of the border ruthlessly. Fortunately, I was mated to a man who was giving me enough love and keeping me sane with his selfless acts for me despite being a little mean in the middle. I could have just accepted the circumstances and be out of troubles.

But no, I had to get impressed by the high authoritative aura of Lucine. I had to get thrilled by Chelsea's idea of visiting the temple on the full moon itself. I had to get so angry over Karam being a father and demand the trip to the temple right then.

And now, I would be spending a night between the ladies who could be performing dark magic or getting blood lusted by the effects of the full moon.

"What is my mate thinking? Her heartbeats are slowing down in worry." Karam said while the faint gusts of wind caressed our bare ears.

"I am scared," I whispered while glancing ahead at the way and back at him. "I think we should go back, Karam. I said too much in anger. I pretended to be courageous and now, I can't stop being uncertain of what is coming next. I can't. . ."

I tightened my hold around his neck when he stepped over a stair and continued the muddy and rocky path.

"Lucine is family. My nieces are your family. You don't have to be scared." He said calmly, his eyebrows being straight in a known confidence. "We are very close now."

I gulped hard. "I have been away from magic and miracles all my life. I don't believe in mysticism too, Karam. All I have faith in is for my God. Okay? We should go back. Look around, these mountains are now trying to intimidate me. The air here holds some history, some aura and keeps whispering things to me that I can't understand. I have heard that mirages happen in deserts. But these are mountains."

He stopped and put me down. My legs straightened and relaxed as I stood on my feet and released a sigh of worry.

While he stared down at me with calm expressions on his face. He cupped my cheeks and whispered, "Look at me."

I kept observing the deadly trenches and cliffs on our left side while the path ahead was only narrowing.

"Look at me, my mate." He whispered, making me look in those amber eyes. His pupils dilated instantly. "We are walking on a path that holds the footsteps of the ancient Lycans. Magic and Miracles are parts of every being's life. The new world keeps becoming new with the practical practises. We ignore the peace of mind by busying ourselves into the acts of business that must keep us and our families going ahead. The connection with Gods and Goddesses only is to be felt during the festivals we celebrate. During the troubles when we need them. It is selfish of us."

I breathed shakily while he narrowed his eyes. "Our souls needs to connect to their Gods in every moment of our life. How? By being ourselves, with our loved ones and keep the peace of our mind stable. You had a rough week. You asked me to take you to Lucine because you knew she was a new face in your life. She would be fair in judging you and me. Because you knew that she would calm your mind in some way."

My jaws clenched as I gulped slowly. "I don't want to visit her anymore," I choked out.

He sighed heavily while giving me a shake of head. "You are the most bravest female I know, my mate. We are so close to our destination and you cannot give up like this. The stories of Severa must not scare you for she was a simple female like you."

"Simple?" I asked softly. "She was extraordinary, Karam. I am just a human. This enchantment, this visit to temple, I don't think I can handle it. I feel as if I m going to a territory of my mind that I might never come back from."

He stared at me, his eyes holding the empathy. "It is natural to be scared of something that is unbelievable. It is fine to let yourself be vulnerable against the magic of spirituality. You are nervous because you think, they are a clan. A cult. They are. But you are a cult in your own. The many forms of you depicting different emotions during the different circumstances, forms you. You demanded answers. You demanded peace. Now, you will get it."

I lowered my gaze. "What if those women won't let me come out? You can't come inside to save me," I whispered while looking in his eyes. "What if she hypnotizes me and I decide to never come out? Jokes apart, I really don't hate you enough to cage myself in that temple. I will still choose the freedom of going anywhere."

His eyebrows straightened immediately. Leaning closer, he passed me a determined look and smiled lovingly.

"There can never be a barrier between the lovers." He said, making my heart swell. Goosebumps raised on my arms while I shuddered slightly. "I am not providing you this trip in guilt of my mistakes. I own them and know a better way to pay back to you, my mate. This is something I am have done even if you hadn't been angry with me. Providing you with all of my will, is my duty and love, to be done effortlessly."

I gulped slowly.

"I am doing this because of the faith in nature. When a person decides to visit a holy place, it is not him or her who wants to meet the deity. The Gods or Goddesses want to meet him or her. They are the ones who call us."

I sniffled softly in the confliction.

"All of a sudden, your mind and heart feel afraid of embracing the air of the place you are about to visit. It is a test of your mental strength now after giving your physically to this journey. Living between monsters, and you get afraid of visiting a holy place? We are always intimidated by the things we are not aware of if we repect the power of unknown. Curiosity backed by the good intentions, is a weapon to protect yourself from oblivion. It doesn't matter if people won't remember us. But the souls of places and things you explored will."

I cupped his hand on my cheek. "I feel as if I can be savage. I can be bold. But I am not," I whispered softly. "I have achieved nothing. I can't do a sport. I am weak even among humans. My words might have weight but my actions. . . I am about to hyperventilate now, Karam. I can't go ahead."

"You have to go there one day, Lucine invited you by herself. We were about to come here some other day but you were the one who called out to me for the full moon night. It will also be better as. . . " He gulped slightly. "As we will be apart."

"But you can't hurt me?" I asked while looking at in confusion.

"But you can hurt yourself by asking for it," he said, making my eyes widen. "By being in the temple, you will learn something new. This will be such a grand experience. You will be able to call yourself superior than other women who couldn't go there."

I blinked and stared at in his eyes. "Why are you encouraging me? What's your mean motive hidden in this?"

His nostrils flared and jaws clenched in the sudden accusation. He nodded while rubbing his thumb against my cheek. "There are mean motives," he whispered. "I want my mate to do what she wants. For her to gain that peace Lucine shares with her the females. For you to know if they are right or wrong. Because none of us has gone there and couldn't check. For you to realize that you cannot sleep without being in my arms anymore."

My heart fluttered wildly on its own.

"For you to know the truth about that bad night of my life. For you to get connected to Severa. For you to get sorted. For you to carry on with your curiosity and explorations. I don't want to hold you back from going there just because you feel scared in the beginning. For you to face your fears. For you to see what happens to the females who could not find their mates, what I felt all these years, what your brother understood and saved you from. For you to get all your answers, my mate."

I lowered my eyes while he kissed my forehead slowly.

"For you to understand that someone who does mistakes knowingly or unknowingly, is not always a bad person."

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"How cute!" I said, while looking up at the tiny cottage up on the flat top of the little hill on this path.

On both of our sides were mountains walls. But a curve came asking us to turn right and boom, there were two ways ahead. The right one going ahead to some unknown destination, maybe the temple. The left one was full of stone stairs, going above to lead us to the small wooden cottage.

"My father built it with the help of his brothers," he had said while my eyebrows raised in wonder. "I don't how they managed to get pass the Mountain of longing. Uncle Radu and Armedyl got it easy. Aunt Pola and Rose are Lycans only. It was only my mother that came from across the borders. A Mystic."

"Is King the first pup? Salome and Anton?" I asked, calculating the idea.

Karam gave me a smile and nodded. "That's what I always think, my mate."

"Guess," I corrected.

"Guess." He repeated in a mocking tone, shaking his head when I rolled my eyes. "Come now."

"Are they good?" I whispered while climbing the stairs.

Reaching the door, Karam pushed it open. I entered slowly while still glancing back at the earthen pots of beautiful flowers and herbs. Not just that, a tiny wooden fence was built to border the mini garden of small plants and flowers. What amazed me was the faint smoke coming out of the little chimney, poking out of the two-faced roof.

"Karam!"

The giggling continued throughout the greetings. The way they hugged him desperately and kissed his bearded cheeks lovingly, was telling me that the family love was good. Or maybe, Karam was just everyone's favorite for the reason I hadn't realized yet.

He kept his intimidating wall on. Yet he talked warmly. "I taught Anton some lesson. Looked like he needed one," he said, making the younger Aunt with raven hair and sharp nose laugh wholeheartedly.

"I am sure he needed one," she said while Karam smiled slowly.

"Adam misses you. Says Alvena cooks gravy too tasty for he used to the overcooked one—" A deep chuckle escaped him when she raised her hand goofily to punch him in chest gently.

"Does anyone misses me?" The elder one asked, having features similar to Noira. She had grey hair and parrot nose. Both were so pink in complexion but she had the wrinkled cheeks like my own Gran. "I am sure, Natasha taught the grand pups about their grandmother being already dead."

I pressed my lips to control a smile while Karam shook his head.

"Not so easy," he said, holding that expressionless face. "She has buckets of the carrots ready for you to cut them and made those pickles. The whole pack is waiting."

The women chuckled while finally noticing me. Their smile faded slowly and the serious expressions covered their judgemental faces.

"Flat chest," the younger one said while looking at me keenly.

I gasped while squinting my eyes at Karam.

"Too pale," the elder one said while crossing her arms across her chest. "She cuts her hair. Uneven. Keeps them open. Where is her crown?"

I bit my lip, feeling conscious all of a sudden. I was trying to hold back some merciless replies for the sake of their age.

Bless Gran for teaching me manners.

"Too skinny," the younger one said while coming closer to me. I gulped when she sniffed in the air. "Smells dirty," she said while shaking her head.

"Well, he can handle that in return for having that dirty bushy beard and moustache. . ," I exclaimed tauntingly while Karam cleared his throat and stood by my side. He wrapped his arms around my shoulder to calm me down. But I looked at the older one too. ". . . and having a judgemental and arrogant family. Do you want the heir or not?!"

"She hates us!" The women laughed wildly while I glanced at Karam in confusion.

He too smiled and shook his head in amusement.

"Goddess gave you the right one, Karam dear." The elder one said while coming closer to wrap her arms around me. "We have been only testing the same."

She pulled away and chuckled again, patting my cheek in adoration. "Beautiful," she whispered while looking at me.

The other one hugged me actively and rubbed my back. "Karam always forgives people easily," she said while pulling away and holding my forearms. She stared at me lovingly and smiled. "He barely talks when all of us are together. When he does, it is always like the bagpipe playing a soothing tune. We wanted a loud drum. Here, you are!"

"Drum?" I repeated while smiling at Karam and giving him a straight look.

He chuckled a little and silenced when one of the ladies said, "Come, have proper breakfast. We have breads, soup and apple pie. Lucine had warned us about your sensitivity. So, we warned the water too."

Karam and I exchanged a blank glance.

Slowly, the time passed with us freshening up ourselves one by one in the bathroom that was built just over a single wooden pillars to balance the cottage. We did our breakfast and talked.

While I could eat bread and tomato soup, along with the apple pie. Karam had his bowl of nonveg soup in his hand. closer to his mouth. He ate the meat pieces hurriedly while the left soup was gulped down by pasting mouth against the edge of bowl greedily. It was innocent and adorable in a way. It scared me to think that he had provided me my share of food during the whole journey. While he didn't hunt for himself and ate only what Amelia had packed for us. Which was just two little bowls. He didn't get to eat according to his need.

And not even for once, I managed to think about it. I was mean.

"Noira didn't cry until she hugged me again," said Aunt Pola while wiping her tears. "She never cries. Never. She is the bold one out of the three pups. Angrier than her brothers. But she cried and it broke me."

After two hours of eating, talking, and bathing because well, Karam and I had been doing more touching each other normally. We had kissed, laid together.

Both the Aunts wanted to bathe. Even though the water was burning hot, it was hard to just stand naked in the bathroom and feel the swift cold air coming from beneath the window shelf. Also, when I could expect the bathroom to fall any time.

Now, after drying my hair, we were seated back on the carpet. Karam and I had rested on one of their single beds for ten to twenty minutes before I took the bathe. We couldn't even talk because of the conversation we had earlier. It was still going around in our mind. I also didn't want to wipe that smile off Karam's face that he had after meeting his Aunts after so many days.

He was now seated on a wooden chair stuck to the wall in our front, wearing the socks the Aunts had washed and dried in past two hours. His boots were lying there too.

The Aunts offered me a pair of socks. I wouldn't be able to trek with socks underneath the leather sandals. It would have been comfortable if they had been shoes. But no, I was fine without socks as I had also walked barefoot when the path was full of smooth mud.

Aunt Pola, Salome's mother was soft. Yet I couldn't decide so early because it was just our first meet. She was seated against the wall in the plain blue frock, knitting a pair of little woollen socks. The white wool was so shiny and pretty.

While Aunt Rose was sitting behind me. She was a bit blunt and less smiley. She couldn't pretend to be all sweet when she was serious about a particular task. Just like how I denied her the braids. But she started lecturing me over how it doesn't look decent for a bride to go to the temple like that.

Now, she was braiding my hair in a way she said that I would love and the crown would suit my hair.

"Alma cried too even when it wasn't her first year," said Anton's mother while tugging on my flicks. "They didn't cry for themselves. They got overwhelmed at seeing Reveka, Emily and Stella following them too. On top of it, Lucine doesn't let them sit."

"Why?" I asked quietly.

"The Goddess gets upset when the females take shelter at a place before the temple. They are Lycans. They can handle tiredness with more hustle." Aunt Pola said while sniffling softly.

"Will she be upset with us too? We took shelter too?" I asked with blank eyes.

Aunt Pola smiled. "You are new and yet to know her. She will forgive you. But that doesn't mean, next time you can't take shelter here. The discipline is for the unmated females. It is a part of their experience there. But the other visitors are her guests. She cannot put conditions on her guests."

"What if I become a loyal follower too?" I asked while biting my lip in curiosity.

Aunt Rose patted my head and brought out the cloth full of flowers to put it on our right side. "Then, you would be the special follower. As you are the human and the bride, who would give us the heir. She would only be softer to you."

My eyebrows raised and I nodded. But they narrowed when Aunt Rose started putting those pretty white and baby pink flowers in my braids. "What are you doing?"

"I am decorating you."

I laughed out loud at her choice of words. "That's too much. I already have a crown."

She grabbed my shoulders to emphasize. "Your crown's roses matches with your maroon cloak. These colors will create a fresh look. Karam agrees."

My eyes squinted as I looked at him watching us with amusement on his face.

"Do you have a mirror?" I asked consciously when Karam kept staring at me with this humour in his amber eyes. I felt like I looked like a clown.

Aunt Rose put the crown on my head while muttering, "There is one on the table in my room."

I got up and walked towards the room while they all chuckled behind my back. Looking round the little room where we had rested for some time, I got the old looking, rusty mirror with metal handle.

Holding it far, I observed my face and gasped silently in surprise.

I looked. . . I looked. . . I looked. . .

"Breathtaking."

I turned around to hear him leaning against the door with muscular arms crossed across his chest. He stepped inside and this time, made his boot steps audible.

I rolled my eyes and ignored him. Turning my head, I tried to take a peek of the three braids joined into one, falling on my back that she had made with upper half of my hair. The rest were left down. The petals of those three braids were pulled out loosely to make them look more artistic. That's where she had studded the flowers.

My lips parted in amazement. "Wow! She's good at this. Can she make me the braids like of Daenerys?"

"Who is she?" He asked while giving me the sudden confused look. I was about to shake my head when his eyebrows suddenly narrowed and humour reached those eyes. He smirked slightly. "Is she beautiful?"

"Not as beautiful as Oskar and Adam," I said while smiling sweetly at him. "Even Lysar. Less beard. Less hair. More cute and younger."

His smirk faded and he made a disappointing face. "Why do you have to make everything serious and get jealous?"

I was checking the hair again and gasped at him. "Jealous?" I gave him a dead look. "Not even my sandals can get jealous. It is self esteem. Self love. You talk about other girls. I will return the favor."

He sighed heavily and smiled slightly. "So, you admit getting jealous."

"Shut up, Karam. I am freaking out again. Getting ready means continuing the journey any moment," I said while putting the mirror and staring at the mountain from the window. They had permanent iron bars for the monkeys to not enter the house.

For now. I hadn't seen any in the path. Something was telling me that they might come in the path ahead and I was not ready. I was capable of being unafraid of cats, dogs, parrots and cows. But monkeys? They freaking steal your belongings. Even though, I had nothing valuable here. I still wished to never face them.

"Again?" He asked softly while coming closer to me. "What worries you now?"

"Nothing," I mumbled while staring at him. "We should begin before I lose the will, Karam. I am feeling lazy to do it all of a sudden."

"You are scared, again." He said, observing my eyes. "You shouldn't be. The scariest thing on this territory is a Lycan, my mate. Remember that whatever you are afraid of, will be scared of me."

"Severa won't be scared of you?" I said.

He blinked calmly and smiled. "She won't be. But why are you scared of her after everything I said? This sissy, my mate?"

My eyebrows raised. "I am not sissy."

"You look like one," he said while observing my face. "If you are not, then let's begin. The sooner we reach there, the sooner we will be back at home."

I gulped when he glanced at my lips. "Your lips are dried."

"Heal them," I said, making him look at me for permission. I nodded while he leaned ahead. I chuckled goofily while pushing him away. "I am not bathing again and freeze to death. Stay away."

He smiled to himself and straightened up, sighing heavily. "I couldn't recognize that you were lying." He chuckled while turning around and walking out of the room. "Come, it's time. We don't want to be late."

My smile faded as the realization had stopped my heart for a moment.

He didn't read through my lies. Wait. What I had done? Chelsea had told me to learn to lie.

I had actually thought of kissing him. I wanted him for real. It wasn't a lie. It was truth. At the last moment, I denied so he won't touch me. If I hadn't said that or just stopped him by my hand, he would still be believing in my words. It was eighty per cent wanting him and twenty per cent knowing that I would have to take a bathe.

In conclusion, to lie, I would have to imagine the thing happening for real and believing in it so much to make it believable  for the other person. It would come handy, for sure.

But could I lie to him when he was being all the loving to me?

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"It looks like the slant path to the heavens. It just going and going."

Karam chuckled and pointed at the upcoming ending of the little tunnel we just walked in. At first, I had creeped out. But it was just for ten steps.

Though, it was still scary. There were bats inside. The tunnel was naturally made underneath the heavy mountain which had spread around to no end.

"We are almost there." He said while taking us out of the cave.

The fresh air slapped my face and I smiled to myself, closing my eyes. "Wow! The cave felt like a never ending tunnel. I was scared." I mumbled while breathing hard. "Light is so underrated. What would I do without the light? Even when the sun isn't out, it's still not dark outside."

Karam stepped beside me and kept holding the little basket made of wooden twigs by the wooden handle. It had his bamboo bottle full of water for us and the bread.

"Remember, what the Aunts said?"

I rubbed my closed eyes and murmured, "To take the gift for the temple. Like an offering?"

"Yeah," he said while staring ahead in concentration. "Even a smile is a gift. But when you can do better than just a smile, you must. But it must be offered with faith and love."

"Wholeheartedly?" I asked while looking at him finally.

He nodded towards the front. "Let's decide what my mate would like to offer."

I looked at the front and gasped loudly at the sudden view.

"What the—" I whispered while dropping my jaw and stepping ahead.

The mere glimpse I had from that mountain peak was the size of two inches. But this was humongous.

The big round tower were three in numbers. Two on each side with one with a bigger radius in the middle. Their tops were gothic cones, having iron spikes as their finishing. The windows were in rows and everywhere. In the front was a two store large building, reaching the middle height of the tower with a two-faced roof as its top. While the two large gates in shape of an upside down U was studded with spike heads.

From where we were standing was beginning a slant path covered by plain rocks placed neatly like puzzle pieces. The railing on each side was made of dark bricks and thick. The path was going far and fat to meet the gates above. While on both sides of this path was trenches filled with greenery and fog.

"It's big," I whispered in shock, feeling goosebumps all over my body. "Like very big."

Karam's chuckle echoed in the background. From my peripheral vision I could see him nodding in satisfaction and admiring the architectural beauty.

My eyes turned glossy at realizing that this was my destination. Trekking from one and half a day, I was searching for this. And I was just a kilometre or more away.

Loud noise start echoing all of a sudden, like thunder. My eyebrows furrowed and heart shrank in the sudden curiosity and terror.

The birds flew away from the top of the trees while the noise turned louder.

Karam's hand reached for my left shoulder as he said, "This is it, my mate. She is waiting."

"Lucine?" I choked out. "Or Severa?"

He smiled slightly to himself mysteriously when I glanced at him. The sound turned louder and I looked back at the large gothic building of the temple. The gates were opening as if the air was pushing them inside. The loud voice echoed around just like how a plane would pass above in the sky.

I missed that sound.

But this one was terrifying. The sound of loud clanking of iron gates echoed around.

I was mesmerized.

"Moon Goddess is waiting, my mate. She wants this meet to happen." He said. making me look at him.

He passed me a comforting smile.

"Let's look for something that you can offer as a gift before you leave for the temple from here, alone."

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"What do you think?"

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If any song you listen and it reminds you of any scene or relation from Misty and Misty II, please let me know. So. I would build the playlist that I will share in the end or in between.