Chapter 63: Episode 063: Decision to see Gianna.
The blue glow in the bedroom shifted. The text dissolved, replaced by a row of sharp, digital numbers that appeared in the air right over Iris’s bed.
[Countdown initiated. You have 6 days to prepare for departure to the Northern Wolf Tribe Territory.]
The numbers started to drop.
143:59:59.
143:59:58.
143:59:57.
Rue blinked. She stared at the ticking clock. She felt a cold prickle of annoyance at the back of her neck.
"What is this?" Rue whispered. She waved her hand through the blue numbers, but they did not go away. "Northern Wolf Territory? I have no reason to go there. I have a baby. Define the requirement for this mission."
The system did not answer. It just kept ticking. The bright blue light pulsed, ignoring her questions entirely.
Rue felt a surge of genuine frustration. Traveling to the frozen north, the home of a massive wolf pack, was dangerous, cold, and might be too loud.
But her mind was already working.
She took a long, steady breath. The frustration was still there, but she pushed it down. She had a clock. She had a destination. She had a plan.
She turned away from the bed. She didn’t say goodbye to Iris, who was still staring at her hands in a daze. Rue walked out of the room, her footsteps heavy and purposeful.
She left the palace with Knox and little Theron. She walked through the silent market. She did not look at the broken lanterns. She did not look at the empty stalls. She only looked at the dirt path leading back to the woods.
When she reached the cabin, the sun was still up.
Two days later.
The house was empty.
Caius only came and went. He would come home just long enough to kiss her forehead, check the locks, and make sure Theron had enough time with him, then he would vanish back into the palace halls to aid Queen Tanith.
Rue walked into the bedroom. She pulled a large, sturdy leather travel bag from the back of the wardrobe.
She began to pack.
She grabbed soft cotton tunics for Theron. She folded five thick, wool-lined blankets. She packed a small jar of dried fruit and a tin of tea leaves. She moved with efficient, quick motions. Her hands did not shake. She didn’t waste time thinking about the cold. She just filled the bag with the necessities for survival.
She stood in the middle of the room, her hands on her hips, looking over the travel pack to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything.
She heard a soft, rhythmic thudding from the living room.
She walked out.
Knox was there. The Panther King was sitting on the wooden floor near the crib. He had his massive back against the wall, his long, dark hair tied back with a simple leather strip.
He was helping.
He had a stack of the baby’s blankets in his lap. He was using his sharp, curved claws to fold them into perfect, tight little squares. He was being incredibly careful. He worked with the same focus a smith would use to polish a sword. He finished one square, set it down, and reached for another.
He did not look up when Rue walked in. He just kept folding.
Rue stopped. She looked at the giant, lethal predator sitting on her floor, patiently folding tiny baby blankets with claws that were meant to rip through prey. It was a strange, domestic sight.
"I am going to the North," Rue stated flatly.
Knox did not stop folding. He picked up another blanket, smoothed the edges, and pressed his claw down to crease the fabric.
"I know," Knox replied.
"I am going to the Northern Wolf Territory," Rue repeated, wanting to make sure he understood the gravity of the decision. "It is thousands of miles away. It is freezing. It is controlled by a tribe that clearly has major secrets. I am leaving in six days."
Knox finished the blanket. He placed it in a neat stack next to the travel bag. He looked up at her then. His gold eyes were calm. There was no judgment in them. There was no attempt to stop her.
"The North is harsh," Knox said, his voice deep and steady. "The wolves are territorial. They do not welcome outsiders, especially not rabbits, and smaller preys they could not handle."
"I know," Rue said.
She walked over and sat on the floor across from him. She watched him fold another blanket. He was so incredibly quiet. He was so incredibly focused.
She had expected him to argue. She had expected him to try and lock the door, or to try and convince her that she was being crazy, or to demand that he be the one to go instead of her. She had braced herself for the fight. She had prepared the logic she would use to shut him down.
But he was just folding the blankets.
He placed the last blanket in the bag. He pushed it toward her and leaned back against the wall, resting his hands on his knees.
Rue looked at the bag. Then she looked at the Panther.
A thought occurred to her. It was a very strange, very persistent thought.
"You aren’t asking me anything," Rue said. Her voice was narrow. She felt a strange spike of irritation. "You aren’t asking me why I am going. You aren’t asking me who I am looking for. You aren’t asking me if I am scared."
Knox watched her. He didn’t blink.
"I don’t need to ask," Knox said.
"Why?" Rue asked angrily.
"Because I know why you are going ," Knox said. He looked toward the bedroom where the baby was sleeping. "You are going because you see a problem."
Rue looked at him. Her face remained blank, but she felt a small, weird warmth in her stomach.
"And you don’t want to come with me?" Rue asked.
Knox shook his head.
"I stay here," Knox said. "I will not be welcomed there, because I am new to the beastworld now, after our Introduction, perhaps the swamp tribe princess can go with you?"
"Gianna?" Rue asked, her brows jumped.
Knox nodded.
She was genuinely surprised. But it wasn’t a bad idea, the only thing was that, Gianna was a loud person and she doubted that the princess would want to be in the same journey with her.
[She is the sister of the King there, so she would be a better candidate.]
She looked at the neat stack of clothes.
"I guess I would have to speak to Princess Gianna then."
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