Rem shook her head and panted, exhaling deeply. “Well,” she began, rubbing one of her eyes, “sorry, I didn’t hear you,” she mumbled, looking at back Loral, "Hey, is anything else different for you? I haven’t chatted with the others yet."
"Nope, just the eyes," she said, taking a bite into her apple.
Rem leaned back into the chair, the pelt so luxurious on her exposed shoulders. She nodded. "Yeah, same here… Ronan didn't seem too worried... But what if it means something bad? Like we are being rejected or something?" she asked. “I only worry because, well, I just do. That seems to be the way of things here.”
"I mean, no one else is worrying. It's probably just magic bringing out the power in us. Josie has been distraught over it, too, butIthink it's pretty neat. I wouldn’t stress so much, Rem. We are going to be powerful and respected,” Loral said seriously, sitting on the red pelt in the middle of the floor.
"You’re probably right, Loral. I am clearly used to just being on edge,” Rem said, giving a small, nervous laugh. It hurt to think that she wasn’t always that way.
"Of course. Plus, you need a straighter head on your shoulders. Your Alpha has plans for you, I think. So, the sooner you adjust, the better."
Rem frowned, eyes widening. “What do you mean?"
"I picked up on a bit at the meeting today. They spoke really fast, so it was hard to catch it all, but I caught the gist of it," Loral said, tucking her unbraided, short hair behind her ear as she crossed her legs. "Your Alpha doesn't like the Elders and doesn’t want them to have the Silvers. More specifically,you. He referenced the Silvers as a whole but called you ‘his Silver’ a lot."
Rem’s body fluttered with temptation, images of Ronan at the forefront of her mind, remembering how close he was when looking into her eyes… She hadn’t thought to ask Loral for a translation, or she would have done so right away. "Oh, really?"
"He doesn't want to let you mate freely. Not sure if that's from a good place or a selfish place, but he did reference that he wanted to ensure you didn’t go to someone like Marcus. He also doesn't want you to be alone here and demanded that a member of Warden be with you at all times."
"That explains Nia," she said under her breath. "Although, she's also my friend, so that works for me."
Loral chewed her apple faster, swallowing before saying, "But the most interesting part was when the Elder got mad. She said that she didn't want people like Marcus abusing his Silvers. Ronan agreed, and then came my second favorite part," Loral said and smiled. It reached her eyes, which glinted with firelight. "He said that it didn't really matter, because once we got to know how to use our claws, he would pity the shifter that angered us."
Rem smiled to herself, warm and fuzzy thoughts softening every edge of anxiety.
Screw it. A part of her—arealpart of her heart—wanted that Alpha. She desired him in unexpected ways, even blushing when thinking about his body pinning her against a wall…
After a few moments of silence, mostly with Rem lost in a world of romantic and intimate musings, the mousy Silver furrowed her brows. "Now wait a minute… If we really are that powerful, I wonder if they'll worry about us running away once we're turned… That seems dangerous, to let us be that powerful. Mavis keeps saying that, but now I am really considering it.”
Rem reflected on those words. "It'd be in their best interest to chain Mavis, at the very least."
Loral snickered, then let out a genuine laugh. Rem gave a small chuckle in return. "You’re absolutely right, though. If we are stronger than them, what's holding us back? Truly? Someone like Mavis would just run away the second she gets a chance.”
Loral shrugged her shoulders. "And go where?"
Rem almost said home, but then remembered that she can't go there anymore. "Well, I'm sure there'ssomewhereto go."
Mavis would go to the Silo District, where the hunters are.
"I mean, itisa good question." Loral furrowed her brows and looked up to the ceiling, tapping her forefinger on her chin. "I just—I don't think I have an answer. Huh. Maybe theywillrestrain us when we turn..."
Rem sighed. "Well, if it's like anything that's happened so far, I imagine we'll find out right as they cuff us and not a second sooner."
Loral darkly snorted. “The more I think about it, the more thatdoesmake sense. That's what the witches would do.”
In that moment, Rem wished she could tell Loral about Fiona and that everythingwas, in fact, wrong—Rem held her breath. What if the plot with the Elder Witch went deeper than anyone suspected? What if this was planned from the beginning?
And no one knew?
Loral took one last bite of her apple and tossed the core into the fire, a smug expression briefly on her face when it landed right in the wood.
Rem exhaled and grinned, reminding her of something that Oliver would do. She decided in that moment that she really liked Loral. They could become friends, even.
I can’t talk about Fiona… But I can build friendships in the meantime.Focus on that.
"Any shifter catch your interest? You've been here longer than me,” Rem asked, trying to change the subject.
"Not yet. But I am excited to see what my options are," she replied with a sly grin.
