She expected angry jaws to close around her nape once more, for the prince to do what all men seemed to, and take what he wanted from her. There wouldn’t have been any protests from her, but it would not have been warm or passionate. When he instead laid beside her and invited her to join him she could only be confused. The idea of cuddling up wasn’t exactly ideal either, but far less of a burden. She couldn’t deny that the chill of winter was biting through her fur and some extra warmth would not be entirely unwelcome. With only a few moments hesitation, she took him up on the offer, settling in close enough to share their body heat.
She frowned at his question, bittersweet memories that she’d been trying to out run rushing to the surface. “My brother did.” The initial answer was short and sweet but it felt unfinished. “Our parents found us once and were furious and demanded that he stop the lessons at once, but we just made sure to be more careful after that.” Her frown deepened, and she began to reach for the all too familiar anger that would help chase away the vulnerability creeping in. “I was sent out to forage for supplies with my sister when we were young and we got attacked. All we knew how to do was run and I was much faster. My lessons started the next day.”
Her voice trailed off. She wouldn’t be offended if he inquired further, but she was just as content to let him draw his own conclusions on how that had gone. Her sister had fallen behind and been the first to fall. If Sylenei had not run they both would have died but she had made it her mission to ensure she was never left so defenseless again. She couldn’t always count on someone else being around to save her.
