Falling in Love with the King of Beasts

ADMINISTRATION NOTE: For the next week or two I'm going to try uploading the daily chapters a little earlier (4:30 and 5:30pm, Pacific) to make the content available to the East Coast readers at a more convenient time. On NovelFull, little details like upload times can have an impact on income, so this is an experiment to make sure I'm not hurting Reth & Elia's audience. I'll let you know if it changes again!

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RETH

Reth took a deep breath. "Today we are all here to begin the journey towards my vision for peace," he started. "A vision that includes all tribes, all people, all leaders from all tribes in council and working hand in hand to bring the people to their best purposes. All packs, herds, flocks, and family groups certain of their place in the Tree City—in the Anima as a whole—and allowed to make the most of their lives. My vision is for communication between leaders and tribes to be open and without guile. But in order to achieve that, we must find our common ground, our common goals. We must agree to what our future looks like, to be certain we are walking in step to achieve it.

"I open myself tonight, as your Alpha, to your suggestions. To your insight. To your struggles. What is needed among us so that we might trust one another again? What is needed between us so that we can offer the hands of peace and friendship once more? What is needed to return these wolves and their allies to the Tree City without harm—or segregation?"

Reth swallowed. The clearing was silent. "The only way I can see clear to all of us returning to normal life together, is if we acknowledge our faults, and our strengths together. 

"To those of you who remained in the Tree City during the conflict, please, look at your Lupine brothers and sisters and their allies. Yesterday, each of the Anima before you had an opportunity to bring anger and war to you. And each of them stood their ground. Either by the instruction of their Alpha, or their personal moral code, these Anima proved themselves trustworthy, even in the most difficult of circumstances, not to choose violence even as their brothers did.

"And to the wolves and their allies, I ask you, see your people who remained! See that they never chose to lose you. Never chose conflict. Never chose war. That they, too, had opportunity yesterday to vent their anger, or come for you in vengeance, and they did not. Even the warriors among them defended and did not attack until their lives were at threat."

He kept turning slowly, meeting as many eyes as he could on both sides. "I would gamble that there is one thing all of us already wish for, and that is no more bloodshed. I would wager that every Anima here, male or female, young or old, would choose to live in peace, if peace could be achieved. Can you not see that all of us want this?"

There was a low murmur—stronger from the Tree City side, but then, there were more than twice as many Anima there. 

"Every one of you left loved ones on the Hallowed Grounds yesterday!" Reth snarled. "Every one of you has felt the sting of loss in these months—has lived in fear or anger. Let us choose to be stronger than that, together! Let us choose to fight instead for peace, for life as it should be. For right! 

"With this in mind, I declare tomorrow a day of mourning. Everyone capable will move to the Hallowed Grounds at first light. Together we will take our dead and bury them, celebrate their lives, and mourn their deaths. And we will not fight! Not only on the grounds, but on the trails, or during our burials. We will respect and honor the losses each has suffered. We will offer hands of help and gestures of goodwill. And tomorrow night, when all are remembered, we will feast together at the market. We will come together, sit together, eat together, and remember that we were all one once before, and we can be that again. Are you with me, Anima!"

The response this time was louder, but still lacking the enthusiasm Reth knew they needed. The people were suspicious—willing to be peaceful, but not trusting others to do the same. And in this way, he knew, they would kill any chance at peace that existed.

"Bring me your fears and your problems. Bring me your offerings and solutions. On this day, we will draw the map that brings every Anima home, every family reunited, and every tribe together as one—the Anima tribe. Tell us your fears! Tell us your solutions! Only in this way can your leaders find our common goals. And only in this way can we leave this day in peace!"

Then he stood back as the people began, one by one, to raise their concerns for the coming reunification. And the councils began to address them one by one. 

Reth glanced at Lerrin to measure male—was he glad for this chance, or was it a burden to him? But Lerrin stood, hands fisted in his bonds, very clearly working to stop himself from turning to look at Suhle. 

Reth sighed. But this wasn't the time, and he knew he couldn't force the wolf to reconsider his position. So instead he stepped up beside him and murmured quietly so none bar the council could hear.

"What can you be certain we need to address for them? What tempted them away from us in the first place?" Reth muttered.

"They see an imbalance—that the pride was empowered, while the wolves, though growing in strength, were restrained. They will feel that more keenly now with their numbers lower, and the tribe split in loyalties." Lerrin turned to look Reth in the eye. "Find the way to make them all certain that they will be heard and valued—allowed to grow—and you will find their hope."

Reth nodded. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me," Lerrin said calmly. "Just do something about it."

Reth snorted. "I'll get right on that."

But Lerrin didn't laugh or look away. For a moment, their eyes held and Reth saw in him the sheer determination and grit that he'd always yearned to see in the other Alphas—that desire that moved beyond a hope for power, and into an almost parental love for the people.

"You are a good male," he whispered. "I wish I had been certain of that sooner. I'm sorry I didn't look deeper."

Lerrin huffed and turned away, but some of the tension went out of him. "I'm sorry I let myself be blinded by my father's… insanity."

Reth shook his head. "Lucan wasn't insane. He was hungry for power and it gripped him so totally—"

"No, Reth. Don't be blind like I was. Something happened to my father. He was a different wolf those last few months. And whatever got to him has infected the people. I'm confident most of those afflicted died yesterday, but they are an intelligent and wily people. Some remain. And when I'm gone, you'll have to find them and kill them." Lerrin turned to look at him.. "I don't think there's any other way to deal with it."