Everything will be fine
Alana
I had felt sick and passed out, but the feeling of being sick slowly passed, and then I could crawl to where Sedrik was lying. He had already returned to his human form and was bleeding from his abdomen.
"Sedrik… Are you okay?" I was so worried about him. The orcs were still unconscious.
"What was that? Was it you? Holy shit... Do you have magic?" I understood why he was so shocked because the night before he had watched me nearly die of the cold and my magic not manifesting itself to help me; he had realized that I was a peculiar witch who had no magic; maybe that was why he was defending myself so much.
I shook my head, unable to explain anything to him. "I don't know, I don't know exactly what happened…" I said I was confused. I grabbed his shoulders and pulled him away. "We have to get out of here before more orcs come within reach."
"Relax, I can handle it... Ouch!" He grimaced in pain as soon as he stood. I supported his body on mine, wrapping my arm around his waist.
"You're injured and need care. I know you're a tough and proud Alpha, but now is not the time to act badass," I told him in a reprimanding tone. Using all the little strength I had, I helped him walk towards his cave.
"Are you worried about me, witch?" He asked after me, laughing weakly.
"My name is Alana, stop calling me that like I have a damn disease!" I sighed and continued my work.
"Don't be mad, don't kick my ass with your badass magical powers," he continued. The man was all hurt, but he still managed to be an idiot.
"I don't have magical powers, I'm a witch who was born without magic," I explained to him at once.
"So, what was that with the orcs?"
"I don't know… maybe the Great Wizard took pity on me…"
"You and your godly gods," he sneered.
"You seem to be well enough to walk alone since you keep talking nonsense." I threatened to let go of him, and he made another grimace of pain. "Be quiet, just point the way!"
How did Sedrik want me to explain what had happened moments ago if I couldn't even explain it myself? No magic had manifested in me before, and no matter how much danger I was being exposed to, how would I know how to explain what had happened?
When we arrived at his cave, I slowly laid him on the bed and took clean clothes to clean his wounds and take care of him. "Will you regenerate again?" I asked, remembering that the night before, when he fell that way and broke his ribs, the next morning he had woken up with enough energy to threaten a band of dangerous orcs.
He nodded after sighing. "I'll heal, yes, but it's nice to see you take care of me," he said with his eyes closed, and I ended up smiling, realizing how worried I was about him.
It reminded me of the kisses we shared in that hole and of how intimate we had been despite being two very different people. He had saved me several times, and I was doing it now too. But why wasn't I taking advantage of this moment when he was lying here hurt and without strength, so I could try to escape again? After all, Sedrik was my enemy, but I had to recognize that in this damned forest, I wouldn't be able to survive without him.
So instead of running away, I went to the kitchen and made some soup like he had made for me yesterday. It would be a thousand times better to have him healed now to help me get out of this hell.
When he woke up, I fed him and cleaned his wound again, which was already healing to my happiness. I put pillows behind his head to make him more comfortable, his chest was slowly rising and falling, and he had fallen asleep again. It seemed that his body required a lot of rest so that regeneration could be faster.
I left the cave a little to research where exactly we were, there wasn't much to do other than wait for him. Out there, everything was surrounded by green nature, and the safest place was to be close to the wolf, so I didn't go too far away. When I returned to the center, the night was already falling outside. I noticed he was awake and looking fine, he was sitting up in bed with his head down, concentrating on his thoughts. When he saw me, his face lit up with delight.
"You're back…" he said, and that meant a lot. That meant that this time, although I had a good chance of running away from him, I hadn't, perhaps because I had realized that with him, I was safer.
"I don't know how to hunt, so I went to pick some fruit," I said with a slight shrug.
Sedrik got up from the bed and came to me with long strides. He hugged me so big that I was like a little girl in his arms. I didn't know why he had hugged me, but I still closed my eyes, enjoying the good feeling of his arms covering me and inhaling his woodsy scent. Sedrik did this sometimes, and it gave me a very different impression from what I had learned about how wolves were brutal and untamed. Sedrik could be all that, but he attracted me.
"Argh," he said, clearing his throat and walked away looking embarrassed. "I'm glad you brought something to eat, I'm starving," he said, and I nodded, also embarrassed, reality tripping me up.
"Of course… I'll just wash the fruit," I said, retreating to the kitchen. What was I doing imagining him like that? He was a wolf, for God's sake! A damn wolf that was the enemy of my people, we were enemies, not friends.
"What did that orc mean when he said that your people are in trouble with the Claws? Who are the Claws?" I asked when we were finishing eating, the moon was full today, and from afar we could hear distant wolves howling. Sedrik had told me that the neighboring packs were partying tonight, it was their tradition to party on the night of the full moon.
"The Claws?" He asked now, somewhat off guard. My question had caught him by surprise.
"Yes, I noticed you got harsher when that orc talked about it," I told him. He sighed before responding.
"You're very analytical."
"I'm a witch without magic. I have to find something I can be good at," I said, smiling, and he laughed.
"Claws are a big, powerful pack," he was explaining, "and the wolves there are merciless. But something happened recently involving my wolves and their she-wolves. Some of my boys ended up mating with the she-wolves from this pack, and the Claws didn't take it well; they sent a statement to me demanding the heads of the wolves involved in the matter; otherwise, they would call for a bloody war between the two sides."
"What a horrible thing. You are all wolves, what's the harm in mating with each other?"
"It's just that there are factions between packs, you wouldn't understand. The point is that this act was so offensive to the Claws that they want death."
"And you're not going to kill your wolves, are you?" He sighed.
"Being a leader is not the easiest thing in the world, sometimes we have to make unpredictable decisions." Then he remained silent, just staring at the moon outside with a melancholy look.
I couldn't deny that I had asked myself this question before: what would a man as important as Sedrik Moonwalker be doing alone in the middle of the forest like a lost animal? Maybe it was always because he needed to get away from something, maybe he was too overwhelmed by everything that was happening in his pack, too much responsibility, and too many things to resolve. Maybe kidnapping me was a way for him to clear his mind a little—a peculiar way, but still a way. Maybe he never wanted to do me any harm; he was just trying to have minimal fun.
At that moment, I felt sorry for him and had an urgent need to hug him. So I went to him and hugged him tight. "Don't worry so much, everything will be fine," I said, feeling him return my hug but still surprised. I looked at him with a smile, and he was also smiling at me. His eyes were dark, deep, and attractive, it was easy to get lost in them.
It was like I couldn't control myself, we were staring at each other so deeply, and I was feeling so connected to him that when he kissed me, I didn't pull back.