Chapter 22
First, Rune and Stone decided to visit Rune’s family. She took a deep breath and let it out.
“We’ll do fine,” Stone reassured her.
She sure hoped so.
Rune and Stone crested the last rise of earth, the crunch of gravel beneath their boots giving cadence to their arrival. The wolf fae pack territory sprawled before them—a patchwork of cottages scattered through the woods and nestled beside the gurgling creek.
The homes were as varied as the fae themselves: there were robust log cabins strung with wind chimes, and modest dwellings hunched under mossy eaves. In the spaces between, laundry lines fluttered with the day’s washing, and vegetable gardens tangled with riotous colorful flowerbeds.
Cows and sheep grazed in nearby pastures, and goats cleared the underbrush in the woods. Birds filled the forest, and butterflies flitted over wildflowers among the cabins. Flowers perfumed the air, making it smell like a bit of heaven.
Rune took a deep breath and let it out.
A low howl rippled through the air, and Rune felt its tremor in her chest, familiar and exhilarating—welcome and warning intermingled.
The forest shivered in the stiff breeze.
From the thicket, fae appeared in shifting forms—some slipped from wolf to fae in the blink of an eye, fur shifting to skin and suede and cotton clothes, while others lingered as wolves circling the newcomers with cautious curiosity.
Wolf cubs darted between the trees, fighting for the best vantage to catch sight of the new pack leaders. The elders, their eyes bright and unblinking, watched from porches and shaded benches, measuring Rune and Stone for the job.
Rune’s heart beat faster. She could feel Stone’s presence beside her, steady and unyielding, as they walked the path winding its way through the heart of the community.
Rune was aware of the expectations—her own, and those of the fae who lined the path, waiting to see if she and Stone could lead them.
Stone’s hand brushed against hers—a silent offering of solidarity, or maybe a reminder that even the strongest wolves did not lead alone.
The pack’s greeting swelled in volume and bodies, a tide of sharp eyes and wary smiles gathering around them.
Stone cleared his throat, and the crowd’s attention pivoted.
Rune realized, with a strange thrill, that she and Stone were being ushered into the ring of the pack, and the air hummed with the anticipation of the old world ceding space to the new.
Then a couple of fae moved forward out of the crowd, Iris and Lolita with them, and two males about the same age.
The man and woman announced they were Rune's mother and father.
They came forth in tears and hugged her.
"Star Gazer told us that she had helped raise you to be the beautiful wolf fae you are today.
Lolita and Iris are your sisters," her mother said.
“I am Chenille. And this is your father, Stormwalker.”
Stone smiled, but waited behind Rune to take in the news.
Shocked to pieces, Rune cried happy tears and hugged her parents back, unable to believe she had a mother and father. She had always imagined they had perished and she had been all alone in the world.
Then she hugged Lolita and Iris, thrilled they were her sisters. Even though she'd always felt a connection with them, she'd never imagined they were family or that she had any siblings at all.
Then they introduced Sam and Rocky, her brothers, the same age as her. They were thrilled to welcome her to the family also. Rune hugged her family all again, thrilled to have them in her life. Caspian smiled at her, and she hugged him too. Noticeably absent were Xena and Fang.
"Xena, Fang, and Caspian are members of other families in the Thistledown Pack," her father said.
Stone stepped forward to join the family, and they embraced him as well.
"I want to mate Rune," Stone said, not asking, as alpha as he was, but sounding like he wanted some kind of approval from her father.
"We're happy to have you as a son-in-law, and we’ll treat you as one of our sons. We watched your interactions, and you have our wholehearted approval. We only want the same for our other children," her father said.
Rune was thrilled that her father accepted Stone, though she was mating him no matter what.
Then they met the rest of the family: her two sets of grandparents. They were so excited to meet her.
"Star Gazer told us when you won the accumulated challenges along with Stone. There are five other families in our pack. The Glimmerwood Pack has six families," her mother said.
"And you've been at odds with each other," Rune said.
"Yes. We know the two of you will change the pack dynamics, and we'll be unified as one," her mother said.
"Though we don't want to let you go, you need to meet Stone's family with the other pack," her father said.
"Both packs plan on a big celebration for you and the others who participated in the challenges honorably.
Thankfully, though we couldn't be there to watch the events play out, everything—all the challenges—was recorded.
Though we nearly had a heart attack when we saw Lolita fall into the hole in the cavern. "
"Me too," Lolita said. "But Rune and our sister, Iris—though we didn't know at the time that Rune was our sister—and Caspian from the other pack helped me."
"We were proud to see how the other pack members were rallying around Rune and Stone, showing that they were no longer cowed by Xena and Vesper," her father said.
“We were too,” Rune said.
"Go, meet the other pack and Stone's parents, and we'll gather for the feast," her mother said.
Rune hugged them all again, and then Stone did. Then they fae traveled, something they were so glad to do again after finishing the games.
When they arrived at the other pack's territory, they found the fae had cottages there too. And like before, they all came out of the homes and woods to greet them.
Stone figured it was a good thing that they hadn't been raised in the packs. Though he supposed they had watched the games too and knew something about Rune, him, and the way they handled matters.
"I'm Melita, your mother," a woman said, her hair the same ice-white as his.
"We couldn't believe it when Moon Gazer came to us with the news that you were our son; we were overwhelmed with joy and disbelief.
We are so grateful that she and her sister rescued you and Rune.
" She smiled. "You make a beautiful couple. "
"I'm Timber, your father, and you have two sisters and three brothers." His father ushered them forward, and they all gave him hugs, and he said, "You know Silas and Elon. All they have done is praise the two of you. But we saw how much you helped them too and stood by them."
"And how much they helped me." Stone couldn't believe they were his brothers.
"We were proud of them for that. And this is Sally, Helen, and Rusty.
They've all been eager to see you too. Vesper, Maeve, and Pari are with three other different families," his father continued.
"You might have heard that they have been excommunicated from the pack.
They were never supposed to have tried to kill anyone at the games. What they did was dishonorable."
"So where are they now?" Stone asked, hoping he and Rune wouldn't have to deal with them further.
"They are not anywhere near the packs. Which, since you and Rune are taking them over, they'll be one pack united. We're all glad for that. Other wolf packs might take them in, but I'm sure they've heard about their behavior and won't want to have anything to do with them," Stone's father said.
"So they'll be lone wolves unless they try to make up their own pack," Stone said.
"Exactly."
Now that was an unexpected turn of events.
"We're glad to be part of the packs," Stone said.
"We're glad you're here to help us work together." His father smiled at Rune. "And you have the perfect young lady to help make that happen."
Even though Stone had never met his parents or other siblings before, he felt the connection right away.
"Who chose who to compete in the challenges?" Stone asked, curious.
"We were told you were forced to participate in the challenges.
If you had the choice, you wouldn't have done it.
But the goddesses knew what they were doing.
In the case of the other participants, various families had to provide one or two fae to participate if they were the right age.
The Game Master considered the eligible ones, then chose.
So it wasn't completely the participants' choice," his mother said.
This made Stone wonder why Lolita would have been chosen since she was smaller than everyone else. They would have to ask her when they could.
"Where will we live?" Stone asked.
"Where the territories meet. There's a home there that is yours and Rune's. The celebration will take place in an hour. Would you like to see the house?"
"Yes!"
Then his family led the way through the woods. Though they could have traveled in the fae way, it appeared they wanted to take them on a walk to see everything there was to see along the way. Maybe they would find their way back to his family when they wanted to return there.
Everyone in the pack stayed back, except Stone's parents and siblings. Stone took hold of Rune's hand on the walk. Both his mother and father smiled at them.
His parents walked close together too, and he could see how warmly they looked at each other and how loving their relationship was.
"I can't believe you get to live in that home," Rusty said. "Everyone wants to live there."
"Everyone takes care of it too," Elon said. "We rake the leaves and—"
"I hope you play in the piles," Rune said.
Elon's cheeks turned red.
Rune and Stone laughed. "Hey, we did that all the time when we were in our glens. We would pile them high, shift into our wolves, and jump into them. Every fall without fail," Stone said.
Everyone smiled. Because Stone and Rune were so serious in much of the gameplay, just like most everyone was, he could understand why they wouldn’t think he and Rune were playful when they had the chance.
Even though Stone and Rune were the new pack leaders, they were all about playing too.
They had no plans to give up having fun.
Rusty confessed, "Yeah, we did it all the time. A lot of the other wolves in the pack did too. We had fun, and then we put all of those leaves into a compost bin so it made compost for the garden."
"And we provide a cleaning service," Melita said.
"Any repairs that need to be made will be," Timber said. "Everyone takes care of the pack leaders."
Stone couldn't believe it. After spending so many years on their own, looking out for themselves and each other, now they would have others look after them?
The home was perfect for a family of their own. He loved the privacy too. They couldn't see any other homes from where they lived. It was great because if they had pack issues, it would be nice to retreat to the privacy of their home after resolving them.
"I have a question; maybe you know the answer to it. One day, Vesper and three other wolves his age attacked me in my glen. Do any of you know who they were?" Stone asked, wondering exactly who they were and where they were.
"They’re Vesper's friends. They're from three different families," Silas said.
"I overheard them talking about it after the fact when they were swimming down at the lake.
We'd heard about a couple of lone wolves in separate glens, but we were told never to bother you.
I'm sure that's when Vesper and his buddies took it upon themselves to go harass you. "
That sounded about right as far as Vesper went, and his friends were probably beta wolves.
Stone was just glad that none of them were his siblings, but he was certain they'd been from the same pack as Vesper since the two packs had been at odds.
And he was glad Vesper was gone. On the day they attacked, Vesper seemed to be the ringleader.
Hopefully, the other three wolves wouldn't cause trouble for him and Rune.
But if it happened, they would nip it in the bud.
When they finally saw the lake and the house, Stone was blown away. He'd expected a small cottage. It was huge. Rune squeezed his hand, and he smiled at her.
The cottage was a fae's dream come true, hidden among mossy trees and nestled near the churning river and shimmering, rippling lake, the sun shining on the surface. Stone walls secured a fertile garden overflowing with colorful flowers, butterflies, and hummingbirds fluttering above them.
The flagstones leading to the door were worn into shallow bowls in the center of each one, polished slick by years of passing feet, and they held the cold of the earth long after the afternoon sun had warmed everything above ground.
"This was the home of our pack leaders in the past. When they died a decade ago, the pack split into two, and we could never agree on new pack leaders,” Timber said.
The waterfront retreat was on ten acres with its own shoreline and breathtaking lake and river views.
"You can launch a kayak or paddleboard from your own beach, spend afternoons beachcombing along the shoreline, harvest shellfish, go crabbing, watch eagles soar overhead, and unwind while taking in the views. With soaring ceilings, expansive windows, and multiple view-oriented living spaces, it captures the beauty of the river and the surrounding mountains,” Timber said.
The kitchen had quartz counters, stainless appliances, a wood-burning stove, running water, and was open to the living room, perfect for entertaining. After living outside for so long, being shut up in small rooms didn't appeal, so this was really nice.
They would have to learn how to cook in a kitchen though. Other than cooking over a campfire or eating at the gaming facility, where a chef and his staff prepared everything for them, they had no experience with it.
The living area had lots of comfortable seating, all appearing new, not like it had been sitting there for a decade unused or used for years before that.
Suddenly, Rune's family arrived. "Hello," her mother called out.
"Come in," Rune said.
"We were just showing them their home," Tinder said.
"It's beautiful," Rune said.
And then the families hugged. They were now united as one.