A Wolf's Howl, A Fairy's Wing

With the survivors secured, Erik and Naeku soon led them to the nearest city, before going off on their own again. Yet, there wasn't much more to do with regard to their mission.

By now, they had saved and scared several villages, and news about third-ranked attacks was starting to spread by word-of-mouth rather than news bulletins from Naeku's family. The latter of which most of these smaller villages took with a grain of salt.

So, after about two weeks away, Erik and Naeku returned to Enkare Nkai.

***

"We're not telling my family about this, understand?" Naeku grumbled, her eyes focused on a sigil drawn on the floor. She, Erik, and all his current wives were gathered in Erik's dimension's large, circular living room, grouped around the heartfire sigil Elora had just created.

The werepanther looked up from the sigil to look wryly at Erik. "Father might actually kill you if he finds out…"

"Hehe, are you suggesting he could…?" Erik smirked a little smugly. His arms were crossed in front of his chest, and he wore a casual, simple outfit that Elora usually conjured onto him.

Unfortunately, Naeku was unamused by his remark and glared at him impatiently. She'd forgiven Erik for forgetting to mention this, and she'd accepted the reasonability of Elora's veto, but that didn't mean she'd take any of his crap right now!

For some reason, despite his faults and the way they met, she'd fallen in love with this man over the course of a mere few months, but now their marriage was in the hands of this unknown sigil, created by a woman Naeku didn't really like all that much! This wasn't a situation she enjoyed!

Her glare quickly deflated Erik's smugness, causing him to purse his lips. "Alright, no telling your family…" he muttered in a defeated tone.

But he immediately regained his confidence and took a few steps closer to Naeku because he noticed her anxiety. With a smile, he wrapped his arms around her beastly form and looked deep into her yellow eyes. "Don't worry, NaeNae. I have no doubt you'll do just fine."

Naeku's eyes widened and she had to choke back a laugh. "N— NaeNae?! What the hell is that?!"

"All my wives get affectionate nicknames," Erik grinned confidently, unbothered by her reaction. "I'm just jumping ahead a little." He raised an eyebrow curiously. "Why…? Don't like it?"

A small blush appeared under Naeku's furry cheeks and she looked away. She felt happiness at his confidence in her, and it made the nickname suddenly feel a lot more special. "I— It's a little childish, but I guess it's fine…"

"Hehe, good," Erik chuckled, before leaning forward to whisper in her large cat ears. "Now, go and prove your love to my stubborn wife so we can get married… I'm aching to see what you're hiding under all that fur, and exploring every inch of it…"

A shiver travelled across Naeku's spine, and the blush deepened. She'd done a lot of hand stuff with Erik by now, but… truthfully, she'd been wanting more for a while already. She was no less excited than him.

That said, she was also nervous. Not just for the sex but… also about showing him her real body. Although a normal human body for the most part, there was one thing that set her apart from most others.

She wasn't exactly self-conscious about it, however. She was perfectly confident in her own beauty and sure in her own skin, but… it was still a significant deviation from the norm. Technically, Erik could hate it. It would be his problem, in her eyes, but she didn't want their relationship to crumble over it.

Regardless, she quickly discarded her thoughts. This was a time to focus.

"A— Alright, let's get this over with," she muttered awkwardly, before quickly making her way over the sigil. "What do I do…?" she asked Elora, who'd simply been watching them with a small grin.

"Just sit in the middle," Elora directed her calmly. "I'll activate the sigil, and you'll be transported to a kind of dream. Once inside, all your decisions, actions, thoughts, desires, and intentions will be observed, and the sigil will make a determination regarding not only the truth of your feelings, but also their potential to last the test of time."

Naeku snorted dismissively, but it was a sound of uncertainty. She didn't trust Elora, or this sigil, and didn't really want her future determined by it. Still, she glanced at Erik and sighed. 'The things you do for love,' she grumbled in her mind.

"Don't worry, Naeku!" Emma smiled gently at her. "It's really not so bad! You love Master, right? So you'll be fine!"

Next to her, Emma and Astrid nodded in agreement with Emma's words, but somehow, Naeku didn't feel particularly comforted by them.

She had no doubt about her feelings, but… she also realized her love for Erik wasn't as obsessive as that of the Ashcroft sisters. As for Astrid, she and Erik had a past that went back all the way to the beginning of their childhood.

Frankly, all three of them had relationships with Erik that she simply couldn't match. She wasn't really sure how much their experience would, or even could, match with hers…

Still, talking about that now would only undermine her own confidence. So, with a confident smile, she thanked them for their encouragement.

Regardless of anything else, she actually really liked all three of them, even Emily, despite her… tendencies. She was impressed with Emily's tenacity in the face of everything she'd gone through, as well as her deep love and care for both Erik and Emma.

Throwing away all last hesitation, Naeku sat down in the middle of the sigil and nodded sombrely at Elora. Instantly, the sigil flashed, and her head lolled forward even as her body remained upright.

***

Naeku's eyes flew open as her body shot upright. "What the hell?!" she exclaimed in shock, panning her eyes to realize she was actually in her own room in the palace. But before she could acclimate to the situation, a massive explosion rocked the city.

BOOM

Blinking in shock, she rushed over to one of the windows… and was confronted with a city in ruins.