AUTHOR'S POV
"Because... I loved him.", he said, clearly. "During those times, I still clean up after him following the beatings I get. I would prepare his food the next day after leaving me out in the cold. And at night, I still wait at the porch for him to get home.. I never hated him, Diana. I can't just leave him because things are ugly", he exhaled sharply with a bitter smile, as she squinted her eyes looking confused. That's when he finally realized what Diana was talking about. Why she ultimately cared for the nagual pretending to be her mother. "One night, I pretended to be asleep. I heard him enter my room as he sat beside me and then I heard him say sorry for the things that he does.". It was one line that lasted a lifetime, making him stay with his abusive father.
"You practically stayed because he showed you a genuine act of love.. I don't think I ever got one", Diana's tightened. "She used me. Let an original feed on me", beneath her voice was a quiet simmering anger.
"We're wolves. I'm not very familiar with human affection, but I doubt it's not far too different from us", he said. He cupped her cheek, catching her eyes. "And she's a Nagual, Diana. They don't build bonds. They build illusions. Control. Dependency. They take what they need and make you believe you gave it willingly".
Her breath caught. That was exactly what she felt.
"For what it's worth, It doesn't matter if Alva, I mean Tamara or whatever her name is, is blood-related to you or not. Some choose to become who they are and what they do, and it's not our fault. They may have instrumental reasons for their acts like.. to protect themselves or just to hurt others", he tucked her hair behind her ear. "It's nice though, that despite the ugly past, tough and hurtful situations you've had, love grew in you and you turned out to be a good person".
"I don't know what that makes me", she said, hugging knees.
"It makes you someone who survived her", he didn't hesitate.
Something felt lighter in Diana's chest, as if something was lifted. "Could a nagual … change?", Diana asked. Before Scott could answer, he sensed something nearby that made him sit upright.
"Of course not! Nagualli doesn't have a heart to love at all! They are beacons of evil. They shouldn't be trusted. EVER.". a tiny voice raised from the main door. In every step it makes, Scott radiates his rage aura directly to the lythari elf coming forth.
Scott moved away slowly from the bed, eyes narrowing at the tiny creature who dared welcome itself in his home. His aura surged, tearing through the space between him and the lythari. Ofir's gentle face twisted, squealing loudly at the little power Scott emanates from his fingers. "How in the world..", he radiated his aura even more as the lythari elf squirm on the floor, gasping for air. He continued cooking the lythari in the heat of his power, exhuming it alive with his burning rage when Diana held his arm.
"Scott!", her voice was enough to extinguish his fury, as if the rains have poured over the blazing wildfire. "S-Stop! Please! Ofir is a friend!", she tightened her grip, with a look Scott cannot say no to.
The pressure grappling Ofir snapped, not from losing control but because she easily took it from him. Scott immediately released the lythari from his aura, but his darkened eyes was not washed away by Diana's soothing presence. He stayed wary, stopping Diana rush towards the heaving lythari. "A friend? Diana, do you know who this elf is?", he held her hand, firmly. Distancing from the tiny creature. "This menace is the reason why Alva was able to take you away from me, from the Valley of the Falls! You almost died because of them", he frantically told his Luna who seemed to have trusted the tiny beast.
"I know...", Diana placed her hands on his chest, nodding. "I saved him from the fire and then, he guided me out of the house to come here".
That settled Diana's escape, and safely finding her way to his home, Scott figured. But still, he believes these elves are trouble. "That isn't enough to trust them".
"No", Ofir replied easily. "...but you should be ashamed for being wrong", coughing heavily, with his hand in his neck.
Diana smiled slightly, with pleading eyes. Scott grunted, slumping heavily on the bed with a face of defeat. "You're safe for now, elf", he said sharply, pulling Diana over his lap. "Luna, they are not to be trusted. I'm telling you", he whispered in her ear while he rests his chin on her shoulder.
"I can hear you, Lycan King! Of course I can be trusted, unlike the nagual. They don't change for love. Not for blood!", Ofir's face twisted, with his lips curved downwards. Picking his nose, and then eating it.
"He doesn't have a home now, and he promised to help me", Diana scooted away, choosing to sit beside Scott. Her sudden aloofness got him wondering.
"Why would you need help from that elf when you have me?", Scott pulled her close, wrapped his arms around her waist. "Call me lycan king one more time, I'll snap your bones all at the same time", Scott bombed Ofir with another threat. Then, there was a glance between Diana and the elf that Scott noticed, but he just decided to let it slide.
"I'll give you some space", Ofir blurted as he instantly stood on his feet. "If the lycan harms the Luna, I won't hold back.", he warned, vanishing into thin air.
"Why I outta..", Scott tightened, but before he could make a move, the lythari was no longer there.
Diana sighed briefly, before leaving Scott on the bed. He followed her with his eyes. Her silence unsettled him, along with her quiet footsteps going to the bathroom. It was only earlier they were inseparable, and now, she wouldn't even look at him. When he thought she might have needed some space, the curiosity in him have already led him to follow her. The shower hissed like static, swallowing the room. Scott stepped in anyway, confronting all his gathered misgivings.
"I love you", he said, hugging her from behind. Simple, true. The warm water runs freely through their skin as he keep her close.
"Love?", she asked, lowly. Her eyes staring at the water going down the drain.
Scott turned Diana around, wanting to see her face this time. "I love you, Diana. I always have. Do you perhaps... love me too?", it was a question that rattled Scott. He doesn't doubt her, but somehow, he wanted to hear the words he's been dying to hear.
"Love is a such a strong word.", she gazed at his lips with the saddest eyes he have seen on her. "Do you... remember anything about the night of the blood moon, Scott? Do you... remember it all?", she suddenly asked. "Think hard, Scott. And try to remember this time. Think", she whispered, desperately.
Scott stood motionless, even if the water isn't too cold to give him a cool rush to get him frozen. "I think... I may have become a monster".
"Do you know how to cure it?", her voice steady. Watching his reaction carefully.
"No...", Scott turned away, as if he already knew where this is going. He wasn't prepared for this. Not just yet.
"Death of the Luna", she said, looking straight into his eyes. He served her silence. The shower ran behind them, water striking their skin in a relentless hush. Steam curled through the bathroom, blurring edges of everything except her face. "Do you know how to calm the lycan, even without breaking the curse?", she asked again, like arrows thrown straight at him. Arrows that he couldn't dodge. Scott remained silent, as if he have forgotten to move."My blood. So tell me, is your love for me stronger to refuse killing me, or... using me? Because you know what, I love you enough to die for you.", her voice now trembling, eyes refusing to look away.
Scott's jaw tightened. The truth coming from Diana struck him harder than any blade. He opened his mouth, but nothing came. It was more than a confession that he asked for. The Alpha who had broken enemies, and torn through forests with rage in his veins could not summon a single sound. His chest rose sharply. Once. Twice. Then, he held her with one hand gently.
"You thought about it", Diana's face shifted to something fragile. Something she understood in his silence.
"I felt the change, Diana. Ever since that night, I knew something vicious have taken over my body.", his eyes lifted to hers. "Whatever happened in the moon bath, it keeps me awake. You screaming my name, and me still not stopping fast enough. The craving for some sweet blood that only blooms in your veins.", he lathered a lavender soap in his hands and soaped her skin. Then, he laughed once. A ruined sound. Dry and cynical. "Then, I thought about it. Maybe your blood would keep the Alpha in me… but I just can't do it.".
Diana stared at him, tears now slipping freely down her cheeks. Feeling sorry for thinking differently. Scott grazed her face with his thumbs. His red-rimmed eyes stared at her. "If you stay, I may fail you. But if you leave, it will kill me... So, Diana, you asked me if I love you. ", he dropped to his knees before her, as an Alpha surrendering to his Luna, as a man being crushed by what lived inside him. "Diana, I love you badly, but I love you truly. I will end this curse, without being the wolf howling for the moon", he said.