The sun came up high in the sky as the ship docked Vilpamolan City. The only stopped for food, then they were on their way. A sigh left Victoria’s lips as she climbed onto her horse. “I’m so ready for a nice hot bath and a nice warm father bed.” The wolf demon said as she straighten herself on her horse. “Always the same sister. Why haven’t you spent more time in the castle?” Her brother said while he helped up Priscilla onto her horse. She was still not used to her new hand; it had only been a few days since the magical prosthetic was attached.

“I love to travel, brother. Just in luxury.” Victoria’s answer was short, but in her mind. She could only think that she was lonely there. “Can’t always have that.” He said while getting onto his horse. “Lead on, Vikki.” He said with a smirk. He knew that she hated that name. The look she gave him proved it. “Victoria.” She said simply and took off.

As they road along the beach, Victoria kept thinking of the map in her mind. “The location isn’t that far. Just up the lake here.” there was a steam like lake that broke off from the river. As they road along the steam. She knew it wouldn’t be long until they were there.

“Do they know were coming?” Alastair asked as he rode alongside his sister. Her eyes glanced over them as a smirk came to her lips.”No.” She looked forward again as she heard her father respond. “Of course not.” He repressed a sigh then and kept his horse at full speed.

As they passed through the warding, they felt it passed through them. They all glanced at each other but kept running.

Howls in the distance were alerted to their presence. “Wolves. I’ll take care of them.” The wolf demon brother said, but before he could. His sister stopped him. “No. They are just protectors. We mean them no harm.” Stopping her horse, the other two followed her lead.

Jumping off her horse, she watched as the pack surrounded them. It wasn’t just wolves. There was a large gargoyle, a wolf that looked like it was steel, a tiger that was just as big and a winged lion that was bigger than both. “This is Silverstein land! How did you get through the warding?” The gargoyle was the one to speak. “He has come by a collection.” Victoria thought as she looked at the animals around her. “They are Silverstein's” Amare came up between the gargoyle and wolf. She was dressed in a cotton black dress and her dark brown skin shinned slightly in the sun.

The brother finally dropped his hand from his weapon. He watched the woman around him then glanced down at her necklace. It wasn’t pulsing. They weren’t monsters. “What do you mean…they are Silverstein’s?” The gargoyle stepped forward this time. His eyes on the three before him. “You must be their Aunt and Uncle.” The witch smiled as she clasped her hands together. “Their?” Alastair was the one to speak now. “Yes. Katerina and Wilhelm Silverstein. Daughter and son of your brother, Thomas and his wife Katherine.” Amare looked from the two surprised faces. “Yes. She is alive. Now come. I’ll take you to their home.” With that, she turned around and started to walk through the trees.

As they followed the witch, Victoria and her brother couldn’t believe that she was alive. It was said that she had perished with her parents. When they finally reached the house, the witch turned around to face them. “I will fetch Katerina’s daughters. Please make yourself at home. Will is inside.” With that, the witch disappeared into the woods.

“They live here?” The wolf demon woman sighed as she looked at the small house. It wasn’t big by her standards, and hopefully Katerina didn’t have too many children. With that she let her brother attend to the horses and walked into the house.

Her nephew was in the dining room to the right. “Dear Nephew. I am parched. I need a hot bath drawn up and a nice meal, pronto.” Taking off her hat, and overcoat, she threw the contents onto the couch beside her.

The young girl, holding her briefcase before her with both hands, entered. She looked around the house before her eyes settled on the man who was at the table sipping his coffee.

“And your daughter will need accommodations.” That was the simplest of introductions that the Wolf aunt could muster.

As his eyes fluttered open, he looked at the sun rays that shined through his window. A smile curved on his lips as he thought about the life he had. Wilhelm had been traveling around for over a thousand years. Now he finally found a place to settle down. With his sister nonetheless. He didn’t know that he evened have one until almost two years ago. Just after meeting Katerina, she offered for him to stay with her. They had clicked right away, and it warmed his heart that she already trusted him. Being around Katerina and her children made him the happiest man in the world. He loved the girls just like he would a daughter. This made the wolf demon want his own children, but he wasn’t in a rush to have one. “First I need a lover.” He thought to himself as he sat up in bed.

“Uncle Will!” He heard his name from the other side of the door before the two youngest ran in. “Eva!” He said with a laugh as she jumped on the bed. “Hey, Guinevere.” He said as he leaned over and picked up the one-year-old infant. Just like her older sister, she jumped on the bed. “Will Will Will… Wakey!” The youngest yelled out between giggles. “I am awake!” He said while laughing before he scooped the girls into his arms and hugged them tightly. “Good morning my beautiful girls.” A smile lit his face, this was his favorite part of every morning.

“Okay! Time for breakfast.” He said as he put the baby on the ground. Eva jumped off the bed and ran out the door. As soon as they were out of the room, the wolf demon got up and shut the door. “Lucky they didn’t see you.” He said with a smirk as he watched Scarlet come out of the closet. Her naked body made him ache. He wanted her again, but it was morning. In seconds, the woman was now a steel word. “Damn that curse.” He said aloud as he walked over to her and laid a hand on her head. “I’ll see you later.” He said then open the door for her to run out.

Grabbing his robe that was hanging on his door, he headed out to the kitchen. The girls played in the living room, running after one another. “Where are your other sisters?” Will asked while mixing the batter. “Freya is reading in the study, and Annette is still sleeping,” Eva said between giggles as her sister chased her around the couch.

“They will be out here soon.” He said with a smirk as he started to make the pancakes. In between flipping them, the wolf demon chopped strawberries. In a few moments, breakfast was done, and Will was putting the plates on the table. “Where is Amare?” He asked as Freya walked around the corner into the kitchen. “She went for a walk. She should be back soon.” Freya answered while sitting down at the table. Annette soon joined them; all dressed and ready for the day.

After they finished their breakfast, the girls went outside. “Where do you think you're going?” Wilhelm said as he picked up the youngest of the group. “Time for your nap.” He said then kissed the girl on the head. This made her giggle, then suddenly yawn. Walking into the bedroom shared by the two youngest girl’s, he laid Guinevere in her crib. With a kiss on her head once more, and covering her with her favorite blanket, the wolf demon left the room.

The house was finally empty, no loud giggles or screaming, just silence. Wilhelm went into the kitchen and put away all the clean dishes that Freya and Annette washed. Then finally sat down at the dining room table with his book in hand. As he read his book, he sipped his coffee. He was at ease. That was until the rude entering of his aunt.

“Holy shit.” He said as he stared at her. He hadn’t seen her since he was a child. “How the hell is she alive?!” He thought to himself. She wasn’t one to take care of herself, she liked other’s doing that for her. He had never once seen her fight or even hurt a fly. Well, with violence that is. She did hurt people with her words sometimes.

Taking another sip of his coffee, he was about to reply to her until her last words. His daughter?! This made Wilhelm spit out his coffee. “What?!” He said aloud while he sat up. “Daughter? You must have me mixed up with someone else.” He walked over to his aunt in shock. That’s when he finally saw the girl. His eyes locked with hers and he gulped. She had his eyes, he was sure of it. Silence fell over the two and he didn’t know what to say.

“Hello..” her voice was soft as she looked at him. “I never knew… No one told me…” Wilhelm said then looked down at the ground. “Who was your mother?” He asked as his eyes found her eyes again. “Marie…. In Adeluna.” She said simply. Trying to remember who that was, Wilhelm suddenly remembered the blonde girl he liked in Adeluna just about seventeen years ago. “That was a very long time ago… She said—” Not wanting to remember that bad falling out they had. “There aren’t many rooms here so, you can sleep in the study. There is a very comfortable couch in there.” Turning he stared at his Aunt. “You can use my room. Katerina should be home today sometime.” With that, he took the women to their rooms.

“I’ll draw your bath, Aunt Victoria.” He said as he collected the sheets from his bed. “I’ll have these washed as well.”


Once finished, Will walked out of his aunt's room, he stopped at the door his daughter was in. A sigh left his lips as he reached up to knock on the door. Freezing, he shook his head and headed down the hall to the living area. He wasn't ready for a one on one just yet. Deciding to just give her time. He entered the kitchen. “I need time too…” The wolf demon thought to himself as he put away the clean dishes; Freya and Annette had clean them before going out.

With the last dish in its place, the wolf went into the living room. Seeing a man on the couch Wilhelm made his sword appear in his hand. “Put that away before you hurt yourself.” The stranger's voice was direct, but he didn't look at Will. “I am your Uncle. Came with Victoria.” The mention of the man being his uncle made the wolf demon despite his sword.

Still cautious, Wilhelm made his way over to the longer cough. “I didn't know I had an Uncle.” The wolf demon stated as he watched the man before him carefully. “You don't know a lot of things.” As he said this, Alistair looked at his nephew. Katherine's eyes stared back at him. Clearing his throat, the elder held out his hand. “Alastair.” Finally, the elder introduced himself.

The action made Will stare at his uncle's hand for a moment before reaching out and shaking it. “Wilhelm.” When the young one said his name, Alastair's eye's flashed. “Hmm…” Thinking for a moment the elder turned his eyes to the fire. “You have my father's name.” His answer shocked the young wolf demon. “My grandfather had the same name?” When Wilhelm said this, it was mostly to himself. He didn't know anything about his Mother's family. “Yes. It is a very strong name. Mean's resolute protector.”

The reply from his uncle made Wilhelm look to the fireplace to ponder. “It fit’s you. Seeing a stranger in the house where your loved ones leave, you are quick to draw your sword and protect them.” A smile lined Alastair’s face when he said this. “Just like your father. He always wanted to protect people. Then he met your mother. He would do anything for her…” As the uncle started to talk about Katherine, he trailed off not wanting to say anymore.

Silence fell between them as they both were deep in thought. That was until Wilhelm spoke. “Thank you. For bringing Pricilla here safely.” Alastair only nodded to the thanks. He was still thinking about Katherine. Bringing himself out of his thoughts, he elder wolf demon looked at his nephew. “You should go speak to her. She has just lost her mother, so she needs her father. More than anything right now.” With that, the Uncle stood up and left the house, leaving Wilhelm to his thoughts.

Taking a deep breath, Will decided to listen to his uncle; he was right. Standing from his chair, he walked down the hall to the study. For a moment he stood there, scared? Nervous? He was frozen in his spot, that was all he knew. The soft cries on the other side of the door made him move. Opening the door slowly, he saw her on the couch. Pricilla had her head in her hands, she didn’t even hear the door open. When Wilhelm saw her in tears, it broke his heart. Alastair was right.

Softly, the wolf demon closed the door. Moving toward her, he sat down beside her. “What?! What are you doing here?” She asked, shocked. Her eyes went to him; red ringed and wet. He didn’t say a word, all he did was brought her into his arms. He expected her to push him away or scream. What she did surprise him most, she fell into his arms and wept.

Finally, being free of the city of Adeluna, Katerina decided she would never go back to the city. How could they think that Nikolaus could kill people on a whim? As they rode home, there was also one more decision; her vampire lover would meet her daughters. She knew in her heart that he wouldn’t leave her. This thought caused the wolf demon to glance over at him. Nikolaus rode on the horse beside her. When he caught her eyes, he smiled back at her.

It took some time, but they finally reached the border of her land. Howls echoed through the sky when they passed through the trees before the wolves ran next to them. Nikolaus was scared for just a moment until he saw heard Katerina talk to them. “I missed you too!” She called down to the baby wolves. With a small laugh, they rode on.

It only took a few minutes till they reached the house, she was anxious to learn about the travels her daughter hand. They made an agreement that they would be home in four days. Jumping off her horse, Katerina ran toward her four daughters that were waiting on the front porch. They all called her name while her arms circled them. “Mom!”, “Mommy!”, “Mama!”. The wolf demon’s heart warmed with love as she kissed each one of them. “I miss you, mommy!” Eva said as she received her kiss. “I did too!” ,” Me too!”. Came from the other girls.

“I missed you, all! So much!” She kissed them. “Mother? Who’s that?” Annette asked as she finally straightened. She eyed the man who was watching them. Her arms crossing her chest. Katerina knew what was going to come. “Girls, this is Nikolaus. A very old friend of mine.” She said as he came to stand beside her. “Nikolaus, this is Annette, Freya, Evangeline, and Guinevere. My beautiful girls! My eldest should be back any time today.” She introduced them and motioned towards every one of them. When she got to her eldest, she jumped up and down while reaching towards Katerina. “Mama. Up. up!” She said. Katerina was more than happy to oblige. Putting her on her hip, she kissed her head once more.

“Hello, Children. Katerina has told me so much about you. I feel like I know you already.” He said as he removed his hat. “OH! Since your Momma’s old friend. Does that mean you’re as old as her?!” Eva asked as she looked at him curiously. “Eva!” Annette frowned at her sister. “Mom isn’t old.” Katerina couldn’t help but laugh at the comment.

Kneeling to her level, Nikolaus looked at Eva. “Older.” His comment caused the girl to drop open her mouth. “No way! I bet you’re not as old as my Aunt and uncle! They are almost two thousand years old!” She said as she pointed over her shoulder. “Sweetheart. You don’t have an Aunt. Just Will is your uncle and he is only a few years older than me.” Katerina tried to correct her daughter. A bit confused by the little one’s comment. “Yeah huh! Aunt Victoria and Uncle Alastair AND! Will’s new daughter, P, just came yesterday!” Crossing her arms over her chest, Eva put on a grumpy face. “What?” Katerina eyes widened as she looked up towards the doorway.

The rest of the Silverstein’s walked out onto the porch. Victoria was the first to speak. “Well child! Look at you! And I thought you were long passed.” Stepping down the steps, she walked over to Katerina. “Wow. If you had blonde hair you would be your mother.” Victoria held out her hand towards the wolf demon’s face. Tears threatening to fall from her face. Katerina didn’t know what to say at the woman before her, she looked like her father, but prettier. Nikolaus looked up at Katerina in that moment, then stood up to introduce himself. “I’m Nikolaus.” He said with a bow to Victoria. “Hello. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Victoria said as she nodded towards the man. The vampire scent hitting her nose.

“I am Victoria, this is my brother Alastair. “She said while motioning towards her brother who stood leaning against the door. “Dinner is done. Why don’t we all sit and eat? Have a little talk as well?” Wilhelm turned into the house and took a deep breath. He wasn’t sure what to do at that moment.

After about thirty minutes, they all sat at the table with a few fish dishes before them. Pricilla was introduced to Katerina and Nikolaus. The two youngest laughed and played with each other while they ate. Annette and Freya ate their food quietly. The adults did the same. Victoria looked over the table at her niece who was still quiet wondering what was going on in her mind.

“WHY! Why didn’t he tell me about my aunt? My uncle!” Katerina kept screaming in her mind. “Why do these things still happen to me!” The sudden touch of a hand on her’s knocked the wolf demon out of her trance. Nikolaus had grabbed her hand and held it under the table. When her eyes locked with his, she saw the worry in his eyes.

Katerina didn’t say a word till the children finally went up to bed. Still sitting at the table, she stared at Victoria and Alastair. “Why didn’t my father tell me about you?” She finally spoke to them. Her Aunt was about to speak when Alastair, who was once quite like Katerina, spoke. “Because of me.” His words made her eyes shoot to him on the far side of the table. “She doesn’t need to know our past,” Victoria said as she started to stand. “Yes. She does.” His words made the sister sit back in her chair. Grabbing her wine, she sipped it while he spoke.

“I was in love with your mother.” His eyes stayed on his niece as he leaned his elbows on the table. He had to repress a sigh; he would always love her mother. Katerina’s eyes widened and didn’t say a word. “Your mother…chose your father. Your father never forgave me for trying to fight for her. So, I left.” He said looked over to his sister. “And you?” Katerina asked as she looked at her Aunt. “She chose the wrong brother.” Victoria said, but she was clearly hiding more but wouldn’t say any more.

Taking their word on it, they finally left the room and left Katerina to her thoughts. “Are you okay?” Nikolaus’ voice came up from behind her as his hands laid on her shoulders. “It’s just a lot to take in.” Turning in her chair, he kneeled beside the chair. His hand came up to move her strand of hair behind her ear. “Let’s get you to bed. Tomorrow will be a better day.” Pulling her up from her chair, he laid a kiss on her lips.

“Kiyomi!” Katerina said as she ran out onto the porch. She felt it; something was wrong. Nikolaus was quick on her heels. It was almost past midnight and her eldest wasn’t home. Closing her eyes, she whispered Kiyomi’s name. There was nothing. The charmed bracelet that Katerina had given her was not working. Turning to him, her worry showed all over her face. “Something is wrong Nikolaus!” The wolf demon turned around hearing footsteps. Maybe it was Kiyomi?

“You have to find her.” Amare was there and then suddenly Alastair and Will came rushing out. “What's wrong?” They had both heard Katerina’s outburst but Will was the one to speak. “I can feel her pain. You must find her. Go. I’ll watch the children.”

They all left that night to search for the missing dragon daughter; Katerina, Nikolaus, Alastair, Will and some of the animals. They looked non-stop for almost a month. Nothing came up from their search.

When they finally arrived at the house, Katerina greeted her children then walked into her bedroom and shut the door. Her children didn’t see because it was time for bed. After the kisses goodnight. Katerina wanted to escape reality. Nikolaus entered a few minutes after to hold her tight while she cried in his arms. Just like before, one of her children had gone missing without a trace. She thought about Natsumi, maybe she had her daughter? But there was nothing wrong with Kiyomi to permit her to take her.

As the rain poured outside her window, Katerina laid there beside Nikolaus. When he finally fell asleep, she had moved out of his arms to sit up. She made her wait to the windowsill, sitting down she watched the rainfall. She didn’t know how long she sat there, it had been hours. Maybe it was the middle of the night? Standing from her spot on the seat, she felt something. “Kiyomi?” She whispered before she ran out the door onto the porch.

Hearing her voice, the vampire jumped out of bed to follow her. He stopped right at the front doorway, right behind Katerina. A woman stood in the rain. Her head down and dark brown hair falling around her face. Her clothes were soaked. A skirt, white low cute sleeveless blouse, and a kimono overthrow that was belted in the middle. She also wore knee-high black boots. This wasn’t the Kiyomi Katerina had seen just a month ago. The girl wasn’t a girl any longer, she looked like a woman…. with fox ears and a tail.

“My baby girl!” Katerina called to Kiyomi before she ran to her with tears in her eyes. Taking Kiyomi into her arms, the wolf demon cried and just held her in the pouring rain. It took a moment before the fox girl put her arms around her Mother. Tears started to mix with the rain that was dripping from her face. She didn’t say a word, and neither did Katerina.

Standing at the windows were her Aunt and Uncles. They watched but didn’t move toward them. Katerina needed this moment with her daughter. Nikolaus also stayed in his spot in the doorway. He didn’t move until the two came into the house. Katerina took her straight to her room.

When they were alone, Katerina looked at her daughter. They were both soaked to the bone. Helping her broken girl, Katerina undressed her daughter. She couldn’t help but notice the changes, she still smelt the same. After drying off her daughter, Katerina put on one of her oversized shirts on Kiyomi, that she normally wore to bed. Sitting her down in bed, Katerina quickly changed before sitting down next to her daughter. “Can you tell me what happened?” Katerina asked as she started to dry Kiyomi’s hair.

Taking a deep breath, Kiyomi couldn’t look at her mother. She didn’t know how to tell her mother. She fell for a trick. Was raped, and then cursed. “Mom…” Kiyomi cried out before she hugged her mother. Katerina tried to hold back the tears as she ran her hand through her daughter’s new hair. “I… Mom… I did something horribly wrong. I gave myself to a man just to find out it was all a trick. Then… I was cursed.” That was all that Kiyomi could say at the moment.

Days finally passed, and Katerina kept a close watch on her daughter. She was mostly locked up in her room day in and day out. Kiyomi didn’t want to be around anyone, just stayed in her bed.

One day, Katerina’s Aunt stood up from the kitchen table. “Katerina. You have such a growing family. You need a bigger place…” Her voice made Katerina’s eyes look up. “This place is fine.” Was all she said before turning back to her book. “Katerina. You have all these growing girls. They need room, or they are going to pull each other’s hair out.” Pausing for a moment, the Aunt smiled. “I have the perfect place. I think it’s time to move into your castle.” Victoria smiled as she put her hand on her hip as Katerina’s eyes lit up.

“I think it’s time for a family trip. Just stay a week there, then decide.” Victoria leaned her free hand on the table as she stared at her niece. “Fine. A week.” Katerina sighed, she was reluctant but hated that her Aunt was right. “I need to get her out of the house.” Katerina thought as Kiyomi appeared in her mind.

The next day, they were packed and ready to go. With Nikolaus at her side, Katerina and her family left the house her Uncle gave her. Maybe for good.