Breakfast was a pretty sad and lonely event for Robin, and she had a sinking feeling as to why it might have ended up that way. It made her feel almost ashamed with herself, but more than anything, she was feeling very rejected. She knew she had no right to, she was only to abide by the will of her master, but it still burned inside her.

Was she not good enough?

She had woken up to her breakfast of eggs, toast, jam, and milk placed on a small tray on the bedside table. The toast was still warm when she had touched it, and her mind raced thinking that the Alpha would be outside those doors. She wanted to thank him for the breakfast, was her reasoning, but really… she just wanted to see him and talk about the night before, what he had meant with his words.

But as she peeked out of the door, all was silent and empty. The blankets he had used last night were folded neatly on the couch, and other than that, there was no other sign of him even being there in the first place. It made her worry quite badly, and it only worsened when she found the note tucked neatly under the plate of toast.

“Eat well and get rested. You can take a bath; a bath has been prepared and your bandages can be taken off. Clothes under the bathroom sink. I will be back in the afternoon to have you checked by the doctor. Lunch will be delivered to your room.” Nothing more and nothing less.

Even so, Robin held the note tightly to her chest because it still made her somewhat happy. Mornings had never been this peaceful or safe…. And she was assured of food. He had even mentioned lunch, something that she rarely ever had before. She was cared enough by the Alpha at the moment, and she should treasure it while it lasted.

Even when deep down inside she felt so weirdly that she wanted more from him. But last night… he had asked for her trust. It had not really reached an understanding in her mind before she slept about what he had said, and she thought it was very sad that she was useless to him last night. What if he was annoyed with me and didn’t even want to look at me? Is that why he did not share the room with me? Was I going to be tossed away soon?

Those thoughts ran through her mind until she fell asleep. Now that her mind was more rested and her appetite attended to, she was starting to understand his words last night, or… understand as much as she could. They were so foreign to her. Jan had never spoken to her that way before; she didn’t even know it was possible.

“But I respect you…”

“I have to honor you…”

“Give yourself to me only when you completely trust me… Only then and never any less.”

Why should she have to give herself? Shouldn’t it be that he should take it? He had every right to her now that he owned her, though he said he was not her master. But in a sense, he is, isn’t he? She is in his bed and within his room. He had taken over Jan’s position, and though her needs were better met under the Alpha, wasn’t it all the same?

She was simply a bird, and the title of cage master had simply been granted to another man.

But a gut feeling was trying to tell her otherwise, that the Alpha isn’t the same and that his words of respect and honor were true. He was giving her the choice…. She was his equal.

She had a choice.

Her thoughts were becoming too confusing and out-of-reach for her, and the toast and eggs that were once delicious were starting to taste quite bland in her mouth. More than anything, she was starting to feel ill.

Deciding to test if the Alpha had been speaking the truth, she ventured towards the bathroom door and peered in. Her mouth had dropped in slight awe at the pristine look of the place. It was as big as most of the rooms she had seen, and she never imagined bathrooms could even look this way. It had been a long time since she had last seen one. In all honesty, she couldn’t even remember clearly… just the faintest idea of what it should look like… but this definitely had to be on the better end.

The walls were a pale blue and so was the floor. There was a clean sink to the left and a toilet at the back end. There was a huge square tub, very huge that probably was twice her length and in width. This made sense to her in a way since the Alpha was quite a large man. His bed was large so it makes sense for his tub to be. As promised, the tub was filled with warm water and there were even bubbles floating about it.

She passed by the sink, glancing at herself in the huge mirror above it, and gasped. It had been a long time since she had looked at herself in a mirror properly. Most of the time, she only had puddles to see her reflection in, so her image of herself was muddied in the murky water. Seeing herself clearly for the first time in a long while brought tears to the back of her eyes, stinging so badly.

God… he had seen her like this all day yesterday?

She was a mess. Her blonde hair lay very badly on her head, flying and sticking up in all directions and her eyes were dark and sunken in. It was apparent that she had been cleaned up a bit before she had woken up in the first room she was in, but she did not look much better. She looked…. Sad…. And starved…. And tiny.

Jan had been right. No one would like an ugly bird like her, only Jan would.

Ugly ugly bird.

Feeling disgusted with herself, she whirled towards the tub, stripping herself of the white dress she had not been changed out of. The tears had blurred her vision very badly, and she did not even remember to remove her bandages before she sunk into the water. The water was a nice warm feeling and it smelt nice, but it did not really make her feel better.

Realizing her bandages were still on, she started to fiercely peel them off of her, dumping them on the floor mindlessly. Staring at her now naked body under the water, the tears only felt more bitter as they fell down her cheeks. The bruises glared at her through the bubbly water, taunting her with more thoughts of worthlessness and brokenness.

Jan was always right.

He will always be right.

She scrubbed at her skin, silently hoping that with every pass of her hand, the bruises would fade away. But they remained, where they will turn into an ugly yellow… and while they may disappear in the future, each of them would leave a mark within her that never will. All her bruises have been beaten into her mind, every wound. All those memories of pain reminded her of who she was and of her place.

She was a broken bird that will never fly.

It had been an hour before she could finally calm herself enough and wipe the tears away, trying to bathe herself properly. She was starting to have a guilty feeling in her chest, wasting the warm water the Alpha had prepared for her. Realizing her childishness for acting out, she cleaned herself properly while making a promise to herself that the Alpha should never see this side of her.

If he did, he would truly realize how broken she was and throw her away then.

By the time she had emerged from the bathroom, she was feeling only a slight bit better.

After the bath, she had shamefully thrown her bandages in the bin properly and cleaned the floor with tissues she could find. She felt that he would be mad if she made a mess, and she thought it right to clean her own mess she made before he realized.

The clothes he had prepared for her were evidently his, they were much too large on her and so she decided to leave the shorts and only keep the black shirt. It fell to her mid-thigh anyway, acting like a dress and she felt clothed enough. Even better was that it smelt like him, and she found herself bringing the collar up to her nose every so often as his scent calmed her senses even for just a bit.

Glancing at a clock on the wall, it took a while for her to finally read the time, having difficulty remembering how to. She guessed that it was around 11 in the morning, leaving her an hour before lunch. She decided then that it wouldn’t hurt to explore outside of the Alpha’s room as long as she remained quiet and would not be seen.

He did not say that it was against the rules to go out, and she was starting to worry about the other girls… especially the young Blue. Maybe she could find them and see if they were being treated well enough as she was. If the Alpha found her, she will try and take the punishment just this once. She just wanted to know if they were ok.

She was also starting to miss him, though she would not admit that out loud.

Hurrying before she could chicken out, she scuttled out of the Alpha’s quarters and tiptoed up the staircase. She stuck herself firmly to the wall and peered around as she arrived at the upper floor. She hoped that it would be as silent and empty around like it was yesterday, making it easier to roam around.

She thought to go back to where she woke up first, thinking that maybe the other girls were there as well, only in other rooms. It was the best course for her, and she could at least remember most of the way by memory. If not, she could rely on things she observed on the walls and ceilings to help guide her.

She had tiptoed at first and tried to sneak around but started to realize that it was no use seeing as there really was no one around, or so she thought until she passed by big wooden double doors that reached from ceiling to floor. They had passed this very door yesterday, but she had not observed it closely because she was starting to feel like she was bothering the Alpha. There were carvings on it, of wolves howling, the forest, and the moon. And engraved on it was the name of the pack…. Infierno.

Not being able to help herself, she stopped to admire it and went to touch the door when loud voices started to round the corner. Panicking, she looked around for a place to hide and found a pillar stuck to the wall that she could hide behind with her small frame. A fear was rising in her as she started to shake, and she bit her lip to muffle any wounds she might unconsciously make.

She should not have gone out. She should have been more careful.

The voices were coming closer, and she noticed that there were two of them... both male.

“Bruce, wait” the name being called out brought a cold dead grip wrapping around her heart as she recognized the name. Her mind had gone to a standstill as she reeled in the realization. Bruce… the Claws… he was here?

How…

Was this the plan all along? Had she been fooled? Was the Alpha and Bruce conniving together? All these thoughts brought her to a near meltdown until she heard the other voice, the one who had been called Bruce, respond.

“There is no time, Percy. We are late, and he will be mad,” the voice was clearly not the Bruce she knew and she relaxed, realizing that it was just another man with the same name. Even so, she remained vigilant as their heavy footsteps now reached the big double doors, just a few meters away from where she was hiding.

She heard shuffling as they stopped in front of the door, exactly where she stood a moment ago. “But what do we tell them? What do we tell him? We were up all night but there was no one. The fucker vanished into thin air.” The other person’s voice was panicked and hushed, and Robin was starting to get curious. It was a bad habit of hers to listen in on others, but one that preserved her over the years. It had been her listening ear that allowed her to know many things about the Claws, many secrets that even Jan did not know she has heard.

“We tell the Alpha the truth and pray that he won’t blow the fuck up,” the man named Bruce answered with finality as she heard the door finally open. The mention of the Alpha caught her attention, and she listened intently as she heard noises coming from inside the room… they were voices of people speaking. Was the Alpha there then?

She heard one pair of footsteps go in the room, but the door remained open for a moment and the other person (she did not know which) remained outside. Worried that she had been found, she tried to peek a little over the pillar to see what had happened. She saw a large muscular man with a bald head sniffing the air, and she realized badly that she had most likely left a scent. She was ready to run or even beg for pardon when she saw the intimidating man let out a small laugh before he quickly entered the door, shutting it firmly behind him and taking back the sounds of the people into the room.

Sighing in relief, she ventured out of her hiding space, though she was much more cautious now in case more people would arrive and catch her this time. But now, she couldn’t help herself but become badly curious now that she had an idea that the Alpha might be inside. And there were other men, and what those two before were talking about means that they were looking for something. Or someone.

Maybe they had meant Jan….

Contemplating, she made a silent decision to try and hear what they were talking about inside, just for a few moments. She would leave soon, she told herself though even she was starting to doubt if she could leave without her curiosity being filled. Bad habits, Robin…. They lead to bad outcomes sometimes.

Quickly, she approached the door again and examined it. She couldn’t hear much of anything at all from where she stood but as she pressed her ear against the wood, she could finally make out muffled murmurs. It was hard to distinguish behind the wooden door, but she could make out enough so she understood what they were saying. It might have also been due to the fact that they were yelling, and as she continued to listen, she started to realize who it was.

“In the east? The south? The north? Don’t tell me there was fuck all!” the words were followed by a large bang, and she couldn’t tell if a table had been overturned or if it had been smashed. Either way, it made her jump and grow increasingly fearful as she realized that it was the Alpha who was speaking.

The response was muffled and all she could hear was “nothing” and “patrolled everywhere”. It sounded like the Bruce person’s voice, most likely repeating what she had heard him and the other man talk about.

There was another crash that was much louder this time. “A magic-user was in our territory. If I hadn’t fucking tore them apart, I would have done so already.” There was a pause, and murmurs of multiple people.

“Grey.” The murmurs hushed all at once as the Alpha’s voice tinged with a grave tone. “Contact June.”

“But Alpha-“

“Contact June!” the Alpha yelled, now sounding angrier than ever. “Bruce, have the men search the cages and their bodies. Find anything, I mean anything, and report it back to me. Tighten border patrol, if anything moves you tell me. The girls will remain with Nora for now. For the rest of the hour, we will continue with-” The Alpha’s voice was suddenly cut off, and all was silent in the room for what seemed like forever. Feeling that she had eavesdropped enough and now feeling too guilty to continue, she stepped back from the door, ready to leave.

But the door had suddenly been pushed wide open, and in petrified horror, she could only stand in her place and freeze as she came face to face with a room full of men now staring intently at her, and before them, a more than angry face of the Alpha who had opened the door. And as his gaze wandered all over her, she could only see the darkening of his eyes as his growl pierced through the tense air.

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