[GIDEON]
"Fine, you have an hour," she said, getting her hourglass off her bag and showing it to Gideon. Her son just smirked at her, letting out a beautiful laugh as he pulled her into a big hug.
Criselda however pushed him away, because he was ruining her hair, which she had spent so much time fixing. However, that wasn't just about the hair.
It was about telling Gideon that he needed to keep time.
He needed to fix his shit before the sun went down on him and the warrior, because if that happened, they would both get hurt. And while Criselda was a high priestess for several years, she had never found the remedy for a broken heart.
"Thank you, Mother, that's more than enough," the protege said to Criselda, before hugging her again and running off before Criselda could even complain again.
She knew she had no power here and in this situation, but Criselda sure hoped that everything would be okay. She hoped that they both would be okay. She loved Gideon so much, and didn't want to see him hurt.
Maybe she had loved him excessively and spoiled him too much, especially with how irate he had been yesterday, but maybe that was just her being a mother, letting her son be free, and yet protecting him at the same time.
The barrier Gideon had created between him and Eddison hadn't been that strong, so Criselda had helped maintain it. Maybe she was a bad mother, but maybe she was the best mother for Gideon, no one could judge her for that anyway.
As he ran back into Acrod, Gideon thought of how he would begin the conversation. He hadn't ever had to say goodbye to anyone that was alive, so this was pretty weird for him. The fact that he even considered it was insane, maybe he had really gone bonkers.
Emotions had a way of making things complicated and right now, Gideon was thinking of going back to Criselda and ignoring the nudge in his heart to go after the werewolf warrior. He wondered if the warrior would have come after him if he didn't rush to say goodbye.
But then he also knew that he had pushed the warrior away last night, so there were very slim chances of the warrior coming to him.
He knew where to find the warrior, because he knew his scent, or rather was addicted to his scent. Gideon coming to look for a warrior was already suspicious enough so if he asked around on where to find the warrior, he would be causing trouble.
Werewolves had mates, and no one had ever heard of a bond like the one Gideon had with the wolf, so maybe that was why he had come back to say goodbye. Maybe he needed to ensure there were no rumors before he left.
So he walked around, sniffing like he was trying to find a distinct scent that belonged to a beautiful black-eyed werewolf. It didn't take long for him to find him.
'Goddess, you look so perfect,' Gideon thought to himself as he stopped in his tracks. The warrior was with his friends, but it seemed like he caught a whiff of a familiar scent, judging by the way his head turned towards where Gideon was standing.
The witch of Greroth was hiding behind a wall, but even then, he could be seen, well, at least by the one he was looking for.
'This will suck,' Gideon reprimanded himself, before walking away from the warrior. Coming back here was apparently not a good idea. He needed to let go and focus on his missions as a witch protege of Greroth.
'Goodbye,' he said as he hurried down the long highways, trying to find the easiest way out, as if he even knew Acrod that well.
"If you are leaving, you're going in the wrong direction. The exit is this way," Grant said, his tone soft, like he was a fragile warrior who needed Gideon to survive.
"I know where I was headed," Gideon said stubbornly, making the warrior scoff. This witch was something else. He was directionally challenged and he wasn't even going to admit it, it wasn't like the warrior would tell a soul anyway.
"Okay, well, I'll see you around, Gideon of Greroth," the warrior said as he walked back to where he had been. He was hoping that he could hear more from Gideon, but if the witch wasn't even willing to initiate a discussion with him, what was the guarantee that they would even talk to each other anyway?
"Hey, we need to talk," Gideon said to no one in particular, but Grant heard him and paused. Maybe that was meant for him, but maybe it wasn't.
After a few minutes of silence, he figured that Gideon wasn't probably talking to him, so he walked away again.
"Wait, I— I kinda need to talk to you," Gideon said, his voice growing quieter with each word that came out of his lips. He sounded so unsure that even Grant could feel it. Maybe this was a mistake, maybe they just needed to ignore their bonds.
For a moment, Grant felt like this would be his doom, or maybe he was just overthinking everything again. Oh but if only he knew what was coming next for him, he could have braced himself.
Then again, fate was a cruel son of a bitch and right now, the two mates who were hopelessly reaching out to each other would just experience what it meant to be mated, and form different factions.
However, maybe they were different.
Maybe this time, they would be able to tell a success story of their bond, but what if?
"What do you want, Gideon?" Grant asked defeatedly, and it took every ounce of Gideon's willpower to not smile at how beautifully his name sounded on the warrior's lips. Gideon was tempted to hear it more times.
Grant was however not sure of what he expected, because this man had made a beeline for the exit just a few moments ago, and now he was back. Staring at the man who was mated to him, he didn't feel secure anymore, and that bothered him.
As much as Grant wanted to believe that the great psycho Gideon of Greroth was back for him, he knew that the man had an ulterior motive.
Gideon seemed to be the calculative kind of a person and his coming back to Acrod had to be one very calculated move, and for that, Grant felt his heart sink into his stomach a second time. What was next then?
"I just needed to talk to you, one last time," Gideon responded as he walked towards Grant who hadn't even made an effort to move away. He had turned back and was staring at Gideon, glaring at him, like it was something he had been waiting to do.
Maybe this was him expressing himself, or maybe this was just him bored of waiting and holding on to things that didn't matter. But then was twelve hours really a long wait? Or was Grant just being a dramatic piece of shit?
But this right here was something that he felt they both needed to do. He could smell something like a rejection but he wanted to hear it. Maybe because he didn't want to crush his soul overthinking about what Gideon wanted.
Or maybe it was because of the history the mate he was given had.
Perhaps there was a different reason, but then the man had just said that he needed to talk to Grant, one last time. Of course, it was right there before Grant, but hope, was all he had, as f that would make his life any better.
"So you really are leaving, huh?" Grant asked, clearly done overthinking the situation. He was prepared for what was to come, even though he could feel himself almost shit himself from the fear of what Gideon would do.
"You know I have to leave, young werewolf," Gideon said and the wolf just let out a sad laugh.
It was the only way to stop the tears that had started forming, from free falling down his cheeks. He didn't want to be pathetic, and yet the man in front of him made him weak at just a glance.
"I guess I'm privileged to have the great Gideon of Greroth coming to bid me goodbye. This is a privilege, right? Or what should I call it, oh wait, the kiss me one more time privilege? Anyway, you can say your goodbyes quick, I have things to attend to here."
Gideon looked at the warrior, unsure of what he expected. This man was different from the man he had met last night, but then so many things always changed when the sun was high up in the sky. Maybe this was just one of them.
"Ah— Yeah, Umm, goodbye, young werewolf. I guess I'll see you around, right? In one of the meetings that your king may let you tag along. Fuck I'm rambling. Anyway, goodbye, friend."
And with that, Gideon walked towards the warrior, quietly passing the man his heart was currently hammering for.
'Friend? What a sick joke,' Grant thought to himself as he watched the man leave him without so many words. Perhaps Grant had expected a confession of sorts. or maybe he had just been hoping that the unexpected would happen, but as usual, he was right.
The expected did happen.
He had just been indirectly rejected, so if this was his chance to lose his dignity, then he would do it. Besides, it wasn't like he would be seeing Gideon of Greroth anytime soon right?
'I'm so sorry about this, I had to,' Gideon thought to himself as he watched his mate's teary eyes.
"Gideon," Grant voiced out weakly, when the man was barely a few feet away from him. He could see how devastated Gideon was, by their brief goodbye and he just wanted to make sure the man was okay.
Grant was smart. He knew that he and Gideon had no chance of being together, but he also had to admit, that the witch of Greroth coming back to Acrod just to say goodbye to him, which was so heartfelt and nice.
"You don't have to. Come now little wolf, there are responsibilities waiting for us both, yeah?" Gideon said, hurrying away for the young werewolf, but he stopped when he suddenly felt sparks on his body, making him lose focus for a moment there.
What the fuck had just happened?
"Don't go, at least not yet," Grant pleaded again.