When the time came to leave, the first instance of how much independence Ashina would lose was shown. She reached over to pick up one of the lightly packed boxes but Farkas pulled her back and forced her to watch guiltily as others from Farkas's pack did it for her.
Ashina knew that for once it would be nice to not be working so hard but she was so used to doing everything on her own that she didn't think she would ever get used to living this sort of life with Farkas. It was only as Ashina took a moment out of her thoughts that she noticed the position she was in, with Farkas being so tall, he had sat down on a chair and even stood up, she was still leaning just against his chest with his chin on her shoulder.
Farkas could already read Ashina like a book, it was almost as if the cogs were turning in her brain and he could see it. A rare smile tugged at his lips as he soaked her in, she was finally his, the years searching for his mate suddenly melted away and he didn't care anymore because she was finally here and he was never letting her go.
"I know this isn't normal behavior for you... to stand back, watch and not help but this is your life now" Farkas whispered in Ashina's ear, feeling his soft lips brush against her ear was enough to make her shiver and a blush creep up her neck. A small part of Ashina wanted to argue back that she would never get used to this life and yet the years of being conditioned by her old pack made her keep her mouth firmly shut.
"C'mon, it's time to go" Farkas starts, he looks around the room until his eyes stop on something, he pauses then sighs "Grab the cat".
There was a clear look in his eyes that showed the last thing he wanted to do was to spend time with a cat - he couldn't even say its name aloud. Yet, Farkas knew Ashina would never leave Mori behind. This cat was the deal breaker, and not only would Farkas do whatever it took not to lose his precious mate but he also wanted nothing more than for her to be happy... and if that meant having a cat living with them then he knew that's what he had to do.
Ashina scoops Mori up into her tense arms, the unfamiliar tight feeling against Mori causes him to try to scratch and fight his way out of her arms causing Farkas's dislike of him to grow even more.
"Mori please" Ashina begs into his fur before looking up at Farkas whose face was full of disdain" He isn't usually like this, he's not used to experiencing changes like this so he doesn't know how to react" Ashina mutters stumbling over her words awkwardly, not even able to meet Farkas's eye.
Farkas shakes his head without saying a word and walks out of the room towards the front door, they all walked out to the car in silence. It was now made aware to Ashina of the sheer number of people Farkas traveling with, there were rows and rows of cars parked up along the road waiting to go.
When Ashina walked outside everyone waiting was giving her, Mori, and even Farkas strange looks due to the whole cat situation and the fact that he was allowing it. It was a well-known fact that Farkas was a stern, unforgiving man who had strict rules that nobody could break.
This was also because he only traveled with werewolves with no mates. those with mates were involved in mates, those with mates were involved in protecting the castle that Farkas lived in but that was a far less dangerous job than bringing them on his travels with him, he didn't want yet another person relying on him to keep their mates safe.
Farkas also never wanted to tell another woman or man that their mate wasn't coming home, he had seen the destruction that had been caused too many times. This meant that all the men he had traveling with him couldn't understand the pull he had to do anything to make his mate happy, they couldn't even begin to imagine what lengths he would go to.
The only person that could come the closest to imagining how he felt was Farkas's best friend and Beta, Lucas. Although he was unmated, ever since they were children, finding a mate was all Lucas ever spoke about and at one time, Farkas would tease him about it. Who wanted to be tied down to one partner for the rest of your life especially when you were the King's Beta, you had women all over you... All the time... And yet, in that moment having found his mate, Hunter had never felt freer.
Once they had climbed into the car, Lucas who was sitting in the passenger seat of the car turned round to face them.
"Hello Ashina, I am the wonderful Lucas - I'm sure you've heard lots about me" he winks playfully with a kind smile that made Ashina smile back much to Farkas's annoyance "Ready to go?" Lucas asks and Farkas nods back curtly.
Lucas had never been happier for his best friend, at one time there had been a rift between the two friends - Farkas couldn't understand why Lucas would rather be searching for a mate than out drinking and partying with him. There had been playful teasing from Farkas too, he couldn't understand what he was doing wrong, he would ask Lucas what he would do if he never found his mate, not realizing the real pain Lucas would feel at the thought of spending the rest of his life alone.
As Lucas sat there and thought about all those times of course he felt a pang of longing as he still hadn't found his mate but he was happier just that his friend finally understood.
Oppositely, as Farkas thought about his past with his best friend, he couldn't help the sinking feeling in his stomach at how he had let his friend down and how much he had hurt him because Farkas finally understood what Lucas had been yearning for, for all those years.
Farkas rests his head against the glass window preparing for the long journey ahead while Ashina sits in a completely rigid position with Mori lying a little more relaxed now on her knee.
The soft lulling of the car was enough to make Ashina's eyes feel heavy and as she struggled to keep them open, Farkas had no worries about falling asleep because soon enough his heavy breathing filled the car.
"You can go to sleep if you like" Lucas smiles comfortingly turning around in his seat to look at Ashina, the nerves seemed to be radiating off of her.
"I'm okay thank you," Ashina says in a meek voice, although this girl was the complete opposite of what Lucas expected to see when he first saw Farkas's mate, he had the feeling that she was going to be perfect. Lucas looks from Ashina to Mori with a fake smile on his face despite trying to cover it up.
"You can barely keep your eyes open" he smirks teasingly but Ashina knows there is no malice behind it and Ashina still finds him comforting like a big brother, something she never had the pleasure of experiencing. Of course, she had thought, she had found it back in her old pack but it had all been lies so it was nice to see it in him especially since she didn't have any concerns about him not being genuine.
"Maybe just for five minutes," Ashina says letting out a yawn almost instantly before doing the same as Farkas by leaning her head against the window and letting her eyes flutter shut.