General Greyson looked at Natalia for a moment before turning back to the man that, even a few hours ago, he would have trusted his back to. Now though, now he wasn't too sure. It irked him that Jackson was so willing to follow another's orders without first clearing it with him.
And how was he even supposed to be sure that that had never happened before? Not to mention he was willing to kill a civilian on US soil. It was just a bit too much.
"He has no say in the matter," said Natalia, pulling Greyson out of his thoughts. "That is what it means to be in a house. What the Head says is the law. Whether you agree with it or not. Then again, you don't seem to have too much problem following orders." The smile on her face was so sharp it could cut glass.
Greyson turned his attention to the men on either side of her acting like sentinels. He didn't understand their purpose here, but she acted like she has known them for a while. Or is it that they were in a relationship? He knew that they were from different houses, but did that matter?
"And you haven't answered either Dementyev, House Skinwalker, House Gypsy, or House Tesalor?" said Natalia, and Greyson could see just how much toll this day has taken on her. Hell, she had been killed twice already. Nobody could be completely fine after that.
"House Tesalor," said one of the best men he ever had the privilege of serving with. He was happy that the two of them would now be in the same House. Whatever that meant. "Does that mean we can live here?"
"Sure," said Natalia with a shrug. "That's what it is for. There are ten spare rooms upstairs. Pick what you want. Renovations are going to start on the left wing in a few months, so if you want to design your own room, feel free to do it before construction starts."
Natalia looked at Dementyev for a second and then opened her mouth to speak. "Dementyev Maximovich Marka, do you accept sanctuary into House Tesalor, to follow the laws of the Six Houses, and to obey me as your Head of House?" she asked, and Greyson understood that this was part of the formal ritual to enter into a House.
Dementyev looked solemn as he nodded his head. "I, Dementyev Maximovich Marka, son of Odin, exile of House Skinwalker, accept sanctuary into House Tesalor. To bind my life with the Head, to obey all commands, and to follow the laws of the Six Houses."
"Then I, Natalia Nadezda Sokol Tesalor, Head of the House of Tesalor, Head of House Gypsy, Pure-blood, and the last of my kind, accept Dementyev Maximovich Marka formally of House Skinwalker, as one of the members of my House and all the privileges that go with it," Natalia said, and Greyson could feel something deep inside his chest tighten. He gasped for breath as crushing pain invaded every inch of his body. He looked around frantically. Natalia sat at her office chair, her eyes never leaving him. She didn't look overtly worried, but there was tension around her eyes, speaking to the fact that she was not enjoying this.
Levi was on the floor, curled up into a ball, while Dementyev sat stoically as if he wasn't going through any pain at all.
"It has been witnessed and accepted by House Van Helsing," said Sasha as the pain intensified.
"It has been witnessed and accepted by Mathew White of House Werewolf," said Mathew again.
"As I will it, so mote it be. Welcome to House Tesalor. May the strands of Fate always be twisted in your favor."
Greyson heard the last words as a bright light flashed in front of his eyes right before he submitted to the darkness.
------
"Are you going to tell me why you are still here, wolf?" sneered a voice that sounded familiar, but at the same time not. Greyson wanted to groan in pain. His entire body felt like he had been hit by a convoy of trucks before being put into a meat grinder. But until he knew who was around him, he didn't want to give anything away.
"The human is awake. We can finish this conversation later, Knight," growled a voice too deep to be human.
"Awe, is the puppy finding it hard to control himself? Maybe you should go for some training. Leave Natalia to me," sneered the first voice.
"Fuck off, Knight, I don't advise you to get between a wolf and his mate. That is unless you don't mind being buried in the back yard,"
"Mate? Who the fuck is your mate?!?" screeched the first voice, and Greyson fought from cringing at the sound of it. He had a massive headache, and this was definitely not helping.
"Natalia," growled the second voice, only this time there was a note of pride to it. Greyson really wished that he knew what was going on.
"Fuck that, she is going to by my Lady," said the first voice, sounding like it was going to come to blows with the second.
"Ha! Everyone knows that the bond between a wolf and his mate is eternal. Nothing like what at Knight feels for his lady."
"Tell that to the romance books about rejected mates. I can send you a few if you want," said the first voice, not sounding at all impressed.
"Lies that humans have told," smirked the second voice a note of laughter could easily be heard. "And you actually read that crap? Well, I supposed it's not like Knights get their own romance series. Not like werewolves do, at least."
There was silence for a moment, and Greyson was tempted to open his eyes to see exactly what was going on. But as soon as his lids fluttered open, he was blinded by the light.
"Then you boys might want to hope that she is more traditional than modern," groaned Dementyev. "Fucking hell. I get put through the wringer and now have to listen to you two arguing like little girls. For fucks sake. And at least there are romance stories about you guys. Have you ever seen a single story about a Skinwalker that wasn't horror?"
"Ah, the Skinwalker is awake. How are you feeling?" asked the first voice.
"I think I was pretty clear about that. I feel like shit, but also the best that I ever have. You guys are fucked." Greyson took internal stock for the first time since he woke up and realized that as much as his muscles were killing him right now, it was a lot like the day after a good workout.