The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy

"Of course I want to know get to know you, Midnight," Jesse says, smiling at the girl, meaning it even if his heart and mind are still consumed with thoughts of Daphne and incredibly confused about what on earth is happening between the three of them. "My grandmother picked us for each other, after all. It makes sense that I'm interested."

"Yes," Midnight says, putting her plate down and her slapping hands on her thighs, leaning forward towards him. "Yes, first we can get to know each other, and then we will have the pups, and then -"

Jesse laughs, shaking his head at her as he holds a hand out, palm flat. "Midnight, you've got to drop the whole pups things. It's not happening."

She squeaks in dismay, sitting up rigidly, staring at him. "Why not!?"

"Why do you want pups so bad?" he asks, utterly confused.

"Because we're supposed to," she says, huffy, a bite of a whine in her voice. "It's the whole point!"

"Who told you that?" Jesse asks, frowning at her.

"Darkness," she says, pouting at him. "As many pups as we can get, and all dedicated to him. They will be so good at the shadow magic because they will get it from both of us!"

"Well, that's a double no, then," Jesse says, frowning at his little mate. "I'm not dedicating any pups to Darkness."

"What is the point of this yurt!?" Midnight asks, casting her hands dramatically out to encompass the entire yurt. "If not to fill it with children!?"noveldrama

"Really?" Jesse says, his face screwing up in confusion. "You see a yurt and your first instinct is...to put have infant in it? Or eighteen of them?"

Midnight narrows her eyes at Jesse before looking away to the door, anger and confusion all over her face. "I don't know why you won't love me," she says, shaking her head. "They told me you would. That you had to."

"Hey Midnight?" Jesse says, seeing that he's honestly worried her. She gives a little grunt of confirmation, inviting him to go on, even if she doesn't look at him. "Can we just...slow down?"

She turns back to him now.

"Look, we barely know each other," he says quietly. "And neither of us really know what's going on. Can we just...chill out? Put all the pup and the love talk on extreme hold? Just...spend some time getting to know one another on a much more basic level?"

A small smile comes to her lips and Jesse honestly thinks she's a little relieved. "Okay," Midnight says, nodding lightly. "Um, what do we do?"

"We hang out," he says, shrugging. "Talk. Go for...walks. Play cards."

"What are cards?" she asks, turning her head to the side.

"All right," he says, laughing a little. "We'll...make cards. And I'll teach you how to play. But in the

meantime maybe we just...ask each other questions."

Midnight considers this for a second and then shrugs like she can't think of anything else. "Okay. You go first."

"I already asked you what your favorite food was."

Her shoulders slump. "But I don't know any questions."

"All right," Jesse says, laughing a little and starting to gather their plates up, wondering where on earth she washes these. "I'll go again, then. What's the Fancy House?"

She shakes her head, vehement. "Nope," she says. "Not allowed. Ask something else."

"All right," he says, slow, trying to hide his smile. "Where do you go when you spy on the Atalaxians?" "Jesse!" she groans, slumping to the side. "That's not fair! You know I'm not supposed to tell you that stuff!"

He laughs and stands, holding out a hand to her. "All right, then, come on. Show me where to wash these plates and while we go there, tell me which of those books over there is your favorite."

Midnight perks up, taking his hand and getting to her feet, beginning to chatter eagerly about each of the books and what she likes about them as she leads Jesse out the door and to a surprisingly clear little stream not far away.

As Midnight chatters and Jesse

cleans the plates, he only half listens, his mind wandering to the big important questions of his life at the moment. How to get home. How to get to Daphne again, to see how she is, to try to figure out what the het is going on. How to find a way to explain to her that he has a mate, but that it doesn't change a single thing about how he feels towards her.

But even as he thinks of Daphne, his wolf turns towards Midnight too. We have to protect her, he says, standing on straight and stalwart legs, ready to leap into action. She's just a poor, abused little girl who has had nothing - probably for her whole life. And she's ours, Solidly, Jesse agrees, as determined on that point as his wolf. Because even as he tried to keep his distance from her emotionally, Midnight - she's grown on him. She's bizarre and strange, but sweet and earnest and so eager to do what's right. He wonders, passively, what she'd have been like if she had been raised in his world. Bright and passionate, surely, and clever, and funny.

But here? She's just...so alone. Just a little girl, even if she is physically grown, her emotional growth

stunted by neglect. A beautiful girl, but-

Hey! His wolf snaps, biting him hard and giving him a hearty scratch in his soul. Don't you dare even think about her beauty. No funny business with this poor girl - that would take advantage of her -