The Crown's Obsession (WN)

Music Recommendation: Someone loves us- Dario Marianelli

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"I will kill you!" threatened Rosella, whose pride had been hurt. "AHH!!" the girl screamed.

"Elizabeth! Let go of her hand right this instant!" shouted Ms. Reina, and Beth pushed the girl away from her. "And you," she turned to Rosella, "The match is over, if I see you pull a stunt like that again I will make sure you will be sitting out this year's training. Have I made myself clear? Everyone."

"Yes, Ms. Reina," murmured everyone.

"I would like to have a word with you, Elizabeth. Follow me," said Ms.Reina, and the two girls cackled, thinking Beth was in trouble.

"My apologies, I didn't mean to do that. I just thought it would shock her and give me time to tackle her," Beth bowed her head when they had come to stand away from the others, who were training.

"You did a good job in shocking not just her but also me," said the woman, a frown on her face. "It seems like it is going to be a little problematic with the way I saw how today's training played out and I prefer the class to be clean. I will have you regroup with another instructor tomorrow. I will speak to Jagger about it."

Beth wasn't sure if she should be worried or thankful, but she bowed her head again, "Thank you."

The woman stared at Beth. Since this girl had arrived here, the other werewolves often had something to speak, and the gossip had reached her ears. "You seem to be in better control with yourself than the others. Did you know that werewolves live longer than humans?"

Beth nodded her head.

"You don't want to live long?" asked Ms. Reina.

With the amount of guilt Beth carried in her heart, she wondered if she wanted to continue feeling that way.

The instructor then continued, "When people get bit by a werewolf, they feel they are cursed. Mostly because others shun them, but Warrings is not like that. It is in your hand to turn it into a gift or a curse or maybe to keep it as it is. For now you can work on controlling it and maybe by the end of the time when it is your time to leave, we can see if you can turn back to human again."

Hearing this, Beth's eyes widened, and she asked, "You know the cure?"

The woman shook her head, "I don't, but you aren't a full formed werewolf. I only know that you are stuck in the middle. You can either choose to turn into a complete werewolf, or maybe I can try helping you in walking you back to your human form."

As decided, the next day, Beth was put in the group where James was without anyone like the two girls to meddle with her.

Days passed by, and weeks soon turned to months.

Beth put her heart and soul in controlling the werewolf trait she had received while continuing to change the way she looked at things. After many failed attempts, she finally learned not to harm anyone through her hands or words.

She now stood under the tree, holding the letter in her hand that her sister Madeline had written to her. A smile on her lips.

Folding the letter, she placed it in her trouser pocket to feel the thin metal card she always carried with her.

Pulling it out from her pocket, Beth brought the card in front of her so that she could take a look at it. The card was still plain, and she wondered if he would ever come to the living world before her time was over.

It was true that people often valued a person after the person left their side. On one side, Beth was torn knowing he was an archangel, and on the other side, the memory of her being the reason for his death still haunted her.

"What is that?" came a question from James as he walked past the trees to come and stand where Beth stood. "I always find you staring at it."

"It is a memory," answered Beth, running her thumb across the smooth surface of the card before putting the card back in her pocket. "Are you sure you don't want to come back, James?"

"My home is here now. Even if I go back to Devon, there's nothing to return to," responded James, a small smile on his lips. "But I am happy that you are going back. You have your family there, Mr. and Mrs. Harris must be waiting to see you. Even your sister."

"They are," Beth nodded her head, and silence fell between them.

Pursing her lips, she then said, "Thank you for your help, even after everything."

Somewhere, Beth had understood that James had found out about the lie she had told him regarding the letter when she was still a foolish girl. Though neither of them had addressed the matter, it was a known matter.

She deeply bowed her head and then said, "Forgive me for my past actions. I wish I could fix some of the things, but with time that has passed, I can only hope to make the present and the future right." James was a good man, and he had still helped her despite her past actions without holding any ill feelings towards her.

"Like you said, what happened is in the past. The person who changed my life isn't you, but Catherine. I now know, I should have been clearer with my words else it would not have led to this today. I have put it behind me as I have a new life now. You have come a long way from the time in Devon," he offered his sincere smile, and Beth smiled back.

In the distance, Beth could hear people who continued to train. The time of evening had started to get closer as the sky had slowly begun to change its colours. While Beth and James spoke about things in their hometown, someone was looking at them or her in particular, from a different place.

A man stood in front of a large vessel that had magical water in it. The vessel was placed on a marble stand, allowing one to look at people who belonged to the living world.

His eyes looked at the young woman who had been holding the card in her hand, something he had left behind for her before he had left the living world. Raphael had been watching Beth for quite a while now, watching her transition like a seed that sprouted from the ground to grow into a plant with leaves and branches.

Hearing a fluttering sound in the room, Raphael's fingers were quick to touch the surface of the vessel's water to turn it back to its regular surface, and the woman's reflection disappeared.

"Unable to leave her alone?"

Raphael smiled at the voice, and he turned around to meet Gabriel's gold eyes, where the archangel's expression was calm.

"That answer can go in many directions," replied Raphael.

"And I am curious which one you are going to pick," said Gabriel.