Chapter 5

Ava woke up the next morning to see the dawn of the final morning before the end of Caine's curse. Upon waking up she saw Lord Caine standing there. He leaded one arm of the mantle and stared into the fire. He glared over his shoulder unexcitedly then his whole face changed when he noticed Ava was awake. " Why didn't you wake me?"

" Because you deserved to sleep." He answered.

" I need to work at this." she said motioning towards the pile of books she ahd found on curses.

" Thora was right it is far less complex then you think."

" Less complex than I think? So is it like a action?"

" Yes! You see it is not that hard." Caine was excited, but he knew it would take a miracle for her to get this.

" I thought you couldn't tell me anything!"

" I can answer yes or no questions."

" Oh. Well is it anything that I can help you with or is it something you have to do on your own?"

" That's not a yes or no question."

" Oh, right. Well is it something that I can help you with?"

" I don't know for sure. But I think so." Ava didn't know how hard it was for him to admit this.

" She can." Thora said once again randomly appearing in the room.

" And how do you know?" Lord Caine asked her.

" Same way you two will no. Just it more because it has happened to me before."

" Was that a hint?" Ava asked all together confused.

" Very good! You know Caine she might just be worth keeping!" Thora joked.

Ava spent the rest of the day worring about Lord Caine. There were many thing she didn't understand: this curse; Lord Caine himself; and perhaps the most confusing why this was so important to her. She thought about what Thora had said, but every idea she thought of sounded stupider and stupider until she just stopped asking Caine about them at all. But all day she thought quietly about them, even when she went riding every time there was any sound at all she thought it was Lord Caine screaming for mercy back at the castle. Ava finally just decided to stay in the palace and try to think of more things that might break Caine's curse. At twilight Ava simply gave up and stared into the fireplace in despare. A quiet male shadow appeared from behind her. " I am so sorry Caine. But I have exhausted all my resources. I don't know what to do. Please don't think that once you are a werewolf forever everyone will abandon you. I know that I will do my best to take good care of you even if you fight it and I'm sure that Thora will stand by you as well."

"Ava, it's all right." I different familiar vioce came from the shadow. " I came as soon as I heard that you have been captured by a werewolf."

" Andre! What are you doing here? I don't want you to kill Lord Caine!"

" What! Ava, he's a werewolf."

" And a good man!"

" But he's a werewolf, you said so yourself, just now!"

" Yes- but their aren't as bad as you think."

" Not as bad as I think?"

" Yes, their-"

" They killed mother!" Thora stepped through a door. But then turned and ran when she saw Andre Cleon yelling at Ava. " Get back here, old woman!"

" Have fun trying to get anyone here to fear you. They are all hard as stone."

" Apparantly not. They leave you free to run about!" Andre Cleon said as he pulled out a large amount of rope. Ava could not believe that her own brother would dare to try to kidnap her because he believed that she had been kidnapped. He tied the ropes tighter than she would have liked, and gaged her with a cloth napkin. But Thora knew he was here so it was only a matter of time until the Lord Caine got angry and came running down the stairs. That would teach her stupid brother! " Now I know what you are thinking, and I am going to be able to catch this one without help from you."

What! Why would Andre think that Ava would think that. Despite everything she loved her brother, but he couldn't succed in capturing Lord Caine, but that wasn't his plan at all she saw. Andre Cleon pulled out of his bag a cross bow, already loaded into it was a arrow with a shiny metalic tip. Ava would have bet her life that it was silver. Ava felt faint as he aimed it towards the stairs.

" Don't worry I won't hurt anyone but that werewolf with this."

You could hear a sound like a large door swinging open slowly, then slamming shut. Ava believed her only hope was for Lord Caine not to get angry and for them to convince her brother that he wasn't really a werewolf. But could Lord Caine even control himself this close to the deadline for stopping his curse? Ava just hoped so.

" Come out you coward! Or do you not mind if I kill the girl!"

That was it! If he was going to use her to bait out Lord Caine then she had to get free. Maybe with her magic she could slowly untie her self. After all she had alway been the best in her class at being telekinetic.

But before she could even start Lord Caine appeared around the corner at the top of the stairs. The very sight of him made Ava feel like a falure. She coudn't stop his curse from coming true and now she couldn't stop Andre Cleon from killing him

" This is for my sister!" Andre shouted. He fired his weapon, and Ava was filled with digust.

She yelled and the ropes fell off her, the gag was suddunly out of her mouth. She rose to her feet. Relief flooded through her as she noticed that the arrow had missed.

" I cannot think of one reason why I shouldn't kill you right now!" Ava was posested with anger! She used her magic to lift her brother off his feet. She did not take her eyes off him, but she did hear a low growl at her brother. She gripped tight with her power round her brother's neck. " Now you say one thing wrong and you hang. With my magic as your noose!"

" Ava! No! Why are you doing this?" Andre said. But Ava was too far gone for him.

" Because you have no right to commit murder even to a werewolf. They are just as much people as you and I!"

" So Ava is it all right for you to commit murder?" Ava thought st first he spoke of her killing that werewolf, when she had been younger and she got ready to hang him.

" Andre, had I not killed him he would have just gone on killing."

" No, what are you talking about?"

" That werewolf that killed mom, it was just a fluke. They are not all that bad." Ava said. She delayed killing him to find out more.

" Fine. Whatever. Just don't kill me."

Ava's eyes were finally opened. This was just what Lord Caine and she had talked about only a few nights ago. If she did this she really would be a murderer.

" Please, I finally have someone to live for. Ava you will never believe this, but I have perposed to this girl I met on my travels and she said 'yes' to a guy like me!"

The low growl was now almost a bark. But why would Caine hate this so much. Ava's mind flew over more last minute things she could do to try to stop this curse. She looked over at Caine who dispite his snarling towards Andre he glared deep into her. His eyes told what his vioce did not, he wasn't telling her to kill him, he was bigger than that. He wanted her to put him down.

" Andre, you might kill him. but he might have just saved your life."

Ava let him down then said a few things out of reflex because her head was spinning faster and faster. She would have fallen over backwards if Lord Caine had not stepped- still in wolf form -over and pushed his shoulders against her back and streched his neck across her shoulder to look into her eyes. Staring into deep brown eyes she noticed something that had been acheing at her heart all along: she loved him. Ava hugged his neck and said it out loud, then kissed the bristlely hairs on the young werewolf's neck.

When she opened her eyes she found herself in an awkward situation, she was kissing the Lord Caine's human neck.. She just about screamed. But Caine only laughed and kissed her back. It is said that in all time, " Greater love has no man than this, that a man gives up his life for his friends." This is very true. Thankfully Andre Cleon did not even try to kill Lord Caine after that.

Andre went on to marry the girl he had spoke of. He gave up the werewolf hunting business after his only sister married one. And he and his wife took up the throne of his forefathers and they were just rulers. No one knew of a better match.

Ava, as I said, married Lord Caine who had been saved by her kiss of true love. And they went back to his land, the land of the light werewolves. They spent many years fighting for peace against The Followers of Shadows.

But in the end I guess the luckiest one of all the people in this story is that of the old king. For no one had dare move the body of the werewolf who had killed his wife. So no one had discovered that he had actually eaten her whole. She had lived in the forest ever since. For she had forgotten who she was. And when she was finally found both of her children's kingdoms rejioce with praise that can only be generated by those who truly care for you.

And so I say unto you yet another phase that is most common thoughout time and that is:

The End