Derek smiled as he saw that his Aunt was pleased with his gift, even though it served as a source of disturbing reminder to his uncle; but of course he didn't care. He loved it actually.
"It means a lot to me. Aunt Jan. I will be going now. Thanks again." He said to her, before turning away for the last time, and walking away from the sitting room, ahead of his cousin, who still looked bewildered by the whole thing. She didn't understand what was going on.
He knew that she was still trying to comprehend or recall if there had been anything her mother had done at one time, that had saved him. Well, she wouldn't. Unless she would ask him, which of course, he knew that she would once she was out of her thinking haze.
For now, he stood outside the door, waiting; waiting for her to show him the way to the room he would be staying in all through his not so long days in the pack, for although this had been his pack house in the past, it wasn't so now. There had been a change over, seven years ago.
"Where is she…." He muttered, referring to Maya. He had been waiting outside for a while, and he couldn't hear anything going on in the sitting room, actually it was quiet. So what is holding her? He thought.
Not more than two seconds after this thought had crossed his mind, Maya stepped out of the room, with a blank look on her face.
"Took you long enough..." He said, after catching sight of her.
But Maya was silent. She didn't say anything to follow up his statement. She just took him by the hand and led him into the passage way.
Derek, understanding that she didn't want to talk anything yet, perhaps to avoid other of her pack members from listening in.
And so he kept quiet, till she led him past some rooms, till they got to a particular one, the last room, in the hallway. If his memory was serving him well, he could tell that this was the room that had been meant for the utensils and tools; the store room.
He threw Maya a skeptical look which caused the Blondie to sough in anger.
"Mum had wanted you to stay in one of the rooms up there, specifically the one next to me, since it's vacant but father negated it." She said, clenching and unclenching her fists, as she tried to rein in her temper.
"His reason?" Derek asked, folding his arms across his chest, not totally surprised by the condescending treatment; his uncle had always proved at every turn to be a cruel and wicked man. He wondered what his father would think of this. Perhaps nothing. He thought, remembering that his old man had allowed a treaty, even after what had happened seven years ago. This would be nothing to him. He might as well, tell him to suck it up, that after all he wasn't the Alpha's son over here.
"Nothing. I asked him. He never gave a reply, just the stink eye which he had thought would make me cower." She replied, with a scoff.
"He doesn't know that I have found out about his schemes about me, his own daughter. He dared deprive me of my mate." She stated, biting her lips, as her anger increased on a steady level.
"It's temporary, Maya. Leo will come around." Derek said, placing his right hand on her left shoulder, in a bid to placate her feelings.
"What if he doesn't… What if the potion had a permanent damage on me?" She asked, already tearing up.
"It didn't. Mum said it didn't. Have a little hope. You can ask your mother too." Derek advised.
" Nah. I don't think I would ask her. If she knows I have found out, my father might know too. You know that they are mates." She opined.
" Okay then. But keep the hope alive." Derek said, then like an afterthought, asked;
" If I'm kept in the store room, where had my pack warriors been given to stay?" He asked, widening his eyes a bit.
"I don't know. We will check it out later; after you've settled in." She replied, already thinking of the same thing.
" Settled in? Right…" He muttered, staring at the door which confined the store room; his mind already filled with imagery of what he would see or not see in the room; cobwebs and dust. He was tired from the long journey, and hadn't any time or strength to clean. He wanted to eat. He wanted to see the pack environment which he had once lived in and he wanted to see Leo and his pack warriors too.
"Wheew..." Maya breathed out, before opening up the door.
A wide assay of dust, and a crowd of cobwebs welcomed them with open arms.
"Oh God..." Derek muttered weakly. "When last had someone come in here? The last seven years?" He asked, rubbing his forehead tiredly. There was no way he was staying here. He just knew it. Something had to happen.
"I'm really sorry about this, Derek." Maya apologized in all sincerity, ashamed for her father's sake. She knew how her own pack members were treated in her cousin's pack; like they were family, like they were part of the pack. With this intro in just 15 minutes of arriving here, she dreadef what was coming next. She knew her cousin's leverl of tolerance was low, and his anger, high.
"It's alright. Not your doing." Derek responded, unfolding his arms and putting his hands into the front pockets of his denim jeans. His thoughts filled on how his pack warriors had been coping in this unwelcoming situation. He knew that his uncle had been suprised to see him here, even though he had masked it quite properly. He knew that if the older man had known, he would have put some things in place to give off an good aura, at least. The only reason why the older man had given off the order for him to stay in the store room was only because of the gift he had gotten for his Aunt Jan.
"You're not staying here today, or tomorrow, till whenever it is, we would be leaving. Let's go to my room." Maya stated vehemently, determined to go through with her statement, of which Derek gladly obliged. Although he has never liked inconveniencing anyone, he thought this was necessary. There was no choice, at least until he found Leo.
"Alright, thanks Coz." He said to his cousin who had already locked up the room with its keys.
Together, they walked away from that site, going through the way they had come from, until they got to the part of the long hallway which contained the rooms which housed the inhabitants of the house.
The third room on the right was Maya's.
Derek remembered that it had been his when the pack had been led by his father; his cousin's room had been right beside him. Perhaps, that had been why they had inseparable, as if they had been joined hip by hip.
"Come in. " Maya said to him, as she stepped into the room before him.
He stepped in, in agreement, looking around the room which had at one time, been his.
"Welcome to my humble abode." She said, gesturing with her arms opened wide, trying to put up a smile that will cheer him up.
"Nice place..." He murmured after a while, causing Maya to scoff, and then burst into laughter, which he followed suite, not knowing why he was even laughing.
"Why are we laughing?" She asked, as her laughter died down a bit.
"I think I should be asking you that." He answered with a smile, before taking a seat on the bed.
Maya rolled her eyes in amusement, before walking towards the door.
"Where are you going to?" He asked her, wanting to stand up too.
" To bring food." She replied, throwing a wink at him, before leaving the room.
After she had left, Derek stood up, wanting to survey the large room, the more. His cousin had left the blue paintings on the wall, he noticed, as he stared around the room in a more scrutinizing gaze.
As he got closer to the wall, he noticed the lines grazing the wall, entangling on themselves as if playing around with each other.
He smiled as he remembered that the long lines which still sat, unremoved from the wall, had been drawn with iron sheets by Clem and he. They had been trying to create roads on the wall. They had been six at that time.
"Such a long time..." He thought, even though he felt like it had just been yesterday that he had been six.
And then as if a loud invisible bang hit his head, he gasped as he remembered something.
The similar, no, totally different line patterns on the walls in Emma's house, which had looked like a map to somewhere, or something. Lines which had so faint, but still clearly drawn and marked out. Lines, that he was sure meant something.
"Oh my..." He murmured, as he beat himself up for forgetting such important fact. He hadn't even remembered it, to tell his mother.
Well, Maya was here.. He would tell her about it, and see what she could deduct from it.