“She’s just a puppy,” Alex said quietly, revealing the softly snoozing creature for him to see better.
“Now she is,” Niyx said, pointing to the wolf. “But by this time next week, she’ll be as tall as your chest.”
Alex’s eyes widened as she whispered, “What?”
“What is with you binding yourself to beings you’re better off avoiding—myself included?”
“What are you talking about?” Alex asked, still whispering as she looked down at the awakening pup. “I’m not bound to her.”
“She wouldn’t be lying docilely in your arms if you weren’t, kitten,” Niyx said. “Puppy or not, she’d be trying to rip your face off.”
As if able to understand his words—and maybe she could—the puppy reached up and gently licked Alex’s neck.
“Stars,” Niyx muttered as he took in the sight, running a beleaguered hand across his face. “What am I going to do with you?”
Alex bit back a grin and stepped towards him, holding the puppy out. “Do you want a cuddle?”
Unlike with Caspar Lennox, the wolf didn’t start growling, but she did eye Niyx speculatively, as if sizing him up.
With a sigh of resignation, Niyx took the little black furball in his arms. But not even he was strong enough to resist the pull of her cuteness, and a smile touched his lips as she nipped at his fingers.
“What did you mean about her being that big in a week?” Alex asked, struggling not to melt at the vision of him holding the puppy.
“Shadow Wolves grow into adulthood at exponential rates,” Niyx said, returning to sit on Alex’s bed.
The puppy, curious about her new surroundings, left his arms to explore, wobbling along the mattress before plopping off it and onto the ground, then sniffing all around the room on one great investigative journey.
“Within a week she’ll be fully developed,” Niyx continued. “So enjoy this cute phase while you can, since it’s not going to last long. That said,” he cocked his head at the puppy as she toddled into Alex’s wardrobe, “you have a real beauty on your hands here. She’s going to be extraordinary when she’s finished growing.”
Again, as if she’d understood his words, the puppy looked back at him, her tongue lolling out in doggy pleasure.
“She’s intelligent, isn’t she?” Alex guessed. “Like, supernaturally?”
“It won’t be the same as your bond with Xiraxus,” Niyx said, and Alex felt her heart thump painfully in memory. “You won’t be able to converse with her like you did with him or you do with me. But there will be… impressions. She’ll be able to sense your needs and understand your requests.”
The puppy snuffled her way over to D.C.’s bed and wiggled under it, sneezing quietly. She then appeared again and trotted back over, jumping up to rest her front paws on Alex’s shins. Taking the hint, Alex drew her up into her arms and placed her on her bed beside Niyx. She immediately crawled into his lap and, within seconds, curled up and started dozing again.
“I wish I was a puppy,” Alex said, looking longingly down at the wolf.
Niyx raised an amused eyebrow. “You want to fall asleep on my lap? I thought we talked about this, kitten. I’m flattered, really, but—”
Alex somehow managed to laugh at the same time as cringe while she interrupted, “That’s not what I meant, and you know it.” She rolled her eyes at his ‘Whatever-you-say’ expression and explained, “All she’s done so far is be all kinds of adorable and sleep. That’s what I call living.”
“Adorable or not, you’ll have to quickly adjust to having her around,” Niyx said, running a hand along her sleek, black coat. “She’ll stick to your side like glue for the first few days, but then she’ll take off and do her own thing, only coming to see you when she wants company, senses you do, or is responding to your direct call. No matter where in the world she is, if you cry out for her, she’ll hear you and be at your side in an instant.”
“So she can travel through the shadows?” Alex said, pointing to the blackness swirling around the puppy’s three paws.
“Judging by the look of her, I’d say she can probably move through the light, too,” Niyx said, stroking her one white paw. “When she’s big enough, you’ll be able to catch a ride with her.”
Alex looked at him in disbelief. “Seriously?”
Niyx nodded. “Yep.”
“That is so cool!” Alex said. “You have no idea how much I’ve been missing the Valispath. It’ll be great to be able to get around easily again.”
“Speaking of getting around easily,” Niyx said, carefully transferring the puppy onto the bed so as to not wake her as he stood and moved closer to Alex. “Let’s get you all fixed up. My arm is killing me, and this headache isn’t much fun either.”
Alex grimaced in apology and when he reached for her hand, she allowed him to unwrap the bandage.
“Stars, kitten,” he breathed after seeing the damage for himself. “I told you not to touch the flames.”
Alex had to resist jerking her arm from his grip in irritation, knowing it would only cause her—and therefore, him—more pain. “I wasn’t exactly in a position to avoid them at the time.”
Niyx’s jaw hardened, but she knew his anger wasn’t directed at her. Gently releasing her hand, he sought out her hidden stash of laendra and passed some over. While she chewed on the flower, he carefully smeared some of the nectar along her burn. The wound was so deep it nearly exposed the bone, but the miracle flower stitched her back together in seconds, taking away all evidence of her pain—everywhere.
Unable to hold back a moan of relief, Alex looked up at Niyx and whispered, “Thanks.”
“I wish I could have done more,” he said, shaking his head. “Aven had me in lockdown for most of the weekend, with constant meetings requiring my attention. Otherwise there’s no way I would have let you go off and do anything you’ve done this weekend on your own.”
“I wasn’t on my own,” Alex quietly said.
“You would have been less on your own if I’d been with you,” Niyx said. “Even just watching from afar.”
That, Alex couldn’t argue with.
“What did Aven want?” she asked as they both sat on her bed, careful not to disturb the puppy. “What were his meetings about?”
Niyx’s face shadowed and he turned away. “Nothing you need to worry about. Not yet.”
His answer alarmed her, as did his secrecy. “Niyx—”
“Please, kitten,” he said, sounding exhausted all of a sudden. “Tell me about you first. I want to know everything.”
Sensing his need for her to drop it, she did as he asked, but instead of telling him, she showed him, replaying the events in her mind.
“You held up better than I thought you would,” he said, referring to her fight with the Shadow Walkers. “Those who compete in the trials are highly skilled, and that’s without their travelling abilities. You should be proud of how long you lasted.”
“I need to win, Niyx,” she said, running a frustrated hand through her hair. “If I have another shot, I need to not just last, I need to come out the victor.”