Chapter 2 – The grand arrival
Gunnar
After our arrival, and the exchange of multiple pleasantries, we were finally showed to our guestrooms and given a little bit of time to freshen up before dinner.
Our trip had been long, and we were both exhausted. The last thing on my mind was to sit down for a three-course meal with a bunch of high-ranking wolves, talking about how great their pack was. Well, on the other hand, if that was what I was supposed to be doing to get some food in my belly, then so be it.
Besides, I was starving and more than ready for a hearty, homemade meal after an excruciatingly long day.
“Beta Gunnar, dinner will be served in the dining hall momentarily,” I heard the soft, melodic sound of a she-wolf’s voice coming from right outside my door.
“Thank you, I will be down in a minute,” I replied without even bothering to open the door.
Quickly and effortlessly, I pulled a fresh, white t-shirt over my head and sat on the edge of the bed to tie my shoelaces. Luckily, it was not a formal dinner, but more of a smart-casual type of thing, so my outfit should have been fine just as long as I was wearing long pants and a shirt that covered at least my shoulders.
“Let’s go, Bud!” I heard Raiden’s voice booming in the hallway, followed by two loud knocks on the wooden door.
I let out a sigh and made my way towards the door, prepping myself internally for all the foolish small talk going to take place around the dinner table. Raiden was much more equipped for dinners such as these. He had good manners and could be described as the perfect gentlemen. It was no wonder all the ladies had eyes for him, and all their mothers thought he would make the perfect son-in-law.
I, on the other hand, was quite happy with spending the evening in a rowdy bar, eating second-hand peanuts out of a bowl, and accepting dark-coloured drinks from shifty-looking characters. I guess no one’s mom would want to picture me walking their perfect little princess down the aisle.
Finally, I made my way out of the room and quickly fell into step with Raiden who was already a few steps ahead of me.
“Got your game-face on?” He asked with a cocky grin when he saw the slight scowl on my face.
“Does it look like it?” I huffed in response.
“Oh, come on now, you can do better than that,” he teased while bumping me with his fist and chuckling.
“Funny,” I mumbled incoherently and stuck my hands grumpily into the pockets of my jeans.
As we neared the dining hall, the smell of freshly baked bread filled the air, and I felt my insides coming alive just a tad. Maybe this dinner would not be so bad after all. Raiden shook his head and chuckled as I took another deep breath of aromatic air and rubbed my tummy jokingly.
“Alpha, Beta, please follow me,” a waitress formally addressed us as soon as we stepped into the large hall. She quickly showed us to our seats and departed with a small bow.
The hall has been emptied for the occasion, leaving only a long rectangular table in the middle of the room for all of the high-ranking wolves from Grimlark and, well, of course, us.
We were seated in the middle of the table with the Alpha, Alpha Kane and his Luna, Luna Murielle sitting on either of the heads. As soon as we took our seats, Alpha Kane shot up and held his wineglass in the air.
“Alpha Raiden and Beta Gunnar, we would like to officially welcome you to Grimlark. May our meeting be fruitful and please, enjoy our hospitality while you are here,” Alpha Kane said in a loud, almost hoarse voice. For some reason, he always sounded like that even though he was not a smoker.
“Thank you, Kane, we intend to,” Raiden answered with a warm smile, while also lifting his wineglass.
“Here, here!” the rest of the wolves yelled out and we all lifted our glasses before taking a sip.
Alpha Kane nodded towards a waitress standing at the far end of the hall, next to what looks like the kitchen, and she immediately disappeared into the swinging doors next to her. Chatter broke out all around the table as Alpha Kane sat down, and I took another large gulp of red wine.
