Silver Moon: Bk. 02 Ch. 02

That got both Dan's and Pam's attention and they both stared at him and then his daughter. They then looked at each other in shock though Dan showed it far less than Pam. Dan turned back to the Chief and almost growled at the smirk on his face. "I have a mate and do not need a second one. I highly doubt that Pam, my soon to be mate, would agree with that." It was very obvious that Dan was not amused.

The Chief's daughter looked more than a bit startled when her father said that. She knew that he liked to have solid connections with their allies but never at the expense of his family. Yes he made sure that all his kids had encountered the children of the packs, clans, and wealthy to encourage them to marry. So far only one hadn't married one of the high and mighty and was a jewelry smith. "What? Daddy that is going to far." Dan was nice but it had simply been for fun that she had slept with him.

Pam frowned at the Chief and then Dan. In Dan's case it was she was starting to get somewhat irritated again over all this crap. "I think that Dan is right on that. I do not share somethings well and the one I am seeing is one of those things. I think I am done with this conversation and the meal. I will see you back in the suite Dan." She stood up and stalked out of the room.

The Chief couldn't help but smirk when Pam stood and stalked out. This was going better than he had planned. If he could drive a wedge between the two of them it would give him a far stronger case if he had to challenge Dan. In this case it would be a legal challenge and in his country. "God, can't even control your mate. Maybe I don't want my daughter married to you."

Dan's eyes turned amber again and he stood and slammed his hand down on the table. When he did he used more strength than intended and the table cracked in half. "Don't ever comment on my mate, children, or pack like that again. I will deal with you if you do and believe me I don't care what the consequences are." He turned and stalked out of the room. There wasn't any way he was going back to the suite till he calmed down.

Back in the dining room the three jumped up when Dan broke the table. Nara's father turned just a bit pale since he really hadn't expected that reaction. That and though he knew that wolves were stronger watching Dan almost casually break a heavy oak table scared him. He couldn't show that though and grumbled at Dan. "The cheek of him to leave like that. He is going to deal with this issue or else."

Chief Joseph stormed out of the room as well leaving his wife and daughter there. He was going to find that damn male and give him a piece of his mind come hell or high water. Joseph was used to dealing with other wolves and though he had been told that Dan was different it didn't really penetrate. Since he was a spirit animal he could smell Dan easy enough and especially the anger scent and he followed it. The scent was leading outside which was fine with him. If he could get him to shoot his mouth off in public it would give credence to any claims the Chief made.

His wife almost growled at him since he was being such an ass at the moment. The man usually was a decent father and husband but there were times she really wanted to throttle him. Right now was one of them since he had been such an ass over the whole thing. If Nara had been in heat she wouldn't have allowed her to go. It wasn't her fault nor Dan's fault that Nara had gotten pregnant. If the totem animals were going to get involved there simply wasn't much you could really do. "Come Nara we are going to go and talk with Lady Pamela and see what she might be agreeable to."

Nara stood up. "Yes mother, I understand." She was about ready to leave the tribe and not come back. Her father was blowing this way out of proportion and she was sick of it. Somehow he had decided it was all her fault and he had to fix it so he wasn't shamed.

~~~

Arthur had gone back to his rooms and didn't even think when he asked Emelia to get him some tea and more headache powder. Before he did anything he needed to take the powder and try and relax. Maybe a nap as well.

"Not a problem Arthur it will just be a few minutes." She started the water and started looking at the teas available. She ended up mixing several together to help him relax and would help with the headache as well. Once she had everything ready she carried the tray to the living area. "I can tell you are stressed Arthur. If you would like to talk about it please do. If not I can give you a good back massage to help you relax as well."

Arthur considered that and considering how tense he was he nodded. "I think I will take you up on that after I have some tea. It smells lovely and very relaxing." He took a sip and contemplated the wall for a few. "Please contact Helda and ask if she would like to come over for dinner or if it would be okay if I came over. Make it a request and nothing else. We need to talk and I don't care where we are when we talk." He settled back on the couch and sipped the tea.

"I can take care of that Arthur after I put a heavy sheet on the bed for the massage." She silently went into the bedroom and set out what she was going to need. After a quick check she made a selection of nice clothes for him as well for that evening. Using the bonds she contacted Helda. "Ma'am Arthur would like to request your presence at dinner. He indicated that where you wish to eat would be fine with him." She knew what was going on but it wasn't her place to say anything.

Helda had finally gone back down to her shop and was working though she hadn't opened it. That wasn't abnormal when she had important work to do. This was her shop and she ran it how she wanted. There were other tailors and seamstresses on the estates and anything that required her touch would be brought to her attention. She wasn't feeling up to trying to sew anything so she was inventorying her supplies and making notes on what might be needed. Even if she did go with Arthur she was going to keep doing what she loved.

When Emelia contacted her she sighed. *Tell him to be here at six pm for dinner. He doesn't need to wear anything formal and casual is fine.* Helda didn't say much else since Emelia didn't need to know any more than she did. Once she told Emelia what time she wanted Arthur there she put down the tablet and went upstairs to start working on dinner.

She waited for Arthur to finish the tea and headache powder before telling him about dinner. "Helda said that tonight at six pm in casual clothes will be fine. I have some laid out and till then unless you have an appointment with Dan it might be a good idea to rest. I will give you a massage and if you do fall asleep I will wake you in plenty of time. If you would go in, take your shirt off and lay down on your stomach I will be in momentarily."

Arthur nodded and then walked into the room after filling his cup up. If he did fall asleep he was sure it would be as good cold as hot. He stripped his shirt off and settled down on the bed and tucked a pillow under his head and tried to relax. When Emelia started working on him her hands were warm and the oils smelled good. Before she was done he had fallen asleep and was snoring quietly.

Emelia left him there relaxing and quietly closed the door to his room. After a glance at the clock she would wake him in several hours. Till then she settled down to her studies. She had no intention of remaining as an assistant though she did enjoy it and was decently paid. Emelia wanted to be in charge of the assistance one of these days.

She kept a close eye on the clock and eventually woke Arthur up. "Arthur it is time to get up and change your cloths. I have some jewelry for you as well." Even though he wasn't going to be a clan lord he was going to have the same number of tails as Helda and that gave him some rank. The jewelry was nice but nothing like Dan's or Pam's.

Arthur rolled over and stretched for a moment. "Okay. Give me a minute to get dressed and then you can have your way with me." He had to admit that he felt much better than he had before she gave him the massage. "Thank you for the massage. I feel much more relaxed." Arthur rolled off the bed and after grabbing the cloths walked into the bathroom.

Getting changed didn't take very long and he had to admit the clothing was quite comfortable. The pants were a dark sand color and the shirt was a much lighter sand color. The colors complimented his looks nicely. Once he was pleased with his image in the mirror he walked out sat down at the chair Emelia normally had him use.

"You look very nice Arthur and I pleased those colors look good on you." She took a few minutes working with his hair. It was way to short in her opinion but other countries had their own styles. Once his hair was done she pulled out a clan necklace and fixed it on. "This is yours and you will be expected to take it with." She pulled out a ring as well and put it on. "This is your personal ring as well for signing documents and such."

Once done she had him stand up and checked to make sure he was ready. "Well you are ready and looking good. I hope you have a good evening. Do you need help getting to Helda's?" She doubted it but it was only polite to ask.

He shook his head. "Thank you but I am pretty sure I can find it without a problem." He didn't say anything else but he did give her a nod as he left the suite. Arthur wasn't really looking forward to this since he had hurt her earlier. It had been such a shock not only to become a Kitsune but also to be informed that she might be his mate.

Arthur stewed on his actions and what all was happening all the way to her place. He had to take a few moments to gather the courage to knock on her door. When he did she answered it almost immediately. "Helda I am sorry if I upset you earlier. It was just such a shock to be told that I was now a Kitsune and potentially your mate."

She sighed. "It did hurt but I do understand. I did not plan that at all and simply wanted an enjoyable evening with you." Helda opened the door further and waved him in. "Dinner is almost finished cooking so why don't you go into the kitchen area and have a seat. I will get you something to drink while dinner finishes."

He nodded and walked into her place. His sense of smell was definitely better and he had to stop and inhale. "Smells darn good Helda and thank you." Arthur followed the smell to the kitchen and settled down at the table. Whatever she was cooking definitely had an Asian scent. He glanced at her and found it odd that she looked Asian but had a light coloring. Must be something to do with the type of Kitsune she was.

"I hope so. This is one of my favorite dishes. It is an Asian form of comfort food." She looked over her shoulder at him. "I am going to let you wonder what it is though. Call that my revenge for earlier." Helda winked at him just for good measure.

Arthur glowered at her for a moment. "Hrumph, I might not eat it then. I don't eat food that I don't know what is in it." He shook his head and twitched as he felt the tail lightly brush one cheek. Before he realized it he shifted and he had to sigh. "What did I do to deserve this? I knew I should have sent someone younger."

Helda managed not to grin and instead walked over to him and gently stroked his ears. "I for one am glad that you are the one that came up. I can understand your confusion and uncertainty but the spirits are rarely wrong." One hand stroked the tail in his hair and then cupped his chin. "I can understand your uncertainty and I am willing to take the time needed for you to get to know me."

He had to close his eyes as she stroked his ears and then the tail. It was so soothing and felt so right when she did. Frankly he was feeling rather lost and wished he had access to the books on Kitsunes he had back in his office. That would help big time. "I appreciate that Helda but I don't know how long that might take. There is just so much going on right now that I am going to have trouble focusing on any sort of relationship." Arthur grunted. "I might just fine Dan for all the headaches he has caused me."

Helda did snicker at that. "I can understand but it really isn't his fault. Unless you object I want to come with you back to your country. I can live with Dan or in the town next to his territory and set up shop. I don't know how far from there you work but we could spend time with each other."

He closed his eyes and leaned his head against her and simply enjoyed the petting. It was such a different feel than anything before. "I think that would be a good idea and I can approve the visa. I don't want to rush into anything. I have never had any sort of serious relationship before and never really felt the need. My work was my life and I enjoy what I do." Arthur finally sat up. "A glass of wine would be nice if you have some. Maybe a rose' or blush would be nice."

When he leaned against her she kept stroking his ears since Kitsunes were very sensitive to that when they were upset. As he talked some of what he said matched up with his spiritual feel. When he asked for some wine she smiled. "I think I might be able to do that." There had been a bottle she had been saving for a while and she carefully opened it and poured a bit into a glass and handed it to him.

Arthur gave it a slight swirl before taking a sniff of the boquete and smiled. "Very nice odor." He took a small sip and his eyes widened. "Oh my is this really from your orchards? It is very good and thank you." He took another sip before putting the glass down and watched her fill it part way.

She smiled. "It is and was a gift several years ago for a set of formal robes. I have been saving it for a special time and tonight seemed right to break it out." She turned to the stove and checked the food and it was ready. Everything went into several large dishes and set on the table. "I think you will enjoy this."

Arthur grinned at her but decided not to say anything more about the food. "Definitely smells good Helda. I can't wait to eat. He relaxed as she served him and once she had some food he started eating. During dinner he kept it to small talk since he didn't want to discuss anything serious while they were eating.

~~~

Once Dan was outside he looked up at the moon and figured that was part of the reason he was so angry. The full moon wasn't that far away and that always put him on edge. Having that ass speak to him the way he had didn't help either and Dan wanted to rip him to shreds. If he pushed much more Dan was going to deal with him and it wouldn't be pretty. The man would be dead and Dan didn't really care what the fallout might be.

He took several deep slow breaths and started growling since that damn fool had followed him out. *Alysson get out here before I kill this damn fool idiot.* The mental contact contained traces of both Dan and his wolf. "Go away little man before I kill you." Dan turned and his eyes were solid amber and had the faintest sheen of silver white to them. It was very obvious that he was struggling not to change.

Chief Joseph snorted. "Threatening me I see. What kind of wolf are you if you can't control yourself?" He really didn't believe Dan would do anything to him since he was a chief and senior spirit wolf. What didn't occur to him was that Dan didn't have any connection with the chief's people. There wasn't any link that would place even the basic allegiance in Dan's mind.

Dan was struggling not to change and he could feel the control slipping. "I am Alpha and if I didn't have control you would be dead by now. I owe you no allegiance and you have not earned my respect little wolf." With Mari it was a term of endearment. In this case it was an insult and Dan did that so he would have a reason to kill him.

The chief sneered back at him. "Pathetic Alpha if you aren't willing to stand up and admit that you are responsible. You corrupted my daughter by your actions. As far as respect you haven't earned it and take your little wolf crap and stuff it up your tail." He was starting to change and that came out as a growl.

Dan gave him a very viscious smile. "Thank you fool. Now I can kill you." He shifted and leapt at the man only to run into something that didn't give much. He bounced off with an oomph and stood up and started to snarl till he realized it was the Silver Kitsune Spirit. The fight from earlier came to his mind and he froze and then knelt down. *Spirit lord.*

Amaratsue looked at Dan and nodded as he knelt down. He turned and looked at the Chief who was looking totally shocked. *You are not welcome in the Silver Kitsune territories. I will inform Clan Leader Logan of this and that once any and all contracts have been fulfilled to not renew them. Your mate will finish the negotiations for your tribe. Begone.* The man vanished from view when he said begone.

Before he had vanished when Dan had changed he had been horribly shocked at the size and speed of the change. Before the Spirit manifested he knew he was going to die and there wouldn't be anything he could do. As soon as the spirit appeared he felt satisfaction since he was sure that he would tromp on Dan for him. When he banished him back to his territory after informing him all contracts were not to be renewed he knew he was screwed.

Amaratsue turned and looked at the kneeling wolf and contemplated him. By Dan's terms he had the right to take justice in his hands and normally Amaratsue would let him but not this time. *I am going to step in though I am loath to. I am stepping in since this is a spirit issue and killing her father would not have been good. You will take Nara back with you. She will deliver your kits and she will be your second mate. I will explain this to Alysson and your mate. I will ensure this is clear to all involved.* With that he vanished from view.

Dan flopped on his stomach and rested his head on his paws. God what a mess and he was going to be lucky if Pam even spoke to him for the next few months. One thing he managed to avoid was cursing at Amaratsue since he was sure he would hear and do something else. *Goddess what now? I don't even want to think what they might come up with next.*

Amariah appeared and slowly came over and nuzzled his face before curling up next to him. She could feel how upset he was and she was doing her best to comfort him and broadcast soothing feelings at him.

Dan relaxed a bit as Amariah nuzzled his face and lightly licked it. Her feelings of comfort helped as well but he was to worked up for it to really do much. He finally stood up. *Go to Gettie or Pam little one. I am going to go for a run and hunt something down.* He gave her a good swipe with his large tongue and mentally smiled as she grumbled at him. Dan turned and left at a full run. It didn't take long before he was deep in the forest. Once there he slowed down and started hunting. If he didn't kill something and eat it god only knew what might happen.

~~~

Nara and her mother stopped one of the staff and asked for directions to the suite that Dan and Pam were using. Frankly Nara was ready to ask to remain either with the Kitsunes or even join Dan's pack to get away from her father. Why he was acting this way she didn't know and it rather upset her. Since her mother was being far more civil about it Nara simply settled for following her at the moment.

When they reached the rooms she stood there silently while her mother knocked. She had her head down and was simply looking at the floor since at the moment she didn't feel like facing anyone. Dan had been fun in bed and if he hadn't been mated she might have tried to see if he was interested but Lady Pam had made her views clear. If anything else went wrong she was going to change shape and run and hide.

Inside Pam sighed since she had a feeling who was out there. "Gettie can you get the door and get them something to drink. I will be out in a few minutes." As Gettie was heading towards the door Pam walked into the bedroom and stripped down. She pulled on some lose comfortable clothing and then walked back out. As she expected it was the mother and girl. "Please relax and have something to drink. I don't know what we are going to talk about but I will listen."