She heard footsteps come to a stop outside her prison cell door. The stranger lingered outside and sniffed anxiously at the cell window. She heard his heartbeat quicken and smiled. He was panicking. Her parents had trained her well in the art of concealment. If she did not want to be found she wouldn’t be. A few minutes passed before the guard's panic got the better of him and he opened her cell door. The contrast of the light inside and outside her cell made him appear to be a shadow as he stood in the doorway. Watching him from the far corner of her cell she remained quiet. He walked further in and the light finally shone properly on his face.

She first recognized his scent and then his chiseled features. Her smile faded, it was only Gustav, one of the nicer guards. He was older and gave off a fatherly vibe. He was most likely sent in her best friend’s stead. Mayko Lumin was assigned as her personal guard a few months ago, but he was also recently promoted to chief, which meant he had new responsibilities to handle prior to meeting up with her. Kymara smiled at the thought of her friend. He was one of the most gentle creatures she'd encountered during her time of imprisonment. His smile was soothing and when he spoke his voice was so deep the air around him seemed to vibrate.

Just as with any werewolf he was tall and the tone of his skin matched that of the color of his shifted wolf fur. His complexion was a delicious combination of chocolate brown and honey that covered him from head to toe, with patches of cream. All three tones covered his face; the chocolate and honey striped across the upper right of his face while the cream covered his lower left jaw up to his ear. His hair, a long soft mass of tight coils, of course matched up to the pattern on his face and transitioned to all cream at the base of his neck.

She enjoyed playing in his coily hair from time to time. She washed and even braided it for him occasionally. On the most stressful of days he would let her put individual plaits on his entire head as a means to calm her. Mayko’s eyes were a whole other story and they were her favorite. They were intense, frightening even, but could be kind if he wanted them to be. His right eye was an icy blue surrounded by chocolate skin, while his left eye was a vivid reddish-orange surrounded by honey skin. Both of his eyes were radiant in contrast to his skin which made them one of the first things you noticed about him. They were second only to the riptide of muscles that hid beneath his black guard uniform. The solid black jumpsuit was sleeveless so his arms were ever visible.

Despite his all encompassing deliciousness they would only ever be friends, as Mayko was already spoken for. During his time outside the manor walls he met his chosen one, Issala Riverstone. All in all she was pleased with her friend and the things he’d accomplished in such a short time; first finding his mate and soon after being promoted. He was now one of twenty chiefs and with a bit of finagling he managed to get himself assigned as Kymara’s personal guard. She couldn't be anymore proud of her best friend. She noticed he also found many new uses for his authority, one of which was occasionally sneaking Issala into the lower cells so that she and Kymara could meet face to face and bond.

Mayko spoke fondly of his mate often but said that for some finding one’s chosen was a gift and a curse. Although Kymara knew nothing of chosen’s, as it was a trait common to werebeasts, she envied them. For a werebeast to find love they only needed to wait. Kymara feared that was a love she would never know. She also feared that love or any love for that matter. Her parents' love is what made her and she was now a prisoner because of it. If she were to ever find her love and bear his child, would that child in turn be snatched from her arms as she was snatched from her parents? She never wanted to know what that loss would feel like. She refocused her eyes on the werewolf fumbling to find his flashlight and sighed.

“I am here Gustav,” she said from the corner and got to her feet.

“Kymara, you have to stop doing that to me,” he sighed.

“I didn’t know it was you at first and honestly I can’t help myself,” she replied with an impish smile.

“Was last night so bad you’ve forgotten what today is?” he asked sternly.

“I know what today is, I’m just not looking forward to it,” she replied as she slid back to the floor.

Gustav sighed again and sat next to her as he said, “It will sadden him if he knew you said that.”

“Then don’t tell him.”

“I won’t, but he will sense it, the resentment.”

“I don’t resent him, not anymore.”

“Then you should make a better effort at changing your behavior when it's time for your visits.”

“The masters do this to torture me, you know that right?”

“They do this to ensure your further cooperation. They know should anything happen to him you would disappear as you did before.”

“He could end this, you know? All he has to do is escape.”

“Your father has said it time and time again: ‘the Silvertide’s entered as three and will leave as three’. He will never leave here without you or your mother. Come now Kymara Silvertide, time is wasting. You are only allowed an hour with him and that time is ticking away.”