CHAPTER 554: THE VERY GRUMPY ASTRONOMER

Jasmine rubbed her arms as Hildegard knocked at the door.

They had marched up stairs and stairs ascending to the highest point of the pack palace.

Jasmine was so breathless and exhausted.

Why would anyone want to stay so far up.

"Are we getting any closer?" Jasmine had asked as she was panting heavily.

They had been marching for so long Jasmine had no idea when or if they would ever arrive.

"A bit." Hildegard had said.

Nanny Nia has gone not even half way up the stairs when she decided that she couldn’t continue.

So it was just Jasmine and Hildegard who went all the way.

By the time they had reached the door, she was breathless.

"This is really far." Jasmine said. "Does he ever come back down?"

Hildegard shrugged. "No not really. He likes to keep to himself. He most importantly does not like being disturbed."

Then she knocked while Jasmine waited.

It was the only door in the entire space and the hallway was like a cubicle.

No other rooms or doors in sight.

Just the wooden one in front of them.

"Do you think Anna is going to be okay?" Jasmine asked.

Hildegard shrugged. "Who knows?"

Jasmine looked down at her hands.

And then it occurred to her.

She had seen how close Hildegard and the Queen had been.

Especially when the Queen had been ill in the crescent pack.

"I wanted to ask you, if you would let me." Jasmine begun, knowing that there might not be another chance for her to.

Hildegard nodded. "Yes go on dear."

"How is the Queen? The last time I had seen her, she had been terrible ill and she had had to be using lyrrun herb." Jasmine explained. "She looks much better now."

"It’s kind of you to remember. She still appreciates you for how you helped her then." Hildegard said and pounded at the door once again.

Then Hildegard looked at her.

"It was poisoning." She said.

Jasmine’s face fell instantly at the reveal.

"What?" Jasmine whispered. "Why? Who would have done such a thing."

Hildegard shook her head. "It wasn’t a pleasant experience. She is past it and she is much better now."

Jasmine was horrified.

Someone wanted to kill the kill?

How long had they been poisoning her for.

It seemed Hildegard didn’t really want to talk about it.

So Jasmine waved it off by saying. "I’m just happy for her. She looks so much better and healed. Especially now that she found her grand daughter."

Hildegard scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"Indeed."

Jasmine furrowed her brows.

Had she just imagined that?

Or was it that Hildegard wasn’t happy that the Queen had finally found her daughter.

Jasmine started to speak. "Wh-

The door was flung open interrupting anything Jasmine had to say.

To her amazement, the man at the door wasn’t who she was expecting.

He seemed to be his early forties, with brown long brownish hair, small lips, a perfect nose and a nicely made jawline.

He was handsome and not what she had expected.

She had been expecting perhaps someone old and grumpy.

Someone like Loren.

Not someone young, attractive and grumpy.

She was so taken aback that she has no idea she was staring.

"Why are you banging at my door?" He demanded rudely. "Can I help you?!"

His dude attitude snapped Jasmine back to reality.

She turned to Hildegard for support.

"I told you he is always in a bad mood." Hildegard said to Jasmine before turning back to step in.

She pushed him aside and went into the room.

"You can’t just come in." He complained going back in after Hildegard.

Jasmine wisely followed them behind and the exact moment that

She was inside the room, she understood why he had chosen to live in the highest spot in the palace regardless of how many stairs it was going to take to get there.

It was similar to Xaden’s mother’s astronomy room.

Except it was more narrow and yet more picturesque.

There were no curtains just full wall to ceiling windows.

It was like a mini loft with lots of equipments on the floor where they stood and then small steps that led to a visible higher ground.

It was all within the open space.

She gawked at the sheer beauty of the place around her.

It was nothing like she had ever expected.

"You’re not allowed in here." The grumpy man marched after Hildegard.

I looked around through his bookshelves as they discussed with each other.

"You need to get a house cleaner." Hildegard said. "This place is a mess."

"The agreement is that I’m left alone." He snapped back.

"Oh don’t be a grumpy wolf. It doesn’t look well on you." Jasmine heard Hildegard respond.

Jasmine gently touched the edges of the aligned books on book shelf and gently picked up one that had fallen to the ground.

She gently placed it back.

They were all books on stars, the moon, the constellation.

The wolf packs.

Lycans.

Alphas.

Luna.

Omegas.

Mages

Their entire existence.

All of them.

Well of course, except for her.

She was an unshifted and an abomination in the entire wolf society.

As the grumpy wolf and Hildegard argued, Jasmine busied herself touching things.

She saw something on a scroll and came to an abrupt stop.

She had seen that language before.

She picked up the scroll despite it being dirty and filled with dust.

The dust engulfed her nostrils and she let out a loud sneeze.

It caught the attention of the grump wolf.

He quickly turned and fired her a glaring look.

"Who in the name of the goddess are you?!"

He demanded.

It was as though he hadn’t even seen her come in with Hildegard

Before Jasmine could explained he marched up to her snatched the scroll for her gentle hands.

"Do you know what this is?! How dare you touch my things without my permission?" He raged on.

Then he look a good look at Jasmine from head to top.

He gave Hildegard an angry look.

"I told you ! No fucking members of the royal family in my space!" He spat.

~~~~~~~~

Jasmine looked around unsure of who he was speaking to.

But then he was glaring at her.

She was the one his eyes were so directly fixated on and she couldn’t understand why.

Jasmine made eye contact with Hildegard.

And it occurred to her.

He was talking to her.

"Me?" Jasmine said in surprise.

"I don’t know is there any other fucking member of the royal family with vibrant red hair in this room?" He demanded.

Jasmine gave a very uncomfortable laugh as she touched her hair.

Lately her hair had now become the center of attention.

"Oh no. You have it wrong." She tried to explain. "The thing I’m a-

"Are you trying to gaslight me?" He asked angrily, his eyes blazing.

She could see his wolf already stirring.

"No I’m not." Jasmine said quickly. "I just-

"She isn’t a member of the royal family." Hildegard said gripping his hand and squeezing it down. "So calm down before you turn into your wolf and throw tantrums everywhere. This place is already a mess enough."

He turned to look at Hildegard.

"She has red hair because she is an unshifted." Hildegard said finally. "You can calm down. You know how hard it is to force your wolf back."

There seemed to be a hint of surprise in his eyes.

But very slowly she watched the fire in his eyes tone down and his breathing didn’t seem to be as rapid as before.

It was only then Jasmine managed to calm down.

"When did unshifted start having red hair?" He asked.

Hildegard shrugged. "Jasmine is the first we know of."

"I’ve researched her kind." He said as he rolled the scroll back. "And this feature she has is not common with them."

Jasmine now interested.

He researched on unshifted?

Like her?

"You research on my people?" Jasmine asked hungry for answers.

"Otto here was the lead researcher on unshifted." Hildegard said patting his back but Otto was busy rummaging through his things. "In his hay days, he wasn’t just a good astronomer, he was the best."

"Not anymore." He grumbled under his breath. "I don’t take visitors so leave."

Jasmine was disappointed at how she was instantly rejected.

Hildegard turned to Otto. "She came to see you because she has something important to tell you. She traveled a long way. I believe it would be disrespectful for you to even refuse to acknowledge her."

"I don’t care." He snapped back refusing to look at anyone.

Then he pointed out the door. "Leave."

Jasmine began to panic.

This was what she had come for.

She could allow herself be sent out.

Then an idea sprung into her head.

"A mage called Marie sent me to you." Jasmine said quickly.

That made him stand still.

He slowly turned around to face her.

"What?!"