True Alpha’s Chosen Mate

Chapter 127 – The Terror Of Miscommunication

When we returned to the castle, everyone looked at me with wide eyes with the black cub in my arms. They didn't say anything, but the surprise on their faces was enough for me to discern their disbelief. Hugo allowed the cub to stay in my chambers with the condition that Tito would guard me. He stayed outside while Hugo and the rest went to do something. 

"Do you have a name?" I asked, lying on my stomach, feet up while cupping my cheek. I was currently on the bed with the black cub in front of me. 

'Mama hasn't given me a name.'

"I see… so you don't have a name yet?" I pressed my lips, staring at him. "I used to have a toy bear and a toy bunny. I named them Miss Boo-boo Smoke and Mister Moon."

He looked at me with innocent eyes, making me smile at him. He was so adorable. I felt bad for him that he received such hostility from the werewolves. 

'What is Mama's name?' he inquired all of a sudden, and my face brightened up.

"Rinnie. Hugh calls me Bambi and Rinrin. I like it when he calls my name." I giggled, thinking that my name sounded different whenever Hugo say it. "As for you… since you don't have a name, what should I call you?"

I didn't think of giving him a name at first. But the way he looked at me with anticipation, I knew he wanted me to give him a name. So I hummed while pondering and staring at him. He was like a fluffy black small.

"Should I call you Blackie?" I titled my head but sighed as that didn't sound right. "Boo-boo? Baby black? Dumbo, so it sounds like Bambi?" 

I frowned as those names I was mumbling didn't sound right. They would suit a teddy bear, but he would have to live with the name I would give him. I didn't want him to resent me if I named him Boo-boo once he grew up.

'Mama?'

I raised my gaze at him once again, blinking countless times before a sudden name crossed my head. The side of my lips stretched from ear to ear as the name I came up with just clicked. In a snap of a finger, I knew right then and there which name that suited him.

"Toby," I declared, watching him look at me cluelessly. "I will call you Toby, in short, for Tobias."

'Toby…' Although he wasn't blushing, he looked pleased by the name. 

"Nice to meet you, Toby." I grinned until my eyes were squinting, nuzzling my nose against his. "Do you like it?"

'Mhm!' 

I was pleased as he squinted his eyes and smiled, showing his little canines. My heart melted as I reached for him to cuddle with him. 

"Tody, you are so fat and heavy," I giggled because Toby was someone I could cuddle all day. "And so fluffy. Will you let Hugh cuddle you as well?"

'Papa?' he looked up with genuine wonder in his eyes.

"Are you afraid of Hugh?"

'Mhm… he looks scary.'

I smiled gently, lying on my side with my arms around him. "Hugh looks very scary and his aura is always imposing, but once you get to know him, he is also like you. He is a bundle of softness. I'm certain he will like you, too."

'Papa will not like me because I'm a bear.' He frowned while I sighed, stroking him. 'He doesn't even understand me. Only Mama can hear me.'

"But I can relay your words to him."

'Even so… they don't completely believe you.'

I shook my head, smiling, closed-lipped. "It's hard to believe — even I cannot believe when I first met a werewolf. But if the intention is good, I am certain things will turn out good eventually."

Toby looked at me while I nodded reassuringly. Of course, I understood that Hugh and everyone would question me about hearing a bear's voice. They said bears don't speak, but they were intelligent creatures. The reason warriors in Belcoot couldn't drop their guards from the bear's attack. 

Suddenly, a thought crossed my head. I looked at Toby and blinked twice.

"Toby, can a bear shift too?" I inquired, knowing this question was quite ridiculous. 

'Not anymore, Mama.' To my surprise, his answer was not what I expected. 'Mama, although we classified as bears, we came from another tribe called Tarsa Tribe. It was an ancient tribe that was caught up in the Holy War. That was what my mother told me and the story everyone knew."

"Tarsa tribe? Holy war…?" my brows furrowed.

"They said during the holy war, the Tarsa tribe and the bears fought honorably to protect everyone. But to do that, the Bear King had to unleash a power just as great as those key participants in the war. So, they helped the Bear King unleash that power. But because of that, the bloodline of the Tarsa Tribe can no longer shift after that," Toby explained with eyes full of bitterness. "They said it was a sacrifice so the Tarsa Tribe survive. Now, the remaining bears from the Tarsa Tribe can only communicate amongst themselves. But others, like werewolves, cannot understand us."

I remained quiet while listening to Toby's youthful voice like a little boy. "Toby, are the bears outside the northern wall part of the Tarsa tribe?" he nodded as an answer to my question. "Why are they attacking Belcoot?"

Toby sported a bitter look. 'Mama, this place you call Belcoot used to be a vast fortress — our land. The werewolves conquered it from long ago, dividing us.'

"Huh?"

'Mama, they established these concrete and destroyed the forest. Hence, we were split,' he clarified with a sigh. 'They only want to go back home and meet their families. Our home is the forest protected by the guardians.'

"What…?" My mouth fell slightly open, processing his words. Toby didn't beat around the bush as he explained it in the simplest way possible. Did that mean… the bears from beyond the northern border simply wanted to reunite with their family in that forest?

But because the werewolves couldn't understand them, they had grown hostile towards each other? Now, the bears were fighting for their right while the werewolves were defending it from what they believed was an act of invasion?

'Oh, God…. was this all a misunderstanding because of the miscommunication?'