It was a few days before Dawn was feeling up to leaving her room. She wanted to let the bruise on her face and welts rashing from Thomas's whipping heal first and give herself a chance to settle into this new world she had found herself in.
Atlas would visit with her often, never pushing her to talk more than surface-level topics. He did most of the talking, but she found herself growing more comfortable in his company. It was not enough to open up yet; she wasn't sure she'd ever be comfortable with anyone enough to open up all the way, but it was enough that she had started eating again.
From his visits, she learned that he was, in fact, twenty-five as she had guessed, only two years her senior. His brother was sixteen, and Atlas had largely taken the responsibility of raising him since his father had passed away when he was a baby. Dawn only knew from nobility gossip that the late Duke had been much beloved and had died in a tragic accident over fifteen years earlier.
Atlas never went into detail on what happened to his father, pain flashing in his eyes anytime the topic got too close. Dawn never pressed for more detail. He had respected her boundaries of conversation and she had vowed silently that she would respect his.
For the sake of trying to make it seem like the conversation wasn't entirely one-sided, she shared with him the bare minimum from her past, as much as she could without diving into the pain that lurked there. She was raised by her father, Elliot Hale, the affluent businessman, at his estate, her mother having died giving birth to Dawn. She had no siblings and had been set to marry Prince Thomas. It was all she had to her history that wouldn't bring her to tears, and even then, she felt her eyes sting with emotions when she had told him.
They had established a small friendship between the two, Dawn allowing Atlas's request to take his meals in her room with her till she was ready to join in the dining room with everyone else. She wasn't sure she was ready for that yet, but she had mustered up the courage to leave her room for the first time.
She dressed herself in a long, plain light blue dress and left her hair down to cover her shoulders. She hesitantly opened her bedroom door and peered out into the hallway. It was midmorning, the sun coming in the windows in a way that reflected off the tile floor. She paused with her body still in the room and her hand on the doorknob. She was nervous to exit, but she needed to do this.
Down the hall, there were a few servants quietly chatting about nothing in particular, but otherwise the hall was empty. She stepped out into the air of the hall, letting the door close behind her. She followed the bending hallway the way Atlas always went when he left her room, down and around a corner. Dawn didn't know where she was planning on going, but she was sure she'd stumble upon someone if she got lost.
Eventually, the hallways led her out into the second floor of a large foyer with double staircases leading down the the bottom. A large set of doors made for a grand front entrance to the manor. She remembered it from her arrival, but with the morning sun coming in it was rather grand. Atlas was at the bottom of the staircase she was closest to, talking with a woman that he held a resemblance to him.
Dawn went to take a step down when fear gripped her suddenly, and she stopped with her foot hovering above the stairs. Had she been allowed to leave her room? She had never asked for permission, and yet she had done it. Would he be mad if he saw her? She pulled her foot back, resolving to run back to her room before being seen, but she froze when Atlas looked up at her and his mouth dropped open.
"Dawn…" He turned from the woman to face the staircase and her at the top. "You left your room?" He asked with a bit of disbelief in his voice, that she'd done it on her own. She took a hesitant step back, when he started climbing the stairs slowly to her.
"I'm sorry. I-I should've asked before I came out." She rushed to speak, watching him get closer to her. He shook his head and took her hand gently once he was close enough.
"No, no. You're welcome to go anywhere you'd like. I'm thrilled you feel well enough to leave your room. You only caught me off guard." He chuckled lightly and smiled at her. She paused the fear that had started, processing his words through it. He wasn't angry at all, he seemed to be glad.
"The healing elixirs have been helping." She reported carefully. Del had been by to ensure everything was healing as it should and give her the elixirs to drink. She had done so without complaint despite her initial doubt at their existence and had watched the speed of her recovery over the days in the mirror. The lines from Thomas's belt were all but gone, and the redness seeped out of them to leave pale lines in their place. It had been fascinating to watch, and she had expressed her gratitude to the manor healer.
"Good. Do you need anything? Are you hungry? Perhaps a tour of the grounds?" He offered quickly with his broad smile. He wanted to encourage this change in her. She looked to the floor. His positivity was sweet and it made any remaining fear drain away in favor of the comfort their friendship had cultivated.
"I would love a tour." She spoke softly, liking the idea of seeing the grounds. "B-But only if you have time." She amended, not wanting to take him away from anything.
"I will always have time for you." He spoke softly and held out his arm for her. She blushed hard, still looking at the floor, but took his arm. He turned and led her down the stairs, the woman he had been speaking to at the bottom, looking up at them with a knowing smile.
A group of five servants turned the corner on the main floor next to the woman, planning to go up the staircase towards Dawn and Atlas, but they paused, looking at Dawn with amazed expressions on their faces. They quickly mounted the stairs, rushing past them gracefully, whispering as soon as they were past them. Dawn hugged Atlas's arm a bit tighter and looked down self-consciously at her outfit. Was she dressed too poorly in front of the duke? Was that what the whispering was about?
"Do I look okay?" She asked. Her dress was nowhere near a fancy gown, but closer to a working dress. It was nearly scandalously casual.
"You look lovely, anyone who thinks otherwise can take it up with me." He said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world as he led her down the stairs to the woman. Dawn fumbled her step marginally at the compliment, the blush from moments before regaining life. Atlas held her arm firmly to keep her from stumbling, but didn't acknowledge the blush, just continued down the stairs.
"Dawn, I'd love to introduce you to my mother, Penelope." Penelope continued to smile in a way that was warm but also like she knew something Dawn didn't, and it wasn't helping her cool the heat on her cheeks.
"It's lovely to finally meet you," Peneolpe said, looking between her and Atlas. Dawn executed a curtsy and a polite smile but kept her eyes down.
"It's a pleasure to meet you as well. I must tell you your son has been very kind to me." Dawn spoke using her fancy voice, the voice she'd use to blend in with the higher-ups.
"I raised him to be a gentleman. If he wasn't, he would take a beating from me." She said, giving Atlas a leading look, and he chuckled, which made the older woman smile, clearly an old joke between them.
"I hope you've been feeling more and more at home." She continued, aiming her focus more at Dawn now. "You're welcome to decorate your room as you wish to make it more your own." She offered.
"It's perfectly to my liking as is. I don't want to cause any trouble." Dawn said, looking at the floor as she spoke. She wouldn't dare make any demands for change, too afraid it would result in the warm environment turning cold.
"It's no trouble at all! We want you to feel comfortable and at ease here. This is your home as much as it is ours." Penelope said kindly, and Dawn dared to look up at the woman, even for just a moment.
"Home..." Dawn repeated the word, trying it out on her lips. "I've never really had one of those before." She admitted, and Penelope's eyes softened looking at her.
"We are honoured then, to be your first one." She gave an honest mothering smile to Dawn, then looked at Atlas.
"I'll leave you to your tour then. Please don't hesitate to call for me, Dawn, should you need for anything." She said softly, and Dawn nodded her thanks. She spared one more smile to each of them before taking her leave.
"Your mother is very sweet," Dawn commented to Atlas, watching the woman go. Atlas smiled and began leading Dawn down the hall to begin their tour.
"She's truly the best of us." He agreed.
They passed a few more people who openly gawked at Dawn with expressions of shock and awe. Dawn looked away each time, self-conscious.
"Why is everyone staring at me?" She asked as they passed another shocked onlooker.
"When I told you you were a rare jewel I meant it. Word has gotten out that a fox woman has been staying here…" He said hesitantly, and she tensed.
"Everyone knows about..." She trailed off, looking around. Everyone knew what she was. Everyone knew she was hiding a demon inside her. What must they all think of her? All she had ever wanted was to disappear, pretend the fox inside wasn't there, but everyone knew what she was. There was no hiding it here.
A younger man who looked like a thinner version of Atlas to Dawn's eyes, and a dark-haired woman of similar age, turned a corner towards them.
"Hey!" Silas' wolf ears on his head perked up, and he jogged over quickly. "Is this her!? The fox lady!?" He asked excitedly, grinning, and Dawn backed up a step. His energy was quickly overwhelming her in combination with the discovery that everyone knew about her secret. "Can you show us!? Please!?" He pleaded, and Dawn backed away again, letting go of Atlas's arm now.
He wanted to see? See the horrible thing inside her? Was she supposed to be proud of it? Everyone seemed to think it was such a good thing for her to have, something she should love and embrace, but all it ever did was cause her pain. The stress of the emotions showed on her face, and she debated running back to her room and hiding away from all the prying eyes.
"Silas. That's enough." Atlas gave him an extremely stern look and growled out the warning. He took Dawn's arm again and led her into a nearby sitting room before she could make an escape. He made sure Silas had listened and wasn't following them before he closed the door to give her some privacy to calm down.
The sitting room Atlas had brought her into was an interior room of the manor, and the only sunlight that lit the room came from below the closed door. It was dark but his wolf eyes managed fine in it and he led her by the hand to a plush chair by a fireplace. He gently helped her sit, watching the way her eyes seemed far away and defeated. She looked down at her lap, caught in her mind, and the spiraling it was doing.
Atlas sighed, feeling guilty at overwhelming her so quickly on her first day she had set foot out of her room. Standing in front of her, he motioned with his hand to the fireplace, and the wood inside lit up with a roaring flame.
"Eep!" She jumped, her eyes snapping back to the present and looking at the fire, seeing no one near enough that could have started it. She stood from the chair sharply, eyes wide.
"Sorry, I should've warned you I can do that. I apologise for my brother. I will reprimand him later." He said, gently guiding her back to sit in the chair. She sat slowly but looked stressed, eyes switching between Atlas and the fireplace.
"Do what!? The fire just…!? Your hand…!?" She pantomimed with her hand a motion that vaguely could be similar to what he had done. He held back a chuckle in favor of looking concerned, realizing it must be quite startling for her.
"Yes. Shifters have other magic outside of their shifting." He explained with a smile, kneeling in front of her. "Wolves have fire, deer have flora, bears have earth, ravens have air." She listened to him, looking at the fire and calming only slightly before fear sparked behind her eyes again.
"No…. No no no no. NO!" Her voice built with emotion, and she looked at him, tears forming in her eyes quickly. "Don't say it! Don't tell me there's something else wrong with me! Don't!" She shouted, fearing that there was more to her demon form, coming out in anger. She gripped the arms of the chair with her nails digging into the worn leather. Atlas gently plucked them from their grip and held her hands tenderly, stroking them with his thumbs, trying to calm her.
"There's nothing wrong with you, Dawn. Period. There never was." His voice was firm but comforting. She pulled her hands away to press on her eyes, the tears still falling. He sighed again lightly, feeling empathy for her.
"Tell me, is there something wrong with me? Am I a demon?" He asked gently, encouraging her to engage with him. Anything to get her out of the spiral in her head.
"There are others like you!" She shouted, dropping her hands to her lap to look at him with devastatingly pained eyes. "I'm alone! I've always been alone!" He shook his head before she was even done speaking, not taking it personally that she was shouting.
"You may be the only fox, but you are also a shifter. You have a place with us." He said softly, looking at her hands that were now clasped tightly in her lap. "You'll never have to be alone again." He finished speaking just loud enough to be heard over her crying. She bit back more tears, trying to shove them down and compose herself, but she found the emotion too big.
Atlas's eyes were pained watching her suffer inside her head alone. From his crouched position, he opened his arms to her, offering her comfort to cry like he had done before in his wolf shift. She saw the gesture and, through her weeping vision, checked his face. He wasn't mad or growing inpatient with her. He wordlessly offered her his consolation in an embrace. She bit her lip, but caved, slipping from the chair to hug him in front of the fire.