'The Mottled Poppy' My way.

Secrets can tear a pack apart

Hey guys, I kept my promise! I said that I would upload all at once and I did. I hope you're enjoying the story. Remember that this is my first Fanfiction, so constructive criticism is welcomed, but please no mean comments. Anyways, in no way does Wolfblood or any of its characters belong to me. Now on with the story!

-------------------------------------------------------------With Rhydian-------------------------------------

Rhydian kept glancing at his phone, silently wishing a text from Maddy to appear saying the trip had been cut short, and she's coming home early.

The truth is that he hates being away from Maddy. And even though he would never admit it because he's afraid it would ruin their friendship, he loves her more than a friend.

Yes, the big, bad, too-good-for-anyone-here Rhydian loves Maddy. In fact, he may be in love with her. He started having a crush on her when she first kissed him on the cheek. He knew it was probably a friendly 'Thank-you' gesture, but still, it felt good. It filled him up with emotions he never felt before, and then, like the tide, they left him as soon as she started jogging away towards her friends. At first, he thought those feelings were based off surprise, but when they came back the next time he saw her; he wasn't so sure that was it. He wasn't sure what they were. He didn't realize he had a crush on her until she accidentally consumed Wolfsbane. Back then, it felt like she was his responsibility, that she needed him, needed to be protected. At first he thought it was a friendly worry, or that his Wolfblood side was telling him to protect the secret, but once he wanted to rip Tom's head off after blabbering about the 'moment' he just shared with Maddy, he realized it wasn't so friendly. He had crush on his best friend. After she was cured, when she asked if he was jealous, after he told her about the 'moment' she supposedly spent with Tom, he brushed it off saying 'Don't push your luck.' He didn't exactly lie to her, he merely said don't push your luck. He never said if he was, which he clearly was, or not. He rationalized that if he just avoided talking or thinking, if that was even possible, about his feelings for Maddy, they would eventually go away. But they only grew stronger. In fact, they even reached the 'I love you' stage a couple weeks before he left for the wild, which he named the 'biggest and most awful mistake in his life that no one should talk about, unless they wanted to be out for a couple hours and wake up with a terrible headache'. This happened when Maddy was comforting Rhydian in 'Bernie's' about his mom. When she touched his hands, his mind immediately thought 'How did I live without her for so long? I can't deny it any longer, I love her.' Then, a couple days later, it either turned into deeper love or in love when she got hurt because Eolas. He blamed himself, really. If he hadn't showed her Eolas in the first place, then she wouldn't have passed out. He never felt so worried in his life when he heard her scream in agony and find her unconscious on the forest floor. He had also never felt so relieved when she woke up. Then his heart broke when he was forbidden to see her anymore by Emma. But if he thought this was pain, he had another thing coming. He knew something bad had happened to her as soon as he saw Emma and Danielle talking to Mr. Jefferies. But once they actually told him Maddy had ran away, he almost fainted. The thought of his Maddy out there on her own, with this crazy Eolas thing controlling her, scared him. After the initial shock wore off, he commenced mentally kicking himself. He felt like an idiot, teaching her this dangerous, drug-like, addictive, self-destroying method of the wild. After what felt like days of searching, chasing, and dodging acorns and other objects thrown by Maddy, Rhydian finally tired his wolf out. The only thing that kept him trying was the thought of Maddy hurt and needing him in a dark alley somewhere. Before he physically hurt himself, though, Danielle made him stop. He didn't want to, but allowed Emma to take over the 'rescue operation' and Danielle to take him to the park to restore some of his wolfblood energy. When he saw Maddy walking hand-in-hand with her mum, all he wanted to do is run over there, hug her, and never let go. But no. He played it cool. He had the perfect opportunity to reveal his feelings, but he played it cool. He was afraid of losing his first and best friend, so he played it cool. That's what made his departure even more painful. Regret. He regretted playing it cool, when he could've told her how he felt. Back then, he had no idea when, or if, he would ever see her again. He would have told her how he felt as soon as he got back, but he was unsure sure if she was mad at him for leaving or not. So, to avoid losing her as a friend altogether, he kept his feelings to himself.