Wolf

Chapter 1: ⓜⓐⓡⓘⓝⓐ

     The heavens opened up on Morghana and me. We were instantly soaked to the skin. I burst through the back door first and shook myself off, doggy style.

     "Marina!" my mother gasped. I had gotten water all over her lovely kitchen.

     "It's water," I said.

     She sighed and glared at me.

     "Morghana you may go," my mum said, gritting her teeth.

     Morghana bowed her head and left, going through the back garden and out the side gate.

     "You are lucky Thor and Lelune have left, or else you-"

      A knock interrupted her and I was extremely grateful that I would be spared from another one of her lectures as she walked away.

     "Come in, Rayne," I heard Mum say and grinned to myself. I was definitely out of another 'talk'.

     Rayne's head popped into view. I ran over to her and grabbed her arm, dragging her in behind me. We went upstairs, straight to my bedroom in the hopes that my mother wouldn't start on me with Rayne here.

     Rayne Harper had been my best, and only friend since we were born. She was four months younger than me and therefore had four more months to find her true mate before she was assigned one.

     I had run out of time. It was less than one week until my eighteenth birthday.

     She flopped on my bed and instantly looked sympathetically at me. She knew perfectly what we would talk about. It had been a topic of conversation for many weeks.

     "Oh Marina, but what about the Ball?" Rayne said.

     "That's two weeks after my birthday. I'll have a mate by then," I replied.

     "What if you find your true mate at the Ball?"

     "I can reject my assigned mate, unless we had, ahem, done...it," I finished lamely.

     Rayne just looked at me and scrunched up her nose in thought.

     "What about you?" I said. "Any luck?"

     "No," she sighed.

     "I think I know who you would match." I smiled mischievously.

     "Who?" Rayne demanded.

     I tapped the side of my nose to signify that it was a secret.

     "For now," I added when her face fell.

     I did know who she would match but I didn't want to disappoint her in case it wasn't him.

     "What if he's from the McHarries clan?" Rayne moaned. "They aren't going to the Ball this year."

     "Then, as the Beta and Delta's daughter, I shall have to request a visit," I said and Rayne giggled.

***

     I waited at my front door for Rayne to come and pick me up so we could drive to school. We did this every day, but sometimes Rayne was late, and sometimes I was late. It was a miracle we were always on time for school.

     We attended a nearby high school and lived in a small village called Aberfoyle, which was about twenty minutes away. The population of this Scottish village was about six-hundred-and-fifty, and almost half were wolves. The others knew about us but swore not to tell. Our fellow pack members had good innings with the residents, especially shop members, as we brought tourists to see the 'rare wolves'. Oh, the stuff they didn't know.(Is it the wolves that they didn’t know? Should make this more clear.)