Fated

Chapter XII

Adira was running. The pitch black of the night was merciless even as she tripped on roots and moss. She could feel the wolf behind her go faster, could almost feel his every step in the thumping of her heart. Looking back at him, she realized it was quite literally at her heels.

Adira, it snarled. She ran faster. Her feet hurt. A gash on her arm was bleeding. 

"Adira. Adira!"

Adira woke up with a scream, her hand out, throwing a punch in the dark. Her fist connected with something solid. She started to scramble towards the headboard, terrified - 

"Adi, it's me!" Cassie whispered at the same time as Adrian burst through the door with a growl, his nails descending into claws. His dark eyes roamed the room before he straightened up from his offensive crouch as he realized there was no danger. His snarl turned into amusement at a sleepy Adira who was still looking around dazed. Adira's bleary brain cleared as she looked around her room. Her eyes landed on the clock beside her bed. 

"What's wrong, Cass? It's five AM. It's good-night time," Adira mumbled as she rubbed her tired eyes. She started to lie down on her bed again before jerking up when Cassie pulled her.

"You have practice, babe. Its time to wake up and start a-fighting. You desperately need it after the horrible punch you just attempted." Cassie replied casually opening the curtains to let the dawn light in. She looked fully dressed for a workout and seemed unfazed despite Adira's half-hearted scowl.

Adrian walked towards them and took a seat at the edge of Adira's bed, "Not today, Cass. I'm hoping to restart pack breakfasts. She'll be too tired for them, then." He patted Adira's legs.

"She's a Luna, she'll manage. It's more important to learn to not die in a fight, old friend. She's mine for the next two hours," Cassie grinned evilly. She seemed far too awake for someone who was clearly ruining Adira's sleep.

"Wait, what breakfast and what training? What's going on?" Adira interrupted before Adrian could reply. She slowly started to get out of bed.

Apparently she wasn't moving fast enough for Cassie who pulled her out of bed pushing her towards the bathroom. "Before you arrived, the pack always had meals together in the packhouse to foster togetherness.  We didn't want to overwhelm you, but I think Ade thinks you're ready. So we're really on the clock here. I'll train you to fight for two hours, after which you get a half-hour to get ready. I'm sure Adrian can cook a dish as part of your submission for the pot-luck. Might I suggest a pasta, Ade? Adira, you go and brush, you have exactly five minutes before I pull you to the field." 

Adira only had a second to take in Adrian's amused face before the door of the bathroom closed.  

 ---

Adira shivered in the cool air as she stood opposite Cassie on the pack's training grounds. Early birds chirped as the yellow sunlight lit the woods. For the last hour, Cassie had Adira attempt to better her strength and stamina.  Adira's body was sore from lifting weights and completing core exercises. She hadn't realized how long a minute could be until she had to do a plank for sixty seconds!  When Cassie finally called a time-out for the exercise, Adira could have wept in relief. She collapsed on the ground and began to fervently thank every deity for stopping her torture before realizing that Cassie had gone back to the duffle bag she had carried to the field. Shit. It had only been one hour. She had another hour of fighting left to do. Fuck. 

Cassie snickered at Adira's expression as she sat down next to her, dropping something on the ground behind her. Though Cassie had trained alongside her, she barely looked affected. "You do know that you've committed to training with the forces also, right? We're going to start training them in two days. I love you and I love that you want to fight but you're going to be seriously fucked. It'll be fun!"