Song for this chapter: I found you by Benny Blanco & Calvin Harris
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My head has been aching for the past five minutes but I'm determined to get this done. I'm not too far off from finishing resorting to the entire file room. Well, the last aisle still needs a lot of work, and I may have to call it a day and finish this another time.
Leaning back, I step away from the box I was sifting through and sit in one of the wooden chairs. The pounding behind my eyes is insistent and I honestly feel like I'm stuck in a closed space. The sounds that were coming from upstairs suddenly sound muffled.
It's not a usual occurrence for a werewolf to feel sick in any kind of way, but ever since I got here, it's almost normal to me. Standing up slowly, I walk steadily to the door, shutting it behind me as I make my way out of the basement and back into the main building.
The first floor is empty as I walk quickly with wobbly steps to the main entrance. Once I get there, I push past the crowd of people gathered in a chatting circle and reach the door.
I quickly run out of there and into the late afternoon air with relief, letting clean air fill my lungs as my headache seeps away slowly. But then something else hits me, and no, not the dying rays of sunshine. A deep need to run free, explore.
It's hard to resist, so I take off into the woods. Heading towards the west side border of pack grounds.Luckily for me, there aren't many people around. Stopping in a clearing not too far off from the patrol tower, I fall to my knees, taking deep breaths.
In all my years as a wolf, I'd never experienced anything like this. I've heard stories of it from my Mom, but she may have left out the part where I feel like I'm stuck in a small room. My heart hammers in my chest, but not from the inevitable meeting of my mate, but because I was terrified.
Completely terrified by the fact that this is happening now when my future doesn't seem sure and my life is the way it is right now. I sit on my knees, contemplating whether I should tell Rita what's happening or not.
But what's the point if I don't even know where he...or she is. You know a female mate wouldn't be that bad now that I think about it, but with my luck,,, I don't have much hope for that. Standing up slowly, I pace around the clearing. Ice does the same in the back of my head.
You knew about this right?
Yeah of course
And I didn't know about this why?
Because I wasn't sure myself
I find that hard to believe
Stopping in the middle of the clearing, I look to the sky. Almost sunset, which means I should get back. Whatever happens, happens. Taylor is not gonna shut up about this.
___
Unknown POV
The camp of wolves seems to be packing up as the sun rises on the horizon. The noise of rustling material of tents and stomping around clatters through the air. No worries about being subtle now.
Three young wolves stand near the edge of the bush of trees, watching the goings-on. Kevin next to Drew and Blake, looking at the rest of the Hunting party pack up camp.
"Hey,, you sure you good man?" Drew asks Blake as he winces for the fifth time that morning.
"I'm fine dude" He rolls his eyes, definitely not used to people asking him that constantly
"Just watching out for you bro" Drew bumps him against the shoulder "Alphas orders"
"Well he's overreacting," Blake mumbles to himself.
Kevin listened quietly to them bicker over nothing. chuckling softly to himself. His brother was always a bit sassy. But he had been a lot more so recently. Ever since Calvin and Drew came back from their scouting trip, he'd been extremely eager to get home.
"Listen I have to tell you guys something" Blake whispers to Drew and Kevin, breaking the silence
"What?"
I think I'm about to find my mate
His voice echoes in their minds through a separate link
You're kidding?
Are you sure
They both flood the link with questions, and Blake rolls his eyes
(A/N: Future dialogue by any wolf characters through mind link will be seen this way, unless it's between the wolf and their inner wolf)
BLAKE: Well it's just how they said it would be, except for the weird shivers and blackouts
DREW: Maybe it's different for Alpha Males
KEVIN: Yeah probably, Dad never talked about he felt when he found his mate so it could be
DREW: Have you told him yet
BLAKE: No way, you know how he is, I'd rather wait till we get home
KEVIN: Do you think she's in our pack?
BLAKE: if she was I would've found her when I turned 18...
DREW: But?
BLAKE: But I think she IS there now, everything in me is telling me to run in that direction
KEVIN: So why don't you?
BLAKE: Because whoever it is, she doesn't seem to want to find me.
DREW: Maybe she's playing hard to get
KEVIN: Ah, then she's perfect for you Blake
BLAKE: Oh shut up you too
DREW: Well damn (he pouts mocking fake hurt)
KEVIN: What are you gonna tell Hayley
BLAKE: Hayley? What does she have to do with any of this
KEVIN: You have a thing with her no?
BLAKE: Please, she knows its not everlasting, we arent mates
DREW: She could be the one, didn't she turn 18 last week
BLAKE: I don't know, It doesn't feel like it could be her
DREW: We've been gone for a while you never know
KEVIN: I hope she's not, shes a little too much for our family
DREW: You Dad likes her though
KEVIN: Only coz her Dad is the head warrior
BLAKE: speaking of the Devil, here he comes
Santiago, the head of warriors at Moon Valley pack. He walks over and all the boys stand at attention. As an ex-military major before he joined the pack, Santiago was pretty strict of formalities
"Recruits," his deep bass voice says, well he says it but it sounds like he's yelling with his naturally loud voice.
"You know, you can stop calling us that right?" Drew says giving him a look, resting his stance
"Force of habit sons" he ruffles Drews hair with his first. "It's time to go, so get your packs and move your asses"
"We're the last men, so we'll move when you guys get on"
"Well while you three boys have been indulging in a serious conversation in your head, half the camp has already gone on"
All three boys look back and see that this was indeed true. Groaning they jog towards their backpacks and start organizing the rest of their belongings.
Santiagos raucous laugh echoes as he watches them scramble.
Soon the clearing is void of people except for Drew, Kevin and Blake. They all stood up, backpacks on their shoulders and followed at a distance from the ain travelling party.
"How are you doing now bro?" Kevin looks over at Blake with a questioning glance.
"I'm fine, I guess I cant wait to get home" he shrugs
"Oh, we know" They all chuckle, pushing Blake around while teasing him.
Blake laughed along with his friend and brother, but deep down, he really didn't know what to expect when it came to meeting his mate. The excitement was a dominant feeling sure, but he just couldn't help but feel this was not gonna be as easy as 1+1. After all, he is the heir of an Alpha throne, nothing ever comes easy for you.
___
"Oh you are not wearing that," Taylor says rejecting the fifth shirt I hold up.
"Taylor, it really shouldn't matter that much what I wear to this feast," sighing, I put down the shirt on the growing pile on my bed. "It's just a welcoming, and ill probably be in the back, completely unnoticed"
"Doesn't mean you can't try to look good" Taylor goes back to her closet and sifts through it again while I fall back on my bed groaning.
"I'd honestly stay here and read my grandmother's book Tay"
"You've probably memorised that thing with the way you read it" turning around, she presents a white sundress "Now this is gonna do wonders for you"
"Am I getting married?" I sit up and gesture for her to pass it to me
"You never know Tess, your mate might just be one of those coming today"
"Oh, so that's why you want me to look good?"
I'm currently regretting telling her that my mate may be close to me. She's way too excited about this.
"Duh!" she jumps on my bed to shake me "You're gonna meet your mate, its exiting and has to be memorable"
"If it really is all that, then the feelings at that moment should mean a lot more than a dress" I stand up and give her all the choices she picked out for me.
Walking to my own closet, I pull out a simple light blue shirtdress and smile at her.
"Now this is way more comfortable" She stares at me in disgust "So if I need to make a quick getaway, I can run with freedom"
"What would you even need to run from?"
"My mate duh" I wink at her and she stares at me in shock. Walking behind the changing screens Taylor got for our room to change.
"Did your mom not tell you how mating goes in packs?"
"She did, but I'm gonna deal with it my way" I shrug, pulling the shirt dress on. "Its gonna be enough trouble with the way people already act around me because I'm a lone wolf"
"Well some people are just not used to your kind, but they'll get over it"
Walking away from the changing screens I give her a look.
"Sure" I smile wryly and she rolls her eyes, grabbing her own outfit and going behind the changing screen herself.
While I clean the room up, Taylor goes on and on about what I should expect during the welcoming and as much as I wish she wouldn't, the meeting between mates. She moves around me, grabbing makeup and hair supplies. Eventually forcing me onto her bed to do my hair, while going on about one of the kitchen boys.
"...and Oliver was talking about-"
"Wait, Oliver? That warrior guy?" I cut her off to ask
"Yeah, you know him" she pulls a strand of my hair and I wince
"Kinda, just talked to him when I was kitchen duty" Taylor gives me a mirror and I stare at my reflection. the messy bun looked a lot more elegant than if i had done it myself.
"Wow Tay, this looks great" I turn and pat her curled her
"Hey-" she swats my hand "And you're welcome"
Once we're done with everything and Taylor has freaked out about a strand loose for the fifth time, we make our way to the north side of the pack, where the entire pack is expected to welcome the Alpha, his sons and the rest of their travelling convoy.
Apparently, every pack member must be present when or if the Alpha comes back from any kind of expedition. Even though we weren't part of the pack yet, the rule applies to us as well.
When we get to the massive clearing, Taylor and I spot Rossel and Rita and make our way over to stand with them. The north side border is the main entrance of pack lands, besides that, there's the other entryway from human civilization. Looking away from my companions, I spot Luna Emery right in front of the crowd with a few other females by her side. Her hair hangs low, and shifts in the breeze.
She keeps her eyes on the horizon as her ears twitch constantly. A weird thing for me to notice, but that's a wolf trait I guess.
It's quiet except for the whispers that flitter between different groups of wolves. My heartbeat is suddenly really loud in my ears.
"You okay?" Taylor asks me after a few minutes
"Yeah, I'm fine I-" I'm cut off by the sound of a muffled roar in the distance.
Heads turn and Luna Emery takes a few steps forward, her eyes scanning the trees frantically.
Everyone breaks out in talking and Taylor whispers next to me, but everything in that moment becomes background noise as every instinct is telling me to run towards the sound.
Ice is alive in me, urging me to take charge, trying her best to do it herself. But the lack of shifting means she doesn't have as much control as I do.
Whatever it is, it seems to feel closer and that part of me that wanted to wait and see starts to falter.
My body turns and I push through the crowds. At most, it was easy to get through since almost everyone was surprised that someone would leave the welcoming without being dismissed.
Probably doesn't happen much around here.
I can hear Taylor and Rita call out for me, but I ignore them all, my instinct to run was far greater than my worry of the consequences of what I was doing.
I hear Luna Emery call my name, putting all her authority on it. But not even that affected me. I'm honestly surprised by my own force of will.
All I wanted at this moment was to escape the impending arrival of something or someone, I wasn't sure I was ready for. And not even my worries of being exposed could stop me as I let myself shift while running.
In front of the entire pack.
I hear the ripping of the beautiful white sundress Taylor loaned me.
Well, she's definitely gonna kill me now.
Landing on my paws near the treeline I turn and look back. Rita seems closer to me than anyone else, probably because she ran after me, lookinglooking at me in shock.
I can sense the shock from the rest of the pack too, I don't even want to know how their faces look. Before I can do anything else, a black wolf breaks through the treeline of the main entry to pack lands. Everyone's attention immediately turns there while I sit rooted to the spot.
We may be far apart, but I knew that that was my mate that that was my mate with every bone in my body. And the roar I heard earlier was his.
Luna steps towards the wolf but he growls at her. Gasps echoed through the pack. Eventually, my mate notices me. I can see the glow of his eyes reflected in the sunlight from the distance.
Just as he starts moving towards me, I turn and run I turn and run despite Ice trying to take control.
I don't know why, but something in me felt ashamed that whoever he is, he'd be stuck with a rarity amongst werewolves and probably not even be welcomed back to the pack.
All doubts and insecurities I never thought I had started to slip through my walls and I push them back, concentrating on my paws hitting the ground as I run at pace.
I can hear the sounds of paws padding behind me as he follows me. It won't be long before he catches up.
I hear a growl that makes the furs on my body stand, and I slow my running for a minute. My distraction is enough for Ice to take over and I let her. She stops us in a small clearing.
Looking around, I can see we've gotten considerably far from the north side border.
My ears twitch as I hear the running behind stop and the sound of a cautious stepping wolf echoes in my ears.
I can feel him, everything in me wanted to run anywhere.
Slowly turning around on my paws, I come face to face with my mate.
He stands a few feet away from me, but his scent washes over me like a shower. I examine his wolf form slowly. Dark glistening fur that ruffles in the soft breeze and his almost fiery reddish brown eyes. He's a lot bigger than me as well.
I watch as he paws the ground nervously, watching me intensely. I don't move at all, and Ice doesn't try to make me. We're both treading carefully.
Suddenly I feel a probe in my mind. I growl softly and my mate steps back cautiously. Then he takes a few steps forward just as the probing starts again. I realize that its him trying too open a connection.
I don't let him in easily, but I let him step forward a little more, until we were only a breadth away from each other. he leans forward and touches my snout with his own. I flinch and lean back, but he doesn't stop, coming forward again and baring his neck to me.
Slowly, I lean forward and sniff him, baring my own neck as we familiarize ourselves with each other.
He then moves away and trots around me, almost as if he was asseing my form. Then suddenly, he pads away to the other side of the clearing behind a few tall bushes.
Confused i try to catch a glimpse of him, but before I move my head even slightly, he comes back with something in his teeth.
Dropping the bundle at my feet, he looks up at me curiously, as if egging me on. I paw at the bundle and find a whirt shirt and short shorts in the pile.
Realizing he wants me to shift back to human, I lean forward and carefully grab the clothes with my teeth.
Once he sees I've understood, he walks back to the bushes and disappears. I can hear a rustling and movement which I assume is him shifting back to his human form.
I turn to go on the opposite side of the clearing to another brush of bushes. Dropping the clothes on the ground. I pull Ice in and slowly shift back to my human form. my breaths come out unevenly as I try to contain the millions of emotions running through me right now.
I shrug on the white shirt and watch as it falls mid thigh. Thankfully it isn't opague, and the white doesn't reveal much. Buttonning up, I hear movement across the clearing and the sound of footsteps tedding on top on dry leaves.
Taking a deep breath while running my fingers through my hair, I step from behind the tall bushes and walk towards the frame of a tall guy in the centre of the clearing.
He turns around just as I get a feet away from him.
And holy mother of greek gods, it takes everything in me not to gasp.
His hazel eyes catch my attention first as they pierce into my own. Watvhing me intently. I resist the urge to shiver as they move to take in every inch of me before coming back to stare into my eyes again.
A few minutes of silence pass before he steps forward, not close enough to make it uncomfortable, but close enough to be in my personal space (Does that even make sense)
"Hi" he says, and nothing in my life sounded better than that one word.
In this moment, I realize that all that doubt, fear, worries washed away in the presence of my mate. And that missing piece, as cheesy as it sounds, has always been this moment.
"Hi" i say and he smiles at me
I cant help myself, i smile back.
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A/N:
Long time no see fellow wolfies. Major apologies for the long ass wait. But shii has been insane out here. Uni and all that.
Hopefully ill have more time to update, the semester is almost over so yay to that!
How are yall btw?
Thoughts on the chapter? What do you think is gonna happen next?
Hit the star, leave a comment, see you next update
Wolfgang out *howls*