Ria POV:
"Titan let's go, I want to make myself a smoothie before we go." I call to my pup whose snoring softly on my bed, he grumbles stretching but complies and gets up.
I'm in leggings and a sports bra with a thin windbreaker over the top and my combat boots. I rush down the three flights of stairs careful not to wake anyone and find Zim already downstairs with a glass of water.
"Hey Zim! How long have you been up?" I cross the kitchen to the fridge and grab out the yoghurt, strawberries, ice and banana.
"Only just got downstairs. Can I have a smoothie too?" She gulps her water down and puts it in the sink.
"Yup. Are you training with us today?" I cut up the strawberries and bananas and place them in the blender.
"Yea, I thought I might." She shrugs watching me whip up the smoothies.
"What are you doing?" Callum comes walking into the room sluggishly.
"Making a smoothie. Want one?" I place all the ingredients in the blender and blend them.
"Sure, make one for Alpha Elijah while you're at it please." Callum looks between me and the blender.
Instead of responding I grab two extra glasses and place them next to mine and Zim's. I turn the blender off and pour the drinks quickly into the four glasses. Sliding one to Zim and one to Callum.
"Where is Elijah?" I look at the stairs and back to Callum, he just smirks.
"You told them about today?" A grumbling Elijah walks down the stairs and into the kitchen.
"Yup, now drink. Luna Ria made it." He slides the extra glass along the counter to Elijah, he scoops it up and drinks.
"Let's go." He growls stalking out the kitchen door and into the hall.
"Titan! Let's go!" I call into the living room as I pass and Titan comes bounding out. I think he was on the couch but we won't tell the others.
The four of us walk out the front door and towards the bridge.
"Who's gonna be there?" Zim asks Callum who is walking beside her.
"Most likely all the wolves, since they heard about Alpha over there getting matched in power everyone wants to see her in action." Callum mutters back trying to not get Elijah to hear. I chuckle, Callum is funny. He doesn't care if Elijah hears or not he just says what he wants, but he isn't cruel just teasing.
"Can we shift? I want to stretch my legs." Zim complains from behind me.
"Sure. How far is the arena?" I turn to Callum knowing if I ask Elijah he will ignore me.
"Can you see those trees over there?" He points to the left of the bridge, it's directly opposite our house just on the other side of the lake.
"Ye."
"That's the clearing."
I nod at Zim, "You can shift, I will too. Callum?" He nods and shifts first, he's large and has messy light brown fur. Zim shifts and is a lot smaller than him, maybe half the size. "Elijah, you shifting?" I look at him presuming he won't answer.
"We need to look united in front of everyone. If you shift now so will I." He responds but doesn't look at me.
"Then don't ignore me." I shift before he can answer. I feel my bones rearranging, a few cracks can be heard but not as many as last time. It doesn't hurt but I can feel the hair growing all over my body, and my face elongating into a muzzle. I stand just about the same size as Callum maybe a little smaller. My pure white fur ruffles in the slight breeze of the morning sun.
"You're white... like pure white." Elijah mutters. It's then that I remember neither Callum nor Elijah have seen my wolf form.
I growl knowing he's staring, his eyes narrow but he shifts. The shift is faster then mine and he is a lot bigger, his fur is pure black. The complete opposite of mine. I look him over, noting he favours his right side over his left. I nod and take off running.
Zim stays by my side the whole way there and Titan just behind. Although I'm bigger than Zim, I'm a lot faster then the two guys. Reaching the clearing a bit before the two guys I stop behind some trees, it's probably better to be seen as one with Elijah. As though thinking his name summons him he appears beside me. He walks over to a tree and shifts back pulling a pair of shorts on he comes out and tells us to shift. Me and Zim walk behind two trees and shift back, as I shift I feel the necklace heat up. I ignore it and grab for a shirt in the tree, reaching down I realise my clothes shifted with me. I look down at myself in confusion, why did my clothes not tear like everyone else's?
The necklace, the rune is the rune to keep your clothes when you shift. It was on the wall in the testing room and the King cast it before we shifted back.
I walk out from behind my tree and see all three of them standing there, seeing me their eyes go wide.
"That is what you were wearing before you left..." Zim looks at my outfit then at me.
I nod slowly, "Yup."
"How? You haven't learnt the rune yet, plus someone who's in human form has to cast it. You can't cast in wolf form, no thumbs remember." Callum speaks up looking at me but not in the eyes as a show of respect.
"I'll tell you all later, I don't think everyone else should hear." I noticed the wolves inside the clearing were hushed. I could hear the beating hearts of the wolves in front of me.
Nodding Elijah walks out into the clearing followed closely by the rest of us. Callum drags Zim to the edge of the crowd and they both stand there leaving me to deal with everyone by myself.
I hold in the urge to scowl as all the wolves are looking at me curiously.
Flaming Pink Hippos that's a lot of werewolves. Titan sits at me feet, growling slightly. A few of the Werewolves growl back and his hackles rise.
"No Titan, they are friends." I murmur to the wolf and scratch his head between the ears. He rumbles and his hackles lay flat, the wolves around watch in curiosity forgetting about their Alpha Male.
"Fine, fine. Clearly you are more interested in who this is." Elijah grumbles and walks over to me.
"Everyone Alaria Ridaro, your new Luna, my equal." Elijah's voice is full of power and dominance. However unlike the other wolves who are affected I'm not.
The wolves all cheer, none seem angry or upset but happy and encouraging.
"Thanks." I look to Elijah not knowing what to say. He just chuckles.
"Ok everyone get into pairs, we are going to be fighting as wolves today!" Cheers erupt and the crowd moves around to find a pair. "You're with me." Elijah whispers into my ear as he watches everyone move to get a partner. Callum and Zim pair up and the newbie's with the older students, as they are trying to get a gauge of how well they fight as wolves.
"First we are going to go for a run in wolf form, please don't lag behind. Stay behind your Luna and I and ahead of your Beta please. For those who don't know the Beta." He gestures and Callum comes up on stage. "This is the Beta, Callum."
"Everyone shift and follow me, don't forget your clothes do tear so get changed and then shift." Elijah shifts and I follow. The crowd gasps when they see my wolf, I roll my eyes but accept this will happen whenever people first see my wolf.
Everyone around me shifts into there wolves and stands as a group in front. Elijah barks and takes off running, sighing I turn and face the direction he ran. I take off at full speed and catch him in a matter of seconds. The rest of the pack chases close behind me with their paw steps creating a rhythm. Titan is running beside me so he doesn't get trampled or lost in the sea of legs.
The rush of power through my body is an amazing feeling, it's like when I go hunting with Blaze back home. I love the feeling of the wind pushing through my fur, I add a burst of speed and take off ahead of Elijah. I'm not sure if I'm meant to but I'm pack Luna, the rules are created by me.
I stretch my legs and bound along, I've always been fast, and in wolf for I feel more graceful. Able to go faster. My muscles flex in my legs as I sprint along the path, I loop around and trot beside Elijah. Although he is ahead of the pack I think it's mainly because the others can't pass him.
I focus on Elijah's mind, I imagine a bridge connecting the two and send a message along it, Can you mindlink the pack? Ask them to run as fast as they can along this open stretch?
I know he's received the message because he jumps in fright. He turns his gaze to me and studies me for a second. I ignore it and continue looking forward. Sure? He eventually responds sounding uncertain.
Tell them to stop at me. I rumble the thought to Elijah and he nods slowly.
I take off running and the rest of the wolves stop beside Elijah and watch as my muscles bunch and release over and over until I reach where I want to stop. I slow to a trot and sit down tilting my head to the side. I watch as 10 of the wolves charge towards me racing each other, pushing their bodies to run. We do this for about 20 minutes before everyone has gone, as a pack we jog back to the clearing.
I shift back behind a tree followed by Elijah. We stand in front of the wolves as no-one else has shifted back.
"That was good, I wanted to see how fast some of you were." I smile at the crowd, a few rumbling laughs come out of it but no scowls.
"Ok!" Elijah claps his hands gaining everyone's attention, "we are now going to fight in wolf form. The pairs from earlier please start fighting, if anyone doesn't have a pair either join a three or come up the front and we will pair you up." I shift into my wolf and sit down watching as other wolves get into fighting stances.
A few wolves come up to me and Elijah seeking a pair, once all of them have been paired up I sit still, watching the wolves fight.
Let's fight. I haven't fought in this body yet. I mindlink Elijah making him jump again. Why do you keep jumping?
Fine. He doesn't respond to why he keeps jumping so I leave it and wait for him to shift.
He goes behind a tree so he doesn't shred his clothes and comes back, we circle each other waiting for the other to attack first. I'm good at fighting as a human but as a wolf I'm not sure.
He attacks first and I back up gauging which side he prefers and whether he leaves anywhere unprotected. We lunge back and forth as if dancing, he leaps at me using his back legs and drops straight onto my back. However I was ready and used his momentum to roll us both so I end up on top. Although I'm facing the sky I still have the upper hand. I spin around and place on a paw on his neck and the other on his stomach and snarl.
Elijah just sits there, until all of a sudden he uses my idea he is giving up against me. Wolves fight dirty apparently. Using my confusion against me and pushes me up with his hind legs and grabs my foreleg in his mouth and twists. In one fluid motion he has me pinned to the floor and my leg in a position to be broken.
I growl and he gets up, he shakes his fur and sits down watching me. I had you first, I thought you submitted. I snarl through a mindlink.
Never underestimate a wolf. He growls back.
Everyone was watching our fight and are now gathered around watching our stare off.
I scowl, I would jump you right now, except the whole pack is watching. We need to look united.
Pfft. He chuckles across the mindlink. You're a girl plus you've been a wolf for what? a day? you would never beat me.
F*ck you Elijah. Women are equal to men, if anything they should be higher up. Without them you wouldn't be here so stop belittling women. I growl sharply making him flinch.
I'm leaving. I mindlink and shift back to human form. A few of the crowd gasp and I look down. I'm dressed what's the big deal? Oh wait you don't usually shift back with clothes on.
"It was nice meeting everyone and getting to work out with you. I have to go now but you'll see me around the school and housing district. Don't be strangers." I smile and strut off with Titan on my heels.
"I can't believe Elijah, discrediting women like that." I grumble to Titan. "Women do so much for this world but what do we get in return? Abuse, threats, raping, belittled. Like seriously who does he think he is!" Titan growls in response and we walk back to the house in silence.
"There you are! I was so worried." Blaze comes rushing over an wraps me in a bear hug.
"I was training with the wolves, and meeting them." I murmur back, "I'm hungry. What have you been doing all morning?" I walk into the kitchen and find Prince Kyle sitting there reading a book.
"Hey Prince Kyle." I smile at him and walk to the pantry.
"Just call me Kyle. How was training with Elijah and the pack?" He looks up in interest. Blaze slides onto the stool beside him and watches me cook.
"Uhhh don't get me started. The pack is amazing they were welcoming even though I'm younger then most of them. But Elijah..." I growl and pour some pancake batter into the pan. "He was fine at the start, didn't ignore me or anything." I grab out the fruit from the fridge and a chopping board. "I raced all the wolves and it was fun." Grabbing a knife I start slicing up the fruit. "Until Elijah decided to have the wolves fight in pairs, they're good by the way." I turn to the pan and flip the pancakes. "I asked if we could fight, me and him. I had never fought as a wolf, I wanted to try it." I walk back to the chopping board with the fruit and continue slicing them up. "We fought and I won, used his momentum against him. If he moved he was dead basically. I loosened my grip thinking I won and he flipped me nearly breaking my shoulder." I stretch my shoulder remembering the feeling. "I submitted because it hurt, bad. I said 'I had you! I thought you submitted.' He said 'wolves play dirty.'" I turn and flip the pancakes onto my plate and add butter to them with syrup and the fruit on the side. "I then said 'I would fight again except it wouldn't look good as all the wolves were watching us.' and he responded with the most belittling thing! He said 'you're a girl! you'd never beat me.' How degrading is that?" I shove a spoonful of pancakes into my mouth and chew, the pancakes are fluffy and buttery and perfect.
"So, I said bye to the other wolves and left." I growl and continue eating the pancakes.
"I grew up with him, he's just like that because no-one told him off. King Vincent is always like that so he's like that too." Kyle pointed out, in no way defending Elijah.
"What does King Vincent have to do with anything?" I look at Kyle expectantly.
"King Vincent is his father. He's the other Prince. You didn't know?" He looks at me astonished.
"Nope, had no clue. I'm not letting him get away with that still." I mutter and continue eating.
"He never said he was the prince, even yesterday when we went around and said our names and stuff." Blaze cuts in, obviously shocked.
o-o
Did you guys think he was the prince?
Comment who you thought was the prince.
- Brax Xx