The next day, I was woken up by a familiar scent. "Pride and threat", I thought to myself. In other words, Autumn.
I could hear she was going up the stairs before she reached my room.
"Hey, glad you're up. Look, um, we need to talk." She told me as she walked toward my bed.
"What's up?" I said, my voice still husky from sleep.
"The Amber Sunset pack members left. They told me to tell you to go to their pack. The alpha wants to talk to you." She told me.
"Since when do you work for packs?" I told her jokingly with a smirk on my face.
"Shut up. I'm trying to help you out. Plus, I'm telling you to go because I trust the pack. That's my former pack, and let's say I was important there, so they'll know not to mess with you or I'll kick their asses." She responded.
Just as I was about to thank her, a thought came into my mind. Why was she being so good to me?
"Autumn. I want to thank you, but, I was meaning to ask, why are you helping me so much? I mean, I'm just a newbie. Why help someone like me so much?" I asked her with my curiosity saying the words more than my own mouth.
Her expressions saddened as she looked to the ground before she looked at my eyes.
"You really want to know?..." She said turning her tone quieter and lowering her head.
"If it's not too much to ask." I answered, turning a bit nervous since it looked like the answer saddened her.
"You're looking for your parents. The possibility of them being out there exist. Meanwhile, I'm looking for the assholes that killed mine so I can avenge my parents. I'm merely helping you because I know that if we find them, at least I can see someone that still has that love. I want to remember how it feels to have a family." She cleared her eyes which started getting watery. "It's a small memory what's left in my mind, I'm trying to treasure it." She finished and gave me a sad smile.
I felt bad for her, I felt sad because of the way she had opened up to me. I didn't even know what to say.
"I'm sorry for that. I owe you a lot. In return of you helping me find my parents, I'll help you avenge yours. You have my word." I told her.
She cleared her eyes and sniffed her nose.
"Thank you, but that won't be necessary. Let's just focus on you for a moment, okay? But thanks for the offer." She said still sniffing her nose and with a sad smile over her lips.
-
I found myself leaving my house the next day with Harry and Autumn in look of my parents. I said my goodbyes and I love you's to mom and Rachel and left.
We went to Iris' home on the way there so I could say goodbye to her as well. When we got there, she was waiting for me in the living room. Her parents had left for work earlier in the morning, far before she woke up. She was still wearing pajamas, a cute one if I may add, with the picture of a kitten sleeping and matching pants, but she was wearing her casual black leather boots. I smiled at the image of typical Iris.
I explained to her what I was going to do, and that I needed her to cover for me while I was gone, but she wasn't up for it.
"I want to go with you. I could be of help. You never know." She tried to debate.
"Thanks, but this is something a bit dangerous. I don't want you to get hurt. Plus, I don't think you could hold on to my fur while I'm running." I told her with a teasing smile over my lips, to which she responded by narrowing her eyes at me.
"Then at least call me. I'd like to hear you once a day at the least." She told me.
"I was already planning on it, babe." I told her, a blush convening my face as I finished my sentence.
"Starting with the nicknames, are we?" She told me widening her eyes in amusement.
"Sorry." My blush didn't feel warm. It felt hot.
"It's okay, babe." She said emphasizing the word sarcastically.
"I love you." I said seriously all of a sudden. "Aren't you a bag of surprises?" My wolf said. I was a bit confused, since it sounded like my thinking voice, even if I knew it wasn't me.
I looked at Iris, she stood still, processing what I had just told her. Then, a smile covered her lips.
"I love you too." She responded back.
We stared at each other for some seconds and then, when it felt perfect, we kissed. This kiss was a little more possessive from my part, but she didn't let me have it my way entirely. She then started controlling the kiss, and I must admit, I liked it.
The two of us pulled each other closer. It felt right to have her in my arms, it felt perfect.
She pulled her head a few inches back, she still had her eyes closed, and when she opened them she had a different look on her eyes. Excitement.
I was feeling similar, and I could hear my wolf telling me to take our mate, right then and there. But as much as I liked the idea, I couldn't do that to her, and I wasn't planning on doing it yet.
"Babe, as much as I love what's going on right now-" I started saying, but she interrupted me.
"You have to go..." She said in a disappointed tone.
"I'm sorry." I said.
"It's okay. I know how important this is for you. I hope you find them. I truly do." She told me with a sincere yet sad smile.
"I'll be back as soon as I can. I promise." I assured her as we got up from the sofa.
I kissed her again, her lips felt soft and I could feel her breathing in my face. I pulled back to look at her once more, only to see her with her eyes still closed from the kiss. I felt blessed I could see that beauty, and I felt blessed she was my mate.
"Goodbye. I love you." I told her as I left her house.
"Good luck. I love you too." She told me.
Once outside, I saw Harry giving me a knowing look accompanied by a smirk and Autumn with a serious look on her face.
"Come back safe!" Iris shouted at me once after I shifted, and then I ran with Harry and Autumn by my side.
-
Harry, Autumn and I had ran about twenty miles when we had decided we could shift back and rest. We had settled in a forest that had no trace of werewolves and we set a small camp place to rest.
"So how do you two know each other?" I asked Harry and Autumn while I finished setting the last tent.
"When I was in Amber Sunset I trained to become a strong fighter, even before becoming a werewolf. Harry was my teacher, and there's also the fact that he's my uncle." Autumn told me while looking at the distance.
"I was the head fighter of Amber Sunset. Some years after my sister was killed, Autumn left the pack searching for vengeance, and I followed her to protect her, and avenge my sister's and best friend's death." Harry said while looking at Autumn.
"Do you have any clues?" I asked.
"No. We haven't found anything for two years now. Our last clue lead us to your town. We haven't found anything since." Autumn answered me with an annoyed expression, yet her look was still distant.
"Actually we did, don't you remember?" Harry told Autumn.
"That bald guy from Camburn? He knew nothing! He told us things we already knew. Plus, he wasn't a rogue, he was outside of his pack territory with the permission of his alpha. A rogue would've known far more than any pack wolf would!" She yelled at her uncle.
"Autumn calm down." Harry told her with serious thunderous tone in his voice.
While Autumn and Harry started arguing I thought about what she said.
"Bald guy from Camburn? Do you mean the coach? He's a werewolf?" I said, interrupting them, almost in disbelief.
"Yes. He's from the Gazer pack." Harry answered.
"The biggest, most ambitious pack on all US." Autumn added with a flat, still distant look.
"Why ambitious?" I asked.
" "The more, the merrier" is their motto. Whether its territory or wolves." Autumn answered, for once looking at me. For a second it seemed as if she had looked at me with a pained expression.
Harry looked at the sky and then at us.
"It's time to sleep. Tomorrow we will reach Amber Sunset territory. Both of you need to rest." Harry told us both.
"Alright." I said yawning.
"Fine." Autumn said in a low annoyed tone.
-
The next day went awfully slow. We let the camp place set just in case we needed it in the future. Plus, we didn't have time to bag everything up. The three of us woke up later than anticipated, so we had to save time.
After running for almost the same amount of miles as the day before, we then reached the outskirts of the pack, and there were wolves already waiting for us. They took us far inside the pack, which seemed bigger than the fields and forests we went through to get there.
We passed by a village of what seemed like American Natives, which surprised me. There were many wolves there too, and a lot of young wolves play-fighting one on one. They all seemed happy.
We had then reached the alpha's huge mansion where other wolves waited for us. These wolves felt stronger, tougher, and more dangerous than the other ones, but there was one that felt the strongest of all of them.
The smell of pride and threat was enough to knock my nose out for some minutes until the odor sinked in.
In front of the mansion a young man with long hair greeted us once we changed.
"Autumn. Uncle Harry. Long time no see." That long haired guy who seemed too chill to be a guard said. I couldn't help but think that he reminded me of surfers, with long wavy hair and sharp jawlines.
"How have you been, Rudolph?" Harry said after he hugged him.
"I've been good, and the pack too." He replied to Harry. "And you? I've missed fighting with you." He looked at Autumn when he spoke.
"You mean you miss losing?" Autumn answered him, to which he responded with an open mouth and narrowed eyes. She later proceeded to hug him, but he rejected her in an over dramatic way.
"No, no. If you knew how to be a good girl you wouldn't act like this. Shoo, shoo!" He waved his hand across her face and she looked at him with narrowed eyes before she slapped his hands, then they both laughed and finally hugged.
They looked really happy for that moment. But then the guy who seemed to be the alpha, Rudolph, looked at me with an expectant look.
"So you're Connor?" He asked.
"Aiden." Autumn corrected. "That's the name his mothers gave him."
"Mothers?" He asked with a confused expression, looking at Autumn.
"His adoptive parents. They have raised him well." She told him with a proud look on her face.
The alpha then looked at me.
"Well, Aiden, there's someone here that wants to see you. Come inside." He told me.
When I entered I smelled a familiar scent. I could feel my wolf looking around someone who felt familiar, but like a stranger at the same time. Rudolph started giving us a small tour, but I interrupted him and ran to where the smell led me. I ran to the kitchen and saw her. She was with her back against the wall next to the fridge.
When she noticed me she started walking toward me.
"Connor? Is- is that you?" She told me with watery eyes and a croaky voice.
My wolf recognized her, and somehow, so did I.
She's my mother.