"Jules..." a voice whispered through the darkness. Jules? That nickname was so familiar, but I couldn't remember who used it.
"Jules...wake up..." the voice continued.
I blinked my eyes open and light flooded into them. My entire body felt sore and I wanted go back to sleep. I felt different. It was like my mind was the same, but my body was foreign. I tried to rise to my feet, but I could only stand on all fours. Realization hit me and I looked myself over. I saw my body was covered in ivory fur and my hands and feet were replaced with paws.
I had shifted.
My brain was working on overdrive, trying to make sense on my new form. My sense of smell and sight had increased. I could hear the birds chirping outside and small animals running over the leaves. A ray of sunlight coming through a small window clearly revealed the dust floating in the air. They were more than just specks; they were silvery hairs dancing in the air.
I was circling around the room, trying to adjust to my new footing, when I heard the door begin to open.
"Juliet," a voice called. I looked to the door and saw my father enter with a blanket in his hands.
I took a few steps towards him and tried to speak, but it just came out like a mix between a bark and a whine. He chuckled and ran his fingers through my fur.
"It's okay sweetheart," he continued.
I could now smell my father's scent on the air. It was like an arctic breeze mixed with pine needles. He smelt like winter. There was another smell though. It was earthy with a hint of smoke. I could only compare it to a forest returning to life after a wildfire.
"Jasper," another person spoke, "can I..."
"Come on in Leo."
I whined. Of all people, why did he have to bring Leonardo?
Leonardo walked in and froze as soon as he made eye contact with me. His green eyes were now a golden color and glowing brightly. Maybe now that I had shifted his primal instinct was kicking in and he wanted to challenge me, prove that I was unfit to be alpha.
He stalked towards me and I growled. It was like he wasn't himself anymore, something primal had taken over.
"Leonardo," my father spoke sternly. Leo completely ignored him and continued towards me. My dad grabbed his arm and Leo growled. In an instant, he had Leonardo pinned against the wall by his throat. Leonardo may be our pack's next alpha, but he was no match for someone as experienced and powerful as my father.
"Calm. Down." My dad growled. Leo was breathing heavily and staring at my dad like he wanted to murder him. My dad's eyes began to glow as he tightened his grip on Leo's neck. After a few moments, Leonardo took a deep breath and closed his eyes, finally submitting.
My dad released him and walked over to me. Leonardo slumped to the ground on his knees as he caught his breath. My dad knelt down and looked into my eyes. "Now, I'm going to trigger your shift since you don't know how to do it yourself. It's only going to hurt for a moment, just don't fight it."
He placed his hand on my head and I felt a slight pressure. I felt stabbing needle points across my entire body but after a moment it numbed. My bones began to shift and fuse into new positions as my fur slowing thinned away. I squinted my eyes shut and when I opened them I was back to my human self. My dad wrapped the blanket around me and helped me to my feet.
"I feel like I just died," I breathed. I physically felt like I could run a marathon, but mentally I was just drained. I wanted to rest, but at the same time, I didn't want to sleep. Everything just felt weird.
"Come on," he chuckled, "it wasn't that bad."
I looked over to Leonardo but he seemed like he was avoiding making eye contact with me. I remembered now. He had royally pissed me off last night and then said he loved me. Now he seemed like he didn't want to have anything to do with me. The feeling was mutual.
"Why'd you bring him?" I questioned my dad.
"He wanted to make sure you were okay."
"Well, I'm fine," I snapped smugly. I guess my emotions were heightened as well.
"Can you please put some clothes on?" Leonardo spoke through a clenched jaw.
I pulled the blanket tightly around me and rolled my eyes. "Pervert," I muttered as I brushed past him and out the door. Modesty was lost to all wolves, being that we frequently shifted in front of one another. Why was he so squeamish around me?
I went upstairs to my room and closed the door behind me. I looked in my mirror and saw that my thin frame was now more lean and curvy and my skin had a healthy glow to it that wasn't present before. My hair even had a little more life in it. I didn't look that different, just more lively.
I put on a shirt and a pair of shorts before going back downstairs. I looked down the hallway and saw Leonardo exiting my dad's office.
Leonardo walked towards me and tried to touch my face but I hit his hand away. Had he lost mind?
"What's wrong with you?" I snapped. What had gotten into him?
Leonardo searched my eyes, "don't you...can't you feel it?"
"Feel how creepy you're being, then yes."
"If you think this is funny Juliet, it's not," he spoke sternly. "I get that I'm not your favorite person in the world, but you can't go against fate. You shifted."
"Fate?" I rolled my eyes and turned to leave, "Me shifting doesn't mean I'm not still pissed at you."
"Juliet wait." Leonardo grabbed my wrist and I yanked it away. Well I guess I was strong enough to get out of his grip now.
"Stop touching me!" I hissed, an animalistic growl buried behind my words.
Leonardo stared into my eyes. "You really don't feel anything?" he asked, the pain noticeable in his voice.
"What are you talking about?"
Leonardo cupped my face and before I could react he kissed me. His lips moved against mine like I was a drink of water in the desert. It was so intense and passionate. I would have relished in this moment...if it was with anyone but him. This momentary bliss soon faded and was replaced with anger.
I pulled away and slapped him. "What the hell is wrong with you!?"
"You're my mate Juliet."
"What..." I muttered. "You're lying."
"Why would I lie about this?" He began, "I said that that I loved you yesterday. It slipped out, but I meant it."
"You never said anything before," I replied. After a werewolf shifts for the first time, they're able to find their mate. But if the mate is human, they wouldn't feel that same pull. For werewolves who haven't shifted yet, they would only feel a very slight connection to their mate until they shifted for the first time as well.
That shouldn't have stopped Leonardo from telling me I was his mate though. He shifted very young. That meant that if he was telling the truth, he had hidden it from me for years. Why would he do something like that? Was he ashamed of me? Was this all some big lie?
He sighed, "it's complicated Juliet."
"Don't!" I interjected, "I'm sick of you hiding things from me! If you really think you're my mate then just tell me the truth for once!"
Leonardo clenched his jaw in frustration. "I can't Juliet, you just need to trust-"
"No, I will not just 'trust you' Leo. You stole my birthright to this pack, then you say I was never going to be alpha but you don't tell me why because 'you want what's best for me'. Now you think you can make everything better by pretending I'm your mate? You really think I'm going to fall for that?"
"Goddammit Juliet!" He yelled, "Can't you understand that I'm not lying? What do I have to gain by saying you're my mate!?"
"Yeah," I muttered, "I guess there's nothing else you can take from me."
Leonardo went silent. He probably regretted his word, but he couldn't take them back now. "Juliet, I didn't mean it like that."
"No," I interjected, "I'm just the alpha's defective offspring."
"You are perfect Juliet," Leonardo spoke sternly, "I wish you would stop thinking you aren't."
He stared into my eyes. I knew his words were sincere...but they were just words to me. I didn't want to admit it, but deep down I knew Leonardo wasn't lying. The way he was acting, trying to get me to believe him, he has never done this before.
Sure, he had watched out for me for as long as I could remember, but did he do that because of my dad or because he actually cared about me. Why hadn't he told me? I knew that having a mate but not being able to be with them was almost torture to a werewolf.
That meant that every day he was living in constant pain, longing for someone that didn't love him back. What would make Leonardo put himself through that? Did he think once I shifted I would realize he was my mate and we would live happily ever after? That I would suddenly be okay with years of lies and secrets?
If he was telling the truth, if he was my mate...why couldn't I feel it?
"I can't do this right now," I breathed as I clenched my fist and stared at the ground.
"Juliet."
"Just leave Leonardo!" I croaked My cheeks were wet. Why was I crying? I was mad at him. I was confused. My head was so overwhelmed with questions that it was giving me a headache. I just...I didn't want to be around him. "Please," I continued softly, "just go."
"I'm s-"
"Please Leonardo!" I yelled as I looked into his endless emerald eyes. They were so full of sadness. No, I couldn't feel sorry for him. I couldn't let him win again. "Please," I finished, "just get out."
He opened his mouth to say something else, but clenched his jaw shut. He sighed softly and without another word, turned and exited the house.
Once he was gone, I exhaled deeply. I didn't know what to think anymore. Was he my mate or was he just lying? Why would he lie about something as serious as being my mate though? A bond with your mate is a bond for life. Even if he was telling the truth, why keep it from me? I probably wouldn't have despised him as much if he had told me this when he first shifted. It was all just so confusing.
I woke the next morning to the sound of my alarm blaring. I hoped yesterday had all been just a dream, but the intensity of the way the sound reached my ears reminded me that I was a fully fledged werewolf now. After I finished getting ready, I walked downstairs with my backpack and was greeted by the smell of my mom's cooking. I sat at the breakfast bar as my mom put a plate down in front of me; blueberry pancakes, eggs, and bacon.
"Morning sweetheart," my mom said, heading over to the cupboard and retrieving a cup, "How'd you sleep?"
I drowned my plate in syrup and began to eat, "Fine." I glanced at an unfamiliar phone sitting on the counter and arched my head to the side. "Whose is that?"
"Don't talk with your mouth full Juliet," she replied, "and that's Leonardo's phone. Can you give it to him when you get to school? He left it in your dad's office last night."
I took a deep breath, "Are you asking me or telling me?"
"Telling."
"Fine," I muttered, shoving the phone in my pocket. There goes my plan of avoiding him all day. I glanced around, "Where's dad? He never misses your blueberry pancakes."
She sat a glass of orange juice down in front of me and replied, "He had to go update your file in the archives."
"File?" I repeated.
"All werewolves in the pack have a file honey," she explained, "we need some sense of bureaucracy to keep this pack running."
"Am I allowed to go down and see mine?"
She nodded, "You can view yours and your immediate family's, alphas can view their generation's files and council members are the only ones with full access to the archives."
"That means Leonardo can see my file?"
"But he probably doesn't care about it Juliet," my mom assured me.
"Still," I complained, "It just feels weird knowing he can find out whatever he wants about me..." He could know anything and everything about me, yet I couldn't know why he didn't admit I was his mate before now.
My mom chuckled. "If he wants to know something I'm sure he'll just ask you." She glanced at the clock on the oven. "You better hurry, your red-headed friend should be here soon."
I finished my food and headed outside just as Alyssa was pulling up. We lived on a pretty secluded piece of land. It was surrounded by a dense forest and had just one long path leading back to the main roads.
Alyssa was grinning from ear to ear as I slid into the passenger seat and threw my bag in the back. She couldn't contain her excitement any longer and squealed, "okay spill because you texting skills are horrible at best."
I rolled my eyes, "Just drive before we're late."
She put the car in drive and made a U-turn out of the large driveway. "So, what was it like?" she asked.
"Hell." I replied, "is it always like that?"
She shook her head, "your first shift is always bad. The endorphins in your body don't numb everything right away so it feels like getting hit by a train, but after a while, you don't feel a thing. It shouldn't be too bad when you shift for the run."
"What?" I asked.
"The pack run, we usually have one Fridays right after school," she explained.
"Who's going to be there?"
"Most of the 12th generation."
"Even Leonardo?"
"Well obliviously, why?"
I went silent for a few moments, "He thinks I'm his mate."
"What!" Alyssa yelled. I swear one of these days she was going to make me go deaf.
"But I don't feel anything," I began, "literally nothing."
"Then how is he your mate?" she asked.
"I don't know, I thought he was lying...but why would he lie about something like that?"
"Maybe your dad put him up to it? You know, so Leo could have a legitimate claim to the alpha position."
"But Leo's already considered next in line, being my mate doesn't change anything."
He had 'nothing to gain' from being with me as he put it.
"No offense Juliet, but maybe it's you," Alyssa replied, "you did shift kind of late."
She had a point, but I heard my dad and Leonardo talking about why I hadn't shifted one night. What if Leonardo knew why I shifted so late? Is that why he didn't tell me?
"This is just one big headache if you ask me," I muttered.
Alyssa pulled into a spot in the student parking lot and we both got out. We entered the building and I went to my locker. I was putting my books in it when I felt a pair of eyes trained on the back of my head.
"What do you want Leonardo?" I spoke. Even though I couldn't see him, I could smell his scent, it was the same smoky one from yesterday.
"I can't say hello?"
"You just did." I turned around. "Are we done now?"
"Can we talk for like five minutes?" He asked.
I took his phone out of my pocket and tossed it to him.
"Text me, maybe I'll get back to you in a few years," I replied.
"Juliet."
"I have class," I interjected as I brushed past him. As I walked down the hall I spotted Tyler with a group of other guys from the pack.
He stared at me like he was searching for something. He walked away from his group and stalked over to me. I backed up until my back hit the cold lockers.
"Is it true?" He asked, searching my eyes.
"I don't know what you're..."
"Don't lie to me Juliet. You're Leonardo's mate?"
"I don't think that's any of your business Tyler."
"Just answer the question."
"Why should I?"
"Why can't you?"
"Tyler," a stern voice called. I looked and saw Principal Richards standing a few feet away with his arms crossed over his torso. "Get to class."
Even though werewolves were a secret, our pack was so large that it made up almost half of our town's population. Many of the teachers and administrators at my school were wolves, including Principal Richards. In fact, he was a member of the council and Stefanie's dad.
Tyler put his hands up innocently and gave me a look before walking back over to his friends.
"Thanks," I spoke as I looked to Principal Richards.
"Anytime Juliet." He smiled, "I'm guessing this has something to do with your recent...troubles."
"How'd you..."
He looked around a bit before replying in a whisper that only someone with supernatural hearing could understand. "Your father came to the council last night looking for answers."
"Any luck?" I asked.
He shook his head, "none yet, but I'll be sure to keep you updated...until then, I recommend you try to give Leonardo a chance."
Yeah, hug and make up, because that always worked.
"I didn't like him before, I'm not going to like him now."
"You can't keep blaming Leonardo for your father's decision Juliet."
"Watch me," I replied at a normal volume as I headed to my first class.