“State your name and purpose here.” The deep voice seemed to consume the whole open room, bouncing off the marble floors.
Harper West, and because life hates me, I thought to myself. While, I remained silent on the far side of the courtroom.
The vast room seemed to swallow up anyone inside it. It held seats upon seats in a circles slowly rising towards the ceiling, similar to a stadium. The whole hall was decorated in lavish stone statues to match the pitch-black marble floor and beige marble walls. In the center of the room was a wooden structure that held a solid platform with extravagant, red velvet chairs and singular pedestals in front of them. On each side of the platform were massive stone pillars, standing strong and holding up the looming ceiling.
All of the Elite Council were dressed in black robes with gold accents along the collars, their hoods over their heads and covering their faces. They were about five feet higher than the rest of us, sitting on the raised stand with a podium in front of all ten of them. None of them were looking at us; their eyes were glued to my son.
Dakota stood in the middle of the black speckled marble floor standing tall and proud. His usually messy brown hair was smooth and slick to the side in a formal fashion, the gel making his hair seem closer to ebony. His grey tailored jacket stood out in the contrast of black surrounding him. I could see he had his hands shoved in his jacket pockets – the only way you could see how nervous he really was.
“Dakota Ryan Foster, sir.” Dakota’s head snapped from its previous position of staring out the window to meet the councilmen’s eyes. “I’m here to declare my rightful place as the Alpha of the Black Crescent Pack.”
I felt a lump form in my throat from the emotion and pride running through my veins at my little boy. Though I could barely call him little anymore. He was the same height as me now, the size of a twelve-year-old boy. His size and change in personality caused a pang in my chest for the little boy I had lost.
A hand grasped my shoulder tightly, in comfort, shaking me from my thoughts. I turned to meet the faces of the people on my side. On my right stood my father, head high, beside Shane, Emilee, Nathan and Joseph Shang. To my left held Alpha Foster and Diana Foster, and Johnny. All their eyes held the same look of respect for my son as I felt.
There were only two people missing. But they would never show. One was shackled in the middle of the pack grounds, being treated as an unwelcomed threat to the pack. Another, my own flesh and blood, couldn’t bare being in the presence of Shane. Even for her nephew.
“Very well, lets begin.” A familiar voice spoke; I searched for the owner of the voice to find it belonged to Evelyn, her short brunette bob coming into view as she dropped her hood. She was dressed in the traditional black robes that made her dark eyes seem even larger than before. They still held a cold edge to them and her posture remained stiff and unwarm – a true council member.
A man stood from his place on the raised council seating and dropped his hood as well. His skin looked smooth and was the colour of mocha, which made his ice-blue eyes a true sight to see. He briefly glanced at me. A ghost of a smile passing his lips as he bowed his head to me, I gasped lowly to keep from anyone hearing. The Elite Council does not show emotion, never mind acknowledging another person with anything but disdain.
“You are his mother, yes?” His voice reminded me of silk as the words flowed from his mouth. I detected an accent that was foreign to me.
I nodded, unsure of where this was going. “Yes.”
“And you are allowing this to happen to your son?” His welcoming demeanor turned cold as he held a slight frown. “I am told he is no older than five. Yet, his body has been strained into growing two times older than that. He may even lose his mind – become a simpleton from lack of time. Is that what you want?”
My breathing had turned heavy from my anxiety setting in. I broke my gaze from the councilmen to turn towards my son. Dakota’s stormy grey eyes had turned to steel as they met mine, no signs of my carefree child left there. I felt as if the wind had been knocked out of me. I was destroying my little boy before he even had a chance to live.
“It was not her decision to make,” The one person I never expected to speak on my behalf answered. Alpha stepped forward and masked my body with his, shielding me from the wondering looks from everyone in the room. “It was mine.”
“Mamello, we are not here to judge wolf-pack traditions.” A light haired man spoke, his body language relaxed and open. His toned arms reached up and pulled back his dark hood.
His beauty struck me; with sun-kissed skin, light blonde hair, and grassy green eyes, he stood out compared to the other men. He was definitely the youngest on the panel, not a few years older than twenty. He looked as if he would be more comfortable on the sunny beaches of California than sitting on the Elite Council.
The bright eyed man, Mamello gave the other man a hard glare before sitting back down into his cushioned chair.
“My name is Cassius and I am the Head of the Elite Council.” The Californian spoke again, his teeth gleaming in the light as he smiled.
My eyes widened in shock when I heard his title. This was the Head of the council; he looked younger than I did. I noticed Joseph’s back was tense and unmoving. He had his head bowed and eyes closed in submission.
Cassius’ eyes narrowed in on Joseph before flashing from green to a yellow, “I must say, I am surprised to find a lion amongst a bunch of wolves.”
“He is part of our pack,” Dakota answered in a low tone that almost sounded threatening.
Cassius smiled at Dakota, his eyes raking up and down Dakota in a calculating matter. Cassius opened to his mouth to speak but was cut off with the sound of a throat-clearing coming from Evelyn at the end of the platform. “We need to get started, Cassius.”
Cassius nodded, his nearly white hair bouncing slightly and smiled widening. “I suppose we do.” He rose from his chair was a grace I hadn’t ever seen a man use. “Dakota Foster, you are here because of the allegations that you are not of Alpha blood thus being unfit to run a pack of wolf-shifters.” His golden eyes settled back into their grassy green tint as he turned to appraise the courtroom. “I am told that the other man who claims the right to the title is here as well, please come forward.”
From the corner of my eye I could see a figure move but I refused to look over. I knew who was sitting on the bench across from us, but I couldn’t find the strength to see the people ruining my son’s life.
Alan’s bulky frame came into my eye line as he stood beside Dakota. Dakota didn’t even reach Alan’s shoulder and looked like a stick standing beside him. It was unnerving.
“Alan Wyatt Peterson, sir.” Alan’s deep voice sounded hollowed and had no genuine respect in it. He was an empty shell of a man who had learned how to play those around him like a fiddle.
“I know who you are.” Cassius drawled, glancing down from his high peak. “You certainly look like an Alpha of the wolf-shifters.”
Alan seemed to gain a foot in height and chest puffed out in an arrogant show at Cassius’ words. “Thank you, sir.” He sounded smug; I could picture the broad smirk on his face.
Cassius ignored the wolf and continued, “Over the past two months, Evelyn has witnessed your training and analyzed the needs for your pack. I only have one question for you both and then we will deliberate this matter in private.” His voice lost its laid-back tone and morphed into one of professionalism that aged him by decades.
I reached out to grab my father’s hand from my shoulder and gripped it tight in my fingers. I wanted to leap forward and snatch Dakota up. I would hide him away from everything supernatural and live a normal life. It would have been the way I had planned it from the day he was born. A life he could be proud of; a life with love, hope, and happiness.
“What does it mean to be an Alpha Wolf?”
The question left the room silent. The Elite Council gazed upon to the two standing in the middle of the marble floor. One a child pretending to be a man and the other a man pretending to be worthy of the title of a man, but neither spoke a word.
Dakota took a step forward, shifting himself to the center of a white star embellishment ingrained into the floor. His hands slowly moving from his pockets to fell at his sides and lifted his chin adjacent to the edging around the top of the platform.
“My father was a born leader. He had been bred and groomed into an Alpha but it was more than that, he knew what it meant to be an Alpha Wolf.” Dakota’s words floated through the silence, cutting my heart in two. “I never knew my father, but I really didn’t have to. I have his blood and I know I will his Wolf. “ Dakota paused to glance over his shoulder at me, “I already feel his Wolf, I-I don’t know how, I just know its dad’s wolf.” Dakota turned back to face the Elite Council.
My heart was lodged in my throat. I could feel the streaks of warmth running down my face as my eyes swam in tears. I wasn’t sure if I was crying for Ryan or for Dakota or for me. I just started crying.
“I’d be lying if I said I knew what it meant to be an Alpha, since I wasn’t raised to be one. But I do know what it means to me to become the Alpha Wolf. It means keeping honor in the Foster name, bring pride to my mother’s, and living up to my father’s expectations. I believe an Alpha learns from his or her pack as much as the pack learns from their Alpha.” Dakota’s jaw tightened and his body grew tense. “I will learn what it means to become an Alpha Wolf when my pack learns what it means to be a true Wolf Pack.”
Dakota bowed his head in respect and left his position in the middle of the floor to walk back to where I was standing. Dakota’s eyes never left mine as he reached my side and took my other hand that wasn’t grasping my father’s. The warmth that filled my body made Kai stir in my bones and the loyalty I had once felt for my pack grip me once more.
“Alan Peterson, care to respond?” Cassius’ voice echoed in the large hall, his voice sounding amused. I could tell from the glint in his eye he knew the Peterson’s were lying. Yet, he still let them have their say in court.
“Y-Yeah,” Alan lifted a hand and rubbed the back of his neck as he took a step forward, closer to the platform.
“Same question,” Evelyn snapped, tapping her slim fingers along the wooden podium, her fingernails hitting the wood in an even rhythm.
Alan nodded, straightening his shoulders and standing upright. “As Cassius said, I do look like an Alpha. I am built to be an Alpha and know what it is to be a great leader. What it means to be an Alpha Wolf is to be a leader to your people, keeping them on the right path and keeping them safe from harm. It’s being their leader and their savior – anything they need of you. An Alpha Wolf is they key piece to keep a pack together and gives the pack a purpose.”
I frowned at Alan’s response in confusion. It sounded so genuine and sincere I couldn’t believe it had come out of his mouth. He bowed his head in respect, as Dakota had done and turned to walk back to his family. My eyes met his for a moment and a small sneer crept onto his face and I ground my teeth in frustration.
“He could sell ice to a damn Eskimo,” I growled, gripping tighter on my son and father’s hands.
Cassius, Evelyn and Mamello stood from their spots on the platform and made their leave. The other seven councilmen and women silently rose after they had left, each one removing their hoods as they stood. They exited through the giant oak doors behind them. The last person to leave was a slim woman who still had her hood over her head. I wasn’t sure why but I couldn’t pull my eyes away from her. I left my right hand being crushed with pressure from my father’s hand. I knew she was staring as hard after her as I was.
She vanished behind the twelve-foot door but I couldn’t tear my gaze away and I knew deep down my father was staring along with me. There was just something about her and I couldn’t figure out what it was.
“Please follow me,” A raspy voice commanded from behind us. I dragged my eyes away from the light brown doors and to the face of a very small woman dressed in a formal navy blue pant suit. Her blonde hair cut just below her ears and in soft baby doll curls, which highlighted her giant light blue eyes. She looked like a porcelain doll.
Our small group of nine was herded to a clinical looking waiting space, reminding me of a doctor’s office. It had white walls with conventional paintings lining the four walls, a large, round coffee table surrounded by two couches and a love seat. There was a glass jug in the middle of the table with lemons and cucumbers dancing around in the clear water. A stand of magazines and newspapers was placed at the far corner of the room, just beneath the flat-screen that had been secured into the wall.
“If you need anything, just call,” The porcelain doll stated, her voice soft but her eyes sharp. “But do not leave this room until I return.” She turned and left without another word.
She left the nine of us standing awkwardly in the mouth of the room. Dakota tense and jaw tight. My father stiff with his fists clenched and eyes held fury. Emilee and Nathan grasping at each other’s hands in silence. Johnny tucked neatly into the corner, biting at his fingernails in a nervous manner. Alpha Foster stood off to the side holding Diana to his chest in comfort as she hid her face in his neck. Joseph looked distraught but continued to watch over us like a guard dog protecting his family. I stood with anguish consuming me as I felt like my heart had been ripped out seeing my family this way, and my eyes gazing helplessly at my little boy.
“I will be Alpha,” Dakota whispered. Everyone in the room broke from their trance to look at Dakota. “I will protect all of you, I will lead all of you, and I will make you all proud.” He met each and every pair of eyes in the room, meeting mine last. “I promise.”
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Two updates in one week, impressed? I'm actually shocked I managed to just sit and write this. I didn't have time to edit it, since I have to go to work in a few mintues but I thought I'd let you guys read it anyways :) Hope no one minds!!! I know it's a tad short but I wanted the big reveal to be a surprise! So what do you think? Any questions? Comments? Is Dakota growing up too fast? Is Harper becoming too emotional all the time? Who was that hooded woman? Will Dakota become Alpha? And if so, will he survive Awakening his Wolf? It's finally getting exciting :D
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