LEON ADLER
It has been days since Ethan left the pack – four days ago exactly. As instructed by my father, and with my permission, the pack warriors began searching for him. Our troops have been deployed to east, west, north, and south. We've also been coordinating with the Elders in hopes that they would have the power to locate a pack member.
As they search for him, I ask the people he usually associated himself with. But their response is either they don't know, or Ethan never really tells them much about his plans or his thoughts.
In moments like this I'm realizing that I should have at least talked to him, or treated him as an equal. Maybe he would have told me that he knows I'm his mate, or his plans.
I've read his letters – letters for himself and for me. I've been holding onto that notebook ever since I found out it in his apartment. In one of his notes, he mentioned that he has been tempted so many times to tell me that I'm his mate, but the more he thought of telling me, he's been constantly reminded that he's just going to bring danger into this pack. He's also been asking why he's special, and why he has the ability to turn off his scent, or remember everything. He's also questioning why he knew his mate's name at an early age – a question I've asked myself so many times. But unlike me, he didn't take it as a bad thing. Ethan saw past right through it, and found a good thing in it. Ethan never made a big deal about it, instead, he seemed pretty excited. And when I was reading those letters, I somehow feel what he was feeling when he was writing those – he felt sad, and happy at the same time.
The notebook containing his letters is currently under my care, placed in my cabinet. I have read his letters several times, hoping that it may give a clue as to his whereabouts. But he only talks about his experiences, me, and his abilities.
"You're supposed to train with the new warriors today,"
Dad comes into view along with mom who is leaning onto him, her hand holding one of his. Mom lets dad go and sits beside me, rubbing my back. They know how this takes toll on me. But I know I am to blame. Had I treated Ethan as an equal and a real pack member, he wouldn't leave the pack. Instead he would let us deal with this along with him. He wouldn't decide to leave.
Mom smiles sadly, knowing what I feel. As her son, she has an idea what I'm going through, and let's all admit it, no mother wants to see their son in this state. She grabs my face and rubs her thumb on my cheek affectionately.
"I thought I should just relax for a moment," I answer my dad calmly.
He lets out a sigh beside me. My father looks at me with pity, something that I don't want to see on anyone's faces, especially when it's directed to me. In my entire life, they have always been beside me; they are guiding me, protecting me, and loving me. But as I look into my father, I have a feeling that he's letting me fight this alone. And I'm willing to do this alone if it means I would be able to bring Ethan back into this pack.
All the three of us remain quiet. I wish there was an explanation in front of us as to why this is happening. If Ethan told me that I'm his mate, would things have turned out differently? Would it change the way I used to think about this whole thing?
"I feel like I don't deserve him,"
"You don't," my mother answers.
Dad and I look at each other with a confused look. Mom is unlikely to say those things, but right now, she has a frown look etched on her face. It looks like she's almost glaring, but not quite.
"Because if you do, you wouldn't be moping like this." My mother continues, sighing as if talking to me is taking a toll on her. "If you want to be deserving, prove yourself. You can't just sit and mope around here telling us you think you ought to relax."
"Honey, calm down." Dad tries to interfere.
"No, I'm not going to calm down." Mom's eyes turn yellow, a sign that she has left her wolf take over her. "Before your father and I got together, he had to go through my parents. Back in the day, families were very conservative. Status was everything. But despite your father's status as an Alpha, my parents didn't want me for him. So he had to prove himself. Now, it's going to be your lost if you keep this up. Do you want Ethan as your mate, yes or no?"
"Yes," I answer without hesitating.
"Then starting tomorrow, relieve yourself from Alpha's duty." Dad opens his mouth to speak, but mom glares at her. He shuts his mouth. "Tomorrow, you'll lead the entire team of the warriors who are searching for your mate. You'll come with them. If you're worthy of Ethan as a mate, you would be able to bring him back here in this pack. If not, prepare yourself to be a lone Alpha. I give you this task as a Luna, not as your mother."
"Yes, Luna."
Her eyes turn back to its natural color, and she hugs me. I lean into her touch, savoring this moment. My mom is right. I have to prove that I'm worthy to be Ethan's mate. If I have to travel the world just to find and bring him home, I will. I'm going to do whatever it takes just to have him back here.
As the moon shines above, I walk across the field alone. Most pack members have gone to sleep, even my parents. The only ones awake are the pack warriors patrolling the area. I stare up at the sky dotted with stars and the half moon, thinking why this is happening to me or Ethan. And as I think of Ethan, I'm wondering how he is. Is he sleeping right now, or is he awake, wondering how I am?
Thoughts and questions run through my head nonstop as the night goes deeper. My heart aches for Ethan. A week ago, I was just questioning myself if I could accept him as my mate. Now I'm too late to let him know the answer that yes, I do.
I accept Ethan Kennedy as my mate.
As I look down, I realize that I've been walking towards Ethan's studio apartment. Ethan used to eat, sleep, and do things on his own here. He was alone, and I wasn't there to accompany here. I enter his apartment and smell the scent he has left behind. The things here in this apartment and the notebooks are the only things he left me with. I close the door behind me, and let myself be drowned on his scent.
Ethan's scent smells like fresh cucumbers; it could be because of the cucumber soap and shampoo he used. The bottles are still in the bathroom. Shane discovered that, and informed me. I'm not entirely sure why he told me it, but it must have something to do with wanting your mate's scent.
His scent clings to me like a tight clothe, wrapping me in a dream. I sit on the bed he used to sleep on, then lie down. I hug the pillow he used to hug, burying my face into the soft object. I shut my eyes and imagine that I'm hugging him. Maybe if I pretend harder that he's here with me, he'd suddenly appear in front of me. I shut my eyes, hoping that he'd come back by tomorrow. The darkness creeps onto me, hugging me as if it owns me. And all of a sudden... I'm falling, then nothing.
There's a sudden bang on the door that jolts me awake. I jump on the bed, eyes wide. The pack warriors must have noticed I went here last night. I run my hand across my face, frowning. It's still early in the morning. Glaring at the continuous knocking at the door, I stand up and head straight to the door. When I open it, I'm greeted by a pack warrior who gives me a salute.
"Leon, your father is requesting your presence." He puts his hand down, leaning to the side slightly to look what's behind me. Nosy bastard. "Members of the Blue Sky Pack have come visited."
"Shit," I curse loudly. "Tell my father I'll be there in a few."
"Yes, Leon." The warrior turns around immediately without hesitation, and runs straight to the direction of the main house.
I hop in the shower immediately, deciding that I should at least take a quick shower before I meet them. I must look presentable before I show up. Otherwise, I'd embarrass myself. I use Ethan's cucumber stuff in the shower, and the more I smell, the more it reminds me that Ethan's gone. I shake the thought away, as my mother's words ring into my ears repeatedly.
Hoping that he'd have a few spare clothes that can fit on me, I look into his drawers and rummage through it, checking what fits me most. He has actually left a lot of clothes, and that makes me wonder how many clothes he brought when he left the pack.
After minutes of looking into his drawer, I found out a white V-neck shirt that just fits me. Well, it's a little tight, but what matters is that it fits. He also has a few shorts that are quite too big for him, but they are an actual fit on me. Once done, I run towards the main house.
Fuck, I forgot that my hair is still wet.
Not giving any more fuck, I knock on the door before entering. As soon as I enter the door, everyone turns around and stares at me, including my parents.
Immediately, I'm wrapped with a powerful presence in this room. My eyes search around the room, and linger on the guy who has a light dark hair, with a few brown streaks. His eyes are a color of chestnut, his jaw sharp. The man is indeed intimidating, and something tells me that I shouldn't piss him off.
"You must be Leon." The guy says as he offers his hand. I nod, and shake his hand firmly. "I'm Cloud. The Great Alpha. Marcus was supposed to be here since he's responsible regarding this matter, but had to step out due to an emergency. Larry, Marcus was the one you were speaking to when you were negotiating."
"Of course, of course." My dad says, nodding his head. "Who wouldn't know Marcus? After all, he's the Guardian of the Werewolves."
"But I do have his mate here. His name is Nigel."
Nigel has a dark brown hair, but his bangs are dyed. The color of his eyes is brown, and they are beautiful. Nigel has a baby face, and despite his thin frame, he seems pretty strong. He looks at me a little longer, and offers his hand.
When I take his hand, his eyes glow green. Both my parents step back, and Nigel tightens his hold on me. The Elders prepare themselves, preparing in case Nigel poses a threat. After a few seconds, his eyes turn back to its natural color. Nigel sighs and looks at me sadly.
"Are you okay?" Cloud asks as he stares at his friend.
"Yes," Nigel answers as he shifts his gaze to Cloud, then he turns back to look at me again. He looks at everyone in the room, before his gaze stays on me. "Your mate ran away from this pack, from you."
"How did you know?"
"Nigel has a power to connect with werewolves, and he can see right through them." Cloud informs us. "He's blessed by the Goddess of this power."
"Your pack is really gifted," My dad says to them, smiling.
"Leon, you have to find your mate as soon as possible." Nigel looks at me worriedly, sadness evident in his eyes. "Your mate needs your help. Your mate is special, and a powerful one. We cannot let the enemies take him."
"We can help." Cloud offers, looking between me and dad. "Nigel, what did you see exactly? You said his mate is special. How so?"
"Because he's somehow connected to me." Nigel tells us. All of us furrow our brows in confusion. "I mean, I'm not implying that we're related. But your mate is a direct descendant of the Goddess, which means he has potentials that he has yet to unlock."
"What?" All of us stare at him in shock.
"When I touched your hand, I almost saw everything." Nigel takes a deep breath, shaking his head. "Leon, I can literally see the strings that connect both of you. As his mate, a direct descendant of the Goddess, you share abilities with him."
"Do you know them?"
"No, I'm not sure what these abilities are. That's for you to discover."
"Ethan, you son of a bitch." I whisper, smiling to myself.
"But I think if you see what I can see, you would be able to find him soon."
"What?"
"The strings. It's quite faded, which means that he's far away from you." Nigel explains, smiling as if he's amused. One moment, he was sad, and now he is smiling. Actually, he almost seems proud. "But no matter how far he is from you, these strings will never be cut off."
"Thank you for helping me,"
I smile genuinely at Nigel. A new determination builds inside me as Nigel returns the gesture. My eyes meet my parents', and they look at me proudly. My heart swells at the sight of them looking at me like I've made the biggest achievement.
"I'm going to bring him home, I promise." I tell them. "And please, do continue with your deal. I'm taking the role of a mate first before the Alpha."
As everyone laughs, I leave them be. Mom said today I'm going to lead the pack warriors to search for my mate so we can bring him back home. Nigel said that he can literally see the strings that connect Ethan and I, but how the hell am I going to see that? How am I going to use the abilities Nigel said I share with Ethan?
What's cooler is, Ethan is a direct descendant of the Goddess. First off, I'm not sure why the Goddess ha a direct descendant considering she never mates. I mean, nobody has told us. It's not even in the history books. So it's shocking to know that my mate can be considered as a God, or a demigod. How cool is that? To be honest, now I'm getting more curious about my mate. I fucked up big time, and now I have to search for him.
It turns out dad has launched a few sets of pack warriors that would help me search for Ethan Kennedy. Before we start the search, I head back to Ethan's apartment to check if there are clues I may have missed. I haven't searched his entire home, hopefully, I would be able to find something that would leave me to him.
I check every drawer, cabinet, and corner of the room but haven't found anything. He has a mini bookshelf, and a few toys from McDonald's are neatly placed on it acting as a figurine. I smile at that. I can't imagine Ethan going to McDonald's just to buy a happy meal and get a toy.
There's also a black jewelry box that catches my attention. It's small, but it's actually pretty. I open the jewelry box to find a necklace that's so familiar to me. I recognize the necklace because my mom gave it to me, and I lost that necklace four or five years ago. There's also a small note attached to it:
Leon Adler's necklace.
The dumbass lost his necklace but never bothered to look. I'm keeping this for him.
It looks expensive, but it's my lucky charm now.
A small token from him, even though he didn't give it to me.
"Ethan, you're really surprising me here." I laugh to myself. Every time I discover something about Ethan, it really shocks me in a good way. Based on his letters and this note, he sounds like he's a lovesick puppy. And I'm actually flattered.
I wear the necklace Ethan has kept for me, and admire it in the mirror. The necklace is actually just a 15k gold. Mom gave it to me for my birthday. I touch the necklace and smile.
That's when I notice a faint red-ish line. At first, I'm actually confused as to what the line is. When I try to touch it, my hand just goes through. It's floating, and... it's directly attached to me.
The strings. It's quite faded, which means that he's far away from you. But no matter how far he is from you, these strings will never be cut off.
"Oh my fucking God," I exclaim as I look at the strings that connect me to Ethan, and vice versa. Does he see these strings as well? Because if he does, then he should already have an idea that I'm coming for him. "This is fucking amazing!"
I run back to the main house. When I get there, my dad is still speaking with Cloud and Nigel. They pretty much look like they are in a deep conversation until I barge in.
"Dad, I'm cancelling the pack warriors to join me in searching." I tell my dad, who looks confused. "Nigel, I see the strings now. I don't know how I did it, but it's just suddenly there when I got this." I show them my necklace. "It's the necklace that I lost 4 years ago – it's a gift from you, mom. But Ethan kept it because I never looked for it."
"Sweetie..." Mom says.
"Mom, please don't call me sweetie. You're embarrassing me." Everyone laughs.
"Well," Dad chortles.
"Well what?" I ask.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Bring your mate home!"
"Ay, yes, sir!" Without hesitation, I run with a huge smile etched on my face. I look at the strings in front of me, floating in the air looking like an apparition. "Ethan, you're not going to get rid of me that easy. I'm fucking bringing you home, and we're going to mate. You idiot."