"Quick! Let's get her inside!" The Elder was so excited. She opened the door and whistled for her two pups to get in which they did but waited and pranced for the bundle that Adam was holding to make it inside.
"Sit! Sit! She sure knows how to make an entrance! Thank you! I haven't had that much excitement in years." Grandma Shado chuckled and plopped into her chair. Adam kept Xael in his arms as he sat on the couch. His dad retrieved a chair from the dining room. Adam wasn't too worried, a part of him knew she just needed to rest and that he needed to stay near her. His Grandmother's dogs stayed near him, more like they stayed near Xael. The three just sat looking at each other, trying to digest what all happened. The Elder was the first to speak.
"It's so good to see both of you! Especially you Adam and thank you for bringing such a special gift."
Adam was gently rubbing his Omega's back to help her. She slowly began to move, but didn't wake. Shado's dad was keeping his distance from the Dire. Adam could tell he was leary of her.
"It's okay dad. Xael considers you family, she'd never harm you."
"That's good to know!" he gave a nervous laugh but still wanted some space between him and her. Turning to his Grandmother, the older Shado cleared his throat. Now he was wanting answers, not to mention he had questions. "Grandma, have you ever seen anything like that?"
"No, no one has. Dires are usually very secretive and only expose themselves to family. But she is NOT a Dire."
Both Alphas looked at each other. Adam was confused beyond words.
"Wait..what do you mean she's not a Dire?" Xael whimpered at the loudness of his voice. He nuzzled her and increased his pheromones to calm her down even further.
"I honestly don't know what she is. Granted, she has Dire traits, but what happened out there today. No Dire can do that and her eyes...Those are not natural Dire eyes either."
"Wait, none of this makes sense." Adam needed to put Xael somewhere else so he stood and laid her on the rest of the couch so he could sit next to her. Once seated, Xael instinctively moved over to him and rested her head on his lap. The pups on the floor quickly gave her their attention.
"See! See how attentive my pups are towards her. It's like they are protecting their own. And that pack Alpha...that was NOT a wolf, was it Adam?"
The Elder Shado and Grandmother both looked at him. Adam ran his hands through his hair, before he could answer, one of the pups jumped on the couch and whimpered. Suddenly Xael's ears popped up through her hair as her tail shot out from under the blanket. Adam's dad jumped up from his seat. His movement was so quick that his chair crashed to the floor. Xael was now awake and terrified. She yelped and instantly plastered against her Alpha with her back to the others in the room. She was shaking slightly.
"Hey, you're okay babe, you're okay." Adam kept his voice soft. Xael looked up at him, her grey/blue eyes were back but filled with fear. Adam's dad's scent was frightening her. Xael's ears were pinned against her head, showing her fear as her tail wrapped around her. The other dog hopped on the couch as well and laid down by her, his head resting on her. Xael reached out her hand and quickly touched him. Adam already knew his Omega was shut down and wouldn't talk or look at anyone, especially in her highly vulnerable state.
{Sorry Adam, my wolf is weak and all over the place. She's not used to your dad, plus he's upset}
{What do you need me to do babe?}
{Just hold me, and release your scent. I'll be fine in a few minutes. My ears and tail will go away also}
"Ah Grandson sit down! You're scaring her!"
"I'm scaring her?!"
The Grandmother got up and smacked him on the arm. "Sit down! Get your scent under control!" She walked over to a small table and grabbed a sage bundle, she lit it and placed it on the table next to Adam in a small cast iron skillet.
"This will help calm her wolf down." She returned to her chair, her other pup got off the couch and sat in front of the chair so she could use him as a footrest. She inhaled deeply, the sage smoke calming her as well.
"Both of you need to settle down. She's very sensitive right now and weak." The Elder turned her attention to Adam.
"Adam I'm so happy you came out today. I know you have a lot of questions, we both do. Have you met her parents?"
"No, her parents were killed when she was just a kid, her grandmother raised her."
"I see, was she raised on tribal land?"
"Yeah, how did you know?"
"Just a lucky guess. I have to tell you two something. I knew today would happen. Spirit showed me in a dream two weeks ago!"
"Are you serious Grandma?" Shado's dad was having a hard time with everything. His analytical mind wouldn't allow him to accept the strange and sometimes mystical ways that Spirit could work.
"Very serious! I do not joke about visions from Spirit! Everything has led to this day. You two meeting, you two mating, etc. I will tell you what I know about Dires, but keep in mind she is a special case."
The Elder adjusted herself in her chair. "Dire Omegas are very rare. You can tell them by their grey eyes, they're also exceptionally beautiful. They usually pass as Alphas but that is a form of protection. Being able to shift their eyes to red also helps with the Alpha persona. They can be extremely aggressive and violent when triggered. For them to present or reveal that they are an Omega, requires a great deal of trust. They are as strong as a True Alpha. Now for the unbelievable bits. They can heal but only our kind. How she's able to heal wolves is beyond me."
"She healed a wild wolf the other day."
"I see. Their unmated scent is very potent. Potent to the point that it can cause an Alpha to go Feral, which is extremely dangerous. The Dire Omega would have to shift to defend herself. If she has gotten to that point, then she will kill the Alpha without hesitation!"
Adam threw his head back, now he knew why she was so reluctant to release her scent around him. And why she was afraid of mating him.
"So Adam, she must really trust and love you to allow you to Mate her. Seeing how you're both still alive, she must have prepared herself beforehand and told you what to do for her afterwards?"
"She did."
"And her being what she is, I take it you went Feral when mating her?"
Adam was slightly embarrassed and only nodded.
"Unbelievable..." His dad was taken aback.
"Now! That is all I know of Dires but I have questions myself! Do you know anything about her parents?"
"I know her mom was a Dire, but she was an Alpha. Her dad was....She said her dad was a Spirit Wolf but a Dire also, I don't really understand it. That Alpha that showed up; he's her Grandfather on her dad's side."
"My God...that's not possible. Spirit Wolves? I haven't heard of them since I was a small child. Now those are legends. Tell me more!"
"It's not my first time meeting the Alpha. I met him just after we scented each other."
"Wait! You scented each other and she didn't drive you into rut?"
"No? She only let me scent her for a few seconds and her scent wasn't that strong. After our run in with the Alpha, she told me all about him. He's her Grandfather. He showed up to 'scope me out' to make sure I was a worthy Mate. She has two pups also but they are hybrids, mostly wolves and she can link them. Hell, she can link anyone that she wants to."
"She can!? Dires are not able to do that!"
"Well, Xael can."
"So what's with the ears and tail?" Adam's dad was able to talk after he had allowed the aroma from the sage to settle him down.
"She did that yesterday for the first time. Don't feel bad dad, she freaked me out also. She said it's a way for her wolf to show that it trusts me. But I don't know why they're out now, she said it's because she's frightened and weakened. My guess is your scent is scaring her and her wolf is forcing me to protect her."
Just then the dog that was lying on Xael sat up, his tail wagging excitedly. The other dog also sat up as he trotted over to her as well. Xael was waking up and starting to move, but only a little as she was naked under the blanket. Xael looked up at her Alpha.
{Can I have some water?}
"Grams, can she get some water?"
"Of course!" The Elder got up and went to the kitchen. Xael moved closer to Adam, her head nuzzling under his chin. Her ears were still pinned to her head but popped up when the Elder returned. Adam handed Xael the bottle of water which she sipped, keeping herself hidden as much as she could. After a few sips, she was coming to, her ears and tail retracted with a soft whimper.
{Sorry for freaking you out.}
Xael had linked Adam's dad but he thought she had spoken to him.
"Glad you are talking now Xael."
"She's not talking dad, she linked you."
All he could do was shake his head. Xael wanted to sit up and talk to the Old One, she didn't come all this way to sit and ignore her.
{I don't have clothes!}
Adam chuckled. "Grandma, do you have something she can wear?"
"Ohhh...let me go look. I think I have a dress from your mom somewhere."
As the Elder was in a back room searching for the Omega some clothes, she finally sat up completely. Turning around, she smiled at Adam's dad. "Thank you."
The older Shado smiled back at her. The Elder came from the back, seeing the Omega awake and sitting up, her face lit up. Xael looked at her, her grey/blue eyes were bright and intense as usual.
"Hello."
The Elder stopped and simply stared at the woman in front of her now having a good look at her. The Elder giggled and approached her. "Here you go my beautiful dear. The bathroom is right over there!"
"Thank you." Xael got up and walked to the bathroom, carefully wrapped in the blanket, both of the Elder's dogs followed her. Xael didn't think it was strange but everyone else did.
"Yup! She's definitely not a full blooded Dire! My pups do not like strangers and look at them..." The Elder returned to her seat, her attention back on Adam. "So Adam? When will you two have pups?"
"Grams, Xael can't have pups. She was badly injured during her time in the military."
The Elder just giggled again. "Give her time young Alpha!"
Adam started to ask her what she meant but Xael came back to the living room. She made sure to stay clear of Adam's dad. The pups went back to the Elder, one acting as a footrest again. Xael sat close to her Alpha but kept the blanket wrapped around her shoulders as she didn't have a bra on.
"Thank you for the sage, it really helped."
"You're welcomed dear! So glad to finally get to meet you, I have so many questions!"
"Ask away, but first..." Xael stood and approached the Elder, she knelt down in front of her and placed a hand on her knee. Xael looked up at her, eyes now gold. Adam's dad couldn't help but gaze into them. "Thank you so much, for taking care of Taza all these years. He..." Xael began to get teary eyed, the Elder placed a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. "He's part of my dad's pack. I'm glad he managed to hang on. He's very grateful for all that you did for him and for taking care of him when he was so badly injured. It's why he aged so quickly, the injuries were never completely healed."
Xael's eyes returned to normal as she stood. The Elder was impressed with her stature and beauty. Xael really was the most beautiful Omega she had ever seen. she returned to Adam's side, before she could sit, the Elder burst out laughing. Turning, Xael saw her jump up and start dancing out of joy.
"Grandma! Be careful!" Adam's dad was concerned that she might fall.
"Look at me!! No more pain!" The Elder laughed as she turned circles. Clapping she sat back down. Adam's dad was not laughing.
"Xael? Explain to me what has happened today." The older Shado wanted answers. Direct answers with no talk of Spirit or mystical creatures.
"Taza is a member of my dad's pack like I explained earlier. I've always been super close to wolves, ever since I was born. They knew he was dying. When they sensed me in the area, well you saw how they all reacted. I'm not sure why I reacted the way I did, I think it was because of so many Spirit wolves being together and active. I needed to get to him before he passed the point where I couldn't help him."
"What are you Xael?" Adam's dad had a litany of questions to ask her.
"As far as I know I'm a Dire. That's what my parents told me."
"Well you are not my dear. You have abilities that no normal Dire has, like your eyes for example. A Dire Omegas eyes will be only one color and that is grey. Yours are grey AND blue." The Elder had to agree with Adam's dad.
"My eyes turn blue when I'm in heat, this color is their mated color. They will turn red when I'm angry or in Alpha state and gold when I'm in my healing state."
"Explain the large Alpha."
{Xael, baby you don't have to keep answering my dad's questions}
{It's okay, I don't mind, he's just curious and worried about you}
"It's like Adam told you earlier, he's my Grandfather. Before my dad was born, his pack was attacked one night. A lot of lives were lost, including my Grandfather and Grandmother. She managed to get away but died in the road near my current Grandmother's cabin. Her Mate came across my Grandmother in the road and secretly took her pup before the sheriff arrived. They raised him as their son, my father. During the attack, Spirit wolves helped my dad's pack against the attackers. His dad was dying from his injuries so he asked the Spirit Wolf pack Alpha to hold his spirit for him, and he did. His body died after that but his spirit is very much alive. One day I got lost in the woods when I was 7. The Pack Alpha found me and his pack kept me safe until my Wolfen Grandmother found me. He told me that his pack were all Spirit Wolves. Some in wolf form others in 'human form'. They keep away from everyone but would reveal themselves from time to time. Other than that, that's all I know about him. He's my Grandfather, and his pack is part of my family, that's all I care about."
The older Shado smiled at her. He had so many many questions but felt it best to wait. He didn't want to overwhelm her. They talked and got to know more about Xael and she got to know more about them. Xael loved hearing the Old One talk and relay her tales and knowledge.
But it was getting late and Xael was exhausted. The amount of healing she had done had worn her out and tomorrow was set to be just as emotional. Hugs, hugs and more hugs were given as the trio began to leave. Xael and Adam promised to visit her often and Xael also wanted her to meet her Grams and pups also. The Old One told Xael to take the blanket so she could keep her modesty and return it on their next visit. One final round of hugs and they headed outside to the vehicle. Xael saw their Grandmother look off into the woods.
"Taza is special, he'll always be close to you, even if you can't see him, he's close. Besides your part of his family now!"
The Old One was comforted by Xael's words. Xael gave her one final hug and returned to her Mate's side. Before getting in the vehicle, Xael linked her.
{If you ever need anything, you can link me or them. They will always be close to you now.}
{Thank you dear one, for everything.}
Xael blew her a kiss as they drove off towards home.