The week passed by quickly, quicker than Asher anticipated and soon the weekend had arrived, and it was time for the picnic.
As the days passed it also got surprisingly chilly, faster than Asher was used to. He tugged on a thin black jacket, with high collars as usual, but wore a white t-shirt underneath, and slipped on a comfortable pair of sneakers. I should go shopping soon... seems like it's going to be colder out here.
The school had gotten Raven's files, and her new bed had just arrived the day before. It did need assembling, which would be a pain to work with.
Asher opened the front door, then closed and locked it behind him.
"So, school starts in a few days huh?" he asked, addressing his daughter as he unlocked the door to the car. The car was much cleaner now, and Raven placed the bag of chips and the homemade salsa they had brought for the picnic in the back seat.
"Yup," she said. "Have you found a job yet?" she asked, being blunt. Asher winced as he started up the car.
"Not yet. I've seen a few job listings around and applied, but haven't gotten any responses yet," he admitted. He propped his phone up on the dashboard, and set the map to GO.
Asher, like most pack members, went to college near his pack. It was a decent college, he got a degree in the culinary arts and became a pretty high tier chef at a restaurant in town.
"Don't worry, we'll be able to pay off taxes and take care of the house with the money from grandmam and grandad, but it won't last forever," he said, mostly for himself.
Once Asher had found out he was pregnant, he had decided to flee the pack. The night he planned on leaving his parents caught him. They understood his choice, gave him a shit ton of cash they had stowed away, and let him leave. Honestly, he was a bit more upset they didn't try to hold him back, but perhaps that was the way it always would and had been.
"Talking about grandmam and grandad we haven't talked to them since we moved here," said Raven, looking out the window. Asher hummed in response.
They couldn't talk a lot, Asher was still cautious (not paranoid) about the pack tracking them, but he probably should talk to them soon, just to let them know that he hadn't died off yet. Even though they were very... pretentious sometimes, they still loved him and he was their son, but it wasn't enough to get them to leave with him. Whatever.
They drove up a steeper hill, as the road got a bit rougher until from the forest of trees broke a massive mansion.
Mansion wasn't even the word to describe it. It was more like a small village, with multiple buildings. Even from out here he could hear loud music, and he could see bright lights strung up. Life and energy seemed to thrum through the air.
"Hello? HELLO?!" rapped a hand on the window. He jolted and turned, rolling down the window.
"Hi, yes," he said nervously, greeting a girl with sandy brown skin. She was wearing a rust-red bardot top with long, flowy sleeves, as well as a dark green pair of flowy pants. At first he had said Raven was "too dressed up" but for the students it seemed more like a party than a picnic.
"Hi, are you lost? I don't think you're in the right place," she said. Asher stuttered, and behind him he heard Raven roll down her window.
"Hey, I'm Raven and that's my dad Asher. Jeremiah invited us?" she said. The girl blinked.
"Ohhh you're the newcomers Minty wouldn't stop talking about!" she hollered over the music, "yeah yeah, you're in the right place. Go park your car on the grass over there," she pointed her hand to a sectioned off area, "and head to the backyard! If you have any food you can put it inside or out, snacks are on the inside and main dishes are outside. My name's Jessica by the way, it's nice to meet you!"
Asher slowly drove his car around and parked it while Raven watched Jessica run off to greet the next car. "This pack is massive," she said. Asher gave a nervous laugh.
"Yeah, I know right?" he said. Raven looked at him in the rearview mirror.
"Dad, if it gets too much we can go home ok?" she offered. Asher shook his head.
"I'm fine, it's fine," he reassured her. "besides, we need to meet the pack and you can go make some new friends."
They stepped out of the car into the makeshift parking lot and they walked towards one of the buildings where others seem to have gotten together. Following a sign wrote FOOD THIS WAY! MAIN DEN decorated with glitter and markers, Asher made his way up the large stone stairs of the den.
Pushing open the heavy wooden door he inhaled the pack scent, and shivered a bit. Raven wrinkled her nose behind him.
"It smells strange." she said.
"Well, that's there pack scent. Each pack has their individual one, it's strong here since they all live here," explained Asher.
The moved through bodies of people to the large kitchen, which had a large kitchen island in the middle stacked up with food. Raven put the chips and salsa down and suddenly there was a loud shout.
"RAVEN! RAVEN HEY!" screamed Minty, long hair swinging behind her. Asher saw her at the other side of the room and Raven shot her a glance, then looked back at Asher. He shooed her away with her hand.
"Go mingle and meet some new people," he said, "I'll be fine.". Raven looked back at Minty, then back at her dad.
"... alright, but if you need help just call for me ok?" she said, then turned her back and left, leaving Asher alone. He let out a breath through his mouth and headed to the counter, pouring himself a cup of lemonade.
Sipping it out of his red solo cup and moving along with the flow of the crowd, he almost spat it out when he bumped into the moving body of a brown haired man.
"Hey watch it!" They snapped, then turned to look at him. Asher flinched a little bit under the glare of the oddly yellow colored eyes. "Wait a minute, who the hell are you?" Asher tensed a bit, but suddenly the man in front of him stumbled a bit as someone slung their arms around his shoulder.
"Rooch! Meet Asher, they just moved into the town. They're living at the old Brigton house," said the loud familiar voice of Jeremiah. Asher glanced up relieved.
"Hrmm," was all Rooch said, muttering it into the depths of his cup.
"Sorry for bumping into you," said Asher nervously. Rooch waved his hand.
"Nah don't worry about it," he mumbled, "any friend of Jerry is a friend of mine." Jeremiah rolled his eyes.
"Yes yes. Why don't you go outside with the others?" he suggested. Rooch took the hint and walked outside with his drink.
"Well Asher! Glad I found you. Let me introduce you to some people, and of course the alpha," said Jeremiah, clasping a hand on Ashers back and pushing him outside.
Outside the den there was a large open porch. Lights were strung up everywhere, there was a fire pit and the smell of roasted meat.
"Hey! Ben!" he hollered. A short looking guy with a butch cut turned around, then brightened when they saw Jeremiah.
"Jerry!" they said, and thwacked him on the shoulder. "Where the hell were you this morning? We needed your help setting up," they complained. Jeremiah gave a sheepish grin.
"Ben, meet Asher. Asher, this is Ben, Mintys dad," he introduced. Ben looked at Asher.
"Hey man, welcome to the pack," he said. Asher nodded back at him.
"Thanks..." he said. Now up close, he saw the resemblance they shared together, mostly her face shape and the sharp, witty smile.
Suddenly, Ben was tackled from behind and Asher leapt out of the way.
"Shit-" shouted Ben, when there was a gleeful cackle.
"Hey Jeremiah, is my mate hogging you again?" asked a dark brown haired women. Ben scowled and pushed her off.
"I barely even talked with him," he said. His mate laughed.
"I'm sure. Oh, is this Asher?" she asked, looking at Asher.
"Uh- yes, hi I'm Asher," he said, extending his hand. She shook it with vigor.
"Hello! I'm Ariana, but you can call me Ari. I'm also Mintys mom and this dumbass's cousin," she said, kicking Jeremiah in the shin. "Where were you this morning? We needed you to help set up." she said. Jeremiah winced again and rubbed his leg.
"Hey! Ben told me that already. And don't blame me, I had to go pick up some supplies for the picnic," he argued. Ari pinched him in the side.
"Excuses excuses," she tutted. Asher watched the scene before him, unmoving, not wanting to disturb the clear "ho-hum pack family" theme. Jeremiah saw him and tugged his sleeve.
"C'mon, let's go," he said, then turned to his packmates, "I'm going to introduce him to Wyatt, I'll catch up to you guys later."
They wandered across the yard, Jeremiah greeting various pack members and Asher trailing behind him. Sometimes someone would ask about Asher, but he stayed mostly silent.
Finally, after what seemed like a hundred hours they made their way to the pack alpha, pushing and shoving their way through the crowd.
"Wyatt!" said Jeremiah, motioning to another tall brown haired man. He turned around and Asher felt his heart pump faster, faster than earlier under the gaze of the alpha. "Wyatt, here's Asher, the new guy," he said. Asher walked forward and stuck out his hand.
"H-hello sir. Alpha," he said. Wyatt took his hand with a small smile.
"Hello there Asher,." he said gently, "I'm Wyatt, the pack's alpha. I hope you've been settling in all right?" he asked. Asher nodded.
"Yeah, Jeremiah has been really helpful," he said. They had some small talk back and forth and Asher watched as Jeremiah shot him a thumbs up behind Wyatt's back.
"So, would you be so kind to tell me what pack you came from? Jerry didn't say," went Wyatt. Asher squirmed.
"I would rather not," he said. Wyatt shot him a critical look.
"You do know if we get your pack records it may help with any medical conditions you or your daughter may get?" he asked. Asher shook his head.
"I really can't," he insisted, determined not to tell the alpha. Wyatt stared at him for a moment more, then realized he wouldn't get an answer from him.
"Alright. I guess I really can't force you to disclose anything. But I did hear you are looking for a job, our pack would be open for a new chef if you would like to," he said. Asher blinked.
"I-I wow," said Asher, startled. "Really?" Wyatt nodded.
"Of course. There's been a new opening since our last chef left."
"But I'm not a part of the pack," Asher pointed out. Wyatt nodded. "And don't you have omegas to do that?
"Yes, but that doesn't mean you can't work here. We'll be willing to pay you a fairly hefty amount as well. Omegas don't... they aren't automatically the chefs here. Things here might work a little different from your old pack, an omega only cooks and cleans if they really want to," he explained. How peculiar.
"I'll take the job opening," said Asher. Wyatt smiled.
"I figured you would."
"You don't want a resume or anything?" asked Asher. Wyatt shook his head.
"You have an honest aura around you. Also, if there was anything that bad about you I'm sure we would've found out by now. And you have a daughter, so I don't think you're a serial killer."
"I-" Asher was stunned, this community might as well jump up and start kumbaya around the campfire. Was it to good to be true?
"If however, it makes you feel better you can send me your resume and I'll look over it. You'll also get a tour of all the pack dens and meet with the other chefs," offered Wyatt. Asher simply nodded, unable to say anything more.
"Thank you so much," he gushed. Wyatt simply waved his hand.
"We're a large pack, we have the funds to do things. Now, if you'll excuse me I need to have a chat with my brother," Asher waved goodbye awkwardly as Wyatt walked off, and took a sip from his cup, then noticed it was empty.
"Hey man, Asher right?" asked someone, tapping on his shoulder. Asher spun around.
"Oh hey, your Brooch right?" he asked. The other man laughed.
"Nah, its Rooch, but all cool. If you're hungry you can go get some food, I think they just finished cooking up another round of burgers."
Asher said his thanks and walked away, to the food table and grabbed a plate. Piling on the delicious smelling food he took a seat at a table, looking around in silence as he ate.
Across the yard there were a few people in wolf form, tumbling around in the grass and playing with each other. It was all werewolves, and the sense of pack and family was so... strong. It was so much unlike his old pack.
"EVERYBODY! WE'RE HAVING A FEW WOLF ACTIVITIES IN FIFTEEN MINUTES. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE MEET US IN THE YARD BEHIND DEN D!" suddenly said a loud voice in a megaphone. Asher recognized it as Ariana, and sat down instead, with no intention of participating but then he saw Raven running towards him.
"Dad! Dad! Can I go do it? Please? Minty and Lesley say it's a lot of fun," she said. Asher smiled.
"Sure, I don't see why not. Let's go inside and find a place for you to shift," he said, depositing his empty plate into a nearby trashcan.
They headed into the main den and searched for an empty bathroom, wandering down a hallway Raven tucked herself into the bathroom. Asher stood outside and waited, until he heard a scratching noise at the door. Opening the bathroom door Asher saw Raven's wolf, a smaller sized dark brown wolf stared back at him. She yipped and raced pass Asher, down the hallway and out the front door.
"Pups," he muttered with a smile, gathered Ravens clothes which were placed in a small bundle and made his way back outside.
On his way out, Asher's feet unintentionally slowed against the hardwood floor he heard two arguing voices. Slowing down, he recognized the voices of Wyatt and Jeremiah.
"-I'm telling you there's something wrong." It must've been Jeremiah which meant the other voice was...
"Well? We barely have anything on him. No pack, no mate, and I don't think the last name is real either, I couldn't find anything in the shared pack record database," returned Wyatt.
"It doesn't make any sense. A male werewolf cannot have any children but-"
"But with their true mate yes yes I know. But there is no true mate here."
"I think it's a form of bond rejection, either him or the mate are rejecting the true bond, assuming that they're mate is a male. I'm almost certain he is, I think I've gotten flashes of a mark against his neck." Jeremiah again.
"Yes and? We really can't do anything about it," said a frustrated Wyatt.
"I think... I think he may have been an omega and was abused in his former pack," said Jeremiah after a moment of silence. There was a pause.
"Well we're going to have to find the pack.... And why would you think that?"
"He's very quiet a lot, sometimes he starts shaking, and I've seen him flinch as well. And when we first met the fear scent pouring off of him was mildly terrifying. He also shares a lot of old pack values."
That's it.
Asher fumed, and stomped up to the office door and threw it open. The two brothers paused and turned to look at him.
"Well I do know that I don't appreciate being talked about behind my back," he snapped. "And for your information, I really would rather you not go digging into my past. And it's delta, not omega. If this is how you treat all your pack members I'm surprised how you're still the alpha."
He then promptly turned on his heel, and stormed back out. Jeremiah reached out and called for him.
"Asher wait-" but was stopped by Wyatt.
"Let him go for now," said Wyatt in a quiet voice.
Back outside at the party, Asher had Raven's clothes all bunched up in his hand. He watched the group of wolves run around, then picked out Raven. He caught her eye and she stumbled, then ran towards him.
Dad do we need to go? She asked through their mental bond. Asher shook his head.
"No it's fine, you can go back," he said, but Raven pulled her ears back and whined.
Come on dad let's go, she said firmly. Maybe you've forgotten but I can smell you right now, and no offense but you smell like a mess.
"None taken. Come on, let's go," he said with a sigh. They walked around the house and back to their car. Asher opened the back door for Raven and she hopped in, then he slid into his seat and slammed the door shut.
"Here are your clothes," he said in an attempt to sound cheerful, but it came out weak, even to him. Raven didn't comment on it as she shifted back, then pulled the clothes over her head.
"How was it?" he asked, keeping his eyes on the road.
"It was great! I've never been with so many wolves like that before," she said, "but you smell unhappy. Is someone bothering you? Was it Jeremiah?" she asked. Mentally Asher sighed, forgetting sometimes how strong his daughter's sense of smell was.
"It was nothing," he muttered, then after a moment cursed and told her.
"They were talking about me. Us. Behind our backs, in the office," he said. Raven gripped the seat tightly.
"Talking about... what." she said, her voice low. Asher rolled his shoulders and tapped his fingers on the wheel.
"Where we came from. Our old pack. Me," he said shortly. Raven blew a long breath and flopped back in the seat.
"Well that's not very nice," she commented.
Raven was never curious about where they had come from, she never asked any questions about their old pack, or about her father. In fact, for a werewolf she tended to make her own little pack of humans at school instead.
What she did know was that her father was an asshole, they had a short fuck and Jacob was disgusted with him the next morning, and her dad ran away out of sheer embarrassment and harassment from his so called "packmates."
"It's fine. Besides, school starts soon and you'll see your friends hmm? This Lesley I heard about?" he said, attempting to divert the subject. Raven caught on and blabbered to him about the people she had met, Minty, Lesley, Jessica was a senior who was attending the high school...
Soon they got home and Asher opened the door and they went inside. Raven went upstairs and yawned, brushing her teeth and getting ready for bed. Asher used the downstairs bathroom, then went upstairs to check on Raven.
"Hey- wait when'd you get the bed set up?" he asked, confused, looking in Raven's room. Raven lounged on her new bed with a book and shrugged.
"When you went out to do some interviews for your job. I put it together because I was bored, " she said casually. Asher chuckled.
"Atta girl," he said fondly, pressing a kiss to her forehead he left her room. "Goodnight," he said, and a soft goodnight was heard back.
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