An Alarming Change

Maureen's POV

The day after my brother's birthday, I woke up very tired. Lucia was still sleeping soundlessly beside me. We had discussed late into the night. Our discussion was about everyone looking so confused, about Lancelot coming to me after he got his wolf.

I didn't see anything wrong with it. He was the closest person to me. Before I had Lucia as my best friend, he was my best friend.

We played hide and seek often, we played tag, and we chased each other around the house and even the compound. So I saw nothing wrong with what happened. To me, he was just playing with me as usual.

But there was doubt in my heart. My mum and the Luna acted weird yesterday after the incident. They left for Mum's room and didn't come out for a long time. I forgot to mention that my mum and the Luna were best friends and as luck would have it they were both mated to two friends, my dad and the Alpha.

The previous night when Lancelot finally came downstairs in his bright green shirt and black trousers, he seemed more appealing to me. But then I thought just maybe he was looking different and more appealing to me because he just recently got his wolf.

He suddenly looked more handsome and attractive. His voice also seemed deeper and then he seemed to look more serious to me.

Deciding to not wake Lucia up, I decided to go check on Lancelot. I was sure he would not have gone to training just yet. It was the morning after his eighteenth birthday, he should be let off training and just sleep in.

I knocked at his door the way I usually did. I heard him grumble but didn't ask me to come in. I entered the room and ran straight into his bed and landed on him.

Lance shot right out of bed as if my body burned him.

'Shit, Maureen what are you doing here so early?' Lancelot shouted at me the instance he got on his feet.

His question confused me to no end. I wondered why Lance would ask me such a question. I have always done it each time he slept in and skipped morning training.

Sometimes he would just allow me to lay my head on his chest and we would talk. I would tell him everything and anything. He was my confidant. Our parents were never around, they were ever absent, so all we really had was each other. My first day in my present school was made easier by him. But his question at that moment confused me.

'Lance, I have always done this in the morning,' I answered still looking at him confused. I had wanted to just listen to his heartbeat that morning and discuss last night's party.

'Look, things are different now Maureen. You coming here unannounced, you coming to cuddle with me, they have got to stop,' Lance shouted at me angrily.

Lance treated me like his baby. He never shouted at me. Even when I was being naughty, he found a way to calm me and make me smile. His words at that moment made my eyes sting with unshed tears.

'Why Lance, why are you being mean to me?' I lifted my head to look into his eyes with unshed tears welled up in my eyes.

Since he was standing up by the side of the bed, he looked rigid and anybody could have cringed by the look in his eyes.

But the instance he noticed the tears in my eyes, he turned away from me.

'You know what Maureen, get out of my room, I am not in the mood for your tantrums this morning.'

'I am not throwing tantrums, Lance. But you are being so mean to me?'

He turned to face me again, the look in his eyes harder. 'Please Maureen go to your room.'

'This is so unfair, Lance. Are you being like this because you turned eighteen?'

'Yes. Maybe when you turn eighteen, you will understand my plight' Lance said rubbing his face and running his hand in his hair. He looked between lost and frustrated.

I stood up and went towards him, I stretched out my hand to touch him but he moved away so fast as if there was something dangerous on my hand.

'Don't touch me Maureen, just go,' Lance shouted at me.

He didn't have to say it twice, I ran out of his room crying. I was blinded by my tears so much that when I got into my room, I didn't see Lucia standing by the mirror.

'Hey! What is going on Maureen, why are you crying?' Lucia ran to me and hugged me while we sat on the bed. She didn't ask me again but allowed me to cry. When she was sure that the tears had subsided, she asked again.

'Lance chased me out of his room.'

'Lance chased you out of his room, why?'

'I don't know what I did wrong. In fact, I did nothing wrong, he was very mean to me.'

'Maybe he was angry that he didn't meet his mate yesterday.'

'I have been with Lance when he was angry, he has never been mean to me.'

'It is ok. You calm down. Knowing how much Lance loves you he would be here soon to say sorry to you. Then you can take your revenge and be mean to him right back,' Lucia said with so much assurance that despite my mood I laughed.

That was one side of Lucia that my innocent mind saw as normal. She never let go of things. She believed so much in taking revenge for every wrong done to her, no matter how little the wrong was.

We took our bath in turns with my mind still on Lance coming to beg me. It was a Sunday so there was no school so Lucia still had till the evening to stay.

Her mum had promised to come pick her up in the evening. Lucia's parents are not like my parents but they were not around all the time. Although the few times they were around they tried to spend it with her as much as they could. Her mother was a drug sales representative in a pack close to our pack.

Her father was one of the pack warriors. He was a high-ranking officer and was well-respected among the pack warriors.

When Lucia became my friend they had not hesitated to allow her to spend time at our house. They knew she would be safe in the pack's Beta's house.

The pack Alpha and Beta's houses were in the same compound. My father and the Alpha had agreed for their families to be at close quarters so that soldiers would patrol both houses together without difficulty.

The previous Betas had always lived in the pack house with other wolves but that had changed with the present Alpha's friendship with his Beta and the Luna's friendship with the female Beta.

Sometimes I just wonder why they bother to build a house where they are never present. They are always away on one pack duty or the other.

My brother has been the one taking care of us for the longest time.

We got to the kitchen for breakfast and met Lance eating. Immediately he saw us he tensed up. I was very angry with him and I made sure to let him see it in my body language.

I totally ignored his presence. I wanted him to apologize to me but he seemed not to understand or see that I was ignoring his presence.

'Good morning, Lance,' Lucia greeted him.

'Hey Lucia. How are you this morning?'

'I am fine,' Lucia answered hanging on to every word that came out of Lance's mouth as if her life depended on them.

'Thanks for attending my birthday yesterday,' Lance took one of Lucia's hands and played with her finger.

I could see Lucia blush furiously. At least she was getting the attention she had always wanted from Lance. It wasn't a totally bad morning then.

'You don't have to thank me, Lance. I practically live in this house. It is not as if I can just stay in the room and not attend,' Lucia said looking at Lance like a lost puppy that has not eaten for days and just saw someone that promised a fat meal.

I rolled my eyes at her, she was just too hopeless when it came to Lance.

'Thanks all the same,' Lance said smiling at her.

'Your wolf was so beautiful. What is his name?' Lucia asked not wanting Lance to stop talking to her already. She was hopeless when it came to him.

'Marshall,' Lance answered looking as if he had lost interest in the discussion but he had to answer Lucia out of courtesy.

'It was so big and beautiful. Can I see him again soon?'

'He is not a pet Lucia, he is a wolf and a Beta for that matter. He will be unpredictable like any wolf with a strong bloodline,' Lance explained in a no-nonsense tone.

That was the kind of tone that my dad used anytime we asked for something he would not give us. Lance had truly changed in under twenty-four hours. He seemed more manly, even in his actions.

'I guess that is true. I was scared when he tackled Maureen to the ground yesterday. I thought he would hurt her but when Maureen laughed under him, I breathed a sigh of relief.' Lucia rolled her eyes and dramatically raised her hands.

I saw Lance go rigid when Lucia mentioned my name in connection with his wolf's action last night. He dropped his spoon and stood up.

'Maureen is his sister, he would never hurt her. He has to protect her as her Beta and that is exactly what he would do,' Lance said looking straight at me.

I wondered if it was my ears or if he actually placed emphasis on "sister".

'I will be out with Dominus.' You girls should not wait up for me,' he said again but this time he was looking at Lucia, who bobbed her head several times as if she had a loose spring.

I watched Lance walk out of the kitchen with a new kind of walking posture. My troubled young heart wondered why he turned indifferent towards me.