A loud, deep growl followed by a couple of earth shattering howls brought the couple out of their slumber. Soon the soft thuds of paws hitting the ground could be heard. The wind carried their scents in, giving away their location. It wasn't hard for the habitants to precisely tell how far the miscreants were given their special abilities. They weren't anywhere near the boundaries around the hut, and still far away from triggering the alarm. Some might find the advanced technology a tad bit over the top given how it surrounded nothing but a lone hut standing amongst tall and dense trees. But it was required given the precious cargo they had to protect. "N-no, no, no…" A woman's frantic voice resonated within the confines of the small cottage. "This can not be happening already." Her vision got blurry with tears as she stared into the wilderness which surrounded their new home through a partially opened window. "It's gonna be alright." Her husband hugged her from behind, pulling her
19 years and 7 months later.Bella Coola, Central British Columbia.***Seraphine***"Seraphine Williams, you better get your lazy ass down here this minute!" I didn't have to be told twice to listen to the voice for I knew the consequences a little too well. There was no way I was going to let her put me through another round of house chores, or "helping her around the house" as she so lovingly called it. As much as I loved the old woman to bits and pieces of my soul, I hated cleaning around our not-so-small house. We weren't necessarily 'rich' as some people I knew would love claiming, but we lived a pretty decent life in our not so small town. "Give me a sec, Mum." I hollered back, hoping that my voice was firm enough to carry the words down through the door. I turned my attention back to fixing the mess of a nest that rested on top of my head.'Why?' I could only question myself as I tried my best to tie my voluminous curls into a bun so that the annoying locks could steer cl
Alaris *** Being the alpha of one of the largest packs of the country wasn't an easy task. Yet, the burden of it fell on my shoulder when my father deemed me worthy of it. I was only eighteen back then. As soon as he handed over the reins to me on my eighteenth birthday, he decided to go on a very long vacation. He wanted to spend the remaining years of his life with his mate—my stepmother. Though one would have a hard time believing that we didn't share blood if they were to observe us interact. My birth mother wasn't my father's moon fated, but they loved each other and the pack needed their luna. It helped that she belonged to the same pack and the two of them grew up together. They were best friends, each other's better half without having the blessings of the moon. The entire pack welcomed her with open arms as she tried her best to fill in the role. And then I was born; the heir to the throne. It was all merry, but happiness doesn't always stick around for longer. Some migh
Seraphine *** I felt it before I could see it for myself. My entire body was hurting. The pain was too much for me to bear without moaning out my complaints. I forced my eyes open despite their protest in unison with the throbbing headache. The move along was enough to split my brain into two halves, literally. I struggled to keep my eyes open for long and had to squeeze them tight as soon as they made contact with the bright ceiling of my room. 'Hold on! My room does not have a white ceiling.' With that thought in mind, I willed my eyes open, this time making sure that they didn't go back to clamping close. "Looks like our sleeping princess is finally up." With the speed I turned my head towards the source of the voice, I was scared of getting a whiplash. "Ugh!" And there it was, the pain—the head splitting kind of pain. "Take it easy, princess." The man spoke up again as I heard him making his way to me. "Who are you?" I frowned as I rubbed the sides of my forehead.
Seraphine *** No, no, no! It had to be some kind of a cruel joke. There was no way any of it was true, or anywhere near it. How was it that werewolves were real? How was it that they weren't only a part of myths and lores? How? These were the kind of questions plaguing my mind as I paced across the room I was supposed to be resting inside. It had already been an hour since he broke the news to me, but my mind was still reeling from the shock. It was understandable though. My entire life was turned upside down within the span of a good few minutes. The reality I grew up believing in was shattered into thousands of pieces with one flick of his wrist. It was hard at first; I refused to trust him. Then, one look into the depths of those swirling pools of amber, and I knew he was being honest with me. Moreover, something inside me wanted to believe him so bad, that I let him have the benefit of the doubt. For now. Slow, deliberate knocks at the door brought me out of my thoughts. L
Alaris *** Her confusion was too obvious; it was etched into her face like a tattoo. She had every right to be skeptical about me and my offer. It still didn't settle well with me as to how calmly she was taking the entire situation. If it was someone else in her place, they would have started running for the hills already. Even then, it didn't settle well with me how she had a frown more or less engraved in between her brows. I was about to clear away her doubts when an all too familiar voice interrupted my thoughts. "Alpha?" I turned around to see Hannah standing with her hands folded behind her back. She was a shy one, a quality that any sane man would admire in his woman. But I was never amongst the sane ones. "Yes, Hannah?" As much as I didn't want to be rude with her, my words sounded ignorant. It didn't help how hoarse and strained my voice came out. "I apologize for bothering you and your guest but Beta Alex told me to pass along a message." Hannah apologized with a
Seraphine *** Yesterday was… odd, and that was me putting it nicely. The minute I arrived at home, I ended up pinching my arms and thighs in hopes that the last couple of hours were nothing more than a weird dream. Though all I got in result were a few screaming red marks and nothing else. I didn't wake up with a jolt. Neither did my surroundings change. Everything was exactly where it should have been, or how it should have been. Even now when I was on my way to college, I was struggling to believe it. Oddly enough, what bugged me more was the fact that it was kept a secret from us all and for so long. I was somewhat coming to terms with werewolves being a part of this world. 'You are supposed to meet him again. Don't forget that.' There it was again, the lady-like voice echoing inside my brain. And I was not referring to my subconscious self. It was a completely different entity residing there—inside my freaking mind. 'There will come a day when you will be the one taking t
Alaris *** "Alex!" A loud, excited yelp made me groan internally. What was so exciting about meeting my Beta? Wasn't she the one who was, apparently, nervous about the entire situation? Because she wasn't sounding anywhere near it to my ears. What I found more annoying was my Beta greeting her back with the same enthusiasm. "Sera!" "If you two are done with your greetings, can we focus on the more pressing matter here?" I couldn't hold myself back any longer. Their loud chirpings were getting my wolf worked up. "You are such a mood killer." It was Alex who replied back while Seraphine went quiet, pursing her lips together as if she was scared to allow another sound slip through her lips. "You will get all the time to bond with her once she has received her training." For some unknown reason, the idea didn't settle well with my wolf. "My priority right now would be getting her in sync with her wolf…." I trailed off, realizing that she hadn't once mentioned her wolf's name to
Alaris***"Hello, Marcus…." I watched her through the eyes of my beast. The way her eyes flickered across mine might have someone believing that she was scared of my wolf. But that was far from the truth. The trust that swirled in those stormy gray orbs of hers for Marcus was too obvious even for me to ignore. She knew that no harm would come to her as long as he was present there. I hoped that she held the same thoughts when it came to me. As much as I might find her annoying, I would never let her get harmed in any way. She was our little one after all. As much as I found the idea frustrating, I had come to terms with it. Sera was someone Marcus was too fond of to let go. She might not be our moon blessed, but she was now a part of our lives; she was someone I wouldn't mind having around. "I wish I could understand you." I stared down at her and realized that she was referring to the low whines Marcus was creating. It was his attempt at conversing with her. He nudged the side
Seraphine***I have been pacing across my room since I returned. I wanted to run away from all of it. My family. My new life. The pack and the wolves. And… Alaris.The last one was most likely the only one that had me going against my flight response. I wanted to stay and fight against whoever it was after me. It was one of the reasons why I wanted an escape from my life. Why would someone come after? What did they want from me? Why go to such lengths of sending a bunch of rogues into another pack's borders just to get me—someone who didn't even have her own wolf? There were too many questions and no answers to any of them. 'How are you holding up?' A voice pulled me out of my reverie, and had me replying to myself as I was too lost to figure out the source of it. "Thanks for asking, Mom. I am doing good." I turned halfway around to look over my shoulder to find the door to my room shut. There was no one standing in the doorway either, or on the other side. "What the heck?" I mu
Seraphine***After roaming along rows after rows of tall wooden shelves, each of which was stacked with books of all kinds, I found myself yawning. Though I could easily pass for a nerd back in college, it wasn't as exciting to go through a big, thick history book as it was studying science. Even when it was about some mythical creatures, history had always bored me. "I guess this should be enough for today." I flipped to the next page and slid in a threaded bookmark in between the pages to keep a track on where I ended. I knew I needed to continue with my research if I were to do anything about my wolf. Yes, Alaris was of great help, but there were certain things which were out of his control. And unless I had a better understanding of them, all of our efforts would be for nothing. I pushed myself up from the wooden chair and groaned internally as I stretched my upper body. One thing was for sure, the pack could do with better—and more comfortable—chairs in the library. How could
Seraphine***After roaming along rows after rows of tall wooden shelves, each of which was stacked with books of all kinds, I found myself yawning. Though I could easily pass for a nerd back in college, it wasn't as exciting to go through a big, thick history book as it was studying science. Even when it was about some mythical creatures, history had always bored me. "I guess this should be enough for today." I flipped to the next page and slid in a threaded bookmark in between the pages to keep a track on where I ended. I knew I needed to continue with my research if I were to do anything about my wolf. Yes, Alaris was of great help, but there were certain things which were out of his control. And unless I had a better understanding of them, all of our efforts would be for nothing. I pushed myself up from the wooden chair and groaned internally as I stretched my upper body. One thing was for sure, the pack could do with better—and more comfortable—chairs in the library. How could
Seraphine***After roaming along rows after rows of tall wooden shelves, each of which was stacked with books of all kinds, I found myself yawning. Though I could easily pass for a nerd back in college, it wasn't as exciting to go through a big, thick history book as it was studying science. Even when it was about some mythical creatures, history had always bored me. "I guess this should be enough for today." I flipped to the next page and slid in a threaded bookmark in between the pages to keep a track on where I ended. I knew I needed to continue with my research if I were to do anything about my wolf. Yes, Alaris was of great help, but there were certain things which were out of his control. And unless I had a better understanding of them, all of our efforts would be for nothing. I pushed myself up from the wooden chair and groaned internally as I stretched my upper body. One thing was for sure, the pack could do with better—and more comfortable—chairs in the library. How could
Seraphine***After roaming along rows after rows of tall wooden shelves, each of which was stacked with books of all kinds, I found myself yawning. Though I could easily pass for a nerd back in college, it wasn't as exciting to go through a big, thick history book as it was studying science. Even when it was about some mythical creatures, history had always bored me. "I guess this should be enough for today." I flipped to the next page and slid in a threaded bookmark in between the pages to keep a track on where I ended. I knew I needed to continue with my research if I were to do anything about my wolf. Yes, Alaris was of great help, but there were certain things which were out of his control. And unless I had a better understanding of them, all of our efforts would be for nothing. I pushed myself up from the wooden chair and groaned internally as I stretched my upper body. One thing was for sure, the pack could do with better—and more comfortable—chairs in the library. How could
Seraphine***"Go on, have a look."As if it was only his words I was waiting for, I sprinted across the room's length, only bringing my steps to a halt once I was on the other side of the desk. "How can you keep something like this hidden?" I asked, more to myself, as I gazed through the tinted glass wall. "Curtains." His words rang beside my ear, making me jump in the spot as his warm breath brushed against my ear. When did he get so close to me?"Y-yes. Of course." I stammered through my response, instinctively taking a step to the side. Alaris came to stand next to me, hands behind his back, as he continued to stare straight ahead at the scenic view. It was close to dusk. The orange and red hues were painting the evening sky in a tale of their own woes. One could see the soft rustling of the leaves from the distance as they danced to the chilly evening breeze. "How can you keep it hidden?" I muttered under my breath as I held onto my elbows. "And, please, don't say curtains th
Seraphine***After roaming along rows after rows of tall wooden shelves, each of which was stacked with books of all kinds, I found myself yawning. Though I could easily pass for a nerd back in college, it wasn't as exciting to go through a big, thick history book as it was studying science. Even when it was about some mythical creatures, history had always bored me. "I guess this should be enough for today." I flipped to the next page and slid in a threaded bookmark in between the pages to keep a track on where I ended. I knew I needed to continue with my research if I were to do anything about my wolf. Yes, Alaris was of great help, but there were certain things which were out of his control. And unless I had a better understanding of them, all of our efforts would be for nothing. I pushed myself up from the wooden chair and groaned internally as I stretched my upper body. One thing was for sure, the pack could do with better—and more comfortable—chairs in the library. How could
Alaris *** "Alpha?" I was inside my office, too lost in my own thoughts, pacing across the room's length as I thought about yesterday's events. The same question had been bugging me since then. Why were the rogues after Sera? "Alpha?" I heard the same voice once again and I looked over my shoulder to see one of the omega females standing a few feet away from me. She bowed her head slightly to greet me. "What is it?" I inquired about the matter since she was quite nervous. I could smell it rolling off of her in waves. "I am the female Beta Alexander appointed to look after Miss Seraphine as per your orders." She spoke as wiped her hands clean off the sides of her skirt. "Yes, Emma. Alex informed me about the matter." I gave her a nod in affirmation. "Is that all you came here for?" I could see it in her eyes that there was more to the story. She didn't have to report to me herself unless she was asked to. "There's one more thing that I needed to report to you." Emma spo