Five

Her alarm goes off, and Conrad reluctantly sits up, her hand going to her head instantly as she massages her temples gently.

She shouldn't have drunk as much as she did, and she knew this even as she was tucking herself into bed.

At least we got all our makeup off, Jane shrugs, unusually awake for such an early hour.

She deliberately set her alarm for seven in the morning - she didn't have to go anywhere till eleven, but she wanted to let Jane out for a run, because who knows when she could let her wolf out next. She definitely wouldn't be able to roam for a while once they get to Atlas' pack.

She won't be marked until they can have a ceremony, and ceremonies for Alphas and their mates take preparation and planning. She can't run on his lands until she's marked, for fear his guards and warriors assume she's a rogue as she has a different scent to his pack.

She slowly emerges from under her duvet, stretching her arms above her head and smiling in satisfaction when she hears all of her bones crack into place.

She grabs a robe and some slip-on shoes, hurrying down the stairs as quietly as she can.

Her mom might still be asleep, but her dad is awake.

She can smell smoke coming from the kitchen, and she rolls her eyes, walking into the kitchen and closing the door behind her to trap the smell.

"What did you try to cook this morning?" She sighs, snatching a newspaper from the dining table and fanning the pan on the stove, peering at the charred mess.

"I was trying to make your mom an omelette. It didn't go to plan, I got a phone call during it," Silas sighs, looking a little stressed as he pulls the pan away from Conrad, dumping the burnt mess into the garbage.

He notices the bundle in her arms and frowns.

"If you're going for a run, stay away from the east quarter. Some packs are using it for training today, and I don't want you mixed up in that," he warns her, and she nods with a smile.

"I'm meeting Char, I think," she grins, heading out the sliding glass door.

Are you going for your morning run today?, she links her best friend, and Charlotte sends a groan over the link.

I'm at the old oak tree with the swing. I'll wait for you, but I'm only staying here for two minutes, Charlotte warns her, and Conrad speeds up a little.

Her friend is a stickler for punctuality, and Conrad knows she'll actually leave if she isn't there in two minutes.

Storing her robe and shoes in the little cage at the bottom of the garden in the trees, she effortlessly shifts into her wolf, shaking her fur out.

Jane takes over to find Charlotte, using her heightened sense of smell and her sharp eyes to track down the other girl.

In under a minute, she skids to a halt in front of Charlotte, who's wolf looks mildly surprised to see her.

Harriet, Charlotte's wolf, is a pretty grey colour, with shorter fur than most other wolves. Her eyes are a similar colour to her coat, and they seem incredibly intimidating when she's in wolf form.

Jane, on the other hand, is a light tan colour, with a shaggy coat. Her eyes are a striking amber colour, and allegedly they're pretty distinctive - everyone who she's trained with in wolf form has said that, although Conrad doesn't exactly believe them.

That was quick, I thought you'd take longer, Charlotte laughs, and Conrad glares at her, slowly pushing Jane back a little.

You said to hurry, so I hurried. Where are we going?, she asks, and Charlotte gives her a wolfy grin.

I thought we'd send you off in style. We're going to get you another piercing before you leave, she giggles, quickly taking off towards the village area.

Conrad curses under her breath, instantly shooting after Charlotte, who's doing her best to run as fast as she can.

Unfortunately for Charlotte, her parents were both medium ranked warriors, so she isn't very fast. She's excellent in a fight, as her wolf is extremely muscular, but that doesn't translate to being quick.

I barely have any room left on my ears, Conrad reminds her, thinking of her six piercings for each ear, each with a stud or a hoop dangling from them in human form.

Okay... Then we can just get you new jewellery. Who knows what the piercer is like up there, Charlotte scoffs.

The two of them have a fair amount of tattoos, mostly hidden on their backs and midriff. Conrad has some swirling around to her thighs and down to her biceps. They also both have a few piercings - Conrad has her ears and her nose stud, and Charlotte has her tongue, ears, and dermal piercings in her neck.

Barbara calls the two of them 'decorated', and Silas loves that his daughter has tattoos - on her eighteenth birthday, he took her to get a matching one with him.

Either way, Charlotte and Conrad in human form look a little different to their friends - most of them abstain from ink, as their pack is more on the conservative side. That's the main reason they have them hidden, and it's always fun for them in summer when people discover how inked they are.

Conrad doesn't argue, because she's been wanting to get a new stud for her nose for a few weeks - she just hasn't had time, and she's too indecisive to go alone.

In no time, Charlotte has led her to the piercing and tattoo parlour they always go to, and she lifts her paw to tap on the glass.

The girl who did all of their tattoos turns around at the noise and grins, hurrying over to unlock the door.

She lets the wolves in, handing them each a towel.

"Thanks for opening early for us, Kate," Charlotte gasps as soon as she shifts, wrapping her blanket tightly around her.

Conrad shifts slower, taking her time as she gazes around the room.

Kate is immediately beside her, squinting at her most recent tattoo, the one on her bicep.

"Do you want me to touch that up for you while you're here?" Kate asks, raising an eyebrow as she looks up at Conrad.

Conrad looks at Charlotte, who shrugs, taking a seat.

"If it won't take too long," she says hesitantly, sitting beside her best friend.

Kate grins excitedly, vanishing to the backroom to get her inks and pen.

"So, how do you feel about having the Society after you?" Charlotte asks, crossing her legs as she gazes at her friend.

"Oh, having fifteen of the strongest werewolves out there after me? No biggie. I'm fine with it," Conrad says sarcastically, making Kate laugh as she strolls back into the room.

"I heard about you and that Alpha. You really go big or go home, don't you, Con?" Kate chuckles, numbing Conrad's arm a little.

"It isn't my fault girl, blame the Fates," Conrad complains, scrunching up her nose as Kate begins with her needle.

She has a massive tree across her upper back, and the branches descend down her shoulders, so Kate is re-filling them.

Charlotte cringes as she watches the needle work, looking away from Conrad's arm.

She's terrified of needles, and she couldn't look at her own tattoo until it was totally finished.

"Do you need to leave for work soon?" Conrad asks, and Charlotte shakes her head.

"I'm not in until 11. There's an anti-bullying assembly, and it was my turn to take that off," she shakes her head, gazing at the case of jewellery.

Conrad nods, zoning out a little as she watches Kate work.

She trusts her entirely, and she's a fast worker - she channels her wolf speed into her tattooing, which means she's quicker than a regular artist.

"You've really gone against tradition," Charlotte comments vacantly, still staring at the jewellery.

"What do you mean?" Conrad asks, raising a brow.

"You and he are different ranks. That'll really piss off The Society," Charlotte shrugs, and Conrad groans out loud.

Kate momentarily stops, not able to tell if Conrad was complaining about the tattoo, or if she was reacting to Charlotte.

She doesn't groan again, so Kate continues, her gloved hand practically a blur.

"I mean, I don't think they'll kill us," Conrad reasons, furrowing her brows a little as she contemplates the situation.

"Well, I don't think they're that stupid, to be fair. He's an Alpha at the end of the day, and you were our future Beta," Charlotte comments.

"Yeah, we supply a lot of doctors to the packs. It wouldn't be very wise for them to bother our pack, and you being killed would be a pretty big bother," Kate adds, briefly looking up from her tattooing.

Conrad is suddenly relieved she had one arm re-done a few weeks before, because she isn't sure she could handle two arms this early in the morning.

Jane is silent, handling the pain pretty well - normally she would be whimpering, which Conrad supposes is a fair reaction.

"Yeah. We'll see, I might still break the bond," Conrad admits, shrugging her shoulders.

"You can't break your bond," Charlotte exclaims in horror, sitting up in her seat.

"I can. I warned him; he needs to make up his mind. If he doesn't want me, I don't mind - I can come back here and work, but he needs to decide soon, before Jane gets attached to his wolf," Conrad explains her reasoning, and Charlotte sighs.

"So he said he was going to reject you?" She asks, and Conrad bites her lip.

"Not in those words, but he went on a rant about how terrible and useless our kids would be, essentially. How they wouldn't be any good compared to the other Alphas kids, and how embarrassing it would be," she shrugs, and Charlotte's jaw drops.

Kate merely raises an eyebrow, scrunching her nose up a little and continuing with the tattoo.

"Oh, I hate him," Charlotte spits, her lip curling upwards in disgust.

"Char, I don't care. His words don't hurt me; I was as horrified as he was. If we had kids, they wouldn't fit in, and that's a fact," she sighs, watching as Kate finishes up on one of the last branches.

They sit in silence for the last twenty minutes, Kate finishing the tattoo, and wrapping it up for her.

"Do you want me to put gauze over the wrap?" Kate asks, raising a brow.

Conrad bites her lip, contemplating.

She would typically say no, but she doesn't know how conservative the pack she's going to be going to is with regards to body modification.

"Yeah, please," she finally decides after a minute of wracking her brain to dig up any details about their cultural practices and beliefs.

Once Kate wraps her arm up, she stands up, cracking her back.

"Do you want t-shirts?" Kate calls from the back room where she's putting all of the stuff back.

"Please," Conrad and Charlotte call in unison.

They went to school with Kate, and they shared a history class with the girl. They hadn't been close in high school, but they were friends now and often bumped into each other at pack functions.

Kate returns with two oversized t-shirts, throwing them to the girls while she glances out the window.

"It's so dark this morning," she comments, and Charlotte groans.

"I know. I thought it was so much earlier than it was when I woke up, I was convinced I had an extra hour to sleep, but then my alarm went off again," Charlotte complains, shaking her head.

Conrad grins, twisting her arm to try to get a peek at the branches.

All she gets is a slight twinge of pain, and she scowls, slipping the t-shirt on and then letting the towel drop.

"Thank you so much, Kate, I'll have the money sent to you," she winks, and Kate grins at her.

"Thanks, Con. Do you still want that jewellery Charlotte linked me about?" She asks, and Conrad nods enthusiastically.

"What sort of thing are you looking for?" She asks, and Conrad bites her lip.

"Just a small stud, I think. The one I have is annoying me," she admits, and Kate leads her over to one of the chests, pulling out a tray.

"Gold, I'm assuming," she quips, and Conrad nods.

Kate fishes a small gold stud out of the tray, holding it up for Conrad to inspect.

"That's perfect," Conrad immediately states, a grin spreading across her face.

Her current one is clear - she had a work meeting the previous week in the city, and she hadn't wanted to take it out altogether - and she hates it, so she immediately swaps them out.

"Send me an invoice," Conrad orders Kate with a grin, admiring the stud in the mirror.

"Will do, there are no freebies around here," Kate laughs, throwing her head back as she giggles.

"I wouldn't expect one, have no fears," Conrad smiles, pulling her into a tight hug.

Charlotte does the same before the two girls stroll out.

"Do you want to grab pancakes?" Charlotte suggests, eyeing up the diner across from the tattoo place.

"And walk back through the woods? Absolutely," Conrad agrees, and the two speed walk to the diner, trying to beat the other to the door first.

Conrad makes it in the door two seconds ahead of Charlotte, laughing as the bell above the door jingles.

One of the waitresses looks up, smiling as she spots the girls.

"To go?" She asks, and Conrad nods excitedly.

"Chocolate chip?" The waitress guesses, and the two nod with a grin, sitting in front of the counter as they wait for their order to go through.

"Are you guys going for a run this morning?" The waitress asks conversationally, and Conrad laughs.

"We already went on one, Elizabeth! We were awake before the birds!" She giggles, and Elizabeth, the waitress, chuckles softly.

"As usual, Conrad. Always awake before the rest of us, you're so busy," Elizabeth comments, tapping the order into the register.

Elizabeth is another person the girls were in high school with, although they didn't have any classes together - Elizabeth and Conrad did cheer together, and Elizabeth and Charlotte did dance.

Within a few minutes, the pancakes are put into bags and handed to the girls, who hop up after paying.

"Bye, Elizabeth," Conrad calls over her shoulder, sending the girl a broad smile as they walk out.

Charlotte is yawning, and waves at Elizabeth as they leave, covering her mouth with her arm.

"I don't know how you're always so nice to people; it would exhaust me," Charlotte comments and Conrad rolls her eyes.

"I was trained as the future Beta. We have to be nice, it's better to have too many friends than not enough," she shrugs, and Charlotte links arms with her, the two hurrying down the road.

It's a little cold outside of the forest, and it's starting to get busier.

The two of them are still only in the long t-shirts, and they'd rather be in the forest in the t-shirts where fewer people would see them.

As soon as they enter the forest, they both slow their pace, relaxing as they stroll along.

"Are you nervous?" Charlotte asks, and Conrad sighs, opening her pancakes.

The smell of the chocolate from the pancakes drifts up to her nose, and a small smile takes its place on her lips.

This is their tradition - they always did this with Marcy whenever they were all home from university.

"I don't know. I mean, it's inevitable. I have to go with him unless he rejects me, and I don't think he's going to reject me without bringing me to his pack," she reasons, shaking her head.

"You'll be a great Luna," Charlotte states confidently, opening her own pancakes and shoving one into her mouth.

Her confidence makes her speed up a little, and Conrad groans, trying to match her pace.

"I don't want to be a Luna, though," she says in earnest, nibbling on her pancake.

"We don't always get what we want. In your case, you really got nothing you wanted," Charlotte sighs, shaking her head.

"How far away is his pack?" Charlotte asks straight after, and Conrad bites her lip, visually configuring the map of the packs on the continent.

"Four hours away. It isn't that bad," she shrugs.

"Is that by road or by air," Charlotte asks glumly.

They had never been that far away before - even their universities were under three hours away.

"It's direct, on the map. So it'll probably be closer to five or six hours of driving," Conrad mumbles, linking arms with her friend again.

"We can call every day, at least," Charlotte points out, and Conrad sighs.

"Yeah, we'll have to. We have our group chats, too, but it just won't be the same as seeing you every day," Conrad whines, scowling and kicking a rock.

"I know. At least if he rejected you you'd be here," Charlotte grumbles, and Conrad tackles her friend with a bear hug.

The sudden movement makes pain shoot down her arm from her tattoo, but she ignores it, squeezing Charlotte tightly.

"I wish he'd just make up his mind," Conrad whispers, sitting up from their spot on the ground.

"If he won't make up his mind, we'll just make him," Charlotte shrugs.

"I have no Luna training. What the hell am I going to do?" Conrad groans suddenly, running her hands through her hair in distress.

"They'll train you, don't worry. They'll have to train you, they can't leave you with no help or information," Charlotte stutters nervously, her own mind running into stressful territory now - she's concerned about her friend, because Conrad can be sensitive. Going to a pack where they won't take approve of her or welcome her isn't very encouraging, because Charlotte knows that her best friend might shut down if she's forced into a situation she doesn't want to be in.

"I'll walk you back to your house now. You need to get ready to leave; we're not letting him think you're a delinquent person," Charlotte decides for them both after a moment of silence, both of them finally coming out of their worrying.

Conrad doesn't say anything, letting her friend haul her up.

Charlotte slides her arm through her best friend's again, speeding up her steps a little bit.

She's screwed, Harriet whispers to Charlotte, and Charlotte tries to block her wolf out.

She uncomfortably pulls the sleeve of her t-shirt down over the wrap on her arm, nibbling on her lip as she gazes out the window.

She's bored with her phone; the screen is making her eyes hurt now.

She's listened to serial killer podcasts, read a book, edited a proposal for work, done some online shopping for the holidays, done some crosswords, and texted everyone she knows.

She has nothing left to do, and there are still two hours left of this hellish car journey.

He glances over at her, his eyes landing on the bandage poking out of her shirt.

"Did you get hurt?" He asks, raising an eyebrow as he faces the road.

"No," she shrugs, watching the trees whizz by.

"What's on your arm, then?" He asks, and she glances over at him.

"A tattoo," she simply states, looking back at the trees.

The different shades of yellow, red, and orange look like little fires as the Range Rover zooms by.

"A tattoo?" He repeats, a tone of disdain in his voice.

"Yeah, a tattoo," she shrugs, raising an eyebrow at her own reflection in the glass.

"My pack doesn't approve of tattoos," Atlas states coolly, and Conrad nods, not saying anything.

"How did you hide them yesterday? I've never seen it, did you only get it today? Is this an act of defiance?" He spits, and Conrad chuckles softly.

"Calm down, big man. Not everything is about you. I've had tattoos since I was seventeen," she sighs, looking over at him, "and they weren't hidden. You must have been looking at something other than my shoulders, arms, and back to have missed them."

He goes quiet at that, and she nods to herself, folding her arms as she gazes back out the window.

"Are we almost there?" She asks quietly, glancing at her phone.

She's bored of being in the car; her legs are getting sore from the awkward position she's stuck in.

Atlas looks over at her, clenching his jaw.

When she looks over at him, since he didn't answer, she can see the vein in his neck pulsing as though it's about to escape through his skin.

He doesn't answer her question, simply pressing his foot down harder on the gas pedal, forcing the car forward.

Their black vehicle overtakes the other cars on the road with ease, even if it does draw them some angry honks and shaking fists.

Jane is getting fidgety, and Conrad nibbles on her lip, tapping her foot against the floor to try and get some blood back to her toes.

"Stop that," he snaps after she does it for around five seconds, and she raises an eyebrow.

"Is there any chance we could stop for a few minutes? I need to stretch my legs," she asks politely, clasping her hands and resting them on her lap as she gazes straight ahead.

"You're testing me," he snarls, pressing his foot against the gas pedal even harder.

A squeak escapes her lips as her hands scramble to grab onto the handle above the door.

"I'm not, Alpha. My wolf is currently freaking out, and if she doesn't get some air soon, she'll force me to shift," Conrad explains clearly, keeping her tone as neutral as possible. Her voice sounds dead and lifeless, and that's what she wants.

"So you can't control your wolf? So on top of being a Beta, you can't even work with your wolf," he sneers, and she closes her eyes for a moment.

"Sure. Does that mean we can stop for a minute?" She asks, "There was a sign for a rest stop a couple of miles back, it'll be coming up soon. Can we stop there for a few minutes?"

He scoffs, muttering under his breath.

She doesn't have the energy to try and listen to what he says - her only goal is getting out of this damn vehicle for a few minutes, and maybe going to the bathroom.

"Fine," he spits, his hands squeezing the steering wheel tighter.

Conrad grits her teeth.

Jane is more on the meek side for a dominant wolf, but she doesn't appreciate the disrespect right now.

She forces her canines to shift into her wolf ones, and Conrad has a hard time covering them up with her lip.

She isn't going to let any of her behaviour be taken as disrespect.