TheronZale and Zane let out a howl, alerting the crowd we’re set to run. The whole dance party howled back as one as we all began to shift and run out the door. Theron nodded to me with a pained look, like he was still assessing all that just went down.“You alright, bro?” I asked, feigning ignorance of what I just witnessed.“Yeah, just...drunk. You got me wasted, you asshole,” he said, punching me in the shoulder, acting light-hearted.“Well, let Hoku take over for a bit; I know Arkyn is chomping at the bit, trying to get out.” I laughed, pulling Theron to the door.“I’ll chomp you if you don’t let me out!” Arkyn pushed forward, shifting and sprinting out into the full moonlit night. Hoku flew past me a minute later, and we were off, sprinting and passing through the trees. We quickly caught up to the pack and took the lead in front of Thorac and Thorr, the twin wolves. You could hear howling echo through the forest as the pack ran as fast as we could, thriving in the moonlit night
TheronThis female. THIS. FEMALE. We had eyes on each other all night in a silent flirting game only we knew about. I couldn’t help the heat rise within me as I watched her dance with Danika. This female completely enraptured me, and I had no clue why. All Hoku and I knew was she was ours. When Reed whispered in my ear about her, it took everything in me not to rip his throat out. It wasn’t like me to be that way with Reed; I knew this. So I stood still, barely able to nod, keeping my eyes on her and not the fact that Reed was watching her, too. When I saw her walk outside, I followed her as if I had no say in my movements. I didn’t even care who else noticed me chasing after her.I waited a moment to see what she would do, silently praying she was a wolf and shifted right here in the moonlight. But she didn’t; instead, she just gazed as if she, too, was drawn to its light. I had no idea what to say once I got to her, but I knew I had to speak to her. I told the first thing I could th
OrionWhen I woke up to the sound of rain, snuggled up to the human girl, I could finally feel a little strength return to my body. I vaguely remember moving up to sleep by her last night when I felt her jolt in her sleep, but that was only vague. I had been slumped here on the human’s bed for days while I slept off the poison. I knew it would be a few more days till I could shift back into my humanoid form, not that it would matter when I could. I was sent here by the priestess herself with specific details.“Protect the human,” she demanded. “at all cost. Don’t let yourself be known to her, but keep an eye on her and get rid of whatever it was that’s infiltrated the wall.” She knew something was placed but needed to figure out what. The extra layer of protection on the house alerted her of something foreign just outside the boundary. How it got there to begin with was still being looked into. When I arrived, I cursed at the old braud and my luck.The Raven-clawed bush was covered in
KamariI jolted awake with a scream, heaving air into my lungs. The dust particles slowly glided through the sunbeams in my window, glistening in the morning light as they floated down gently. Everything was still and quiet, Orion gazing at me snuggled up next to my leg as if I wasn’t just running for my life. I’ve had the same nightmare for two nights in a row. So real, yet it was just a dream. In it, I’m running in the same forest as before, this time looking for the glowing eyes that usually follow me, but I can’t see them, sense them.Instead, I felt something else behind me. I couldn’t see anything but knew there was something out there. As I ran, the fog got thicker and thicker until I couldn’t see where I was going. I was blind in an unknown forest with the predator beside me gone. There was only the sinking feeling something was chasing me. Then, both times, I wake up right as I feel something grab me from behind. I gave myself a minute to shake the eerie feeling from my bones
After a vigorous warm-up of stretches, bodyweight exercises, and kickboxing-type movements in the air, we walked out to an open field where the football team was already training. I immediately found Theron and Reed going at it in a large, chalked-out circle on the grass. Theron almost looked as if he was deliberately trying not to look at me. Reed saw me and caught my eye, nodding to me. He had been running around town yesterday morning and caught up to me. We exchanged small talk about how the dance mainly was, then tried to race me in a sprint by my house. He won, of course, but barely. I decided I liked Reed. He was a good guy and someone I didn’t have to fear. Arrogant as hell still, but a good guy.I ran into Naya, knocking me out of my stupor as the squad team stopped at a place with several large circles scattered closely around each other. Around each circle were a couple of sets of pads. Ms. Swan yelled out who would be pairing up with whom. Thankfully, she paired me with Na
TheronAfter we freshened up, Reed tilted his head towards his car, but I just shook my head. “Thanks, bro, but I think I will walk home. I need to get some air.” was the only thing I would confess as I walked out of the locker room door. I put my hands in my pockets and kicked a rock as I walked the dirt path around the campus. It was a thirty-minute walk to my place from the gym; I knew because I tracked it a million times during runs.The crisp air filled my lungs, calming my thundering heart. The light mist was almost always present here during the winter months. Something I loved to feel against my skin, cooling my body from the training I had just done. I inhaled and jolted; a hint was all I could smell on the wind before it was gone again. But it was there nonetheless, honeysuckle and fresh rain. I looked over and stopped dead. I thought about running away like a coward or putting my head down and walking the rest of the way to my place with my eyes closed. But instead, I slid
TheronI got to the party early, hoping to have an early exit. I knew I needed to support Rune but didn’t want to see Reed with her. Knowing he was trying to be with her hurt more than it should. Besides, I wanted to be at the guard posts, like I have been the last week every night, keeping watch and staying distracted from my thoughts. I hadn’t had a dream all week, which was strange. I had them so often for so long that I almost felt lonely without them, without at least being near my mate if it was only in my dreams.Dean’s Pub in town was where Rune decided to have the party since it was his and Dani’s favorite hangout spot. It had pool tables and an old jukebox; the twins were already taking up one of the tables to challenge anyone feeling gutsy. Before long, the bar filled up, crowded with the team and squad. At the bar, I felt someone slide their hand down my back. I cringed, knowing who was working for my attention from her strawberry vanilla scent alone. I turned to see Olivi
“You’re not a nuisance to me. and yes, I’m sure; get in, Kamari.” I felt a tingle down my spine when he said my name. How does he do that?! I closed my eyes briefly, savoring the feeling, before walking to the car. He watched me intently as he held the door open for me, careful not to touch me before closing my door. The truck had one long seat with the buckles taken out of it. I folded my hands in my lap as Theron got on the other side and drove towards my house. We drove in silence for a few minutes before I couldn’t hold it in any longer.“What happened? Last week? Why...why are...” I didn’t know how to ask; I only knew I had to speak up. Speak my truth.“Why am I avoiding you?” He looked straight ahead at the road, his jaw clenching nervously. It made his sharp jawline stand out; I felt the urge to touch it.“So you are? Avoiding me, that is.” I exclaimed, folding my arms across my chest. I couldn’t keep the annoyance from my voice.“yes.” I looked at him for a minute, contemplati
The light of the day as it cascaded through the cave made her head pound more. She hated the sight. Spring was her least favorite season. All full of flowers and sunshine; it made her sick. Sitting on the cold, damp earth at least helped her find her bearings. She was still gathering her strength and her senses from when she teleported. It was a gamble; she had never done it before. She was only taught the spell in case she ever needed it in dire circumstances. Well, her daughter betraying her felt like a damn dire circumstance, one she would rectify once her strength came back to her. That girl was foolish to side with the weaker of her two sides. Her fathers blood would never overcome her Raven powers. Her daughters father... Zander. The name alone caused more pain in her chest than she felt like considering at the moment. She didn't even know she could feel such emotions anymore. Not since the first summoning all those years ago. Even her own mother's death didn't hurt quite like t
“Wait, what? Why?” With her now being a werewolf, we had discussed her staying here with the pack and her mate.“It won’t be long. I’ll be gone and back again within the month. I just need to settle everything with school and pack my things from my apartment to move here. Plus, I’d like to give my dad a heads-up. He’s been texting me worried since I haven’t gone to see him recently.” Sera’s dad was the only family she had left. Her mom had died giving birth to her, leaving her dad to raise her solo. I nodded my agreement.“I’m going with her,” Reed announced; I had expected him to want to go with her. Theron came and sat by my side, taking my hand in his while swirling his thumb inside my palm. I leaned into his warmth, laying my head against his shoulder."Are you sure you’re up for it, Reed?" Theron eyed his friend. I looked up at him. My expression must have shown the confusion I felt because Theron smiled before explaining.“With the Desert pack going silent with no word, I’m worr
As the morning sun rose, the birds chirped their morning song, signaling that the crisp, freezing winter was ending and spring was waking up. It had been two months since the battle of clans, with the pack busy repairing the town and healing its injured. Moriko sat outside on the porch in his white cat form, staring at the field that once held a great battle.I sat beside him, scratching behind his ear like an old habit, earning a purr from him. We sat silently for a moment, gazing at the peaceful morning sunrise. In the corner of my eye, I could still make out the black patch of ash that was Morana. It never lifted from the earth, like a scar.“Where will you go next?” I asked to break the silence.“I must return home to the Ostyn Clan headquarters. There is much to do and arrange now that the power has shifted to a new priestess, and the curse has broken. I am needed there to protect your mother.” Moriko had sadness in his voice; he had walked beside my grandmother for decades, ands
KamariShe was okay; she was bleeding, but Mother was going to be okay. I nuzzled her, overjoyed to see her again, letting loose some healing magic to knit Mom’s side up. Only she didn’t need my magic; she was already healing fast, which was new. She wrapped her arms around my neck and hugged me.“I knew you’d come, just in the nick of time, too.” She whispered to me. I nuzzled further into her, needing to feel her warmth and know she was okay. The sound of her scream before would haunt my dreams for days. I felt movement behind me; I turned out of my mother’s arms and moved protectively in front of her, watching Morana stand off with Verena.“Get out of the way, you stupid child!” Morana screamed at Verena’s wolf. The wolf held her ground, huffing air out of her snout.“What are you doing?! You’d choose them!? The ones that killed your father!?” a single tear escaped Morana’s eye as she spoke about Zander.“I’m doing this for you! So you can rule! Now get out of the way!!” The markin
KamariI was the wind and earth, I was lightning and fire. I ran into the fray with full abandon. I let the bond guide me to where Theron was fighting my Father. Snow stung my eyes as I dashed through the blizzard. As I ran toward him, I saw wolves stop to watch me run past them. They paused and stared before going back at it, battling the Phantom warriors and the animals of the forest that had joined the fight.A few light-colored wolves dared to run at me. I unleashed my fire on them in my wolf form, allowing Tala to mix her power with my Ostyn blood. Fire clashed with ice, creating water in my eyes from the raging snowstorm, and I lost track of what was real and what was magic. It almost looked like my magic formed through Tala as a bird of fire, tearing into the wolves as we fought with teeth and claws. A mountain lion leaped on the remaining wolf, fighting him off and giving me time to go to my mate.I still wasn’t 100 percent sure how I did it. I was running through the forest w
TheronDo you have any last words, pup? Zander spoke triumphantly into my head with death in his eyes. I mentally pushed on the bind the Raven had on me, trying with all my might to get free. She began to sweat with the pressure, but the bind held firm. Zander took a step closer than another. I moved my eyes to see the remaining warriors of our pack fighting viciously outnumbered but standing their ground.A wolf got through the Cadre’s barrier and slashed Dani down her side. She howled in pain, her blood staining the white snow beneath. Rune shot out off the ground, shifting in the air and throwing his wolf form at the wolf to get him away from his mate.It opened a hole in the barrier big enough for several enemy wolves and a few witches to break free and run towards the house. That was when the cat jumped through the busted door, attacking anyone near the opening. Alpha Zander had shifted back into his human form, unafraid of the vulnerability it put him in, and wrapped his hands ar
ReedIt was a fucking slaughterhouse. We were outnumbered three to one at least, and with everyone battling for the past several days, we were exhausted. The snow didn’t help either; it kept getting in our eyes, watering our vision, and making it hard to keep the focus on our opponent. Zander planned and executed this well. We would need a miracle to win this war. I swiped and killed mercilessly at the Desert Pack. From what I knew of the slave traders, they deserved nothing less.Where is he? Rune asked in my head. I looked to see him step up beside me in his human form with two broad swords. Rune had always enjoyed fighting with swords in battle and would often switch off between his wolf and warrior form “to ease the tension for both forms,” he had said. Rune was one of our most formidable warriors because he was so good in both forms and enjoyed both sides, sometimes a little too much. Where I would fight out of necessity, Rune fought for
ReedI stood staring at Ms. O as she worked her magic on Theron. At first, nothing happened. fear coursed up my spine when I saw the look on Ms. O’s face. She couldn’t hide the terror and sadness in her eyes. I couldn’t make out his heartbeat or even feel his presence for a split second. I dropped to my knees in shock, sitting there, helpless, beside his bed. This wasn’t happening, this couldn’t-Slowly, I saw Theron’s skin turn from ash to golden brown, and his breathing grew steadily. Without thinking, I burst out in laughter, a tear sliding down my cheek. My joy was short-lived when I heard slamming and hissing outside the room. Ms. O and I both looked at the door at the exact moment. I became alert immediately when Arkyn pushed to get out. He had been reeling the past few days, needing to fight and protect the pack battling outside these walls.“I’ll protect him. Go! Help them, save her, please.” The last
Izabele“NOOOOO! You can’t! You can’t sacrifice yourself like this!” I raged while I slammed my fist into the door that wouldn’t open. Whether it was her or the house that locked me in, I didn’t know, and I didn’t care; I was mad at both of them. I bellowed at the door, trying to claw my way out when someone interrupted me.“Umm, Ms. O...Ms. O? MS. O!” I turned to look at him with tear-stained eyes. He took a step back with his hands up, smart boy.“From the feel of her power, I-uh, think she can handle one witch, right? And-”“NO, she cannot. The High Priestess’s power comes not from fighting or battle spells but from healing. She is our greatest healer and greatest seer. She can see...She can see...she saw this. She insisted she came with me when I said I was coming here. She knew...” I trailed off, not wanting to say what I knew was coming next. Her words from a few day