Chapter 1

(Juniper’s P.O.V)

4 years later:

            Walking through the halls of my high school, I keep my head down and try and make myself as small as possible. I don’t feel like dealing with people today, not that I ever feel like dealing with people. Particularly teenagers, especially THESE teenagers. After the rogue attack and waking up in the hospital after spending two weeks in a coma, I woke up sounding like I smoked 5 packs a day. All of the doctors my parents had taken me to, all said the same thing, that I would never get my voice back. Even talking with Fae healers, spell casters, and elves nothing could be done. No one could regenerate the cells of the body to fix this, no one had that type of magic. It was ancient magic according to one Fae healer, that only Celestial’s had. So, I’ve basically been silent for the last 4 years, only communicating via sign language or mind link with my family.

            The bullying all started about a year after the attack when people began to realize that my voice was going to permanently sound like this. So, they started calling me names and making fun of my voice; saying that I needed to cut back on the cigarettes. They never said these things around adults, but they never miss the chance when we aren’t being watched. I was 12 when I was attacked, and I’m about to turn 16, a few days before the future Alpha King Euan turns 18. Euan and I have always had a special bond, he always protected me from the kids and their teasing. It was the same with my older half-brothers Owen and Marcus. Our father, Royal Beta Killian Shay, had a mate before my mother but she died giving birth to the twins. Owen was older and therefore the future Royal Beta. My mother, Florence, is a Siren and our father’s second chance mate. They met about a year after the twins were born when our father was visiting the Kingdom of Oceri, the sea dweller kingdom, which was governed by my mother’s great Uncle, King Lir. Though, now Queen Charlotte and King William have taken over for him. It wasn’t long after they met that they had me, and then my sister.

SLAM!

            Someone rams into my shoulder, sending me reeling into the lockers that I was walking past to get to my first class of the day. Great.

“Well look who it is, it’s chimneyfish!” A Senior says.

            Ew, it’s Grant. He’s the star football player for our school and the most popular kid in school. Euan was for the longest time, but he graduated early to start his Alpha King training. I push myself off the lockers, ignoring his favorite nickname for me since everyone knew I was a hybrid—wolf/siren.

“I’m talking to you!”

            They always are, trying to get me to actually speak to them, but it never works. I only speak around my family and even then, I don’t like it. I shake my head and start to walk away to my class when a big hand comes down on my shoulder and I’m spun around and slammed back into the lockers. What the fuck is with this kid and lockers? I look up into Grant’s face, he would be handsome if he wasn’t such a prick. He’s about to say something when a loud growl sounds from behind him, it shakes the whole school. We ALL know that growl, that is the growl of a pissed-off Luna Queen. The entire hallway becomes deathly silent and still in her presence.

“I’m going to ask this once, and only once. Why are your hands on my niece?” Luna Queen Morrigan growls out.

“I was just talking to her, Luna Queen.”

“Junie, is that true?” She asks.

“No.” I sign to her.

“Care to elaborate?” She asks me.

“He was bullying me, and I was ignoring him. He didn’t like it and that’s when you got here.” I sign to her in explanation.

“I see. Well, Grant, I’m afraid that my niece has a different story. So, do you want to try that explanation again?”

            Grant gulps, and I couldn’t help the small smile that comes across my lips. Luna Queen Morrigan wasn’t really my aunt, but she very much filled that role as a biological aunt would.

“I…I…I was…just…” Grant trails off, knowing that he wouldn’t be able to say anything without getting into trouble.

“Well, since you seem to not be able to give me a satisfactory explanation. Punishment is as follows: detention for the rest of the week, Omega duties for the next month, and you will write an apology letter to Juniper.” She says.

“Yes, Luna Queen.” Grant murmurs.

            You can’t argue with the Luna Queen.

“Junie, please come here.” She says to me.

            I walk over to her as she dismisses the rest of the hallway back to class, she stares daggers into Grant’s back as he scurries to his first class. She pulls me into her office here in the school and closes the door behind her.

“Has the bullying gotten any better?” She asks.

“Do we really have to talk about this?” I sign.

            This conversation annoyed the shit out of me no matter who I talked to about it.

“Yes, we do.”

“No, it has not gotten any better. You know this Auntie Mo.” I sign.

She sighs, “I’m sorry sweetheart. I know this is hard, but you are the strongest young woman I know. You are destined for great things.”

“I’m really not though.” I sign.

            After I was able to get some of my voice back, I told my parents, the Royal Gamma Cormac, and the Alpha King and Luna Queen about what the rogue had said. They looked through all of the prophecies that they could find, looking to see if they could find something that mentioned a werewolf/siren hybrid. There were plenty of prophecies about hybrids of my species but, what we found out about me, and my sister was that we were equal parts Siren and wolf. We have both a Siren and a wolf half, which isn’t typical hybrids. There is always a more dominant gene, one that trumps the less dominant gene. There are exceptions to this rule, like Luna Queen Morrigan and her children, she is three equal parts—elf/spell caster/werewolf. Her genes were dominant to Alpha King Rian’s, so all of their children are tribrids. It’s really confusing and messy and annoying to try and figure out, but basically, there were no hybrids mentioned in the prophecies that were equal halves like my sister, Stephanie, and I.

“Do you want me to call your dad or mom?”

“No, I just want to go to class please.” I sign, heaving out a sigh.

            Aunt Morrigan just nods her head, as I get up to leave, she grabs my shoulders and pulls me into a motherly hug.

“We love you, Junie, please let us help you.” She whispers, knowing that I keep a majority of the bullying to myself.

            There’s just no point in telling an adult or someone in authority about the bullying, it just made it worse when the punishment for the one doing the bullying is over. She lets me go and I nod my head to her, before making my way to my first class of the day—history. Goddess, this day couldn’t be over soon enough.