Alpha's Shadow

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“Ayla, honey can you come sit down with us, we want to talk with you” Dad called out for me. Hopefully, they finally decided I could go and live with dad’s parents at the White Oak pack. I had been begging them to let me go for a year after all. I started asking them the day after David rejected me for being the runt of the pack. I remember smelling him, recognizing him as my mate I was beyond happy. Grandma’s words ringing in my mind. “The Moon Goddes does not make mistakes in who she pairs together” David was right I had been the runt of the pack. Dad’s great grandmother was a rare human mate. Grandma was a werewolf as is my dad his brothers and sister. She was fated to my Grandpa Alpha Quinn and a very powerful werewolf. Dad is big even for a wolf everyone else in my family is either big or average-sized for a wolf. Then there is me 5 ft 3, after shifting I could pass for a regular wolf. I always knew that some pack members whispered behind my back. But I got lucky, Mom was the only pack doctor and after refusing to be Uncle Cedric’s Beta to move in with the Bloodtail pack, Dad became the pack’s lead warrior. They were well-respected. And the Alpha’s son and future Alpha was one of my best friends. It at least stopped the other packmembers from gossiping too much. So when I found out the morning of his eighteenth Birthday he indeed was my mate. Like I had been hoping for most of my life, and even more when I didn’t find my mate when I turned eighteen, nine months before he did. I was over the moon, I remember Sarah my wolf going crazy when we sensed David walking up to us. And when he spoke the thirteen words no wolf ever wants to hear I felt my heart shatter as Sarah closed herself off from me. “I David Birch, reject you Ayla Hemmig as my mate and future Luna” Rejecting me in the pack kitchen, so that everyone could hear. To make matters worse he felt the need to explain why he would reject his best friend. “You’re a sweet girl Ayla you would make an Omega very happy. But how could the runt of the pack ever be the Luna we need” Soon after he started avoiding me, being short with me like it was my fault that his mate was the runt of the pack as he put it. Of course, this caused the other members of my pack to mistreat me. They respected my family too much to get physical but their words hurt too. That is why I wanted to live with my grandparents. Their pack was different, they would all accept me. As a small unmarried wolf, because I was sure I would never want a chosen mate. Second-chance mates are for those who lost their mate. Not wolves that got rejected like me. Deep in thought, I made my way to the kitchen to join my parents at the kitchen table. Mom looked sad and Dad looked conflicted, he held a letter in his hand. Instantly I recognized the royal seal. So the rumors were true Crown Prince Griffin would pick a chosen mate. On his first Birthday, he got the mark showing his fated mate died before they met. In four years he was supposed to rule the land and all the werewolf packs taking over from his father and mother. He needed a Queen by his side to do so. Rumors had been spreading he was inviting all unmarried She-wolves ages eighteen to thirty to come to a ball, where he would choose his chosen mate. “The rumors are true, Prince Griffin is inviting all the unmarried she-wolves between eighteen and thirty to come to the ball. We know you want to live with Grandpa Quinn and Grandma Emmy Sweetheart” Dad started confirming what I was thinking as soon as I saw the letter. “If you go to the ball we will grant you permission and we will convince Alpha Phillipe to let you move in with the White Oak pack” This was the best news ever, if I was not suitable as a Luna even as a fated mate. There was no way the Crown Prince would select me as his chosen Queen. The royal family lived closer to the White Oak Pack, so I might as well pack all of my belongings. Maybe I could convince Mom and Dad I could stay at the White Oaks a few days before. After all, it was only a few hours by airplane to get to SilverCreek where the Royals lived. I never been there before and I was excited to go. I would be able to taste some new foods, and maybe even get some new recipes. “You’re not saying anything, honey, do you agree?” Mom’s voice pulled me back to the here and now. “Sorry Mom, I was daydreaming I just got a little excited, of course, I agree I cannot wait to see SilverCreek” I honestly told her. My parents’ wide smiles hurt me a little. They were excited and happy I seemed so open to giving this a chance. But all I could think of was going over to Jessa so I could tell her. She was twenty like me and unmarried too. My sister Kate named after our human great-great grandmother was nineteen and unmarried. We would probably go together the three of us. Before I even asked Dad chuckled telling me I could go and visit Jessa. Jessa and her two parents were the only packmembers who never treated me differently aside from my family of course. I would miss them when I moved, but they could always come over and see me. *** I rushed over to Jessa’s house and was welcomed by one of her fathers. “Got the letter too I see?” He said with a kind smile. Unlike me Jessa hoped to be picked by Crown Prince Griffin. Even when I pointed out that I doubted the future Queen of all the werewolves got to get away with her country-rock aesthetic. “Your fated mate is supposed to love you just as you are” She shrugged, and like clockwork, her face twisted with guilt and horror the second she realized what she said. It was another thing I hated. Ever since getting rejected the few friends I still had and my family members danced around the subject of fated mates. I can’t blame them, there is no pain greater than your mate rejecting you. It was worse since David and I had a connection, we were best friends until the moment he rejected me. It took me days before I could get Sarah to talk to me again. And it took another week before I felt strong enough to get out of the house and face pack live again. My parents, my uncles and aunts, my grandparents. They all found their fated mate. I grew up surrounded by loving couples. My entire life I dreamed what it would mean to finally find my fated mate. To feel the love all the happy couples around me had. I longed to have someone make me as happy as Dad made Mom. I loved to have cute little things like how Granddad always made sure Grandma had a tin full of freshly baked red velvet cookies because that is what he served her on the first date. I still was happy for the couples around me. But I lost my belief in mates and romance, I knew now you either get lucky or you don’t. And I didn’t need others to shelter me like I was still the fragile thing I was after getting rejected. Jessa mumbled an apology. But I wanted to change the subject, so I ignored Jessa’s rushed apology. “So are your fathers going to take you, I doubt my parents can travel with us. Would they mind if we traveled together” I asked her about traveling instead. “Sweety your parents, James, and I already discussed it. Of course, we are not letting 2 young she wolves travel alone. We will go together the four of us. And yes we will stop at the White Oak pack” Jessa’s father Theo smiled at us. At first, I was so excited about seeing my grandparents and going to SilverCreek with my best friend and her fathers I missed that Theo said 2 girls. “Wait, Mister Silver, you said 2 unmarried she-wolves, do you not mean 3? Isn’t Kate traveling with us too” I had not seen Kate in the last 2 days, which was unusual but if something happened to her Mom and Dad would have surely told me. All the faces around me fell, and I knew something happened to my dear sister. “Oh sweety, has nobody told you why Kate hasn’t been home,” Theo Silver said avoiding making eye contact. Chapter 2 Ayla and Grifin 2 Griffin Looking in the mirror I curse my mark again. The mark showing that my fated mate died before I ever met her. It happened when I turned one, almost twenty years ago now. So I never really mourned her. For some years I was sad she died though. Mom and Dad are fated mates and I see how much they love each other. I have always wanted that and knowing my fated mate died meant I would never. Not until I learned about second-chance mates. Rare but sometimes the Moon Goddess will bless wolves who lost their mate when they couldn’t have done anything to stop that from happening with a second mate. Ever since that lesson when I was fourteen I dreamed about meeting her. I fantasized what meeting her would be like, what she would smell like. I dreamed about walking up to my parents and telling them I found her. I joined my parents on every royal visit since. I visited as many packs as I could after my eighteenth birthday. All with the hope of meeting her. I never stopped dreaming of walking into a pack home and being overwhelmed with the most enticing smell in my life. I played the moment our eyes would meet for the first time in my head so many times. And I have been doing so for three full years now. Mom and Dad want me to find a queen now. So in two weeks' time the night before my twenty-first birthday, I need to pick my queen. A chosen mate, meaning I will never meet a fated mate. I have been trying to convince them to give me more time but it is no use. Now I am getting ready to go and speak with them like they asked me to. Sighing I button my shirt hiding the mark I hate so much. *** “Have a seat son we might have a solution for your problem” Dad tells me signaling to an empty chair in their office. I do, hoping against all hopes that they will give me a little more time to find my second-chance mate. They are not, they are suggesting a compromise. Inviting all unmarried she-wolves in my age range and a bit older. Giving me one last chance to find my fated second-chance mate. It seems bleak, if I have not found her before how likely is it I will find her during this one last ball? But I need to have faith, and I do realize some of our subjects are getting nervous at the fact I have not picked a Queen yet. The Luna of all Luna’s, they have every right to do so. Because it is what the country needs. “Thank you, Mom, thank you Dad can I take my leave now?” I ask anxious to get out of my chair. I need to go on a run because lately I’ve been feeling so locked in. They just nod so I rush out making quick work of undressing and shifting. Later that night I shift again and go out to howl at the moon praying to Selene the MoonGoddess to bless me with a second chance mate. “I promise I will be the best mate to her I could be. I will spend the rest of my life doing everything I can to make her the happiest every day for the rest of my life” *** Ayla “No, what are you guys talking about?” All kinds of scenarios flash my mind. But never the thing Jessa tells me. “I thought you knew she found her mate, he was traveling to a neighboring pack. He just stopped for lunch a little outside the background just as your sister was shopping in the big mall. It was a coincidence so they are both extremely happy. I don’t get why they were so panicky to talk about this. I am happy for her, and I cannot wait to meet him. If anyone deserves to find her fated mate it is my wonderful sister. For them to have it happen at such a coincidental meeting makes me happy. Who knows how long they would have had to wait if not for this meeting? “And everyone else just figured I was too fragile to be happy for my sister? So you all were nervous to tell me?” Theo stands up apologizing but I don’t want to listen to it. It’s bad enough that I‘ve been rejected by my fated mate. The guy I had a crush on since I was seven years old. It was bad enough that he did so in the pack kitchen so that everyone could hear and see. And I honestly get why my family and friends were worried in the beginning. Now though I have been doing better for so long. Sure I lost hope in ever finding a chosen mate. I’ve been rejected so there is no way the MoonGoddess is going to bless me with a second chance mate. I wanted what my grandparents, uncles, aunts, and parents have. A mate whose whole face lights up because you walk into the room. That sickening feeling of not wanting to be without each other for even a single minute. Grandma still mindlinks Grandpa every time they are away from each other for over an hour. That is what I would have wanted. Since I cannot have that I am not willing to settle for less. People need to understand that I am fine with that. I just want to go live in a pack where they respect me. Maybe be a teacher or something else to help the kids. I love children, I would have liked to have a litter of pups with my mate. Another thing I don’t want to dwell on. Instead, I figured I could be working with children. “Sis, it was not like that can you come home so we can talk” Daniel mindlinks me. My younger brother is the only one that gets me. He promised me that I would be the very first wolf to know if he’d found his mate. He also is the only one who knows of the bullying. Or how severe it is. As far as mom and dad are concerned some of the pack members make nasty remarks on occasion. I wish it was, I have a thick skin and could handle that. But Hannah took it upon herself to mistreat me. Beat me and no matter how small I am I could have handled her in a one-on-one fight. Or a fair fight but she doesn’t fight fair. She has always been jealous of my friendship with David. Looking back she could have had it since it wasn’t real. She used to claim that the reason she was so jealous was because deep down she felt David was her mate. So him hanging around other unmarried she-wolves made her protective of him. Hearing him reject me should have made her happy, but it proved something. That she was not his mate, she found her mate not long after. An Omega he was a sweet guy. He was not enough for Hannah though, she rejected him instantly. Then she blamed him so she could wallow in pity. Not that she mourned her rejection long. Now both without their fated mate she started to try and hit it off with David. Determined to be the pack’s Luna. Most of the pack members loved the idea of having Hannah as the Luna. She seemed to be in shape, she was average size, slim. And very beautiful with her long blond hair and pale blue eyes. She loved partying and hosting parties. The perfect feminine she-wolf, poised, graceful, and kind. That’s how she came across, David was falling for it too. As were most of the pack members. Still, there were some who never agreed with David rejecting me as his future Luna. Pack members who believed that the Moon Goddess does not make mistakes. That for some reason our pack would benefit from a quirky, short, tomboy Luna. I loved going to pack meetings but I preferred the lowkey casual meetings over balls where we had to dress up. Those pack members showed that they did not accept Hannah as their Luna. Every time a pack member did something to show they would have preferred me as their future Luna, Hannah lashed out. With her little pack of twisted friends. Kayla, Charlotte, and Taelyn. They would follow me out of sight, hold me down, and then beat me up. I could have told packmembers I always had bruises to show what they did. But it would cause Mom and Dad to argue with David and Alpha Phillip and leave the pack. They would go and live with the White Oak pack too. Meaning it would risk a war, Mom still is the only pack doctor. So Alpha Phillip would demand them to stay living with the BloodMoon pack forbidding them from living with the White Oak pack. And I love Uncle Cedric but he would go to war to protect his family and there is no way I am going to be the one that causes all of that. So for now I do as Daniel asked and as I am about to shift back to my human form a huge wolf runs into me throwing me on the floor. Chapter 3 Ayla 3 And of course, it is Jason, Hannah’s brother who sometimes helps his sister and her little band. “Come on Sis, Kate will be home in two hours, let me explain why she hasn’t told you yet don’t be stubborn” Daniel’s voice calls out through the mindlink. I was on my way home but if I told him I was delayed because of the five wolves circling me he would lose it. I told him about the bullying but made him promise not to get involved and I never asked for his help. And I am not starting today, he takes after Dad set to be the next lead warrior. He loves his family and he would get involved. Which would cause Mom and Dad to find out. “What is it this time Hannah” I ask her through my mindlink. Not wanting to shift back to my human form because I stand a better chance like this. “I heard you are going to the ball hosted by the royal family. Do you really think you are fit to be the queen? The Luna of all Luna’s if you are unfit to be the Luna of our pack” Hannah scoffs. I should have known it was her jealousy again, as I heard some rumors David had told her he wanted to have her as his chosen mate. Moon Goddess knows they have been dating. However, according to the rumors, Hannah did not want to complete the marking process. Because she wanted to be unmarried for the prince’s ball. Hoping she would either be his second chance mate. Or his chosen mate, fully delusional that she has all it takes to be the next Queen. While I am not looking forward to this event, and I knew the Prince would never choose me. I did know that the royal family is seen as kind and fair. I imagine the future queen had to possess those same qualities, meaning it could never be Hannah. The smart thing was to keep my mouth shut. Not egg her on more, so that I could maybe walk away with just some hurtful remarks hurled at me. If I would just take all her insults and let it go that would be enough for her. Shame, that I wasn’t wise, I was stubborn and I would never let anyone get away with offending me. “You’ve got a lot of mouth for someone who the Moon Goddess herself deemed barely worthy of an Omega. You think the royal family won’t see you for the garbage you are?” Like clockwork, their growls and snaps told me I was about to get another beating. “Stop it right now, what do you think you are doing five against one?” An unfamiliar voice boomed through the forest clearing where all of this was about to happen. I looked up to see someone wearing the royal sigil on his jacket. Everyone shifted back to their human forms. Awkward tension filled the air, I was the only one who brought my clothes with me. So I quickly got dressed again. Ignoring the royal sigil either out of pure stupidity or pure arrogance Hannah still buck undressed faced the man. “Who are you to interfere with pack business, even if you are a servant of the royal family here on whatever business” It’s not my business how she addresses the man who just helped me. I am a little annoyed he felt the need to get involved too. Hannah’s obsessions with ranks and feeling better than any low-ranked wolves gets to me. She has no rank yet, her father is the Beta but she is like me still an unmarried she-wolf without a rank. The stranger chuckles when he notices me rolling my eyes. He doesn’t comment on his rank, I can sense he is not an omega. Hannah would be able to notice too if she just used her brain for a second. The authority in his voice was not that of an omega. “My ranking or pack has no bearing on my interrupting your cowardice. No wolf should deem themselves unworthy enough to attack a single wolf in a group. Honestly, I don’t know if I am praying to the Moon Goddess that you are mated so you won’t come to the royal ball. Or to pray you are unmarried to spare other wolves from having a mate as horrendous as you are” He scoffs, even his wording suggests he is far more than an Omega. I try to show him the respect he most likely deserves still, I cannot contain my laughter. His gaze focuses on me with kindness in his eyes. Ignoring the others including Hannah’s fit about being called out he asks me to bring him to the Alpha because he is coming to hand deliver the invitation for the Prince’s ball. “I know this is an offensive question in most cases, but I don’t see a mark on you. And you seem to be of age, are you unmarried or have you not completed the marking process yet?” He asks and I can tell there is no malice if he is indeed to hand out the invitations for the Prince’s ball it would make sense for him to give me one directly. “You are right I am rejected by my mate, so I won’t be completing a marking process ever” I answer immediately cursing myself. Always speaking my mind had put me in trouble before. That is why some of the pack members believe me to be unfit as a Luna. They want someone poised and gentle, and Hannah does a far better job pretending she is than I do. “Never say never” the man winks and hands me the invitation. Which I accept with a bright smile, not for the reason he might think. I am not excited to meet this Prince. Go to a fancy ball where I have to overdress but it is the last step to moving in with the White Oak pack so this is bringing me one step closer to leaving this whole mess behind. “I am Dillion by the way,” He tells me shaking my hand and introducing himself. “Nice to meet you Dillion I’m Ayla thank you for saving me back there” I reply. I think I like Dillion he seems to be very down-to-earth. He reminds me of my great-uncle Nicholas. Funny, spontaneous but fair. During our walk to the pack house, we chatted a little about the BloodMoon pack. He is asking me how I am being treated here. No doubt he picked up on most of the pack members whispering about me. After seeing my undressed human body with bruises after saving me from five pack members gaining up on me. I don’t tell him anything, it is still not worth the trouble that would come from revealing this pack is far from what pack life should be. He is the first person I shifted around in ages all to hide my bruises. Even if that causes the pack to gossip even more. Undressed around shifting is common for wolves. Nobody ever bats an eyelid, and my always shifting away from the pack has caused more rumors. “Sis I am worried where are you” Daniel sounds agitated so I excuse myself to Dillion and mindlinking him back. “Ran into Hannah but we got interrupted by a messenger of the royal family. I’m walking him over to the packhouse and will be home in ten okay?” “You’re close to your family I take it. Would you ever be able to move to a different pack for a chosen or second chance mate?” Dillions asks me. If it wasn’t for the beautiful intricate mark on his neck I would think he was teasing me. Maybe he is just being nice, making me aware of the fact that I can find another mate. Or maybe he wants to see if I have honest intentions in coming to the ball. Either way, I do not know him well enough to let him in on my plans or feelings. “Part of being a wolf is the potential of needing to move to a new pack. I always knew and I still do” I give the most non-committal answer I could think of before saying my goodbyes. I have never been this relieved to see the pack house. Before he can ask me anything else I rush off to my home. Where a nervous-looking Daniel is waiting for me. Suggesting we go to his room to talk before Mom and Dad come home with Kate and her new mate. By now I am really curious as to who her mate is and why people are making such a big deal out of this. The only thing that would hurt me if she was David’s second-chance mate but her mate is not from this pack so I know that isn’t the case. “You know Kate has been dying to meet her mate eve before her eightteenth birthday right?” Daniel nervously starts. Chapter 4 Ayla 4 “I know Dan, and I want her to find her soulmate, so I am happy that she did” Before Daniel can tell me more we hear the front door opening, as Mom calls out for us. And I can smell my parents, Kate and another wolf. Meaning her mate joined her. Now is my chance to show my family I am genuinely happy for my sister meeting her mate. Show them that the fact I got rejected does not stop me from being happy for my little sister. I rush down the stairs excitedly but I almost skid to a halt when I see who Kate’s mate is. It’s Tim Hannah’s cousin. I know because he used to visit the pack often. It has been a few years since he came over though. “Hi, Tim so I take it your Kate’s mate?” I ask him. He is a few years older I think his 23 or 24. And I wonder if he knew Kate was his mate before he stopped visiting. Dad suggests we all sit down, and while I am still happy for Kate she found her mate. I get why my family was a bit hesitant to tell me about it. Even with them not knowing the full extent of what Hannah has been doing to me. Everyone in this pack knows she is always giving me hard times. Or that she is wanting to take my rightful place as the Luna of the Bloodmoon pack. Being the Sweetheart she is Kate helps Mom make everyone tea and coffee and puts out some baked treats she made. All while Tim is looking at her with that smitten smile I hoped to one day get from my mate. There is a small painful stab in my heart knowing that I will never get that. But the feeling of happiness for my sweet sister drowns it out quickly. “Please Ayla, let me explain because Kate told me what my cousin does to you” Tim starts. So she told him all about my rejection, and Hannah’s response to that. Mates share everything I know they do. Still, I don’t know how to feel about the fact Kate never asked me if I was okay with her telling him everything about me. Determined to be happy for her and giving this guy a chance I just nod as I keep listening to him. “You must have noticed my parents and I stopped coming over right? My aunt wasn’t like she is now but my Uncle and cousins they changed her. My didn’t use to care about ranks at all but being the Beta’s wife messed with her I suppose.” From what I remember he was right his brother, Hannah’s maternal uncle was a kind soft-spoken guy. So was Mila Hannah’s mother when we were children. I remember her playing with us kids in the playground, wearing jeans and a T-shirt. Since a few years, she was dressing ready to go to the office all day. When she had no job and was a homemaker, she helped our Luna out with planning every once in a while. “It hurt my father deeply but he went no contact with his sister, after getting in an argument with her mate. Hannah’s father. My brother and I could still visit them but we never felt the need to. We didn’t agree with what they were doing. That’s the reason I stopped for lunch at the mall and not with my family” He uses quotation marks as he says the word family. I suppose having lunch at your aunt and uncle's would make a lot more sense if you were still on speaking terms. Now it just made sense he stopped at the mall since he knew of good places to get lunch in the small town next to ours. I remember them all going to the mall when they were visiting here. Even if he still would have been in contact with his family I would not have judged him for it. As long as he isn’t like Hannah or her parents for that matter and makes my sister happy that would be enough for me. He doesn’t let me finish telling him so. “No please Ayla, let me finish because your sister has not accepted me as her mate yet. She was about to reject me thinking I knew what Hannah was doing to you. She told me that without your blessing she isn’t accepting me. As much as the idea hurts me I get it though. And I love the fact that my mate is loyal to her family.” He tells me and now I finally understand everything. It was never about Kate being scared I wouldn’t be happy for her. It was not about my parents being scared I still was too fragile to handle knowing my sister found her mate. “Kate, I love you but you’re silly sometimes, of course, you have my blessing. He couldn’t have known what Hannah is doing, if he still came to her often he would have known you were his mate years ago” Kate rushed up to me hugging me tears in my eyes. She was there for me when I was trying to put myself back together again. From an early age, she looked up to me, and I know she still does. To her, it didn’t make sense at all for anyone to reject me. I just never knew she suffered from it so much she would reject her fated mate for being related to the she-wolf trying to move in on the mate who never wanted me. “Go accept your mate and put him out of his misery, please. And you know dad wants to have a family BBQ now” I whisper in her ear quietly enough so that no one else can overhear us not even with their heightened hearing. “I Kate Hemming accept you Tim Davies as my mate,” Kate tells Tim beaming, he wastes no time in accepting her too. “This calls for a family BBQ” Dad calls out causing me and Kate to burst out in a fit of laughter. We all help set everything up and an hour later we are all sitting in our spacious backyard chatting and eating. Turns out Tim is a warrior not a lead warrior like Dad is but it would still be bad for his pack if he were to move here. He was traveling with the Luna to keep her safe. Kate doesn’t have a rank yet, she has been training with Dad, and she wants to be a warrior too. Unfortunately, Alpha Phillip is a little old school in his ways, saying women can not be warriors. Mom and Dad always told he she should still train because she might have to shift packs after meeting her mate. Proving to me once again that the Moon Goddess usually knows what she is doing. She just messed up with me. Not only is Tim a warrior too, but there has been some internal conflict in his previous pack and part of the pack split off to form the Cresent Moon pack. Meaning they were short on warriors too. The pack is led by a female Alpha and her Luna so gender should not be an issue for Kate in training to become a warrior. All in all, it makes the most sense for Kate to move to the Cresent Moon pack. “Ayla, since you know Alpha Phillipe doesn’t like it very much if your mother and I both leave the pack for too long. I was hoping you could be the family member bringing Kate to the Cresent Moon pack. She will need a family member there to break the pack bond. Their pack is on the way to the royal ball. You will have to spend a few days in the White Oak pack.” He swallows as if he is unable to find the next words. Mom is looking sad too, and I know it is hard on them. Even with them still believing I will stand a chance to become the Prince’s chosen mate. They know I will never return to our pack. Not for anything other than a short family visit. Both their daughters moving out from the pack will be hard on them. Especially knowing that the Moon Goddess planned for me to keep living here. I love them for not holding me back for selfish reasons and of course, I agree to be the family member escorting Kate to her new pack. With the emotional stuff out of the way and knowing we need to visit Alpha Phillip tomorrow to discuss two pack members leaving his pack. We make sure to keep the rest of the night light and happy. It’s one AM when I feel like I can excuse myself without being a party pooper. No matter how happy I am for Kate, being surrounded by loving couples always hurts a bit. Tonight on top of that I had to cope with the fact that I couldn’t be happy without hurting my parents. And having to go to a ball where I will no doubt get proven once again that the very thing I am so proud of makes me not good enough to be a mate. Chapter 5 Ayla 5 The next morning we went over to the packhouse. Alpha Phillipe would always spare his first hour of the day for walk-ins. He wasn’t a bad Alpha just not a great one either. What bothered me the most was the fact that he was training David to be the next Alpha. And how that meant David would sit into most conversations. Alpha Phillip was more than okay with Kate going to live with the Cresent Moon pack. He loved members of the pack going to live in another pack to form alliances. My problem was that there was already an alliance between the Blood Moon and White Oak pack. Alpha Phillip would never let pack members move to another pack if it didn’t benefit him. In most cases forming or strengthening an alliance would suffice. But I wasn’t about to move to my mate's pack. I was about to move to family so no new relationships were built. He was very interested in the prospect of one of the pack's unmarried she-wolves becoming a chosen mate to the royal family. For him, it would be the ideal alliance. Like his son though he deemed me unworthy of being the future queen. He didn’t even try to hide his disbelief shrugging his shoulders as he told us. “Honestly I have no issues with Ayla going to the royal ball. But we all know the likelihood that the Prince will choose her as the Luna of all Luna’s is extremely small. Tell me how it would benefit our pack if she was not to return to us after the ball” My parents tried to reason with him, pointing out how the pack was not treating me kindly after his son rejected me. Mom went as far as asking him how the future Luna would feel knowing that her Alpha’s fated mate was still living in the pack. “My son has selected a wonderful chosen mate. He is making the greatest sacrifice known to wolves. Letting her go to the royal ball to make sure the Prince does not want a fine she-wolf like Hannah for himself. Rest assured though if he does not and she will return to us as our Luna she will treat Ayla exactly like she has been doing ever since the rejection” Alpha Phillip told us like he was reassuring a toddler that there were no monsters under the bed. Was he that unaware of what was happening right under his nose or was he that uncaring? Not screaming about everything Hannah and her flying monkeys had done to me so far was already taking all of my self-control. Willow was already itching to take over control. I knew I shouldn’t I had been enduring the bullying, the beating the misteatment for two years now. All so I would not cause problems for my family. Now so close to escaping was not the time to mess it all up. Easier said than done when David smirked at me, licking his lips before addressing his father like a good little Alpha in training. “Can I give my opinion Father?” He asked politely, and of course, Daddy dearest let him. His pride over his son starting to pick up Alpha duties written all over his face. With an evil smile, David started talking again. “I do think the Hemmings put too much weight on my decision to reject Ayla. Every wolf with a sense of self-preservation would want a more suitable Luna. They all applaud me for the sacrifice I made in recognizing the Moon Goddess' only fault. Many seem to think for some reason the mate bonds between me and Hannah. And Ayla and that Omega what’s his name got switched up” Right away the air was thick with tension. Kate squeezed my hand hard enough to hurt. Telling me without words that I needed to keep my mouth shut. Mom and Dad stiffened at the insult. Not because he thought it likely that I was fated to an omega. No one in our family cared for ranks. It was his blatant disregard for me, my wishes, and the matebond we once shared that set everyone off. “I gather she is allowed to see her sister off to her new pack then Alpha, I mean my mate and I could always guard her but…” Dad asked Alpha Phillip, I knew there was nothing else he could do. Still, his silent and quick acceptance of my fate hurt me. Alpha Phillip’s permission for me to see Kate off came as quickly as Dad’s acceptance came. It was something at least. It would present me with a small break from the bullying and the pain. I was over David I had been since the day I saw him teasing Hannah. Seeing my once-fated mate move on so quickly and with the she-wolf that hurt me so much was still painful to watch. Like a constant reminder, the Moon Goddess indeed messed up. During the walk David’s remark about mine and Hannah’s matebond being switched up stuck with me. What if he was right? What if I could have had a sweet mate who would have adored me and loved me like I always dreamed of? How could it be possible for one single mistake to ruin so many lives? Hannah’s mate had not survived the rejection. It is the worst pain known to wolves. Omega’s are weaker and often they will die from the pain of rejection. Yet Alpha Phillip sat there with a straight face telling me the she-wolf who caused our pack to lose a member. making parents lose their only son over something as petty as a rank would be a better Luna than I would be. My anger was taking over, and I needed to get these emotions out before they would get the better of me. Willow hadn’t stopped fighting to take control and it would be better to shift if I was still in control. Our wolves tend to react more primal and I had no doubt she would go over to David and fight him the second I was no longer in control. Too upset with my parents I mindlinked Kate where I was going so that she would not worry for me before shifting walking out into the forest, to one of the empty tree trunks where we could keep our clothes after shifting. After checking no one was there I shifted into my wolf form and just took off running. I’ve always loved running and it was the one thing I was better in because of my size. Being small made me faster and a lot more agile. I could outrun every wolf in my pack and most in the White Oak pack too. The feeling of the wind rushing through my fair, the whizzing in my ears drowning all the other sounds out always made me feel peaceful. Feeling peaceful, calming down, and collecting myself was exactly what I needed now. The first few minutes it felt like someone was watching me. Once I got deeper in the forest the feeling faded so it must have been in my head. Everyone in my pack could follow me in this forest. *** Sun was already setting, I had ignored every single family member that reached out to me over the mindlink. Now my limbs were aching, I was hungry, thirsty, and honestly exhausted. When I finally reached the treetrunk where I stored my clothing. Hannah was waiting for me with her friends and brother. This time I would be in real danger, I was dead tired and hadn’t eaten all day. There was no way I could defend myself well, still, I took on a fighting stance. There was no way I would take their beating lying down. In an instant, all five of them are on me, head-butting me and biting me. Scratching me with their paws. I tried hitting them back with my paws. Biting me but they were all over me and I could not defend myself sufficiently. In the end, I had to stop fighting saving the last of my energy to get dressed and make my way home. The moment my body grew limp they shifted and left me on my own. But not without grabbing my clothes so I had to make my way home undressed. Meaning my parents would see my bruising, they would see what fate they had accepted for me so willingly. *** My mother gasped the second I opened the front door, Kate and her mate ran to catch me, to stop me from falling over. Dad was growling about to shift when Daniel stopped him. “This is what you allow to happen, she tried to protect all of us but this is what you’re letting them get away with” Daniel has never screamed at either one of our parents, I was about to tell him not to but the second I opened my mouth blackness overtook me.