I tiptoed down the hallway and quietly made my way down the stairs. The house was quiet except for the hum of the tv coming from the front room. Realising that it was one of the typical movie nights that the house held for its residents, I swiftly pulled up the hood of my jumper and crept out through the patio doors and down into the garden. The house rules exempted anyone from going outdoors once it had gotten dark outside unless they had a specific reason or they were fully trained, just in case of an attack. You never knew who could be lurking around in the shadows.
I made it to the edge of the lawn without anyone noticing that I had snuck out after hours and slinked into the trees, pausing briefly to check behind me, just in case that I was being followed. I scanned the garden and the patio, but I couldn't see anyone about. Not a noise could be heard, and I looked back up at the house, lights glinting in the dark.
A cool breeze fluttered through the air, caressing my skin, and causing me to shiver in anticipation. Breaking the rules made me feel alive. I briskly walked further into the forest, the trees getting thicker and taller, and the packhouse rapidly disappearing. The noise of the night-time wildlife soon replaced the deathly silence as the woods became alive with activity. Hoots and howls and tiny squeaks called out from in between the trees and the bushes. I carried on walking as fast as my legs could carry me until I entered a small clearing, basked in moonlight. Soft, springy moss covered the forest floor underfoot, masking the cracking sound of twigs and dry leaves under my feet. I sat down on the ground, feeling the evening dew beginning to seep through my clothes, leaving my skin feeling damp. A ray of brilliant silver moonshine fell upon me, illuminating me in a ghostly glow. I bowed my head and deeply breathed in and then back out, feeling all the tension, worry and nerves leaving my body with the air that I exhaled. Straightaway, I felt more relaxed and more at ease. I didn’t feel so wound up and heavy anymore.
I closed my eyes and searched deeply within my mind for any trace of a connection to my wolf. I tried to hear her heart beating, her breathing or even her voice, but all I could hear was the rush of my blood in my ears and my heart beating in my chest. I remembered the Moon Goddess’s words telling me to talk to my wolf and gently coax her home.
Anything at this point was worth a try.
I coughed deeply and positioned myself so that I was sitting comfier on the moss and began to think of what to say.
Look, I know you are scared, and feeling hurt, I get that. I understand how you are feeling. You are probably angry and upset too. Tom betrayed both of us. He was meant to love us and protect us, but he failed. Tom was evil and hellbent on his revenge to Xavier. He saw us as a gateway to hurt and destroy our Alpha.
What happened to us was unforgivable and inexcusable, but I am okay now. I promise. I have healed well, and I am fighting fit again, ready to take on the world with you alongside me. Tom is now dead, and he will never be able to hurt us ever again. I know this because I watched him being destroyed. Xavier killed him as soon as he rescued me, rescued us, yet again from inside the barn.
Xavier loves us very much. He lives and breathes us, he feels us, and we are always on his mind. We are a part of him now as he has chosen us for his Mate. The pack needs us to be their Luna, but I am not, will not and cannot move on without you. Please come back to me. Please come home!
I have missed you so much. I feel like a piece of me is missing. I need you, and you need me. I feel stronger now, and I have learnt so much more about myself and you. Please come home. I can’t live my life without you. You are me, and I am you. We are one.
I will never let anyone hurt us again and neither will Xavier. He has promised to take it slowly and only claim us once we are ready. I know you don’t want to feel a man’s touch ever again, and neither do I, not right now, but together, we will learn to fall in love again. Please, just give Xavier a chance that he deserves.
I know you loved Tom and I know that you disapproved of Xavier, but the Moon Goddess has explained everything. She has shown me the prophecy. Xavier was our destined Mate, but she threw Tom into the works to show us what would become of us if we didn’t except our rightful place. Just show me a sign that you are there and that you can hear me.
Just something, anything.
I kept my eyes shut some more and deep in my mind, an image of my wolf, walking slowly towards me played out in front of my eyes. I pictured myself holding my outstretched hand towards her, feeling my fingers connecting with her soft fur. I could hear her gently growling in appreciation at my touch before laying down and resting her head on my legs, her dark brown eyes looking up at me, filled with hurt, anger and pain. I watched myself bury my head into her large muscular neck, sobbing in relief, coating her silky fur in my tears, with my arms wrapped around her, holding her tightly.
I opened my eyes, the vision disappeared from my mind in a cloud of smoke, and I looked around the clearing. It was still quiet, with only the chirping crickets for company. I stood up and thought of my wolf once more and the vision that I had just watched. I breathed in deeply and shut my eyes once more as I prepared myself to try and shift. A familiar feeling overtook me, and in much-needed relief, I felt silky soft fur springing from my skin, claws ripping out of my fingers and toes and long pointy canines breaking out from my gums.
She heard me!
In utmost delight, I threw my head back and let out a long ear-splitting howl, happy that my wolf had come back to me after all this time. But something did feel different about her. My wolf no longer felt brave and powerful as before. She was timid, and I could feel her scanning her surroundings nervously.
It's okay, I whispered to her. Nothing is out here with us. It's just you and me. We are all alone.
Suddenly, in the distance, a loud howl echoed out into the night air. It sounded hurt, angry, and full of worry. My wolf instantly crouched to the floor, pinning her ears back. Our wolves have excellent hearing, and somewhere out in amongst the trees, we heard a large, heavy object rushing towards us.
Go!
I urged my wolf, and I could feel her large, powerful body jump up and dart further into the trees. Branches and twigs snapped noisily as we crashed through the undergrowth. A growl echoed out from somewhere behind us, and the sound of more heavy bodies chasing us soon filled the air.
A large group of people was clearly chasing us. Where they friend or foe? Most likely foe. Oh shit. Keep going!
I could feel my body moving faster and I heard my wolf’s heart pounding out of fear in her chest. I could hear her whining to me, scared and terrified of what was happening.
I am so sorry. I didn’t think anyone was around, I pleaded apologetically.
A sudden snarl from my left grabbed my attention, and as I looked over, I saw an enormous grey wolf come hurtling towards us, canines exposed, ready to take us down. Swiftly I turned around and swung one of my massive paws at the intruder, claws extended and struck the wolf heavily across his muzzle, causing him to fling backwards into a tree. A loud whine echoed out into the night air, and the grey wolf lay on the floor, not moving. Not hanging around to see if the wolf was severely hurt, I took off once more, running in the direction of the moorland. I knew I had to get us out of here, away from this pack of wolves that were chasing us.
I kept going as fast as my legs could carry me until I could no longer hear the wolves behind me. I saw a clearing steadily approaching. I knew that this was the last clearing before I would be out in the open moorland. I lowered my head and prepared to sprint across the clearing faster than I had ever run before. Before I knew it, a large black shape came crashing out from the undergrowth, connecting painfully into my side, resulting in me being flipped over and plummeting to the floor. I yelped out in shock and pain from landing roughly on the floor. Groaning, I quickly got up, ready to get the hell out of there, but as I looked up, I saw that I was now encircled by a large group of wolves, all of whom was snarling menacingly, teeth exposed and fur all standing up on edge. I swivelled my head around the group, looking for a way out but every wolf was standing flank to flank, blocking out any chance of escape. I lowered my head and began to snarl back angrily. A large black wolf with jet black eyes that burned furiously came towards me, head lowered and snapping his jaws menacingly.
Hang on a minute! I knew that wolf! It was Xavier! And if that was Xavier, then these other wolves were our Warriors!
Confused, I stopped snarling and lowered my body to the ground, submitting to my Mate. Quickly I mind-linked Xavier, as clearly, he didn’t know who I was.
Xavier, what are you doing? It's me, Leah. What’s going on?
I watched as the large black wolf, suddenly took a step back and raised his head, looking at me intently. He stopped growling, and his fur once more lay flat. He whipped his head around and snapped angrily at the rest of the pack, who had all stopped snarling and instantly dashed back towards the packhouse, leaving the Alpha and me all alone in the clearing. He took a small step towards me, and I could hear my wolf growl warningly.
It's okay, I soothed. He won’t hurt us.
I don’t trust him, was my wolfs reply.
I looked back over at the wolf who was slowly crawling towards us, keeping low to the ground. I felt my self-stand up tall and firm, body tense in apprehension. My wolf wasn’t happy that Xavier was this close, but I could tell she was trying her best to let him come near, for my sake. Finally, Xavier’s wolf was standing right in front of us. Gently he lowered his head and gently nuzzled his nose into my white fur. My wolf leapt backwards in shock and yelped, like a terrified puppy at his touch.
I’m sorry I can’t do this, she cried.
Yes, you can. Just relax, I coaxed her. He wants to love us. You need to trust him and me, I pleaded gently.
Once again, Xavier began to walk towards us once more. I could feel my wolfs body trembling with fear, but this time, she let him nuzzle into her neck once more. His wolf let out a soft, friendly growl, and I could feel my wolf becoming calmer. He stopped nuzzling my neck and proceeded to lick my face in adoration. As quick as a flash, he took a step back and shifted back into his human form. He looked at me and commanded “Shift. Now!”
He sounded annoyed, so I quickly did as I was told and returned myself to my human form. He bent down and grabbed a pair of trousers that one of the wolves had carried for him and he put them on. He threw me a towel, and I quickly covered up.
“I think me, and you need a little chat, don’t you?” Xavier whispered in an authoritative tone, not taking his eyes off me.
Sighing, I realised I was in big trouble. I gingerly took his hand and felt him pulling me dominantly back to the house.