Melanie's Pov

I found myself crying. I felt like that little girl who watched her father die all over again. I felt her arms around me, and I hugged her tight. She cried along with me, and she was not one to cry. She only cried when something was really touching. So, my story was touching her. After we were done crying, she continued to hug me and asked me to continue my story.

"I cried a lot trying to wake my dad up. I could not believe he was gone. Bryce was the one who got me out of my trance. 'They are back.' And he removed his cloth and dragged me outside to the nearest not burning bush. He covered us and only left space enough for us to see just like before.

They shifted to their human forms. They stood before us naked and I almost fainted. It was my first time seeing a man completely naked, leave alone the men standing in front of us naked. One of them was really built and his wolf, grey in color, stood taller than all of them. He looked like their leader. He started the conversation. They were about 10-20 men.

'Where could she have gone? That bastard Sam said that she always meets with the famous trader by the waterfall.' I was beyond surprised. So, that is how dad knew. The werewolves must have told him as they were taunting him. I felt really sad and betrayed. One of them strode into our house and came back panicking.

'She must have been her! The Wrenison's body has been moved!' They all rushed inside to confirm. We heard the leader shout for them to fan out and search everywhere. They thought I could not have gone far and they were right. I was hiding in plain sight.

'We have to move. If one of them comes near this bush and decides to touch it, it is over for us. He will definitely feel us. Let's go.' And that is how I left my people. Only I survived that day. Bryce was from the north of our village, so we decided to go South. None of us knew where we were going as long as we had each other and we were safe.

It was a long journey before we reached here. People said all kinds of things. The massacre was on their lips. So according to most, my father was the one who sponsored the Army. He gave them food, weapons and even shelter. I was shocked. I always thought my dad was being a good Samaritan hosting all those strangers in our village. Turns out they were werewolf hunters. It was too much at times, but Bryce was always there. We walked until it was just trees. Forest upon forest and no people. And funnily, that is where we met Wilen.

He was creepy. He appeared out of nowhere and said he had been expecting us. And that he had been chosen by the gods to guide us to our new home. We almost ignored him, but we were too tired to. We barely had food since we got into the forest. Our water had ended a few days ago and we badly needed rest. We followed him out of lacking a better option. We would have definitely died if we did not.

He had a hut in the middle of the forest. A well-built hut with mud and grass and it was fully stocked. He welcomed us inside and made us some porridge as we waited for food. He was a neat guy. Everything was well arranged, including his clothes and tools of trade, each in their corner. He hosted us for almost a week. By then, we had lost track of the days. Coupled up with the exhaustion, we did not even know exactly how many days and nights we stayed with him.

On the last day, he woke up, made breakfast then woke us up. He politely asked us to eat up and prepare ourselves as well as pack our things as we were leaving. In the last few days, we had learnt not to ask questions. You only did what you were told. So, we ate and packed and waited for him to lead the way. He had packed enough food and water for all of us, enough to last us a month. And we began the second part of our journey. We walked for days. We would always camp for the night. He would find us a good place and provide the sleeping gear. Since we found Wilen scary, we always opted to sleep holding each other out of fear that he would do something to us in the night.

Then one day after walking forever, we reached a large clearing enough to be a whole village. What caught my eye was the Rarity growing all-round the clearing. Wilen cleared his throat and said, 'Welcome home,' as he entered the clearing. We looked at each other and followed him. He walked right to the middle with us following suit and he placed his things down. He reached for the bag with his tools of trade. They were weird things; sticks, beads and herbs that he used to pray and make awful concoctions. He knelt down and started praying to his gods in his weird language. All we could catch was 'Bless this land.' He looked like someone having a seizure.

His eyes were closed, hands in the air and he kept on chanting phrases in the foreign language. He was sweating profusely. He prayed for a while until finally the beads and sticks moved to form a circle around him. He opened his eyes, picked the herbs and asked me to take them. He told us to go round the clearing holding the herbs together and touching the boundary of the clearing. As we did that, he continued his chants, and you could see the beads dancing round his head and the sticks were following us behind. After we were done, everything returned to his feet then this blue-like light washed over the clearing. He then stopped chanting, opened his eyes, packed his stuff and rose up. He slowly dusted himself up and said, 'The land is now fortified. It is all yours.'

It was like Bryce, and I could not believe it. We jumped up and down in joy. We hugged each other and almost kissed but Wilen cleared his throat. We both jumped from each other so fast like the other was on fire and faced him. It had been so long since we smiled at each other. It was all about survival. Love would come later. But now the journey had come to an end, and another one was yet to begin.

'In as much as I said the land is yours, there are rules you need to live by. You have the duty to keep the land as fortified as it is. I will be in charge of a couple of things. You need the materials to build this village to something. So, I will be in charge of trade. Most people especially the werewolves are looking for the both of you so you cannot leave this land. I will be trading Rarity to give us all we need. I will also be in charge of anything health. So, in case any of you is sick, you can consult me.

The most important thing is your names. You will have to lose them. But I must unite you two to be one first. Your surname shall be Davidson and so will be the name of the orphanage you will build later. This village shall be known as Davids after the both of you. This land requires good deeds so as to remain fortified. An orphanage is a good place to start. A lot of children are victims of the war between the Army and the werewolves. I believe we can help them. Also, find appropriate names before I return. You wed tonight. Let me go prepare. Your only duty is to find names.' And with that, he left us to ourselves.

I chose the name Melanie which was my mother's. Her legacy had to live on. Bryce refused to change his. He said the name Davidson was already bad enough, he could not afford to lose another good name. His stubbornness started a long time ago. I could not convince him otherwise. It was around midday when Wilen left us. After choosing our names, we just sat down to enjoy the peace. No words were said until Wilen returned. It was already getting dark. He came back with a lot of things.

He handed us some clothes and some ornamental beads. He guided us to each our separate side of the river and asked us to wash up then dress up. There was a river deeper into this forest. I was given a white gown that was too long and too big for me. Bryce was given some black cloak that was funnily too tight for him. If only we could exchange. As if sensing we were done, Wilen appeared. He brought Bryce to where I was, and he made us hold hands.

'I need you both to walk to the center of the river still holding hands. No matter what happens, do not let go each other.' So, we obviously did as we were told. There was no arguing with him. We walked hand in hand from the bank to the middle. We faced each other still holding hands. He stood by the riverbank and started chanting in his language. His beads, sticks and herbs were in the water in front of him. And everything started moving as his chanting grew louder. Even the water joined in the dance. Only thing that was left still were the herbs.

The beads and sticks along with the water were moving towards us. They started a song and dance around us. The funny thing is we could still see. All the water was with us. The riverbed was visible. The water mixed with the beads and sticks was moving around the two of us. I understood then why Wilen said no matter what we should not let go of each other. The force was too great. We really struggled to hold hands.

As for Wilen, he kept on chanting. He seemed to be using a lot of energy. The herbs were now floating above his raised hands. It was a long process. Wilen even ended up kneeling, but he kept on chanting until finally the herbs started moving towards us. it was creepy at first but everything with Wilen was. The herbs settled in between us, touching our holding hands. Wilen stopped chanting as soon as this happened and the water stopped moving. Everything settled back to its place except the herbs. The sticks and beads went back in front of Wilen but still in the water.

'Thank you for accepting and blessing this union. You are now husband and wife.' The herbs moved then and went back to their original position in the water next to the rest. Wilen picked everything and put them back in his pouch. He then asked us to come out of the water still holding hands. At the riverbank, he held our hands together and said,' Welcome to your new life, Melanie and Bryce Davidson.' This man was strange. He already knew the names we were going to choose.

He tried to move but he ended up kneeling down instead. He tried getting up but he could not. He looked exhausted. In a flash of a second, he fainted. We had never been that confused in our lives. He always knew what to do and now we did not know what to do. We decided to carry him back to our clearing. We put him in the center and proceeded to prepare a place for us to sleep and food for the evening. Bryce was in charge of the shelter. He managed to make a temporary shed from the grass and sticks around. I started a fire and put Wilen beside it, so he does not catch a cold. I also used the fire to cook us some vegetables and meat from Wilen's stash.

We ate and slept. I had spread the mats that Wilen had us carry to sleep on. He also had us carry some bed cloths that clearly looked handmade, and we used them to cover ourselves. We only hoped it did not rain and that is how we slept, me in Bryce's arms and Wilen right next to us. He was still out of it, but we hoped by morning he would be back with us. The first night was the most peaceful night I had had since forever. We slept through to the midday of the following day. I was woken up by some strange noise. First thing, I checked my surrounding. Bryce was still deep asleep with his back turned to me. I turned to check on Wilen, but he was not where I left him the previous night. Now, I was worried. I decided to follow the noise. I found Wilen on one end of the clearing busy building. He was the one making the noise.

'You know it is not good to sneak up on people like that.' He had his back to me, so I rolled my eyes. 'And it is not good behavior to roll your eyes at your elders you might just go blind.' The sarcasm just made me laugh. It was good to see him back on his feet.

'Glad you find this amusing. Your sleeping was not. That is beside the point. I am building on this end. The only space I will occupy. Both of you will build on the opposite end of me. Directly opposite. Our houses will face each other. Just that we will be on opposite ends. I hope you got that. Better wake your husband up and start planning. The rainy season will be upon us sooner than you think.' His amusement was long gone and that is how we started life here.

Wilen helped us get everything we needed. We built until it was a whole village. We took in everyone who was an outcast or a stray. The orphanage was built last. It took us a whole year to finish building. And we started taking in orphans too. It offered a source of income for those we took in. And that is how we have grown to where we are. I was unable to have children, so I dedicated my everything to the orphanage until you came along. The rest you already know. And that is my story."

"Wow mom! I think we should go back to the house before your husband finds a way to kill me or worse make me disappear. I can feel his anger all the way from the house." I just laughed and allowed her to help me out of the water and into my shoes. The walk home again was very quiet. It was short and I loved the tranquility in it. As soon as we opened the door, Bryce was on me hugging and checking if I was okay. Wren was right. He was angry but I could also see the worry. It was past midnight.

"You this girl! If something happened to her, I would have found a way to make you disappear." She just shrugged and left us to be. She went to find something to eat am sure.

"Sometimes Bryce, you need to calm down. She is just but a child." He just gave me disapproving eyes but kept quiet. He led me to the chair and held me like his life depended on it. After a short while, Wren brought some food for me. It was simple. Rice and veggies and I knew Bryce made it. It is the only thing he knew how to make really well. She brought her own food also and we ate in silence except for the staring daggers being thrown Wren's way by Bryce. She did not seem to mind.

She cleared the table, and I asked her to help me with my medicine. I gave her the instructions, and she did as I asked in front of us both. I took my 'medicine' and asked her to clean the utensils and the kitchen before going to bed. She knew I always did it to avoid roaches infesting, so she did as I asked. I asked Bryce to take me upstairs since I was tired. I was starting to feel the effects of the drug. Bryce held me in his arms while we were in bed, and he whispered his love for me and kissed my forehead. I slept to the beating of his heart. It was the most peaceful way to go.

Bryce's Pov

It was quite a peaceful night we had. I had slept right through and so did she. She slept in my arms and that felt really good. It always does. But I had to wake up. There was so much to do since the previous day was wasted. We did not even get to celebrate my wife's birthday. Anyway, I could always arrange a surprise party later in the day and maybe exclude that lousy Wren. Melanie would kill me though. I never understand their relationship. She is not a likeable child. The gods know I have tried.

I had to get out of bed and prepare. The sun was still thinking of rising and I did not want to wake her, so I was sneaking around. After preparing myself, I thought I should kiss my wife goodbye. Her skin was super cold. The sun was starting to shine in our room and that is when I noticed she was paler than usual. I felt for her pulse but there was none. Her chest was not moving at all. And for the first time in my life, I screamed.

First one to respond was Harrison. He practically lived with us. I asked him to get Wilen, and he ran to do so almost knocking over Wren on her way in. The hate I have for this girl. She was the one to blame for this.

"You'd better pray my Melanie is okay or the things I will do to you you'll live to remember me." I saw the fear in her eyes, and she took a couple of steps back almost falling into Wilen who was coming in. She stood outside as Wilen examined Melanie.

"Am so sorry Mr. Davidson. Your wife passed in the early hours of the morning." All the strength left me. I found myself on the floor sobbing. In my peripheral, I could see Wren crouched by the door post crying. She had no right at all. This was all her fault.

"You are to blame, and you will pay for this dearly. You are about to feel my wrath. I am Bryce Roberts, and you will surely pay."

Wren's Pov

And that is how ended up where I am right now, in this boarding school. After Melanie died, Bryce made sure I knew he never liked me. I became hi personal maid and errand boy. Harrison was practically receiving payment for work that I was doing. He even got the time to start a family. For months, I would cook, clean, wash clothes and any menial job around the house including busted pipes and broken roofs. And by evening he did not like what I had done, I would be made to understand why he is a Roberts and not a Davidson. He would beat me like there is no tomorrow. Like real beating involving kicks and fists.

On top of that, he would expect me to run errands for him. He would send me with messages and letters which was Harrison's work. He would time me and if I was not back on time, he would beat me in front of his workers and the children in the orphanage. Worse was if I failed to deliver a message or letter, I would receive twice the beating. I was always bruised up and I had no one to talk to. If you happened to be seen near me, you would be punished alongside me. So, everyone minded their own business. Only Melanie would have defended me, but she had left me with him. I hated her so much for that, so I started calling her Melanie instead of mom. Bryce never even cared about my education.

By the third month of Melanie leaving us, Bryce was tired of seeing my face. He would beat me simply because I showed my face to him. So, he made the conscious decision to send me to a boarding school. I was kind of relieved because I would not be beaten but I was also worried because I knew nothing beyond this house, Melanie and Bryce. I had barely interacted with anyone outside our house and now I was expected to interact with so many people at once. Not like I had a choice. I was asked to pack a bag one night that I was leaving for boarding school the following day. He did not even have the courtesy of taking me. Harrison was the one who took me. I did not even know where we were going. At least he provided a cart as a means of transport as well as food and water for us and the donkeys to pull the cart. It was a long journey that took a little over a month. At least Harrison gave me stories about his new wife on our way, so I was not bored. But I never responded. He was the one doing the talking.

I only knew where we were headed when we reached. Montes village, his village of origin. I guess now I knew why he was Bryce Roberts and not Davidson. As soon as, Harrison made sure I was settled, he left. And that was the last person my village I ever saw. I have been in this boarding school ever since. Bryce sent me a letter a little after to the school explaining how I was a delinquent child and that I was never to be allowed to go home even on holiday breaks. So, my school became my home. The day I was sent away from home to this school was my birthday. I turned 16 that day.

Now I am a few days shy from turning 18 and for some weird reason I am nervous as hell. I can feel my body is changing calling for something even, but I cannot place my hand on it. Anyway, I have 7 good days to figure it out.

It is night now. Midnight to be precise. Everyone in the dorm is asleep. Weirdly, I cannot sleep. It is too hot to sleep. I feel kind of feverish, and my lake is calling out to me. I have this lake just outside this village. A little deep into the forest behind our school and dorms. I love sneaking out most of the nights that I feel restless. It is the serenity that comes with it that attracts me to the lake. It always reminds me of how I felt around Melanie and tonight I need that. So, I sneak out without notice and trek the short distance to the lake.

But instead of the peace and quiet that I always find, I find chaos. Even before I reach the clearing where the lake is situated, I hear the heavy splashing of water. Continuous splashing like someone is drowning. I start running and indeed someone is drowning. I cannot tell exactly who, but it is a guy. And by the looks of it, someone must have pushed him in because he is fully dressed. Though am in a dilemma. I cannot swim. No one ever taught me how to. I only come to the lake to dip my feet in and enjoy the quiet.

I think fast and find a long strong stick. Finding one was easy since am surrounded by trees. In his splashing, I manage to get through to him and ask him to hold onto the stick I am holding over him. I manage to help him get to the lake shore and I help him out of the water. The guy in his relief hugs me really tight but I manage to throw him off me. I am mad at this point.

"And what exactly is wrong with you! I was just being a good person helping you and you take advantage of that!" I am yelling by now. He just laughs and replies.

"Feisty. I like it." That manages to calm me down enough to remember no one actually likes me talking. So, I just give him a mean face in response and he just laughs.

"I am Terris St Augustine." He introduces himself stretching out his right hand which I shake. He has a firm grip to be honest, and he is not bad looking. I am quite tall myself, but he is towering over me. I would say over 6 feet tall. He has this striking honey-colored eyes with a hint of red. In fact, a red ring surrounds his pupils. Strange I have never seen that before. He only has a robe on and a pair of shorts which are dripping wet. His robe is a nice mix of blue and green which compliments his rich in color skin. Against my own skin, his makes me look paler than usual. His chest is full, and he has got a 6 pack. He definitely works out. His thighs and legs are packed and strong. His arms are also packed with veins running down them. I find myself ogling. His voice snaps me out of it.

"Like what you see?" He teases and I find myself blushing. His hair is short and matches his eyes. And he has alluring lips covered with this bush of a beard same color as his eyes. His jawline is sharp matching his body.

"The way that blush travels up your ears. The red suits your skin perfectly. I like." He teases again and I turn even redder. He licks his pink, rosy lips and laughs.

"It is like your tongue got stuck somewhere. Anyway, it was nice to meet you officially and thank you for saving me. Whoever pushed me into the water is here and if he continues to see me with you it will be more trouble. So, I have to run. Bye pretty lady and see you St Durren." He says looking at the forest across the lake and running in the opposite direction. The confusion on my face is very evident. Now, who is St Durren and what is with the saints? It sounds like a cult or something.

I look in the direction he looked while referring to this St Durren and I see no one. Well, it must have been those chasing him down and I must have made them end their pursuit. After all, he did say that being seen with me is trouble. I must be trouble then. I think to myself. The night drama has already exhausted me. I came for the peace and quiet, but I ended up in chaos that just left me confused and rather tired. The walk back to school is uneventful and I manage to slip back into bed without alerting anyone to my absence. Not that anyone cared much anyway.

The next couple of days are quiet. To avoid being noticed, I mostly keep to myself. No one knows much about me except the fact that I practically live in school. Everyone thinks am an orphan that got picked by one of the teachers and was on that school on scholarship. I hear them talk every time I pass by. The way I arrived in school is what makes them start the rumors. I was a quiet kid with healed and healing bruises all over my body. That made me look helpless in their eyes. Not that I minded, only that it was a reason to be bullied. But the bullies never anticipated a 'helpless' child to retaliate. I once beat a fellow student, a boy for that matter, till all I could see was blood. That is when I stopped. He was rushed to the village healer, and he stayed with him for 3 months. I hear he had a broken nose and jaw.

To be fair, when I started beating him, all I could see was Bryce's face. So, I kept beating him until I could not see his face. No action was taken against me. I was taken to the head of the school who let me off with a warning. She said that she understood that I had been through a lot, but it should never repeat itself. I was fine with that as long as no one touched me. From that day, no one ever dares breath in my direction which is fine by me.

Anyway, my birthday is in 2 days. I was born/found on the last day of the fourth month. I do not know how my life is going to change once am 18. One is considered responsible for themselves once they got to that age and my situation is worse since Bryce washed his hands off me. He can easily toss me away once I am 18. But that is the least of my worries. I am particularly not feeling well. Ever since the night of the chaos, I have been having several fever spike episodes and serious cases of severe headache. I do not want to say anything since I know Bryce will have to be informed. And going back there is not an option for me. So, I am suffering in silence.

I particularly feel more drawn to the forest and the lake than normal. It is the only thing that manages to calm me down. In the presence of nature under the glowing light of the moon, I feel so much better. So, I have been sneaking out every night since the chaos night. I have been hoping to see Terris again, but I have been hoping in vain.

This sickness has been affecting me in ways that it should not. I am an excellent student. I do well in my studies but concentration for me has been difficult since the chaos night. It is serious to the point that teachers call me out for it in classes which has had me laughed at more times than I can count. Another thing is I have found myself attracted to both boys and girls. Before the chaos night, I never found myself checking out anyone. I always assumed like Melanie, I would find someone meant for me when the time is right and settle down. Now the last few days, I have been finding myself staring at both girls and boys. Good thing is no one pays attention to me, so it mostly goes unnoticed.

No one even knows my birthday is soon. I am thinking all this nervousness is what is making me sick. Some teachers have noticed, those who care enough anyway. I am paler than usual, either sweating or having chills which make me shiver. I manage to pass it off as nerves courtesy of the coming exams which is understandable.

So, it is one day to my birthday. By midnight, I will be 18. Everyone is asleep in my dormitory. I cannot seem to catch any sleep. I have been turning and tossing so much that I am worried I might wake someone up. I can tell it is almost midnight, and the nature is calling out to me stronger than ever before. I am hot and sweating like crazy. Sneaking out like this is not going to be easy but I have no choice. This heat can only be cooled by the waters of the lake.

I sneak out successfully. I try to be as quiet as possible despite my discomfort. I literally run to the lake. How I remove my clothes even I do not know. What I know is that the water feels amazing against my skin. It cools me down drastically. That proves to be temporary though. Suddenly, I feel so much intense pain from virtually everywhere to the point that I scream out. I do not understand what is going on. I think I might be dying. Maybe I got the same sickness Melanie had.

The water does not seem cold enough for me. It is burning me instead. So, I carry myself out of the water with the little strength I have got. I lie on my back on the back on the lake shore closing my eyes. The night air is doing good things to me. I feel so much better. Who knew being naked outside at night at night was this good? I slowly open my eyes to the sight of a bloody red full moon. That is odd. I had never witnessed or heard of one. But I am distracted from that by the pain. This time stronger than before. I wince and curl up into myself. And as soon as it comes, it is gone. Just like a wave. I have a series of waves before everything stops at once. The pain, the fever, all gone.

I try to get up only for me hear a crack and the most excruciating pain from my legs travelling up my body. I have just broken my legs, and I do not know how. It is midnight now, but it does not matter since there are more serious issues at hand than turning 18. I am now convinced that I am going to die. This is definitely worse than what Melanie had. But one thing is for sure, I am not going to be found naked. I try to locate my night gown. It is a few feet from my legs. Maneuvering with broken legs is not easy.

I try to lift myself up so that I can be able to turn and grab my gown, but my hands crack too. The pain is worse than before, and the heat comes back with it. Even the night air is useless now. The intensity is too much now. I am sweating ten times more than before. I feel a series of more cracking as if the bones in my body are rearranging themselves. The pain is too much now that I am crying. Every bone in my body is cracking and breaking. The pain makes me think of one person who might be of help. Only problem is, he is far away. But I call out anyway with the only strength I got.

"Wilen."

And as soon as the name rolls out of my tongue, I see him in my sight. I have never been this relieved to see someone. He looks about the same but with my tearful eyes it is hard to tell.

"Help me please." I manage to whisper. I have been screaming a lot, so my voice is barely there.

" I am sorry my child. I cannot. I can only sit and hold your hands through it. This is the next phase of your life, and you must go through with it. The only person who can help you is on the sidelines watching. He knows better than to interfere. He knows you need to do this by yourself. And also, he is a little afraid of me. He did just see me appear out of thin air." I want to laugh at that last statement with him but am too weak and in so much pain to engage. His explanation does not make sense to me, and I frankly do not care. I am glad he is here though.

He holds my hand through it. It has been hours of pain and heat to the point that am numb. I feel my bones rearranging themselves. And my vision slowly starts sharpening. All of a sudden, am in all fours looking straight into the red eyes of a large black wolf that is in the forest that is across the lake. I do not understand how I can see that far or what exactly I am seeing. And before I could grasp anything, everything goes dark.

The next time I come to, the sun is shining bright on me I have to close my eyes for a second. I open my eyes again and try to adjust to the light. I am lying on my back and with the way I can feel the sun on every part of my skin, I am definitely naked. I look around. I am still at the lake, by the shore. The morning breeze feels good. I feel better actually. No more heat or headaches. Just a calm healthy body. And the events of last night come rushing back. Wilen was definitely here and am sure I saw a wolf. It was as dark as the night with red eyes like the moon that same night. And again, it hits me where I am and what time it is.

By now everyone must be awake. I am in so much trouble. I run back to school and sneak in successfully. Everyone i sup and about in their night wears. It is bathing time, so I blend right in. I am just lucky. This would have ended so much worse. Bryce would have been called, and I am not ready to see him, maybe ever. So, I join the others and prepare myself for the day. Funnily, I do not feel sickly like yesterday, but I feel funny. Like I am not just me. All my scars are gone. My skin is as smooth as a baby's. But I ignore it. It must be just that Wilen was able to cure me. Maybe it is the herbs that are making me feel funny. But deep down I know that Wilen never gave me any herbs.

Anyway, I manage to catch up with everyone and sit down for my first class of the day; Social and Political Science. I do not enjoy it very much because it involves a lot of discussions forcing me to participate. But the teacher, Ms. Koza, is nice even to me. She was among the few to notice I was not fine the past few weeks. She in class and she is discussing leadership. She wants someone to help define leadership and no one is. I usually sit at the very corner of the class. She is scanning the room to see who she will choose. I know the answer but am always quiet unless chosen. Then out of nowhere a deep voice says,

'You know you should answer. It would not hurt anyone.'

"What?" I say so loud that everyone turns to look at me. I sit alone and no one in this room would dare to speak to me. So, where did the voice come from? And before I can figure it out, Ms. Koza smiles wide and takes the opportunity to ask me to answer. Everyone is still looking at me, weirdly of course. I clear my throat and answer as audible as possible. I know it is correct, so I say it fast and keep quiet.

"Very good." Ms. Koza and the voice say at the same time. She must have seen the confusion om my face because she asks me what the problem is. I manage to lie and tell her I thought I had omitted something in my answer.

The rest of the day goes by smoothly except the voice. It is everywhere I go and it is driving me crazy. I can tell it is coming from within me. It is in my head, and it scares me. Maybe I am not cured after all. What happened last night must have been leading to this. My thoughts are interrupted by the voice.

'You know I do not like being called the voice. I do actually have a name. You should be kind enough to ask.' I like the sass, but someone is angry.

Right now, the nature is calling out to me once again. It is night now and everyone is asleep. So, I focus on sneaking out. The lake is peaceful tonight. I disturb the peace by dipping my feet in, but it soon settles. The air is cool and crispy which is making me feel good. I close my eyes and for some weird reason my hearing sharpens. I can hear all the little creatures running around the forest. Except I hear a twig snap across the lake in the forest, and I open my eyes so fast. At first, I see no one but suddenly my vision sharpens and I see beyond the trees across the lake. It is the same wolf as last night but what shocks me the most is what the voice in my head shouts.

'Mate!'

Leonard's Pov

My name is Leonard St Durren. I am a werewolf and the Alpha of the Crimson Pack. I am 50 years old as of now and I am mate less. I turned 18 with the hopes of finding my mate but I have never found her. I am the son of Alexis and Franc St Durren. I love my parents, but my mother Alexis gets on my nerves most of the time. Case being I need to find a partner since I have not found my mate. She says that if a werewolf does not find a mate by his or her 30s, then he or she is allowed to choose a partner. But I do not want that. I still believe the gods have designated someone for me. So, I am still looking, never giving up. I have a sister, younger than me though. she is her late 20s and mated. She found her mate as soon as she turned 18. Her name is Frances Alexa Stone, and she is mated to Alistair Stone, Alpha of the Shadow Pack. They have been together for almost 10 years now and have 2 children already.

Anyway, despite my mother's pestering, I am not giving up. My second in command, my Beta, is Snyde Easton. He also found his mate Sonia shortly after turning 18. They have 3 boys of their own. Snyde and I were born on the same day, first day of the first month. We have grown together, and we are the best of friends. I am the godfather to his boys. He knows me better than anyone else. I know him only second to Sonia.

So today is a particularly bad day for me. My mother has been on my case since morning. It is like she forgets I am busy running a whole pack alone. Not like she cares anyway. She brought this girl; I do not even remember her name. I had not even woken up. So, she thought it was a good idea to ask her to sneak into my bed while I was asleep. So, the girl did and mother locked us in. One minute I am dreaming of my faceless mate and the next I feel hands on me. I almost choked the poor girl to death. By the time mother was coming to her rescue, she was all out of air and she passed out.

She had to send the girl back to her people with a lot of gifts as an apology. It is safe to say she will never come back here. She looked so scared. Now my mother wants me to kill me. I have been hearing her voice all day. I am just tired. I have a massive headache. Snyde meets me in my office massaging my temple.

"What is up bro? You look exhausted. And why is your mother complaining like that?" He was not around when everything was going down. Sonia is not feeling well so he had gone to seek a healer.

"I do not even know where to begin. She has been at it all day. I really need to get out of here."

"Well, a run sounds good right now. You can tell me all about it as we run. Plus, I need it too. It has been a long day." He knows me too well.

The run goes well except for the part that Snyde laughs at my predicament. We usually run round the pack, and he laughed half of the run. On a good note, Sonia is going to be just fine and mother finally kept quiet. On the bad note, the run did absolutely nothing to help me. It is nighttime but I cannot relax enough to fall asleep. It is almost midnight, and sleep has not come. So, I decide a walk is a good idea. Nothing feels good like the cool air of the night especially in the fourth month of the year. We are on the third day of the fourth month.

As I walk, something draws me to the lake. I used to love going to Lake Serene when we were children. Snyde, I and other friends our age used to hang out there a lot. That is until this kid, my sister's age, started coming by trying to be our friend. When we get to 18, we stop aging. So, we were 27 and the kid was 5 and he wanted to be our friend. I came to learn later that he is the son of the Alpha of the Ashwood pack, our neighbor. And that he had as much right to the lake as us since half of it is in their territory. That pissed me off and I stopped going there. The kid's name is Terris St Augustine.

I am walking in the forest slowly towards the lake. Beyond the trees, I can see the boarding school the humans built. The lake is situated a couple of miles behind the school. I am busy gazing at the school that I do not notice I am almost running out of forest cover. It is that sweet lavender scent that snaps me out of my daze. And that is when I see her. The most beautiful woman I have ever seen. And my wolf, Raven, is going crazy in my head, 'Mate! Mate! Mate!' I cannot believe I have found her.

She is sitting by the lake shore on the side of the Ashwood territory, with her legs dipped into the water. She has her eyes closed soaking in the moonlight and the cool night air. She is oblivious to things around her but yet I remain in the shadows of the trees. She has this long black hair, dark like the night, that looks good in the night light. It is flowing up to her waist tempting me to run my hands in it. I can already imagine myself grabbing it as I am pounding into her from behind. And now I am horny. I have been waiting for and dreaming about her for the longest. I guess it is natural to be horny.

I can see she is fair in complexion though I am not sure if it is the cold that is making her pale. I can imagine biting into that skin and leaving obvious bite marks all over her pale skin. They would definitely look good. She is wearing a night gown that she has lifted up to allow her to dip her feet in the water. I can see her juicy thighs, and I can see myself in between them eating her out. I can already hear her moaning my name. Her night gown has a few buttons at the top that she has not bothered to button up. So, the wind keeps on playing with the unbuttoned parts and I manage to see the outline of her breasts. They are not really full and yet very alluring. I can see myself nestling in between them and falling asleep. I just wish she could open her eyes so that I can see what color they are.

I admire her over and over and it is not helping my situation. Imagining myself with her is making my member even harder. I cannot see her figure really, but I already love what I see. I choose not to disrupt her peace, for her sake and mine. If I get close to her, I will devour her like a hungry lion and that is not the impression I want her to have of me. She stays like that for a long while and I am still admiring her. I wonder why I have never seen her before. I have been to Ashwood pack several times, courtesy of that annoying brat, Terris.

I can tell she is a werewolf, but she does not smell like she belongs to any pack. She smells like a rogue werewolf which is quite odd. How come she is in Ashwood territory? And that is when I notice Terris hiding in the forest behind her and he is looking straight at me with that smug smile of his. So, she is here courtesy of him. Terris has me distracted enough that I do not notice her getting up. I only see her wear her robe over her gown with her back turned to me and she starts walking towards the school. Now I am super confused. She should be walking towards Terris not the school. No werewolf is allowed to attend the human school. That was part of the treaty we signed with the humans for the sake of peace. Everyone is to remain in their territory.

Maybe I am judging too fast. I decide to follow her behind the tree cover and sure enough, she goes into the school. How is this possible? Maybe Terris knows something about this. I decide to walk back to the lake. I find him waiting for me at the same spot she was sitting. I stand opposite him, on my side of the lake.

"I see you finally found your mate. I knew there was something special about her, the very first time I saw her. I even thought of being united with her and making her my life partner. If I knew she was your mate, I would have actualized my thoughts." And then he smiles that smug smile of his. Only he can manage to joke at a time like this.

"St Augustine! Now is not the time. I have so many questions."

"Of course you do St Durren. But I can only answer them if you agree to be my friend." He shrugs his shoulder nonchalantly. Only he can do this.

"St Augustine! I said not now!" I shout back at him.

"Well, you know you are not my Alpha. Am an Alpha too and that commanding tone and aura does not work on me. I will never submit to you because like it or not we are equals in our capacities. So, I do not have to answer to you." And he leaves just like that.

I did not know he is capable of getting angry. That is a first. He is always playing and joking around. He manages to soil my good moods but when I think of her, my moods change instantly. I am happy as I walk back home. I am whistling which I never do and all the guards doing night patrols are amazed. I can see it in their eyes as I pass by them. I am rarely happy to be honest so, I understand their reaction.

I am not even sleepy anymore. I feel like I should be celebrating but, I cannot just yet. I have to know who she is and unravel the mystery surrounding her first. I am so lost in thought that I do not notice the someone on my bed.

"You know if I intended to kill you, you would be dead by now." I turn very fast to see my best friend. I am in attack mode already.

"Snyde! You should not scare a werewolf like that. It never ends well." He just laughs.

"Says the werewolf lost in thoughts and not paying attention."

"Says the werewolf with a mate and 3 kids at home." He raises his hands in surrender. "What are you doing in my room?"

"I could not sleep. Sonia being sick has me kind of on edge. I keep looking over to see if she is still breathing. So, I thought I would disturb the one I thought was sleeping." The innocent look on his face has me almost laughing.

"Only to find the one who is supposed to be sleeping is missing." I laugh.

"Exactly! I asked the guards, and they said you took a walk round the pack. Where were you anyway? Why did you not call me to keep you company?" The curiosity on his face makes me laugh again.

"How can I call someone who has a mate? And to make it worse, the mate is sick. I cannot do that to Sonia. That is being selfish. Plus, I was just around the pack clearing my head." He narrows his eyes at me.

"You know Sonia adores you. She would not mind at all. You know sometimes you forget I know you. You are hiding something." Nothing ever passes Snyde.

"And how do you know I am hiding things?" He stands from the bed and walks up to me. He is almost my height. He looks into my eyes and says holding my shoulder,

"Because you, my friend, are glowing like someone who just had sex. Also, you are avoiding too much eye contact. So, whom did you fuck?" He demands.

"I did not have sex with anyone. And will you keep it down before you wake everyone up?" I whisper back.

"You'd better tell me what is going on before I get your mother, the Luna, to ask you for us." He crosses his arms over his chest and gives me a serious look. Time for jokes is over now.

"Okay fine but do not shout or freak out on me. Remain as cool as a cucumber. Promise me." I whisper.

"I promise Leo. Cool and calm." He whispers back. He is getting it now. No being loud.

"Good enough. I have finally found her Snyde. I found my mate tonight." I tell him in one motion. As soon as my words register in his head, his facial expression changes. I am not sure what I am looking at but he looks like a lot is going on, on his face. He looks how Sonia looks when she sees me. The excitement is there but usually a lot of confusion and freaking out once she notices she has called me by my first name and hugged the life out of me in front of the pack members. I am looking at exactly that on his face. He does not even say anything.

"I know you would behave like this. Snyde you promised." I remind him because I know he likes to keep promises. I see him visibly calm down enough to say something.

"Sorry about that man. A lot is going on in my head. You have actually found your mate. I thought the gods forgot to give you one. That was the reason I was coming to you tonight. I did not like how you were during our run. I could tell it did nothing to calm you down. So, I knew you would not be asleep. It was the other thing keeping me awake. Am glad I do not have to talk you into choosing a partner." I am confused.

"What? You wanted me to be united to someone?" I ask shocked.

"Story for another day. Come here my man." He proceeds to hug the life out of me like Sonia does. They are mates for sure.

"Congratulations. Now tell me about her." He releases me and pats my back. I can see the excitement on his face.

"Yes, once I catch my breath." I then proceed to tell him all about her and the mystery surrounding her leaving out the juicy parts reserved only for me. He is shocked for sure.

"Human school? Is she a spy and which pack is so interested in the territory harboring the school enough to send someone in?" Am as confused as he is at this point.

"I do not know Snyde. She does not belong to any pack. She is a rogue. That kind of mission is risky even for werewolves belonging to a pack like us. But St Augustine has the answers we need." I can see the annoyance on his face already upon hearing his name.

"That boy again? What are we even waiting for? Let's go there and force it out of him." He demands as if Terris lives next door.

"Man, not boy, Snyde. And he is an Alpha too so we cannot force anything out of him. I have already pissed him off tonight by my blunt disrespect and disregard for his authority. I do not want to burn the bridge and ruin any chance of him ever talking to us. Let the man sleep." I can see the shock on his face.

"Wow! She just came and she has already done a number on you. I cannot believe you are defending St Augustine. He is the one person you do not like or try to even tolerate." I want to laugh but I know he will be pissed.

"I know but for her sake anything. Even if I have to tolerate him then so be it."

"The power of having a mate right there. Who was saying I was losing my backbone to Sonia?" He teases. I punch him in the chest jokingly and we laugh together.

"I hear you man. You should go back to Sonia. If she wakes up and finds you not next to her, she will kill us both. And Snyde, not a word to anyone. Well, except Sonia because I know she is going to get it out of you, one way or another."

"Okay. Have a good one." We hug and then he proceeds to leave. I decide it is time I catch some sleep. It is late already. I blow out all the candles and get into bed. I sleep to the image of her in my arms.

But the next morning, I am woken up from my peaceful sleep by the chaos. My mother is the one calling out my name in panic and I can hear commotion outside. I wonder what is going on.

"Mother, what is wrong? You look terrified."

"My son, that St Augustine boy is here. And he says he is not leaving until he talks to you. Snyde is trying to talk him down, but he is relentless." That manages to wake me up completely. I put on a robe and rush outside to see what the problem is. I find Snyde seconds away from punching the living daylights out of Terris. I manage to come in between, and I get punched instead. Snyde is shocked and he has this horrid look on his face.

"I am sorry bro. I did not see you."

"It is okay." I turn towards Terris and ask, "What is it?" He replies,

"We need to talk about last night."