The full moon shined throughout the darkness. On this supposed lovely night, a bound Ellie was getting dragged to the plaza for the last rite. Apparently, since it was such a big event to happen, Lila and Aiden decided to make this public, so everyone in the pack can formally welcome their future Alpha as the Alpha she was meant to be.
It truly left a bitter taste in her mouth, though… All those looks of expectations, the joyful expressions she was seeing on these werewolves? Before the rite, before she found out the true intentions behind it, they used to be directed to her, making her feel proud to be a werewolf of this pack, and wanting to live up to many expectations.
Tonight? Not even a glance came her way. No… All this attention was for none other than Maddie, who was especially giddy with what will happen next.
‘I hope she gets what’s coming to her soon. Her, and everyone else,’ Ellie thought, as she got tossed onto a familiar circle next to Maddie.
“Brothers and sisters of the Hermit Pack! Tonight, it will be a wonderful night for us all. Tonight… is the night when my daughter becomes the rightful Alpha of this pack!” Aiden shouted, resulting in cheers amongst the werewolves. “After a long time of humiliation- a long time of worrying for the fate of our pack- we can finally look towards a bright future! And relieve ourselves from a disgusting sight.” Ellie did not need to look up to know he was referring to her at that last part. “Join me, kin, as we witness the turning point of our lives!”
Howls and cheers erupted all around. Although Ellie realized how little all the other werewolves truly thought of her, to witness how happy they were to soon be done with her… It truly hurt her deep down.
“Then it seems we are all ready… To witness the final rite!” As soon as Aiden shouted that, the circle under Ellie and Maddie glowed. An act in which the adopted werewolf knew so well, and was far from prepared for.
As it had been during all those times before, searing pain spread out all over her body, as Ellie hunched over and held back pained screams, trying hard to maintain a calm expression on her face. Though this may be the last time the rite will be performed, she refused to give these mutts the satisfaction of seeing her in pain.
Likewise, as she glanced to Maddie’s side, she could see her ‘adopted sister’ also toughing out through the final rite, unlike the previous times they had undergone this event. Whether it was because this last rite was being done in public, where Maddie should not display such pathetic weakness, or because Ellie was trying to tough out this last one, she did not know, and she did not care. To hell with what goes on in her head- in any of their heads.
Soon enough, the light from the two magic circles erupted, ending the rite, as both werewolves fell to the ground. The sight worried the pack, specifically towards Maddie, as Steve rushed to his beloved.
“Maddie! Maddie, are you okay?” he asked.
Maddie’s fingers twitched as she slowly got back up. Many people held their breaths in anticipation for her answer. Next anyone knew, she slammed a hand down on the ground, creating a crater within, and let out a powerful howl.
“Oh… I am more than okay…” she spoke. “I feel… fantastic!”
At those words, the pack erupted into cheers and joyful howls for their mistress, with Steve hugging Maddie, and Lila shedding happy tears for her daughter.
Ellie, on the other hand, has never felt so empty- so weak- in all her life. With that last ritual done, she could barely move a muscle. And with no one in this pack expressing any sort of concern towards her… Never had she felt so broken in all her life.
‘All this time… All my time in this pack… befriending these mutts… training with them… Everything… What was it all for…?’ she wondered, a tear forming in her eye.
Breaking away from the hug, Steve turned and looked down on Ellie, a smirk on his face. “Oh Ellie… Ellie, Ellie, Ellie… How I so long for this moment,” he began, getting every wolves’ attention. “I didn’t even feel the courage to say this before, since doing it will hurt me just as much as it would to you. Such is the fate of mates. But now? Now, we are mates no longer. Your world is now Maddie’s, as hers’ is yours’.” He stopped in his tracks when he caught a whiff of something, and leaned closer to Ellie. After taking a few sniffs, he clicked his tongue. “Tch. Must be some leftover, lingering smell of your old wolf. Well, the final rite did just end; it wouldn’t be surprising to still smell it on you.”
“Stevy, won’t you hurry it up and end things with her already? I’m not one to be a spoiled brat, but I don’t like to see you hanging around with her any longer,” Maddie spoke. “… Even if it is to make her know her true place here~”
Ellie could only glare at her ‘sister’, before looking back at her ex, who let out a chuckle in agreement. “As you say, Maddie. Even I don’t want to be around this nobody any longer. Especially since I feel nothing for her.” Turning to the downed werewolf, he then said, “Ellie, you stray, pitiful dog… I no longer see you as my mate. In the name of our Moon Goddess, I reject you and whatever leftover bond we share!”
As soon as those words left his mouth, Ellie- already given up on everything these past several days- felt something in her break, more than anything else she had experienced before.
‘So this is… a mate’s rejection…’ she could only think, enduring the pain in her chest.
A scream suddenly rang out, catching everyone’s attention. Turning to the source, they were all baffled to see Maddie on the floor, clutching her chest like her life depended on it.
“Maddie! Maddie, what happened to you?!” Steve was the first to act, as he rushed to Maddie’s side once more, holding the girl close to him. “S-… Something… hurts…” she spoke in a strained voice. “My chest… My heart…” As soon as those two words left her lips, a thought crossed her mind, as Maddie glanced at Ellie. Like her, she saw her now-worthless sister was also experiencing some kind of pain in her chest, only she was toughing it all out. Not that that mattered; what mattered most was the fact that the pair seemed to be experiencing the same pain, at the same time. ‘Don’t tell me…!’ Maddie grew enraged when another thought came to her mind. “It was you… wasn’t it…?” she began. “As some last ditch effort to get back at me for taking what was rightfully mine… You casted some kind of curse on me, didn’t you?!” Ellie- fighting through the pain still- was baffled by the accusations. “Excuse me…? What are you talking about? I don’t know any sort of witchcraft, unlike you,” she mana
“That’s Alpha William!”Ellie- fighting against the wave of exhaustion the moment she was saved from her execution- widened her eyes when she heard who her savior was. He who was none other than that injured, delusional werewolf she found in the woods. Well… She wasn’t sure if she could call him her savior now. Not if he’s really that Alpha William of the Devorare Pack.The Devorare Pack is a pack consisting of the most vicious werewolves ever known. Any living being said to enter their sight will die in the most gruesome manner, be they prey, werewolf, or otherwise. Why, even the omega werewolves- normally incapable of combat and rather spend their days fooling around- can hold their own against other non-omegas, or so rumors say. And out of everyone in that pack, their Alpha is especially the most dangerous. He who is said to be most especially brutal and cruel to his enemies.While she knew exactly who Alpha William and his pack were, Maddie was purely clueless, if her confused exp
With the greetings done, Jen brought his attention to Ellie. “Alpha. This werewolf…”“Call her our guest. For now,” William simply said, his tone stating no further talk about the topic. Though his tone brought more worries to Ellie about her situation, Jen bowed in respect.“Yes, Alpha. Ah. About the werewolf who brought that group of intruders into our home…”The moment the Beta changed the topic, Ellie could sense the air around William grow heavy, sending a horrible chill through her bones.“I assume you have them hostage?” the Alpha questioned.“Why yes, Alpha. In fact, because we had sensed you coming earlier…” Jen looked past the crowd behind him, where a pair of werewolves brought over a heavily injured, scrawny teenage werewolf towards them. The scrawny boy struggled to get out of his captor’s grip, only for his efforts to be in vain, for neither one of them budged an inch. One of the ‘guides’ tossed the captive werewolf down, before their leader.William knelt to the downed
Ellie was left utterly speechless by the words that came out of William’s mouth. Did she hear him right?!“You brought me here… just so you could have an heir?!” she questioned.“Or a heiress. So long as the pup is strong,” he practically confirmed, much to her increasing bafflement.“No! You might as well have left me for dead back there! What makes you think I would ever agree to this?!”“How about the fact that I am offering you a place to stay?” Ellie looked on in slight puzzlement at the offer. “You’re a smart werewolf. I’m sure you know that no pack would ever take in a stray like you. Much less a stray with two scents. Even if you do leave, there is nowhere for you to go.”The female werewolf gritted her teeth when he pointed that out. While she was not sure about her having two scents, she was well aware that there was not a single pack sane enough to take in a lone werewolf like her, at the very least. However, that was more of a reason to just let her die back there!“You th
“He is also my lover.”Ellie felt the world stop at those words- the confirmation of her suspicions- as a wave of emotions rushed through her, mainly hurt and disgust. While she did not know why she felt hurt by those words, she knew she was disgusted. Not that she was seeing a real same-gender couple, but more that one half of that couple thought she would be okay in baring his child while he was in that sort of relationship! What in the world was he taking her for?!“If you already have a lover… why bring me here? Calling me your mate?” she unknowingly asked.While Jen seemed a bit surprised by the questions, William bluntly answered, “I believe I already told you why. Unless if your hearing is even worse than an Omega’s. I need an heir slash heiress. A next-in-line for the Alpha position with my blood. Someone I can trust to lead the future generation of the pack. As much as I love Jen, sadly, we are both men. We cannot have a pup.”“The harsh truth of reality…” the Beta sighed in
The next day, training was far worse than Ellie had imagined. She did not know if it was because she grew weak, because she was recovering, or if the training was naturally this harsh in this pack, but training with Jen had to be the hardest thing she had ever done. Ever since the early morning, the pair had undergone a number of sessions. With each trial performed, whenever Ellie showed even a bit of exhaustion, or lost a bit of momentum, Jen practically whipped her back to shape, paying no heed to any injuries that were still healing. Ellie couldn’t even catch a break in between all this training, and she was way past her limit.It did not help that they started their training so early in the morning, with a light meal for Ellie. Thus, she did not have much stamina to go through the regime. To make things worse, just when they thought she was done with training for the day, as it would turn out, all she had done were supposedly ‘simple warmups’, in preparation for some sparring sess
With each word that came out of Ellie’s mouth, Jen felt more annoyed by the female before them. Before he could even do anything, though, William- already anticipating his boyfriend may say something to retort- brought a hand up to stop him, causing the Beta to reluctantly stand down again.“Very well then. A deal is only done from two ends, after all. I may have offered food and shelter and medical assistance, but I suppose those are more considered as necessities any werewolf should have. Especially for one who is to carry my child,” he reasoned. “Alright, since you wish to be treated as a member of this pack, I will do just that.” To Jen, he then said, “Jen, after we have some time together, is there any chance you can gather up all the werewolves tonight?”“Yes, Alpha. As you wish,” Jen accepted, already having an idea as to what the gathering will be for. Despite wanting to protest against it, since it was his Alpha’s wish, even as his boyfriend, he had no right to change his dec
It was night time. Upon William’s request, Jen had rounded all the members of the Devorare Pack at the square, where the two were waiting for them all. Amongst the many werewolves, Ellie was also called to this gathering. ‘Why am I also summoned here…?’ she wondered, for she was practically forced to attend this meeting by Jen when he went to gather the werewolves a little earlier. Going by the conversation she had with William, she had a feeling this meeting was to announce equal treatment towards her, that she would be staying in the pack for a while, but did she really need to be here as well? In fact, did he have to call all of his pack for this? Surely these guys can catch on based on how he and Jen act towards her, can’t they? And besides that, it was practically common knowledge to treat your guests with respect. Something Samantha was shown to be capable of. Wouldn’t the others also be capable of such? “I’m sure you’re all wondering why I’ve called for this gathering,” Willi