Chapter 4: Classes Begin

Jake woke early, his mind quickly going over the events of the last 24 hours. He never thought he would see her again, but as soon as she stepped foot on the bus yesterday, he knew. He knew exactly who she was, but she didn't remember him. She had no recollection of saving his life all those years ago. But he did. He remembered the color of her hair. He remembered her smell. He remembered her eyes, the piercing stare she gave him and her determined strength as she pulled him away from danger.

But when she got on the bus, she didn't even glance his way. She barely acknowledged him until he went up to her at the stop. She didn't seem to feel the same pull that he did. Something was off, and he intended to find out what it was. Until then, he had to tread carefully. One wrong word and he was convinced she would run away from him faster than a cheetah on the hunt. He hadn't met anyone as skittish as she was. 

Jake got ready and went to Firash's door, pounding on the wood as he opened it. "Rise and shine, motherfucker," he greeted his friend.

"Oh, fuck off," Firash replied.

"Get up, asshole. We need to grab the girls and get breakfast."

Firash groaned. He pulled his head up and looked at the clock. "You bastard, it's only 6 am, there's no way the girls are up already."

"I'll bet you $100 that Ellie has been up for at least an hour and Meredith is dressed by the time we get there. But, you're right, Sam is still snoring. You can wake her up," he wiggled his eyebrows at Firash. "Come on, man, I know that gets you hard."

Firash threw his alarm clock at Jake. Jake dodged the clock and laughed. "So what is it, man, she your mate?"

"I think so," he groaned.

"You think so?"

"Well, I don't know, I feel a pull but that's it," he answered. "Nothing like what Azule said it was supposed to be like."

"Well, considering your brother literally chased his mate down the interstate when she was in a taxi on her way to the airport to go visit her grandparents causing a major accident; I think it's safe to say that no one is going to have the same experience as Azule. He caused a fucking four car pile up."

"He thought he'd never see her again."

"He's a fucking psycho. A stalking psycho."

"Yeah, but she liked it."

The boys headed down to the lounge room, ready to trek up to the girl's dormitory. They walked to the girl's hallway and Jake smirked, gesturing toward Ellie and Meredith, sitting at a table in the entranceway, talking quietly.

"How long have you girls been up?" Jake asked nonchalantly.

Ellie looked at her watch, "Uh, 2 hours now about."

"Just 45 minutes, but I shower fast," Meredith added.

Jake held his hand out to Firash as Firash grumbled and pulled the money out of his wallet, handing it to Jake.

"What's that for?" Ellie asked curiously.

"Nothing," Jake and Firash said in unison.

"So, classes start today, what do you have first. Have you gotten your assignments yet?" Firash asked Meredith as he peered over her shoulder at the paper she was reading.

"No, we were looking at the newspaper. There was a shooting overnight just two towns over. It looks like some crazy man went on a rampage at a bar in town. Seven people died and 13 were wounded. It's insane." Meredith indicated the article she had been reading.

"When do we get our class assignments?" Ellie asked the other three.

"This morning after orientation. We have to go to the auditorium for orientation at 9, then we will get our schedules at noon and have the afternoon free to settle in on campus. Classes start tomorrow," Jake offered helpfully. He would know the way things worked since his grandfather was the head of their house after all. Ellie gave Jake a small smile of thanks and looked around the common room.

"Do you think we should wake up Sam? It's almost 8:30, she'll want to get ready before we head over to the auditorium." Ellie asked helpfully. Jake smirked at Firash and pushed him toward Sam's room.

"All yours, buttercup," he said with a laugh. Firash shot him a look and went off in the direction of Sam's room.

"What was that about?" Meredith asked Jake.

"Firash thinks he is Sam's mate. Don't tell her yet, he wants to be sure. Has she said anything?" Jaked asked the girls.

"No, but Sam's still 16, don't you have to be 17 before you find your mate?" Meredith asked helpfully.

"Yes, and that makes so much sense now. That's why he doesn't feel the full effects of the pull yet. She's still underage." Jake nodded in understanding.

"So, Firash is 17?" Ellie asked Jake.

"He turns 17 in three months, I imagine he only feels the slight effects because his birthday is so near. Sam's just turned 16, she still has 11 months to go until she turns 17, she probably won't feel anything for months yet." Jake explained. He was starting to understand that Ellie needed explanations for anything related to wolves, she was grossly unlearned when it came to werewolves, even though she was the daughter of two.

Ellie nodded, her face a mask of confusion.

"What's the matter?" Meredith asked her.

"Will I have a mate?" Ellie asked, her face a mask of confusion. "Normal humans don't usually have mates, right? So, a wolfless werewolf, is that even a thing? Do I even qualify?" Ellie sat pondering her situation. Jake noticed with hope that she hadn't burst into tears or hysterics during the conversation. They were making progress, albeit slow progress.

"Yes, you'll definitely have a mate." Jake confirmed.

"She will?" Meredith asked.

"How do you know?" Ellie asked. "I could just be an anomaly, I might not have a mate and then I could marry a normal human more like me."

Jake inadvertently growled, then covered his growl by clearing his throat. Meredith shot him a quick glance, but he was pretty sure Ellie didn't notice.

"I'm almost positive that you will have a mate, but time will tell. You'll likely know by the time you're 17 since most wolves in the area go to this school and we meet up with other schools for holiday events for the specific purpose of finding mates." Jake confirmed.

"We have events just to find mates?" Ellie asked in confusion.

"Yes!" Sam had joined the trio with a flourish. "Oh, just wait, Ellie! The Christmas Ball is so supposed to be the best event of the season, we get to meet up with the full pacific northwest packs and they let us drink. It's the best! Or so I've heard," she added with a blush.

Jake laughed at her antics. "So, did Firash wake you up nicely?" He asked innocently.

"No! The rat bastard, he jumped ON TOP OF ME!" She emphasized each word with a punch to Firash's arm. "I was sleeping so peacefully and then he practically smothered me with his overwhelming bulk! UGH!" Sam let out a fake protest.

"We should get going, it's quarter to nine and we need to get to the auditorium." Ellie mentioned as she glanced at her phone which had vibrated with an alert. Jake watched as she stood up, hit ignore on the notification and put her phone back in her pocket. "Everyone ready?"

They filed out and down the stairs toward the auditorium as a group, watching students from other halls join the flow of people walking to the auditorium. The group found seats and settled in for a three hour orientation covering all of the basics of life at the academy, which would be their home for at least the next four years.