I lean against a stone wall to catch my breath and wait for my stomach to settle. Then, composed once more, I notice a group of children playing a game, laughing raucously and enjoying themselves immensely.
‘Hello. Miss?’ A young woman with a posh accent says. She has long dark-brown hair and brown eyes. She appears to be in her mid-twenties, and two young girls hold her hand.
‘Hello,’ I nervously reply, saying hello to another human for the first time in my life. It’s odd yet liberating. I shade my face with my velvet hood, so she does not see my violet eyes.
‘Is everything okay?’ She asks. I nod.
‘Yes, I'm fine, thank you.’ I say.
The woman tilts her head to the side, frowning.
‘I'm sorry. It's just that you’re not wearing any boots, and it's not very ladylike or customary for a young lady to be barefoot in the street,’ she says. I look down at my feet, and boots were not something I thought about when I stole the clothes from the stall. I’ve seen the forest visitors wearing boots but had no idea how important they are.
‘I'm not from around here. I’ve travelled a fair distance. I don't have any boots.’ I say.
The lady gasps, ‘Dear me, sweet girl. I didn't realise you were homeless.’
I try to explain that I'm not homeless.
‘Now, now. Not to worry. I live up the road. I will happily part with a pair of my boots for you.’ I let her escort me to her house, and her children follow behind us.
‘Sit, dear. Sit.’ She ushers me into a beautiful, handmade, ornate wooden chair in her kitchen.
‘Firstly, this is the village Wellmore. My name is Vivian. These little girls are my five-year-old twin daughters, Ella and Grace,’
‘It's a pleasure to meet you, Vivian, Ella and Grace,’ I say and smile at the children.
Vivian puts her hands on her hips.
‘Well, dear girl. Aren’t you going to tell me your name?’ She asks. I giggle at my obliviousness.
‘Maia,’ I say.
‘Maia. What a beautiful name. Well, Maia. Let me get you some boots,’ she says, walking into a room and returning with a pair of brown, lace-up boots.
‘I dare say, these should fit you nicely,’ she says kindly.
She holds my left ankle as I push my left foot into one boot, and then she holds my right ankle as I push my right foot into the other boot. She ties the laces and finishes them off in bows.
My stomach rumbles embarrassingly loudly.
‘Oh, you poor thing. You are starving! You’ll eat a meal before you’re on your way, won’t you?’ She says, pulling a pot and a saucepan out of a wooden cupboard.
‘I will. Thank you very much.’ I say, emotional with her generosity.
‘With our king’s army growing, finding good food is harder. I can offer you soup and bread,’ she says happily.
‘Soup will be perfect.’ I say, relishing the thought of eating hot soup.
Ella and Grace play around the table and sing a song to me while Vivian stands at the hob and cooks the soup.
Watching children play for the first time is a wonderful experience. It warms my heart and makes me reminisce on my childhood in the forest with the animals.
‘Girls to the table, please,’ Vivian says,
and the girls sit on the chairs on either side of me.
Vivian ladles soup into four bowls from a big metal pot and puts a bowl down on the table in front of us with a chunk of bread.
I’m devouring the food when Vivian interrupts me.
‘Ahem,’ She clears her throat. I look up. She and the girls haven't started eating yet.
‘Maia. It’s not polite to have one's face covered during mealtimes,’ she says politely.
My face pales. ‘May I be excused to not remove my hood, as I am afraid you may not like what you see?’ I say nervously.
‘Maia, please forgive me. I had no idea you had a deformity. Yes, of course, you may be excused.’ She says, mortified.
When my bowl is empty a second time, I thank Vivian for her kindness and stand.
‘You’re very welcome.’ She sighs, escorting me to the
door.
‘You’ll come and visit us again, won't you?’
‘I’d love to,’ I reply after we have hugged one another and said our goodbyes.
Among the fruit stalls, I steal several pieces of fruit which are rightfully mine and stuff them into a hessian sack I have found. No one has taken notice of me.
Wanting to learn more about Wellmore Village and its people, I find a nice spot to sit down and observe the main street while crunching on a red apple.
A few robust, middle-aged women in pastel-coloured dresses and shawls converse with one another, and I don’t mind eavesdropping in on their conversation.
‘The Alpha King's Ball last night was unsuccessful,’ one lady says happily.
‘Oh? I’ve heard the Alpha King is the most handsome man anyone has ever seen, yet has a heart so cold that even his wolf is frightened of him.’ they say, bursting into laughter.
‘We will win the war and wipe out those filthy animals.’ They giggle and waddle toward a market stall.
I leave the village and make my way back home to Ember. I tell Ember about Wellmore and how I met Vivian and her twin daughters.
‘I'm going to have to go back to the village every few days for food. I'm also worried about this war.’ Comforting me, Ember crawls into my lap and snuggles into my chest, and we sleep.
Alpha King Damon Women in all shapes and sizes, wearing all sorts of colours, gush and gape at me and run their fingers along with my vest as we dance at a ball held in my honour. Their behaviour would be socially unacceptable anywhere else.Damn you, Eric! I know you have told these she-wolves I might have to choose my own mate, get them off of me before I release my wolf and start ripping their heads off! I tell my Gamma Eric via mind-link.Sorry Alpha. You might have to consider it. If the rumours are true and King Fenris attacks Moon Crest Valley, you’re stronger with a mate and Luna. Eric mind-links back.Not if she isn’t my true fated mate, now get them away from me, Eric, before it’s your head I rip off.‘Ladies, ladies. Let the Alpha King compose himself. Being surrounded by your beauty is overwhelming for him. Let me escort you all to the drink table, where you can tell me your progress with Alpha King Damon.’ Eric says as he winks at me and ushers the she-wolves away. I cro
Beta TroyThe forest is the most serene, harmonious place I have ever seen. Trudging through thickets and bramble, I hear leaves and twigs crunch under my boots. The forest has a sense of magic about her. She truly is enchanting.Halfway through the forest, I hear the sound of trickling water. Feeling quite thirsty after such a long trek, I follow the sound and eventually find a stunning waterfall. I hold my flask underneath the stream for a while to fill it before having a drink.In the distance, someone with a very melodic voice sings a very beautiful song.I make my way toward West Wallow in human form and arrive a few hours later. Had I been in my wolf form, I would have arrived sooner, but going undetected by the humans when war could be approaching, is extremely crucial.I wander around the market in Wellmore and buy some of the juiciest fruit I have ever had. The King’s soldiers stop at stalls with carts and place half the contents on t
In Wellmore, the villagers are angry and on edge. They’re complaining about a tax hike and a food shortage, having cleared the forest of food. The market stalls are only half-laden with edible goods, from which I steal some apples and a loaf of bread. I sit down on a bench, and eat an apple, storing the loaf of bread in the hessian bag I kept from my first visit. Standing on Vivian’s doorstep, I knock on the side window and wait patiently for her to come to the door. ‘Maia! I'm so glad you’ve come to visit us. Come in,’ she says, smiling and standing aside so that I may go in.‘You’ve come at the right time. I’ve just boiled a pot of tea,’ Vivian smiles.‘Oh. That sounds lovely. What is tea?’ I ask her, and she pauses.‘Have you always been homeless and alone?’ She asks, pulling out a chair for me to sit in.‘No. I live with my friend Ember,’ Vivian places a warm drink on the table in front of me.‘This is a cup of tea. Be careful. Sip it slowly. Don’t burn yourself,’ Vivian caution
King FenrisArriving at the training fields, my most trusted knight, Sir Hugo, and I hop down from our thoroughbreds and tie them to posts with rope. Thousands of soldiers are in training. There is a cacophony of sounds: swords clashing, axes and maces thrown at wooden targets, tree stumps, and men grunting with exertion.A few hundred archers shoot at targets from varying distances and nod at me as I pass behind them. There is lots of yelling as men practice their war cries or call out to one another. A few training casualties hobble around with injuries to their ankles, knees, and feet.My Commander in Chief, James Boroughshaw, is stationed outside a makeshift tent and is observing the jousting closest to us.‘My King,’ James says as he kneels before me.‘Commander James,’ I nod, and he stands back up.‘I require an update of our progress,’ I say, sitting down in a wooden folding chair and accepting the glass of brandy Squire Thomas hands to
Maia‘Maia,’ Grace says.‘Yes, Grace?’ I smile at the young girl in front of me.‘Can we come to your forest and meet Ember one day?’‘Sure. I’d love to show you my home. And I'm sure Ember would love to meet you,’ I say excitedly and smile.‘Perhaps when this war is over,’ Vivian says, exhaling and folding her hands in her lap. The girls nod and run off again.‘Vivian?’ I say. ‘Where’s your mate?’ I ask.‘Only werewolves have mates. Humans have husbands. I had a husband: it was love at first sight. His name was Derrick. We were married a few weeks after meeting and had our girls not long after. When they were two, he died in a mining accident. The mine collapsed and killed him and twenty other men,’ Vivian says, wiping her eyes with her handkerchief.‘Oh. I'm so sorry,’ I say, watching her dab her eyes.‘I don't know if I could love another man. I know Derrick would want me to. He’d want the girls to have a father, but I just haven't be
Beta TroyIn Shadowguard, a slave auction is about to commence. Twenty-five children between the ages of five and fourteen stand side by side in a row, with their hands tied with rope. They’re bruised, dirty and malnourished. A man walks toward a small cage, and a growl emits from within it.Excited and shocked, the crowd is divided between those who view the wolf pup as a commodity and those who view him as an animal to be feared.The auctioneer drags the young boy out of the cage and demands he stands. The boy is so exhausted and weary that he falls over into the dirt. I’m disgusted but must know the fate of this poor boy.After lunging at the crowd of spectators, the auctioneer punches him hard in his stomach, winding him, and knocking him over. I make eye contact with this young soul—defeat and grief blaze in his eyes.‘A real genuine wolf pup! Not just an ordinary wolf pup! This one has Alpha blood. He’ll be the strongest farmhand you’ve eve
Alpha King DamonWe don’t stand a chance at winning this war with fifteen thousand warriors, so we stop at Mist Falls and Wolfwell, recruiting everyone able to fight and increasing our number to eighteen thousand.After a few days, we reach Thornwell, a town halfway between our packhouse and the forest border. We decide to train the recruits for a few days there. Thornwell is a decently-sized village with a river running through the forest border and into human lands.For the past few nights, I’ve had the same dream of my mate. I see only the back of her long dark hair, and every time I try to get closer, she vanishes.I haven’t been able to stop thinking about her. The war should have my full, undivided attention, and yet, here I am, pining after a girl I don’t even know. I yearn for her: to touch her, to kiss her, to smell her violet and honey scent, to hold her in my arms.My wolf has been uncontrollable because our unspoken mate bond is driv
Alpha King DamonMaia wilts like flower petals under my touch when I put my hand on her face but stiffens when I mention the word mate.‘My kingdom has been waiting a very long time for their Luna and their Queen,’ I say. Her breathing is heavy, and she is starting to panic.She is my mate. She should be just as excited as I am. I’m struggling to restrain my wolf, and here she is, reacting unexpectedly to our connection.I tilt her head up with my hand under her chin, forcing her to look at me. Her mesmerising violet eyes stare into my wolf eyes, and I register her fear. She screams, then runs. Forest detritus, dirt, leaves, and twigs swirl around her as she runs, and I’m knocked backward by a strong gust of wind.I am in disbelief and awe, wondering how she could do that with the wind.I pull my clothes off and discard them in a trail, continuing the chase in wolf form.Even in wolf form, I can only just keep up with her as she follows the river,