Abe’s POV
It’s 5 AM, the rest of the pack is not yet awake. I quietly sneak out of my room, down the long mahogany stairs, and quietly shuffle out of the pack house without waking a soul. The cool morning air hits me in the face and awakens me with the smell of grass and the lightness of the lingering morning dew.
I quickly make my way through the meadow and to the tree line. My ears perk up as I quickly make myself aware of my surroundings and look to make sure that no one is near. I take my clothes off and put them beside the tree trunk. I quickly shift into my wolf, and let him take control.
My wolf, Arrow, is a mighty black wolf with a gold strip down his chest. The gold stripe represents all of the strong alphas who have come before me. Arrow has been my sounding board since I was 15 years old, the time when young wolves shift for the first time and are able to communicate with their wolves, even though they have been there the whole time. He has become my best friend and my confidant. He is strong, wise, and a fighter. The true making of an alpha wolf.
As we run through the forest, dodging and jumping over bushes, trees, and stumps, I start to relax. This is my favorite time of the day, the time that I am free of responsibility. No one looks at me as alpha, they don’t look to me for guidance - this is the time that I can just be Abe.
As I let my mind drift, pictures of her flash in my mind. Her long, curly strawberry blonde hair framing her face. Noel. I could still see the sparkle in her eyes when she laughed. She was my childhood best friend and my first love. I quickly try to release the picture and memories from my mind. Arrow growled at me for trying to forget.
It has been 10 year since the rouges attacked. Rouges are a pack of their own, they have been the outcast of other packs. Usually they go mad and become wild and feral. They occasionally try to attack different packs and kill as many as possible for revenge. They were no different with my pack. Many lives were lost that day including Noel ‘s. And the pain is still hard to bare.
As I let go of the memory, I realized I have arrived to my destination. The sun is starting to rise and almost blinds me as it glistens off of the lake in front of me. The smell of the fresh blooming wildflowers enters my nose and releases whatever pinned up tension I still had left.
I relax and shift back in my human form. My naked body laying on the cool dewy grass, I let my mind ponder on what would happen tomorrow. I am turning 18. I will be taking over my father‘s position as Alpha of the Black Crescent Moon pack. We are the strongest and largest pack in all of the territories.
“ We have grown. We have strengthened ourselves mentally and physically. I can feel your anxiety, but we are ready to become Alpha. With our Luna by our side we will be unstoppable.” Arrow said.
I cracked a smile. My Luna. Along with becoming alpha, at the age of 18, werewolves are able to find their mates. I am ready to meet my mate and I can feel Arrow’s excitement when I think about us meeting our mate.
I’ll mate is picked out by the Moon Goddess herself. Mates are our other half. They make us whole. We will be bonded together for life. Images of Noel popped back into my mind. I’ve been thinking of her a lot lately.
When I think of my mate, I pray the Moon Goddess Blesses me with a mate who possesses her qualities. Noel was my father’s Beta’s daughter. She inherited many of his qualities including strength and intelligence. But there were qualities that made her different. She was kind and caring and not the normal kind and caring. She could connect with people and make them feel safe even at such a young age. She understood people and empathized with him. When I think of her, it only makes me long for my mate more. Arrow howls in my mind in agreement.
My thoughts are halted when a familiar voice booms in my head, “Abraham, where are you? Training starts in 15 minutes which means you are already 30 minutes late. You are already showing what a weak Alpha you will be.” My father said.
“How dare he call us weak?!” Arrow growled in response.
My father is Alpha Artimus of the Black Crescent Moon pack. He used to roll with benevolence, he was kind and understanding of the people and they genuinely loved him. When the rouges attacked, he changed. He became closed off, stern, and harsh. He ruled with an iron fist and he was no different with his family.
My mother, Luna Meredith, says he became this way because his father told him that he was weak and blamed him for the 49 lives lost during the attack. She said it changed him, but by doing so he has kept this pack safe.
As I was now aware that my absence was known, I quickly shifted back into my wolf and hastily made way back to the pack.
