For a brief moment, Jade panicked at the incoming beast in front of her. He was definitely at the top of the wolf hierarchy because he was bigger than most of the opponents she had fought in the past.
He was nearing herself and she stepped back in mock fear, stumbling on intention and falling to the ground. Raising her hands in front of her face, she let out a terrified scream.
It was time to put on a show.
She heard the crack of bones snapping and within moments, the shadow of a man hovered over her.
“Calm down, please. Do not be terrified of me.” The accent was heavy in his voice, a telling sign that he was a native.
He had turned into his human form to talk and Jade could not sense the presence of anyone else. She removed her hands from her face and slowly opened her eyes only for them to widen.
Jade blushed and bashfully looked away. “S-Sir, you are. . .na-naked,” she stuttered out in embarrassment and did not look at him.
“Ah, please excuse me. Do move from where you are. I shall return in a few seconds.” She heard him move after he said that in a panicked voice.
Why? What was the panic in his voice for?
She made a move to stand up very quietly. Turning slightly, her traitorous shoes made a crunch when she shifted her position. She stopped imherselfdiately when she heard, “Do not move!”
She stilled immediately, silently cursing his advanced hearing in her mind. At this rate, she wasn’t going to succeed any time soon.
He walked back and this time, he was fully clothed. He had not arrested herself for trespassing yet which meant two things; one, he was mistaking herself for a human, or two, he was going to have fun playing hunt with herself.
The latter had a higher possibility of being true.
He stood in front of herself and she gulped, appearing to be frightful of the situation. She made sure to shiver, to show a bit of fright so as to lower his guard.
The man neared her, standing mere inches away. “May I hold your hand?” he asked.
She was taken aback.
Was he going to break it?
Jade nodded nonetheless and raised it in front of herself. Her other hand was itching to the dagger. She watched him gingerly, ready to defend and attack when needed.
However, contrary to what she had thought, he held her hand in his. The man’s hands were warm, calloused fingers rubbing soothing circles over the back of her hand in his attempt to comfort her.
A calm expression came to his face before he smiled and sniffed. He frowned, sniffing her once again.“You are not human,” he deduced and titled his head. “However, I can tell that you are a shifter.”
With widened eyes, she nodded her head and revealed her identity with feigned naivety. “I am a fox, sir.”
Visible relief washed over him. “You are a shifter indeed, then. Are you aware of mates?”
Dread settled in her heart. She didn’t like the sound of what he was implying with that question.
“I am aware, sir. However, fox shifters are not blessed with them.”
He chuckled in delight and his hold tightened over her hand. “Well, you’re my mate, so you are indeed blessed with that luxury.”
Mates?!
Werewolves all had someone they were predestined with, a love they described to be ‘written in the stars’ which they called ‘mates’. However, for werefoxes like herself, that wasn’t a blessing.
It seemed more like a curse.
She shook her head slightly, getting back in the game. “You are. .?”
“Malfrid Mekkelsen,” he answered, “Alpha of Mekkelsen Pack.”
Jade’s eyes snapped at him.
Alpha? She was mated to the Alpha of the pack where the relic was?
That was it. Everything had clicked into place as a brilliant new plan dazzled in her head.
She gave him a mousy smile. “I am Jade.”
““I have never known foxes to be shy. Don’t be shy, Jade. I'm yours. Observe me as much as you want.” He chuckled and then looked ahead just as she did.
The wolf’s words made her heart race slightly. She took a deep breath, trying to control her emotions.
They reached a clearing full of people that looked at them as they neared. They stopped their work, most likely curious to see which stray their alpha had brought back.
She held her ground there. She could pretend to be a little bashful around Malfrid but Jade was not going to be shy with everyone. That would be a mistake.
“Members of the Mekkelsen pack,” the Alpha roared and everyone stood attentively, “I take the highest of honor in introducing the Luna of the pack; Luna Jade Mekkelsen!”
The entire pack heard and processed the information relayed by the Alpha before going up in cheers. The happiness on each face was evident and most of them started to kneel in front of hers, showing their loyalty and trust in the bond.
"Halt!" a voice rang out and a woman stepped out. "We must not overwhelm Luna when she has just arrived. You all shall receive an equal chance to know her at the celebration for her arrival tonight," she announced and the crowd once again went into cheers, happy for their alpha and delighted they had the chance to meet her.
She looked at the man next to herself who nodded. He gave them permission to disperse just as the woman who made the announcement neared us.
"Mother." He smiled, greeting the woman in what Jade recognised as the language of the land. “This is Jade. And Jade,” he turned his attention towards herself, “this is my mother.”
"My son," she palmed his cheeks and kissed his forehead for which he had to bend down, "you have finally received the blessings!" she gushed and turned to Jade. "Come along, little Luna. You must be changed for the party tonight."
Her attention span was less than the new kids brought into the academy. So, distracting her would be an easy task for herself.
She donned a concerned expression on her face. "The ceremony is tonight." She gave a concerned look to Malfrid. "Will the cooks of your pack be able to prepare the food in such a short time?"
The woman chuckled. "Yes, yes. If the hands fall short, there are always more than enough volunteers." Without Jade’s permission, Malfrid’s mother reached over and held her hand in hers. "Come on, we must hurry."
She started dragging Jade more forcefully than her son had to the direction of a house. The more they neared the building, the more it seemingly grew in size. Jade glanced back at the man who gave herself a nod and a smile. He was handsome, there was no doubt about that.
She bit her tongue to punish herself. Master would have whipped her for the thought alone.
They entered the house and she was taken up the stairs. Jade glanced around the house, trying to make mental notes about the people who inhabited it. The walls were bare of any pictures. Wolves had that usually, so it was a little odd that they didn’t have many objects of sentiment. The feeling of belongingness and family was important to them.
"Here," she opened the door to a room. She recognised the scent heavy in the air.
"This is Malfrid's," Jade whispered and looked at her. "Why here? Is There no other room unoccupied?"
The older woman looked taken back.
"Oh, you aren’t a wolf," she said as more of a realisation to herself.
Jade nodded once. “A werefox,” she supplied.
"Ah, I forgot that your kind doesn’t have mates. Of course, you would like to stay in another room until the ceremony!" she murmured, wincing a little as if she was mentally kicking herself for not realizing sooner.
The ceremony.
Jade’s breath hitched in her throat at the meaning of it. She knew what she was talking about.
It was the marking ceremony. Jade,” he repeated after her as if the name alone brought him relief. “Do you possess no family name?”
She shook her head, lowering it. Her heart crunched together a little in her chest but the feeling was gone as quickly as it came. “Unfortunately, no.”
His free hand found her chin as he gently tilted her head back. “You shall possess mine,” he declared with firm eyes. “You are Jade Mekkelsen from this point on.”
Damn the wolves and their possessiveness.
“Come along, mate,” he pulled on her hand gently, “I shall introduce you to everyone.”
Jade fell into steps alongside him. She was not going to let the opportunity go. He did not shift back and she took the chance to observe him.
Malfrid was taller than she was. She barely reached his chest and the wolf was blessed with a muscular body much in contrast to her fox genes. His jaw was chiseled and his chin jutted out slightly. The stubble added to the roughness along with his dusky complexion. His eyes— she gasped and turned to look ahead.
He was watching her.