I watched as my cousin left out the front door. He was a pretty happy guy but seeing him beam like this made me kind of want to meet this Nat girl. Something inside me made me quickly turn to Astra. It felt like my heart almost stopped. A tear fell off her cheek as she looked where Atlas went. Tears welled up in her eyes and she quickly looked down, but I already saw them.
"I'll be right back" her voice shook slightly as she went to leave. Before she could walk away I grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the crowd. I held it tighter than before making sure she knew I was right there. We went to the kitchen as it was somehow the quietest spot in the whole house. I turned sharply to look at the girl whose hand I held. She kept her head down but I could see the tears streaming down her flushed cheeks. Without thinking I pulled her into my arms and hugged her tight. Her tears made my heart heavy. I felt like I was the one making her cry and I was desperate for it to stop. At the same time, I knew she needed to cry, it would help not to have all those feelings weighing on her. She wrapped her arms around me and gripped the back of my shirt as she buried her face into my chest, muffling her sobs. We both didn't speak and just stayed like that for a while.
Astra's crying slowly calmed down and when she finally stopped we both just stayed in the embrace. I wasn't even sure what I was doing as I rested my cheek against the top of her head and pulled her in just a bit tighter. I didn't want to let her go.
"Dante?" Her small voice broke the silence and made my heart skip a beat.
"Sorry" I pulled myself away from her and looked her over moving her hair out of her face making sure she was okay. Well as she could have been.
"No, it's okay" she sniffled and looked up at me. Her honey brown eyes were red, and her makeup was slightly smeared. "Thank you" she mustered up a small smile which turned into shock. "Um…" she quickly looked me over, her eyes trailing up and down my chest, "sorry for ruining your shirt" she covered her face in her hands, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment. I looked down at my shirt. I was covered in her tear marks. I let out a laugh catching Astra off guard. Her face turned more red as she peeked through her fingers. "You don't have to laugh about it," she pouted. She was kind of cute and next thing we both knew I picked her up by her waist and sat her on the counter.
"You probably need to rehydrate and have a snack" I turned to the fridge and located Trish's after party charcuterie board, setting it next to her.
"You do realize I'm not a child right?" She asked, trying to lighten the mood as I handed her water.
"I mean aren't you like twelve?" I joked.
"Eighteen, but I mean you're like eighty right?" She took a sip of water looking away.
"Ouch, at least I look good for an old man. Didn't know twenty-two was the new eighty though" I handed her a little charcuterie sandwich which she took. We both laughed slightly and stayed like that for a moment. IEven with the music around the house it was almost awkwardly quiet in the kitchen. Astra sighed heavily.
"Ya know…" she stared down at her hands and tiny sandwich. "I didn't always like Atlas."
I was surprised to hear my cousin's name and for her to bring it up so soon. "I dated and liked other guys before him, and I've known he has dated other girls as well. But… sometime probably like a year ago I quickly realized how much I noticed him." She stared harder at her hands. "I've always cared for him, like I care about everyone else in this family but the way I cared about him was different. I noticed how his blue eyes lit up when we ate jolly ranchers and how he couldn't quite hit higher keys when he sang songs in his car. Every time his deep blue eyes found mine and every time his voice said my name it created a small spark within me. It wasn't his fault but everytime he smiled at me, or remembered something I liked it gave me hope…" she looked up to the ceiling and her voice cracked. "And he'll never know" tears welled up in her eyes again. "He'll never know how much of him became part of me and now because he found his mate, because I was never his, I'll never get to tell him" her tears fell and I quickly took her face in my hands cupping her cheeks and making her look at me.
"Hey, hey, it's okay" I wiped her tears away with my thumbs. "I know it doesn't feel like it, I know it feels like your heart is going to burst from the sadness but it's okay Astra" her tears fell harder.
"But I never told him how I feel, why was I such a coward?"
"Astra, listen to me," I put my forehead against hers. "You are not a coward, you loved someone with your whole heart. You held onto those feelings and didn't run away from them. That takes courage to do" she grabbed my hands that held her face and she continued to cry. A sudden urge to punch Atlas in the face came over me. I knew he was oblivious but how could he not see how much this girl was in love with him? He was lucky to have a girl like Astra be so smitten with his existence. Hell between Trish and him talking about her all the time I could have swore at least one of them was in love with her! I clenched my jaw at the thought of Atlas happily talking to his mate being blissfully unaware of the pain he has caused. He was an idiot for never noticing Astra in that light. I mean I just met her and I could tell that whoever she chose to love or whoever the goddess has as her mate was going to be the luckiest person in the world. I gently wiped her eyes with my thumb staring into her golden eyes. I brushed her midnight black hair out of her face wanting to run my fingers through it the second I touched it. My eyes trailed her face down to her lips that looked soft and-
I stopped myself, my thumb about to run over those soft pink lips. I quickly shook any thought away. Seriously, what was I doing? She just had her heartbroken… What was I about to do?
_________________________________________________________________________
I sniffled again. Goddess I hope this was just the alcohol I have never cried so much in front of someone I just met. I was really starting to embarrass myself. I sat up more and Dante took his cool hands away from my face. His eyes looked worried and I was starting to worry I was the reason he looked like that. "Thanks so much Dante" I tried to smile a few last tears falling to the sides.
"No problem Astra, I'm glad I could help out" he smiled reassuringly.
I finally ate my charcuterie sandwich and made a second one handing it out to Dante "Tiny sandwich?"
He chuckled and took it from my hands. Our fingertips barely brushed against each other but my heart still skipped a beat. What was wrong with me? That's it no more drinking apparently I definitely can't handle my emotions when I do. "Man this has been a rollercoaster of a night, huh?" I laughed mainly at myself.
Dante shrugged, "Yeah, but that's not always a bad thing" he handed me a few paper towels which I gratefully took to clean up my face.
I sighed heavily again. "Asty!" I heard Eros from behind as he walked into the kitchen. "There you are girl, Trish and I were looking everywh-" he paused seeing my tear stained face. "Oh sweetheart" he gently hugged me as he realized the reason for my tears.
"I'm alright Eros, seriously. I mean I've honestly cried it all out" a dry chuckle escaped my lips as I sniffled my face still damp from emotions streaming down it.
"The goddess knew you were going to be too good for my brother Asty" Eros pulled me away, his hands still on my shoulders. "I'm glad, honestly you're too good for this whole family" he gestured all around him.
"What are you talking about Eros?" I chuckled again, "You guys are my family"
"Of course, but you're still too good" he winked at me and I put on a small smile. Eros gently smiled back. He turned to Dante and patted him on the back. "Let's go get Owen to drive her home" Eros linked arms with his cousin and started to drag him out of the kitchen. Dante quickly turned his head back to look at me with concern on his face. I just smiled more and waved slightly at him. Part of me wanted to stop him and stay by his side but I didn't want my flirting with him be because I was trying to fill a void. All the alcohol was slowly leaving my system and my face flushed with embarrassment as flashes of being next to Dante ran through my mind.
"Goddess what was I doing?" I whispered sliding off the counter.
"Asty!" I turned to Owen. "Let's go kid" he smiled and jingled my keys in his hand. I was kind of happy to be going home back to my bed. I made a few last minute charcuterie sandwiches and followed Owen out the door. I was glad that I didn't see Atlas or Dante on my way out.
_________________________________________________________________________
I stood in the doorway and waved at Owen. His gray wolf form running off clothes in his muzzle. Good thing about lycan DDs is that you don't have to leave your car somewhere. I heard the click of the lock behind me. I turned and saw my dad and brother on the other side of the door. It was midnight and not particularly late for my family but they both looked a little worn. Something in my dad's eyes told me that one of the Launder brothers called him and let him know about my water works. I rushed in and gave my dad a tight squeeze. He held me back patting my head. "I'm okay," I whispered.
"I know nugget" he sighed.
"The goddess knew you were too good for him anyways" Izar piped up over dad's shoulder.
"Eros said the same thing" I chuckled.
"Because he knows what he's talking about." Izar ruffled my hair as I was stepping away heading to the bathroom.
"Aren't you a bit biased?" I asked with a small smirk.
"Of course I am. I'm biased that Eros has the same view as I do, because I'm right" he walked with me to the bathroom.
"I think you're in denial" I whispered in a sing-song voice teasing Izar.
"I think I don't know what you're talking about" he mimicked my tone as we both smiled. "Get some sleep kid"
I nodded my head and watched as my brother headed to his room. I was exhausted, more so than any training session I've had before. I took my shower slowly, letting the steaming water hit every part of my body. I tried to wipe away my makeup and tear stains to the best of my tired ability and I changed into a t-shirt and my boy short undies. Physically crawling into my bed was just as much as routine as literally rolling out of it. I curled into a ball, letting myself sink into my blankets and pillows. My emotions raw and my eyes heavy, I was instantly asleep.
_________________________________________________________________________
Beep, beep, beep, beep.
I shot out of bed and grabbed my phone off my end table. 0700. Um… why was I getting up at seven in the morning? And why the hell do I feel… energized? I quickly looked into my phone's alarm. After the 0700 alarm, twenty more alarms followed it in ten minute intervals. I woke up on the first alarm. Confusing emotions ran through me. I feel like I should be hyped that I finally woke up without an obnoxious amount of help. I should definitely be happy that I wasn't so fucking tired, but… Something wasn't right. My heart raced as the confusion set in more. Why wasn't I tired? I should be worse today than yesterday, and I didn't even have a hangover. I thought back to the strong drinks I was throwing back with Trish. I should definitely have a hangover.
My heart thumped loudly in my ears. Ba-dum. My vision blurred for a moment. Ba-dum. Okay maybe I was hungover cause I'm definitely going to throw up. Ba-dum.
I instantly sprinted to the bathroom just making it to the toilet as a vile taste hurled out of my mouth. That was gross. I wiped my mouth and swished with mouthwash. Super gross. I looked up at the mirror and my eyes flashed a bright yellow causing me to jump back into the towel rack. When I did the one side fell off.
I definitely barely bumped into it. Before I could think anymore about the towel rack a racing heat stated to flood over me. My head started to split and I fell to the ground knocking everything around me down. What the hell was going on? I shut my eyes tight and held my head and just as fast as the pain came, it left.
I slowly sat up. Somehow this was not my morning already. I mean waking up at seven should have already told me that. I dragged my feet to the sink and washed my face with cool water as the heat of what happened stayed on my cheeks. I dried my face and stopped in my tracks as I looked in the mirror.
Somehow I saw her. I stared in the mirror my black hair sticking to my pale face, sweat dampening my skin. Staring back at me like an after image were two sharp, glowing yellow eyes. Eyes that were surrounded by thick, soft black fur. My wolf was staring back at me. How was that possible? I had three years before I was supposed to be able to connect to her and yet here she is showing herself. The hell was going on? My breathing was heavy, the bathroom a total mess. Bottles were strewn over the floor, the towel rack was holding on by one mount to the wall. My mind continued to race. Seriously what the fuck was going on!
"Astra" a strong female voice rang in my head. "Astra we don't have much time." My heart raced, it was her, it was my wolf who was speaking with me. Her name instantly came into my being.
"Raven" my voice was breathy as I started to feel the heat consume me again.
"Don't give into the pain Astra! You can survive the change! You're ready!" Her voice seemed to fade away as I tried to listen to her words. What was she talking about? "Fight the pain until tonight, survive until tonight when we can shift Astra!" She urged me as her voice finally faded. My legs gave out and it felt like every bone, every nerve in my body instantly burst into flames. Tears flooded down my face. "Ae-" my voice was weak, but the way it felt like my blood was starting to boil turned my weak voice into loud moans as I tried to control the pain. It hurts so bad. Why does it hurt so fucking bad?
"Aella" I cried, it felt like my bones were melting in my body. Any tiny movement felt like it was weighed down by a mountain and every breath I took felt like how I imagined drowning would be. "Aella!!" I screamed as loud as I could, my voice cracking under the strain. "Aella, help, please!" I cried loudly. It hurts so bad, I shouldn't be turning, it wasn't even my birthday. I fought to keep my eyes open. Please someone save me…
_________________________________________________________________________
I shot up in my bed. My breath raced out of me. What was wrong? Something was wrong. "Aella!" Stella, my wolf, spoke my name. "Astra needs us!" My heart clenched in my chest.
"Aella!!" I heard a blood curdling screech that was unfamiliar but I knew instantly who it was. Astra. I quickly bolted for my door sliding on my blanket as I threw the door off the hinges. I ran down the hall to the bathroom and I could hear my dad's and Izar's doors open behind me.
"What's going on?" Izar yawned.
"Aella, help me, please!" Astra cried as I swung open the bathroom door. She was staring down at the ground grabbing the counter of the sink. I watched as her grip tightened and the sink cracked under her strength. She slowly looked up at me. "Aella…" her voice croaked. Tears were falling like hail from her eyes and her skin was both pale like death and as red as fire. I quickly went to her side and supported her weight as her body went limp.
"She's changing!" My wolf cried out both in fear for our sister, amplifying the reality of what was happening.
"Get ice!" I screeched out into the hall as I turned on the cold water in the tub trying to hold my baby sister up. "Dad!" I cried my heart racing. Izar rushed into the bathroom first, our twin senses alerting him before anything else. "Izar! Help me!"
"Astra!" He called her name and helped me lift her into the tub. It was like her body was physically heavy. Or maybe my fear was making me weak.
"Watch out!" Dad quickly pushed into the small bathroom and poured a bag of ice over Astra. "Izar grab the other ones!" He commanded. Izar sped out of the bathroom to the garage to grab the rest of the ice. Dad and I tore open the bags that he brought, pouring each bag over Astra as steam flowed off her body. It was chaos.
"Why is this happening?" Izar demanded.
"She's changing!" I yelled.
"But why?! She's eighteen!"
"Enough!" Dad growled, causing the mirror to shake. "I know you two are worried and have questions. I wish I could answer them, but right now we have to focus on supporting Astra. Her body temperature needs to stay low until tonight, we need to support her anyway we can." He clenched his teeth together.
Tonight was a full moon. Astra just has to make it til tonight. I gripped her hand in both of mine, tears at the corner of my eyes slowly rolled down my cheeks. "Astra, just hang in there!" I clenched her hand tighter.
"Seriously what the fuck is going on?" Izar sighed a growl behind me.
"Izar, support your sisters, I'll be right back. I'm calling Arche"
Izar came up and brushed Astra's hair from her face. Steam still came off her body as the ice that filled the bathtub was starting to melt. This was the most extreme reaction I've ever seen from someone who was about to change. Dr. Arche is Trish's father and our family friend. All I could do was pray that he could get here to help as soon as he could, or at least give us some answers on what was happening. Izar put a hand on my back. "She'll be okay Ella" he reassured me, staring into my eyes. He looked over at our sister "she's strong". Please goddess, give my sister any strength that she needs to survive this…
_________________________________________________________________________
I was furious. Angry at myself because I felt so useless. One sister was a mess with worry and anxiety because our baby sister was on the verge of death and there was nothing I could do besides clear out the local stores of all their ice. We have gone through over fifty bags of ten pound bags of ice. We tried to keep the tub full to the brim covering Astra almost up to her neck. Aella kept switching out cold washcloths over Astra's forehead basically constantly as her body heat was pretty much making the cloth instantly hot.
I paced back and forth. Dad went to pick up Dr. Arched from the airport an hour away. I was glad he made an emergency trip home but it was taking too fucking long. Aella and I were fueling each other's anxiety as our twin senses started to sync.
"We need to calm ourselves" my wolf, Coda, broke through my pacing.
"I know!" I said out loud instead of in my mind. 'But we can't even reach Astra's wolf! We have no idea what is going on' I linked with him mentally. 'And we have no idea if she is even going to mak-'
"She'll make it" Aella cut through my thoughts. "She's our sister, she'll definitely make it. Plus weren't you just the one who said she was strong not that long ago?" Her words caught me off guard. "Asty will be sad to find out that her only brother is going to give up on her." Aella was right.
"I'm not gonna give up on her, plus she has both of us looking out for her!" I sat next to my sisters again. "We'll keep her safe" I spoke mentally to Aella.
"Of course, like we always have" she looked at Astra with worn but caring eyes. Astra might not be a triplet to us but our sibling bond was strong. We weren't about to let some premature shifting take her away from us.
_________________________________________________________________________
My head was splitting and my body was hot as I laid in the guest room staring at the ceiling. I definitely wasn't hung over, and I haven't gotten sick since I first shifted at twenty-one, so what was happening? My chest was tight and my whole body ached the way it did when I was fifteen and fell 2,000 feet while rock climbing. I groaned as I rolled over to try and get comfortable.
"Hey Dante have you seen my charg-" Atlas stopped mid sentence as he stood in the doorway. "Geez man you don't look so good." Well thanks. I rolled away from him groaning again. This was ridiculous. I tried to reach out to my wolf Orion.
'What's going on with us?' Nothing. 'Orion?' A fear started to spread. 'Orion?!' I couldn't reach my wolf. I could feel him, he was still there but whatever was happening to me was affecting him just as much. Atlas left the second I turned over and I didn't have the strength to ask for help. Whatever was happening hopefully passed soon. Please let it pass soon…
_________________________________________________________________________
It was terrible. I watched as Astra turned ghost white, all color draining from her face. The day has been hell and I was desperate for it to finally be night. Arche was checking all of her vitals and talking with Aella about how she found her sister. My heart was breaking as I watched my youngest baby sit in ice water, her breathing haggard and shallow.
"She's definitely getting ready to shift," Arche sighed, coming over to me.
"But how? She's eighteen Arch, how is she ready to shift?" I couldn't wrap my mind around it.
"Have you ever seen this before?" Izar asked.
"No." my heart dropped. He was one of the best medical doctors in both the lycan and human realms, why didn't he know anything?
I swallowed hard, my mouth dry. "Is she going to make it?" I asked quietly, searching my friend's eyes.
"Of course she will! Why would you even ask that?" Izar blared out. I could see Aella from the corner of my eye searching my face as we waited for an answer from Arche.
Arche sighed even heavier and ran his fingers through his hair. "She's… holding on. but it is really up to her and her wolf. Styr, when I tell you this is uncharted territory I really have no idea what is going on. I have never even heard of someone shifting so young, maybe twenty, hell late bloomers are more common than early shifters. She's… She's holding on Styrmir, that's all I know for certain." That was enough, there was hope that my daughter would survive through this and she was a fighter. She could definitely survive. My heart clenched in my chest making it difficult to breathe. I was so angry and worried that I could feel my wolf, Hammer, pacing around in my soul. Astra is just as much his daughter as she was mine. We all tried asking our wolves what was happening but none of them could quite understand what was going on.
Arche packed up his equipment and was rushing to the door, "I'm going to Alpha Reinhart's pack house, maybe he knows something or can point me in the right direction in his library, if she gets any worse than what she is now, even the slightest call me and meet me at my home."
I hugged my friend tight, "Thank you vinur."
"Stay by her side, like you and Nora, Astra is a fighter." With those words he rushed out the door heading straight to the pack house.
Nora, may you and the goddess keep our baby girl safe…
_________________________________________________________________________
I felt like I was going to throw up the later it got. My bones ached into my soul and my mind felt hazy. I wanted to call out for help or call out to Orion to see if we would be okay but we both were in so much pain. Goddess, what was going on? My first shift didn't even hurt like this. I would never wish this on anyone…
_________________________________________________________________________
It was finally time, Izar and I laid Astra in a clearing on a hill behind our house. This was where we all came to change. Dad waited at the bottom of the hill, no other news came from Dr. Arche as of yet. Astra had sweat all over her face and her breathing was still ragged. I kissed her forehead and stroked her hair. She laid in a thin white dress and a light blanket draped over her. Usually whoever was going to swift would be awake and while the transformation could be painful it was bearable.
"It'll be time soon." My brother grabbed my hand. "Don't worry Ella"
I nodded my head as Izar went and joined our dad at the bottom of the hill. Please Astra, please pull through this…
_________________________________________________________________________
My body felt like it was being surrounded by fire. It ached like I hadn't moved in years, each muscle, each joint tight and constricted within my skin. I'm not sure how long it's been since I fainted. How much longer would I have to force myself to focus on not letting the pain take over. I was already passed out but I felt so mentally drained. How much longer?
"Astra…"
"Astra" a voice called me.
"Astra" it was louder, whose voice was it?
"Astra, it's time"
That's right. Raven, my wolf. She was calling out to me. I was going to shift wasn't I?
"Let me take control Astra, this is the last bit of pain you must endure" her voice echoed in my mind. Great more pain.
"Do not think, do not resist. No matter how much it may hurt just let yourself go to the shift Astra" her voice was calm and confident like she had all faith in me but did I have faith in me? I was already so weak, so much more exhausted than I ever would have thought possible. I steadied my mind. I didn't have a choice but to keep fighting. It was keep fighting or die here.
"Al…lright" I barely managed to communicate back to Raven.
"Let go Astra" I listened to her words and let my mind go blank and any hold I had of myself disappeared. I have to fight…
____________________________________________________________________________
I cried out in pain into the pillow of the guest bed. "Dante" Orion's voice finally broke though.
"What's happening?" My mind was hazy. I dry heaved, contouring my body with the pain.
"Our mate, it's our mate!" Orion cried.
"What do you mean? What's happening?" I tried to steady my mind, "Orion?"
Orion howled out and before I could get any more answers I fainted…
____________________________________________________________________________
Astra screamed out in pain. Her body twisted and her bones broke as the full moon shined over her body. Her scream quickly became animalistic as more of her body snapped.
"You got this Astra" I whispered, holding back tears. "You can do it" I watched as her body started to finally change into shape. Almost without warning a deafening crack rang out around the clearing and as I gasped from the sickening sound a howl followed. Suddenly a black wolf stood in front of me. Her yellow eyes stared directly into mine. Her fur was like midnight.
"She did it!" Izar cheered in the background.
"Of course she did" my dad choked behind him.
The wolf glanced between them and bowed her head slightly before turning back to me.
"I am Raven" a strong and gentle voice echoed in my head. Before I could speak she continued, "I do not have much time, I wish I could answer all your questions now but Astra is still very weak. We will both need time to recover our energy."
"What can we do to help you both?" My voice shook from the shock of the last few hours, tears still at the corners of my eyes. Raven stepped closer and put her forehead against mine.
"Do not worry, just let us sleep… sister" and as fast as she appeared, Raven shifted back into Astra. The transformation back was extremely less painful sounding and laying naked under the moon was Astra. Her breathing was calm and the color quickly returned to her skin. I covered her with the blanket, dad and Izar running up behind me. By the time they reached Asty and I, tears of relief ran down my face. Izar picked up Asty and dad held us all in his arms for a moment. She was okay, Astra is alive. It's all okay…
____________________________________________________________________________
As suddenly as the pain came it left just as suddenly. I woke up the next morning like nothing happened. When I would ask Orion more about our mate he would just silently wag his tail. Maybe he's broke because as much as I tried I couldn't exactly feel anything. Nothing seemed different besides the fact that he was more energetic than normal. It was annoying at this point. I sighed. Do I even tell the rest of the family about this? I mean I honestly don't even know who the hell it could be. They might not be anywhere near here. Atlas is still being giddy about his mate but he met her, in PERSON, before they even had a connection. Am I broken?
I somehow found myself at the kitchen table lost in thought when Eros walked in. "Hey apparently dad is back?" He spoke more questionable than statement.
"Is he?" Atlas looked up from grinning at his phone.
"Yeah he texted us all this morning it looks like" Ajax walked in scratching his stomach staring at his phone half asleep.
"Considering how much you've been on your phone I thought you would be the first to notice" Trish scoffed at him. I think she was a bit annoyed at him because he broke Astra's heart. We all knew it wasn't on purpose but Trish gets annoyed with her brothers fairly easily.
"Well it's because lover boy is too busy swooning over his mate" Eros wiggled his eyebrows.
Atlas blushed a few shades of red and cleared his throat, "Well yeah I'm swooning for her, she's simply amazing."
'So is Asty' I thought, why was I thinking about her all of a sudden? An image of her laughing while dancing flashed through my mind. Damnit. I slammed my head onto the table. I have a mate. What am I thinking about right now?
"You good bro?" Ajax raised an eyebrow as he sat down.
"Yeah, my brain is just being stupid" I sighed.
"Oh… kay?" Ajax turned away sipping on some coffee.
"Oh yeah, dad said he had to come back for an emergency and he'd stop by when he's done" Atlas finished scrolling through his phone.
"Leave it to dad to just come and go as he pleases" Owen sighed as he was finishing up breakfast.
"Owen" Eros spoke softly.
"I know, I get it, he has his whole hero doctor thing" Owen aggressively flipped a pancake and everyone decided to drop it.
Riiiiiiing, "It's Nat!" Atlas perked up and ran to the other room. He's kind of pissing me off with his love.
____________________________________________________________________________
I woke up to the singing of birds and rays of sun peeking through my curtains. My body felt weak and my eyes heavy as I slowly opened them all the way. I glanced around the room, everything the same as before, but I felt different. Slowly my memories started to fade back into my mind. Right. I shifted.
'Raven?' I tried to connect with her.
'Good morning' she easily answered, her voice caring and resounding and more clearer than before.
I slowly sat up, my body sore, 'what happened?' My memories from when I shifted were broken up with long periods of pain and darkness. The pain was so overwhelming.
'We shifted successfully with the help and care of our family. You did well Astra' Raven came closer to me in my mind. She was a large full black wolf. She looked soft and her yellow eyes shone bright in my consciousness.
'Does it always hurt like this?'
'It'll get easier, but considering we are quite young to be shifting it might take a while before the pain is unnoticeable'
Yay. That's all I need. I'm always going to be sore and tir- wait… I thought for a second, sure I was sore and maybe a little worn but I wasn't exactly tired. Not in the way I normally am, weirdly I felt a strange surge of energy pumping with my blood. Okay maybe painful shifting will be worth it. I mean hell being a female and all I have to deal with being uncomfortable once a month anyways.
'It is time you got up Astra your body needs to stretch' Raven nudged me with her muzzle.
'I do feel stiff, how long have I been out anyways?" I slowly took the covers off my body.
'Three days.'
I almost fell out of bed as I was getting up. 'Three days?!' Maybe that's why I feel so rested. Great I'm never going to hear the end of it from Izar, I was already imagining the sleeping beauty jokes.
Raven chucked a bit. 'You're body needed to recover from the sudden change and considering how worry our family was about us I think they will let you off the hook'
Before I could tell her I hope so the door slammed open causing me to jump. Standing in the doorway was Izar, Aella, and my dad, all of their eyes were wide open. "Um… good morning?" I spoke, breaking the silence. I saw tears well up in Aella's eyes as she pushed past the rest of my family. She came right at me and hugged me tight sobbing into my hair.
"Astra!" She wailed in my ear as I patted her back. "I'm so glad you're okay!"
Izar and my dad came over and we all shared a group hug. Tears were in the corner of their eyes as well. With them crying and cooing over me it made me get teary eyed. I hugged them back tightly. I was actually kind of scared, I wasn't sure what was going to happen to me. I'm so glad that they were there for me. I remember their words of encouragement as I laid there unconscious. I'm so glad I'm alive. We all cried as we stayed in our embrace. "Thank you for being there for me… I love you guys" I cried softly, happy to be in their arms.
____________________________________________________________________________
"Dad!" Trish ran over and hugged her father tight. He looked a bit haggard and sleep deprived.
"Hey there pumpkin" he hugged her back. His sons came in and welcomed him back as well, hugging him one by one. Owen just gave him a quick welcome back and left the entryway. My uncle sighed before turning to me. "Dante! It's glad to see you my boy" he gave me a firm hug. "How has your stay been?"
"Good, it's been fun and everyone is great Uncle Arch." I gave a warm hug back.
"I know someone who you think is great, someone who you were flirting with at the party" Trish giggled and wiggled her eyebrows.
"Oh?" My uncle seemed intrigued. Great, all I need.
"A certain black haired girl?" Eros joined in with the teasing.
"Knock it off, I don't think of Astra like that" I sighed walking away.
"No one said we were talking about Astra" Eros and Trish giggled behind me as I stopped dead in my tracks. I hate them.
I noticed my uncle became stiff after they said Astra's name. He turned toward Trish. "Hey hun let me talk to you for a moment" he pulled Trish off into the living room, Eros following behind them as I walked back to the kitchen.
I was getting a drink, or a snack, or anything that would distract me from the idea of Astra. I get it, she was cute, beautiful even but it was just harmless flirting and nothing more. Plus I have a mate! Somewhere… I think… I sighed more, goddess I've been sighing a lot.
"What?!" I jumped a little as I heard Trish shout from the other room. "What do you mean?!" I wasn't sure what was going on but I was trying to ignore her. It wasn't a conversation I was invited to so I didn't want to eavesdrop. "What do you mean Astra fainted?!" She screamed again, my whole body tensing at Astra's name. What did she mean she fainted? What happened? Before I could think of anything else I was in the living room staring at them.
"What happened to Astra?" I asked as calmly as I could but I felt a slight quiver in my voice as the words left my lips.
Uncle Arch looked over at Trish with a questionable look. I know I was family but I didn't know Astra, well not in a way that I should be this worried about her.
"Dad, you can tell Dante too," Eros encouraged.
There was a long pause as my uncle searched for the words. "Styr called me two days ago begging me to come back for Astra. She… Astra shifted" What did he mean? Last I knew she was too young to shift? Barely knowing this girl was becoming annoying because the more I thought about her the more I wanted to go run to her and check on her. Trish broke my thoughts.
"How is that even possible?" Trish asked in disbelief.
"I'm not sure what I found is true or not. I've never seen anything like this so I went to the pack house to speak with our Alpha… I don't want to say what it could be, not yet, not until Alpha Reinhart confirms somethings." He quickly noticed all the worry in our eyes. "Don't worry, Styr called me on my way over. She's awake and is doing a hundred percent better than before"
Thank the goddess. I felt like I was holding my breath. I sat in the chair and sighed.
"We need to go visit her then! Eros!" Trish pointed to her brother.
"Already on it" Eros was texting at an amazing speed.
"Um?" Was all that came out of my mouth.
"Don't go overboard, she is still a patient and will need her rest" Uncle Arche sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"What is going on?" Before anyone could answer me Ajax, Owen, and Atlas quickly turned the corner with worry in their eyes.
"What's going on with Asty?" Ajax asked.
"What should we get her? I know she likes dark chocolate" Owen continued.
"She's okay right?" Atlas asked concern at the edge of his voice. "Oh don't forget the sunflowers either" he continued.
Suddenly the living room was buzzing with my five cousins. They were talking about sqashmallows, and candy, and tea, blankets and Astra. The only thing that was making sense to me was her name.
"They are buying Astra get well gifts" my Uncle brought me up to speed as I am sure he saw the utter confusion on my face.
"Really? All of what they are saying is for Astra?" I mean I knew she was close to the family but were they not going overboard?
"She's our life saver" my uncle looked at his family lovingly. I wanted to ask more, I had so many questions, how could he just leave it at that? I went to continue with my words when something told me it wasn't my place to ask right now. I sighed, I'm sure eventually I'll hear the story anyways.
I watched as they continued to debate on what to get Astra and I started to feel a little anxious. Maybe it was the excitement mixed with my worry for the girl I met at the party but I wanted to buy her something too. I stared at my cousins for a moment, something told me I wouldn't be able to interject with a gift idea. I pulled out my phone and started looking for my own gift for Astra and when I found what I wanted to give her it felt like a spark had ignited…
____________________________________________________________________________
I have been laying in bed all morning. Which would be great if I was actually tired, but the one day I could just sleep all day with no worries is the day I am awake with all the energy I haven't had in the last eighteen years. I sighed and flopped back in bed. I looked at my phone expecting a reply back from Trish right away but I haven't got anything yet. I realized when I texted her that I didn't have her cousin's number which was a bummer. I remembered his joking smiles and gentle, asking for permission touches. I giggled a little bit at the memory. Raven's tail wagged slightly as well. Ah good times.
"We're here!" Trish yelled into the house. Oh there she is. Wait… I sighed. Someone probably told them I was sick or something and I knew what that meant. I looked around the room, walls, and shelves, and bins were filled with their past get well gifts. I really don't know if I have any room for anymore. I smiled to myself. I got up and threw on a slightly oversized white t-shirt and black comfy shorts that stopped right above my mid-thigh. I was excited to see Trish and talk to her about my crazy last three days, well I slept through pretty much all of it but you get it.
I quickly left my room and I could hear them all talking in the kitchen. A rose hazelnut black tea hit my senses. Goddess it smelt amazing, and it mixed with fresh rain that was wafting around the house. Weird, I don't remember it raining.
"Yeah, we're just glad she's alright, sorry we couldn't be here sooner" Atlas's voice was filled with worry. It made my heart stop for half a second but it didn't have the hold on me as it did just a few days ago. Plus the smell that was filling the house was driving me crazy to the point I couldn't even focus on Atlas. I craved whatever that smell was.
"Whoever made that tea I will marry you!" I joked as I turned the corner into the kitchen.
"Astra, look who it is," my dad sighed at the company with a smile on his face.
"What tea? I didn't make any tea?" Aella looked confused.
"I could make some tea!" Trish quickly stood up.
It wasn't tea, and the sun was shining outside. I quickly scanned the rest of the kitchen and he was already staring at me. Our eyes locked. His deep, forest green eyes stared into mine. I noticed the small specks of light green around his iris as a spark ignited in me. Mate, Dante… Dante is my mate! My legs gave out as my heart pounded in my ears and a surge of adrenaline raced through my body.
____________________________________________________________________________