#(so it's all sleek and elegant on the outside but it's hiding a BEAST inside)

[invinciblerodent]

feeling particularly rabid today as I install bg3 onto MY BEAUTIFUL NEW PC!!!!!!!!

I don't know much about nothin

But one thing, I do know;

Shit's gonna be PRETTY

[werewolfdays]

Pack Gathering

here’s some actual plot for once! Quarantine gave me enough time to finish this beast of a snippet. This is kinda long, but I hope y’all enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it! -

The Kincade manor had to be the richest house I have ever seen in person. It was probably big enough to be considered a castle. Jayde was right about one thing, it was a ridiculous flaunt of wealth. With its white marble steps and columns, dazzlingly intricate windows that reflected the sunlight, and granite wolf statues guarding the grand entrance, it was impossible to dispute that the owners didn’t think of themselves as royalty.  

Not only that, but nearly every single person in that mansion right now is a werewolf. Very prestigious and powerful werewolves. It wasn’t that I didn’t feel safe, Jayde promised she would be by my side no matter what, it’s the fact that I was starting to feel unprepared for this. I was only human after all, I honestly didn’t know what to expect from everyone in there. I tried to focus on the other prominent emotions I was feeling to distract me. Like my excitement for entering a completely different world. The Lodge was filled with werewolves that I’ve grown accustomed to, but this place already felt different and I haven’t even stepped inside yet. 

Jayde’s hand fit into mine before we set foot on the steps, “You’re nervous.” she stated quietly, moving closer to me.

Jayde’s version of dressing up was throwing on a black blazer over a white shirt that had an artistic graphic of some kind, tucked into sleek black jeans with Chelsea boots to match. It was very simple and didn’t really come off like she put in much effort, but she admittedly still looked extremely attractive. Especially with the sleeves of her blazer rolled up to her elbows and her stylishly unkempt blonde hair brushed over to one side. 

I was relieved by her proximity and leaned into her, “A little.”

“I should warn you,” she began, taking me off to the side of the stairs while people passed us to enter the party, “These wolves, they’re very old fashioned. Alphas, mates, all that crap is really important to them. And the most important of all is being a purebred, so don’t be surprised if they act weird around you.” 

Her words didn’t really help my unease and I glanced up at the manor again, even more unsure of myself, “Is me being here going to cause problems?”

Jayde took a second before she answered me, like she was struggling with a response. Then she nodded, “Yes. But don’t take any of it to heart.” 

“Don’t take the fact that my human existence is offensive to them to heart?” 

A brief smile tugged at the corner of her mouth like she just realized how that sentence sounded, “I won’t let any snide comments slide.” her brows furrowed with another thought, “Are you… comfortable with me calling you my mate?” 

“Your mate?” I asked curiously.

“Yeah,” Jayde replied, looking down bashfully. She started to fiddle with the necklace she gave me, slowly readjusting the chain, “Werewolves usually mate for life and when we find the right person, that’s what we call them. Or more accurately, claim them. My parents didn’t really care for most of the old world traditions, but they did claim each other as mates. It’s sacred. If I tell the people here that you’re my mate and I’m yours, then there’s a chance that would get them to back off a bit.” 

The explanation didn’t surprise me at all. It actually kind of appealed to me, but I sensed some aversion from the emphasis on claim. “You don’t like the idea?” 

Jayde gave a half shrug and once the clasp was at the back of my neck, she ran the tips of her fingers along my skin for a moment longer than necessary when she pulled her hands away. I missed her touch as soon as it was gone. 

“No, I do. Or the main gist, I should say.” She finally met my gaze, her demeanor exuding some embarrassment, “It’s just that wolves can be so territorial. You know, like, possessive. That’s the part I don’t like, you thinking that I’m trying to take possession of you, because I do have that instinct. And the people in there will definitely see it like that. Especially since you’re human.” 

“I don’t care what the people in there think of us.” My hands went to her waist to reassure both her and me, “I know what your intentions are. I know you’re not trying to own me or anything, so I don’t mind you calling me your mate. And not just here either.” 

There was something comforting about Jayde calling me her mate and me calling her mine. I was content with girlfriend, but mate felt like a bigger, better word. Like it carried more weight and meaning. Using it every now and then definitely wouldn’t be a bad thing.

She smiled at me, her shoulders slackening with relief, making me think that she felt the same about it. Her index finger came up to tap under my chin while she leaned in to kiss me. We didn’t let it become more than a long peck considering we were in a public place. Jayde wasn’t too fond of people watching us, and I can imagine these werewolves taking any interest in our intimacy would annoy her even more. 

“You ready?” she asked once she pulled away.

“I’m ready.”

Jayde looked me up and down fondly, “You look gorgeous by the way.” 

Skye helped me pick out the dress. It was elegant, yet simple overall. Skye thought that the navy blue color went well with my hair and skin tone, which I couldn’t argue. The sleeveless lace bodice didn’t constrict me or make me overheated from nerves. The flowy skirt reached my knees, giving me enough movement to feel comfortable, and the flats I was wearing wouldn’t kill my feet too badly. I didn’t wear dresses very often, but I always enjoyed it when I wore one like this. 

I blushed at Jayde’s praise and accepted the arm she held out to me as we ascended the steps.

The inside was just as grand as the outside. Perfectly spotless tiled floors that I could see our reflections in led to a grand staircase that curled around the whole foyer. People were mingling about with fancy glasses of various alcoholic beverages, dressed like they were trying their hardest to promote their status to each other. As soon as Jayde and I entered the foyer, gazes landed upon us, followed by quiet murmurs. Curious and even scornful gazes, I noticed. My flushed expression turned to slight embarrassment from all the attention and I instinctually moved closer to Jayde, clinging to her arm and trying to hide my nerves. No doubt they could all sense it anyway.  

“Let’s go get something to drink.” Jayde suggested, leading me away from the prying eyes in this particular room. As we walked by a couple looking me up and down very carefully, she growled at them, making me smile to myself. 

This was going to be an interesting day. “It’s gonna be a lot of that, I’m guessing.” 

She groaned in agreement, “If Skye hadn’t asked me to go to this damn thing for her, I wouldn’t have come within a hundred miles.” 

I remembered all the stories Jayde told me about coming here with her family when she was a kid. I gathered that if her father hadn’t been such close friends with one of the alphas, they wouldn’t have even come here at all. It sounded like every visit was painful for both families on account of their opposing views. I was dreading the inevitable moment I meet the alpha female, Miranda. She sounded like a very strict and uptight woman, which made me fear that she was the one who was going to have the biggest issue with me. 

The open bar was in the next room, filled with even more werewolves of high status. Strange looks continued to come our way, which I ignored as best as I could. “They can all tell that I’m human right away, can’t they?”

She nodded, “Most of them, yeah.” 

“Am I the only human here?”

“I haven’t caught any other scent besides yours.” she answered, quickly asking the bartender for a whiskey and a glass of champagne. “Your scent is pretty distracting though.” she added with a small side-grin. 

I accepted the glass of bubbling liquid that was being handed to me, offering my thanks to the bartender before I replied to her, “I hope not too distracting.” 

Jayde took a generous swig of her whiskey, “Not distracting enough, actually.”

We stood quietly for a few minutes while Jayde surveyed the crowd, her shoulders slightly tense like she was preparing for an attack. I tried to commit some profiles to memory too, in case I recognized anyone from the descriptions that Jayde had given me earlier, but every time I looked at someone for more than a second or two, their gaze found mine like they somehow knew I was watching them. Can werewolves sense people watching them? The idea was a little unnerving considering how many times I’ve stared at Jayde before we got together. Did she know I was staring at her all those times? And she didn’t think I was a psycho?

“Jayde,” a man called as he approached, pulling me out of my embarrassing thoughts. He must’ve been about thirty years old or so. Kind looking face, clean shaven with his light brown hair combed perfectly. 

“Jonas.” Jayde greeted back with a nod. 

“You got roped into this, huh?” Jonas asked with a hint of humor.

“Just when I thought the torture was over.” she said somewhat sarcastically. 

Jonas smiled, then noticed my presence beside Jayde and eyed me curiously, though I noted it wasn’t judgemental. It might’ve even been concern. “Who’s this?”

“This is Nadya.” Jayde put an arm around my waist, “My mate.” I watched his eyebrows shoot up in surprise while she addressed me next, “Nadya, this is Jonas. He’s Miranda’s first born son with her first mate, Arthur.” 

I recalled Jayde telling me that the previous Kincade alpha male, Arthur, had been killed by hunters when Jonas was very young. “It’s nice to meet you.” I said, reaching out to shake with him.

Jonas’s grip was firm, but gentle when he took my hand. I realized from his expression that he was offering respect, which wasn’t something I thought I would receive so easily here. “It’s lovely to meet you too, Nadya.” 

“I’m…” I started nervously after letting go of his hand. I probably should’ve left it, but I felt like I couldn’t, “I’m sorry about your father.” 

His expression softened, “It’s alright, it happened a long time ago. Truth be told, I barely remember him.”

“He seemed like a good man, from what I’ve heard.” I said sincerely, “I’m sure he would be proud of you.”

Jonas studied me quietly for a moment while he swirled the drink in his hand absentmindedly. He didn’t look me up and down like a lot of people were, he just kept his gaze right on mine until the corners of his mouth tugged up in a smile. Then he nodded and said, “Thank you.” 

I smiled and nodded back, but was slightly unsure if that offended him or not. “Of course.” 

The moment passed with Jonas standing up straighter and taking in a breath, “Well, I won’t hold you up any longer, I have a couple toddlers to track down. You know, make sure they don’t get into my mother’s closet upstairs. You two enjoy the party.” 

“See you around, Jonas.” Jayde said, shaking his hand like an old friend before he went to walk away. 

He got a couple steps, then halted and turned back to us, “Oh, Jayde?” 

“Yeah?”

“It’s good to see you.” He had an almost familial fondness in his eyes, “Alive and well.” 

Knowing that he must have been referring to the fact that he hasn’t seen her since before she was captured, Jayde’s eyes sparkled with gratitude and she smiled, giving him a meaningful nod, “Thanks.” 

Once he disappeared in the crowd, I asked Jayde, “Was that okay? What I said.”

“You have a way with words, Nadya.” she answered, lovingly caressing my arm, “I don’t think anyone besides his wife has told him that his dad would be proud.” 

“Really?” 

She nodded, “Miranda didn’t take it too well when he told her he didn’t have any ambition to be the next alpha. She thought that was disgracing Arthur’s memory.” 

I suppose that kind of made sense for people like this, in a twisted way, but that still wasn’t fair to Jonas. “Well, he seems to be doing pretty well for himself.” 

“He has the family he’s always wanted. A mate. A couple of kids. Miranda might not think that's ambitious, but I do. Jonas sought a more modest life, and when you’re a werewolf, that can be more difficult than just staying in a large pack.” 

This subject sounded familiar. “Your dad did that, right?” 

She hummed in confirmation, “The Thatchers were another major purebred pack. My dad loved his family, but he also wanted something of his own. When he met my mom, he just wanted it even more. It’s never easy to break away from a big pack to form your own. There’s a lot of bravery in that.” 

“You and Skye are the only Thatchers left?”

“Us and you.” Jayde told me with a smile, “And Toby. Even though he’s a Cortez, I call him both. You know, we might run into his siblings today.” 

The fact that Jayde basically called me a Thatcher caused an incredibly light flutter in my stomach, “It’ll be interesting to meet them.” 

“Celina has a bit of a stick up her ass, but she’s good people.” 

As I was about to reply, there was a loud and booming voice shouting, “Thatcher!”

When Jayde saw another man approaching us, she swore under her breath, “Fucking Christ, here we go.” and downed the rest of her whiskey, turning around and motioning for a refill from the bartender. “It’s Garret.” 

Apart from Miranda, Garret was one of the Kincades I was hoping I wouldn’t meet. He sounded like the worst type of frat boy and all the times that Miranda tried to push Jayde and Garret into a relationship, basically grooming them to eventually become mates since they were small children, made me extremely uncomfortable. 

Now that I could see him in person, with his arrogant smirk surrounded by patchy stubble and overly gelled dark brown hair that was slicked back and cropped close at the sides, I wanted to be in any other room besides this one. There was a pendant around his neck that suspiciously looked like a bullet. Specifically a silver bullet. I wasn’t sure if it actually was one, or just for show, but it didn’t exactly match his tailored suit. The fact that he wore it so blatantly made me think it was a trophy of some kind. 

Garret carried himself like he owned the place, but it almost came off like he was trying too hard. Once he sauntered over to us, he gave Jayde a long once over and it was difficult to keep my expression neutral. “Wow, you really did make it out, huh? I mean, shit, look at you.” he motioned at her dramatically with his hands, taking a special interest in her most visible scars, and let out a chuckle, “Maybe a little worse for wear, but I guess it’s kinda badass.” 

“Okay, you said hello, you can go now.” Jayde said dryly, letting all of the amber liquid in her glass fall down her throat while glowering at him. 

“Still playing hard to get after all this time?” Garret asked with a cocked eyebrow.

She wasn’t amused, “I was never playing your game, Garret, I just genuinely can’t stand you.” 

“Oh, come on,” He groaned dramatically, “You’re being rude to the next great alpha? Under his own roof?” 

“I’m actually being pretty civilized.” Jayde remarked, motioning for yet another refill of whiskey, which was starting to worry me a little, “You’ll know when I’m being rude.”

Garret looked like he wanted to say another snappy joke, but then he focused on me. The look of surprised interest on his face made me realize he literally just noticed my presence. His pale blue eyes slowly looked me up and down, glittering like a kid in a candy store, and I felt Jayde stiffen beside me. “What’s up with the human?” he asked her nonchalantly without taking his eyes off me. 

“This is Nadya.” Jayde answered through clenched teeth, barely holding back a snarl.

“What’s she doing here?” he finally looked to Jayde for an explanation, “What, we just gonna have fun with her later?”

While I wasn’t entirely sure I knew exactly what his assumption entailed, my mind did go to a few possibilities. Like how it was a full moon and the participants of this party were invited for a hunt during the night. The way Garret had been looking at me started to make sense now. It made my skin crawl. 

A brief sparkle of yellow shimmered across Jayde’s dark blue irises, I only noticed it because I was standing so close. She tensed up further, scowling darkly, an opened her mouth to say something, but I spoke up first because I had had enough of Garret’s comments making both of us uncomfortable, “Jayde and I are mates.” 

He locked eyes with me again like he was shocked I had the ability to speak, “What would you know about that?” he snapped.

“She understands it a lot more than you do.” Jayde said calmly, not taking her dangerous glare off of him.

Garret addressed her with a scoff, “So, being tortured for years gave you a sense of humor?” 

“No,” Jayde shook her head patronizingly, “Just gave me some perspective.” 

“Pretty twisted sense of perspective, if you ask me.” he grumbled.

“We didn’t ask.” I pointed out. He shot a look at me again, this time looking furious that I had the audacity to speak to him like that. Maybe I should have held my tongue or used a little more caution with a werewolf like Garret, but something about him made me especially impatient and unwilling to just let his behavior go unchecked. Not to mention I hated the way he was talking to Jayde. “Why does it matter to you anyway?”

“Because my big brother cannot stand it when he can’t get what he wants.” Replied a girl that suddenly appeared next to our disagreement with a glass of wine in her hand and a giant grin, “Isn’t that right, Garret?” 

The beautiful young woman was around my age and had the Kincade family resemblance for sure, though she also had a smirk that was familiar in a different sense. It was the same mischievous smirk that Skye wore on a daily basis. It wasn’t hard to recognize this girl as one of the twins that taught Skye everything she knows about being a troublemaker.

“Amara,” Garret glowered at his sister, using a clear warning tone, “Go away.”

“Do you have to be such a sore loser?” Amara replied and shrugged, “I mean, Hell, after all this time Jayde still won’t fall for your shitty flirting attempts. Learn to give up, you’re just embarrassing yourself.” 

Garret’s face took on a reddish hue, either enraged, embarrassed, or both. The siblings stared each other down in a tense silence to the point that I was worried about it ending violently, but then Garret drew in a long breath before releasing it slowly. Without another word to any of us, he trudged off. He threw me a quick glare as he brushed by me and I noticed that he had reached up to grab his pendant, the silver bullet now lost in his clenched fist. I frowned. If that really was a silver bullet, that must be burning his hand. 

Jayde must have noticed it too, “What’s the deal with the stupid necklace?”

“Oh,” Amara snickered, “He killed a hunter a while back and took the loaded silver bullet out of the guy’s gun. Now he goes around showing it to people and saying, ‘This was the bullet that was gonna kill me, but I showed that hunter bastard how a real man fights!’” She scoffed and shook her head, “I swear he becomes even more of a douche after each day.” 

I shook my head, mumbling, “You don’t say…” into my glass of champagne, not at all surprised.

“Some things never change.” Jayde remarked. 

Amara fully looked at the both of us, “You do. Strolling in here as one of the last surviving members of your family’s pack with a human girl on your arm. Kinda wish I could’ve thought of something like that to drive my mother crazy.” 

“Nadya really is my mate.” While there wasn’t any full-blown animosity in Jayde’s voice, she was still being assertive, “I didn’t bring her here as a joke. Sometimes werewolves realize they don’t have to stick to archaic pack beliefs. It is the twenty-first century, after all.” 

“Wow,” The Kincade wolf stated slowly, her perfectly manicured eyebrows arched in surprise at Jayde’s intensity, “Is it hard to hear me up there on your high horse with your little human?” 

“It is a bit windy, yeah.” she replied sarcastically. 

The energy between the two was different than with Garret. It wasn’t like they were overly fond of each other, but I could tell there was still some respect, as well as amusement with the other’s presence. The banter was also interesting. Almost sibling rivalry-like. Then I realized that it was exactly that because these two had a long history of growing up together.   

Amara chuckled at Jayde’s retort and looked to me, “Well, if she really is that important, then I guess I should introduce myself.” 

I accepted her extended hand, “I’m Nadya.” 

“I gathered.” she replied with that smirk, “I’m Amara.” 

“I gathered.” I said, mirroring her tone cheekily and releasing her hand. 

“Oh, she’s got a little bit of sass,” Amara grinned at Jayde, “I like her.” 

Jayde gave me a soft and proud smile, reaching out to briefly brush the back of her finger against my jaw. The small touch was both comforting and energizing. “So do I.” 

“Well, this has been fun, but my main source of entertainment went that way.” Amara pointed in the direction that Garret went, “Mitchell and I are shadowing him all day and whoever makes him flip his shit in front of everyone first wins.” she leaned in as she passed us to wink at me and say, “Don’t let these wolves scare you.” 

I grinned back at her and nodded, “They’re more bark than bite.” 

Amara let out a hearty laugh, walking backwards and pointing at me, “You’re funny.” Then she disappeared into the crowd to go annoy her older brother with her twin. 

When I looked back to Jayde, I saw that she was watching me very intently and I wasn’t sure why. “What?”

“Come on,” She said, setting her glass of whiskey aside and plucking my nearly empty flute of champagne out of my hand to place it down as well. Before I could ask why, she grabbed my hand and began leading me through the main bustle of the party.

I uttered a quiet, “Excuse me.” whenever we closely passed guests and offered a few sorry’s as well to those that I couldn’t avoid while Jayde pulled me along. We eventually broke through the crowd and made our way down some nearly empty hallways. This place was so big that even if I lived here, I was sure I would get lost on a daily basis, so I was impressed with how Jayde seemed to know exactly where to go. 

We took a couple more turns, until there was no one else in sight, and I finally asked, “Where are we go-”

Jayde suddenly stopped, her hands going to my waist, and I was cut off by her mouth crashing into mine as she pushed me back against a wall. It left my head buzzing with disorientation for a second, but I quickly recovered, reaching up to grab her shoulders and eagerly return her kiss. Her hands squeezed my hips, drawing me completely against her until there wasn’t even an inch between us. Within the span of a few fluttering heartbeats, I was totally overtaken by the sensation of her lips moving against mine, the taste of whiskey on her tongue, the sudden flooding of warmth that went throughout my limbs.

She pulled away, allowing me to catch my breath in flustered pants. “Sorry,” She murmured, resting her forehead against mine, “I just really had to do that.”

“I’m not complaining.” I said, laying my forearms on her shoulders to play with her hair, “What was it for?”

“I was about two seconds away from knocking Garret’s teeth out,” Jayde explained and leaned back to smile at me, “Then you talked back to him like that, wiping his stupid fucking smirk off his face, and I swear I fell in love with you all over again.” 

Having had no idea that my actions had that effect on Jayde, and feeling rather proud of myself because of it, I pulled her in again. This was exactly the kind of break I needed after the few interactions we’ve gone through already and I sure did need something to get me through the rest of the inevitably uncomfortable meetings. Jayde indulged herself too, deepening the kiss for a few breathtaking moments before letting her lips trail down my neck. Her teeth teased the sensitive skin along my pulse and one of my hands gripped her upper arm in encouragement while the other tangled in her hair. A harder nip caused my nerves to spark and crackle like lightning, making me suck in a sharp breath. 

An excited gasp escaped her lips, tickling my skin, and then her mouth was on mine once more. I could feel we were both getting lost in this, perhaps too much, but I couldn’t bring myself to stop her. Not when she felt this good. Not when I knew I wouldn’t get this again until we left this place. 

Then there was a noise close to us, a door being slammed shut, and Jayde broke away from me with a startle. She looked over her shoulder, as did I, and we saw a woman had come out of the bathroom that we failed to notice we were right across from. The strange werewolf simply stared at us and we stared back, me sheepishly wiping at my mouth with a blush since Jayde and I had gotten a little intense just moments earlier. After a few awkward moments, the woman shook her head in bewilderment like she was trying to shake herself out of a hallucination and continued on her way. 

As soon as she was gone, Jayde made eye contact with me and we immediately burst into laughter. Her head fell against my shoulder and I buried my face in her neck to muffle my giggles. It felt like we were teenagers getting caught making out in the hall during class. After a few moments or so, we regained some composure and Jayde took my hand again to lead me somewhere else.

“There’s a room I used to go to as a kid when I wanted to get away from these people. No one besides my dad ever found me there.” she said with a grin.

A thrill went through my body as I laced our fingers together and followed her. I couldn’t deny the excitement I felt sneaking around with her like this, and the implications of going someplace more private intrigued me too. Then I remembered the senses that werewolves have. Everyone would pretty much be able to tell immediately if we went further. It was already uncomfortable enough being stared at for being human, but if the people here also sensed that Jayde and I sneaked away for a quickie, I can imagine that would only increase the level of awkwardness.  

I realized that couldn’t have been Jayde’s goal because there’s no way she would want the wolves glaring at us more than usual. But taking us someplace where we could have a proper break from the party and indulge in some passionate kisses appealed to me just as much as the former idea. 

As we continued on, I brought Jayde’s hand up to brush my lips against the back of her hand, giving her a sweet smile. The heated expression that came across her face when her eyes met mine made me think that she didn’t really care what the other werewolves ended up sensing. Well, if she didn’t have a problem with it, then neither did I. 

We reached a closed door and Jayde quickly pushed it open. I was so focused on her, and distracted by the anticipation of contact, that I didn’t notice someone else was already in the room until Jayde stopped in her tracks. She let go of my hand and held out her arm to prevent me from taking another step and I was puzzled by the sudden seriousness in her expression. That is until my line of sight followed what she was so intently staring at. 

There was a young woman, nicely dressed in a black dress with gold trim, sitting on one of the lounge chairs. Her dark curly hair, that was intricately braided on one side, rested on her squared shoulders, tensed up in a specific position to keep her spine straight. 

I could tell from here that she wasn’t a Kincade wolf. At least not part of the main family, but there was something about the air around her that made me think she was more important than a subset of the pack. The young werewolf’s eyes were closed and I realized she must be in a meditation of some sort. Then her eyes snapped open, immediately finding Jayde, and I saw the telltale glow of her wolf surfacing. 

While Jayde’s wolf eyes were a deep golden, this girl’s were a pale yellow. She silently regarded Jayde’s presence, then mine and that’s when I heard a soft growl beside me. When I glanced at Jayde, I saw that her eyes had shifted too, her growl a light warning to the other wolf as she was unsure of her intentions. As far as I could tell, the girl wasn’t being aggressive. Still, Jayde remained alert, her arm still held out over me protectively. 

Finally, the girl’s eyes shifted to a more human looking gray, and I felt Jayde relax a little. Then the girl spoke. 

“You don’t see many of your kind these days.” 

I could only think that she recognized Jayde as one of the very few remaining Thatchers. 

“We don’t give up too easily.” Jayde replied. 

“I can tell.” Her voice was calm, almost soothing, but there was a hint of strain buried underneath. 

“Elaine, right?” Jayde asked, lowering her arm and taking a couple steps further into the room, “Reinhart?” 

“That would be me.” Elaine confirmed flatly. 

So this was a werewolf from another old purebred pack. I started inching my way forward too out of curiosity since Jayde had a lot of respect for the Reinhart pack, but then Jayde’s arm went up again to halt me. She didn’t want me near Elaine for some reason, which confused me. The other werewolf seemed very relaxed in our presence. 

“I’ve heard things about you.” Jayde said.

Elaine shrugged, leaning back in her seat nonchalantly, “Probably all true, albeit a bit exaggerated.” her eyes briefly drifted over to me again before settling back on Jayde, “I’ve heard things about you too, but nothing about a human girl.”

“I can be full of surprises.” Jayde’s arm still hadn’t lowered and I was getting impatient with it. It seemed like a rude gesture, even if she was only trying to protect me. But she ignored my touch when I set my hand on her arm to urge her to lower it. “I’m sure you’re full of them too.” 

Elaine gave a slightly bitter smirk that nearly looked like a snarl, “Not the random maulings of humans type of surprises anymore, I assure you.” 

That made me hesitate. Jayde being so unyielding made sense now. Elaine isolating herself and seemingly practicing meditation suddenly made sense too. She must have been using it to help with control. Though I knew enough about werewolves to know that a purebred struggling with control like this wasn’t a common thing. Even Garret didn’t show signs of it. That only made me more curious about Elaine. 

“That’s why you’re here then?” Jayde started sarcastically, “Tucked away in a back room because you have control now? It’s a full moon tonight, how are you feeling?” 

“Jay,” I scolded softly, unsure why she was being so rude. 

“I know it’s hard for you to understand, but being this was never easy for me.” Elaine said slowly like she was explaining something complicated to a child, “I never wanted to hurt anyone. I exiled myself from my pack for years because of it. I sure as shit wouldn’t be back here if I thought I couldn’t handle it. Though, I will admit that I believed it would just be wolves.” Yet again, Elaine met my expression. It was hard to read her, but I could tell my presence was making her uneasy. 

“I’m sorry we interrupted your meditation.” I told her sincerely, “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.” Then I spoke to Jayde. “We should probably leave.” 

The smile Elaine gave me was small and brief, but actually genuine. “You’re fine. Besides, it looks like we interrupted each other.” when she looked back and forth between us knowingly, I realized with a hot flush to my cheeks that we had been a bit obvious with our intentions in coming here. Thankfully, she shifted the topic before I became too embarrassed, “What’s your name?”

“Nadya,” My first instinct was to go up and offer my hand, but I wasn’t sure she would be entirely comfortable with that, “I’m part of Jayde’s pack.” 

“That makes sense, considering,” she eyed Jayde and noted how her body language was still defensive. While she had finally relaxed her arm, Jayde was still positioned half in front of me. I knew I wasn’t in any danger, so I stepped out from behind her to stand beside her and offer Elaine some trust. Jayde looked over at me like she wanted to argue, but Elaine spoke up, “I promise she’s safe around me.” 

Jayde didn’t take her eyes off me while watching my expression very closely. As soon as I nodded, silently agreeing with Elaine, she backed down, trusting my judgement. “I hope so.” 

“I wouldn’t have let this conversation go on this long if I wasn’t sure.” 

“Guess I’ll have to take your word for it.” 

“I do usually keep my word, if that makes you feel any better.” 

Jayde nodded, “It will once I see the evidence for myself. I hope you don’t take any offense.”

Elaine seemed to soften towards Jayde in understanding, “I get it. It’s hard enough for a normal werewolf to trust others. If I had gone through what you have, I wouldn’t trust anyone.” 

“It’s gotten me this far.” Jayde said with a shrug. 

“Trust has too.” Elaine nodded at me, “You have a human at your side. And here of all places. That’s a shocking amount of trust.” 

Jayde blinked at Elaine with a subtle tilt of her head like that hadn’t ever occurred to her. I smiled to myself, remembering how we met. How Jayde was forced to trust me as I was forced to trust her when neither of us knew each other at all. We both had to depend on the other to save lives. It worked, and here we are now. Together like family and in love. It was pretty funny to me.

“Good point.” Jayde answered.

“We can leave you, if you’d prefer more alone time.” I offered, knowing how overwhelming a crowd like this could be. It must be especially overwhelming for Elaine. “I could go get you something to drink or snack on.”

Her smile towards me became warmer, but she politely shook her head, “No, that’s alright. I should be rejoining the party anyway. My parents will be wondering where I am. This was supposed to be a test to show them how much I improved, and I snuck away instead.” 

“Don’t feel too bad, we did the same.” I reassured her as she stood up, “But less innocently…” 

That made Elaine laugh. She moved closer to us, but gave me a wide berth, probably to keep Jayde, who had tensed ever so slightly again, comfortable, “I’m a bit envious of you guys, if I’m honest. It must be kinda fun to sneak away like that.” 

“It is,” Jayde confirmed, “until you get an earful from someone responsible later.”

She gave us a lopsided grin over her shoulder on her way out of the lounge room, “That’s the worst, isn’t it?” 

Elaine almost ran into someone in the doorway, sidestepping at the last second. The new arrival offered her his apologies, bowing his head. The overly formal greeting made me think he was a lower level wolf because he addressed Jayde in the same fashion. He folded his hands behind his back and bowed in a way that was more submissive than respectful, keeping his eyes on the floor when he spoke. 

“Miranda would like to speak with you.” 

Speaking of getting an earful, I thought. 

“Oh, I’m being summoned now?” Jayde asked. 

“You are in your alpha’s home.” the young werewolf stated carefully, “You should show some respect when she calls for you.” 

Jayde rolled her eyes and motioned for me to follow her. “My alpha…” she grumbled under her breath like that was the most ridiculous joke ever told. 

“She’s waiting for you in her office.”

“I know where.” She replied without looking back. 

Elaine offered us a quiet, “Good luck.” though the look on her face made it obvious that she was beyond glad she wasn’t us right now. 

Jayde’s demeanor completely changed. I’ve seen her like this before. She was gearing up for a fight. Whether it was physical or otherwise remained to be seen, but she wasn’t expecting a warm welcome from the Kincade alpha female. I could tell that Jayde was preparing for every possibility and I was worried that it was all because of me. I never should have come here. It’s caused too much trouble already. 

The office was apparently on the other side of the mansion, which made that lounge room Jayde took me to more appealing. I guess that’s why she would escape there as a kid. It was as far away from Miranda as possible without leaving the house. We had to go through the main bustle of the party again and I couldn’t help but feel like Jayde was heading towards the chopping block. Was all of this really that big of a deal? I guess so, if the way people were looking at us told me anything. I frowned deeply, linking arms with Jayde protectively. She had to know that the opinions of these werewolves didn’t mean much in the grand scheme of things. We still had a proper home to go to. 

A middle aged man was waiting for us on the outside of what must have been the door to Miranda’s office. He smiled at Jayde as we approached, though there was pity in his eyes. I was surprised at how much this man looked like an older version of Garret. This had to be his father. The Kincade alpha male and Jayde’s father’s closest friend back in the day. 

“Hey, kiddo.” Logan said sheepishly, “Wanted a proper hello with you before you head on in.”

“‘Cause it isn’t going to be pretty?” Jayde asked. 

“She was really banking on you being…” He started, but drifted off and shook his head, “Well, she’ll tell you. It’s really good to see you. I can’t tell you how relieved I felt when I heard you had made it out alive. Tristan would be glad that his legacy continues on with you and Skye.”

Jayde fixed him with a level stare. “Is that what this is about? His legacy? Or hers?” 

To my surprise, Logan couldn’t hold her gaze. I would’ve thought an alpha of a large pack like this would be more confident, but I was getting the impression that Logan was mostly an alpha in name only. It seemed like he was bowing to his wife’s will quite easily, no matter how he felt about it. Then he looked at me, the only emotion I could gauge from his expression was indifference. 

“You should probably stay out here.” He said, “Miranda only wanted to speak with Jayde.”

Jayde turned to me, “Do you want to?” she asked sincerely, giving me an out if I wanted it. 

I wasn’t overly fond of facing off with an alpha like Miranda, but I didn’t want to just abandon Jayde to that. “I want to stay with you.” 

She smiled at me, in both relief and pride. I had no doubt that she could have handled this without me, but that didn’t mean she had to. “She’s coming with me.” she told Logan firmly. 

He didn’t argue, but sighed and nodded us on, “Okay, go on in. And be careful with your words, please.”

Jayde didn’t reply to him, only stepped forward and opened the door. 

Miranda’s office was highly decorated in both modern and historical items. Medieval weapons hung on the walls above bookshelves that were full of very old and worn looking books as well as clean and crisp ones, all perfectly organized. I had to resist the urge to go over and browse the spines. There were deep red velvet curtains on the windows that could drown out all the sunlight if they were pulled closed, but thankfully they were open and allowed the sun to illuminate the entire room. I would’ve felt trapped if they weren’t. The desk had all of the most modern necessary technology equipment, though the desk itself looked very old and grand with intricate carvings. I also noted a large crest hanging on the wall above the leather office chair. It was a wolf sat on his haunches on the face of a shield with a crown around its neck and a dagger in its mouth. 

The Kincade alpha female, Miranda herself, stood with her arms crossed in front of the desk. She bore a resemblance to her daughter, though with lines along her forehead and around her eyes and mouth to show how she had held this stern expression for who knows how many decades. Streaks of gray ran through her long dark hair that had been stylized perfectly for this event. Or maybe she put in that amount of effort into her appearance no matter the occasion. Her light blue eyes showed no warmth or sympathy, only a demand for order and respect. 

She hadn’t been waiting alone in this room. Garret stood close to her with a large grin on his face like he had won a prize. It didn’t surprise me that he had gone crying to his mother after our encounter with him. 

The office was silent for a long time as Jayde and Miranda faced off with each other. Logan had entered the room too and closed the door behind him, though he kept a distance back and started wringing his hands nervously. Miranda paid him no attention, just kept her eyes on Jayde. 

“Do you have anything to say for yourself?” Miranda finally asked, breaking the unbearable silence.

“Excuse me?” Jayde asked with a scoff. 

“Jayde, I have always been patient with you,” the alpha said, ironically with little patience, “because I respected your parents and I greatly admire your bloodline, which is even more precious now, but you have truly crossed a line.” 

“Could you be more specific?”

Miranda raised her eyebrows, “Do I need to be? When you have her by your side?” 

I looked down in shame. This really was because of me…

Jayde grinded her teeth in frustration, “You invited me here and I came because I owe you thanks for taking Skye in when my family was lost. That’s a debt I can never repay, but that doesn’t mean you get to judge me for anything.” 

“I don’t get to judge you?” Miranda scoffed incredulously, “I don’t get to judge you for parading a human around my home and claiming that she is your mate to my son's face!? You have a duty to your lineage! We are being hunted to extinction and you want to play around like a child with a human girl?” 

As much as I wanted to chime in and defend Jayde, I also knew that speaking or talking back in any way would not help this situation. I was the problem. All I could do was watch on in silent suspense. 

“Your father would have wanted something better than this for his legacy.” Miranda added bitterly. 

Jayde advanced on Miranda aggressively. Both Logan and Garret tensed, taking a step towards their alpha in case she needed aid, but Miranda didn’t so much as flinch. 

“Don’t ever talk about my father!” Jayde said furiously, “You don’t know a goddamn thing about what he wanted for me! You do not speak for my dead family!” 

While I have seen Jayde mad before, this felt different. The Kincade struck just the wrong cord and the twitch of Jayde’s muscles told me that she was using all of her willpower to not attack the rival werewolf in front of her. Miranda’s eyes began to glow an inhuman pale green, and I knew that Jayde’s eyes were golden without seeing her face. 

“Someone should, since you are clearly incapable of doing so.” Those terrifyingly cold eyes landed on me and I don’t think anyone has ever given me such a hateful look without even speaking to me at all. Then she focused back on Jayde, “You disgrace your kind.”

“Nadya is my mate.” Jayde continued with a fierce growl, “She is my part of my pack. You will treat her with respect.” 

The fact that she was fearlessly defending me in front of an intimidating alpha made me stand a little taller. If she could be this brave, then so can I. 

Miranda looked angry as ever, but she somehow kept her terrifying calm, “Why should I? You’ve never afforded me even the most basic level of respect before. As your alpha, I should have received as much from the very first moment you walked through my doors.”

“You are not my alpha!” The younger werewolf stated with her fury rising again, “You never were and you never will be. I don't have an alpha.” 

That last sentence made the room go very still. Miranda regarded Jayde with a new expression, like she had witnessed her setting the whole house on fire.

A few incredibly tense moments passed with Miranda staring Jayde down with a glare almost as scary as the ones I’ve seen on Jayde. “Are you declaring yourself?” 

I didn’t know what that meant, but the entire room held its breath. That question was clearly a huge deal. Even I went as rigid as the others, waiting on a knife’s edge it seemed. 

“Yes.” Jayde answered, her growl so low that I almost didn’t catch it. She directed her glare at Garret next, actually making him shuffle back. Then looked back at Logan, who avoided her eyes again. Her amber irises settled back on Miranda once more, but the woman didn’t seem to have anything else to say, so Jayde shook her head and turned her back on her. 

Jayde caught my hand when she came to me and started pulling me out of the room. Once we left, we saw three young werewolves scrambling away from the door, clearly having been eavesdropping. One of them was Amara, and the guy to her right had an uncanny resemblance to her, which must have made him her twin, Mitchell. The third was a slightly younger boy that I guessed was the last Kincade child, Declan. Miranda’s children had been listening intently to the drama and looked both overly entertained and shocked about what they heard. 

“Enjoy the show?” Jayde asked as she continued our path away. 

“It was better than I could’ve hoped for,” Amara answered with her brothers snickering, “Alpha.” 

We left them behind and after what I witnessed started to really sink in, I whispered quietly, “So, what exactly just happened?”

“I uh…” Jayde sounded distracted and when I looked at her, I saw her furious golden-eyed expression had been replaced by bewilderness. Her own actions hadn’t hit her either until now, “I think I just declared myself an alpha in front of Miranda Kincade at her own gathering.” 

“That’s a big deal, right?” 

“I would say so, yeah.” 

The rest of the party that we passed through didn’t seem all that interesting anymore. It went by in a blur as we retraced our steps out of the building. Even the looks and murmurs didn’t really register. We were both quiet until we got back in the car and started driving away from the manor house, putting its great columns and statues in the rear-view mirror. 

“I didn’t mean to cause all that trouble.” I told her after I spent some time staring at the trees we were passing by and spacing out.

Jayde glanced over at me, shaking her head, “No, Nadya, that wasn’t because of you. That was a long time coming.” 

“Maybe, but I definitely didn’t help the situation.” 

“That would have happened whether you were there or not.” 

I went quiet again, watching the road in front of us for a minute. She was probably right, but I still felt bad. 

“Look, I’m not an alpha,” Jayde explained patiently, “I had to say that because I knew it would be the only way to stop Miranda’s bullshit. She doesn’t care about my bloodline, she wants to claim it. I’m pretty sure she didn’t feel all that bad when my family's pack was wiped out because she had Skye; what she thought was the last of a respectable bloodline to strengthen hers. Then I came back and she invited me here so Garret could shoot his shot. It wouldn’t have gone her way even if I wasn’t with you. So don’t put any blame on yourself at all, this mess was because of her.” 

Her explanation helped me make some sense of Miranda’s behavior. It also lifted some of the guilty weight on my shoulders. I still kept quiet for a bit, trying to process everything she said and everything that happened. Then I looked over at Jayde and smiled, “You sure acted like an alpha.” 

She chuckled, “It is in my blood, I guess. You’d be surprised by how easy it was for me.” 

“I think you’d be a good one.” 

Jayde sat up a little straighter at my words and gripped the steering wheel a little more firmly, “You know what?”

My brows furrowed in curiosity, “What?”

“We’re dressed nice,” she pointed out, “and there’s still some hours left in the day. Let’s go somewhere and have some fun.” 

My smile was broad, “Yeah?” 

“Yeah.” her smile was just as big and absolutely gorgeous. 

There was a bar we ended up going to that had delicious food and a live band playing. The dance floor had hardwood floors that reflected the beautiful string lights hanging from wooden beams, giving the whole place a cozy barn vibe. Everyone was laughing and dancing with each other even though they were mostly strangers. These people were just happy to be having fun with good music and drinks. I dragged Jayde out to dance with me and she didn’t even complain once, only let herself enjoy the fact that she was here with me, far away from the Kincades and their backwards ideals. 

The band took on a more slow tune, their instruments and voices becoming soothing and reverberating through the bar. I fell into a slow dance with Jayde, one of her hands on my waist while the other held my hand as she made us sway to the beat. I watched her silently, appreciating all of her features, even the scars, loving every inch that my eyes traced. When I focused on her lips, I saw the edge of her mouth curl up and looked up to see that she was studying me the same way. 

“I’m proud of you, you know. For what you did.” I told her, softly adding, “Your dad would have been proud too.” I didn’t care what Miranda said, I knew in my heart that I was right. 

Jayde lightly bumped her forehead against mine and I closed my eyes, listening to her hum along with the song. “Thank you.” she whispered before leaning in to gently press her lips to mine. 

That filled me with such an indescribable feeling. Amazing in every sense of the word. I kissed her back, letting that warm feeling carry me up into the stars. Making the entire bar disappear except for her and us, holding on to each other and moving to the music.