The Claimed Promise

First Shift

Alright Kora, we got this. What you need to do is get down on your hands and knees and concentrate. Close your eyes and think about me; think about giving up control. I instantly comply and it doesn't take long for Arezu to start coming forward. The pain is overwhelming as my bones begin to crack and realign to hold my large wolf. Pain radiates through my body, but Arezu comforts me as the shift progresses. A burning sensation blankets my skin as hair begins to fill every inch and soon, the pain stops. When my eyes open, I'm looking down at huge white paws and loud gasps can be heard through the crowd. Liam is the first to speak up.

"Her wolf bares the mark of The Moon Goddess..."

Arezu loves the attention and decides to shake out her beautiful fur for the pack. Many of the pack members are in awe of Arezu and we catch some of the comments.

"Look at the rare color of her fur."

"Her wolf is the same size as Samara's, no doubt in my mind."

"Look at the beautiful color of her eyes."

Clearly, the pack was infatuated with Arezu, but, we wanted to know what our mate thought. Turning, we met the almost black eyes of Samara. She was very clearly barely keeping control, and all Arezu wanted to do was tempt Samara into letting Yuri out. So, she decided to take matters into her own paws, so to speak. We were soon standing directly in front of Samara, as close as our bodies would allow, and Arezu rubbed her head against Samara before giving her arm a little playful nip. The nip was all it took and Yuri to decide Samara didn’t get to have control anymore. Soon, she had shifted into an absolutely beautiful wolf. The majority of the fur covering Yuri was pitch black except for bright gold markings around the ears, eyes, shoulders and swirled through the tail fur. Yuri’s eyes were emerald green and were so clear they almost seemed to sparkle when Arezu and I stared into them. We were indeed the same size but, something about Yuri wasn’t what we had expected. Yuri was a male wolf, even though Samara was female. When I attempted to question Arezu about it, she avoided the conversation all together and instead decided to tease her mate.

My big, ferocious looking wolf started hopping around Yuri, nipping at his feet and then turned, smacked his snoot with her tail and took off running into the forest. The sound of laughter and howls followed us into the forest as the pack run started. One howl in particular sent our heart into a flutter; Yuri had let out a powerful howl that I believed to be his way of accepting Arezu’s teasing as a challenge. Ours paws thudded against the ground, the wind blew through our fur, and, in this moment, I had never felt more alive or free, in the backseat of my own body. Arezu pushed herself as hard as she could, and for a moment, it seemed we had outrun Yuri as we slowed to a stop near a stream. His scent wasn’t around, and we had traveled quite far into the forest to outrun our mate in our excitement, so, we decided this was a perfect place to take a moment to catch our breath. Arezu bent and calmly drank from the stream. For a moment, everything seemed to still in the beautiful landscape as her tongue lapped at the water.

The first thing to bring the reality of the situation screaming back was his smell. Yuri’s smell was strong and there was no doubt that he was extremely close. The second, was him tackling Arezu to the ground and pinning her underneath of him. If it was even possible to see a grin on the face of a wolf, one shown clear on Yuri’s; obviously he was proud of sneaking up on us and taking advantage of the moment. Rather than fight and push Yuri off, Arezu rubbed her muzzle against his, almost making a purring sound at the sensations from touching her mate. Shock was evident in Yuri’s body language as he froze for a moment, not sure how to respond to Arezu’s affection. After a few moments went by, he soon returned her affectionate rub and relaxed into her body: All the tension from the chase long gone.

Our moment came and went as the sound of a desperate alarm howl echoed into the night. Before Yuri could respond, Arezu had kicked him off of her and was rushing towards the cry for help. She knew it was a member of the pack and the thought of taking care of her pack pushed her forward faster than before. We jumped through a thick set of trees, our final obstacle to the howl, Yuri’s footsteps far behind us. In front of us laid an injured wolf with three wolves standing over him. Arezu took a moment to smell the air and the scent of Liam invaded our senses. Oh no, Liam. In an instant, Arezu bared her teeth and challenged the wolves surrounding him.

Of the three wolves, two were clearly smaller. Both were brown and fairly ordinary looking in color. Both leapt at us at the same time and as they came towards us, Arezu dodged to the right, surprising one of them. As the wolf was caught off guard, our canines sank deep into their neck, and within a moment, a loud snap was heard, and the wolf dropped dead from our mouth. The second wolf reacted out of emotion and lunged forward, trying to catch us off guard as we dispatched the first wolf. Arezu easily dodged the small wolf and sank her canines into the back of this wolf's neck as well. Within moments, the wolf dropped to the ground lifeless. One final wolf, larger than the others, stood between us and our pack member, our friend. Instead of rushing us like the other two did, the wolf bared its teeth and lunged for Liam. The sound of Yuri’s growl echoed through the forest as he arrived at the scene, but that didn’t stop Arezu. Within a second, we rushed forward to prevent any further damage and the larger wolf latched onto our leg. In a rush of rage, Arezu clamped onto the neck of the wolf and began to furiously shake. She threw the wolf against a nearby tree, knocking the wolf cold and causing them to shift back into their human form. Without a second thought, Arezu was comforting Liam’s wolf, trying to help him to his paws. Yuri rushed forward and soon shifted back to my beautiful mate Samara. Many wolves from the pack began to arrive as Samara gave orders. Arezu soon returned control to me, and I felt my body begin to change into human. Within a few moments, we were standing there completely naked. Rather than worry about being naked, my first thought was my best friend’s mate, my beta and my pack member that I was supposed to protect.

“Liam! Are you ok?!” Worry is evident in my voice and Liam just stared at me, a look of fear etched into his handsome features, before he finally forced himself up.

“Queen Luna. Thank you for your concern, your care and your protection. Without you, I would not be here, and I would have lost my newly found mate. I am extremely thankful to you and your wolf for saving me. This will forever be remembered.” Liam’s eyes teared up and instantly, my own followed suit.

“Do not thank me, Liam. I would do anything to protect you and anyone else in my pack. I am happy you will be able to return Lindsey. She needs you.” I put my best smile on and give Liam a nod as the other pack members began picking him up.

“Let us rejoice in the gift of The Moon Goddess, thank you for the gift of our Queen Luna!” Liam’s voice rings out into the forest, and I realize the rest of the pack is here. Soon, the night air is cut by the sound of wolves howling out as well as shouts of hoorah. Instead of the typical flush of embarrassment I usually felt from being the center of attention, I stood proud in front of my pack. Arezu was happy and wanted them to know. Within a moment, my canines extended, my senses improved, and my nose shot into the air. A loud howl escaped my lips in answer to my grateful pack. As we howled together, one howl stood out from the rest. When I looked over at Samara, she was half shifted like myself. Her eyes were dark, and she was staring at me with a look full of lust. Clearly, Samara was fighting Yuri for control, and I needed to do something so that this moment didn’t become one that took the focus from the pack.

Both our voices combined as we spoke to the pack, “This attack on one of our own is unacceptable, and as your new Queen Luna, I want to assure every wolf here; I will protect you. We all need to stand together, stand strong, and stand united!” Celebratory shouts filled the night air as the pack made their way back to the castle. As I began to walk forward, the feeling of a blanket being draped over my shoulders brought back the reality that I was naked.

“Thank you, Samara. I had all but forgotten that I wasn’t clothed.” Blush tainted my cheeks, and she gave me a knowing smile.

“Only I get to look at you in this manner. If it weren’t for the circumstances, I doubt I could have kept control of Yuri.” Darkness flashed through her eyes as if to show Yuri was in agreement.