The Pack
1398 Words
Aubrey arrived at the lobby where Donovan immediately grabbed her bag before pressing the button to the elevator. She could sense he was nervous. Is Donovan nervous? For what?
“Excited?” He said when they entered the elevator, breaking the silence between them. She only asserted to nod, not being sure of how she actually felt. Donovan exhaled awkwardly and the silence reigned again.
“Do you want me to put on some music?” Donovan asked once they were in the car.
“That would be nice, sure.”
“What do you like?”
“I… I’m not sure. We were not allowed to listen to music.”
“Oh…”
“But I would love to listen to what you like, maybe I’d like it as well.” she smiled, avoiding another silence to come between them. Aubrey took her time analyzing the car while Donovan searched for the playlist. She hasn’t really been in a car before until she left Elias’ castle and this was the first time that she was actually in the front part of one. Donovan’s car was luxurious, that she could tell, with black leather covering the seats and silver details. The dashboard was completely digital, with a single movement of the werewolf’s hand, the screen duplicated in the windshield without blocking the vision from the street. Aubrey gasped lightly at this, she was not used to this kind of technology at all, Elias liked everything old fashion. Donovan chuckled lightly at her reaction. Aubrey could see the screen moving without Donovan moving.
“How do you do that?” She asked, surprised.
“With the eyes, my love. It detects my movements, so if I move them down slightly, it moves with me.”
“But what if you are just looking at something in the street?”
“When you put the screen in the windshield the car goes in autopilot, see?” he lifted his hands from the wheel and Aubrey could see how it was moving lightly to align with the road, then he put them back on, “but it is always safer to be alert. You never know… Ah! I think you might like this one.” He blinked and soft music started playing. Violins with melodic voices could be heard.
“What is that?”
“‘Blanka Misio’, it’s a very popular Pop Opera group made up of angels.”
“Angels? Really? Sounds very angelical indeed” She let the music fill the car for a while, “I like it.”
“Thought you will, I would be glad to sync my playlists with your phone. You can hear it in your free time, we can find out together what’s your music taste.” he said in a very good mood. He has been so worried about not being able to find things in common with Aubrey. They have grown in such environments and he didn’t want to push her away, making her think that they were incompatible. But this has given him an idea, he could show him what she has been missing this past few years. She could have a lot of her first experiences together.
“Sync my phone?”
“No problem, I’ll explain it all to you. But first, let’s get you settled, ok?” he said nodding ahead. Aubrey took into her surroundings, they were now in a dense forest, the sky couldn’t even be seen from here. Floating lights were guiding the way through the cobblestone road.
“Those lights are beautiful. What are they made of?”
“Actually that’s one of Lilian’s creations, it illuminates the path for anyone that forms part of the pack.”
“And what would happen if I come here by myself? Would it illuminate the path for me?”
“You are my mate, my love; but you won’t be part of the pack until we complete the… mating bond.”
“Oh…”
The path reached a clearing where a large mansion of at least five floors stood greatly covering everything on sight.
“Wow, this is your house?”
“This is the pack house. Almost all the Foresta werewolves live here. Some live in the city. But the main people that coordinate the rest of the wolves reside within these walls.”
“How many werewolves are in your pack?”
“More than a thousand pure-breeds, around ten thousand half-breeds.”
“Why the distinction?”
“Half-breeds have the option of deciding if they rather live like a pack or under the traditions of the other breed they come from. We still consider them as part of the pack for some administrative purposes but not all of them are obligated to our rules.”
“Obligated?”
“Being part of the pack comes with some perks but also with responsibilities. You can live in the mansion, for example, free of charge; but you would have to work in a maintenance or bureaucratic role. We offer food, protection, shelter and jobs to any pack member within our networks and companies. And of course, there’s the mindlink.”
“That thing you do where you talk through your minds?”
Donovan chuckled, “it is a little bit more complex than that but, in essence, yes. Any werewolf, either pure or half-breed, that completes the ceremony, gets the gift of mindlink.” The car finally parked and they got out. Donovan grabbed Aubrey’s backpack and led her through the mansion.
Once inside, the place was filled with life. Little pups were running around, people talking or cleaning. Everything suddenly stopped when they noticed Aubrey. Aubrey stared at them awkwardly and waved shortly. Should she be introducing herself? What should she say? ‘Hi, I’m your new Luna. I am or was a slave.’ Before she could think of something, Donovan went ahead and spoke with an authoritarian voice that made her tremble.
“Pack, this is Aubrey. She is my mate and eventually she will become your Luna, for now she’s just visiting so she can get to know us, I’m sure you will make her feel at home.” Aubrey startled when the pack responded with applause and howling of joy. After a while, all of them stopped, looking directly at Donovan. Aubrey looked at him, he was staring at all of them without blinking. Maybe he was talking to them through that thing, the mindlink. Everyone simply nodded and gave a small reverence before leaving the entrance.
“Wha- what was that?” Aubrey whispered while Donovan grabbed her hand and took her to the end of the entrance where an elevator stood. He pressed the button and the doors opened immediately. They stepped inside and he pressed the button at the top.
“What was what?”
“All that. I think I wasn’t expecting you to present me like your mate.”
“You ARE my mate. I needed them to know that right away and not leave space for questions of rumors once they saw you. I could have told the whole pack in a single mindlink but I wanted you to see their expressions once they knew their Luna had finally arrived.
You see, Aubrey, when an alpha finds his mate; it’s not only a time of joy for them, but for the whole pack. A Luna is necessary for any werewolf that lives in society. The alpha is the ruler that keeps them safe but the Luna is that brings cohesion and love to the formula. She’s the spiritual guide that establishes our moral compass.” Aubrey fidgeted in her place with this statement. They were expecting her to be the glue of this pack? She couldn’t even knew if she could take care of herself, let alone a whole pack.
The doors opened to a luxurious penthouse. All about it screamed ‘man cave’, the decoration was mainly black and leather. Even the place had that sort of musky scent that Donovan carried as well.
“Welcome to my home.”
“You live here? Like… only you?”
“Yes, this floor is exclusively for the Alpha and Luna of the pack. Don’t worry. I made sure that everything got settled for you before our arrival.”
“But how? You invited me just a couple of hours ago. How did you…” Donovan answered her question by tapping his temple with his index finger. “Ah, mindlink. Yes, of course.”
The entrance leads to a beautiful and enormous living room with leather couches for at least twenty guests. Donovan put Aubrey’s bag in one of the couches and showed her around the penthouse. It comprised a kitchen where almost a whole restaurant could work in, a dining room equally as grand, a studio, a meeting room, at least ten guest rooms, each with their own independent bathrooms.
“Now THIS is the cherry at the top and I’m pretty sure that this is going to be your favorite part of the house.” They approached a mahogany double door and Donovan opened them wide. Aubrey gasped at the view.
- Writer
