Wolf Born

Chapter One.

I made my bed and got dressed in a pair of black gym shorts, a white tank top and a pair of white running shoes. I threw my hair into a high ponytail and made my way outside. The cabin was small, a two-bedroom, one-bathroom cabin with a small kitchen and living room space. It was cozy and decorated the way we wanted it to be. It was home, not just to me but to Silas as well. I stepped through the sliding glass door and onto the back porch. A strong gust of air struck me which I breathed in deeply, allowing the wind to fill my lungs before letting it back out through my parted lips. Silas was already waiting near the lake, on the grass patch that we referred to as our back yard. He stood facing the lake with his arms crossed over his chest. He wore a navy-blue hoodie and a pair of black sweatpants, paired with matching black trainers. I bounded down the porch steps and made my way across the match of lush green grass, stretching my arms as I did. Silas picked up on my scent long before I reached him and turned to look at me. He said that I smelt of raspberries and vanilla which was a strong contrast to his earthy smell “So what will it be today?” I asked as I stepped up beside him, looking out at the lake. I stretched my arms out high above my head, arching my back before folding my hands behind my head. Silas uncrossed his arms and followed my gaze to find a fish eagle diving down, towards the surface of the lake “Hand in hand combat training” he replied, reaching for the hem of his hoodie and tugging it over his head. I glanced at him from out of the corner of my eye. His torso was well built, strong and defined with bulging muscles. He peeled the hoodie off his arms and tossed it aside as I averted my eyes “Again?” I questioned, lowering my arms back to my sides as Silas knelt, down to reach for the bandage tape. He’d brought two water bottles, one for each of us, medical supplies and what I assumed was a packed lunch for the two of us “I need to prepare you for what your father might have in store for you” he explained, wrapping the red tape around his knuckles. My back muscles tensed slightly at the mention of my father, but I brushed it off with a sharp nod. Silas finished wrapping his knuckles, biting the tape to tear the end and tossed the tube towards me. I caught it without looking “I’m quite confident I can hold my own against him” I argued, pulling at the tape to start wrapping it around the knuckles of my left hand. Silas reached for a water bottle and stood, unscrewing the cap to take a swing of the clear liquid. His head was thrown back as a stream of the water trailed its way down the length of his throat “It’s not him I’m worried about” Silas said once he was done drinking and screwed the cap of the bottle back on. I finished wrapping my left hand and moved on to my right one, flexing my fingers to make sure that it wasn’t wrapped too tightly. I knew what Silas was afraid of and he had every right to be “They won’t hurt me” I tried to assure him, an image of my brothers flashing in the back of my mind. Silas tossed the water bottle aside with little care as to where it landed and ran the back of his hand along his wet jaw “There’s no guarantee that they won’t” my brothers had never been a threat to me before, instead feeling overprotective of the only girl in a house filled with males but regardless if they wanted to protect me or not, if my father ordered them to attack, they wouldn’t hesitate “I know you can stand your ground against a pure blood Alpha but can you handle five of them?” Silas had a point. I tore the bandage and tossed the tube aside, flexing my fingers before pounding my fists together, testing the amount of impact they could take. A small smirk made its way onto my lips as I turned to face Silas “We’ll just have to find out, won’t we?” his stands was serious, jaw clench and eyes hard but he quickly relaxed at my playful retort. A smile tugged at his lips and a breath of laughter escaped them as he shook his head from side to side “Someone’s eager to get her ass beat” I shifted my weight from one leg to the other and stepped back, raising my fists to shield my face as my legs spread in a fighting stands. Silas was always overly formal but during combat it was like all that formality went straight out the window “Only by you” I shot back, pairing it with a wink and a confident smirk. Silas spread his legs so that they were aligned with his shoulders and held his arms loosely at his sides. He rarely bothered to shield himself since he could always sense his opponent’s attacks before they made them from simply assessing their movements “The same rules apply, first blood wins” he reminded me. It meant that the first one to get the other to bleed would be the designated winner. My expression went blank as I concentrated, a serious aura filling the air between the two of us. My eyes scanned his body, trying to find some twitch, some slight movement that could give him away. It was the same technique he used when fighting but he was smart and stood perfectly still, making it that much harder for me. I only had one choice, if he wouldn’t move then I had to make him move. I shot forward, my left foot moving as if I was aiming to hit his right side, but I quickly planted my left foot into the dirt and turned my body to face his left side. He fell for it, moving to block his right and leaving his left side open. I brought my left shoulder in and rammed it into his shoulder, sending him staggering back a few steps as I used the force of the blow to steady myself on both legs. There was no emotion in his eyes as he caught himself and looked at me. He knew I was toying with him, giving him a small nudge as an attempt to provoke him and it was working. I scanned his build, eyes moving from his slightly bent legs to his sweaty torso from the heat of the summer sun. I needed to nudge him again, to move past his calm limits until he got to the point of reckless judgement. It was the oldest trick in the book and I was planning on using it to my advantage. I lunged, fist raised and aiming for his jaw, but he effectively dodged it like I was hoping he would. He raised his right fist and targeted my stomach, but I gripped his shoulder with the hand I was planning to hit him with and jumped, using his extended arm to propel myself up and over his shoulder so that I landed in a crouched position behind him. He turned to look down at me and I lunged, aiming to ram my fist into his stomach but he dodged to the side, grabbing hold of my wrists and using it to spin me around and pin my arm behind my back. I had to arch my back, pressing it back against his chest as I gasped at the feeling of his hand constricting around my arm. Pain shot through my arm and up to my shoulder as I frantically tried to come up with a way out. He chuckled, his breath tickling my left ear and my eyes shot to the side to look at him, an idea coming to me. I leaned slightly to the right and raised my left leg straight up, causing my leg to connect with his face. He groaned and instantly let go of me, stumbling back and touching at his face. In that moment I was grateful that women were more flexible than men. I turned on my heels, raising my right leg to kick him square in the chest. He didn’t have time to dodge and took the force of the blow, his body leaning back but his feet unmoving. His hand shot out like a viper, gripping my heel and shoving me backwards. The air shot out of my lungs when I landed firmly on my back with my eyes staring straight up at the clear blue sky, wide. My head connected with the ground and I groaned as a strong hand wrapped itself around my throat. I instantly started gripping and clawing at it as Silas knelt, down over me, pinning me to the ground with nowhere to go. His grip tightened gradually until I was wheezing for any traces of oxygen that I could find. I knew that I needed to relax and slowly began to let go of his hand, placing my arms on either side of me as my body went limp. I looked up into his brown eyes which were silently begging for me to do something. Even though he was my opponent, he was still my protector and would never severely harm me. He wasn’t enjoying the sight beneath him, his forehead creasing and eyebrows furrowing as he pleaded with me to move. I reached a hand up and buried it in his hair, running my fingers through the almost black, brown strands. My eyes softened as I looked at him, eyes drooping as a small smile made its way onto my lips. My hand trailed its way down to his stubble coated chin, willing him to come closer. His free hand shot up to cup mine as his grip on my neck began to loosen. He leaned towards me but stopped when I tilted my head back slightly, eyes dipping down to his lips that were mere inches away from mine. His eyes were heavy as he leaned his face into my touch. He sucked in a breath when our lips got closer but instead of receiving a kiss like he was hoping to, I threw my head back and rammed my forehead into his nose. He cried out, falling back on his rear between my legs and gripped at his face. The c***k that rang out was enough to satisfy me as I looked up at the sky, laughing “Son of a b***h” he cursed as he pulled his hand away from his face. I sat upright, noticing the trail of blood that made its way down from his nose, over his lips and to his chin where it dripped down onto his chest “I win” I announced, grinning. He looked up from his blood covered palm and glared at me with a heated gaze. He wasn’t amused, a deep growl rumbling up from his chest. I laughed, sitting up on my knees and reaching for the first aid kit that sat nearby. I got in between his bent legs and opened the kit to find some rubbing alcohol and cotton. I dipped the cotton in the alcohol and reached out to cup the side of his face. He placed his hands down on either side of him to steady himself as I began dabbing at the blood to try and clean it. He didn’t even flinch as I worked around the bruised and swollen skin, concentrating as I worked, still sitting on my knees in the grass beside the lake “Do you want me to snap it back in place?” I asked, referring to his broken nose. He turned his head away from me, eyebrows scrunched up and a pout resting on his lips. I set the cotton aside and sat back on my knees, waiting for his reply but he ignored me which made a small smile touch the corners of my lips “Come now, you can’t be that mad at me” I taunted, leaning forward so that my face was a few inches away from the side of his, but he continued to ignore me. I placed both palms on his chest and gently pushed him back so that he was lying on his back with me on top of him. He looked up at me with an emotionless gaze as my outer thighs rubbed against his “You cheated” he declared, not phased by our position. He knew I was playing with him, using my body and lips to compel him to answer me. It was a weakness that he would never admit to but somehow, he managed to fall for it every time “I was only using your weaknesses against you” I argued, sitting back and placing a hand on one of his knees, applying a small amount of pressure. He caught on quickly and lowered his leg so that I could roll off him and onto the grass so that both of us was lying, staring up at the sky “There’s more than one?” he asked, talking about the number of weaknesses he had. He sat up and reached for his nose. A loud c***k ran as he snapped it back in place with a groan, clutching his head between his hands. I hummed “One, you’d never really hurt me” I began, turning my gaze from the sky and onto him as he looked down at me, resting his arms on his propped knees “And two, you’re a depraved male with out of control hormones” his jaw dropped slightly at my second accusation, head rising to give him a clearer view of me. I sat up, placing my palms down on the grass behind me as I closed my eyes and tilted my head back to bask in the sun’s rays “My hormones are not out of control” he argued but we both knew that it was the truth. Neither of us had had any contact with the opposite s*x in over seven years including me, who had gone through puberty in front of Silas’ eyes. He’d seen me grow and evolve, even having to give me the menstruation speech when it was time to explain things. Such things never bothered him, having to explain things to me and tell me why I felt the way I did towards men out of the blue. He’d already gone through puberty by the time we were sent to the cabin and despite keeping mostly to himself about such things, I could tell that he would sometimes let his eyes linger for too long or that he’d try not to look at me for the same reason. I knew that he’d never do anything other than look at me in such a way unless I ordered otherwise out of respect for my dignity “Sure” I muttered, eyes still closed while Silas moved beside me, reaching for something. The smell of cooked meat met my senses and I opened my eyes to look down at the lunch Silas had packed for the two of us “Chicken sandwiches with a side of fruit salad and lemonade” he said, handing me a plate with a sandwich and a small bowl of salad on it. A plastic fork accompanied the meal for me to eat my salad with. Silas poured me a glass of lemonade and set it down on the grass between us. I looked down at my plate of food, sitting up with my legs crossed and the plate resting in my lap as I picked one half of the sandwich up and took a bite. I leaned against Silas’ shoulder as he ate himself, surprising him when I rested my head on his upper arm. I looked out at the lake and felt the wind blow gently against my face. I didn’t want to ever leave but I knew what awaited me as soon as the sun would begin to set. Letting the scenery and the sound of Silas’ heartbeat calm me, I finished eating and fell asleep on his shoulder, in the shade of a large oak tree.

Silas woke me up an hour or so later, telling me that we needed to go shower and pack for the trip. I packed first, folding and stuffing my clothes into a duffle bag before I made my way across the hall and to the bedroom that sat opposite mine. I tossed the bag onto the king size bed, covered in black sheets and headed for the dark wood dresser, opening the top drawer to retrieve Silas’ clothes and back them in along with mine. The shower tap turned on in the bathroom as I folded some shirts and boxers for Silas to take on the trip. I hummed a simple tune as I worked, grabbing his shoes and some socks. Next were our toiletries. I left his room and headed for the bathroom at the end of the hall, knocking three times before I opened the door and stepped inside. Silas had his back to me in the shower as I knelt, down to open the cabinet beneath the sink, gathering some shampoo and shower gel into my arms. I picked up some new toothbrushes and toothpaste along with his shaving cream and our razors “Don’t forget the deodorant” Silas reminded when I was about to close the cabinet above the sink. I opened it back up and grabbed the deodorant before closing it. Silas turned off the shower and reached for one of our brown towels, wrapping it loosely around his waist before stepping out onto the white mat “Can you pass me the conditioner?” I asked, nodding my head toward the shower. Silas looked back inside the steaming shower, lined with green tiles and reached for the white bottle on the metal shelf. His other hand gripped the towel as he wiped the wet bottle against it then handed the conditioner to me “Thank you” I muttered, taking the bottle and heading for the door. Silas stepped towards the sink and reached for his blue toothbrush that was in a container next to my pink one. I used my shoulder to nudge the bathroom door open and kicked it shut with my foot. I started humming again as I made my way back to his room and tossed the toiletries into a smaller backpack which I stuffed into the top of the duffle bag and zipped it up, carrying the heavy bag to the living room and setting it down beside the front door. Silas stepped out of the bathroom, dressed in a pair of long, grey gym pants that were made of a windbreaker material. He was rubbing his wet hair with the brown towel as he made his way back to his room to find a decent shirt and some shoes. I bumped his shoulder with mine when we passed each other in the hall which caused him to smile down at me. I headed to my room to find something decent to wear then went to the bathroom, closing the door behind me and tossing the clothes onto the sink. I stripped out of my sticky clothes and kicked my shoes off as I waited for the water to heat back up, which didn’t take long. After scrubbing my body and washing my hair, I got out, drying my body off to get dressed in a pair of brown shorts with a cream-colored ruffled top and some brown gladiator sandals. I dried and curled my hair in messy waves which I left down and added some makeup to my eyes and lips. Silas was seated on the foot of his bed, looking at a map of the area to determine which rout we would take to reach Trojan pack territory. I fell, down on the bed behind him, looking up at the ceiling above. There was a painting of the sea shore hung above the bed’s headboard and I found myself wanting to visit the beach some time in the future “Is Trojan territory close to the shore?” I randomly asked Silas who kept looking at the map and tracing the routs with his fingertip. I didn’t remember much about my life on Trojan territory, just that it was sad and lonely despite me having five brothers but Silas on the other hand could remember it clearly ever since we were younger “It’s located near the Easter shoreline, yes” I rolled onto my side so that I was facing his back and reached for the hem of his white shirt, tugging on it a few times to catch his attention. He raised his head, turning it to glance down at me from over his shoulder “Can we visit the shore while we’re there?” I asked, having never been to the beach before. Silas knew this and breathed a laugh, motioning for me to look at the map before he turned his attention back to it “I’m sure we can squeeze a trip to the beach into our busy schedule” he sarcastically said which caused a smile to tug at my lips. I sat up on my knees and peered over his shoulder at the map he held in his hands. I could read it since Silas had taught me how to a long time ago. He wasn’t just my trainer, he was my teacher, having taught me all about history and anatomy, not to mention mathematics and geography “Where’s the pack house located?” I asked, gripping both his shoulders with my hands as an attempt to steady myself. He shifted slightly, raising his right hand to motion towards a small patch of land that was about the size of a peanut on the map “Right here, near the river that runs from this lake to the East” he explained, dragging his finger from the large pool of water along a small blue line that lead almost directly to the patch of land. A few miles from there was the sea but the cabin was located almost half the U.S continent away from the pack lands “How long before we reach the pack?” I asked, sitting back on my knees and removing my hands from his shoulders. He folded the map up and glanced back at me from over his shoulder. My hands gripped the bed sheets beneath me, toying with the fabric “It’s an estimated five hours on wolf back” he answered me, setting the map aside and falling back onto the surface of the bed with his hands folded behind his head and legs still off the side of the bed, feet firmly planted on the ground “I don’t-.” Silas already knew what I was going to say before I said it and looked up at me, brown eyes staring into my fiery, gold-red ones. My unique appearance was only part of the reason why my father had sent me away at a young age “I won’t let you shift, Luna” he assured me, reaching out to place the palm of his right hand against my cheek, cupping the side of my face in his large hand. My eyes drooped a little as I relaxed, his assurance enough to calm my raging heartbeat. I leaned into his hand and raised my own hand to cup his “I won’t let anything bad happen to you” he whispered, referring to both my father and the consequences if I was to shift. Unlike normal wolves, I had very little to no control over my wolf, meaning that if I was to shift, she’d go on a rampage and most likely end up killing innocent people “I give you my word” I curled my fingers in between his and pulled his palm slightly away from my face. Silas was more than just my protector, he was my family, my brother, my best friend and lover, not in a romantic sense but more in a caring towards each other kind of way. He was my teacher, my doctor, my trainer and my happiness. I turned my head to place a kiss to the palm of his hand. His eyes watched me as I pressed my lips to his skin, eyes closed until I finally leaned back and took his hand in both of mine, holding onto it, in my lap as if my life depended on it. Silas turned his head to look up at the ceiling and closed his eyes. I began humming the same tune I would every time I got the chance and rubbed circles on the back of his hand with my thumb. I was terrified, scared of what awaited me on Trojan territory but if Silas was with me, I knew nothing, and no one could ever harm me.

Time ticked by slowly as I watched Silas sleep. He needed to get as much rest as possible in before the trip since he’d the one carrying me. At one point, I lied down beside him, resting my head on his stomach while still holding onto his hand and listening to the sound of his heartbeat along with the churning of his stomach. The sun was starting to set over the horizon, casting an orange hue over the room as I turned my head to look up at Silas. It was time to leave. I rocked his side with my free hand and he groaned, eyes squeezing shut before opening to peer down at me. He never slept too deeply for fear of me needing something. A small smile grazed his lips at the sight of me and he raised his free hand to run his fingers through my hair. I was curled into a small ball beside him, using him as my pillow and he didn’t seem to mind “It’s time to go” I said, sitting upright and casing his hand to fall onto his stomach. I let go of his other hand that I had been holding for the past few hours and stretched out my aching muscles by reaching my arms up high above my head and yawning. Silas sat up, his legs never having left the ground and ran a hand through his dark hair “You need to eat something first” he said, rolling his shoulders back and reaching up to c***k his neck on either side, a bad habit that I got used to over the years. I shook my head as I threw my legs over the side of the bed “I’m fine, really” I argued, reaching for my sandals that I’d kicked off earlier before getting onto the bed. I slipped my feet into them and started tying the intricate buckles. When I looked up, Silas was shooting me a pointed look “It’s my duty to look after you and I will not have you fainting of malnutrition during our trip” his tone was stern like that of a strict father figure, but it had little influence over me. I stood and crossed my arms over my chest, leaning most of my weight on my right leg with my hip propped when I spoke, “Fine, I’ll eat but only on one condition” Silas looked up at me from a sideways perspective and stood, grabbing the map he’d left abandoned on the mattress a few hours prior. He crossed his own arms, the muscles bulging as he raised a single eyebrow up, expectantly, waiting for me to continue “You have to promise not to stop cooking for me once we reach the pack house” he was silent for a while then threw his head back, a hearty rumble vibrating out through his mouth from his chest. The rumble echoed through the room as a small smile made its way onto my lips. He uncrossed his arms and shook his head from side to side once he got his laughter under control “And here I thought you were going to force me to be your s*x slave or something” my face paled before the color rushed to my cheeks, tinting it a warm shade of pink. I looked away, trying to hide my face behind a curtain of dark crimson hair as he made his way out of the room, still chuckling every now and then. He paused in the doorway to look back at me “I wasn’t planning to stop cooking for you” my head shot up to look at him, but he was already gone, making his way down the hall and to the kitchen. I couldn’t fight the smile forcing its way onto my lips and uncrossed my arms to follow him out into the main room. He was in the kitchen, preparing something for me to eat as I plopped down on the wooden bar stool that was pushed up against the kitchen counter top “So I take it that if you weren’t going to stop cooking for me, you’re not going to stop training me?” he opened the old yellow fridge and dug through it for some leftovers since we were in bit of a hurry. He settled on some macaroni and cheese from the night before and heated it up for me. He stood near the microwave as he waited for it to finish, opening the top drawer to retrieve a fork for me to eat with “You’re my responsibility, I have to take care of you regardless of us living here or visiting the pack lands” I felt a rush of relief flow through me at his words. It had been seven years, seven long and peaceful years of us growing used to how the other did things and I didn’t want anything to change “Nothing changes” he said as if having read my mind, opening the microwave and retrieving the white porcelain bowl to place it down on the stained wooden counter in front of me. I picked the fork up and twisted it between my fingers to properly grip it. Silas stood in front of me, on the opposite side of the counter with both hands gripping its edges “Can’t we just stay here?” I randomly asked, not wanting our calm way of life to get destroyed by the people of our past. I didn’t bother looking at Silas as I picked at my food, not actually hungry but knowing that I had to eat something to satisfy him “I wish we could but we both know that I can’t disobey a direct order from your father” it was true, Silas was my father’s Beta’s youngest son and that gave my father complete authority over him if we remained part of the pack. I took a bite of food and chewed ‘Only if we stay part of the pack’ Silas’ back muscles tensed and his grip on the counter top tightened, causing his knuckled to turn white. I wasn’t looking at him, instead staring off into space. My voice had echoed through our connected mind link, playing out in the back of his mind as I finished chewing my food and swallowed “Luna, with all do respect, we need the pack, we have yet to determine whether your mate resides there or not” I dropped my fork in my bowl with a loud clutter and banged my clenched fist down on the counter top, causing the bowl to rattle. Silas went silent as I stood, causing the stool to tumble to the floor with a loud thud “I don’t care” I said, my voice trembling as I braced myself against the counter. My arms began to shake as I kept my head down, staring at the ground by my feet “Mate bond or not, they’re just a stranger to me and you’re-.” my head shot up so that I was looking him directly in the eyes. The orange light of the sunset shown through the kitchen window and surrounded him in a halo of light. Tears stung the corners of my eyes “You’re so much more!” I wasn’t trying to imply that he be my mate, instead I was trying to say that all I needed was him to be happy, not a mate or family but him. His stone-cold expression turned into a small, sad smile as he stepped around the counter and stood behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist in a hug “It’s your destiny to be the future Luna of a pack” he said, resting his chin on top of my head and staring straight ahead at the lake beyond the kitchen window, illuminated by the light of the setting sun “But I give you my word that no matter the outcome, I’ll always be there, right by you side” I lowered my head, hands reaching out to grip his bare arms as I clenched my teeth and fought back the tears threatening to escape. I dreaded the thought that surfaced in my mind, but I had to ask, parting my lips in a slow drag of breath before I could mutter them “What if…you meet your mate?” he removed his arms from around me and reached for the bowl of food to toss it out. He then moved to the sink and started washing the dishes, placing them in the drying rack as he did “Then she’ll just have to come second” my head shot up at his words and I looked at him to find him smiling back at me. He picked up the wash cloth and wiped his hands dry on the fabric before neatly folding it back on the counter. He reached for a set of keys that hung on the wall and started towards the front door “Come on, the sun’s about to set” he said, opening the door and reaching for the duffle bag that sat beside it on the floor. I followed his movements with my gaze, a smile tugging at my lips before I followed him outside and onto the front porch. He locked the door behind us and placed the keys in the duffle bag. We descended the front steps and stepped onto a dirt road. Silas dropped the duffle bag by his feet and tugged his shirt over his head, handing it to me to fold and place inside the duffle bag. I knelt, down beside it, zipping it open and placing the white shirt on top of everything else. He kicked off his shoes next and peeled off his socks, holding everything out for me to take. When he stripped out of his pants, I looked away, eyes scanning the forest tree line instead. When he held the material out to me, I took it, keeping my head down as I folded it and placed it inside the bag which I then zipped up and stood. Cracking bones and strangled cries reached my ears and caused me to look up at a pained Silas on his hands and knees. His teeth elongated to form canines as his chin stretched to form a muzzle. He tore his own flesh from his back to reveal tuffs of dark brown, black fur like his hair as his knees snapped and shifted. His feet and hands became paws and his spine elongated to form a tail. I looked away as his cries began to turn to howls of agony and breathing deepened. When the sickening sounds stopped, I dared a glance at him and found a wolf, the size of a horse looking at me with chocolate brown eyes. His wolf was beautiful and made entirely out of pure muscle. He shifted his stands and lowered his head low to the ground, his ears folding back against his skull in a show of submission towards me. I approached him, reaching my hands out to cup the sides of his head which was roughly the size of my torso alone. He moved his head from side to side in my grasp and I leaned forward to press my forehead against the top of his head. Silas and his wolf were two different beings with different personalities and opinions. His wolf saw me as more than just his responsibility, he saw me as his mate even though Silas and I weren’t mated. His wolf was just as protective of me, if not even more so and he got jealous quite easily. His anger was more easily flared than Silas’ which made him a very temperamental and territorial wolf. He opened his eyes and pulled his head back to look at me. I lowered my arms back to my sides as he bent down, signaling for me to get on his back. I stepped around him, reaching out to grip handfuls of his pelt to be able to hoist myself up onto him. Once I was steadied, he stood up and made his way over to the duffle bag, grabbing it by the straps in his mouth and lifting it up off the ground. Silas then took over, surfacing to the front of his wolf’s mind to speak as he glanced up at me from over his shoulder ‘Hold on’ I leaned forward, pressing my front to his back and wrapping my arms as far as they would go around his neck, hands gripping his fur and eyes squeezing shut when he took off at a speed no human could ever hope to achieve. He headed for the lake and turned right on its banks, slowing down a bit and causing a rumble to rise in his chest as if to try and signal me. I opened my eyes and looked out at what he was trying to show me. The lake was painted orange, a stream of light dancing on its surface as we jogged past. I sat up straighter on his back, legs still tight around his torso as I gazed out in awe at the scene. I knew that that kind of beauty would be rarely seen on the pack lands and savored every second of it as we passed. We eventually broke through into the forest tree line and began running along the river that lead to the East. I leaned forward when Silas picked up speed and squeezed my eyes shut as the strong wind struck my body and sent my hair whipping violently around me. He swerved in and out of the trees, moving around them effortlessly and leaped over boulders and fallen tree trunks as he ran. I buried my face into his fur and inhaled his earthy scent with our earlier conversation repeating itself multiple times in my mind.