The Rogue Warrior

Chapter One - The Good Old Days

We sat in the darkness that consumed my room. Only the glow of the alarm clock and the moon's rays spilling in from the window offered any light. It was one of those nights where neither I or my younger sister could sleep. Instead, she snuck into my room and plopped on my bed as she often did. Tonight, she was gossiping over the Blue Moon Pack members that were going to be visiting in a few days.

"Maybe one of them will be your mate. Maybe it will be the beta or even the alpha," she giggled excitedly, a little louder than she meant to. She quickly brought her hands to her mouth to try and stifle her giggling. Sometimes werewolves from other packs would visit for various reasons. Sometimes they were searching for their mates, sometimes to discuss pack politics, or even rogue control. Rogues were wolves who didn't belong to a pack and were considered a threat.

"I doubt it will be the beta or alpha. We are Gammas, not Lunas," I replied, rolling my eyes at her giddy and yet contagiously sweet personality. I tried to pretend that I didn't care about finding my mate. Though the reality was, I did. I cared as much as any love-sick shewolf.

When a werewolf turns 18, they meet their wolf. It is also when they can shift and find their mate. Their mate... the person chosen for you by the moon goddess herself. Your other half. I had turned 18 a few months ago and I still haven't found mine. It wasn't uncommon to take a while to find them, especially if they were in another pack.

"You never know," she grinned. "I can't wait to find my mate. I hope it's Blaze," she swooned at the mere mention of his name while I felt like I was going to hurl. Blaze was Alpha Rocco's son.

"I hope so, too. You will know next year," was all I said not wanting to hurt her sensitive feelings with my words of doubt. Alana was a soft and warm soul. I loved her dearly, even though I found her to be both an annoyance and a hindrance. She was prissy, selfish, and weak. She was the epitome of a princess in distress from fairy tales you read as a child. I wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

"We should get some sleep," she said yawning. "I have school and you have training tomorrow." For once she was acting like the responsible one. The reality was, neither of us were. We both had a knack for getting into some sort of trouble. Our older brother Owen was always bailing us out of trouble. That was back before he became my rival to take the Gamma position when dad retires. Now, I mostly watch out for Alana myself.

"Yeah yeah, see ya tomorrow," I waved her off as I watched her leave my room.

The sun peaked over the horizon. The golden rays streaking through the mountain peaks in the distance. I always liked to watch the sun rise in the mornings before I began my training. I sat in the damp grass listening to waking birds and whispering winds. The world around me was more lively this morning than usual. I could already hear distant voices with my werewolf hearing. Everyone must be awake earlier than usual to prepare for the visiting werewolves from the Blue Moon Pack. They were supposed to be arriving later today to renew their alliance or something like that.

Rumor had it there was a lot more tension between the main packs lately, but I was never included in pack politics. None of us were. Sometimes Blaze, the alpha's son would leak information to my brother. Owen told me it was because Blaze was going to chose him as his Gamma. I wrinkled my nose at the thought. I had been training hard to be chosen for the position.

Three silhouettes appeared in the distance. The dawn's rays outlining their bodies in radiant gold. All familiar scents lingered in the air which told me who was approaching. It was Blaze with his dark brown hair, and warm caramel colored eyes. He was the largest of the group. He was the Alpha and Luna's son after all. Beside him was Owen who looked rather pale in contrast to Blaze's olive-tanned skin. Then was River, mine and Alana's best friend. She had long, raven black hair that swept down to her waist; piercing blue eyes that could leave anyone breathless. River was the beta's daughter and she certainly lived up to the title. She was as cunning as she was beautiful.

I could hear my wolf, Cyra growling in my mind as they approached. She viewed Owen as my adversary, and she was always on edge whenever he was near. There was always tension between us that went beyond typical sibling rivalry.

"Hey Alina," River greeted me. The boys nodded their hellos.

"Alana is going to be so jealous if we get to see the visiting werewolves before her. It's too bad she is stuck in school all day," River said excitedly. I grinned knowing she was right.

"I think I can fix that," I said and winked at her. I didn't want Alana to miss out. Things like this always excited her even though I couldn't understand why.

"Oh no, you aren't going to help her ditch school again," Owen scolded me as if I were a child. His tone was not even playful, but rather stern. Cyra's constant growling deepened. "And everyone will know. The entire pack will be more alert than usual," he added. The Full Moon Pack had a few hundred werewolves within its ranks which was a lot of pairs of eyes.

"Enough." Blaze grumbled, his eyes shifting between us.

"I want to be there when they arrive. I want to see these wolves we have this alliance with," River said.

"Okay, but you know the meet is only for our parents and the Blue Moon Alpha and Beta," Blaze told her matter of factly. His voice, even in a casual setting sounded so strong and powerful that all we could do was nod at his words. It was River that finally piped up.

"You know you are going to sneak in there," she pointed out with a sheepish grin. Blaze shrugged his shoulders and looked away. He said nothing in response. He didn't admit to it or deny whatever intentions he had.

"If you guys are done, I need to get to training," I said with a flat tone.

"Mind if I join you?" River asked.

"Sure."

"I have to help prepare, but you two kick some ass," Blaze said waving as he started to walk off back towards the pack house. Owen followed him close behind, but not before giving me a dirty glare. I still felt the temptation to bust Alana out of school. It was only River and I left after all.

River stood stiff except for her long hair that danced all around her in the breeze. A wide grin crept over her pale features. I knew exactly what she was thinking. We were going to get Alana.

"I wonder if we will find our mate," Cyra said happily. It was a rare occurrence for the fiery wolf to sound so happy. "But, something doesn't seem right," she said.

"What do you mean?" I asked her as I leapt to my feet. I realized how much shorter I was then River. She was a tall girl.

"I sense something. I'm not sure what yet," was all Cyra said. I normally didn't question her. She never seemed to know anything. I had even shifted years before my 18th birthday which was unheard of and when I asked her about it, she didn't seem to know why or want to tell me. I knew there was something different about my wolf which is why I had kept the fact that I shifted so young away from everyone except Alana and Owen who had seen me shift for the first time.

River and I didn't need to say anything to each other. We knew what each other was thinking. Instead we smiled and started walking towards the high school.