Female Alpha's Choice

Shift in dynamics

Darcie

I woke up before my alarm and it felt like I had only just closed my eyes to sleep. I hardly felt rested, I was nervous and jittery. Celeste matched my energy, almost making me dizzy with her enthusiasm. “We might meet our mate today!” I smiled. She was so happy about just the idea of finding her mate, she would completely lose it if we did. She rolled her eyes at me, “Like you wouldn’t.” “I would at least keep my cool externally, one of us has to keep the dignity.” I teased her. We giggled together; I was so glad to have Celeste with me. Today was going to be a big day, the first day of the festival. Future Alpha and Betas would be arriving around 12pm to get settled before the group training session at 1pm and then a ball would be held tonight. Max couldn’t train with me this morning; he had been part of organising the group training session with a few other head warriors from neighbouring packs, and he was going to be busy setting up. He said it was going to be fun today with group activities so future leaders could get to know each other. The harder training and sparring matches would be tomorrow and I was looking forward to those more than anything else.

I needed to get some energy out and I had already planned to meet up with James so we could train together this morning. I was early though so I decided to give Celeste a run too. “Yes, lets go!” If I thought Celeste was excited before, she was ecstatic at the chance to run. “Just keep it close to the pack, not near the boundaries. We’re still on rogue alert and I’ve only got just over an hour before we need to get ready to meet James.”

Our run wasn’t long but Celeste ran faster than normal, doing large loops of our land. It was a perfect crisp morning and the silence of the woods calmed us both slightly. Our pack lands were truly beautiful and I was glad I had woken up early enough to enjoy the sunrise. Back at the pack house I quickly showered and changed into my usual training gear; tight shorts, a sports crop bra with an oversized tee and white sneakers.

I grabbed a banana as I walked briskly through the kitchen and exited the pack house, headed towards the training rooms. As I walked over, I could see some the head trainers setting up obstacles on our oval and in the wide clearing next to it. I could make out Maxs’ huge frame in the distance and, judging by his arms, he was directing where certain obstacles were meant to be set up. “Looking good so far Max” I mindlinked him. There was no way he’d be able to hear me from there, even if I shouted. “Thanks Dar. Did you notice the rope climb station?” I groaned at his cheeky reply as he snickered. He knew rope climbs were my most hated obstacle.

I entered the gym to see James already sweating and raining punches into a bag. He wasn’t just warming up, he looked like he’d been at it for a while.

“What did that bag do to you?” I joked. He stopped but just smiled in response and walked over to me breathing heavily. “I didn’t realise you were already awake. I woke up early too and went for a run, you could’ve come with.” He was still too out of breath to reply so replied mentally while drinking water. “I needed to get rid of some tension and I figured you’d want as much rest as possible.” I frowned in concern, “Are you ok? What are you tense about?” He sighed, finally able to respond normally, “Just thinking about this weekend and all the things that can go wrong…it’s my job to worry about you.” He smiled again, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “There’s nothing that can go wrong, we’re in our pack lands. You saw how dad was last night, he’s not going to allow anyone to disrespect us. I don’t think it’ll be easy but I’m ready to prove myself,” I flicked my hair over my shoulder, slightly irritated “Don’t you think I’m ready to be Alpha and prove it to all the other Alphas?” James rolled his eyes and sipped more water. “Come on Darce, you know I think you’re more than ready and capable. I care about you, so I can still worry, ok? You don’t have to be all ‘bad-ass’ in front of me.” I glared at him and started tying up my hair. “I’ll show you bad-ass. You recovered enough for me to kick your ass in the ring? Let’s go, Beta.”

James

I was sweating profusely now and could hardly catch my breath as I dodged another of Darcie’s lethal sidekicks. We’d been sparring on and off for 40 minutes and I was regretting using some of my energy earlier. She was a weapon. It had been a while since we practiced with each other and I could see her improvements under Max’s expert guidance. Actually, scrap that, I couldn’t just see them, I was feeling them. Thank goddess we heal quickly, or I’d be heading to breakfast black and blue. She skipped lightly to her left and I saw her shift her weight slightly onto her left foot, ready to pounce again. I took my chance and rushed at her, grabbing her around her waist and pulling her down. The fact that she had taken her T-shirt off earlier, showing her perfect abs and toned waist, had not helped my concentration throughout our session. I briefly enjoyed holding her body close under me, trying to gain control of her wrists to pin her effectively. Bam! My breath was knocked out of me and suddenly Darcie was straddling me, forearm along my neck with light pressure, claiming her win. I was stunned, I couldn’t understand how I’d gotten into this position. “I submit, Alpha,” I grinned up at her and she winked before rolling off me. We lay there on the mats, catching our breath. “Geez what has Max been teaching you?” I propped myself up on my elbow to look at her, “You’re not going to have any issues this weekend in the fighting matches.” She was still breathing heavily with her eyes closed but she smiled happily, “Good. I’m glad you think so. Nothing to worry about, see?”

“I wasn’t worried about you fighting Darce,” I murmured, too tired to think before I spoke. She sat up quickly and we were at eye level, our faces much closer than what I was prepared for. My eyes couldn’t help but glance down at her perfect lips. “What do you mean? What else is there to worry about?” I returned my eyes to her gaze. Her brown eyes were so deep, so layered with her emotions, it was impossible to be anything but honest. “I’m worried about you finding your mate. I just hope he’s worthy of you.” Her mouth and mind were silent but her eyes changed. I could read everything in them; concern, uncertainty, slight anger? They lightened slightly and humour glinted in them, “Are you worried he’ll be better looking than you? You don’t want to lose all the girls from the ‘James fan club’ hey?” She lightly punched my shoulder and stood up to get some water. I internally debated for a moment before deciding to take the plunge on the awkward, but necessary, conversation. “Darce, listen, it’s more than that.” She paused but didn’t turn towards me. I stood up and took a small step towards her, “You know I fully support you being Alpha; I always have and always will. But surely you know there’s the chance that some of the pack won’t be as open minded. Your mate will need to be-” She spun quickly facing me with a furious look in her eyes, “My mate won’t ‘need to be’ anything. Whoever, or whatever, he may be is besides the point. I will be accepted alone, as I am. My mate isn’t a prerequisite for my title James.” I was surprised at her anger, and I could see the hurt she was trying to hide also. We’d had small arguments before, but I could feel this was different. Her aura increased and it was the first time I turned my gaze from her in submission; not out of respect but because I simply had to. Her Alpha blood was obviously gaining power the closer we got to her ceremony. “Sorry, Alpha Darcie.”

She inhaled sharply as she realised the effect she had on me. She had never wanted me to use titles with her when we were alone, and she could feel the shift in our energies. I felt her step towards me and her hand pulled my face upwards. “It’s just Darcie, James. It’s still me.” Her eyes were apologetic but I could tell Celeste wouldn’t let her say sorry. She was an Alpha wolf and didn’t want to be disrespected; I understood. The dynamic between us was always going to shift at some point.

I put my hand over hers to prevent her from moving and stared into her eyes again. “It’s my job to protect you and sometimes that includes telling you things you don’t want to hear. I just want a smooth transition for you, that’s all. And I’m willing to do whatever it takes.” My eyes burned into hers with sincerity and I hoped she could hear the deeper meaning of my words. “Whatever?” She asked. She moved forward slightly and I didn’t miss the ways her eyes quickly flicked down to my mouth and back up. She gently bit her lower lip subconsciously and I almost groaned at how hot she looked. James, Laris growled, ‘you said you’d at least wait until after this festival. She may find her mate, don’t complicate this, please.’ He was right. Damnit. I closed my eyes and stepped back quickly, releasing her hand. I took a deep breath and looked at her. “Of course whatever, it’s my job.”