The Wolf Within

** Lia's POV ** "Now remember everyone; while tonight is the first ritual for many of you, I feel it is important to clarify that this is by no means the ONLY mating ritual you may take part in." The crowd was silent, save for a few coughs and shuffling feet. Here I was again, my seventh mating ritual, yet only the second one I was hosting, and I couldn't help but feel hopeful. However, I felt it was important to set expectations for everyone before we all started this emotionally charged journey together. After all, very few of us would find our mates tonight, and many of these desperate souls needed to be prepared for that. . . including myself. "Unfortunately, not all of us will be blessed enough to find our mate." The only things to be heard now were the bonfire and crickets. Six rituals is a long time to try to find one's mate and walking away from so many, empty handed, is enough to make anyone want to give up and believe the Moon Goddess had forgotten them; but being the Alpha of the Protettori Della Luna, I felt I had no choice but to try, regardless of how much pain my heart would endure again. Come on Lia, your sad is showing. Cheer these people up again! This is supposed to be fun. I glanced over to see Alexa (a.k.a. Al), my beta, wink at me. Thank the Goddess I had her near me. Regardless of my Alpha status, I had definitely never been one for public speaking. Al was always there to help me through it though, and I couldn't be more grateful. "Ahem," I cleared my throat and continued, "However! Let this not burden our hope! After all, tonight many of us shall be blessed enough to find our true mate!" Somewhere inside myself I was able to pull out a happy and boisterous voice at the end of this. The crowd shouted and howled in excitement. I was happy to see so many smiles around the fire now. The past few months of planning had been dreadful, and coordinating this ritual with the neighboring packs had been a raging pain in my side; but seeing all of those smiles and all that hope. . . yea, it was those moments that made being an Alpha truly worth it. "One more word of caution! Regardless of what happens tonight, it is of the utmost importance that you do NOT leave the grounds. I'm sure you've all heard of the attacks that have been striking our packs over the recent months. I assure you these have all been small instances and these grounds are perfectly safe; but even so, I ask you to stay safe, diligent and alert. If you hear or see something or someone out of the ordinary, or if you see someone stray from the grounds, notify myself or one of your respective Alphas or Betas immediately!" The crowd's feeling went from hopeful to slightly weary. Now that I had given my warning it was time to start the ritual. "Now, are you all ready to begin?" Yells and shouts echoed once more around the fire. I knew they could do better. "I said, ARE YOU READY TO BEGIN?" They all howled in unison, save for the other Alphas attending. "Good! Now keep howling while I call for the blessing!" I looked to the sky, which was covered in clouds so thick we couldn't see the full moon above them. I opened my arms wide to it and called out "Great Moon Goddess, mother of wolves, bringer of all light in the darkness! Hear how your descendants call out to you! Here how we thank you for your wonderful gifts! We've gathered here on this, the Full Heart Moon, so that you may shine your light on our other halves! Let us emulate you and become whole once again! Shine your light upon us and show us our destiny!" And with this I released my pleading howl, accompanied by the howls of the other Alphas involved. The clouds parted and the night sky cleared. The moonlight was so bright it was as if we were performing the ritual in the middle of the day instead of at midnight. "Now, it is time to release your wolves. Remember, young ones, it's best if you remove your clothes before doing so. You may give your items to those who have already been blessed with their mates as they will stay here this evening. They will keep your belongings safe." Once everyone had carefully packed their clothes away and placed them next to the people they trusted, all of which were sitting on the porch of the great pack house, they each shifted. t was wonderful to see the pride of the first-timers as they each revealed their wolf, even the omegas were excited to show their other side for the first time outside of their circle of family and friends. Are we starting or what? Al asked. I looked back to Al and realize I'd been having a proud Alpha moment for a bit too long and all the wolves are staring at me, waiting. I looked skyward, closed my eyes, and released my call to the world. It felt as if my heart was so filled with desperation as it called out that my howl poured itself over the world. In my minds eye I saw it rushing, wave after wave through the land, eagerly moving on the wind, around the trees, across the world to my mate. Others around me had began to release their calls, but none of them reached me. After a few moments I heard the running of paws and the excited yips and growls of the other wolves as they ran deeper into the forest, in search of a private oasis so they could better acquaint themselves with their mate. No call had answered my own. I joined the other ill-fated wolves in a howl of sadness until it was cut short. In the midst of all the chaos and excitement, a small cross breeze blew against me and my nose picked up the sweetest of smells. It was the smell of the rain before it fell, mixed with the cozy scent of fallen leaves. Along with the scent of a.... cat? Regardless my nose couldn't seem to get enough of that scent. I moved my head up to see where it came from, I hadn't realized I had already began tracking the scent through the woods, I was so lost in the smell. The scent came from the direction to my right. Closer to the edge of the grounds, the edge of the pack's forest. This couldn't be right. I had begun to sense another wolf's presence but how could that be. Every wolf in the area was on my pack's grounds, no one would be this far out unless... were they a rogue? My nose and body didn't seem to care about politics. All it wanted was to find the owner of that sweet scent. As I came to the edge of the forest, I was well away from the pack territory and had crossed into neutral land. I raised my head again to look across the field hoping to see the mysterious wolf in the clearing. My eyes, instead, landed on the most beautiful woman; who stood staring back at me with shock and fear in her eyes.