Five Times Fated

Chapter Five

NOAH TOOK SKYE out to the edge of the treeline and set her down. A werewolf’s first shift was extremely painful. In order to shift, your bones would break and reform. Your literal organs reorganized themselves. That first time was the most excruciating pain one could imagine. Skye could barely breathe, taking every gulp of air in rapid, shaky breaths. “It’s gonna be okay”, Noah reassured, pressing his hands to her shoulders. When mates touched, it felt like electricity in a good way. It felt nice and pleasant. Noah’s touch was almost calming to Skye. His voice sent tingles zipping down her spine. She never understood why people found their mate’s speaking voice irresistible until now. “Hey, look at me. Take a deep breath. It’s gonna be okay. We can do it together, okay?”

Skye nodded weakly. “Okay.” Noah pulled off his shirt, and Skye couldn’t even bring herself to gawk at his chiseled body with the amount of pain she was in.

Eventually, her hands and feet transformed into paws. Skye screamed one last time as she shifted fully, her screaming turning into a howl. Noah shifted quickly beside her. Because he was used to it, he wasn’t in any pain at all, and did it quickly. He was a large, black wolf that looked quite intimidating. He nudged her playfully before running off into the woods. With a yip, Skye followed after him. The two of them ran through the trees, side by side. Skye felt relaxed, free, and at peace. The wind blowing through her fur felt amazing. Eventually; they came to a small stream where Skye leaned over to look at her appearance. She was surprised to see that her wolf was completely white, aside from a single gray streak by her ear, with piercing blue eyes. Noah came to stand beside her, and, for a moment, they just looked at their reflections together before he nuzzled her. Nuzzling was a great form of affection between werewolves in their wolf form. It was almost enough to cause whiplash, with Noah being so openly affectionate and Keller being so anti-Skye. She followed him to a small clearing filled with wild flowers.

After they shifted back, the two of them lied side by side amidst the soft flowers. Skye found that she wasn’t embarrassed to be naked in front of Noah. He was a comforting presence for her. In a different world, she could have definitely found herself being instantly in love with him and being happily in love like mates were meant to, but, unfortunately, she lived in this world. And this world had Keller. Noah kissed one of her marking spots, causing her to shiver and break out of her thoughts, apparently, Skye had five marking spots, which wasn’t exactly normal. Most people only had one. She supposed it was good for her, though, if she really was mated to all five of them. Or at least it would have been if they weren’t going to reject her. “This one is mine.”

Skye turned in amusement to smile at his confidence. “And how would you know that?”

He smiled back, shrugging. “I can just tell.” He seemed to story her for a moment. “You’re beautiful.”

Skye’s cheeks flushed in embarrassment. “Thank you”, she said softly. Another brief silence, and Skye suddenly remembered that she hadn’t told anyone where she was going. “We should get back.

Noah nodded, though he looked a bit disappointed. “Of course, if that’s what you want.” The two of them walked back in comfortable silence. If only everything else could be this way.