Silver Fate

She's Mine

== Heath Ray ==

He had been pacing back and forth through the main hall of his pack house for about an hour already. Ever since he came home. He ran all night, chasing the awful smell of Rue’s attackers, all around the borders of his territory. There was only one conclusion to be made; it must have been Lapis'. Rue mentioned they were big wolves. And that she had never seen, nor smelled them before.

And right after the attack, Caleb Lapis Lazuli of all people announced he would be coming over.

White-hot rage surged through him. How dared Caleb Lapis Lazuli invite himself into Heath’s territory, and threaten those who served him faithfully? If it weren’t for the boy’s elite status as the king’s eldest pup, Heath would have put a swift stop to his arrival. Caleb had wasted no time in arriving uninvited; not even giving thought to seeking Heath’s permission first.

Rage shimmered through his veins, and Heath knew he shouldn’t suppress his anger, because it could come to use when him and Caleb would meet face-to-face. He would certainly ask the prince what the meaning was of last night’s provocation. What him and his Beta’s had done, had shaken every foundation of the truce between the Sullivan’s and McClawly’s. Why did the prince make such a bold move? What was his purpose- did he want an all-out battle between two territories far away enough from his paternal home? Could it be boredom or was it something more sinister than that?

He might be just a spoiled brat, born with privileges that blinded his judgement and made him reckless. Maybe he was the type of person that would disregard decisions’ consequences when political issues arise?

‘Where’s Rue,’ he snapped to Rue’s father- his temporary Beta. The bearded man had been standing close to him for the past hour, looking at him patiently. Heath was staring at the floor, somewhat surprised that his pacing back and forth hadn’t left a groove in the floor.

‘What do you mean, my Alpha?’ the grey-bearded man answered. ‘Are you waiting for her?’

Heath looked up, stopped pacing, and crossed his arms. ‘Waiting is a big word,’ he corrected his Beta. ‘But why would she still be sleeping?’

He knew Rue. Rue never slept in. She was the first to wake up- go for a run, or read a book, enjoying the serenity of the morning’s quiet.

She must be shaken still, by the adventures yesterday.

Even from a young age, Heath recognized that Rue was special. Heath himself had been abandoned by the Sullivan clan and forced to grow up feeling like an outsider. He was never allowed to live in the warmth of the Sullivan packhouse or one of the smaller locations for the lower-ranked wolves. He was not even accepted as an Omega; he was an orphan. Instead, he was exiled to a chilling orphanage that seemed more suited for animals than children.

Despite the bleakness surrounding the orphans' lives, Heath managed to find his way to an education, something that no one ever truly imagined. It made him feel miraculous, defying the odds against him all those years ago.

He still remembered the fateful day that he met James Sullivan, oldest son of Alpha Henry Sullivan. All of James' life, he had been told his destiny: to become Alpha of the grand Sullivan pack after his dad got sick of the job. James' smug smile suggested that he couldn't wait for that day to come, unlike his seemingly hapless father, Henry, who still enjoyed the benefits of being an Alpha without experiencing the necessary hardships.

A slight smile appeared on Heath’s face, while remembering the surprise on Henry’s face as he barged in last January. And the fear in his eyes, when he found himself at the short end of Heath’s sharpened canines… He was more than willing to prove lineage means little when faced against natural instinct and strength. Henry showed him submission, but still found his throat torn out by Heath’s bear teeth.

Spoiled and petulant- just like the crown prince. They were the perfect example of those with an overinflated sense of entitlement. Unaware of true hardships and difficulties in life, they act as though their riches mean nothing could ever stand in their way. Instead, it should have humbled them to be part of society’s lowest ranks.

As he stepped through the hallways of the Pack’s High School for the first time, fear had ruled his teenage physique. Suddenly, James appeared and dragged away all certainty that people weren’t cruel, as he pulled off Heath’s backpack and emptied its contents onto the ground before screaming that Heath did not belong there- that being around him, would lower his personal status.

‘Go back to your own kind,’ he said. Words that Heath would forever remember.

And him? He was weak. If not for Rue, he probably would have listened to the useless little Sullivan, and dropped out.

Growing up, he was constantly told that the world would never belong to him. His life in the orphanage felt like a living nightmare; with his parents nowhere to be found, it seemed like no one wanted him at all. But despite the entire world’s words of discouragement and what should have been crushing defeatism, Heath refused to give into the idea that nothingness was destined for him.

James’ anger was just the icing on the cake, that were his insecurities.

That’s when he saw her again. She knelt down, right next to him. The silver glow in her white curls made her hair shine like pearl. Her kind eyes, and gentle movements, surprised him. She picked up his things like it was normal for a Beta’s daughter to kneel down in front of a no-one like him. He still remembered so clearly how it felt. The electricity when their palms touched. She smiled at him… Showing her goodness and pure innocence.

‘Do not listen to him,’ she whispered to the teenage version of the guy that’s now her Alpha. ‘One day, you will be better than him. I’m sure of it.’

If she meant it? He had no clue. But her words became the basis of his future. He never felt worthy of being in her presence after that. His entire being yearned for her. From the moment they spoke for the first time, until now, she had always been the only one for him—the woman who occupied his every thought.

He was an Alpha now; women lay beneath him willingly. And he made use of that, yes. He needed to, since she was not even eighteen before that day. And he would never have touched her before she became of legal age. But every woman he ever entered was mere practice. Practice, for when she would finally be his. Each kiss, embrace and thrust he gave to others, he imagined giving to her. He saw her right in front of him… Her eyes closed with pleasure. Her voice trembling while she moaned out his name. After coming of age, obviously.

‘She’s not here,’ his Beta- and her father-‘s voice pulled him back to reality. Fury welled up inside of him.

‘What are you implying?’ he asked, trying to sound as calm as possible. ‘She’s in her room, and not here?’ He hoped her father would agree, but knew the odds were against him.

‘She’s in Grawr, Alpha. My wife sent her to the herbalist’s place.’

Heath spun around to face his Beta, fury boiling inside of him. ‘No-man’s-land?’ he belted out. If the grey-bearded man was not her father, he would have shoved him to the floor. ‘Insufferable stupidity,’ he growled, while storming towards the exit.

He needed to go to her. To find her. Who knew why Caleb Lapis Lazuli's Beta’s were after her? It might have been a random attack, and nothing personal. But that was a chance he could not take. He would not take. ‘Do you even know what happened to your daughter, last night?’ he continued while storming away from the girl’s father.

But he did not get a chance to continue. The door opened, and there he was. The blue fire in his gaze could have been mistaken for a rage, but Heath recognized disgust. It was the same flame that was displayed in his own eyes, yet they radiated a different colour. It was disgust, assisted by elitist dominance. Both their eyes glowed a glow that only appears when the dominance becomes too strong to control- for Heath, at least. One that only appeared when his body ached for transformation.

Heath took a few seconds to observe the situation. He did not really know what to say to the prince. Caleb was here, so not with her. Which was good news. He just did not understand why the prince was so upset. He had said on the phone that he wouldn’t come over until the following day, so why was he there so early?

Six big guys followed him into the room. Each of them butt-naked. Teenagers showing off their testosterone. Why were they not announced? Did they even request an audience, or did they just storm right through, to find the Alpha? What was up with their display of dominance and what did Heath do to deserve this disrespect?

Right before Heath wanted to ask what in the world the prince’s problems were, the blue glow in Caleb’s eyes shone even brighter. He stormed towards the Alpha, and stopped mere meters away from him. His hostility did not go unaware. Heath sensed it not only coming from the prince, but also from his Betas. It was radiating off of all of them like an aura.

But Heath knew he did not stand alone either; thirty comrades flocked to him and gathered their strength- ready for whatever was about to come their way. Wait, he linked to them through thought. I need to know what his deal is first.

‘Dauphin,’ he called the prince by his title in French- knowing well that members at court liked to show off in French. ‘Welcome,’ he said through clenched teeth.

‘Welcome?’ the prince said. He smiled, but his teeth did not take part in the happiness. ‘You should know how welcome I feel, Heath,’ he disrespected the Alpha by calling him by his first name. Showing him he did not respect him.

Heath growled. Who did this pus think he was?

‘You have found yourself in my territory, little prince,’ he growled back. ‘The least you can do is call me by my title. The title that I have fought for, might I add.’

‘You are no Alpha,’ the prince insulted the natural Alpha. ‘Alphas do not claim women that do not belong to them.’

What? What was that about… What did he-

‘Rue?’ Heath asked. The blue glow radiated even brighter, showing anger on the prince’s expression. A possessive growl filled the air.

That’s when Heath realized.

They were fated.

Within seconds, Axl took over. He lost control of his wolf faster than he could even realize.

Axl pushed him away, escaping from the mental grip. With a rush of rage, he shed his clothes by ripping them into tiny pieces, and they embraced their true form. Their paws thundered against the ground as they both stood there in their full splendour- their eyes aglow with anger, like red beacons in an empty sky.

The prince gestured towards his Beta’s not to do anything. Then he, too, transformed into his wolf.

The prince’s wolf was smaller than the Alpha’s. Where the Alpha’s wolf had grown by his Alpha-blessing, the prince was lacking that title and the Moon Goddess’s strength. The prince’s pelt was dark brown, with a red glow. His bright blue eyes kept radiating, even in his wolf form.

Heath tried to stop Axl from attacking, but the prince’s hostility and anger did not make it easy on him. The idea that this prince… this entitled, spoiled, little brat would dare to claim her neck..

That’s when he lost it. His mind went black, and with a loud roar, Axl jumped forward. With bared teeth, he went for the prince’s neck.

No one will have her.

She was his, and no one else’s.