The Crimson Alpha

Chapter 13: Training

~Mabel's P. O. V.~

Roxy and I were in her car with her Beta. She and I were on our way to Lululemon to get me properly equipped. I kept thinking about last night. How long has my father known about Eustace being a werewolf? How long has Eustace been watching me? Every question that popped into my head made me pissed off. Did mother know? No, I doubt she did. She would have run with me if she had. Tch. I will kill them both. Eustace and Jackson. I thought I held hatred for Eustace when I met Seth that day. No, this is on a whole other level of hate. If he has been watching me since I was a little girl, I promise that even hell won't save him from me.

Roxy puts her hand on mine. "Are you okay? You're grinding your teeth and your hands are in fists." She has easily become my best friend.

"No, Rox. I am not okay." I started to explain. "19 years of prison. Who knows how long Eustace had been watching me? Like some pedo mixed with grooming. Then there is Jackson. I wonder how long he knew that Werewolves were a thing. And why did he still go through with it? I would have died protecting my daughter from a monster."

She went over to the other side of the seat. "I understand your anger, May. Really, I do. Demitri died to a murderer. Another Alpha for me." She stretched. "I think it's time I told you my story." She got comfortable. "Mitri and I met at a bar that is specifically for the super natural kind. He was out with his friends partying and I was there being a lonely wall flower. Our eyes met and we only said one word before things got heated." She paused and winked at me. Oh, ew. I shook my head. "It didn't take long for us to get married. We were about 8 months into our marriage when we were attacked." She looked solemn and sad. "The Alpha that challenged Mitri had done so out of jealousy of him. Claiming that I belonged to him. Mitri lost the fight and was killed. Before the other Alpha had time to register that I had seen that, Rose and I were on his back and biting the scruff of his neck. We almost killed him. But he was a coward and ran off. I haven't seen him ever since." She looked at me with a sad smile. "So, yes. I do understand your anger." She rubbed my shoulder. "We'll get him and your father." She started to giggle. "I wonder what your wolf will be like."

I smiled at that. "I imagine her with my black night hair color. Do we get to name our wolves? Cause I was thinking about Pepper if she did have my hair color." This got Roxy to burst out laughing at me.

"Oh, sweetie. We don't name them. The Moon Goddess does. They tell us their names when we gain them."

I was confused. "Gain? Seth said you were born a wolf."

She grabbed a bottle of champagne. "Oh, my adorable new Luna besty. I am going to tell you everything." She started to give me the full low-down on what it means to be a Luna and a wolf. I was taking notes mentally. The Luna is normally an Alpha she-wolf that is mated to the next Alpha, or comes from an Alpha bloodline. At least, in normal situations. There have been recorded times where an Alpha is mated to a human, but he has to reject her because, socially, it's frowned upon for a ranked member to have a human as a Luna. That made me scared. I didn't want to lose Seth. I just accepted him. She reassured me that he wouldn't do that. Her duties are similar to an Alpha's, while also being different. Both run the pack and protect it. But the Luna is also in charge of decorating the houses, the gardens, she has to make sure the nurseries are up to code, trains with the other ranked wolves Monday through Saturday. I groaned at the hours I would have to be up for that. Freaking 4 am?! Ugh, I am so not looking forward to that. But I took joy that Seth would be there too.

We pulled up to Lululemon. "Alright, let's go nuts." She pulled out her own black card. "Cha ching!" We got out of the car laughing like Catholic school girls. Though, we didn't get far before a couple of douche bags saw us.

I took hold of Lululemon's door handle when I heard a whistle come from behind us. We both looked and saw that 2 men had basically pushed us against the glass. "Can we help you, gentlemen?" I took point. If I am to become a leader, then I will let out my bitchy side. Crossing my arms as I deadpanned them.

The one on the left started rubbing his hands. "We got us some fine lookin' ladies." He licked his lips. Ew. "Mm, mm, mm, mm mm! You are one sexy lady." He wasn't much to look at. Greasy black hair, pale fish eyes. His skin looked like a zombie.

Roxy stepped in front of me. "We are not available." She smiled, but that grin did not read friendly.

The second one got in her face. "A couple of gorgeous specimens like you? I bet not. I think that we are better than your guys. I wouldn't leave you alone." I rolled my eyes.

I pulled Roxy back and let my inner b***h fly. "She said we are not available. Back off before you get hurt." I narrowed my eyes at them. The second one wasn't that good looking either. Short blonde hair, dark brown eyes. Like his heart. Equally zombie-like. If I had to guess, these guys were drug addicts.

"Oh hoo. We got a feisty one." The grease-haired one said. This is where I wish Seth had told me sooner. I could have had my wolf by now.

I shook my head. "Let's go. They are not worth our time." I told Roxy. I purposefully didn't say her name. I may have been sheltered, but I am not stupid.

The blonde-haired one put his arm in our way. "Whoa, there, sweet cheeks. We ain't done with you yet."

Roxy ducked under him. "You really don't want to mess with us, boy." That made him look at her. His eyes had gone darker. His hand was trembling. Oh, no. He's going to assault her! Before I could stop him, his fist hit her. Though, she didn't seem phased by it. "I warned you."

He hit her first, and I will protect my friend. I lifted my foot and kicked him in the balls. The sound he made had me smile proudly. "You bitch." His friend tried to hit me too. Somehow, I dodged it and managed to hit him in the stomach. Where did the reflex come from? I haven't started my training.

Before I had time to register what had happened, the police pulled up. "What's the problem here, ladies?"

I spoke up. "Grease hair here assaulted my friend." I defended Roxy's actions.

The store owner came out. "I called as soon as he hit her." He told the cop.

The cop nodded and inspected the situation. Another employee came out. "He" She pointed at the blonde dude. "Was about to hit her. They defended themselves."

Onlookers were joining us. The owner of the bank across the street and showed a video of the guys assaulting us and harassing us before we fought back. "Officers, they did nothing wrong. Those men did."

The officer took the phone and nodded. "Alright. Evident that they are telling the truth." He pulled out his cuffs and his partner cuffed the other one. He recited the whole 'Right to an attorney, right to remain silent...' Blah, blah, blah. Roxy and I watched as they were taken away.

The owner and bank manager turned to us. Lululemon's owner shook his head. "I am so sorry, ladies. Nothing like that has ever happened. Are you two alright?"

We nodded. "What is this world coming to? I am glad you ladies are okay. If you need any more assistance, I am just across the street." He shook our hands and went back to the bank.

Lululemon's owner opened the doors. "As compensation for the trouble, your purchases are free today." Roxy's and my eyes lit up.

"Thank you, sir!" We squealed.

We didn't go full hog because we wanted to be respectful of them. And not let people see that we got whatever we wanted there for free. We got what I needed. From shoes to sports bras. From leggings to tank tops. It wasn't what I was used to wearing, but I didn't hate it. In fact, it was quite nice. Different. I could move in these clothes.

"For a skinny girl, you have enormous boobs." Roxy exclaimed. "Is it bad that I am jealous of a 19-year-old?" She looked at her Beta. He gave no answer. Smart man.

I giggled. "Almost 20. 10 more months. My big 2. 0."

We got back to the house where I saw the kids and Alpha Corey with Luna Toni packing up. I got out of the car and wanted to know where they were going. I didn't want them going. They are like my own aunt and uncle. Roxy held me back and smiled at me. My shoulders relaxed when I saw that it was just Toni and the girls going home. Corey kissed his wife and kids goodbye. We waved them off.

"Toni knows how to defend the pack, they have been without a leader too long. Roxy, I suggest you do the same." He explained.

She sighed and nodded. "He's right." She looked at me. "I needed to return to my pack too. I will see the start of your training. Tomorrow morning, I will leave." She and I exchanged hugs. "Next time I see you, you better have that wolf. Rose would like to meet her."

I laughed. "I bet she will kick Rose's ass." I joked.

Rox slacked her jaw and acted hurt. "You bitch." She squeezed me tighter. "Seriously, though. Call me when you are ready to go through the change. I want to be there."

I pulled her back. "Well, duh. I can't have my best friend miss my first shift."

I felt hands around my waist. Pulling me to their chest. "I know you will be one sexy wolf. Our Beta, Jericho, can handle a few more months. That is how long we have to get you battle ready. 3 months. Starting today."

I nodded. "Okay, I'll get in my new clothes." He let me go so I could go change. I heard Roxy tell Corey and Seth what had happened. I'll tell them what I felt today later. It honestly scared me. I had never had reflexes like that. Not that I remember anyway. I shook that from my thoughts for now and got ready for my first day of training.

Roxy was sitting on the porch as the guys were warming up. I stretched a little and met them out in the meadow. Seth had also changed into gym shorts and a muscle shirt. Oh, my. He looked sexy. Corey did the same. He was alright. Not nearly as sexy as my man. Roxy came up to me and handed me a piece of paper. I nearly died.

"This is my protein diet?! It has foods on here that I hate." I complained. A lot.

Seth came over and looked it over. "Sorry, love. You're going to have to get used to it. Until you gain your wolf, you need this."

I groaned and gave up. "Fine. It won't be tasty." I crossed my arms.

He shrugged and motioned for me to get out there. "Come on. Time to get started."

I nodded and began my training. It didn't seem so bad at first. I managed to dodge upper cuts. But then, it got ugly. I wasn't able to get any hits in. I was on my ass within the first couple of hours. 2! That's all it took! I was covered in bruises and scratches. They were going easy on me. I know they were. They had me take a break as Roxy joined in. I saw moves I couldn't follow. Roxy got thrown, Corey was put on his back and Seth was rammed into a tree. I wanted this to stop, but then again, I saw their wounds healing faster than I could keep up with. Even the broken bones were healing quickly. They had me rejoin and I used what I tried to see in this round. It didn't help much. With each predictable move, came harder blows.

The sun set almost an hour ago. I was on my back panting for air. I felt the sweat drying on my scrapes. Every bruise throbbed and made sure that I knew it was there. If this is light training for them, what is their normal training? I groaned as I moved and sat up. The three wolves themselves were back at it. It was a sight to see. If not also horrifying. The bones breaking and then re-healing was not something I liked to hear. I guess being a wolf has its perks. I honestly couldn't wait to get mine. Seth did say that wolves up here didn't get their counterpart until the age of 21. Do I have to wait 2 years? I hoped not. Looking up at the stars, I begged their moon goddess to let me have mine sooner. I want to join Seth's pack. He spoke highly about being in one. It sounded like a real family.

A grunt of pain made me look at the fighting. Holy Hannah! They all looked like s**t! I got up and started to run over to Seth. "No need to worry, May. These will heal by tomorrow." I shook my head and helped him up.

He was quite heavy. "You need to rest. Is this what normal craning looks like?"

They all laughed at me. "It wasn't training, Mable. We were sparring." Corey got up from the ground and helped me carry Seth. "We had to tone it down for you since you are human." He started to explain. "If we went full throttle on your training, you would be dead."

Roxy got a little ahead of us. "We werewolves heal quickly. We have to in case of an attack by another super natural being. It catches them off guard." I nodded. Good to know.

We went back inside and I set Seth on the couch. "When you do become a werewolf, you will be training twice as hard."

I sat across from him and the others. Can I ask this? Would they know? "Speaking of." I looked down at my hands as I started to fidget with them. "I am only 19. Would I gain a wolf? You have said that this side of the U.S werewolves gain their wolf spirit at the age of 21. How can I be your Luna without a wolf? Do I have to wait 2 years?"

Corey smiled and handed everyone a slice of pizza. "Humans turning into werewolves are the exceptions to the age requirement. As I understand it," He sat down and placed the pizza on the side table. "A human mated to a werewolf can gain their wolf immediately. It's to balance out the partnership. Especially if that human was mated to an Alpha rank. They would need their wolves to lead effectively. A human that hasn't turned can be a big liability to the pack."

Going through that thought process. It made sense. If the future Luna is still human, she could get captured and killed. Or even become a hostage. "I understand. The Alpha won't be focused on the attack and more worried about their mate. If I were to get captured, it would mean the death of me and the Alpha."

Roxy nodded and sat next to me. "Another reason why we are training you now. We won't rush you with the change. But you do need to learn how to defend yourself against Alpha-ranked wolves. They could try to steal you. And do far worse things to you and Seth. That isn't just flat out death."

Again, I thought about that. If we are to complete the mating bond, he would feel what I feel. "If I were taken hostage, they could torture me to hurt Seth."

My mate came over and kissed my forehead. "It's both scary and awesome that you are taking this very well. I thought you would have been scared off by now." I stood and pushed him into the reclining chair.

Sitting on his lap and with pride. "Seth Lakeland. It would do you well to remember that I am not just some show girl." I crossed my arms. Oh, it hurt to move, but he didn't need to know that. "I am your mate. I am your Luna. It was scary, like in the first 5 seconds. But," I paused and looked at each of them. "To learn and be captivated by your kind? It's even bigger than any fear I had. I want to be a werewolf. I want to be with you in both human and wolf spirit. I can't do that when you are hesitant about turning me into a werewolf. It would be best that after my third month, that we do the change in OUR pack. I won't have you be distracted if we get attacked. Do you all hear me?" I looked at each one of them.

Roxy burst out laughing. "On your homecoming? That's when you want to do it?" I nodded.

I felt Seth take a deep breath. Letting it out harshly. "Very well. I will do what my Luna commands."

I beamed a smile. "The night before. I want to complete the mating ceremony." He started kissing my neck.

"What my Luna wants, she gets." He growled low in my ear. It made my body shiver in a good way.

With that situation settled, we all said good night to each other. Seth and I went upstairs into our room. I wanted to do some pre-mating stuff. But Seth said no. I took my win from downstairs and cuddled with him. He is mine. I accept him. And no other wolf is taking him from me. Or me from him.