The Red Moon Pack

Season One. Chapter 7.

They were all keeping an eye on her, some of them closer than others. After the last attack by Vampires, Sebastian had done all the digging he could, getting as many details of this Mortem Coven that Adira had mentioned to them. She had not been lying. That Lord Alexanda was indeed a dangerous man. He was greedy and while it was not known for his reason to send some Vampires to their lands, it was clear there was something going on. He had asked the Vampire named Sy about it, however, being locked up for so long and weakening due to not feeding, he had no information to support their questions. It had not made Alpha Gabriel happy, and it was clear there was only one final way to get the information they need.

School had started end of January and Adira has started a few weeks after that. She had a rough start, being targeted by other students for the first few weeks. Kinley would not allow it to continue on and he made it very clear that he had her back. The agreement was that she would not get into any trouble with other students, nothing was said about other people jumping in to help her though. Kinley was always one of the first, Maximus and Stacey too. Sebastian himself had stuck up for her a couple of times to.

Now, at the end of March, most of the school were used to the young girl, and while they still felt strange about her being there, they did not cause any trouble. That was… unless their name was Julian. Who after a short break, when he returned to the school only a week ago, he had noticed that pull, the same pull he had felt when he sensed her at the Hospital. She had been in a class, with Leonardo and Abagail, English apparently, and Julian had stormed into the room looking like he was in a slight rage. He glanced around and while everyone had looked up at him when he entered the room, knowing he was not meant to be there, Abagail had said that Adira had not, as she did not know the trouble that Julian always caused around the school.

He stormed right up to her, standing before her desk and told her in a demanding tone to look up at him. Adira did, confused, not sure what he wanted and who he was. The whole class was silent, wondering if they were watching a moment of mate meeting mate. Some pulled out phones and started recording. They were silent for a moment and then Julian smashed a fist on the table and growled.

He was furious and angry and the impact actually split the table. He yelled at Adira and hearing the noise down the hall other students came out of their classes to poke their heads in and see what was happening. Adira had stood up, looking at him in complete confusion. In the video though, Sebastian could see the warning look in her eyes. Julian was going too far and she was holding back to retaliate.

He stepped closer to her, a step away, still yelling at her, asking her why he felt drawn to her but when she looked at him there was no connection. Why did it seem that she was his mate but yet the pull was not strong enough. He accused her of hiding things, tricking them and claimed that because she had not transformed yet, that was why the pulled was not solid and he started demanding that she change.

Everyone knew this was a stupid request. She was calm in telling him that it was impossible, that she had not shifted yet and that she was still young. He said she was lying and he grabbed a hand full of her hair. She did not panic and even though Leonardo had stood up ready to finally intervene, he was not needed. Even Alpha Gabriel agreed, she had every right in defending herself this time. She did. Adira moved a hand and gripped the wrist of the hand in which grasped her hair. Shocking everyone watching and those who saw the video, she had twisted her body and in turn, got loose from the grip of her hair, before twisting Julian’s hand making him growl in pain and then to a chorus of gasps, she literally flipped him over her shoulder, pinning him to the ground hand behind his back.

She warned him, loud and clear to never lay a hand on her again. She was not his mate and he needed to learn how to respect a female and not treat them like a tool for his liking. Straightening up, she had tidied her hair, picked up her books and with a request to the stunned teacher asked to be excused. Mrs Bower did not decline the request and all the students parted to let her pass.

Julian was less then impressed and demanded she stop and apologise. Until the head of the school got word of his disturbance and suspended him once more. Most of the students heard or saw the video before the end of the school day and while a lot of them had not firstly accepted Adira, they could not help now to either respect her for sticking up for herself against Julian, clapping at her as she would walk past them, or they would run in the opposite direction.

Adira was tiny, it was a natural expectation that she would be weak and easy to defeat… they all knew now that she was not. Some said she had Vampire blood in her and that made her strong. Others said it was because they trained her to be a killer and so there was a little bit of fear of her now. Sebastian himself had seen the video and he was surprised at how quickly and strongly she had acted. He was coming to learn that she was tough when needed but in reality, she was a very shy and timid girl, very reserved and watched everyone around her and said what was needed if it was needed.

After the video got around, his father had called him in for a discussion. He wanted to know if Julian was going to be an issue. He was not angry with Adira, in fact, he was impressed with her skill and seeing as she did not give anything away, he had gone to Sy. He had confirmed that Lord Vincent had trained Adira since the moment she could walk, to access speed and strength but to only use it when needed. Like there was a switch in her mind, when she was attacked it came on and her whole persona changed; she became a fighter. She had good control on it, some times when a Vampire went through the same training, they ended up dooming themselves by not being able to control the switch and end up killing and not just those who attack but going on a rampage. Lord Vincent had cancelled such training practices, seeing it did not work well for others, however, because it worked for her, he kept it going. Alpha Gabriel was worried about it, feared the day that Adira would not be able to control herself, and Sebastian could not help but agree.

They had to watch her closer, make sure nobody tried to set her off like that again. On the other hand they knew she was settling in ok. Working at the hospital had really been a huge help. Having a new point of view, some of the processes and treatments were rediscussed. Doctor Shelt was keen to learn more new things, as he had never really gone out to the human world to see what changes were out there and while he always did online searches and read books, her information was quite helpful and it was clear Doctor Shelt adored her. He spoke very highly of Adira, but he knew, there were things she did not talk about and it was the same thing they all faced.

She got along well with his sister Abagail, and because they were the ones keeping an eye on her at school, Adira would always sit with Sebastian and his group of friends. Watching her from affair and close up, he could tell she was mostly shy and nervous around people, but alone, she seemed less tense. She always went to the garden and did her thing, training with the stick. He had watched her the first day she went out there, feeling like her movements were tamed, powerful and strong like a personal dance.

Being the twenty first of March, there was a party going on in the garden of the pack house. Sebastian had finally turned eighteen. It was only a year older, and yet, it was a whole different level in the werewolf world. He was classed as an adult now, and he would have to take on more responsibility now, but he knew not yet taking the Alpha role meant he still got some sort of breather.

Having a good time so far, Sebastian was feeling relaxed and chilled out. He was laughing and joking around with his best friends, his family all full of joy. Halfmoon pack members were also present, however, Julian was kept away due to his recent actions at the school. It was clear even his own Alpha was angry at him. In fact, the two Alpha’s had a discussion about it, and Alpha Gabriel did explain that a few of his own pack could agree there was a pull towards the girl, but it was not the mate pull. Nobody could explain it, and it was something that Doctor Shelt was keen to figure it out and understand what it was.

Speaking of the girl, Sebastian looked around, noticing how she was alone, standing by a small pond near the flower garden. She was standing there silent and staring. With a curious expression on his face, Sebastian went to the drink stand, grabbed a second bottle of water and then walked over to where the girl stood. There was a soft warm breeze tonight and it whipped her hair out behind her like a curtain. She wore a dress that was mid length, gracing her legs just below her knees. He was sure this was the influence of Stacey and Abagail, as normally Adira would wear pants and tops. She looked nice, and in fact, as Sebastian discovered this thought actually send his stomach into a flip. He took a deep breath. He thought she was interesting but he could not have any further thoughts. Firstly, they still did not know if she could be trusted… secondly, he did not want thoughts like that about other people. He was still waiting for his mate to show up. Tonight, was another gathering in which she had not shown. He felt sad about it, but maybe it was a good thing for now, while they had a lot of things going on with the pack.

When she heard him approaching he could sense the uncomfortable feeling she emitted, the way she tensed up and quickly looked around. He could tell that she was not very keen on him coming near her, she never was. He felt like maybe… she did not trust them in return either. She had come here to request them send Sy home. They had kept him and also advised her to remain. Was it something she wanted. They figured it was best, to not send her back to the Vampires, but was it really what she wanted?

“You look lonely.” He stated stepping up next to her.

“Nothing different….” She started to say but stopped and turned away from him again.

“Why do you hide your thoughts?” he asked. “Do you not trust us?”

“Do you not trust me?” she replied back.

“Very fair.” He nodded.

He held out the water, offering her to take it. Adira looked at it, was silent for a moment, hesitating. It was as if… she was assessing the water. He smiled, joking he had not tampered with it in any way. He even proved it by holding it up so she could see the seal had not been broken yet. After a moment, she finally took the bottle, but did not open it right away.

“Can I be honest….” She asked, her voice low and soft.

“Yes.” Sebastian nodded.

“It is not that I don’t trust… I am careful… and taking my time… but it is just… after finding out that Lord Vincent has had me laced with wolfbane…. I find it hard to trust things.” She said shyly.

“It makes a lot of sense, and I do not blame you.” Sebastian admitted back. “I guess, for a long time Lord Vincent was like a father to you, and then a friend and master. Finding out about the wolfbane would be a shock, making you loose trust in those you thought you could.”

“I just… do not know if he did it… for his own gain or to help me.” She said.

“Help you?” Sebastian asked confused.

“He asked me to come here, knowing full well the wolfbane would leave my system. He may have hoped I would not have known… but maybe he felt I was a danger to his Vampires and wanted me weak so I did not attack them randomly.” She stated.

“What would make you think, you’d be a danger to his Vampires?” he wondered.

“I know Sy told you what I was trained for…” she answered. “But he… may not have told you everything.”

“There is more?” Sebastian asked shocked.

“While I was trained from a young age to be fast and strong when fighting, it was trained… to also be a killer. I was trained… to do his werewolf bidding. That was why he asked me to come here, because clearly sending Sy was not good enough for you and he wanted me to come here being a likely being. He wants Sy back, and I am not allowed to return until he also returns.”

“You think… he planned all this, the wolfbane leaving your system while you were here…. to attack us if need?” Sebastian asked, not sure he liked it.

“No…” Adira replied, with a sigh. “Do you know why Sy came here?”

“Why?” Sebastian asked back.

“He was here to discuss with you the threat of the Dark Lord.” She stated. “You saw what his Vampires did to the guards. He is ruthless. He is growing and he is a threat to everyone.”

“You think… Lord Vincent just wanted to warn us?” Sebastian asked.

“Sy is his third, and he would not send him on a suicide mission by sending him to attack. One Vampire against a full pack. It would be silly. Since Sy has been in your cells all this time and not caused any problems, answered all the questions he could for you, do you honestly think that he is here to cause harm?” she stated.

“Are you… here to cause harm?” Sebastian asked.

“No.” Adira said.

For the first time in a long time, she looked at him, dead square in the eyes, as he looked back, he could see the complete and true honesty in her words. She really was not there to cause harm. She truly had been sent to help Sy. The knot that had grown in Sebastian’s stomach since the day she had arrived seemed to loosen. He knew they could not just completely trust her by those words, but he knew for sure she was not there to do any harm.

In fact, having that chat with her had been quite good. Sebastian could see that she had finally relaxed just that little to give them some more information. While it was stuff they already partly knew, it gave more context to the matters and he knew he would be having a chat with his father about their talk later.

Together they stood by the water, he had trouble seeing the girl next to him as just a child like everyone else saw. He could tell she was wise and different to most. There was that strange pull beings had towards her. She was sixteen in age, but she was much older in mind.

As the night went on, Sebastian retuned to the main party, leaving her be by the lake. Maximus mind linked, asking him if all was good. Sebastian told him it was ok and promised he would explain more later. They left it at that and just enjoyed the rest of the night. Adira did not stay around, and when they checked where she had gone, one of the guards advised she was up in her room. That did not bother them too much, but Sebastian understood, knew that she was feeling uncomfortable. This whole situation for her was a massive change to her life. It was going to take her some time.