Rejected (Werewolf Levi x Witch Reader Soulmate AU)

Chapter 1: Levi

Every werewolf had a soulmate, chosen for them at birth. The guiding force that assigned soulmates was a mystery – whether it was fate, the gods, nature...no one knew. But the bond itself was definitely real, and to find their mate was a gift that every werewolf longed for. A mate was your perfect match, someone who would love and understand you better than anyone else, someone so wonderful that you would do anything for them.

Levi hadn't found his mate yet, and at twenty-eight years old, he was well past the age that the rest of his friends had met their partners. Erwin, the pack Alpha, had met Hanji at seventeen. Mike, the pack Gamma, had met Nanaba a year later. The lower-ranked members of the pack would also typically find the mating bond clicking into place when they reached maturity, or soon after.

Levi had kept his eyes open – discreetly, of course, because he couldn't damage his reputation by appearing in any way desperate. But despite his efforts, he never found her. Whoever his mate was, she didn't live in this town that was occupied exclusively by werewolves. She wasn't a part of his pack, or any pack that he had visited on Erwin's behalf.

Some wolves never found their mates, and Levi had long ago started to think that he might be one of them.

Despite none of them being his mate, there were numerous female werewolves vying for him to claim them. Levi was strong – the strongest Beta in the pack's history – and because of their animal instincts, werewolves found that strength very attractive. Survival of the fittest, and all that.

Levi could have had his pick, and he had mulled the idea over in his mind. As Beta, it was his responsibility to continue his strong bloodline, to create descendants who could succeed him as Beta and protect the pack after he was gone. But having pups required a partner, so the logical thing would have been to pick the strongest unclaimed female and be done with it. After all, he wasn't getting any younger.

Still, he couldn't bring himself to do it. Not yet. Even though it was stupid of him, he couldn't give up on the fading hope that he might still meet his mate.

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The sky was a dull shade of grey when he awoke, mirroring Levi's flat mood. He dressed and ate with militaristic efficiency before heading out of the mansion that was his by right of being the Beta. Despite all of its comforts and grandeur, despite all the time and effort he put in to keeping it immaculately clean, he hated being in that house. All the empty space only served as a reminder that he had no one to share it with, no family. His parents had been killed by enemy wolves when he was young, and of course, he had no mate or pups of his own.

He stepped outside and took a deep breath, inhaling the cool air and crisp scent of the forest that surrounded this town for nearly fifty miles in every direction. It was a wolf's paradise, and it all belonged to his pack. Levi often spent his free time patrolling said forest, feeling more at home in nature than in his silent mansion.

Lately, he had another reason for patrolling the forest whenever he got the chance. The Rogues – wolves who had left their packs and set out on their own – were growing bolder. They had started banding together, not to form a new pack, but to destroy any pack in the area. Apparently, it wasn't enough that they themselves were solitary – they wanted to dismantle the entire pack system. Complete anarchy.

The pack system benefitted everyone. The stronger wolves protected the weaker wolves, and in return, the weaker wolves took care of the day-to-day needs like gathering food, educating pups, and running shops for clothing and such. However, the Rogues thought that coexisting with the weak was beneath them. They were bullies who preferred "survival of the fittest" in its truest form, and they were prepared to force their beliefs on the rest of the world.