The Shift

Chapter 1

 It's been 8 years since they first appeared. I guess we should count ourselves lucky the transition was as smooth as it was, there was no major war, no families torn apart, it just happened. I remember the day it happened like it was yesterday it was like any other evening I was in the kitchen watching mom make dinner and dad was on his way home from work. Suddenly the tv popped on with an ear-piercing beep I watched mom put down everything she was holding, quickly following her as she moved swiftly into the living room. I sat down beside her and with her eyes glued to the screen she pulled me closer to her body. The president walked out followed by a large man, even as a child I knew this wasn't normal. He walked to the microphone in the middle of the stage with a smile not bothering to introduce the large man following him and cheerfully announced the merger, the Beast's government and ours had come to an agreement they would enact new laws re-shape the country to a "better" version to suit everyone's needs. Imagine our confusion as the president hastily threw information at us without any real background we thought this was a joke it had to be. After a while, he backtracked explaining to the world werewolf was not just a thing of storybooks or our imaginations they were real and are living among us. We were stunned, no words left our mouths as we sat eyes glued to the screen watching the rest of this broadcast. The president seemed almost overjoyed to explain his daughter had been mated to one of the beasts. After the beasts found out human-wolve mates were more common than once believed they thought it was time to come out of the shadows. The government had always known they were there but before this, the wolves minded their own business and so did we. So what were these advantages they spoke of you may ask; our government gained strong military allies as the beasts were stronger and faster than the average human to put it lightly they were indestructible compared to us. In a war, no one would stand a chance if the beast fought alongside us. The beasts gained something too something each one of them wanted so desperately and would even kill for, their mate. They went on to explain the new laws set in place, most were reasonable such as humans were still tried by human courts and the wolves were still under pack law when it came to crimes it seemed fair to me. Our lives would more or less stay the same. For us a few tweaks to and children's schooling and allow the wolves to be themselves in public were the most drastic changes they announced and most people thought they could live with that. That's when it went horribly wrong. The large man stepped up to the microphone introducing himself as Alpha Jackson before slowly and carefully reading through the new expectations to be placed upon every person. He started by explaining the origin story of the wolves and how their moon goddess has blessed each one of the wolves with a mate. Their mate was their other half, they would do anything and everything for their mate and could not survive without one once they met them. He explained mating would be taught and explained to all school-age students to make the transition easier for them, adults would take mandatory classes to understand the importance of mates and also how to react if you or your child is mated, and finally, he explained with emphasis if you had a mate you could not run they would find you, you could not say no, you were there's as if it were the most simple fact of life. Alpha Jackson babbled on about what a joyous occasion it is to find your mate and how lucky you are to find them, he then expressed condolences to everyone who would be separated from their current spouse if they had a mate out there stating your mate would be forgiving because you didn't know. He explained how wolves are more violent than us and it was best not to challenge them for your own safety. This was even more important when dealing with their mates as they would kill anyone who got between them and their mate. Mom pulled me even closer if that were possible and I felt the cold wet of tears fall down onto my shoulder as she leaned over and kissed me on the head.

"We will be okay Cassy" mom whispered in my ear so quietly I almost missed it

We continued to watch as the president's daughter and her so-called mate stepped onto the stage, his arm wrapped protectively around her waist and his eyes scanned the room looking for any possible threats to his mate. I think she was there to pacify us as she explained in detail how scared she was at first but now can understand why it is so wonderful to have someone who loves you unconditionally, as she said that the beast smiled down at her pulling her even closer if possible. That is the part that scared me the most she didn't fight it she didn't seem afraid that she had completely resigned to her life claimed by the beast. Mom just sat there for a long time after the broadcast was over she didn't say anything she didn't move she just let the tears silently stream down her face. I don't know how long it was before dad burst through the doors his frantic eyes settled on me and mom, he quickly shut the door before making his way over dropping to his knees and wrapping his arms around my mom telling her everything would be okay and they would get through it. Later that night I heard them speaking in hushed tones making plans on what to do if either of them were mated and dad sounded broken as he told her he would rather die before mating a beast. Four years later that's what my mom did.