An Omega's Desire

Chapter Twenty-Five: "Polaris"

Sean sat against the door of the car with his feet up on the seat. Hugging his knees, he listened to his father growl out softly to his mom as she drove. "The nerve of him! Coming out fangs bared like that. I swear his Luna needs to put him on a leash!" His mom chuckled softly, calmly slipping in cautiously. "They are worried about Mark. Everything rides on him. They lose him... This pack is going to be hurting." Sean felt a stab of guilt. His dad shook his head, telling her firmly. "If Mark and Cliff fall, the next leader falls to you as his second." His mom tapped her fingers nervously on the wheel, mumbling out. "I don't even want to think about that. Right now, we need to focus on Zedekiah." His dad snorted, grumbling out. "You know what this Pack's problem is... With each generation we grow more distant from each other. Remember when we were puppies? We did things together." His mom looked at his dad briefly, saying flatly. "We do things together." His dad shook his head, telling her seriously. "I'm not talking about the Festivals. Remember all those Team building exercises in school? Pairing Alphas, Betas, and Omegas into teams and working together to go on scavenger hunts? We learned that we had different strengths and learned to rely on each other. We learned that we were in the Pack together. We didn't separate the puppies from playing together after their scents came in. We were forced to play together."

His mom chuckled, saying softly. "Yes. But it was dangerous. Alphas and Betas can't control themselves around-" His dad growled softly to cut her off, interjecting gruffly. "Ya? And who decided that? When we were pups how many incidents do you remember? When did our Alphas and Betas become savages?! I remember going into Heat and not running for cover! I was taught to USE my voice. We were taught to PROTECT OUR OWN! Our pack motto means nothing to this generation! Look at Cliff! How much pressure is he under? How much pressure is he putting on his son to support a Pack that is growing more divided by the day!" Sean perked up with a timid look, causing his mother to shush his dad. Giving his dad a soft glare, she discreetly told him. "I know you are upset... We all are. But let's not talk about this now. Ok?" His dad shifted in his seat to face her, saying much calmer now. "Laura... You are Cliff's second. I know you see it and I know you feel it. You saw what happened at the Festival. Our Pack is not unified anymore. We are a Pack divided by our generations. We are not the Pack we once were." Laura pulled into the driveway, parking the car a bit roughly. Then looking at her mate, she snapped out. "There is nothing we can do about that now! We agreed that Sean-"

Sean's dad leaned closer to her, cutting in swiftly without any trace of anger in his voice. "I didn't agree for them to isolate my son and treat him like an Outsider." She backed off, her expression softening to a guilty one. While his dad told her gently. "Laura, we can't fight a war... When we already have one going on within our walls. Sean isn't the only Omega dealing with this crap and it has to end. I'm tired of the Zeta Council and Cliff avoiding the problem. If his Luna doesn't know how to fix this problem, then 'I' will. I'm done rolling over. I'm getting fucking sick of this shit. Tell me that I'm wrong?" When she didn't say anything, his dad got out of the car, telling her seriously. "You and the others can worry about Zedekiah... but I'm going to call the Omegas together. It's been too long since we've had a proper Pack meeting." His mom nodded but said nothing. Getting out of the car, he followed his dad inside the house. His mom waved to them, then drove back out to return to the hospital. Her job as Cliff's second was more important now than ever.

As they ventured inside, his dad went off into the kitchen to use the house phone. He'd never seen his dad so upset. Trudging into the living room, Sean thought about watching TV until he heard his dad chatting about him over the phone. Hearing his dad talk about him getting fired and hired in one day was just too painful to listen too. So, grabbing a bowl of popcorn, he went up to his room. Curling up in his bowl chair, he started watching a movie until the excitement of the day drained him enough that he fell asleep. Although, while his body was completely relaxed, his mind wasn't. His dream took him through the events of the day in flashes before going to a scene that felt wrong. He was trying to go see Mark in the hospital and was allowed to see him. Upon reaching the room, Sean grabbed the doorframe in utter shock. Mark was hooked up to every machine, but they were all flatlining. Screaming for help, Sean ran for the bed until he was grabbed by the shoulder and turned around. As he turned, he caught the brief sight of Zedekiah before a knife was shoved into his stomach. Gasping sharply, Sean jerked up in his bowl chair with quivering whines.