Blood curse.

Mikhail

"Is everything alright?"
Elena watched as Mikhail rose from their bed, where Ethan was snoring softly. His head rested heavily on her breasts, both of them naked under the covers. But Mikhail still slept fully clothed.
It had been six months since the day of the Howling when Mikhail was forced to accept the Tri bond or die from injuries inflicted by the Royal prince. And he had chosen life, but not the life he thought he was getting.
"Just need some air," Mikhail muttered by way of an explanation as he headed out, and Elena nodded softly to show that she'd heard.

The mountains were cold at this time of year, and Mikhail could see his breath as he stepped off the porch. Fortunately, werewolves didn't feel the cold, so the snow underfoot didn't bother him. A few other pack members were also out and about, this was a working pack after all, and they dipped their heads as Mikhail passed by, respectful as always to one of the tri-mated Alphas.
Familiar curling of his lips accompanied the thought, tri-mates what a fucken joke that was. He was forced to accept a gay man and an elemental wolf or die. Sometimes he wished Colette had chosen death.
Just ahead, an Omega wolf worked hard, sweeping the streets clear of snow, only to have more snow take its place. And with a small, impatient wave of Mikhail's fingers, the snow melted into a water spout, lifting itself high in the air, carrying all the excess snow with it, away from the streets and into the lake at the back of the small village.
"Thanks, Alpha Mikhail!" The wolf called as he continued on his way, "It was no problem, Warren." The teenager called back, grimacing at the Omega's use of his title. If only Warren knew there had been a 50/50 chance that his magic would have gone badly and flooded the whole damn town. Ethan had taken to elemental training like a duck to water. Everything the older wolf conjured was perfect, but not Mikhail. His magic raged out of control, it was dangerous and unpredictable, and no one seemed to know why.
All he ever wanted was to join the trainers back at Shadow Moon, like his sister Izzy, and prepare for the Beta role, like his father Santos, not that this will ever come true for me now, he thought bitterly.
His mother was found torn to pieces in a meadow at Howling Warriors four weeks ago, two days after Vampyres took his father, and his eldest sister Isabella killed the pack Beta in a Luna challenge. Raeann, his youngest sister, stayed on at Howling Warriors, one of the largest packs in America, and now they were preparing for war against his father and the Vampyres. Sometimes Mikhail thought he was stuck in the twilight zone.
Goddess, he needed a cigarette! But wouldn't you know, they were banned in this pack, something about messing with the elementals magic blah blah blah...
Quite often lately, Mikhail's mind would wander to a certain red-headed she-wolf, Colette was the reason he was in this situation, and yet Mikhail couldn't stay mad at her. Was Colette okay? Did Prince Tibarn treat her well? There was no way for him to know the answer to those questions. The Royal family lived in their world, and commoners were never privy to their inner workings.
Kicking the snow that had regathered in frustration and feeling completely alone, Mikhail continued with his walk.

2.
Raeann had expected the Ravenclaw Coven to look like something out of a Harry Potter novel, all dark, medieval, and imposing. Instead, she found herself standing outside the front gate of a quaint farm cottage, just inside pack lands, that looked disturbingly familiar. A knock on the door confirmed her suspicions.
"Seanathair Agus seanmháthair(Granddad and Grandma)?." Raeann's eyes lit up at the elderly couple beaming back at her.
"Raeann garinion (Granddaughter)!" John and Carolyn Murphy exclaimed, reaching out and pulling Raeann in for a much-needed family hug. Everything was as she remembered it, and Raeann thought maybe she had copied the address down wrong?
Closing the door, Raeann let the elderly couple hustle her into the living room, and as always, the air smelt like blueberry scones (Raeann's favorite).

After the challenge rites ended and the Vampyres had savaged half the Howling Warrior pack, Raeann finally managed to get to the dungeons, to free Valenar. The sight of what her papa had done to her friend caused Raeann to vomit at the front of his cell.
Valenar's arms were twisted at grotesque angles, held up and behind his back by a heavy chain attached to a strange pair of manacles that were glowing around his wrists. Fresh welts covered his bareback as Santos had stripped the young man of everything except his briefs, and Raeann couldn't hold back her tears as she saw the words carved into Valenar's chest.
"UNICORN FUCKER." Despite how much pain he was in and how his body trembled and slumped over when Raeann released the chains, Valenar uttered not one word. When the were girl searched for and found a first aid kit, she cleaned his wounds as best as she could and discovered why he was so silent. Santos had stitched his mouth shut. It must have been his final torture before Valenar was left to rot.
Try as she might, Raeann couldn't remove the manacles from his hands, and in the end, she carried the young wizard out of the dungeons-manacles and to the pack clinic, where Dr. Packard took over.

She wasn't allowed near the clinic while they worked on Valenar, and at some point, the High Priestess was called in from the Ravenclaw coven, but she arrived and left under cover of darkness with mages, wizards, and warlocks surrounding her.
They had taken Valenar with them when they left, and it would be another four weeks before she received a phone call giving her an address, letting her know that Valenar was ready for visitors.
Which bought Raeann to this moment, in her grandparent's home, completely confused.

3.
Caroline watched her granddaughter like a hawk, noticing the way the girl's eyes shifted from side to side, and the thing she always did with her hands when she was nervous was happening again.
John looked at his wife, communicating without words, and, making a decision, Caroline went over and sat down beside her.
"I need you to keep an open mind, Raeann," she began and was relieved to see her youngest granddaughter nod once, so she continued. "I guess the best way to start is by removing the blinders, so illuziya begone!" The air seemed to shimmer, and then Raeann's elderly grandmother was gone. In her place sat a strikingly beautiful woman, with blazing hair and deep cavernous purple eyes, a crown with a runic symbol adorned Caroline's head, and she was wearing a robe that seemed to breathe as she did, changing into all the colors of blue one could think of. In Caroline's hand was a staff, white and glowing brightly, a claw at the top holding a crystal ball, flashing with different images from all over the world. Gone was the comfy living room Raeann thought she was sitting in, and instead, the gobsmacked werewolf was sitting on the back of a Cerberus, its three heads peering at her with a half-grin on its face.
"What kind of fuckery is this!" Raeann screamed, leaping off the back of the enormous animal and staring wildly around. Her grandparent's living room used to be the size of an average country lounge...not anymore. Raeann was standing in the middle of a large study hall, each wall lined with books, and a tall ladder reached the ceiling on every side, used for access to the higher volumes as students scrambled up to get whatever it was they were looking for. Creatures were wandering around that Raeann thought only existed in fairy tales like werewolves, she thought, shaking her head at her stupidity. Her grandmother remained seated on the beast, patting its heads as she would a dog.
"Welcome to Ravenclaw Academy," Caroline said with a smile.

4.
The toilet bowl was becoming a regular sight for Isabella over the past couple of days; she felt terrible. Shadow would leave early in the morning to plan with the pack war council and often wouldn't return until late in the evening. With Camille's death, Isabella had stepped in to fulfill the Beta duties until a replacement could be found. Usually, this would be decided through one day of challenges, with the wolf emerging victorious at the end, earning the Beta spot. But with war being declared and half the pack wounded in varying degrees, it wasn't the best of times to test the remaining pack members' strength. Every able-bodied wolf was required to keep the Vampyres off their land until the wounded recovered.

Two days ago, Isabella began to feel a little unwell, she was off her food, and her breasts were tender to the touch. Despite continuing with her punishing regime, Isabella had also gained a few pounds, and now she was vomiting in the toilet...uh oh.

Dr. Packard was doing his morning rounds, checking on the worst of the wounded. He was satisfied with everyone's progress overall; the fatalities had been minimal, and everyone else would recover from the Vampyre bites in time. He was even whistling as he walked through the hall heading back to his office, lost in his world when he bumped into a figure coming out of his office.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Isabella said, turning red as the medical files he was holding flew out of his hands, "It's okay, Luna." He hastened to reassure her as he scooped up the folders, chuckling as he noticed her embarrassment. 'I wonder if she's here about the pups she's carrying,' his wolf Larry snickered, and Dr. Packard stifled a laugh. Isabella Stalker was a wonderful young woman, fierce in combat, gentle with the pack, and wise beyond her years, but the poor woman was clueless when it came to her own body. Typically, the Alpha would have smelt the change in scent from his mate by now, but they mustn't be spending much time together with everything happening. He knew that feeling all too well. Since the attack, his hours at the clinic had increased, and his mate Hayley was on the verge of a mutiny being left at home alone on Grandy duty. Their grand pups were a handful, and Marc, Lucas, and Frank would often turn up with them when their mates needed a break. Spying Luna's loitering, he decided to put her out of her misery.
"Luna, do you want me to do an ultrasound so that you can see for yourself?" He asked gently, and her smile was all the answer he needed.