An Alpha King is expected to be powerful, strong, valiant, wise, decisive, and perfect. Alpha King Pietro is all that except the part being perfect. He was the most awaited heir of the royal family but he was born blind. And so they thought.
Iya...
Meanwhile in a not so well known and not so powerful pack 8-hours drive away from the royal pack, a certain young lady has just turned 20 and her mundane life goes on as usual.
"Happy birthday, Iya! I cannot believe it has been 19 years since our miracle came to us."
"Oh papa, you're gonna make me cry!"
"Your mama has a surprise for you, a little something for the picnic you planned with your friends," Ettore excitedly announced. Ettore is the gamma in Woodlands Pack. He has served his alpha since he was 18 years old. He could not ask for more because for him the simpler the life, the happier it would be. He met his mate, Stella, when they were both 19 years old. Stella is half-wolf and half-witch. A witch indeed but Stella remains neophyte with her craft. It was as if she was holding back, and for a good reason.
"Iya....my darling, look, this is for you!" Stella sweetly handed Iya a wrapped gift.
Iya beamed and hugged both her parents. She knew no matter what was inside the box is nothing compared to the gift of love and protection her adoptive parents have given her.
19 years ago, as narrated to Iya by her parents, by some miracle her father found her by the riverbanks, crying desperately and cold as ice. She was about 10 months to 1 year old, wrapped only in a blanket. Ettore tried to locate her mother and soon lost hope and brought the baby home. Iya's mother, Stella, told her that she was in tears upon seeing her. She knew it was destiny that Ettore found her, that from then on Iya belonged to them. They worked extra hard to provide for Iya. They pleaded hard to their pack alpha to let the baby into the pack despite her being a human. Yes, Iya is human. They pledged with blood that the secrets of the werewolves will not be compromised by Iya until her last breath.
Iya's parents told her the truth about her past when she was 13 and when she started asking when she will have her wolf like the others. Ettore and Stella had no choice but to explain everything to Iya especially the part that she is not a werewolf, the importance of keeping the secret about wolves, vampires, and witches to humans and even the fact that she will not have a mate. The day she became an official pack member became her birthdate.
Iya was disheartened at first but soon accepted that it is not the worst thing. She grew up in the pack assimilating their teachings, culture, and rules. She is training to be a librarian in the pack high school to replace Mrs. Otto when she retires in two years time. But little did her parents know that Iya has been training as a hunter and warrior with her best friends.
Her parents does not want her actively joining wolf activities and they'd rather she stay close. Iya thought so that this is because she is human and other werewolves might pick on her for being different and quite inferior. She respected and obeyed them except with the warrior and hunting trainings.
Iya gleefully tore the gift wrapping and opened the box. She took out what seemed to be a dress. When she saw the entirety of the dress her eyes balled and then got teary.
"This is beyond beautiful, Mama, Papa! I love it! I don't want to use it. It's so pretty even for me!" She sniffed.
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"Oh don't be foolish, dear child, of course you will wear it later. It's about time you wear something lady-like. You are often in jeans, trainers, joggers, rompers." Stella castigated.
"I thought you said I lay-low and not attract attention." Iya countered jokingly.
"Yes, that is true, but it's your birthday! Do something different at least today." Ettore said.
"Okay, I rest my case! Thank you, you guys! Soon, it will be my turn to take care of you both. I promise this to the moon goddess.. I love you," Iya vowed.
"Oh, go on now love, get ready for that picnic of yours. Say hi to Sofia and Luca for us. And, Iya, behave, okay? I know you are 20, but in our eyes you are still our little girl," Ettore endearingly said.
With another hug, Iya sprinted to her room on the second floor and got ready. At past an hour or so, she bid goodbye to her folks.
"Did you do the spell?" Ettore asked Stella in a hushed voice by the porch.
Seeing that Iya is far enough, "Yes, but for how long should we do this to her?"
"Until he comes. It says so. We cannot waver now, Stella. We are bound to protect her." Ettore reminded. Stella cast her head down and shook them as if in disbelief. "She will never forgive us."
Iya started her walk towards the waterfalls to meet her best friends, Sofia and Luca. She kept looking at the print of her beautiful flowy dress. It felt different but nice to dress up once in a while. She curiously felt prettier. She will have a great day, she just knew it.
She is aware that she is not that pretty. She is ordinary and plain. She has accepted this but with difficulty and with time. There were days she wished she is as close to being pretty as the alpha's daughter, Arabella or even her bestie, Sofia. She grew up wishing for so many things. Before her low self-esteem took over her mental health, one night she had a dream about a woman convincing her to stop comparing herself with others since she is beautiful in her own way. The woman in her dreams emphasized that a beautiful heart is another kind of beautiful. Since that dream, slowly, Iya started to like herself and started to see her strengths. It was liberating to the point that she started opening up to new things like attending small parties, school activities, and even dating.
Iya reached the falls but was early by 30 minutes. She set up the picnic blanket and put down the basket and books. She strolled near the waterfalls. The sound of the falls is calming. This place will always be her and her friends' haven. This falls has witnessed the phases of their lives. They learnt to swim here. They fought here. They studied here. Sofia and Luca first showed her their wolves here. Luca's girlfriend broke up with him here. And the falls will continue to witness more of their lives. Especially her, since she has no mate and may probably live here forever.
The water is drawing her closer and closer. She looked at her reflection and stepped back in complete bewilderment! She looked into her reflection again. And there it is again! Her reflection is showing a different face. She is so beautiful! She was confused and a bit freaked. She looked again and tried to move her face and the beautiful face is doing the same! It can't be! She kicked the water and when the ripples settled, she looked again nervously.
When she looked, it now showed her face, her real face, the face that she knows. She exhaled and relaxed. It must be her mind playing tricks on her.
"Iya, Iya!" Sofia was shouting from afar.
"Sofia, yay! Finally, I was worried no one will come!" Iya shouted back as Sofia started to run.
When Sofia was close enough she was panting. "Whew! That was tiring!" She paused again to regulate her breathing. "Oh, oh, happy birthday, bestie! Oh, look at you sweetie, you look beautiful!" She happily greeted with a hug.
"Thanks, but where's Luca?" She asked.
"That's the thing. Iya, we are so sorry but we can't have your birthday picnic now. Something has come up. It's bigger than BIG! At 9 o'clock in the evening! Luca, being the beta's son is obligated to help on the preparations." Sofia informed.
"What's going on? Preparations for what?" Iya inquired with a bit anxiousness.
"Alpha King Pietro is coming to Woodlands Pack in 6 hours!"
