Crazy Little Thing Called Mate

\THREE/

- Everest -

"I have a rather important topic to discuss with you." My father had announced over dinner.

"Who?" I asked out of line.

My father was always one to follow a very tight chain of command when it came to our pack, even more so when it came to my siblings and I.

And being one of the youngest means, you don't get to speak unless spoken to.

"All of you." He responded flatly.

My older brothers where here for dinner with their mates, my sister and her newly married husband were also home for dinner.

"What of Briar father?"  Rich asked.

Briar was my second sister, together there were six of us. Three boys and three girls.

The oldest of us is Richard Junior, or as we call him, Rich. Second is my brother Ash, he's sort of my favorite of my siblings. Brooke and Briar are twins, Brooke being the older of the two, then there is myself and the baby of the bunch is my brother Vale.

"Your sister is doing exactly as she is expected to do, remain by her husband's side." My father answered Rich's question.

Briar had been married to her husband for just over a month now, he was the son of an Alpha, Brooke and I had felt bad for her, being married off to someone who isn't her mate.

But that was until it Brooke was selected as a bride, her fiancé used to be some luna-less Alpha, but then our pack went to war with his and needless to say, father had to find her a new husband, Brooke is now married the second son of a Beta.

So not only does she not have the luxury of being with her mate (whoever he may be) but she had to marry a man who has no power whatsoever...and with Brooke, it was always about power.

Now don't get me wrong, my father isn't entirely cruel. We do have the chance to find our mates, it's only...the window to find them is rather small.

You see, just like other Weres, we all had our first shift at 17.

But the rule is, either we find our mates before our 22 birthday (5 years after our first shift) OR we would have to have a partner selected for us by our father. The last alternative, if we do not follow the rules...we're out of the pack for disrespect toward the alpha.

Now I know what you're thinking, 'what about their mom, surely she has a say.'

Thing is....we all have different mothers, and none of them are around.

Our rules for partners have been handed down from generations before; arranged marriages are far from new. My father, just like Brooke and Briar, was assigned a wife...only since he is a man he has a little more say in the matter.

Sure he got married to the woman, had Rich and solidified the marriage long enough until her father died, after that he divorced her and became the 'bachelor alpha' where he went on to create his dynasty.

Kid after kid came, but to him he didn't see it that way, with every new child of his, he saw us as another opportunity piece...we'd all be married off to different packs, and for him that meant that so long as he was alive, he'd have a small bit of control in other lands all thanks to us, his children.

Rich was the luckiest, being the oldest he automatically would inherit our fathers pack and therefore didn't require a mate, BUT the lucky bastard found his mate in a girl he had known his whole life. Ash lucked out one evening when a visiting pack was on our land to draw up negotiations, his mate turned out to be the only child for that Alpha and therefore he will become his mates new pack alpha (due to Were law that states a female can not be alpha) when her father either steps down or dies. And, sweet Briar had been married off to an equally sweet son of an Alpha.