wolves¹[wyatt lykensen]

.12

ADJUSTMENTS AND ANXIETY

"I'M WELL AWARE this is not a permanent solution by any means, but this will help for a little while and buy us some more time to search for something that is permanent." The pack watched me intently as I announced the small plan. "If you have any questions or ideas, don't be afraid to bring them up. Everything is on the table and welcome to be discussed."

Murmurs filled the crowd that stood in the den below me, most dispersing after a moment. I descended down the stairs, meeting a little boy standing at the bottom.

"Um, Miss Great Alpha," he said unsurely, tugging at the bottom of his shirt. I squatted down, becoming eye-level with the wolf pup. I gave him a small smile.

"You can call me Coraline," I said as he glanced up to me. "What's your name?"

"I-it's Wesley," he muttered, gaining the courage to fully look up at me after a moment.

"What do you want to ask, Wesley?" I encouraged, keeping a small, comforting smile on my face.

"Are you going to save us?"

The little boy's honey brown eyes poured into mine as he waited for an answer. I reached out to him, grasping his smaller hand with my own and giving it a light squeeze. "I am going to do everything I can, Wesley. I'll find us a brand new moonstone if I have to," I assured him. The answer seemed to satisfy him, causing a toothy grin to wriggle it's way onto his face. My eyes wandered over his figure and noticed the few other were-pups that waited for him a few feet away. "Don't worry about it, okay? Go play with your friends."

At that, the boy turned and ran off with the others, ushering them to another part of the den.

"Wynter made a list of the sickest members. They're the ones that are gonna get the necklace before others," Willa's voice echoed behind me, causing me to turn to find the curly-haired werewolf. "I just gave it to the first wolf. It's not that bad of an idea."

"Well, it's not exactly a good one. Are you sure there aren't any spare necklaces that we could also use?" I ran a hand through my hair as I asked. The girl shook her head.

"They don't have any charge. They're just useless rocks now." I sighed at the information, causing Willa to set a hand on my shoulder. "You're doing what you can right now, Coraline. Don't worry, we're going to find something."

"I just hope we find it soon." My eyes wander over to the pack members who were trying to conserve their strength and rest. "Very soon."

➤

"I'm going to be staying with the pack most of the time from now on, so..." I trailed off as I stuffed a few more things in my bag before zipping it and slinging it over my shoulder. When I faced my parents, their eyes were wide as they watched my movements. I could already tell the type of thoughts that were racing through their heads.

"I get that this is a lot to adjust to—it's a lot to take in to begin with, but I need to be with my pack. I know you guys probably aren't fond of the idea of me leaving and staying in a den, but I'm the alpha now. It's my job to look out for my pack and I can't do that from here," I explained, looking between the two of them to gauge their reactions. "Especially not when I have to sneak in and out of my own house because of anti-monster laws."

"Sweetheart," my mom began with a sigh. "How did this even happen? Wasn't Addison was supposed to lead them?"

My brows furrowed slightly. "I thought Wyatt filled you guys in on everything?" My head tilted to the boy in question who was waiting downstairs.

"We'd rather you explain it to us than some random boy that you brought with you!" dad scoffed, throwing his arm in an outward motion for exaggeration.

"He's not a random boy!" I exclaimed, sighing tiredly afterwards. "He's my—he's my friend, okay? And I asked him to explain it to you so I could get my things and leave as soon as possible." I pushed a few strands of my hair back, tucking the pieces behind my ear. "There was a prophecy of a Great Alpha that the pack showed Addison and I. It originally showed Addison, but then it changed to me. Turns out, she was only supposed to lead the wolves to find the moonstone, not lead the pack as the alpha. Understand?"

My mother lowered her head in a small, disapproving manner that made my jaw clench. This would've been much easier if they were wolves, I thought.

"Look," I said quietly. "I love you guys...but I have a responsibility now. I'm not going to neglect it. I'll see you soon." I adjusted the strap of the bag on my shoulder, gently pushing past my parents and walking downstairs.

As I reached the last step, an anxious Wyatt stood from his spot on the couch. My eyes narrowed as I met him near the center of the living room, already being able to tell that he heard some of the conversation I'd had with my parents.

"Are you ready?" he asked, his eyes flitting to the stairs, but landing back on me after a second. I nodded and he motioned for me to hand him my bag. I didn't feel like denying the nice gesture, so I took it off my shoulder and passed it to him as we left and shut the door behind us.

I looked around carefully before moving forward, not wanting to run into a patrol. We walked to the end of the street, the air between us completely silent as we tried to pay attention to our surroundings. I silently prayed that we wouldn't run into anyone, but luck wasn't on my side as of late. As we turned onto the next block, a low whirring of a siren began to echo off of the houses, making my breath hitch in my throat.

Wyatt gripped my wrist and tugged us behind a tree that sat next to one of the houses, hiding us from the view of the incoming officers. His arm involuntarily wrapped around my back as he pulled my figure closer into his chest, pressing us into the side of the structure as we watched the vehicle go by.

We waited for a moment before moving a muscle, not wanting to risk getting caught.

Wyatt cleared his throat lowly and let me go. "Sorry," he muttered, hoisting my grey bag back up onto his shoulder. I gave a small nod and smile, showing that I didn't mind.

"It's okay." I peeked around the corner of the house, watching as the patrol vehicle turned around the corner and into the cul-de-sac. "My guess is that there's at least five more patrols," I sighed. "It's gonna be a long night."