More Than An Alpha

Initiation

I was so immersed in my misery I didn't hear the approaching steps until the person stopped two feet away in a small shuffle. I quickly brushed away the tears from my face and cleared my throat before turning around to see who it was.

Jamie stood there, his head slightly cocked to the side just like a wolf would do, his features were so much like Osckar's. All of them looked alike and all were blessed with good genes. I gave him a half smile as I wrapped my arms around my chest.

"So you're going to be my sister in law." he said, eyeing me up and down.

"I guess so," I replied.

"Good luck getting through the initiation." he said, his brows furrowing as he went on, "It's a tough process, especially for someone that is about to be the alpha female, you're going to have to prove yourself to the pack."

That piqued my interest, I'd heard that the Silent pack didn't just let anybody into the pack, with their brutal ways hardly anyone knew joined. The process was selective, secretive that all anybody on the outside could do was speculate.

"What stuff do I have to do?" I unfolded my arms from my chest, only weak and vulnerable people did that, I needed to be commanding. Unafraid.

Jamie shrugged, "It depends on what Osckar thinks up for you, it's more entertaining if every initiation is different."

I nodded, taking it all in. It's possible he would go easy on me but the hard edge I'd seen him display earlier made me think otherwise. He needed a mate who was his equal, who was capable of looking after the pack.

"You should come inside," Jamie said stepping back inside the packhouse. I almost laughed, a fourteen-year-old was giving me orders.

When I didn't move he sighed and walked back inside, I turned my back on the house and looked out into the village. From here I could see all the lights flicker on the darker it got thanks to the house being positioned slightly up a slope. When I headed back inside it was eerily quiet, as I padded through the corridors I poked my head in each room but didn't come across anyone. I dashed upstairs to my room, the only place of sanctuary I had and got ready for bed. As I lay there, hearing my own heart beating softly I drifted asleep.

It felt like only moments later that I was woken up by a low growl coming from the corner of my room, I sat up fast, my senses on high alert. I scanned the room, stopping when I saw a large wolf in the middle of my room, my heart raced as it moved towards me. It only calmed when I caught the strong and unmistakable scent of Osckar.

"What are you -"

He tilted his head then trotted to the door, a quick glance back at me had the pieces of this puzzle clicking into place.

I flung my blankets open and cold air wafted over me, I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and stood. He was still waiting as I threw on a nightgown and slid into a pair of sandals that lay beside my bed. When I was ready I followed him out of the room, through the house and into the woods. We walked for ten minutes, my hand buried in his fur as I enjoyed the softness of it and let him guide me to wherever the hell he was taking me.

At the thinning of the trees Osckar shifted back into his human form, standing naked next to me, I did my best to keep my eyes up and away from his body. He chuckled at me, I guess I wasn't as subtle as I thought I was.

Ahead I could hear multiple whispers and I took a step towards the noise. Roman appeared out of the shadows with a pair of shorts in his hands which he was quick to hand over to Osckar.

"What's going on?" I whispered walking further in until I could see a crowd of people, of the pack.

"Your initiation." Roman said wagging his eyebrows, "We're going to see if you are truly worthy of being our Luna."

It turns out Jamie was giving me a heads up earlier this evening, although it didn't give me much time to prepare, I wasn't shocked.

"What do I need to do?" I asked, squaring my shoulders as I looked from Roman to Osckar.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you in advance, but don't worry I have complete faith in you," Osckar said, pulling me forward so that we stood at the head of the gathering.

That quickly changed when each member fanned out, absorbing us into a pack circle. You can do this I told myself, looking at the closest people in the eye.

"Today is a special day for our pack." Osckar started, his voice loud and clear, "I found my mate, your Luna, and to welcome her into the pack she will have to fight two of our best fighters. This is to prove she can protect the pack, then she will lead a hunt to prove she can provide for the pack."

There were a few cheers from the crowd.

My thoughts earlier confirmed it, he wasn't going to go easy on me and I didn't want him to either. I needed to earn my place, to earn the respect of his pack if I am to be a valued member.

Osckar pushed me forward as he stepped back and into the crowd, I let out a breath to calm myself down. This is just like training, I said to myself. Just pin them down and everything will be fine.

Two males came out of the crowd, both of them shirtless as they moved to either side of me. I was about to face both of them at the same time!? Ok, just relax, you've done this before.

I decided to attack first, I chose the one I thought was the weaker of the two, instead of punching first I kicked, aiming for his chest, but he blocked it with a flick of his hand. I heard the other guy coming from behind, so I delivered quick blows to the man in front of me, one in the jaw and the other in the gut. I fought in an attack then evade dance until I felt grasping hands from behind yanking so hard I fell back to the floor.

The sound of clothes shredding rose above the roar of the crowd and I knew the game was about to change. Scrambling away and up onto my feet, I kept the two men in sight, well one large grey wolf and man in sight. I'd have to shift soon if I wanted to survive the onslaught that was about to be unleashed. Not caring about my pyjamas I willed my body to shift and felt my body explode in power as I landed on all fours. I was bigger, if I were human I'd be smirking at the dumb choice they made but all I could do was crouch as I readied for the attack.

I lunged for the grey wolf, our snarls and growls the only sounds in the clearing as the crowd calmed down as we nipped and shoved each other to the ground. I felt it as his teeth bit into me but ignored the pain, getting the upper hand I managed to pin him down, I held him there for a few moments until he surrendered.

It didn't take long to fight the other wolf, although he gave me the most wounds, I was sure my snout was dripping blood from the bite marks. They clearly didn't hold back. I chanced a glance at Osckar, his arms were across his chest, his jaw was taut and Roman had a hand on his shoulder.

I could feel my broken skin begin to knit back together as the healing began to take effect. The crowd cheered for me and some started chanting the word Luna over and over. If I was in my human form I would have smiled.

"Gather up hunters, Calla is about to lead you to a kill."