The Struggles Of You And I

Chapter Four.

Chapter four. 

        I whimper, and immediately shrink back into my place in the tree. My mate growls, hearing me whimper in fear. I can’t help but panic at the sight of my mate and another wolf growling at one another. I’m confused all of a sudden - do I want a mate? Do I want to live to please someone other than myself? At the same time, I can feel my wolf pushing me towards my mate, filling my head with thoughts: of him and I running through the forest together; of me carrying his pup one day and being happy. I’m stunned in place as these thoughts fill my brain, but it’s only when I hear snarling do I look down and see my mate forcing the other wolf into submission and letting him go. As the other wolf limps into the forest, my mate comes back to my tree and takes a brief glance up at me. My heart leaps into my throat, and I whimper from the pain of being in heat and not being close enough to my mate. He growls and stands on his hind legs while clawing at the tree. I can tell he wants me to come down, but I’m scared.

My thoughts are not my own, and my wolf is only confusing me further with her thoughts of happiness. I can’t help but wonder, is he from my pack? Other than the times he has saved me, I haven’t seen him around. When Sasha sees me running through a forest, will it be my own? Or will I have to leave my pack for another? Will I have to leave my family?

These thoughts cause me to pause in the tree, and I can’t help but fear the outcome of the mating. I can see that he isn’t happy with me. He plants himself in front of the tree I’m in, facing the forest around us, constantly growling and the odd time circling the tree. Males arrive having smelt me, and he fights them into submission. During this tradition if it were to happen that two males showed up at the same time, or before the female is marked, they can fight for the ‘honor’, and whoever is forced into submission first has to leave the forest.

My mate is eliminating any and all competition but I can tell it’s taking its toll; I can smell blood and my wolf knows it’s his. She wants to go down and help him, comfort him.

I start to make my way down the tree once again, the closer I get the stronger I can feel the need for him increase. My heat stirs every now and then, and I have to suppress the urge to scream or moan, not wanting to grab anyone’s attention. I’m within seven feet of the ground and I can see my mate fighting two wolves at once. It confuses me, because the two wolves are working together but will have to fight each other if they were to beat my mate.

I whimper at the sight of my mates black fur matted with blood, some from earlier and some new. He has a slight limp as he lunges for a dark brown wolf, but as he lunges and grabs the wolf by the neck the other wolf grabs my mates back paw. My mate growls in pain and releases the other male. I whimper at the sight, I’m scared he won’t make it. I don’t want a different mate. I want my mate, who sat under my tree for hours. The sun will be setting soon. At the sound of my whimper the wolves snap their heads in my direction, and I recoil, as I’m now only five feet from the ground and they could probably pull me down.

My mate uses the distraction to grab the brown wolf’s friend by the neck and slamming him to the ground, pressing all his body weight on top of him. I can tell the wolf will surrender and I feel relief. That however is short lived as the brown wolf sees this and lunges in my direction, hoping to mark me before my mate can even get up. I growl lowly, trying to warn him to stay away, but I can tell he smells my heat, and the pain and arousal I feel only supports that theory.

He jumps for my tree and almost catches my ankle, so I pull it in closer to my body but stumble at the quick action and fall from my spot in the tree. I land with a thud onto the ground, and not a second later the brown wolf is going for my neck, but my wolf takes over and I can feel my eyes shift from their usual green to a darker moss-like shade. I know I can’t shift, but I wish at a time like this I could tear him apart. I growl and I can feel my teeth extend and nails sharpen, my wolf trying to come out as much as possible to protect me.

As he goes for my neck I lash out at him, and he growls in my face and snaps his teeth at me. I know I should be scared but all I can feel is my wolf’s anger.

I feel the wolf’s weight crushing my body into the ground, trying to get control over me, and I let out a loud yelp at the weight of it. Just as fast as it’s there, it’s gone, and my mate is standing over me, shielding me from the other wolf. I can tell he is hurt and I can feel his anger radiating off of him in waves.

My heat rears up at the proximity of my mate and I purr underneath him, my mind telling me that now is not a good time, but my body is yearning for his touch to take away the pain. My mind flashes to my cuddle buddy and I wonder if this is him. It must be. He takes away the pain. My thoughts scatter at the pleasure I receive from the deep growl that rumbles from his chest, and my back arches off the ground in offering to him. Lost in the moment I don’t realize that my mate has once again gone on the attack and is now rolling around with the brown wolf. The struggle is heart breaking. I can tell my mate is weak from the night of running to find me and fighting off any male who dare come to close. I worry he won’t make it through this one, and my wolf is stirring in my head; I can feel her pacing in my mind. The pain is becoming unbearable, as I watch my mate being flipped around and pressed into the ground, the brown wolf growling at him, telling him to submit. My mate glances at me and I can see the pain in his eyes, but it’s quickly replaced by a look of determination as he returns the wolf’s growl. The brown wolf lunges for my mate’s neck and everything goes black.

My screams are all that can be heard through the forest as Sasha forces her way out. My body burns and aches as my bones unwillingly bend and snap into place, taking the shape of my wolf. I cry out as I feel my legs breaking and reforming, along with my jaw snapping and taking on a new shape. It feels like eternity but I know it wasn’t that long because Sasha talks me through it, with constant whispers of "I’m so sorry," and "You’re going to be okay."

Sasha tells me to let go and I do, I let her take the reins. I’m in too much pain to do otherwise. Almost as soon as I give her control I’m moving. Sasha jumps on the brown wolf who has a firm hold on my mate’s neck, and I can tell my mate will lose consciousness soon. In shock the brown wolf lets go and bucks us off. Sasha lowers herself to the ground, ready to go at him again.

He was too busy trying to fight my mate that he blocked out my shift, thinking I was screaming about the fight, not from the massive waves of pain. As he was regaining his surroundings, I tackle him, immediately going for his neck and holding my grip even as he tries to shake me and scrapes his nails down my belly. Sasha’s out for blood, but I know she will take his submission and let him go. I growl and tighten my grip on his neck, and as his eyes start dimming, I can tell he’s going to pass out soon if he doesn’t submit. In his surprised state I’m able to get him to submit to me, and as soon as I let go he dashes into the forest. I know I probably hurt his ego, but at the moment all I care about is my mate laying ten feet away in a pool of his own blood. His neck is healing, but having taken so many hits it’s healing at a slower rate. Sasha whimpers and so did I, nudging my mate, trying not to hurt him. His eyes flutter open, and he looks up at me in alarm. I can tell he thinks I have been marked, as I shifted. There is no other explanation; I can see the hurt in his eyes as he lowly growls at me.