In The Beginning, Chapter 131

“What do you mean?” I asked, my curiosity too great for me to hide.
“When Deo and I were gone, we had been working on a new evolutionary step for what would become human beings... but with us gone, Zeus manipulated them in a different direction, he spent thousands of years infecting them, forcing the births of millions. So, few of the children that were meant to be were born, that it broke the mate bond. They had gone against their purpose, and fate, I think... I think my mother abandoned them. Reproduction seems so random, even the left-over threads were difficult to weave to create your mother. With every generation there are fewer and fewer true mate bonds, I began to doubt she would ever be born, I can only assume my mother allowed us one last chance to fix things.” She smiled, cupping my face affectionately, and kissing my head.
“How are we supposed to fix thousands of years of corruption?” I asked, it was one thing to fight a war, another to save the world from itself.
“One thing at a time. Soon you will take an important piece of Zeus’s army off the board, then we can start loosening the chokehold he has on the world.” Theia smiled, and Hyacinth raised her cup to toast with her, they giggled as their cups clunked together over the bar.
“Here, here, first we win the war, then we take over the world!” Hyacinth chuckled, as she settled back into her stool, while I made my way around to the table, shaking my head at the two of them. Our cheer suddenly died as a hawk swooped down onto the back porch and tapped on the window with its beak. Theia hurried out of the doors, and the bird flew to her shoulder.
“There is a scout moving towards the house from the North, as Daniel predicted.” She quietly told us. The bird flew away quickly, and she came inside, closing the doors and scanning the trees. “I will hide, you both act normally, they may be able to hear parts of your conversation when they get close. Stay calm.” She instructed as she made her way out of the kitchen. Hyacinth joined me at the table, taking my free hand in hers reassuringly.
“Talk to me about Daniel.” She smiled; I frowned in confusion before chuckling at the absurdity of it all.
“It hasn’t been easy... getting alone time, and we are both feeling the frustration.” I admitted sheepishly.
“Is that why you kicked the boys out? I had wondered, I remember an Alpha summit in... 1936, about the war... two days into negotiations, we don’t join the military for obvious reasons, but many of the men saw it wasn’t just a human war... So, negotiations began, but anyway, two days in and they were at each other's throats. No one wanted the shame of backing down used against him, and, you know Alphas, pig-headed idiots, drunk on their own testosterone.” I hid my smile behind my cup, realising what Hyacinth had done, anyone listening would assume she was sympathising, or just telling me a story, I was too polite to interrupt. “The other Lunas and I did all the work, came to an agreement, and then worked on our mates... Daniel is not like some of the Alphas you will meet, he takes your concerns seriously, and values your opinion. He will rely on you to keep a cooler head than him, especially around the other Alphas.” She explained, it was starting to feel like an intervention, or relationship counselling.
“I know, and I know he can’t tell me everything... I just wish he would open up a little more.” I made a miniscule gap between my thumb and forefinger.
“I believe that is a problem with men across the species, they could all communicate better. Try to be patient, he is learning, and much freer with his expressing his emotions, than he was when I first met him. He has come a long way in less than a year, a big part of that is you.” Hyacinth reassured me while giving my hand another squeeze.
“I guess that’s a little scary too, how much we’ve both changed... Sometimes I wonder if we are growing together, or apart...” I shrugged, unsure how Hyacinth was pulling such personal admissions from me.
“My advice, always ask about his day, even if you spent it with him, ask what he enjoyed most, least, anything. You will find yourself doing the things he enjoyed best to make him smile and will know to comfort him in some way when something he doesn’t like happens, he will pick up on it and begin offering up details he might’ve glossed over before. He just needs practice, he is already very vocal about expressing his love for you, you just need to work on the rest.” She tapped my knee affectionately as she went to refill the stove top kettle.
“Did you ever look for a second chance mate?” I couldn’t help but ask.
“No, I don’t think anyone does, they just meet them sometimes... but I am not one of those people, even without him physically here... my heart still beats only for him. That’s not to say I haven’t been tempted to take a lover... it would still feel...”
“Like you were being unfaithful.” I finished, and she smiled at me with relief. We were given a short reprieve from the heavy conversation by the whistle of the kettle, and the several minutes it took Hyacinth to prepare her beverage. She looked thoughtful as she returned to the table, the milk from my latte felt heavy in my stomach, preventing me from drinking more. I just held the cup to give my hands something to do and keep them from shaking as I felt eyes on my skin.
“I’m sure, had I been given a second chance, it would have been different. I have heard others describe it in many ways, but the one I like best was a woman I met in a Canadian pack. She said, when she lost her mate, she carried on for their child, but she felt hollow without him. When she met her second chance mate, although she always loved her first mate, he helped fill the hole inside her. Not completely, and her son helped some, but between the three of them, and the other children she had with her second mate, it became bearable. I understand what she meant... I filled it with a village full of people, but there is still a gap left, and I feel it every day.”
“Charlie?” Daniel linked, “don’t react! Theia get a message to me, there are two scouts at the rear of the pack house, watching you. Stay calm, they won’t attack yet, they have slipped through the gap the patrol left, so they’re surrounded, it wouldn’t make sense to attack now.” He reassured, even though it was killing him to stay put, even with him trying to hide it, I could sense his restlessness.
“It would look suspicious if you came back now, I have Hyacinth and Theia, and the patrol, and there’s only two of them, I like our odds if they do attack!” I replied, feeling his relief.
“Stay safe, I love you.” He linked; I could hear the smile in his voice.
“Love you too.” I replied, fighting my own content grin.
“You both seem happy.” Hyacinth commented on my smile, heating my cheeks.
“I am, I hope Daniel is...” I replied shyly.
“He is, trust me.” She replied with a wink, we continued making idle conversation, ever aware of the eyes tracking our movements. The sun began to set, while we chatted and gossiped, Hyacinth told me stories about her and Thomas, while it hurt to talk about him, it also seemed like she needed to talk about him with someone. The sky was dark, when Daniel returned with the Alphas and their men, they all seemed in better spirits than they had when they left.
“Hey!” Daniel smiled as he entered the kitchen, his swollen eye back to normal. In fact, none of the men appeared injured at all! I thought as Daniel leaned over me to place a soft kiss on my lips.
“I am ravenous!” Lander announced, making a beeline for the fridge, Kathy had prepared food for everyone before she left, but tonight we had to fend for ourselves. “You saving this brisket for something?” Lander questioned.
“That’s not going to be ready until tomorrow even if I start it now.” I replied, his face falling, until he found the leftover lasagne.
“Okay if I have this?” He asked, holding up the dish.
“Yeah.” I shrugged, it was kinda how I imagined things would’ve been if I had an older brother, him and his teammates or friends eating everything in the kitchen after practise. A flash of a memory from high school and Steve made me uneasy, Daniel was nothing like him... Was there something wrong with me for thinking fondly of anything to do with them? Sensing something, Daniel moved to my side, he took the seat next to me and interlocked our fingers.
“Everything okay?” He asked via the link, stealing the last of my cold latte.
“Since I told you about... what almost happened to me at Prom... I guess the memories must be close to the surface... you all reminded me of them, not that night, the rest of the time, like after practice and stuff. I had track and extracurriculars that kept me after school, so sometimes I would hang out with them. No matter whose house they were in, they acted just like you lot, gathered around the refrigerator, raiding the cookie jar... Is that weird?” I asked, genuinely unsure. I hadn’t thought about any of them in years, when I had, it had been mostly about that night. The last time I thought about the time I had spent with them had been immediately after I got home. I had gone over every interaction, every conversation, looking for what I had missed, something in their behaviour had to explain where my night had ended. I needed to understand how people I thought liked me, that I thought of as friends, could want to hurt me like that, and the boy I trusted to be my first kiss, and more, not only didn’t care about those firsts, but wanted to turn it into any girl’s nightmare. Daniel stayed silent for a few moments, choosing his words, as he ran the pad of his thumb over my knuckle affectionately.
“I think it’s normal to have something trigger a memory, and the feelings you experienced at the time, even if you feel differently about it in the present.” He said diplomatically, I fought an amused smile.
“A very logical argument.” I replied, when his wolf dropped an image, like a silent movie, he was tearing a faceless man to pieces, shredding and tearing the generic football uniform until it was barely recognisable. “Although I think your wolf is upset by the comparison. I think it had more to do with it being one of the few references I have to group male behaviour.” I reassured them both and shuffled my chair a little closer. Daniel, being Daniel, simply dragged the chair closer, ignoring the loud scraping, and the attention it garnered, and slung a protective arm around my shoulders, ignoring the men and their knowing chuckles.
“Don’t expect me to be logical when it comes to you.” He stated simply, but it was the way he looked at me, as he said it aloud, even the men present didn’t dare laugh, or joke, I felt my cheeks heat as I looked at him, unable to drag my eyes away from him, the silence becoming a tangible entity around us. Until he freed me of his hold, breaking eye contact to look at the men.
“Do not ask my mate to provide you with food, she is my Luna, not your cook.” He announced as he stood, leading me out of the kitchen. I could hear Hyacinth rescuing the appliances for the hapless men as I was led into the office, I walked into the centre of the room as Daniel closed the door. I heard the click, and he was almost instantly against me, kissing my neck and walking me to the desk. I was spun around and lifted, so I was sat on the desk, Daniel between my legs, his hands moving up my body. “I couldn’t wait another second...” He groaned, before his lips captured mine in a passionate kiss that I felt in my toes.