6 #MY_BLACK_KNIGHT 6
Happen 3
As Produced By SheriffSquinty
Theme: Our Mate!
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Finally, we could smell them. Over a dozen wolves, gathered in a clearing a few miles up the path. Judging by a low howl that came from the distance, they had discovered our scent, too. Front the front of the pack, Alpha Brett began to slow his pace. He was a dark grey wolf, larger than the rest of the pack, and a firm but
great Alpha. I liked him, except for the fact that his daughter was…well, horrible. I noticed her sleek form standing next to him, her fur even darker than his.
‘ All right pack, it’s time to stop and shift to our human forms,’ He instructed
calmly. Both sides chose to appear in their human forms because they were less of a threat and less likely to violent outbursts. In wolf form, our inner Wolves were
much more difficult to restrain from completely taking over our human side. Also,
while Shifting in front of your own pack was common, it was considered
inappropriate to show a bare body to a wolf from another pack, especially an enemy pack.
Closing my eyes, I willed my human body back. I felt the dizzying and contracting sensation of fur and claws receding, my bones shifting and melding back into their original form. Originally the process had hurt; now it felt as natural as breathing.
We always tied our clothes to our ankles before Shifting, as the size increase in our ankles was less drastic between forms and it was the most convenient way to bring clothes along. Quickly, each wolf began to dress. I swiftly maneuvered into my bra and panties, followed by a loose pair of pants and shirt. We very rarely wore shoes, unless venturing into human settlements. I turned to the others as they finished the process. Once we were all clothed, we faced Alpha Brett. He was a large, muscular
man with golden-brown hair and piercing hazel eyes that his daughter had inherited.
“Ready?” He called out, and we nodded in unison. Through my erupting
nervousness I noticed Will’s lanky figure come standby my side. I smiled up at him, grateful for the reassurance.
As a group the fourteen of us began a brisk walk down the path, moving much
more quickly than humans would have been able to. As we approached, something began to tickle my nose. Frowning in confusion, I tilted my head and sniffed the
air. Several different scents mingled in the air along with my pack’s, so it was hard to differentiate, but one in particular stood out. Well that was….strange. It smelled of musk and pine trees and spices, and I found it strangely alluring, drawing me
towards it. I couldn’t stop sniffing as we continued to approach. It was like all of my favorite scents rolled into one.
After a moment, I noticed Will was looking at me strangely. “What the hell are you doing?” He asked, eyes glimmering with amusement. I felt my pale cheeks flush
and I instantly looked down. “I don’t know.” I muttered truthfully. I decided to stop
breathing so deeply, for the scent was incredibly intoxicating and distracting, and I couldn’t fathom what would cause it.
I heard the different voices before I saw them. My nervousness spiked and I heard heartbeats all around me increasing. I mentally chastised myself; I couldn’t let them smell my fear. We had to be strong and keep our pack formidable. I took a few
deep calming breaths through my mouth and hoped the others would do the same. The voices of the Black Mountains Pack were relaxed and amused, which was
completely unexpected. Then again, they knew they’d be coming out of this ahead. We entered the clearing. It was bathed in bright silver moonlight. A small stream trickled nearby, and there were a few assorted rocks and boulders around the
clearing, which was plenty big to hold all of us and more. In the middle was a
slightly tall rock; I assumed that’s where the Alpha would stand. I snarled inwardly thinking about it.
And still, the intoxicating scent pressed in all around me, but I couldn’t think about that. There were more than a dozen Black Mountains Pack members scattered in a half circle and their hungry eyes were fixed onus. Some stood while some lounged on the boulders nearby.
We spread apart slightly, forming our own half circle, Alpha Brett taking a few
steps forward while Jack, the Beta, strode over to stand near him. My father, who had checked in with me numerous times during the journey, shot me a reassuring look before standing near the other two. I tried to relax slightly.
I noticed Will standing close tome and he briefly grabbed my hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. I smiled up at him again; he really was a good friend to have. Slowly, forcing my heartbeat to slow down through my controlled breathing, I
turned back to observe the Black Mountains Pack. I’ll admit, I was curious what they were like.
*
As Produced By SheriffSquinty
*
Most of the people in the clearing were males, although I did spot a few women. They all were very tall and muscular, with a hard glint in their eyes. Almost every single one had one or multiple visible scars on their tanned skin. They looked like they could weather any hardship thrown at them. The smirks on their faces,
combined with their menacing stance, proved that they had absolutely no fear of
us. And why should they, I thought bitterly. They could wipe us out by sheer numbers.
Will leaned in close tomy ear, his voice barely a whisper so they wouldn’t hear, as they were only about thirty feet from us. “I don’t see the Alpha or Beta…” he trailed off as suddenly, in one motion, the Black Mountains Pack stood up and
straightened, looking at attention. Their eyes were wary but respectful and their posture was stiff, which could only mean their Alpha was approaching.
Footsteps came from the trees from behind them and two men emerged. I was
forced to hold my breath as the intoxicating scent became overpowering, which left me furrowing my brow in confusion. I couldn’t focus on it for long, though, as I
honed in on the Alpha and Beta.
The Beta alone was as big as Alpha Brett, but he paled in comparison to their
Alpha…Gabriel, I remember hearing. He had to be several inches over six feet tall, and even from this distance I could tell he was built of solid muscle; it was as if his body was carved from stone. He wore a tight shirt, which further displayed his
musculature, and I could see several visible scars.
His hair was as dark as midnight and tousled, really a good look on him, but I
couldn’t think of it in an admirable way knowing who he was. He had high
cheekbones and a strong jawline. If it were anybody else I would have been
dazzled at just how stunningly attractive this werewolf was. He looked almost
surreal. The moonlight reflected off of his taut muscles and gave him a nearly
unearthly glow, and I hoped I didn’t look like I was drooling over the monster. I was expecting to feel a rush of hatred from my Wolf upon seeing him for the first time.
But instead, my stomach clenched in a strange way and I felt fear strike me as I
quickly looked at the ground, glad he hadn’t looked our way and caught me staring. My Wolf was oddly silent, withdrawn, and I could tell something was wrong by
the tension that crackled within me. What the hell was going on? My breaths came rapidly, but I forced myself to stareat the ground, grateful when Will took my
hand again.
I heard the Alpha address his pack and then climb onto the rock. I peeked up just enough to look athis pack, forcefully keeping my eyes from him, remembering Will’s warning. The Beta was standing by the rock; he had chocolate skin and a shaved head, his eyes regarding us coldly. Then the Alpha spoke.
His voice was a very deep timbre and incredibly husky. I swallowed hard, feeling my knees turn to jelly and a strange mix of fear and…something else…stir within
me. I was a whirlwind of emotion and couldn’t figure out what was going on. I had
to brace myself against Will, who thankfully just assumed I was terrified and
wrapped his arm around me, holding me close. That was it right? I was just
terrified? I hated and despised this man after all, and he was incredibly imposing. All of this emotion was just building up.
He began to address us formally, about how this was a ritual and it was our duty to negotiate and such, but I couldn’t listen to his words. I was too distracted by the
sound of his voice. My various emotions were derailing my coherent thought and I was unsuccessfully trying to encourage my wolf to come out of her dazed state, but to no avail. I glanced up athis pack. They were staring up at him with admiration written plain on their faces. So my father had been right, then. He was a visionary to them. And we despised all of them.
I continued to look around the clearing as he spoke. Anything but focus on the
Alpha, for something was seriously wrong with me and I had to just pretend he
wasn’t there. I had to stare at something else, so I resolved to deliberately avoid
glancing anywhere near him, instead focusing on inanimate objects around the
clearing. A rock, a tree, anything! I began to mindlessly count the trees, aware how stupid it was, as the minutes passed by. I just knew that I couldn’t look at the Alpha on the rock. Hopefully he wouldn’t notice my inattention. I figured it was safer to
space out during the meeting than lose my mind by staring athis perfection again. I could figure out what the hell was wrong with me later.
Another minute or two trickled by and I began to scuffle quietly at the grass
beneath my feet. I felt Will glance at me once or twice, clearly confused by my lack of interest as the Meeting continued. I vowed to explain everything to him later when I had figured it out myself. I just couldn’t lookup at the Alpha’s rock right now. I inherently knew that would be a dangerous action, but I wasn’t sure why.
So I studiously looked away during the entire Meeting. The minutes slowly passed by in agony. It was actually a concerted effort to avoid looking at him, and I was
shocked that my Wolf was so distant and confused. I clenched my fists, immensely uncomfortable, still trying to ignore the compelling scent.
I dimly registered Alpha Brett’s voice as they discussed something, and sensed an angry ripple run through my pack. The feeling of static anger snapped me to
attention and I shifted my gaze to Alpha Brett. His face was darkly angry as he stared up at Gabr—The Alpha.
“We have given you everything you wanted. We have showed you the upmost
respect-” Alpha Brett began, his authoritative voice ringing out towards the Black Mountains Pack, but the other Alpha cut him off.
“The upmost respect?” He said, the hint of a snarl in his voice. I was listening to
him this time and the sound of his gravelly voice again made me shudder, though it wasn’t entirely unpleasant. What the hell was I doing? My Wolf had made an odd noise deep in her chest athis husky snarl, and I forcefully pushed her to quiet
down.
“You say you respect us,” Gabriel continued, voice deadly, “Yet one of your pack members has not been paying attention to anything we have been saying sofarthis meeting. Her deliberate disinterest is a direct insult to this Meeting.”
My heart froze. I froze. Everybody in the clearing froze. I could sense their
confusion. My gaze quickly dropped to the ground as I took a shaky breath, trying not to shiver in horror. I felthis burning gaze on me. I didn’t knowhow, but I
somehow knew that Gabriel—why the hell was I calling him that—was staring me down.
Slowly, my pack mates turned to face me. I couldn’t lookup. I wouldn’t lookup! My Wolf was whimpering deep within me, though I couldn’t interpret her tone.
Something was telling me to lookup at him, but I was too horrified and stunned to move.
“Skylar…” My dad began warningly, confusion in histone. He spoke aloud for the benefit of the other pack.
“Is it true?” Alpha Brett demanded. I knew it was true. I knew it was incredibly rude to be playing games in my head instead of paying attention, but if they only knew what I was feeling! But I had no explanation.
“I…I…” I managed to stutter out, face burning, throat dry. I was visibly shaking
now, and I could feel Will staring at me in horror. He was no longer touching me, though he still remained deliberately close.
I heard the soft noise of someone landing on the ground and I tensed up. Anger
was radiating in the air, and this time I could tell it was from the enemy Alpha. He was approaching, godammit! My feet were glued to the ground. I wanted to turn
and run as Will had said, but I couldn’t move. Panic struck me, and I locked my legs to I would not visibly shake.
Sweat beaded on my forehead. A second passed. Then another. I heard the
footsteps stop a few feet in front of me and an angry, deliberate snarl that made me inwardly cringe and renewed my shaking, despite my effort not to show my fear. My Wolf made the odd noise now, almost like a…purr? Why was she reveling in
the Alpha’s anger?
“Look at me,” The husky voice snapped. I felt a strange pull, asifa hand was grabbing at me, trying to force me to look at him. I squeezed my eyes shut. He
wasn’t using a Command in histone yet my Wolf was urging me to respond. She desperately wanted to obey his order, eventhough he wasn’t our Alpha.
‘ Skylar, do as he says!’ My dad snapped as Alpha Brett chimed in. I felt their anger through our bond. They didn’t understand.
“Look at me!” There was a Command in this one, an Alpha Command I could not ignore. My head snapped up and my eyes methis. I knew something big was going to happen as I finally made the dreaded eye contact with my worst enemy.
And my world stopped.
My inner Wolf jumped out of her daze then and began to howl triumphantly,
pouring every ounce of joy she had into her howl. I just stood there, stock-still,
unable to comprehend what was happening until my Wolf started forcefully
pushing one concept into my brain: ‘ Mate! OUR MATE!’ She crowed repeatedly, as I stared blindly at the Alpha in front of me, blinking in disbelief.
This couldn’t be happening. It couldn’t be him…but deep down inside, I knew otherwise.
He was my Mate.
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