by Leia Stone
“How do I shift?” I felt stupid for asking.
I heard Akash chuckle behind me. "You let your wolf out. No pun intended. Let her bubble to the surface. Then push with everything you are and it just happens. I threw up my first shift, so don’t feel bad if you do."
I laughed. “Okay, just don’t get too close to me. I might throw up on you.”
He smiled and then ran to be with his friends. The pack began undressing around me, including Kai, but I noticed everyone kept their eyes on the ground. Here goes nothing, I thought, and began peeling off my clothes. When I was about to unclip my bra, I looked up. Kai was staring into my eyes. I blushed. He shifted in seconds while the rest of the pack slowly started. I heard cracking bones all around me and took a deep breath calling to my inner wolf. ‘Pack. Run.’
Once I felt her at the surface, I pushed. It was like screaming with no sound. I felt the blood rush to my face. My blood felt like it was carbonated, and my skin felt like Jell-O. One second I was standing on two legs, then I felt like someone had taken a knife and filleted me in half, and then I was standing on four paws. The other wolves hadn't finished shifting but all eyes were on me. They went from me, to Kai, and back to me. I thought they must be staring at us because we had the same gift; the gift of shifting instantly, being super-fast… but then I heard it. ‘Mate.’
I looked up at Kai in his wolf form. A thousand images passed between us. Him as a little boy in India hanging clothes on a clothes line with his mother. Me as a little girl being rocked back and forth to sleep by my mother. Him as a young man being attacked by a wolf pack, being changed. Me around 12 years old covering my ears as my father screamed at my mother. Him as a young wolf fighting for dominance. I felt every bite. I felt his pain. Me as a teenager standing over my father in the kitchen; a knife dripping blood in my hand. My father’s dead body on the tile next to my unconscious mother. Kai happy as an Alpha of his first pack. Me happy when my mom and I moved into our first place. It was like a life review of what each other had missed up until now.
He jumped on my wolf, rolling me down the grassy hill nipping at my neck playfully. I breathed him in. Cedar, mint, and home. ‘Mate,’ I heard my wolf say. ‘You're mine,’ Kai said. My inner wolf howled.
‘I wanted it to be true from the first time I saw you. Your markings are beautiful, white with a black star and black socks,’ he told me.
Kai was my mate. I could feel it now, the rightness of it. My wolf was pleased and my human side didn’t have time to process it. I heard a painful howl behind me and turned to see a wolf with glaring black eyes. Sadie. My wolf recognized her. She ran off through the woods without waiting for the pack. I felt sorry for her. Kai nipped my leg and I jumped over him and began to run. ‘Chase,’ my wolf said. Kai took off after me, grinning. The rest of the pack was at our heels. I could feel them. ‘Pack. Run.’ I pushed myself faster, harder. Kai was right next to me.
‘You’re fast like me,’ he said. I pushed faster delighting in the feeling of my body, then I circled around to meet up with the pack.
A small, reddish wolf with two white spots on her back pounced on me playfully, yipping. Emma. My wolf nuzzled her and then I noticed Devon circling Kai. They seemed to be talking. Devon’s markings were the exact opposite of Emma’s. He was stark white with two reddish spots on his back.
‘You found your mate!’ Emma’s voice said. I froze startled. ‘The pack can communicate through the pack bond while in wolf form.’
‘Oh, cool.’ I tried.
A medium-sized tawny wolf with a white paintbrush tail and a thin, white line along his back, came up to me. Akash, my pack sense told me. He nipped my left paw and then took off running. My wolf yipped and ran after him. ‘Chase.’
One second I was chasing him and the next I was slammed with a vision. Like a movie screen playing in my head. I could feel my legs running, but I couldn’t see Akash or the forest in front of me. I saw Sadie in human form, in a grove; the downtown Seattle space needle peeked out of the skyline behind her. She then changed into her wolf. She was a large, female wolf with brown and reddish markings. A wolf pack came out of the clearing and a wolf with the opposite markings to Sadie howled and sprinted towards her. They nipped each other running in circles. Then I was shown Sadie looking at Kai. He nodded. She was saying goodbye.
Then the vision was gone. Akash and Kai were in front of me whining in anxiety. ‘I said are you okay? Can you hear me, Aurora?’ Kai asked.
‘Maybe she’s having a seizure. I read about staring seizures once,’ Akash added.
I shook my head to clear it. ‘Not a seizure, a vision.’ I walked over to Kai to reassure his wolf I was okay. I licked his muzzle and then replayed my vision for him in my thoughts. His wolf’s eyes glowed and his muzzle opened. He was panting.
‘I know what you are. There are stories about your kind,’ he said.
‘My kind,’ I thought.
‘You’re a Matefinder. The most sought after, the most…hunted.’ At this, his wolf tipped his head back and howled. My fur rose up and my ears were stiff.
The other wolves ran to him to see what was wrong. ‘Alpha, Alpha.’ I could hear their concern. Jake brushed my shoulder as he passed me and it happened again! I no longer saw the pack in front of me. I was pulled into a vision. I saw Jake, then I was shown a hospital sign. ‘Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, Scottsdale, AZ.’ Then the room #314 flashed in my mind. It was like I was walking into the room, lying upon the bed was a frail, skinny female. She was sleeping.
A nurse walked in with a doctor and they whispered. “Her white blood cell count is not good. She will be dead in two days. Call the family,” he told the nurse. The nurse frowned. “She doesn’t have family. I’ll call a priest.” She was Jake’s mate. I didn’t know how I knew it; it was just there in my mind, a knowing. Then I flashed to months later. There was snow on the ground. Jake and the girl from the hospital were having a mating ceremony, and Emma was sitting in the front row, her belly swollen with pregnancy.
The pack came into focus in front of me, Kai was in human form now, shaking me. I tried to send him the images of my vision but then I hit a black wall. I blacked out.
I became aware of breathing on my face. I cracked open my eyes to see a human Kai inches from my face, his eyes glowing yellow.
"Jesus!" I shrieked. "You scared me." My throat felt dry. I felt weak. Kai didn’t move but he sighed in relief, breathing on me. "You scared me, too. I couldn't get brother wolf to calm down." He backed up and I could see his eyes fading back to brown.
"I'm fine. I just… when did I change back to human?" I looked down at my body. Someone had clothed me. I blushed.
"A little while ago. You passed out. After you… discovered your gift."
I sighed. My gift. "Did you tell them? The pack.”
"They picked up on your thoughts. When we are in wolf form we can communicate with the pack. It makes us better hunters. Instead of communicating with just me, you sent it to the whole pack. I have to teach you to close your mind. Sadie and Jake are waiting outside the room. They’re grinning ear to ear. If it’s true, Aurora, if you can find mates…" He cleared his throat, eyes gleaming yellow again. “…well that makes you very valuable to other wolves, to all wolves. You could be in danger."
I placed my hand on his. The touch seemed to reassure him and to be honest, my body ached to touch him.
He went on. “Our race has been slowly dying out. Not many can survive the change and children can only be born to mates. Finding our mates has become harder and harder. Take you and me, for example. If I hadn't saved you from that accident, you would have died a human and I never would have known. I would have lived out my life alone, with no family." His voice became a whisper just them. He lowered his head, and for one brief second he looked like a small child. I sat up slowly and wrapped my legs around him.
"About this mate thing," I began. His face went slack; the Mount Hood Alpha looked nervous. He placed his hands possessively aro
und my waist keeping me close to him. I instinctively placed my hands around his large, tan biceps.
"When we're in wolf form, I feel like your mate. But as humans, I need us to start slow," I told him.
"Slow?”
Clearly he didn't understand the concept. I brushed my fingers through his thick hair, unable to keep myself from touching him.
"Slow. Like when we're human. You’re my boyfriend. I'm not ready to jump into some mating ceremony and have kids next month. Okay?"
His laugh was deep and distinctive; it made me want to hear it over and over again. "Boyfriend. Okay. I can do that." He kissed me chastely. "…for now." His eyes scanned my body and my skin heated at his meaning. I let go of my hold on him and detangled my legs, clearing my throat. He grinned, flashing his bright white canines.
“I’m the luckiest man alive,” he said, kissing my forehead and standing up. I sat there frozen, not prepared for the comment he had just made. He held out his hand, pulling me into a standing position. “You’re not used to being treated right, are you?” he asked, looking deep into my eyes. My breath began to come out in ragged gasps. This was intense. Yet, something inside me assured me he could be trusted with anything. He was my mate. Mine. Made for me.
“No, I’m not,” I told him, breaking his intense stare. “The only experience I have with men is if they are raising their fist to me or walking out the door never to return.” My lip quivered at the admission but I wouldn’t cry. He needed to know but he also needed to know I was strong. I had been through a lot and it took more than some hot Indian guy kissing my forehead to make me become whipped. I wouldn’t be beneath him. I was his equal or there would be nothing.
His face fell at my thoughts and his eyes took on a sad look. “I wouldn’t have it any other way. Mates means equals in the wolf world. Dominance aside, you are my other half, my equal.”
I tucked a blonde lock behind my ear and grinned. Okay, enough intense talk. I thought to myself. I grabbed his hand and led him out of the room.
Jake and Sadie practically leapt on me. “Are you okay?” Sadie asked, grabbing my arm as if to inspect me. Jake hugged me, grinning. “You scared us.”
I was taken aback by all of the attention, the affection. Looking beyond Jake and Sadie I saw the rest of the pack in the living room and trickling out onto the lawn. They were whispering; I heard one of them say, ‘Matefinder.’
“I’m fine, thank you,” I told them.
Jake cleared his throat. “So… I think you know the location of someone I am very interested in finding.” His eyes flashed yellow and he was grinning ear to ear. Sadie nodded. “And me as well.”
A small growl came from Kai. “Give her some time before you bombard her. She doesn’t even fully know what she is. She just had her first shift.” Jake and Sadie lowered their heads and backed off a few steps. I placed an arm on Kai’s shoulder.
“Actually, we need to get to Jake’s mate immediately. She’s…” I paused.
“She’s what?” Jake stepped forward. He reeked of fear. I could smell it.
“She’s dying of cancer in a hospital in Arizona.” I tried to keep my voice calm but the agony on his face made my eyes tear up. I could see now how important mates were to these wolves.
“She’s human?” he stated as if to himself. “Wolves don’t get cancer.”
Sadie put a comforting hand in his shoulder. “And my mate? All we got from your thoughts was that you saw my mate, too?”
“Your mate is a wolf. I think he is a member of the Seattle pack,” I told her.
Kai spoke behind me. “Sadie, I’ll call Shamus in Seattle to schedule a pack meeting to sort things out. Jake, I’ll book our tickets to Arizona immediately.”
Jake and Sadie nodded. Then Kai spoke in all of our minds. ‘We tell no one of Aurora’s ability. The only stories I have heard about Matefinders are that they have a history of being the most hunted wolf in history. Protect her with your last breath.’ The last part came with Alpha infused magic. I could feel it. That was an order. Every single one of the pack members’ eyes glowed yellow as they nodded. I could feel the command pressing on everyone as the entire pack bowed to one knee and lowered their heads.
After the wolves dispersed, Emma came over to talk to me. She bumped her hip with mine causing me to loose balance for a second. “Matefinder, huh? First you make second in the pack, then we find out you’re Kai’s mate, now this.” She smiled genuinely and I realized she was becoming very dear to me. I could trust her. I knew it. I could sense or smell it. My wolf could too. Emma was a good person. I didn’t trust easily. I returned the smile as best I could. “Boyfriend,” I said smirking as Kai caught my eyes a few feet away where he was talking to Devon. “Kai’s my boyfriend. We’re taking it slow.”
I heard him growl and then discreetly cover it into a cough. Emma snorted with laughter. “Playing hard to get?” she whispered in my ear. I grabbed her hand to lead her away where we could have some girl talk. Once we were alone, I told her about my vision of Jake’s mating ceremony.
“You’re going to be pregnant.” I smiled.
“When?” She asked and then smiled, grabbing her belly. Silent tears slid down her cheeks.
“I don’t know. Time is too hard to tell. There was snow on the ground.” I smiled.
Kai, Max, and Devon came to find us.
“I still don’t know fully what a Matefinder is, what they are capable of. But I know someone who does,” Kai told us.
I looked at him expectantly.
“Sylvia,” Kai said with resignation.
Devon groaned. “I hate witches.”
I jerked my head back so fast that I almost fell over.
“Witches! Wait. You’re telling me witches are real too?”
Emma smirked. “And vampires.”
I swallowed hard. Okay, breathe. Just breathe. “And fairies?” I added. Everyone busted up laughing as Kai placed a hand on my shoulder. Okay, I guess that’s a no on fairies.
“Why would a witch know about my ability?” I prodded.
Kai let me lean against him. “Because witches are the keepers of all supernatural knowledge. I only know rumors of the Matefinder, things I learned on my travels through packs. Children’s stories my mother told me. But witches know everything.”
I guess it was time to meet this witch.
Sylvia
Sylvia was a tall witch with long, thick, auburn hair and bright green eyes. She appeared to be in her early forties, but she was a witch, so who knew what her real age was? She was beautiful and had long, slender fingers which traced the lines of my outstretched palm. Kai stood to my right and Devon to my left. Max and Emma were outside the door keeping the pack out of earshot. With their werewolf hearing, I was pretty sure they could hear every word.
Sylvia’s voice took on an airy quality. “Yes, it’s all here. She can find mates, but not at will. Only spirit can guide her visions, but there is dark magic that could force her abilities. She could be coerced to find mates for anyone. That is why she will be hunted.”
Kai growled.
Sylvia looked up at him. Her eyes, once a bright green, were silver. “Not by me, wolf. Stand down.”
She looked back down at my palm and sniffed long and deep. I fought the urge to pull back. “Yes. She has magic, too, from her grandmother.” She paused, looking up at me tilting her head to the side. “How odd. Your grandmother was a Witch.” Her brow crinkled. She took a deep breath again. “Your blood smells powerful, but there is a block. I can’t see more. I don’t know what clan you are from. Someone has shrouded you in protection magic.”
“How can she be part witch? That isn’t possible.” Devon stated what I was thinking.
Sylvia grabbed Kai’s hand and held it next to mine. “It shouldn’t be possible. Old lore states that Matefinders can take on their mate’s ability. She can do what Kai can do. Matefinders are always female, always born in a set of twins.”
I gasped and pulled my hand away
, breaking the spell. Her eyes became green again. I choked on a sob.
“Drake.” I couldn’t speak. A rush of images bombarded my brain. My little twin brother drowned at six years old, pulling me from the raging creek. My father never forgave me for losing his precious son. That’s when he began the drinking and abuse.
Kai picked up on my thoughts. Sylvia grabbed my hand and looked into my eyes with compassion. “Like I said, Matefinders are born in a set of twins. The female always inherits the gift and the male is her protector.”
My mind was still playing catch up. “Wait, my grandmother was a witch? That means my mother or father is half witch?”
“Men are called warlocks, dear.” She smiled, but a sad look came over her. “The story is written that the last Matefinder, your mother I presume, was half witch and half wolf. She gave you and your twin to a guardian for safekeeping, someone she trusted. She gave you to your mother, as you call her. That’s what the legend says. Your biological mother was the only other Matefinder on record. You are the second. It’s believed to be a genetic gift.”
My mind was reeling. “My… my biological mother. You said was… she WAS half wolf and half witch. How is that possible?”
Sylvia nodded. “She died. She was captured and forced with dark magic to use her abilities. She was forced to find mates before it was time. Wolves started changing humans. Babies. Anything to grow the werewolf race, but they were changing their mates before it was their time. Or their mates were already wolves, but it wasn’t yet the right time to meet. They forced the mating ceremony living out unhappy marriages because it was not a union guided by Spirit. It was evil, what they were doing, and so your mother… she killed herself. As far as how she was half witch and half wolf, we don’t know. The legend stops. There is no information to suggest interspecies child bearing is even possible. It’s a mystery. The harder I look into it, the more confusing it becomes. So we call it a legend. Those that lived through it have only vague memories. Very powerful magic has been put into covering this up. Then you come along.” The silence was permeable.