Melina

It all happened because we were starving.

My best friend, Sage, and I hadn't eaten for the last twenty-eight hours while we traveled through forests. 

Enemy territories surrounded every corner. Sage wasn't a good fighter, and not to mention, both of us were unmated. Which meant that if pack members caught us and their Alpha's sons didn't have mates either, by law, we'd have to find out if we were destined. 

It didn't matter what we wanted. Rogues were the lowest class. If we were unlucky enough to be their mates, we'd be forced to marry, and probably much worse. 

So freaking romantic. Alphas sure knew how to make a girl melt.

Then suddenly, we saw it. 

Far in the grassy field, with brown fur and white freckles. A juicy piece of ass. A yummy, yummy deer. My mouth watered and started dripping. 

"Oh, thank you God," Sage whimpered. "Thank you, thank you, thank you—"

"Shh! You'll scare it away. Be—" I stepped on the driest leaf on planet Earth and it crunched like it had swallowed a microphone. The startled deer jerked its head up and bolted into the woods.

Sage desperately cried out and charged after it, heading straight into the enemy lines.

Fuck! I growled in warning, but it was no use. She had gone brainless from hunger.  

I ran as fast as I could. Sage was chasing the deer. I was chasing Sage. And the five wolves behind me were— Five wolves!? Behind me?! We were dead! Dead meat! 

Their growls were so close, I could feel the heat on my fur. I shook off the terror and surged through the dense nature, my paws slipping on animal scat and decayed plants. The deer ahead ducked suddenly, and slid under a tree that had fallen. 

Unfortunately, Sage and I weren't as fast.

She smacked into the bark of the tree, with me right behind her. My muzzle throbbed, no doubt broken. I yelped for her to keep moving and crawled under the tree, deer obviously forgotten. 

That's when I saw what the wolves really looked like, and it was so much worse than I expected.

They were pitch-black killing machines. Twice my size. Their fur was rich and sleek, bouncing sunlight with every step they took towards us. 

There was no way we could outrun them. We needed a different option.

To my right, I heard a river flowing. Sage and I jolted in that direction, breaking through cluttered branches that blocked us like spiderwebs. Almost there. Just a little bit longer.

But as soon as we were out of that nightmare, a new one started. We were standing on the edge of a hill, and below us the river was angrily slapping against rocks. They were massive, and their edges sharps like weapons. 

"You don't have to jump," a male voice behind us yelled over the noise. "We don't kill for stealing. But you..." He paused and sniffed a couple of times. No. Dread tensed my muscles. Please, no. "You don't have mates," he said with surprise.

"We have to jump," I murmured to Sage, swallowing the painful knot in my throat. "We have to."

We both braced ourselves for the worst. I closed my eyes to count.

"One. Two—" A sharp bullet blew through my shoulder. The impact stumbled me forward, almost throwing me over. I dug my claws in the dirt while Sage cried in agony. They shot her too.

I held back my tears, staring at the far away mountains as their corners started fading. This was the end. I'm so sorry, I didn't make it. I'm sorry.

Apollo

I lowered my face behind my fists and smirked at the eight kids who wanted to fight me. 

"Don't be scared. I'm only going to break a couple of your limbs." I jerked forward as if I was about to strike, and laughed my head off when they flinched. 

"Apollo..." My mother chided from the back of the studio, waiting by the door.

Taking advantage of my distraction, my brave, five-year-old student kicked my ankle. "Kiai!" 

I dramatically collapsed on the mat and pretended to die. "Oh nooo, you tricked me."

She kept swinging her leg into my stomach, grinning the whole time. "Kiai! Kiai! Kiai!"

I threw her over my shoulders and stood up, facing the class. "I have your friend hostage. What are you going to do?" 

All seven of them charged at me like warrior chipmunks,  yelling simultaneously. 

"Apollo." My mom called again, crossing her arms. "Is this really what you want to do? Your brother is searching the world to find his mate. Why aren't you?"

Oh, for the love of God. How many times were we going to have the same conversation?

I set the little fighter down from my shoulders and pinched her cheek. "Show them who's in charge, huh?" My heart melted at her toothy nod.

"You know the rule." My mom raised her eyebrow, this time using her Luna voice. 

"Yes, mother. Even though it's a stupid, outdated rule. And I'm surprised you're not more against it, considering you're a woman." 

She smacked her lips like I was ridiculous. "Hunter said he found two female rogues. They're both unmated."

I could tell she did something wrong from the evil sparkle in her eyes. "What the hell did you do to these girls?"

"Nothing! Well, not nothing. But... I might've shot them with a little bit of a tranquilizer." 

"Of course, you did." I grabbed a clean towel off the floor and wiped the sweat off my chest. "Okay, kiddos! Clean your mats and put them where they belong. I'll see you next week."

I walked my mom out to the parking lot. She continued. "I know you think our rules are outdated. But if Xander finds his mate before you do, he's going to be the new Alpha. Not you."

Still. There was no way the Moon Goddess would choose a rogue as my mate. I was responsible for the most powerful pack in the West. Surely, their Luna would have a similar upbringing.

"I'll only meet these women if you apologize to them." I opened her car door and helped her in.

"Please. They should be thankful I gave them the chance to meet with you." 

"Listen, you psycho." I raised an eyebrow, my tone a playful warning.  "Promise that you'll apologize, otherwise I won't do it."

"Okay! Boring. Then you promise, that if you meet your mate tonight, you have to work on giving me grandchildren."

"I'll get right on it." I rolled my eyes.

"Be smart with the positions. The easiest way for her to get pregnant is to be on all fours—"

"Mom!" I laughed. "I'm not having this conversation with you."

~

I drove on the mountainside, passing the clusters of pine trees, their tops lost in the night. Our house was the oldest property, nestled between two lakes. It was a rustic, timber structure, with floor-to-ceiling windows and trusses ornamenting the ceiling.

Roasted deer, wine, and sugary pastries wafted the backyard. Family members were laughing around two rectangular tables, underneath string lights. 

I went inside to shower. Twelve hours of labor covered me in dirt, from butchering livestock to repairing boats. 

"Please, you have to calm down!" Maria, our eldest servant, shouted from the guest room. "Please, stop! Just listen to me!"

I ran towards the door and twisted the knob, breaking it by accident. "What's going on here?"

Hunter caught up and stood beside me, but I was too taken aback to acknowledge. 

A hurricane had torn the place upside down. The bed sheets that used to be white were now stained and all over the carpet. The crystal chandelier was violently swinging. The crooked artwork fell off the wall, shattering. And poor Maria was shaking.

"I-I don't think she's used to being in this body. S-she wants t-to shift to her wolf, b-but—"

"It's okay, I'll take it from here. Hunter, can you help her get some water?"

Hunter nodded, equally worried about Maria. She spoiled and protected us when our own mothers were too strict. Who would terrorize such a sweet woman?

After they left the room, I focused on the blue curtain the rogue was hiding behind. Her heart pounded in panic. 

"You're okay. The tranquilizer makes it difficult to shift, but it'll pass soon..." I said. 

The candlelight from a nearby nightstand outlined her small figure. I tilted my head with curiosity. What did she look like? With careful steps forward, I inched closer to the curtain.

"You don't have to be afraid of me. I promise—" I got whacked in the face with an iron vase.

My head snapped sideways, and metallic liquid soaked my tongue. She slit my fucking lip in half. I wiped the blood, shoving the annoyed growl down my throat.

Then I froze.

She was an angry goddess with golden-brown eyes and freckled cheeks. And completely nude. Her hair was a mixture of deep burgundy and bright copper. It cascaded to her waist, covering her breasts. Holy... My heart almost exploded and burst straight into her hands.

Mine.

It all made sense now. Every painful event since the day I was born. Every wrong decision I'd ever made. Everything had unraveled in such a way to bring me to this very moment. 

My woman. Only mine and forever mine. I'd make sure no other reality existed.

I smiled at her, my breath-taken. "Wow, you are abso—" She flung her knee into my groin, smashing my balls. My eyes popped out of their sockets and I choked out a humiliating squeak. 

Before I had a chance to recover, she jumped out of the window and escaped from me.

A/N
Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this chapter, please give it a vote <3