i be tryna laugh with the bros 'bout the opps that we know
But they can't take a joke, 'cause it's not one
think it's 'cause we live by the code, reputation to uphold

Uncle Eddie was standing on the other side of the training grounds, two suitcases beside him. Pack warriors were running over from the trees towards him, and I saw the Alpha make his way over.

Grinning, I sprang up to my feet and jogged in their direction.

" - don't know how he got past us, Alpha! We didn't see him," one warrior gushed out.

"We swear, Alpha," another one jumped in. "Not one sign of him!"

"Nonsense, I walked right by," Eddie huffed, crossing his arms.

"Dad!" I squealed, hugging him tightly.

"Skittle!" he exclaimed. "How are you? Did they hurt you? I. Will. Turn. Them. To. Stone. This Instant," he snarled out, eyeing everyone around us.

"Ahem" someone cleared their throat, drawing our attention.

I turned my head to see the Alpha looking at us furiously, clearly displeased with all the commotion.

"My office." The look in his eyes meant now. He turned on his heel and headed back to the pack house.

"No, you will not!" Uncle Eddie slapped the hand of a warrior that was attempting to carry his suitcase. "That contains valuables!"

He grabbed the handle of the suitcase, while I took the other. Uncle Eddie interrogated me with so many questions that I was completely out of breath by the time we reached my mate's office. Stumbling through the door, a sense of deja vu washed over me as I stood in front of the familiar desk.

"Mr. Willows, please sit," my mate gestured to one of the chairs. Surprisingly, he didn't seem angry.

"You," Uncle Eddie wagged his finger at the Alpha. "If I find out you laid a single hand on her, I will rip your limbs off and use them as bats to beat anyone else that harmed her."

My mate's eyes flashed with anger at Edison's threat, his jaw hardening.

Uncle Eddie didn't seem to notice, instead turning to inspect me up and down, "You can be honest, Skittle. Did they do any - what is that?" he gasped in horror, noticing a scratch on my elbow.

"Hold my spoon," he shoved his wooden spoon of a wand at me, ready to throw hands at the Alpha. "I'm going to take care of this the old-fashioned way," he spoke in a deadly voice.

My mate stood up in a flash, tensing up at the sign of a possible fight.

"Wait," I intervened, grabbing Uncle Eddie's arm. "He didn't hurt me, dad." I rolled up the bottom of my leggings, exposing the bruises on my shin. "I was training!" I exclaimed excitedly, a big smile stretching across my face.

"Training?" he looked at me, searching for any signs of a lie. He knew how much I loved to practice fighting, and though I never said anything, I knew he was aware of how much it had saddened me when I was excluded from it at our old pack.

I nodded wordlessly, catching the eye of the Alpha who was staring at me with an unreadable expression, which caused my grin to fade.

"You're letting her train?" Uncle Eddie asked my mate, who gave a curt nod in response. "Well, why didn't you say so earlier?" Edison broke into a grin as he reached over and grasped the Alpha's hand with both of his, shaking it wildly.

"Uh, yes, Mr. Willows," my mate appeared to be slightly startled at the sudden change in emotion. "If you'll take a seat, please."

They both situated themselves in chairs on opposite sides of the desk, and the Alpha drew out a file.

"Your daughter and I have come to an agreement, and it seems you will both be joining my pack. I'll inform your former Alpha of the switch tomorrow," my mate stated, pushing the sleeves of his shirt up.

"Don't bother." Contacting that man was the last thing I wanted. Unconsciously, my fingers started tracing my back, where his whip had hit me too many times.

Alpha Eastwood just glared at me. "As part of protocol, I am obligated to." He paused, eyeing me carefully. "Unless, there's a reason I shouldn't?"

My mouth parted slightly, unwanted memories flashing through my head. "No reason," I composed myself, breaking eye contact. "I just didn't want you to waste your time."

There was a moment of silence, followed by a slight shuffle of papers.

"Right, " my mate continued. He proceeded to tell Uncle Eddie that we would be staying there while I trained with them to improve my skills. I didn't dare tell Uncle Eddie that it was just a cover-up to hide our being mates, and I could tell that this was the official story for my joining the pack.

"As you are new, you will both be given Omega status until you have proven trustworthy and deserving of a higher rank," Uncle Eddie raised an eyebrow at the Alpha's words, before glancing at me. I simply shrugged in reply.

I didn't care about my rank and status.

They didn't matter anymore.

"You will both be given chores to do as well," my mate skimmed the sheet in front of him. "Ms. Willows will be assisting in the kitchen and Mr. Willows, you will be in charge of cleaning the dungeons."

"Give his chores to me as well."

There was no way in hell I was letting Uncle Eddie get on his knees and scrub the blood of rogues because of a mess I got us into.

He had done enough for me as it was.

My mate looked over at me in surprise, frowning slightly. "With training and kitchen duty, you won't have the time."

"Skittle, I refuse to let you - "

"I'll have it all done, don't worry," I cut him off. "All chores that were intended for him can be put under me instead."

"Reya, you will not!"

"It's okay, Dad," I placed a hand on his shoulder. "You do enough for me as it is."

Although Uncle Eddie wasn't happy about it, he conceded after he realized he couldn't make me budge on my decision. Alpha Eastwood didn't seem pleased either, and I couldn't figure out why.

There wasn't any house available for Uncle Eddie and I to live in, so Alpha Eastwood had a spare room cleaned for him in one of the other wings of the pack house. Someone knocked on the door, and I saw my mate's eyes glaze over as he mindlinked them to come in.

Uncle Eddie's eyes widened for a moment upon seeing Gamma Harris, before he quickly masked his surprise with sneeze.

My brows furrowed. Did he know Gamma Harris?

"Gamma Harris, meet Mr. Willows," my mate introduced them. "Could you please escort him to his room and make sure he's settled?"

"Of course, Alpha," Gamma Harris stated. "Nice to meet you ..." the hand he held out faltered as he finally looked at Edison. "I'm sorry, have we met before?"

"I don't think we have," Uncle Eddie displayed a perfected facade of confusion. "But perhaps, we bumped into each other while traveling about."

Gamma Harris didn't seem to buy it, but he let it slide. "If you'll follow me," he reached over and grabbed the two suitcases.

"I can hold those," Uncle Eddie jumped up.

"No need, I've got them," Gamma Harris lifted them and walked out of the room, Uncle Eddie trailing behind.

My mind was swarming with possible theories of how Uncle Eddie could've known the Gamma of the Shadow Pack, but none of them made any sense.

"Is there a reason you're still here, Ms. Willows?" the velvet smooth voice of my mate pulled me from my thoughts. "Because I suggest you leave before you consume all of the oxygen in the room."

I scowled.

"I prefer the term breathtaking, and I wouldn't mind it if you suddenly lost the ability to breathe," I tossed him a snide smile.

He glared.

Walking towards the door, I couldn't help but pause before leaving.

"You know, I keep wondering," I turned back to face him. "If you can't sense me as your, you know, then how did you know it was me that trespassed when you went to my old pack?"

"Your fingernails were covered in green."

Uncle Eddie's potion.

I had almost forgotten about using it on him, and I hadn't realized some of it had stuck to me as well.

"Oh," a part of me was disappointed that it hadn't been something more. Then I started laughing.

"Laughter is a waste of air and energy, Ms. Willows."

"Yo - you caught me ... green-handed," my own statement sent me into another round of chuckles.

"Your humour lacks intelligence," the statement would've hurt if it hadn't been for the slight flicker of amusement in his eyes.

"Please," I snorted. "I'm pretty sure you don't even understand the term 'joke.' "

"Not all of us have the time for such childish behaviours," he turned back to the file in front of him, a sign of dismissal.

And just like that, my mood dampened.

"Right," clearing my throat, I left the room, not sparing him another glance.

Heading to the dining hall, I grabbed some lunch for myself. As I was about to eat it, an elderly woman came up to me.

"Hi sweetie, are you Reya?" she gave me a warm smile, settling down in front of me and I couldn't help but give her a look of surprise. No one, aside from Conrad, had been particularly kind to me since I arrived and it felt unusual.

"Hello," I returned her grin with a shy one of my own. "Yeah, that's me."

"I'm Amara," her grey eyes seemed to hold a few century's worth of knowledge. "But most call me Ma."

"The Alpha informed me that you'd be helping in the kitchen, dear," she brushed her silvery hair out of her face. "Why don't you finish up your food and come meet me there so I can show you around? Just go through those doors," she pointed to a pair of white rectangles off to the side.

Nodding to her, she left me to my meal which I quickly consumed, before going to the kitchen. Ma walked me through my duties, most of which were the same from my old pack, and made sure to show me where everything was. We worked peacefully for a few hours, along with some of the other pack members, but none of them were as nice to me as Ma was. Their attempts at whispering behind my back weren't as discreet as they thought, and I found out exactly what they thought of me - they were all confused as to why the Alpha would've allowed someone as weak as me to join the pack.

"Ignore them," Ma shut them up with a glare as she came to work beside me. "Alpha Rowan is a smart man. I trust his judgement, so if he let you join, then I respect you." Her words warmed my heart.

I had learned a lot about her over the short time we had met. She was almost 200 years old, and had lost her mate and kids in a rogue attack a long time ago. Despite everything she had suffered, she dedicated her time to caring for anyone she could, and I easily saw why so many people referred to her as Ma. I was careful not to reveal too much about myself, but talking to her was so effortless that I found myself about to slip up more than once.

It was almost dinner when she told me that I could go. Everyone else had already finished up and it was just the two of us left.

"How much do you have left, Ma?" I asked, not wanting her to have to work on her own. After talking to her, I had found out she was the first one in the kitchen in the mornings and the last one out in the evening.

"Not much, dear. Just some cleaning and a few meals to deliver," she replied, pulling out a cloth rag.

"I'll finish it up," I stated. "You should take some time to enjoy the evening."

"You're too kind, child. I do this every day, it won't take me too long."

"All the more reason you should have a break." Grabbing the cloth from her hands, I steered her towards the door. "It's the least I can do in return for all the hospitality you've shown me today. Don't worry, I'll make sure the kitchen is sparkling for you tomorrow."

"May the Moon Goddess bless you, dear," she reached up and placed a hand on my cheek. "The food on that tray is for the Alpha. Could you please take it to his office when you're done?"

Internally groaning, I simply nodded and ushered her out.

I took extra time than necessary to clear and wipe down the counters, and even reorganized the spice cabinet, but it only prolonged the inevitable fact that I had to take food to my mate.

My eyes fell on the tray. "I hate you."

Unfortunately, no amount of glaring could force the inanimate object to sprout feet and carry itself to the dreaded office.

With a sigh, I picked up the meal and walked to his office. On the way, I felt a jolt of pain sear across my abdomen, causing me to almost drop the food, but it barely lasted a second before disappearing.

Balancing the tray on one arm upon reaching the door, I reached forward and knocked on the dark wood. It was only then that I realized his office was soundproof - there wasn't a single detectable noise coming from inside.

After a long moment, the door opened, revealing a disheveled Serena. Her attire was more than revealing; a single glance down and I was sure I would've seen the entirety of her chest, and her shorts didn't leave much to the imagination.

My throat ran dry when I saw the Alpha behind her, seated at his desk, the top few buttons of his shirt undone. 

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What do you guys think??

And for those of you who were hoping for some rooomaaanceee, I sincerely apologize hehe (It's gonna be a rocky road for these two), but there will be some sort of subtle bonding coming soon

But in other good news, I've heard some COVID vaccines are coming soon to some countries, so fingers-crossed that things can return to normal soon!!!

Also, as an Indian girl, it breaks my heart to see what's happening to the farmers there. Please take the time to read about it and pray for all of those hardworking people who are being so neglected by their government :(

I've begun working on the next chapter, but I am in the middle of finals, so hopefully I can still get it out sometime next week!

Until next time

xo