let's not kill the karma

let's not start a fight

it's not worth the drama

for a beautiful liar

My legs burned as I sprinted back to my pack. My mate had been slowed down by his sneeze session, but he still ran after me until I was off his territory.

I was glad my mask had been on the whole time because it made it easier to leave knowing we both had no idea what the other looked like. Well, he had seen my human figure and my eyes, but that was about it.

For all I know he could be an ugly troll with stinky breath and a foot fungus.

I could feel my wolf snorting at me but I didn't care.

He probably hated skittles.

The Crescent Moon pack whizzed by in a blur as I continued building up my mate to be the bane of my existence in my mind to ease my heartache.

By the time I reached the Lunar pack, I was completely out of breath. My night had been exhausting to say the least, and I was already feeling the effects of all the running and fighting. I sniffed the woods outside the pack house until I found the bag I had ditched earlier. With a sigh, I removed my mask and daggers, burying them in the bottom of the bag before zipping it up and making my way to the pack house.

I glanced at a clock to see that it was almost one in the morning. Uncle Eddie would be fast asleep by now, his wizardy experiments usually tired him out. My stomach grumbled out in hunger, angry with me for having skipped dinner. Striding into the dimly lit kitchen, I opened the fridge and pulled out some leftover spaghetti. I was in the midst of heating it up in the microwave when a group of people my about my age stumbled in.

"Heyyyyy, it's Reya the pack Runt," one of the guys slurred, and I knew from his voice that it was Jason.

I turned around to see three girls and two guys. They were dressed in gowns and tuxedos, indicating they had just come back from the Mating Ball. My gaze fell on Jason. His brown hair was disheveled and his tie hung loose around his neck. He flashed me a sloppy smile, his brown eyes twinkling.

Another guy, Leo, punched his arm. "Dude, that implies that she's actually a pack member," he snorted. "She's just our charity case. We all know no other pack would accept a wolfless werewolf," he finished with a laugh.

I stood there silently. I had grown used to everyone's taunts over the years. Every wolf shifted at the age of 13, but royals shifted later, at the age of 16. This was due to the fact that our wolves needed more time to develop and gather strength.

Shifting was a rite of passage in our community. It was a painful process, and one's family and a select few pack members were usually present for it. This allowed for the child to draw on strength from other wolves to make their own shift easier.

So while everyone my age shifted together for the first time that year, I watched from the side. And on my 13th birthday, Uncle Eddie, the Alpha and a few of my friends gathered to help me. Uncle Eddie and I knew I wouldn't shift, but to sell the idea that I was an average wolf, we had to play along and pretend we were just as shocked when nothing happened.

The bullying started the day after my 13th birthday.

Everyone was confused as to why I hadn't shifted. Adults had given me looks of pity and sympathy, while the teens just laughed and called me weak. Pathetic. Ugly. They said I was a mistake. That I should have died.

It hurt a lot at first, even though deep down I knew their words weren't true. No one wanted to be friends with me, and as a result, I was excluded from a lot of gatherings and hang outs. I unofficially became an omega within the pack. Slowly, they began to take advantage of me and my mental vulnerability. I was given extra chores and a lot of kids forced me to do their schoolwork.

And it sucked.

I spent many nights crying in Uncle Eddie's arms as he rocked me back and forth, telling me I was a princess and that they didn't know what they were talking about.

But I didn't feel like a princess.

I shifted by myself at 16. That time there was no support group for me. It was just Uncle Eddie that held and soothed me as every bone in my body broke in our tiny bathroom. A royal shift is ten times worse than an average one because due to the power of our wolves, we feel everything. Every snap, every rearrangement.

It had lasted seven hours for me.

With no help from my deceased family or pack, I was forced to endure the pain on my own without the help of anyone else's wolf.

It was the worst pain I had ever endured.

Or so I thought.

Jason pushed past me, shoving my shoulder in the process, causing me to hiss out in pain as he hit the bite from my mate. It was healing, but slowly due to my exhaustion.

"You know you don't even need this," he sneered, taking my plate from the microwave. "You probably have such a small appetite without a wolf."

"Are you kidding? Look at how fat she is," one of the girls spoke out in disgust. "You're doing her a favour by eating it."

I could feel my wolf clawing at me to come out, her anger growing as they laughed at me. She wanted to teach them a lesson and put them in their place, but I shoved her down. They weren't worth it.

My food, however, was.

I grabbed the plate from Jason, giving him a cold glare as I did.

"I've seen the way you eat Jason, and quite frankly, it's extremely unattractive. I truly pity the girls you go down on because it must be a slobbering mess. Perhaps that's why you can never do the same one twice," I clicked my tongue as Jason's face turned bright red. "It's a good thing you have a mate that'll be forced to stick with you though!" I finished off in a cheery tone.

"And luckily no poor guy will have to suffer being your mate," interjected the one voice that could literally give me cancer on the spot.

Valerie entered the kitchen with a smug look on her face, coming to a stop in front of me.

"Awww, is someone grumpy because she still hasn't found her mate?" I cooed in a baby voice. "This is the fourth year you've come back from the ball empty-handed. Maybe the Moon Goddess is trying to keep him away from your wretched personality."

Valerie snarled in anger, reaching out in a flash as she took my plate of food and dumped the contents all over me.

I stood there in shock for a few seconds, my jaw slack at what she had just done. My wolf was livid, thrashing under my skin at the disrespect. Sauce was dripping off my head and clothes, running a trail down my face while spaghetti hung in my hair.

Valerie snickered as she put a hand over her mouth. Everyone else roared with laughter, pointing fingers and clutching their stomachs.

"Oops."

That did it.

I took as much spaghetti off my head and flung it at her face before she could utter another word.

She stared at me, her eyes swirling with shock, anger and disgust. Her arms began to shake as she let out a deafening scream.

"You should not have done that," tsked Jason. "You're going to get it now."

Footsteps pounded in the hallway and I saw the Alpha, James, run in. He was a tall man in his mid 50's. He had brown curly hair, and a scraggly beard that could have been nice, but due to his low maintenance, it grew wild and untamed. He was fit, but there were signs of a mild beer belly poking through his shirt. His green eyes surveyed the room, scouting for signs of an immediate threat and landed on us with burning curiosity as he realized there was none.

I hated him.

With a passion.

"What's the meaning of this?" his voice boomed in the kitchen, eyes flashing with anger. He focused on me as he said this, and I knew he already thought I was to blame for whatever had happened.

"Alpha look at what she did to me!" Valerie cried. "This is getting out of hand, sir! She needs to be put in her place," she spat out, glaring at me with venomous eyes.

I didn't say anything. I had learned not to a long time ago.

After my first shift at 16, I decided enough was enough and that I didn't want people walking all over me. They had bullied me for three years at that point, and even though I was supposed to be stronger than all of them, it didn't mean their words and actions didn't hurt. I succumbed to their harsh taunts, letting myself believe I truly was worthless. For so long I had wished that I had died with my parents.

It wasn't until I shifted, that I gathered newfound strength from my wolf. She picked me up when I could no longer go on. Comforted me until I had grown immune to their words. Had my back when no one besides Uncle Eddie did. Because of her, I started to stand up for myself.

But they didn't let me get up that far.

People noticed when I started becoming more defiant. I began to yell back when they called me names, say no when they tried pawning off their homework and chores. They didn't like it one bit.

And so, my punishments began.

Everytime I stepped out of line, I was taken to that place.

Sometimes I was whipped instead, and those were the times I was most grateful. Whippings were quick and physical. I could heal from them. But that place; it was just mental torture. And that was the worst form - it stuck with you long after.

I was also pulled from training immediately. It was their way of making sure I couldn't get any stronger physically.

People began blaming me for anything and everything, and the Alpha believed them. He already disliked me before, but that year, it transformed into pure hatred. After a while, he didn't care how ridiculous an accusation against me was; if someone complained about me, I suffered for it.

Valerie had always been the worst of all. She took every opportunity she could to get me in trouble. The dumbest was when she stomped on her own lollipop and then called the Alpha, whining about how I had done it.

He placed me down there for three days.

Over a stinking lollipop.

Valerie didn't even eat sugary things.

It was as if it became a game for her; seeing how often and how easily she could get me in trouble.

She was a vile creature.

Over time, I learned not to argue about it. No one listened to me. I was pretty sure they all knew that I hadn't even done anything half the time. But no one cared.

With a sigh, I met the Alpha's gaze.

"It was nothing but a misunderstanding, Alpha," I spoke, knowing it didn't matter what I said.

He cocked an eyebrow, folding his arms across his chest. "A misunderstanding? She's covered head to toe in food and you consider that a 'misunderstanding'?"

I was covered in food too.

I dropped my gaze to the floor, staying silent.

"Well? Explain yourself!" he said.

That was just cruel. He and I both knew there was no point in me saying anything; he just wanted to humiliate me further and everyone around us was thriving off of it.

Guess I'm more entertaining than late night comedy shows, I thought.

"I wrongfully acted against Ms. Valerie and I take full responsibility for my actions," I said in a monotone voice.

"From what I see, you have harmed another pack member and we do not tolerate that sort of behaviour here, Reya."

I almost snorted but I kept it inside.

"You'll have to come with me," he sighed. "This is a very serious matter."

He turned and walked out the kitchen and I knew I was to follow.

As I walked out, something caught my eye.

Valerie snickered as she shot me a wave, before turning on her heel and sashaying back to her friends, her skintight pink gown trailing behind her.

----------------------------------

A/N

I'm so impressed with myself for writing this so quick (it took me five months to get the first chapter out after the prologue lol)

What did you guys think?

Did you catch on about the pink dress? (If not I'll explain it here haha)

Please vote and comment if you enjoyed this!

See you soon xo