Tatum

I woke up as I did any other day; surrounded in furs, itching to stretch my legs and wanting to leave the confines of my room. I hated the walls that confined me.

My wolf wanted his run and I needed to get out of this place. It smelt of bear and other forest creatures that had taken up this place as home before we moved in.

Walking through the corridors of our den I tried to listen for movement which was unlikely at this hour seeing as I usually woke up a good few hours before dawn to run the borders but this morning I heard the distinct footsteps of a male plodding around.

''Dustin.''

''Fuck you, Tate!'' I growled at the nickname as he growled back at being caught raiding the last few pieces of meat from yesterday morning's hunt.

See, Dustin and I used to be as close as two friends could be. You could say we were inseparable, but that was before he became an asshole and started hanging out with the fuckhead middle ranks, so he fell to one as well. Shame, if he had have followed in his father's footsteps and not got caught up in himself, he would have stayed by my side and been my beta next spring.

'What're you doing?''

''Eating?'' He sassed.

''Fuck off Dustin you can't eat anymore. There was enough food last night to kill a sleuth of bears.''

''I snuck out. Never got around to eating.''

''You're going to get yourself killed and knowing my unfortunate luck, I'll get stuck with the job.'' Sneering at the thought of having to deal with his pigheaded self, I stalked out of the food hall and emerged from the cave.

It was always one of my pleasures to emerge from the cave before anyone else. The crisp autumn air pulled itself from further than the pack lands, swooped through the forest, danced on the rivers and flooded the cliffs dragging with it some autumn leaves that had started to fall in numbers from the creeping winter.

My wolf pulled to the surface and took over as familiar tingles prickled my skin and the sound of bones breaking filled my ears, the burn and tear of every muscle and bone causing me to have to shake out my fur after the change. The pain never changed since the first time, I just got more used to it the same way you get used to getting hit during training. It all becomes bearable and normal.

The second my wolf and I were content with our shake off, we didn't waste time with stretching and just took off down the face of the cliff jumping rocks, climbing boulders and sliding down slopes until we reached the forest floor and began morning patrol.

After an hour of patrolling and coming up with nothing more than a few rabbits hopping around,  my wolf was content with our morning routine and we laid down on the ground for all of two seconds before I felt someone pushing the mind link.

'Tatum we have a meeting with the Alphas tonight in the Forest Pack's lands.'

'Yes, Alpha.'

'The hunting party is moving out in five minutes so get your hide here before then. The middle ranks can't catch a rabbit let alone a deer on their own and Alic and I are busy this morning so you'll have to lead them again.'

'Yes, Alpha.' I felt the link close and my wolf huffed.

We had been taking the hunting party for the last few weeks. I had a feeling it was to do with my father wanting me to get used to leading the pack around more now than ever. My father was to hit his fifties in a few short years so he thought it was the time I challenged him soon.

My father led this pack to glory and survival, I had no need to challenge him before and felt no desire for a mate but now that was all changing and I don't know how I feel about being pressured into choosing a mate, someone I'd have to spend the rest of my life with. But it would soon become my duty because once it passes the tipping point if I haven't challenged my father soon enough, he will challenge me. There can't be two alphas in a pack and my body was already changing into the role of one, telling me to find a mate and remove all threats to my mates' future position.

We have a multitude of fine females within our pack but none of them appealed to my wolf or me. We wanted- no we needed something different. We didn't want a low-rank female to idolise us, we didn't want a middle rank to try hard to match us and we didn't want a high rank to challenge us. We wanted a mate that was different.

I shook out my fur again as I emerged from the tree line to be at the base of the cliffs where a hunting party of a mix of high rank and middle-rank grey wolves were gathered and ready to move out and we did just that.

To say the game here was on the rise was an understatement. It was as if no one here hunted and let the deer out of control. There were herds around every corner and it had the wolves getting too excited and breaking away from the group, tormenting the prey.

My wolf growled in annoyance as yet another middle rank broke from our hunting party and luckily it was one of Dustin's dumbass friends I could take out my anger on.

I broke from the front of the group and my wolf charged the light grey and white wolf throwing it to the ground and holding it by the scruff. His wolf thrashed and wriggled causing me to growl louder and slip my grip from the back of his neck to the underside and clamping my jaws enough to mean business but not enough to slice his jugular.

He whined and whimpered, his wolf submitting as it fell to the ground on its back showing me his belly and extending his neck to me as much as my jaws would let him.

'Anyone else carries on like a pup chasing a butterfly and I'll snap it next time.' No emotions seeped through, just clear and deadly promise as I tightened my jaws before leaving the wolf to whimper and go back to his idiot friends.

All the wolves nodded their multishade grey heads as they lowered and got into a crouching position as a herd of deer started passing by in front of us ready to be taken down and with the nod of my head and the howl of a scout I had sent out to guide the deer to us, we all charged and took as many as we could.

''Good job Tatum.'' My father clapped me on the back as the lower ranks dragged the deer through the cave and into the eating chambers while the hunting party celebrated.

''Yeah good job big bad wolf. Soon you'll be running with the big boys.'' Alic punched my arm and grinned at me.

I shook my head and smirked at him. He always understood how difficult it was to deal with the excitable middle ranks. This is why he refused to take the hunting parties when more middle ranks were born and more high ranks settled into doing different jobs like border runs, which was why we rarely had intrusions in our lands.

''Yeah, well when you old dogs finally retire your greying hides there'll finally be enough room for someone else to sit on those thrones. I'll be sure to find someone to keep yours in top shape.''

We shoved each other around for a few minutes before my father emerged from the eating hall to find me and send Alic off to eat before there was nothing but bones left.

''There's a small town in no man's land. Do you know it?''

''I saw it this morning.'' I nodded.

''Good. Go there and get some wine. Rick mentioned his wife likes red wine and Alic suggested we bring a dinner gift. I'll leave you to it.''

''Yes, Alpha.'' I turned and left straight away as it was more than a twenty minute run through the dense forest and through two river crossings. If I was to be back in two hours to leave for Alpha Rick's house I had to get back early in order to get ready.

As soon as I walked in the supermarket I was lost. It's not as if I haven't been in a supermarket before, it had just been a very long time. Traditional wolves didn't live off human products, we lived from the land so supermarkets were rarely needed unless there was an unfortunate circumstance.

I spent the next ten minutes walking up and down isles getting covered in the scent of herbs and spices making my nose twitch irritably. It was worse than walking through a witch's nest. This was impossible.

''Can I help you?'' A small she-wolf, from Alpha Reid's pack it seemed as she had curls of orange falling down her shoulders in waves, spoke in a timid voice as she helped a young blonde human child pick a candy bar.

I guess this human land was somewhere where the wolves of 'modern' packs mingled and learned from the human species. It wasn't as if I had not heard of it, but I had also never seen it before, it puzzled me as to why they'd need any assistance from human kind when all they needed was the ground they walked on to provide them with all they needed.

''Red wine.'' She jumped at my voice but hurried to lead me over to the red wine, standing to the side with her eyes down and her shoulders shaking. She was very clearly a submissive wolf.

''I won't hurt you.''

''I'm sorry. It's just.... You're a traditional right? The Alpha's son.'' Her blue eyes slowly lifted before shooting back down making me raise a brow in question.

''Yes.'' My eyes raked the red wines before I shrugged and grabbed a bottle of a random brand.

''You're looking for a mate, aren't you? I mean... you need a mate and I don't have a mate and my Alpha is a great man and if we had an alliance we-'' She was rambling, fiddling with her hands as she spoke.

''I don't need anything. Your Alpha is a great man but I won't accept an offer. I'll find my mate on my own terms.'' I turned from her and made my way to another human employee at a desk where I handed him money and left swiftly before my father wondered why I was taking so long.

I didn't feel bad for her. I wasn't cruel in my words or demeanor and the packs knew we weren't exactly jumping at the opportunity to mate outside our pack. Submissives were popular within other packs so I had no doubt she'd soon find her mate.

''Tatum you have twenty-five minutes to get ready. Thank you for this.'' My father nodded his gratitude as he took the bottle from my wolf's muzzle.

I didn't waste any time getting to the pools in the back of the caves to wash off the day's work and to get ready. In no time my father, Alic and I were walking through Alpha Rick's front doors and being led by him and his wife into a beautiful dining room.

The floors were pristine wood, the table made of dark stained oak with a glass top and each with a cream coloured cushion sitting on top of it for comfort. Comfort wasn't something that my pack often strived for. We settled for anything that just did the job.

''We'll keep the serious talk for later but how was your hunt this morning? I'm sure you wasted no time running into the hunting grounds.'' David's thick muscled chest rumbled with laughter as his eyes darted from Reid to my father, no one noticing how his eyes kept falling back to the medium built Alpha across the table from him.

''Actually, my son leads the hunts these days, though he did bring back quite a large prize.'' All their eyes turned to me as bread was brought out by some submissives and low ranks.

''There's a lot of prey out there. Had some of our middle ranks running around like pups.'' I shook my head as the table erupted into laughter.

''It'll do that to them.'' Reid laughed and I couldn't help but notice the way David's deep brown eyes softened at the sound.

Smash

The silence was broken with an ear piercing shatter.

All the wolves at the table stopped instantly and looked around for danger.

It wasn't until I sniffed the air for the danger that the scent of arousal hit my nose and my wolf clawed at my insides as if he was trying to rip free and run out of my body. That was when everyone's eyes fell upon two terrified bright blue eyes before he darted away.

A primal growl rumbled and vibrated in my throat as I tore myself from my seat and chased the scent up the stairs and to a pale brown door covered in stickers and pictures.

My wolf wouldn't stop or slow at my father yelling at me to do so.

He didn't stop at the screaming of a woman telling me that it was her nephew and he didn't do anything wrong.

I couldn't stop my wolf and I didn't want to.

The smell. It was too much. I wanted it. I needed it. It was...

Mine!

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