Aella

My eyes flutter open at the sound of a door closing, the bright lights hitting them as I squint. I'm so tired... I just want to roll over on the bed and continue-

I shoot up into a sitting position and take in the unfamiliar room around me. Where am I? And why am I in here? I look down as I try to piece together what happened, tracing the cuff of the unfamiliar black and tan hoodie. I don't recall wearing this before I fell asleep-

Everything clicks. The Retrievers, the tranquilizer, teleporting. I have no idea where I landed, I don't even know if I'm still in the same country. I notice the lack of restraints and collars, meaning I'm not in the Retrievers possession. Throwing off the bed covers, I see that the rest of my clothing is the same, even though my boots are sitting beside the bed instead of being on my feet. Good, it'll make leaving that much quicker. I glance around and see my bag in the corner, and get up as fast as possible, not wanting to fall from a lack of stability. Slipping my shoes back on, I grab my bag and make my way over to the window, looking out to see what lies below...and I groan.

Crap, it's too high up.

I think as I take in the three stories between me and the ground. I look over to the door, and contemplate silently. This means I'll have to go through three floors to find the exit, avoiding anybody who's here and not getting lost. Even if the people here are nice I can't stay, just me being here puts them in danger.

I walk silently over to the door, twisting the knob slowly. It moves without a sound or difficulty, so I pull the door open a sliver and peek through the crack. The hallway is empty both ways and the stairs are to the left, so I slide out of the room and make my way towards the stairs, keeping close to the wall.

It's quiet, no sounds, no movement...it's like I'm the only person in here. Glancing quickly, I creep down the empty stairs while hugging the wall, and keep doing it until I reach the bottom of the stairs to the first floor. It seems that this is where my luck runs out, for the sound of feet thumping above alerts me that I'm not as alone as I thought.

"She's out of her room! Find her!!"

"Tell Apollo now!!"

Screw quiet, I need to get out of here. I don't know who Apollo is, but I'm not waiting to find out. I haul ass through what appears to be a living room, and make my way to the nearest exit as I hear the pounding feet behind me.

"Wait! Miss!!" A guy yells, reaching for me as he edges closer, and I instinctively crouch low and grab my knife, swinging it behind me and aim for his legs to distract him. He falls for it, jumping back and looking down, so I take the advantage and swing back up, slicing across his cheek and nearly hitting his eye.

"Shit!!"

Just before I grab for the door another one tries to grab me, I aim for his chest , slicing open his shirt and cutting through his skin. He lets a string of curses as I cut his hand as well, keeping him from grabbing me. Two more men come down the stairs, and I brace myself for a fight.

I drop down to the floor and swipe my leg out, knocking the one I cut in the face into the path of the other two. I uppercut the one with the chest wound while he's distracted, knocking him back and throwing him off balance before I throw my knee into his stomach. I feel a pair of arms grab my shoulders and I throw a swift jab to his stomach, making him grunt in pain as I push him down to the floor.

I rotate the knife in my hand and swing for one of the new ones, slashing across his arm and drawing a lot of blood. I stomp my foot down on the one next to me before giving him a swift kick in the crotch, and he crumples to the floor quickly.

I pull myself back into a low stance as I face the other three. I have to hand it to these guys, they are persistent...but I was trained for this, trained to survive, to endure. So if it's a fight they want, it's fight they're gonna get.

We keep this up for a few minutes, me throwing blows and them doing nothing more than blocking my exit and trying to grab me. As much as I'm curious as to why they aren't fighting back, considering the damage I've done to them, I don't try and dwell on it. I have to admit though that something about their behavior seems familiar...the silent communication, the group attack patterns, and the occasional growl from them giving me a feeling of deja vû.

Just when I thought I was finally getting free, multiple sets of footsteps come from the other side of the room.

"What the hell is going on in here!?!" A young but authoritative voice yells.

The power in his voice shakes the house a little, causing the men fighting me to falter in their actions. I keep going despite the shiver that rolls down my spine; where the hell it came from, I don't know, and hook an arm around the neck of the man closest to me and throw him to the ground....my body following instinct and fight patterns learned a long time ago. The people who just showed up gasp in surprise as the other men back up completely, and sensing another person behind me I quickly turn around and flick my knife forward in my hand.

He catches it, grabbing my arm with a large hand and grasping my wrist tightly, but not enough to hurt me. My body freezes as I turn and face him, locking eyes with his brown depths as I register a feeling where he touches me that I've only had described to me once before.

I drop the knife as the reality hits me...no, this can't be right. This can't be real, it has to be a mistake.

But there's no mistaking it. The proof is in the fiery sparks erupting in my arm and wrist. I'm in a house full of werewolves, and the man holding me is my mate....

"It's alright love, you're safe now."

He has no idea just how wrong he is. I've just doomed them all, and there's nothing I can do to fix it.

Apollo

This was not the reaction I expected from my mate.

Silence, distance, and hesitation....Instead of the physical contact pulling us closer, it just seemed to push her away. Ronan and I are both anxious and on edge, pacing in the hallway outside her door. Instead of sharing a room as mates usually do, she chose to be in another one...which is across the hall from me. Her scent is driving me mad, to smell her and feel her presence but not be able to touch her is torment to me and my wolf...but I understand that I need to be patient, my mate isn't a werewolf like me...so I can't rush her. Goddess only knows what circumstances brought her into my life, I can only guess.

To be honest, it could be worse. She could have tried to run again, she could've flat out rejected me- that particular thought sends a wave of pain and fear through me. She didn't though, instead she decided to stay, but proceeds to stay as far from me as possible. It still hurts immensely even if it isn't true rejection.

I still don't even know what her name is.

She almost never talks, and the rare times she does it's one or two word answers. It's worrying me greatly, I honestly can't even tell what she thinks of me. Does she hate me? If she did she wouldn't willingly stay...unless it's because of the storm. Does she know what I am? Is that what's keeping her at bay? Is she afraid of me? Or is it something else entirely?

I growl in frustration, the lack of answers is almost as irritating as the numerous questions. It's been two weeks since she woke up and I still don't know anything about who she is.

All I do know is very simple.

The eyes that were closed to me when we met are a beautiful blue color with multiple hues, and their beauty is enhanced by the intense emotions in them. Even if she doesn't speak to me I can see the emotions flicker in her eyes, especially if I catch her staring at me. It's not a glare, or hate in the slightest, but rather...frustration and guilt. Why does she feel guilty when she looks at me?

The second is that she's bilingual. On a few of the occasions she's talked, I've heard her mutter words of a different language under her breath. After some research and finding a pack member who knew, I discovered it was Greek, and the words she uttered were curse words. It's intriguing that she's Greek, or at least knows the language.

Third is the most impressive, her combat skills. The day she woke up, I came back to the pack house to find her taking on four of the top warriors at the front door. Meaning she not only took them all on at once, but she nearly walked out the door before they noticed she was out of the room she was staying in. She was tossing them around like rag dolls, leaving distinct knife wounds on their bodies, some of them deep enough to scar, as well as dark bruises and a few cracked ribs. As angry as I was that they made her feel like she was in danger, I have to admit I enjoyed the view of her kicking ass, werewolf ass for the win. I was right when I felt she was stronger than she appeared.

But besides that, I know nothing about her as a person...her inner thoughts and feelings are a complete mystery to me.

~Have patience kid...she'll let us in soon enough...~ Ronan murmurs, and I have to admit that he's right. Sighing, I place a hand on her bedroom door for a brief moment before walking upstairs to the Alpha's office...my meeting with Darin can no longer wait.

"Apollo, come on in." Alpha Darin says as he sees me in the doorway, and enter the room to sit down in front of his desk.

"I heard about you finding your mate, I wanted to personally give you my congratulations." He says with a smile. "I leave for 2 weeks and come back to find my future Gamma has found his mate...what else do I miss when I go on trips?"

"Thanks, and honestly not much, the mate part was a surprise..." I reply, and he raises a brow at my tone.

"Is there something wrong?"

"Well..." I hedge, and he gives me the 'spill it' look.

"She's not very receptive to my presence. Instead of the first touch pulling us closer, she's only kept her distance. I don't think it's from spite, she has this guilt and sadness in her eyes whenever I catch her looking at me."

I proceed to explain the full story of meeting her, the lighting, the dart, her nearly escaping, and he leans back in his chair in deep thought.

"Hmm, perhaps she's more than human?" He murmurs, and I blink in surprise.

"You mean, like a witch?"

"Yes, it's definitely possible, you said it yourself that you felt she was powerful. It's very possible she could be a mage of some kind, one that specializes in lightning?" He questions, tapping his chin.

Honestly, it would make sense. The only way she could've been in the impact zone of the strike without being harmed is if she created the lightning in the first place.

But that also would mean that she very likely knows what I am, what we are, and what she is to me. That I would never hurt her, and no one in the pack would dare to try.

So, what's really keeping her away?

"Well, I'm sure you two will get closer. And in the meantime, I wanted to let you know that your new home is set to be finished by spring, and you'll be presented as the new Gamma once the weather lets up and we can have an official ceremony."

"Thank you, Alpha." I say as I stand up, shaking his hand.

"Of course, you've earned it Apollo. And I'm sure whatever is going on with your mate will settle soon, I have a good feeling."

"I certainly hope so."