Apollo

This is probably one of the best moments of my life.

I sit beside my parents on the couch as I watch my mate play with my little brother Kyon, building a large tower out of Legos together. My other brother Jace sits and watches, smiling at Kyon's antics instead of playing on his phone for once. He also watches Aella closely, curiosity and intrigue clearly seen in his gaze. I don't blame him, she is very intriguing.

The smile on her face makes me feel overwhelmingly happy, there aren't many things that could top this.

"She looks so much happier than before baby, what happened?" My mom asks, barely able to contain herself.

"After I came back from that meeting, we talked for a while...and ended up sleeping in the same bed."

She suppresses a squeal, hugging my shoulders and shaking me a little.

"And?"

"And, when we woke up this morning we talked some more. What we liked, and other things about ourselves. We actually have some things in common."

"Like?"

"I have a feeling she'd love your beef stroganoff recipe."

Smiling wide, she jumps up and starts running towards the kitchen.

"Then we will have it for dinner!"

I laugh at my mother's energy and enthusiasm. She loves cooking for family, and the fact that Aella likes that dish too only makes her want to cook more.

It was difficult for mom to keep her distance from my mate all this time, and now that she's letting us in, mom is going to take every opportunity she can to get closer to her. This morning for instance, she was practically glued to her side, and on the few occasions she wasn't, she watched Aella and I interact from a distance. We've spent almost the entire day together as a family, watching movies and talking...even if mom stared at us the whole time, I have enjoyed it.

"I have a feeling your mother is going wear herself out from trying to bond with your mate." Dad murmurs as he grins at me, and I can't suppress the chuckle.

"She doesn't even know about the cookies yet."

"Goddess help us."

We both laugh, getting the attention of the trio on the floor. Aellas' blue eyes gaze up at me, their depths giving me chills. I'll never get used to the feeling...and I hope I never do.

"What's so funny?" Kyon asks, sitting next to her with an action figure in his hands. She looks so comfortable sitting with him like that...but there is something I've been thinking about doing with her since the moment she came into my life.

"Kyon, Jace, why don't we go help mom in the kitchen, she's going to bake some cookies too." Dad says, catching the look between us.

They both get up and follow Dad to the kitchen, and I crouch down to the floor to meet Aellas' eyes. I curl my hands around hers carefully, and she tilts her head in curiosity.

"My mom is going to be busy in the kitchen for a while, so I was wondering if you wanted to explore the territory with me a little before it gets dark?"

"That sounds nice."

I smile and help pull her up, leading her to the front door. I give her one of my large hoodies to wear over the two shirts she's already wearing, she's not as resistant to the cold as I am, so she needs the extra layers. That, and the sweatshirt will envelope her in my scent. I know she's far from ready when it comes to marking...so until then this will suffice.

I hug her body to mine as we walk outside, her cuddling into my side makes me and Ronan growl in content...which turns her cheeks red. The weather is finally decent enough for a walk, and it gives me the opportunity to show her what our land looks like outside the packhouse. I know she's been feeling pent up indoors, even if the house is humongous.

Going throughout the territory, I show her the homes and training grounds. Introducing her to any of the pack members we ran into as we walk, they were all extremely happy to meet her at last, even joking that I had been hiding her away from the rest of world. She seemed so surprised at their enthusiasm, like she was with my parents, but it didn't stop her from talking to them before we continued on.

~Can I meet her now? I'm the only one she hasn't met yet.~ Ronan whines inside my head, impatient to meet her as well.

~I think that's a good idea...just let me get to a more private place to do it.~

I stop for a moment and look down at her, her cheeks flushed from cold. It's about time we head back inside, but I think we can make one more stop before the sun sets.

"Before we go back home, I want to show you something. My favorite place on the territory."

Her eyes glimmer with curiosity, and she nods.

"I would love to see it."

My heart swells up so big I swear it's gonna burst, and my smile nearly splits my face in half as I show her the way.

After about fifteen minutes of walking, I push past a wall of bushes and small trees to reveal the best place on the territory. The ground halts to a jagged cliff, the drop at least three hundred feet down. From it you can see the entire town below, as well as incredible sunrises, and like tonight, incredible sunsets.

The sinking sun casts a soft orange glow over the snow covered trees and houses, the frozen blanket glimmering in the bright light. Whenever I have the chance I come here to watch the sun, and occasionally the moon. In fact, the only thing that makes this place look better is night time during a full moon.

"It's so beautiful Apollo..." She murmurs in wonder, and as I look down at her awestruck face, I realize I was wrong. There is something else that can make this place more incredible...her.

The glow of the sinking sun casts beautifully over her face, changing her eyes from a icy blue color to that of lake at sunset.

I continue to stare at her in silence, the sunset long forgotten. She turns to me after a while, no doubt wondering why I didn't answer, and she blushes when she sees me staring, which only enhances the color on her face. I lift my hand to her cheek, my thumb softly brushing over her lips. Another thing I've dreamed of doing swirls around in my thoughts, and I finally pull myself together enough to ask.

"Can I kiss you?"

Her eyes widen, and the blush on her cheeks deepens. After a few seconds, she nods, that bit of shyness returning. I smile and tilt her face up to mine, leaning down to her level as my eyes close. Our lips press together softly, a purring sound rumbles from my chest as her lips slowly against mine, the sparks sending a warmth through me. I caress the back of her head, my hands running through the soft tendrils of her hair. The sigh that whispers against my mouth between kisses lets me know she's enjoying this as much as I am, her hands gently sliding up my chest as we continue.

Eventually, I convince myself to pull away, not wanting to go too far before she's comfortable. As I start to pull back, she whimpers, and I peck her on the lips as consolation before pulling back completely. I watch her eyes flutter open, embarrassment and content painting her expression.

"Thank you, Sweetheart."

The nickname just rolled off my tongue without a second thought, and I suddenly feel a bit anxious. I don't know if she would even like being called that.

"Sweetheart?"

Clearing my throat, I rub the back of my neck.

"I'm sorry, if you don't li-"

"No, it's fine...I kind of like it..." She interrupts, her eyes dropping to my chest. I chuckle and press a kiss to her forehead, internally sighing in relief.

"You truly are adorable."

I pull her flush against my chest, and as we watch the sun sink a little lower in the sky, I finally remember Ronan's desire to meet her.

"Aella, you do recall that werewolves have an inner wolf, right?"

"Yes, but I haven't met yours yet."

"Would you like to? Because he wants to meet you."

She looks up, a bit surprised.

"He does?"

"Yes, very much."

She smiles. "I'd love to meet him."

"His name is Ronan."

I extract myself from her arms with some effort, and smile as she tries to follow me.

"I have to shift for you to see him love, so you might want to turn around."

Her eyes narrow in confusion before she understands what I'm saying, quickly turning her back to me before I start undressing. As fast as she turned, it wasn't fast enough to hide her wide eyes and flushed face.

I slowly shift into my wolf form after removing my clothes, towering a few inches taller than I already was. I shake out my fur instinctively, and bark to get her attention. Jumping at my sudden bark, she turns around to face us, and freezes in place. A look of recognition crosses her features, which is odd considering that I've never shown her my wolf form.

I step towards her, making sure my movements are slow and calculated. Does she not like us? Is she afraid of us?

I whine and step closer, the appearance of tears glistening down her cheeks makes me whimper as I place myself directly in front of her. I rub my muzzle against her cheeks, trying to wipe away her tears.

"A-Apollo?"

I nod and rub my muzzle against her shoulder, her fingers running through the thick, brownish gray fur on my shoulders and neck. Her head level with my chest, she buries her face into it, and the purring sound returns full force. We stand like this for a few minutes, dropping my head behind her back to return her embrace. Her soft sniffles are muted by my fur.

"Mom was right."

I prick my ears up at her voice, raising my head to look down at her in confusion. She smiles and rubs behind my ears, a pleasant sensation. I can't communicate very well in this form, at least, not with her unmarked, but I listen intently.

"When I was little, I used to have a dream...it was the same one over and over again, and it always ended the same way."

She pauses, and I tilt my head to the side, waiting for her to continue.

"One day, my mom told me she had been having the same dream since I was born...except, it was vision. When I asked her what it meant she said I would meet them one day, and what happened afterwards was up to me."

She rubs the fur under my eyes, and I watch her carefully, wanting nothing more than for her to finish the story.

"The dream was about wolf with gray and brown fur, and golden eyes. Apollo, it was you."

Eyes widening, I enthusiastically lick her neck and face. Her mother knew I would find her? She has dreamed of me since she was little? She's known she would meet me before I was old enough to find her?

She giggles at the feeling of my tongue on her skin, half-heartedly trying to push me away. The goddess is so generous for blessing me with such a extraordinary mate, one that has dreamed of me as a child. I'm so lucky...I will never let her generosity go to waste.

As the sun finally disappears below the horizon, I finally notice how cold it has gotten, my mates hands cold and her lips trembling. Gently picking up my clothes with my teeth, I crouch down to the ground, motioning for her to climb on my back. Hesitating only for a moment, she manages to straddle my back, directly behind my shoulders.

She squeaks in surprise as I stand up, her arms immediately locking around my neck, at least attempting to anyway. I begin trotting back towards home, our pace much faster than the one we used to get here.

I relish the feeling of her arms around me as we head home, knowing full well that mom is going to interrogate us all through dinner.