It was raining.

The tiny droplets came in gentle slaps against my skin; gradually morphing into downpours of cold inclement pricks and urging us to step back and take shelter in the confines of the gazebo.

But none of that mattered. We simply didn't care.

Vanilla Ice's Ice Ice Baby blasted off through the speaker; it's familiar beat and melody compelling me to dance wildly on the forest floor, with only a laughing Storm as my audience.

"Ice ice baby, vanilla, ice ice baby!" I whisper-shouted out along with the artist, making my already amused mate chuckle all the more.

He was casually leaning against an old spruce tree; a common abundance in Maine, with his arms crossed over his chest and his head slightly tilted on one side. He was soaked from head to toe, despite the little protection the tree offered. The shirt he was wearing clung to his body wantonly, making way for his ripped muscles and body clear for everyone to see.

I watched the way his eyes shone with mirth, creating sunbeams that striked through my heart in the midst of rain. Lips stretched out into a smile, the resonant sound of his laughter overpowered and drowned out the music, making my heart dash away in sporadic beats.

He caught me staring and I winced, quickly looking elsewhere. I bet he was smirking right now. The twat.

"You should shift. I remember you said you haven't since we arrived here." I blinked and slowly nodded.

"Yes, but I also said Bella's recently been dormant." He hummed and stepped out from the tree's refuge and joined me in the rain.

I wonder how I looked right now with my dress almost like second skin.

Storm trudged towards me and softly caressed my cheek. I jumped slightly; shocked by the unforeseen spark of intimacy. His gray eyes glazed over and turned into luminous gold irises, beckoning his wolf forward.

Feeling giddy all of a sudden on meeting his wolf for the first time, I felt Bella's presence emerge vigorously and pull me back to take charge.

Storm-well, Storm's wolf- smiled lovingly at us. It was weird looking at Storm like this—loving and gentle. He was usually either confused with what to do with me or just passive and cold. But then again, this really wasn't completely Storm, so...

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, agápi mou." His deep and regnant voice reverberated around the silent but listening forest, causing me to shiver with its dominance.

"What took you so long?" Bella breathed out; a sense of longing evident in her tone.

The golden hue in his eyes turned a deeper shade as he sighed. "I apologize. I...was confused for a while."

Bella paused and frowned, struggling to decide if we should tell them now that we already knew someone preceded us. Deciding against it, she gave a tight-lipped smile. "I understand. I am Bella and my human is Yzavel. What is your name?"

"Bella...Yzavel," he repeated. The mere mention of our names made our breath hitch in delight. "My name is Lakan."

His name suited his stature. Lakan was an ancient word of Philippine origin which meant 'paramount ruler'. Him and Storm were revered both collectively and separately. They were, after all, considered the Alpha King of North America since they rule the Cinori.

Although, the idea of Alpha Kings doesn't exist anymore.

"Let us shift?" Lakan asked, interrupting our thoughts. Bella nodded eagerly, realizing the demand of nature for us to change into our wolf form.

I crouched down in a position set to support me from shifting. Seeing Storm already in the process of turning, I felt my own bones snap, distorting to form an inhumane figure—my wolf.

Almost immediately did all of my senses heighten. Everything was a staggering zoomed in version of life; almost like seeing the smallest pixels in a computer. I could see the particles that come with a raindrop, the swish of the leaf that fell from a tree a few meters away; the smell of petrichor slowly kissing the wet earth.

I closed my eyes and savored the feel of the shift, feeling a deeper bond with nature and life. Bella finally felt relief and so did I. Storm finally gave us the time of the day and met Lakan.

A nip at our ear made us open one eye, taking a peek at Lakan. He barked and nudged his snout towards one direction, seemingly telling us to run first. Ladies first, if he could talk out loud.

I wasn't marked yet, let alone mated. Storm hasn't even really claimed me, except when he introduced me to the then confused pack. Other than that, intimacy wasn't a present factor in our relationship. This is why we couldn't engage in a mind linked conversation with him and Lakan.

Until now. And Goddess help me, please let this keep going on.

He growled, snapping me out of my thoughts. Bella whined and pretended to drop dead on the ground, making me embarrassed as usual.

Welcome back, Bella. I grumbled, now instantly regretting to push her out of her 'hiatus'.

Yes, I am back. I'm glad we've met his wolf. I was tired of the prude human, she said with haughtiness.

Bella was a very sassy wolf and sometimes it was hard to get used with her bluntness, but she wasn't all that. Despite her funny personality, she has saved me more times than I could count. She was always there for me and became the reason why we were deemed the best tracker in our pack.

Her being dormant shifted a different emotion within me. I felt robbed of half of my soul. It was a loss I wouldn't dare wish on anyone.

Lakan pawed Bella's belly, making her yelp and get up. I laughed and gushed at Lakan's adorable urge to get her running and she scoffed. She dug her claws on the ground, scratching and feeling it to be familiarized with the territory's dirt.

And so we ran with the cloud's tears dropping on our midnight fur.

______________

"Bella is beautiful," Storm complimented with a smile. I looked down as a blush creeped across my cheeks, and bit my lip to hold in the ecstatic smile trying to tear through my lips. I felt a surge of Bella's pride and I agreed.

Bella was like any other wolf—she had an acajou brown pelt that turns into a darker, almost raven shade when she's under the moonlight. She wasn't enormous like an Alpha and not as small as an Omega...just the right size and height; perfect for a tracker. There wasn't anything unique like being of white fur or having a different shaded spot in her anatomy.

What made her special was her aura. She stood regal, her command and confidence demanding notice from her surroundings. She was also an extremely fast runner, what with the years of excessive training on her specialty that molded her. This was, if she was serious enough though.

Most of the times she's just bratty, but only with me.

"She agrees," I mused, earning a chuckle from him. By now, the incessant rain has finally stopped, and we were just sitting down on a wooden bench in the gazebo we ate dinner in. It was silent between us, but the silence was blissful and full of unspoken relief.

From a distance, we saw Khal hastily running towards us. I frowned, a sense of uneasiness engulfing me. Something is wrong.

He arrived panting and trying to catch his breath, he said, "Alpha, Luna... We have a problem."

• •

It took me so long to finally come out of the shell of insecurities I was entrapped in. I'm so sorry for the very extensive delay of updating. For a long time, I felt my writing wasn't good enough. I had already planned the main ideas for the most important chapters, but I had no clue how to expand this into chapters.

Here is my apology to all of you who are still journeying Storm and Yzav's life with me. Thank you.

See you next chap?