"Someone find that damn fox!" Someone shouted and their voice sent a shiver down my spine. I heard the scrambling of feet going all over the pack house. I silently crept towards the door of the room I went in to. I listened carefully for anyone near me. When I couldn't hear anyone I made a mad dash for the front door. When I got close I jumped and wrapped my tiny paws around the doorknob, swinging my body and managing to pull the door open. I dropped down and ran into the night air. I heard a howl before the thundering of paws sounded behind me. I spared a glance back and my heart leapt to my throat when I saw a huge dark brown wolf chasing after me.

I was small and quick so I managed to get into the forest before he did but I still wasn't out of the territory. All of a sudden he was over me and he dropped his heavy body on me. I struggled to get free. This is the only time where I curse being so small. He growled and I ceased struggling. He moved off me briefly and grabbed the scruff of my neck in his jaws. He began walking back to the pack house with my tail dragging along the ground. He picked up his speed and he trod on my tail, making me yip in pain. He nudged the front door open with his nose and people watched in curiosity as he took my small body up the stairs. He dropped my on the bed, shifted back and quickly locked the door so I couldn't escape. I went under the bed and curled myself into another ball. He grabbed a pair of pants and pulled them on before sitting on the bed. I slowly unrolled myself and poked my head out. I looked up to see the guy looked down at me.

"I won't hurt you." He said. He slowly put his hand down and I sniffed at it. He's killed people, that's for sure but it was a long time ago. I looked back at him to see him looking down at me. I don't think he wants to hurt me. I slowly came out of hiding and jumped on to the bed. I approached him slowly and sniffed him. I put my paw on him to get closer but I pulled it away with a surprised bark when I felt intense sparks. I forgot about those. I sat down and wrapped my fluffy tail around my paws as I watched him closely.

"I'm mated to an animal." He sighed as he ran his hand down his face. I got up from my spot and walked up to him. I surprised him by rubbing my furry face against the underside of his chin. He stroked the length of my back and I purred.

"What am I going to do?" He asked himself. He suddenly got off the bed and walked towards the door. I took a running start and jumped, landing on his shoulders and making myself comfortable. He chuckled quietly and he kept on walking. As he kept on going, I grew more confused as to where he was going. He pushed open a set of large wooden doors to reveal and older couple standing in the middle of the room talking with each other.

"Derek? Why did you call us here?" The man asked. So this was Derek.

"This is Melody." He said as he gestured to me. I raised my head and the couple's eyes widened.

"I thought it was dead." The man whispered and the woman nodded in agreement.

"She is my mate." Derek said in a quieter voice. The room was dead silent. All of a sudden the couple began to laugh loudly.

"That's a good one, Derek. I haven't laughed this had in ages." The woman wheezed.

"I'm not joking." Derek told them but they kept laughing like they didn't hear him. I nuzzled his jawline and he leant into me. I turned back to the couple and let out a bark. That got their attention back to us and their laughter died down. They saw Derek's serious face and they completed sobered up.

"You can't be serious, Derek. She's just a dumb animal." The man said and Derek growled.

"I don't care what she is. She is my mate for god's sake. I don't know how it happened but I'm not going to question it." He told them.

"How are you going to have pups? Can't you just take a she-wolf from the pack to be your Luna?" The woman asked and it was my turn to growl. The looked at me in surprise and I buried my face into Derek's neck.

"No I won't. We'll deal with the pup issue when the time comes. Now that you're up to speed, you can go." Derek said and they walked out. He walked over to the large desk and collapsed into the chair. I spotted a laptop on the desk. I hopped off his shoulders and walked up to it. I sat down and used my nose to tap the keys.

"Melody? What are you doing?" He asked. I moved to the side and he read the message I wrote out loud.

"'I'm a shifter'. What? Really?" You could hear the hope in his voice. I nodded and he grinned widely before frowning.

"Why do you stay in that form then? Why are you a fox?" He asked quickly. I turned back to the computer and slowly answered his questions. He read them out loud again.

"'I'm hate my human form and I don't know why I'm a fox'. Why don't you like your human form?" He asked and I typed again.

"'In my fox form I'm always safe. I feel exposed and at risk when I'm in my human form, regardless of where I am'." He read. It's true. When I'm in my human form I can't help but feel like I'm in constant danger.

"Is your name actually 'Melody'?" He asked and I nodded.

"Do you think you'd be comfortable enough to shift into your human form now?" He asked and I was still for a few seconds before shaking my head.

"That's ok. There's no rush." He said and I looked at him in surprise. I thought he would have gotten me to shift regardless whether I wanted to or not.

"How about we go to bed?" He suggested as he got up from the chair. I followed him out of the room and followed him to his room. I waited on the bed while he got changed. My mouth started to water when I saw his washboard abs. Goddamn they're perfect. He climbed into bed and I curled into his side, quickly falling asleep.