"Alpha's leaving in five minutes." Sean's voice met my ears.

I sleepily turned to see him standing in my doorway. Frowning, I glanced at the time on my watch to see it was seven o'clock at night. I turned to see Molly passed out asleep on my pillows, crumbs lining her chest.

With a quiet grunt, I got up from where I lay and dragged myself to the bathroom. I lazily relieved myself and glanced briefly at the mess of a ponytail on my head. Grumbling about being exhausted, I fixed it into a bun to hide the tangles. I needed a haircut, but the emotional tie to my shield of hair was too strong.

I dragged myself to Sean and left Molly where she was. I shut the door softly before slumping against Sean, wanting nothing more than to go back to sleep. My wolf was excited to see her mate again, but honestly, he gave me whiplash.

"Come on, lazy butt." Sean chuckled, patting my head.

His hand grasped mine as he dragged me along with him and down the first flight of stairs. When we approached the balcony that overlooked the front door, I saw Phoenix standing in the hall, surrounded by a few other wolves. I assumed they were the warriors he was taking with him, going by the size of them. One of them was Michael and I noticed he saw me with wide eyes before looking away.

"Dragging me outta bed for this," I grumbled as we hit the ground floor.

'Don't you want to say goodbye to your mate?' Sean teased.

"Out of my brain poop-face," I growled.

He just chuckled as I raised my blockade, too tired previously to even realise it was open. We approached the group of wolves slowly and Phoenix's attention was immediately on me. I saw him frown down at my appearance and even half asleep I knew I looked like a bird's nest.

"What's she doing here?" A nasal voice grunted.

Jess. Oh, how I hate that woman now.

Sean rolled his eyes, his arm secured around my hand as I leaned against him. Surely, I could just close my eyes one more moment?

"She's with me, and we are here to say goodbye to Alpha Titan." He huffed. "What are you doing here? You're not a warrior."

She grimaced and stared down at me. "I came to give my goodbyes to Alpha, too."

My wolf growled in my mind and I tensed at her double meaning. She wouldn't, would she? I mean, he wouldn't? Surely? My mate and her?

My eyes turned to find Phoenix still fixated on me, his pretty hazel eyes staring right into my own. It was quiet for a moment as we just studied each other, not a feeling of tension to be found. It was quite nice observing him with no strained emotions.

Sean cleared his throat, his arm coming from around my back to hang by his side. Phoenix's eyes snapped to the motion as if realising our closeness. A small, low grumble left his lips as he glared at Sean. But Sean just laughed, discreetly making sure we weren't touching.

Satisfied, Phoenix's darker eyes now turned back to me and glanced at me from head to toe. I shuffled onto one hip, wondering why I'm really here... when I could be in bed!

'Male wolves.' My wolf grumbled.

I really need a name for her.

'Wolfie, do you have a name?' I wondered.

'A name of my choosing, no, but the moon goddess gave me one.' She whimpered.

Well, I want to hear it. I cooed.

'Really?' She chirped.

Yeah, of course!

'Moon goddess called me Celimene.' She purred.

Beautiful. I hummed, causing her to bark.

"Nova?" Sean's voice snapped me out of my trance.

"Huh?" I blinked furiously.

"Where have you been?" He chuckled.

"Sorry was taking to Celimene." I smiled sheepishly.

"Clementine? Do I know her?" He frowned.

I giggled. "Celimene, Sean. My wolf."

"Of heaven, the moon and its strength," Phoenix interjected, stepping towards me.

I blushed. "W-well, I d-don't know abou-about that."

He smirked gently, his hand coming up to cup my face. "Look after yourself while I am gone, Nova Hope... Celimene."

The beauty of his golden-green eyes entrapped me, my wolf practically a puddle at the sound of her mate calling her by her name. My cheek was warm with tingles of pleasure caused by his rough hand. It covered the entire side of my head. I wonder how tall he is on paper...

'I wonder how big he is.' Cel chirped.

My eyes widened, and I found my mouth going dry at her dirty thoughts. The last thing I wanted was to picture Phoenix naked as much as she wanted me to... But the picture of him on the training field was... hot as hell, quite frankly.

I refocused my attention to find Phoenix still holding my face in one hand, except his eyes were a lot darker.

"You be careful too, Alpha Phoenix," I murmured.

His eyes narrowed in displeasure. "I told you to call me Phoenix."

Glancing around, I realised it was just the three of us. In my hazy state, I didn't see them leave.

"Of course, Phoenix." I looked down at my feet.

His thumb stroked my cheek, drawing my attention back to him. His wolf was pulsating with dominance, begging to be seen. I found my eyes become more focused as Cel met his wolf halfway.

"My wolf is Ares." He muttered.

'How fitting.' My wolf chortled.

"Ares," I whispered in return.

His eyes closed briefly, his wolf eyes soon opening to look down upon me. He seemed to fight with himself before he leaned toward me. I stared up at his looming figure, tensing at the approach. But she merely brushed his lips against my forehead, leaving them there a moment longer than necessary as he inhaled my scent.

'You look adorable, half asleep.' His deep voice muttered through my mind.

'Adorable!' Cel scoffed at me.

He leaned away with a soft smile, his hand dropping to his side. I felt suddenly cold without his touch, a loss I was growing accustomed to.

His expression hardened as he turned to Sean. "You will protect her at all costs. Only you and Charlie know of her importance to me. If she is so much as hurt beyond your training, you shall have me to deal with."

Okay, I think I'm drooling now. My wolf was trembling.

"Yes, Alpha." Sean bowed his head at the Alpha's command.

Phoenix turned to me one last time. "I will see you in a few weeks."

I nodded mutely before he gave me one last glance over and turned to walk away. I couldn't tear my eyes away from his retreating figure as he got further away. My hands were twitching, my wolf was whimpering at her stoic mate.

With no control of my limbs, I ran towards him. In a spur of the moment, I wrapped my arms around his waist, burying my head into his crisp shirt. He tensed beneath me, but I was too busy melting into his warmth.

He smelt of Earth and soft sheets. The feeling of his body this close to mine was almost godly. I was going to regret this later. I know I was. Being this close to him was going to hurt me in the next few weeks.

His hands suddenly found their way around my shoulders, and he squeezed me gently. I didn't want to let go, but I knew I had to before someone walked in on this. Then I'd have some explaining to do.

"Be careful," I whispered.

His face fell into my hair, and he sighed. "One day... I wish I could do this every day."

I swallowed nervously, wondering why he was hesitating against the mate bond. But chose to just enjoy the moment. The tingling of his skin and the warmth of our touch.

We reluctantly pulled away and I gave him a soft smile, which he returned. He gave Sean one last hard glance before opening the door and disappearing behind it.

Gone.

It was silent for a few minutes as I listened to the cars driving away, the throbbing of the mate bond going with it. I tried not to focus on it every day, but right now it was aching. Cel was upset her mate was going, their wolves already accepting of each other.

"Well..." Sean began. "I have never ever... never ever seen Alpha smile like that. And... and I've never ever seen anyone run at him and come out alive."

I turned to him with a pointed brow. "What you getting at here?"

He shrugged. "Alpha is a big old puppy after all."

"Oh, you mean like you?"

His eyes narrowed. "Aren't you tired?"

"Extremely." I nodded before marching my way back up the stairs.

"Goodnight, Nova." He called after me.

I found Molly where I left her, and after turning off the TV and moving the snacks to the floor, I climbed in beside her. My heart was full of warmth, the small affection he let slip making me feel fuzzy.

***

A week later, the usually rowdy house seemed on edge. The moment I woke up, I could feel the tension in the pack link.

It was Saturday, so it was more sparring, of course. Despite that, they wouldn't let me shift to join in my wolf form. I had yet to shift, and the growing tension in the pack was really setting Cel on high alert. I could feel her pulsating under my skin, the hairs on my neck standing on end and my nails aching to elongate.

Hey, it's okay. I hummed as I made my way to my shower and washed, leaving my hair dry.

Molly had taken it upon herself to take me shopping every week for the past month, every Tuesday. I didn't have any money since I didn't work in the community, but Sean always insisted on taking money from him. I later found out that Phoenix forced it upon him, which made accepting it a little easier knowing it was my mate's.

But besides the point, I now could decorate my room and en-suite better. I had fern plants growing in my bathroom and along the shower pole, snake plants on my window and a gardenia beside my toilet flush. I even had a few aloe vera that was growing along my vanity shelf. I would harvest them and use them for skin products when they grew well enough. I was loving the plant mum life, and that was only my bathroom.

My bedroom had yet to be decorated, but I had bags of things ready to go. I went with a baby blue and yellow theme, wanting to feel airy and light. I already dotted my plants around, but I've yet to decide on their permanent places.

I smiled to myself as I cracked my bedroom window open, the smell of the dew on the grass hitting me right away. It was 9 am and a few wolves were already out walking the grounds. I was so high in the sky, the distance beyond the trees was telling me the rain was coming.

The shower had relaxed my tight muscles, but Cel was still uneasy. The fact we hadn't shifted meant we didn't have the best control of each other since we bonded little.

I haven't heard from Phoenix since he left, and the mate bond was but a dull ache in my chest. But I knew I had to ask to shift. The only other wolf that knew of my colouring was Beta Charlie. So, I'd have to ask him.

I wandered downstairs to the kitchen and after distastefully eyeing the food laid out; I chose just a fruit salad to start the day. I wasn't feeling food. My appetite had decreased again.

"Hey, Novie." Molly ran over to me from the dining room.

"Hey, Molly. You o-okay?" I smiled.

She shrugged. "Worse day of the week."

I chuckled and grabbed a fork to eat the fruit with. Sitting at a table in the dining room she joined me with a mug of coffee.

"Wonder what we'll be doing today since Alpha Titan has gone." She mused.

I shrugged. "Beta will no d-doubt kick us just as ha-h-hard."

She frowned and gulped the remains of her coffee, eyeing up my bowl of fruit. "No bacon today? It's full English day."

I glanced at the other wolves around me to see their plates high with hash browns, sausage, bacon, tomatoes, and everything else to go with it.

"I don't feel hungry." I shrugged.

She hummed. "Maybe it's because you've not shifted."

"Yeah maybe..." I grimaced. "My wolf was-was really on edge when I w-woke. The t-tension in the p-pa-pack link was so high."

She furrowed her eyebrows. "Tension? There's no tension?"

I paused, staring down at the remaining kiwi and strawberry. "W-what?"

"Yeah, the pack is fine. Nothing bad going on here." She chuckled. "Maybe it was a bad dream... caused by not shifting!"

"Yeah, maybe," I mumbled.

"Anyway, you done? Wanna go outside and find my douche of a brother?" She grinned.

I nodded in agreement and stood in unison with her. Putting my bowl in the kitchen sink, I rinsed it before placing it in a dishwasher. Molly grinned at me when I finished and linked my arm to hers, dragging me along outside.

We wandered towards the sound of male voices. I noticed many men were already out exercising, with Sean watching over them. I could smell Charlie nearby but stuck beside Molly for the time being.

"Oh, big brother!" Molly sang.

I watched his back sag before he turned to us, his arms crossed. His gaze was harsh as he saw his sister, but softened when he saw me. His arms opened from their tense posture and with a small smile, I walked myself into them. He squeezed me gently and briefly. My big teddy bear gave great hugs, I will admit.

I turned to see Molly gaping at us, not moving from where I left her. "Y-you-you-she-you... you hug her, but not me?"

I could taste her jealousy on my tongue and gave her a sheepish smile, but Sean just chuckled. I noticed a few wolves behind us were giving overly curious glances.

"That's 'cause I like Nova." He chirped.

She gasped. "How rude!"

He rolled his eyes. "What do you want, anyway?"

She huffed but dropped the subject, giving me a pointed look. A hint at my feminine charm, as she calls it.

"What are we doing today?" She grinned innocently.

He rolled his eyes. "Sparring. It's a sparring day. Human vs human, wolf vs wolf. Except for you, Nova, medical grounds still prevent you from shifting."

She frowned, obviously realising Sean was unaware of my heritage fur. "Aww, no fair."

"Go do girl stuff or whatever. You have half an hour." He rolled his eyes.

"Girl stuff." She scoffed. "How sexist of you!"

Sensing another upcoming sibling fight, I slowly crept away from the pair. Once out of Molly's range, I saw Sean's eyes dart to me suspiciously; that man always had an eye on me. I smiled sheepishly as he glared daggers.

'Leave me with her! Thanks.' He groaned.

I giggled, but rolled my eyes and made my way to where I could see Charlie in the distance. He was speaking to someone on his mobile and I could tell it was a tense conversation, so I held back from getting too close. Once he saw me, he gave me a small smile and said something else into the device. He lowered it to his chest and raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, I just wanted to have a word with you, Beta." I smiled sheepishly, stepping forward.

He nodded and returned to his call. "Yes... yes, it was her."

I furrowed my brows in confusion as he glanced at me again. He faux yawned but continued to listen.

"Yes... Yes Alpha, okay. Talk soon." And he hung up the phone.

My wolf bristled at the thought of her mate being on the phone. But I pushed her back down.

"What's up, Nova?" He smiled and came closer.

I glanced up at his warm chocolate eyes and scrunched up my nose. "W-Well... I was just W-wo-wondering... if-if I c-can shift soon?"

He frowned, hesitant to respond. "A random question, Nova. What brought it on?"

I shrugged. "Well, I h-haven't shifted in-in over 6 weeks. An-and only once really... and I h-have been-s...struggling with my wolf's control. She's ma-making me f-feel so m-much tension, that even today she woke me up b-because of it."

He frowned deeper. "That has been quite some time. Has Alpha not let you shift since?"

I shook my head. "I f-feel like I'm losing it... control."

He nodded, deep in thought. "Okay, I will take you out later tonight, where no wolves are about. And we will shift and maybe hunt. Keep it private, though. Alpha doesn't want people to know of your wolf."

I sighed and cast a glance at the ground. His hand came onto my shoulder and he gave me a soft smile.

"It's for your own benefit. Honestly." He smiled. "As for the tension, the pack is fine... unless... well... The only tension is coming from where Alpha is. He's having a rough time trying to settle ranks. But you'd only feel that if..."

He eyes me warily, moving closer to sniff me. I jolted away in surprise, giving him an incredulous look.

"Don't even think about it."

"Sorry Nova, I just don't understand why you're feeling his emotions this early into the bond."

I grimaced anger boiling. "Well, maybe I wouldn't be so high alert if I first could shift. Second, not be treated like dirt by pack members glaring at me. And last, if I actually n-knew what was g-going on between me and m-my-my mate, I wouldn't be so on edge. I feel like a t-t-toy being dragged along! One m-moment he's avoiding me, the n-next he's kissing me! If-if he's going to reject me, can't he j-just do it already?"

His once wide eyes lowered in sympathy. "Nova, he's doing it-"

"Save it." I snapped. "I'll see you later."

Not giving him another glance, I stormed off into the tree line to cool myself off. I could feel my claws had extended and my teeth had sharpened. I was on the edge of shifting, so took myself a little further into the woods. I had never let a partial shift through this far. The hair on my arms turned black and I could feel my bones aching, ready to switch forms.

"Nova!" A voice called out.

Not him. I groaned, turning further into the bushes. He followed me, his stronger nose being the better tracker. His hand came down on my shoulder and I turned in an instant and bared my teeth at him. I was acting on instinct and right now I wanted to be alone.

Sean's eyes widened as he scanned me head to toe. "Hey, hey Nova. It's okay, it's just me. Just shift if you need to. I won't hurt you."

I whimpered at the genuine tone of his voice, wanting nothing more to submit to the feeling. But I couldn't. I was sworn not to shift without the Alpha or Beta beside me.

The reality of the situation had me calming down, and I felt my joints slowly relax, my teeth blunting back to their vegetarian norm. I slowly sank my claws back into their place with a grunt.

Standing straight once again, I sighed, casting a glance at the leafy ground. "S-sorry."

"It's okay." He sighed, pulling me into his embrace. "You had good control. You should have just shifted."

I shook my head against his chest, holding onto the fabric of his shirt. "I'm not allowed."

He pulled me away at arm's length. "Why not Nova? I would love to meet your wolf."

I chewed my lip. "I'm only allowed to shift with Beta or Alpha... but I haven't in weeks."

He grimaced. "That's not fair to your wolf, Novie."

I nodded. "I know, I was t-talking to Charlie about it and h-he said I can shift with him tonight... but I g-got angry about Phoenix."

He nodded in understanding. "The purest person I know gets stuck with an unemotional rock for eternity. How ironic. He can be an ass Nova, an ass with power. He cannot lead you on like this, not if you're to be the Luna. It's not good for you, or even the pack. We've had Phoenix as Alpha for twelve years now, it's been a long time since we had a Luna. We're becoming too careless and power-hungry. You've heard the rumours."

I nodded in agreement. "It's just hard."

He hugged me again. "I know Novie, and it shouldn't be. Not for you. You deserve more than this."