Second chance love

Everyone knows that when you turn 17 you shift for the first time, and you have the opportunity to find your mate. The Moon Goddess chooses your perfect soulmate, the one that completes you and makes you wonder how you were ever able to feel happiness before.  Holly walked towards her wardrobe and pondered her outfit choices for the evening. It was the day of her best friend Finn's 17th birthday, his parents were throwing a huge celebration as he was their only son, and the next Beta. While she skimmed over her summer dresses, discarding each of them in turn, Holly once again prayed that Finn was her other half, her mate. She had always known she had feelings for Finn, from the first time he bumped into her - literally - at school. He looked at her through his overgrown fringe with chocolate brown eyes and mumbled an apology while running out of the dining hall. This was back at the very beginning of high school, just as Finn had moved to the area, and before he became adjusted to the school being mixed cohort of both humans and wolves. He later admitted that he wasn't sure who he could trust and was avoiding everyone he could. Holly found that adorable, in a completely non patronising way. That was before the next Alpha, Darren, had taken him under his wing and showed him around. Now Finn was no longer the nervous new kid and was definitely coming into his own as the next Beta. Holly would always be grateful to her older brother Darren for accepting Finn as his potential Beta, and for allowing her to tag along with the pair of them any time she wanted. There was only two years between Holly and Darren, and she was fast approaching her 17th birthday. She couldn't wait. As she was lost in her own thoughts, Holly heard a soft knock on the door. Her mother, the pack Luna poked her head around her door.  "Are you okay darling?" She asked, with a look of motherly concern clearly etched on her face.  "I'm just debating throwing all of my clothes out, no big deal." Holly had already given up hope of finding the perfect outfit for the evening and was mentally kicking herself for not agreeing on the shopping trip her mother had suggested earlier that day.  "I'm sure it's not that bad," her mother soothed her, "and if it is, then maybe you'd like to wear this?" She stepped fully into Holly's bedroom holding a beautiful pale yellow dress, that flowed down to the ground with a slight slit up the side that would be ideal for showing off one of her toned and tanned legs. Holly practically squealed as she grabbed the dress off it's hanger and ran into her bathroom to change.  "I take it you like it then?" her mother laughed, calling through the open door. "Are you kidding mama, I love it! It's perfect!" She stepped out of her bathroom and beamed with glee at her mother who was sat at the end of her bed. It was only then that Holly realised that the Luna was dressed ready for the evening too, wearing a simple loose fitting white gown that looked as though it would trail ever so slightly on the ground as she walked. Her mother always did know how to look like an angel who walks the earth.  "Wow!" Her mother breathed, "It looks even better than I imagined it would. You look gorgeous baby girl." Holly looked at herself in the full length mirror on the back of the bathroom door. She smoothed the fabric over her stomach, noticing that it pulled in just enough at the waist to enhance her natural curves, and the sleeves that hung just off her shoulder and trailed all the way down to her fingertips were translucent enough to show off her summer tan. The colour matched the blonde highlights in her normally chestnut coloured hair, and the green and blue flower detail that outlined her modest cleavage brought out the sparkle in her sea-green eyes.  'If Finn doesn't realise I'm his mate in this, then he never will!'  Holly thought to herself happily. She popped on a pair of white sandals and a touch of strawberry scented lip balm, and turned to her mother who was watching her and radiating with pride for the young woman she saw in front of her. She took a blue flowered hair clip from her pocket and used it to pin her daughter's hair so that it wouldn't get blown by the breeze from the sea, and gave her a quick peck on the forehead.  "Let's get going then, shall we?" She said, linking her arm through Holly's and guiding her towards the open bedroom door.  Holly walked out, with a feeling that this was the night that would change her life forever. If only she realised how right she was.