The Alpha's Embrace

Onward

Serenity walked with a pip in her step. She felt liberated, and a weight was lifted after that chat. It was only when Serenity gathered her clothes that she had tossed half hazardously did she realize Mary didn't follow.

Serenity got dressed and sat on the porch calmly, waiting to see if Mary would show up. It was not until Serena came to call her for dinner that Serenity went inside.

"I thought Aunt Mary was staying for dinner? I made extra to..." Serena scratched her head in confusion as she looked at her sister.

"She got called to do something." Serenity casually made up an excuse for why Mary didn't follow. Serena made the noise 'oh' before dropping it, and the two sat down and had dinner.

After that, the sisters cleaned up and went upstairs to shower and go to bed. After all, it was late.

"Ren?" Serena called out to Serenity before she could enter her room. Serenity turned her head and answered with a hum. "You seem more relaxed, less tense. Did you figure things out?"

"Yeah, Serena, I figured things out." Serenity smiled softly at her. "Don't worry, little piggy. Everything is going to be alright."

After exchanging a few more words, the sisters entered their respective rooms. Serena rested her forehead on the closed door as she silently thought. 'The more you say not to worry, the more I worry.'

With a sigh, Serena moved away from the door to get ready for bed. Jorah sat on his brother's bed. Silence enveloped them both. Since they got back, Jared hasn't said a word. He just sat in a chair, staring out the window.

Jorah could understand Jared. After all, the pain of rejection was no joke. Actually, he still felt uncomfortable. This discomfort would stay until the day Serena and himself finished the mating ritual and marked one another.

Jorah instincts screamed at him to forcefully mark her, but that wouldn't do him any good. He couldn't give Serena any reason to push him away. This was beside the point. The point was that he was curious to know what thoughts were running through Jared's mind.

"I'd never understand some people's stubbornness about rejection." Jared opened his mouth and began talking. Jorah looked at his brother, but his brother's gaze was still fixated outside the window. "Rejection never works. In the end, the mates end up not being able to resist. So what's the point? If rejection was as simple as this. There would be nobody suffering because of who their mate is."

"Jared....." Jorah didn't even know how to begin. His kind, softhearted brother was hurting so much. "Let's not look at this negatively. Even if she wanted, she'd never be able to stop the bond, and eventually, you'll get together."

"How many wolves do you think rejected their mates because they were the wrong s*x? How many of them fought the bond because of the so-called traditions of werewolf society?" Jared tapped his chin. "How many of those people were cast out? Or intentionally went rogue?"

"Jared..." Jorah helplessly called out to his brother. He knew this was something that weighed heavy on Jared's mind. The people were hurt by their elders, who just couldn't understand why the goddess would give them a mate of the same s*x.

This was the change Jared and Jorah worked so hard for. For these people to be able to live out in the open. Mates were sacred to werewolves. So, not being accepted because you can't choose your mate must be a painful thing to go through. The elders called it blasphemy when two wolves of the same s*x become mates. Why? Because it's something they couldn't understand. To the elderly, the continuation of the race is important and those people who were mated to the same s*x cannot help continue it.

So they try to destroy it. But this way of thinking is dated. It wasn't like the fate of the werewolf race laid on the shoulders of those people. It wasn't fair, so Jared and Jorah began a campaign to end the suffering. To not only bring liberation to them but also, to women whose talents are constantly repressed by men. Serenity was living proof that a woman was capable of becoming an alpha. Not only did Serenity become alpha, but she also brought up the status of women in her pack. Now she had a few women in various positions of power.

Jared admired Serenity from afar, even going as far as to call her his idol. So when he found out she was his mate, he was happy. But that happiness didn't last long.

"The way she looked at me." Jared turned his head and made eye contact with his twin before he continued speaking. "My wolf cried out. Underneath that coldness and indifference was a woman crying out."

"No, not this again, Jared. Don't you dare f*****g tolerate someone else's selfishness because they are suffering. This is not Alisha you're dealing with. She's your mate and capable of doing more damage to you than our sister. " Jorah immediately started to convince Jared otherwise.

"I know that. I'm not stupid. It's just that even if I could respect her choice not to be mated with me, I can't. She's broken. So very broken. I know I can't fix her if she doesn't want my help, but until then, I'm staying by her side." Jared told Jorah.

"Is that your resignation speech?" Jorah couldn't help but ask. Jared looked at his twin, slightly speechless by the question.

"I'm not resigning yet, there's a lot to do and people we have to save. Don't tell me you forgot our vow?" Jared asked and Jorah nodded in response.

"Of course I remember. Even if we can't eliminate the stigma, we can spread the understanding and reason to the masses. If it can't be done in our generation, there's hope for the next." Jorah clenched his fist excitedly as he continued, "Hopefully there won't be any more Alishas. "

"Yeah," Jared smiled softly, "Why don't we have dinner and then discuss some contingencies for the upcoming power struggle?"

Jorah nodded, and the brothers went to eat dinner before they began their discussion.

After leaving the area Serenity's house was in, Mary ran around and tried cooling her head off. But the more she ran, the more frustrated she got. Somehow, she ended up at Thomas' house. Scratching the floor with her claws. She tentatively mindlinked Thomas to go outside.

When the confused Thomas appeared, Mary was pacing in circles in her wolf form. "What happened?"

"I f****d up!" Mary shifted into her human form and informed Thomas. She began to tell him about the conversation she had with Serenity and Thomas couldn't help but be speechless.

"You went and did the very f*****g thing you told me not to do? What the f**k is wrong with you Mary?" Thomas exploded.

"f**k" Mary clasped her hands together as she sat down and rocked back and forth uneasily. "I know what I just did. I created a bigger problem."

"What does she intend to do then?" Thomas asked, rubbing his aching forehead in circles.

"Lie." Mary answered truthfully. "If the truth can not be hidden any longer, she's going to lie."

"Great, that's just perfect. Just the words I needed to hear." Thomas scoffed. "And how, does she intend to lie?"

"By mixing the truth with lies." Mary answered his question with a sigh. Thomas closed his eyes, his shoulders slumped as he buried his head in his hands.

"If she does this, if it comes to that. You and I will not be blameless," Thomas mumbled. " Mary, please tell me there's a silver lining somewhere here. I just need there to be some sort of silver lining."

"She's not indifferent to her mate," Thomas paused and looked up at Mary when he heard that. "I think he's the reason she decided to lie. The truth, she doesn't want him to know."

"Underneath everything, it circles back to mates huh," Thomas said softly. "That's not a silver lining Mary. That's just going to be another victim of Serenity's selfish actions. And probably the person who will be hurt the most by it."

Mary didn't reply, she knew what Thomas said was the truth. But she didn't agree with Jared being the person most hurt by Serenity's actions. Mary believed, ultimately, Serenity would be the one hurt the most.

She could understand Serenity's point of view, she was just trying to make it hurt less. Not only for everyone it involves but also for herself. Especially for herself.....

But it was at times like these that the truth was better than half-truth mixed with lies. To convince her otherwise would be foolish, since nobody can get this stubborn donkey to move if it did not want to move.

"Let's not think about this yet. It's not the most urgent thing we have to deal with. Ren rejected Jared, and she's going to get weaker. Victor will never let a golden opportunity such as this one go." Mary sighed. "I'm thinking the best course of action is having her come along when the king and his entourage leave with Serena."

"Is that a good idea?" Thomas furrowed his brows before a look of understanding flashed across his face. "Close contact with Jared while traveling through the realm. Good idea. It will make her realize how strong the bond is."

"Well, it's a risk. It could backfire, but it's better than leaving her here to get challenged. So, in the meantime, you'll be acting as her proxy. Beta Thomas." Mary informed him.

"You go get yourself sorted, I'll handle the pack stuff." Thomas nodded in response, then bid goodbye to Mary, who turned and went home.