Talons

Chapter 6: The Benefits

Rhea's POV 

Life at the new school was easy; it went by fast, and I felt like graduation day came too quickly. Humans are so accommodating that I never felt judged or ridiculed. 

Raven on the other hand struggled, not where grades were concerned; she came with me because she is more than capable. Her problem was that she was too popular, and it had become hard for her to say ‘no’ to the human males. 

I used to tease her about it but stopped when I realized that she felt like she was betraying her future mate if she does what her body is telling her to do. 

Raven is so adamant about becoming a future Luna that she does not even consider the fact that she may not be mated or a Luna at all. I do not remind her of that, because I am not cruel. 

I love my sister, and that means that I am willing to ignore her illogical thought pattern to preserve her feelings. Besides, she has helped me a lot over the last year, so I owe her. 

As part of the 'special needs' requirements of our high school, I had been meeting with a counselor. She had me reevaluated and my autism diagnosis changed to social anxiety. Once Raven found out she was thrilled. In her understanding, I am just an extremely shy girl.

For the hour it took us to get to school and the hour it took us to get back, Raven walked me through random and sometimes awkward situations. She then assigned me homework based on her ‘lessons’ and I was beginning to come out of my shell a bit.

I can now hold a conversation with almost anyone, although meeting the eye is still a challenge.

Robin has also been endurance training me, which is a confidence booster.

In my age group, I am one of the strongest fighters, but my rank will not be made official until I am sworn into the pack.

All three of us are going to attend the same university come fall, but we are studying different fields. Raven is into politics; no guess as to why, and Robin is going for physical education. I am taking up chemistry, but I haven’t decided on a branch yet.

Our mother wanted to have a giant send off party for us but knowing how uncomfortable I would be as the center of attention; my sisters convinced her to throw them an even bigger eighteenth instead, and that works like a charm. Still my mother insists that we have some sort of send off and we agree.

Today is that day, and I am far from thrilled about it. My mother wanted to keep the cost low because Raven and Robin turn eighteen after the school year begins, and the pack is sending seventeen other teens to college, so money will be tight. As a result, the party is being held by the lake and is picnic style.

I start making my way toward the water but stop to greet a group of Robin’s friends.

One thing leads to another, and I backflip into the lake. I can’t swim, so I have to be fished out, but the purr I hear from Sylvia lets me know that she is proud of us for stepping outside of our comfort zone, even though we know Colton is watching.

Since then, I have been squirming around uncomfortably under his gaze, but he has not stopped glaring at me. I recently found out that he and Lark are not as friendly as they once were, and I have a feeling it’s because Robin told him her suspicion.

I readjust my glasses and bury my face deep inside the book I am reading. I have perfect vision, but they make me feel safe, so I wear them.

Robin says they make me look hideous, but that was always the point.

Raven was not the only one to get attention when we transferred schools, and while she liked it, I did not. A classmate of ours noticed my discomfort and suggested for me to dress in baggy clothes and ‘butt ugly,’ (her words) thick frame glasses. My sister and I were at first skeptical, but it worked like a charm, and I have no intentions of going back.

Most of the female pack members know this, and a lot of them are starting to do the same thing when they receive unwanted male attention. Male wolves come into their s****l urges earlier than female wolves, some of them become ‘hunters,’ while others delve into training to distract them.

That is why the werewolf council has made twenty-three the legal age for un-fated markings. If not, a lot of males would feel the urge to mark a female, even if they aren’t fated. It's a natural biological reaction and ignoring it for too long can cause anger issues.

I do not yet have s****l urges, but my sister’s do, and I know my brother is struggling to not prematurely mark anyone. Jenny: our gamma’s daughter, found her mate last year, and we all witnessed the negative effects rushed markings can have.

Her mate was the future beta of a neighboring pack, but as part of him gaining the title, he had to mark the future alpha’s sister.

Because they were both nearing twenty-three, he agreed and they held a huge celebration. He marked her, mated her then came to our pack to introduce her.

Jenny was drawn to his scent, and when she saw him hugging another woman, she shouted the word ‘mine’ and was ready to attack.

The beta flinched when he heard it, but he didn’t seem to be as affected as Jenny. The situation was brought to the werewolf council, who refused to allow the man to reject his chosen mate and claim his fated one. 

Jenny did not agree with the council and accused them of playing politics. However, after a few days, the ‘pain of infidelity’ almost killed her, and she reluctantly accepted the rejection.

She nearly broke, but she found comfort in training, and now she is one of our fiercest female fighters. If second chances exist, I hope she gets one. I also hope Lark finds a mate soon; he deserves it with how hard he has been working for the pack.

We have a massive farm, and while we usually rotate our crop, we mostly stick with peaches, corn, and apples. We have our own delivery company as well, so we can ensure freshness, which is constantly monitored by the sensitive nose of our drivers.

Anyway, to make a long story short, my value to the pack has been proven, and my brother hasn’t let anyone forget it.

When out on deliveries, our drivers are no longer randomly attacked while stopping for rest in unknown wolf territory. They are treated as if they are humans passing by, and even rogues don't go looking for trouble with humans.

We also found that males in our pack are less sexually driven when females are wearing the blocker. That is a huge advantage, and now training can be done between males and females without the awkwardness of spontaneous arousal. It still happens, but from what I am told, the scent is muted, so it does not trigger a ‘strong reaction.’

So now, when my pack members call me Brain, they aren’t insulting me anymore. They are genuinely proud of me, and I’m sure it helps that this year, the pack is sending more teens to college than ever.

The added income from the scent blocker is being put toward educating the youth. That is big in the wolf world. No one wants to become a pack helper unless they genuinely enjoy manual labor, menial tasks, or simply do not have a choice.

Having an education means possible employment in the human world, which always pays better. Human employed wolves are still pack members, and they still pay pack taxes, but they have freedoms that pack helpers do not.

Our pack is good to our helpers though. We make sure they are given adequate days off and combat training. If they want to leave the pack, they are not declared rogues, they are simply allowed to leave, but as far as I know, no one has ever left our pack, but we have had many try to join.

I am so caught up in my thoughts that I do not hear the footsteps approaching until it is too late. My ears twitch, something that they do often now, and my eyes dart up to see Colton looming above me.

His expression is confusing me, but there are too many witnesses for him to hurt me, so I try to remain calm. He sits next to me, and I shift away; he looks annoyed by that.

“Listen Brain, I just wanted to apologize.” My jaw hangs open like a largemouth bass. He goes to continue speaking but a blonde-haired girl sits on his lap, and I take my cue to leave.

I don’t know what kind of mind game he is trying to play but I will not stick around to figure it out.